Trip #5:

Boat: Thunderbird 2 day

Departs: Thursday August 10th

Fishing: August 11th & 12th

Returns: August 12 pm

Trip 5 began with a wonderful surprise visit at the dock by the one and only Jeff Hinrichs. Jeffy looked great and it was awesome to hear that he will be fishing with us soon. All the best to you Jeffy!

The voyage heading out was smooth and our bait was some of the best I have ever fished with. We headed towards a zone on the back side of San Clemente Island and started to patrol the area around 4:30am. There was heavy boat pressure and we counted 57 boats parked in this area. The bluefin were squirrely. They would respond to the chum and then disappear. We started to get bites around 6:30am on the fly lined sardines and sinker rigs. The quality of bluefin was outstanding with 60-100lb models coming out of the water.  I was fortunate to land a bluefin on 80lb test on the sinker rig. It was stick and move fishing for a while. We continued to pick isolated fish for parts of the morning and a little bit into the afternoon. Ryan and Bill caught 100lb class fish on the fly line. We also had some casualties. Jeff tried hard, including a move out west to get out of the parking lot, but we could not find willing schools. 

We continued the hunt the rest of the day and it was tough fishing. The weather was world class though. Before you know it, it was dinner time with Goofy serving us his signature bacon wrapped pork loin. 

That evening, Captain Chris continued to box the same area we fished throughout the day looking to get the nighttime bite started. Late into the night we were able to hook standout fish. Luke connected with a 90lb class fish brought up on a 7-minute fight.  The night was capped by Junior Angler Kitt Lockwood hooking a 93lb bluefin. Congratulations Kitt! The face of joy on that kid will be ingrained on me. It validated our decision to invite junior anglers on our trips. 

We ended the day with 13 nice grade bluefin and 2 yellowfin. Jackpot honors went to Jim Bertella on a 110lb bluefin caught that morning. The man is simply a terminator...

Just past midnight, Capt. Chris decided to make a big move and run towards San Nicolas Island. This area had been productive on Trip 4 and it was worth a shot. We pushed within 18 miles of the island and could not find what we wanted. Chris made the U-turn and pointed towards the zone we had previously fished for most of the trip. Around 2am, we found the right school. Those who paid their dues at the rail scored. Most of the fish were caught between 150ft-360ft. Heavy knife jigs were the ticket. Several standout fish were picked in this stop with guest angler Saif Liswi pulling out a 142 pounder and this was the jackpot fish for the day.  Yours truly also got on the action with two fish. This bite continued into the early morning. This would be the last bluefin bite of the day. We ended with 13 bluefin. Paul Casillas obtained a patch for his 74lb fish. Well done, Paul!

Jeff made the call to hit the yellowtail spots on the Clemente West End and front side. Hayden connected with a nice sized yellowtail. We also made the traditional calico bass stop with a decent bite and fun for all. The bonita also made an appearance. The return trip was made under spectacular weather and glassy conditions. What a treat. 

Overall, we had a great group and even though the volume did not materialize, we got standout fish. As always, there were valuable lessons to be learned. I truly treasure these trips and appreciate all of you. Until next time, tight lines....



Ed