Fishing Reports
Jan. 27, 2012
We had a very good day of quality Yellowfin
Tuna fishing today with a good shot of cows to go along with the
100-190 pound grade we have been catching. We have sent along a few
photos of part of the mornings big fish. Bill House and his 225 and
277, Scott Harper with a 270 and Sonny Jones and a 220 he caught
after taking a ride in the skiff. Mike Burkman not shown also had a
220. Very good weather, actually at times yesterday the weather was
to good as we struggled to keep the kites up and fly with the big
baits. Things are coming along very nicely, everyone is having a
wonderful fishing experience and we are praying that this great
trophy Yellowfin Tuna fishing holds for the remainder of our time
down here on the grounds. We will report back with more updates
tomorrow.
Crew of the Red Rooster III
Jan. 26, 2012
Another very good day of Yellowfin Tuna
fishing today along with a few Wahoo to keep everyone on their toes.
We have sent along a photo of Red Rooster III regular Bob Michener
and crew member Nick from today's action. The 15-18 knots of wind we
have had the past two days has backed off to a light 8-10 knots and
we are enjoying beautiful weather and excellent fishing conditions.
We have a lot of fishing time remaining and we are all hoping for
continued success as the trip progresses. It appears everyone is
having a great time as we work at making this a trip to remember. We
will report back later and keep you up to date on our progress as
things develop.
Crew of the Red Rooster III
Jan. 25, 2012
We are starting our third day of fishing
this morning, the fishing to this point has been very good on the
mid range 90-190 pound Yellowfin Tuna. Our Largest Yellowfin Tuna SO
FAR is 247 pounds caught by Scott Harper, he was baiting a large
mackerel at the time he hooked the fish. I would say their is a very
good chance at a trophy Yellowfin Tuna right now if conditions
continue to stay as they are, we have a very nice start to the trip
and will continue to keep you updated. Our weather has been a bit
breezy but very comfortable fishing conditions. WE will report as
the satallite service allows.
Crew of the Red Rooster III
Jan. 24, 2012
Good fishing today on mid range fish for us,
basically 70 to 130 pound fish made up the bulk of our catch today.
Bill Cambell had the largest Yellowfin of the day for us and it was
approximately 185 pounds. Great day, very nice start to the trip.
Our weather was perfect kite flying weather today, which was very
successful for us in the afternoon. WE will be around here in the
morning and are hoping for similar good luck with a few shots at the
bigger fish. WE have sent along a few photos today of Art Cabllero
with a nice Wahoo and Paul Lapore with one of his Mid range tuna.
Crew of the Red Rooster III
Jan. 23, 2012
Still rolling down in very nice traveling
weather at dark this afternoon, 5-10 knots NW wind and very little
seas. We moved our bait around to make room for fish tomorrow and it
appears we have a very nice load of sardines, everything is living
extremely well at this time. We will be arriving tomorrow morning to
our first destination hoping to get the trip started, we will report
back with updates daily provided we continue to have satellite phone
service on the fishing grounds.
We have included a few pictures of the final
tackle preparations around the boat before we arrive on the grounds.
Crew of the Red Rooster III
Jan 21, 2012
We are still headed south in 15-18 knots of
wind but very little sea state. It has been a nice ride down to this
point, the weather and water temperature are beginning to warm as we
travel south. We have spent two hours each day having seminars
preparing for the fishing Adventure a head, tomorrow will be the
final of four seminars and will include wahoo fishing along with the
final instructions on skiff fishing, deploying of the back up rods
and general safety around the deck while engaged in fishing. The
group and crew have been working diligently for the past two and a
half days preparing for what battles may lay a head, we are ALL
extremely excited to start the fishing part of the trip the day
after tomorrow.
Bluefin Jim and Sonny Jones our charter
masters from Longfin Tackle store and Pelagic Fish Gear had a
wonderful raffle this morning and EVERYONE was winner. The grand
prize winners were Art Coballero who won a Shimano Talica 20 reel,
Bill House who won a Shimano Tere rod and Mike Butler who won a
custom wrapped Calstar 770 XXH rod. We would truly like to thank the
Manufactures of these great products that made this special event
possible. A very special thanks to Mark Mills at Shimano Reels.
Additional thanks to Calstar rods, Lead Masters Wahoo Bombs, Salas
jigs, Z-Man flyers, Sato Crimps, Pelagic Wear, Accurate Reels, Lake
Irvine, Longfin tackle, Izorline, and Mustad Hook Products. We hope
to put all this wonderful gear to good use!
We will try to report daily.
John G. and the RR3 crew
Jan. 19, 2012
We are headed south on our Bluefin
Jim/Pelagic 15 day trip. We put a nice load of sardines on the boat
and managed to clear the point a little early. Headed down, we will
report daily as long as we have satellite reception. Wish us luck.
