8/27 Boat fishing report with Capt Art.....

There was no secret lure used....I was in "experimental mode" and decided to drop down a variety of lures....from Bill's custom poured curly tails, store bought curly tails, my "hoochie moma" and even a live sand dab = THEY ALL WORKED  Just like any real estate agent would say: "It's about LOCATION,LOCATION,LOCATION".... And that's what "El Capitan / "Mono Man" took us to 

By the way Art, PLEASE clean your reel....my ears are still sore form hearing that thing squeak all day  That would be a strike 1,2 & 3 in Alan Tani's book 

Just curious guys, what did the sand get hit by. Also did Bills sand dab get nailed?

jason

 Art caught most of the underlings (and the one keeper) with his 3-way live bait set-up. The dabs we were using were only big enough for a ling to swallow - so when Art hooked-up, we already knew it was a ling.

I don't know about Bill's dab....

Mooch, no sea sickness?

-- Dave

Mooch, no sea sickness?

-- Dave

....Dave, I had dramamine for breakfast , lunch and dinner THE DAY BEFORE  I'm good to go for another week or so 

I did get one bite on the dab but it needs more refinement. I am going to try to get another one molded up and poured before the end of the season.

The dabs were getting hit by everything big enough to take them.  Recent trips using dabs have produced big vermillion, big coppers, big schoolie blues and of course lings.  I've tried a couple setups setups for them, 3-way, leadhead and a slider/mooching rig.  3- ways tend to twist up a bunch on the drop and retrieve but my hook up ratio on them have been higher.  Sliders tangle less but I seem to loose more gear.  Leadheads just sucked.  I'm just gonna go straight dropper loop next time for simplicity.  
I usually stop at the same spot for them but I'm sure they litter sandy bottoms in 100' anywhere on the coast.

Its been my experience that chunking the macs will produce more smaller fish, fishing them live produces less fish but better quality (and tangles galore on anything other than a dropper loop).  Pops swears by big whole rotting dead macs......to messy for me.

My prefference is still toward the iron but I had some trouble getting it down at times.

My prefference is still toward the iron but I had some trouble getting it down at times.

comrad....try braided line instread of mono 

Fish were attacking it and hooking themselves before I got to the bottom......smarty pants.
 

oh....I forgot to mention about another technique I've learned from this trip.....instead of using the traditional "jigging" or "hop and drop" method (on a drift) with a lead head jig with a plastic curly tail grub, I was "dragging the bottom". I snagged a few times but with the sesitivity of the braided line, you can actually "feel" the bottom much better. And if you feel a your lure getting stuck, just give it a light tug upwards (and paddle back if need be). Just remember to not to let out too much line - still try to keep you line almost vertical to avoid more snagging. I managed to catch 5 underlings and one keeper (and 1 small cabby) on one drift using this method. Just keep an eye on your FF and if you see larger obstructions underneath you, simply reel it in to avoid the snag. The action of a curly tail grub on a slow drift has enough action to entice a bite - believe it or not. And because, your presenting the bait in a SLOW pace, it gives the big lazy predator a better chance of nailing it 

Just my 2 cents -

That's not surprising, the part about better feel with braid: it stretches less. bass Anglers having using braid in some situations instead of monfilament for years for exactly that reason.