Arriving at the landing Friday evening after a long drive to San Diego in Holiday traffic was a relief as I was greeted by some of the familiar faces that frequent the dock. It got me all fired up to get this 1st trip of the 2001 season out to water.
As the group of 14+ and myself assembled, I saw a great mix of anglers from Pro to Novice. This was going to be good, especially with the crew of the Conquest's helping hand.
As the group boarded the vessel the crew presented themselves in their J.E.S. Sportfishing , crew apparel! The final touch of perfection needed to give the upscaled visual that our trips truly deserve.
Bait was a fantastic mix of large sardine and anchovy and we settled into the galley for the assembly of directions for this trip.
The target was Yellowtail, but we would troll feathers in hope of finding some of the lead swimmers of the Albacore migration that is south at 200 miles.
The morning Grey light was incredible. Flat sea's, an overcast sky and a slight breeze made the day just fantastic! It also made the homemade French toast, eggs to order and sausage just that much easier to enjoy!
We started the troll and we were off... the 1st stop on a paddy produced not a one, but the 2nd stop, Wow!!!! Bendo is the best way to describe it. I guess our brief seminar and the 30 minutes I spent alone with the rookies paid off, because BMW, Mercedes and Lexus would have been
proud of our level of precision. 28 fish on that stop! Joel, the Skipper and Owner, later said that was the best stop he had seen so far this year. A few blind jig strikes and paddy after paddy produced the incredible early season numbers of LIMITS for ALL! I saw a lot of YELLOW!
I smooth ride up the line and our usual Ribeye steak dinner and raffle were the icing on the cake for this trip as well as the Birthday cake for Brain Horne, of Burbank. Happy Birthday Brian.
The Jack pot trophy and $150, went to Gary Weissenberg of San Diego for a beautiful 20 lbs. yellow weighed in on the rusty scale...I think more like 22lbs.
Raffle prizes of Kicker Jigs went to John Branum and rookie, Lisa Hamza, who I think may still may be out on the boat, she' got the fever. The Penn 500L reel was awarded to Felipe Mationg and the
Seeker CJB70F went to John Gonzales of Fullerton... Good Job.
Thanks to the Sponsor's Seeker Fishing Rods and Kicker Jigs for all of there product support.
See ya on the Water,
Jamie Spencer
