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Marlin Weighed in and Releases
Southern Californian Anglers Marlin Release Board

Patrick Ryan - Angler
Captain is Russ Ito of the Carpe Diem.

That report is pretty much how I figured it'd go. For the last 3 days, boats pounded the ridge from the East End to the 277 and saw a bunch of fish, but couldn't get them to eat. I talked with Bob Stephens, who got the last fish of the ZG, and he indicated that when they lifted his fish up, it barfed out a bunch of bait. Clearly, these fish were gorging byt the light of the new moon and are just now getting hungry again. As usual, two days to late :-)   Thanks for the update, Steve
Stan    SCMO

"Marlin Sept 20-22 (Pesky Roundup)"    Southern California Marlin On-line    Sep-24-01, 08:13 AM (PDT)
Fished the Pesky on Friday and Saturday and, once again, survived.
Fishing was slow, but we knew that going in. There has not been a lot of fish taken in the Zane Grey earlier in the week (although BLUE THUNDER landed a behemoth 289-lb stripe that was the largest ever in a SoCal tourney). Most of the action had been along the ridge from the east end of Catalina down to the 277, so that where we went.

Friday was difficult, as a decent number of fish were seen but none taken. Remember, this is the cream of the SoCal fleet, and when they see fish but can't get them to go, something is funky. One report I did get from Bob Stephens, who caught the last fish of the Zane Grey, was that the marlin had been stuffed with anchovies and squid, so I think they were glutted. No fish were taken in either the Pesky or the King Harbor tourney on the first day.

Saturday dawned full of expectation. Because of the way the point system works in the Pesky, the first fish of the day would most likely win the event and, if fishing continued slow, could take everything. Our fears that the top prizes would have to be raffled off were allayed around 9:30 when Ed Day on PAPA LOCO released a jig fish. Feeders were still being seen (even by me!), but no one was able to get a bait fish to go. By the end of the day, 4 marlin has been caught and released on lures. All of the action was between the 277 and the end of the island.

The evening's festivities were up to Pesky standards, although somewhat muted. The events of the week before were still fresh on everyone's mind (and if you had forgotten, the enormous flag hanging down the side of the Casino would remind you), but we had additional sorrow in our hearts. Earlier in the week, the wife of Greg Stotesbury, fisherman extrordinaire and all-around good guy, had died unexpectedly, leaving Greg a single father. The Peskys may be cutups, but they support their own, and a lot of money was raised that night to help the Stotesbury family through this difficult time. After the banquet it was the usual Pesky shuffle through Armstrongs, the Marlin Club and God only knows where else. Hard luck award goes to the crew of SHELLBACK, who learned the hard way that a rod not safety-lined really can be pulled through the outrigger clip when hooked up. So far as we know, the rod is still in tow behind a particularly active striped marlin. They cleaned up in the raffle, though, so don't feel too bad (hey, did you guys get the bikes to the boat without riding them into the bay??)

Congratulations to Ed Day of PAPA LOCO for taking top honors in the Pesky and Warren Gunther of JEWEL LURE for winning the King Harbor Marlin Club event.

JD's Tuesday Report    JD's Big Game Tackle     
-"No Problem" started out the day (Tuesday) with a released fish
-"It don't get much slower than this,"
-69 1/2 degrees yesterday in the lee of Clemente Island, today it;s 65degrees, no life. Catalina Island's East End had a little life and a few shots at fish this morning, Long Point looks to have develoved a litttle better with warming water/ bait.
-Lots of life. birds seals, kelps just outside the 209 Fathom Spot
-Tournamen Controll, C-Bandit Hooked Up, 12:42 pm (Gulf-3) where ever that's at? Released it.
-C-Bandit has released two fish so far in the tournament
-Bongos, #3 just caught a Swordfish, 5 hour battle, Everyone on board (it was a family charter) fought the fish, so the angler is listed as "the Watson's" 247lbs, hooked in the corner of the mouth, on a live mackeral, 50lb tackle, just outside the 14 Mile Bank.
-Huntington Harbor Naval restrictions, open between 8-10am and 4-6pm, Patroll boats may escort boats and are subject to search

JD's Monday Report    JD's Big Game Tackle     
Monday's Results 
-"Blue Thunder" caught their marlin after a 4 1/2 hours battle! 2:42pm 287LBS, GRAM was the angler! 1184 points! bait fish, Capt. Richard Hoffman,
-"Andeamo" 175lbs 2nd Place
-Wait n Sea, Hooked up , foxtrot 3, weighed in at 173 1/2lbs! 3rdPlace
-4 fish released , three taken out of 11 hook ups,
-C-Bandit , Capt Hook, Ted, Vitamin Sea, Released their fish!
-Like any tournaments, a few minutes before the lines out,, someone always calls in a hook-up- Tigre Spirit, calls in with 6 minutes, it came off- 3:55pm Lines out 4:00pm
-Andnamo just landed their fish, 4:45pm
-40-60lb Bluefin taken off the Dumping Grounds 90 below San Deigo (below / outside ) the 60 mile bank
-The Masters Angler Billfish Tournament, had some 58 boats, 11 fish caught and released, 1 fish on 30lb, 1 on 20lb, 7 on 16lb and 2 fish on 12lb tackle, Charlie Albright, age 13 took High Angler with his released 12 lb tackle fish taken on his dad's Kea Kai- Congrats Charley, a standing ovation at the awards banquet honored him!

Marlin - Sept. 14/15/16"     Southern California Marlin On-line   Sep-16-01, 09:23 PM (PDT)
With heavy heart, we boarded HOOKER for 3 days of marlin fishing. I'm pleased to report that most boats, including ours, were flying the Stars & Stripes. Tried with little success to make bait in the harbor and headed for the island. Most success lately had been in the lee of Catalina, so we started there. Friday was Day 1 of the MABT, so there was little info available but lots of boats to follow . Worked primarily from Avalon Bank out to 152, but saw nothing. We weren't alone, however, as only 5 marlin were released the first day. ESPADON gets the hard luck award, as their fish was successfully tagged but subsequently DQ'd when the main line broke, leaving them without the required portion of leader. Weather was snotty, but not as important since we were fishing within a mile or so of the island.
Day 2 dawned beautiful, but soon whitecaps were evident once again. The majority of the fleet moved further off the island today, and most of the action for the MABT was out by the 152. The water was unseasonably cold - between 65 & 66 in most places. The Terrafin chart showed that there should be warmer water off the west end, so we headed that way to start. By the time we got past the Isthmus, hovever, action was heating up on the 152, and we reversed course and headed down the ridge. WILD BILL led a group of MABT boats all the way to the 172, where there were great conditions, but no fish. We baited a pair of swordfish on the 152 to no avail. 5 more fish were taken Saturday in the MABT; I'm guessing Dana Anglers were high club with 3 marlin released on 16-lb gear, and Charlie Albright of Los Pescadores was master angler for his 12-lb release.

