Natalie and I are looking forward to this trip which has become somewhat of a tradition. It seems for most of the past 10 years we have found ourselves on the string line at Catalina. We look forward to Catalina 2010 with the crew! For those of you with an adventurous spirit there is the new zip line in Avalon.
2010 Delta/Bay Extravaganza and Catalina Adventure
- Thread starter Jim Gibson
- Start date
riversun45
New member
I have to back out. Leasing my house is more complicated than I thought. Next year though is a go. Anyone know of a good place to spend the winter with an RV + C-Dory and still be able to boat in reasonable weather and no oil?
Riversun on Gypsy River
Riversun on Gypsy River
C-Pup16 in Los Angeles
New member
I will visit you guys at The Isthmus during the week, but can' be sure I'll stay the entire time. Work comes first. It's nice having a job in this economy, and I won't risk losing it. Don't reserve a string line for me. I'll get what's available or will anchor near the camp ground beach and just row my dingy over to your gathering. Jim has my cell phone. I'll post here before the adventure begins what day's I'll come over. I'll probably leave MDR at night, fish at dawn, nap on a beach chair in the afternoon, have dinner with you guys then return at night and be at work the next morning!
Keith
C-Pup16
("Tiny But Tenacious")
Keith
C-Pup16
("Tiny But Tenacious")
C-Pup16 in Los Angeles
New member
Thank you TeBoo Mike. I appreciate that.
Jim Gibson
Member
Thanks Keith for checking in. We will see you when we see you.
Sincerely,
Jim
Sincerely,
Jim
C-Pup16 in Los Angeles
New member
I hope to join the Catalina Gathering, but I will leave MDR either Sunday morning or Monday morning around midnight to be in a fishing position for the dawn bite... probably next to Eagle Reef. Kimiko wants me to bring her fresh yellowtail for sashimi. I will stay at least through Tuesday's dinner and return to MDR on Tuesday night.
It's been a while since you'll have seen me as a newbie with a 16 ft DC.
The 16 foot C-Dory's small size has prevented me from inviting friends fishing or entertaining on board. It's so tight for two guys, I'd be afraid I'd have to change its name from C-Pup to Broback so I go to sea alone, even shark fish alone. It's turned me into a sea hermit. I call it my ocean cocoon where I go to exhause my physical body and rejuvenate my spirit...kind of like having sex with Mother Earth.
I wish to explain something to you other C-Dory owners. C-Dory gatherings are more than about you 22 ft and 25 ft C-dory and C-Cat owners visiting and wooping it up on each other's massive hulls... you need to be especially inclusive and nice to us poor step-childs in 16 foot C-Dories. Please remember that old CD16 owners like me may have been at sea alone for so long, we lost our social skills and confidence or even ability to speak. Many, like me, have no memory of the female gender being on a boat.. We have been living at sea like primitive ancients who voyaged on rafts and canoes. Please appreciate that a C-Dory gathering offers social skills therapy to the owner of a 16 ft C-Dory so ladies... if I stare, take pity and smile and say nice things to me and gentlemen, don't punch me if you wife throws me a wink or a drink. C-Dory gatherings are a recovery process for lonely CD16 owners so we can return to the world as whole, functional people. That's the burden for you folks on the string line. Your life of fun in the sun is not without some duty to restore 16 ft C-Dory owners to their full human potential so we can return to The World and function as citizens. Thank you.
It's been a while since you'll have seen me as a newbie with a 16 ft DC.
The 16 foot C-Dory's small size has prevented me from inviting friends fishing or entertaining on board. It's so tight for two guys, I'd be afraid I'd have to change its name from C-Pup to Broback so I go to sea alone, even shark fish alone. It's turned me into a sea hermit. I call it my ocean cocoon where I go to exhause my physical body and rejuvenate my spirit...kind of like having sex with Mother Earth.
I wish to explain something to you other C-Dory owners. C-Dory gatherings are more than about you 22 ft and 25 ft C-dory and C-Cat owners visiting and wooping it up on each other's massive hulls... you need to be especially inclusive and nice to us poor step-childs in 16 foot C-Dories. Please remember that old CD16 owners like me may have been at sea alone for so long, we lost our social skills and confidence or even ability to speak. Many, like me, have no memory of the female gender being on a boat.. We have been living at sea like primitive ancients who voyaged on rafts and canoes. Please appreciate that a C-Dory gathering offers social skills therapy to the owner of a 16 ft C-Dory so ladies... if I stare, take pity and smile and say nice things to me and gentlemen, don't punch me if you wife throws me a wink or a drink. C-Dory gatherings are a recovery process for lonely CD16 owners so we can return to the world as whole, functional people. That's the burden for you folks on the string line. Your life of fun in the sun is not without some duty to restore 16 ft C-Dory owners to their full human potential so we can return to The World and function as citizens. Thank you.
