San Diego - 2 Day Tuna - New Lo-An

[gillettehunter]

Good job!! Glad to hear it went well!
Bruce

 

[SafariCurious]

Hamachi (yellowtail) is my favorite fish to eat! Congrats!

 

[Tanks]

Wow, something I have never tried as I like to do spearfishing most of the time. I will have to try it as that place is close by relatively speaking.

congratulations

 

[SafariCurious]

Wow, something I have never tried as I like to do spearfishing most of the time. I will have to try it as that place is close by relatively speaking.

congratulations

You def should, it is a of fun.

The big bluefin are usually caught at night, you drop down a big lure 200, 300 sometimes 400 or more feet down and reel up as fast as you can.

When a 100 pound tuna hits and starts swimming about as fast as a cheetah can run, it is a real adrenaline charge!

If you are an eccentric weightlifter like me, bring a big spinning rod so you have to fight the fish the whole time without being able to set the fishing rod down on the rail of the boat to take the pressure of your arms and back like most people do, haha.

If your budget allows, go for at least a few day long trip or longer on one of the high class long range boats like Polaris Supreme, the Excel, the Intrepid, or the Independence. They provide good sleeping and food accomodtions, and the bigger the boat the more comfortable it is when the weather is less than perfectly calm.

Peak of the season out of Southern Cali is mid July through mid-October, you may catch some nice fish at other times of the year, but go during peak season if you can for the best experience, in terms of highest chances of catching big fish and getting good weather.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

Boat pushed out about 10:00am. Picked up bait (Sardines).

Meatball Subs for lunch on the way out to start at the 40 mile mark offshore. Good cook (Kairi) ex-army guy.

Tried a couple kelp paddies with live bait, no takers.

Me and my fishing partner (Doctor Mike) he’s retired!

Motored around looking for Tuna. Finally located a group near dinner time. Some guys were putting out live bait on sinker droppers, but no takers.

Dinner was Chicken curry over rice, green beans, and a nice salad.

Ice cream sandwiches for desert.

Switch to jigs - Chrome Daiwa Saltiga SK 300 Grams - for night fishing.

Went down to take a nap. Woke up to the skipper’s call of “drop-em down between 200-300 feet” and as soon as I get on deck Mike is hooked up! 15 minutes later and a 130lb BF was on the deck. Of course he was using my rod and jig! I thanked him for breaking it in and congratulated him on the nice Tuna!

Action was good with multiple biters… My first drop after checking the bite leader, -nothing on the way down, but after 150’ reeling up I got my first Blue Fin of the trip! 10 to 15 minute fight. And he’s on the deck.

I catch my breath, go back in the water and as I was dropping (100’ down) line goes slack. Start reeling and fish isn’t there. Damn it… Boat moves for another set up.

First drop on the next stop, and nothing as I get down to 300’. I start reeling up slowly and my line goes tight after 75’ feet or so! Fish on and as soon as it realizes it’s hooked, he heads straight out and up. Now I know this is a good hot fish. The Accurate 2 speed (100lb braid) with 200lb bite leader is singing a smooth and steady song with this 130 plus pounder pulling hard and drag ripping. He slows, I put it in low gear, get his head turned and start cranking him in. He dives, then takes me around the boat 1 1/2 times! Deck hands are orchestrating the movement of rods, lines, and guys with fish on or trying to get in or out of the water for their chance. Bout a 20 minute fight with the fish diving under the boat and me trying to keep the tip of the rod as far outside the rail as possible, including dipping the tip of the rod in the water on multiple occasions! Exiting and exhausting at the same time. Deck hands coaching you the whole time… The BF starts to come to the strain of the constant pull and reeling in low gear; he makes big wide circles and you know it’s a matter of time. The boat lights show a chrome blue glimmer and before long you see “color” and 2 more beck hands armed with long bamboo handled gaffs hook him at or near the head! Such a relief to hear them say, “free spool your drag, we got him”! Big thud on the deck followed by tail thumps and then a quick spike to the brain ends it.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

Bite shut off around midnight with some guys still fishing till 1:30 - 2:00am… I went down to my bunk.

Next day breakfast was standard eggs, sausage, potatoes, and toast. Slow start as we were motoring and looking for signs of life. A nice paddy and live bait chum line gets the yellow tail biting. Mike lands one and I land 2 on or live bait rigs. Just tail hooking sardines and casting them out enough to let them free swim toward their destination! Nothing big, but fun! Others fill out the remainder of the 12 or so Yellow Tail stop.

The flying fish come out for a quick thaw and prep starts for kite fishing.

2 kite fish caught the first day and 1 the second day.

 

[Hunt anything]

Gotta love it when a jig stops after 20-30 seconds in 1,000’ plus of water.
Was everyone using “glow” jigs? In my yellowfin and black fin experience they out fish standard jigs around 5 to 1.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

Remainder of the second day we continued motoring and looking, but it was a slow day with a few stops and drop sinker live bait attempts.

Lunch was steak salads -perfectly seasoned and cooked filet…

Dinner was prime-rib on top of mashed potatoes with a light gravy and asparagus along with a side salad.I brought a nice bottle of Cabernet…

Desert was chocolate covered strawberry cake and vanilla ice cream.

Slow night fishing with one more nice BF caught on the jig…

The boat started motoring at 11:30pm for the 6 plus hour ride back to Point Loma. We all slept well. Up at 4:30 for a nice hot shower and to pack and sort our gear…

Coffee and breakfast sandwiches (I was full from dinner) on the way in while we watched the sunrise.

We made reservations for 5 Star fish processing and they met us at the dock, checked in our fish put them on the truck in totes, and took our final requests on package sizes. 5 Star gave us a couple hour window.

Packed up the truck and I made a call to another 6 pack charter for a future 1 day trip. Then we decided to head to Breakfast Republic for a great breakfast. As soon as we finished and were walking to the truck, 5 Star called and let us know the order was ready. Nice!

Quick stop at 5 Star and the fish were split evenly, packed in our respective ice chests, iced, and we are back on the road.

After a little LA traffic! Now we’re 3 1/2 hours from home on I-5…

If you ever make it to San Diego try Breakfast Republic and the Jurassic Bacon..

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

Gotta love it when a jig stops after 20-30 seconds in 1,000’ plus of water.
Was everyone using “glow” jigs? In my yellowfin and black fin experience they out fish standard jigs around 5 to 1.

Ha! I used glow with a black light…

 

[Hyde]

One of my bucket list trips. Thanks for another fine report!

 

[NIGHTHAWK]