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2018: Trip 6 Thunderbird (2 day)
DWRRC Trip 6 2018 (Two Days
- Departure Thursday August 9, 9 PM
Fishing August 10th and 11th
Condensed version:
- 17 Anglers
- Tanner and SCI:
- 33 BFT
- 13 YT
- 1 Goat
- Bunch of Calico’s
- JP: Day 1 Jeff, Day 2 Cody.
Slightly longer rambling on version: (Beer required)
This is the much-anticipated trip following the larger-than-life trip 5 where personal best records were topped like the record heat wave records occurring all around us in Southern California.
Themes for this trip:
- Fish or get off the pot
- Lessons learned
- Snacks – Cheez-It
- Ronco
The line up was a cast of formidable anglers capable of catching fish in a single cast. Look up in the sky, It’s a bird, it’s a bait. Splat. It’s a bird.
Stewart, Steve S, B J, Bill (Parks), Ryan, Luke, Cody, Filling in for toe injured Roy – Brian W, Chris (Jr), Jeff, Paul C, Gary T, Ron Rudrud, Chris L, Super Mario, Andy (D & B Skelton Key) and Tim Schneider.
Guest angler for a second year was Gavin. That kid is now taller than Super Mario.
The crew was Captain Jeff at the helm, second Brian, Chris (AKA Goofy), Steve, Rico and youngster Walker.
The buzz leading up to the cast off was fast and furious. Luke and others peppering us with emails and texts of fishing conditions by the Thunderbird and others leading up to the day of departure.
Sea conditions were forecasted to be a rising swell due to storm activity further south. Swells to 10 feet with 10 to 35 knot winds. Don’t believe any of this, I made this stuff up. Gotta keep the fleet away.
Two days leading up to this trip, Luke sent out announcement to be at the dock and ready to board at 7 PM. All were to respond with, I will be there by 7 PM. That meant all gear in line, parked, fed, beered up, socialized, pottied, etc. All confirmed as requested.
Upon arrival I recognized a familiar pattern.
Brian W and Gary T front of the queue followed closely by Ryan, Luke and Bill.
This goes along with one of the themes for this trip. Fish or get off the pot. There is a distinct dedication that goes into being prepared and ready and being at the front of this line. These are the guys that make it there almost always without fail. Planning, dedication, instincts, knowledge and desire all go into being ready when that small window of opportunity presents itself out on the water. Yes, luck also plays into it, however these guys have the skills and make their own luck.
As the crowd gathered, greetings were made like a scene from Cheers when Norm showed up.
AN-DEEE. Beers passed out, greetings, questions about gear, trip 5, how many hooks on a flat fall is too many. Nobody knows.
The buzz was on and everyone was getting in a lather to be on the water.
This is one of the things I look forward to on these trips. The dynamics of this gathering at the dock with the different individuals all with a common thread. And a boat load of gear. I consider myself as being extremely fortunate to be part of this elite club. This camaraderie is a part of my life I am grateful for.
As seven o clock was looming, most went out to forage for a meal and returned, belly full of seafood or Mexican food and cerveza’s. As often occurs when we arrive for early departure, that hour comes and goes without sign of the boat.
Eerily, smoke from the Holy fire was a cloud that obscured the sun, and just stopped as if against an invisible wall just off the coast. It kept the weather a bit cooler and reminded us of where we live. In a desert prone to burning.
The Thunderbird rolled in after 8 and was in process of making a Southwest Airlines turn around in 40 minutes or less.
Jeff briefed us on action for the day and that we would be targeting Tanner and possible Cortes. He did not want to be too far away from SCI as big tuna was the word for late Friday afternoon. Tanner bank, light lines and small hooks. 20 lb. line with fluorocarbon. Football BFT to 15 pounds and Yellowtail to 20. Jeff said he had a good supply of cured sardines waiting for us. He was spot on the money about the bait. Then he said something along the lines of, we will catch fish, or not. He a funny guy.
A very high tide as we walked up hill onto the dock to board about 8:45 and pulled away from the dock as the galley was being restocked. As we were finding our coveted spots for tackle and rods, our attention was brought back to the local events as long walls of flame from the Holy fire were visible. A somber feeling. This brought words of how bad this fire really was and the deranged person who intentionally set this fire. A-hole.
Off to the bait store for three well stocked bait tanks of healthy looking sardines with a smattering of mackerel. As we left the bait receiver, it was difficult to notice we left the harbor as the seas were very flat. We will take it while we can. Goofy did the safety drill, and those of us still rigging completed our task at hand to be ready for the morning festivities. A less bouncy night of rest for all. Albeit a warm one.
Super Mario was trolling as we approached tanner bank and was on a quest to drink a boat load of beer in two days. 6:45 when the anchor dropped. Seas still very calm, warm and no breeze. Fish were to be caught, or not. Excellent bait. Lots of life, most swam away from the boat or were pulled away by the current.
