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Fishing Report
ARCHIVE - 2009

Ron Mancuso of San Jose showing off his 34 pounder to the Queen he caught on April 15, 2003
IN THIS REPORT:

Past Scores
Past Whoppers
Past Daily Summary
2008 Archive
2007 Archive
2006 Archive
2005 Archive
2004 Archive
2003 Archive

PAST SCORES:
Sun., Nov. 15 - 36 anglers, nice day to end the season on...details below
Sat., Nov. 14 - 25 anglers, 210 rockcod (could have been more), lings?, cabs?
Fri., Nov. 13 - 29 anglers, went out, made it 5 miles down coast, turned back
Thu., Nov. 12 - Cancelled at 5am...just too much wind; try again tomorrow
Wed., Nov. 11 - 19 anglers, some with more, some with less, couple of lings
Tue., Nov. 10 - Going out tomorrow...
Mon., Nov. 9 - Cancelled but swells have calmed down
Sun., Nov. 8 - Trip cancelled - swells forecast at 14 to 17 feet!
Sat., Nov. 7 - Trip cancelled - swells forecast at 15 to 17 feet!
Fri., Nov. 6 - Trip cancelled
Thu., Nov. 5 - 18 anglers, 176 rockcod + 4 cabezon, 1 lingcod
Wed., Nov. 4 - Coming back from meetings; fishing tomorrow
Tue., Nov. 3 - Off to attend PFMC meetings
Mon., Nov. 2 - Off to attend PFMC meetings
Sun., Nov. 1 - Off to attend PFMC meetings
Sat., Oct. 31 - 30 anglers, 290 rockcod, 6 lingcod
Fri., Oct. 30 - 15 anglers, 147 rockcod + 3 cabs to 7 lbs., 2 lings to 10 lbs.
Thu., Oct. 29 - 15 anglers, the haves and the have nots
Wed., Oct. 28 - Day off, but we're going tomorrow on Thursday
Tue., Oct. 27 - Day off...again
Mon., Oct. 26 - Day off
Sun., Oct. 25 - Day off
Sat., Oct. 24 - 22 anglers, 137 rockcod, a few lings?
Fri., Oct. 23 - Cancelled again, but we're going tomorrow on Saturday
Thu., Oct. 22 - Cancelled due to high swell and wind
Wed., Oct. 21 - 8 anglers, 79 rockcod + 1 cabezon to 4 lbs., 1 ling to 6 lbs.
Tue., Oct. 20 - 13 anglers, 119 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 7 lbs.
Mon., Oct. 19 - Day off, but going tomorrow
Sun., Oct. 18 - 15 anglers, 123 rockcod, cabs?, lings?
Sat., Oct. 17 - 24 anglers, 197 rockcod, 1 cab to 4 lbs., 3 lings to 10 lbs.
Fri., Oct. 16 - 26 anglers, 208 rockcod, couple of lings
Thu., Oct. 15 - Off today but tomorrow looks fine
Wed., Oct. 14 - Day off...leftover rain
Tue., Oct. 15 - Day off...rain storm
Mon., Oct. 12 - Day off
Sun., Oct. 11 - 35 anglers, 243 rockcod, 22 cabezon, 4 lingcod to 16 lbs.
Sat., Oct. 10 - 18 anglers, 176 rockcod + 4 cabs to 6 lbs., 4 lings to 16 lbs.
Fri., Oct. 9 - 30 Friends of Rollo, 242 rockfish
Thu., Oct. 8 - 12 anglers, 120 rockcod
Wed., Oct. 7 - 18 anglers, 180 rockcod, 5 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Tue., Oct. 6 - 12 anglers, 120 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Mon., Oct. 5 - Day off...but we're fishing tomorrow
Sun., Oct. 4 - Day off...winds still forecast for 20 to 30 knots
Sat., Oct. 3 - Cancelled...ocean kicking up it's heels
Fri., Oct. 2 - 16 anglers, 146 rockcod, 3 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Thu., Oct. 1 - 8 anglers, 80 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 7 lbs.
Wed., Sept. 30 - Waiting until tomorrow for wind to calm down
Tue., Sept. 29 - 14 anglers, went out past the buoys, turned back
Mon., Sept. 28 - 15 anglers, 150 rockcod w/1 cab to 6 lbs., 3 lings to 14 lbs.
Sun., Sept. 27 - 37 anglers, around 8 per rod, a ling or two
Sat., Sept. 26 - 25 anglers, 210 rockcod to 8 lbs., 1 lingcod to 7 lbs.
Fri., Sept. 25 - 17 anglers, 170 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Thu., Sept. 24 - 13 anglers, 130 rockcod, 3 lingcod to 9 lbs.
Wed., Sept. 23 - 7 anglers, 70 rockcod, 1 cabezon, 1 lingcod
Tue., Sept. 22 - 25 anglers, 215 rockcod, 3 cabs to 6#, 5 lings to 10 lbs.
Mon., Sept. 21 - Gave the crew a break; day off
Sun., Sept. 20 - Private charter of 22, about half limits, 1 lingcod
Sat., Sept. 19 - Private charter of 18, 126 rockcod, 1 ling to 9#, 1 cab to 6#
Fri., Sept. 18 - 19 anglers, 138 rockcod, 1 cab, 1 ling to 10 lbs.
Thu., Sept. 17 - 19 anglers, 152 rockcod, 2 cabs to 5 lbs., 1 ling to 7 lbs.
Wed., Sept. 16 - 12 anglers, 119 rockcod + 1 cabezon, 4 lings to 16 lbs.
Tue., Sept. 15 - 27 anglers, 199 rockcod, 1 lingcod
Mon., Sept. 14 - Day off for maintenance work
Sun., Sept. 13 - 34 anglers, still slow but better day
Sat., Sept. 12 - 36 anglers, one of our worst trips of the season
Fri., Sept. 11 - 19 anglers, 190 rockcod, 9 lingcod
Thu., Sept. 10 - 8 anglers, 80 rockcod, 2 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Wed., Sept. 9 - 14 anglers, 140 rockcod...big brownies, coppers and blacks
Tue., Sept. 8 - Trip cancelled based on conditions and forecast
Mon., Sept. 7 - 32 anglers, wind up, fishing down
Sun., Sept. 6 - 36 anglers, 360 rockcod...nice blacks and reds...again
Sat., Sept. 5 - 36 anglers, 360 rockcod...nice blacks and reds
Fri., Sept. 4 - 28 anglers, 224 rockcod, 3 lings to 10 lbs., 10 cabs to 8 lbs.
Thu., Sept. 3 - 8 anglers, limits of rockfish, 3 lingcod
Wed., Sept. 2 - 20 anglers, 163 rockcod, 6 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Tue., Sept. 1 - 20 anglers, 172 rockcod, 4 cabezon to 6 lbs.
Mon., Aug. 31 - 8 anglers, limits of rockfish, 3 lingcod to 18 lbs.
Sun., Aug. 30 - 12 anglers, 92 rockfish
Sat., Aug. 29 - 22 anglers, around 5 or 6 fish average, BIG swell
Fri., Aug. 28 - Cancelled due to ocean forecast
Thu., Aug. 27 - 10 anglers, 100 rockfish, nice browns, reds and coppers
Wed., Aug. 26 - 18 anglers, 144 rockfish, 6 cabs to 5 lbs., 1 - 8 lb. lingcod
Tue., Aug. 25 - 17 onboard, 13 fishing, 120 rockcod, 2 lingcod to 10 lbs.
Mon., Aug. 24 - Day off...whew!
Sun., Aug. 23 - 32 anglers, 204 rockcod, 4 cabs to 4#, 3 lings to 15#, 16# halibut
Sat., Aug. 24 - 32 anglers, 246 rockcod, 7 cabs to 6 lbs., 6 lings to 16 lbs.
Fri., Aug. 21 - 17 anglers, 170 rockcod including 1 cabezon to 4 lbs.
Thu., Aug. 20 - 33 anglers, 330 rockcod w/6 cabs to 6#, 5 lings to 15#, 7# halibut
Wed., Aug. 19 - 31 anglers, 206 rockcod, 7 cabs to 10#, 3 lings to 9#, 22# halibut
Tue., Aug. 18 - Another research tagging trip and the fish were chomping...
Mon., Aug. 17 - All tagging, no keeping research trip
Sun., Aug. 16 - 35 anglers, just shy of 300 rockfish, 2 cabs to 4#, 2 lings to 9#
Sat., Aug. 15 - 31 anglers, 253 rockcod, 2 cabs to 4lbs., 2 lingcod to 10 lbs.
Fri., Aug. 14 - Still just too rough; caught some, came back early
Thu., Aug. 13 - Ocean kicked up; threw in the towel before noon
Wed., Aug. 12 - 30 anglers, 290 rockcod, 3 cabezon to 6 lbs., 4 lingcod to 12 lbs.
Tue., Aug. 11 - 24 anglers, 240 rockcod with 3 cabs to 6#, 15# lingcod, 10# halibut
Mon., Aug. 10 - 17 anglers, 103 rockcod, 3 cabezon, 1 lingcod
Sun., Aug. 9 - 33 anglers, big swell, slow fishing, about 6 per rod plus 2 cabezon
Sat., Aug. 8 - 15 anglers, 150 rockcod with 2 cabs, 1 lingcod
Fri., Aug. 7 - 27 anglers, 270 rockcod with 6 cabs, 3 lingcod
Thu., Aug. 6 - 15 anglers, 150 rockcod with 15 cabezon, 9 lingcod
Wed., Aug. 5 - 35 anglers, 288 rockcod, 17 cabezon, 7 lingcod
Tue., Aug. 4 - 25 PAL anglers, don't have exacts, but they had a 20 lb. lingcod
Mon., Aug. 3 - 34 PAL anglers, flat calm like yesterday, just a slow pick
Sun., Aug. 2 - 36 anglers, 33 limits, 8 cabezon, 4 lingcod
Sat., Aug. 1 - 35 anglers, 268 rockcod, a few lings and cabs
Fri., July 31 - 22 Rollo kids, heard they caught lots of fish...
Thu., July 30 - 17 PAL kids, 139 rockcod, 6 cabs to 7 lbs., 2 lings to 13 lbs.
Wed., July 29 - 34 anglers, 340 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Tue., July 28 - 23 anglers, 181 rockcod, 4 cabs to 7 lbs., 6 lings to 9 lbs.
Mon., July 27 - 23 anglers, 167 rockcod, 8 cabs to 8 lbs., 1 ling to 12 lbs.
Sun., July 26 - 36 anglers, don't have the exact numbers, but it wasn't good
Sat., July 25 - 25 anglers, will fill in later...
Fri., July 24 - 23 anglers, 178 rockcod, 1 cab to 4 lbs., 2 lings to 6 lbs.
Thu., July 23 - 34 anglers, 238 rockcod, 4 cabs to 7 lbs., 2 lings to 14 lbs.
Wed., July 22 - 35 anglers, gotta get the score...
Tue., July 21 - 11 PAL kids, half limits, 2 cabs to 5 lbs., 4 lings to 8 lbs.
Mon., July 20 - 9 PAL kids, 90 rockcod w/7 cabs to 5 lbs., 2 lings to 6 lbs.
Sun., July 19 - 34 anglers,
Sat., July 18 - 35 anglers,
Fri., July 17 - 38 anglers, score on its way..., know we caught 1 halibut...
Thu., July 16 - 36 anglers, 288 rockcod, 3 lingcod, 2 cabezon
Wed., July 15 - 36 anglers, 360 rockcod w/1 cabezon, 11 lingcod
Tue., July 14 - 18 PAL kids, 118 rockcod, 4 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Mon., July 13 - 18 anglers, 161 rockcod, 5 lings to 15 lbs., 3 cabs to 7, 1 halibut to 22 lbs.
Sun., July 12 - 21 anglers, 127 rockcod, 2 lings to 9 lbs., 3 cabs to 7 lbs.
Sat., July 11 - 35 anglers, 259 rockcod, 3 lings to 8 lbs., 5 cabezon to 6 lbs.
Fri., July 10 - getting the info from the boat...
Thu., July 9 - Cancelled...just too rough to take out our San Mateo PAL kids
Wed., July 8 - getting the info from the boat...
Tue., July 7 - 12 anglers, 120 rockcod with 16 cabezon to 7 lbs., 4 lingcod to 10 lbs.
Mon., July 6 - 21 anglers, 210 rockcod with 17 cabezon to 9 lbs., 13 lingcod to 17 lbs.
Sun., July 5 - 30 anglers, 300 rockcod, ___ cabezon, 9 lingcod to 17 lbs.
Sat., July 4 - 32 anglers, 320 rockcod, ___ cabezon, ___ lingcod
Fri., July 3 - 34 anglers, 340 rockcod, ___ cabezon, ___ lingcod
Thu., July 2 - 30 anglers, 300 rockcod w/9 cabezon to 11 lbs., 3 lings to 10 lbs.
Wed., July 1 - 26 anglers, 260 rockcod w/6 cabezon to 8 lbs., 1 ling to 6 lbs.
Tue., June 30 - I was out of town...have to fill in details later
Mon., June 29 - 16 anglers, 160 rockcod (nice browns, vermillions & olives)
Sun., June 28 - 21 anglers, 210 rockcod, 1 lingcod
Sat., June 27 - 18 anglers, 144 rockcod, 1 cabezon to 4 lbs., 1 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Fri., June 26 - Too rough for our kids with the Friends of Rollo
Thu., June 25 - 23 anglers, 184 rockcod, 3 lings to 10 lbs., 2 cabezon to 6 lbs.
Wed., June 24 - 15 anglers, 150 rockcod, 1 lingcod
Tue., June 23 - 25 anglers, 128 rockcod, 1 lingcod
Mon., June 22 - Waiting one more day for less wind...
Sun., June 21 - Cancelled again due to too much wind and swell
Sat., June 20 - Trip cancelled; too much wind and swell
Fri., June 19 - 28 anglers "minus 1/2", a little over 100 rockfish
Thu., June 18 - 12 anglers "plus 2", 120 rockcod, 3 lingcod to 10 lbs.
Wed., June 17 - 23 anglers, 230 rockcod
Tue., June 16 - 18 anglers, 174 rockcod, 6 cabezon, 4 lingcod
Mon., June 15 - 22 anglers, 175 rockcod, 1 cabezon, 1 lingcod
Sun., June 14 - 36 anglers, 358 rockcod, 2 cabs, 2 lingcod
Sat., June 13 - 33 anglers, 330 rockcod, 6 lingcod to 15 lbs.
Thu., June 11 - 12 anglers, 118 rockcod, 2 cabezon to 11 lbs., 2 lings to 10 lbs.
Wed., June 10 - 9 anglers, 90 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Tue., June 9 - 20 anglers, 193 rockcod, 7 cabs to 8 lbs., 2 lings to 20 lbs.
Sun., June 7 - 29 anglers, 218 rockcod, 5 lingcod to 10 lbs.
Sat., June 6 - 21 anglers, 210 rockcod with 1 cab to 8 lbs., 6 lingcod to 17 lbs.
Fri., June 5 - 12 anglers, 120 rockcod, 6 lingcod to 27 pounds!!
Thu., June 4 - 10 anglers, 100 rockcod with 3 cabs to 5 lbs., 10 lingcod to 17 lbs.
Wed., June 3 - Cancelled...just not enough folks signed up to make the run to Pigeon
Tue., June 2 - Day off to change batteries
Mon., June 1 - Trip cancelled
Sun., May 31 - 24 anglers, 240 rockcod, 8 lings to 10 lbs.
Sat., May 30 - 24 anglers, 239 rockcod, 1 cabezon to 6 lbs., 3 lingcod to 12 lbs.
Fri., May 29 - 12 anglers, 108 rockcod, 5 lingcod to 13 lbs.
Wed., May 27 - 13 anglers, half limits or so?, couple of lings
Tue., May 26 - 9 anglers, 65 rockcod, 2 cabezon to 5 lbs., 1 ling to 8 lbs.
Mon., May 25 - 23 anglers, 134 rockcod, 4 cabezon, 2 lingcod to 12 lbs.
Sun., May 24 - 25 anglers, 140 rockcod
Sat., May 23 - 27 anglers, 195 rockcod, 8 cabezon, 4 lingcod to 13 lbs.
Fri., May 22 - 22 anglers, 176 rockcod, 6 lingcod to 11 lbs., 2 cabs to 7 lbs.
Thu., May 21 - 17 anglers, 67 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 7 lbs.
Wed., May 20 - 22 anglers, 111 rockcod, 8 cabezon to 6-1/2#, 1 ling to 7#
Tue., May 19 - Cancelled; not quite enough folks to make the run
Mon., May 18 - 12 anglers, 106 rockcod, 2 lingcod to 8 lbs.
Sun., May 17 - 26 anglers, 219 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 7 lbs.
Sat., May 16 - 25 anglers, 20 fishing, 131 rockcod, 2 cabs to 5#, 2 lings to 7#
Fri., May 15 - Cancelled, but looks like winds back off for Saturday
Thu., May 14 - Ocean still not cooperating
Wed., May 13 - Still waiting on the weather
Tue., May 12 - Scratched due to weather
Mon., May 11 - Go back to work; still no fishing today...
Sun., May 10 - Crossed it off again
Sat., May 9 - It's blowing and looks to stay the same for a while
Fri., May 8 - Still too much wind and swell
Thu., May 7 - Cancelled; same story, different day
Wed., May 6 - Trip cancelled; taking it day by day
Tue., May 5 - Cancelled due to ocean forecast
Mon., May 4 - Cancelled due to ocean forecast
Sun., May 3 - 12 anglers, 68 rockcod, 1 lingcod to 8 lbs., 1 cabezon to 4 lbs.
Sat., May 2 - 16 anglers, 118 rockcod, 2 lingcod to 9 lbs.
Fri., May 1 - 22 anglers, 128 rockcod, 10 cabs to 6 lbs., 1 ling to 8 lbs.

