Hey there guys,
Having to fish 3 solid consecutive days on the 3/4 day boats here in Southern California was really tough work. I wouldn't wish having to make that effort on anyone.
Monday and Tuesday I rode the Pierpoint and today (Wednesday) I fished on the Premier. Limits of sand bass were the order of the day the first two days with limits of both sand bass and barracuda today. That's not just individual limits that's boat limits.
The live bait at this time of years is not always the best so although we had good chum bait the hook bait was scarce.
No matter, most people have gotten used to fishing with plastic swimbaits and that's what accounted for most of the limits.
The bass were not that big with the biggest being around 4 pounds. The Barracuda with pretty good average size with a number pushing up into the 7 1/2 to 8 pound range.
Lots of boats out on the Huntington Flats where we saw the Victory, Southern Cal, Native Sun, Enterprise, Monte Carlo, Western Pride, City of Long Beach..... you name it they were there! ha ha
All these boats have done well the last few days with many getting limits.
During the three days a very large Halibut and legal White Sea Bass where also caught.
The Barracuda love the red and white swimbaits both Kalin and Whams with the sand bass chewing just about any color you threw out and let sink. Most of the fish were caught on the sink at first then spread out throughout the water column once the bite began to build.
Today was the most crowded day with 40 some passengers while Monday was the lite day(12) and Tuesday OK (20).
Lot's of good fun and lot's of short fish. Most legals where just that 12 to 14 inches. If you like to fish numbers instead of quality, nows the time to go! I've heard that the quality fish are consistantly caught on the twilights. The twilight boats are packed and I don't like that!
JapanRon
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[size 4]c'mon now japan u gotta fish longbeach sportfishing..... [/size]
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[size 4]-chris[/size]
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the pursuit got a legal sea bass on monday! yipee! I gaffed it!
we all thought it was just a really big sand bass. but it came up and we started yelling "WHITE SEABASS... WHITE SEABASS!" the captain started to come down from the wheelhouse, maybe because he doesn't think I can gaff or something. I dont know. but I gaffed it before he could even step foot on the deck. he just looked at me and mumbled.... "good job Joe". It was quite funny.
and on wednesday, the pursuit got limits on barracuda and sand bass. not bad huh chris??? hey you left that western outdoors magazine at my house.
joe
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Hello Guys,
Got to love it JR, fishing three days in a row! It's a tough job but someone has to do it! Glad to hear you had a great time!
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Hi there theangler,
After catching 40+ sandbass a day for 3 days my thumbs are torn all to heck. Seriously, I think I've scraped a nerve in the pad of my thumb as so much skin is literaly ground away and three little extra long slashs feel prickly when I try to flex the thumb.
I tried using the 3M water proof stuff but it didn't really do the job to protect my thumbs. I then tried ends of rubber gloves but the sensitivity for fishing was messed up.
The only way to grab those sand bass without injury to the creatures gills or taking the slim off them is to lip them. It's hurting me more than them!!! Oh well, It's nice to know they are free to fight another day.
Looking for a solution besides not catching so many fish!
JapanRon
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Hey Ron,
I bet that your 3 day limits of sand bass and your one day limit of cuda would'nt add up to my 2 3/4 day albie trip!! I caught 19 albies on the first day and 1 YT and a SHEEPHEAD on the second. My albies ranged 25-35lbs and my yellow was 18 so average albie was 28lbs?? times 16=448 and I had 3 about 30lbs =538lbs!!!! I had the biggest cleaning bill on the boat $103.50!!!! Which means I WAS THE #1 FISH KILLER!!!!!
hahaha Ill be back at work tomorrow [crazy]
Aaron
I killed them all!!
Ohh ya and Joe I gaffed a legal on Sunday that was a whopping 8lbs (wsb) !! And I gaffed a 25lbs albaduck!!! hahaahahahahahhaa [cool]
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Good Job dh_tubinaaron,
Glad to hear you did so well on the albies. So where's my sushi? Nice size fish. Here's some questions for ya.
1) About how far out and where were you guys getting the albies? Potato Bank, banana flats, whatever!!! ha ha
2) Do anything at the Coronados? You'd think there would be a lot of yellows outside to the island.
3) Jig fish or bait? If jigs, what colors seemed to do the best.
4) Use any plastics? I heard the 5 or 6 inch Big Hammers did real good on the slide or otherwise.
5) With that grade of fish, what was the lightest line you could get away with?
Again, Congrats on the fishys.
JapanRon
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OOOOOH YA 8 Pounder huh?!?! haha. that was my first time gaffing a wsb. it was cool. mac just got back from his albie trip and he absolutely killed them. he got 4 fish over 30lbs! HOLY GABEBUS!
now where in the world did you get this 103.50 for fish cleaning. I would do it myself if it cost me that much! geez. haha I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL THE 28TH!!!
Hey aaron, how was the water out there. mac said that he could hardly stand up! I am getting kinda nervous. I can't get by without dramamine if there are anything above 4ft. oh well. we'll see.
good job on the trip man. I am just waiting for you to fax me some of that fish! oh wait. that isn't possible.
