“Hello everyone,” said the Royal Polaris report on August 31, “the weather continues to be wonderful. Flat seas, clear skies, and warm days. Fishing was on fire today. We had an excellent day of Yellowtail fishing. Most of the fish were in the 14 to 20 pound range, with a few going over the 30 mark. We started out at Cedros Island.

“The fish at Cedros didn't cooperate for numbers,” the report continued, “but the quality was there. So around lunch, skipper Billy Santiago Jr. made the move over to San Benitos Island, and what a great move it was. The Yellowtail charged the boat, like fireworks on the 4th of July. We had limit-style fishing today, and what a day it was. We are now headed up the coast and will fish offshore, looking for a few paddies to stop on for some Dorado.”

At Fisherman’s Landing September 2, Santiago weighed the winners. Robert Garrido of Petaluma won first place for a 99.4-pound tuna. He said he got it with a sardine on a 2/0 ringed Gorilla hook, 40-pound Izorline, and Avet 6-3 reel and a Calstar 765 L rod.

Just Missed Century--The first-place tuna aboard Royal Polaris was only 6/10 of a pound short of 100 pounds.

Steve Koke of Manhattan Beach won second place for an 86.6-pounder (his best tuna ever), and Chai Lee of LA was third, for an 80-pound yellowfin tuna. Posing with the winners was regular long ranger Roger Hegyi of Laguna Niguel, who bagged the trip’s only wahoo, a 42-pounder, at Guadalupe with a purple Marauder on the troll.

Accurate Gets ‘Em

“We lost a very small percentage of fish on this trip, due to the gear that Jack Nilsen (Accurate reels designer) brought on the boat,” said Qualifier 105 skipper Brian Sims at Point Loma Sportfishing September 2. He had just docked after a five-day trip to points south.

“Today got off to a good start,” wrote Sims on August 31, “with 30 to 40-pound Yellowtail biting in the dark. We then caught a few nice tuna before everything went dead. After a short move, we began picking at 30 to 45-pound Yellowtail with a few 50 to 70-pound tuna in the mix. Today's Accurate Boss 665 reel loaded with 60-pound Jerry Brown Line One hollow spectra was won by Tony Sanders, for a 70-pound Yellowfin tuna.”

Qualifer 105 jackpot winners scored with these fat yellowfin tuna.

Tim Fisher won first place for the Accurate trip at Pt. Loma Sportfishing when Sims weighed the catch. His yellowfin went 70.4 pounds on the certified scales.

Tony Sanders was second for a 68.8-pounder, and Larry Mackey took third place for a 65.6-pound tuna.

Son & Dad: 10-year-oldTaylor Kemp was on his first trip, but he got 'em better than most.

Fishing with his dad Chris Kemp of San Clemente, 10-year-old Taylor Kemp got the larger of the two fish they posed with, but generously let his dad have the 50-pound tuna and stood up with dad’s 37-pound yellowtail.

Taylor likes playing soccer at Truman Benedict Elementary School, and this was his first fishing trip. Taylor drew compliments from the adults on board, for his attitude and his persistence.

A Toady Boy: Qualifier's best yellowtail was this 48-pound ripper.

Larry Kelley of Gardena posed with the trip’s best yellowtail, a 48-pounder.

Mark Case of Huntington Beach found this dandy 39-pound yellowtail.

Another good yellow was caught by Mark Case of Huntington Beach; a 39-pound homeguard.