Long Range Fishing Update – 12/13/09

Bill Roecker for FishingVideos.com & the San Diego Sportfishing Council

Polaris Supreme Yellowfin Tuna

The Tonk Charter
Tommy Rothery docked his Polaris Supreme at Fisherman’s Landing December 13 after the 11-day Tonk Charter with 16 anglers.
“We had excellent kite fishing,” he told dock reporter Bill Roecker. “and good weather. The guys were using lots of light line, 50-pound, so there were lots of long battles.”
On December 10 he wrote, “If I thought yesterday was great, I didn’t think today would be even better. We had just another fabulous day. Same grade of fish and the anglers did excellent job catching the tuna on lighter line. As with the past couple of days we also had a few marlin sprinkled in. The wind came down and our weather is gorgeous. And to answer the most popular question this time of year, no we haven’t seen any of the 200-pound tuna since we arrived. But the fishing is just excellent, wonderful. Today is our last day and we are now heading for home.”
Jason Myers of Shady Cove, OR won first place in the jackpot, for a 151.8-pound tuna he bagged with a sardine under the kite. He used the boat’s kite rig and got the tuna to gaff in 15 minutes. He said it was his best fish ever.
John Seymour of Anaheim won second place for a 135-pounder, his bet tuna. It fought for a half-hour.
Jay Myers of Medford, OR (Jason’s brother) won third place for a 133.6-pound tuna. The two brothers posed with the winning fish.
Brace of Supercows

Excel "Super Cows"

Excel arrived at Fisherman’s Landing December 13 under skipper Justin Fleck’s hand. She had nine cows aboard, including two supercows over 300 pounds. She had just finished a 16-day Braid charter with many long-time big fish enthusiasts aboard, including Tim Turis and Kenny Cirks. Cirks didn’t contact an XL-sized tuna this trip, he said, but Turis did, and was left with a badly straightened hook. Braid rep Jan Howard was also aboard with his boss, Dennis Braid, who won third place.
Big Al Scow of Rancho Palos Verdes won the jackpot for his 331-pound yellowfin. He said it bit on a double sardine rig under the kite.
“It fought for an hour and 45 minutes,” he told Roecker. “It took 650 yards of line, and I finally had to yell at it, and it stopped.”
Scow said he used 8/0 Eagle Claw hooks on a 130-pound Basil topshot, and tied that to 130-pound Power Pro Spectra on his Penn 70 VSW reel and a Baja Boomer rod.

Excel Returning to the dock

James Hassen of Rancho Palos Verdes got the other supercow, a 316-pound yellowfin. It bit a sardine on a 9/0 Eagle Claw hook tied to 130-pound Blackwater fluorocarbon attached to 130-pound Izorline Spectra on an Avet 50 reel and a Calstar 760 H rod.
“It fought me for 45 minutes,” he said. “My best fish before was bigger: a 329-pounder.”
Dennis Braid won third place for a 272-pound tuna. He felt that his small connections made a big difference in hooking up. He used a mackerel bait on an 8/0 Eagle Claw hook crimped to 130-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon and 130-pound mono and 130-pound Spectra on a Penn 50 VSW reel and a Braid Power Play rod of four feet, eight inches in length.
Steve Lindsey of Redondo Beach caught a 258-pound tuna with a double sardine rig under a balloon. He used 9/0 Eagle Claw hooks, 130-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon and 130-pound Momoi line with 130-pound Line One Spectra on a Penn 70 VSW reel and a Calstar 760 H rod to take his best fish ever in 60 minutes.
Saltwater Editor Brandon Hayward of Western Outdoor News got a 252-pounder and a 202-pound cow. He remarked that he only made two or three casts between those hookups.
He baited sardines on 5/0 gorilla hooks tied to 100-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon and 100-pound Line One Spectra on an Accurate 12 topless reel and a Super Seeker 2 x 4 rod.
“I love that rod,” he said. “You just lay it on the rail. I lost my first big one. Then I went to the 100-pound and hooked the 252-pounder.”

Excel Yellowfin Tuna

Andy Marcum of Oceanside also caught a 252-pound tuna. He said he got it with the kite, on 9/0 Eagle Claw hooks on 130-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon, 130-pound Big Game line and 130-pound Line One Spectra. He fished with a Penn 70 VSW reel and a Calstar 755 XXXH rod, and beat the tuna in 45 minutes.
Tom Carlisle of rolling Hills Estates bagged a 238-pound tuna with a sardine on an Eagle Claw 8/0 hook. He used 130-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon, 130-pound Momoi line and 130-pound Power Pro Spectra on a Penn 50 W reel modified by Cal Sheets and a Baja Boomer rod. The fish fought him for 50 minutes.
Basil Pappas of Harrington, NJ found a 210-pounder with a double sardine rig under the kite. Maker of the famous “Basil Topshots,” Pappas used his own rig to take his cow. He used 8/0 Eagle Claw hooks, 130-pound Momoi (the BHP wind-on leader) and 130-pound Line One Spectra on a Penn 80 treated by Cal Sheets and a Baja Boomer rod.
“He bit at the end of the day,” said Basil, “and he gave me a good, hard fight for 30 minutes. He took me around the boat. It was the first cow of the trip, so everyone was cheering for me.”
Excel leaves again tomorrow on the last trip before the Christmas break.