CHRIS: I'll start walking! just name the direction. sorry guys.... inside joke.
joe
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Ron: Take 1 20lbs set up, leave the 25 at home and fish 30, 40, 60, 80, and 100 if you have it!! We had Boho sardines and horse choves. They chewed the Bohos and I was usin the mega bait on 60 and 80 lbs and still hanging them. I caught most of my fish on 25 lbs but had a 30lbs set up, it's your call on either 25 or 30 but I fished 25 on my Newell 332 and my Pac Bay 670. I got bit off on my 40 lbs on my jig stick so it might have been a knick in the line or a big BLUE!!! We went 110 down after the captain decided that it was too "ROUGH" (5 foot swell every 10 seconds with wind chop, come on!!!) Though I did have a few that put me on a knee and holding on to the rail while fishing in free spool!! haha We were supposed to go big and burn the gas to 200 down but the attitude of the captain was he had a set time of leave the dock at 9 and come back at 6:30 am, he did'nt try very hard and fishing rockfish was a big joke between that and sitting at the bait barge for 3 hours until 5:30 am was a huge joke, makes me think twice about going back on the boat.
JOe: The 28 of August right?? Prime time swell season for a little boat!!!!! Sucks to be you guys!!! The boat I went on is 102' ??? the Horizon is what 65???? hahahahaha................ hahahaha......ha!!!! Make sure you eat a greasy bf burrito with extra cheese, fish love cheese!! Remember chumming in mexican waters is illegal, so bring a bucket! [laugh]
Aaron
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I think the blue horizon is 55 but not sure on that one. I kind of want the water to be rough, but at the same time, I dont. I want to test my stomach. ahah. I might leave the dramamine behind and tough it out. remember that time on the victory! hahahahahahaha wow that was a fun day![:/][:/] I was pukin left and right. hahaha I never ever got sick like that... ever! Did you guys get into a white out. Mac said that a few 2 dayers did a little bit more south.
he just told me so many HORRIBLE stories about that boat. like one time, there was a deckhand on that boat that had never decked before. he couldn't even tie a hook on the line. REDICULOUS! he aaron, let me borrow your 229 for the trip. I want to use it to fish bait.
what do you guys think about the fluorocarbon. one of my buddies was fishing fluorocarbon and a DEAD bait on the slide and hung one in 10 seconds! WITH DEAD BAIT!!!! do you think fluorocarbon is an essential or what???
this is going to be my first tuna trip, so bare with me guys!
joe
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35 pound albie thats a pup my largest on a one day trip was 68# fish no. 2 66# year 1984 ( or there abouts ) can any of you san pedro, long beach , etc. deckhands guess where ? someone out there has to remember this bite
chris
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so sorry... that was a whole 4 years before I was born! haha
joe
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Hi there DH_tubinjoe,
I love fluorocarbon in line ratings of from 2 to 30 pounds. I always fish lighter than I should and that goes for my leader material. I love the idea that the line is harder to detect.... Even though the diameter is thicker at a given test than an average diameter mono line. Why do I favor it? Because a good flurocarbon is exceptionally resistant against line abrasion from those nasty rocks in Catalina and for our more toothy friends elsewhere. Not only is the line made with tougher material and advanced processes, the thicker line can simply take more wear. Doesn't take a rocket scientist on that one! ha ha
For fish over 50 pounds my experience is ziltch. Some tuna anglers I have read posts on don't neccessarily use fluorocarbon as topshots on there spectra or braid lines.
I use nothing but co-polymer or braid-like main line with fluorocarbon line leaders.
Some fluorocarbons are brittle and might break you off if the fish is big and makes a sudden jolting burst. Ironsilk and a number of other fancy lines are brittle. I like Seaguar and P-line as well as a couple of other brands for leader material.
I stay with clear although some like the green or smoky gray tint.
JapanRon
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now i feel old i'll fill in the blanks 83-84 was a crazy couple of years with a really strong el nino i'm talking 74 degress at the light house and marlin being hooked a mile off the light even got my first dolardo less then ten miles out that year anywho back to the tuna i was working the fury 2 out of ports o call sportfishing and the albies were less then twenty miles out from the light a little south i believe bite lasted about 2 weeks never got alot of fish if i remember right we got 12 one day but all 50# plus fish never got any on the troll fished bait balls is there no one out there who remembers this bite ?
chris
just thought you guys might be interested to know the biggest fish caught on board was 78 # plus !!!!!
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NO JOE YOU CANT HANDLE MY 229!!!! its Too smooth for you!!!!!!! Remember when you used it on the Pursuit??? DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON FLOUROCARBON FOR A WFO ALBADUCK BITE!!!!
Mike Blue on the Victory was telling me about the epic summer of 83 and 84. He said that they had numerous 200-300 fish stops that included YFT, YT, Do do's, skipjack, Big Bones, and other weird sh!t.
The ALBIES WANT TO DIE SO GO KILL THEM!!!!!
Aaron
PRAY FOR THE ALBIES TO COME INTO RANGE FOR US LB GUYZ!!!
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a couple of years ago, the Pursuit were catching yft a little past catalina! awesome huh.... what reel did you pair up with the rod that you wrapped???
joe
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Hi there aquaman,
I read some interesting stuff on the albies that swing our way. Seems like 91 and 92 were pretty good years too for very big fish.
It said that the albies are only about 15 pounds when they hit mexican waters and gain weight according to forage which in turn affects bait. They are willing to hang around one area for weeks on end if the water temp and the bait are there. Anywho, in 91 some people were catching 90 pound albies off the back side of Santa Cruz. They go up to around British Columbia and make a sharp left back into the northern pacific where they grow to about 150 pounds.
I wonder if they eat themselves out of existance like the Bluefin Tuna?
Though others might find their run interesting.
Oh ya, I thought the thing about thier gliding at 100 feet back down to 300 feet crusing depth interesting too. The commercial boys really got these creatures habits down.
JapanRon
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thats because the albacore don't have swim bladders. so they have to keep moving.... in order to take a break from swimming, they just glide down to deaper depths and come back up...and continue this process.
joe
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