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2019: Trip #3 Thunderbird (2 Day)
DWRRC Trip Report
2019 Trip #3- 6/21-6/23- 2 Day Trip
Scribe- Gary Thompson
NOTE- It took this scribe 4 double Palomas to get through this report, so I take no responsibility for any typos, questionable facts or other representations contained herein.
Club Participants- Refer to the sign-up sheet, although there were a couple of last-minute changes.
Crew- Jeff, Brian, Steve, Chris, Goofy
As usual, this trip started a few days earlier with Ryan B. filling us in on the proposed plan and the weather. (Luke B. decided he would rather be in Europe visiting various drinking establishments as part of his family visit). Ryan followed up with updated information before the trip and we were all well prepared. Thank you, Ryan, for the great updates.
The Scribe arrived at Newport Landing where the new boat now runs from at 2:45pm on 6/21, and observed some of the usual suspects had already arrived. We learned that Hayden C. had arrived at 10:45am! Geez Louise I guess he really wanted head of the line privileges! There were about 6 of us there by 3:00pm while the rest filtered in throughout the afternoon. M. Trunk had his usual load of CLs but didn’t have one open and under consumption. We wondered if he was not feeling well, then he confessed that he didn’t want to get busted by the local law enforcement who patrol this neck of the boardwalk. Eventually he relented and popped one open, along with a few other folks. Mario Jr. outdid Trunk on the beer though. He brought 76 cans! At 3:40pm, Mario Jr. had a line in the water (as usual) from the quay wall.
One little note here about early arriving- the scenery. Since the whale watch boats run out of Davey’s, the scenery was not as “talented” on the boardwalk at Newport Landing. However, there was still plenty of worthwhile activity in this regard to ensure that we maintain all of our skills at the highest level, and observe for new innovations in “fishing”, if you all know what I mean…..
By 5:00pm everyone was scattering to their favorite haunts for dinner, most at the Mexican place on Balboa Blvd. Good food for the price. By 6:00pm, everyone was here and now just waiting for the boat. Word is SCI sucked, and has for several days, so we will not be fishing there at least for the first day. Weather forecast for both days looks very good so we have options. Oh, I can’t go on without mentioning Tony B. whining about work. Typical lawyer. I keep telling him he needs a job that doesn’t ever interfere with fishing, like my job. HAHAHAHAH!
The boat arrived around 7:30pm and the anticipated wait for Jeff to come up and give us a quick rundown on the “plan”. The plan is Cortez Bank first day, then go from there.
With the boat at Newport Landing, and Wiggy having fixed the bait receivers, the crew was able to load bait there, thus alleviating a stop at the bait receivers at the jetty. The bait appeared cured also and held up well for the entire trip. We also had about 25 scoops of live squid on board already, and some mini macks mixed in with the sardines, so we were pretty well set. After the crew loaded bait, we loaded up, and left the dock at 9:20pm. We cleared the harbor at 9:40pm. Flat calm seas and next stop, the Cortez Bank, 9.5 hours away.
While transiting the harbor, Goofy gave his customary safety speech consisting of informing all where the ice was for the drinks. Then we all traded the usual obligatory insults with Goofy and settled in for the next two days. Goofy also laid out a tray full of those little “mini wienies” and told us all to eat hardy. Needless to say, there was a bit of discussion surrounding this “snack”.
Immediately upon departure from the harbor, Tony B., Tom H., and yours truly decided it was time to break open the Jack Daniels. As such, we were now officially in “fishing” mode.
Day 1- Well at 3:45am, nature called for this Scribe, as we were just passing SCI. Too bad as it was flat calm and I was having a nice snooze in this nice ride. Anyway, Boo Boo (Brian) was in the galley getting a drink he concocts of “wake me up” stuff, and I grabbed a cup of coffee. I figured, I’m awake so that is it. I told Brian that I was going to fish with 20lb and he just laughed at me. Now why would he do that? Well, I decided to rig my 30lb as well, “just in case”. What I also noticed in the galley was some interesting “decorations” that had been installed in the night. More on that in a minute.
