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Alijos does it for 8 days, Cedros and offshore makes five-day trips winners
Western Outdoor NewsPublished: Jun 30, 2009
SAN DIEGO — The last round of “spring” 8-day trips had some great run-ins with Alijos Rocks yellowfin and yellowtail, while shorter 4- and 5-day trips continue to count on Cedros’ yellowtail to go with any shots at offshore albacore, bluefin and yellowtail.
The American Angler got back to Point Loma Sportfishing Monday morning with a different pair of hands pushing its throttles.
“If Ray Lopez was a racehorse we’d say he broke his maiden, because he came back from his first trip as master of the American Angler as a winner,” said dock reporter Bill Roecker in his report sent to WON. “Ray docked the boat at Point Loma Sportfishing June 29, after an excellent yellowtail trip (listed as the Shaker Tour) with 25 anglers to Cedros Island.
“We had pretty steady action in the lee of the island,” Lopez told Roecker at the landing scales. “We got near-limits of yellowtail. The most common rig was 40-pound line with the yo-yo or the surface jig or a flylined sardine. The 7X jig was best in blue and white or scrambled eggs color.”
A smattering of tuna, albacore and bluefin was encountered on the trip. The best bluefin was a 41 pounder, taken by Brad Arnold, while the boat was drifting near the kelp on the windward side of the island. “It is a very unusual place to encounter such a tuna,” added Roecker.
Bill Randall of Foothill won first place for a 38.8-pound yellowtail (Arnold wasn’t jackpot eligible).
Jack Purtell of Yorba Linda won second place for a 37-pound yellow, and Paul Pangburn got third place for a 34.8-pound ’tail.
Two ladies fishing aboard the Angler also got big yellowtail. Melanie Kito of San Diego bagged a 33 pounder, and Monique Dixon of Yreka found a 29.6-pound yellowtail.
Jack Purtell took his 15-year-old son Andrew on the trip for his first outing of the long range sort, and the pair got the job done on big yellows.
The Excel was the last boat to return before the American Angler.
“We saw good sign of tuna at Alijos,” remarked Excel skipper Justin Fleck at Fisherman’s Landing June 27 to Roecker, “and we caught near-limits for our two days there.
“Then we tried The Ridge, and had outstanding yellowtail fishing there. Then we went up to Cedros and had a bass tournament. Bassin’ for calicos was excellent, and we got a couple of white seabass and also some halibut farther up the line.”
Mike Springer of San Marcos won first place in the jackpot for a 64.2-pound yellowfin tuna.
Steve Meinster of Van Nuys was second, for a 63.8 pounder, and Jeffery Lenz of Huntington Beach won third place for a 59.4-pound yellowfin tuna.
The biggest Alijos haul so far this year in terms of yellowfin over the century mark came in the same day, when eight fish over 100 pounds were weighed at the Point Loma Sportfishing dock June 27 by skipper Kevin Osborne when the boat returned from an eight-day trip with 22 anglers aboard.
Seeker rep Dave Archibald of El Cajon won first place for a 139-pound tuna he got at Alijos Rocks, along with a 119-pound yellowfin.
Archibald baited a sardine on a 5/0 ringed Super Mutu hook tied to 50-pound blue Izorline. He used 100-pound Izor Spectra backing on a Penn 16 S reel and a super Seeker 6460 rod. Len Layman of Scottsdale, Ariz., won second place for a 131.8-pound tuna, and Les Harrell of Mesa, Ariz., also baited a sardine on 40-pound line, and came up with a third-place tuna of 131.2 pounds.
Skipper Osborne was up early one morn. Trying to convince his anglers to attempt some deep jigging, he had an immediate connection with a 57.2-pound amberjack. The big jack swallowed a Salas 6X Jr. jig in scrambled eggs motif.
“The water’s up to 68 degrees,” commented Captain Kevin. “It was a waiting game for us. Patience paid off, and they came to us in the late afternoons.”
Skipper Joe Crisci brought the Qualifier 105 home to Point Loma Sportfishing June 27 after a 7-day trip with 32 anglers. Bobby Gowin of Glenn’s Tackle in Costa Mesa was the chartermaster.
“It was scratchy at The Rocks,” Crisci said of the time the 105 spent there, adding “We only stayed there one day. But fishing was great on The Ridge. The water’s 63.5 to 64.5 degrees there.”
Many of the best fish at Alijos came on the kite. Since there was a complete rotation, kite-caught fish were allowed in the jackpot.
