Heartbreak: 9/19/09 Big Sur trip report

[Nelson Kwok]

The Norcal coast looked sloppy so I tried down south again. Dove below Pt.Lopez with decent conditions 10-15 foot vis. I spent most of my time looking for lings or hardheads on the bottom, but the canopy formed by little 3to 4 foot palm kelp made that difficult. It is a slow day and all I have on my stringer is a small blue and a decent kelp rockfish. Finally I find a pinnacle with a clould of black rockfish. Jackpot! I was on the bottom below the school trying to pick out the largest ones when I see what I think is a big black rockfish hanging below the others. As I get closer its color slowly begins to materialize and I can't believe what I'm seeing. In front of me was a male sheephead! I've only seen pictures of these fish, never in real life. With trembling hands I swing and let loose a hurried shot. I see the shaft hit low. I get penetration, but it is in the lower part of its stomach and in an instant the fish rips free leaving its guts in the water. Crap! I've had fish swim off after glancing shots, but this one left me with a distinctly sick feeling in my core because I know it was an injury it won't recover from. I see lots of sea life in the water and resume hunting the area after telling myself not to take any more sloppy shots. A few dives later I see another sheepshead, a female this time and begin tracking her. With my tunnel vision it takes a moment before I realize right next to it is another sheepshead, a HUGE female that dwarfed the previous two. As I track it with my gun I see it begin to glide away. I give a quick flick with my fins, trying to keep my body motionless and follow it with gun extended. She didn't seem too spooked and as soon as she turned broadside I squeeze the trigger. It wasn't a stoning shot, but I hit the fish center of mass and I get a clean pass through. Fish immediately does its wriggle and tries to dart away as I kick with all my might toward the surface. Before this shot, the largest fish I've taken with a spear is a kelp greenling so I'm shocked that this this fish is able to pull back. I'm kicking kicking kicking toward the surface when I feel the tension increase and looking down I see the fish has swum under a rock and I can't dislodge it. Not having a floatline or reel on this gun all I can think to do is keep pulling and kicking. Seconds from letting go of the gun I feel the tension give way and I shoot toward the surface with fish in tow. Just before I make it to the top my line suddenly go slack. I can't believe it. I cannot believe I lost two fish in a row! As a fisherman I've lost plenty of big fish. Hook straightens or pulls out, line snaps, knot breaks, etc. As a hunter I've wounded and lost game animals as well. Every time it happens it is upsetting, but not really overly so. I think each time all I consider lost is the food value of the animal. Not sure whats different this time, but with these two fish there was a deep sense of remorse that I still feel now, many hours later as I replay the two scenes in my mind over and over. I'm still trying to figure out why that is. I took a few more half hearted dives before calling it quits and starting the long 3hour+ drive back to the Bay area.

[fishfetish]

Man I feel your pain. It is sickening when that happens. Thanks for the report and better luck next time.

[Tino Bernazzani]

Ouch,
Two lost sheephead in a day...ouch…
Nelson,
I would never target a fish like a large sheephead or ling even without a reel or floatline.
There have been too many times where I would have lost my gun due to a shot becoming lodged in some rocks or a fish that became tangled. Not to mention a float line can save you from loosing your gun while diving and even during your entry/exits.
A 50'er is perfect for NorCal diving and is a good investment while diving our limited viz.
Congrats on seeing your first big fish. I'm sure there will be plenty more in your future.
Oh and Neptonic Float lines are by far the best.:D

[jsspagg]

You can get a 100' yellow poly propalene line at Home Depot for less than $10. Connect the line to the butt of your gun.

Inexpensive solution = life, no lost gear and fish dinner.

[undrH2Ohntr]

Heartbreaker for sure. I know you are fairly new so use this as a learning experience, you need to take better shots, odds are those fish are now dead. I also second Tino, get a floatline:beer:

[ralphthehalibut]

What tino said X3.

FOr your own safety, not to mention the responsibility of landing the fish you shoot, buy a floatline.

A 50' poly rope is like 3 bucks at walmart.

Sorry you lost those fish. It's crazy how much it can eat you up inside. The good thing is you feel remorse for losing the fish. Any responsible hunter should

[lettersmooth]

Nice writeup, bummer though.

Keep practicing in the pool or whenever you can, shot placement is key. Get a good idea of your shooting skills so that when you come across a good fish with a crappy shot, you'll be able to do the right thing.

