Salami Nippers
“The morning salami bite started within a few minutes of the same time as yesterday with similar chaotic results. Multiple hookups out of nowhere, and when the smoke had cleared there were some great tuna on board. Gary Lacroix, who seems to always catch big fish on this trip got a 238-pounder on his Salami to take the lead in big fish on board honors. For his efforts he also won an Accurate Boss 600 reel. Kathy Rounds, our other lady angler had a very hot stick today. She got two out of the morning flurry and another later in the day. Her big fish today was around 140 but she had one around 180 yesterday I believe. The "Creve Couer" (Broken heart) of the day goes to Francois. Although that half of the French connection scored today with a 170 and a 140 he lost two other huge tuna today. One was definitely somewhere over 200 and the other they are guessing was 275 of more. It's hard to feel too sorry for him as many great fish as he's got on board, but we hate to see any one lose a big one, especially that big. We ended up with 29 tuna and 14 wahoo, not too shabby for a hard fishing scratch day.”
Fingered By Fate
“Another day at Roca Partida that is notoriously fickle,” noted royal Star skipper Tim Ekstrom February 17, “when it comes to producing good hauls of big fish. So be it.“At the very least the lack of success at Partida made the next move obvious as we set forth for Isla Clarion ready to tangle with some trophy class yellowfin if they are ready for us. At present we could not be better prepared or better positioned for triumph. This group of anglers is eager to get back in the game with our final four days dedicated to trophy tuna if everything unfolds according to plan. No surprises though. We already saw how that worked out.
“Photo today features one of our bona fide heroes in every respect. No kidding. Dr. Dave Hall has earned a level of respect through his dedication to the Revilla tagging project, his dedication to long range fishing, and his incredible achievements uncommon to say the least. I could ramble on for a long time about my admiration for Dr. Dave that goes far beyond fishing. As an amenable individual, as a positive influence on every voyage he is a part of, as someone who adds good to any and all occasions I can not say enough. I'd be willing to bet just about anything that one would be hard pressed to find anyone to disagree. Dave is pictured today test driving one of the new prototype Calstar 765 XXXH rods against a spirited opponent that actually had a heck of the time putting a bend in the rod. Awesome. Pure power. But, it takes some real brawn, or brain, to fish this rig to it's full potential. Dr. Dave was the right man for the job.”
An Appreciation
“Bill:
I don't know if anyone ever says thank you for all the work you put into these reports day-in-and-day-out. But, you do a really crackerjack job and it's fun to read.
Mil gracias!”
Jonathan Roldan, Tailhunter International (by email February 17, 2011)
Bill's Reply
Thanks, Jonathan! A kind word like yours really helps to make my day.
We look forward to seeing you at the Fred Hall Show in Long Beach next month.
Tight Lines,
Bill
Jonathan's Reply To Bill
“I know the feeling, Bill. You write and write and press "send" and off it goes into cyberspace and hopefully someone is reading it. Every now and then, someone writes back and gives you a thumbs up! You've been kicking out reports and photos for years and do such a great job. We've been on the road for seven weeks now doing all the fishing/hunting shows, making our way down the Oregon coast now from Portland to the Phoenix show, then Boise, then Fred Hall next month. We'll see ya there! God bless!”
Jonathan Roldan