Click here to go to our 2008 Archive
Click here to go to our 2007 Archive
Click here to go to our 2006 Archive
Click here to go to our 2005 Archive
Click here to go to our 2004 Archive
Click here to go to our 2003 Archive
Or click here to return to our current Fishing Report

WHOPPERS (20 lbs. and over in bold):
Sun., Nov. 15 - Spencer Palmer of ? - 7 lb. cabezon - Pigeon Point
Tue., Oct. 20 - 7 lb. lingcod
Sat., Oct. 17 - Shusaku Goto of Sunnyvale - 10 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Fri., Oct. 16 - Joe Ramirez of So. S.F. - 7 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Sun., Oct. 11 - Orien Gumban of Santa Clara - 16 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Sat., Oct. 10 - Alyson Adams of Santa Cruz - 16 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Wed., Oct. 7 - Phillip Baldwin of Tahoe City - 8 lb. lingcod - San Gregorio
Tue., Oct. 6 - Bill Page of Fremont - 8 lb. lingcod - Martins Beach
Fri., Oct. 2 - David Yang of Fremont - 8 lb. lingcod
Mon., Sept. 28 - David Ross of Fremont - 14 lb. lingcod - Martins Beach
Sun., Sept. 27 - Alfredo Lemos of San Jose - 7 lb. cabezon - Pescadero
Sat., Sept. 26 - Gene Coombs of San Mateo - 8 lb. vermillion - Three Rocks
Fri., Sept. 25 - Jon Brown of Fremont - 8 lb. lingcod
Wed., Sept. 24 - Jose Luis of San Francisco - 9 lb. lingcod - Three Rocks
Tue., Sept. 23 - Zack Davidson of Daly City - 10 lb lingcod - Three Rocks
Mon., Sept. 22 - Mac McGintry of Sunnyvale - 10 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Sat., Sept. 19 - Rich Lockwood of Wilton - 9 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Fri., Sept. 18 - Norma Bybee of Hesperia - 9 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Thu., Sept. 17 - Yuzhon Gu of Menlo Park - 15 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Wed., Sept. 16 - Vincent Ma of So. SF - 16 lb. lingcod - Pesacadero
Sat., Sept. 12 - Peter Thurston of San Francisco - 6 lb. vermillion - Pescadero
Thu., Sept. 10 - Rob Wendt of Rapid City, S. Dakota - 8 lb. lingcod - Ano Nuevo
Wed., Sept. 9 - Ngun Nguyen of Union City - 6 lb. copper - San Gregorio
Mon., Sept. 7 - David Huang of Santa Clara - 6 lb. vermillion - San Gregorio
Sun., Sept. 6 - Brandon Greaux of Fremont - 6 lb. vermillion - Ano Nuevo
Sat., Sept. 5 - Jianming Lin of San Francisco - 9 lb. lingcod - New Years
Sat., Sept. 5 - Warren Lau of Fremont - 8 lb. vermillion - New Years
Fri., Sept. 4 - Joseph Lopez of San Francisco - 10 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Thu., Sept. 3 - Chuck Ma of Berkeley - 11 lb. lingcod - Martins Beach
Wed., Sept. 2 - Lou Hacker of Foster City - 9 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Tue., Sept. 1 - Robert Gardner of El Cerrito - 6 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Mon., Aug. 31 - Stan Wong of San Jose - 18 lb. lingcod - The Ritz
Sat., Aug. 29 - Gene Charles of Roseville - 8 lb. lingcod - San Gregorio
Thu., Aug. 27 - Lyman Los of San Francisco - 5 lb. vermillion - San Gregorio
Wed., Aug. 26 - Lou Hacker of San Mateo - 8 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Tue., Aug. 25 - 10 lb. lingcod
Sun., Aug. 23 - Spencer Palmer of Los Gatos - 16 lb. halibut - Franklin
Sat., Aug. 22 - Will Dea of Fremont - 16 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Fri., Aug. 21 - Lane Plagge of Union City - 5 lb. vermillion - Pigeon Point
Thu., Aug. 20 - Craig Yost of St. Paul, MN - 15 lb. lingcod - Franklin
Wed., Aug. 19 - Doug McBlaine of Redwood City - 10 lb. cabezon - Pescadero
Wed., Aug. 19 - Jeremy Vukashoul of Daly City - 21 lb. halibut - Pescadero
Sun., Aug. 16 - Sebastian Zorick of Fremont - 10 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Sat., Aug. 15 - Simon Lee of Palo Alto - 10 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Fri., Aug. 14 - Ivan Chuton of Belmont - 7 lb. lingcod - Three Rocks
Thu., Aug. 13 - John Schneider of San Jose - 12 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Tue., Aug. 11 - Bob Juner of San Carlos - 15 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Tue., Aug. 11 - Bev Seltzer of Los Gatos - 10 lb. halibut - Pigeon Point
Sat., Aug. 8 - Eugene Cushing of Sparks, NV - 8 lb. lingcod - Bean Hollow
Fri., Aug. 7 - Brian Bellmore of Sacramento - 22 lb. lingcod - Bolsa Point
Thu., Aug. 6 - Glenn Itano of Alameda - 14 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Tue., Aug. 4 - Pat Prudell of San Mateo - 20 lb. lingcod - San Gregorio
Tue., Aug. 4 - Yoshi Yi of San Mateo - 10 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Mon., Aug. 3 - Gabriel Sanchez of Millbrae - 12 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Sat., Aug. 1 - Shashurin Phillip of Union City - 12 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Sat., Aug. 1 - Gregory Christie of Paradise - 15 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Fri., July 31 - Sean Costello of Loma Mar - 6 lb. cabezon - Pescadero
Thu., July 30 - Franklin Wu of San Mateo - 13 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Wed., July 29 - Chialan Kuen of Fremont - 9 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Tue., July 38 - Michael Bruner of Texas - 9 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Mon., July 27 - Jennine Mimus of Foster City - 12 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Mon., July 27 - K. Shimo of San Francisco - 8 lb. cabezon - Pescadero
Sun., July 26 - William Nobles of Mobile, Alabama - 5 lb. vermillion
Sat., July 25 - Gene Coombs of San Mateo - 9 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Thu., July 23 - David Butler of Pittsburg - 14 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Wed., July 22 - Bryce Kish of Tracy - 13 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Tue., July 21 - Franklin Wu of San Mateo - 6.5 lb. vermillion - Three Rocks
Sun., July 19 - Colleen Peterson of Citrus Heights - 6 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Sat., July 18 - Luke Smith of Fair Oaks - 22 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Fri., July 17 - Mike Burchard of Oroville - 13 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Tue., July 16 - Bill Page of Fremont - 7 lb. cabezon - Pigeon Point
Mon., July 15 - Paul Nepomuceuo of Daly City - 22 lb. halibut - San Gregorio
Mon., July 15 - Danny Chow - 15 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Tue., July 7 - 10 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Mon., July 6 - Justin with SM PALS - 17 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Thu., July 2 - John Budrick of San Mateo - 10 lb. lingcod -
Thu., July 2 - 11 lb. cabezon
Thu., June 25 - John Schneider of San Jose - 10 lb. lingcod - Pescadero
Thu., June 18 - 10 lb. lingcod
Sat., June 13 - Erwin Ocampo of S.F. - 15 lb. lingcod - San Gregorio
Thu.., June 11 - 11 lb. cabezon - below Pigeon Point
Tue., June 9 - 20 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Sun., June 7 - 10 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Sat., June 6 - Joe Schwark, Jr. of Fremont - 16 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Sat., June 6 - John Yang of San Mateo - 17 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Fri., June 5 - Frank Jerich of SF?? - 27 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Thu., June 4 - Glenn Itano of Alameda - 17 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Sun., May 31 - Dong Tieu of San Jose - 10 lb. lingcod - Franklin Point
Sat., May 30 - Dennis Leung of S.F. - 12 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Fri., May 29 - Landon Gottlieb of Redwood City - 13 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Wed., May 25 - Mike Casentini of So.SF - 6 lb. cabezon - Franklin Point
Tue., May 26 - Nate Stone of HMB - 8 lb. lingcod - Franklin Point
Mon., May 25 - Justin Bell of Campbell - 12 lb. lingcod - Franklin Point
Sat., May 23 - Warren Ng of San Francisco - 13 lb. lingcod - Pigeon Point
Fri., May 22 - Tony Lee of Palo Alto - 11 lb. lingcod - Franklin Point
Thu., May 21 - Vince Novelli - 7 lb. lingcod - New Years Island
Wed., May 20 - Lee Poston of San Mateo - 7 lb. lingcod - New Years Island
Mon., May 18 - Spencer Palmer of Los Gatos - 8 lb. lingcod - New Years Island
Mon., May 17 - Richard Alwine of Larkspur - 7 lb. vermillion - New Years Island
Sun., May 17 - Warren Ng of S.F. - 7 lb. lingcod - New Years Island
Sat., May 16 - Ngon Nguyen of Union City - 7 lb. lingcod - Franklin Point
Sun., May 3 - Who? Where? - 8 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Sat., May 2 - Mike Wilmer of San Rafael - 9 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point
Fri., May 1 - Nat DiGrazia of San Jose - 8 lb. lingcod - below Pigeon Point

Click here to go to our 2008 Archive
Click here to go to our 2007 Archive
Click here to go to our 2006 Archive
Click here to go to our 2005 Archive
Click here to go to our 2004 Archive
Click here to go to our 2003 Archive
Or click here to return to our current Fishing Report

PAST DAILY SUMMARY:

Thursday, December 24, 2009 - Just a quick note to wish everyone a Merry Christmas! Not much to report since our fishing season ended. Wish I could tell you we've been able to kick back and rest, but that's not the life of a boat owner. The off season nowadays is annual maintenance time. We've had our annual Coast Guard topside inspection, and we also took the boat out of the water and completed our out-of-water maintenance and had our Coast Guard hull inspection. As usual, the Queen passed both inspections with flying colors, and one of the Coast Guard inspectors commented that the Queen was one of the finest boats in its class he has ever inspected...which is usually what we hear from most of the guys and gals that crawl through and around our boat during the inspections. Are we proud of the Queen of Hearts?...you betcha! Anyway, happy holidays to you and yours, stay safe and enjoy!

Monday, November 16 - The 2009 rockfishing season is now officially over both above and below Pigeon Point. Our last trip of the year took place yesterday on Sunday, November 15. We were graced with a full boatload of folks to join us for one last hoorah, one last chance to bounce some lures, donate some gear to the fishing gods and bring home some fresh rockfish for the table. We couldn't have asked for much better weather, with clear, crisp blue skies, just a little breeze and a small swell that did build a bit as the day went on. Just like Saturday, the day started off extremely slow with only a fish here and a fish there for most of the morning. Finally the fish started biting and, just like it was all this season, those who knew how did fast work of putting fish in the sacks, while those new to the sport caught a few and learned lessons for next time. By days end the big minus tide was joined by winds coming from the same direction making for a screaming current, resulting in more tackle donations to the fishing gods than fish being hooked, so it was time to call it quits and head for the barn. We ended the day with somewhere around an average of 3/4 limits along with two lingcod to 6-1/2 pounds and five cabezon to 7 pounds. Not limits, but not a bad way to end the season, either. The harbor was absolutely humming on Sunday with the opening of the commercial crab season and the first decent weather for the recreational crabbers, too. The RV'ers had their pots of hot water bubbling in the upper parking lot while other folks were anxiously waiting the commercial boats' return with the first crab of the season. It was like the good old days with the working boats working, the private boat trailors filling the lots and loads of people walking the docks. Now that our "real" fishing is over, it's time for a little time for ourselves mixed in with a little maintenance here and there. We do have the permit to run deep water rockfishing trips, and it sounds like the Humboldt squid have returned offshore, so we may schedule some of those trips once we've had a little down time. Check back here for updates...we might not be running right now, but we're still here....

Friday and Saturday, November 13 and 14 - We loaded everyone up Friday morning, turned the bow towards Pigeon Point, and started heading down the coast. Mile by mile the weather got worse and worse, and before we made it to Martins Beach, as much as he hated to do it, Capt. Bob made the tough executive decision to turn back. The Friday afternoon forecast didn't give us much hope for Saturday's trip, but thankfully our charter on Saturday was a group of rough and tough guys ready for whatever the ocean threw their way and they decided to give it a shot. The weather forecasters blew this one again, this time in our favor, though, and Saturday turned out to be a fine day. The fishing was extremely slow in the morning, and by the time the fish really started chomping only about a dozen guys were more interested in fishing than kicking back and socializing. It could easily have been a limits kinda day, but it doesn't take limits to have a good day fishing as confirmed by our group today. Thanks, Dave, for you and your group joining us, and a special "hi" to BJ...I admit I didn't recognize you at the shop in the morning but put two and two together when Bob said you were with the group today. Good to see you again. Tomorrow on Sunday is our last day of the season; looks like it should be another good day.

Thursday, November 12 - We got up at dark-thirty in the morning and turned on the weather radio and computer. The report offshore at the Half Moon Bay Buoy said the wind was already in the 20s with gusts pushing 30 knots along with a 10 foot swell at 7 seconds, and down the coast the report for Pigeon Point had the winds in the teens. We've done this long enough (boy, is that an understatement!) to know it would be a nasty ride down and up the coast and just plain not worth the punishment that we'll all take just to try to catch a few fish. Capt. Bob gave everyone on the books a call as soon as he got to the harbor at 5am and told them to go back to bed because our trip for today was scratched. The weather this week is what I refer to as being a "teeter-totter"...just a little more or little less wind and swell will determine if we'll be able to go fishing or if we're not. Both the wind and swells are supposed to back off just a bit for tomorrow so we plan on giving it another go Friday morning. Still plenty of room if you'd like to join in on one of the last days of the 2009 season.

Wednesday, November 11 - Just a quick morning update: Capt. Bob called a little after 9:30 to let me know the newest youngster to the ocean fishing ranks, a tyke just big enough to join us on our trips, already landed a nice brownie and a legal lingcod...I told his dad we knew who would be catching the biggest fish of the day as soon as we saw his son. Didn't know it would be first thing in the morning, though. Sounds like the wind is going to come up as the day goes on, so hopefully the fish will cooperate sooner rather than later. Looks like we'll be battling the wind off and on the next couple of days, but Sunday looks like a great day at this point with light winds and low swells. Sunday is the first day of the commercial crab season, too, so grab one of the remaining spots to join us fishing and then head over to a commercial boat when we get back in and pick up some fresh crabs rights off the boats to take home with your fish...crab combo, Queen of Hearts style.