Jim Gibson
Member
Keith-
We are so glad that you are coming. We need some of your philosophy to make us all a little more appreciative of what we have. Everything is relative, and happiness is truly a function of expectations.
Sincerely,
Jim
We are so glad that you are coming. We need some of your philosophy to make us all a little more appreciative of what we have. Everything is relative, and happiness is truly a function of expectations.
Sincerely,
Jim
C-Pup16 in Los Angeles
New member
I HOPE THAT MY LAST POST DIDN'T GET ANY OF YOU GUYS (OR LADIES) WORRIED! I 'm eager to see all of you. Yes, I have size jealosy issues but I'll deal with that appropriately.
For you fishermen new to Catalina, I have caught yellowtail on the harbor side of Eagle Reef at about 90 ft, also in the channel between Bird Rock and Harbor Reef at about 90 feet, and at the high point between Ship's Rock and Bird Rock. That high point is found about 1/3 the distance on a straight line between the two if starting from Bird Rock. I caught two out of three yellowtails hooked during the 2008 C-Dory gathering in August using a pink "Storm" plastic fish ("swim bait") on the sink. I'm no great fisherman. On two out of three of those hook-ups, I had birdnested the reel after a poorly executed cast. I spent five minutes pulling apart the snags. The yellowtail hooked themselves on the sink and waited for me to finish. I didn't even know I had a fish until I started to retrieve! The third yellowtail was caught on a 5.5 inch or 6.5 inch "Big Hammer" plastic swim bait. Put a strip of squid or a big squid tenacile on the swim bait hook as a "taste". That's all you need. No live bait.
For halibut, use a heavy lead head and plastic swim bait with a taste of squid. Bounce it along a sandy bottom on a retrieve. The anchorage area in front of the campground beach is a good halibut location. The locals fish there for their big butts. All these trophy fish and a lot of calico and sand bass can be caught in abundance in view of the harbor moorings. (Stay out of the fish sanctuary. There are buoys marking it.)
The key to success is to keep on casting and retrieving. No breaks for the weary or the bored. Count as the lure sinks and feel for bumps (fish hits). If a fish bumps it or gets hooked say, at the count of 12, then you found the depth where the fish are schooling. Make your next cast in the same direction, and start cranking it in at 12 (i.e., at the number when the last fish hit). If no bumps or hook-ups occur on the sink, then let it sink to the bottom and crank it in, even if that means vertically. Try different speeds, especially fast on a vertical retrieve. This approach covers all depths and increases the odds of finding where the fish are. (They sometimes school mid-level.)
Be sure your drag is set softer than a tight setting so that the first energetic run will not break your line. As the fish tires, you can tighten the drag more to bring him in quicker. I carry rod and reel combos with 15# (pound) clear mono, another with 20# and another with 30#, and another with 60# spectra with a 20# flurocarbon top shot. If you plan to fish near kelp, spool one reel with spectra (braided) kelp cutting line instead of mono. It helps you retrieve a fish from kelp. Loosen the drag and let it pull the spectra so the braided line saws through the kelp.
Also if you anchor in or near kelp, tie a second thinner release line to the anchor and connect that to a buoy or fender. If the anchor snags, pulling that should release it. For fishing in open pockets in kelp, I use an old mushroom anchor rather than my main anchor with chain.
If the wind is blowing or there is tidal current, drop your main anchor with chain up-wind on a kelp-free sandy bottom. Then let out enough anchor line to let the wind or current position your boat near (not at) the kelp's edge. If you have a sabiki rig or small hooks, put a little piece of squid on each hook and catch some mackerel. Then chop them up and gradually toss pieces overboard to let the current take it towards and into the kelp. I use the TV infomercial onion chopper to make really fine chum. This "chum" should draw fish out of the kelp and into your casting area. It's the same idea as a pizza parlor at a mall with lots of pedestrians. They get customers by having some pretty girl offer passerbys free pizza samples outside its front door. I'm seeking a pretty girl in a bikini to cut and toss chum for me while I fish. Any volunteers? In this approach, use a heavier 20# or 30# line and set your drag tighter. You want to man-handle the fish towards the boat to prevent it from retreating into the kelp where it will tangle and break off.
