Moss Landing - Return of the Mack (Video Report 7/13)

It's been a while since i've had a "Real" fishing report. That isn't going to change until i get a "real" fish, so
until then, i got some fun footage of Macks and Anchovies right outside Moss Landing.

My New Blog
I also just started a Kayak Fishing Blog @  Thelostanchovy.com
I haven't got much content up, but things are coming along.

It's basically my kayak adventures, tips, maybe some tutorials and all things we love about kayak fishing.

Good job, Keith.  I like how your joy comes through.  Good job on the blog too.   

Hey Keith, nice meeting you out there yesterday. Nice video bro. I wish I brought a bucket. Highlight of our trip was on our way back, a big whale surfaced on its belly next to Tim (Krusty) and I'm not sure if it was another whale that surfaced right away or the tail of the same whale that lifted Tim's kayak up in the air. Really scary stuff. Good thing he didn't flip. Tons of bait and tons of whales. Salmon = no show.

Herb

That baitball makes me salivate!  Thanks for sharing bro!  Will definitely visit your blog on a regular basis. 

Return of the mack!

Thanks for the "Return of the Mack" video Keith.

Hey Keith, nice meeting you out there yesterday. Nice video bro. I wish I brought a bucket. Highlight of our trip was on our way back, a big whale surfaced on its belly next to Tim (Krusty) and I'm not sure if it was another whale that surfaced right away or the tail of the same whale that lifted Tim's kayak up in the air. Really scary stuff. Good thing he didn't flip. Tons of bait and tons of whales. Salmon = no show.

Herb

I wanna hear more about the whale "attack" 

right on Keith! sorry I missed out on the "Return of the Mack" next time

Nice, them macks are fun to catch, I cant wait till they show up in HMB harbor. I wish I did not have to work last weekend, I would have joined you guys!

Hey Keith, nice meeting you out there yesterday. Nice video bro. I wish I brought a bucket. Highlight of our trip was on our way back, a big whale surfaced on its belly next to Tim (Krusty) and I'm not sure if it was another whale that surfaced right away or the tail of the same whale that lifted Tim's kayak up in the air. Really scary stuff. Good thing he didn't flip. Tons of bait and tons of whales. Salmon = no show.

Herb

Same here brother. yeah! so what happened with the Whale attack!! lol. Those whales were popping up everywhere. Sometimes just feet away from you. LOL.
Most of the day was spent trying not to collide with them, but if I did, i would make sure the GoPro was on. 

right on Keith! sorry I missed out on the "Return of the Mack" next time

Alex, I was toast from the Grunion run. hahah what a great night with NCKA brothers, but it was really head to wake up and salmon fish in the morning.
GRUNION RUN = DRINK BEER

Launched at first light with fishaholic, Herb, SmokeOnTheWater, Lost_Anchovy, and papio3. On the way out the channel, a band of marauding sea otters tried to board our kayaks, demending we hand over our prize of frozen anchovies. I could have stayed and watched those critters all day, but the chromes were calling us. At the mouth of the channel we started noticing large bait balls with seagulls and pelicans circling above, and lots of Humpback whales in the distance.

The waters was thick with anchovies. When you looked down in the water, they shimmered like coins just out of reach. All I saw on my fish finder was a solid wall of bait. We started mooching frozen herrings and anchovies. Within minutes I got a hit on my mooching rig and my drag started singing. The fight is on! It kept peeling line and I managed to hold it for 30 seconds before it popped off my barbless circle hook with my bait. After mooching for several hours for no more hits, we broke out our trolling gear and began following the whales and seagulls. I have never seen so many Humpback whales. It was a majestic site, which I enjoyed from a distance. We trolled for hours, but no chrome love for us. I did not see a single salmon netted the entire day. Perhaps the salmon moved on, or were too full on fresh anchovies to bother with our frozen offerings. Around 11, Herb was ready to throw in the towel, so I suggested we do a Hail Mary troll toward the mouth of the harbor.

I was trolling slowly with Herb about 30' to my left when a pair of Humpback whales came up between us. I looked at Herb with saucer sized eyes, and yelled, "Damn! That was close!" Just then the water around me came alive as all the anchovies started jumping out of the water. Then the biggest mouth I have ever seen came out of the water about a kayak length ahead of me. As I stared at its enormous pleated throat, it landed on its back away from me. I have seen whales lunge feeding in videos, and I knew they usually do so in groups. I braced for the inevitable mouth that would surely swallow my tiny 13' kayak. I then felt an impact and the rear of my kayak lifting out of the water. Code brown! I was not sure what to do. Do I brace with my paddle? All I knew was this was going to hurt.

Amazingly the whale seemed to realize that it had collided with something, and slowly lowered my kayak back in the water. No self recovery needed. After I regained my composure, I yelled over to Herb, "Did you catch that on your GoPro?" "No bro, the battery died!" came the reply. I got to get a GoPro ASAP! I immediately reeled up my deep six from 100' down and opened my rod pod to check inside my kayak for water. Bone dry. The only damage was to my rudder, which was jammed by the impact. Did anyone see the license plate of that whale?

Salmon fishing on a beautiful day with buds, and surviving the adventure of a lifetime. What an epic day!

That for sure would have been a great gopro video.  To bad his batteries were dead.   Glad you came out safe Tim!  Whales are truly amazing animals.  He could have easily flicked you like a booger 20ft up in the air.   

That for sure would have been a great gopro video.  To bad his batteries were dead.   Glad you came out safe Tim!  Whales are truly amazing animals.  He could have easily flicked you like a booger 20ft up in the air.   

That would have hit in Youtube over 1M, thats crazy bro, glad it went out fine.

Fun video, Lost_Anchovy. My wife and I both think mackerel are delicious, so I'm also hoping they show up near HMB soon.