Monday, November 9 - The ocean is settling back down and it's time to get back to fishing for one more week. This is it, as this Sunday marks the end of the 2009 rockfishing season. We have a private charter on Saturday, but there's plenty of room the rest of the week. The forecast is calling for a chance of showers on Wednesday but not much wind on top of a moderate swell, so if you'd like to go Wednesday, be sure to include some raingear...remember, the fish don't care, they're already wet. There's still the chance of some changes to our schedule, so make sure to give us a call and make a reservation if you'd like to join us so we can get a hold of you if needed. We're off on Tuesday but we will be fishing on Wednesday.

Friday, November 6 - With a minimum 18 mile run required down the coastline to get to and back from the fishing grounds below Pigeon Point, there's absolutely no way we're going to battle the swell that's forecast this weekend. It's calling for swells of 15 to 17 feet on Saturday with wind increasing to NW 10 to 20 knots, and just about the same on Sunday. No reason to wait any longer to make the decision...our trips for Saturday and Sunday are now officially cancelled. We're in the process of making calls, so if you have a reservation and haven't received a call from us yet, you will be hearing from us shortly. We are still scheduled to run daily all next week, weather permitting, and we'll be keeping a close eye on the forecast as always to see when conditions look favorable for our next trip.

Thursday, November 5 - Capt. Bob travelled just about as far as he could down the coastline past the imaginary line at Pigeon Point to just above where the coastline closes again at the northernmost marine protected area this side of Ano Nuevo and put the lines in the water. It was quite a run, but it was worth it. The day started off with a sprinkle of fish coming over the rail and ended with a wide open faucet. Nice fish, too. The crew kept their usual close watch on the bags and Capt. Bob knew exactly how many fish were needed to end up with limits. The fish were flat out chomping the last drift of the day, and when the last fish we needed came over the rail Capt. Bob gave the command to "roll 'em or troll 'em" (in other words, "wind them up, NOW") because we had landed all the fish we could take...I hear Popeye in the back of my head yelling "that's all I can takes and I can't takes no more"). I told Bob maybe I need to send him away more often because he definitely appreciated being back on the water after spending the last five days at the PFMC meetings. As far as the meetings went, it sounds like we dodged a bullet and we should be in for more or less the same rockfishing season next year as this year, subject as always to any in season adjustments that may be deemed necessary in the future. There's still the possibility of a few changes in depth restrictions, minimum sizes and a few other items, but we won't know for sure for a bit longer. As far as tomorrow, the swell I've been watching all week is supposed to begin hitting the coastline tomorrow on Friday, and with little interest in trying to fight a losing battle, we've cancelled the trip for Friday. We're still keeping Saturday and Sunday open but I don't have much optimism. I'm about a fly's hair away from throwing in the towel but we'll wait to see what tomorrow's forecast will say before making any final decision.

Wednesday, November 4 - Just received a call from Capt. Bob and he's flying back this afternoon, so we will be fishing tomorrow on Thursday. There's not much swell forecast but it does look like we may have to contend with the wind. With only a little more than a week left in the season, we'll just have to take what we can get. We're still scheduled to run Friday, Saturday and Sunday; the forecast came down a tad but is still calling for a huge swell to roll through. Unless there's a major change in the forecast, the trips for this weekend are pretty doubtful, but we'll hang on and see how it progresses as the days get closer. If you'd like to join us tomorrow, give us a call to be added to the books or feel free to just come on down in the morning to check in.

Tuesday, November 3 - Our trip for Wednesday has unfortunately been cancelled as the meetings Bob's attending still require him to stay at least another day, but we're still scheduled to run on Thursday as long as he gets back in time. We should know by mid-day on Wednesday whether he'll be coming back on Wednesday or required to stay until Thursday. Looking at the ocean forecast, Thursday may be our last shot at getting out for several days as an absolutely huge swell is forecast to hit the coastline starting on Friday, with swells of 13 to 15 feet, and continuing through the weekend. One graph is showing monster waves in the 30 foot range at the Half Moon Bay Buoy for Saturday. Not good news for the opening of the recreational crab season scheduled to open on Saturday, but it may just be music to the ears of the guys waiting to charge the surf at Mavericks. One model I watch indicates that the swells will subside again by next Tuesday or Wednesday, so we should get a few more days on the water before our 2009 rockfishing season closes on Sunday, November 15.

Monday, November 2 - Fishing on this past Friday and Saturday was downright excellent. Jumbo blacks, as big as they get, were biting on Friday and made for some huge sacks of fish paired with the other assorted fishies as well as a handful of cabezon and lingcod. A 12 year old whose dad set him up with one of our shop special Ugly Stick and Penn Jigmaster combos and the basic tackle kit in the morning laid the fish away and had his limit onboard by 9:30 with no problem at all. I don't have the exacts for Saturday as Capt. Bob headed off to another fishery management meeting and handed the controls over to trusty relief skipper Capt. Joe, but I heard fishing was great on Saturday, too, with a lot of nice vermillions in the mix; I believe I heard that the biggest vermillion of the day tipped the scales at a whopping 9 pounds. I even received an email from Sarah who joined us on Saturday thanking our "amazing crew for the fabulous experience"...that's what we like to hear! Sure wish fishing could have been this good all season long, but we'll take it when we can get it. Bob is currently scratching and clawing and doing what he can at this week's meetings just to try to get the same rockfishing season for next year that we had this year, but it's going to be another tough battle. Too many people didn't play by the rules is what we're hearing so everyone is going to have to pay the price for those that just don't give a sh*t and do whatever they please just to catch fish. Don't be surprised if we get even less time to fish next year and shoved back into fishing no deeper than 120 feet. There are those who think I'm blowing smoke and crying wolf, but seeing and hearing what goes on at these meetings as well as behind the scenes is mind blowing. Mark my word...when Bob gets fed up with fighting the battle at these meetings, unless someone else steps up to the plate, it will be real scary to see what will happen to the recreational rockfishing seasons off the Bay Area coastline. I'm very proud of all the hard work Bob puts into attending the weeks and weeks of meetings he attends every year, as well as all he does on the water to do what's right. It's not easy at times, but in the end it's worth it. As soon as Bob gets back from the meetings down south later this week, we will continue fishing below Pigeon Point, about an hour and 20 minute boat ride south of our harbor, through the end of the season which closes at the end of the day on Sunday, November 15.

Friday, October 30 - I just have a few seconds to post this update, so...Good fishing today and good weather, and it looks real good for tomorrow. Still have about 6 spots open for tomorrow if you'd like to join in on what looks to be a real good day of fishing. Check in at our shop when we open the doors at 5:30 a.m. to grab your spots if you don't get a hold of us before I leave the office this afternoon.

Wednesday, October 28 - The winds are forecast to finally start laying down tonight and are supposed to be light enough for us to go out fishing tomorrow on Thursday. We have plenty of folks so we're definitely going fishing, but we also have plenty of room still available if you'd like to join us. The forecast looks real good for Friday, Saturday and Sunday...maybe Mother Nature is actually going to be nice to us and give us a good shot of some enjoyable days on the water to end this week. Just like Thursday, we're going every day through the weekend but there is plenty of space available, too, even though Saturday is starting to fill up a bit. As always, reservations are definitely recommended so you know you have your spot reserved and we know you're planning on joining us.

Monday, October 26 - The northwest winds that have played havoc with us and our anglers' tummies more often than not this season continue unrelented, with winds forecasted to blow 25 to 35 knots tomorrow on Tuesday, so our trip for Tuesday has been cancelled. It's supposed to come down a tad on Wednesday but it's still pretty iffy; it's looking like we should be able to make it out on Thursday, with Friday actually looking decent at this point. This is the last week to fish the areas north of Pigeon Point as the rockfishing season off the Bay Area coastline closes at the end of the day Saturday, and then we'll head to areas below Pigeon Point, about 18 miles south of the harbor, where we can continue to fish through November 15. We made it out this past Saturday; it wasn't pretty, but it was fishable which is what we told folks in advance was what we were expecting. Their hearts and souls were hearty and willing, so they dealt with the tough conditions the best they could and caught what they could catch which is all we could hope for. With the forecast looking good for the end of this week, hopefully the season above Pigeon will end with a bang instead of a sputter. End of Season Senior Special: With Friday's good forecast, we will extend our offer for our reduced senior rate of $55 for this Friday to give folks 62 and over one more chance to take advantage of what looks to be a good day on the water before the north area closes.

Friday, October 23 - The forecast came way down from yesterday's report to this morning and we heard that another charterboat made it on a trip that left late morning and the weather was fairly decent to start out but did build a bit as the day went on. So, the plan for Saturday: if you want to go fishing, we're going to give it a try. Check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing, look for the BIG yellow "TICKET OFFICE" sign in the front window. We open our doors at 5:30 a.m.; please arrive no later than 6:15...the trip DEPARTS at 7:00 a.m. Plenty of room available, so don't worry about sending an email or leaving us a message...just come on down.

Thursday, October 22 - Still too much swell and wind to make it out tomorrow so our trip for Friday has been cancelled. We are still scheduled to go fishing on Saturday at this point but we are watching the ocean forecast closely. If you're interested in giving it a try on Saturday, make sure to make a reservation so we can let you know if there's any change in plans. If we do make it Saturday, I don't think it will be a trip for the meek, so if you're a person who tends to get seasick or are worried about it, I'd recommend you wait for better conditions. For the old salts, nothing you're not used to fishing these parts.

Wednesday, October 21 - A few years back catching 80 rockfish would have been a piece of cake. Between the tough weather we've endured this year, the restrictions limiting where we can fish, some downright finicky fish this year, and a lot of folks who are trying to learn how to catch their first fish, it's not a piece of cake anymore. But somehow, just somehow, we squeeked it out today and everyone walked home with their 10 fish rockcod limit along with one bonus lingcod. I was glad to hear the newest additional to the fishing ranks, an 8 year old who joined us for the first time today, had a great time, so regardless of the fish the day was a success anyway. A huge swell is due to roll in tonight so we threw in the towel early and cancelled our trip for tomorrow, but we'll see how the forecast progresses for our trips scheduled for Friday and Saturday. If you're looking to go out rockfishing this season, there's not much time left: the season closes above Pigeon Point in only more 8 days on October 31 and along our entire coastline after November 15. Hopefully the ocean will give us a few more decent days to get out between the weather systems that are rolling in.

Tuesday, October 20 - Those using the stuff that's been working all season long (aka super flies) caught plenty of fish, and those using the "hootchie-coo" stuff caught some but definitely had a tougher time of it. We can lead fish to water, but we can't make them drink. Oh, wait, that's a horse...well, same idea. Capt. Bob gave it his all but finally pulled the plug with 119 rockcod onboard for 13 anglers along with a seven pound lingcod. The ocean forecast has been a ping pong ball with every update, but at this point it still looks favorable for tomorrow calling for about the same weather as today except a tad less swell. It could be on the bouncy side or it could be fine, but it should be fishable regardless, so we are going fishing tomorrow with whoever wants to join us. Lots of room still available, so feel free to just come on down in the morning and check in at our shop between 6:00 and 6:15 a.m. The rest of the week is pretty iffy as it stands right now, but we've got to take it day by day to see how the forecast shapes up before we make the decision for the next day's trip.

Monday, October 19 - Looking at this week's current ocean forecast, the day to go fishing is tomorrow on Tuesday, as it's the day with the lightest winds and the lowest swell. We have enough folks on the books already to make the day but there's still lots and lots of room available, so if you're thinking about going on a trip sometime between now and Friday, tomorrow is the day I'd pick if it was me. Don't know about Saturday yet; it's so far away forecast-wise I'd take whatever it says with a grain of salt, anyways. We've crossed off our trip for this Sunday...we're just plain tired, fed up and want to have and deserve to have some fun, so we're taking the day off and going to go yell and hoot and holler at the Raiders. It may be too much to think that they can win two in a row, but we can hope.

Saturday, October 17 - We received the sad news today that Mike Casentini, a good friend of the Queen of Hearts, passed away. Looking back on our whopper lists, Mike's name will pop up several times over the years, and his picture is proudly displayed on our back wall at the shop with a 48 pound lingcod he caught on 15 pound test several years ago, one of the biggest, if not THE biggest, lingcod caught on the Queen of Hearts. Mike has a big grin on his face as he hefted the lingcod up for the picture...I heard he wouldn't pick up the fish until it had been bonked over the head several times to make sure the fish that was such a huge monster wouldn't fight back. Mike was one of the good ones, and he will be sorely missed. Without a doubt, Wednesdays just won't be the same without him. We are proud to have known Mike, and we're sure he enjoyed his times onboard the Queen of Hearts as much as we enjoyed having him join us for so many trips over the years.

Friday, October 16 - Didn't get a chance to watch the movie stars last night on Channel 5? Well, you can still see it on CBS5's website at: http://cbs5.com/video/?id=56769@kpix.dayport.com. The segment on the Queen of Hearts is about 5 minutes into the story. As far as fishing today, there was some leftover swell to contend with in the morning, but Capt. Bob said it was really no big deal as long as he stayed out of the shallows. As the day went on, though, the wind came out of nowhere and it was howling by the time they were heading back to the harbor. That's not what had been forecasted, but that's what we got. As has been the case a lot this year, some folks did great while others had a tough time finding any fish that wanted to bite. Several went home with their 10 fish limit and several went home with just enough to enjoy a good fresh fish dinner. The latest forecast for the weekend looks good...as long as they're telling us the truth...calling for west winds at 10 knots with a west swell of 4 to 6 feet at 11 seconds for Saturday and about the same for Sunday. Plenty of room available on both days. If you'd like to join us, don't worry about getting a hold of us; just come on down in the morning and check in at our shop. We'll have the doors open by 5:30 a.m.; please arrive by no later than 6:15 to check in.

Thursday, October 15 - Haven't seen it for ourselves yet so I don't know how exciting or boring it may be, but...Capt. Bob and Heather and the Queen of Hearts will have their moment of fame tonight. They will be on "Eye on the Bay" tonight at 7:00 p.m. which airs on CBS, channel 5. Eye on the Bay came by the boat a few weeks back and included us in their story of things to do at Pillar Point Harbor. Like I said, we haven't seen it yet, so I have no idea if we'll be on for 10 seconds or 5 minutes, but, if you're not doing anything exciting around 7:00 tonight, tune in and check it out. Or if you'd rather see the boat and crew in person, we will be fishing tomorrow on Friday and still have room available. The weather forecast is calling for almost no wind and a very small swell, so we're in great shape weather-wise. Give us a call to make a reservation or you can just come on down in the morning and check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing, between 6:00 and 6:15. Still plenty of room this weekend, too, as well as pretty much every day through the end of the month.

Wednesday, October 14 - The rain is moving out of the Bay Area and the ocean is calming down. The forecast is calling for some leftover wind and swell on Thursday, so we're crossing off Thursday and will wait for better conditions on Friday. Friday looks like the ocean should definitely be back in good shape and this weekend looks fine, too, with swells down to only 3 to 5 feet and not much wind. Only five more weekend days left to fish above Pigeon Point; if you're interested in getting one more trip in before the upper territory closes, this would be a good weekend to take advantage of it. Plenty of room on all days for the next week at this point, but, as always, reservations are always recommended.

Sunday, October 11 - After the day we had yesterday, I really had high hopes for today. Figured we'd get that last calm-before-the-storm kinda day in. Some folks like Victor did fantastic, but then there were others who had a tough time figuring out the difference between a rock grabbing their sinker and a fish grabbing their hook and ended up spending more time tying on more gear than pulling fish over the rail. In an effort to stay out of some of the wind that was already starting up offshore ahead of the storm coming in on Tuesday, Bob stuck in the real shallow water where the cabezon were really on the munch. We ended up with 22 cabezon along with around an average of about 7 rockfish per person. We scratched our trip scheduled for Monday as there were only a couple of folks interested in going out with the impending storm that's due in on Tuesday. Sure sounds like it's going to be a soaker but should move out by midday on Wednesday. The current forecast looks fairly decent for Thursday and Friday and I think we should be in good shape for this coming weekend, too. I know there are a lot of folks real confused about when our rockfishing season closes this year. Here's the scoop: We can fish the territory above Pigeon Point through October 31 and then continue below Pigeon Point, about 20 miles south of the harbor, through November 15.

