Friday/Saturday

[Fortunate One]

It looks like there will be a fishable window from Friday into Saturday. Atlantis is the target with an alternate target of Veatch.

I'm running my 50' express out of Warwick, RI. It's been tough getting commitments. Although there is a member of this site presently working on it.

I do have a person for the pit and one coming along for the ride. Since the window of opportunity is small it is weather dependent and could be called off at the last moment if its still kicking too much on Friday morning.

if anyone is interested and has experience, we may be able to accommodate.

Shoot me a PM and we can talk. It's first come first serve.

Mike

[Parapapam]

PM sent... not sure if you can fit my constraints into your plans. If not, I certainly
understand.

Mike

[scbaseth]

Pm sent!

[Fortunate One]

Guys,

I appreciate the responses. Seems like I could fill the boat for multiple trips with the PM's I'm getting.

I won't know until tomorrow morning if there are any openings left. I'm waiting for some regulars that I invited early to see if they have coverage at work or not.

There's still openings available if they do come.

I'll post when we're full.

But if anyone hasn't sent me a PM yet, I do have enough interested and available people that I'm trying to work with.

For those that I've been corresponding with via PM, all I can say is as soon as I know how many if any I can bring I'm going to go down the list.

[Fortunate One]

Guy's we're full.

I'll keep those of you informed when we're headed out again.

Mike

[storm petrel]

Howdja do?!?

[Fortunate One]

Well Steve,

The long and short of it is, Once again we were the only boat down there, We caught 2 nice yellows. We should have had at least one more. But the reality of it is if the seas were calmer we would have had 4 more larger fish on top of that. We were trolling in some nasty stuff when we came upon birds feeding and when that school came up and crushed our spread. Only 2 stayed glued. One was lost at the boat and 3 more hit th espied but came unbuttoned. Thats fishing.

We crushed the mahi population again.

I thing the story should be that the boat kicks ass once again. She has proven her mettle and if I get time I'll post some video to show you what I'm talking about.

I'll post more about the trip tomorrow if I'm not down cleaning her. Bottom line is we didn't get the epic catch we were after, but the fact of the matter is we had a good time and we did catch fish.

I think the high light was when the big blue marlin hit a lure and screamed off line only to having the line part. Nobodies fault, but it once again this boat has raised marlin 3 out of three trips.

I'm just way too tired to post the whole trip at the moment.

Morning update: The break going from 67 to 71 had life north of Veatch. There were whales and dolfin but we couldn't see any fish breaking and there was a lack of birds. If i were doing a 2 day in the canyon trip I would have pulled up and hit that area. It was about 15 miles from the northern tip. Further in about 7 more miles, there was a much more dramatic break going up to 75.1. A little further in at the canyon 80 degrees of relatively lifeless water. But we were there so we worked the canyon. Like I said we crushed the mahi which were off the pots a bit.

The way the wind and current were running we set up to drift right up the eastern canyon wall onto the flats at the tip where we did catch one yellow about 60lbs. The place at night became alive. At first there wasn't much going on and then 2 hours into the drift a 20 lb mahi took a squid bait and found himself on board. It hit like a tuna. There were a few other mahi in the slick at night. Then some squid came which we caught and drifted, flipper showed up with his buddies for a long time. There were what I thought were blue runners right behind the boat. They mush have schooled up on the port side because I saw 4 dolfin come screaming in down the face of a wave and circle right on the port side and all these 8" bait fish jumped out of the water into the mouths of the dolfin. That was a sight you don't see every trip.

It was sporty at night and we had 2 thunder storms blow through. Reminiscent of the last trip when the guys were fighting a dusky as the storm raged. This time we got a blue shark. Figures it had to happen shortly after I hit the rack.

On the morning troll we tried to do something in this area but there was nothing happening so I went north to the colder break. We worked that area and picked up a few more mahi and then I headed back into the warm break where the blue marlin came in all lit up and hot for a ballyhoo. This one came tight and was screaming off line, but unfortunately the blue diamond line parted. Disappointed again. This boat raises marlin but we've yet to get one to the boat. I'm sure it's going to happen. It's just a matter of time.

We got bit off by wahoo a couple of times in the warm 80 degree water. But the thought of running a lot of lures on wire, doesn't appeal to me because I'd rather play my odds with the tuna and marlin. I'm sure we'll get lucky and get some wahoo on board that doesn't cut the line.

