The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly!

Another run to the deep produced nonstop action on big yellowtail rockfish. Singles and doubles kept the rods bent all morning. A great day on the water for two fathers and a special 16th birthday celebration for Alex!

Flat-calm seas and not a breath of wind made for perfect conditions on today’s Jurassic Park trip. We headed out to a new spot, and as soon as the lines hit the water, it was game on!
Big canaries, bright reds, and jumbo yellowtail rockfish came over the rail one after another, and a lot of doubles, in a steady bite. To top it off, we even found some Petrale sole mixed in with the action.
Great fishing, great weather, and an even better group of people. It doesn’t get much better than that!

What started out as a halibut trip turned into a wide-open Jurassic Park bite, with some of the biggest canary and blue rockfish we’ve seen in a very long time! The action was nonstop, with fish coming over the rails all day long. Limits, big smiles, and plenty of heavy sacks of fillets heading home. Great fishing, great weather, and a boat full of happy campers! 🎣🐟😎

We planned a nice, easy local rockcod trip for Grandpa, two dads, and grandkids. The plan was simple: stay close to home and put some fish in the boat. Unfortunately, after a solid hour of fishing, we hadn’t had a single bite. The south swell rolled back into town and really put a damper on the nearshore action.
Rather than wait it out, we made the run offshore to deeper water—and that’s when the fun started. The crew got into the fish in a big way, and they were quality fish too! By the end of the day, the cooler was loaded with canary rockfish, widows, yellowtail, browns, red rockcod, and two beautiful lingcod.
There will be plenty of fresh fish fillets heading home tonight, along with a few tired kids who are feeling a little older, a little tougher, and a lot happier after a full day on the water.
Great group of people and a pleasure to fish with. And a special thank-you to Will for the Willy Willy Hot Sauce. That stuff is outstanding!

Flat as a pancake out there today, with only a whisper of wind. We spent a couple of hours trolling around in search of salmon, but they just weren’t in a cooperative mood.
With Plan A not panning out, we made the switch to Jurassic Park deep-water fishing—and the action was nonstop! Doubles were common, and the fish averaged a solid 4 pounds. Lots of bent rods, lots of fish hitting the deck, and plenty of smiling faces all around.
Happy Birthday, Trevor! Thanks for spending your special day on the water with us.

Out to the salmon grounds today with high hopes. Started hooking fish as soon as we dropped in. Hooked into eight fish. At least one got taken from a sealion and five others got off the hook. Managed to bring home two nice kings.

Made a run for the deep today, but large waves and building wind had us stop halfway. We ended up fishing in some pretty nasty conditions, but the crew stuck with it and earned every one of them. Despite the rough ride, we still managed limits of rockcod. Tough crew today—and a fish box full to show for it!

Beautiful flat calm water today with more than 20 whales swimming near and far. Sadly not many salmon were caught today. Storm coming in tonight.

Went out on a local rockcod trip today in beautiful smooth water. The fish were a little slow to bite at first, but with some patience—after all, that’s what fishing’s all about—we got into some really nice reds, canaries, and olives. Danielle topped it off by putting her first lingcod ever on deck… and then went right back and caught another one! Pretty hard to beat that. Happy campers and a fun day on the water!

Out to the Jurassic Park grounds today with our dear friends Julie and Dave and their kids for their 15th year of fishing with us—hard to believe it’s been that long. As always, we had a blast spending the day on the water together. The fish were a little slow to get going, but with some patience we managed to put together a nice catch and pick away at some quality fish. The water was nice and comfortable, which made for a beautiful day offshore and another fun trip with great company. Always a pleasure fishing with you guys—already looking forward to year 16!

Weather was a bit off for our planned halibut trip today, so we decided to start on rockcod and then shift inshore for halibut if conditions improved. Unfortunately, the nearshore conditions never cleaned up, so we stayed offshore and got into some great black, canary, and red rockcod action instead. Lots of quality fish headed home for dinner tonight!

A little change of pace today as we headed out locally for rockcod. The swell made things a bit challenging, and the bite was slower than our usual action, but we still managed half limits of quality reds, blacks, blues, and a mixed bag of other tasty rockfish. Taco time on the MEGA-BITE!

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Another beautiful day on the salmon grounds today. The fish were still scattered, but we found some willing biters and put three nice salmon in the box. Happy campers all around.

