Drake's Beach - 1/7/07 (tough afternoon...)

Well, I hit the suds at Drake's for one more day of wintertime perchin'. I met up with Anne at about the top of the high tide. The wind seemed to be blowing from a more north-northeasterly direction, which made the hills less effective in sheltering the beach from the breezy conditions. The surf was mild & the water clarity had improved since yesterday. We fished the west end of the beach & found a few fish scattered along the shorebreak, mostly small BSP's that hung around for about the first hour or so after the high tide. Then, things really sloooowed down. The grabs & tugs were very light, almost like they were produced by small BSP's or silver perch. I think Anne left around mid-afternoon, but stuck around to take a look at the far west end of the beach. Along the way, I came across these fellas, probably napping after partying it up all night with the girls from the colony further down the bay.




I encountered more decaying vegetation as I traversed the beach - got my tippet caught on debris on nearly every cast. The wind became more problematic into the evening which made it difficult to feel the grabs, but I pulled up 2 small calicos before calling it quits, winding up with a total of 4 fish for the day (all released). Hopefully the breezy weather & lumpy seas will settle down soon - I'm ready to fish another beach!


TL's

- Mark

[Anne Vitale]

I agree with Mark....it was a tough afternoon. I got there about 1:00 pm and the first thing I noticed while gearing up was that I had inadvertently left my stripping basket home . Instead of taking the forty five minutes or so it would have taken me to go home, get the basket and return, I decided to rough it instead . My Italian grandmother would have said "cabo testardo" -- hard head or stubborn. Believe me, I heard it from her a million times when I was growing up). Needless to say, surf fishing without a stripping basket is rough stuff . Trying to get 20 ft of T-8 and 35 ft of shooting line up out of the surf with a 3 wt rod while the surf was either tangling the whole rig around my legs or alternating between pulling it out to sea or back to the shore while I was watching for the next big wave can take the fun out of anything. Not that I was having much fun anyway . About 2 and a half hours into it and having only brought in only two small BSPs. I decided I had had enough.

Glad you did better Mark. That is a great shot of those elephant seals . They do look like they had a hard night down at the other end of the beach . I notice that over the last 5 or 6 years since they started to return to Point Reyes at Chimney Rock, they have been coming further and further east up the beach. If the trend continues, the park service may not allow people to even walk on that end of Drake's Beach during mating season. As you know, they already have Elephant Seal Warning signs at the parking lot ....Anne

[k.hanley]

Interesting post Annie.
I can't pass up this teachable moment.........

You stated "...Needless to say, surf fishing without a stripping basket is rough stuff . Trying to get 20 ft of T-8 and 35 ft of shooting line up out of the surf with a 3 wt rod while the surf was either tangling the whole rig around my legs or alternating between pulling it out to sea or back to the shore while I was watching for the next big wave can take the fun out of anything..."

Forget what I think about baskets, this is a great example of why lighter rods can limit what you do in the surf. A heavier blank (heck even a 5-weight though 6 or 7 would be better) could have handled that line pick up no problem.

I know, I know, it's all a personal choice. Yes indeed it is. Stay safe out there my friend.
Cheers, Ken

[Anne Vitale]

Ken...that is a very good point. Actually the first time I hit Drake's Beach a few weeks ago, even though I forgot to bring my stripping basket, I did just fine. The difference, however, is that at that time I was using my 5wt. So....because I really didn't understand what I was doing, I mistakenly chose to go ahead and fish without the basket yesterday. I really didn't think that the 3wt would make that much difference. WRONG!! I got the line out there eventually each time but it took far too many roll casts to get the head outside the guides. After that, my cast had to drag all that running line up out of the surf. In the end it wore me out and I had to quit early. Good lesson Ken. Fish and learn......Anne

Ah, more precious pearls of wisdom concerning the selection of fly fishing gear for tackling the surf, Ken. Stripping baskets, now there's a topic that's best left for discussion in another thread.

Hope to see you & others at the SM ISE this week!

- Mark

[k.hanley]

Say Hey Mark and crew........
Jay and I aren't doing a booth this year at San Mateo ISE. We are providing a seminar every day and doing a few tying demos in the theatre. We'll also be hanging out in a variety of exhibits (sponsors and friends). You can always try to get us at the Fishabout Booth or drop a note there if that works. Hope to see you there in a couple of days!
Cheers, Ken :P