2-day NBU Tuna Hunting 0702~0705 (First String) [Archive]

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Funjunkie74

07-06-2008, 01:18 AM

So, yet another weekend of great fishing!
Me and Bob decided to jump on the Young's Tackle Annual 4th of July 2-day trip aboard the First String out of H&M.
-----------------------------
Short Story: 130+ Albacores, 2 Blue fin and 1 Opah!! I managed to land 5 albies and Bob landed 2. It was very scratchy fishing and never quite opened up. But everyone on board tried their best to get in on the action. There were several tangles - which unfortunately ended up in lost fish, but the highlight was definitely seeing an Opah upclose for the first time!! The gentleman that landed the fish caught it on 20# test and got worked for about 30~40 minutes.
-----------------------------
Long Story:

15:00 Bob calls me to tell me that he's leaving his work.
16:30 I call Bob to get an update on where he is...STUCK IN TRAFFIC!!
17:30 Bob finally arrives at "Casa de Pescador Loco".
17:40 We're off!!
19:40 We arrive at H&M and load up onto the boat. Since this trip was chartered by Young's Tackle in La Palma, it was mostly locals that we've seen before on local day trips. Cool.
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7030001.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7030003.jpg

Now for those who have never been on the First String, here's the most impressive bathroom I've ever used...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7030005.jpg
Notice the tile work on the walls and that a full size toilet people...FULL SIZE!! Makes the morning "meeting" a lot easier!! LOL!!

Anyway...
21:00 We're off on our adventure.
21:45 I'm off to bed!

--DAY 1--
05:00 We wake up, get breakfast, start fishing in the dark and into daybreak.
06:00 That when it happened...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040006.jpg
This gentleman goes bendo!!
06:40 Finally see color...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040007.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040008.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040009.jpg
GAFF!!
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040010.jpg
The result....
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040012.jpg
Mac Daddy (Charter Master) and the Gentleman.
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040016.jpg

From here on out, it was run and gun time...set the trollers out and we're on the hunt for albies....

As we're cruisin' around, we see the local Mexican tuna raper...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040019.jpg
If you look carefully, you'll it's dragging along a huge net/cage contraption.

Continuing on...
We have little spurts of action every time the trollers go off. 10 here...5 there...20 here...
I love this crime scene...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040020.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040021.jpg

Everybody had a shot at trolling, 32 people, 5 poles...some would use this time to chat and get to know each other. Others resorted to consulting with a higher power...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040025.jpg
Down on one knee, he's "wishin"

Things slow down a little. So the deckies prepare for...uh...sunny day?
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040029.jpg

As far as fishing goes for me, I landed my first one on the troll at about 9am.
And a second one at around 12pm - fishing sardines on the slide.
Bob landed 2 within the day, but I don't recall what time.
I continued to land 2 more, and the day-end total was 4 for me, 2 for Bob, 86 for the boat.

The Phenix Pro Staff were on board too!
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040035.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040036.jpg

End of the day.
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040039.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040041.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040046.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7040049.jpg

Not too shabby.

--DAY TWO--
Sun rises with new hope...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7050059.jpg

At around 8 or 9am, the trollers go off again and we all throw in sardines.
I got lucky and managed to land my 5th albie.
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7050066.jpg
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7050067.jpg

And Bob...well...I think this picture speaks for itself...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7050069.jpg

12:00 It's time to head in. 79 miles out, Captain announces that we'll be getting back at around 8:30pm or so.

20:00 We arrive inside the harbor and take one last group photo.
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7050071.jpg

The gentleman with the Opah couldn't get an accurate reading on the boat for his Opah, so down comes the wench in front of H&M...
http://tsuribaka.us/photos/2008/20080705/P7050073.jpg
Scale reads 53#!! That's awesome!!
-------------------------------
Credits:
Thank you Young's Tackle for setting up this great charter.
Thank you "Rocky" for all the great raffles!
Thank you Captain and crew of the First String for bustin yo a--es for us and making this a very memorable and smooth trip. The Prime Rib dinner was awesome!!
Thank you Phenix Pro Staffers for your competitive spirit and keepin' me (a Kencor Pro Staff) on my toes!! A little friendly heckling goes a long way and makes things a little more interesting. (FYI: Their leader landed 6, lost 5 - I landed 5, lost 1)

Thank you everyone for reading this report. I hope you enjoyed it.

