The Urban Carp - LA's Finest Fishing?

Guide Steve Blair with a LA River Mud Marlin 2011

The Urban Carp is LA's newest fly fishing guide service hunting down LA's Mud Marlin.

Mud Marlin in the parlance of the fly fishing community are in fact carp, big fat, 10lb carp.

Make no bones about it the LA river is a cesspool, it's one of the most degraded habitats in all of the western United States and yet one enterprising visionary and guide, Steve Blair, is now LA's finest hunter of the catch and release Mud Marlin.

And his new website is open for business.

A lot of folks outside of the fly fishing community will not understand why anyone would want to fish these toxic leviathans of the deep, but to understand that you also have to understand the geography of LA.

For an avid fly fisherman in LA the closest trout waters are 10 hours away, in traffic, and it's usually a three to four day schlep to get into the Eastern Sierra where the waters are pure and the trout big fat and happy.

If you can sneak out of work early in downtown LA and bag a 10-15lb  Mud Marlin it takes the edge off that "Jones for the outdoors" that all fly fishermen suffer from.

All laughing aside the Urban Carp is a serious endeavor lead by a top class guide into a river system that is in many ways as wild as anything you'll find in the Eastern Sierra.

Leave your spray cans at home and go have some Mud Marlin fun!

Great White Hunters-Ahhh Gawd!

More of the "Zowie Kapowie" with this latest video sent in from shark blog fan Stephen from New York.

We're not sure about this latest video. What do you get when you have 40km of deserted beach, 4 bored fishermen, 12 cases of beer, and some Great whites?

The answer is another crazy shark fishing video.

Thailand Fish Cakes Anyone?

There's a big shark, then there's this critter. We're not sure which is more "concerning" for your average swimmer.

Found exclusively in Thailand these giant catfish feed an anything they can get into their gobs. Including, people.

Here's the caption:

Two Thai fishermen show off a 646-pound giant catfish they caught in the Mekong River in the Chiang Khong district of Chiang Rai Province in northern Thailand in mid-May 2008. The fish reportedly scared some tourists.

Editors note: Yeah, no doubt over a few Red Horse beers.

Australia's White Sharks-Now 20% Bigger and Lakebound!

How many times do we have to remind you that pretty much everything in Australia will kill you.

It seems even an innocent dip in the local lake will kill you with the "discovery" of a 21 foot Great White shark cruising the local waters there. If dodging Salties and Freshies (crocs) wasn't bad enough

Yes that's right, a 21 foot Great White shark.

Here's the full news report for your review and as Fox News would put it " We'll Report. You Decide"

Great white shark 'in lake

Police issued a warning today after a seven-metre great white shark was reportedly netted and freed in a Central Coast lake.

A commercial fisherman reported to police that he netted the monster in waters at a popular school holiday vacation spot at Tuggerah Lake.

The fisherman reported snaring the seven-metre shark in nets he had cast off Canton Beach, at the northern end of the lake about 5.30am today.

Salmon Futures $40/Lb? You Betcha!

Well, it has come to pass. The once magnificent salmon runs from San Francisco to Oregon are now officially gone. With a one year "temporary ban" in place...and who are we kidding here, fishermen and a 500 million dollar industry have been wiped out overnight.

The same old war horses who got us into this mess are now trying to fix it. The solution is 500 million for fish replanting and habitat reconstruction, 10 years of good will, and a few prayers of forgiveness to the almighty.

SEATTLE — Failure. Disaster. Devastation.

Those words can describe the utter loss of commercial and sport ocean Chinook seasons in 2008 in most of Oregon and California. But through all of the gloom, Oregon emerged from the historic closure with a small victory: a 9,000-fish coho quota for sport fishermen.

The historic closures due to low returns to much of the West Coast rivers, primarily the Sacramento, was marked only by a lot of angst, a few simple votes, a quiet audience and much regret as the Pacific Fishery Management Council met in Seattle to decide the fate of not just sport and commercial fishermen, but also several coastal ports and towns for years to come.

Tiger Beach Bahamas 2008 - Fly Fishermen Kill Shark

Sometimes the news we get here is news you never want to hear.

Last week a fly fishermen from the USA seeking a trophy catch deliberately hooked and killed a 15 foot Tiger Shark and brought it back to a marina for a weigh in.

Those on site who witnessed the event say the animal weighed in at 1200 pounds, and when cut open, revealed a few full term pups, one of which was put into the marina and as of last week was still seen "swimming around".

This report was confirmed by speaking with the marina manger "Peter" this morning who also added that "the same vessel was at the marina last year and caught another shark of similar size".

The crew of Shark Diver are distressed to hear of any gravid animals harvested for sport, especially coming from Tiger Beach where fishing for Tigers is like shooting fish in a barrel. We would like to propose legislation for this site to protect these animals in Bahamian waters.

Perhaps it's time for those within our community who have spent the past few months attacking Bahamian dive operations over the recent Shear Water Affair to re-focus on more pressing issues like this one.

It's a big step in leadership, let's see if anyone is up for it?

Monster Bluefin Tuna? New Zealand's The Place

The crew from TOPP's have been toiling away for the past few years in New Zealand, tagging monster bluefin tuna.

Turns out they are not the only ones interested in some of the last stocks of these magnificent animals left on the planet.

Bluefin are some of the rarest and most valuable tuna on the market with some animals fetching upwards of $80,000...for one fish!

