Phil Friedman Outdoors

CNN crew films JD Ashley and other soldiers in Afghanistan firefight

Don Ashley, owner of Pierpoint Landing in Long Beach always has his son JD in mind. Ashley's youngest son JD enlisted in the army at the age of 18 and did a tour in Iraq. He recently reenlisted and shipped out to Jalalabad Afghanistan.

Yesterday, Ashley received an email from his son with a CNN news report of a firefight JD had just been in. in Bullets flying, mortars launched, air strikes and danger are all part of a day in life of a soldier in the deadly valley of Kunar.

"Sometimes I don't even want to look at these kinds of reports because I just can't stop thinking of the danger JD is in," said Ashely. "When you see and realize how close the bullets are coming to our guys, it's scares me to death."

On Thursday morning, JD said he felt so bad for a recent fallen comrade. "I just can't help but feel so bad for his family."

Ashley said he was going to keep up his hard work in the face of impending danger as firefights were a part of daily life. "I just hope I have the Ashley luck and get the hell out of here alive," he said.

This 4th of July is a good time to keep JD and all the brave men and women of our Armed Forces in mind. Without there enormous sacrifice, we would have no freedom.

Play video- http://afghanistan.blogs.cnn.com/2011/06/28/in-the-deadly-valley-of-kunar/

Oilfish caught on the long range Independence

Crewmember Doug Brink of the San Diego long range boat Independence looks forward to late night deck watches. While some deckhands dread being up all night caring for the boat and passengers, Brink longs for it.

 

As the boat drifts at night, Brink drops a bait down into the abyss hoping for a rare catch. He uses 130 lb test, a reel that hold hundreds of yards of line, and a giant 12-O hook. He drops his bait down to 400-500 feet and then waits patiently.

 

On the Independence most recent trip, Brink skewered a jumbo squid on to a razor sharp hook and sent it overboard hoping for a bite. “I caught a 125 pound opah the last time I did this,” he said. “You just never know what’s down there.”

 

After about 45 minutes, Brink saw his rod twitch and then load up; he was on. It didn’t fight that much but it took a while to drag his prize up from the depths. Brink has caught some big mako sharks and is hoping to land a swordfish someday. This time however, it was a 30 pound oilfish.

The oilfish is a species of snake mackerel and lives in depths from 300 to 2400 feet. The flesh is very oily but edible. Some people say that eating oilfish has a laxative side effect. Brink barbequed the denizen from the deep on Monday and said it was delicious and he had no sudden trips to the bathroom. 

 

Although it is recommended that you eat this Japanese delicacy in 6 ounce portions due to the high fat content, Brink ate more with no side effects.

 

Brink, who just finished up a stretch of 39 straight days on the Indy is headed for another similar stretch next week. You can bet if he gets a chance, he will be trying to catch another creature from the depths of the sea.

 

 

 

30-lb oilfish taken by Independence crewmember Doug Brink.|
Photo credit- Independence Sportfishing

 

Tropical Storm Arlene headed for Mexico in Gulf

The first tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season gained force as it headed towards the Mexican coast. TS Arlene looks like it could become a hurricane before making landfall north of the coastal city of Tuxplan early Thursday.

Petroleos Mexicanos said it was considering evacuating its oil platforms off the Veracruz coast but had made no announcement by Wednesday evening.

Floods and landslides are a major concern. Officials said 6 inches of rain was possible in northern Veracruz while some mountainous areas could get up to 15 inches of rain. A total of 13 Mexican states could be affected. If the heavy rains hit the state of Tamaulipas, they would fall on soil dried out by the worst drought to hit the area in 50 years.

The Mexican Government posted a hurricane watch from the tourist zone of Barra de Nautla to La Cruz in the state of Veracruz.

Playful minke whale caught on video in the Santa Monica Bay

Last Thursday on Philip Friedman Outdoors Radio, rocker Ted Nugent vowed he was going to kill 20 whales this year just to bug Paul Watson from Animal Planet's Whale Wars. Not too many people took Nugent's threats seriously but there were some who were very offended.

Last May, Jeff Chi and friends were rockfishing about 8 miles from Marina del Rey when a curious minke whale surfaced next to his boat the Basshole. You can see how playful this leviathan was as it kept coming back for more attention and human interaction.

Chi said it was an amazing experience and one he will never forget. He did also mention how terrible the playful whale smelled. Danny Salas from Harbor Breeze Cruises in Long Beach says he see's it all the time. "When people meet these whales up close and personal, it changes them," he said.

