2000 Fishing News Archive

October 30 - Final Report

Stick a fork in it, folks - the season is over. Yeah, folks are still seeing fish here and there, and the occasional tuna or marlin is still caught, but we've reached that point where it's not forth the diesel fuel you'll burn to get it.

The storm that blew through over the weekend brought winter-like conditions to the Southland, and the fishing has shown the results. The last marlin we heard of were one taken on the 14 Mile Bank Wednesday by MERRI TYME II and another released Friday by COMANCHE 6 miles south of Dana Point (in the heart of the storm, no less!). Yellowfin tuna reports are still trickling in from the 43 and 302, but the numbers have nearly dropped to zero. If you're intent on working to get that last marlin of the season, I'd try working from the 14 to the 267 and looking for the sauries.

Before we sign off for the winter, I'd like to reflect back on some of the moments of the Y2K season that'll stick with me ...

Breakout season - They started it with a swordfish, and followed it up with a dozen marlin. Steve Bledsoe and the crew of NO EXCUSES stepped it up and had their best season to date, often catching fish when others couldn't and being the only boat to get any consistent jig action. Steve was an early supporter of SCMO and one of the first hardcore Marlin Club posters; hopefully, now that the season is over, he'll be able to come out and play with us again ... :-)

Good season, great day - Were the circumstances different, no one would have believed it. But when Bill Kingsmill and his WILD BILL crew caught 14 marlin in one magic day off the dome at San Clemente Island, they did it surrounded by dozens of other boats unable to scratch out even a single fish. Some days, talent and luck collide, and the results are awesome. Like Gary Jasper's 339-lb striped marlin of years ago, this accomplishment will be long remembered.

Persistence rewarded - Unlike many of his peers, Dave Denholm of ESPADON does not trumpet his billfish successes, preferring to let the achievements speak for themselves. This year, they spoke volumes about his singleminded pursuit of swordfish. In a time when the entire fleet is lucky to catch two swordfish in a year, Dave's two swordfish are a testimony to his angling skill and willingness to do whatever is necessary to succeed.

So another season comes to an end. I'd like to thank everyone who helped make this SCMO's best ever - the posters, writers, reporters, contributors and photographers whose efforts make this site what it is. Particular thanks goes to my HOOKER crewmates for putting up with my incessant notetaking, and especially to my father, who once again dealt with the unjust accusations from others in the fleet (you don't really think he'd compromise his secret info here, do you? Puleeeze!).

It'll be a busy offseason here at SCMO, as we finally have the time to get on with all the projects we have in mind (if you have any suggestions, let us know!). The Marlin Club has developed into a worldwide billfishing forum, certainly far more than I could have imagined, and I look forward to spending a lot of time there in the coming months. With posters in Australia, New Zealand, South America, Madeira, South Africa, and wherever billfish roam, the sun truly never sets on the Marlin Club. We'll be upgrading the Internet Portal to make it even more user-friendly, and may even tweak the looks of the site - hey, it's been three years! Most of all, I look forward to sitting back and enjoying this wonderful community of billfish enthusiasts we have created here at SCMO. See you in the spring.

October 26

"Oh, the weather outside is frightful ..." OK, so it's not quite Christmas, but it is raining like crazy outside right now, so you might as well start looking forward to the holidays.

We received no tuna reports this week, other than the periodic sighting by boats looking for the last marlin of the season. Best spot for yellowfin sounds like the 267 and up to the 14 Mile Bank, but don't hold out high hopes. They're really finicky and will require a lot of chum - and luck - just to scratch out a few.

Speaking of last marlin, Gary Jasper on WAIT N SEA made his bid on Monday when he released a marlin a few miles off of Laguna. Unfortunately for Gary, that fish won't even earn last fish honors in his family, as wife Lynn took the boat out on Tuesday and repeated the feat. Feeders are still being seen in the same spot 5 to 6 miles off the hospital in Laguna, and the area looks very lively, but the fish aren't all that cooperative. Of course, the current storm could make this all problematic.

Coming Monday - our last weekend roundup of the year and a look back at the memorable moments of the Y2K Socal offshore season.

October 23

The weather was the big winner over the weekend, as worries about an incoming storm kept a lot of folks off the water. But some of those who did venture out found both tuna and marlin success, fueling thoughts that there may be life left yet in the Y2K season.

The National Weather Service Friday afternoon issued what they called a "Marine Event Warning", with predictions of winds up to 40 knots and combined seas of up to 14 feet. This was enough to cause many to stay off the water for the weekend (including yours truly). While there was some wind and a pretty nasty swell on Saturday, a lot of folks ventured out anyway. A number of marlin had been seen feeding 4 to 6 miles off Laguna (between the 14 Mile Bank and the 267) late in the week, and several boats, including NO EXCUSES, SHOWDOWN, WILD BILL, HOT SPOT and TYEE all found success there over the weekend. The show was better than the go, as the fish were somewhat finicky, but for this time of year it's pretty good. There are at least some swordfish left as well, as your host spotted one lazing off Church Rock on Friday.

Further to the north, yellowfin tuna were taken under porpoise schools northwest of the 14 Mile Bank. There was also good action for the tuna on the Avalon Bank and off the east end of Catalina. To the south, tuna action continued on the 302 and 43 spots. The cloud cover finally cleared up enough to get decent SST charts, so anglers were able to chase temperature breaks to find the fish. Hopefully, this will continue until the next real storm arrives.

We received word earlier this evening that a boat returning to Marina Del Rey from Catalina sank after striking the sewer outfall in El Segundo. Fortunately, no one was killed, but several were hospitalized. This once again points out the need to understand where you are and where you are going. Events such as this are what inspired us to create our Interactive Navigation Chart, and it has proven to be one of our most popular features, even among boaters who do not normally frequent SCMO. If you're heading out to an area you are not familiar with, stop by and check the chart. You can even calculate the mileages, which just might save you that embarrassing call to Vessel Assist (not to mention the bill for a $1000 can of fuel!).

October 19

Midweek reports are usually pretty scarce, particularly at this time of the year, so there's not a lot to tell. But there was a little excitement yesterday that should pique your interest going into the weekend.

Last weekend's show of marlin off of Church Rock at Catalina and the Dome at San Clemente seems to have died out. However, yesterday the marlin put on a pretty good show on the 267 just out of Dana Point. Relatively large numbers of feeders were seen between the high spot and Newport Canyon, with the best time being right on the tide. I have no confirmed report of any being caught, but there are several rumors flying. That's been the area with the warmest water for the last few weeks (although the poor SST charts we've had lately makes it hard to tell!), so I guess it's no surprise to find the marlin like it there. We'll have to see if they stick there until the weekend.

The tuna continue to bite, with the numbers going up as we move away from the full moon. The best spots for yellowfin remain the 267 and the same spot 4 miles off Church Rock we mentioned on Monday. Several reports were received that there were larger size yellowfin on the 499 as well. The Butterfly remains a good choice for those willing to make the run, and I'm told there's a big temp break between there and the Tanner Bank that is holding both albacore and bluefin tuna.

I'll be heading out in a couple of hours to take a shot at that action off Dana, and I'll let you know how it goes straight from the water. If you get out this weekend, be sure to file that trip report when you get back - maybe we can help each other get those last few fish of the season!

October 16

There might be a little life left in this season yet, as marlin, bigeye and even albacore made appearances over the weekend. If the weather has it's way, however, the upturn on fishing might be all too brief.

The weekend's marlin action can pretty much be summed up in two words - NO EXCUSES. Steve Bledsoe and crew continued their breakout year by releasing a pair of marlin Saturday at San Clemente Island. Steve Lassley on the swordfish boat MIRAGE found several batches of feeders in the morning and called in any marlin boats in the area. After answering the call and working the area for several hours, NO EXCUSES got one to eat a DoorNob 4 miles off the island between the Dome and Wilson Cove. Not five minutes after releasing the first fish, a second came up in the pattern and was hooked and released. Not too shabby! SEA TREK IV also took one in the general area on Saturday, and ESPADON released one off the north end of the island.

Closer to Catalina, boats in the Tuna Club's Linen One tourney found a few marlin to challenge their vintage tackle. While several marlin were hooked off Church Rock, none were fought to success. Several swordfish were taken by harpooners off of Laguna over the weekend, but there were no reports of recreational anglers finding any kind of success.

The midweek storm that blew through the region caused sea surface temperatures to cool a few degrees, bringing to an end the great tuna fishing on the northern banks. The 209, which only a week before was the hot spot for yellowfin tuna, was reported to be "cold and dead" by anglers looking to score. The one exception seemed to be the 289, where decent numbers of yellowfin were available, albeit picky. There was also a nice flurry of larger (25 lb) YFT Sunday afternoon about 4 miles off Church Rock, and both KAWAKAWA and ONO got in on the action. To the south, yellowfin and skipjack were found on the 181 and 182, and nice bigeye tuna up to 80 pounds were reported on the 302.

As the season winds down we all tend to reflect on the great moments we found on the water. What better way to share those moments than by posting your fishing pictures on La Galer’a del Pez? Email us your favorite shots, or you can send them to us, and we'll scan them for you and return them. SCMO has one of the largest collections of local fishing photos, and we'd love to add yours!

October 12

"Where have all the marlin gone?"

If that sounds like the lyrics of a song to you, feel free to jump in and sing along with the rest of us. The combination of bad weather mid week and dropping sea temperatures have combined to leave us all scratching our heads as to the location of the fish. We haven't received a trip report in over a week, and the last marlin reports we got were of the ones caught last weekend. I'll be one of many on the water trying to find the school, and hoping the fish haven't, as Marty Morris put it, "snuck around San Nicolas and headed for Mag Bay."

