Well, I'm due to report, so, crab is the only story here. It's a pretty good story, as stories go. To be fair, you can definitely go home with nothing, but mostly crabbers are leaving with a few crab. Snarers are getting a few. When the current gets too strong, a few snarers are heading out onto the oceanfront beach and picking up a few keeper Dungeness. The current isn't nearly as fast there. Inside the bay the boaters are picking up a few up to limits. The guy I spoke with that had limits used rockfish heads for bait when he limited, but had half-limits using chicken for bait. His timing with the tide may have been better on his limit day, too, as crabbing over the tide turn is almost always better than crabbing through peak current. The outer bay has still been good but, as usual, dropping in the right spot is the key, and finding that spot, well, it can take a bit of effort. I'm still looking for it. But I've seen the results from the guys that found it, so I know that there's a few spots out there to be found. 

    The weather forecast has not been sympathetic to bluefin fishing, so I haven't heard of anyone heading out there lately. No tuna reports does bode well for no whales spotted, so let's look at the silver lining, as it were. Maybe traps, soon. Of course, that would also mean that the guys that depend on crabbing to pay their bills will get to go fishing, too, so the better gear is offset by a load of better fishermen. Good for them, though, if it happens. We had our easy chances, and if we missed it it's kind of our fault. Go make some house payments, boys.

      It's been a busy holiday week. I haven't had the chance to write. Luckily, others have stepped in and picked up the slack. Thanks! Here's a tuna report from Tuesday: "Hey Willie,

 

Tried out the new Makaira 50 wide yesterday trolling Bodega Canyon to the canyon north of the football.  Lots of birds, whales and dolphin but no tuna seen.  We did get one hit at the north canyon that stayed on for 5 seconds then off.  No sign of debris or fish lips on the Madmac so not sure what it was.  We did stop on the football to crank up some rockfish in 600’ of water which gave us the exorcise we hopped to get reeling in a tuna.

 

Regards,

 

Brad Stompe"  It sounds like you had a short strike, Brad. I'm jealous. The only feedback I had on Tuesday was the boat bucking from the chop. We're probably past the best bluefin fishing this year but I'll bet it ain't over. I'll bet someone has a bit of success by next weekend, weather permitting, and possibly in shallower water than one would expect, as the bait seems to have moved in closer. Gage and a buddy missed one near Cordell yesterday among piles of birds and whales. It's not dead, it's only mostly dead.

   Zack Wilson sent in this report from today: "How’s it going?

Went out solo today on a beauty of a day on the bay. Set off around 8am and plan was to test out some spots inside the bay and then run North towards Salmon Creek if things looked slow. Boats were stacked up there so figured things were happening. Luckily I didn’t need to leave my spot in the bay and I ran through a 6 trap set twice and was pulling in about 1.5-2 keepers a trap with lots of shorts and lots of babies. Got my limit and pulled back in around Noon. They’re still out there!

Best, 

Zack"  Clearly, Zack was crabbing in a different spot than I did, and good for him. Those are some jumbos. Most everybody working gear in the outer bay have been doing pretty well. Zack just did well a bit quicker. A word to the wise, though: Both of the MPAs off of Bodega Head (the MPA and the SMCA) are closed to crabbing with hoops. It seems that most boaters are avoiding it, but it's worth a mention. It would suck to get a ticket for dropping a ring (that you have to use in order to save the whales) in a place that only allows traps (that you have to use because that's how the law was written, apparently). That would be bad timing. In other news, Tomales Bay crabbing continues to be tepidly plod along, not great but not bad, mostly. As usual, boaters are outdoing shore casters. The tides are ripping out in the afternoons and the bar is potentially fatal, but so far this week nobody has flipped over or been sucked out the bay. But tomorrow is another day. Fingers crossed that we all survive the holidays.

 

    Here's a good report from today: "Hi Willy!

We ran through the gear once in the outer bay for 1 keeper and bailed back inside. We hit it just right and ended up with 13 commercial grade Dungeness. 3 of them were the biggest We have ever caught in over 15 years of crabbing in the bay. The gauge is 7 inches and it didn't cover the shell. I'm sure it was the albacore trimmings we used for bait that got us the jumbo, not our crabbing prowess. Somewhere between mile 5 marker and the green can. Great day at Lawsons and on Tomales Bay, as usual.

Crew of the Tomales Outlaw"   Clearly, I should have been crabbing on the Tomales Outlaw today. They had a good day. I tried for bluefin, hoping that the east wind wouldn't be too bad. The wind didn't howl, but twenty miles of fetch was enough to make the waves really unpleasant. And no tuna for us, nor feeding birds, from the north end of Cordell to the Football. I wish I had been crabbing. Other people have been doing pretty good on crab. Kapulani Chong and crew limited on jumbo Dungeness in the outer bay yesterday. There have been a few limits from inside the bay, but mostly people are catching just a few. The shore snarers are catching a few too.

