The adventure begins. Again!

[Rare]

Now I know you're lying.

I cant fool you...you my friend are as sharp as my butter knife!

[Kingofthesea]

OK not that I don't believe you but ........the boat left the dock on Sunday. I can get in my car now and I'm in Rosarita, Mexico in 2 1/2 hours Is Joey rowing that tub?

[Rare]

You do understand why they shut it off, dont ya?

[Kingofthesea]

Commie subs?

[crashmister]

image.jpeg

Well the ridge was a blow out so they're headed for the rocks. Weather's getting a little snotty as well. No one has been there in a week. Alijos (Rocas Alijos) has a bad habit of going off under those conditions. We did 56 in under 2 hours on the way down last year.

[Kingofthesea]

Great pic Pat

[Rare]

[crashmister]

They're finally on the board! Joe has 2 wahoo and Rich had one. Unlimited skip jacks around but none tag worthy.

[Kingofthesea]

thanks Pat.

[crashmister]

sorry guys that should have read unlimited skip jacks, and a few Yellow fin tuna, but none tag worthy. At least they'll have Fresh sushi!

[kblue]

Commie subs?

We should send boatless drone...satellite feed over Internet...

[HJared]

Commie subs?

We should send boatless drone...satellite feed over Internet...

that would be something.

[Kingofthesea]

Think big young Jarred. In less than 10 years Apple will have a chip that's the half the size of a grain of sand that's injected into your eyeball and if they wanted the entire world can see through your eyes in real time. That will be impressive

[HJared]

how about the laser std test or glasses that you can look at someone and see if they got some nasty poop. or the xray superman contacts, now that would be something people would pay for

[Rare]

[Rare]

[Kingofthesea]

Rare!!!!! Thanks blood good to see his mug. Is that the wahoo he wants to trade for weed?

[kblue]

Thanks a lot Rare...
But stop teasing us... post the rest of pictures... don't keep them to yourself...
I want MORE pic...

Why GK wearing only FL clothing...

[STRIZ]

LOL

That Wahoo on the left is bigger than the dude. He got food for a month lol

Cool beans

[Green Tide]

After riding for a couple of days I know it felt good to get a few fish in the boat.

[Kingofthesea]

With those rocks in the background looks like the three wahoo were caught before they took that crazy right turn a couple of days ago.

[crashmister]

The Rocks just never lit up so they're headed to Mag Bay for tuna. Yesterday they got a few wahoo and half a dozen grouper. Hopefully there's some big tuna in their future.

[permitchaser]

the lil dude smoke GK You better do something ...

[crashmister]

Chris got one.

[Rare]

Congrats, Chris. Pat 150lb.?

[crashmister]

At least. See the short top fin? Means it's a local fish. Longer top fin means it's a longer range or open ocean fish. That's frigging huge for a local fish, probably in the cow range. Not much size difference from mine at all.

[kblue]

Yeah go Chris...!!!

[crashmister]

Hey everybody! First, thanks so much for all the well wishes and support. Really means allot. I'm in Atlanta airport waiting on my connection so I thought I'd start this story.

