08/17/2026
I was so very fortunate to be in a position to guide a young person this week, along with his godfather. Hawk just turned 11, and Dan contacted me a few weeks ago to see about getting the young man out for some kayak fishing at Shelter Cove. I jumped at the chance to take he and his godson out, and from the beginning I gauged Dan's sureness about young Hawk's abilities. Along with the usual questions about seasickness, paddling experience, open water familiarity, I asked Dan how he thought Hawk would do with fighting a larger fish or having to paddle against current. Dan's confidence was unwavering, and that was good enough for me.
Leading up to the trip, I found myself extra nervous and focused in on how things would go with the fishing. Paddling with a rod under your leg on the troll is pretty basic, but a much more demanding situation like having to respond to a thresher on the end of the line quickly transforms the moment into a complex and potentially dangerous interaction. It would be up to me to devote extra time to the details of how to handle the gear when things start happening.
But wait, that's what I always do! It turns out, taking a kid out had me questioning my own thoroughness regarding how I teach and train my guests to use the methods that I show.
Prior to the trip I devoted some time to thinking about how I wanted to specifically take time to instruct and advise - on shore. It turned out that I was able to do that, not just with Dan and Hawk, but Hawk's parents Morgan and Sarah were there at the launch with us, as was Dan's wife Emily. Giving instruction to the young man right at the kayaks, with Dan listening intently as well, I could see right away that he was soaking it up. He'd already mentioned the type of reel that I use, and he seemed to have a lot more fishing savvy than I'd expected to see.
Once we got launched, I realized that it was likely true that I'd been worrying needlessly, and this seems to be a common experience for me these days. I think it comes with age...
Anyway, we launched in the face of a little south swell that was in the forecast as 2 @ 14 SW, and it was no problem. I'd told my guests about it, and I'd added that it's been a funky summer in that regard - lots of south swell forecasted, and it rarely shows up much. My guests easily dealt with some little 2' rollers that went under them right at the end of the breakwater as I was launching, and I was soon with them heading toward the moorings. I told them that on the way in the tide would be higher and that I doubted we'd even notice the south swell by then.
Maybe I should've been more worried, in this case...
On the water, now passing Pilot Rock, I go over navigation, where not to paddle, the moorings, the point... and, oh yeah, it's foggy with only about a hundred meters of viz. At this point I feel no trepidation from my guests as I lead them out into the fog. It's a nice day with slick water and only a little bump moving under us. No wind, and a few other boats on the water.
We get out onto the reef, with the ability to see land long gone, and I have the guys set up with trolling gear and line counters. Lyin' counters, I call them - because they only work for so long... Only Dan and I have sonar, as Hawk's on one of my smaller (but very seaworthy) boats - the Tarpon 120. So the plan is that I'll stay right with Hawk, feed him depths as I coach him on using the gear and responding to bites or the bottom, weeds and tangles, deploying and retrieving,...etc. Dan would have to listen in and figure it out - he's an adult, so no problem.
As we got into a rhythm with the fishing - bites, conversions, fights, landings, lost fish... I saw that Hawk was dialed in on the details of what I was showing him, and I was surprised. It wasn't just a case of a kid doing well; this was feeling like maybe the fastest I'd had someone new to this pick it up and run it proficiently - and that list is almost all adults.
The catching went about how it often does. Dan had the hot stick, landing a few blacks and underlings, and the guide put up a couple of rockfish too. Hawk got a special hookup with a salmon that I released boatside with the pliers and it was in good shape, with just one hole in its lip. We were in a position to keep working the rockfish and find some legal lingcod, but the current was showing itself to be a major issue - just like last trip.
With several fish onboard, I told the guys we would need to keep the gear up and paddle back to where we first started getting bit - a few hundred meters to the east. They complied, and we were paddling quite a while to get back. A strong current like that can be hazardous - especially in the fog.
Now I'm gauging Hawk's paddling abilities. He's doing great, but the seat is giving him some discomfort, and his back hurts. At one point I mentioned that I do have my tow rope, but he wasn't having it. He toughed it out, and as we got back over the east side of the reef the fog lifted a little and we could see the lighthouse and the breakwater, west and north of us.
The guys had done great, and I now knew that the fishing would be the easy part, since both Hawk and Dan were excelling with the methods. We discussed beaching to take a rest, but the consensus was that we would give it more time along the beach where the current wouldn't be nearly as much of an issue for keeping our position.
As we fished down the beach we found a few more biters: underlings, a nice black, a croaker... My guests knew that our main focus was a halibut, and I was intently describing how they'd need to be very aware and sensitive to light bites where they'd need to cultivate any indication that a fish may be touching their bait.