After I finished rigging up, I went back to bed only to be awoken at 5:30am by THREE alarm clocks going off. Good lord I thought the boat was sounding general quarters! Well anyway. I rolled out and headed to the galley where several folks were already admiring and discussing those “decorations” I mentioned earlier. Now so as to keep this report politically correct, we won’t describe what these decorations were, but we all deduced that there was only one person that could have been responsible- Trunk. That was confirmed a bit later when Trunk crawled up from the bunkroom with a shit eating grin on his face. The kind of “cat that ate the canary” grin. He then proceeded to blame it all on Andy W. HAH!
Goofy got up and just stared a bit and proceeded to ignore it all, for now. Word came down from the wheelhouse that our ETA was 7:00am. Boat was flying in this good weather at 10.5-11 knots. Goofy served up a really good breakfast of pancakes, bacon and eggs. Very tasty.
We arrived at the bank at 6:55am, on the lower end, and dropped anchor at 7:05am. A couple fish showed but no bites. A live squid was a guaranteed whitefish or sheepshead, but we weren’t there for that. On the move at 7:45am up the bank to the west. Nice calm weather but heavy mist and wet conditions.
Arrived at the 9 fathoms spot a few miles west of Bishop Rock at 8:45am. Good sign and show of yellows and large bonito. We went 7-12 on the yellows. I went 0-2 on yo-yo jigs. Both bit on the sink, and both pulled the hook after being on for a while. WTF was that all about? We also landed several large bonito in the 10-14 lbs. range. I got one of those too and they definitely tug hard when they are that big, especially on 20lb. Parks landed a bruiser yellow that weighed 41.75 lbs. on the spring scale, but only taped at just under 35 lbs. It was a skinny fish and the girth measurement was not as proportional as it should have been for its length. Thus, the low taped weight due to the formula.
We were on the move again at 10:20am, looking around the area of the 9 fathoms spot, then headed back south down the bank. Jeff wanted to see if those fish that were there earlier were ready to bite. We got the anchor down about an hour later and proceeded to catch- nothing. No boils, no bites, nada. Jeff decided there was no point chasing shadows any longer so it was time to “stuff the bags” with some nice Reds. Oh Yeah! Goofy served up an excellent BBQ pork sandwich for lunch while we were traveling out to the deep-water areas.
Over the course of the morning, Goofy had decided that the new “decorations” in the galley were most likely not suitable for their regular cliental that rides the boat, so he slowly removed all of them over the course of a couple hours. By lunch time, they were all gone. Oh well.
We fished several spots in deep water in various areas, and did well. Drift was very good in the calm water and made fishing deep pretty easy. Very few tangles. We ended up very well with a large quantity of nice Reds, some Chucks and Boscos, and miscellaneous other bottom dwellers. We also added 4 nice ling cod, one each for Parks, Ryan B., Tom H., and yours truly. And those lings were mean. Both Ryan’s ling and mine pulled drag!
We wrapped up a good fun day around 5:45pm and took off for SCI to try and get in right at dark and try for some squid and maybe a few dark evening fish. We finished the day with 7 yellowtail, 4 ling cod, limits of reds and assorted rockfish, and a handful of stud bonito. Patch and Jackpot for the day went to Parks with that brute yellow!
We did have one passenger casualty for the day that I must mention. Yours truly the Scribe got skewered in the leg by a Red spine when Chris dropped it on my leg. The spine went straight into a surface vein on my leg and it looked at first like it had hit an artery. I was bleeding like a stuck pig! When we determined it had just hit a vein, all was good. Luckily the spine didn’t break off so a little hydrogen peroxide and a good band aid, and it was back to fishing. No rest for this wicked scribe when fishing for cods!
During the afternoon, and on the way to the island, we enjoyed some of the best snacks ever I felt on a DWRRC trip, due in a great part to Ryan’s pre-trip plea of “NO CHEEZ-ITS”. We had quite a variety of chips, crackers, salsa, various salami and other meats and cheeses, and smoked salmon. And of course, the cocktail hour was in full swing with the Jack Daniels, other whiskeys, and all the connoisseur wines flowing.
