Oh my. Lets everyone just calm down a bit.
If I may interject here...
The location this fish was caught is actually one of Orange County’s less populace, most productive beaches for ALL sharks. In fact, in the last month and a half that beach has produced 4 Soupfin, 1 Seven, a dozen leopard sharks, and 4 hook pulls on real large bottom fish, think big seven. And thats for me only. And all on the kayak baits. Until saturday there had not been a white shark hooked on that beach (to my knowledge) in over three months.....I for one had considered them gone for the year, and welcomed their departure as a way to ensure my big baits would stat in the zone offshore longer in hopes of exotics.
As to the talk of the baits being too large and the tackle too heavy: 1. I apologize, a 7’ Sevengill or 5’ soupfin or heaven forbid a “bait ray” or surf kitten unfortunatley has NO value to me as a sportsman. In fact a 7’ white is not exactly a big deal for me either. This fish was a pest and consumed a bait I had been saving for a real exotic, one of a odd-shaped build that what was hooked recently at the mouth of Dana Harbor! If I am going to fish, it is a big game affair at all times. I am always hoping for that one fish, be that a seven over 9’, a sixgill, a hammer (and yes, they are already here) or heaven forbid that grander mako I lost last summer 400 yards down the beach from the location in question! I apologize if that comes across as offensive, but I consider myself a big game angler, and anything a spinning rod (and i dont mean a superspinner/shorejigger) can handle conformtably is either too small or not aggro enough to arouse me. The big baits serve two purposes: 1. Longevity: The longer soaks in the zone reduce fatigue from kayaking and mean the crabs and lobsters can have at it for longer before its no longer appetizing. 2. Exclusion: Big baits keep the little fish off (usually). Dont really feel like kayaking 100 times a day for repeated bat rays and leopard sharks...unless I need bait....2. The drop distances we are fishing vary from 50-400+ yards. Its not about distance from the beach, its about presenting a bait larger than can be cast on lighter tackle. The hook size is a funtion of bait size. Yes, for soups and leopards our 16/0 hooks are large, but not inneffective, at all. But when you start applying an honest, scale measured amount of drag over 30lbs any less of a hook is going to pull, be that from a seven or a soup. We use the same size hooks for casted gear as for yak gear. You need more purchase with real drag ratings than a mini-hook can give you.
Its not like the only fish we catch is White Sharks, In fact, its not even what we catch most of the time! They just get a disproportionate amount of attention. Those sharks are there, theyre everywhere. They eat all baits, from 1oz to 30lbs. Trust me, reducing the gear will not reduce the hook-ups, only the amount of gear left in the fish. DFW have sat on my couch and asked that I get the gear back as much as possible when they are hooked. I feel bad that they continually get dragged into these stories as if there was some legal issue.
My personal opinion in this: More whites are hooked because there are more whites. I personally hook more whites because I’m on the water more. When we only casted we only lost more, not hooked less. And then they were swimming around with gear and that made negative press too! Damned if I do damned if I dont! I don’t hide because I have been assured that my
practices are solid and my methods within the statute. When asked to not fish somewhere by lifeguards I leave, when asked I explain. When asked by DFW to design a flotation device that would not remain affixed to the fish upon pier release, I did. When asked not to pose for photos we refrained from that practice.
I have been staying out of the fray on here alot once I got wind of some negativity surrounding my fishing style; a style very popular in other locales just emerging here in California. I did not wish to offend or start a fire here, you guys have a community and I appreciate that. I mistook the mindset here to be of a big game nature but I apologize for misreading the room.
Don’t go kayak baits if you dont want, dont daylight fish if you dont want, and dont fish heavy tackle if you dont want. But I intend to fish a way that is proven and effective and in search of that big landbased T, cali landbased hammer, landbased blue, or landbased mako (again!). And Ill enjoy catching some truely large bottomfish along the way.
