Report for TRIP TWO 2002 -  6/8/02 - Relentless

On the high off of trip 1, there was a lot of anxiety being released as we prepared for trip 2. The fishing off shore had slowed tremendously over the previous 2 weeks and the only thing positive going in was there were still great reports coming from the private boaters of good scores @ 371-1010 areas. We started the week with a great high pressure system that I thought would be our savior, but Friday mornings break in the pressure system changed everything and I understood that this would be an extremely good or very scratchy catch weekend for the fleet.... Well, the latter was the result as the morning started out at 75 miles with overcast skies and 4-5 foot choppy swells bounced the 18 anglers aboard the big sportfisher Relentless from side to side... I wasn't long really before we had our first hook up bringing 3 albacore to the boat.  The second group of trollers were equally successfully and 2 or 3 bait fish! were landed. Young Kameron, K2fish of Allcoast, landed his first every albacore on this stop which was a high point for everyone on board. Then it happens, the clock started ticking...... We had a stop with some rather large Bonita and first time Angler Gerardo Martinez had his very first taste of off shore fishing.....but this was not what we were after... Rotation after rotation the clock ticked.... Picking and scratching we went through the numbers with no real progress.... I saw All Coaster John Butler hook a bait fish to my right and my heart raced that this was going to be the stop..... Nope! We even found a healthy paddie where we could see breaking fish and when we threw bait, the entire school went deep. It just was not going to be a user friendly day. As the swells flattened things started to look more promising. We started to find the area with some descent temp breaks and the boat started to stop more frequently... As Tak Mori of Carlsbad ripped a bait fish right in front of me and his reel went screaming, I thought to myself again is this the stop? Lunch was called from the galley and we motored along as we ate our Patty Melts... Nutrition accomplished, more fishing to been seen.  We were at 80+ miles and time was running out... Everything that we could control was perfect! Bait, Boat, Crew, Anglers and Food. It was just one of those days where we are thankful just to have a J.E.S. group and get out on the water.....As we were now out of time and 82 miles from the dock, our count was somewhat bleak, but we were the top 1 day boat out of Fisherman's with 24 Albacore and 6 Bonita for the 18 on board. Some boats may have had more, but they were 1 1/2 day trips or had quite a few more anglers.... Winding down the trip with an awesome nap as we headed up hill, then dinner prepared by chef Paul of center cut pork chops served with glazed caramelized onions, double baked garlic potatoes and fresh zucchini and squash...the 17 other anglers were chomping at the bit to see who would win one of the 2 Seeker blanks, 2 Penn 500L Reels, 4 Kicker Jigs and Mirror Lure deep diver. This was a true sportsman group and all cheered as I announced the raffle winners. Brian Martin, Tak Mori, John Butler, Rob Martin, Rob Kelly (Sole Searcher), Loran Dargatz, Gerardo Martinez and Kameron Shipley (K2Fish) congratulations on your winnings.   Jack Pot went to Rob Martin and it was a tough day on the water, but he prevailed with the biggest bait Thanks to all of the great sponsors and individuals that make this all possible.  Jamie Spencer / J.E.S. Sportfishing  268 Green Lea Place  Thousand Oaks CA 91361  (805) 371-7315  (805) 371-7312 Fax