Day 3 was very quiet, with the MABT boats gone home and only a couple of folks pre-fishing for tomorrow's Zane Grey start. Heard of no marlin taken today, and headed in around noon.

As you might imagine, there was a high security profile this weekend. LA Harbor was crawling with Coast Guard auxilliary, and all boats headed into San Diego were searched. Huntington Harbour had it worst, since they share an entrance with the Navy's ammo dump. The harbor was closed Saturday except for 4pm to 6pm and all day Sunday, causing a lot of tourney boats to bolt early to insure entrance. There was also a carrier group operating between Catalina & San Clemente Island on Sunday. Even this far away from New York, both literally & figuratively, the acts of a handful of cowards can be felt.

Sunday Fish Report    Wayne Slahor      Sun, 16 Sep 2001 00:27:45 EDT
I fished the last two days (charters) and coming back into the harbor was not really a big problem. Today was even quicker than yesterday-maybe they have their act together more after doing the checks for several days. It only took us about 20 min today, which included 10min. of waiting. The Coast Guard is boarding all inbound traffic. The officers were friendly and polite. Where have all the sailboats gone?-there was not a single sailboat in sight in the harbor all the way to Sunroad Marina at 6:15 PM.??  By the way, on Friday we had 72 albacore for 5 passengers, and 63 for three passengers and 4 crew today
You guys were lucky with the short wait getting into the bay...I spoke with the guys on one of the 6 packs and they waited in line (it bottle necked/90 boats or so) for 4 hours around mid-afternoon, getting to the fuel dock around 5:30pm....of course the actual inspection only took a few minutes....heard it was better early early in the mornings...and during the week. Sounds like good fish'n all around.   Penny, The Marlin Club

JD's Friday Report    JD's Big Game Tackle   
-We saw a jumper 10 off the island.
-Long Point ,cooler dropping a degree or two
-Albacore catches on the 16/02 (inside the Butterfly Bank)
-Wild Bill's hooked up again (on 20) , you just can't keep these guys out of the game1:26 pm
-Tournament Control,---Sassy Sissy We're Hooked Up! 1:41pm
-Control, 28 we're wired Tiger Spirit, Ned's on the fish 16lb 2:04 pm, Tag and released! 37 minutes.
-Tournament Control, Sassy Sissy just released their fish 1 :07 30lb- Jerry Lewis
-The albacore they were catching were in the 12 to 16lb range.
-Mackeral Bank held a fish (marlin) or two, a little action off Church Rock, 152 but not much, most of the action on the marlin came from around the Avalon Bank area. 3 or 4 miles surrounding it.
-a couple of long 3 and 4 hour battles, some won others lost.
-Those wanting to catch a White Sea bass, fish the Newport Artificial Reef with mackeral.

JD's Thursday Report    JD's Big Game Tackle   
-A light overcast morning, some fog which seems to have burnt off by 9:am
-Boats fishing off the East End of Catalina, report only fair conditions, another boat whom had made bait at the offshore oil rigs report 67/68 degrees and clean blue water ,"looks good here". those at the east end say to stay there! 9:15 am
-Seems there are quite a few boats traveling around, also the Navy has patrolls out in the water. Not many fish (marlin) seen, a few schools of yellowfin reported inside Catlina/Avalon Bank area.
-Albacore boats are working out as far as 100 miles for a few fish.
-Huntington Harbor was open for boat getting in or out/ with armed/shotgun escort. Reports say the Navy would like boats that are returning in on Saturday to enter the harbor between 4 and 6 pm.
-It's Tournament Time
-Secret dope passed between boats today, , from what I've gathered it goes something like this, "we're on the --------, saw a ------------ about------ ago, so and so went out to the ------ but they didn't find much. Water Temps on the 209, 68.5 Got the jigs out, seeing the tuna jump out of the water, nothing yet, --------- was hooked up ------ on a ---------.
-Albacore on the Airplane Bank (5 west ) (15 miles below the 60 mile bank) , small albies, but a bunch of them.
-Those wondering if the tropical storm off Baja will push warm water this way may be, wrong - ground swell action only pushes energy not the physical movement of water hundreds of miles.
-San Pedro/Long Beach has small bait, anchovies and sardines.
-Circle hooks, like long-line hooks are designed for still/drift fishing, let the fish hook themselves, all you've got to do is, bait em', drop them down, go eat a hot dog then wind in a marlin, -----------or shark!
-Several of the marlin that were caught in the Rosie' Tournament, when cleaned and gutted, were plugged with squid!
-Mackeral (bait) were caught off the Balboa Pier earlier this morning , cut pieces of squid, (flylined) worked well. use chum.
-By 4pm this afternoon the wind was a 10-12 knots out of the west, pleasant tailing weather. Several marlin were hooked today, locations were kept secret.
-25/26 (outside the Coronardo Islands) yellowfin, they're there but not biting. up and down more yellowfin than I've seen in a long time. 4:19pm
-Butterfly, 60 mile bank had a few fish (tuna) but rough out there
-Water temps off the East End have dropped several degrees, looks like the curents have pushed to the west. Long Point has the best warm spot and bait is stacked up against the beach 1/2 mile.- JD- 5:45 pm
-Good Luck in the Masters Tournament

The Rosie's Tournament was held in Avalon, Catalina on Monday and Tuesday, they had 19 boats participating. Gambler took 1st Place with a 226lb fish winning $52,000, 2nd Place went to the Verdict with an 214lb fish/ $18,000 and 3rd Place went to the Arin Marie with an 192lb fish, in all there were 6 fish taken, 3 fish released. A minimum weight of 145lbs was required and several big fish were lost, only one jig fish that I know of and it was released unharmed. Capt Hook took the first's day largest fish winning them $16,000. Nice calm weather and they didn't have to travel far. Almost all the fish were caught within 2 miles from Avalon, many of them within a mile off Pebbly Beach . The awards were held at the Country Club and a great slide show was shown.

