2015: Trip #2 on the Fortune (2 Days)
6/11/15 - 6/13/15
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Trip # 2 – Fortune Two Day – June 12th & 13th, 2015
Crew:
Captain Bruce Smith
Deckhand Cory Woods
2nd Captain Mathew Fisher
Deckhand Mike (last name unknown)
Chef “BBQ” Bill Armstrong
DWRRC Representation: (in no particular order)
Roy Patterson
Ryan Burson
Luke Burson
Gary Thompson
Ron Henry
Stewart Finley
Mike Zinniker
Rich Dyer
Ron Rudrud
Bryan Upcraft
Andy Woodfill
Mike Allen
Tom Hill
Jeff Henrichs
Bill Parks
Mike Trunk
Hayden Claisse
Jeremy Patterson
The trip began in typical fashion with the DWRRC representation arriving early to claim their rod racks, tackle storage, and maybe beat the Thursday traffic into San Pedro. The Fortune had recently completed a day-and-a-half trip and was tied up and waiting in its slip while the crew was tending to all the last minute details prior to our 7pm departure. Captain Bruce mentioned the opportunity to take a look around the local Yellowtail grounds if everybody was on-board. That sent Luke into action, working over the contacts in his cell phone to see what the status was for those anglers still making their way up to the landing. When the smoke cleared and the final angler had arrived, we motored off to the Bait Barge for some very thick and large Sardines.
While the Crew was hard at work filling the tanks, the birdlife was alive and well over-head. While engaged in a conversation with Andy, one of the birds targeted the bill of his hat and with one direct hit managed to create a little deflection that caught me in the mouth mid-sentence… While still laughing and somewhat bewildered by what had just happened, Andy took yet another hit from the birdlife above. This time the end results only affected Andy’s hat as we decided that we were probably standing in a bad place and opted to move. While still laughing off what had happened I mentioned to Andy that it was going to bring him good luck for the trip.
Once plugged with enough Dines, and still leaving space for more Squid, we proceeded to the Yellowtail grounds near the outside Oil Rigs to have a look around and see if we could make this two day trip become a three day trip by sacking a few. While in-route to the grounds, BBQ Bill put out an amazing Ham Sandwich spread to ease over the guys and establish the first of many truly delicious and above expectation snacks and meals that we would be enjoying throughout the trip. We motored around the Rigs for a little bit and Bruce saw nothing worth stopping for so the call was made to head to Catalina to make some squid. From there Hayden’s light was flicked on and happy hour was officially kicked off while Game 4 of the NBA Finals was being shown in the Galley.
Once at Catalina, the crew was successful in getting the Squid to float and the tanks were filled up and ready to continue the trek to San Clemente Island (SCI). We began fishing our first stop at SCI around 5am in an area that Bruce referred to as Windmill. While there we tugged on assorted Calicos and Whitefish while the local Seal population was out in full force and ripped into a few easy meals. Mike Trunk hooked up on a mystery fish that smoked some drag, but no visual confirmation was ever made but it showed characteristics of a YT. After about an hour the call was made to seek our entertainment elsewhere and the hook was pulled to continue the pursuit for exotics. Huevos Rancheros were being served in the galley and, believe it or not, Mike T., Andy, and Jeremy began the morning with breakfast beers. (always a culinary delight!)
The Captain did a little looking around and found a meter mark that was worth further investigation so we throttled back and began a drift. The drift yielded two “younger” YT for both Mike T. and Bryan U. A couple others fell victim to our good friend the Sea Lion. Hayden attempted to enact revenge on one of the Sea Lions by hooking it and proceeded to put the wood to it. In the end the Juvenile Seal Lion earned its freedom and returned to pester the next fisherman who came through. Beyond the YT, we were greeted with an assortment of Calicos, Whitefish, and the occasional Cuda. After no additional YT made their presence, Bruce decided it was time to make a move to China Point to try for some Calicos in tight to the rocks. BBQ Bill put out a plate of fresh made Coffee Cake and the anglers began to prep their gear for DWRRC-Style Calico fishing!
