Rail Time Again!

If you are like me, you get frustrated when an article makes you wait to the end to get the important details. So this time, I’ll go right to the stats and follow up with details and photos.

Passengers:  Jeff Chuang, Chartermaster, Steve Chuang, Tom and Jim Carlisle, Cathy Needleman and me.

Crew:  Gary Adams, Owner/Captain, Jake and Andy

Day 1:  Jeff landed two 60# class bluefin on 30# and 40# line, live sardines for bait.  I caught a baby bluefin on 50# line, live sardine for bait.  Casualties were several but the real heartbreaker was the one Jim fought on 30# for around 30 minutes before it broke off.  The other casualties were mostly like my two - hook up then bing, it was gone (hook bit off or pulled hook).

Day 2:  Steve landed two yellowtail, Cathy, Gary and I landed 1 yellowtail each.  Casualties were many.  We quit counting when the count was 5 for 16 bites.  Yellowtail were caught on both sardines and live squid mostly on #2 hooks and 25# line.

Steve also caught sheepshead, white fish and calico bass.  Cathy kept up with Steve catching calicos, white fish etc.  I caught one seagull.

Now for some details.  We departed Peter’s Landing around 6 pm and picked up a load of sardines at the receiver.  Gary kicked the engines up heading for the bluefin grounds. He had us rig our flatfalls or jigs for night fishing.

The bluefin were in an area between Catalina and San Clemente Island.  Many boats in the San Diego fleet were fishing the area too.  Gary circled the fleet looking for schools of fish.  He said he didn’t see any and didn’t see anyone hooked up to fish.  That information plus the rather lumpy conditions were why he decided to save us from getting beat up for nothing.  He headed straight to San Clemente Island to make live flyers for the next day’s fishing.  I slept through it all.

Early the following morning, Gary headed back out to the bluefin grounds and started the search for fish.  We were instructed to have our 30, 40 and 50 pound outfits ready with small hooks like 1/0 Mutu.  When Gary metered a school, Andy or Jake would chum sardines then we would slide back our sardines.  Jeff hooked up first and Jim right after him.  I was picked off at the same time.

Jeff and Jim were on 30#.  Jeff landed his but Jim’s was too big for his line and it broke off.  Jeff hooked another on 40# and landed it as well.  The rest of us hooked and lost fish except for the tiny bluefin I landed.  So small, it should have been released.

We spent the entire day driving around looking for fish.  Surprising how tired you can get just waiting.  We set up for jigging at sundown, but when Gary searched the area, he said he didn’t see any schools big enough to stop on so he headed back to San Clements island.

Jim and Cathy heated up the pasta and ribs and set out the salad for dinner. I crashed as soon as we ate.  

Around 1:30 am, Gary started the engines and woke crew to help him scoop squid.  When I got up in the morning, the tanks were full of squid, flyers and sardines.  Our white seabass rigs with dropper loops were already in the rod holders fishing.  

After daybreak, Gary advised us to rig our 25# outfit with a #2 hook to fish for yellowtail.  After a short time of checking out coves, Gary found the right one.  Good current, nice colored water and crashing yellowtail. We really got schooled by these fish.  We were no match, but it was fun.

We spent the day fishing yellows until time to call it a trip.  Jake and Andy processed our 5 yellowtail and 3 bluefin.  

We were back at dock by 6 pm and on our way home by 6:30:

As always, a huge thanks to Jeff for including me on his trips and I’m always grateful to Gary, Jake and Andy for their expertise, humor (You know what they say!) and assistance. 

Jeff's Sashimi Platter