Liteliner
09-16-2009, 09:37 AM
The wife gave me the go so I jumped on the Cortez Express 976 Freedom Charter. At 210 for a 1.5 day on a topnotch boat you cant go wrong... :Cool:
Well I have tried 3 times this year to get to the Cortez for some epic whitefish fishing and this trip was no different.:Crying: Capt. Tommy took a vote and the majority picked the long run in hopes of some pelagics.
We start trolling rotations at sunup and go on the hunt. We soon realize that kelps were very far and few. About 9 we find our first patty and its a nice one. Put the advice I got from Deckhand Sargeant Sal and Capt Tommy to use so I start off the day with my new MVP in my arsenal. A 9ft GLOOMIS Pelagic Series sporting a Saltiga 20 spooled with 30 lb Spectra and topped off with 15 lb mono and a 3 ft flouro leader just for kicks....:Cool: Anyways, I pinned on a rather large sardine on a number 1 Owner Live bait hook and sent him on his journey towards the kelp. Soaked the dean for about 5 minutes and just when I decided to rebait my line starts peelin off at a very fast pace... God I love this feeling.:LOL: Put it in gear and set the hook and about 50 yards past the kelp a stud of a dodo rockets out the ocean and the fight is on... He made a couple leaps for Freedom:Wink: but my new FishKILLA MVP was just to much. 5 minutes later I'm rewarded with this beautiful mahi.
Not sure how much it weighed but im gonna say over 25.:Wink:
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/lypeter23/IMG_3575.jpg
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/lypeter23/dodo5.jpg
Well the next paddy I picked up a dink dodo and finished up my limit. I got bit at every paddy but one i think. We only found about 7 paddies all day though. Farmed a few fish to tangles and had one other dodo which I gave to the other guy that had also hooked the same fish. Not much else goin on. Lots of dodo's on the kelp but most didnt wanna play. The key to getting bit was a small hook and a flouro leader with light line. Final boat count was 10 dorado, 2 yellowtail, 1 yft, and a bonito.
Some of the days catch....
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/lypeter23/IMG_3576.jpg
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/lypeter23/IMG_3579.jpg
I ended up with Jackpot ($250 i think it was) and gave it back to the crew after paying off my tab and got hooked up with an official Freedom Jackpot hat. Freedom is a great boat and even though fishing was slow I cant complain with a new PB DODO and Jackpot. Met alot of really cool people also.
The food was killer aswell. The cook used hash browns in his breakfast burrito instead of potatoes like most do and man that was so bomb.... It seems to give it that not so dry texture. Lunch was also great. What more can you say about the Freedom Burger Combo. The burger was monster. It kept me full for the rest of the trip so I skipped on Dinner which smelled amazing but I had no room for it after a few Tecates and Heines... Sorry no food pics. I will make sure to get food pics from now on...
Well I have tried 3 times this year to get to the Cortez for some epic whitefish fishing and this trip was no different.:Crying: Capt. Tommy took a vote and the majority picked the long run in hopes of some pelagics.
We start trolling rotations at sunup and go on the hunt. We soon realize that kelps were very far and few. About 9 we find our first patty and its a nice one. Put the advice I got from Deckhand Sargeant Sal and Capt Tommy to use so I start off the day with my new MVP in my arsenal. A 9ft GLOOMIS Pelagic Series sporting a Saltiga 20 spooled with 30 lb Spectra and topped off with 15 lb mono and a 3 ft flouro leader just for kicks....:Cool: Anyways, I pinned on a rather large sardine on a number 1 Owner Live bait hook and sent him on his journey towards the kelp. Soaked the dean for about 5 minutes and just when I decided to rebait my line starts peelin off at a very fast pace... God I love this feeling.:LOL: Put it in gear and set the hook and about 50 yards past the kelp a stud of a dodo rockets out the ocean and the fight is on... He made a couple leaps for Freedom:Wink: but my new FishKILLA MVP was just to much. 5 minutes later I'm rewarded with this beautiful mahi.
Not sure how much it weighed but im gonna say over 25.:Wink:
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/lypeter23/IMG_3575.jpg
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/lypeter23/dodo5.jpg
Well the next paddy I picked up a dink dodo and finished up my limit. I got bit at every paddy but one i think. We only found about 7 paddies all day though. Farmed a few fish to tangles and had one other dodo which I gave to the other guy that had also hooked the same fish. Not much else goin on. Lots of dodo's on the kelp but most didnt wanna play. The key to getting bit was a small hook and a flouro leader with light line. Final boat count was 10 dorado, 2 yellowtail, 1 yft, and a bonito.
Some of the days catch....
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/lypeter23/IMG_3576.jpg
http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/lypeter23/IMG_3579.jpg
I ended up with Jackpot ($250 i think it was) and gave it back to the crew after paying off my tab and got hooked up with an official Freedom Jackpot hat. Freedom is a great boat and even though fishing was slow I cant complain with a new PB DODO and Jackpot. Met alot of really cool people also.
The food was killer aswell. The cook used hash browns in his breakfast burrito instead of potatoes like most do and man that was so bomb.... It seems to give it that not so dry texture. Lunch was also great. What more can you say about the Freedom Burger Combo. The burger was monster. It kept me full for the rest of the trip so I skipped on Dinner which smelled amazing but I had no room for it after a few Tecates and Heines... Sorry no food pics. I will make sure to get food pics from now on...