Southside: Calm day, less boats, fished shallow – caught fish!

January 16, 2022 By Scott Leave a Comment

For the second straight week the winds were very light. I picked a day during the work week that was forecast to be windier than the rest, 8 to 12 mph, and it paid off. The boat traffic from the previous week was non-existent. Unfortunately I had run my Bixpy electric motor into shallow sand when I launched and it was turning itself off. Only after returning did I fix the problem; the power cable wasn’t attached properly and the fail safe system was preventing it from shorting.

Because I was without the use of the motor, I stayed within 70ft deep knowing the winds would eventually kick up. The water had dropped a degree from last week to 74.5. Decided to just see what would hit the CHL Minnows on the damashi in clear water. It initially was slow, like in last week’s glassy conditions, so I put a strip of kawakawa on and that turned things around. Taape, toau, and hagi were coming up, and when I took the bait off and just used the soft plastics, moana bit and continued to bite. That led me to believe that boat traffic on very calm days does shut down the bite.

I used a plastic pasta noodle container as a poor man’s bait tube, refreshing the water every so often, and the moana were no worse for wear. With the damashi reef fish test over I wanted to see how live moana would work in the shallows. Not so good, the moana just had its stomach ripped out, and nothing else took it. I let the other moana go.

Next up was a frozen halalu, and that just had its eyes and stomach removed. Hmm… maybe there were only bait stealers in the shallows? I didn’t want to waste my precious frozen opelu so I kept paddling against the current (man was I missing my motor) , and came across a school of opelu I could see from the surface! Unfortunately they didn’t want to bite but I saw what looked like predators cruising the edges of the school.

So I lowered a frozen opelu to the bottom, raised it up 20ft or so and felt the hard taps. Eventually line pulled out and a very jerky battle began. The water was still glassy at this point.

I could not believe how blessed I was to catch a 4.5lb uku at 60ft! Are they always this shallow but just don’t bite when the boaters and divers are churning up the water? I put down another opelu after paddling back to the spot (man, I miss that motor!), and had a smaller uku rip it off. By then, the wind was pushing me west so it was time to paddle in unassisted. Did I say I missed my motor? Nothing hit the 3rd opelu on the way in.

The uku turned out to be a male preparing to spawn in a few months, and that made it nice and oily on the sashimi plate. Gotta love the shallow water winter-time uku!

Baby Beast and Mini Feast from the East!

April 22, 2020 By Scott 6 Comments

Surf was booming on the north and west shores and surf on the south side was projected as high as 5ft so we went east to a new spot Erik, our small boat buddy, had recommended. Erik provided all the intel as far as where to launch, where the opelu were, where the nabeta were, and if he were free he would have met us on the water! How many guys would share their secret spots like that?

Frank and I made it out to where the opelu were supposed to be, but it was after 9 in the morning and we couldn’t find a good mark. We paddled over to a deep reef and Frank damashi’d up moana and taape on ika strips while I bottom fished with frozen opelu. I was surprised how few nibbles I was getting so I went all the way out to 200ft and had a hard thump that took the whole fish. I put my second to the last opelu on and dropped again. Thump, thump and a strong run. I was thinking shark but soon there were really hard head shakes. Not as quick as uku head shakes so I assumed it was ulua. The fish took out a lot of line so I buttoned down the Avet SX Raptor 2-speed to stop it, and after struggling to gain line in high gear, I dropped to low gear and man what a difference! The fish didn’t make another sustained run again and it floated so quickly it came up on the opposite side I was expecting and scared me!

I debated keeping the white ulua but had always said I’d release my first kayak caught ulua so I did. Looking at the photos again, it was probably just a bit over 10lbs but at the time I thought it was much bigger because of the bullish fight. Nothing else bit the last opelu in the deep so I went to look for nabeta.

Tipping the damashi with ika strips Frank gave me initially yielded hagi until I moved off the deep reef and onto sand. I dragged the weight instead of bouncing it and could feel fish lightly tugging at the ika and not hooking up. Finally I hooked a yellow nabeta (deepwater gold!). I had to wade through little puffer fish and nunu before I got 2 more nabeta in the deep, then I went a little shallower and started getting reef fish. By then it was time to go in so I turned up the Bixpy motor to contend with the offshore wind, and could sustain a 3.5 mph pace by paddling along with the jet. Without the motor I’d be struggling at 2 mph and be hurting the next day.