We passed the Islander on the way to China Point. The Islander was doing a Kayak Mother-Ship Trip so a bunch of Yaks were working over the area pretty well. We arrived at Boiler # 2, the hook was dropped, and it was Showtime! The bite started out easy enough, as the DWRRC representation began chucking a mixture of Dine and Squid. It quickly became apparent that the Calicos wanted the Dine, which were really big. As the saying goes big bait, big fish, and it started getting really serious and quite on the deck as a couple of 20”+ sized Calicos began to come over the rail. Tom Hill was sitting atop the leaderboard from Trip # 1 with a 22” X 16” Calico and wore a vest containing a bulls-eye while the bite began to materialize greater and greater.
Several Calicos came over the rail that would press the limit of Tom’s fish, but it wasn’t until Ron Henry had his beautiful 23” X 16.5” Brute get taped-out that the leaderboard would bare a new occupant. The prideful vest was turned over to Ron, who wore it with a huge smile on his face while the rest of the guys on deck fished hard in envy. Ron’s fish was not without challengers as Jeff H. managed a Calico that would be only a few ounces short to wearing the vest.
At some point during the furious bite, Jeremy Patterson landed a 25” X 17” Checkerboard on a Wax Wing. The fish did not take over the vest, as Jeremy is a long-time guest of the club, but the catch quickly opened everybody’s eyes as to the special opportunity we were all being allowed to participate in. A couple hours into the bite and we began to run very low on the Dines. With the low supply the bite also began to fizzle out as BBQ Bill announced that lunch was ready in the Galley. Linguini in Clam Sauce with Garlic Bread was being served and you could not help but wonder if you had accidently stumbled onto a Long Range boat.
We remained on the hook at China Point while some enjoyed lunch, and others continued at the rail. The Calicos were still biting as the Squid became the sole option to throw at them. With a little more time of working the squid at them, the Calicos began to increase in size. Multiple 20”+ fish starting being landed and it became apparent that the bite and quest for the vest were back on. Roy landed a 22.75” X 15.75” specimen that nearly put him in the top spot, but the leaderboard was about to see a new occupant as Andy Woodfill connected with a 22” X 17” Calico that charted out to 7.95lbs, barely edging out Ron Henry’s 7.83lbs. Andy’s time at the top would ultimately be short lived as he had enough time to give high fives, sign a few autographs, take a couple pictures with some kids, kiss a few babies, and put the vest over his shoulders.
While the taping out process was being executed on Andy’s fish, Ryan Burson was hooked up to the next contender. Patiently and methodically working the fish through the gauntlet of kelp and rocks, Ryan anxiously called for the net. The net was deployed and the Bass that barely occupied it immediately showed promise of taking over the top spot. A quick review of the fish and it bore a very similar resemblance to the original leaderboard Bass that Tom Hill had secured on trip # 1. Tom of course stated that the fish was his as it was being toted over to the board for official measurement. When the measurements were all said and done, we had a new top Calico to shoot for, and Ryan had a new Personal Best with his 25” X 18” – 10.13lbs. Calico! That’s right, the double- digit mark had been broken!
The Club continued to put the wood to the biting Calico’s but no other fish would be able to contend with the DD Beautiful Brown Beast that was CPR’d to be caught another day. In the mix of the five hour – forty-seven minute bite, a younger YT also managed to hit the deck. And lastly one of the Kayaker’s from the Islander thought that it would be a good idea to kick about 20 yards off the stern and right over the area that we had been feverishly pounding with baits.