We were then rewarded with an excellent tri-tip dinner, along with baked potato with butter and sour cream, rolls, and salad. All you wanted. Definitely a great meal and well appreciated. Some of us retired shortly thereafter, while others stayed up partying. My only question was- would the “interior decorator” return?
I had a premonition that I relayed to a few of the guys that the yellows were going to bite the next day. They had been off the bite for so long, they were due. Was I right? Keep reading and we will see.
Day 2-
We arrived at Pyramid Cove around 9:15pm the night before, but no squid or fish in the dark. The Cove was full of boats, approximately 40, due to a yellowtail tournament that day. What a fricking parking lot. And it was cold and heavy mist early in the morning, almost rain. The good news is we still had plenty of squid for the day. Early risers caught a few legal barracuda in the dark, but that was all. We were all wondering with all the boats, what this day would bring. And by the way, the “interior decorator” had not returned.
Not long after grey light, we got a good hit on the yellows on the dropper loops. They were all nice fish in the 20-30lb range. We threw on 18 in about 45 minutes before they quit. I even got one! Finally! After yesterday’s fubar for me, I was beginning to wonder. When it died out, we moved out to the China Point ridge. Fish splashed around a bit, Mario Jr. got one on the surface iron, and that was it. Boat traffic was horrendous. Lots of Googans in their Parkers (Captain Jeff likes Parkers- HAHAHAH!), the Islander had their kayak fishermen out, and we even had spearfishermen in the water. What a fricking zoo it was!
At 7:45am we pulled anchor and headed off to happier hunting grounds. Jeff’s plan was to spot hop up the front side and be in position by around noon at the west end. Thus, we spent the next several hours “spot hopping” up the island. Breakfast on the run was a nice plate of bacon, eggs and potatoes. But there was then something about someone asking for a burrito and the next thing you know everyone that hadn’t eaten yet was eating burritos. I’m not sure how that happened, but from what I understand, is was kinda funny. Goofy was just shaking his head. Between stops, lots of weird discussion and witty banter took place in the galley, with Goofy expounding more words of wisdom, as we traveled the front side of the island searching for conditions, fish and no sea lions. We found plenty of all three, however, fish did not want to even show. One issue we did have was it was overcast. And we know what that means at that island. As Wiggy would say, “no sun, no fun”.
By 11:30 am, we anchored up at the ridge and kelp at the upper end of Northwest Harbor hoping to get something going. By this time there was some light winds and we had a side current, but the sun was out. There had been fish in there a few days prior so we were hoping for the best. And it paid off in spades. The yellows showed right away and were eating everything. Surface irons and fly lined baits, both sardine and squid (with a very small slider) were getting bit. The bite was steady and lasted for quite a while. It was typical yellow fishing. Fish would come through in spurts, splash around, we hang a few and then they swim off for a bit. Repeat the cycle many times this day. Additionally, due to where we were positioned, we had excellent bass fishing for anyone that wanted to catch one, mostly legal fish. The squid was working well on the bass, and they were also eating the jigs. Of course, the yellows though were the prime target. Mario Jr. was smoking it on the jig nailing 5 or so on his surface iron. When it was all said and done, we put 34 more yellows into the RSW. I personally went 3-4 out of this batch. The one that got away was a funny deal. It was on for a while, got in the kelp, and I pulled the hook trying to get it out. And then a calico ate the bare hook! Too funny. I ended up 4-7 on the yellows for the trip, but should not have lost those two on the first day. Frustrating to say the least.
At the end of the day, we had bagged 53 yellowtail, and although only a few were kept, all the legal bass you wanted. The Patch for Day 2 went to Ron S. with a nice yellow, and the jackpot went to Mario Jr.’s guest Ed C. with his best ever yellow.
So, once it was all said and done for Day 2, I guess my premonition was correct. But even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.
We left for home at 1:30pm. Cocktail hour for the most part began right away on the way home. Tony B., Tom H. and I polished off the Jack Daniels, and others did there thing as well. A great Philly Cheesesteak sandwich for lunch, then it was nap time for most as a fitting end to a good day. With a smooth ride home, except for some wind the last two hours, we arrived at the dock around 6:45pm. We all unloaded from the boat, hustled for our vehicles, loaded up our gear and fish, said our goodbyes and any final insults, and headed home looking forward to the next trip.