The news is a little better for tuna fishing. The yellowfin bite is still going strong, and many people are reporting limiting out with a lot of morning remaining. The most consistant bite now is on the 267 and 209 spots, along with the area between the two. But the tuna are being found over a large area, including many simply schooling on the surface. So, keep your eyes open and your cedar plugs close at hand. Bigeye tuna continue to be caught, but not in any great numbers. Probably the best place to look is the 302. Of course, there's always the great albacore bite up at Morro Bay ... :-)

We usually publish these reports through the end of November, depending on how the fishing is. Someone had better find something this weekend, or I might be able to get an early start on the off season ...

October 9

Sometimes, I get it right. I'll look at the reports, the data, and the history, and I'll predict where the marlin will go. A couple of times each year, I make the right call and the email reflect the gratitude of happy anglers.

Then, there's a weekend like this one. I said I thought the fish would head up west, and several people took that statement and ran with it. The marlin did not appear, and the emails were not nearly so complementary.

For what it's worth, I'm not entirely surprised the marlin did not appear up there. I quite frankly figured the season was over, and winterized all my marlin gear. I even spent the weekend on the beach, catching up wit a lot of long-neglected tasks. So you can imagine my surprise and chagrin when I got a trip report from my father telling me that not only were there marlin being found, but that he had released one over the weekend.

The aforementioned action was on the 267 Sunday. The weather Saturday had been nasty and kept a lot of the fleet in port, but those looking for tuna on Sunday often found marlin as well. Feeders were seen on the 14 Mile Bank and off of Church Rock, but HOOKER, SHOWDOWN and WAIT N SEA all got their fish on or near the 267. To the south MARIE B got a marlin 6 miles out of Mission Bay, but that was the only report we got from down there. For reasons known only to them, ESPADON was working off of San Nicolas Island when they got a swordfish to go. Several hours later, they landed the 210-pounder.

The good news for local fishermen remains the yellowfin tuna. They're pretty much everywhere you want to look. The hot spots remain the 267 and the 209, which more closely resembled parking lots on Sunday. Further south, the 181 is producing well along with the ridge to the south. There's two sizes of fish, football sized 6 to 8 pounders and larger fish to 25 lbs. Unfortunately, you don't know which you're fishing until you get them. The tuna are hitting most of the standard tuna jigs, but here's Stan's tip o' the week - if you're looking for the bigger fish, troll marlin lures. The big guys will hit'em and the footballs will leave them alone.

It's late in the year, and the fishing's getting tougher. That means its more important than ever that we get your trip reports - whether you catch fish or not. Let us know where you were and what you saw. It just might increase the accuracy of those predictions I make!

October 5

Somehow, it never fails to amaze me just how quickly our marlin fishing can go sour. Normally, we look for the first big November storm to make the stripes turn tail and run. While the weather has been moderate this week, there's no question the fish are missing. Does this mean the season's at an end?

The bite that materialized in the lee of Santa Catalina Island during the Catalina Classic was never a great one, but with the intense fishing pressure, it turned out some decent numbers. Now, it appears that the bite may have shut off altogether. Despite reports of fish being seen, the only local catches have been one on the 267 on Tuesday and another today on the 14 Mile Bank. We also heard of one released earlier in the week on the 9 Mile Bank. The fish are being seen in wide area roughly from the 277 to the 267 to the mid channel rigs to the west end of Catalina. The SST charts don't support it (heck, we haven't had a cloud-free pass in weeks!), but we've gotten a lot of on-the-water reports indicating that the temperature has dropped significantly during the week. Personally, I'd still look for the marlin to make an appearance to the west.

While the marlin fishing has slowed, the yellowfin tuna continue to range over a wide area of local waters. Football-sized YFT are being found from the 267 down to the 302 and pretty much everywhere in between. While kelps and porpoise continue to hold fish, most that are being caught are from open water schools. Best bets have been the Butterfly Bank, 181, and 390.

We received several interesting reports indicating the dorado may still be sticking around despite the late date. Several boats working the 181 for tuna reported finding paddies thick with dodos, and they've been found on the 267 as well. Pretty amazing for October!

If you're frustrated at the fishing, perhaps you should stay on the beach and check out the discussions in the Marlin Club. We've had some pretty amazing conversations going on, with top anglers from around the world commenting on such diverse topics as teaser usage, single vs. double hooks on lures, and reforming tournament rules to decrease the number of killed marlin. Some great stuff going on over there ... check it out!

October 2

Your opinion of the current marlin fishing probably depends on your homeport. If it's Dana Point or north, you think it's pretty good, and you're right. But if you're fishing south of that, I'm sure you think it sucks. You're right, too!

The epic bite we enjoyed off the Dome at San Clemente Island is well and truly gone, replaced by a weaker (but closer) bite inside of Catalina. Participants in the Tuna Club's event Friday found marlin on the Avalon Bank, as well as inshore off the Isthmus. Fish were reported close to the island down towards the West End as well. In fact, fishing within a mile or two of the entire island from the slide down past Long Point and then to the West End has been a pretty good place the last few days. Away from the island, there has been a good feeder show on the Avalon Bank and the 14-Mile Bank. One area showing a lot of good signs was northwest of the 14 towards the mid-channel oil platforms. Neal Shaver on OSPREY reported baiting a dozen sleepers there (33.28 / 118.08) Saturday, as well as seeing a half-dozen jumpers. Unfortunately, they weren't biters. This seems to be a common thread right now, with the fish not really being interested in baits. The exception seems to be on the tides. Jig bites are up as well, which is good news for the rest of us. It seems that the fish are sliding to the west, which is common non-El Ni–o year late season behavior. Look to see them off the West End soon, as well as on the banks around Santa Barbara Island.

Unfortunately, happy things cannot be said for those fishing out of San Diego. The bite we've seen the last few years out of Marina Coral simply never materialized this year, and it's been a long run for those looking for billfish. The 302 showed some action over the weekend, but that was about it. The story is happier for fishing tuna, as a 166-1/2lb bigeye tuna was caught at the 302 and weighed in at the San Diego Marlin Club. That's one of the largest bigeye in recent memory, and perhaps a sign of good things to come. The big tuna are also being found on the 43.

Yellowfin tuna are being found pretty much everywhere right now. They're on the banks, under the paddies, and swimming with the porpoise. There's even a lot of free-swimming schools being seen. Among the best spots are the 267 and 209 to the north, and the 312 and 390 to the south. For those adventurous types (or those with their own oil well), probably the best spot right now is the Butterfly Bank. The challenge remains getting the tuna to bite, as they continue to be very finicky. Try the smallest baits or lures in your arsenal, since they seem to work best.

Rich Hamilton attended the most recent round of planning meetings for the Highly Migratory Species plan last week in San Diego. Unfortunately, he reports that he was one of only a handful of individuals representing the recreational fishing community. That's sad, because a lot of people (your host included) worked hard to get the word out. After the high attendance at the last series of meetings a few months back, it is disappointing to hear so few turned out this time, particularly in a fishing-rich region like San Diego. We established a conservation forum when we introduced the new Offshore Fishing Forum so we would have a place to post meeting notices, agendas and minutes for such meetings, so that everyone could at least be aware of what is going on. Of course, when you see how few people have viewed the postings there, it's easy to see why Rich was alone. What happens in these meetings impacts us all, and will determine the future of recreational fishing in our waters for years to come. We all need to make it important to ourselves to be involved. Stop by the RFA Conservation Corner regularly to see what is happening, and learn how you can help. We all need to fight for what we want - you can bet the other side will!

September 28

This will be a quick report, since your host has been down with a virus all week, and the first casualty seems to be concentration ... :-)

As we predicted, the Catalina Classic tourney fleet didn't have to go far for their marlin, as the main action was centered right outside of Avalon. The fish were found in an area from Long Point on Catalina down to the 152 and out to the Avalon Bank - commonly known as the "Kiddie Pond". Making things even nicer, the most common fishing method was slow trolling mackeral or drift fishing - with diesel fuel costs rising, one has to like that! The 113 boat fleet released 44 marlin in the two-day event, and killed another 23. Congrats to Jim Francis on CAPT HOOK II, who took first place with a 208 pound marlin.

A lot of us were dismayed after the earlier Zane Grey event with the number of undersized marlin that were killed. Two positive changes were noted in the running of the Classic, which is organized by the same folks. First, the minimum size was increased to 155 pounds, insuring that a lot of the smaller fish would be released. More importantly, the sizes of weighed marlin were broadcast to the fleet, so they would know where they stood and wouldn't have to kill a smallish fish only to find later it wouldn't place. These are encouraging moves in the right direction - but there's more that can be done ...

The bad news is that the number of marlin caught was way down later in the week. Now this could be due to a lot fewer boats or the fact that all the pro anglers had gone home, but it could also mean the marlin have moved once again. We'll see this weekend!

The local hot spot for tuna has been the 209, where the yellowfin have readily taken both jigs and bait, a nice change from recent weeks. Bigeye are still being caught, but there is no concentration. I haven't heard too much from down south, so I don't have any good info for where to try down there. If you find something we should know, let us know by filing a Trip Report. I'll be off the water this weekend recovering, so I'll try to get out a FishNet update before the end of the weekend. It'll also give me a chance to catch up with the recent Marlin Club discussions, which have been coming on strong of late. Check them out!

September 25

Well, this should be interesting. As I'm writing this, the site is currently offline, and has been since Thursday due to an error at our webhost. Hopefully, it will be up soon and you'l be able to use this information!

