2015 Trip Reports

10/2/15 - 10/3/15 Download the PDF here. Scribe: Chris Lund Club Members Luke Berson Paul Casillas Mike Trunk Chris Lund George Miller Bill Parks Murphy Parks Ron Shrout Brian Wynne Hayden Claisse Mike Zinniker Guests Steve Rauch Joe Gigante Ichiro Carl McKinley Jim Chio Eric Lund Jack Proctor Pre-Game Hayden got things started by being the first to arrive at 1:30pm, beating out Brian W. by a narrow margin. Hayden likes his tackle box in just the right spot…more on that later. Everyone else followed for an 8:00pm departure, leaving us enough time to enjoy some food and beverages at Mitch’s. The Fortune was already docked, so we were able to load our gear as we arrived. With the help from the crew it was an easy task. Before we hit the bait receiver everybody wanted to be ready to target the exotic wahoo that have been in our local waters. To be successful at this task, Luke wanted everyone to be on the same page. Luke did a great job at making sure that all anglers had at least one or two weapons to catch a wahoo via chrome jigs, wahoo bombs and wire leader hooks. The boat arrived at the bait receiver around 8:00pm and loaded up on some quality sardines. We didn’t have any anchovies like we thought we might have, but the sardines were in good condition. While at the bait receiver captain Bruce gathered us at the bow for our game plan. Bruce wanted us to be ready for wahoo by trolling marauders and having our jigs and bombs ready for the kelp paddies. (Who would’ve thought we would be getting a wahoo 101 seminar from Captain Bruce on a 2 ½ day trip.) Bruce also covered how to fish the very popular flat fall jigs for the tuna that we’re likely to encounter at the kelp paddies. The weather outside was unfavorable. Our first half game plan was to fish an area called the corner, 27 miles from Point Loma. Since we weren’t going too far that night we hung out in the comfortable confines of the harbor. It was a relaxing couple of hours while we ate, drank, and rigged up, all to the beat of the D.J. Mike Trunk. We left the harbor around midnight for a bumpy ride out to the corner. 1st Half We got the first half kicked off at 6:00am. The first 3 trollers were rigged with marauders hoping to find wahoo while looking for kelp paddies. Not an easy task with 4 to 6 foot swells and the wind blowing 10 to 12 knots. I could go through all the clichés like, fish have tails, should have been here yesterday, It’s called fishing not catching. Bottom line is, after many trolling rotations, we didn’t find kelp with anyone home until 1:00pm. We found two bigger size kelp paddies close to each other and all anglers got busy catching football size yellowfin tuna and smaller yellowtail. The final tally for this stop was 19 yft, 1 dorado. (the smaller yellowtail were released.) We looked around the same area for nothing. Then we returned later to these same paddies for 4 more yellowfin tuna. It was time to head for San Clemente Island where we would be anchored for night. While Hayden was relaxing in the galley a couple crew members decided that his tackle box needed to be safe. So with every strap, bungee cord, and tie down on the boat, that tackle box would have survived a major hurricane. After arriving at the island, with time running out in the first half, Paul C. took the jackpot with an 18lb yellowtail using a sardine on a dropper loop. It was a beautiful fall night at this off shore island for a decent pick at the calicos and a very tasty lasagna dinner. 2nd Half With a break in the weather outside, we were off to the famous Tanner Bank. The anchor went down at 7:00am and it wasn’t too long before Eric and a couple others got things started with some yellowtail. Ichiro got one of the first bluefin of the morning. Using 20 to 25lb setups, we had a slow pick at the bluefin tuna throughout the day. Unfortunately, so did the hammerheads! They got several of the bluefin tuna as well as Luke’s better grade yellowfin tuna. The only silver lining to this was that it led to some delicious sushi and poke’ for the galley. Thank you chef Murphy! The flat fall jigs, yoyo jigs, and fly lined sardines all were successful for catching yellowtails. Most that were kept were a little bigger than rats with a lot being released. Murphy decided to get some revenge on one of these pesky sharks. He rigged up with wire, a balloon and a chuck of tuna. After a 45 minute battle and some over and unders, the 300lb hammerhead was successfully brought to leader and cut loose. It was awesome to see the eyes on the side of the head staring back at us. We all called it a day at dusk and headed back to Point Loma. Total for the day was; 14 bluefin, 76 yellowtail and 1 hammerhead shark. Second day jackpot went to George Miller for his 25lb bft. A “Shrout” out to Ron for getting a real deal yellowtail! With Haydens cocktail light glowing, it was time to head back to Point Loma. We had a nice downhill ride while enjoying a steak dinner with of course a few libations. It was my pleasure to fish with the following members and guests.