All in all, this was a very good 2-day trip with lots of good fishing, although at times slow, and lots of fun. Especially some of the interesting “antics” that do occur on these trips. I sometimes wonder how Jeff and his crew can actually put up with us.
Final Trip Score- 60 yellowtail, 4 ling cod, a handful of barracuda and bonito, some bass kept, lots of legal bass released, and lots of nice Reds!
Some observations-
The Cortez Bank is always a crap shoot. You just never know. We had good weather, decent current and good water conditions, plenty of fish, but just off the bite. It happens, but it was certainly worth the shot we took. And you can’t go wrong with the bottom fishing.
The sea lions were being their normal obnoxious selves on every spot as usual at SCI. They picked at our baits and spooked the yellows as usual, but for the most part, were disinterested in eating hooked fish this trip. So, in that sense we got pretty lucky. We only lost a couple to them that I can recall. Not sure why at times they are like this, but we benefited by it on this trip.
Lastly, some observations about the new boat itself since I have now fished two trips on her. As we all know, a lot of work was put into the boat during the winter to prepare it for fishing in Southern California waters. And the work has paid off. Bait capacity in the four bait tanks is tremendous- Jeff estimates 80 scoops of sardines is now capacity. Also, much easier to segregate bait when two or more types are available. The fish hold is much more accessible, twice the size as the previous boat, and the same refrigerated salt water spray system. It is also shallower so fish aren’t stacked on top of each other as bad as the other boat. Fish kept very well in it.
The bunkrooms are very nice with good air conditioning, bunk curtains in each, and lights and electrical in most bunks. Bunks are also larger than older boats and can accommodate all of the big guys like me and others. The galley and dual seating areas are very nice and spacious, with comfortable seating capacity of 24 in the main upper seating area, and 6 in the lower area. The galley itself is very nice and has allowed Goofy to expand his menu options for our group. He has lots of storage space in the refrigerator, freezers, and dry storage with a large beer/soft drink cooler. And a unique ice dispenser as well for our evening libations. He seems to enjoy his new galley very much. The tackle storage is good with plenty of space, and more than enough rod holders (yeah right). The one drawback which I believe they will work on is the anchor and getting a fish around it. Definitely need crew assistance. The boat seems to take the weather well, although we have not yet had a real test, but coming home on this trip, the wind did kick up and the ride was fine. The boat drifts pretty well also.
Some items we might suggest to Wiggy to be added/improved next year. Two main priorities- a new hood fan over the grill, the one they put in is a piece of garbage. And the “monkey bar” on the cabin aft overhang. The overhang may or may not need to be cut back as it does not seem to hinder casting jigs or bait from the sides near it. Careful casting is all that is necessary. A few minor items- mirrors, paper towel dispensers and trash cans in each head. Sliding side windows in the upper galley seating area since there is no air conditioning there would be nice. One on each side.
One final thought for the club officers. As you contemplate the passenger load for next year, in conjunction with the cost increase, I suggest sticking with 20 as maximum. Both trips so far had 20 and there were times when it did seem crowded. 22 or 23 may be too many. But that is just my observation.
And that ends my report for Trip #3. Signing off. Gary T.
