06-08-2003, 06:52 AM
A once in a lifetime trip - two years in a row!
I just returned from the Big Hammer Calico Bass Skiff trip on the Qualifier 105. Like last year this trip was unbelievable. Personally I didn't do as well as I did last year but overall I would say the trip was actually a little better (if that's possible). The average size of the bass seemed slightly smaller but the numbers of big bass were higher. The yellowtail fishing was also just as good if not better. Lots of nice yellowtail to 50 lbs. on iron, swimbaits, and bait. I did a lot of experimenting this year which may have lead to me not doing quite as well as last year but I learned a lot - which is a fine trade off. One thing I did notice this year was that swimbait colors seemed to matter a little more this year - at least for me and the guys on my skiff runs. Sometimes colors that I thought would be great weren't and vice versa.
The new Big Hammer color "Senorita" which has been very productive for bass here in California didn't produce like I expected. The only place it did well was in boiler conditions. On the other hand, "Sea Wolf", a color I never thought I would seriously target calicos with was one of the best colors of the entire trip. For yellowtail it was the new "Steve's Shad" color in the 6 and 7 inch baits.
The crew was great and exceeded all expectations. Brian Sims is an excellent captain and goes way beyond driving the boat and putting people on fish. His fun personality, knowledge, and laid back attitude really helped make the trip fun in addition to the excellent fishing he found for all of us.
*****************************************
Some of my best baits:
Bass (5 & 6 inch swimbaits - mostly 5 inch):
#60 - Sea Wolf (all conditions)
#52 - Red Calico Hunter (darker conditions and/or boiler conditions)
#43 - Firetiger (medium light conditions fishing the kelp)
#4 - Keylime (bright sunny conditions fishing the kelp)
Yellowtail (6 & 7 inch swimbaits):
#66 - Steve's Shad
#51 - Silver Sardine
Yellowtail (iron):
Blue/White or Dorado (surface)
Scrambled Egg (sinking)
*****************************************
Day 1 - Thursday - May 29, 2003 - San Diego:
Started the trip off on the wrong foot. After loading our stuff on the boat Bryan and I went over to Angler's Choice to grab a fighting belt and a couple of jigs. We got back to the dock 30 minutes before the scheduled departure but since they thought everyone was on board they were pulling away from the dock. Having them come back and retrieve us won us the coveted "Nutsack" award for that day. On the way out we stopped on a few spots that were holding some yellowtail and large snot missles. Steve Greanias got the first of many yellowtail on the trip and it was the only yellowtail pulled from all the 'cudas. Most of the fish were caught on iron.
Day 2 - Friday - May 30, 2003 - San Martin Island:
Like last year there were a couple of skiffs with only a couple guys on board so like last year I jumped on when I could. I was able to fish the first skiff run and San Martin. It was a fairly productive run - much better than last year at San Martin. We had a steady pick of nice bass (2 - 4 pounders) with a few that broke the 5 pound mark. My first 5 pounder came near the end of the run on the 5 inch Sea Wolf. On the next skiff run we started at a point and worked a different side of the island. It started out on a bang for Bryan as he nailed two nice bass right away on the 5 inch Sea Wolf. As we got around the corner the calicos turned into sand bass and the bite died off a bit. We worked our way down getting lots of sandies with the occasional calico mixed in.
Big fish of the day was an estimated 8+ pounder caught by Dimitri Peros. Unfortunately there was no Boga Grip on his skiff and they had to estimate the weight. If I remember correctly the fish was 24.5 inches long with part of it's tail missing.