-Boats fishing for marlin today report casting to fish time and again , perfect greenies, they would not take the baits, JD's Tip--- Marlin in close to the beach/ kelps are more accustom to eating Spanish mackeral, as they get off the beach more the greenies are more of a common bait. Spanish Mackeral, because of all their spines on them require you to give them (the marlin) more time to turn and swallow the baits, give em' a good 10 potato count! JD
-Schools of 20-25 lb Yellowfin in the lee of catalina, Avalon Bank, Shipping lanes, not taking any baits or lures though.

Rosie's Tournament update   Steve Bledsoe     12:10 PM Tuesday 9-11-01
according to Marilyn on the pier in Avalon.....

HOOK is in the lead with a 169.5-lb fish
GAMBLER is in second with a 157.0 -lb fish
C-BANDIT just boated one - no weight yet
BACK OFF released a fish
GAMBLER released a fish
HOOK, KEEPER and VERDICT have all lost fish

Most of the action has been off the Slide
you can call Marilyn at Rosie's Fish Mkt. at (310) 510-0197 for more info....
Steve

JD's Sunday Report    JD's Big Game Tackle    September 09, 2001  
-Light Overcast with good glassing weather.
-Meatball after Meatball inside the 14 Mile Bank (6 off Laguna), even though the waters cool, the marlin are here.
-Boats were baiting sleepers off the Dana Pt. 3 miles out to the 267 Fathom Spot.
-Still the South swell
-Looks like a better day than yesterday.
-When I say "fish" i mean Marlin, most of that other stuff is that other stuff!- something you eat! JD
-There was a big Hammerhead Shark seen yesterday , late afternoon off Newport
-Here come the Outrigger Canoes back over the Avalon Bank and through the Shipping lanes,
-Water temps dropped off today, Avalon Bank 65.5, 67 on the 14 Mile Bank, not much going on there, warmest water 69. 7 off Laguna.
-Boats traveling out to the 118 line, found cold water, no bait.
-If you buy your tackle from M I___, it comes with a CURSE! , if you buy your tackle from JD's Big Game it comes with a 10 Fish Guarantee!
-You know it's marlin season when the football games and the action on the water coincide! its something like the tides or the solunar tables working together
-66 off the Head, it gets colder off the backside of Catalina Island to 64 degees!
Hook-up 12:14, Go get em' Danny! Off the Can Dump, Catalina
High tide today, 1:48 pm these are the best looking tides for Broadbill Swordfish today, Watch for them to "Pop" over the next couple of hours,
the birds are up, 1:17pm, inside the 14
The wind was up
tailers up, 1:18
Best we've seen all day 1:18
one fish lost after an hour.
and the Newport slop blew in
From the Mackeral Banks to the Head tons of tunas, tough to get to bite, it broke your heart seeing the tailers in the afternoon 3:30 4:00 but no bites, 2-4 off the Dome in the lee inside Clemente, cool water, 64-66 degrees
Squid still at Clemente Island, yellows still there.
Yesterdays fish in the afternoon were 9 from Dana 270 from the harbor.
Earthquake!, no wonder they weren't biting today!

JD's Saturday Report    JD's Big Game Tackle    September 08, 2001
-By 7:00 am several marlin had been baited, seen, hooked. I think there are tow or three marlin tournaments going on today, both money and club tournaments.

-The Geneva M's swordfish was lost last night. Those long battles generally go that way, hooks wear holes and tear out as the battle draws to the end, no stretch or cushion in the lines and tensions increase. Swordfish have such soft mouths that unless your hooked to a solid bone or fin section they can pull. Over the years , in weighing in swordfish or counting those that have been caught, not just hooked but the ones that are actually caught, I would have to say that over 75% of those fish weighed are fowl hooked. Where the hook may have pulled out of the mouth and lodged in the pectoral fins or snagged into the body's flesh somewhere. Even the hook and leader have gone into the mouth, been flushed out through the gill plate and catch in the "V" of the tail, hog-tying the fish, which makes for a short battle. To that effect, if the ones that are successfully landed are generally foul hooked, then originally the hook arrangement should be geared to that direction, not to intentionally foul hook the fish but in the event the hook does pulls loose from the mouth a fixed larger sized hook will snag better. An 10/0 or 11/0 #7731 or # 7691 Mustad hook tied tight, not free swinging, and the barbs cut/sharpened short for quick penetration does best. At least 15 ft . 250 to 300lb leaders, Swordfish like to roll in the leader so you need the extra length to prevent break-offs. They don't run a long ways ,they just stay at levels or plateaus which have to be broken. You've got to pull hard, either you pull the hook or you break their will, Best of Luck- JD

-A jig bite and another boat just baited some sleepers, inside the short bank (267) 6:31am
-There must be fifty boats fishing inside the 14 Mile Bank/ 267 area. those working below Dana Pt, this morning not much happening, the area above the Avalon Bank was also quiet as the water temps dropped a bit from yesterday.
-Maybe 10 12 marlin caught/ released yesterday inside the 14.
-Add into the situation there were some 25 or so outrigger canoes with their escort boats paddling from Newport to Avalon, right through the fishing grounds!
-A few fish seen just south of Church Rock a couple miles
-Feeders up 9:26am, High Tide at 12:57 pm this afternoon, the mid day bite should develop by then, yesterday at sunset there was an afternoon show right on the Avalon Bank as the tide turned.
-We're bit, one mile off Avalon! 11:51am
-Albacore reported N/W of Northwest Harbor San Clemente Island
-By noon the colud cover had burnt off and the wind began to freshen
-Several more marlin caught/ released off Avalon. as feeders came up on the slack tide and tailers began to show in the wind waves 1:12pm
-All and all kinda quiet for the fleet so far.
-11 or 12 fathoms off South Laguna Beach ( 25 line, loran) trolling Rapalas the cattleboats have scored once in a while on the yellowtail.
-A different day today than yesterday, with the swell from the southern storm mixed with the wind swell out of the west, Question which way do the marlin tail in this type of weather? , Absolutely, Yes
-Jig Fish, hooked up- 3:27pm (marlin)
-All and all a different day.
-The charter boats out of Newport scored again on the Albacore and a few skipjack, I beleive fishing above/west of Northwest harbor.-
-Turning down hill towards Dana Point in the Newport Dana afternoon slop, two miles off Dana Point a double was hooked up, one fish released the other still being fought, 6:50 pm
-they both were caught!
-they came up in the afternoons sunset! birds, tailers, feeders, another one or two were hooked! 7;00pm