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Trip #8: Boat: Thunderbird 2 day Departs: Thursday October 3rd Fishing: October 4th, 5th Returns: October 5th pm Arriving at the dock a little later than I usually like to, the typical group as one would expect was all there. At this point I am starting to think that Hayden secretly lives at the landing, and only comes out of the shadows every couple weeks to fish with the club. It was overcast and on the cool side at the dock and I was beginning to regret only bringing shorts on the trip but figured with enough beer and maybe some stronger beverages I would find a way to stay warm throughout the trip. The fishing had either been wonderful or complete garbage the days prior, but everyone was hoping the optimistic that we would locate some hungry fish. After the standard, organized, boarding of the vessel we would call home for the next 2 days, we loaded up some great looking bait and off we went into the calm night. The plan was to head to Cherry Bank to hunt for the elusive bluefin. Our crew consisted of Carmello, Steve, and Jarid with Captains Jeff and Chris. It was my first trip without Goofy, and there was a calmness in the galley that felt very unfamiliar but also a feeling that something was missing. The forecast was absolutely wonderful with very little wind and a swell that was almost non-existent. After the guys all set their gear up, they disappeared one by one into their bunks. Day 1 - Friday Fishing began around 4am for some, with 2 bluefin being landed by Jim (81 lbs) and Ryan (87 lbs) just after 5am. Excitement was high with a couple of great grade fish coming over the rail, but we would soon lose that excitement. We continued to look for hungry schools, and look, and look…. We found several good schools swimming deep, but they would either disappear or avoid our bait like I avoid my mother-in-law. At about 1130 Captain Jeff decided it was time to take a break and drop deep for some taco meat. The rockfish grade was great with Luke pulling in the largest Salmon Grouper he had ever seen. It weighed in at 11 lbs, but I swear it looked bigger. We continued our taco quest until around 245 before resuming the look for the bluefin. We looked, and looked, and looked some more with zero success until dinner time. At this point, I figured if I wasn’t going to catch any fish I might as well catch a buzz. With a great dinner from Carmello consisting of chicken, rice, salad, the cocktails and conversations flowed into the evening until it was time to look yet again for these stupid fish. We looked, and looked, and looked some more. At some point only 4 were still standing. Jim, Cory, Ryan, and I were hanging out hoping to come across something to catch. We did our best to stay well hydrated, and that was about the only thing we were successful with late into the night. Of the 4, Ryan was the first to throw in the towel sometime around 2 or 230, I think... The remaining soldiers finally surrendered at about 315 and made our way to our bunks. Final count for the day was 2 bluefin and 52 rockfish. Day 2 – Saturday With a disappointing day 1 behind us, day 2 did not bring a change. We drove hundreds of miles looking, and looking, and looking. I think Captain Jeff was more disappointed than any of us. We sat around and ate what we could of the endless amounts of chips, which seemed to be the only snack option when people were shopping prior to the trip. On the upside, we had a great group of guys and some of the calmest seas that I have ever seen. Final count for day 2 was a big fat zero but I guess that’s the way fishing goes sometimes. We returned to a quiet dock, and disembarked with our snack size bags of rockfish, and headed home. Till next time, James Harris
Trip #7: Boat: Thunderbird 2.5 day Departs: Tuesday September 17th Fishing: September 18th, 19th Returns: September 20th am It all started on a pleasant Tuesday afternoon, Tuesday September 17th in fact. Tuesday is a fantastic day to get to the docks, because this Tuesday happened to be Taco Tuesday. Taco Tuesday is a great way to start anything of any importance, especially a fishing trip, two-dollar tacos and five-dollar margs to get things rocking while you’re still on land. This has been unscientifically proven to allow one’s sea legs to become accustomed to an imbalance of equilibrium, making for a smooth transition to the boat. We departed the dock around 8 pm with words of Tanner and Cortez slipping through the breeze and dancing upon our ears. Day 1 we arrived at Cortez bank around 5:30 am. After a night of getting rocked by large swells we awoke to a sea that was not all that happy to have us and not very willing to give up the fish. It was on the tougher side of things, but we still managed