BY GUNDY GUNDERSON
Special to Western Outdoor News
SAN DIEGO– Like a dog with a bone, the long range fleet held on to a first-class bluefin bite that continues to produce excellent catches of quality fish. The bite shifted from night to day to night again. But however you slice it, the fishing was good on school grade fish to go with good numbers of trophies to 238-pounds. Meanwhile, the Independence departed on a season first 8-day and the Rooster traveled down to the cow grounds for the first long trip in weeks.
Indy finds yellows
The Independence was traveling southbound on a spring 8-day trip. These spring trips are known for the excellent yellowtail fishing. The boat sent this report on the second day of fishing, “We had another great day yellowtailing yesterday that started in the early hours of the morning. The hot ticket was either a dropper loop rig or the good ol’ yo-yo jig. The gang experienced another day of really good fishing. After the dust settled we decided
to pick up our anchor and get on the hunt for tuna. We will be looking in our travels, but the guys have the day to switch gears into tuna mode. We will keep you guys posted on what we come up with.”
Big X and John
The Excel was on the aptly named John’s Big Bluefin or Bust 3-Day Trip. This trip was big bluefin with no bust. The boat sent this message, “We’re out on John’s Big Bluefin or Bust 3-day and so far the title is spot on! There’s good sign of these fish around and the passengers are hard at work. There’s a lot of big fish out here. Our Largest so far is a personal best by Josh Edwards, a 238.”
Intrepid on blues
The Intrepid was on a series of short trips targeting the many bluefin schools in local waters. Capt. Bill Cavanaugh was at the wheel and filed this report, “We returned home this morning with an impressive catch of bluefin tuna. Most of our fish were 100- to 190-pounds. Most guys caught their personal best. Sinker rigs and jig fishing with 100-pound test was the ticket to getting a bite. When the dust settled we had 37 fish over 100-pounds. We were fortunate enough to have beautiful weather our whole trip. We all had a blast with a great group of anglers and one fun fishing trip. Jackpot winners go as follow, 1st place, Anthony Sciarrilli with a 188-pound bluefin, 2nd place, Dave Henderson with a 184-pound bluefin and 3rd place, Charles Prada with a 179-pound bluefin tuna.”
The boat was right back out with a day and a half trip. Capt Bill Cavanaugh summed it up this way, “We arrived home this morning from a very successful extended 1.5 day trip. Our final tally was 92 bluefin that were mostly 40- to 60- pounds and 12 fish went over 100- pounds.”
Supreme fishes local
The Polaris Supreme was also on the local grounds finishing up a 2 -day trip. The boat sent this report, “Quality all day. We returned from a 2-day this morning with 40 bluefin for our 24 anglers. Although we were short of limits, the quality was, once again, exceptional. 37 of the fish were from 100- to 225-pounds. Most of the fish were caught during the daylight hours. Sinker rigs and 200-300g jigs were especially productive this trip.”
The next day and a half saw more good fishing, “Another excellent 1.5- day trip in the books. We returned this morning with limits of bluefin up to 175-pounds. We had nice weather and fun fishing. Sinker rigs and jigs on 80-100-pound test are still the go-to setups.”
Rooster departs south
The Red Rooster departed on the annual June Heat Charter looking for some action to break up the ride. The boat stopped at the rocks and scored a few yellows, “We made a quick stop this afternoon and picked off a few yellows for the galley. It felt good to stop and break up the travel south. The girls did better than the boys.”
Star finds big ones
The Royal Star was on a local 3-day trip and struggled to pin the big fish down. Finally, after a two day pursuit, the boat got on the quality tuna. Tim Ekstrom filed this report, “Trophies. Some mid-day trophy hunting produced the desired results with half a dozen beauties from 160- to 190-pounds joining their pals in the RSW tanks. A testament to appropriate gear and rigging, the only casualties suffered were the result of pulled hooks.”
