BY DAVE HURLEY
HALF MOON BAY— The boats will be launching once again this week from ports from Santa Cruz to Crescent City in search of bluefin tuna, and the previous weekend brought absolutely spectacular action with 59 bluefin reported out of Half Moon Bay on Sunday, September 22 with another 20 fish the following day. The weather had something to say about the remainder of the week, but this week looks good for more tuna action.
The appearance of the bluefin the past few years has been a growing crescendo, and more and more boaters are getting in on the action, so much so, that boats are running over each other’s gear even though it is a big ocean out there. Overall, the enthusiasm for the chance at a big fish has somewhat tempered the let down from the second consecutive season of the salmon closure.
Captain Jerad Davis of the Salty Lady out of Sausalito picked up a bluefin earlier in the week, but on a whale watching trip outside the Farallons on the 22nd, he said, “The tuna put on a show with big fish in the 150- to 200-pound range jumping within yards of the boat. My deckhand had to go downstairs and bite his hands to keep from letting out a MadMac.’
Several six-pack boats had been getting in on the fray including the Codfather and Tanker City out of Alameda and the Scallywag out of Emeryville. The Codfather was the first boat to put in the miles at the start of the season, and they will be back out again this week. Big boats such as the Pacific Dream out of Berkeley are on standby for the right weather conditions for an overnight trip with live bait. When it’s on, it’s on, and anglers are losing far less fish as there is far more attention paid to having the proper gear.