Jimmy Bass from Tradition Sportfishing had a similar experience in . "We had a minke whale about 25 feet or so touch our guard rail on the boat while we were sculpin fishing off El Segundo. It was a very cool experience."

You will see the whale come back to the boat time and time again, spy hopping, and looking for human contact.

Minke whales are targeted by the Japanese whaling industry. Last year, the Japanese ended their season early due in large part to Paul Watson and his constant harassment. Nugent will be playing at the Grove of Anaheim this Thursday.One has to ask if even Terrible Ted would change his mind after seeing this gregarious whale? Probably not.

 

Florida spinner shark jumps over surfer

A spinner shark in Florida jumped over a surfer and it was caught on video. If you look closely, you can see the shocked surfer turn his head to see what just went flying by.

Pete Thomas from www.PeteThomasOutdoors.com has witnessed firsthand spinner shark behavior. Thomas was in Costa Rica's Golfo Dulce where he saw several spinner sharks leaping out of the water.

While these sharks have never killed a human, it's not above them to take a bite out of a swimmer as they become very excited when feeding. Spinner sharks are fast predators that feed mostly on small bony fish like sardines and herring.

Humans as usual are more of a threat to these sharks. The meat of the spinner shark is prized for it's edibility and its fins are used in shark fin soup. Spinner sharks are an important catch of the US commercial shark fisheries operating in the northwestern Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico.

The sharks are know to frequent shallow coastal waters as this video clearly shows.

      

Bluefin move within 45 miles of Point Loma. Free tuna seminar Thursday

Free 976-TUNA “TUNA” seminar
When and where: 7 PM, Thursday, June 30^th
Hooters of Anaheim, 2438 E Katella Ave, Anaheim 92806
More info: Captain Larry Moore 714 329 3853 Captain Jeff Jones 562 704 9545

Bluefin tuna have moved in to one day range of San Diego as the "Tuna Season" is now upon us. “The fish (bluefin tuna) have moved up to 45 miles from Point Loma,” said Independence crew member Doug Brink. While most of these fine eating, hard fighting fish have been in the 20 to 40 pound class there have been some bigger. “There are bluefin over 100 pounds mixed in,” said Brink.

Condor Sportfishing was fishing only 45 miles from San Diego and just posted this on facebook. " 9 blue fin 25-40lbs for 13 anglers on an overnight trip. ita a start!!! we saw schools of bft all day long and hooked over 20!!!"

You can hear Captain Scott Misel by clicking http://tinyurl.com/3flalp2

Photo The Scientific American

To get you ready for battle, there is a free tuna seminar this Thursday at 7 pm at the Hooters of Anaheim. Captains Jeff Jones and Larry Moore will be covering it all for you.  The seminar is designed for both private boaters and sportboat anglers.  

Captain Jones will cover things like how to target bigeye tuna, fish the porpoise for yellowfin, turn a single jig strike into a good bait stop, how to slide on a school of bluefin and much, much more.  

Captain Larry Moore has been running sportboats for decades and has gained a reputation for being one of the games best. Moore will cover proper tackle, bait selection, tuna on the iron, swimbaits, and lots more.   

There will also be tackle on sale, raffles, and great food available.

Jeff Jones
Back in the 80's, Captain Jeff Jones was fishing on his dads 42' Uniflite over 100 days a year.  Many of those days were spent offshore chasing tuna.  With many bluefin, albacore, yellowfin and the occasional bigeye captured on the "Avid", Jones honed the skills necessary to get a bite on the toughest of days.  

From there, Captain Jeff Jones went on to run the successful 6-pak charter boat "RailTime", and continued to rack up good scores during the offshore seasons.  Jeff now runs private yachts and teaches owners and their crews the tricks he has learned over the years. 

 

Photo: Condor Sportfishing. First one day tuna of 2011 taken 45 miles from San Diego.

Patch fishing video update: Santa Monica Bay seabass explode!

Tremendous white seabass fishing in the Santa Monica bay broke open over the weekend when the Hi Liner and he lucky 10 passengers landed 30 white seabass to 50 pounds. Private boaters also got into some frenzied action just off Manhattan and Hermosa Beach.

 

The first halibut of 2011 on the Redondo Special was caught off Palos Verdes along with a variety of other species including sargo, calico bass, sheepshead and rockfish.

 

This Patch fishing video update also gets you up to date on San Diego and Baja tuna, La Jolla white seabass, Newport Beach thresher sharks, Huntington Beach sand bass and barracuda and much more.

 

Just click below and get up to speed on all the latest saltwater fishing information.