Now, for the report. The winds shifted late in the week, killing off the mega marlin bite we've enjoyed off of San Clemente Island. Both the King Harbor Marlin Club and Invitational Light Tackle Tournament fleets worked the area on Friday and Saturday, with meager results. Congratulations to Chip Langdon, fishing on MARLIN MAN, for taking first place in the ILTT. Bob Woodard Jr on CHRISTINA LYNN took second. Both released a marlin, but Chip took first place on tiebreakers. In the KHMC event, first place went to Linda Wilson of FIRE HATT for a 129-lb striper taken off of San Clemente. It was Linda's first marlin, and she had intended to release it. However, it came up bleeding profusely, so they did the right thing and took it. Second place in the multispecies event was claimed by Shawn Deeter on REEL FUN with a 50-lb tuna taken on the 277. That's either a big yellowfin or a small bigeye - either way, a nice fish!

If you're reading this and thinking that the demise of the San Clemente bite means a dwindling of the marlin, fear not. Proving again the value of access to secret dope, Team Kingsmill and WILD BILL led a fleet of boats that scored on the 277 Saturday. Rumors had been swirling since late Thursday that the 277 might be the next big thing, and it looks like it's true. Among others scoring there over the weekend were RELENTLESS and PETE'S SAKE with two each, and NO EXCUSES and ONO with singles. Other areas showing signs of life and likely to be worked during the Monday-Tuesday Catalina Classic are the regions between the 14 Mile and Avalon Bank, between the 267 and 277 Banks and just off Church Rock.

The exotic species continue to be caught in amazing numbers despite the late date. Because of the site outage, I don't have trip reports to rely on, but I'm told that the weekend hot spots were the 425 for yellowfin tuna and dorado, the 371 for nice sized albacore and the paddies just outside of Oceanside for yellowtail. If you've heard otherwise, or got into them yourselves, file a Trip Report!

When you run a site that so many people depend upon for late breaking information, an outage is your worst nightmare. I apologize to those of you who were inconvenienced by our untimely departure. On the bright side, you learn quickly how much people value what you do at times like this, and I'd like to thank everyone who sent emails both to SCMO (which were likely bounced, also due to the outage) and Wave Crest Web Design, left phone messages for me here at the Home Office, and even passed the word over VHF channel 5, which is how I finally learned about the problem. We'll learn from the experience, and will take steps to keep it from happening again!

September 21

This will be a quick report, since I'm leaving in a couple of minutes to fish in the King Harbor Marlin Club's tournament. The majority of the marlin action generated this week was from the Zane Grey tourney, and all of it came from that same place over at San Clemente Island. The bite that had cooled off last weekend roared back on Monday, as the fish cooperated in a region along the lee of the island anywhere from the Dome up to Northwest Harbor and out to about 4 miles. Several boats reported finding fish so close to Wilson Cove that the Navy tried to shoo them off while they were bit!

I haven't seen the final results from the Zane Grey, but the numbers I keep hearing are something like 30 fish weighed and another 30 released. I believe that Marylin Stephens' 187-lb'er was the big fish for Day 2, which means the Day 1 results stand for the tourney with Bob Pernicky on NO PROBLEM nipping Bill Seiler on GENE'S MACHINE by a pound, 226 to 225. It sounds like a lot of fish were killed on Day 2 that had no shot at the title, but were fighting for the daily cash jackpot. Hmm ... killing marlin for money ... isn't that commercial fishing? I'll have more to say on that later.

If marlin isn't your bag, you're in luck. The yellowfin tuna continue to be hammered, and the waning moon seems to be helping. Decent action is seen on the 277 and off the east end of Catalina. If I had more time, I'd find you more spots, but since I don't, when you do be sure to file a trip report! To the south, the hottest of the hot comes courtesy of Bob Hoose. Bob reports that dorado, albacore, yellowfin and bigeye tuna can be found at a spot 58 miles 170 degrees out of Pt. Loma (31 40 / 117 19, for you navigationally challenged). The 302 and 425 remain hot for the tuna, and really big bigeye tuna are being caught on the Lower Finger and Worm Banks. More when I return from this weekend!

September 18

This report is delayed a bit, since we wanted to bring you the latest from the ongoing Zane Grey tourney. As the bloated Orson Welles might have said (just before the end), "we will post no report before its time."

Well, leave it to the Peskys to turn off a perfectly fine marlin bite. For the past three weeks, marlin fishing had been red hot in the lee of San Clemente Island. Then the anglers of the Los Pescadores tournament (myself included) arrived on the scene and the fishing shut down. Actually, the causes are more of a natural thing. The remnants of Hurricane Lane generated some particularly nasty swells that made it difficult for even the best to spot and cast to feeding marlin. Combine that with a full moon that made the fish spooky and you end up with only seven fish for forty boats. That left some folks pretty upset - especially those who ran all the way to the Osborn Bank following bogus hookup reports (contributions are being accepted to help pay the fuel bills for REEL LIFE and SPARKLER *grin*) One man who was quite happy with the outcome was our friend Aaron Grose. Aaron, fishing on PELON DOS, maxed out his points by releasing the fish, bagelling it, wearing the skirt, and catching it using a bait from an Offshore tank. The net result of all that craziness was first place honors for himself and High Boat for PELON DOS. Coming in second was Brian Sanford (Double J) fishing on EL SUE„O. In third was Matt Earl with a fish released from FIRST OF THE DAY, otherwise known as the behemoth DONNA C. Congrats to all who survived both the tourney and the after event parties. Just for the record, our top angler did not spend the night in jail, as earlier reported. However, we hear Russ Armstrong would like to speak with him about a particularly nasty stain left on the carpet at his restaraunt ... :-)

While the Pesky fleet was busy getting kicked around off San Clemente, others were finding success elsewhere. Friday, renown refrigerator angler Chris Benson released a marlin on the 277 while fishing aboard NO EXCUSES. Steve Bledsoe's crew repeated the feat the next day fishing off the Dome. Several other marlin were taken on the 277, as well as a pair on the Mackeral Bank. However, the warm water pushing up into the Catalina Channel has chased a lot of the larger bait out of the area, and the marlin are following. Despite great signs (and the aforementioned efforts of messrs. Franklin and Moss), no one has reported seeing marlin off the Osborn or the west end of Catalina, favorite late-season marlin hangouts. It's just a matter of time ...

The Zane Grey tourney is going on as we speak, and the improved weather has made for a dramatic increase in the number of fish caught. Of course, as it was pointed out to me a few minutes ago, it could also be the improved angler talent ... :-) Day one saw the fleet working a grid from the middle of San Clemente Island out to the Mackeral Bank. There were 57 fish hooked, 20 boated and 22 released. GENE'S MACHINE was the first day leader with a 225-lb marlin, followed by BAD ATTITUDE at 212 and GOOD KARMA at 202. Of course, good karma should cancel out bad attitude, right! The release division will be tight, since several boats already had multiple releases. We'll get you the final results as soon as they are available.

I mentioned the negative impact of the warm water on the marlin. Well, it's had just the opposite effect on the tuna, as huge schools of yellowfin tuna continue to pour into the region. Practically every school of porpoise is carrying tuna with it, as are many of the kelps. Acre-sized patches of water can be found frothing with YFT as they chase the schools of mini anchovies they so love. While a lot of folks have found success, we've received a lot of reports of difficulties in getting the fish to bite - particularly those under the porpoise schools. Fishing the school is an art form, and if you're an expert, we'd like to hear from you over in the Marlin Club. For now, all I can say is chum, chum, chum! The best area remains between the 267 and the 14 Mile Bank, with the region between hot as well. Other areas producing good scores included the 209 and a patch southwest of Church Rock. Unfortunately, the seiners are hitting these guys pretty hard, so I don't know how long the bite will hold up.

To the south, anglers are finding success on the yellowfin fishing the 425, 371 and 295 spots. There are still albacore being caught outside of the 295, if you're willing to run that far. So long as you're down there, be on the lookout for the bigeye tuna being caught just outside of Ensenada on the Lower Finger Bank, among other places. Pete Whitehead and his crew on PETE'S SAKE picked up a 4-pack of the giant tuna on Saturday, with the biggest estimated over 75 pounds. James Bygrave on LUCKY STRIKE did even better, with the three anglers landing 7 tuna ranging from 80 to just under 100 pounds. Those fish were good enough to net them the tuna division championship of the Blue Porpoise Marine Fishoff.

I'm happy to say I made it back from the Pesky in time to appear on Fish Talk Radio Sunday night. I wanted to appear knowledgeable without trying to pass myself off as an expert and, most of all, not make an ass of myself in the process. Hopefully, I succeeded; if you listened, let me know what you think. Thanks to Capt. Ron, Mike, Terry and Wendy for being gracious hosts. Thanks also to my fellow anglers in the Pesky for not calling in and putting me on the spot!

September 14

Tournament season continues, and the marlin continue to cooperate! Monday and Tuesday was Rosie's tournament out of Avalon, and multiple fish days were common. Congrats to GAMBLER, who nipped WAIT N SEA at the very last minute. All the top fish were well over 200 pounds, continuing the trend of large fish being caught off of San Clemente Island. Of course, if you're releasing them like you should, size doesn't matter ... :-) The center of the marlin action continues to be off of the northern lee section of San Clemente Island. It moves slightly from day to day, but is usually between Wilson Cove and the Dome, anywhere from 5 or 6 miles off to right on the beach. It is primarily a bait bite, so make sure you plug the tank before you leave the beach. Mackeral are available in Cat Harbor for those who need them. Rumour has it there is a bite developing off of Church Rock as well - we'll see!

