8/12/12

I always hesitate to say "the best" as a subsequent recollection of something better may arise to refute
me. At the very least I know that the present offshore fishing for 30 - 45# class yellowfin and bluefin
tuna is certainly among the best I have ever seen, and definitely the best in at least ten or more summer
seasons. It is the real deal; and shows promise of continuing for some time to come.

While the best of the potential is not realized by every boat out here every day, and there have been a
couple of down days during the past week that have shaken confidence, the fish, as proven by today's
results, are still around.

A couple of short morning stops revealed far more than we landed and located us for what was to come.
Finally, somewhat similar to the good kelp story of yesterday, we found a spot that decided that around
Royal Star was the place it wanted to be - all day.

There have been more than a few of these long "plunkers" during the past ten days that in my opinion are
the ultimate in offshore fishing. We had a couple of shorter versions but the full day special has
avoided us by both the fishes' and our own doing; it takes some real patience, not my strongest virtue,
to get these things going. Today was our turn.

From mid morning through late evening we drifted catching and collecting around us more and more 30 - 45#
Bluefin and yellowfin tuna along the way. It was the perfect opportunity for anglers to practice and
perfect their angling skills, put the gear and rigging to good use, and enjoy the chance to sit and fish
with a consistently reasonable opportunity at realizing success. One to five quality tuna hooked all day
long, in beautiful, perfect drifting conditions is about as good as it gets, and is by far the most
productive style of fishing we find.

Needless to say by day's end we had a group of thoroughly sated, fully satisfied anglers that were ready
to take a break and enjoy some different scenery tomorrow. Recognizing that there can be too much of a
good thing we took the cue implementing a completely different strategy for tomorrow. But, we are not
done with this offshore thing by a long shot. We will revisit the grounds on the backside of this voyage.
Any day I miss an opportunity to catch this grade of tuna offshore is one I regret. There have been a lot
of good days out here during the past ten. Thankfully we have been here for most of them.

Photos for the day feature long time Royal Star veterans Dave Yamahara and Mike Nagao with crewman Steve
Gregonis and Captain Gregg Tanji on the assist. Dave got the bluefin and Mike the yellowfin. Both of
these fish were hooked and landed within a few minutes of each other. What an idyllic set up - absolutely
phenomenal!

Tim Ekstrom



Photo Here...


Photo Here...