Saturday, October 10 - Wow, what an absolutely fantastic day on the water! The folks on our 18 person private charter were graced by flat calm weather and biting fish, and it was just a downright fun day. I heard there were claps and cheers for just about every fish that came over the rail. The only downside, if you want to call it a downside, is that this group probably didn't realize what great quality fish they were landing...Capt. Bob said is was without doubt one of the best days of the season, with nary a small fish in the lot. To sweeten the pot four cabezon were landed as well as four lingcod with the biggest tipping the scales at 16 pounds. The weather looks fine for our trip on Sunday, and we might be able to squeek in one more day on Monday if the weather holds and as long as there's enough interest in the day to make the trip, but it is looking pretty bleak for Tuesday and Wednesday with a decent weather system on the horizon. Looks like it will only last a couple of days and then hopefully it will settle back down to give us more time on the water before the season winds to a close. Monday, October 12 has now been cancelled.

Friday, October 9 - We had the privilege of introducing a group of high schoolers from Alta Vista to this thing called "fishing" today courtesy of our pals with the Friends of Rollo. The kids headed over the hill to the harbor after they met up at school, and by the time we left the dock it was already after 10 a.m. As they had to be back to the dock by around 1 p.m., it was time for Capt. Bob to work a little of his Houdini magic. The weather was perfect, and thankfully the fish were plentiful and biting two at a time. With the lines in the water for just a little over an hour of fishing, the 30 kids put well over 200 fish on the boat and sent Heather into a filleting flurry to try to get the fish cleaned in time for the group to head off in search of pumpkins before heading back home. Sounds like everyone had a great time, and thanks, Michael, for all your hard work getting the trip put together and giving the kids memories that will hopefully last a lifetime as well as getting a few of them "hooked" for the future.

Wednesday, October 7 - Another real nice day on the water with lots of cooperative fish giving easy limits to our 18 anglers along with five lingcod and back to the harbor by a little after 1:30. The quality brownies again made up the majority of the catch along with some nice yellows, some gophers and a handful or two of decent size blues. I always like calling and hearing the laughing and joking going on during the day...actually it makes me envious I'm not out there doing it, too. We have private charters tomorrow, Friday and Saturday, so our next available trip is this Sunday, and it looks like the weather is supposed to hold up at least through the weekend. We have about 6 spots open last I checked for Sunday, so if you want to take advantage of what it seems like one of the few nice days on the water this season, Sunday would be a good choice.

Tuesday, October 6 - As has been the case all season, all it takes is a little good weather to have good fishing, just like today. We had limits for all anglers and back to the dock a little after noon with the majority of the fish all quality brownies along with an eight pound lingcod. Weather along the coast looks fantastic for tomorrow, and we have plenty of room available. We haven't had too many days like this, so if you can take advantage of it and go fishing, this would be the time to do it. Give us a call or just simply come on down in the morning on Wednesday and check in at our shop between 6:00 and 6:15 a.m. On a side note: I can't believe I even have to say this, but...I heard that someone came into my shop at the end of the day with a drippy gunny sack of fish. They were rightfully told to take the drippy sack back outside. Customers who are looking to pick up some items are always welcome in our shop, but please have enough courtesy to leave drippy gunny sacks of fish outside. I wouldn't bring a drippy gunny sack into your house; please don't bring them into my store!

Monday, October 5 - We're back fishing tomorrow after having the last couple of days off due to the high winds and swell that rolled through over the weekend. Boy oh boy, the ocean was real mean on Saturday, but thankfully it's calmed down now and the forecast is looking good for this coming week. We are available tomorrow on Tuesday and on Wednesday, but then we have private charters Thursday, Friday and Saturday; Sunday is open and we still have about a dozen spots or so left at this point. Even though having to cancel out a weekend is a real bummer, Bob and I were able to really enjoy our time off, attending the 60th anniversary dinner celebration for Golden Gate Fishermen's Association on Saturday night, and then heading down the coast with the top down on Sunday to check out the Capitola Wharf and Highway 1 sites. So that's what normal folks do on weekends, huh?!

Friday, October 2 - Afternoon Update: The weather held up long enough for us to finish up today's trip, but by the end of the day the wind arrived. We ended up with just a few fish shy of limits for everyone onboard, 146 rockcod for 16 anglers along with three lingcod to eight pounds, as we had a few folks that didn't feel too great most of the day, and it makes it pretty tough to catch fish if you don't have your line in the water. The afternoon forecast is calling for way too much wind and swell for tomorrow so our trip on Saturday has been cancelled. We're still scheduled to run on Sunday if the winds calm down in time; if you're interested in Sunday's trip, be sure to give us a call. This thing is supposed to blow itself out by Sunday night and it looks like relatively smooth sailing again by Monday and through the current forecast period which goes through Wednesday. Morning Update: We're out today, and I'll be updating later with the details. As far as tomorrow's trip, we are watching the weather forecast like a hawk. No, it has nothing to do with the tsunami that rolled around the Pacific earlier this week...we have had several folks call in worrying about it, but no need to worry as that's long gone and didn't affect us at all. What we're worried about is the same thing that's caused havoc with us all year long: the wind. If it blows like they are forecasting, we won't be going anywhere...except maybe to the movies. But if the wind stays offshore like it often does, then we'll be fishing. The next forecast we get usually updates around 2:30 p.m. give or take. At that point, depending on the conditions Bob saw on the water today, what the ocean is doing this afternoon, and what the forecast says, we'll decide whether we'll be giving it a shot in the morning or not. Thankfully it looks like this is a quick moving system and should be out of here by Monday if not sooner, so the beginning of next week looks like we should be in good shape weather-wise again.

Thursday, October 1 - Not a breath of wind at the harbor this morning, and Bob called in the same report from the water...no wind, just a bit of a swell. We ended up with early limits for all our customers with the majority nice brownies and yellowtail rockfish along with the usual assortment of other fishies, plus one 7 pound lingcod. The forecast looks like we should be okay for tomorrow on Friday, too, but we're watching the weekend real close. If you're interested in going tomorrow, don't worry about getting a hold of us, we have plenty of room available...just come on down in the morning and check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing; look for the BIG yellow "TICKET OFFICE" sign in our front window. We'll have the doors open by 6:00 a.m.; please arrive no later than 6:15.

Wednesday, September 30 - Just like I said yesterday, the forecast can and often does change from one forecast to the next: it was updated mid-morning today (at 10:42 a.m., highly unusual update time), and the wind is supposed to come back down to only 5 to 15 tomorrow and Friday, so it looks like we're back fishing. If you're interested in going out on Thursday, give a call or send an email to reserve a spot; I'm at the phone and computer until 5pm.

Tuesday, September 29 - As of yesterday afternoon it looked like we might beat the wind and squeek in a trip today. We loaded everyone onboard this morning and headed out, but we were met by the wind just outside the breakwater, and by the time we got outside the buoys the swell joined in. With the fishing we had yesterday Bob tried to head towards yesterday's hotspot, but the weather just kept building and got flat out nasty. No reason to even worry about trying to put the lines in the water...no one needs fish that bad or risk getting hurt in the process. We headed back in and handed out rain checks for folks to come back when conditions aren't so downright nasty. The ocean forecast is not looking good at this point with NW winds 15 to 25 knots along with 4 to 6 foot wind waves on top of a 6 to 8 foot swell on tap for tomorrow and pretty much stuck in that mode for the next five days. The forecast updates each morning and afternoon and often changes from one forecast to the next, so for the next several days we'll be keeping a close eye on it and make the call each afternoon about the next day's trip. Our trip for tomorrow on Wednesday has been cancelled.

Monday, September 28 - With a gang of experienced fishermen onboard armed with the right gear (shrimp fly rigs), it took no time at all to load up on quality brownies...they had limits along with three lings to 14 pounds and a six pound cabezon and were heading back in before 11:00. The forecast this week is calling for the winds to increase but it looks like we'll squeek in tomorrow's trip on Tuesday as long as the wind holds offshore long enough. The plan is to show up in the morning and give it a try. If you'd like to join us, don't worry about getting a hold of us...plenty of room available. Just come on down in the morning by 6:15.

Sunday, September 27 - Just a quick weekend update to add in a couple of details to the fish counts and let anyone interested know that we are fishing tomorrow and have plenty of space if you'd like to just show up in the morning. We'll have the doors open by 6:00 a.m.; please arrive by 6:15 at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing...just look for the BIG yellow "TICKET OFFICE" sign.

Friday, September 25 - Sorry I haven't had the chance for an update the last couple of days; just too busy at the "real" job. We have found cooperative fish every day so far this week and have sent everyone home with limits every day along with an occasional lingcod here or there. The only thing that has varied this week is the quality. Some days there are lots of quality fish, other days a limit of 10 fish is not even close in comparison to sacks with fewer but bigger fish. Weather continues to look like it will cooperate through this week, but there are changes I see in the future that tend to indicate that it may just ramp up again a bit next week. As always, we'll take it as it comes day by day.

Tuesday, September 22 - Yep, there is definitely potential this week. Bob tried the local spot where loads of small fish are mixed in with an occasional keeper but just couldn't stand watching way too many fish being thrown back unwanted, so he continued heading down the coast looking for greener pastures. It took a while but they finally found a great spot with lots of quality fish that came onboard one by one by one and added up to a great trip by days end. Four and five pound reds, belly busting china and gophers, real nice good size blacks, a few cabezon and a handful of lingcod...fish that we're used to catching but just haven't seen as much as usual due primarily to the northwest winds that just haven't given us that much of a break this whole season until this week. The shrimp fly rigs definitely had the advantage early on but even the bars started catching fish as the day went on. The majority of folks went home with their 10 fish limit, and those who didn't would have if they could have just caught onto catching a few more fish than rocks, but everyone has to learn. Plenty of room tomorrow on Wednesday and we are definitely going fishing; just check in at our shop by 6:00 to 6:15 a.m. Special Trip This Friday, September 25: Our friends at sportfishingreport.com will be joining us this Friday for a special "limited load" rockfishing trip of no more than 20 people. If they can squeeze stuff out of some of their sponsors, they may have a few free goodies to hand out, but no promises. Regardless, it's always a fun group, a good trip and goes to a good cause keeping one of the best, most accurate and most impartial West Coast fish score websites in business. To get in on the fun, make reservations directly with sportfishingreport.com by going to: http://secure.fishingresos.com/resos/65.php. If you run into a problem trying to make a reservation, let me know and I'll see what I can do to help. Last I knew, they have half the boat filled, so when the last spots are filled, that's all she wrote.

Monday, September 21 - Looking at the ocean forecast for the next five days, this week actually has potential to be one of the better weeks of the season with light winds and a pretty low swell. It started calming down over the weekend, but even as of Sunday morning there was still enough snap to the swell in the shallows along with a big minus tide to put at least half of our folks down more often than not during the trip, and it makes it awfully tough to catch fish when you don't have a pole in your hands. The ocean settled down once the tide started coming in, allowing tummies to settle down and some folks were able to get back on their feet. As has been the case pretty much all season, those putting in the time at the rail and using what the fish want (hint, hint: super flys) have been able to eek out limits, and it goes downhill from there. Our charter on Saturday liked throwing plastics and bars and they ended up with right around 6 fish per person, pretty much what we'd expect using that type of gear the way it's gone this season. 2009 should definitely go down in the books as The Year of The Fly. They're not fancy, they're not exciting, but they continue to be what the fish are biting best.

Friday, September 18 - 2:30 UPDATE: Capt. Bob just called and and said they pulled another rabbit out of the hat and finally found a spot that cranked out jumbo blacks and big brownies, along with some nice coppers and reds thrown in. Even guys that were down for the count early on due to the swell got up and put five nice fish in the bag in no time flat. Don't think we ended up with limits, but it was pretty close, and the quality of the fish that were caught at the end of the day definitely made up for what was lacking in numbers. EARLIER IN THE DAY: It's 1:00 in the afternoon and last I heard they're still working hard trying to find fish that want to bite. They find plenty of fish, but getting them to bite is the hard part, and Bob still can't bring himself to catching and releasing 10 small fish to try to find one fish worth putting in the sack, so the hunt goes on. A much higher than forecast swell rolled in today, a good 10 feet by 11 seconds, but thankfully no wind, and it is definitely making it another tough one today. They haven't given up or given in yet, and hopefully they'll find the magic spot soon where they can load up. Yesterday on Thursday wasn't an easy day, either. By midday they were lucky if they had about half limits, but at least the majority of them were good size. They finally found some fish towards the end of the day that bit like maddogs and they ended up with what seems to be our season average of about 8 fish per person, along with one ling and two cabezon. The forecast is calling for better weather by next week, and calmer conditions usually does good things on the fishing front, so we'll just keep plugging along and take it a day at a time. If you're in the Half Moon Bay area this weekend, there is a Brew Festival Saturday afternoon at the harbor from 12 to 4 and I believe some type of chili festival on Sunday around the same time. We have private charters on both Saturday and Sunday, and we've decided to give the crew a break and have crossed off the day on Monday, so our next available trip on the Queen of Hearts is Tuesday, September 22. If I don't get a chance to get back to the computer, have a great weekend.

Wednesday, September 16 - We had limits today for our 12 anglers including one cabezon plus four lingcod to 16 pounds. Bob got the report from Heather that there were lots of big browns, reds and overall good quality rockfish, it was the best day they've had for at least a week, that conditions were looking like they are changing for the good and the red tide has moved out. Yesterday we ended up with somewhere around 7 to 8 rockfish per person for our gang of 27 anglers plus a few lings. Sorry I don't have more of the details, but I'm not able to be in touch with the boat as much as usual as Bob has been at the fishery management meetings since Saturday morning. Bob finished up his portion of the meetings today and will be back at the helm tomorrow on Thursday, so I should be able to fill in more of the blanks. As far as the meetings, sounds like Bob pulled out a lot more of the little hair he has left at this week's meetings. It's absolutely insane, but the "bean counters" are coming up with huge numbers of how many rockcod have been caught this year. Those numbers are what they base our future seasons on, and this could ultimately result in an even shorter fishing season and limit changes for next year. There is absolutely no doubt in our mind that these numbers are incorrect, but trying to prove them wrong is another story. We're going to be in touch with our association to see how to attack this issue, but it's a tough one. It is really unbelieveable what takes place just so folks can have the opportunity to be able to go out and catch some fish; thankfully we have a lot of great folks who join us who understand which makes it all worthwhile.

Tuesday, September 15 - Okay, here's the good, the bad and the ugly about this past weekend: Friday was the good, but just barely. Bob turned the boat north for the first time this season and fished Montara to avoid the red tide that was moving in south of the harbor. Red tide is the term given to the color the ocean turns when zillions of microorganisms bloom along the coastline turning the water a maroon red and making it almost impossible to find fish that will bite. There's no rhyme or reason to red tide, no way of knowing it's coming until it arrives and no way to know how long it will stay until it's gone. One day it's here and the next it's gone, or it can hang around for weeks at times. Anyway, Montara is a one by one by one type of bite where you have to just plunk the boat in a spot and stick with it all day, and conditions have to be right because it's a make it or break it kinda place, so Bob doesn't head there very often. It took all day, but we ended up with limits for our anglers along with a decent showing of 9 lingcod. Then came Saturday, and that's when it got bad. As bad as it gets. The perfect storm of everything that could go wrong went wrong. Bob had to turn the wheel over to our back-up skipper Joe so Bob could attend another round of PFMC meetings, which stuck Joe with the unenviable position of trying to find fish in a full-blown red tide for a boatload of folks who began the morning on the wrong foot to start off the trip due to some miscommunications, misconceptions, misunderstandings, mis-whatever-you-want-to-call-it. It set the tone for the day and went downhill from there. No reason for more details, but it was just a downright sucky day. Now for the ugly...well, it wasn't really ugly, but it wasn't that pretty, either. I didn't hear how the day ended, but we had a nice group of folks on Sunday who knew it was going to be an uphill battle based on what happened Saturday and it sounded like they handled the day fairly well. Our mechanic did some pre-scheduled wrenching on our exhaust system on Monday, but we're back out today with another fairly full boatload of folks and I've got my fingers crossed that today will be a better day and we'll be back on track after this weekend's derailment. Today marks the two month countdown until the end of the season, as rockfishing in our area closes below Pigeon Point on November 15.