The demise of Hurricane Lane pushed a lot of warm water into the Catalina Bight, and with it large numbers of yellowfin tuna. The best spots have been the 14 Mile Bank, 267, 209 and 289 Spots, although breezing schools have been found close to the beach out of Newport and Dana. If you see a school of porpoise pretty much anywhere, you can assume there are tuna under it. Cedar plugs, CD-14 Rapalas and jet heads have done the job, along with mini macks and sardines.

To the south, the 295 has been the main action spot, with yellowfin, albacore and now bigeye tuna being caught there. Further south, bigeye up to 90 pounds have been caught on the Lower Finger and Worm Banks. Sounds like whatever you want this weekend, it's out there. The full moon will make the fish act funny, but it should still be epic.

Sorry about the brevity of this report, but I'm on my way out the door to fish the Pesky. It's always a blast, and this year should be no exception. If you're in it, I'll see you at Descanso Saturday night. If not, you blew it, but can still fish with us next year! See you on the radio Sunday night!

September 11

We're deep into the local marlin tourney schedule, and I'm happy to report that the marlin are cooperating! Let's start first by congratulating the winners of the weekend's events: Dave King on REEL TIME II in the Balboa Angling Club's Master Angler Billfish Tournament, John Woods on FREESPOOL in the 552, Miguel Gascon on FIVE A DAY in the Oceanside Anglers Club event and, in a tie, Troy Fitzgerald of MIL-SO-MAR and Fred Weston on T-ROSE in the San Diego Marlin Club's inaugural Offshore Invitational Tournament. Look for more tournament details posted in the Marlin Club. Well done all!

When the marlin first appeared off San Clemente Island last a couple of weeks ago, it was hoped that they would stick around a few days before heading off. No one could have dreamed that we'd see the kind of consistent marlin action that's been found there - and still is! The majority of the weekend's action was off the west (or north, actually), end of Clemente, with the fleet ranging from Wilson's Cove around to Northwest Harbor and anywhere from 1 to 6 miles off the island. It was an awesome feeder show, with boats charging back and forth looking to pitch a bait. It sounds like it's still going on, as we have reports of at least two boats (GAMBLER and WAIT N SEA) getting fish in Rosie's event that started today. With all those boats in such a tight area, it was inevitable that we'd hear of tempers flaring and fish being lost to other folks' running gear. Remember, keep your head and play nice out there!

For those not caught up with marlin fever, the weekend provided a nice surprise, as albacore made a welcome return to the Southland. We received several reports here at the Home Office of longfin stops at 70 to 80 miles 180 to 185 degrees out of Pt. Loma. These are a nice grade of fish, running 20 to 25 pounds, but not the bruisers being caught up to the north. Closer to home, there have been huge schools of yellowfin tuna gorging themselves on anchovies on several of the banks. The 209 appears to be the best spot, with significant numbers being found on the 267 and Mackeral Bank as well. Several boaters also reported stumbling on schools between the banks, which indicates that wherever there is bait, there'll be tuna. Unfortunately, wherever there's tuna, there'll be seiners, and that is the case here. Hopefully, they'll leave a few stragglers for the rest of us!

This will be another busy weekend, with several more tournaments being run. I'll be fishing in the Pesky Friday and Saturday, so if you see me staggering out of Armstrong's in Avalon on Saturday night, be sure to say 'hi' - or at least keep me from walking into the bay :-) Remember, Sunday night I'll be talking about marlin, SCMO and fishing the 'net on Fish Talk Radio, AM 830, from 8 to 10 PM. Listen in and see if I know what I'm talking about! BTW, thanks for all the great trip reports this week. Looks like my rant worked - please don't make me do it again!

September 8

As you might imagine, with three major tourneys this weekend, information about the billfish is pretty scarce. Fortunately, the "Secret" dope isn't a secret at all. The same spot off the Dome at San Clemente Island that produced so many marlin last weekend is going strong. OSPREY released one there yesterday, and at least three were landed on the numbers on Tuesday. I suspect the only real issue this weekend will be how to cram so many boats into a little area ... :-)

There's actually two areas of marlin activity right now. The spot off the Dome starts about 5 miles offshore, and runs down parallel to the island. Expect boats to spread from there to the 499 and 289 in search of the best action. The second spot is closer to shore, running from just off the Slide at Catalina down towards the 277. This ridge saw a lot of action over the weekend, and the signs continue to look good, although we got a report today that the 277 looked pretty dead. We have some pretty good SST charts today, so you may want to look for the temp breaks - the marlin will be hanging there. If you find yourself further to the south, you might want to check out the Lower Finger Bank, since some pretty good sized marlin schools have been reported there.

After a few weeks with no real swordfish activity, we received word today that Dave Denholm on ESPADON boated a swordie yesterday on the 499. We had heard reports of them being seen there, along with stickboats, so you may want to take that heavy outfit and a couple of rigged squid.

The tuna fishing picked up a bit this week. Good numbers of yellowfin tuna were found in the triangle formed by the 277, 209 and 289, with the center of activity being the 33/118 cross. Among the successful methods have been trolling CD-14 Rapalas in the mackeral and purple/black colors, as well as anything that mimics a squid (and, of course, the real thing!). To the south, the 213, 390, and 60 Mile Bank have been producing as well. There are some yellowtail mixed in with the tuna, but your best bet for the forktails is still the lee of San Clemente, anywhere from White Rock down to Pyramid Head. And, if you just have to have albacore,there's always Morro Bay!

Along with the exotics to catch, there's been exotics to see. Keep your eyes open and you'll catch the graceful spout of blue whales as they migrate through the area. There are also large schools of Rizzo's porpoise, close cousins to pilot whales. And if you're lucky, as I was last weekend, you just might catch site of pods of orca working off the backside of Catalina. Pretty amazing!

I try not to harp on our visitors, but sometimes it can't be helped. As you've noticed, we don't charge for any of the information we provide at SCMO, unlike several of the sites that have come along after us. But that does not mean that what we have here is free - the price we ask of each of you is your participation. A case in point is our Trip Reporter. Every day, on average, 500 people view the trip reports; most reports average over 200 individual views. Yet, in the days since the end of the Labor Day weekend, only 5 people filed new trip reports to describe their holiday fishing. That's just not right, and it's not fair to the few who do file reports. The Trip Reporter, like everything here at SCMO, only works if everyone participates. Remember those "Take a penny, Give a penny" dishes next to the cash registers in the drugstore? If you needed a penny in your bill, you took it. But if you got one back in your change, you were expected to give it back. This place works the same way. If you find the trip reports useful, fine. If they help you have an epic trip, even better! But when you get back, repay the kitty and file a trip report of your own. It only takes a couple of minutes to do, and you're done. We aren't looking for publication-quality reports (just read the ones already there!), just where you went and what you saw. That's not much to ask, and is a lot cheaper than $5 a pop! Please, do your share.

September 4

Let me start by making the following statement: Yes, they really did catch 14 marlin. The "they", of course, is Team Kingsmill of WILD BILL. Fishing in the lee of San Clemente Island 5 miles off the Dome, they released an amazing 14 striped marlin on Saturday. Now, there have been times in the past when really amazing marlin bites have resulted in some incredible scores. I recall a bite up at Santa Cruz a few seasons back when one boat (the WILD BILL crew fishing on a trailer boat, I believe) rolled up an incredible score of something like 8 or 9. But this has to set some kind of record. The feat is made all the more amazing by the fact that, for most of the day, they were at the eye of a very large, tight fleet of boats trying to emulate their success. The next closest boat was NO EXCUSES, with 3. Normally, that's a great day. But they have to realize they came in second by 11 fish! As Jim Kingsmill, who wound in 7 of the stripes, put it, "it was just like Mag Bay!" Indeed!

Between fits of incredulous headshaking, other boats did manage to find marlin of their own. On Saturday, TIGHT LINES released a pair fishing in the pack off the Dome, and THREE SEAS and PESCADOR each released one. Sunday, the fleet split into several smaller groups, driven primarily by predictions of nasty weather on the horizon. HOOKER, having moved to the region off the east end of Catalina, released a marlin 4 miles short of the 277. SLEEPER moved in on the numbers and found a pack of feeders, and managed to catch and release one of them. Back off the Dome, WAIT N SEA released three, WILD BILL two more, and LEGEND, NO EXCUSES and OFFSHORE one each. A bit to the south, PESCADOR got a jigfish on the 289, and GERONIMO released one just north of there. The weather was picking up pretty good on Saturday, chasing a lot of the boats off. One suspects it might have had the same effect on the fish. We'll soon see.

While we were out playing with the marlin, a lot of folks were still trying to get their fill of the exotics we've enjoyed all summer. Alas, just as Labor Day indicates the end of summer, it has meant a significant lessening of the food fish, as well. The 209 was notable as a spot to catch yellowfin tuna, as they were being found in good numbers running with the porpoise. Between there and the 277, a large herd of dorado was reported to be available to those who had the mini-mackeral we've been seeing lately. To the south, spots that have been producing all summer, such as the 302 and the 181, were reported to be empty. However, Those willing to run down to the 220's and the 213 found the exotics triple play - yellowtail, yellowfin tuna and dorado. We also received a report of really large bluefin tuna on the Cortes Bank, but haven't had that confirmed. Anyone? Bueller?

I was fishing this weekend, but managed to get the new Interactive Hot Spot Chart up and running before I left. Based on the feedback I've received, it is rapidly becoming one of our most popular features. It was suggested that some way to determine distance between points would be a good addition, so we added a Course / Distance Calculator to the chart page. I'll be interested in getting opinions and suggestions for improvements.