As you know the trip started S L O W! Big fish but few and far between. A few of us were lucky enough to hookup and land big fish but the numbers weren't impressive. I managed to draw first big fish blood with a 185 on my SEa 15 on a cal star 770XXH 100 lb JB line with a 100 lb windon. File that under "big mistake"!! The Pete Barret custom rod and Okuma reel preformed flawlessly. I how ever had my azz summarily kicked! With the first fish of the trip a new personal best on a way too small reel, I'm feeling reasonably confident the skunk of previous trips with stupid mistakes on line and drag issues, not to mention pulling hooks is now history. While thre weren't many fish at the bank, size however was excellent with 180's average. We stayed until noon the second day and made for Clarion island, 19 hours east. We got to the island before sunup on day 3. About the same story as the Hurricane bank, but much smaller fish in the 40 to 50 lb range. Day 4 we checked in with the Mexican navy stationed on the island. Basically they come out in a boat that's, well, barely a boat. 7 guys in something I wouldn't cross new river in, and they're 2 miles off shore.
The island crew is real tight with our crew chief Fernando. So it's old home week when we show up. Not to mention usually somethings broke. Last year it was the island generator. They'd been down 5 days when we arrived. They met us as we approached and had the generators broken fly wheel with them. A drill press and an easy out and they could not have been happier.
This year they needed fresh water, 200 gallons of fresh water. So I filled 5 Gallon water jugs while they relayed them up and back from there boat to ours. Our good deed to allow us unrestricted fishing. Or so we thought. Enter the "gun boat". Not sure if the US navy gave Mexico this boat or they actually paid for it, either way they got ripped off. We thought a quick visit and they're gone. (we can't fish within 6 mikes of shore by Mexican law) Then all 5 boats (by that time 3 other boats joined Excell and us at the island) can move back into island waters and fish. Not meant to be. Turns out this scow is broken and needs a fresh water pump, and the island don't have a replacement. ( I can't believe it floats) So in an effort to get rid of em we offered a fresh water pump free with delivery. The nut sac's got angry that we were listening to their radio traffic. That little adventure cost us almost 2 full days of fishing at the island. With 2-1/2 days left to fish the situation was getting desperate. We had less than 30 fish total on board. The following morning clarion started to produce. My first fish, around 150 gets gaffed and I grab my SEa20 with 100 JB. Bait and toss it out. Bait runs less than the length of my windon (25 yds) and line starts screaming off my reel I slide the drag about half way to strike and it's on!!! Next 2 min solid he's running hard. I realize getting all this back is gonna be a mission. I slowly start moving the drag up and finally get this fish turned. Now I'm ganing line almost faster than I can reel. That don't last long. Unlike the big fish I've fought to this point, he's not sounding. He's staying high in the column and far out from the boat. The veterans tell me that's what the big ones do. As if I wasn't pumped enough. Now it's a slug fest. First hour I don't gain jack he don't take back. He finally sounds with all of half my spool of line. Now at least I have some leverage. I lay the rod on the rail with the butt under my left arm pit and start railing this fish to no avail. Boat drops on a wave, reel like crazy. Boat lifts hold. It's like reeling against a snag. With line peeling right back off. 45 min later I start gaining about 6 inches of line each time the boat rocks. Half a 20 spool, 6"s at a time. 2:30 in we got color in the lights. Fought this guy from broad daylight to pitch black darkness. Finally 15 min later he's gaffed. I'm exhausted. 4 gaffs later my first ever cow tuna is on the deck. While he taped out at 245 actual weight was 232. Still good enough to be second to a sandiego long range legend Charles Tanaka. Charlie decked 4 cows last day.
Bites still on but I'm all done. So I grab old John's 130 set up, drop a bait and bam, I'm on again! Hand it of to John and grab the rig he's using and reel it in. Johns on a good hour and gets cut off. Apparently his line rubbed a shark because the last 8" was shredded. Dropped another bait but no joy. We picked up anchor and moved in to the island for bait and to anchor for the night.
We made bait until about 10:30. And all but Charlie, Ben Kita, another legend, Jack and myself went to bed. We stayed up just to rig jigs for daybreak.
As I'm returning my rig to its holder, I see a large fish I can't quite make out in the lights right next to the boat. I just ask out loud not to anyone in particular, is that a shark? Charlie walks up and one look, he yells, that's a f-ing tuna! Mad scramble comedy of errors ensues First, I'm trying to figure out where Ben came from and how a 70 odd year old guy moved as fast as he did. But he had a bait on this fish in seconds. To no avail. Jack on the other hand has a PL68 jig he's trying to hook the fish with. Instead he got the line in the fishes mouth. Great we got the line! Now what? It's a hundred pound fish. We're not gonna hand line it. So we try to tie the line on another reel. Fail! Knott's to big to go through the top eye. Try again and get it through. Then of course we over pack the reel with line and it's not turning. Finally in a moment of clarity I grab Matt one of the crew who long gaffs him no problem. I stick him and heave! 120 on the deck and a great story to boot. We could not stop laughing through the whole ordeal. We didn't have a clue what was waiting for us the next 2 -1/2 days. We certainly didn't expect to salvage the entire trip, but that's the buffer zone. Anything can happen.
Next morning sunup bite starts real slow. Gary decides to try a chandelier rig. Tie a weight 3-4 feet from the hook with a rubber band. The bait swims and the weight takes it down. Not a min later, he's on with a good fish. Rudy picks up on it and bam he's on. He tips Phil as he's moving by with his fish, phil grabs a weight and he's on in seconds.
Next morning we pull anchor about 3:30 and move to our spot. We drop anchor and start chumming.
My first bait runs and dies. I'm getting a second an Charlie tells me get a jig in the water. I grab my 30 with a white PL 68 and drop it. A couple of good bumps on the way down and then bottom. Wait, how can that be bottom? We're in 40 fathoms. I start reeling and bottom takes off in a 90 second screaming run straight down. Not a huge fish but definitely respectable. Unfortunately with no one to hand the rod off to, I start railing him up. Get him on the boat and drop right back down. By this time a few of the others got the heads up and started dropping jigs. One after another until we have 9 fish hanging off the boat. The crew is scrambling with tangles, juggling rods, steering fish and people in opposite directions trying to avoid crosses and hull scrapes as well as keeping everyone out of the props. Of the 9, 7 were landed. 2 broke the line. All of this in the span of just over an hour and a half. Then they just shut off. Until late afternoon. Then they lit up again with a slightly smaller grade of fish. Next morning same thing but an hour or so longer time span. At this point I had close to 600 pounds of fish in the hold in 3 fish. Time to see who's down and see if I can hook em up. So I'm just hooking and handing off at this point. The crew is quickly being overwhelmed so I jump in to help. There 11 tuna on the deck and more coming in. I'm helping rope and drop fish int thr RSW to clear the deck for more. NICE 150's one after another. By late afternoon an hour or so before dark, Ben Kita gets into a big fish. I check on him and he's sure it's a cow but not sure how much over. I realize no one is on the back deck fishing. I drop a bait and bam! I miss supper. 2 hours later what's probably my second largest fish to date, 192 hits the deck. By the time he gets in we're ready to move in to anchor for the night by the island.
Last 1/2 day starts out on fire and keeps going until we pull anchor at 5 to head for Cabo.
Over a dozen cows hit the deck on the last day.

[BoatlessFisherman]

Awesome Pat

[crashmister]

Chris just checked in. Bites been slow. Joe lost 2 Rich lost one. A super got decked today. With a couple days left, they're still in the game.