Monday, September 14 - I'm racing to get out of the office today to head up to the Coliseum for the Raider game tonight, so I just don't have the time to update what happened over the past three days but will do so when I get back at my desk tomorrow on Tuesday. If you'd like to go fishing Tuesday, we have plenty of room available and we are definitely going fishing. Call and make a reservation with Robert at our shop or feel free to simply just come on down and check in at our shop in the morning by 6:15 a.m.

Thursday, September 10 - Our 9 man private charter thoroughly enjoyed a great day on the ocean, catching their 10 fish rockcod limits along with two lingcod. The big fish that have been biting off and on this past week didn't start munching until later in the day, but plenty of 'em were landed to fill out the sacks nicely. Thank you to Rob for putting a great trip together. We're definitely fishing tomorrow on Friday and still have enough room that you are welcome to just come on down in the morning without having to worry about having a reservation. Saturday's trip is full but there is space open on Sunday...with the football season starting up, I expect to have a lot more Sundays with openings....

Wednesday, September 9 - The wind backed off and it was limits again today for everyone onboard, 140 rockcod for our 14 anglers. The catch was made up of lots of big browns and coppers and some more huge blacks. They weren't fishing in cabezon territory, so no cabs today, and the lings still have still been just a trickle of fish here and there, but the quality of fish today sent everyone home with smiles on their faces. The winds are forecast to stay decent through this week which should definitely help keep the fish biting. We have a private charter tomorrow on Thursday, but there's still plenty of room for Friday and Sunday. Wanna check out some pictures from our long range trip?...finally got some posted: www.fishingboat.com/royalpolaris2009.html. Be sure to click on the pictures to enlarge them.

Tuesday, September 8 - To catch up after the holiday: Saturday and Sunday the wind gave us the break we needed and we loaded up on 36 limits each day of bomber blacks and reds below Pigeon Point...absolutely jumbo fish that we haven't had much of a crack at with the rotten weather we've had more often than not this season. Then Monday came and back came the wind. Just as Bob made it down to the Point the wind came up making it impossible to hit the areas he fished over the weekend, and he tried spot after spot all the way back up the coastline but didn't find much that wanted to bite. With the weather forecast calling for 20 to 30 knots of wind for today, the extremely tough fishing we endured on Monday, and a very tired crew who have been working themselves to the bone, Bob pulled the plug on our trip for today to rest up and wait for a little better weather for tomorrow and hopefully better fishing, too. We're available this week tomorrow, Friday and Sunday; the weather forecast looks fairly decent for the rest of the week, but it's always a darn good idea to get in touch with us to make a reservation to ensure we have space available as well as ensure we don't have any change in plans.

Friday, September 4 - A lot of folks took home their 10 fish limit and others took home a few fish less than limits, with an overall average of about 8 rockfish per person for our 28 anglers, along with three lingcod to 10 pounds and 10 cabezon to 8 pounds. At the time of this report, we have just four spots left for this holiday weekend, on Sunday, and it looks like it's shaping up to be a great weekend on the water. If you're interested in grabbing some or all of those last spots, make sure to give us a call...I may be able to break away from the computer soon and may just stay away from it over the holiday if I can help it. Enjoy the great weather and have yourself a safe and fun holiday weekend.

Thursday, September 3 - With the talent we had onboard today coupled with decent weather, it didn't take long for our customers today to catch their limit of nice quality coastal rockfish along with three keeper lingcod. We have plenty of space available for our trip tomorrow on Friday; if you'd like to join us, don't worry about calling or getting a hold of us...just come on down and check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing...look for the BIG yellow "TICKET OFFICE" sign. We'll have the doors open by 6:00 a.m.; please arrive no later than 6:15 a.m. to check in. Our trip for Saturday is full, we have room for about 6 people on Sunday and only two spots left open for this Labor Day Monday. If you're looking for reservations for this weekend, best bet is to give us a call rather than email to get a hold of us. If you get our recording, just be sure to leave a message so we can get back to you as soon as we can.

Wednesday, September 2 - You could hear the grin in Capt. Bob's voice when he described the fish that were caught today, "real nice sacks" is what he said, a phrase he uses discriminately. Lots of real nice brownies and coppers made up a majority of the catch. It took a while to find fish that really wanted to bite, but when they did, those fishing had no problem landing their limit. Unfortunately there was a handful of folks that were curled up in various corners and waited to get back to solid ground which is why we didn't end up with limits for everyone. Yesterday it was more or less the same story, but jumbo blacks took the place of the coppers in the mix.

Monday, August 31 - The swell that rolled in on this past Friday is finally laying down even there is still a bit of a snap to it as Capt. Bob puts it. The winds on the ocean have also subsided, and the weather looks fairly decent for this coming week. The swell that rolled through this past weekend definitely made it tough to find fish that wanted to bite, but Capt. Bob did what he could to find fish worth putting in the bag without killing too many smaller fish. He explained to me that when conditions are like they were this past weekend, there are spots that might produce limits, but due to the number of smaller fish that have to be thrown back that don't have much of a chance of surviving, Bob leaves those spots alone. Throwing back 10 small blue rockfish that people don't want to keep to find one fish worth keeping doesn't make sense in his book, and that makes sense to me, too. I was out on yesterday's trip, and the secret to catching a limit of fish was the same thing I've been hearing all year: use shrimp flys (or "super flys") along with a small strip of squid and be sure to change out the strips of squid often. The fancy stuff like bars and plastics caught a few fish, but the flys with squid definitely were the top producers. I ended up with my limit, but I had to work for it. I did land my first ever "treefish" rockcod; treefish are more common in Southern California and aren't caught very often around our area. They're pretty cool looking: broad yellow and black "convict" type of stripes ringing their body with bright red lips that looks like the fish was tipsy when it tried putting on it's bright red lipstick. We didn't find any legal size lingcod yesterday, but Capt. Bob called and said Stan Wong landed a huge 18 pounder around 8:30 this morning. What was he using? A 4 ounce chrome bar...with a fly rigged onto the hook along with a teaser fly above it. Didn't get the final score for the day, but I did hear we ended up with limits with a lot of nice brownies biting again plus a total of three lingcod including Stan's 18 pound whopper. Long Range Fishing Report: I promised I would put together a report and pictures from Bob and my recent long range trip we took onboard the Royal Polaris earlier this month. I finally got the report done, so check it out at: www.fishingboat.com/royalpolaris2009.html. Pictures will be added soon, hopefully within the next couple of days.

Thursday, August 27 - We had a great group of all familiar faces onboard today who put limits of nice quality browns, reds and coppers in their sacks in spite of a growing swell and building northwest winds. Even though it wasn't downright nasty, it was far from nice today and the forecast is calling for conditions to increase tomorrow...northwest winds 15 to 25 knots, wind waves 3 to 6 feet on top of a "washing machine action" 5 to 7 foot west swell mixed in with a 3 to 4 foot south swell. So, as much as we hated to have to do it, we've thrown in the towel for tomorrow and cancelled our trip, disappointing the 15 people who were looking forward to going fishing. A lot of folks just don't understand how rotten it can be on the ocean when it's so nice on land...I know it's hard to believe, but the only way the boat makes money is to take folks fishing, so when we cancel, believe me, it's only for good reason. Like I told some folks, if you really want me to take your money so bad just to beat you up, I can take you out back the shop and do it for a lot less! Seriously, though, there will be better days ahead...tomorrow is not one of them, but this looks like a fast moving system and should blow itself out about as fast as it came in.

Tuesday, August 25 - Those on the ball had their limits no problem early in the day, and those not quite in tune did fine but definitely did a little more fishing than catching. We ended the day with 120 rockfish for the 13 folks who wanted to take home fish, along with two lingcod to 10 pounds. I'll reiterate what I said last week: if the crew gives you advice, or if they offer to let you use our gear because they see you are not catching fish using the stuff you brought, don't think about it...take it! Always try to remember: the crew is out there seeing what is working day in and day out; every once in a while someone will use some totally funky lure or bait that shouldn't work but does, but that's definitely the exception, not the rule. We like doing what we can to help folks catch fish, and anything the crew suggests is said only to do just that. So often I hear folks respond, "Really?" when they should answer "good idea...I'll do that." I never guarantee fishing, but I'll guarantee more often than not that following the crew's advice will make a difference. We are available for fishing tomorrow on Wednesday and there is still plenty of room; feel free to just simply come on down in the morning and check in at our shop between 6:00 and 6:15.

Monday, August 24 - Over this past weekend folks went home with right about 450 rockcod, anywhere from 6 to 10 fish per person, and we ended up with a combined total of 9 lingcod to 16 pounds and 11 cabezon to 6 pounds, along with a 16 pound halibut. Capt. Bob says he could have plunked down on a spot and pounded out limits of small fish, but that's just not his style; he's not worried about numbers as much as folks enjoying their day on the water. Summer break is coming to an end and so it seems are the weekday crowds, too. Due to a last minute change in a charter for today, we didn't get enough folks together to go out and ended up with the day off. We will be fishing every day the rest of the week, though, but the loads look pretty light at this point, so those of you who've been holding off waiting for a little more elbow room, it looks like this week might be a good week for you. We've been running 7 days a week pretty solid through the summer, but with the crowds winding down we may take off a day or two now and then. More important than ever to give us a call or send an email in advance to make reservations so we know there's enough interest in a trip.

Friday, August 21 - Two good days in a row with great weather and great fishing. Capt. Bob said our group on Thursday worked together really well and it was a real enjoyable day with folks doing more catching of fish than catching of rocks. Seemed like everyone actually listened to the crew when they made suggestions...what a concept. Today on Friday the gophers were chomping right off the bat, and those on the ball caught their limit in no time at all. Hopefully the trend will continue.... At this point we have just two spots left for our trip on Saturday; if you want to join us, it's first come, first serve in the morning. Be at our doors when we open the shop at 5:30. We still have a dozen or so spots open for Sunday, and we are available every weekday next week, Monday through Friday. If you want to reach us over the weekend, please be sure to call rather than email as I will probably be away from the computer until Monday morning. Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, August 19 - Okie dokie, I finally wrangled all the paperwork out of Capt. Bob and was able to fill in a lot of the blanks in our whoppers and daily scores above. Since the Royal Polaris didn't really give much info about our trip, I also plan on putting together a report about Bob's and my vacation along with lots of photos. Please continue to be patient; hopefully I'll have it up in the next couple of days. As far as fishing onboard the Queen of Hearts goes, the story of this season continues: those who know how to fish usually catch their limit with no problem...that is as long as they use what is working. And what is working? What's the secret? Must be something special, right? Nope. The lure that has been outfishing everything else this season hands down is the simple super fly rigs we had made up special for our customers. The same super fly rigs we sell to folks in our basic tackle kits and onboard the boat. We like using bars, we like using plastics. We even like using the fancy stuff. But number one we like to catch fish. And the story continues even further...the biggest fish have also been caught on the same thing...the simple Half Moon Bay Sportfishing super fly rigs. Today was no different. The biggest fish of the day, a 21 pound halibut, was landed on one of our super flys. I'm not trying to give a sale pitch, just trying to get message through that this year the fish are biting the fly rigs, and if you want to take home your limit, the best thing you can use are the flys. They have been catching everything: rockcod, lingcod, cabezon and halibut. The second best thing you can do is listen to the crew. They are out on the ocean seven days a week. Anything the crew says is said only because they want to help you catch fish. Those that listened today caught fish. Those who didn't bought lots of gear to replace the stuff they donated to the bottom of the ocean. Sure, we make money selling gear, but we only sell gear because it's what folks need so they can catch fish, and catching fish is our number one objective. We also want folks to have fun catching fish, but we know it's tough to have fun when you have to shell out more and more money to buy more gear that wouldn't be necessary if folks would just listen and try taking the advice the crew is giving. Anyway, enough said and hopefully the message has sunk in. Our trip for tomorrow on Thursday is full, but we do have plenty of room at this point for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and the forecast for the ocean continues to be fantastic through the weekend.

Monday, August 17 - The weather looks absolutely fantastic for this coming week, one of the best forecasts I've seen in quite a while, with very little wind and low swells. If you've been waiting for the weather to calm down, this is it! Take advantage of it because the way the weather's been this year, who knows how long it will last. Slowly but surely I'm finally getting a chance to get my info together to update the missing info in my reports, so don't give up on me...I will get it posted as soon as I can. Today is a private charter with the folks from the Moss Landing Marine Labs who are catching, tagging and releasing rockfish inside and outside the marine protected areas around Pigeon Point. This past weekend we had a lot of first-timers joining us and they did well landing a solid 8 fish per person average along with a couple of lings and cabs. Thursday and Friday a front came through our area and they were downright nasty days on the ocean. Rather than beat our folks up, we gave it the college try but threw in the towel after a couple of hours of bouncing around, headed back in and passed out rain checks to give everyone the chance of joining us on a better day. We have another research trip tomorrow on Tuesday, but we are open and have plenty of space available at this point for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday this week. This Saturday is now available...there was a private charter scheduled but the chartermaster just called and said he has to reschedule due to a chance in his crews' work schedule...if you're interested in joining us on Saturday, give us a call or send an email. We do still have about a dozen spots available for this Sunday, too.

Wednesday, August 12 - The fish bit like gangbusters right off the bat, and those on the ball landed their limit with no problem at all, landing several double-headers in a row. But then things slowed and we ended up just two handfuls shy of limits for 30 anglers with 290 rockcod onboard, 3 cabezon and 4 lingcod. Getting the info from the boat this past month has been like pulling teeth, so I apologize for not having more details; I'll keep trying to whoop them in shape to get more info to me so I can pass it on to you. Plenty of room available tomorrow, so feel free on just showing up at the shop around 6 to 6:15 if you'd like to join us. And due to a charter that rescheduled, we have space available this Saturday, August 15. If you'd like to grab some spots, give us a call so we can get you on the books.

Tuesday, August 11 - Back in the swing of things with limits again today for everyone onboard, 240 rockcod for 24 anglers including 3 cabezon to 6 pounds, plus a bonus 15 pound lingcod and 10 pound halibut. I was tickled to hear that the top fish was landed by Bob Juner; Bob has been joining us on our long range trips for the past several years and wasn't able to make it out with us last week, so it was nice to learn that the fish gods smiled upon him and he landed the jackpot 15 pound lingcod today. Honorable Mention award goes to Baja Bev who pulled up a 10 pound halibut...was it on the lures you bought in the morning?? The weather forecast is a little on the ominous side this week but it seems as if the reports are being downgraded as each day approaches, so hopefully the trend will continue. As I've said all season-long, not a bad idea at all to grab an anti-motion medication like Bonine ahead of time to try to ward off the ill effects of the motion of the ocean. The ocean has made us pay to play more often than not this season, so taking Bonine or whatever works best for you as an insurance policy is a darn good way to go. Our trip tomorrow for Wednesday is full, but we do have room on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and a couple of spots open for Sunday.

Monday, August 10 - Back from vacation! Bob, Marie and I just arrived back in town late last night from our fishing trip in San Diego on the Royal Polaris. We had a great time as usual. I'll be working on getting everything updated on what happened while we were away as well as details about our trip as soon as I get the chance. Have some great pictures to share, too. Schedule change: While we were away, our charter that was scheduled for this Saturday had to reschedule to later in the year, so we are now available and have lots of room at this point open for Shallow Water Light Tackle Rockfishing on this Saturday, August 15. Give us a call if you'd like to grab some spots...I have lots of emails I have to wade through so a phone call would probably be the best way to go for the next day or two.

