Poppers for Pelagics’: West Coast Tuna Tackle

Braid, Wind-on, and Lures. Blast off. Popper fishing for big tuna is something that has been practiced, the Northeast Bluefin fishery and the Gulf Yellowfin fishery have been focal points of the technique. Puerto Vallarta is another location that saw anglers casting poppers in the past years but not until recently had it been a viable technique in the Southern California Bight with the introduction of larger Bluefin tuna. The East Coast tuna fishery has predominantly been a spinning reel/rod fishery for...

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Sea Bass

Form Follows Function: The Black Sea Bass Opener

    As I sit and type, my thoughts are almost exclusively of the opening day of Black Sea Bass. In New Jersey, this Sea Bass season is one of heated contention. It seems that a shift in fisheries management in this region has neighboring states like NY fighting for quota, and anglers and captains in NJ screaming about seasons and limit. It is quite a mess, and with good reason! According to the fishery managers themselves, the species is 240% rebuilt!...

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Private Versus Sport Boat: Basic Tackle for the upcoming season.

Ready, set , go. Time to catch them up. The fishing season is right around the corner! With June one month away, it is time to start thinking about making sure we have the right tackle on the boat. While the specifics will vary depending on where you live and what gamefish you will be targeting, we will reflect on the tackle used across the country. No matter if you are on the east coast fishing the canyon for tuna, billfish,...

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Catch more Fish: Prior Planning for Proven Performance

This blog outlines preparation for a basic weekly trip. The size of the fish and tackle might change, but the general process of preparation for the trip is consistent. If you create a list, post it somewhere that you will see it while preparing for your trips, and it will become part of your weekly regiment. Most of this seems pretty basic, but you would be surprised on how many fishermen miss things, and it could be small, but the...

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Easy Reel Maintenance To Prolong The Life Of Your Reel

In this blog we will outline the proper way to care for your reels after your trips during the season. We receive several calls a week on the proper maintenance of reels after daily use. We will outline what we suggest that we have learned over the years. It does not take long to go through a maintenance check list on your reels after a full day or multi days use on the boat. These steps will help prolong the...

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A Time for the Long Rod

Long rod in action on moving Yellowtail Here on the west coast we have a technique for casting poppers or surface iron to fish that are either finning, foaming on bait balls, or actively chasing bait on the surface. The key is to cast longer distances to these fish without spooking them with the boat. We do this by using 8 to 9 foot cork taped rod with a 500/600 size reel attached with a reel clamp with 65 to 80...

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The Details to Successful Fishing

People that do not spend time on the water have no idea the time that goes into a fishing trip. No matter if its on a day boat, multi day boat, or on your own boat if things are not somewhat organized the percentage of failure increases and the possibility of losing a fish or missing the opportunity to catch one is always present. In life details sometimes can make or break you. The probability of success can be greatly influenced...

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2017 Los Cabo Tuna Tournament: Came to Play

That smile tells it all. Nothing like getting the monkey off your back right out of the gates. It was the second and last day of the Los Cabos Tuna Jackpot. I had stopped Vaquera on the outer Gorda Bank to make our second drift chunking Humbolt squid. Making my way to the bow I pitched out a chunk Diego had pinned on for me. Away went the squid along with my 100 lb test Momoi Hi-Catch top shot into the...

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Looking back at Tuna Carnage on the FV Maximus. A Trip for the Ages.

Friday morning was a blurr trying to get all my stuff out the door while leaving my dog Chacho, and my wife Theresa in a nice warm bed and it was pouring buckets. Had to get myself down to Costa Mesa to pick up my fishing partner Sean "Pump" Canova as we were embarking on another PV adventure on the Maximus with Captain Keith Denette. This was our 6th or so trip on the boat and we had seen good...

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East Cape: The Paradise below the border. By Mark Rayor

Reflecting back to 1991 when Jen and I pulled up stakes from Southern California and moved to Buena Vista. Compared to today that time was like the stone age. There was only one phone in our little town and communication was very limited. No internet, no cell phones and importantly during hurricane season no weather forecasting. In those days all the local resorts pulled their fishing boats and closed up shop for August, September and into October. I quickly found and...

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