Once again, I watched with joy and now pride, as Hawk performed on a high level with the rod and reel. While he'd fought a few fish he hadn't had a keeper yet, but that changed when he got a greenling up. This helped with the back pain, but it wasn't long before that had returned. We were getting pretty steady bites, and all were having fun. I already felt like the trip was a smashing success since we had some keepers, Hawk had got to fight some fish and had done so well with the gear, and we'd navigated in fog to the outside and back. With the young man now expressing his discomfort due to his back a little more often, I didn't know how long we'd last...
He toughed it out again, and after each of us had had several bites and we'd landed a couple more this and that's, Hawk got the bite that we'd all been looking for. I was right with him - we were working the spot! He gets bit, and, as instructed, he stops paddling, pulls the rod out from under his leg quickly but gently, points the tip at where the bite came from, waits for it to develop, and as I see his tip moving he goes to set the hook! He's missed it though - just as we'd missed several bites that were likely halibut.
Did the guys believe that though? Is the guide just saying that bite we just missed was likely a halibut?...
I knew it was - that's why I'm the guide!
Missing that bite and still right there in the moment, Hawk looks at me and says, "should I paddle backwards?" Because I'd explained that you want to stop, point the tip toward the bite, pull some line for it maybe, so you could get that fish to stay interested. He'd listened to all of that instruction and come up with this idea all on his own: "should I paddle backwards?"
"That doesn't usually work", I reply.
He paddles backwards.
Next instant: he's on! OMG! I didn't feel self-conscious at all. I will stand by "that usually doesn't work" for paddling backwards, 100%! It was a beautiful moment, because of how this young, new practitioner had just improvised and diversified, and it worked!
So, no matter what he had hooked, we were all excited that it was happening. Within 20-30 seconds though, the thrill of the scene got multiplied big time, as Hawk lifted and reeled to this fish - another thing I'd shown him that he had picked up lightning fast - and a big halibut came into view!
I got the net out since I was already right there by him, and I encouraged him to lift it a bit more so it could get led to the net (guide secret!). I told him I can't reach for it with the net - big no-no. Then I reached for it...
The scene explodes into chaos, as this door mat goes ap***it and dives right past my net. I was sure the fish would be lost, but somehow all providence was on our side and the fish was still hooked.
I coach as Hawk gets the fish back up, and I'm thinking to myself, "this is a bigger fish than I thought an 11 year old would be able to handle." I'm in position but can't reach the fish again, so I say "lift", and Hawk's like, "I'm LIFTing!" I reach again - I'm desperate!
I've got it. Then it almost flies out - typical halibut move. I get the net closer to me and close the deal, and it's such a relief to have not lost this fish!
Either way, fish or not, hookup or not, the day was a smashing success, but Hawk catching that big halibut was about the best thing that could've happened to make the trip even better.
After coming down off that major high where we continued trolling hoping for the bite to develop even more, the three of us started making our way back to the harbor. We'd gotten about 6 hours in on the water, so it was a great day.
It turned out our last challenge would be the south swell. With the tide less than an hour from high, the south was booming on the breakwater as we approached the launch. I told my guys we'd wait out the set, and that didn't take long. But it turned out the set wasn't over. I got pushed in as I landed in front of the guys, and I nearly dumped due to a wave coming over the far inside reach of the rock wall. I hopped out quickly, got tangled in my own line that was on deck, saw Hawk and Dan coming with a beefy looking south swell about to move under them, and I darted as fast as I could to Hawk and helped him avoid a little yardsale right at the landing.
That sporty exit from the water had caught me off guard, and I found myself shaking a little with adrenaline after having moved quickly with that high priority. I tried not to show it, and only several minutes later did I tell Dan that it had been the sketchiest landing of the season.
Hawk took it all in stride, and for once, after a day of surprises, I wasn't shocked at all!
We got our Traditional Stringer Display photos, had a great time at the Tailgate Fillet Station with the whole family, and I sent them on their way with a cooler full of fresh fillets and smiles across the board.
Before I let them head out I was sure to give direct feedback to my youngest-ever successful kayak trolling pupil. I told him how proud I was of how he'd performed and the level to which he'd followed my instructions, and he was pleased to receive it, it was easy to tell. I must say though, I was as impressed with the way that he heard me offer praise as I was with all of his attention and proficiency earlier in the day. It was as if his confidence was baked in, and that's a wonderful thing to see in anyone - especially a young man his age.
Big thanks to my guests, Dan and Hawk, family who was there for support and to participate, and that halibut too.
The Season of Gratitude continues...