Monday, August 3 - Nice way to finish up the week...yesterday's trip produced limits of rockfish along with a couple of handfuls of lingcod and cabezon for the 33 anglers who wanted to take their fish home with them. The weather on the ocean finally looks like it has decided to settle down for a while again and looks great through this week with low swells and very little wind. We're taking out the kids with the PALs gang on Monday and Tuesday, but at this point we still have plenty of room for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, as well as some space open for this Sunday. Bob, Marie and I are off to San Diego for our annual Queen of Hearts sponsored long range fishing trip in San Diego on the Royal Polaris, so if you want to grab a spot or two or more onboard the Queen of Hearts this week, make sure to call, NOT email, to make a reservation. While we're away, we've left the Queen in good hands: Heather continues to deck through Wednesday and then hands over the keys to the deck to Randy for the rest of the week so Heather can enjoy a long-planned vacation. I'm sure Randy will be a kick to fish with as it's been quite a while since he's got a chance to get out and have some fun and run around with a gaff in his hands. Capt. Joe Gibson, who has been fishing the Half Moon Bay waters for as long as Capt. Bob, will be the man at the wheel; if there are fish willing to bite, Joe knows where to find them. This is my last report until I get back from our trip. If you'd like to check to see how Bob and I and some of the gang who fish with the Queen of Hearts are doing on our trip, check out the Royal Polaris' reports at www.royalpolaris.com; click on "Current Conditions" for the daily updates and photos. Again, if you'd like make a reservation while I'm away, be sure to call, NOT email, as I'll be away from the computer until we return on Monday, August 10. Have a great week...I know I will!

Friday, July 31 - Just a quick update: the kids sponsored by our pals with the Friends of Rollo caught bunches of quality browns and blacks and caught some blues to finish out the day as fast and furious as they could. Don't have the exacts, but the kids did great and landed darn close to limits if not limits. Our trip for tomorrow on Saturday is now full, and we have just one spot left for Sunday...if you're interested in it, call, don't email, to nab it.

Thursday, July 30 - 17 kids and chaparones with the San Mateo Police Activity League joined us today, and, as usual, the kids did great landing fish after fish. Big fish honors goes once again to Franklin Wu for his 13 pound lingcod. And guess who landed the other lingcod that was caught today?...yep, Franklin caught that one, too. Kids like him (even though he's not such a kid now...probably not too far away from heading off to college) make programs like the PALs worth every penny. Hats off to Ralph and Paul who have put years of their time and sweat into the program and have made it pay off with success stories like the kids who came out today. Schedule change: Three spots opened up for this Saturday's trip, but two of them are now full...this weekend the weather is going to be absolutely fantastic, so if you want to take advantage of it, give us a call soon to grab the last spot. Only room for one or two left for Sunday, too.

Wednesday, July 29 - At long last, the fish were chomping right off the bat, and our anglers were able to bag limits for everyone onboard, 340 rockcod for 34 anglers plus a bonus 9 pound lingcod. Capt. Bob says in Southern California they have the "Three Bs"...bonita, barracuda and bass; the majority of our catch today consisted of the Northern California version of the Three Bs...brownies, blacks and blues, along with the usual gophers, chinas, and a few vermillions. The weather was downright gorgeous and there were lots of smiling faces on the way back to the dock. The way the forecast is looking, hopefully this trend will continue for a while. Maybe summer on the ocean has finally arrived? CREW UPDATE: Who's decking today?..is a question I hear a lot. Well, crews come and crews go, but we've got an excellent crew onboard again. Please click here for a complete list of our current crew.

Tuesday, July 28 - Lots of fish were marking on the meter in the morning, but their mouths were shut tight and they just didn't want to bite. By the end of the day, though, they were munching pretty good and we ended up with a decent score of an average of about 8 rockfish per person along with 4 cabezon and 6 lingcod. Not much room available on tomorrow's trip, so if you want to join us make sure you're at the shop when I open the doors at 6:00 and let me know right away so I can hold a spot for you. We have private charters Thursday and Friday this week, are full on Saturday, but there is still space available on Sunday. The ocean weather forecast is looking fantastic again for this weekend, with only a 2 to 4 foot swell and very little wind...it's about time! Don't forget to bring your jackets, though, and keep the shorts at home. The fog has been thick in the mornings and it's been extremely wet and drippy, so continue to dress in layers.

Monday, July 27 - I finally got out of our shop at a decent hour on Sunday and had a chance to tackle a little housecleaning, so I didn't talk with Bob until he got home. About a half hour after he walked through the door, I finally thought to ask him how fishing was. His answer: it sucked, it sucked, it sucked. How bad? Probably one of the worst catches we've had all year, with about three fish per person average, no cabezon and no lingcod. Yep, pretty sucky I'd say, too. The wind did us in again fishing below Pigeon Point, with a good 20 knots along with a south swell that just knocked the bite in the dirt. So for those folks that think we only report when the fishing is good, there you go...it was sucky. That's fishing. But, as they say, tomorrow is another day, and Capt. Bob checked in a little after 9:00 a.m. Monday morning to ask if four nice cabezon already this morning would redeem him. I told him it was a start...he's not off the hook yet, though...so we'll see what he has to say for himself by the end of the day.

Friday, July 24 - We ended up with right around that 7 fish per person average we've been seeing a lot lately...experienced anglers going home with limits and those not so experienced catching a few fish in between donating lots of sinkers to the ocean gods. What we've missing in quantity at times, though, has definitely been made up by quality according to Capt. Bob. He says some of the blacks being landed are absolute monsters, as big as they get type of blacks, along with the usual gophers and assorted other fishies. We have a private charter tomorrow on Saturday, but there are still a handful of spots available for our trip this Sunday. If you'd like to grab one or two or three, make sure to give us a call as I'm away from the computer over the weekend.

Thursday, July 23 - The forecast is finally calling for the winds to start calming down, but today we still were bounced around a bit making it tough on a lot of our first timers. They still faired well, ending the day with about 7 fish per person, 238 rockcod for 34 anglers plus 4 cabezon to 7 pounds and 2 lingcod to 14 pounds. We have plenty of space still open for tomorrow, so if you'd like to join us, don't worry about calling or getting a hold of us...just come on down and check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing...just look for the BIG yellow "TICKET OFFICE" sign. I'll have the doors open by 6:00 a.m.; please arrive no later than 6:15 to check in.

Tuesday, July 21 - The ocean was back on the bouncy side again today so Capt. Bob was a little worried about how the PAL kids would hold up, but they hung in there and fished the majority of the day. The rockfish were finicky again and were not very interested in biting the bars and plastics that everyone was using...Bob doesn't think a single person was using shrimp flies, and unfortunately shrimp flies continue to be the best way to catch fish. But these kids aren't worried about catching limits as much as they just want to have fun, so they ended up with just shy of half limits along with four lingcod and two cabezon. Biggest fish was a huge 7 pound vermillion caught by Franklin who has turned into one heck of an angler. At long last the forecast is calling for the winds to back down by this Sunday...sure would be nice if it stays that way for a while.

Monday, July 20 - Today belonged to the kids with the San Mateo Police Activity League, and even though they had a small group with them today, they brought out the big hitter veterans...some of these kids have been coming out the last several years and they're getting to be real pros. Their group of nine anglers scored limits, 83 rockcod plus 7 cabezon to 5 pounds plus two lings to 6 pounds. The kids will be at it again tomorrow, but we are available Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and we have a couple of handfuls of spots still available for this Sunday.

Saturday and Sunday, July 18 and 19 - We had a 22 pound halibut earlier in the week, and we ended the week with a 22 pound lingcod on Sunday. The ocean is still kicking up its heals at times and making it tough for folks not used to the motion of the ocean, but limits are still the rule for those who can handle the conditions and they continue to catch some real nice browns, blacks, vermillions and the usual smattering of the various shallow water species. It would be nice to say all the fish are big, but they aren't...there's always a mixture. This year, though, we are seeing a lot of real large fish in the mix, even though the lingcod haven't really bit with much vigor yet. It really has the feel that if the weather would just settle down for a while, fishing could be off the hook. Hopefully it will happen soon since we have only four months left to fish this year as the season closes on November 15 (below Pigeon Point).

Friday, July 17 - Haven't got the official score yet, but we know we didn't have limits, primarily because as much as the crew tried to explain, a bunch of the folks today were REALLY rock fishing...they caught more rocks than fish, and boy oh boy did they do well catching lots and lots of rocks. Unfortunately, that doesn't do much for the fish scores, though. Everyone still enjoyed themselves and are taking home plenty of fish, which makes the day a success in our books. We did get the second halibut of the SWLT season, too, a nice bonus, along with what sounded like a good size lingcod caught earlier in the day. I'm heading out to grab the supplies we need for our daughter's college graduation party tomorrow (yes, COLLEGE graduation!...we're getting so old), so I probably won't get a chance to give another update until Sunday or Monday. Enjoy your weekend.

Wednesday, July 15 - Just a quick note to report limits for all anglers onboard today, 360 rockcod for 36 anglers including one cabezon plus 11 lingcod. Just a couple of spots open for tomorrow. If you want to join us, be at our shop or give us a call at 6:00 a.m. if you're close enough to the harbor to make it at time before we leave at 7:00 to grab a spot. Our daughter's graduation ceremony is at 4pm on Thursday, so the boat has to be back at the dock Thursday by no later than 2:00, so we're discounting the ticket price to $55 since we may be cutting the day short just a tad.

Tuesday, July 14 - The kids with the San Mateo Police Activity League joined us again today. The winds backed off this morning but the swell still had a leftover snap to it, so Capt. Bob kept away from the shallows and didn't venture too far down the coastline to try to give the kids a little better platform. The kids did well again, landing 118 rockcod plus four lingcod for their group of 18, with another catch made up of lots of brownies, fishing around the Martins Beach area.

New Crewmember Stephen from Hawaii hefts the first halibut of the 2009 SWLT season, a nice 22 pounder skillfully landed by Paul

Monday, July 13 - Sorry for the lack of updates this past week. I've still been crazy busy between getting the boat out in the mornings, then going to my 9 to 5 commercial property management job plus taking care of the phones for the boat at the same time, working at the shop over 12 hours on both Saturday and Sunday this past weekend, and preparing for our daughter's college graduation ceremony and party later this week; needless to say, all my time sitting at the computer has been concentrating on taking care of all the accounting, emails, ordering, stocking, etc. Anyway...the northwest wind came back with a vengence once again by Wednesday of this past week and it is still making its presence known. It looks like it's supposed to back off the next few days but then return by the end of the week. I can't stress enough how important it is if you're coming out to take something like Bonine to try to help ward off the effects of the mean ocean we've had to battle. As long as this northwest wind hangs around, we'll continue to have to pay to play. Someone asked me if we knew when the winds were going to back off...absolutely no way to know, we just have to deal with it while it's here. Those who know how have been taking home limits of quality fish, and those who are learning are taking home enough for a dinner or two. We've had a lot of great folks join us this past week who still enjoyed themselves in spite of dealing with tough conditions on the ocean. Today we finally found our first halibut of the season, a nice 22 pounder caught on the last drift of the day to beat out the 15 pound lingcod caught earlier in the trip. The fish were biting like gangbusters right off the bat today, but as the wind increased the bite slowed, and we ended up just a few fish shy of limits for everyone onboard, but the majority of the fish were quality brownies as has been the case a lot this year. Our schedule is really starting to book up now that summer is in full swing, so reservations are more important than ever...the last thing you want to do is get up at dark-thirty in the morning just to find out that we don't have any room. Be sure to check our schedule or give us a call to make sure we're available.
Albacore update:: What's up with the albacore? Yes, the albacore finally showed off the Bay Area coastline. Good numbers of albacore were caught during the 4th of July weekend, but that's when it was fantastic, flat calm weather and before the weather turned. The wind came up offshore by July 6th and I don't think any recreational boats have been able to make it out to the tuna grounds since that weekend. In addition to making for nasty conditions, the northwest winds also typically cool off the water, not good news for albacore hunters. So, until the winds back off, we're putting the albacore ideas on ice for a bit. We love chasing tuna, but the "stars" have to align properly for us to schedule trips: We need the weather to cooperate, know there are fish within range to be caught, and have room in our schedule to be able to put an albacore trip on the books. The way it's looking with us right now, I don't see us running any albacore trips at least until the middle of August after Bob and I get back from our Royal Polaris long range trip. If I hear more news, though, I'll definitely pass it on.

Tuesday, July 7 - Yesterday and today were trips number one and two of the summer with the kids sponsored by the San Mateo Police Activity League. As usual, the kids slayed the fish, catching more cabezon each day than any other day we've seen so far the rest of the season, with 17 cabezon on Monday and 16 cabezon on Tuesday...they just have the touch, I guess. They also fared well with the lings, landing 17 lings combined for the two days to 17 pounds. Add to that limits of downright quality rockfish...I'd say the kids are off to a great start! We are open tomorrow on Wednesday and have about 6 spaces available; if you'd like to join us, just come on down in the morning and check in at our shop when we open the doors at 6:00 a.m.

Sunday, July 5 - Crazy busy weekend...thank goodness! The harbor was hopping this weekend, and our shop was humming. It was really great to get so many folks out for a fantastic weekend on the water. The wind was calm, the seas were flat, and the fish were biting. The ocean is definitely alive again this year after being a little on the "off" side the last few years. The rockcod are munching along the coastline, the lingcod are primed and ready to go off, there are albacore being caught offshore, there's jacksmelt in the harbor, a few halibut are being caught inside the outer harbor breakwater...more details to come as soon as I have a little more time....

Thursday, July 2 - Crazy busy again, so tough to get the time to update the reports. Fishing has turned on with pretty much limits daily along with more cabezon every day and a sprinkling of lingcod. Super fly rigs are still hands down your best bet to come home with a limit of fish. Weather is drop dead gorgeous on the ocean today, with virtually no wind or swell and lots of sunshine...heard the crew is even wearing shorts, a very rare occurrence in our neck of the woods. Our books are really getting crammed through the end of next week, so advance reservations are more important than ever. Call as much in advance if at all possible to make sure we have room on the day you are interested in. If you call and we're too busy to get to the phone, please be sure to leave us a message so we can get back to you. Our trip for tomorrow on Friday is full, only a few spots open for Saturday, but there is still a decent amount of space available for this Sunday's trip.

Monday, June 29 - The day started out real slow, but then someone must have turned on the light switch because the fish bit like maddogs, as fast and furious as you can catch them two at a time. We had limits for all 16 onboard by a little after noon, with the majority of the fish great quality browns, vermillions and olives, with a few other assorted fishies mixed in for good measure. Even the guys casting bars found fish that accepted their offering. The ocean forecast is looking better and better, with light winds and a swell of only two feet by this Friday. It may almost be July, but don't forget that you still need to dress warm and bring your sweatshirt and jacket even now...it may be 100 degrees on land, but it was foggy and overcast and just barely in the high 60s in Half Moon Bay over the weekend...great for sweatshirt sales in the shop....

Sunday, June 28 - To catch up on the last few days.... We had a group of kids join us this past Friday sponsored by our pals with the Friends of Rollo, but unfortunately the weather was just too bouncy on the ocean again today so be brought them back in after a couple of drifts with the hopes that they'll try it again when the weather cooperates a little better. Saturday was our cream of the crop gang put together by Hayward Commercial Door. The bars were still having a tough time of it, but what they missed in quantity by sticking with the bars they made up with quality with some real nice fish. Sunday's gang stuck with what's been working (the flies) and pulled in limits for everyone onboard. I met the boat when it got back down and some of the olives I saw were absolutely bombers. The weather is still trying to calm down, but thankfully it looks like the swells will subside this week and this weekend is looking real good at this point.

Thursday, June 25 - Contrary to what we expected from the ocean forecast, we actually had downright decent weather on the ocean today; the fish weren't biting quite as well, though, so it was a day of the "haves" and the "have nots." The "haves" had real nice sacks of fish, and the "have nots" took some home, too, just not quite as many and quite as big. We ended up with an overall average of about 8 fish per person for our 23 anglers, along with 3 lingcod to 10 pounds and 2 cabezon to 6 pounds. We have private charters the next three days so we are not available, but we are open and available every day next week, including 4th of July weekend. The State offers two days a year where anglers can fish without having to pay for a license, and this year those two days are the 4th of July and Labor Day. So, if you'd like to save yourself the $14 license fee, take advantage of the State's offer and join us on the 4th. We have room available at this time for the 4th, but the trip is starting to fill up, so don't wait too long to grab a spot if you want it. Not a sales pitch, just the truth.