FJ74

Jig-Guy

07-06-2008, 08:36 AM

Great report, story & pic's loved it all.:Applause:

Thanks Jig-Guy:Big Smile:

Trout-Tuna-For.Me

07-06-2008, 08:48 AM

chris

07-06-2008, 08:58 AM

gotta love the bloody tuna report
i waited for it to go wide open last year and never made it out
i think i'm going to look into the legend for next week

Normalfellow

07-06-2008, 09:29 AM

sweet report joe....looks like an albie slaying....first string is a top notch boat....

Funjunkie74

07-06-2008, 10:25 AM

Great report, story & pic's loved it all.:Applause:

Thanks Jig-Guy:Big Smile:

Thanks Jig-Guy!! Glad you enjoyed the report!

FJ74

Funjunkie74

07-06-2008, 10:28 AM

Hey FJ...great report
Just a quick question.....what was the favored color of trolling lures the albacore ate up? Last year the fav color was the blue/white, and years before they always ate my black/purple. I'll be going on a 1.5 day trip next weekend so your answer will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

It was purple/black in the morning. Anything after that. Cedar plugs, dorado...
Honestly, I wouldn't worry too much about the trolling part...I would be more concerned about avoiding tangles and getting your bait out quickly!

gotta love the bloody tuna report
i waited for it to go wide open last year and never made it out
i think i'm going to look into the legend for next week

Me too! I waited for it to open up and it never did. This year I figured I'd go anyway.
I guess you can say it turned out for the better!

sweet report joe....looks like an albie slaying....first string is a top notch boat....

Thanks Billy! I wouldn't call it a complete slaying...but we did kick some a--!!
And YES! The First String is a top notch boat...so much so that I'm going out on it again next month!! LOL!!

FJ74

k3vin_kim

07-06-2008, 11:14 AM

Not too shabby.

FJ74

Ohhh man... took the words right out of my mouth.

You guys rocked out there. What did the dude use to catch the opah?

P.s. mina says "GIVE US SOME TUNA~!!"

(perhaps she'll think twice next time b4 not letting me go on a 2 day trip...)

k3vin_kim

07-06-2008, 11:22 AM

Bob,

what do you mean Joe got 3 and 1/2?

Dude, I was busy playing beer pong at my brother's house. I drank... i don't even remember anything.

one_leg

07-06-2008, 11:32 AM

Oh boy, that looked like it was fun. Was it? ;)

JapanRon

07-06-2008, 06:31 PM

Hi Funjunkie74,

Congrats on a great trip, most excellent report and great pictures. Pool little Opah !! I'm sorry if I seem ..... whatever .... but I wish they'd released the Opah to be on his or her way !!

They are such cool fish, curious, and seem to be geninuely attracted to humans and or their boats.

Good job on the longfins !!

JapanRon

Funjunkie74

07-06-2008, 10:16 PM

Ohhh man... took the words right out of my mouth.
You guys rocked out there. What did the dude use to catch the opah?
P.s. mina says "GIVE US SOME TUNA~!!"
(perhaps she'll think twice next time b4 not letting me go on a 2 day trip...)

Dude landed the Opah on a fly lined sardine.
I hope you enjoyed the tuna!!

Bob,
what do you mean Joe got 3 and 1/2?
Dude, I was busy playing beer pong at my brother's house. I drank... i don't even remember anything.

Bob is not letting me get away with my "slightly" on the small side tunas....

Oh boy, that looked like it was fun. Was it? ;)

What do you think Alan?? I think you'll have a blast with the tunas!

Hi Funjunkie74,
Congrats on a great trip, most excellent report and great pictures. Pool little Opah !! I'm sorry if I seem ..... whatever .... but I wish they'd released the Opah to be on his or her way !!

They are such cool fish, curious, and seem to be geninuely attracted to humans and or their boats.

Good job on the longfins !!

JapanRon

Senpai, thanks! Glad you enjoyed the read!

LA Smoker

07-07-2008, 01:00 AM

mrjonez

07-07-2008, 11:13 AM

killing it.

sansou

07-07-2008, 11:18 AM

Joe & Bob: it was a pleasure meeting up with you guys. You guys did well!! Will be out wednesday night on a quickie trip if you guys want to join up.... See you around!

gallogg

07-07-2008, 11:22 AM

Joe,

Nice report as always,
I can't wait until my trip on 7/19.