If out at night, dawn, dusk or in fog, watch out for the Catalina ferry boats. They move at a very high speed and for some reason, do not seem to show up on my radar until they are damn close. I carry their arrival and departure schedules on board to be on the look-out when they should be passing by. I consider them more dangerous to me than cargo ships or sail boats.
One reason I fish at dawn is because the fish bite better... the other is to avoid the scuba diving boats. Divers will take over Ship's Rock and Harbor Reef area after dawn when those divers awake from their beauty sleep and have their coffee and breakfast on shore. There's no use fishing once they arrive, unless you want to chum for sharks. That's always fun!
The best time to fish is when there is a strong tidal current, especially about 2.5 hours before the ebb (retreating) tide slacks. Fish take a siesta from eating during slack tide. When there is current, game fish wait down current behind structure (kelp beds, submerged rock piles, wrecks) for the ebb current to flush bait fish from the shallows. As the bait fish pass over the structure, they become an all-you-can-eat buffet dinner for waiting game fish. The stongest tidal current is when there's a new (dark) moon of a full moon. When there is little current available, try fishing the down current side of Arrow Point which creates some current all the time.
If you have trim tabs, you might want them in an up position when fishing. I lost one of my hooked yellowtails in 2008 when it ran from the gaff and a trim tab cut the tight line. I lost another in the kelp.
Be aware that strong afternoon winds can create a dangerous sea even just outside the harbor. I recall fishing the channel between Bird Rock and Harbor reef in huge breakers one afternoon and suddenly realizing what a fool I was to focus on fishing when my little boat was struggling with the equivalent of Captain Billy Tyne pushing his swordfish boat through the Perfect Storm. (As a seafarer, you must see the 2000 movie with George Clooney, my look alike.)
To quote from the movie:
Linda Greenlaw: [warning Billy over the radio] Billy? Get outta there! Come about! Let it- let it carry you out of there! What the hell are you doing? Billy! For Christ sake! You're steaming into a bomb! Turn around for Christ sake! Billy, can ya hear me? You're headed right for the middle of the monster! Billy?...
My point: don't over-estimate your boat or seamanship and take yourself into "Monster" seas. They seem to occur every afternoon if you're in a 16 foot boat, even a C-Dory.
Keith
For you fishermen new to Catalina, I have caught yellowtail on the harbor side of Eagle Reef at about 90 ft, also in the channel between Bird Rock and Harbor Reef at about 90 feet, and at the high point between Ship's Rock and Bird Rock. That high point is found about 1/3 the distance on a straight line between the two if starting from Bird Rock. I caught two out of three yellowtails hooked during the 2008 C-Dory gathering in August using a pink "Storm" plastic fish ("swim bait") on the sink. I'm no great fisherman. On two out of three of those hook-ups, I had birdnested the reel after a poorly executed cast. I spent five minutes pulling apart the snags. The yellowtail hooked themselves on the sink and waited for me to finish. I didn't even know I had a fish until I started to retrieve! The third yellowtail was caught on a 5.5 inch or 6.5 inch "Big Hammer" plastic swim bait. Put a strip of squid or a big squid tenacile on the swim bait hook as a "taste". That's all you need. No live bait.
For halibut, use a heavy lead head and plastic swim bait with a taste of squid. Bounce it along a sandy bottom on a retrieve. The anchorage area in front of the campground beach is a good halibut location. The locals fish there for their big butts. All these trophy fish and a lot of calico and sand bass can be caught in abundance in view of the harbor moorings. (Stay out of the fish sanctuary. There are buoys marking it.)
The key to success is to keep on casting and retrieving. No breaks for the weary or the bored. Count as the lure sinks and feel for bumps (fish hits). If a fish bumps it or gets hooked say, at the count of 12, then you found the depth where the fish are schooling. Make your next cast in the same direction, and start cranking it in at 12 (i.e., at the number when the last fish hit). If no bumps or hook-ups occur on the sink, then let it sink to the bottom and crank it in, even if that means vertically. Try different speeds, especially fast on a vertical retrieve. This approach covers all depths and increases the odds of finding where the fish are. (They sometimes school mid-level.)