Wednesday, June 24 - Bob wanted a little more wind yesterday...well, they say be careful what you wish for because you might get it. We definitely had more wind today, but thankfully the swell was reasonable and the fish were biting. The day started off with a bang, with several doubleheaders of belly busting brownies biting, and then it was a steady pick the rest of the morning to finish off limits for everyone onboard. With the bouncy weather we've been having this past week, we're doing good to end up with rockfish limits, but lingcod and cabezon have been few and far between. Number one lure continues to be the tried and true, nothing fancy about them, shrimp fly or super fly rigs. We have plenty of room for tomorrow; if you don't get a chance to get a hold of us and want to join us, just come on down in the morning and check in by 6:15. ...On a different note, today was our daughter Marie's final day at college! She will be walking down the aisle at next month's graduation ceremony picking up her Bachelor of Applied Science in Computer Animation and Visual Effects that she earned at Expression College in Emeryville. A lot of you have been fishing with us for a long time and can remember when she was just barely old enough to walk on the decks. Hard to believe she's now a college graduate! Congratulations Marie!! Way to go!

Tuesday, June 23 - The winds finally died down and we're back on the water. There's a bit of left over chop making for some unhappy tummies, a little "washing machine action" as we call it, but there's no wind...actually, Bob was hoping for just a tad bit of wind to help out the drift. They started the day with double headers of reds, but then the bite died off and they had to start hunting, and I'm waiting for the final update. The winds look like they'll give us a break for at least the next couple of days, and we are available and running both Wednesday and Thursday. This Friday, Saturday and Sunday are booked with private charters.

Friday, June 19 - We made it out today, but it wasn't nice. There was no wind at the harbor in the morning, but, by the time we got to the fishing grounds down the coast, it was a different story. The northwest winds have now returned with a vengence and the swells have increased. The fish were biting right off the bat, and anyone who had a rod in their hands had at least a fish in their bag or more in short order. But there were several that never touched a rod all day and several more that joined their ranks as the day went on. The winds continued to build all day, and we ended up with a little over 100 fish for those remaining standing. As much as we hated to do it, with what we saw today coupled with Saturday's forecast which is calling for northwest winds of 20 to 30 knots with gusts to 35 knots, along with combined seas of 9 to 18 feet every 9 seconds, we've cancelled our trip for tomorrow on Saturday. As it looks right now, we'll have to take it day by day and wait for the afternoon forecast to make the decision on the next day's trip for the next several days. If you have a reservation, we will definitely be in touch if there is any change in plans, but always feel free to check in with us for an update if you're wondering what's up.

Thursday, June 18 - The swell definitely picked up a tad as was forecasted but thankfully the winds never hit the beach where we were fishing, so we were able to find cooperative fish that gave our anglers limits...well, kinda...two of our anglers didn't want to take any fish home, so we had ended our day with 12 limits of fish and three lingcod, even though we had 14 anglers onboard. Which reminds us: Please make sure to always let the crew know first thing in the morning if you don't want to take your fish home so they can keep track of the maximum number of fish we can catch. Thankfully several years ago DFG made a very intelligent regulation modification that allows boats fishing for finfish (i.e., rockcod and salmon) to catch "boat limits." That regulation allows our customers the opportunity to continue to fish until limits for all customers onboard are reached so long as no one walks off the boat with more than their individual daily limit of fish. Our crew keeps as close an eye as possible on the number of fish we bring onboard, which is why it's so important to let them know if you don't plan on keeping your fish so we can pull the plug at the right time. As far as our trip for tomorrow on Friday, we still have space available; if you don't have a reservation, no problem...feel free to just simply come on down in the morning and check in by 6:15 a.m.

Wednesday, June 17 - After being graced with a wonderfully cooperative ocean the past two weeks, unfortunately the northwest winds have returned and the swell has picked up a tad keeping us away from the shallows today, but the fish were biting in the deeper water and we ended up with limits again for all 23 anglers for a total of 230 rockfish. Capt. Bob said the catch was a good overall quality of fish, with several nice reds (I asked what size is "nice"...5, 6, 7 lbs. was his answer), along with lots of browns, olives and yellows, but lings and cabs were out of the picture with the rolly polly weather we were dealt. Even though we prefer to fish shallow and use light tackle, always be prepared to go both shallow and/or deep if you bring your own gear. By law we can fish out to as deep as 180 feet this year, which gives us a lot more territory to our avail than we had the last couple of years, but we will often be needing more along the line of 8 to 12 ounces of weight when we fish those areas. When we fish shallow, a lot of times all we need is 2 to 4 ounces of weight. Bring a couple of rods, too, if you have them, one like a fresh water bass rod with around 12 pound test as well as a conventional saltwater rod and reel combo, 6 to 7 foot, with 20 pound test, give or take. If you don't have gear, no worries...your best bet is just to simply wait and pick up the basics from us so you know you'll have what we're using and what's been working.

Tuesday, June 16 - Touched base with Capt. Joe briefly by cell phone a little after noon...and they were just pulling up the lines with limits, 174 rockfish plus 6 cabezon for 18 anglers, along with four more lingcod. Sounds like it was nothing fast and furious, just a good pick that added up fish by fish. Major thanks to Capt. Joe for doing such a great job of filling in while Bob attended another round of meetings in his position as Northern California charterboat representative on the federal Groundfish Advisory Subpanel. Bob will be back in town later this afternoon and back at the wheel tomorrow. Sounded like there were a few fireworks that went on at the meetings but nothing that sparked a fire or any changes to our recreational fisheries for this season at this point. Plenty of room for tomorrow, as well as Thursday and Friday. Saturday and Sunday are full, though, but we are taking standbys in case of any last minute cancellations.

Monday, June 15 - Quality fish again today, just not quite enough of them though to make for limits for everyone, with an overall average of about 8 fish per person. Heather, who went out today on her day off to catch a couple of fish with a couple of friends, told me there was absolutely no water movement whatsoever, so it sounds like you had to drop right down on top of the fish and just about bonk them on the head to get them to bite. I see a change coming in the weather, though, so water movement should not be an issue tomorrow. Capt. Joe is still at the helm and doing a great job, and he's got one more day at the wheel tomorrow. Capt. Bob will be flying home from the Spokane PFMC meeting Tuesday afternoon, so Bob will be back at the controls on Wednesday. We are definitely going fishing tomorrow on Tuesday but we do have plenty of space available if you'd like to just walk in without a reservation in the morning. I'll have the doors open by 6am; check in by 6:15.

Sunday, June 14 - More quality fish, and limits again for all 36 anglers, 360 fish including 2 cabezon plus 2 lingcod. If you'd like to join us tomorrow on Monday, don't worry about getting a hold of us or making a reservation. We have plenty of room available and we are definitely going fishing; just come on down in the morning and check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing...look for the BIG yellow "TICKET OFFICE" sign. I'll have the doors open by 6:00 a.m.; please check in by 6:15 so we can leave on time by 7:00 a.m.

Saturday, June 13 - We had an absolutely fantastic day today. The quality fish were chomping right off the bat. First fish of the day for our good friend Geno was a huge vermillion and it went from there. By the end of the day we had limits for everyone onboard, 330 quality rockfish for our 33 anglers along with a bonus of six lingcod to 15 pounds; a majority of the fish were brownies, vermillions and chinas with very few blacks and blues in the mix. Everyone that came in the shop in the afternoon told me what great quality of fish were landed and what a great time they had. Hats off to Capt. Joe Gibson who stepped in for Capt. Bob who is at another round of PFMC meetings...Joe did a great job of putting everyone on fish that put smiles on their faces. Our trip for Sunday is full, but we are running all next week and have room every day except for Saturday. With great weather, great fishing, and kids out of school for the summer, advance reservations are more important than ever....

Thursday, June 11 - Heard the morning started out slow, with the exception of a couple of hot sticks: Curt hauled in four real nice vermillions on the purple and black jig he brought from our shop in the morning, and a visitor from Southern Cal joined us on a busman's holiday and was stoked to bring in a huge 10-1/2 lb. cabezon (call it 11 to round it off)...we see cabezon over 10 pounds quite often, but in Southern Cal it's a once-a-year-kinda-whopper of a catch. By the end of the day, though, everyone ended up with their 10 fish limit and we had two lings and two cabs. Today is the last day we are required to run below Pigeon Point, as the territory above Pigeon will be open when the Queen runs her next trip this Saturday. Even though the trips started out tough when the season opened at the beginning of May, we had some darn good fishing overall with the last week downright outstanding more days than not. Sure will be nice, though, to be able to move out of the little box of area we've been cornered into below Pigeon, and this year we can fish out to 180 feet above Pigeon, giving us a whole bunch of additional spots at our avail that were off limits the last couple of years. We are now full but taking standbys for both Saturday and Sunday's trips, but we are running daily, weather and interest permitting, and have plenty of space through the weekdays next week. Weather continues to look good through at least the weekend with low swells and just a tad of wind off and on.

Tuesday, June 9 - Capt. Bob called in a little after noon and said they were heading back up the coast with 20 limits of nice quality rockfish including seven cabezon to eight pounds and they also had two big lingcod to 20 pounds. I'm starting to feel like a broken record, but the weather on the ocean continues to be outstanding, with just a little wind off and on over a two to three foot swell. We have plenty of room available for tomorrow on Wednesday and we are definitely going fishing, so if you're interested in joining us, don't worry about getting a hold of us...just come on down and check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing, between 6:00 to 6:15 a.m.

Monday, June 8 - No trip today, but we are definitely fishing tomorrow on Tuesday, and ocean conditions continue to look great.

Sunday, June 7 - As we drove to the harbor in the morning, the moon was full and shining brightly high in the western sky. I had a feeling that fishing would be a little tougher because of it, since it seems the fish tend stay up late and feed through the night with the moonlit conditions, and I was right. The morning started out extremely slow, but the crew put in overtime and stayed later into the afternoon hours to give folks extra time to put a few more fish in their sacks. We ended the day with an average of about 7 to 8 rockfish per person, along with 5 lingcod to 10 pounds. One of our nieces, Kristin, joined us for her first fishing trip ever and had a smile from ear to ear when she told me about all the fish she caught. What was really cool was when she said how great it felt to know that she was the one who had caught the fish we had for dinner that night. Yep, she got it....

Saturday, June 6 - 21 folks took our advice and joined us for an absolutely gorgeous day on the ocean, and they cranked out limits of rockcod again for everyone onboard including an 8 pound cabezon, along with six more hefty lingcod, the two biggest weighing in at 16 and 17 pounds. Looked like big fish of the day was going to be decided early on when Beav landed the 16 pounder, but he was squeezed out of the top seat when John brought his 17 pounder onboard. With today's catch, that puts us up to 30 lingcod caught in the last four trips to 27 pounds...not bad, eh? We had a couple of young girls that were real cuties who joined us on Saturday, too, and it made my day to hear that one of them landed a huge vermillion early in the trip, and they were all smiles when I saw them back in the shop at the end of the day.

Friday, June 5 - A 27 pound lingcod landed before 10:30 a.m.! With absolutely flat calm, never-gets-better-than-this type of weather on the ocean, the biggest fish of the season so far was landed today, a huge 27 pound lingcod. I've been getting some calls from folks who are concerned with the weather...oh, my goodness!! Believe us, it is absolutely gorgeous on the ocean...it really, really, REALLY doesn't get any better than the conditions we have right now. The sky might be gray and cloudy, but the ocean is absolutely fantastic and the forecast is calling for more of the same through the five day forecast period. Last month we suffered through tough fishing, rotten weather and an extremely cold ocean...but this month is starting out with a bang! The fish are biting, the lingcod are chomping, the water has warmed up and the ocean is as flat as it gets! Time to go fishing! We had limits of rockfish again today along with six lingcod for 12 guys to 27 pounds. Lots of room this weekend; just come on down if you don't get a chance to get a hold of us.

Thursday, June 4 - With some of the best, flatest weather we ever get in our area, the fishing has turned on and is cranking out limits of rockfish along with increasing numbers and bigger and bigger lingcod. Today makes the third day of fishing in a row with limits of rockcod for everyone onboard, plus we added 10 lingcod, the biggest tipping the scales at a hefty 17 pounds. Heard jackpot-winner Glenn caught it on his last cast of the day to win the big fish prize. Don't let the skies deceive you...the weather on the ocean is flat glassy calm with a very light breeze and virtually no swell (2 to 3 feet to be exact). The forecast looks great through the weekend and into next week, and it doesn't get better than limits, so, if you're thinking about going fishing, sounds to me like it might be a darn good idea right about now! Plenty of room the next several days, but please be sure to give us a call or send an email and put yourself on the books.

Tuesday, June 2 - We've cancelled our trip for tomorrow on Wednesday as there were only a handful of folks on the books by the time we were closing, and unfortunately that's just not enough folks to make it worthwhile to make the 18 mile run down to where we can fish below Pigeon Point. We already enough guys signed up for Thursday and Friday, so those trips are a go, but please always be sure to give us a call and put your name on the books as soon as possible if you want to join us so we can gauge how much interest there is for a particular day. We usually make the final decision by around 3:30 p.m. for the next day's trip, so call before then if at all possible. We are also definitely fishing both Saturday and Sunday this weekend, but reservations are always recommended not only to ensure we have room available and but also to ensure that we can get a hold of you if there is any change in plans. Even though the weather forecasters are throwing the "R" word around (as in "rain"), the ocean forecast is real decent with no more than a 2 to 4 foot swell forecast through the weekend with just a little wind thrown in to help out the drift.

Saturday and Sunday, May 30 and 31 - It took almost a month, but at long last everyone onboard walked off the boat with their 10 fish rockfish limit, 240 fish including a 6 lb. cabezon plus 3 more lingcod to 12 pounds on Saturday, and 240 fish plus 8 lingcod to 13 pounds on Sunday. Capt. Bob told me on Friday that it looked like conditions were definitely changing for the better...we've had the best weather on the ocean of the entire year the past couple of days and the water temperature jumped to around 54 degrees, major improvement over the 48 degree water we had just a week ago. Bob said everything was working, flys, bars and plastics, but the standout the last couple of days were the 4" green and black backed plastic shads.

Friday, May 29 - It was real close; all we needed was a dozen more fish and everyone onboard would have walked off the boat with their 10 fish rockcod limits for the first time this season. Close, but no cigar as they say. We ended the day with 108 rockcod for 12 anglers, and five more lingcod up to 13 pounds helped fill the sacks a bit, too. There were a couple of real nice vermillions landed, and some big blacks were biting as well. Plenty of room available for both Saturday and Sunday this weekend, and the ocean forecast is calling for only a 2 to 4 foot swell through at least Tuesday with just a touch of wind from the south. If you don't get a chance to give us a call, just come on down in the morning at check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing...look for the BIG yellow "TICKET OFFICE" sign in the front window. I'll have the doors open by 5:30; just check in no later than 6:15.

Wednesday, May 27 - Finally have a chance to update our report after the holiday weekend. This past Saturday the fish really bit well with over 200 fish landed for our 27 anglers, and even the swimbaits and bars started working, but things slowed back down Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with scores back to around half limits. The weather, though, is rapidly improving after the last couple of days' northwest winds, and the forecast looks downright nice with very little wind and only a two to three foot swell by this weekend. We're taking Thursday off to give Captain Bob a break and to change the Queen's oil, but we are fishing Friday, Saturday and Sunday, with plenty of room every day at this point.

Friday, May 22 - Much better day today than yesterday...and finally found a few more lingcod and one that broke the 10 pound barrier. What did they catch it on you ask? Same thing we've been saying every day so far this season: the good old, nothing fancy, superfly rig. Still continues to be the "hot" lure. Gotta use what the fish want, ya know. We still have space available for tomorrow on Saturday, plenty of room for the rest of the weekend, and we'll be fishing every day thereafter, weather and interest permitting. I don't know if I'll get a chance to hit the computer and post an update over the weekend, so, in case I don't, don't think it has anything to do with how fishing is or isn't going. Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend, and don't forget to think a special thought in memory of our fallen soldiers and sailors who so bravely served our country, as well as for their families, to whom we are owe our deepest gratitute and thanks.