 

White seabass erupt in the Santa Monica Bay

 
Kevin Vanderwest caught his first white seabass on board the Tradition out of Redondo Sportfishing on Saturday. Photo credit- Tradition Sportfishing

White seabass fishing in the Santa Monica Bay was excellent for some boats on Saturday and was continuing into the evening hours for the boats off Hermosa Beach trying to catch more live squid for tomorrow’s action.

 At 9 PM, the boats were making plenty of live squid but some crew members couldn’t resist dropping a bait over the side.  The Redondo Special had three seabass, the Slammer had three, the Hi Liner had lost a couple while the Tradition had decked a 25 pound yellowtail.

 Earlier in the day, the boats had found copious amounts of live squid just off Hermosa Beach and watched the food chain unfold before their very eyes. At daybreak, Hi Liner skipper Gary Lacroix anchored the boat over a mess of that squid and the big ones had come to eat the little ones.

 White seabass from 25 to 58 pounds went on a feeding frenzy that some skippers called the best seabass bite they had ever seen. “I’ve seen some great seabass bites in my day but that has to be the absolute best,” said Redondo Special skipper Eric Hobday. Hobday said the boat was bent like an umbrella.

 The anglers on the Hi Liner were using 40 pound test, a 4 ounce sinker with a 3-O to 5-O hook and live squid for bait. “As soon as their baits got down; they were bit” said Lacroix. In most cases, the bites were from big croakers that stripped line off buttoned downed drags.

 Rods and reels were passed over and under the anchor line as the seabass struggled to get away. Out came gaffs as seabass after seabass were lifted over the rail. Anglers actually had to catch their breath, as the action was furious. In the end, the High Liner caught limits of white seabass; ten anglers with 30 of the delicious, humungous fish.

 The Redondo Special hooked over 25 white seabass to land 9 while the Tradition landed 15. The bite is best on the high tide which is at daybreak and 6pm for now.

 In the afternoon, the Redondo Special headed to Point Vincente where Patrick Friedman caught his first halibut; a 13 pound flatfish. Sheepshead, calico bass, sargo, and some rockfish were also part of a varied catch.

  
Patrick Friedman along with his girlfriend Iris Arguelles caught his first halibut on the Saturday afternoon trip on the Redondo Special. Photo credit- Philip Friedman Outdoors

 The question that looms however is whether the elusive, enigmatic grey ghost will bite again on Sunday? We are just hours away from finding out.

Sunday morning update

The Hi Liner has 5 white seabass in much slower action this morning as there are over 30 boats on the squid grounds this morning. A few fish have been taken but nowhere near yesterdays action.

Last night, while bait fishing for squid, the Hi Liner had a 58 pound seabass.

Ted Nugent Goes Off On Paul Watson On Philip Friedman Outdoors

 

 

 

Philip Friedman Outdoors has move to Thursday nights at 9 pm PST on www.AM830KLAA.com. Our first guest was hard rocker and  outdoor enthusiast Ted Nugent. We were surprised to hear about Ted's thoughts on Paul Watson and Whale Wars.

On Philip Friedman Outdoors, Nugent vowed to kill 20 whales this year and invited Watson to come to his concert at the Grove of Anaheim on June 30th.

Nugent also spoke of fat zombied kids and the need to get outdoors, the value of clean and sober living, hunting, his music and lots more.

Of course, we would be interested to know what you think about Nugent's interview. You can click the link below to hear it now.

Ted Nugent; love him, hate him, it's must listen to radio.

Ted Nugent comments on Paul Watson from Whale Wars (4 minutes)Ted nugent vs paul watson

 

 

Entire  Interview Click to hear Ted Nugent Now (may take a while to load; 18.25 minutes)

Ted Nugent On Philip Friedman Outdoors, AM 830 Thursday

 The controversial Ted Nugent will be joining Philip Friedman Outdoors Thursday evening on AM 830 at 9 p.m. in Los Angeles. The broadcast can also be heard worldwide on www.AM830KLAA.com .

 

 Nugent was born on December 13, 1948 in Detroit Michigan and is also know as the Motor City Madman. He has played over 6,000 concerts and still loves touring. He has released over 34 albums and has sold over 30 million records. He will be playing at the Grove in Anaheim on Thursday, June 30^th.

 Nugent is also known for his conservative political views and for his love of the outdoors and hunting.

 He will be addressing a variety of topics on Philip Friedman Outdoors including Paul Watson and Whale Wars, animal rights activists, his music career, bow hunting, zombie kids who should get outdoors and the importance of clean and sober living.

 As usual, Nugent holds nothing back and will be interviewed for more than 15 minutes. Some of what he has to say will shock his detractors and further endear him to his fans. Love him or hate him, this is must hear radio.