JD's Friday Report    JD's Big Game Tackle    September 07, 2001
-Light Overcast with good glassing weather.
-With the upcoming marlin tournaments this weekend and the overall fishing effort, many boats are scouting around today, working up the inside of Catalina and west to the 172 fathom Spot,, back south towards the Avalon and 14 Mile Banks, down 7 miles off the Domes /Dolly Pardons( San Clemente), and out the the 289 Fathom Spot (half way from the "Ridge" 181 to San Clemente Is,/ Pyramid Head, and tight to the beach/ lee of Clemente Island. if there are many marlin out there watch out here they come!
-Up west (above Catalina), good looking water, birds/ bait but no marlin seen
-Hook up, 10:30am We came up to a kelp paddy, tossed a mackeral to it, up comes this Sunfish jumping, it's still jumping! 20 jumps does that count in the tournament as the "other species"?
-one Yes/ three No's, next sunfish we catch, we'll put a broomstick on it!
-one marlin caught allready this morning by the Capt. hook, fishing at 26/54 (inside the 14)
-The skies started to burn off by 10 am
-Several others jumpers seen 10am to 10:30 am
-A good temp break inside the 14 Mile bank 67/69 degree
-Boats traveling south of the 14 found conditions not to their liking so returned back northwards.10:45am
-We just baited a "purple" one, but couldn't get him to go, Worked towards the San Clemente Island still seeing those yellowfin, but hard to get to bite, glassy slick seas, no Dorado or Yellowtail under the paddies, the Sunfish crowded them out!
-Just got hooked up, jig, (pink & green), but it broke off, now I'm watching the jig bounce around on the fish , no line on it 11:34am
-Another marlin hooked, fought and finally broke off at the boat, 3/4 mile off Main Beach Laguna this morning, caught on live sardine, soak it with a Penn 965 reel with 20lb line (maybe 150yds of line on the reel, good battle!)
-A few Dorado off Dana Point, under the kelps
-2 inside the Avalon Bank towards Long Point, a couple of quick feeders, Beautiful 69 degree blue water, not a whole lot of life, it was a 20 second feeder, we were there in 30 seconds, no bites 1:24pm,
-I think 3 marlin were taken so far from around or inside the 14 Mile bank so far. 2:14 pm
-the fish taken off Avalon/Casino was a baitfish, and I think a couple of jig fish and two other bait fish so far, another fish may have been been taken off the backside/ Silver Canyon

Thursday KENDAN Fish Report     Marty Morris      09/6/2001 10:00:11 PM
Every week the demand to receive the "Ken-Dan Wednesday Report grow louder and the list of subscribers grow longer. Today, with the Labor Day Holiday pushing things back a day, we bring you the famous "Wednesday (+ 1) Fishing Report." To get the maximum information from today's report - sit back, close  your eyes and imagine the following: Get up at 0430 at Shelter Island, run up to the Crystal Pier, make some bait, run out to the 178, put the lines in the water, turn right, troll down the entire length of the "9," past North Island, down to the 425, turn right and then another right heading back up the line a little further to the west, angle towards Pukey, cross the bottom of the "9", pull in the lines and then head for home.

JD's Thursday's Report  JD's Big Game Tackle    September 06, 2001
if your going out today, bring a sweatshirt!. Drizzle, overcast skies calm glassy seas.   Good bait at the Newport Bait receiver small sardines and good hook sized Anchovies,

Another batch of feeders came up on the inside of Catalina yesterday, one fish caught there.

Mackeral fishing off the outer oil derricks was tough.

Cattleboat skippers also report a batch or two of feeders off the lee of Catalina this morning, bait is scattered from Catalina to the Oil Rigs.

One other bite this morning 10 miles off the beach, I think inside the 14 Mile Bank, and another boat on the Bank was reported backing down, (black diesel smoke) seen but no response on the radio from them.

The bongos boats came in the harbor late this afternoon, one boat flying a shark flag, (release) the other boat came in with a Albacore Flag and a Tuna Flag, where they were fishing . I wish I knew, I believe ( a guess) they had run down to the outside of the 43 Fathom Spot or possibly the Butterfly Bank,

DESTROYED..! part 1   DanKauai    -  Southern California Marlin On-line     Sep-06-01, 12:52 PM (PDT)
I had a visit from HER yesterday….    When I booked the call, the gent said they just wanted to catch Anything, not looken for a trophy… a 6 hour trip....    We started out trolling the 40 fathom ledge, (240 ft.), I’ve been picking up Wahoo, Mahi & school tuna there the past week late in the mornings & was hoping for more of the same for the family of 5 that were visiting from Wyoming.

After an hour of not much happening on the ledge, I got a call from another charter that was working the outside, 1,000 fathoms…
He said the BIG Skipjack were still there & biting fair, he had three already 18 to 25 lbs. but the school was on the move, since it’s only a few miles, I asked the group & we decided to give em a shot.

As I trolled into the deep, I pulled out the Marauder from the Short position & replaced it with my Purple Soft Head lure, telling the folks, `Might as well…. There might be a Marlin following the Skipjack tuna…. & I made note that we still had the peanut lures out for the smaller eatable fish that Also cruse the deep waters.