Be sure your drag is set softer than a tight setting so that the first energetic run will not break your line. As the fish tires, you can tighten the drag more to bring him in quicker. I carry rod and reel combos with 15# (pound) clear mono, another with 20# and another with 30#, and another with 60# spectra with a 20# flurocarbon top shot. If you plan to fish near kelp, spool one reel with spectra (braided) kelp cutting line instead of mono. It helps you retrieve a fish from kelp. Loosen the drag and let it pull the spectra so the braided line saws through the kelp.
Also if you anchor in or near kelp, tie a second thinner release line to the anchor and connect that to a buoy or fender. If the anchor snags, pulling that should release it. For fishing in open pockets in kelp, I use an old mushroom anchor rather than my main anchor with chain.
If the wind is blowing or there is tidal current, drop your main anchor with chain up-wind on a kelp-free sandy bottom. Then let out enough anchor line to let the wind or current position your boat near (not at) the kelp's edge. If you have a sabiki rig or small hooks, put a little piece of squid on each hook and catch some mackerel. Then chop them up and gradually toss pieces overboard to let the current take it towards and into the kelp. I use the TV infomercial onion chopper to make really fine chum. This "chum" should draw fish out of the kelp and into your casting area. It's the same idea as a pizza parlor at a mall with lots of pedestrians. They get customers by having some pretty girl offer passerbys free pizza samples outside its front door. I'm seeking a pretty girl in a bikini to cut and toss chum for me while I fish. Any volunteers? In this approach, use a heavier 20# or 30# line and set your drag tighter. You want to man-handle the fish towards the boat to prevent it from retreating into the kelp where it will tangle and break off.
If out at night, dawn, dusk or in fog, watch out for the Catalina ferry boats. They move at a very high speed and for some reason, do not seem to show up on my radar until they are damn close. I carry their arrival and departure schedules on board to be on the look-out when they should be passing by. I consider them more dangerous to me than cargo ships or sail boats.
One reason I fish at dawn is because the fish bite better... the other is to avoid the scuba diving boats. Divers will take over Ship's Rock and Harbor Reef area after dawn when those divers awake from their beauty sleep and have their coffee and breakfast on shore. There's no use fishing once they arrive, unless you want to chum for sharks. That's always fun!
The best time to fish is when there is a strong tidal current, especially about 2.5 hours before the ebb (retreating) tide slacks. Fish take a siesta from eating during slack tide. When there is current, game fish wait down current behind structure (kelp beds, submerged rock piles, wrecks) for the ebb current to flush bait fish from the shallows. As the bait fish pass over the structure, they become an all-you-can-eat buffet dinner for waiting game fish. The stongest tidal current is when there's a new (dark) moon of a full moon. When there is little current available, try fishing the down current side of Arrow Point which creates some current all the time.
If you have trim tabs, you might want them in an up position when fishing. I lost one of my hooked yellowtails in 2008 when it ran from the gaff and a trim tab cut the tight line. I lost another in the kelp.
Be aware that strong afternoon winds can create a dangerous sea even just outside the harbor. I recall fishing the channel between Bird Rock and Harbor reef in huge breakers one afternoon and suddenly realizing what a fool I was to focus on fishing when my little boat was struggling with the equivalent of Captain Billy Tyne pushing his swordfish boat through the Perfect Storm. (As a seafarer, you must see the 2000 movie with George Clooney, my look alike.)
To quote from the movie:
Linda Greenlaw: [warning Billy over the radio] Billy? Get outta there! Come about! Let it- let it carry you out of there! What the hell are you doing? Billy! For Christ sake! You're steaming into a bomb! Turn around for Christ sake! Billy, can ya hear me? You're headed right for the middle of the monster! Billy?...
My point: don't over-estimate your boat or seamanship and take yourself into "Monster" seas. They seem to occur every afternoon if you're in a 16 foot boat, even a C-Dory.
Keith
Jim Gibson
Member
Ron-
What a great 5 minute video done by the Catalina Conservancy. This video sets a tone for the 2010 Catalina Off-Shore Adventure where by "everything is connected"!
Sincerely,
Jim
What a great 5 minute video done by the Catalina Conservancy. This video sets a tone for the 2010 Catalina Off-Shore Adventure where by "everything is connected"!
