Westport Sea Monster

The rematch with the Westport Jetty did not get off to an auspicious start. The wind was blowing the bait back into our face on the bay side and the rocks were eating lures at an alarming rate. Sensei wised up first and switched to the ocean side.



The waves were coming in pretty high but the fish were more cooperative. The first catch went to Sensei and it was a 12"ish black rockfish (released to grow a bit bigger). At the same time that he was casually reeling in his fish, something larger was pulling my line back out to sea. I never saw what it was but eventually it spit out the jig. About 15 minutes later, another hard bite came and it felt like deja vu down to the fish spitting out the jig... Luckily for me, the temptation won out and the fish jumped right back onto the hook. It took awhile to pull him up off the rocks to safety but I was in shock. A lingcod is not a normal looking fish:



Even the fillets were blue but that shouldn't stop you from eating one if you get a chance. This was the tastiest fish I have ever caught and I don't expect that to change for a long time. Pan seared, finished in the oven, and garnished with a butter/chili adobo sauce made for a very happy wife. It probably made me enough points for a few months worth of jetty trips!