The bite that we were fortunate enough to experience was truly amazing, but I will let the numbers do the talking from here:
- Ron Henry – 23” X 16.5” – 7.83#
- Jeff Hinrichs – 23.5” X 16” – 7.44#
- Andy Woodfill – 22” X 17” – 7.95”
- Roy Patterson – 22.75” X 15.75” – 7.05#
- Jeremy Patterson – 25” X 17” – 9.03#
- Ryan Burson – 25” X 18” – 10.13#
Many other notable fish came over the rail, these fish were the one’s that were documented on the official board. When the smoke cleared we had 7 different Personal Best’s fall:
Jeff Hinrichs
Andy Woodfill
Ryan Burson
Ron Henry
Hayden Claisse
Mike Trunk
Jeremy Patterson
In a quick interview with the Club Bass Historian, Bill Parks, I asked how he would compare that particular bite against the others that he had participated in. I was no more than half way through asking the question when Bill replied with the simple two word answer of “Best Ever!” He further justified his answer in terms of “Quantity, Quality, and Duration” he had never been in a better bite. On a personal note, I can say that “The Bite” will forever be etched in my mind and I am sure the other’s who got to live it out.
The hook was ultimately pulled and we were going to be heading to San Nic Island to fish the “Alpha Spot” amongst others for day 2 with the plan of targeting YT. While leaving, the trolling gear was sent out for those anglers who still had a little left in the tank, and the Bonito were tough to keep off the Jigs. Many multi-strike “HOOK-Ups” ensued as the Crew and DWRRC representation would have races to see who could skip their Bonito in the fastest as Bruce keep the throttle down still looking for one last bite to tug on.
The light went on, the bottles of wine and other drinks of choice began flowing, and a truly delicious spread of BBQ Ribs and Brisket was being served up for dinner. The travel from SCI to San Nic was rather uneventful as we were greeted with pretty calm ocean conditions. Liquid sleep aid and tired bodies made the sleeping easy!
Arrived at San Nic at o’dark thirty and anchored up on the Alpha spot while the crew tried to coerce up some more squid. The squid was there and willing, but so to were our friends the Sea Lions so no additional Squid could be made. The Sea Lion population was alive and well around the island, but so to were some of the biggest Red Crabs that I have ever seen. Some looked to measure around 4” in size! Some anglers were up and at it around 4am looking to soak a dropper-looped Squid in the hopes of waking those still sleeping to the gentle thud of a WSB or YT. While on the hook and in the dark, Andy hooked into something that ultimately got devoured by a Sea Lion. It was pretty dark outside still so no visual confirmation could be made as to what it may have been.
As grey light came upon us, three other YT were hooked. (Mike Z., Stewart, and myself) None of which would make the deck as they were hijacked by Sea Lions who were nice enough to at least show us the fish prior to eating them. The agony of defeat reminded me of one of my personal favorite quotes about fishing… “It has always been my private conviction that any man who pits his intelligence against a fish and loses has it coming.” (John Steinbeck) Enough geeky literature reflection and back to my “Scriberly” duties… In the midst of Mike Z’s fight with the first hooked YT, and while fishing right next to Tom Hill, Andy hooked something and began to crank feverishly to avoid another Sea Lion intervention. Andy’s technique would pay-off as he would later boat a nice Halibut that weighed out at 29lbs. on Roy’s Boga Grip. I assume you could all guess what Tom Hill had to say about that ‘Butt…
Recognizing that we were probably fighting an uphill battle with the Sea Lions, the call was made to continue the search. BBQ Bill prepared a Corn Beef Hash and Eggs breakfast that, like all other meals, was truly delicious. After making a few drifts and looking around, we settled up on a spot close to the island to try our hand at some San Nic grade Sheepshead. The Goats really wanted to bite as multiple huge specimens were being sacked up. We managed to put one of Hayden’s Goats on the Boga Grip to get an understanding of size and it tipped the grip at 16#! Amongst the Goat bite, Ron Rudrud pulled up a very nice grade Cabezon. The Cabezon was by far the largest that I had ever seen, but no weight was ever determined.