Tuna is also the favorite food of great whites at Isla Guadalupe where the mighty bluefin were once as plentiful as sardines at this dive site.

Here's the local story. The picture features a guy who's been eating nothing but bluefin for his entire life and now has the strength of 12 men.

O.K, that part was an onion, but the rest of the story is pretty amazing, now where did we put that fishing gear?

Giant Squids - Dosidicus Gigas - Killing Off Salmon?

Scott Cassell, one of the foremost authorities on the Giant Squid sent in this article today.

If you follow recent events off the shores of California and Oregon talk is squarely centered around the imploding salmon runs. In almost every major river and tributary salmon runs this season are off by almost 80%. That's a stunning statistic.

At the same time giant squid populations are surging up and down the coast and in areas where squids were once only sighted periodically.

What is happening out there?

"His years in the water with the animal has convinced Cassell that the West Coast squid population is booming. He speculates that the animal's increased numbers coincide with a drop in its predators, tuna and sharks, which are commercially hunted. Cassell isn't alone in his belief. The Pacific Fishery Management Council, which has authority to set restrictions on commercial and sport fishing, identified Humboldt squid as one of 46 possible reasons salmon are disappearing".

"Cassell said he believes the squid are preying on the salmon, although one study showed no evidence of that. Another theory suggests the voracious squid have disrupted the food chain, which is contributing to the salmon's decline."

Clearly something is happening off our coasts with salmon being the "canaries in the coal mine". The giant squid nexus seems plausible from a guy like Scott Cassell.

Giant Snakehead Invasion!

Pulled off the Internet and on to your desktop this morning...and we're not making this up.

What you are looking at is a nasty little invasive species of predatory fish from Asia called the Giant Snakehead.

The problem with this critter is what it eats, pretty much everything in sight. Naturally the good fisherfolks in the U.K do not want this fish in their waters and were dismayed when someone caught about a two feet long specimen last week.

Here's where it gets interesting:

"Giant Snakeheads caused chaos to indigenous fish and the environment when they were found living in rivers and lakes in the U.S. in 2002. Snipers with high-powered rifles even set up watch to shoot the fish as they crawled ashore and entire lakes were poisoned to get rid of them."

God bless America, take heed U.K people, we have plenty of high powered red necks with guns willing to come to your country, drink beer, and shoot fish off your banks...just give us the word!

Florida Commercial Shark Killers Cry "Regulations!"

Suffering from one of it's worst budget shortfalls in years, Florida has come up with a novel way to recoup falling tax revenues from crumbling home sales.

"State regulators offered a voice of support this week to West Florida's boutique shark (fishing) industry, which has all but shut down after federal scientists declared several key species dangerously overfished."

"St. Petersburg attorney G. Michael Mastry, who represents the shark (fishing) industry, estimated that about 75 fishermen and a dozen seafood processors would split up about $6-million to $8-million if the request is granted."

So once again sharks are going to the front lines of the continuing eco-slaughter. This time for the sake of 25% of the projected revenues going back into state coffers. As an eco tour company that champions all sharks we would just like to point out one thing:

Florida is the same state that banned sustainable shark diving eco tours off it's shores. To be replaced,not 4 years later, with state sponsored shark killing...all for 25%.

Never Piss Off A Mako Shark

There are several reasons you might consider not pissing off a Mako Shark.

Number One: These critters are less than forgiving when it comes to those who add baits to hooks for the express purpose of killing them.

Enter a young fisherman from Australia this week (where else). Seems that he, along with his jolly crew of fellow beer fueled miscreants, failed the "How to Handle a Pissed-Off Mako 101 Class".

Shark Attacks Australian Fisherman on Boat Deck

BRISBANE, Australia – A 200 pound 10 foot- mako shark attacked a fisherman on his boat deck, biting him on the leg after the man reeled it in while fishing off Australia's east coast Sunday, an official said.

Witnesses say the shark immediately "whipped around" and bit into his right calf after he stepped on its tail. "They could not release the shark from the leg at all until they had cut the shark's head off".

As huge shark fans ourselves we cannot help but point out the obvious here. For those of you who need it spelled out here's the 1-2-3:

1. Don't fish for sharks
2. Don't drink beer and fish for sharks
3. Never step on a 10 foot Mako

Competitive Eating Champion Sets New Record-36 Pounds

Bahamas News Daily--Denny "Mad-Man" Pelkin, a competitive eater whose feats of gluttony earned him a spot in the Competitors Speed Eating Hall of World Records has set a new all time eating record on a recent fishing trip to the Bahamas.

Stunned onlookers out for a day trip to Muriels Reef watched in horror as Denny first caught a world record spotted grouper of 77 pounds-and then proceeded to eat half of the fish, live, in exactly 3 minutes.

"It's the most amazing thing I ever seen", said 73 year old captain Ron Freeman of Sunrise Charters out of Freeport, "and I seen some things in the Navy".

According to other fishermen who were there at the time Mr. Pelkin then proceeded to wash the fish down with a six pack of Grand Bahamas Kalik Beer before passing out on the back deck for the rest of the afternoon.

The International Speed Eating Commision or ISEC issued the following statement last week, "We have reviewed the video tape submitted and have verified the actual weight and the time in which this fish was consumed, it's another speed eating record for Mr."Mad-Man" Pelkin.

The following underwater Onion was brought to you by Shark Diver Always wait an hour to go in the water after you eat.