As I mentioned last week, I will be an upcoming guest on Fish Talk radio. However, the date has been moved back one week to Sunday, Sept 17 from 8 to 10 PM on KPLS, AM 830, Orange/Los Angeles. that's the Sunday after the Friday/Saturday Pesky tourney, so it should be an ... interesting ... show. Those of you who were at the post-tourney party last year know why. Finally, I'm happy to pass along that we finally got some good satellite shots today, so we've got nice new SCMO sst charts - just in time to prepare for the upcoming tourney weekend.

August 31

As we suspected, the first major tournament of the season managed to locate the elusive marlin that have managed to hide thus far from the rest of us. The Churchmouse event, which was held out of Avalon on Monday and Tuesday, saw 15 fish caught for the 100 boats in the event; some were released. I'm sorry I don't have better information, but, unlike the other local tourneys, the Churchmouse isn't well publicized. If you are responsible for this event, let us know and we'll make sure you get proper visibility next year. The majority of the action occurred in the channel between Santa Catalina and San Clemente Islands, as the bite that we reported on Monday turned out the be the hot ticket. There was a lot of action on the 499, with the Mackeral Bank seeing some fish caught as well. The marlin were well distributed, though, with marlin being seen from off Ben Weston point on Catalina across to the radome on Clemente. There was also a decent show off the Slide and down the ridge to the 277.

You didn't have to be in the tournament to catch marlin, though. Ron Johnson called the Home Office on Monday to report that Reed Miller, fishing on Ron's SHOWDOWN, released a pair of marlin Saturday while working near the 499. Ron said that one stripe was a baitfish and the other caught on a lure. This is in keeping with what we've been hearing, that the fishing is pretty even between bait and lure - good news for those of us who can't throw a mackeral worth beans! If you have a fish to report, you can post it in the Trip Reporter, email us with the details, or call the Home Office at (310) 374-2818 and leave it on the machine.

The show of exotics we've been enjoying lately has declined dramatically in the past week. While there are still dorado, yellowfin tuna and yellowtail being caught, it's nowhere near the quantity we had gotten used to. Some yellowfin were taken on the Mackeral Bank, the 277 and the 209 - mostly as bycatch by boats searching for marlin. The closest thing to a concentration was out on the Butterfly Bank. Closer to shore, some success was found for those who tried the 289/43/182/181 region. Dorado continue to be found scattered wherever the warm water is, but the numbers are way down. There's been a lot of seiners working the last few weeks, and I think that's a big part of the cause for the decline. Yellowtail fishing has been good at the south end of Clemente, with the White Rock / Fishhook region working well.

For those of you who are registered for the Offshore Fishing Forum, be sure to log in and check out the new Registered Users Forum. It's only available to registered users, and we'll be using it to post special information and offers for our OFF community. Also, the new interactive hot spot chart should be up and running by the weekend. Look for a new link to it from the main page and navigation menu.

I don't blow my horn much outside of SCMO, depending on word of mouth to bring in new visitors. So I was pleased and surprised when I was invited to join Mike Gardner and Capt. Ron Baker as a guest on their Fish Talk radio show. It will be fun to talk about the mission and future of SCMO, and perhaps we'll be able to share our community with a few more anglers. Tune in and listen Sunday, Sept 10 from 8 to 10 PM on KPLS, AM 830, Orange/Los Angeles.

August 28

About the only good thing that could be said about this past weekend is that the fuel docks made a lot of money. Based on the number of boats out pounding the offshore waters, it's a miracle there are any fish left at all! But sometimes, the fish are smarter than the angler, and this was one of those times.

Everyone keeps waiting for the marlin to pop up in some kind of quantity. After this weekend, they're still waiting. Three fish were taken in the Tuna Club event - one 6 miles off the Slide, one on the Mackeral Bank and another off Pyramid Head. But that's pretty slim pickings for thirty of the top marlin boats in the region. The ever-stealthy ESPADON quietly released a pair last week while working the region from the Mackeral Bank into the lee of San Clemente Island. One additional marlin was boated by a surprised private boater when it hit his sardine soaking on a paddy 4 miles out of Newport Beach (one more reason to always be prepared for anything). But that was pretty much it for the marlin. There was a lot of boats working the 499 and off the west end of Catalina, but with little to show. We also got reports of a nice tailer show off the east end down to the 152, but no one claims to have gotten any of them. Of course, every boater out there seems to have seen at least one jumper, but, considering the lack of numbers thus far, one has to think it must be mola or mako. The same goes for swordfish, as we've gotten a lot of reports of two-finners seen at a distance. The only confirmed sightings came on the 267 and Avalon Bank, where boaters reported unsuccessful baitings. The most interesting billfish report, and something to think about, is the report of some marlin action late yesterday on the 499. The Churchmouse tourney starts today, and if that's a real bite, you know the anglers will be there. Stay tuned.

At what point do we consider this a failed marlin season? Last year at this time, there'd only been a little blast of fish off the San Clemente Island domes. It wasn't until well after the tournaments that a few fish arrived to save the season. This year started off well, but now looks a lot like last year. We know there are longliners nailing the marlin as they work their way up from Mag Bay; are we seeing the effects? Is this the way it will always be in the future? All the more reason for us to make our voices heard at the next fisheries plan meeting in September ...

Lest you think it is only the billfishermen with their lips dragging this Monday, just read this typical report from the other offshore guys: "Fished the (fill in your favorite bank) on Saturday and Sunday for one lousy dorado/yellowfin/yellowtail (your choice). I figure that means I spent about $40 a pound - a mighty expensive fish!" The numbers were way off this weekend, and I suspect it is due at least in part to the fishing pressure being exerted. The only folks who seemed to do well were those out Friday or early Saturday. By Saturday, and through Sunday, boaters reported finding paddies with few fish, but showing clear signs of previous fishing - mostly in the form of debris left behind by the fishermen. We even heard cases of notes being left on paddies for the next guy who came by. When you consider that some of the paddies were being worked by as many as 40 boats at a time, it's no wonder the fish are moving off of them! As for the distribution of the fish, they continue to be found from La Jolla all the way up to the oil platforms off San Pedro. Personally, I'd try further offshore in the hopes of finding virgin territory. There was a report of good yellowtail fishing off of Church Rock on Saturday, and a 40-lb dorado was taken out of a school of freeswimmers in tight to the Slide. Yellowfin continue to be taken out of porpoise schools, although getting them to bite can be a frustrating challenge.

Here at the SCMO Home Office, we have a long list of features and projects to add to the site. One of the oldest (like three years old) has been to provide a graphical chart of all the fishing hot spots to complement our latlon listings. I'm happy to say we finally found the right picture to use, and are in the process of setting it up for use. It'll have all the points, ports and hot spots on it, and clicking on a spot will give you the name and coordinates. Finally, you'll be able to look and say, "so that's where the 1010 Trench is!" Look for it in the coming weeks.

August 24

So, you're probably here looking for that last-minute marlin dope before taking off for a weekend of tournament fishing, right? What were you THINKING?? During tournament season, the only thing with worse lockjaw than the fish are the anglers! We'll give you what we've got, but it'll be a short report.

We continue to get scattered reports of marlin sightings, but very few marlin catches. The bite seen last weekend off Los Coronados appears to have slowed, yet there has been no new concentration found to replace it. One marlin was lost Monday on the 425 and another Tuesday on the 9 Mile Bank. There were reports of jumpers on the 9 and a decent tailer show 7 miles north of the 425. But that's pretty much it for the south.

Further north, there were sightings from the 209, the 277, the 499 and tight to the Slide. The most intriguing element, particularly with a tournament this weekend, is the continued reports of good signs up to the west towards the Osborn Bank and as far up as the 17. So far, nothing more than signs and a periodic jumper, but interesting enough to possibly entice tourney fishers looking for an edge. If you're fishing in a fleet and half of them suddenly turn northwest at flank speed, you'll know it just went off.

The yellowfin tuna continue to be taken in outstanding numbers over a wide area of ocean. Tuna in the 15 to 20-lb range were taken from as far south as Todos Santos to as far north as a few miles outside of Dana Point, with the 425, 295 and 371 to the south and the 209, 267 and 277 to the north producing the best numbers. The fish are being found both close to kelps and mingled in with porpoise. We even received one report of a tuna slam - albacore, bluefin, yellowfin, skipjack and bigeye - being accomplished by one angler out of San Diego.

Dorado are still being found in a wide range similar to the YFT. Probably the best action was found on the 209, which, not coincidentally, had the warmest water. With the arrival of the yellowfin, the dorado might finally get a break from the action - at least for a while.

There were a tantalizing series of swordfish reports from up north this week. One was seen off the east end of Anacapa Island, and another near the 172. The swordies were the first into our local waters this season, and maybe they're leading the way again. One more reason to lay in extra fuel just in case.

We've been promising our own SST charts for a few weeks now and I'm happy to say they're here. We use the same CoastWatch data used by most of the popular SST services, and have customized the views to make them as printer-friendly as possible (no more blowing out the black ink cartridge printing those charts!). Check 'em out, print 'em and take 'em along. One other tidbit concerns the Offshore Fishing Forum (which has been going nuts with a lot of great posts in the past few days, BTW). As an incentive to get you to register and login when you use the OFF, we've added new forums that can only be seen if you login first. That way, we can reward our users with information only they can see! There's some interesting new info there now. I can't tell you what it is (you'll have to register and login!), but it tells you how to get something for free that'll stick to your transom. Don't forget to file those trip reports when you get back in!