Day 3 - Saturday - May 31, 2003 - Benitos Island:
Started out bass fishing in the kelp which produced moderate results. Moved into the gap and fished the sparatic kelp with a few boilers which picked up the bite a bit. Bryan was still throwing Sea Wolf and still consistently getting fish. I experimented as long as I could with moderate results and finally broke down and started fishing the Sea Wolf also. After a nice run on bass we saw some signs of yellowtail and started casting various lures. When we didn't get bit we started slow trolling. I had a 6 inch Steve's Shad colored Big Hammer out. Bryan had a Krocodile and if I remember correctly Tom had a Rapala. Within a minute or so I hooked up to our first skiff yellow on the Hammer. After landing the fish we made our way around a point where the other skiffs were knocking the yellowtail left and right. Most fish were on surface iron. Our fish were on Hammers and Krocodiles. We ended up with 7 yellowtail with just as many lost to light tackle and shallow water. Steve's skiff brought in 17 yellowtail.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/yellowtail-davis-bryan-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]One of Bryan's Skiff Caught Yellowtail[/center]
While all of the yellowtail activity was going on the bass were going absolutely nuts - but not on anyone's line. The ocean was literally filled with red crabs and the bass were boiling on them like crazy. Unfortunately they weren't interested in anything else. It was an awesome sight and really fun to watch. I was wishing I had a redbug colored Assalt Crawdad, Salt Stik or maybe even a red colored Rebel Wee-Crawfish.
Day 4 - Sunday - June 1, 2003 - Cedros Island:
Bryan was lucky enough to sneak on the first morning run and had an excellent trip. Red Calico Hunter was his hot color and he swore the red painted heads were making a difference. On the second run we headed to the same spot which was still producing. I was in experimental mode so while all three of the other guys on the skiff were using red jig heads I stuck with plain (for a while). To my surprise they were all outfishing me so once again I broke down and switched to a red jig head. Sure enough I started doing better. Unfortunately it was just a tad too late as the bite started to die off.
We started running around trying to find another bite when Cal and I remembered the good fishing we had off the point last year. We stopped just beyond the point and set up a drift and the bass went completely WIDE OPEN!! For the rest of our run there were very few casts that went untouched. Most of the fish were in the 3-5 pound range and every fish that came up would have 2 to 8 followers trying desperately to grab the swimbait out of the hooked fishes mouth. Dropping another swimbait into the water would be an instant hook-up. Seeing those big calicos in that crystal clean water going completely nuts was one of the best moments of the trip. At noon we had to leave the fish biting to go back to the Q105 for lunch and the next skiff run.
I was able to jump on Brad and Scott's skiff after lunch and we headed right back to the point. The bass were still in full speed except there weren't quite as many followers. I don't think we caught anything under 2 pounds. The highlight of the run was when Brad hooked up to something very big. After managing to get it out of the kelp he finally got the fish up and seeing it down about 10 feet I knew right away it was BIG. He got it into the boat and it was by far the biggest calico I've ever seen. It's head was absolutely enormous. It went 9 pounds even on the Boga Grip and was about 24.5 inches long. It was caught on a 5 inch Silver Sardine Big Hammer. This was Brad's second big fish of the day has he landed a 49 pound yellowtail from the big boat during the mid-morning skiff run.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/calico-golstein-brad-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Brad's 9 pound Calico[/center]
The bright colors such as Keylime, Silver Sardine, and Chartreuse Grunion were the hot ones this afternoon when the sun was out.
After dinner the squid showed up and I caught my first one ever. It amazing how good those things pull and weird that they will attack a swimbait. I threw out a 6 inch Calico Hunter and watched the squid come over to it, grab it, and start eating it.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/squid-wolf-pete-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Hammer Caught Squid[/center]
Day 5 - Monday - June 2, 2003 - Chester's Rocks:
First morning skiff run. It started off kind of slow fishing the kelp. We moved around a bit and ended up near the main rock and the boiler fishing was on. All four of us hooked up immediately casting at the rock with a straight in grind. The fish weren't big (1 to 3 pounds) but it was sure fun pulling them away from the rocks. Senorita finally turned on for the first time this trip. I also used a slightly more subdued prototype version of Senorita which worked very well also. After the "rock bite" died off a little we started exploring. We saw some boils and birds working outside so we buzzed over and to our surprise didn't find yellowtail but found bass. The first casts with surface iron and krocodiles produced a few nice bass. Then once they broke up we were able to find them deeper with swimbaits.
I spent the mid-morning skiff run on the big boat where Captain Brian Sims expertly stirred up a nice long wide open surface bite of 25 pound class yellowtail. Fish were crashing everywhere and eating everything. I got my first fish on the surface iron then switched to the 6 inch Steve's Shad swimbait and continued to nail them. After the mid-morning skiff run Dimitri came on the boat and started getting the yellows on the 7 inch Steve's Shad.
