Friday Tuna Report

[Mark Mc]

First of all, sorry I didn't get to this Friday night; too late & too beat! Went with Marty on "Xta-Sea", got our 3 halibut at the ranch, then headed due north towards the good temp break shown on the last decent satellite shot. Stopped about exactly on Nelson's Island, just west of it 1/2 or 3/4 mile (the high spot about 9 miles north of the chicken ranch, with the 67 fathom spot on it) where we saw some jumpers, a jig boat going back & forth, & patches of birds here & there. Hooked 7 & landed 4, and a few more short hits. Only 55-56 deg. water!!! Puffin was west of us 4 miles in the 60/61 deg water, but didn't get a bite & no birds or jumpers, so he joined us. Fish were feeding on very small baitfish, probably sauries. Best results on small cedar plugs, and "Fishtraps". Yours truly even hooked one casting a Fishtrap at a jumper. Oddly enough, after it really laid down flat calm at about 2:30, we stopped seeing jumpers; quit at 3.

Thanks again Marty for the ride; you run a first-class operation!

[Marty]

Mark........should have read your report first, as I just posted a report under Pilars. Good thing I didn't empellish our results or I would have been caught. Nice have you fish with us again and we will have to keep the string of 'great ' fishing trips going. Oh, we went out Sat. to our chicken pile numbers and got three quick ones (smaller) and decided to run back to Nelson island. We ended up going about 8 miles past our spot (it was 53) and found water to 54.9, but no birds, no rips, no breaks and I was too beat from Saturday to keep going. The highlight of the trip north was we had a big black cod with us and spotted a fin, so we put the cod on the gaff hook and lowered it over the side. We ended up with about 5 or 6 blue sharks chomping at our cod. If was really neat to watch that close. Then your truely gets the fishtrap out throws it out and Whammo, 6 or 7 foot blueshark on the trinidad and 25 lb. I finally brought him in and found that the trap had bit him in the back fin. We got him to the boat and touched him and tried to get the trap out, but he woke up, the line broke and he was back on the chew with the leftovers of the cod.

Talk to you soon

Marty