Hurricane Bank whips up
incredible yellowfin fishing for long trips
BY BRANDON HAYWARD
WON Staff Writer
SAN DIEGO — For the
first time this winter long range season it wasn’t Clarion’s Buffer Zone
that was the place to be, but rather it was the Hurricane Bank that
produced great action for the last round of trips.
The Red Rooster III
returned from its Loftus/Martin 14-day trip right as WON was
going to press Monday morning. WON caught up with skipper Andy
Cates Monday morning to get the scoop on how the trip played out and
what was getting bit.
“We started out at the island,
and the conditions were hideous,” said Cates of the water set-up in the
buffer zone. It made the decision to bust out to the Hurricane Bank an
easy one. But the fishing — which went on to be Richter — was far from
east right out of the gates.
“Roy (Rose on the Royal
Polaris) and I anchored up on corners of the bank. The water was
green and after 6 hours we both had two 40 pounders (tuna). I was just
about to take off, then we hooked one and then we had 10 going,” said
Cates. The next move would have been Puerto Vallarta, but instead they
sat on the bank for 4 days and filled the boat with 120 to 200-pound
yellowfin to go with good action on wahoo before heading into Clarion to
get two jackpot fish.
From 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. the
anglers on the Rooster went from having two small fish to having
45 yellowfin to 180 pounds on the deck. Cates said they went back into
Clarion to try and get shots at bigger fish for the jackpot, and the
moved worked out, with Tom Keller getting a 274.8 on the kite that went
on to get first in the jackpot. A 244.6 for Butch Oldenkamp on an
Accurate ATD 12 caught outside Clarion took second.
While on the surface filling
the boat might make it look like there was no hot gear or rig, Cates
said that the anchor fishing with live sardines was the type of stuff
that screamed small reel and short topshot.
“That 12-sized reel like the
Accurate ATD 12 or a 20-sized reel was what the guys that were really
doing good were using,” said Cates. “It was sardine fishing, so you had
to be able to cast.”
Still, the kite fishing was
really dynamic, with most of the bites coming on the fly out.
Dock reporter Bill Roecker
added that Gary Grimaud scored a 210-pound yellowfin (the third biggest
of the trip’s five cows) at the Hurricane to finish up the jackpots.
Roecker also added that the
long range fleet was on it’s way up behind the Red Rooster III,
and that each day this week will have another long range boat coming
home. Everyone that ran out to the bank loaded up like the Rooster
did.
SMALL REEL, BIG FISH —
An Accurate ATD 12 helped Butch Oldenkamp flyline up this 244.6-pound
yellowfin tuna on the Red Rooster III’s 14-day Loftus/Martin
trip.
Spectacular ‘Cane Fishing
Andy Cates brought Red Rooster III home to H&M
Landing after a 14-day trip with 18 anglers, the annual Loftus & Martin
expedition. “We had spectacular fishing at the Hurricane Bank,” remarked
Cates, “with plenty of opportunities at wahoo.”
The trip’s tusker was a 274.8-pound yellowfin taken
by Tom Kelleher of Corona del Mar. He told dock reporter Bill Roecker it
was his best-ever tuna, though he’d had a 243-pounder six years ago. He
said he baited a mackerel on a 9/0 Mustad 7691 hook, and used the boat’s
kite 130-pound pound kite outfit, with a Penn 80 reel and a Seeker Black
Steel 6463 XXXH rod. The big tuna fought for an hour.
Butch Oldenkamp of Bakersfield won second place for
a 244.6-pounder. It bit a sardine on a 12/0 Mustad circle hook tied to
130-pound Maxima fluorocarbon leader, 130-pound Line One spectra, an
Accurate ATD 30 reel and a Calstar 7455 XH rod.
Gary Grimaud of Ocean Beach won third place for a
210-pound tuna. He said it bit on a sardine and an 11/0 Mustad 7691
hook. He fished with 130-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon and 130-pound Power
Pro spectra on a Penn 80 W reel and a Super Seeker 6463 XXXHG rod “It
took a half-hour,” he remarked. “It’s my fifth cow.”
Peter Wright of Torrance got a 200.2-pound tuna in
just 20 minutes. He said it took a sardine on an 8/0 Eagle Claw hook,
130-popund Blackwater fluorocarbon, 130-pound Maxima mono topshot,
130-pound Izorline spectra, an Avet 50 reel and a Calstar 770 XXH rod.
Squeaking into the cow club with a 200-pound fish,
Tony Postolov used a sardine on an 8/0 Eagle Claw hook. He said he used
130-pound Izorline pink fluorocarbon and 130-pound Line One spectra on
an Accurate ATD 50 reel and a Phenix seven-foot rod.
