Took dad out to the Coronado Islands for some Yellowtail fishing. We pulled into the Mission Bay bait barge around 7:30am for a scoop and headed out into the chop. The ride out was a little bumpy and visibility was about 5 miles but we managed in part due to my dads excellent sense of direction and me finally figuring out how to zoom out far enough on my Lowrance GPS.
We started at South Island and spotted a small school of something on the fish-finder so we dropped hooks and dad landed a nice sand bass within 5 minutes. As it turned out, that was the only catch of the day despite trolling, chumming and searching with the fish finder.
Weather was cloudy and cold, and the sun never showed its face. Water was calm enough close to the island but roughed up quickly as you moved away. Also, there was a line of barges and commercial fishing vessels off the southern tip of the island. Not sure what they were up to but they sure scared the fish away...or caught them all. Almost looked like a blockade of some kind.
Had a great time and boat handled really well. We left at 2:30pm and made excellent time back to Mission Bay in just one hour. We saw hundreds of Dolphins about 10 miles South of Point Loma headed North in a long line. Looked like they were migrating or something. I have never seen so many Dolphins all at once. They were all around the boat and as far as the eye could see.
All in all a really fun trip. Just could have used a few more bites.
After another fun weekend and live music at the Tiki Bar it was time to get some work done. Took Lido Deck offshore to run in the new motor a bit and see how she handled the Pacific 'chop and roll'.
She took the choppy swells like a real lady, strutting her stuff and pulling 30mph (gps) off 3400 rpms. With plenty of room to spare on the throttle.
Took a few minutes and some experimenting to get the right outdrive trim for maximum speed/control and a few pokes at the trim tabs keep her level but when she was dialed in she zipped through the washing machine like the veteran she is.
We got back to Mission Bay and took a cruise round Fiesta Island just for kicks. The jetskiers love it when a big boat (wake) makes a pass.
I had Adam along with me to help out since getting back into the slip can be a challenge. Tight lane between docks and the breeze/tide shoves you around enough to make hitting the mark a contest of skill.
We stopped at the Dana Landing fuel dock to top off the tank so we can head out to the Coronado Islands on Wednesday knowing we have plenty of fuel for the trip. Dad and I are gong to try for some Yellowtail. Need to make some room in the freezer!