9/10/15 - 9/12/15 Download the PDF here. Trip 6 Write Up Thunderbird 2 Day September 10th – 12th, 2015 Scribe: Ryan Burson Crew Captain Jeff Captain Mike 2nd Captain Bob Brian Steve Goofy in the galley Club Members Roy Patterson Bill Gardner Ryan Burson Charlie Sanchez Mike Allen Andy Woodfill Brian Upcraft Andy Sienkiewich Dave Moritz Stewart Finley Brian Wynne Paul Casillas Gary Thompson Mike Trunk Joe Stassi Bill Parks Club members began to arrive at the docks around 3:00 p.m. The first arrivals showed up to wait patiently in the heat and 100% humidity. It was pretty brutal. Early arrivers included the usual: Brian, Roy, Bill, Andy S and myself. The rest of the gang trickled in over the next few hours. While waiting dockside, Mike Thompson announced that he had a conversation with a club officer (who was not in attendance on this trip) who demanded that the club go fishing for yellowtail as it was completely unacceptable for a 10-pound yellowtail to warrant a trophy. We watched hundreds of whale watchers come and go as we enjoyed libations at the dock. The Thunderbird got back in to the dock around 7:00 p.m. and Mike Trunk got off the boat. He was on the overnight trip where he caught 4 of the 31 tuna. After the boat unloaded, the crew let us load up our gear. We had to return to our dock libations as they fueled and iced up. Some club members went into the Pavillion to watch Thursday Night Football. By 8:00 p.m., we were on our way. We were told to rig up mackerel snaggers as we were heading north for bait. The libations continued. Many nice craft beers were brought out. Mike Trunk provided the music for the evening, complete with Trunk karaoke. Mike Trunk also enjoyed a romantic slow dance with Roy for a few moments. We arrived at Long Beach harbor where we filled up on sardines on mackerel. We also put another 60 mackerel on the sabiki rigs. On Friday, folks started rolling out of their bunks around 6:00 a.m., some more foggy-headed than others. We were a few miles off the back side of Clemente where Jeff was looking for meter marks. At 6:30a.m., the first Coor’s Lights were popped by Andy and Mike Trunk. By 7:00a.m., the anchor was down and we were fishing for yellowtail. It didn’t take long for the fish to get with it. The fish were biting the fly line sardine and mackerel very well, but we were having heavy casualties due to the pinnacles on the bottom. At 9:00 a.m., we had 46 yellows. By 10:00 a.m., we had 80. The Dana Wharf Rod and Reel Club did not have a good batting average on these fish, except for Andy W who went 8 for 8 in the morning on 25 pound test. They were deep, mean and knew every rock on that reef. Dana Wharf Yellowtail Casualty List at 10:00 a.m. with 80 fish on the boat (fish caught/fish attempted): Mike A – 6/10 Paul C – 1/3 Bill P – 7/10 Ryan B – 7/12 Charlie S – 4/9 Joe S – 5/6 Andy S – 2/4 Roy P – 4/9 Mike T – 7/13 Bryan W – 8/10 Gary T – 5/6 Bill G – 4/10 Stewart F – 7/8 Andy W – 9/13 Dave – 5/11 Brian U – 3/5 Mike T – 4/6 This works out to a 60% average. Jeff really wanted to catch 100 fish on this spot. At 10:30 a.m., we had 90. By noon, we had 111 and left them biting. During the bite, Mike Thompson was enthralled to see a blue footed booby. He reminisced on seeing them in the Galapagos and how interesting of a bird they are. After I accidently snagged the booby, we were all able to get a better look at the bird. Goofy prepared tri tip sandwiches as we looked for kelp patties. We stopped on a few, but nothing was there. We continued our run home to go get more bait. Yes, that’s correct. We went home all the way from Clemente on a two day to fill up on bait for tuna fishing the next day. At 6:00 p.m., we rolled onto a kelp where Gary hooked a dorado, but lost it when it broke off during a jump. We found one kelp where we were able to pick off a few small yellowtail, skipjack tuna and 12 yellow fin; the largest of all the fish was less than 10 pounds. After that stop, we headed for the dock. Bill Parks received day one patch with a 25-pound yellowtail, which also happened to be his first fish of the trip. No cocktail light was needed. We all knew what time it was. By the time we were back to the dock, we were out of wine and liquor. A quick run was made to refill. After filling up on booze, bait and ice, we were on our way in search of tuna for day two. Day two started at the Osborne Bank by Santa Barbara Island. There were quite a few boats at the island, but we stayed away from the fleet at the edges. One of the boats around the island just so happened to be the Amigo. Fish started biting in the dark with Mike Trunk catching the first one on a flat fall jig at 5:45 a.m. The fish got with it real fast and made quick work to get our daily limit by 7:15 a.m. By 9:00 a.m., we had two day limits, plus crew limits, and were done fishing. They were mean little fish. If you hooked them on 20-pound test, you’d be on them for a while. Mike Trunk was hot with the flat fall and got six. The day two patch went Dave Moritz with his 34-pound tuna. This was first patch. Memorable moments from the trip include: Mike Thompson hooked and handed a fish to Joe S. Immediately after passing the fish off to Joe, Brian W. hooks and hands a fish to Mike Thompson. Mike Thompson fights and lands the fish and Brian W. gaffed it. This wasn’t the only time a club member gaffed a fish. Throughout the whole trip, members helped other members out with the gaffing of fish when the crew was on other fish. Bill Parks caught a fish that had someone else’s flat fall in the gill, so he was stoked to get a free jig out of his fish. Mike Thompson almost got spooled while fishing on Joe’s outfit. He managed to get a 37-pound blue fin tuna on 25-pound test after about 45 minutes. This was the big fish of the trip. If you were going to do one trip this season, this was the one to be on. Everything we targeted bit, everybody got fish and it was an incredibly fun two day trip.