Usually I don’t do well the first few times out at a new spot but we were productive because of Erik’s accurate directions. We left a few stones unturned so we need to go back!

Fred Hall Show 2020 – Day 1

March 9, 2020 By Scott Leave a Comment

Got to the show on the first day, about an hr after the doors opened. The crowd grew as people got off work but thinned well before the 9pm closing. I suspect the early birds wanted to grab the deals before they sold out, yet it was less crowded than last year because of the growing Coronavirus concern.

Starting at one end of the 2 large exhibition halls, I made my way systematically. First place of note was Jeff Mariani’s Cedros Kayak Fishing booth. Cedros Island, 310 miles south of San Diego and just off coast of Baja California, has been a very popular long range sport boat destination from San Diego but the Mexican government no longer allows the US boats to fish it. The prized yellowtail and calico bass fishery can only be sampled though Mexican services like what Cedros Kayak Fishing offers.

Jeff explained that he provides outfitted Hobie Outback pedal kayaks, rental rods and reels if needed, and will take you and the kayaks by truck or panga to the best option to fish that day. Lodging is at his modern 7 bedroom, 5 1/2 bath home. Tours include transport to and from Cedros Island, meals, beverages, fishing trips, fish cleaning and processing. To get there, his guy will pick you up in CA, drive you over the border to Ensenada where you’ll board a small plane to Cedros Island. When I lived in LA and kayak fished, my unfulfilled dream was to land a yellowtail on a kayak. This might be my best shot!

The tours are very affordable compared to other destination fishing trips. We Hawaii folks have to fly into San Diego of course.

4 days/3 nights - 2 days of fishing - $2000
5 days/4 nights - 3 days of fishing - $2400

Next up was Bixpy jet motors. I visited them last year and was really intrigued with the idea of putting their compact electric motor on my kayak’s rudder but thought I could find a cheaper, yet effective solution.

Bixpy’s design is almost plug-and-play. I would just have to replace my rudder with theirs that the motor attaches to, and I can still use my foot controls. No extra harnesses to get in the way of my fishing line. Their lithium battery is so light it floats and the wireless remote would allow me to control the Bixpy’s speed from my wrist. There’s even a kill switch I’d wear that would shut off the motor if I fell out.

I hadn’t been able to find a more elegant solution within the Bixpy’s price range and I really needed the additional help. In the past year I’ve struggled to fight the wind and current in my Ocean Kayak Trident Ultra 4.3, and while I always safely made it in, I paid the price with tight muscles the next few days. Houman, the designer/creator of the Bixpy system explained how I’d install it on my Trident, projected I could expect to run at 4 mph for more than 5 hrs, and that I should expect the battery to last 3 to 5 yrs before it needs to be replaced. The Bixpy jet motor itself should last 3 yrs or more before it needs to be serviced by the factory.

The Bixpy system isn’t cheap by any means but if it gets me to my spot and back, and helps me fight the current, it’s worth it. I can still paddle the kayak and get my exercise in, and use the motor when I need to. I’m hoping to have it powering me around within a month or so.

The Bixpy motor, battery, remote and rudder will cost about $1250.

I stumbled on the Temple Reef rod booth and wondered why that brand sounded so familiar. Then I remembered reading great things about their jigging rods in some online forum. Pro Staffer and rod designer Benny Ortiz gave me the run down on the rods he has selling at the show, and how the 2-piece rods joined near the rod butt, far below where the flex stress point of the rod was. The slow pitch rods flexed properly in the tip yet had backbone for larger fish. Their replacement policy was to pay 50% MSRP one time, after that you’re on your own. I thought that was fair and if I didn’t have an unused slow pitch 2-piece rod already, I would have purchased one at their show prices.

Time was running short so I shot over to the Anetik booth to see Pete, whom I met last year. After wearing the Anetik Shade Mask and Shade Socks last year, we liked them so much we’ve been selling them in the Store. Pete said their new, best selling product is their wind and rain repellent jacket made from a light neoprene type material. In the short time I was with Pete, numerous guys tried the jacket on and some bought it. I picked up two size Large Shade Socks at wholesale to sell in the store and really should have bought more Shade Masks since the last two sold out today! I love the very breathable fishing shirt I got last year and wear when it’s warm (kind of cold now) but I understand it would be hard for others to buy it without seeing and touching it. Let me know if you’re interested in buying any of their UV protectant clothing. I’ll be placing another order with them soon.