Sincerely,
Jim
Jim Gibson
Member
Dear C-Brats:
We are now just two (2) weeks away from the 9th Annual, Catalina Off-shore Adventure. This event starts in Marina Del Rey, California, on August 15th, and then moves 35 km off-shore, on August 16th, to Two Harbors (West End), Santa Catalina Island.
We are starting to get excited again about the prospect of this reoccurring event. We even went down to the boat shed this weekend to make sure that C-Dory Pounder is still intact, and up for this coastal passage.
As of now we have the following fifteen (15) vessels signed up for this event:
1. Jim and Kath on M/V Pounder
2. John and Robbin on Dinner Belle II
3. Ron and Nat on Islander
4. Steve, Melinda, and Alex on Dora Jean
5. Ken and Marcia on Marcia Jane
6. Scott on Lil Rascal
7. Dan on Farwest II
8. Jeff on Bossa Nova
9. David and Donald on Blue-Eagle (arrived via Point Conception!)
10. Phil on No Pressure
11. Joel and Susan on SEA3PO
12. Mike on Sealife
13. Brent and Dixie on Discovery
14. Keith on C-Pup
15. Ikaikacaptain on ?.
There will be approximately 25 attendees at this event. If anyone else is coming please get your skipper’s name, and boat name, on this list. Also, if anyone is dropping out of this event at the last minute, please let us know.
We still need the name of the skipper for vessel, or pen name, Ikaikacaptain. Also, if other crew is coming, that are not listed above, please provide their names so that we have identification, and a complete head count, for the entire group.
For the Monday night potluck on the beach at Two Harbors we need food volunteers. For each volunteer food item, please bring enough food for 25 folks, or if it is designated for two volunteers, then please bring enough food for 12 people. The food volunteer list is as follows:
1. Meat and charcoal for BBQ (Jim and Kath)
2. Appetizers and snacks, such as chips and dips, or veggies and dip (need two volunteers)
3. Buttered French bread, wrapped in aluminum foil (need one volunteer)
4. Green salad and salad dressings (need two volunteers)
5. Macaroni salad, or pasta salad (need two volunteers)
6. Baked potatoes, wrapped in aluminum foil, with sour cream, salt, and pepper (please pre-boil the potatoes) (need two volunteers)
7. Vanilla ice cream (can get at Two Harbors store) (need one volunteer)
8. Chocolate syrup and cookies (need one volunteer).
In total, we need 11 more food volunteers. Please sign up early to reserve your preferred dish choice. Also, everyone is to bring to the potluck their own plates, napkins, and utensils, along with their beverage of choice.
On Sunday, Kath and I will be traveling by truck and trailer, along with John and Robbin in their rig, down to Marina Del Rey, from Northern California. We should arrive at MDR around mid-afternoon, August 15th.
If anyone needs to get a hold of us they may call me on my cell telephone (916) 799-0286. We are looking forward to seeing everyone!
Sincerely,
Jim and Kath
Jim on M/V Pounder
And the C-Tales Continue
We are now just two (2) weeks away from the 9th Annual, Catalina Off-shore Adventure. This event starts in Marina Del Rey, California, on August 15th, and then moves 35 km off-shore, on August 16th, to Two Harbors (West End), Santa Catalina Island.
We are starting to get excited again about the prospect of this reoccurring event. We even went down to the boat shed this weekend to make sure that C-Dory Pounder is still intact, and up for this coastal passage.
As of now we have the following fifteen (15) vessels signed up for this event:
1. Jim and Kath on M/V Pounder
2. John and Robbin on Dinner Belle II
3. Ron and Nat on Islander
4. Steve, Melinda, and Alex on Dora Jean
5. Ken and Marcia on Marcia Jane
6. Scott on Lil Rascal
7. Dan on Farwest II
8. Jeff on Bossa Nova
9. David and Donald on Blue-Eagle (arrived via Point Conception!)
10. Phil on No Pressure
11. Joel and Susan on SEA3PO
12. Mike on Sealife
13. Brent and Dixie on Discovery
14. Keith on C-Pup
15. Ikaikacaptain on ?.
There will be approximately 25 attendees at this event. If anyone else is coming please get your skipper’s name, and boat name, on this list. Also, if anyone is dropping out of this event at the last minute, please let us know.
We still need the name of the skipper for vessel, or pen name, Ikaikacaptain. Also, if other crew is coming, that are not listed above, please provide their names so that we have identification, and a complete head count, for the entire group.