After getting our fill of Goats, Bruce opted to take us out to do some Ling drifting. The Lings also wanted to play and had a developed a taste for Iron. Hook up after hook up occurred as the sacks began filling up more and more. Chuckleheads and Reds continued to come up from the depths along with the Lings. Luke managed to set the hook on a biting rock that would later live out its days in the bait tank. The rock was home to all kinds of cool stuff that one could spend hours and get lost staring at. Adding to the odd catch list was Rick Dyer, who managed to nab a Wolf Eel from the depths of Lingsville. I have only seen one other Wolf Eel in my life and Rick’s was just as nasty and mean looking as I had recalled. Nobody was really eager to try and figure out how to release it, as it wrapped itself around anything it could, and bit down on anything that dared come near it’s ominous set of teeth. It was at that time that I was glad to be a paying patron and not working the deck.
That was essentially the end of our trip. We sailed in on a flat calm ocean with another incredible lunch being served up of Calico Bass, Rice, and Corn. When it was all said and done the patches were awarded to Ryan Burson for his Day 1 PB Calico that weighed in at 10.13lbs, and on day 2, Andy Woodfill popped his cherry with his Butt weighing in at a solid 29lbs. Having felt like I have said enough with this write-up, I opt to leave with yet another favorite fishing quote that may help to shed some light on why we love fishing the way that we do. “The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of something that is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope.” (John Buchan)
Thank you for taking the time to read my account of the trip! And I apologize not for the length!
-Mike Allen
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Trip #2: Boat: Thunderbird 2 day Departs: Thursday, July 9th Fishing: July 10th & July 11th Returns: July 11th PM
Trip #1: Boat: Thunderbird 1.5 day Departs: Thursday, June 25th Fishing: Friday, June 26th Returns: Saturday, June 27th AM Leading up to the trip, the forecast had us a little concerned. Wind was expected to limit our options and potentially make for a challenging day. Fortunately, as often happens in fishing, the stars aligned. We departed around 9:00 PM after receiving reports of a hot bite near Catalina, which became the game plan for the morning and allowed for a shorter run. The destination proved to be Silver Canyon on Catalina's backside west end. Around 4:00 AM, I wandered up on deck to find a good number of anglers already fishing. Luke was bent on a fish that eventually hit the deck as a white seabass (WSB), and I was told Gary had already landed a yellowtail (YT) while Jeffy had put a huge halibut on the deck. I joined the action shortly thereafter. The bite was a bit slow initially, but then things started to happen. Three of us were hooked up simultaneously, resulting in two WSB hitting the deck, including a beautiful 44-pound fish landed by Waleed, Saif's son. Mine unfortunately wasn't one of them. After several minutes of fighting what felt like a quality fish, it made its way to the stern, wrapped three or four other lines—including another angler who was actively fighting a WSB—and eventually threw the hook. Disappointing, but that's fishing. Shortly after first light, the bite erupted for many. Captain Jeff began calling out fish moving under the boat, and chaos—in the best possible way—ensued. Everyone was fishing squid on dropper loops, and fish seemed to be intermittently everywhere. I apologize for not being able to accurately credit every catch because I spent much of the next several hours either hooked up or preparing to get bit again. By 10:00 AM, the scorecard was remarkable: 39 Yellowtail 3 White Seabass 2 Halibut 26 Lost Fish A special mention goes to Jeffy, who landed a beautiful 31-pound halibut. These were not school-sized fish. Most of the yellowtail ranged from roughly 25 to 40 pounds, and fighting multiple fish of that caliber before breakfast was both exhausting and unforgettable. For many of us, it was one of those dream mornings that keeps you coming back. Most anglers had opportunities. A few did everything right and simply never got the bite—a reminder that fishing can be