August 21

The story on marlin continues to be the lack thereof. There's plenty of warm water, lots of bait - but no marlin. They are seen infrequently and for the most part as single fish, and when found in packs they seem to have lock jaw. Some folks did get lucky over the weekend, though. On Friday, Adam Stewart was finally able to christen his new boat with its first marlin, a tailer taken on the 267. A lot of boats headed up to the 499 in response to some swordfisher dope about supposedly thick marlin. Unfortunately, while the signs looked good, the marlin were not there. Ironically, while everyone was off to the northeast, the only local fish of the day was released on the Avalon Bank. Several of the boats sliding back down reported seeing a lot of swordfish gear in the lee of San Clemente Island, but there were no reports of anyone even seeing any swordies.

The marlin scene has been better to the south, as the waters around Los Coronados has yielded the best concentrations of marlin yet seen this year. At least two marlin were taken just west of Coronado del Norte on Saturday, and an other down by the Finger Bank. Sunday yielded another pair from those same waters, one a feeder taken 2 miles off Coronado del Norte and the other taken 5 miles southwest of Coronado del Sur. Marty Morris also reported a decent show of sleepers on the 425 Sunday.

This time last year as we approached tourney season the only marlin caught had been a couple of San Clemente Island. This year, with the signs so good so early, we really expected great things. Now, with the first major events only a couple of weeks away, things need to turn around quick to avoid a lot of disappointed anglers.

Unlike last year, however, there is a lot of other offshore action to keep everyone happy. The yellowfin have arrived full strength, and are being caught in huge numbers. They are being found both under paddies and mixed in with porpoise. Among the best areas was the path between the 181 and 182, although the tunny widespread and as far north as the 14 Mile Bank. To the south, boaters were getting huge counts tight to the coast south of San Diego to the Lower Finger Bank. The standard tuna jigs like Tuna Clones and hexheads are doing the job, and we've heard that CD14 Rapalas and blue and white iron work as well.

The dorado and yellowtail continue to populate the paddies. Of course, finding the ones with the fish is a challenge, and getting them to bite when you do find them can be even tougher. But those who succeeded scored in a big way. The are still close to the beach, following the line from the 14 to the 267 out to the 181. But we've also heard of them being taken out on the 152 and the Mackeral Bank as well, so the hot ticket is to check every paddy you find. Be prepared to chum the paddy to get them going if necessary. Most creative chum award goes to one guy who cut of the first dodo he got and used it as chum. Courageous, but it paid off!

Unfortunately, with all the warm water we're getting, the cold loving tuna have moved offshore. If you're one of the 3 guys left in SoCal who hasn't plugged the freezer with albacore yet, they're still out there - way out there! You'll have to run to the Dumping Ground or 20 miles the other side of the Cortez Bank if you really want some. Same goes for the bluefin, including those 100-pounders. However, a 90-lb bigeye was weighed in this weekend in San Diego, so there's still hope if you're looking for really great tuna steaks.

At SCMO, we're proud to have been the first site for the local offshore fisherman. In the 4 years since we started, though, many other sites have come along, including some with useful information for anglers planning their next trip. We pound the Internet pretty hard each week looking for some tidbit of knowledge, and we bet you do, too. So we decided to save all of us a lot of trouble by putting the best of the Internet in one place. We call it the Info Center, and it contains links to all the useful sources we've found in our years on the Internet. Fishing reports, message boards, and fish counts - all the best spots are there. We've even included links to some of the subscription -based sites for those of you looking for an edge and, of course, links to the best of SCMO and Sharkin' Online. Check out the Info Center - I think you'll find it's the one-stop shop for the offshore angler.

August 17

OK, let's talk marlin. after all, thats why you're here, right? There still isn't the concentration of fish that we've been looking for, but a couple of longnoses have been caught during the week. KEY TO THE SEA reported releasing a stripey yesterday near Coronado del Norte, and I DREAM OF did the same near the 267. While the marlin seem to be just about everywhere in small numbers, several batches have been reported. To the south, Marty Morris of KEN-DAN reported seeing a nice batch of marlin on the 9 Mile Bank, and fishspotters.com reports a group out about 7 miles from Ben Weston Point at Catalina, which would put them just outside of the Farnsworth Bank. Other areas showing decent batches include the 14 Mile Bank, the 267, the Avalon Bank, and the area just offshore from the Can Dump at the east end of Catalina.

With the water so warm (as high as 75 degrees in some places!), it was inevitable that we'd see an influx of the warmer water species. The yellowfin tuna have hit in bigger numbers, and are being found in a lot of different regions. The 302 has been particularly good, along with the 295 and 495. The tuna have headed up the ridge and are being caught as far north as the 209. Be prepared to run into them wherever you travel this weekend. Bluefin and albacore are still being caught as well, with the best bluefin counts coming from the 302 (primarily as YFT bycatch) and the longfin being caught at the 295, 495 and Butterfly.

The dorado and yellowtail are still under a lot of local kelps, but unfortunately, not under all the kelps. It's pretty much a matter of luck to find one with both species, with more found with just the yellows and even more with just sunfish. If you find the right kind, the mini green mackeral are working well if you have them. If not, chum heavily and hold on!

As you know, here at SCMO we've always tried to provide the best resources possible for offshore fishermen. One thing we've always been looking for is decent SST charts. I'm happy to announce that, starting next week, we will be adding the NOAA CoastWatch SST charts to our sst page. These are the best free charts available, made from the same data used by the commercial outfits. But we're not through there, and we'll continue to bring you the best possible tools to improve your fishing experience!

August 14

Ah, summertime ... when the sun is shining and the water is flat. At least, that's how this summertime weekend went. Whatever happened to that nasty weather we were supposed to have, anyway? Not only was it beautiful offshore, but the water temps were back up as well. Go figure.

There's still no real concentration of marlin, but just enough are getting caught to keep everyone interested - and on the water! Without any sense of new places to go, several boats found success fishing the east end of Catalina, which is the closest thing to a "hot spot" we have so far. On Friday afternoon, Dave Denholm on ESPADON released a marlin 3 miles off the Slide and DOUBLE D slid off Church Rock and did the same thing on Sunday morning. Several other reports were received of fish taken in the same area.

Not everyone was satisfied working the "kiddie pond", however. A small fleet looking to take advantage of the nice weather found a good show of feeders on the Mackeral Bank and 289, but none were caught. A few hearty souls followed some "secret dope" up to the 499, where they found great conditions, but no marlin. Finally, Bill MacCorkell and AGITATOR took the long trip around the west end of Catalina to check out the 125. Like those checking the nearby 499, Bill reported good signs but no billfish.

Further south, there were a few successes to report. John Ashley released a marlin from his boat TENACIOUS while fishing south of North Coronado Island. Two other fish ere taken in the waters around Los Coronados, and another on the 181. The north tip of the 9 Mile Bank was a good area as well, with quite a few reports of marlin in the region.

With the warm water in the area, the dorado continue to populate the kelps. Every kelp paddy had at least a couple boats on it, but unfortunately, not every kelp held mahimahi. The best area seemed to be the waters between the 267 and the 209, with a smaller, pickier batch of dorado off the east end of Catalina near the 152.

Tuna continue to be a part of the local fishing scene, and Friday was 2000 fish day for the San Diego fleet. Boats running out to the 295 found plentiful albacore, all fattened up to a late-season 25 to 30 pounds. Further south, Bob Hoose of Team 7Strand fished out of Punta Banda, where they had a 4 hour stop on albacore about 10 miles offshore.

A scary moment occured Saturday as one of the swordfish spotter planes suffered a engine failure and was forced to ditch off Oceanside. Despite a poor navigational fix (and after some surreal commentary on VHF channel 88 by the pilot as he headed down), the pilot was dragged out of the drink by a private boater with only minor injuries.

If you haven't heard, the BAC's Masters Tourney has sold out. Before you kick yourself for waiting, remember that there are other great events to sign up for (you already know my favorite, the Pesky). Drop by our Tourney Calendar to see which one fits your needs.

August 10

After the excitement of last weekend, we were expecting the fishing to really blow up this week. Unfortunately, the only thing that's blowing right now is the weather, and it is threatening to turn this weekend into a real blowout. There are currently small craft advisories for the local waters and gale warnings just to the north (the direction that gives us our future weather). Buoy data is showing sustained winds of 30 mph. Perhaps this will be a good weekend to check out tackle sales ... :-)

If you insist on heading into the slop, let me tell you what you have to look forward to. After the two marlin that were released last Sunday, there has been very little action. One marlin was caught today just outside Avalon by WILD THING, and several boats reported jig strikes on the 277. Other than that, there has only been widely scattered reports. Earlier in the week, most of the reports came either from the region of the Avalon Bank or the lee of San Clemente Island. If I had to pick an area to start this weekend, I would go with the 277. However, that is a particularly exposed piece of ocean, and may make for a miserable experience.

On the brighter side, a 121-lb bigeye tuna las landed by the crew of RACHEL while on the way to the 295. The tuna hit a Mean Joe Green marlin lure (man, those things are getting everything!) and was landed after a 2 1/2 hour fight. It's the only report we've had of the big tuna moving into the region, and it's a good sign. The 295 has been the hot spot for other kinds of tuna this week as well. Yellowfin tuna up to 20 pounds were found there, along with some nice albacore. Marty Morris and KEN-DAN found it to their liking yesterday, coming home with a nice mix of albacore, bluefin tuna, yellowtail and dorado. The alby were also found at the 390 and the 213. Some nice scores of bluefin tuna were reported from 135 miles, 200 degrees from Point Loma. Unfortunately, they were schooling and the seiners were on the way, so by the time you read this they'll be cat food. If you're looking for dorado and yellowtail, join the crowds at the 267 and 14 Mile Bank. Heck, even if you're not interested in the fish, it might be worth the trip just to watch the show as everyone tries to pound the same paddy.

