Score! Fresh halibut
I’ll get this out of the way quickly…fished the Clemente out of Dana Wharf on Monday. Got skunked. One each short sandy and calico. This lucky angler got big fish with one of 2 halibut taken, a handful of mixed bass and a couple sculpin for 40 plus anglers. Tough day on the water, but I did get to speak at length with the new leader of the Halibut Derby, Peggy Stein.
Let me take a step back, I had really needed to get out this weekend. It’s been awhile (2 weeks!). Friday, Dana Wharf tweeted me this pic of Jeanne Koester who scored a 31lb., 8oz. halibut on the Friday drift. I wrote at length about Jeanne when she got 3 on one trip I rode with her. Then, Sunday again, another big one. This time it was Peggy topping the leaderboard with a massive 43lb. 10oz. fish!
Capt. Corey hoists Peggy’s Big Flattie (picture courtesy of Dana Wharf)
I was really excited to get out yesterday. Turns out Peggy rode Monday also, so I got to ask her about the big fish…
Was it a big fight?
I started out at 9 (on the port side ahead of the bait tank), went all the way up and around the bow, and ended up at 15 (on the other side, midway down the bait tank). Luckily, people were really great about winding up and letting me by.
Have you fished your whole life?
No! I lived in Florida before, but never fished there. Then I moved here and started fishing about 3-4 years ago. I fished about 4 times my first year, then caught a 25lb. yellowtail on a dead anchovy and have been hooked ever since. Now I fish about 4 days per week!
Who’s a better halibut angler…you or Jeanne?
Ha! I wouldn’t be surprised if she ended up getting a bigger one before it’s all said and done. But I do have 7 for this year, to her 6 😉
Wow! These ladies really have this fish dialed in. Great job Peggy and Jeanne. I’ll get this skunk off me next week, but it was great to get to know Peggy a bit and hear firsthand about her big fish. Still plenty of time to get in on the fun. The derby ends April 30th. The top 25 anglers qualify for a one day fishoff, and the ‘regular season’ and fishoff winners will split the pot (last year over $4000!).
at 4:15 pm
I forgot to mention to you Joe probably the greatest halibut fisherwoman I’ve seen due to her diehard effort was Jackie Cain, who was a regular at Dana Wharf Sportfishing. She passed away several years ago. She would always fish for halibut with a trap rig and would hold her rod parallel to the rail and take up about five or six spots. LOL But she was very nice and we were fortunate to know her for many years.
at 8:41 am
One of the ladies down there, I think her name was Cindy, busted out a little stool at the rail. Always thought that’d be awesome to bring a lawn chair and kick back, but didn’t think I could get away with it 😉 Thanks for stopping by Jimmy