The 19 year gent (the kid) immediately said, “I’ll take THAT rod when it gets bit… I Smiled & said it has his name on it now…
His sister `a year younger was saying how, “ANY Fish that can eat THAT lure will be too big for you… I smiled & said,” It’ll be “SPORTING”… looking at the 5’6” rod & the Penn International 50SW two speed packed with 80 lb. mono. & I told the young miss, “you get That rod, pointing to the 40 lb. outfit with my Mahi killer on it… `the rest of ya’s kin fight it out…”

It was a beautiful day… a couple fluffy white clouds passing by in the 13 knot winds, the sea was as Blue as it can be & the swell was nice & spread out, making the lures behind the boat swim as they were designed to…

The day was going great, Kauai a couple miles in the background, the sun still not high but enough to warm everything without being hot… the family was kiken back enjoying the ride, I had the young miss up on the bridge with me, (I wanted to show her a flying fish )…

Off in the near distance, I pointed out the other charter boat as it made a pass thru the birds & stopped, I showed how they were kina just keeping a slow forward movement so it was probably a Skipjack they hooked…
Then…
I saw a Giant Frigate Bird & a couple Red Footed Booby's hanging, the booby’s were swooping like they do when after the Mahi that are after the Flying fish… `the young miss had a `cute smile at the name of the bird & thought I was lying… It’s true, we get Red Footed Booby’s & Blue Billed ones… I prefer the booby’s with red feet over the Booby's wit blue nose & often tell folks so.… When they are in pairs, `mo beta’s…
Cool….
As we got close, we saw the Frigate swoop down & grab a 10 inch flying fish out of the air & fly up high so it could piece it out to swallow it, I always like it when folks from the flat lands get to see this, I Still get a big kick out of it myself…
The booby’s were still swooping & I pointed out the neon Blue Mahi swimming under it, I kept pointing at it & the family saw it as it saw the peanut lure & swam over a GRABBED it… it was the rod ran off the bridge so when it went off, it was only a foot from the young miss….

SNAP ZZZZzzzzzzZZz…it’s Jumping..! ZZZzzzzZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
I told the her, “That’s your rod…. I’ll hand it to ya when ya get on the deck…

`get the belt on, OK, cool, DON’T jerk… ok, try & do the lift n wind I showed ya earlier… `good, I reeled in the other peanut lure & put a slab of Tuna belly on it & let it back as the young miss worked the nice sized Mahi, having a hard time I might add… I reeled in the short lure & stowed it & gave mom the 30 lb. rod with the slab on it & told her to “just hold it there & when n if another Mahi comes to it, give it a little & when I say, put it in gear & crank…

The young miss was in the zone, keeping great tension on the line when she could, without jerking, cranking as the Mahi jumped, just holding as it ran… `a Natural…
& WHAT a Smile….BEAUUTIFUL… …she’ll make some lucky guy a great wife….

I told the Kid ta watch, take notes as that is how I’ll Expect him ta work HIS rod when it goes off laters….

OK..! Look, there’s Another… `Mom ya see it..?… “WoW..! I do…look how Blue it is…
Ok, it’s got your bait, give it a little….. OK, put it in gear…ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzz…
It’s Jumping…
“We get a double going folks..!…Nice ones too..!”

`interesting only the ladies are bent… `Hmmmm… how does that happen..?

I got out a bait rig & put another slab on it & gave it to dad showing how to work the reel & said he can put it out if n when another Mahi comes around…

I put my gloves on, telling the young miss to reel till the swivel gets to the rod tip & if I let go of leader to `Hold On… her Mahi was tired & laid out perfect for the gaff, I closed my eyes & swung…
EYEBALL Shot…
NICE WON !!!!…`Easy 30 lbs…

OK dad, there’s another…let yours out… ok cool, it sees it, `let en have a little…OK, put it in gear…
ZZZZZzzzzzZZZZZzzz…Ah dang…`missed it….

“Oh Well”… mom’s still tight, maybe another will come around, if so, the kid gets it,
`dad, you had your shot…LOL….
I put another slab on & told the kid the same as dad a few minutes before…

Meanwhile the 8 year old boy is watching with glee… I told him, “we’ll get you one soon… he said , “I’m READY !!! with a smile from ear ta ear…

We quickly took pictures of the young miss & her Mahi & I put it on ice…

Mom’s fish was close & gave one of the best jump sequences a Mahi can, close to the boat with perfect sun, the light gear helps here, mom didn’t have the technique her daughter had but since it’s hooked on bait, that’s ok as the hook is probably deep… so I was able ta make joke about what the purpose of the handle on the reel is… We All got ta Smile Big…

She got it close & I asked her too ta reel till swivel got to rod tip & “be ready…
This time, the Mahi didn’t lay there for the gaff so when I closed my eyes & swung, I got it in the gills & brought on board & kicked it into the corner, explaining why I ware the big boots…

Had to smile as the bloody Mahi spread it’s blood around, I also wondered `Again, why many folks ware White close fishing… LOL…

So there we were, All bloodied up, a couple 30 pound Mahi on ice, trolling towards the other boat that has gotten farther away while we worked the Mahi but not too far ta catch up to.

We now were Really having a great day…. & we `still had 4 hours left…

So there we were…. 10 AM, 5 miles off the southside of Kauai, `a third of the way down the mountain with 6,000 ft. of water under the boat, nice sunny day, 15 knot winds, chest high swells & me & the family enjoying the ride….
I now have the 8 year old up on the bridge, driving the boat, his mom n dad relaxing on the bench seat midship watching the lures pop & swim behind the boat & the kid standing watching forward at the Big group of birds just ahead of us & the young miss sunning on the back deck, I’m liking the new style of swimwear, `I mean how the lures are swimming….