When they were trying, Jeff M and second Brian K were on fire. Jeff was hooking and handing off BFT’s. Then I noticed they were using special sardines. What tank were these smaller bait coming from?
Slow action on the fish. Tough to get bit. Some went down to 15 lb. line. I heard number 4 hooks were the ticket. (Thank you Ron) I was surprised to land a nice fork tail with such a small hook. Lots of dog activity. Then the frigging shearwaters got worse and worse. Them buggers can dive. Nose hook, butt hook. They found the bait and got hooked. When the bird to fish ratio got ridiculous, Jeff pulled the hook and moved a short distance in hopes the dogs and birds would focus on the Freedom close by.
That slightly worked and was short lived.
All told, stop 1 yielded 21 BFT, 11 YT
Stop 2, 3 BFT and 2 YT and a goat.
One thing to note, for all the dog activity, we did not loose a hooked fish to the sea lions. A very welcome change. With Cortes out of the picture, the decision was then made to run to SCI for the late afternoon tuna activities. Time to rig for the SCI monsters and time for more slumber. I heard lunch was served.
Total count at this time.
24 BFT, 13 YT and 1 goat
Yours truly got that goat on a butt hooked sardine as we were ready to pull away. Bizarre.
Still calm seas and still warm.
Dinner was to be served at 5:30 to 6:00-ish to make sure were all fed before the evening activities commenced. Ham steaks, au gratin potatoes, salads and fix-ins. A fine wine selection also provided by club members.
Many of us for the first sitting as there were many who wanted to be on first on the rail when we started fishing the flat falls. After an hour or so, creeping up on twilight, no bites yet. Lots of metered fish. Gary switched to fishing bait, hoping to hook a smaller fish (you know, 80 or 90 pounds).
I stopped in the galley for a break and a mint Klondike Bar. Delicious. Thank you Goofy.
Back to the rail. We were in 1900 feet (meters?) of water. Jeff is calling out the schools and depth as they swam under us. It is now dark. Fish at 180 feet. Fish at 120 feet. There are some big fish in there.
I have no clue as to how deep my flat fall was. I bring it to the surface, let it out in with minimal drag, and thumb it to prevent backlash. As I was making my way along the port rail, Gary yelled from the galley, “Hey Jeffy, catch one”. Within a few short moments, my flat fall stops. I announce “I have hit bottom”. A little more movement, it stops again, “I have hit bottom” goes out again. Move the lever to strike, wind in the slack, and then it was holy sheep shit Batman, this might be a big tuna. As it was taking more line, my thoughts gravitated towards “This is going to take a while. A long, long while”. Then I heard Chris Jr announce, he hit bottom. Yes!! He was on. Two monsters of the SCI hanging. A while later, I heard something no one ever wants to hear. Chris was no longer on his fish. Then something about “Rico, you got some splaining to do”. I recall having to go over the bow once, then several trips bow to stern, port to starboard. Great job on all fellow anglers and crew to keep us untangled. Rico became my guide and amigo for the remainder of the battle. This was not a pretty sight as I attempted to use the gimbal in my fighting belt to control the twisting of the reel as I wound in. I did not think anything would fall down below my fat ass. However, the belt on my fighting belt did. This fish went slack more than once as it was swimming towards the boat. I would make some progress only to have this beast take more than I gained. Rico is pulling line in while I was reeling. Everyone was very supportive during this fight. Getting me to slow down, letting me know I had the best crew there is on this. This calmed me down. Chris thank you for the drink of water and pouring it on me. After being on this fish for what seems like an hour, about 60 feet off the port stern, this fish explodes on the surface. Slack line. Reel, reel, reel like crazy. Tight line again. Still there. Still not on mono yet. Get to mono, only to see it go back out and then some. Set a little more drag, and able to make headway. I told Rico he tied the Fluorocarbon top shot to the spectra on the previous trip I was on. He was now very nervous after hearing this bit of info and wanted to get to the top shot. Finally get to deep color. Making the final circles, then it was one last lift and on to the gaffs. Four gaffs and it was over the rail and on the deck. Wow. What a beautiful fish. A fish of a lifetime, in Southern California waters off of San Clemente Island. Wow. Frigging Wow!
This cow taped out at 219 pounds.
Jeff was back on the move as we drifted off the school during my battle.
The fish were located, and once again, the rails were lined with flat falls a falling.
I was done, however I was encouraged to try again. No, I was done. I stayed up until around midnight rails still lined with anglers. Chris L asked me to touch his reel as I was making a last round. Didn’t help.
2:30 AM. Super Mario was the only one still fishing.
First at Tanner, last at this time at SCI. He said the others had just gone to bed. I asked him what he was going to do if he hooked one. He said Luke told him to start yelling and someone would show up. Back to bed.
Commotion at 4 AM. When I went top side, Bill informed me I could go back to sleep.