  

 Guess what? "

Risk Assessment and Mitigation Program Update -  November 17, 2023

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Director Charlton H. Bonham has assessed entanglement risk under the Risk Assessment Mitigation Program (RAMP) and announced the commercial Dungeness crab fishery in Fishing Zones 1 and 2 will be delayed, and the season delay in Fishing Zones 3-6 remains in effect due to increased concentrations of blue and humpback whales. There is also a continuation of the temporary crab trap restriction in the recreational crab fishery in Fishing Zones 3 and 4 and will now include Fishing Zone 1. The recreational trap restriction for Fishing Zone 1 will go into effect on Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023, at 6 p.m. and continue in Zones 1, 3 and 4 until at least the next risk assessment. The Fleet Advisory for the recreational fleet in Fishing Zones 1-6 remains in effect. Recreational take of Dungeness crab by other methods, including hoop nets and crab snares, is not affected by the temporary trap restriction and is allowed statewide. The use of recreational crab traps in Fishing Zones 2 and 5 is also still allowed.  The next scheduled risk assessment is expected to occur on or around Dec. 7 or 8, 2023. The full news release can be found at the CDFW News Room and for more information, please visit CDFW’s Whale Safe Fisheries webpage.

" So, that's what. As they suggested, so they decided. The situation stays the same, except that no more traps in the far north of California. Are there suddenly more whales there? At any rate, as sportsmen, we have nothing to complain about. The commercial guys are .... sorry, all my metaphors are pretty disgusting and not to be shared here. Least offensive is, they're getting screwed someplace uncomfortable, and it ain't the back of a Volkswagen Bug. Sorry, guys. But, hey, bluefin to the Oregon border! 

   Also in crab world, some good numbers from the outer bay. A few boats the last few days limited out there, and others did very well. I didn't do as well as I planned but caught five jumbos in an hour with four hoops. I think my bait (bluefin trimmings) washed out pretty quick, as my three runs through the gear dropped from four keepers on the first pass, then one, then none. Then I went home, as high tide would prevent me from getting the boat back out of the water until 2:30. So, a little over an hour for a half limit of jumbos. I think that I would have done better with some squid in the mix, but I only needed five crabs, so good enough. Others did better than I. The good crabbing should last for a while, as the pros won't be able to go for a bit longer.

 I won't copy and paste the press release, but just know that CDFW has info suggesting that they shouldn't open traps for sportsmen or any commercial fishing at all. That's the suggestion. Too many whales, it seems. While an official decision has yet to be announced, I think it's safe to say that you can leave your traps wherever they they are. Hoop, there it is. For now.

   Inside Tomales Bay the catch has dropped off, partly from a huge number of crabbers working a small area, and partly from serious tides causing fast currents. The tides are fading this week, so catches should start sucking less. Probably less gear dragged out of the bay, too. Today's crabbers didn't limit but caught anywhere from 5 to 25 Dungeness per boat. Not bad, but numbers from the outer bay and Ten Mile have been better yet, when you can get there.

  Because shallow water rockfish is closed there really isn't much successful fishing to report on. No tuna reports for a couple of days has people thinking that the tuna have left. While I'd like to say that's true and minimize the amount of boats I have to dodge while tuna trolling, I don't think it's over yet. If the whales are still here, it's because the anchovies are still here. And if the anchovies are still here, probably the bluefin are, too. The bluefin are here to party, and that party is in the form of food. Anchovies being bluefin food, well, nobody's leaving yet.

    Here's another submitted post that I've been waiting for. Lorca Rossman sent over this picture and this report: "Bluefin pics might be getting a little old, but these were my first.  Tacked out the canyon solo yesterday and around the SW corner (09/33) found tons of life.  Dolphins, whales, birds, sea lions..and bluefin!  My sixth attempt and first success.  Trolled a madmac WAY back and between 10 and 11 put a pair of 140-150lb tuna in the boat.  Hadn't brought enough ice so stopped at Lawson's for another 80lbs before heading home.  