humbling even when the boat is surrounded by fish. Several anglers had outstanding days. Luke was among the high hooks with five fish: four yellowtail and one white seabass. I finished with four yellowtail, three during the morning frenzy and another 12–15 pound fish later on a fly-lined sardine. Bill also brought in some big yellowtail and hooked a fish on the fly line that unfortunately came unbuttoned. Jim B. also had an excellent trip with multiple fish, and several anglers finished with more than one yellowtail. After the yellowtail bite slowed, we made several additional stops looking for fly-line fish before shifting our focus to calico bass. We headed to the kelp beds around San Clemente Island, where the calico fishing was excellent. Several quality fish came aboard, including at least a couple stretching beyond the 20-inch mark. The weather was pleasant, the ocean was cooperative, and it was simply a beautiful afternoon to be on the water. Later, while casting a spinner for calicos, I hooked something considerably larger. It nearly spooled me before finally breaking off. We'll never know what it was, but it definitely got my attention. To finish the day, we returned to the same Catalina area where the morning action had occurred, hoping for a classic sundowner bite. Unfortunately, it never really materialized. We released a juvenile black sea bass of perhaps 30 pounds, caught a few calicos, and I heard reports of a leopard shark and a few sand sharks. While the evening lacked the excitement of the morning, there are certainly worse ways to spend a sunset than drifting off Catalina with friends. One of the highlights of the trip was watching our junior anglers. Gary's grandson successfully landed a yellowtail after Captain Jeff handed him the rod during a hookup. Leedo, Saif's son, not only landed a yellowtail but also the trip's jackpot-winning 44-pound white seabass and finished with an impressive catch that included two yellowtail. He fished with tremendous enthusiasm from start to finish. James Harris had another young guest angler aboard who joined in on the action and boated at least one YT. It's always encouraging to see the next generation discovering what makes this sport so special. The crew deserves tremendous credit. At times there were three or four large yellowtail hanging simultaneously, creating the kind of organized chaos that tests even experienced deckhands. They worked hard, stayed positive, and kept things moving smoothly throughout the day. The snacks were outstanding as always. A special thank-you to Jim B. for the smoked salmon and tartar sauce appetizer and to Sharif for the chilled crab dip, both of which were excellent. Perhaps the biggest factor in our success was having live squid available. Without it, I honestly believe the trip could have been a completely different story. A special thank-you goes to John "Halfday" Fisher, a close friend and longtime mentor of Captain Jeff, whose squid nest provided the bait and whose report the day before helped point us toward the Catalina bite. The sardines worked as well for calicos, although they were absolutely enormous—some of the largest I've seen. When all was said and done, we enjoyed one of those special days that reminds us why we make these trips. Big fish, good friends, beautiful weather, enthusiastic junior anglers, great appetizers, and memories that will last far longer than the fillets in the freezer. The final tally was an impressive 40 yellowtail, 3 white seabass, 2 halibut, and 27 lost fish. Interestingly, the scorecard barely changed after 10:00 AM, which illustrates just how extraordinary the morning bite really was. What the numbers don't reflect is the excellent calico bass fishing we enjoyed throughout the afternoon. On a personal note, I finished with yellowtail weighing approximately 40, 35, and 31 pounds, along with a smaller fly-line fish in the 12–15 pound range. The catch was enough to earn my first club patch, barely surpassing Bill's monster. Congratulations to Waleed, Saif's son, who took the jackpot with his outstanding 44-pound white seabass, the largest fish of the trip. A sincere thank you to Captain Jeff, the crew, and everyone aboard for helping make it such a successful and enjoyable outing. Hopefully Trip #2 is just as memorable.