While I slumbered I missed out on: Luke put on a clinic brining in a 200 pounder in at 35 minutes, Paul wrestle in a 140 pounder (he has practice), Brian W, B J, Stewart and Super Mario land some sizable BFT. Chris Jr was on again. He had the right gear, and the tackle was holding. This was a big fish. This tuna must have been Nemo-ish with one whacked out fin, as it was making ridiculously large circles. Deep color, precariously close to the boat on the circles. A few more circles to go to gaff. Then the worst happened. The fish went under the boat, got onto the screws and was gone. I was so heart broken for Chris. I could see and feel the disappointment and frustration. He did everything possible to boat this fish. This really sucks.
About 5:30-ish Cody and Gavin hooked up. This was to be the last hook up on BFT for this trip. Cody and Gavin were looping the boat and passing each other then settled into their perspective corners. Chris was doing everything to encourage Cody. Got into his line, nudging him with his foot and floated a pinched loaf past him at the rail. Fatherly love and encouragement.
These were going to be long battles as they both had identical rigs of 80 spectra and 80 lb. top shot. After several runs and painfully slow progress, Cody was first to boat after 2 ½ hours.
Another cow. Taped at 216 pounds. 2 hours 24 minutes longer than it took Cody to bring in a suicidal 232 pound cow on trip 5. Let’s see, that averages at 1 hour and 18 minutes per tuna. That’s about par. Pictures with the catch. Goofy was his co-holder. Let’s leave it at that.
I heard Chris say he was now going to be referred to as Cody’s dad.
Gavin brought his fish to the boat three hours after he started. That was an epic journey.
188 pound BFT. Pictures of Gavin with dad (Steve) and his catch. A proud moment for father and son.
This is the second trip in a row where personal best records were topped.
Luke - 200 pound BFT.
Jeffy - 219 pound BFT.
Gavin - 188 pound BFT.
Congratulations and well earned.
Now to the island in search of calicos. Kelp cutters in hand, we set anchor at the edge of a kelp forest with decent current, and quite a few willing participants on sardines, plastics and mackerel.
After a fair amount caught and released, the dogs pushed us to move.
Second stop not so many willing to play.
Third and final stop, jackpot. Fish boiling and a decent bite going on. Burning through bait fast.
Several nice keeper size to rail, let go to swim another day. Great stop for another great trip for DWRRC.
Pulled the hook and heading for home.
Fish count:
Day 1
25 BFT, 13 YT, 1 goat.
Jeffy, 219 lbs. BFT (Personal best – 1 hour 20 minutes to boat - line 100/100/180) JP day 1
Day 2
8 BFT
Cody, 216 lbs. (2 ½ hours – line 80/80) JP day 2
Luke, 200 lbs. (Personal best – 35 minutes – line 100/100/200)
Gavin, 188 lbs. (Personal Best – 3 hours – line 80/80)
Paul C, 140 lbs.
B J, 70 lbs. (10 minutes – line 100 mono)
Stewart, 85 lbs. (20 minutes – line 100/100)
Super Mario, 90 lbs. (Super stoked – 1st one on a flat fall)
Brian W, 95 pounds (or with adjustments and rounding up, 125 lbs. 😊)
A bunch of Calicos with sore lips.
Now for the Ronco moment. But wait, there’s more.
Several miles off of the island, the swell was picking up with the winds increasing.
Except for clear skies, it was starting to look like tuna conditions.
Jeff asked Rico if he wanted to catch a 200 pounder on the gummy flier?
Kite went up, gummy flier splashing.
Luke, Andy and Paul were ready with their surface irons.
A Western Outdoor News moment was occurring ahead of us.
½ mile ahead, several hundred yards long was a line of crashing tuna. Some of these were huge. Multiple explosions at the same time. This went on for several minutes. Crashing fish everywhere.
As we closed in, we could see flying fish were involved in this action.
A few crashed close by, but out of reach.
As we got closer, the action fizzled. The gummy had come loose from the kite and the irons were ignored. Time to head on in.
Lessons learned:
Set drags ahead of time with a scale. Check again if you suspect it has changed.
Line that is not frayed after several fish has lost all stretch and prone to breakage
Always keep one rod and reel ready on the way in.
Reach out. You will find a home for your surplus fish
Fish or get off the pot:
Split ring pliers, 280 pound split rings, 3 to 4 hours arranging the chandelier of top hooks on the flat fall until just right look and sound. Jingle jingle.
Listening to Hogan’s staff. 11-0 hooks made the difference for the flat fall.
Personally, I now have a Shimano Teramar TMC-90H (sorry, Chris L.) paired with a Shimano Trinidad 16 N (Toriums are on backorder) on a Tiburon seat with 50 pound red spectra. Wow, it is truly fun to fish for calicos this way.
Ryan, Gary and Ron H, your fish still hold top honors. Three more trips to go.
Thank you to all who have mentored me over the years.
It is truly appreciated to get me where I am. I have a long way to go.
See you on trip 9.
Jeffy
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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