There was just a bit more time so I speed walked over to the Boating section in the adjoining exhibition hall, took this photo and realized I knew nothing about boats.

In the outdoor arena, there was no one manning the live trout pond and no dogs jumping into the pool like there were last year. Victims of the Coronavirus scare I’m guessing. Just some food trucks and a few people eating in the cold air. I ordered a pulled pork-style chicken sandwich and called it a night. Stay tuned for Day 2.

Fred Hall Show 2019 – Part I

March 11, 2019 By Scott Leave a Comment

Being able to talk with the major fishing brands in one setting was too hard to pass up. The crew who provide reviews for this website couldn’t make the trip so I went solo and opted to use Lyft to get around.

I hit up the vendors on the first two days of the show, Wednesday and Thursday, while they were still fresh. Last year, when Erik and I hit the show on the weekend, the guys in the booths were swamped and glassy eyed.

A lot of the guys we met last year weren’t there this year, but I did meet some new folks and learned a lot about the products we use and hope to use. The show focuses on Southern California fishing and Alaskan / Mexican destination fishing lodges, but I was able to see a bunch of products and services that would interest us back home in Hawaii.

I had been tracking the Bixpy electric “jet” motor that mounts to a kayak’s rudder for a while. The jet motor has such a compact footprint on the rudder and the lithium ion battery is so small and light, that someone could paddle around without running the motor and not be negatively impacted.

My concern was how long the jet motor and lithium battery would last in the salt since together they cost $1000. The Bixpy rep said the motor should be able to run maintenance free for a few years, and then would be easily repairable at the factory. The lithium battery, however, would need to be replaced after about 3 years of normal use, and a replacement battery would cost about $500. That’s still cheaper than the $1800 plus Torqueedo kayak motor.

Since one of my favorite sales guys, Rick Carr, was repping Minn Kota electric motors at the show, I stopped by to understand how much it would cost to mount a salt water trolling motor on my new Ocean Kayak Trident Ultra 4.3. Rick recommended the Minn Kota Riptide Transom Mount 45lb thrust with “Digital Maximizer” that efficiently conserves battery power. List price is about $320, and it would be mounted off the right side of the kayak, behind my seat, and I’d control it with an extended tiller. Sounds like I know what I’m talking about huh? I’m not a boat/motor guy so it took a while for me to understand the terminology. This would be the least expensive way to add a motor to my yak but the downside would be the added weight of an SLA battery and the weight/size of the electric motor hanging off the side of the kayak.

Steve and Peter Oropeza working hard and having fun in the Promar booth

Steve Oropeza, of Promar / Ahi USA, helped me get situated with the locations of the 500 plus exhibitors, and told me that Chase Baits and Hookup Baits were two of the hot lure makers this year.

Chase Baits makes very realistic swimming soft plastic squids that look like they would be effective to fish vertically. The squids were about the size of our Hawaiian cuttlefish and could be killer in low light but I opted not to get any since I still have a few lures I haven’t tested from last year!

At first glance the Hookup Baits just looked like beefed up freshwater tube baits with better hardware. But the owner Chad explained how the lures were properly weighted with Owner jig hooks to swim optimally and the durable plastic bodies were infused with fish attracting scent. Their photos of the saltwater bass, yellowtail, and tuna with Hookup Baits hanging out of their mouths spoke to the effectiveness of the easy-to-fish lure. The lures could be cast and retrieved like you’d retrieve a weighted soft plastic, or fished off the bottom in a hopping manner. The silhouettes really replicated the bait fish they were imitating. I picked up some 3/8 oz jig head versions to whip with, and some 1 oz jig head versions to fish vertically.

A friend wanted me to pick up a Nomad Design DTX Minnow in the 6.5 inch, 3.75 oz size to troll fast and deep for pelagics. They are the hot offshore brand of lures from Australia that are encased in hard plastic, wired throughout the body, and rigged with heavy duty inline single BKK hooks. I can’t troll a lure faster than 3 mph so I decided to try the Nomad Design Maverick, in the 5.5 inch, 1.5 oz size. The Maverick is a very versatile lure that floats, and can be popped, walked or retrieved so it swims underwater in a gurgling S-shaped pattern. I’m thinking I can put the Maverick out as I paddle around, and retrieve it on the surface when I get to a fishy spot.

Stay tuned for Part II covering a Mexican destination bucket list trip, UV protection leggings for kayak fishing, dogs jumping into frigid water on command and more!