Trip #8: Boat: Thunderbird 1.5 day Departs: Thursday, October 2th Fishing: October 3th, 4th Returns: October 4th pm Thunderbird Crew: Capt. Jeff Capt. Chris Jose Nate Goofy Cast of Characters: Bill Parks Steve Morgan Riley Dyer Jim Bertella Justin Becker Jacob Richards Luke Burson Paul Morgan Mike Allen (Scribe) Patrick Thunyakij Bruce Granse Kevon Kong Michael Harris Ryan Burson Oscar Ochoa Ed Chutney Jeff Allen Andrew Ron Shrout Murphy Parks Romeo Ochoa James Harris Ozzie Baktiari Arriving for a trip in the month of October at Newport Landing is a far easier experience then one would have in the summer months of June – September. The dread of driving through the neighborhood in hopes of an empty space large enough to accommodate the larger trucks that many of the club members own seems to dissipate as the offerings are far more plentiful. While the welcomed views of summer also tend to be less abundant, the ensemble of club members arrived with plenty of time to catch-up on some conversations and enjoy a beverage or two.
Trip #7: Boat: Thunderbird 2.5 day Departs: Tuesday, September 16th Fishing: September 17th, 18th Returns: September 19th am Thunderbird Crew: Jeff Markland- Captain Steve Raby- 2nd Captain Carmelo in the Galley Jose & Nate on deck The fishing schedule for 2025 has two 2 1/2 day trips and Trip #7 was the second one. Historically the 2 1/2 dayers fill quickly at the Annual Sign-Up Meeting. This was not the case this year as this trip only filled to about half during the Lottery and the rest of the spots were taken by guests. Here are the members who were on the trip: Gary Thompson, Steve Morgan, Mike Barton, Alex Mesko, Mike Higa, Bill Parks, John Lenker, Steve Lenker, Kyle Shimigawa, and Luke Burson (trip scribe). That is 10 members and the other 13 were all guests. The Club owns the following a big thank you for committing guests to this trip because without them this trip would have put a financial burden on the Club of $8,125. And the Club simply does not have those funds so the trip would have been cancelled. A special thank you to Mike Barton with 5 guests, Steve Lenker with 3, Mike Higa with 2, guests, Steve Morgan with 1 guest, Bryan Upcraft with 1 guest, and Luke Burson with 1 guest. And all the guests fit in perfectly and made it a good group to fish, sleep, and eat with for 2 1/2 days. As the trip approached Gary sent out information a week before with information about the trip. At that point the weather looked good and the fish counts were encouraging. As the trip got closer Gary sent out more information with the weather holding plus the Thunderbird getting limits on their weekend 2 1/2 dayer. All were feeling pretty optimistic about two things that had been missing on previous trips……nice weather and good fishing. On the day of departure, the usual members arrived early to ensure that they would board first to secure the tackle spots that are important to them, Others started to drift in throughout the afternoon. All were challenged with parking because of the local Wednesday street sweeping. Some were luckier than others but everyone found a parking spot. And then to our surprise the Thunderbird arrived close to 4 PM and it was obvious why…..very good fishing. To be specific they had back-to-back multi-day trips with limits of BF. And the buzz for all on the dock was pretty strong. They caught the fish at the Cortez, some at night near SCI but most during the day on bait. We asked about the bait and the group did not have good things to say. We quickly put two and two together that the fishing must be pretty good to do that well with poor bait. And another important item……NO STINKING FULL MOON! Jeff indicated we were headed back to Cortez and to save a little time we were going to take the direct course line around the east end of SCI. We’re expecting a flat smooth ride, we quickly learn that our course line had us in the rolley trough. It turned out to be anything but smooth. Our crew for the 2 1/2 trip was Jeff as our Captain, Steve as the 2nd Captain, Carmelo in the galley with Jose and Nat on deck. We have fished with them many times before so we knew we were in good hands for the 2 1/2 days. We stopped to load bait and to our surprise, that bait looked pretty good. The size could have been bigger as it was all medium to small-medium baits but it looked good. That even increased the anticipation of what was to come. As it turned out about 60% turned red while the rest was good bait. For the next two days, you really had to pick through what was in the hand wells to find the good ones. As we rolled into the “Bank” there was a pretty good electrical show to the west from about 3 AM to 5 AM plus some slight rain. And we could see some