Last night, I had the opportunity to attend a marlin seminar at the King Harbor Marlin Club given by Bob Hoose. Bob is the point man for local lure maker 7Strand, and has done a lot in the last few years to help educate local fishermen by giving seminars, putting together lure testing teams and organizing events such as the BAC's Master Angler Billfish Tournament. He's also the voice of the BAC fish report, and has been one of SCMO's earliest and most vocal supporters. I point all this out because Bob will be cutting back his efforts with 7Strand to pursue a career in commercial real estate. I'm sure that while he knows it's the right decision for a lot of reasons (at least two that he pointed out last night *g*), I'm sure it's killing him. So if you see him, pat him on the back and thank him for his efforts on behalf of all us fishermen. He deserves it.

August 7

We had predicted on Thursday that there could be "epic" marlin fishing over the weekend. At the time, I had no idea how personal that prediction would become. More on that in a moment.

Heading into the weekend, there were three things to concern the offshore anglers - the iffy weather, the dropping sea surface temperature, and the fact that every fisherman with a hull and some fuel would be out chasing dorado on the kelp. I'm happy to say that at least two of the three were not an issue. Unfortunately, if you tried to fish the 267/279 or the 14 Mile Bank, you already know just how crowded it was. There were some pretty amazing stories about stupid fisherman (and diver) tricks performed out there this weekend. The sad part is that, in spite of the numbers of boats trying to catch them, very few dorado were actually caught. A lot of the kelp paddies had emptied, and many of the ones that held fish simply wouldn't give them up. I suspect the dropping water temps had a lot to do with it, but one can only guess how the pressure of all the boats impacted the fishing.

As is often the case, your feelings about the marlin fishing depends on your perspective. A lot of folks think this season is getting off to a very slow start. I, on the other hand, think it's already a great season. Of course, that's mostly because my brother Rick, fishing on HOOKER, released a marlin Sunday morning about 5 miles off the power plant on Catalina (not off San Mateo, as reported elsewhere). Details can be found in the Trip Reporter, and photos should soon be available in La Galer’a. Several others found success as well. Also on Sunday, OH JOY got a double jig strike on the 289. Chris Brown was able to release his fish, but the other was lost. Further south, Dick Sieminski on JIDONA found the Upper Finger Bank to his liking and released one marlin there. Earlier in the weekend, Hal Schroeder on BOUT TIME landed a 182-lb marlin that took a tuna feather on the Mackeral Bank. Later Saturday, we received unconfirmed reports that one marlin was released on the 267, and two more on the 9-Mile Bank. Finally, Sandy Gruwell, fishing with Rich Hamilton on MIL-SO-MAR, boated a 144-lb'er late Thursday 6 miles out of Dana Point. As you can see, the marlin are starting to bite, even if there hasn't been any accumulation of the billfish. Stickboats and spotter planes continue to report scattered swordfish sightings, but nothing like a few weeks back.

The tuna action has diminished significantly in the past few days. Those chasing the albacore found some success at the 390, 371 and 302 banks. The lack of numbers was compensated for by an improving grade of fish, typical for later in the season. Bluefin were found on the 302, including several that weighed in at over 100 lbs. We've received reports of yellowfin tuna under schools of porpoise as far north as the 267, but no one has reported catching any, so it remains an illusive rumor.

Tournament season will be upon us soon, and, unlike last year, it appears that there will be some fish to catch! Check out the upcoming events in our Tournament Calendar, and check in at the Marlin Club and Trip Reporter to see how the results pan out.

August 3

Things are heating up in SoCal, and I don't just mean the weather! For the past few weeks, we've seen a lot of signs of good things to come. Now, it looks like they might be here.

We've been getting reports of scattered marlin at most of the normal places for the past few weeks. The problem has been that they simply didn't want to come out and play. Now, however, we're getting the first indications that the marlin might finally be on the chew. Yesterday, LOCAL BOY released a marlin that hit a Mean Joe Greene on the 267. Also yesterday, we received a unconfirmed report of a boat releasing one marlin on the 277 and another inside the 14. Both marlin hit the jigs, although one was subsequently taken on a drop back marlin. We also got a late report about a marlin released Saturday off La Jolla. The encouraging news is that the marlin have started to hit the jigs. With good weather predicted for the upcoming weekend, there could be some epic marlin fishing.

Certainly the most intriguing news of the week has been the presence of subtropical exotics in our waters. Dorado have invaded in huge numbers, as they follow the string of warm water that has been hugging the coast for the last 10 days. They are in striking distance of even the half day boats out of most of the SoCal landings. One report from this morning has one boat catching over 30 dorado on the 14. More exciting (at least to me) has been the repeated reports of blue marlin in our local waters. We've received reports (both on the water and in the air) of blue marlin being sighted on both the 209 and 302 spots. That sounds worth checking out!

There are still albacore out there, although with the dorado being found local, most folks aren't willing to run out after the tuna. The best spot of late sounds to still be the 118/32 cross. There's been an interesting report of yellowfin tuna being found under schools of porpoise, so keep your eyes open!

Whatever your pleasure, it sounds like it is out there now. This is the time to use that extra vacation and hit the water. Don't forget to drop by and let us know how you do!

July 31

Considering the number of boats taking their shot at the local billfish populations, there was surprisingly little success. Of course, it's still early, and the marlin seem to have lockjaw. You can count on that to change!

The marlin have moved into Southern California, but unfortunately not in any concentration. Thus far, we've only heard of two marlin caught - one last week by Gary Jasper on WAIT-N-SEA off the Slide at Catalina, and one today by DESPERADO 12 miles south of Dana Point. But many people had chances. A large number of boats were working the 279 south of Dana, and another large group were working the Avalon Bank and east end of Catalina. Both groups saw a lot of marlin, and tossed a lot of mackeral, but with no success. Normally, we'd use the sst charts to determine where the fish will stack up, but the satellite we get our charts from is having trouble and isn't producing useable data. However, I witnessed firsthand the large temperature break running off the east end and heading south towards San Diego. The spots with marlin all seem to be near the break, so I expect to see areas such as the 152, 277, 209 and 312 heat up soon. Time will tell. The swordfish action seemed to tail off somewhat (to almost normal levels!), although several were seen on the 279 and the Avalon Bank.

Lest we forget, the albacore bite continues. Greg Stotesbury took KAWAKAWA down to the 118/32 "Cross" and limited out early in the morning. He found the fish would eat pretty much anything you offered them, which is good. The 390 was pretty much wide open as well. Dorado and yellowtail are still being found under just about every paddy, which caused several interesting range wars. Remember - first come, first serve!

Just in case you hadn't noticed, we've been getting a lot of good reports over at the Trip Reporter. In a lot of ways, that's becoming a signature feature of the site. We certainly want to encourage that, and would appreciate it if you could pass the word. There's a lot of other boards out there, many more popular than ours. But none provide the quality and quantity of offshore reports we do. We don't care if you want to go up the Coast or down the San Diego boards to post your questions or comments, but make sure you and your buddies file the trip reports here!

July 27

By the time you read this, I hope to be out on the water, trying to make the news we'll be reporting on Monday. In the meantime, a quick review for those who haven't been paying attention ...

The summer of swordfish continues. if you'd asked me this morning, I'd have told you the best place to head for swordfish was the 289, based on last weekend's results. That was before Doug Daniels on PESCADOR hooked a sword southwest of the 14 Mile Bank. Amazingly, the fish took the first bait offered it at around 1:30 this afternoon. An hour and a half later, the 225-lb broadbill was on its way to Rosie's scale in Avalon. Another indication that the swordfish have moved comes from the Bongos fleet, where one of their boats reported finding a sword just outside Avalon. Despite repeated efforts to get it to bite, the fish just wasn't interested, and the Bongos crew left it sunning itself on the surface.

Unfortunately, the news is not as optimistic for the marlin. Last weekend's concentration of stripeys off the San Onofre Domes seems to have dissipated, and we haven't heard where they have gone. That's not to say that we haven't gotten reports of straggler marlin. The 279, the 14 and Long Point at Catalina were all spots generating sightings. I think if it were me, I'd start off the Slide at Catalina and keep one ear on the radio to see where to go next.

One of the more exciting occurances this week was the arrival of dorado in significant numbers. The band of warm water we have been reporting continues to flood into the Catalina Bight, bringing with it these delicious warm water speedsters. Most every kelp paddy from the Mexican border all the way into Santa Monica Bay seems to have dorado, yellowtail or both. They seem to be a bit picky, but they're well worth the effort. The tuna continue to run, with the biggest numbers coming from just inside the 60 Mile Bank. Amazingly, the tuna seem to be headed north as well. Truly a mixed bag for the weekend - I'll look forward to some killer trip reports!

July 24

As we had indicated last week, the season is truly upon us. That point was driven home by reports of both the first swordfish and first marlin of the season. First the swordies. Two swordfish were caught on the 289 on Saturday. Steve Bledsoe on NO EXCUSES got one to take a frozen squid, and subdued the critter after two hours. The fish weighed 228.5 lbs on the DAC scales. Meanwhile, back at the 289, Eric Grennan on TIGER SPIRIT was feeling pretty bad about losing a broadbill earlier in the day until a second sword took the bait. The battle lasted an hour an a half, and Eric's fish weighed 302 lbs at the BAC dock. Steve mentioned that while he was fighting his fish, he could look off the stern and see Eric fighting his. Clearly a concentration of fish! We have a picture of Eric's beast in the Galer’a and hope to have the same for Steve's soon.

