Saturday, October 9th, 2010 Good day folks. Our fishing time for this morning quickly diminished as we bumped and thumped our way up the line last night, so today was strictly a travel day due to our bad speed last night. The gang broke down gear, watched movies, and took naps. Us crew-members completed various maintenance and cleaning projects while Chef Schooler and Mark continued kicking out the finest of meals. Pancakes, yellowtail taco plates, and of course, fillet mignon and lobster for dinner.

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We're enjoying our ride very much as it's a little overcast with a very light sea/wind state. Our ETA for tomorrow morning around 7:00 am, plenty of time for all of us to watch the San Diego Chargers dominate some team from the Oakland area. Anyhow, thanks for checking in and we'll speak with you when that time arrives. Take care now.

Richie and friends. Oct. 5, 2010 5 day trip for more Photos Friday, October 8th, 2010 Hi friends. Today's goal for us was to find a bit more action on the yellowtail for the guys and more action is exactly what we found. We started off anchored for nada, we drifted a few times for a couple boxes, and then we anchored up once more to find that the fish were giving off a much more ferocious vibe than a couple hours prior. While drifting, by far the best method of hooking up was the yo-yo iron but once we got settled in on the anchor, the fly-lined baits started to produce quite well for us as well. You could choose either jig or bait and you had a yellowtail on the end of your line. The grade of fish wasn't all that bad either, we'll call it a 12-18 lb. average with a 20 lber. thrown in now and then. Bottom line, it was a fun morning of catching yellowtail in the Baja sun and when we had our fill on the school-size fish, it was time to make a move to finish up the day and get our fill on "cow" yellowtail. In short, we were unable to connect with any cows and come nightfall, we had to motor on up the line and begin the long trek back for home. So that's all. We're San Diego bound and our weather program shows that our weather is going to be less than favorable. We might have time to make a rockcod drift or two but we'll see if the weather cooperates and how good of speed we make. We'll see how it plays out and we'll chat with you tomorrow. Happy Friday and enjoy the start of your weekend. Take care. Richie and the Crew. Thursday, October 7th, 2010 Good evening everyone. After traveling from mid-morning yesterday until mid-morning today, we finally arrived at our next stop on this five day expedition - yellowtail land. After having phenomenal fishing here for most of the summer, we couldn't help but wonder if this familiar place would be as good as we left it several weeks prior or if this place would give us the slip. Honestly, it gave us a little of both and when all was said and done, we feel a tad bit disappointed with the outcome of today. We definitely had to work hard to get a bite and we had to work hard to land the fish. Yellowtail from 18-25 lbs with a nice mix of the "premiums" that we so desperately desire at today's location are currently chilling in our RSW well and although we're not all that stoked with the quantity, we're very pleased with the quality. We did see plenty of those homeguard yellowtail to keep us around for another day but for whatever reason, they're not in a biting mood so we will be making a move tonight looking for a little more action to give our anglers. Let's hope the grass is greener on the other side. As the anglers dined on their veal chops, we began the task of motoring to our next destination as we will be trying for an evening yellowtail bite and from there, it's onto spot number four of our trip for tomorrow's fishing. Our weather today was breezy and cold up until about lunch time when the sunshine took over, the breeze subsided, and the jackets finally came off. Beautiful weather and gorgeous sea conditions to finish out our day and we're hoping for a repeat not only for tomorrow but for the remainder of the trip up until we arrive in San Diego on Sunday morning. So that's a wrap-up of our day. As always, wish us luck and we'll speak with you tomorrow. The SUPREMES' and Richie Wednesday, October 6th, 2010 Hi friends. We spent last night drifting in the rain with the hopes of waking up to a biting school of bluefin/yellowfin laying under the keel. We repositioned ourselves in the dark and after finding the spot we liked, we shut her down and again, the waiting game began. Just before grey light, the troops awoke from their slumber and got to to the rail, ready for the games to begin. The bluefin took a little while to get with the program and after awhile, we got our first mark. We watched one fish on the meter turn into two, then three, and before you knew it, the school was under us and "the big hit" was beginning to brew. For the next few hours of the morning we stayed very busy, keeping multiple fish hooked up at all times and reaping the bounty that Mother Ocean provided for us. The bounty - bluefin tuna in the 12-22 lb. range and a token yellowfin tuna that looks to be in that 30 lb. range. It was the type of action where breakfast was put on hold so that we didn't miss an opportunity to capture a quality specimen because we knew that it was a morning bite or bust. Our anglers didn't mind one bit waiting for breakfast, the shot at hooking up with a bluefin tuna thwarted any hunger that they might have had for French toast. No offense, Chef Schooler. Anyhow, although we didn't have the mother load of "big hits", we did have one of the biggest hits of all the boats in the area and we take great satisfaction in our great success. But like they say, all good things must come to an end, and after our morning bite was reduced to nothing, we began the search for the next batch of victims. It didn't take us long to figure out that it truly was a morning time bite as we never located another school, so we made the decision to point her on a southerly course to those oh so familiar yellowtail grounds. Here we go again. So that was a "brief" report of our activities today. Highlight of our travels this afternoon was a yellowtail we caught of a kelp that looked to be about 35 lbs. What that toad was doing with all the juvenile fish, who knows. Weather today turned from a morning of a stiff southerly breeze and rain squalls to flat calm and sunshine in the afternoon. As of now, we're enjoying our weather very much and we hope that tomorrow we're able to put on some shorts, tank tops, and a sun visor as our long pants, jackets, and beanies that we've been wearing now smell of fish. Good problem to have. We also hope to throw a bunch of yellowtail into our RSW wells tomorrow. That's our plan for now. We'll check in tomorrow. Have a great night. Richie and the Family. Tuesday, October 5th, 2010 We're baaaaaaack. We departed early this morning on our final 5 day trip of the season with a nice load of bait, an eager group of anglers, and a well-rested crew. After evaluating our many options that we have for this trip, we decided on giving the local tuna zone a good, honest long range check. The local fleet had some very hearty scores on bluefin and yellowfin tuna in the prior days and we wanted in on some of the late season tuna bite as well. We swapped out the wahoo trolling gear for a more appropriate assortment of feathers, cedar plugs, and other various tuna jigs to drag behind the boat. We arrived in the zone at about 2:00 pm and for the next few hours all we had to show for our efforts was a big goose egg on the fish count board - not good. At around 6:00 pm, we stopped on a single fish mark that responded nicely for us and we managed to boat a handful of bluefin and yellowfin tuna. The bluefin were 15-22 lbs. and the yellowfin were the same grade with the exception of two that were in the 30 lb. bracket. With the exception of that stop, it was a slow day down here but we feel that this area is holding some potential for a big hit and we don't want to be elsewhere when it does happen. We'll be here drifting all night and giving it a try starting at first light tomorrow morning. We're happy with the sample of fish we had today but we're looking for the real deal tomorrow. Here we go. So there you have it. It feels good to be back on the water and we're anxiously awaiting the "big hit" that's hopefully coming our way. We're also anxiously awaiting our traditional departure meal of Prime Rib that Chef Schooler/Mark have prepared for us. Our weather was rather interesting today as we had a slight swell, a breeze that subsided throughout the day, and a couple rain squalls to boot. We also saw one of the most intense rainbows that many, including Tommy, has ever seen. We didn't find the pot of gold at the end, or a bowl of Lucky Charms, and it didn't rain Skittles but we did enjoy the spectacular view and it goes to show that you never know what you might see out here on a long range trip. Wow, I've spent way too much of this report talking about rainbows. Wish us luck and we'll chat with you tomorrow. Dreaming of rainbows and "the big hit", The crew + Richie