Don't feel too bad on the sheephead though, they taste crappy in my opinion, maybe I didn't cook it right? I just fried it for tacos and the meat is musky and oceany, didn't taste very good. Maybe you're supposed to cook it with a bunch of lemon or something to cover the flavor?

Keep at em, you'll get em soon enough.

[Chris Lupin]

What everyone else said, the rope is really easy to find cheap and its worth every penny. It also gives you the opportunity to drop your gun to mark a spot, if its scallops or abs up north or lobster down here. In low vis you can just follow your line down and easily find what you're looking for.

[Roboptic]

Q,
Your concern for your lost fish is a good thing. Bringing them home or just getting a chance to watch them is what most of us are after.
I would second the advice above and suggest that you look into a 6' bungie [$24 neptonic] to go with that $10.00 poly pro line. This will allow you to play a large fish with with less chance of a tear out.

Rob

[Urchin_Diver]

at least you didnt lose your gun

[Kirby]

Nelson- Absolutely get yourself a 50 foot floatline. No experienced divers up here that I know dive regularly without one. They allow you to mark holes with scallops, lings and abs and give you a chance to breath up before you dive for them. The cheapest floatlines that I found were from HanaPa'a, a Hawaiian fishing and dive store, and of course you should talk to Vanessa at the Freedive shop. I think the line from HanaPa'a cost me fifty bucks. Like everyone else said you could go cheap and get floating poly prop but I wouldn't. It tangles much easier than a floatline and in my opinion is dangerous. Sheephead have soft meat and tear out easily and therefore should be played lightly. A floatline is the solution.

[ApneaAddict]

Don't feel too bad on the sheephead though, they taste crappy in my opinion, maybe I didn't cook it right? I just fried it for tacos and the meat is musky and oceany, didn't taste very good. Maybe you're supposed to cook it with a bunch of lemon or something to cover the flavor?

I agree. I've tried both small and large (~20lb) sheephead with similar results. Yuck. Foul tasting mushy junk. I don't shoot them anymore. But I supposed thats besides the point.

Its always unfortunate when a fish tears off. That sickening feeling when your line goes slack is heart-wrenching. I agree with the others who said to get yourself a floatline. Or at least buy a cheapo Cressi reel, etc. I think those run about $20 and hold enough line that when you shoot a fish and it holes up, you can dash to the surface without risking losing your gun. I can't even imagine not having a reel or floatline. I would have had to ditch my gun in order to make it to the surface at least half a dozen times while diving up here. (Lings in particular tend to hole up- or they're shot in a hole and they stay in the hole)

Dive safe.

[Devildiver]

I think that you've got the float line/reel point hammered home....

After a shot, If you've got enough bottom time left, swim to the fish and secure the shaft and fish....then surface holding both. Try to avoid dragging the fish up by the line. I try to do this every time, although I don't always have enough breath.


oh, and brain them all!

[jcjkspearfish]

Sorry to hear that. To make you feel better, I lost 5 yt in a row this summer to bad shot placement/using a flopper and applying too much pressure. It makes me feel terrible just thinking about it. Get a floatline and if you want, rig your gun up for break away so your gun isn't stuck under the rocks.

[donny]

I think that you've got the float line/reel point hammered home....

After a shot, If you've got enough bottom time left, swim to the fish and secure the shaft and fish....then surface holding both. Try to avoid dragging the fish up by the line. I try to do this every time, although I don't always have enough breath.


oh, and brain them all!

good advice, watch the best hunters and comp divers, they take off after the fish like a torpedo down the shooting line as fast as possible. basically as soon as they pull the trigger they are bolting a lot of times. sometimes you can get to that fish while they are still stunned even after a poor shot that is just barely holding before the fish has a chance to put any pressure on the spear. A good reason to not take low percentage shots late in you breath hold if you are going to take them at all. Learning how to effective grab a fish underwater is another thing to learn. It's a tough call for anybody when you see a personal best go by without a good shot or late in a breathhold, just part of the ethics of the sport and is a personal standard that every one holds differently. Keep practicing and being a responsible hunter and soon sheaphead will be no challenge to bag.