to scrape out a pretty good haul of fish. With a tally of 47 fish caught from good sized yellow tail to smaller blue fin from 20 lbs to the largest being 55 lbs caught by our Junior Angler Lucas Harris. Now, I believe, young Lucas learned a valuable life lesson on this trip, if you don’t gamble you can’t win. The next biggest fish, patch recipient, and pot was caught by Steve Sturm! Day 1 ended with a trip back to the bait barge because the bait was not great. Day 2 we arrived at Cortez bank around 5:50 am. As we were now a well-rested contingent of hardened sea slappers, everyone was extremely eager to get a line out. With rods in our hands and lines in the water, Bonita and small yellowtail began to come over the rail. After 3 hours of Bonita, El Capitan, Jeffe, decided it was time to make a move to Tanner. And this was well received. We arrived to Tanner and it began to sprinkle which was nice. At Tanner we caught yellowtail and smaller bluefin. The night bite wasn’t very bitey, El Capitan made a great effort moving multiple times to try and get us on the fish to no avail. Mr. one cast one fish, Mike Castillo caught the biggest blue fin of the day receiving the patch and pot. Light lines, small hooks and bait that was less than willing to be sacrificed in the belly of monsters make for tough fishing but it’s always great to be out on the water. Adios Brandon Lockwood
Trip #6: Boat: Thunderbird 1.5 day Departs: Thursday September 5th Fishing: September 6th Returns: September 7th am Trip 6 kicked off as it routinely does the usual suspects being at the dock, possibly before sunrise for all I know. My dad and I arrived at the dock around 2pm on Thursday with almost no traffic on the peninsula due to school being back in session. The weather at the dock was beautiful but we knew there was some wind ahead on the Tanner and Cortez Banks but that was really the only option as that’s where the fish have been basically all summer. Captain Jeff told us he wasn’t sure where we were going to start but it was going to be a bumpy ride out. After getting bait we were headed west. When we woke up, I was informed that Jeff took us to the Tanner Bank and was looking for fish. We stopped on a couple spots of fish and eventually got the anchor down and tried to get a bite going with no luck. Around 9:00 AM, we made the hour and 20-minute run to the Cortez Bank. The fishing improved once we got there but it was still a grind and we were soon anchored up in about 150 feet of water. The next 3 and a half hours were classic plunker bite fishing. Light line, small hooks and a hot bait would be rewarded with bites. There was a good mix of bluefin and yellowtail biting and the weather really improved from the ride out and was better than forecasted, but still a bit breezy. The final count for the morning was 14 Bluefin (8-15lbs), 14 Yellowtail and 4 bonito. At 1:30PM, with the bite really slowing down Jeff decided it was time to make another move towards the northwest end of Clemente; that would not only put us closer to home but get us in position for an afternoon/night bite on some better grade bluefin. With that being said most of the boat went down to get some rest. After the nap it was time to enjoy some beers in the sun on the top deck of the boat. Things got interesting when Bruce spotted bigger tuna splashing nearby. The crew jumped into action, setting up the kite and sending out flyers, while others used fly lines and sinker rigs. There were some standout moments: Hung, Bruce’s guest, landed his first bluefin on a dropshot rig with 40lb test after a tough fight and Kevin Kom quickly pulled in a solid bluefin on a 50lb fly line. Last but certainly not least, Rico worked the flyer like a pro, and at one point, we had two bait fish and two kite fish going at the same time. We had a close call when two kite fish got tangled and broke one of the fish off but when the first fish was gaffed the braid of the broken off fish was wrapped around it. Jeff and Scuba Steve jumped into action to try and save it. Jeff wrapped the braid around his shoulder and hands, and Steve spliced the line back to the rod, letting us bring in the fish. Our junior angler Lucas was pumped after the catch. This description truly doesn’t do it justice and was one of the most impressive things I’ve seen done by a crew. After the heroic save, we went a perfect 5 for 5 on 70-130 lb fish. The kite fish were caught by Mike Barton, Ron Shrout and Lucas, our junior angler. With the sun starting to set and a few hours left to fish, Jeff kept the search going while guys were having Carmelo’s pork loin and mashed potatoes in the galley. He told us we were going to have to work hard at it as the fish they had been seeing in this area was in wolf packs. The first