Thursday, May 21 - The fish were off the bite today unfortunately. When they came in to buy their coffee Friday morning, the live fish rod and reel commercial guys who fish along the coastline said that even they only caught just barely a little over a handful of fish for their efforts. Doesn't make us feel any better, but our folks faired just about as well, landing about 4 fish per rod plus one more of those 7 pound lingcod that seem like the only size lings that want to bite right now. Why? I don't know. Just one of those days. Might as well blame it on the bit of south wind that blew through Thursday. The wind is forecast to be from the west on Friday, so I hope the Bob rhyme told me, "wind from the west, fishing is the best" holds true....

Wednesday, May 20 - The marine report said the winds at Pigeon Point were blowing about 7 knots in the morning as Bob crossed the line...he called me and said they must have forgotten to put the "1" in front of the "7" because it was more like 17 knots of wind. That made for fishable but tough conditions. The majority of today's gang really likes using bars and plastics, but unfortunately at this point they are just not catching fish as well as the good old, nothing fancy about them, super fly rigs. So with the wind coupled with the fish not wanting our offerings, we ended the day with about half limits, 111 rockcod, 8 cabezon and another cookie-cutter 7 pound lingcod. The wind did back off as we headed back up towards the harbor, so we have our fingers crossed it will be a little nicer to us tomorrow. We will be going out tomorrow and have plenty of room if you are interested in joining us. Don't worry about calling; just show up in the morning. Check in between 6:00 to no later than 6:15.

Monday, May 18 - The brownies bite well right off the bat but then the current started screaming and made it tough to hold bottom. Capt. Bob worked his magic, though, and found, in order by how many of each species were caught, browns, gophers, olives and vermillions that totalled up to 106 rockfish for the day as well as two lingcod for our 12 anglers. Was tickled to hear that Richard had a real nice sack of fish to take home including a couple of bomber vermillions to finish out his trip (so was it the jigs you picked up from me in the morning??), and Spencer had the hot stick and helped out others who were lacking in the luck department today with a few extra fish. Other than the strong current, the weather was fine, just a tad of light southerly breeze and overcast skies, and the five-day ocean forecast we get continues to indicate that we're in good shape through at least Friday if not longer. Due to the amount of fuel involved in running trips to Pigeon, trips on weekdays are definitely "interest" permitting...if you're interested in going on a weekday trip, please make sure to give us a call as early as possible so we can make the decision whether or not there are enough folks to show up in the morning. For weekends, though, reservations are always recommended to ensure we have still have space available. As much as we hated to do it, with only a handful of guys signed up for Tuesday, we've crossed off our trip for tomorrow, but we will definitely be fishing on Wednesday.

Sunday, May 17 - The winds calmed down and after being tied to the dock for 12 days in a row, it sure was nice to be graced with some downright nice weather and get back on the water. When Capt. Bob arrived at the fishing grounds Saturday morning, the water temperature registered a chilly 48 degrees, so we knew we had our work cut out for us. We picked away, and one by one the fish started adding up. We had a good snap at one point on Saturday where several real nice vermillions and coppers were landed, picture quality kind of fish, the kind that put smiles on your face when they come over the rail. What was lacking in quantity on Saturday was definitely made up by quality, and Sunday the numbers were even better with an overall average of about 8 fish per person. Even with the cold water and the lathargic fish, we still ended the weekend with a combined score of 350 rockfish, 3 keeper lingcod and 2 cabezon and it looks like we're in good shape weather-wise for the upcoming week. At this point, we're scheduled to run every day, interest permitting. We are definitely going fishing tomorrow on Monday, but we do have plenty of space available. If you'd like to escape the heat and join us, just come on down and check in at our shop, Half Moon Bay Sportfishing, in the morning. We'll have our doors open by 6:00 a.m.; please check in by 6:15.

Friday, May 15 - Glory, glory, we WILL be fishing this weekend. As long as the winds stay offshore as predicted we're back to fishing tomorrow on Saturday...at this point the plan is to show up in the morning with our fingers (and toes) crossed and hope the weather gods are smiling. The forecast looks great for Sunday and Monday's trip and I don't see any question about those days.

Wednesday, May 13 - A glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel?? At long last, the weather forecast looks like someone was able to bump the record player that was stuck and we should finally be able to get back out to see if there are any hungry fish waiting for us. This Sunday actually looks downright decent at this point, and according to one site I check it looks like we'll be in good shape at least through the middle of next week...and hopefully longer. The next three days are still a wait-until-we-get-the-afternoon-forecast mode, so be sure to let us know if you're interested in going so we can give you a call as soon as we receive the afternoon forecast regarding the decision for the next day's trip. Our trip for Thursday, May 14 has been scratched, but we'll wait until tomorrow to find out about Friday.

Friday, May 8 - The ocean forecast is still calling for NW winds 15 to 25 knots along with a 5 to 7 foot swell at 9 seconds...that, combined with the conditions we actually see outside the harbor (as in lots of white water), give us no choice but to have to cancel our trip for Saturday and continue to wait for the ocean to give us a break. We'll wait to see what the forecast says tomorrow afternoon for Sunday's trip; just a little less wind and a little less swell and we'll be back on the water....

Monday, May 4 - The season is finally open and of course now springtime weather decides to kick in. We made another trip out yesterday on Sunday, but the swell was definitely building making for tougher conditions and we ended the day just shy of a 6 fish average per person along with a ling and a cab. With the ocean forecast calling for increasing swells and winds continuing out of the south, we pulled the plug for our trips for Monday and Tuesday, and we'll have to take it day by day for this coming week. Please be sure to give us a call (510-581-2628) to verify the status of the next day's trip if you'd like to join us...if you reach our recorder, please just listen to it...it is updated every afternoon. On a different note...the annual Queen of Hearts five-day long range trip onboard the Royal Polaris has four spots open. The trip leaves San Diego on Tuesday, August 4 and returns on Sunday, August 9. One of the great things about this trip is it doesn't require having or spending a lot on special long range gear...the item we use the most on these trips is just simply a couple of handfuls of hooks as the majority of our fishing is using live sardines, and the Royal Polaris has rod packages available for those who need rentals. If you're interested in joining us and other Queen of Hearts folks for a great trip on one of the top boats and crew in the long range fleet with the opportunity of catching yellowtail, dorado, albacore, bluefin or yellowfin depending on what's biting, give the Royal Polaris a call at 619-226-8030 and tell them you'd like to join the Queen of Hearts trip. And feel free to give Sherry a call here at the Queen of Hearts if you have any questions.

Saturday, May 2 - Sure feels good to hear folks are back out enjoying themselves and catching fish. We ended the day with some guys walking off the boat with limits with an overall average of about 7 to 8 rockfish per person along with a couple of lings, with the usual HMB mixture of rockcod: blacks, reds, gophers, seatrout and such. So far the fishing is actually a little better than what we'd expect given that the ocean temperature is hovering right around 48 degrees where we're fishing and the wind has been blowing from the south the last couple of days. Fishing below Pigeon Point this time of year can often be pretty tough while some years it can be off the hook; the way it's looking so far, we might actually be in for some decent fishing this month. But by no means is it easy fishing. Those doing well really have to work at it and experiment until they find what works and what doesn't. If your favorite lure isn't catching a fish after a while, take it off and save it for next time. Try something different. They're not very fancy, but you still can't beat a good old set of super flys...and I hear black and purple has been a good choice. Using strips of nice and juicy fresh squid has also been an advantage. Last but not least the cold water makes the fish real lathargic, so listen to the advice of the crew onboard carefully. They have a few tricks they've learned over the years; if they give you a suggestion, remember that the only reason they're making it is because they want you to catch fish. Forecast looks about the same for tomorrow, and there's still plenty of room if you'd like to join us. Don't worry about getting a hold of us; just come on down in the morning. We'll have the doors open at 5:30; check in by no later than 6:15.

Friday, May 1: 2009 Opening Day at last!! Yes, there are still fish in the ocean!!! Just received a brief update from Capt. Bob a little after noon that our customers have put in the boat about 6 or 7 cabezon, a lingcod (and released a couple), and some of the guys have caught their 10 fish rockcod limit or are real darn close (even though there are still a few others who are having a tough time finding the biters). He said the bite's nothing fast and furious, just a slow and steady pick all day with a couple of flurries mixed in, but we'll take it! The clouds are spurting and sputtering every now and then, but the ocean is not bad with just a tad of south wind off and on. The forecast is calling for this weather system to ramp up later today but then lay right back down after midnight tonight. Hot lures?...Gulp! And we just happen to now sell a complete line of Gulp! in the shop and at a very competitive price...not a commercial, just some advice. Heard the chartreuse and brown minnows have been working along with the peeler crabs. We have space available and are definitely going fishing tomorrow on Saturday and on Sunday, so, if you'd like to grab a spot and join us this weekend, just give us a call. I'll try to give a final score later today, but I'm having internet trouble so I'll see what a can do later.

Wednesday, April 29: Only a couple of days away until we can jump on the boat with rods in hand and head down the coast to see what's biting. This Friday is opening day for our 2009 rockfishing season. The weather forecast on the ocean looks pretty decent with winds 5 to 15 knots and a 3 to 5 foot swell; there is talk of the possibility of showers but that won't stop us...the fish don't care, they're already wet. There's still a few spots open for this Friday, and plenty of room for the weekend, and we are scheduled to run trips every day once the season opens, weather and interest permitting. I'll do my best to post an update by the end of the day Friday with the details of how the day went.

Monday, April 20: Our rockfishing season opens a week from this Friday! And boy are we itching to go fishing! One more weekend of whale watching this Saturday and Sunday, weather permitting, and then it's time to gear up and start catching some fish. The last couple of weeks of whale watching have been tough. We finally found a mother and calf on yesterday's trip, but we had struck out on the four previous trips. There have been lots of sea lions at the buoys to check out, but no whales until yesterday. Like I always tell folks, there's no magic button we can push to make the whales pop up, and there's no way to tie a rope around them and have them in a certain spot waiting for us. We had been receiving reports from folks on the beach that they had been seeing whales just offshore, so we knew they were still out there...it was just a matter of being in that right place at the right time. So, one more weekend of hunting for whales, and then the hunt for fish begins....

Monday, April 6: 25 days and counting until we can fish again! After more than five months of rest, hopefully the rockfish, lingcod and cabezon will be waiting for us this year when we can finally start bouncing the bottom again with our season opening on Friday, May 1 below Pigeon Point. On the salmon front, if you haven't already heard the news, there will be no salmon season again this year off the Bay Area coastline. The official word will be announced by the end of this week by the PFMC, but no reason to wait to hear what we already know. Based on the way it's sounding, though, there is a glimmer of hope that we may be back fishing for salmon in 2010, but it all depends on how the predictions on returns this year hold true. So until we turn our attention full-time to rockfishing in May, we'll continue our whale watching trips through the end of April. This past Saturday we found a group of northbound whales in the morning but they eluded us in the afternoon. The whales come through in waves at times, and it's all a matter of being in the right place at the right time. We'll be on the hunt again this Saturday and Sunday, weather and interest permitting; just give us a call or send an email request so we can save a spot for you to join us. Another rumor that needs addressing: Don't know how it started, but there is a rumor going around that the rockfishing season will open early above Pigeon Point since there will be no salmon season again this year. Wrong!! Even though Bob tried his best at the last two PFMC meetings to attempt to have an in-season adjustment giving back some of what was taken away from this year's rockfishing season, there is no change: The rockfishing season below Pigeon Point opens on Friday, May 1. The areas above Pigeon Point are closed in May and will open on Saturday, June 13. With Pigeon Point well within our range, the Queen of Hearts' rockfishing season will open May 1st.

Saturday, March 7: What a show!! ... Whale watching trip number two of the season, and our batting average remains unscathed...we had what one customer described as "gazillions" of whales around us. Capt. Bob estimates it was more like 15 to 20 whales, but they put on such a show that it was pretty much non-stop action. One of the whales breached (jumped completely out of the water) several times. Another whale semi-breached (lauched it's upper half in the air) at least seven times in a row. Other whales were blowing all around us, making it tough to decide which direction to look. Capt. Bob says most of these whales looked like they were young northbound adults, having fun on their way home after their Mexican vacation. The folks on this trip were definitely treated to one of those dream trips, something like you'd see on one of those TV nature shows. It's not always like that, but it sure is nice when it is. After the boat got in, Capt. Bob was off to the airport to jump on a plane and head to Seattle for the first PFMC meeting of 2009. I plan on taking advantage of the low airfares and car rental deals, meeting him in Seattle at the end of the meetings and take him on a ride for the weekend up to Whistler in British Columbia, my favorite of all places in the world I've visited so far. Our next whale watching trip will take place as long as the weather permits on Saturday, March 21.

Saturday, February 21: Today was our first whale watching trip of the season, and we're batting 1000, with three northbound adult gray whales spotted early in the trip that let us follow them for quite a while and get several glimpses of their majesty. We will be offering whale watching the majority of the upcoming weekends through the end of April, weather and interest permitting. Reservations are a darn good idea to be sure there's no change in our plans, which is a definite possibility this time of year as our trips are dictated by what the ocean decides to do as well as by the number of folks that want to give it a go. The Mavericks surfing contest is still in the holding pattern, waiting for the right conditions to roll through, and the contest window is scheduled to remain open through the end of March. There have obviously been several storms rolling through this wet and wooly February but nothing that has produced the consistant, large swells required for the contest horn to sound. So for now we'll just keep watching the whales swim on by until we can dust off our fishing gear and begin our 19th season fishing the San Mateo coastline.

Friday, January 30, 2009: The Queen is finally back in the water! Bob called a little after nine this morning and asked if I could hear it. Hear what, I asked? The engines he exclaimed! It was the first time since before Thanksgiving that they've been fired up. They were purring so smoothly they didn't even make enough noise for it to transmit via our cell phone conversation. Like Ray, the yard foreman at Svendsen's Boat Works confirmed, there is not another 50 foot Delta in existence that is continuously kept in as good of shape as the Queen of Hearts, especially considering the boat was originally launched back in 1972. Even though we're back in the water, we still have a few nuts to turn and bolts to fasten before we'll be back up and running. I do have whale watching trips scheduled beginning as of Valentine's Day, Saturday, February 14, so hopefully we'll be able to start offering trips at least by then if not before. As soon as I know more precisely when we'll be heading back home, we'll start pinning down our schedule. In the meantime, we are taking reservations and charters for our upcoming rockfishing season. If you'd like to join us for one or both of the opening days/weekends, it's not too early to give us a call and put your name on the books, or grab a date for a charter for your group. During these tough times, we all need something to look forward to, and a fishing trip fits that bill perfect.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009: Happy New Year everyone! I know it's been a while since my last update, but not much going on this time of year except our usual annual maintenance...sounds pretty mild, but, believe me, with Capt. Bob as picky as he is about his "baby", maintenance is never a "usual" occurrence. The Queen is getting the wintertime attention befitting royalty, which keeps Her Highness top in her class. I'll give you all the details later. We think we are finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and hopefully we'll be back in the water by the end of next week or so. Once we're back at the harbor, it's time to start back to work and we'll be scheduling Humboldt squid trips, whale watching and some Deep Water Rockfishing trips, weather and interest permitting. The waiting period for the surf contest at Mavericks is also ticking and the contest can be called at any time when the right conditions roll through; we plan on offering trips to view the contest with the best seats in the house as we have done the last several years and are currently taking reservations (check out our Mavericks webpage for info at www.fishingboat.com/mavericks.html). The 2009 rockfishing season will begin below Pigeon Point on Friday, May 1, with the "peak season" above Pigeon Point opening on Saturday, June 13. No definite word on the potential for a salmon season for 2009, but it doesn't sound good at this point. We won't know anything for sure until the fishing feds (the Pacific Fishery Management Council) conducts their meetings scheduled in March and April. Little tidbits are starting to leak out that make us tend to believe we have hope for 2010 but we'll have to wait and see. Our shop is still open 7 days a week from at 8am to 4pm weekdays, 7am to 5pm on Saturdays and 7am to 4pm on Sundays, so please come on by if you're in the area or looking to pick up some bait or gear. Hope all is going well for you and yours and we're looking forward to starting our 19th season with you all soon.

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Queen of Hearts
Houdini Sportfishing
Phone 510.581.2628
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