Humboldt Two Day Dive - 8/20 and 8/21/16

I saw a good forecast coming, and those have been scarce this summer!  Got ahold of Terry and Ron and we were set to get on it.  We met up Friday night for trip planning.  It was great to be hooked up with these guys for another Humboldt run, and dinner at a favorite Mexican place in Fortuna (Las Cazuelas) was the best way to start off our weekend.

Saturday was about accessing a remote spot in hopes of catching conditions that would allow for an offshore adventure in search of trophy abalone, lingcod and rockfish. My guests and I met early, convoyed to Mattole Beach, and just after sunrise made our way down the Lost Coast a couple thousand yards with our boats on wheels and our gear stowed on top. While we were able to successfully shore-launch the kayaks, the ocean was far from the placid pond we'd anticipated with the favorable forecast. We managed to paddle to and dive some rocks I've had my eye on for 25 years, but today's conditions weren't suited for exploration - it was literally pitch black on the bottom in 20 feet of water.

As the tide came in we relocated to a more familiar spot where we were able to safely battle the swells while searching the bottom for abs in 10 to 12 feet with 12 to 18 inches of visibility. While no ten inchers were located today, we did enjoy a challenging dive and trail hike with the beauty of the Lost Coast as our backdrop. One oldgrowth 9.5 incher was harvested for Stockwell Family eats - my 5th tag burned for the year. 

We made the Trudge back up the beach to the trucks and hit the road.  On the way home we saw some friends after their rockfishing trip, and soon we were back over to the Eel River Valley where we parted ways for the day.

Here's Sunday's report:

"Tired and Happy" is a common theme for me lately. I haven't dove so hard on a two day run since my 20's!

I only took one picture today!

Yesterday's trail haul and rough water dive along the Lost Coast was just day one for Terry and Ron. Today we opted for easier water - we'd paddle and dive Trinidad Bay to survey the habitat and see what we could find for sport or just observation. Five hours of exploring at a few different stops hit the spot, and we were ready to call it a weekend.

Today's harvest presented itself as a result of our focus on looking around, venturing out and taking a closer look at opportunities we may otherwise be missing. After diving several spots at varying depths we ended up finding quite a few rock scallops - we took home half a dozen nice ones and left more than that. I've only ever harvested a scallop or two here and there, and this was Ron's first experience with scallops in a long diving career. He ended up finding the biggest one on his own at the end of our dive, and I was stoked to have shown him the "orange smile". It was a great capper to a really awesome weekend with my two VIP guests.

Thank you, Ron and Terry, for repeatedly supporting my biz and allowing me to go on adventures that surpass what I ever did before I was a guide! Putting my full focus and energy into these trips, and, this is it right here, focusing on having a really positive engagement with my guests - these are things that have taken it to the next level for me. This was the first trip with Ron where we haven't gotten a ten inch abalone, but that's fine! We have the potential to pull off an amazing harvest, but we're also focused on the other aspects of outdoorsmanship that make us feel fulfilled, and we always reinforce these values through our communication.

That's what it's about for me. Thanks for following, and I hope you'll come with me if you're feeling it. 

Thanks for sharing the trip with us Eric.

...

Nice, thanks for the report and pictures

Holy crap,the walk to the water seems like an adventure all its own

Awesome report Eric!!!

Still on my bucket list to get out there one day with you!

Hoping to dive with Ron one of these days well!!

Congrats on another killer adventure and thanks for sharing!!

 

Sincerely,

Jim

ps...jingles are cool! I've found them on concrete sailboat mooring blocks when hunting for halibut here in Monterey. I at first thought they were little scallops as well...I've eaten them while diving...yummy! 

Great report thanks.  Sounds like scallop heaven!

Great report Eric!

The Piscean household has been kicking around the idea of a trip back to Mattole...

Nice haul! And props to you guys! That area is remote !

Ooooo, that looks fun, I wanna go!

That's what you call "working for your dinner!" Nice report, I've been out through Petrolia to the beach and quite a ways south, so I know the mostly crappy conditions you're facing. But there are big abs out there.  Great report, thanks for posting!

Now that looks fun.  Except for crappy visibility.  I would love to be there on those rare clear days.  I could only imagine what we could harvest. 

As usual, my trip with Eric was tremendous fun, educational, and humbling. Conditions weren't the greatest but the company was. I've never been disappointed with an Eric guided trip and I highly recommend his services. Thanks again for taking this senior citizen on a memorable trip.

Two days of great fun.

And more fun.