8-20/15 - 8/21/15 Download the PDF here. Trip #5- 2015- THUNDERBIRD 1-1/2-Day Trip- Aug 21st It was a warm but pleasant afternoon and evening Thursday, Aug 20th as 16 stalwart club members gathered as early as prior to 3:00pm at Davey’s Locker for a 9:00pm departure on our 1-1/2 day venture to the land of the always elusive tuna. Since the boat was out fishing, we had a long wait, so some partook of the finer and not so finer brews that they brought, some of us went to our favorite local Mexican restaurant a few blocks away, and some just hung out. This trip featured club members Ron Shrout, Tom Anderson, Andy Sienkiewich, Mike Guest, Bill Hammer, Joe Stassi, Luke Burson, Paul Casillas, George Miller, Ron Rudrud, Tom Hill, Brian Wynne, Gary Thompson, Hayden Claisse, Mike Trunk, and Bill Parks. After the boat returned, got fuel and ice, we boarded up. As 9:00pm came and went, and we hadn’t left, it became known that our galley mate was still shopping for the vittles for our venture. When he got back about 9:15pm, he mumbled something about Smart & Final shouldn’t take food stamps since it would be less crowded. Anyway, since we didn’t have far to travel to the tuna grounds, no problem. Our crew for this trip was- Jeff “Fish Killer” Markland Brian “Ginger” Dunham Ricardo “Rico” Zepeda Ramirez Brian “(No Nickname)” Kelly Chris “Goofy” Ashcroft And special guest Mike “Wiggy” Thompson. We left the dock and pulled over to Newport Landing first to see if the sardines that were curing for a day or so were still there. They were and it was a good thing because I hate to think what Wiggy would have done if they had been stolen again like the last trip! We got all there was, about one tank full of pretty decent stuff and took off. We decided to swing outside the harbor and try and snag some mackerel and then we would swing back to the bait receiver inside the harbor and top off with anchovies. We managed to snag about 100 pieces of mackerel after about an hour (they weren’t biting), and then swung back inside and topped off with the finest looking 3 inch pinhead anchovies money can buy (It was a good thing we had them- more on that later). We cleared the harbor just before midnight en-route to the 182 spot southeast of Newport. Weather conditions were fairly nice going out, but in the trough left over from the afternoon winds. However it would pretty much stay nice for the entire trip, and flat as glass most of the afternoon and evening the next day. We arrived in the “zone” at about 5:30am. There weren’t many boats in the area yet, but later in the day that would change, including the long range fleet showing up. Still having a hard time wondering what those folks on the Royal Star and Royal Polaris thought of fishing next to the local fleet. Water temp was in the 70’s all day. We started off with a decent little “hit” pretty quickly for about a dozen fish on a sonar mark, and it looked like this could be a stellar day. Luke had the first bite and first fish on the boat. The fish were 18-25 lb variety. But then…..you guessed it! It was troll and look and search and troll and stop on sonar marks for nothing and dry kelp patties, the usual stuff for the next couple of hours. Around late morning we stumbled upon a kelp that was holding some fish. But they wouldn’t bite the sardines. They were smaller fish- 8-12 lb variety. Sooooo….break out the light line, small hooks, and the pinhead anchovies! And guess what- the tuna would bite them! If you could get one away from the boat, you had a chance at a bite. And then when you thought you had seen it all, out comes the trout bobbers. Yes, the float bubble type that you slide up your line. They make casting a pinhead much easier. I guess the Thunderbird boys had been doing that lately and it does work! We caught several that way. Even Wiggy hooked one on the bobber. I couldn’t do it though, too old school, but I did get 3 just fly lining a pinhead. I can’t imagine what it might have been like on that bunch of fish if we had regulation hook bait anchovies. There were plenty of fish around, showing pretty well, and I think they would have bit good on larger anchovies. In any event, after a pretty long drift, they quit and I believe we had picked off about 20 fish out of that kelp. If I recall, I believe that was the kelp we got the dorado on also, but I lost track. The scribe has failed us here. So off we go again, this time we traveled for the next several hours through the Gobi Desert, the Kalahari Desert and the Sahara Desert. Finally, we busted a move about 10 miles northwest to an area where some late afternoon fish had been seen and caught by a couple of other boats. No great shakes but a place to go look. Not long after we got into the area, we found a kelp with some fish on it and had another small hit for about another dozen or more nicer grade models (18-25 lbs). Then it was over. Our sundowner at dusk turned out to be a couple fish on a kelp with another getting eaten by the very nice sized hammerhead shark that was guarding the nest. We were very close to home so it was decided to head in with flat calm weather to eat dinner by, and tie up early. Jeff announced that those that wanted to go home when we arrived could, but those that wanted to sleep on the boat and go home in the morning could also. They would have a crew member on the boat to make sure everybody and their gear was watched over. That was a nice gesture by the crew to let us do that. We were back at the harbor around 10:15pm, but had to finish cleaning fish so we anchored down the coast a way for a while. And low and behold, another nice hammerhead came up under the light. I wonder if he was cruising the swimming beach at Corona Del Mar earlier in the day….. Anyway, we docked up around midnight. Final total for the trip was 51 YFT, 1 Dorado and 3 Skipjack. Hot stick for the trip was, of course, Luke Burson with 7 YFT. Yours truly had 5 YFT and several others had 4 YFT. Jackpot and patch went to Paul Casillas with a nice YFT that everyone was guessing was somewhere between 25-30 lbs. The crew was excellent, fun to fish with, very congenial, and the food was very good. Goofy does well in the galley with his breakfast burritos, killer burgers, and the Mexican buffet dinner was very good. Even Wiggy was in a good mood. All in all, it was a great trip, with great weather and a goodtime had by all. Scribe- Gary Thompson ps- I can still fly line a pinhead anchovy after all these years! There is a God!

