Islander 11/11 - 11/13 Yellow Fever

almost done

OK, one last shot of loading the Islander the first night. Capt. Shane was worried that all of our gear wouldn't fit on the boat and I will say I have never seen a boat with that much stuff on it. Will have to pack less stuff next time. Maybe 8 rods and reels and over 20 jigs was overkill. Funny thing was that there other guys with even more stuff.

The last of 'em.

I'm between HAPPY and PISSED....Happy you guys had the BLAST-of-a-LIFETIME and PISSED because I was not on-board.
DAM!!  sweet pics, stories of blood,goodtimes, food and beer!   WOW!            

Absolutely awesome! Good on ya'll for the landing the YT's. Those are beautiful fish and sure they're really tasty too. Love the pics and thanks for posting so many. Some day I'll have to do the real mammoth drive and get all the way down there.

Z

Some day I'll have to do the real mammoth drive and get all the way down there.

Zee, I call shotgun on your mammoth drive!!!

Way to go guys!!!  Looks like a great trip.

-Allen

I had a blast as well and caught my vindication YT on the last day.  I finally switched from sardines to jigs after about 5 hookups all on jigs, shortly afterwards I got hammered and the fight was on.  Once I was really starting to gain ground on the fish a sea lion started hanging out around me, so I just kept the line tight and stopped winching the fish up.  The sea lion gave up on me, but during this time the fish wrapped up on a lobster trap rope!  After much cursing I pulled up over the rope and looked down - there was the fish 15 feet below the surface.  I pulled up the trap-line until I reached my spectra - then HANDLINED the YT in the rest of the way and gaffed it.  Mission accomplished! 

Only a few of us got out to dive, but the diving was spectacular, the reefs were absolutely full of fish and lobsters.  IMO even better than Hawaii for sheer numbers of fish and critters.  On two tank dives I saw about 100 lobsters, but maybe only 1 legal one deep in a cave well out of reach.  I also saw an abalone, probably a green ab since it didn't have a black fringe - it was very big and all alone, not very promising for the future of abs down there without human help.  I got a couple scallops and an uni while I was down there too. 

EPIC report on what looks like a fantastic life experience. Made me laugh from the belly.
Glad everyone came home safe for more adventures.

Tote,  thanks for the tribute.

Quick question on the YT..

 The filets were frozen by the Islander and given to use mostly frozen.

I drove home with them packed in ice and that is how they are now,

 can I still freeze them or do I have to find a way to eat it all now?

and how long will this fish keep on ice?.. Thanks

Tote,  thanks for the tribute.

...and did you use the super-FAT "elMarko" on the Yak?!   it looks Big&Bold!  

Looks great y'all.
Wow, a beer delivery zodiac and chunky yellowtail! Now I have something to dream about this afternoon while I'm stuck in the office.
Thanks for the virtual trip!

Everyone should note that nearly all the YT were caught on yo-yo jigs.  Usually bait is better on a slow bite, and a bunch of us did sardines until the last day when the evidence really started to pile up that the jigs were the magic lure (didn't matter much what type), once we were all jigging instead of fly-lining and dropper-looping sardines the fish really started to pile up.  Next time I fish for YT the jigs will be my 'A game' not my 'B game'.

Tote,  thanks for the tribute.

...and did you use the super-FAT "elMarko" on the Yak?!   it looks Big&Bold!  

Not just one but THREE of those super fat El Markos..

Generally I do both.  When I hooked mine on iron I was dragging a bait as well...cover your bases.  Although it can sometimes lead to a bit of a tangle/hassle (which mine did) I was able to get it out quickly and land the fish.  Thanks P-spark for being ready to help in case I was gonna need some.  I do this all of the time in baja and it has been very productive an well worth the risk.

Quick question on the YT..

 The filets were frozen by the Islander and given to use mostly frozen.

I drove home with them packed in ice and that is how they are now,

 can I still freeze them or do I have to find a way to eat it all now?

and how long will this fish keep on ice?.. Thanks

Help!!!!,

 Does anyone have a answer to this????