The best tuna weighed 100.2 pounds, caught by George Morales of Corona. He said he bagged it in 20 minutes on the boat’s kite rig after it engulfed a “double trouble” sardine setup.
Ron Reid of Lakewood won second place for an 86.4-pound tuna, and Bill Cook won third place for his 66.8 pounder on 30-pound line.
Roy Rose brought the Royal Polaris home from the annual five-day family trip June 26. About half the 36 passengers were kids. Many of them caught the largest fish of their lives, yellowtail almost as long as the kids were tall.
The trip spent time at Cedros Island and also offshore, where a few albacore were caught along with a couple of the season’s best bluefin tuna. The boat had limits of yellowtail, and anglers aboard said the smaller fish caught first were nearly all on jigs, while a batch of big ones caught the next day on the other side of the island were nearly all on bait.
Mike Darakjian of San Clemente found the season’s biggest bluefin so far, an 81.4 pounder that ate a sardine on a 2/0 ringed Super Mutu hook. He wrestled the first-place tuna for 30 minutes on 30-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon leader and 30-pound blue Izorline, with a Penn 555 reel and a Calstar 870 rod.
Not seen is Kevin Wyman of Laguna Niguel, got a 44.4-pound Cedros mossback and won second place in the adult jackpot.
Annie Vellonakis (daughter of well-known RP big tuna regular Stas) won third place for her 42-pound bluefin, decking it in 15 minutes after it took a sardine disguised with 35-pound Blackwater fluorocarbon leader.
The annual Thom Hultgen Memorial eight-day trip aboard Red Rooster III returned to H&M Landing June 26 with chartermaster George Daniels.
The best fish on the Rooster wasn’t eligible for the jackpot. The 133-pound yellowfin tuna was caught by Rooster regular Hans Rueckert of Granada Hills on a sardine and a 3/0 ringed Super Mutu. Hans said he had 80-pound Spectra backing on a Trinidad 40 reel and a Calstar 700 H rod.
Dave Malmberg of Encinitas won the jackpot for a 61.6-pound yellowfin tuna. He said it came on a sardine and a 2/0 ringed Super Mutu hook tied to 30-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon leader and 65-pound Spectra on an Avet JX reel and an unknown make of rod.
On his first long range trip, Chris Gault of Upland won second place for a 61.3-pound yellowfin.
Epic angler Alec Robbie took third place for a 59.1-pound tuna that he got with an 870 Accurate reel and 40-pound Blackwater Fluoro.
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SAN DIEGO — The last round of “spring” 8-day trips had some great run-ins with Alijos Rocks yellowfin and yellowtail, while shorter 4- and 5-day trips continue to count on Cedros’ yellowtail to go with any shots at offshore albacore, bluefin and yellowtail. The American Angler got back to Point Loma Sportfishing Monday morning with a different pair of hands pushing its throttles. “If Ray Lopez was a racehorse we’d say he broke his maiden, because he came back from his first trip as master of the American Angler as a winner,” said dock reporter Bill Roecker in his report sent to WON. “Ray docked the boat at Point Loma Sportfishing June 29, after an excellent yellowtail trip (listed as the Shaker Tour) with 25 anglers to Cedros Island. “We had pretty steady action in the lee of the island,” Lopez told Roecker at the landing scales. “We got near-limits of yellowtail. The most common rig was 40-pound line with the yo-yo or the surface jig or a flylined sardine. The 7X jig was best in blue and white or scrambled eggs color.” A smattering of tuna, albacore and bluefin was encountered on the trip. The best bluefin was a 41 pounder, taken by Brad Arnold, while the boat was drifting near the kelp on the windward side of the island. “It is a very unusual place to encounter such a tuna,” added Roecker. Bill Randall of Foothill won first place for a 38.8-pound yellowtail (Arnold wasn’t jackpot eligible). Jack Purtell of Yorba Linda won second place for a 37-pound yellow, and Paul Pangburn got third place for a 34.8-pound ’tail. Two ladies fishing aboard the Angler also got big yellowtail. Melanie Kito of San Diego bagged a 33 pounder, and Monique Dixon of Yreka found a 29.6-pound yellowtail. Jack Purtell took his 15-year-old son Andrew on the trip for his first outing of the long range sort, and the pair got the job done on big yellows. The Excel was the last boat to return before the American Angler. “We saw good sign of tuna at Alijos,” remarked Excel skipper Justin Fleck at Fisherman’s Landing June 27 to Roecker, “and we caught near-limits for our two days there. “Then we tried The Ridge, and had outstanding