7-30/15 - 8/1/15 Download the PDF here. Dana Wharf Rod and Reel Club Trip Report Thunderbird - July 31st and August 1st Anglers: Ron Shrout Ryan Burson Luke Burson Brian Wynne Dave Moritz Hayden Claisse Roy Patterson Jeff Hinrichs Tom Hill Ron Rudrud John Wilson Gary Thompson Bill Parks Ron Henry Bob Wheeler Christopher Castillo (guest) Captain and Crew: Captain Jeff Markland Captain Mike Thompson Captain Bob Melville Goofy, Cook Ricardo, Deckhand Brian, Deckhand As everyone started to assemble in the Davey’s Locker side parking area the anticipation for the trip was high. Some members just returned from a 2 ½ dayer in San Diego where they had excellent YFT fishing. That was on Monday and Tuesday. Since then, some boats got into the bigger BFT and those going were prepared, most had 50# outfits, some also had 60# and 80# bait outfits as well. To add to the pre-board excitement Bill, Luke and Roy brought raw YT and YFT sashimi for all to enjoy with a concealed bottle or many of beer. Moving to Davey’s has some benefits. The Thunderbird returned at 6:30 PM from their overnight trip but need to fuel, wash and load galley supplies. When they were done we all boarded. First stop was just outside the harbor to fish for mackerel. The bait fishing was easy, and we quickly loaded a few hundred prime size greenback and some smaller Spanish macks. Anticipation was again high as those baits looked perfect for the larger BFT. A few of us also dreamed of pitching the big macks and Spanish into skinny water to try and unseat Ryan from the leaderboard spot for calicos. Alas, that was not to be. Next stop was to meet the Pamela Rose off Huntington Beach for our supply of sardines. The bait in the receiver was poor so we went to get fresh bait right out of the nets. Little did we know that the bait was already stressed and would not fare so well the next day. Finding one with scales was a challenge. All went to bed with thoughts of big fish. Some went to bed with a buzz on from those concealed bottles of beer! We did not travel far as the plan was to start in the close area and then work our way south to the area the SD boats had been fishing. When we got up and started fishing, Bob said he ran into colder water and he turned around – we started in the vicinity of the 209 spot about 25 NM off the east end of Catalina. We fished that area most of the day, working our way northwest toward Catalina. Part of the day we were in sight of Avalon off the slide (the big quarry near the east end of the island). Now is as good as time as any to share that this trip did not have a scribe. A volunteer was requested but no one stepped forward. What follows are only the highlights because your President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary were all busy fishing and no one took notes. The details before the fishing started are easy to remember but once it was game-on the focus was on picking a good bait, casting it to the right spot, helping the bait to swim, getting a bite, fighting the fish to gaff and then doing it all over again. We collectively only remember some of the trip highlights: Day 1 First fish boated about 7:30 AM. Big fish for the morning was a ~50# tuna by Ron Shrout, no one knows for sure if it was a BF or YF (you would think we would know by now) One good stop for a good number of tuna, then many stops for just a few fish. Mid-morning three bigger models were hooked by Roy Patterson, Brian Wynne and Luke Burson Roy’s fish Roy fought his fish for an hour plus, many trips around the boat – Goofy said 7 laps; Roy lost count at 4, or was it 5? Seriously under-gunned tackle, Trinidad 20 (6.2:1 ratio), 30# line and Calstar 700M Fish had Roy at a stalemate at the end, and he was whipped At deep color Goofy, who had been at Roy’s side throughout the fight, suggested to Roy that it mightbest if he let Jeff pull on the fish for a while (Roy was beat and landing the fish was in jeopardy) Roy passed the rod to Jeff, and about 10 minutes later Jeff’s young and fresh arms had the fish to gaff ~90 Bluefin Tuna (per the tape) and a Personal Best BFT for Roy Brian’s