Bob,

Thanks for saving me a fillet, I'll try to come pick it up this weekend! :)

I'll see you guys on Westerly!

Sammy

Funjunkie74

07-07-2008, 12:15 PM

Nice report Joe. Had a great time fishing with you as always. K3vin I have some fillets for you if you want them, just have to come pick them up. haha. but seriously I set aside some fillets for you Mike and Sammy. We had some BFT sahimi on the boat but man I really want to try that Opah... looks so delicious. BTW Bill is the name of the "gentleman" that caught the opah. Real cool guy, had lots of stories to tell. That old timer had some stories.

Bob, as always its a blast fishing with you. Hey, don't forget to add the pictures from your camera too!!

killing it.

Mr. Jonez...that's how the NBU do.

Joe & Bob: it was a pleasure meeting up with you guys. You guys did well!! Will be out wednesday night on a quickie trip if you guys want to join up.... See you around!

Rich, thanks for coming down to the landing. BTW, we got lucky at the parking lot that day. One of the boats just landed and a bunch of spots opened up!

Wish I could make a Wednesday run!! GRRRRR!!

Joe,

Nice report as always,
I can't wait until my trip on 7/19.

Bob,

Thanks for saving me a fillet, I'll try to come pick it up this weekend! :)

I'll see you guys on Westerly!

Sammy

Sammy, thanks!
What boat are you going out on the 19th?

fleaflicker

07-07-2008, 02:07 PM

Nice going you guys. :)

Hey Bob, what am I an orphan? :D JK

Camping and fishing up north? It's time. Maybe this weekend? Or...

everm

07-07-2008, 02:20 PM

Good job on the albies! When we going yakkin'?

E

troutdog

07-07-2008, 02:48 PM

Nice report FunJunkie74, congrats on a nice catch!

Got a question for you....I always hear that sun fish/mola mola are not much for table fare and are "bad luck" to catch. Have you heard the same? Just curious what your thoughts are.

Thanks for another great post!

TD

Rich and Noah

07-07-2008, 03:58 PM

Nice early season action. 2.5 days is too long for me but you need to let me know of any upcoming rendezvous.

BTW- Opah is good eats and a prize catch. I lived in Hawaii for 3 years and they love it, usually prepared w/ some Miso marinade

LA Smoker

07-07-2008, 04:05 PM

Nice going you guys. :)

Hey Bob, what am I an orphan? :D JK

Camping and fishing up north? It's time. Maybe this weekend? Or...

Oh come on Walt, I got you too... just have to make everyone else's fillets a bit smaller. hahaha... Seriously, I set aside a loin for my boys so let me know who's coming to pick it up. I'm going to Vegas on Friday afternoon so either before then or next week.

Funjunkie74

07-07-2008, 04:43 PM

Nice going you guys. :)
Hey Bob, what am I an orphan? :D JK
Camping and fishing up north? It's time. Maybe this weekend? Or...

Walter! Thanks! Did you drag your boat up north already?

Good job on the albies! When we going yakkin'?
E

Thanks Ever!
When the YT & tuna bite shuts down.

Nice report FunJunkie74, congrats on a nice catch!
Got a question for you....I always hear that sun fish/mola mola are not much for table fare and are "bad luck" to catch. Have you heard the same? Just curious what your thoughts are.

Thanks for another great post!
TD

Lately I've seen many of them just cruising along. From what I understand, for starters "if" you land one - they taste like crap, don't know much about the "bad luck" but before any of this, I hear they are virtually impossible to hook up by any conventional means.

Thanks for reading! Glad you enjoyed it!

Nice early season action. 2.5 days is too long for me but you need to let me know of any upcoming rendezvous.

BTW- Opah is good eats and a prize catch. I lived in Hawaii for 3 years and they love it, usually prepared w/ some Miso marinade

Yeah, this trip was a charter organized by Young's Tackle in La Palma. Not exactly the same as an NBU gathering. I'm not sure when, but I think we're due for an SD trip with the crew soon....

FJ74

cappo

07-07-2008, 04:57 PM

score!! way to go man. Hopefully I'll come back with similar counts on my 2.5day trip this friday.

deanhall32

07-07-2008, 05:58 PM

Joe,

Let me know when you guys head down. I'd like to jump on a trip with you guys.