I got on the early afternoon skiff run just as the bite was starting to mellow out a bit. Out of Steve's Shad baits I threw on a 6 inch Silver Sardine and nailed another one from the skiff. We searched for a few more yellows then commenced to bass fishing. We went to the beach and had an excellent drift past beautiful coastline catching countless bass to 6 pounds and a 7 lb. Leopard Grouper for Bryan. Keylime was my hot color as the sun was out and the water beautifully clear.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/calico-wolf-pete-0007.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]5.8 lb. Calico Bass[/center]
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/leopard-grouper-davis-bryan-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Bryan's Leopard Grouper[/center]
We found a big school of bass feeding on the red crabs like they were at Benitos. I tried rigging a 5 inch Clear Red Hammer weightless and using it like a jerkbait. I got bit once but didn't stick the fish. Once again wishing I had some redbug Assalt lures on board.
Day 6 - Tuesday - June 3, 2003:
At dinner last night the captain suggested trying out some new inside areas that are not visited by long range boats very much. Although everyone agreed that it would be fun to "explore" the fishing just wasn't there. The big Lizardfish were wide open but the bass didn't really want to play. On our skiff run Tom pulled a couple of nice calicos off the rocks and we found a deep spot that was holding a few nice sand bass and calicos - in between all of the lizardfish.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/calico-hampton-tom-0002.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]One of Tom's Calicos[/center]
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/lizardfish-davis-bryan-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Wide Open on Lizardfish![/center]
Day 7 - Wednesday - June 4, 2003 - Cedros Island:
Once again we had an excellent day at Cedros. The morning skiff runs produced countless bass - again. Bryan hopped on the mid-morning skiff run with Brad and Scott to witness Scott catching a 49 pound Yellowtail on a 5 inch Big Hammer while bass fishing in moderately heavy cover. He got the fish on 25 lb. test. While the skiffs were out in the morning the big boat went and chased yellowtail. The first stop produced several large fish between 40 and 50. The 50 pounder which ended up being the largest fish for the trip went to Doug Frasco using a 7 inch Steve's Shad Big Hammer. The next stop produced lots more yellowtail but they were generally smaller. I caught a few and lost one to the dogs and a nice fish at color to a straightened hook. I didn't think it would happen but next year I will be bringing the Hammerhead Tuna Jig Heads with the forged hooks.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/yellowtail-martini-scott-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Scott's 49 pound Yellowtail[/center]
After lunch the skiffs went out and we went North to fish along the shoreline. The action wasn't wide but it was a lot of fun. I actually sight fished a small halibut on a 5 inch swimbait. Duke showed us his versatility by catching several different species within minutes of eachother. I think his collection included Calico Bass, Sand Bass, Garabaldi, Halibut, Sheepshead, and a puffer fish. There may have been more - I just can't remember.
Day 8 - Thursday - June 5, 2003 - San Martin Island:
We were out on the first skiff run today. It started out slow for us but toward the end we got into a really nice bite along the edge of the kelp. Today Bryan and I were primarily sticking to Assalt grubs just for the fun of it. We caught lots of fish in the 1 - 3 pound range with a few pushing 5. The hot baits were the 5 inch Twin Tail Spyder Grub color #10 (Amber Pepper Red) and the 5 inch Skirted Ringer Curl Tail in color #7 (Irish Whiskey).
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/assalt-calico-wolf-davis-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]A couple of nice bass caught on the Assalt Grubs[/center]
Dimitri and his skiff showed us that how to read the conditions, water, land, etc. can really pay off as they caught another fish that approached 9 pounds and a handful of 7 pounders.
During the mid-morning skiff run Brian put us on a pretty nice halibut bite where several fish in the low 20s were put on the boat.