For the Monday night potluck on the beach at Two Harbors we need food volunteers. For each volunteer food item, please bring enough food for 25 folks, or if it is designated for two volunteers, then please bring enough food for 12 people. The food volunteer list is as follows:
1. Meat and charcoal for BBQ (Jim and Kath)
2. Appetizers and snacks, such as chips and dips, or veggies and dip (need two volunteers)
3. Buttered French bread, wrapped in aluminum foil (need one volunteer)
4. Green salad and salad dressings (need two volunteers)
5. Macaroni salad, or pasta salad (need two volunteers)
6. Baked potatoes, wrapped in aluminum foil, with sour cream, salt, and pepper (please pre-boil the potatoes) (need two volunteers)
7. Vanilla ice cream (can get at Two Harbors store) (need one volunteer)
8. Chocolate syrup and cookies (need one volunteer).
In total, we need 11 more food volunteers. Please sign up early to reserve your preferred dish choice. Also, everyone is to bring to the potluck their own plates, napkins, and utensils, along with their beverage of choice.
On Sunday, Kath and I will be traveling by truck and trailer, along with John and Robbin in their rig, down to Marina Del Rey, from Northern California. We should arrive at MDR around mid-afternoon, August 15th.
If anyone needs to get a hold of us they may call me on my cell telephone (916) 799-0286. We are looking forward to seeing everyone!
Sincerely,
Jim and Kath
Jim on M/V Pounder
And the C-Tales Continue
Hi Jim and Kathy,
Marcia and I will glad to bring the chocolate syrup and cookies. We're looking forward to the cruise and real "Island Time". Two Harbors is one of our favorite destinations.
We've not launched out of Marina del Rey before. Do they have the necessary parking spaces for leaving truck and trailer for a whole week with this large a group?
Regards,
Kent
MARCIA JANE
Marcia and I will glad to bring the chocolate syrup and cookies. We're looking forward to the cruise and real "Island Time". Two Harbors is one of our favorite destinations.
We've not launched out of Marina del Rey before. Do they have the necessary parking spaces for leaving truck and trailer for a whole week with this large a group?
Regards,
Kent
MARCIA JANE
Lil Rascal
New member
Sorry, But I wont be able to make the cruise this year. I forgot about the dates when I bid for my August schedule and now I will be flying most of that whole week! I might be able to do the first night, but I would have to check with the wife's schedule.
Jim Gibson
Member
Kent, there is plenty of parking at MDR for this group. Follow instructions for parking and paying at the attendance gate. Pay for the correct number of days and put your tickets on your windshield. We are buying tickets for Sunday to Saturday (7) days. They will ticket you if you do not do it correctly. You can park your truck and trailer in the lot. You can also wash your trailer after launching and when retrieving. Bring plenty of quarters.
Sincerely,
Jim
Sincerely,
Jim
Jim Gibson
Member
Scott-
Sorry that you will not be able to make it. We will miss your sarcastic sense of humor.
Maybe we will see you on one of your flights someday!
Sincerely,
Jim
Sorry that you will not be able to make it. We will miss your sarcastic sense of humor.
Maybe we will see you on one of your flights someday!
Sincerely,
Jim
C-Pup16 in Los Angeles
New member
I'll bring some albacore and sweet corn for the barbecue Monday night. If I catch anything at the Isthmus on Sunday or Monday, I'll add that too.
I took C-Pup to Catalina at dawn on Sunday morning 8/1 and fished all day on the back side. Not a bump. It was siesta time for senior fish. In the afternoon, I came around to the front side and fished a little at the Isthmus, but no better. Strong easterly winds made it too dangerous by 3:00, so I anchored in front of the camp site beach and spent the night. I fished Monday at the Isthmus from predawn until 9:00 AM. Pretty slow, but I caught two large Calicos on the west side of Ship's Rock... not in the kelp, but bouncing a big hammer down the wall to the shelf, maybe 75 feet deep. The calicos were 16 inches and over two pounds each. At 9:00 I then went to Palos Verdes to troll the Yellowtail Highway (120 ft depth). No fish on that road. Then I fished the kelp, but no luck either. On my return to Marina Del Rey (MDR), I stopped at a local fishing spot near El Segundo (power plant pipes, four cans) and caught two more calicos in two passes over that rock pile.
I think the reason for the poor fishing was the quarter moon. I didn't see others bringing fish back to MDR. The tidal movement is too slow at a quarter moon to stir the appetites of game fish. The fish I caught were at the peak movement in the tide, which must have rung the dinner bell for the calicos.