fish Brian fought his fish for over an hour, less trips around the boat, the fish settled in deep Right tackle, Talica 10 2-speed, 40# line and Calstar 700H A very stubborn fish, stayed deep while Brian applied maximum drag pressure Fish was finally almost ready to gaff, one circle away but too deep to try….and the hook pulled The fish looked to be the same size as Roy’s….a true heartbreaker Luke’s fish It was hooked about 45 minutes after Roy’s and Brian’s fish were hooked Also under-gunned tackle, Talica 8 2-speed (this was right), 30# line and Calstar 800L (this was way not right) The fish acted different that the two BFT, still hard to lift but no long runs At deep color it was determined to be a YFT On the last large circle Luke told the crew “this time” and they successfully gaffed the fish right next to the boat, Luke called it a “do or die” shot ~60# Yellowfin Tuna (per the tape) More tuna were caught including some nice Dorado Jeff Hinrich had a big day with 8 fish – what the hell happened to him; he got real good! Gary Thompson also had an 8 fish day Total for the day was 73 YF, 1 BF and 3 Dorado Roy’s fish was the largest but due to crew assistance the JP and Patch went to Luke Thunderbird was high boat for the fleet including the SD boats!!!!! We then did something we have never done before; we went back to Newport for more bait, more ice and another cooler. We also ate dinner in the harbor tied up to the dock, which was great idea. Dinner was outstanding, catered Mexican food where we built our own soft tacos with carne asada and chicken. It was really, really good and was followed with Goofy’s brownies. Before dinner, there was fine brown and some clear adult beverages consumed and of course plenty of fine red wine was shared. We left the harbor to again meet the bait boat but this time we took bait from their internal tanks. Luke was the only one up to witness the bait loading – the rest of the group was unconscious in their bunks. It was much better bait than the bait on day 1. We then slowly traveled to the area where we caught our fish on day 1. We arrived about 3 AM and the Captains drove for hours looking for a meter mark in the dark. None were found. At daylight we started fishing but it was obvious that this was to be as different day. Day 2 The bait was much better but finding the fish was tough No big fish but a few YFT pushing ~30# More Dorado, some around 15#s More boats in the area, some wanted to fish real close to us while we drifted We worked our way up towards Avalon, then west of Catalina and then to the 267 fathom spot outside Dana Point where fish had been reported but without success Total for the day was 14 YF and 4 Dorado JP and Patch again went to Luke with ~30 YFT (We’ll forgive Luke for taking the JP both days as a retirement celebration, but if he does it again, someone might just knick his line!) We headed to Newport a little early and docked at 6:30 PM; on the way in a few witnessed a humpback whale breach – pretty special! Some observations: 16 is the right number of anglers based on what our members bring although it is tight for tackle and rod storage. Members are advised to take smaller tackle boxes and fewer rods. Jeff Markland is a hardworking, talented skipper – he communicates very effectively. His crew is exceptional. Goofy is “goofy” but adds a fun dimension to the trip….and his food is fine. Having Mike on the boat is a real plus. It is like an extra Captain and deckhand. He let Jeff run the trip and make the decisions but was there for advice. The fish cleaning regulations is a change for all, we were day 1 of the new regs. It will take some time for all of us to get it figured out.For those who don’t know, they have to package the filets, belly (including the anal vent and fin) and collar together in a single bag or tied together in multiple bags.Makes for a lot of waste. Fishing was great and everyone had a shot at a Bluefin Tuna of a lifetime. For those of you who watch the counts, there have been a couple of handfuls of bigger tuna landed since our trip with fish approaching 200#s.Go big or stay home.