*****************************************
For more pictures from the trip visit [url "http://www.bighammerlures.com/gallery-skiff.htm"]www.bighammerlures.com/gallery-skiff.htm[/url]
If you were on the trip and have pictures please send them to [url "mailto:photos@bighammerlures.com"]photos@bighammerlures.com[/url]
[signature]
I just returned from the Big Hammer Calico Bass Skiff trip on the Qualifier 105. Like last year this trip was unbelievable. Personally I didn't do as well as I did last year but overall I would say the trip was actually a little better (if that's possible). The average size of the bass seemed slightly smaller but the numbers of big bass were higher. The yellowtail fishing was also just as good if not better. Lots of nice yellowtail to 50 lbs. on iron, swimbaits, and bait. I did a lot of experimenting this year which may have lead to me not doing quite as well as last year but I learned a lot - which is a fine trade off. One thing I did notice this year was that swimbait colors seemed to matter a little more this year - at least for me and the guys on my skiff runs. Sometimes colors that I thought would be great weren't and vice versa.
The new Big Hammer color "Senorita" which has been very productive for bass here in California didn't produce like I expected. The only place it did well was in boiler conditions. On the other hand, "Sea Wolf", a color I never thought I would seriously target calicos with was one of the best colors of the entire trip. For yellowtail it was the new "Steve's Shad" color in the 6 and 7 inch baits.
The crew was great and exceeded all expectations. Brian Sims is an excellent captain and goes way beyond driving the boat and putting people on fish. His fun personality, knowledge, and laid back attitude really helped make the trip fun in addition to the excellent fishing he found for all of us.
*****************************************
Some of my best baits:
Bass (5 & 6 inch swimbaits - mostly 5 inch):
#60 - Sea Wolf (all conditions)
#52 - Red Calico Hunter (darker conditions and/or boiler conditions)
#43 - Firetiger (medium light conditions fishing the kelp)
#4 - Keylime (bright sunny conditions fishing the kelp)
Yellowtail (6 & 7 inch swimbaits):
#66 - Steve's Shad
#51 - Silver Sardine
Yellowtail (iron):
Blue/White or Dorado (surface)
Scrambled Egg (sinking)
*****************************************
Day 1 - Thursday - May 29, 2003 - San Diego:
Started the trip off on the wrong foot. After loading our stuff on the boat Bryan and I went over to Angler's Choice to grab a fighting belt and a couple of jigs. We got back to the dock 30 minutes before the scheduled departure but since they thought everyone was on board they were pulling away from the dock. Having them come back and retrieve us won us the coveted "Nutsack" award for that day. On the way out we stopped on a few spots that were holding some yellowtail and large snot missles. Steve Greanias got the first of many yellowtail on the trip and it was the only yellowtail pulled from all the 'cudas. Most of the fish were caught on iron.
Day 2 - Friday - May 30, 2003 - San Martin Island:
Like last year there were a couple of skiffs with only a couple guys on board so like last year I jumped on when I could. I was able to fish the first skiff run and San Martin. It was a fairly productive run - much better than last year at San Martin. We had a steady pick of nice bass (2 - 4 pounders) with a few that broke the 5 pound mark. My first 5 pounder came near the end of the run on the 5 inch Sea Wolf. On the next skiff run we started at a point and worked a different side of the island. It started out on a bang for Bryan as he nailed two nice bass right away on the 5 inch Sea Wolf. As we got around the corner the calicos turned into sand bass and the bite died off a bit. We worked our way down getting lots of sandies with the occasional calico mixed in.
Big fish of the day was an estimated 8+ pounder caught by Dimitri Peros. Unfortunately there was no Boga Grip on his skiff and they had to estimate the weight. If I remember correctly the fish was 24.5 inches long with part of it's tail missing.