They don't taste bad and there are many great ways to cook them but unlike some fish there are also many ways to cook them that don't work out so well. If you are unsure how to prepare the next one you catch do some research for a good recipe. If it ends up inedible then that is not much better that having it tear off a spear. Been there too. The sport is a learning experience, that is part of why it is so great. Have fun, Donny

[donny]

if you don't have the $ for a neptonics floatline you can make a similar one cheap, search the board for directions. for reef diving you don't really need any line inside the plastic tube which makes it even easier. making stuff in the garage you use to catch dinner is fun. the poly rope is much better than nothing but the tangle issue is huge and well worth the trouble or $ invested to make/get a plastic tube floatline IMO. Donny

[ApneaAddict]

good advice, watch the best hunters and comp divers, they take off after the fish like a torpedo down the shooting line as fast as possible. basically as soon as they pull the trigger they are bolting a lot of times. sometimes you can get to that fish while they are still stunned even after a poor shot that is just barely holding before the fish has a chance to put any pressure on the spear. A good reason to not take low percentage shots late in you breath hold if you are going to take them at all. Learning how to effective grab a fish underwater is another thing to learn. It's a tough call for anybody when you see a personal best go by without a good shot or late in a breathhold, just part of the ethics of the sport and is a personal standard that every one holds differently. Keep practicing and being a responsible hunter and soon sheaphead will be no challenge to bag.

They don't taste bad and there are many great ways to cook them but unlike some fish there are also many ways to cook them that don't work out so well. If you are unsure how to prepare the next one you catch do some research for a good recipe. If it ends up inedible then that is not much better that having it tear off a spear. Been there too. The sport is a learning experience, that is part of why it is so great. Have fun, Donny


Nicely put. I very much agree.

I've found that this technique is the best way to handle halibut in particular. Shoot em them swim forward and drive the shaft down into the sand. Then you can get your other hand under the fish on the shaft and voila. No chance that bugger's getting away. That was my technique when I speared my 30 pound hali'. Takes some of the fun out of wrangling the fish, but guarantees you'll be going home with dinner.

[Kirby]

Going in for a fish right after you shoot it is NOT always a good idea. Depending on the size of the fish you may want to let it tire first. I have seen a few very large sheephead and I certainly would not swim down after a bad shot and grab on. This is because of entanglement. I have had very small halibut tie me up with my shooting line at the surface. If this happens at the bottom on the reef or around kelp you may not make it back to up. While I generally do swim full speed towards the fish I shot, I make a quick decision about the risk involved depending on shot placement and fish size (and I usually shoot little fish).

Get a floatline, shoot a fish, let it run, go the surface, breath, relax, (drink a beer), retrieve your fish...

[Nelson Kwok]

Thanks for all the comments . It looks like a floatline is the way to go for these bigger fish. I bought this 30 foot floatline

http://www.freediveshop.com/product_info.php?cPath=87&products_id=209

from the Freedive shop, but only used it once before putting it away. The thing caught like crazy in the kelp and every few dives i would have to pull it all the way through to untangle it. Diving in more southern waters I would imagine the palm kelp being even worse than the bull due to all the tiny little hooks they have. How much more streamlined and tangle free are the smooth plastic lines?

I've never used a reel, but that could be another option. Any opinions or preferences for one over the other? I'm using a borrowed 60cm Picasso Century now, but my future gun is a Rob Allen 70cm railgun. Don't know if that will make a difference going with floatline or reel with that gun.

[apneanaut]

Thanks for all the comments . It looks like a floatline is the way to go for these bigger fish. I bought this 30 foot floatline

http://www.freediveshop.com/product_info.php?cPath=87&products_id=209

from the Freedive shop, but only used it once before putting it away. The thing caught like crazy in the kelp and every few dives i would have to pull it all the way through to untangle it. Diving in more southern waters I would imagine the palm kelp being even worse than the bull due to all the tiny little hooks they have. How much more streamlined and tangle free are the smooth plastic lines?

I've never used a reel, but that could be another option. Any opinions or preferences for one over the other? I'm using a borrowed 60cm Picasso Century now, but my future gun is a Rob Allen 70cm railgun. Don't know if that will make a difference going with floatline or reel with that gun.
Reels are more risky - it is easier to lose your gun on entry/exit, if your reel jams, or if your mono gets tangled in your bands.

On the other hand, they beat the hell out of floatlines. No floatline material or float will keep your line from getting stuck. Sure, maybe you can pull it free but it will totally harsh your mellow and shorten your dive. Anyone who tells you they have a floatline that does not get stuck does not understand the difference. I would never use a float line up here, I hate getting tangled.

I use a $20 Cressi reel that has served me just fine. Not a quality reel, but cheap and it gets the job done.

[apneanaut]

I don't think you should live by a strict rule of grabbing at a fish immediately after shooting it or letting it run. It depends on the fish and the situation. Better practice to hold off and only take shots that you know will have a firm hold. As you get more experience (and suffer the agony of losing fish), your aim will get better.