CAPTAIN: ANDY CATES
DATE OF TRIP: MONDAY, JANUARY 2ND
–MONDAY, JANUARY 16TH, 2012
LENGTH OF TRIP: 14 DAYS
AREAS FISHED
TRIP/CHARTER MASTERS: 1W12-- LOFTUS/MARTIN
CHARTER
FISH COUNT: 260 YELLOWFIN TUNA 70
WAHOO
1st
PLACE JACKPOT 274.8 LBS YELLOWFIN TUNA CAUGHT BY TOM KELLEHER OF CORONA DEL
MAR, CA
2ND PLACE JACKPOT 245.0 LBS YELLOWFIN TUNA
CAUGHT BY BUTCH OLDENKAMP OF BAKERSFIELD, CA
3RD PLACE JACKPOT 210.4LBS YELLOWFIN TUNA
CAUGHT BY GARY GRIMAUD OF SAN DIEGO, CA
REMARKS: TROLLING JACKPOT 102.1LBS YELLOWFIN TUNA CAUGHT BY DON
ROLSTAD OF BONITA, CA
200.2 LBS CAUGHT BY
PETE WHYTE
200.0 LBS CAUGHT BY TONY POSTOLOV
Jan. 13, 2012
Good evening folks. So far it has been a great ride
home. Almost half way there and still great weather.
Tomorrow is a big day with Capt. Margarita starting
the festivities after lunch. Give the guys a chance to eat before the
Margarita's flow. College games and Margarita's. Sound fun? With nice
weather it will be.
Andy Cates
Good morning folks. We left the Island yesterday at
about noon. We have had a nice ride so far and expect to get in on Monday a
little early.
After leaving the epic fishing at the Bank, we had
saved room for a few fish at the Island in hopes of a couple of Jack Pot
fish. First day was more of the same with a little morning show on fish from
80 to 170 pounds. Just enough to make you feel like you were on to
something. That died out.
Yesterday before we left we made a good move and had
a chance at a couple of big fish and things worked out.
Butch Oldenkamp on an Accurate 12 landed this 256
and It looked like that might be first place untill Tom Kelleher landed a
286 on the kite. This took first and second and it looks like one of the low
200's from the Bank will be third.
All in all it worked out great . Now we are on our
way home and we have a great catch with happy and tired beat up anglers. The
boat leaves on another long trip on the 19th of January. John Grabowski will
be running the boat. With the fishing at the Bank and the chance of a cow at
the Island it is a great setup. Also some wahoo to be had, we did pick up 5o
wahoo at the bank that rounds things off nicely. If you are looking to come
out and get in on some of this we do have a spot or two on the next trip.
Call the office and let them know
Andy Cates
Jan. 10, 2012
Good evening folks. We have had no signal but wanted
to update on the fishing. We started out at the Island. We had a very slow
day with very little sign and poor conditions.
We made the move out to the Bank and it paid off
big. Our timing was great and we saw it get better and better each day,
Really a nice grade of fish with many fish in the high hundreds closing in
on the 200 pound mark. Most fish being 120 to 200 pounds. Each day we
watched the grade and caliber of fishing get better and better.
Classic Hurricane bank fishing. Very little wind
just enough for the kite. Oh and were those kites on fire . Some evenings it
was as fast as you could get it out there. All day biting with an incredible
show and action in the evenings.
With our fill of fish we are headed in to the Island
and give that another try in hopes of a few Jack Pot fish. We will be there
and have a day and a half to fish. Hopefully we get a few big ones.
Andy Cates
Jan. 10, 2012
The Red Rooster III has been at Hurricane Bank,…at this
time, the Satellite service has been very poor. That is why there has not
been any reports at this time. We will certainly keep you all posted. They
are all doing fine, and enjoying their fishing trip. Office of RRIII
Jan. 4, 2012
One more day of travel. Almost there with good
weather. The water is warming up and we are ready to go. Tomorrow we stay
busy with the wahoo gear and another raffle with three rods from Loftus and
Martin
We will report again tomorrow
Andy Cates
Jan 3, 2012
Good evening folks. Not much to report today. First
day of travel gave us a chance to do a little maintenance and get the boat
ready for a week of fishing. We had cool temperatures with fog and very
little sunshine.
Tomorrow we start the seminar's and the rigging.
Flat seas but chilly today.
We will report again tomorrow
Andy Cates
Jan 2, 2012
Good evening folks. We are out again after a great
holiday vacation. What great San Diego weather during the holiday's. We are
hoping for great weather on our 14 day voyage down to either the Hurricane
Bank or the water 's off of Clarion Island.
Loftus and Martin have sponsored the trip with
giveaways today and raffle's for the next three days. First day out and the
bait looks great. We will see tomorrow but so far good.
We will report again tomorrow on our progress and
weather
Andy Cates