few stops were quick as the fish that were located kept on the move. Slowly but surely, Jeff started to work away from the fleet and it paid off on the first stop. At 9PM the boat stopped on a school that was from 270’- 400’ and just as my jig got to 400’ I was able to get the first bite of the night and was able to boat it, but not before it swam off the gaff at 50 miles an hour with my reel in free spool. Shortly after that fish hit the deck, my dad was engaged in battle with a bluefin of his own and was able to make quick work of it. Micheal Harris was the next to join the party and got one on a flat fall with a little flashback to 2016 nights. They do in fact still get bit. There were a few more hooked on that stop that found eventually their freedom due to various reasons. There were a few more stops, but no bites and at midnight it was time to turn the boat back towards Newport and get some much earned rest in flat calm seas. The final count for the trip was 23 Bluefin (8 from 75-130lbs), 14 Yellowtail and 4 Bonito. Jackpot went to Kevin Kom with his fly lined 80 pound bluefin. All in all, the fishing was tough but as always this group of guys always manages to put a good score of fish together. It is always a pleasure to fish with this club and create lifetime memories. It is a highlight of my summers and look forward to it for many years to come. Tight lines, Jake Chutney
Trip #5: Boat: Thunderbird 2.5 Day Departs: Tuesday August 20th Fishing: August 21st, 22nd Returns: August 23rd am
Trip #4: Boat: Thunderbird 2 day Departs: Thursday August 8th Fishing: August 9th & 10th Returns: August 10th PM “In every species of fish I’ve angled for, it is the ones that got away that thrill me the most”. — Ray Bergman: The late Ray Bergman was born in Nyack, New York in 1891 & died there in 1967. He wrote for "Outdoor Life" magazine for 26 years. I am not going to bore you with the same deck foreplay that usually starts these scribe histories. Yes, Hayden showed up before dawn. Yes, guys dropped their bags and went to their usual watering holes and dinner spots. What was unique is Paul forgot his tackle box. That, I would think, would be hard to do….but he did scurry home and get what ne needed. By the goodness of all on the deck, he was allowed to keep his place in line. Ian and I have “day jobs” so we did not show up to see the morning coffee being made at Newport Landing Restaurant. Instead we arrived at 6 PM. Getting a call from Roy asking if I’m still attending the trip was entertaining; glad he cared enough to make sure I was aboard! It was interesting that when we did arrive, all the gear was on board and bunks were taken. Now I know why you arrive early; my top bunk was not the best on board. Next time I will take conference calls while watching the Ferris Wheel! As I grabbed my bunk and dropped my tackle box, I noticed an earie tranquility on The Thunderbird. NO GOOFY! I am not an old DWRRC salty dog like the rest of this crew, but in my 3 years in the Club, Goofy has been a main-stay. Always there, always giving someone sh_t and certainly taking some too. That tranquil glow graced us the entire trip. We left at 7 PM, picked up bait and started off to Cortez Bank. There was some hints of wind, but we decided to brave the elements. We arrived at the Bank around 5:30 AM and Jeff rolled us into some deeper water. We started fishing around 6 AM to a nice bite of Blue Fin. We had at least 2 loaded up consistently on that stop, with schoolies of 25-40 pounds. We dragged in 52 BFT on that stop with a few Yellow Tail coming aboard as well. Jim (6) Brian (4), BJ (6) and Saif were pretty active with nice numbers and good quality. Andy and Ryan pulled in some nice Yellows. It was good to see that Ryan could still pull on fish. His back, for the most part, held up while fishing for Pelagics. Fly line was the set-up of choice on this stop, but Yoyos and drop shots were also successful. We moved off this part of the Bank and moved to shallow water as the bite seemed to taper off as we continued to fish that stop. There were some that thought we should stay….Captain Jeff made the right decision! At 8:30 we pulled up into more shallow waters at 120 feel and anchored. We were not alone, in looking around there were at least 10 other Sport Boats in the area sitting on the same shallow bank. We moved off that anchor around 11 AM. We had to move as the boat LIMITED OUT on Blue fin with 104 boated (that includes the 52 from the earlier spot). We also bagged 35+ Yellow Tail! What was great about that stop was the quality of fish and the ability to catch YT and BFT at the same spot. If you had a Drop Shot on or you were Yoyo-ing, or fly line you were hooking up! It was an epic morning bite and one for the record books. Saif