NorCal Fishing BS

No one I know has really ever told me they had a good day on that lake either (fishing-wise) so I think pairing that with the fact that it can be so brutal weather-wise on some days makes me not wanna go. I know there are tons of big bass out there, but just haven’t had the kick to try it for a long time. Lol

 

I had next Saturday locked. Then BIL decides to have early thanksgiving dinner. Wtf.

tomorrow is my wife’s birthday. Ain’t gonna happen . Faack. I been eyeballing google earth for weeks!

 

Let me crack the code first. I’ll tell you everything.

 

I’ve spent way too much time watching jet-ski fishing videos. Sick! Not sure if it’s a thing here on the west coast but in Florida it’s very popular.
You could rip it out and catch whatever! Fast stable. Totally nuts.

 

That sounds great. I'd like to do that out of Santa Cruz harbor. Last time I kayaked out to the 1-mile boey and fished for rockfish I was tired as shit. Everytime I was jigging I'd float way out and it took a lot of effort to stay where I wanted to be and then make it back in.

 

That would be rad! I’ve watched those videos too and thought about it. I think the only thing I would have an issue with would be space + price. For the price of a decent jetski, I could get a bass boat and have friends/family on it and overall more room. But being able to get into small water and whip around would be legit!

 

That would suck major to get tired enough to where you can’t get back in. Definitely a fear I have. “Huh.... all of a sudden I feel like I’m a couple more miles from shore.....”

 

these 4 keeper (3) rock crabs and kelp crab kicked my ass today. also threw back 4 dinks. compared to dungeness, whoch live in sand, these crabs are like twice as hard. they hold on the rocks and kelp , so i's like dragging a 10lb weight (on the ground) to get them free and then a 5 lbs weight once its in the water column. they aren't streamlined like a fish, i guess its like how a foul-hooked fish feel like a Big-un!

to give you an idea, I use a 6000 or 8000 size reel, and my 6000 handle is getting all wobbly from so much torque. 40 and 50 lb braid.

 

How do those taste compared to Dungeness crab taste-wise? I love Dungeness.

 

I’m headed to the mile buoy tomorrow (up in 5hrs lol) in a skiff

 

the kelp crab was amazing. super sweet. first time ever catching one of those.

the rock crab is sort of meatier tasting than dungeness. We like the knuckles/body pieces of dungeness more than the claws. Indon't know why, maybe the claws are more "crabby tasting."

on the other hand, rock crabs taste more 'meaty' than dungeness. and tend to be smaller. the minimum size is 4" compared to 5 3/4" dungeness, but i usually only keep the rocks if they are 4.5+". a 4.5" rock crab has bigger claws than most 6" dungeness, but the body pieces and legsare so tiny, so its alot of picking and tiny shells. still good though.

I learned last year that its better to cook dungeness and rock crabs separately. preserves each slightly different taste.

 

the fishing has been shitty lately because the lakes been getting tore up by all these tournaments. Clearlake has had back to back 130+ boat tournaments like 3 weeks in a row. I think yesterday WWBT Kayak TOC was at Clearlake.

 

Even the tournaments aren’t getting the major weight like they’re used to seeing too. Also with other lakes shut down people just go there.

 

Yup, I counted at least 10 trucks with boats in tow over St Helena on my commute into work at 5am this morning.

 

I talked to a couple of kitted out kayak fishermen. They said fishing was slow.

their boats were sick. Electric motors , big giant fish finders. There were Five tournaments at the lake yesterday from what they told me.

 

yeah it’s crazy the traffic the lake normally gets, but with the COVID shit going on it’s getting a ton more than normal as outdoor activities are one of the only things you can still do normally

 

Great point!

 

Sooooo yeah about that Delta, eh? I took my wife out there today for a couple of hours and SMOKEEEEEEEDDDDDDDDD the bass. Largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass were plentiful. A bunch of smaller ones, but after weeding out those I got into some nice 2lb+ bass! Windy as shit, but the fishing was still good. Love that place.

 

Still got plenty of rockfish in the fridge from today, but pretty uneventful. Using Sibiki for baitfish we couldn’t stop catching big ass croaker and JackSmelt, but too big for bait. Even got croaker on shrimp flies. My buddy hadn’t got a rockfish yet, got a good bite, and pulled up two croaker on his hi lo rig




Highlight of the day for me for sure

 

That’s badass! You look like one of those seasoned fish charter captains that’s been doing it since he could walk. Lol