Since we were north of vetch and between vetch and Atlantis, I decided to make the 15 mile run to Atlantis. Once we got there it was screaming. The ride down there put us right in the teeth of a nasty storm. But I didn't stop, the boat would just keep going. We finally got to the tip of Atlantis and water was piling up along the western side. Bill Brown said the bait is going to be pushed up on this side and he was right. We troll into the flat and there they were, birds looking and looking low. Shortly after finding the birds we see a flock on the water working like crazy. It's the classic event you want to see. I steered the boat right through the middle of it and "fish on". One on, Two On, Three On and a forth got hit. I could tell theses were nice fish.
Now were doing this in 6' building seas, with the wind howling through the riggers. Once fish came unbuttoned, probably due to the fact that it was hard conditions to keep the lines tight. the fish have the advantage when they're in a wave that's racing towards the transom. But 2 stayed tight, I worked the throttles and shot some video as we got the first one on board. The second one came to the transom and then it was brought to the port side. I was listening to Bill tell me where he wanted the boat to go since he was ready to bring the fish to gaff, but it got a little confusing when 8 guys are standing in the pit and I couldn't see the corner. Someone yelled turn to starboard, I thought I should have turned to port but I listened to the voice coming from the pit and the fish went under the boat and broke off.

Needless to say Bill was a little upset with the guys in the pit. But hey, I understand, they wanted pictures and it is exciting to be in the action. Lesson learned, all trips will have instructions to the guys about pit discipline. I don't like to lose fish, but it happens and although it would have been nice to put another fat yellow on before we headed back in a large following sea, what can you do that's fishing Learn from the experience. I felt for the angler.

It was pretty uneventful on the way home. Uneventful as it can be in a 6' following sea wit the tops blowing off of them. The boat tracked well even Capt.Bill Brown made comment, right before he fell asleep in the companion seat. We took 4 waves bad coming down off of a steep one only to crush into the next taller wave really slowing the momentum. We hooked a couple of times also and that was corrected by backing off the throttles.

The boat wants to run, and there's some times I want to push her harder than she needs to be pushed. But I'm still getting use to her. I think people take for granted that she does 26 knots in tough seas. We take spray but the windscreen and wiper does the job and we just keep going.

Just as we hit the inbound lane, I get a vibration. I immediately shut her down and check the engine room. Everything looked fine. Shafts were spinning ok, everything was in its place so I knew I probably wrapped a line.

Pat Brown had an idea of taping his camera to a gaff and over it went to video what was under the boat. It turned out to be a polly propylene line wrapped on the starboard prop.Time for someone to swim. Pat and his buddy Dan, went in with knifes in hand and determination to get the line off. Unfortunately we were still in 4' seas so they couldn't do much.

since it was not a lot of line and it was located before the prop and not on the struts, I put her in gear and decided to see if I could find a spot where the vibration wouldn't be that bad. I found the sweet spot and we were off and running again.

When I decided to build a custom boat I did it with the intent of building a tournament fishing machine. I wanted something that could go out and fish in seas that a lot of boats won't go in. The boat has proven that she can get there and raise fish in conditions that leave others laying on their couches.

When I was standing up in the tower pulling the riggers up, the wind sounded like a machine. I was thinking what business do we have going to the canyons in questionable forecasts.

As I secured the last rigger and headed back down, with two feet on one ladder rung, arm wrapped around the tower leg and a death grip on an upper rung, I just thought to myself, this is why I built her.

Needless to say, there were no other boats in either canyons. I didn't see another boat until I was within 20 miles of Point Judith.

Today, I'm tired, a bit sore from driving my off road vehicle the "Stradivarius" through seas that literally kept others tied to the dock. I sit here and write this as my good friend Captain Bill Brown is running the Billfish this morning taking people out on a shark charter. That man is a machine.

[backman]

Nice run Mike - fish in the box, safe back at the dock in Oct, picking a tight window is a victory!

[Parapapam]

Gutsy call on that run. But as I said, your boat is in a different class than I am used to. The little guys
"pay" with a much smaller margin of error.

Getting it done and getting home!! Nice!!

Mike

[CaptainCJ35]

Despite being inexplicably sea sick the first day, my first trip to the Canyons was amazing. "Strad" is one amazing boat! Thanks again, Mike.

I have a ton of video footage which I'll edit when I have a chance and I'll post it up.

SeaSickCJ35