boats in the distance. We would learn that we would not be alone at Cortez Bank but because of the way the fish were spread out it would not make a difference. Jeff got the anchor down close to the position that they had success on the last trip and it took a little time for the fish to find us……and they did. It was a slow pick for the next 4 or 5 hours. Occasionally we would have 2 for 3 going but most of the time it was one at a time. The conditions were perfect, a strong current in the right direction and some breeze to keep the boat a little crossways to the current. Jeff said the conditions were perfect. As the morning continued there were two ways to get a bite: 1) hot bait close to the boat, or 2) long soak behind the boat. Although detailed records were not kept it seems that the hot baits close to the boat got 4 to 5 times the bites compared to the long soak. This getting bit close to the boat with hot baits was shared with all as it was working great for a few: light line (20#), small hooks (#6 or #8), the best bait in the well, and then give that bait 30 seconds, and if no bite wind in and do it again. And if the bait did not “swim” then cut your losses and wind in to do it again. Some fished that way and were rewarded, others continue to soak their baits. It was a little frustrating that so many were locked into soaking baits when the other method was working so well. It just must be too much work to change baits every 30 seconds and it is easier to soak them behind the boat. The few anglers who changed baits quickly did pretty very well while others did not……that’s fishing. The fish seem to leave us around 2 PM so Jeff decided to go looking in the direction of SCI. By heading back toward SCI we would have a shot at bigger fish at night. We ran all the way back to within 5 miles of SCI and never saw anything on the electronics. When it got dark the effort changed to working the area where the BF had been at night but after about 5 hours of looking without a single mark on the electronics Jeff decided to head back to Cortez to fish the same location we were in that morning. Carmelo prepared an excellent dinner of marinated chicken, basmati rice, and a Greek-style salad. And of course, it was finished with Klondike Bars. Jeff turned down swell to make it easier to eat but once dinner was over he reversed course and it was pretty bouncy. Most stayed up hoping for a shot at bigger BF but that never happened so everyone went to bed for the ride back to Cortez. Day One - 46 BF, 12#s to 49#s, JP to Todd (guest) 49#s and Patch to Mike Higa 33.4#s. The ride back to Cortez seemed to flatten out but it started to rain and would continue until about 8 AM. We also again had a “Mike Castillo” special event…… dragonflies, thousands of dragonflies. They were everywhere including some in the bunk room. The two heads had more than you could count. All commented that it was good that Mike was not on this trip. It was the most anyone had ever seen on the water. The morning of day two started similarly to day one. The short soak with a hot baits was again working but so was the longer soak. The fish catching was spread out among all fishing. And there were some consistent bigger models in the mix, still the 12-15 pounders but more of the 20 pounders and 30 pounders. Jeff moved the boat a few times, we drifted some, and also anchored in deeper water. While drifting and in the deeper anchored spots a few fish were caught on the “drop shot rig” but most were caught flylining. At times time guys fishing 25# and 30# got bit as well as the 20#. We worked this well into the afternoon when it was ROCK CODDING time. And we did not have to travel but a few miles. Jeff set the boat up on a spot that produced for the last trip and it was good. Almost solid Reds, just a few other fish mixed in. Most guys fished bait (fresh dead squid), some fished jigs. The bait clearly outfished the jigs. We did this until it was time to head home to Newport. During the course of the day, the weather got better and better. Our ride home was very smooth. Carmelo prepared Tri-Tip, mashed potatoes, and a green salad. The desert was ice cream. After dinner, all broke down gear and went to bed pretty early. Day Two - 34BF, 12#s to 33#s, JP and Patch to Mike HIga 33.#s (same size as day 1). Also 92 Reds! Note: Mike won the patch both days and also won one on an earlier trip……3 patches this year for Mike Higa, well done! We got back to the dock about 4 AM, did our standard offload, distributed the fish and everyone went home happy with BF and Reds. It was an excellent trip. Trip total - 80 BF and 92 Reds (four short of boat limits). This was one of the better trips of the year for the DWRRC. Luke “Just one more cast!”