7/9/15 - 7/11/15 Download the PDF here. DWRRC TRIP #3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: 9-11 July 2015; 18 Club members and guests aboard the FORTUNE out of San Diego. Excellent bait, boat, crew, weather and food. It was an outstanding fishing trip -- especially from the fishes’ point of view. Everybody headed for Fisherman’s landing Thursday PM with the intension of arriving between 5PM and 7PM. Note to self: four accidents on the southbound I-5 does not promote speedy travel! The FORTUNE was available for boarding all afternoon so all got settled as they arrived. The soul collection consisted of Captain Bruce and his crew, Roy Patterson, Ryan Burson, Ron Shrout, Hayden Claisse, John Wilson, Luke Burson, Joe Stassi, Nick Burson, Gary Thompson, Mike Trunk, Bill Parks, Brian Wynne, yours truly; and five guests - Kevin Kom, Michelle Burson, Randy Beebe and father and son Mario and Mario C. Cleared the slip and made the bait barge by 2000 hrs. David (first time cook with us) made cold cut sliders to keep the hungries at bay. The bait was good - both the ‘Chovies and ‘Dinos - so expectations were running high. Bruce gave us the safety briefing and outlined the fishing plan. Fish were close, only 22 miles away, so Tuna was the target with a nice easy run to get in the area. He did note that while fish were present, catching was spotty; some boats doing well, others not so. Friday morning gray found us on the west side of the San Diego Trough along with 576 other boats. It appears the reported location of the Tuna was not exactly “closed hole”. Bruce wanted three trollers only and at 0545 we started our rotation. Thirty minutes later, a meter mark stop and we started boating YF Tuna. Most were in the 20# range but they didn’t stick around too long. We put ten down the chute. After a couple uneventful stops Kevin tied into a nice YFT with the right gear. He put a beefy, close to 50 lb fish, onboard. At 0900 Bill and Hayden each hooked up using a bit of lead to get down to the six fathom area. YFT for Hayden and a 45 - no, 30 - no, 40 - yes, pound Blue fin for Bill. At 1545 Ron lands the first and only troll fish of the trip, a YFT. That catch closed the door on targeted fish. Bruce did his best to put us on fish, many meter stops and we ran up on breezers a number of times, but the fish would neither come to nor remain on the surface. At the end of Friday’s fishing he decided to spend the night on the water and run the “nines” Saturday morning to get us one more shot at some fish. It was not to be, we fished Saturday until 0915 but no takers. As usual the crew of the FORTUNE treated us well. David’s meals were super, mixed fresh fruit early AM followed by breakfast of French toast or burritos; cookies mid morning, stylish hamburgers at lunch, quesadilla mid afternoon, chicken breast with a chorizos sauce for dinner and ice cream to top it off. We ate well (had a bit to drink also). A few items of special note: - Gary set a personal best in ventilated T-shirt fashion. - Michelle sports a Tommy Tippy-Cup wine glass. - Joe dabbles in origami using sandwich wrappers. - Luke joins the ranks of the retired. - Set a Club record for the number of “chickens” requiring hook removal. - All the Club Officers were on the trip -- Ron caught fish. Think about it!! Final tally was 13 Yellow fin Tuna and one Blue fin Tuna. Kevin’s big tuna earned him the Jackpot dollars and Bill got the Club patch. George Miller -- First Supernumerary Scribe

6/11/15 - 6/13/15 Download the PDF here. Trip # 2 – Fortune Two Day – June 12th & 13th, 2015 Crew: Captain Bruce Smith Deckhand Cory Woods 2nd Captain Mathew Fisher Deckhand Mike (last name unknown) Chef “BBQ” Bill Armstrong DWRRC Representation: (in no particular order) Roy Patterson Ryan Burson Luke Burson Gary Thompson Ron Henry Stewart Finley Mike Zinniker Rich Dyer Ron Rudrud Bryan Upcraft Andy Woodfill Mike Allen Tom Hill Jeff Henrichs Bill Parks Mike Trunk Hayden Claisse Jeremy Patterson The trip began in typical fashion with the DWRRC representation arriving early to claim their rod racks, tackle storage, and maybe beat the Thursday traffic into San Pedro. The Fortune had recently completed a day-and-a-half trip and was tied up and waiting in its slip while the crew was tending to all the last minute details prior to our 7pm departure. Captain Bruce mentioned the opportunity to take a look around the local Yellowtail grounds if everybody was on-board. That sent Luke into action, working over the contacts in his cell phone to see what the status was for those anglers still making their way up to the landing. When the smoke cleared and the final angler had arrived, we motored off to the Bait Barge for some very thick and large Sardines. While the Crew was hard at work filling the tanks, the birdlife was alive and well over-head. While engaged in a conversation with Andy, one of the birds targeted the bill of his hat and with one direct hit managed to create a little deflection that caught me in the mouth mid-sentence… While still laughing and somewhat bewildered by what had just happened, Andy took yet another hit from the birdlife above. This time the end results only affected Andy’s hat as we decided that we were probably standing in a bad place and opted to move. While still laughing off what had happened I mentioned to Andy that it was going to bring him good luck for the trip. Once plugged with enough Dines, and still leaving space for more Squid, we proceeded to the Yellowtail grounds near the outside Oil Rigs to have a look around and see if we could make this two day trip become a three day trip by sacking a few. While in-route to the grounds, BBQ Bill put out an amazing Ham Sandwich spread to ease over the guys and establish the first of many truly delicious and above expectation snacks and meals that we would be enjoying throughout the trip. We motored around the Rigs for a little bit and Bruce saw nothing worth stopping for so the call was made to head to Catalina