Suddenly, dad says, “WoW !!! Look at all the birds…
The boys n me smile & the 8 year old says in a “Knowingly way, Dad, they have been in front of us for 20 minutes, were trying to catch up with the school…`Duh…
I Smile BIG inside…
& ask him to go ahead & get on the deck as his turn might be up if we get a pass & the 40 lb. rod gits bit…

The Skipjack are feeding on Nehu, a 2 inch bait fish that balls up tight, the birds really like this as it provides a easy meal. It also gives us an easy pass at times & this is one of em…

As the group of birds get close, we can hear the birds squawking at each other, they are in groups tight to the water, in area’s 50 ft. in diameter with nice splashes coming up from underneath… & hundreds flying around everywhere ya look in an area a half mile around the boat, Quite the show, the Frigates are chasing the Shearwaters trying to get them to spit up their food as they don’t have the wax on their wings & can’t get wet like the little shearwaters, all on board are enjoying watching the big bird harass the little one & are amazed by how well it can maneuver for it’s size & Why it would put so much energy into such small bait, I still can’t answer that without thinking they are just bully’s as they often do it, at times relentlessly…

Here we go….
SNAP…ZZzzZZzz Another…`Snap ZZzzzzzzzZzzz…! DOUBLE ..!!!

OK, your up..! get the small belt on, dad, you might want to help him, the kid can have the one off the rigger….
As I slow the boat, I can see both rods seem to be paying out line as if hooked to the Skipjack that are boiling all around the boat & are both going deep.
I reel in the short lure’s & stow it while telling the kid ta, “take it easy…Watch what your doing, your just yanking line off the reel, if it’s running, just hold it & wait…
Dad n the 8 year old are doing good, just holding on, might be cause the lighter line isn’t giving much choice, these big skipjack are Tough.
I turn the boat downhill & take it out of gear so’s not to be pulling line off with the boat & making it easier for dad n son team & allowing the kid ta crank his in mo easy on the 50SW… it doesn’t take long for his to get to color, I get my small gaff ready in case it’s not hooked good & ask again to crank to swivel & be ready, as I pull the 20 foot 400 lb. leader, I can see the 10/0 hook from my Richard Cranium lure is solid in the tunas mouth & just lift it onboard, I take the hook out of it’s mouth, slip it into the artery under the chin to bleed it & hold it upside down while the pool of blood goes out the scupper, the kid asks if he can hold it for a picture, as mom has the camera ready…

I Smile n say, `Sure… checking that mom & the young miss are out of the way but dad n son are close by…
I let the kid grab it, knowing he will never be able to hold on…
`sure nuff… as soon as he lifts the 18 lb. Skipjack, it shakes the rest of it’s blood ALL over as it drops to the ground…
I tell him again, but mo serious this time that he Really needs ta hold on… LOL

Now we can concentrate on dad n son, `in their Pink Poka Dot clothes trying ta get some of the 40 lb. string back on the 4/0 reel…
With only the short rigger lure out, I’m able to keep the fish off the stern & stay out of gear so they actually do a good job teaming up on the fish, dad lifting / level winding & the 8 year old cranking… saying how, “he JUST Can’t Believe his fish is the same size as his brothers as his is So Much stronger…

I sit on the bridge watching as this family from the flatlands get ta experience Blue Water Fishing…

As the fish gets to color, about 60 ft. under the boat, the 8 year old sees the Big Blue / Silver flash & Exclaims how he was rite about the size…
Then….ZZZZzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzz `OK, just hold it..!…ZZzzzzzzZZZZZzzzzzz…..

I smile as I hear that “Knowing Voice” again, saying how he, “KNEW HIS Fish was MUCH BIGGER than big brothers…
& the Smile was priceless on everyone on board…

After that last run, the fish came up quick… I again explain they need ta be ready when I pull it to the surface in case it wants`ta ta run… As I pull the 16 ft. 200 lb. leader, I see the 8/0 hook on the peanut only has a little of the tuna’s mouth & part of the gill hanging on it so I put a gaff in it’s head & bring it on board…

WoW..! `It IS bigger…this one will go 25 lbs `Easy… The “Knowing voice” says, I Told you..! We take a family picture, give high fives & pack the fish in the ice, `Sashimi tonight…

I have the `8 year old pro… drive towards the birds as I put the lines back out… Telling the kid, “there Really Should be a Marlin swimming around with these tuna… `Keep your eye on that Short lure…. So there we were… All bloodied up, chasing them booby’s again…

So there we were….

I changed my mind…. `Part V......  Sep-10-01, 01:43 PM
It’s funny how one puts in so much time & efforts, waiting…looking…waiting… hoping for a GIANT FISH to swim up behind the boat & Eat a Hook.