Funjunkie74

07-07-2008, 10:09 PM

score!! way to go man. Hopefully I'll come back with similar counts on my 2.5day trip this friday.

Thanks Juan. Good luck on your trip!

Joe,

Let me know when you guys head down. I'd like to jump on a trip with you guys.

It'll be announced.

TroutOnly

07-08-2008, 07:08 AM

NICE REPORT AND PICS I LOVE TROLLING FOR ALBIES,I LEARNED AT A YOUNG AGE SO I ALWAYS HAVE THE COLORS AND KNOW WHEN TO RUN THEM ,I LOVE SMOKED ALBIES,,,t/o

one_leg

07-08-2008, 07:10 AM

NICE REPORT AND PICS I LOVE TROLLING FOR ALBIES,I LEARNED AT A YOUNG AGE SO I ALWAYS HAVE THE COLORS AND KNOW WHEN TO RUN THEM ,I LOVE SMOKED ALBIES,,,t/o

Bob, don't you have an appointment with a trout to go to somewhere? :D

TroutOnly

07-08-2008, 07:17 AM

NOPE ONELEG IVE GOT SOME BIG STRIPERS TO KILL THIS WEEKEND,,,t/o

Funjunkie74

07-08-2008, 10:00 PM

NICE REPORT AND PICS I LOVE TROLLING FOR ALBIES,I LEARNED AT A YOUNG AGE SO I ALWAYS HAVE THE COLORS AND KNOW WHEN TO RUN THEM ,I LOVE SMOKED ALBIES,,,t/o

T/O, I know your name is TROUT ONLY...but are you ever gonna come back to the saltwater?? You talk a lot of experience but I haven't seen a saltwater report from you since...Jesus was a teenager!! LOL!! j/k

Thanks brah! Glad you enjoyed the read!

FJ74

ironshrimp

07-09-2008, 02:39 PM

Wingnut

07-09-2008, 06:29 PM

Great report, what an awesome trip, well done! :cool: :D

Troutman65

07-09-2008, 06:40 PM

Great report, what an awesome trip, well done! :cool: :D

Ditto.

FJ74, congrats on your catch. I really need to get down south soon:D

TM65

Funjunkie74

07-09-2008, 09:23 PM

Joe N' crew...nicely done
I might just have to set some time aside and ante up
lemme know next time you guys head out
Sansou told me 'bout the wednesday quickie trip for tuna and I was in agony for a whole hour .....everyone's stories are driving me nuts dude,
wtg holmes

Thanks Adir!
Yeah, you're gonna have to stop reading people's reports and land some fish!!
If you think....you will miss the boat.

Great report, what an awesome trip, well done! :cool: :D

Thanks Arthur!

Ditto.

FJ74, congrats on your catch. I really need to get down south soon:D

TM65

Thanks Patrick! Yes, you need to get on these fish soon!!

FJ74

Greg Madrigal

07-09-2008, 10:36 PM

Damn great photo set on the opah! Nice work on the longfins 2!~ Thanx 4 the report.

GMAN<><

gallogg

07-10-2008, 09:30 AM

Yea, Joe...

That Opah picture is cool!

Sammy

fishhead

07-10-2008, 09:32 AM

answord

07-12-2008, 09:59 AM

Nice Job Joe and Bob Hyung!
I know nothing about albacore fishing but sure it looks nice!! =D
Great Job and i will see you guys one the westerly!

Funjunkie74

07-12-2008, 04:05 PM

Damn great photo set on the opah! Nice work on the longfins 2!~ Thanx 4 the report.

GMAN<><

Greg, I'm glad you enjoyed the report! Yeah, that Opah was beautiful...too bad it's not mine....

Yea, Joe...

That Opah picture is cool!

Sammy

Thanks Sammy!

I would have killed it twice and then killed its soul..they are the best eating fish I have ever tasted.

Fishhead...um...you lost me at "kill it twice".....LOL!
I hear that they're awesome eating fish...need to catch mine next!!

Nice Job Joe and Bob Hyung!
I know nothing about albacore fishing but sure it looks nice!! =D
Great Job and i will see you guys one the westerly!

Sky, thanks!
It is fun to fish albacore! You need to get out and fish bro!
Prepare for a severe beating on the Westerly!! LOL!!! (just kidding...)

FJ74