In past C-Dory Catalina Gatherings, you guys who dive seemed to go west to Emerald Bay. I suggest that you visit Rippers Cove, about 15 minutes east of the Isthmus... very private and pretty, plus a large stretch of sandy bottom that is almost Caribbean clear. It is one of Catalina's primitive campsites, boat access only. When I overnight on the front side, I prefer anchoring at Rippers Cove for the peace and quiet, and to not be run over by larger yachts that seem to race into or out of Two Harbors with reckless speed and no courtesy. When fishing the predawn at the Isthmus, be careful of sleepy skippers of big sport fishers blasting out of the harbor to race to their marlin destination. Their mind is elsewhere and their brain still half asleep... so have an air horn at the ready and don't hesitate to give them five blasts to wake up an help them to focus. Of course, you'll wake up everyone else at the Isthmus too !
I'm looking forward to the chance to meet you all at this gathering.
Be well,
Keith
C-Pup16
I took C-Pup to Catalina at dawn on Sunday morning 8/1 and fished all day on the back side. Not a bump. It was siesta time for senior fish. In the afternoon, I came around to the front side and fished a little at the Isthmus, but no better. Strong easterly winds made it too dangerous by 3:00, so I anchored in front of the camp site beach and spent the night. I fished Monday at the Isthmus from predawn until 9:00 AM. Pretty slow, but I caught two large Calicos on the west side of Ship's Rock... not in the kelp, but bouncing a big hammer down the wall to the shelf, maybe 75 feet deep. The calicos were 16 inches and over two pounds each. At 9:00 I then went to Palos Verdes to troll the Yellowtail Highway (120 ft depth). No fish on that road. Then I fished the kelp, but no luck either. On my return to Marina Del Rey (MDR), I stopped at a local fishing spot near El Segundo (power plant pipes, four cans) and caught two more calicos in two passes over that rock pile.
I think the reason for the poor fishing was the quarter moon. I didn't see others bringing fish back to MDR. The tidal movement is too slow at a quarter moon to stir the appetites of game fish. The fish I caught were at the peak movement in the tide, which must have rung the dinner bell for the calicos.
In past C-Dory Catalina Gatherings, you guys who dive seemed to go west to Emerald Bay. I suggest that you visit Rippers Cove, about 15 minutes east of the Isthmus... very private and pretty, plus a large stretch of sandy bottom that is almost Caribbean clear. It is one of Catalina's primitive campsites, boat access only. When I overnight on the front side, I prefer anchoring at Rippers Cove for the peace and quiet, and to not be run over by larger yachts that seem to race into or out of Two Harbors with reckless speed and no courtesy. When fishing the predawn at the Isthmus, be careful of sleepy skippers of big sport fishers blasting out of the harbor to race to their marlin destination. Their mind is elsewhere and their brain still half asleep... so have an air horn at the ready and don't hesitate to give them five blasts to wake up an help them to focus. Of course, you'll wake up everyone else at the Isthmus too !
I'm looking forward to the chance to meet you all at this gathering.
Be well,
Keith
C-Pup16
C-Pup16 in Los Angeles
New member
I will join you old salty C-dogs and newbie poof C-poodles at the C-Dory Two Harbors gathering. I plan to take C-Pup (without wife or dogs) on Saturday evening around midnight to the Isthmus to fish the dawn bite. I'll anchor for a few hours sleep at the single anchorage site marked on charts located on the west side of Harbor Reef. Then for Sunday afternoon and night, I'll anchor in Rippers Cove. On Monday and Tuesday I'll be on the string line with the razamataz line up of super C-Dories and ultra-max dingies. I'll return to MDR on Wednesday after fishing the isthmus until 9:30AM.
Oh... and if some pretty girls in bikinis on the beach see me on C-Pup and say "what a cute boat", I will them "It's my dingey. My yacht is too big for the harbor". Please don't give my secret away! I may want a dance partner at the bar!
Oh... and if some pretty girls in bikinis on the beach see me on C-Pup and say "what a cute boat", I will them "It's my dingey. My yacht is too big for the harbor". Please don't give my secret away! I may want a dance partner at the bar!
Pacificcoast101
Member
Merry and I will catch up with the convoy from Marina del Rey as they pass Redondo Beach. We're in King Harbor. We will only be able to stay until Tuesday morning.