Day 3 - Saturday - May 31, 2003 - Benitos Island:
Started out bass fishing in the kelp which produced moderate results. Moved into the gap and fished the sparatic kelp with a few boilers which picked up the bite a bit. Bryan was still throwing Sea Wolf and still consistently getting fish. I experimented as long as I could with moderate results and finally broke down and started fishing the Sea Wolf also. After a nice run on bass we saw some signs of yellowtail and started casting various lures. When we didn't get bit we started slow trolling. I had a 6 inch Steve's Shad colored Big Hammer out. Bryan had a Krocodile and if I remember correctly Tom had a Rapala. Within a minute or so I hooked up to our first skiff yellow on the Hammer. After landing the fish we made our way around a point where the other skiffs were knocking the yellowtail left and right. Most fish were on surface iron. Our fish were on Hammers and Krocodiles. We ended up with 7 yellowtail with just as many lost to light tackle and shallow water. Steve's skiff brought in 17 yellowtail.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/yellowtail-davis-bryan-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]One of Bryan's Skiff Caught Yellowtail[/center]
While all of the yellowtail activity was going on the bass were going absolutely nuts - but not on anyone's line. The ocean was literally filled with red crabs and the bass were boiling on them like crazy. Unfortunately they weren't interested in anything else. It was an awesome sight and really fun to watch. I was wishing I had a redbug colored Assalt Crawdad, Salt Stik or maybe even a red colored Rebel Wee-Crawfish.
Day 4 - Sunday - June 1, 2003 - Cedros Island:
Bryan was lucky enough to sneak on the first morning run and had an excellent trip. Red Calico Hunter was his hot color and he swore the red painted heads were making a difference. On the second run we headed to the same spot which was still producing. I was in experimental mode so while all three of the other guys on the skiff were using red jig heads I stuck with plain (for a while). To my surprise they were all outfishing me so once again I broke down and switched to a red jig head. Sure enough I started doing better. Unfortunately it was just a tad too late as the bite started to die off.
We started running around trying to find another bite when Cal and I remembered the good fishing we had off the point last year. We stopped just beyond the point and set up a drift and the bass went completely WIDE OPEN!! For the rest of our run there were very few casts that went untouched. Most of the fish were in the 3-5 pound range and every fish that came up would have 2 to 8 followers trying desperately to grab the swimbait out of the hooked fishes mouth. Dropping another swimbait into the water would be an instant hook-up. Seeing those big calicos in that crystal clean water going completely nuts was one of the best moments of the trip. At noon we had to leave the fish biting to go back to the Q105 for lunch and the next skiff run.
I was able to jump on Brad and Scott's skiff after lunch and we headed right back to the point. The bass were still in full speed except there weren't quite as many followers. I don't think we caught anything under 2 pounds. The highlight of the run was when Brad hooked up to something very big. After managing to get it out of the kelp he finally got the fish up and seeing it down about 10 feet I knew right away it was BIG. He got it into the boat and it was by far the biggest calico I've ever seen. It's head was absolutely enormous. It went 9 pounds even on the Boga Grip and was about 24.5 inches long. It was caught on a 5 inch Silver Sardine Big Hammer. This was Brad's second big fish of the day has he landed a 49 pound yellowtail from the big boat during the mid-morning skiff run.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/calico-golstein-brad-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Brad's 9 pound Calico[/center]
The bright colors such as Keylime, Silver Sardine, and Chartreuse Grunion were the hot ones this afternoon when the sun was out.
After dinner the squid showed up and I caught my first one ever. It amazing how good those things pull and weird that they will attack a swimbait. I threw out a 6 inch Calico Hunter and watched the squid come over to it, grab it, and start eating it.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/squid-wolf-pete-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Hammer Caught Squid[/center]
Day 5 - Monday - June 2, 2003 - Chester's Rocks:
First morning skiff run. It started off kind of slow fishing the kelp. We moved around a bit and ended up near the main rock and the boiler fishing was on. All four of us hooked up immediately casting at the rock with a straight in grind. The fish weren't big (1 to 3 pounds) but it was sure fun pulling them away from the rocks. Senorita finally turned on for the first time this trip. I also used a slightly more subdued prototype version of Senorita which worked very well also. After the "rock bite" died off a little we started exploring. We saw some boils and birds working outside so we buzzed over and to our surprise didn't find yellowtail but found bass. The first casts with surface iron and krocodiles produced a few nice bass. Then once they broke up we were able to find them deeper with swimbaits.
I spent the mid-morning skiff run on the big boat where Captain Brian Sims expertly stirred up a nice long wide open surface bite of 25 pound class yellowtail. Fish were crashing everywhere and eating everything. I got my first fish on the surface iron then switched to the 6 inch Steve's Shad swimbait and continued to nail them. After the mid-morning skiff run Dimitri came on the boat and started getting the yellows on the 7 inch Steve's Shad.