Bigeye 256lb in 1 day range        Johnny  Allcoast   Sep-04-01, 11:18 PM (PST)   
The fish ended up weighing 256 on the certified scale at Seaforth. We started trolling for albies about 6 am on Monday, Labor Day, and got a jig strike at about 6:15 for 6 dodos. Continued on for a couple scattered skippie and mini-albie strikes until about 7:15 am, when we stopped on a paddie with good yellowtail marks. Hooked a couple 5 pound yellows, and then they turned into albies, big-time! We ended up driving away from them to preserve what bait we had left in case we ran into some yellowfin or yellows on paddies, (this was a two day trip on the Aristokat six-pack out of Seaforth), and because we were only about two HOURS into our trip. Around 11 am we decided to put out a couple of marlin jigs just to be doing something instead of looking around and not fishing. They were both Zukers 3.5M marlin jigs, one mean joe green and one bright pink. Somewhere around 2:30 in the afternoon, both jigs got slammed. When they were both into the spectra before the boat could even be taken out of gear, we had an idea they were bigger fish. Tim the captain said they had to be bigeye or marlin, and since they weren't jumping, they were probably bigeye. I had grabbed the heavier outfit, and from the pull it definitely felt bigger than the 85# bluefin I got last year. The fish just kept taking line, slowly and steadily. I wasn't really worried about getting spooled since I had 500 yards of 80# Izor spectra topped with 200 yards of Izor mono (one of Basil's topshots). When the fish was out somewhere around 400 yards, it took a 300 yard run straight at the boat. I had been hoping that it would kamikaze the boat and it would be over, but at about 100 yards out, it turned around and screamed out another 200 yards. This repeated a couple of times over the first hour or so, and then they had Mike's fish at color. I knew his was on my other rig with a 50# topshot, so I guessed that his was either smaller or I had a really mean fish on. About an hour and fifteen minutes after the original jig strike, Mike's fish was gaffed and they dragged it into the stern. I heard/felt a loud *thump* and then the screams when his fish came aboard. When everyone came back up from the stern, no one would tell me how big the fish was, so I had to wait until I got dragged back there by mine. I guessed 150#, which is what I had originally guessed the one at the end of my line was, but at this point I realized that mine was a lot bigger and got kind of scared. I've read about a lot of 70-120 pound bigeye being boated locally, but very few in the high 100's, and at this point I was on my knees in the bow trying to gain line...
Not long after Mike's fish came up, mine actually started to show some signs of tiring, and eventually it came to color. It just sat under the bow sulking for about 20 minutes, with Tim and the crew coaching all the way on what to do at each stage and how to react depending on what the fish did. (the crew was great at coaching every step of the way, and I'm sure I wouldn't have gotten the fish without them). The fish finally came all the way up (once it got to 80 feet deep, we could see it on the fish finder, and Richard Fischer, also an Allcoaster, gave us reports on it's depth), and we realized that the troll jig had a 12 foot marlin leader, and with the swivel wound all the way to the top roller, the fish was still JUST out of gaff's reach. Major dilemma. Well, we kept trying, and on the third circle, one of the crew members reached WAY out and hit it in the head, and the other two gaffs went in within the next second. At this point I was estimating the fish at 200#, which was already amazing. It took four gaffs to lift the fish onboard, and when it hit the deck, it cracked the non-slip coating/finish on the deck. Tim and I looked at each other and agreed. 250. Then we started yelling and high-fiving each other, and decided to end the trip and head home to weigh the fish.
By the way, does anyone know what the CA record is? We thought it might contend, but have heard everything from low 200's to well over 300 as the record. We got the weight certified and I have the rod with knots attached still, and the other problem is that no one from DFG verified that it was a bigeye, though we all were able to identify it and hopefully it looks obvious in the pictures. I will have them developed in the morning and post them as soon as I can get them scanned... Now I've got to take some aspirin and get to bed...
Forgot to mention- the bigger one was taken on a Penn 50S modified by Cal to fish 80#, on a Calstar 655XXH fiberglass rod, and the smaller on a 16S modified to fish 50-60# by Cal on a Calstar 660H glass rod, both obviously custom wrapped by BGI...     Knee-buckler: Aristocat Capt. Tim Linskey (left) and angler Johnny Wong show off Wong's 256-pound bigeye tuna, caught in Mexican waters 80 miles south of Mission Bay.   

Brought to his angling knees  - Man battles 256-pound bigeye tuna off Aristocat   By Ed Zieralski
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
September 6, 2001

It's bigeye tuna season, and no one knows that better than Johnny Wong of West Covina.   One of the bigeyes, called gorillas for their massive size and sheer strength, dropped Wong to his knees as he fought it Monday aboard Capt. Tim Linskey's Aristocat out of Seaforth Sportfishing.

Wong and fellow angler Michael McLain of South Pasadena were trolling marlin jigs, 3.5 Zuker's pink, in order to avoid getting stopped by albacore or skipjack about 80 miles south of Mission Bay, north of the 1010 Trench. They had a double jig strike, and the rumble was on.

McLain boated his fish, a fine 132-pound bigeye, an hour later, but Wong stayed fastened to his, belly to the rail and, at times, knees on the deck, to withstand the battling bigeye.

"At one point, I was at the bow, on my knees, the rod on the rail and just trying to reel it in," Wong said.

Wong fought it for 2 hours, 15 minutes before Linskey, his two deckhands and McLain stuffed four gaffs into it and muscled it over the rail and into the Aristocat. It weighed 256 pounds.

"I was completely dead at the end, just kind of hurt," Wong said.

Wong said the sheer weight of the tuna cracked the fiberglass deck floor of the Aristocat.

"It's the biggest tuna at the landing in the 25 years I've been here," said John Yamate, part owner and general manager at Seaforth Sportfishing on Mission Bay.

Wong used 80-pound Spectra backing with a topshot of 80-pound blue Izorline on a Cal Sheets-treated Penn 50S reel and a Calstar 655XXH rod.

As big as the fish is, it isn't even close to an IGFA world record, line-class or all-tackle mark. The record for bigeye on 80-pound test line is a 375-pounder caught last April off Ecuador. The California state record for a bigeye caught in offshore waters is a 240-pound, 10-ounce fish caught at the Butterfly Bank on Aug. 1, 1987, by Steve Hutchinson. But this fish was caught 80 miles south in Mexican waters.

Wong wraps rods in his spare time and has an on-line fishing tackle shop, www.biggameinternational.com, where he sells the rods, reels and fishing tackle. His previous best catch was an 85-pound bluefin last year that took him about 30 minutes to land.

"This catch dwarfs that one," Wong said. "We have a lot of pictures of me fighting the fish, but the one with me on my knees at the bow . . . "    That says it all.

Bigeye 256lb in 1 day range     Eric C. Meins     Allcoast    Sep-04-01, 07:51 PM (PST) 
976-tuna is reporting that one of the 2 bigeye that the Aristocrat landed today was 256lbs and in 1 day range!!! Now were talking. Imagine pulling up to Shelter Island with a very fresh, not a popsicle, fish like that strapped to the back of your boat like a long ranger coming back from a 16 dayer. Kill bag and flying gaffs anyone? Just knowing there swimming around out there makes a long boat ride a little nicer.    Eric
Edit: Checked 976-bite which had a few more details and said that only 2 lines were being trolled quite close and both hooked up. 1 marlin jig was a mean joe green and the other was a hot pink feather. Said they were down around 80 miles. The other tuna was a mere 132lbs. The bigger fish took over 2 hours to land.

