Fathers' Day Fishing - June 19th Halibut Trip

We made way towards the Island of Montague and dropped the anchor in a spot I have yet to fish this year.  Once again the current was extremely strong making it hard to keep the 3lb weight to the bottom.  The jigs were definitely the choice of the halibut this morning, landing the two biggest fish on the boat.  The bite was constant but we weren't getting much size to our halibut, averaging 15lbs - 20lbs.  At about 12:30 we pulled anchor to a spot that I have done well in the past but received only one bite and landed one fish.  They say never to leave fish to find fish, I agree but the gamble can sometimes be worth it.  August 21, 2009  I left an area that I was catching fish in to run 8 miles in the complete opposite direction from home.  It was late in the day and I was only 6 fish shy of a limit.  Within an hour of dropping the anchor we caught a 305lbs and a 168lbs halibut.  You can see why this is a difficult call at times. 

At 3pm we pulled anchor and ran 20 min to a spot that was sure to hold some fish.  Within an hour we landed 47 halibut.  It was chaos on the deck but everyone was having a great time.  The deckhands really worked for their money running around the boat enough times to equal the distance of a marathon.  All in all a great day with great weather.  The rain never showed and the sea state was flat calm with no wind.  Can't complain ... this has been a great spring. 

Bobby Mitchell & Son Luke
Happy Fathers' Day

Our next trip is this Thursday, See you there...FISH ON!!!

Limit the Boat in Less than 90 Minutes! - June 10th Halibut Trip

Keoni Tamayo - Deck Hand Extraordinaire

Today was by far the best day we've had on the ocean. The water was glass like with no ground swell.  A perfect day for even those who are allergic to the motion of the ocean.  With a full boat we headed out, once again, to the Island of Montague.  We dropped anchor at 9:45am and sat at our first spot hoping for some larger halibut.  The tide, however, was not in our favor with very little water moving.  The halibut bite did not turn on for us but were able to pull up about 9 Yellow eye rockfish at our first spot.  After an hour we pulled anchor and made way towards our new destination at a bit shallower area with more current.  Although a slow pick, we were able to pull a few nice fish off this spot; the largest weighing in around 90lbs.  After a two hour soak, we decided it was time to fill the boat at a spot with a larger density of fish.  After an 11 mile cruise we dropped down around 180ft and limited the boat in less than an hour and a half.   We had a great group of people who were enthusiastic about fishing and made my day.  Our next trip will be this Sunday as we still have a few seats, though they are filling up quick so make your reservation soon. Fish On!

#145lb Halibut - June 9th Halibut Trip

The fishing is definitely picking-up in Seward.  Everyday the bite seems to be getting better and better.  The weather has been great with blue skies and little wind making for a very enjoyable day on the gulf.  We decided to make the run to the Island of Montague; a long run but worthy ride.  While doing the fishing speech we immediately hooked a halibut setting the tone for the rest of the day.  There seemed to be a fish on every two minutes.  It was a mixed bag of different sizes varying from 15lbs to 145lbs.   Overall it was a great day and everyone went home with quite a bit of fish.  We also had the leading daily derby winner weighing in at 145lbs; big enough to win that lucky fisherman a free fishing charter.  Looking forward to another day on the water with variable 10kt of wind and 4' seas...should be nice, we left them biting...FISH ON!!!