to make some squid. From there Hayden’s light was flicked on and happy hour was officially kicked off while Game 4 of the NBA Finals was being shown in the Galley. Once at Catalina, the crew was successful in getting the Squid to float and the tanks were filled up and ready to continue the trek to San Clemente Island (SCI). We began fishing our first stop at SCI around 5am in an area that Bruce referred to as Windmill. While there we tugged on assorted Calicos and Whitefish while the local Seal population was out in full force and ripped into a few easy meals. Mike Trunk hooked up on a mystery fish that smoked some drag, but no visual confirmation was ever made but it showed characteristics of a YT. After about an hour the call was made to seek our entertainment elsewhere and the hook was pulled to continue the pursuit for exotics. Huevos Rancheros were being served in the galley and, believe it or not, Mike T., Andy, and Jeremy began the morning with breakfast beers. (always a culinary delight!) The Captain did a little looking around and found a meter mark that was worth further investigation so we throttled back and began a drift. The drift yielded two “younger” YT for both Mike T. and Bryan U. A couple others fell victim to our good friend the Sea Lion. Hayden attempted to enact revenge on one of the Sea Lions by hooking it and proceeded to put the wood to it. In the end the Juvenile Seal Lion earned its freedom and returned to pester the next fisherman who came through. Beyond the YT, we were greeted with an assortment of Calicos, Whitefish, and the occasional Cuda. After no additional YT made their presence, Bruce decided it was time to make a move to China Point to try for some Calicos in tight to the rocks. BBQ Bill put out a plate of fresh made Coffee Cake and the anglers began to prep their gear for DWRRC-Style Calico fishing! We passed the Islander on the way to China Point. The Islander was doing a Kayak Mother-Ship Trip so a bunch of Yaks were working over the area pretty well. We arrived at Boiler # 2, the hook was dropped, and it was Showtime! The bite started out easy enough, as the DWRRC representation began chucking a mixture of Dine and Squid. It quickly became apparent that the Calicos wanted the Dine, which were really big. As the saying goes big bait, big fish, and it started getting really serious and quite on the deck as a couple of 20”+ sized Calicos began to come over the rail. Tom Hill was sitting atop the leaderboard from Trip # 1 with a 22” X 16” Calico and wore a vest containing a bulls-eye while the bite began to materialize greater and greater. Several Calicos came over the rail that would press the limit of Tom’s fish, but it wasn’t until Ron Henry had his beautiful 23” X 16.5” Brute get taped-out that the leaderboard would bare a new occupant. The prideful vest was turned over to Ron, who wore it with a huge smile on his face while the rest of the guys on deck fished hard in envy. Ron’s fish was not without challengers as Jeff H. managed a Calico that would be only a few ounces short to wearing the vest. At some point during the furious bite, Jeremy Patterson landed a 25” X 17” Checkerboard on a Wax Wing. The fish did not take over the vest, as Jeremy is a long-time guest of the club, but the catch quickly opened everybody’s eyes as to the special opportunity we were all being allowed to participate in. A couple hours into the bite and we began to run very low on the Dines. With the low supply the bite also began to fizzle out as BBQ Bill announced that lunch was ready in the Galley. Linguini in Clam Sauce with Garlic Bread was being served and you could not help but wonder if you had accidently stumbled onto a Long Range boat. We remained on the hook at China Point while some enjoyed lunch, and others continued at the rail. The Calicos were still biting as the Squid became the sole option to throw at them. With a little more time of working the squid at them, the Calicos began to increase in size. Multiple 20”+ fish starting being landed and it became apparent that the bite and quest for the vest were back on. Roy landed a 22.75” X 15.75” specimen that nearly put him in the top spot, but the leaderboard was about to see a new occupant as Andy Woodfill connected with a 22” X 17” Calico that charted out to 7.95lbs, barely edging out Ron Henry’s 7.83lbs. Andy’s time at the top would ultimately be short lived as he had enough time to give high fives, sign a few autographs, take a couple pictures with some kids, kiss a few babies, and put the vest over his shoulders. While the taping out process was being executed on Andy’s fish, Ryan Burson was hooked up to the next contender. Patiently and methodically working the fish through the gauntlet of kelp and rocks, Ryan anxiously called for the net. The net was deployed and the Bass that barely occupied it immediately showed promise of taking over the top spot. A quick review of the fish and it bore a very similar resemblance to the original leaderboard Bass that Tom Hill had secured on trip # 1. Tom of course stated that the fish was his as it was being toted over to the board for official measurement. When the measurements were all said and done, we had a new top Calico to shoot for, and Ryan had a new Personal Best with his 25” X 18” – 10.13lbs. Calico! That’s right, the double- digit mark had been broken! The Club continued to put the wood to the biting Calico’s but no other fish would be able to contend with the DD Beautiful Brown Beast that was CPR’d to be caught another day. In the mix of the five hour – forty-seven minute bite, a younger YT also managed to hit the deck. And lastly one of the Kayaker’s from the Islander thought that it would be a good idea to kick about 20 yards off the stern and right over the area that we had been feverishly pounding with baits. The bite that we were fortunate enough to experience was truly amazing, but I will let the numbers do the talking from here: Ron Henry – 23” X 16.5” – 7.83# Jeff Hinrichs – 