yellowtail fishing there. Then we went up to Cedros and had a bass tournament. Bassin’ for calicos was excellent, and we got a couple of white seabass and also some halibut farther up the line.” Mike Springer of San Marcos won first place in the jackpot for a 64.2-pound yellowfin tuna. Steve Meinster of Van Nuys was second, for a 63.8 pounder, and Jeffery Lenz of Huntington Beach won third place for a 59.4-pound yellowfin tuna. The biggest Alijos haul so far this year in terms of yellowfin over the century mark came in the same day, when eight fish over 100 pounds were weighed at the Point Loma Sportfishing dock June 27 by skipper Kevin Osborne when the boat returned from an eight-day trip with 22 anglers aboard. Seeker rep Dave Archibald of El Cajon won first place for a 139-pound tuna he got at Alijos Rocks, along with a 119-pound yellowfin. Archibald baited a sardine on a 5/0 ringed Super Mutu hook tied to 50-pound blue Izorline. He used 100-pound Izor Spectra backing on a Penn 16 S reel and a super Seeker 6460 rod. Len Layman of Scottsdale, Ariz., won second place for a 131.8-pound tuna, and Les Harrell of Mesa, Ariz., also baited a sardine on 40-pound line, and came up with a third-place tuna of 131.2 pounds. Skipper Osborne was up early one morn. Trying to convince his anglers to attempt some deep jigging, he had an immediate connection with a 57.2-pound amberjack. The big jack swallowed a Salas 6X Jr. jig in scrambled eggs motif. “The water’s up to 68 degrees,” commented Captain Kevin. “It was a waiting game for us. Patience paid off, and they came to us in the late afternoons.” Skipper Joe Crisci brought the Qualifier 105 home to Point Loma Sportfishing June 27 after a 7-day trip with 32 anglers. Bobby Gowin of Glenn’s Tackle in Costa Mesa was the chartermaster. “It was scratchy at The Rocks,” Crisci said of the time the 105 spent there, adding “We only stayed there one day. But fishing was great on The Ridge. The water’s 63.5 to 64.5 degrees there.” Many of the best fish at Alijos came on the kite. Since there was a complete rotation, kite-caught fish were allowed in the jackpot. The best tuna weighed 100.2 pounds, caught by George Morales of Corona. He said he bagged it in 20 minutes on the boat’s kite rig after it engulfed a “double trouble” sardine setup. Ron Reid of Lakewood won second place for an 86.4-pound tuna, and Bill Cook won third place for his 66.8 pounder on 30-pound line. Roy Rose brought the Royal Polaris home from the annual five-day family trip June 26. About half the 36 passengers were kids. Many of them caught the largest fish of their lives, yellowtail almost as long as the kids were tall. The trip spent time at Cedros Island and also offshore, where a few albacore were caught along with a couple of the season’s best bluefin tuna. The boat had limits of yellowtail, and anglers aboard said the smaller fish caught first were nearly all on jigs, while a batch of big ones caught the next day on the other side of the island were nearly all on bait. Mike Darakjian of San Clemente found the season’s biggest bluefin so far, an 81.4 pounder that ate a sardine on a 2/0 ringed Super Mutu hook. He wrestled the first-place tuna for 30 minutes on 30-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon leader and 30-pound blue Izorline, with a Penn 555 reel and a Calstar 870 rod. Not seen is Kevin Wyman of Laguna Niguel, got a 44.4-pound Cedros mossback and won second place in the adult jackpot. Annie Vellonakis (daughter of well-known RP big tuna regular Stas) won third place for her 42-pound bluefin, decking it in 15 minutes after it took a sardine disguised with 35-pound Blackwater fluorocarbon leader. The annual Thom Hultgen Memorial eight-day trip aboard Red Rooster III returned to H&M Landing June 26 with chartermaster George Daniels. The best fish on the Rooster wasn’t eligible for the jackpot. The 133-pound yellowfin tuna was caught by Rooster regular Hans Rueckert of Granada Hills on a sardine and a 3/0 ringed Super Mutu. Hans said he had 80-pound Spectra backing on a Trinidad 40 reel and a Calstar 700 H rod. Dave Malmberg of Encinitas won the jackpot for a 61.6-pound yellowfin tuna. He said it came on a sardine and a 2/0 ringed Super Mutu hook tied to 30-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon leader and 65-pound Spectra on an Avet JX reel and an unknown make of rod. On his first long range trip, Chris Gault of Upland won second place for a 61.3-pound yellowfin. Epic angler Alec Robbie took third place for a 59.1-pound tuna that he got with an 870 Accurate reel and 40-pound Blackwater Fluoro. |
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