I got on the early afternoon skiff run just as the bite was starting to mellow out a bit. Out of Steve's Shad baits I threw on a 6 inch Silver Sardine and nailed another one from the skiff. We searched for a few more yellows then commenced to bass fishing. We went to the beach and had an excellent drift past beautiful coastline catching countless bass to 6 pounds and a 7 lb. Leopard Grouper for Bryan. Keylime was my hot color as the sun was out and the water beautifully clear.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/calico-wolf-pete-0007.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]5.8 lb. Calico Bass[/center]
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/leopard-grouper-davis-bryan-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Bryan's Leopard Grouper[/center]
We found a big school of bass feeding on the red crabs like they were at Benitos. I tried rigging a 5 inch Clear Red Hammer weightless and using it like a jerkbait. I got bit once but didn't stick the fish. Once again wishing I had some redbug Assalt lures on board.
Day 6 - Tuesday - June 3, 2003:
At dinner last night the captain suggested trying out some new inside areas that are not visited by long range boats very much. Although everyone agreed that it would be fun to "explore" the fishing just wasn't there. The big Lizardfish were wide open but the bass didn't really want to play. On our skiff run Tom pulled a couple of nice calicos off the rocks and we found a deep spot that was holding a few nice sand bass and calicos - in between all of the lizardfish.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/calico-hampton-tom-0002.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]One of Tom's Calicos[/center]
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/lizardfish-davis-bryan-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Wide Open on Lizardfish![/center]
Day 7 - Wednesday - June 4, 2003 - Cedros Island:
Once again we had an excellent day at Cedros. The morning skiff runs produced countless bass - again. Bryan hopped on the mid-morning skiff run with Brad and Scott to witness Scott catching a 49 pound Yellowtail on a 5 inch Big Hammer while bass fishing in moderately heavy cover. He got the fish on 25 lb. test. While the skiffs were out in the morning the big boat went and chased yellowtail. The first stop produced several large fish between 40 and 50. The 50 pounder which ended up being the largest fish for the trip went to Doug Frasco using a 7 inch Steve's Shad Big Hammer. The next stop produced lots more yellowtail but they were generally smaller. I caught a few and lost one to the dogs and a nice fish at color to a straightened hook. I didn't think it would happen but next year I will be bringing the Hammerhead Tuna Jig Heads with the forged hooks.
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/yellowtail-martini-scott-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]Scott's 49 pound Yellowtail[/center]
After lunch the skiffs went out and we went North to fish along the shoreline. The action wasn't wide but it was a lot of fun. I actually sight fished a small halibut on a 5 inch swimbait. Duke showed us his versatility by catching several different species within minutes of eachother. I think his collection included Calico Bass, Sand Bass, Garabaldi, Halibut, Sheepshead, and a puffer fish. There may have been more - I just can't remember.
Day 8 - Thursday - June 5, 2003 - San Martin Island:
We were out on the first skiff run today. It started out slow for us but toward the end we got into a really nice bite along the edge of the kelp. Today Bryan and I were primarily sticking to Assalt grubs just for the fun of it. We caught lots of fish in the 1 - 3 pound range with a few pushing 5. The hot baits were the 5 inch Twin Tail Spyder Grub color #10 (Amber Pepper Red) and the 5 inch Skirted Ringer Curl Tail in color #7 (Irish Whiskey).
[center][image]http://www.swimbait.com/gallery/photos/assalt-calico-wolf-davis-0001.jpg[/image][/center]
[center]A couple of nice bass caught on the Assalt Grubs[/center]
Dimitri and his skiff showed us that how to read the conditions, water, land, etc. can really pay off as they caught another fish that approached 9 pounds and a handful of 7 pounders.
During the mid-morning skiff run Brian put us on a pretty nice halibut bite where several fish in the low 20s were put on the boat.
*****************************************
For more pictures from the trip visit [url "http://www.bighammerlures.com/gallery-skiff.htm"]www.bighammerlures.com/gallery-skiff.htm[/url]
If you were on the trip and have pictures please send them to [url "mailto:photos@bighammerlures.com"]photos@bighammerlures.com[/url]
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