bagged 16 fish (10 BFT /6 YT) BJ- 11 (9 BFT/2 YT), Jim- 13 (11BFT/2 YT) and Steve- 10 (8 BFT/2 YT). These 4 guys caught 50 of the 145 fish caught…well done guys. (NOTE: I’m sure I missed another Big Hitter on this list, so apologies if I missed someone…I was too busy wrestling my own catch!). Since everyone had smiles on their faces and a full fish hold, Jeff moved us to bottom fishing. The Bank always shines with Big Reds and a sprinkling of other cod mixed in. Jeff let the boat know that we were headed off to bottom fish and gear up for bite. Everyone has their “ultimate” bottom set-up. I like the double dropper loop with a bunch of squid, Saif showed on deck with a large Blue Fin knife Jig. As I looked at the different rigs, I catch Mike with a dildo strapped onto his line! What the hell is that? The “tail” was long and the head would make any porn star blush. It did catch fish, but Mikey was bummed that his tail got eaten off. The knife jig stole the show as Saif brought up some huge cod monsters from the deep. I was fishing next to Paul and, on the drop, he got nailed. He was fishing a Tranx 500, so coming up was not fun; but he pulled up 2 massive, beautiful reds that put a nice smile on his face! Unfortunately, Ryan did not have a smile on his face, the heavy swells and waves did a number on his back….not fun fighting those swells with a bad back. We made 2 different drifts and brought in some beautiful fish; Reds, Bocaccio, Vermillion, and a few Sheephead. I caught a huge White Fish that I was excited to cook up when I got home. Guys who wanted to “fill their sacks” had that opportunity and we made quick time to leave the swells and white capped waves. A third drift was not warranted. We headed to San Clemente (The Island, not the beach town) around 3 PM. Night fishing for Blue Fin was off the agenda with limits on the boat, so that offered up many options for the thirsty fisherman. Some started Happy hour early while others bunked down for a few hours. I decided to nap a bit and came up to quite a happy hour crew. It did not take long to join the party, Bourbon, tequilla and many wine bottles were found throughout the galley. Carmelo, standing in for Goofy, did an awesome job on dinner. We had baked chicken with a purple rice and salad. The salad was worth noting as it was a mixed green with tomatoes and cucumber…nice alternative to the bland head lettuce we usually see on these trips. No Goofy drama with this dinner. The dessert bars got handed out and no one had to beg….I’m sure some missed the banter. Day 1 JACKPOT Winner - Roy, who edged out Saif and BJ with a nice sized Blue Fin caught during the AM bite. Congrats Roy! We woke at Pyramid Cove with lines being wet around 6. This Scribe did not see the sun till 7ish, but no harm was done…no fish landed. Jeff moved us out of the Cove to hunt Yellow Tail. He stopped at Gold Beach where Hayden and Reilly caught 2 nice YT and we picked off a few Bonito and Calico. While at Gold Beach, Alex hooked a nice Yellow on his Yoyo and brought it to the rail, it was gaffed and “controlled” but as they moved it to the stern to lift it to the deck, the fish flipped off the gaffe and the jig! Go figure! Jeff did Alex right and gave him a Boat Yellow to make up for the gaffe (get it ha, ha). We left Gold beach and searched for other spots. We stopped on some Calico, stopped to fish YT, but never found a sweet spot till 11:30. Thunderbird pulled onto “Runway” and the spot lived up to its name. We fished there for 90 minutes and brought in18 yellows and missed many more than we bagged. All of these fish were of high grade 20-30#. I was pulling on a nice Yellow when my spool went off with a huge run…quite a fish! Then I hear Mike yelling from the top deck that I was on a seal…. my Jackpot lust was lost. We left Runway at 1 PM and started to head home. Bruce won the Jackpot and Fisherman of the Day. Congrats Bruce, great looking YT! As we were heading home I was chatting with Jake intently (as you do with Jake ) on the port side of the rail. We were into a good story intent in conversation when….Crash…on my head and 50% of Jake, a cooler was emptied from above deck! Ice cold water allowed us to sober up and laugh at the “accident”…still wondering if that was an accident or prank, but fun no matter! Our Junior Angler was Rowan, Ryan B’s girlfriend’s son. Great young man who was excited to be on his first overnight! He had some issues with waves and swells, but finally got his sea legs and enjoyed pulling in a few big fish. Great work by a future DWRRC Angler! What an epic fishing trip with great quality and a crazy consistent bite throughout the 2 days. Thanks to the folks who helped me Scribe, hard to keep up on such an action-packed trip. Dutifully submitted, Justin