As you might expect, such a bonanza of billfish made the 289 look like a landrush as anglers sped out on Sunday to stake their claim. No other swordfish were landed, but Jimmy Kingsmill on WILD BILL spotted a tailer on their way in (no surprise if you saw him at the 7Strand seminar last month) and got it to take a fresh mackie. At the time of release, they were about 13 miles out of Dana Point, off the power plant domes. Earlier in the day, Eric Nelson on ONO had a chance to beat Team Kingsmill to the punch when he successfully baited a marlin in the same basic area (14 miles, 198 from Dana). Unfortunately, the fish was lost just prior to leadering. You'll get'em next time, Eric!

Lest we forget, the tuna are still running. We got good reports of albacore catches from the 1010 trench, the inner Butterfly, and a spot about 8 miles south of the twin 220s. The numbers for that last spot are 32¡ 39' / 118¡ 04'. Those are Hoose's numbers, so blame him if you get skunked ... :-) There were some bluefin reported at the 390 spot, along with the first decent dorado reports of the season, said to be stretched from the 9-Mile Bank up the coast almost into Dana Point.

It's very exciting now that the season is heating up, and we'd like you to help us share the excitement of your achievement. Take a moment after the excitement wears off and write up your experience for our Tall Tales and True Stories section. It doesn't need to be fancy, just what happened in your own words. Don't worry - we'll take care of the editing! Then, once the pictures come back, send them to us for the Galer’a del Pez so we can show the world what a great fish you caught. You can scan them electronically and email them to us, or send them to us here at the Home Office and we'll scan them for you and send them back. It's the successful trip trifecta - file your Trip Report, write a True Story and post your pic in La Galer’a!

July 20

There has been very little news reported in the last few days, mostly because of the lousy weather offshore. The tuna appear to be down on the Butterfly and Mushroom banks still, but from the low numbers reported from the landings it is hard to tell. The nasty weather has brought with it cold water, and it remains to be seen how this will affect the fishing. The only bright spot is a band of warm water that runs up the coast from San Diego through the 209 and up the Catalina Ridge. This might explain the reports we received of marlin being seen on the 209 by spotter planes. Since this is exactly the way we'd like to see the marlin move, it's OK with us! But seriously, there are small craft advisories and gale warnings posted for the area, so use your head before you go out.

The first marlin of the season was taken today. Got your attention, huh? One of the Pt. Loma partyboats is reporting that a marlin took an albacore lure while trolling about 55 miles out of San Diego. While not exactly first fish flag material, it is a marlin, and one more indication that the season is upon us!

July 17

It never fails. Every time we write off the tuna fishing, BANG! it heats up again! It's probably just my billfish bias, hoping that the sooner the tuna clear out, the sooner the marlin will start to bite ... :-) But tuna are once again the main story. We had theorized that the weather might be a bit rough this weekend, and every trip report we received mentioned the lumpy swells. But those party boats and private boaters who braved the weather were rewarded with a widespread albacore bite that often included numerous and sizable bluefin tuna. Sunday's landing counts showed some of the largest numbers of the season. Most of those fish came from outer banks such as the Mushroom, Worm, and the upper reaches of the Dumping Ground. For those unwilling to run so far, good quantities of albacore were found on the 60-Mile Bank, the 213, and especially the 390. It was at that last spot that our best bluefin tuna reports came in from, with some fish going as big as 100-lbs for those with live bait and heavy tackle. The billfish report remains promising, as reports of both marlin and swordfish continue to trickle in. The largest number of marlin were reported on the 209, with one report of a jig strike northwest of the 289.

We don't usually deal in rumor here at SCMO, but I heard that this year's BAC Masters tourney will be an all-release event. If so, kudos to the club and its members for taking this positive step. Hopefully, we are heading towards a day when a tournament that credits dead fish is as rare as one credits releases was only a few years ago. I mention this in part as a reminder that we are entering tournament season, a time when news sources begin to seriously dry up. We at SCMO will continue to do our part to shake the bushes for the best, most comprehensive offshore fishing news, but we need your help. Now more than ever, it is crucial that you submit a trip report after every offshore trip. Even if you're just a lurker, even if you normally do your posting at other boards and only come here for the news, we need the participation of everyone. Because the trip reports come directly from the anglers, and not from a third party, it's the one reliable source of accurate information, and is depended on by the thousands of Offshore Fishing Forum visitors each week. I know you're tired and smelly when you get home, and would rather crash than write a report, but please do - it's important to a lot of people.

July 13

We'd love to tell you the tuna bite was red-hot. We'd love to tell you the marlin had arrived. But in both cases we'd be lying, and we try to keep that to a minimum. Last week's upturn in the albacore numbers was short-lived, and by yesterday the San Diego boats numbers were down to less than a fish per rod. Some are still being scratched out, of course, with the 213, 220's and 1010 Trench seeing most of the action. Of interest is the fact that, while the numbers are down, the percentage of bluefin tuna is up. In fact, we received a report of a 91-lb bluefin being caught in the region. If you're willing to run a far as the Dumping Grounds, there's a rumor that the numbers might be greater. But that's a loooong way to go, and weather reports today were of windy conditions (despite what the forecasts said). Still no marlin or swordfish taken, although the numbers of fish being seen continues to rise. Several reports were received of good numbers of swordfish (and stickboats) on the Mackeral Bank, and several marlin were seen between the 289 and Pyramid Head. We remain optimistic ...

Even though the billfish have not yet made a real appearance, it's time to start thinking about tournament fishing. I've fished two events for the past 10 years - the King Harbor Marlin Club and Los Pescadores events - and had a great time. Both are open to all comers. But there are a lot of great events in the next few months, including a pair of new all-release events worthy of consideration. You can check them all out at our updated Tournament Calendar. Oh yeah - TURN IN YOUR TRIP REPORTS!

July 10

If you've checked the counts in the morning fish wrap, you already know that the albacore bite went through the ceiling over the weekend. A new wave of fish were found on Saturday, and by Sunday Point Loma Landing was reporting a 1700-fish day. Not bad, considering everyone thought the tuna were toast just a few days ago. The fish were found about 70 miles from Pt. Loma, between the 213 and the twin 220's. That's about the same latitude as Punta Banda, just in case you're checking your fuel capacity. The nice thing is that it appears there were some epic bait stops along the way, which has not been the norm so far this year. Further to the north, the albacore are much more scarce. This caused a great deal of consternation to the Dana Angling Club, who held their annual tuna tourney over the weekend. The fleet ended up working the back side of the 43, with most boats scratching out about a half dozen longfin for the weekend. The only positive note was that the weather, which had been nasty all week, finally cleared in time for the weekend. We'd like to see those fish from down south make their way up here, but there's a large band of colder water they'll have to cross if they're to do so. Rumor and innuendo continue to be the watchwords for the local billfish efforts. Several boats make exploratory runs this weekend, with lots of life seen but no marlin. We're still waiting for that first catch, and may have to wait a bit longer, I'm afraid.

We use a lot of different sources to piece together these reports. Each source has some information of their own, but a lot of the dope is passed from source to source so that we all know what is going on. That point was driven home to me as I checked with one of the fish report phone lines last week and had my own fish report read back to me ... :-) So what's the point, you say? Just this - the information we gather goes out to a lot of different sources. In addition to the posting here and the FishNet News Digest we send out each Wednesday, our fishing news is reprinted at over 10 other fishing sites nationwide, include two new ones starting this week. There's a lot of people depending on us for good information, and that means depending on you for your trip reports. Our oft-imitated Trip Reporter was the first board dedicated to local fishing dope, straight off the water, and it is still one of the most popular ones around. Over 5000 people have viewed the reports at the new forum since it was introduced only a few weeks ago. Obviously, people value the information. So when you get home after your next trip, don't forget to take a few minutes to file a report. In the next few days, we'll be posting a guide to help you write better reports that will help us all know where the fish are - or aren't. And don't be afraid to tell your fishing buddies to file a report as well. After all, the only bad trip report is the one that doesn't get written ...

July 6

We have a marlin report! An honest-to-God, eye-to-eye, fish-on-the-line marlin report! We had predicted that the first marlin could go over the 4th of July, and Tim Spaeth on SNICKELFRITZ did his best to oblige us. Trolling 12 miles off Oceanside, a marlin hit a purple lure in the spread and was off to the races. Unfortunately, as stripeys tend to do, this one was a greyhound and spit the hook after a half hour. But at least now we know they're really here. Tough break, Tim. There were also a few swordfish baited inside the lee of San Clemente Island. The good news for tuna is that there are still some around; the bad news is that they're widely scattered and thin. Most of the places that produced in weeks past are kicking a few albacore out, primarily southwest of the 43 and down the slide from Pyramid Head. But the numbers are way down, and you have to wonder if the warming water is putting an early end to the tuna season. Of course, we got so spoiled the last couple of years ...

As part of our continuing effort to find new ways to use the Offshore Fishing Forum, we have converted our Swap Meet section over to a new OFF forum. The same rules apply though - if you're looking for something, or to get rid of something, post it there! Of course, you really ought to consider putting it up for bid at the Marine eXchange online auction first, but it's your choice - we give you every possible option! The new Swap Meet forum is also the place to publicize your fishing related business as well.

July 3

C'mon - we're in the middle of a long holiday weekend here! You didn't really expect a report, did you? If you just have to get the latest, check out the postings in the Trip Reporter. We'll have a fresh report on Thursday, and FishFlash bulletins if anything happens before then.

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