23.5” X 16” – 7.44# Andy Woodfill – 22” X 17” – 7.95” Roy Patterson – 22.75” X 15.75” – 7.05# Jeremy Patterson – 25” X 17” – 9.03# Ryan Burson – 25” X 18” – 10.13# Many other notable fish came over the rail, these fish were the one’s that were documented on the official board. When the smoke cleared we had 7 different Personal Best’s fall: Jeff Hinrichs Andy Woodfill Ryan Burson Ron Henry Hayden Claisse Mike Trunk Jeremy Patterson In a quick interview with the Club Bass Historian, Bill Parks, I asked how he would compare that particular bite against the others that he had participated in. I was no more than half way through asking the question when Bill replied with the simple two word answer of “Best Ever!” He further justified his answer in terms of “Quantity, Quality, and Duration” he had never been in a better bite. On a personal note, I can say that “The Bite” will forever be etched in my mind and I am sure the other’s who got to live it out. The hook was ultimately pulled and we were going to be heading to San Nic Island to fish the “Alpha Spot” amongst others for day 2 with the plan of targeting YT. While leaving, the trolling gear was sent out for those anglers who still had a little left in the tank, and the Bonito were tough to keep off the Jigs. Many multi-strike “HOOK-Ups” ensued as the Crew and DWRRC representation would have races to see who could skip their Bonito in the fastest as Bruce keep the throttle down still looking for one last bite to tug on. The light went on, the bottles of wine and other drinks of choice began flowing, and a truly delicious spread of BBQ Ribs and Brisket was being served up for dinner. The travel from SCI to San Nic was rather uneventful as we were greeted with pretty calm ocean conditions. Liquid sleep aid and tired bodies made the sleeping easy! Arrived at San Nic at o’dark thirty and anchored up on the Alpha spot while the crew tried to coerce up some more squid. The squid was there and willing, but so to were our friends the Sea Lions so no additional Squid could be made. The Sea Lion population was alive and well around the island, but so to were some of the biggest Red Crabs that I have ever seen. Some looked to measure around 4” in size! Some anglers were up and at it around 4am looking to soak a dropper-looped Squid in the hopes of waking those still sleeping to the gentle thud of a WSB or YT. While on the hook and in the dark, Andy hooked into something that ultimately got devoured by a Sea Lion. It was pretty dark outside still so no visual confirmation could be made as to what it may have been. As grey light came upon us, three other YT were hooked. (Mike Z., Stewart, and myself) None of which would make the deck as they were hijacked by Sea Lions who were nice enough to at least show us the fish prior to eating them. The agony of defeat reminded me of one of my personal favorite quotes about fishing… “It has always been my private conviction that any man who pits his intelligence against a fish and loses has it coming.” (John Steinbeck) Enough geeky literature reflection and back to my “Scriberly” duties… In the midst of Mike Z’s fight with the first hooked YT, and while fishing right next to Tom Hill, Andy hooked something and began to crank feverishly to avoid another Sea Lion intervention. Andy’s technique would pay-off as he would later boat a nice Halibut that weighed out at 29lbs. on Roy’s Boga Grip. I assume you could all guess what Tom Hill had to say about that ‘Butt… Recognizing that we were probably fighting an uphill battle with the Sea Lions, the call was made to continue the search. BBQ Bill prepared a Corn Beef Hash and Eggs breakfast that, like all other meals, was truly delicious. After making a few drifts and looking around, we settled up on a spot close to the island to try our hand at some San Nic grade Sheepshead. The Goats really wanted to bite as multiple huge specimens were being sacked up. We managed to put one of Hayden’s Goats on the Boga Grip to get an understanding of size and it tipped the grip at 16#! Amongst the Goat bite, Ron Rudrud pulled up a very nice grade Cabezon. The Cabezon was by far the largest that I had ever seen, but no weight was ever determined. After getting our fill of Goats, Bruce opted to take us out to do some Ling drifting. The Lings also wanted to play and had a developed a taste for Iron. Hook up after hook up occurred as the sacks began filling up more and more. Chuckleheads and Reds continued to come up from the depths along with the Lings. Luke managed to set the hook on a biting rock that would later live out its days in the bait tank. The rock was home to all kinds of cool stuff that one could spend hours and get lost staring at. Adding to the odd catch list was Rick Dyer, who managed to nab a Wolf Eel from the depths of Lingsville. I have only seen one other Wolf Eel in my life and Rick’s was just as nasty and mean looking as I had recalled. Nobody was really eager to try and figure out how to release it, as it wrapped itself around anything it could, and bit down on anything that dared come near it’s ominous set of teeth. It was at that time that I was glad to be a paying patron and not working the deck. That was essentially the end of our trip. We sailed in on a flat calm ocean with another incredible lunch being served up of Calico Bass, Rice, and Corn. When it was all said and done the patches were awarded to Ryan Burson for his Day 1 PB Calico that weighed in at 10.13lbs, and on day 2, Andy Woodfill popped his cherry with his Butt weighing in at a solid 29lbs. Having felt like I have said enough with this write-up, I opt to leave with yet another favorite fishing quote that may help to shed some light on why we love fishing the way that we do. “The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of something that is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope.” (John Buchan) Thank you for taking the time to read my account of the trip! And I apologize not for the length! -Mike Allen