JD's Labor Day's Report, Monday  J.D.'s Big Game Tackle   
-Calm seas , overcast skies, WIND NW 10 TO 15 KT...INCREASING TO 15 TO 20 KT DURING THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 TO 3 FEET. SWELL NW 5 FEET. PATCHY DENSE FOG IN THE MORNING
-Coast Guard reports a small 15 ft boat overturned in the San Pedro Channel, keep your eye out for it.
-Two sleepers reported 2 miles south of the 14 Mile Bank this morning. sunk out. 7:03 am
-The Full Moon has slowed thing down.
-Fish baited 7 miles off outside the Domes yesterday, Dolly Pardons, some quick feeders, a scratch of fish seen off San Clemente Island
-Water temps 70 degree just outside the 267 Fathom Spot, the colder water side of the temp break seems to be holding more life
-From the Satilite images/ Swell mode it looks as though there is a large swell out of the West on the outside, no wind on it .- -The few marlin that were in tight to the beach (in the lee) at San Clemente Island (off the windmills) 1 to 2 miles moved down the island towards the Domes on Sunday, pushed by the early wind out of the N/W the cold water (64) crept in from the west and came down the island. Yellowfin were still in the area but hard to hook, they were on that small mini bait.
-Jumpers , quick feeders seen off Clemente, not taking the baits or jigs .
-The 289 spot looks real good,
-A big 8-10 ft. shark seen with a white dorsal fin seen?
-About a hour ago we saw a sleeper just tipping, sunk out. had a couple zips, knockdown this morning for about a 45 minute show. (I think outside the 14- JD) 1:15 pm
-Another jig fish or two strikes this morning during the AM high tide today, Green/ Yellow, Green / White
-Several boats have drifted the overnight these past few days, full moon, Sharks , no swordfish , at least confirmed.
-Got the glasses on at least one marlin, 1:35
-seals, birds, jumping sunfish lots of life, on the 14 mile bank, 1:35pm
Saw one big batch of feeders earlier today, it's been quiet for the past few hours since.
-The marlin were feeding early and late in the afternoon, during this full moon phase. scattered batches of feeders from inside 14/267 to outside the banks

178 LB Bigeye taken @390   gofish    Sep-03-01, 08:03 AM (PST)
The boat Solud landed a 178lb (scaled) bigeye at the 390 proper on Sunday. The fish was landed on a short daisy chain with a 7" black and green Zuker at the end.
xxx large tuna    Landshark    Sep-03-01, 01:51 PM (PST)
when leaving SI ramp on sunday afternoon, there was a tuna hanging at the marlin club that looked like it was over 150 lb. It was by far the biggest tuna I've seen in person. Anyone else see that? And was it a local fish?  

Saturday Fish Report   Steve Bledsoe    Date: 02 Sep 2001     Time: 18:36:55
We fished San Clemente Island yesterday for marlin. We found a small group of fish tight to the island between the Dome and the Windmills within 2-miles of the beach. The fish showed mainly as single tailers and an occasional quick feeder. Brooks Morris and Chris Benson both caught and released marlin yesterday on the "No Excuses". Brooks got bit on the drop-back on 30# and Chris pulled a 20# fish out of a bait ball. Dan Schumacher, Niall and Dave Devoy fished Dan's boat "Skipped Out". Dan caught and released his first SoCal marlin on 20# tackle. Dan and crew threw mackerel on a tailer and got bit. The Skipped Out crew also caught a 20-lb dorado and a 30-lb YFT from a paddy in that same area tight to the island. The water temp was 67 to 68 degrees, green and dirty from the Mackerel Bank in to the Island. The lee of the island is full of bait and yellowfin tuna. The seiners were working the tuna just a few miles inside Pyramid Head. Despite the large quantity of tuna in the area, there were very few tuna bites there yesterday. We found lots of 63 and 64 degree water between the two islands on our morning crossing.  

JD's Thursday Report   J.D.'s Big Game Tackle   
-Beautiful Weather , a light southwesterly, patchy cloud cover, calm seas, a few fish around. The upcomming weekend looks good. At least for boat rides!
-The East End of Catalina held a few more fish yesterday, over the past 100 years that's the spot, and will continue to be. If you needed to catch a marlin and you spent every day of the season fishing within 5 miles of the East End you would have a better catch there, than those who ran around.- JD
-More Mola Mola sightings
-Mackeral next the the West receiver (Long Beach) this morning.
-Avalon Bank , 65 degrees, looks good a few birds,
-Albacore south of San Diego 180 degrees 60 miles
-Water conditions are changing daily,, what was good yesterday, is not he same today.
-267 Fathom Bank, 69 degrees a few sauries, the kind of fish that smiles alot are around in good numbers
-one sword fish and a couple of jumpers seen off Dana Point, 267 fathom Spot
-14 Mile quiet, looks good but no one home
-Cattleboat (Holiday) has Mexican limits of albacore (5 fish each) by 10:35 am, beautiful weather
-The winds starting to build from the West, Southwest 1:20pm
-We just caught three Tunas under the Porpoise,
-Swordfish guys around going nuts, just watched one guy go out on the plank and stick three fish! 1:59 (one the bank (267 Fathom Spot)
-Low tide 2:40 pm today
-Clear skies, Swordfish skies
-Not much happening on the marlin scene, a few jumpers around.
-The Tuna fishing below the border kept up, with a couple of guys saying they still had fish after several hours.
-Halibut fishing improves on the beaches, also mud sharks!
-267 looks good, got up to 70 degrees, birds, porpoise, sunfish, a jumper or two, good on the meter, sauries on the surface, swordfish,
-The Navy ,in the wisdom has San Clemente Island closed this weekend! The middle of the island is open but Pyramid Cove and Northwest harbor are closed during most of the daylight hours. According to the Navy, San Clemente Security officer the following hours are in place, but thing are changing today and maybe there's a chance it will be open?

Wednesday KENDAN Fish Report     Marty Morris      08/29/2001 11:40:12 PM
There are definitely fish up the coast towards San Onofre and downwards. Trent Huls got a couple and saw more, had bait bites on tailers, etc on Sunday. The water temp charts show the band of warm water along the coast - out to about 5 miles. We went yesterday. Problem was the southeast wind blowing in the AM (white caps in the channel), smooth running up hill, but continued blowing 12-15 out of the southeast all day. Never turned around to SW or W or NW. Saw two tailers going north (downswell) 4 1/2 to 5 miles straight out of oceanside harbor, and another 6 miles of domes. lots of bait and good bird signs from Carlsbad on up. Frequent huge meat ball marks on meter. San Clemente is now open, the bite at East End picked up, but can you imagine the scene there this week-end. If the weather improves you know where I - and most of San Diego - will be. And no problem making bait at Scripps Pier. As usual - good bite just before light. Water temp was 68.5 to 66.2 on the two sides of the break. Marty