Gorgeous day on the water for today’s salmon trip. We ran up the coast with our good friend Debbie, her family, and coworkers. After about an hour of trolling—*Fish On!*
Seventeen-year-old Jackie jumped in to help Grandma Debbie land her salmon—her first in 50 years! Not long after, we hooked up again, and Jackie took the rod once more, bringing in an even bigger fish.
Beautiful day, quality fish, and great company all around.

Out to the salmon grounds today in fair weather. We trolled for about an hour before four of the six anglers started feeling seasick, so we called it early and headed back to the harbor.

Nice day on the salmon grounds—plenty of sunshine, light winds, and a crowded fleet. The bite was slow for everyone. We had four hookups but managed to land one.

Beautiful day on the water for our salmon trip. The fish are still a bit scattered, but they’re definitely getting bigger—a good sign the main body is moving in. We stayed off the Moss Landing chaos and worked a quiet zone with my buddy Art. Paid off nicely—three quality salmon and a bonita in the box. Great group of brothers and sons, and a great day all around.

Great day on the salmon grounds. Fish are still scattered across Monterey Bay, with an early bite down near Moss Landing. We started elsewhere, then slid into the fleet after the radio chatter—but arrived a little late to the party. Still, we had three hookups, lost a couple at the boat, and landed our biggest fish of the season—a solid 17-pounder.

Back on the salmon hunt! It’s been a grind for the whole fleet trying to locate fish, and we were right there in the mix—until we made a move up the coast. That call paid off in a big way.
Rod goes off deep… long battle… and boom—17 lb bonito on deck! Stayed with it, picked up a couple more bites, and boxed a 15-pounder king salmon.
Seas were up more than usual, but it didn’t slow down the fish—or the crew from Boston… still rocking shorts out there. Great group, great attitude, and a great time on the water.

Back out for salmon at the Soquel Hole, but the place was overrun with pyrosomes (aka sea pickles). They were fouling the lines nonstop, making it tough to keep gear fishing. After a couple hours of frustration, we pulled the plug and headed for the deep reef—Jurassic Park. And WOW… the fish were there and they were big! Turned what was shaping up to be a tough day into a great comeback.

Back out to the salmon grounds for another shot at the Soquel Hole. The weatherman missed the mark—agitated seas and even a little rain made for a bumpy ride. The salmon didn’t seem to mind, though. We hooked five, released one short, lost a couple, and still put two nice kings on deck. BuMpY, but productive.

Found a small weather window ahead of the incoming storm and decided to take another shot at salmon. The ride out to the grounds was a bit rolly with some confused seas, but once we dropped the commercial floppers, the boat settled right down. We set the gear and worked the tip of the Soquel Hole, hooking four fish and putting two solid king salmon on deck. Timed it just right and made it back to the harbor before the wind came up.

Best water conditions we’ve seen so far this season out on the Soquel Hole today—flat seas and beautiful water. Plenty of boats working the area, but it was a tough bite overall. We managed to put one salmon on the deck, while most boats came up empty. Not wide open yet, but the conditions are lining up—shouldn’t be long before things turn on.

Absolutely beautiful day on the Jurassic Park grounds with flat calm seas and perfect conditions. We were able to fish an area that’s been off-limits for the past four years—and it definitely paid off. These fish were hungry!
Wide open action with quality reds, yellowtail, and canary rockfish hitting the deck, along with some nice lingcod up to 13 pounds. Non-stop action and smiling anglers all around. Doesn’t get much better than that out there!

Out to soquel hole again for salmon with about 100 other boats. Another day of slow catching. We did relatively great with four hookups and one nice one in the boat.

Ran back out to the salmon grounds and were treated to an incredible whale show on the ride—always a highlight out here. We set up our troll right where we left off after yesterday’s success with four salmon. Today proved to be a tougher bite for most of the fleet, including us, but the crew stayed on the grind and kept lines in the water. Looking forward to getting back on the fish tomorrow and turning it right back around.

Beautiful day on the salmon grounds with the coaching staff from a local high school. Plenty of boats around, but not much action—nets were pretty quiet. We managed to scratch out four king salmon and picked up some bonito for fresh poke on the ride home. Great group, lots of laughs, and a fun day on the water.

Water and wind conditions were perfect, but the salmon weren’t cooperating. We put in a solid effort and managed to land one salmon and one bonito for the day.

We had awesome weather today on our first salmon charter in over three years. While there were a lot of boats out fishing, it seemed that not many fish were being caught. We managed to hook into seven fish and got two in the boat.
The fish and the baitfish are currently scattered due to the storm over the weekend. However, we expect the fish will start schooling up again tomorrow, and the fishing should be good for a while.