Bait fish and predators have been noticeably absent at my south shore lure testing spots.  A trip to the Eastside testing grounds was long overdue.  The tide was halfway up its steep climb and there were no bait fish in sight.  I started with a lure I used in off color conditions and didn’t get a sniff.

I put on the lure Masa had been recommending and once again it cast superbly with the wind and into the wind.  Still no follows though, after an hr of whipping both lures.

Suddenly a fish wrestled with the lure on the surface. The best casting lure could catch fish too.

Kaku, the target species!  It resisted a little but soon let itself be slid on the surface of the water.  I scooped it with the Promar floating landing net and walked it to shore. I love this net because the netting is so deep and the material is tangle free.

It measured 17.5 inches fork length and I tagged it, revived it and set it free.  The center hook had caught the edge of one of the kaku’s eyes but didn’t penetrate the eye socket.  If the fish is recaptured it would be interesting to see how well that injury heals.

I missed another kaku on the way back to my car and drove to another spot where I had always seen bait schools. No bait schools around but a large kaku surprised me by taking drag and coming off the hook.  That happened on the next cast also so I loosened the drag, missed a couple smaller kaku that I could see and the flurry ended.  Masa’s recommended lure definitely represented well.  Imagine how good it’s gonna be when the bait fish return.