Amazing having these fish in our backyard!!" First and second success in one trip! Solo! Plus, as I understand it from another website, Lorca stopped for a limit of crab. Excuse me, a limit of crab! Solo! I'm about maxed out with two fish for three guys, but Lorca seems to be good with two fish for one guy. And as limit of crab! Lorca is one motivated dude, it seems. Damn good job, Lorca, and good on you for waiting them out. And the best thing to have on the boat in order to catch a tuna is another tuna. If you hook one, there's probably another biter nearby. Maybe. Not a lot of bluefin caught yesterday, at least by guys that will tell anybody, but Lorca caught two by himself. So, it seems that when your time is right , you catch. After a few barren days you start to lose faith. Don't. Trust the gear, trust the technique. It works. Ask Lorca. The secret for bluefin? Have faith and keep trolling. It seems to help to be a badass, but I personally use the grind and troll technique. Lorca has the badass thing. Use what you have.

   I also got this report from Harvest Time: "We dropped our first of 12 promars 645 yesterday and started pulling 730ish, limits for 3 by 8th ring, then high-grading and stowing gear and back in Rocklin by 1. Love it when a plan actually works for once." I think that means that there's a few crab in the outer bay.

 

 

   Mike Martin sent over this crab report : "Hey Willy, went out Thursday morning for the first time this year. The herd leaving the dock were all heading north. We decided to give Ten Mile a go. Set 6 pots 50'-70' and another 6 in 115'. Pulled 10 crab out of the shallow pots and ZERO crab in the deep pots. Moved them in shallow and we got our 4 limits in the next 2 pulls. Not stuffed pots for sure but a nice grade of crabs. No females and only about a half dozen under sized."  That sounds like pretty good crabbing to me, and not dodging boats is even better. I guess that when you're crabbing all alone you get to run your own gear without any help. It sounds kinda nice. Most of the crabbers that I spoke with today had Dungeness but not as many had as many as they were trying for. The boats that left the bay did pretty well, but inside it was tougher. 

     These guys gave up on the crabbing today and decided to do something that burned more fuel. In this case, well played, sirs. It was busy and I didn't get names, but I do know that the bluefin weighed 110 pounds gutted. Also, should they choose to go crabbing tomorrow they should have some of the best crab bait imaginable. Even crabs like bluefin.

 

     Crabbers are still catching. I've seen a few keepers caught from shore in front of the store, but most shore snarers are catching very few keepers. Inside Tomales Bay boaters are generally catching enough for dinner but I haven't heard of any limits since the opener. The outer bay has quite a few crab and most boaters crossing the bar are catching limits or numbers close to limits there. Again, though, the crab aren't everywhere and a little testing and fine tuning is often necessary. 

     The forecast for today wasn't ideal but it looked like there might be a tuna window, so Vance Staplin, Alec Bennett and I took a shot at it. Our one bite was at about 9:30 on a pink mackerel Madmac 200 50 seconds back. This one weighed 122lbs gutted and gilled. We caught it at 25 by 35 about a half mile from a birdnado. Close to the same time another boat had a double about a mile north of us. There wasn't nearly as much sign as there was last week. I saw only two tuna at the surface under birds and we covered 75 miles today. It ain't over yet, though.

   I received this photo yesterday. No information with it. From what I can deduce from the photo, Curly DiBella caught a bluefin. Way to go, Curly! Later, I heard that he was fishing with Peter Kim out of Bodega. Two fish for Peter's boat in two trips? First, go Peter! Second, go Curly! Third, you can tell me if you launch from a different place, guys. I won't be upset. Actually, less work for me, so... The takeaway from this is twofold: One, Peter is on a roll. Go team Kim! Two, take Curly fishing. He makes the fish bite. Just ask him.

   I received this report this morning, about November 4. "We fished in the area of 29x36.  Lots of jumpers and birds. After two hours of being taunted by breezers we hooked the long line(90secs). While clearing the other two rods I get hit, number two on. Then it becomes unbelievable the third rod is hooked up. Thank the tuna gods for one coming unbuttoned. After 45 minutes and one bent gaff we have two on the deck. One 120# and the second 185# by doing the math. Ron White on tater salad." Nice job on the triple/double! Two out of three is not bad at all when you're dealing with fish as large as at least some of the crew. Nice job, gents, although I'm not jealous of you triple. It's a rare day when you lose a fish early and think, "Yes!". A good day.

    

    On the crabbing front, numbers dropped a bit on days two and three but people are still catching.  I saw a couple of keepers landed from shore in front of the store and heard of at least one fisherman landing eight on the oceanfront beach on the opener, so there is hope for snares. 

 

    The mixed aromas of spoiled crab bait, stale beer and a bit of marijuana and cigarette smoke floats about the shoreline. Boaters in a rush cut off snares as they race by. Snarers cast out directly on to boats. Drunk crabbers pass out under parked, empty boat trailers. Miles of polypropylene rope stretch across the surface of Tomales Bay. Hey everybody, Dungeness season is officially open! And the results so far are mostly just okay. Reports from people casting snares from shore were mostly bad, although, as referred to earlier, a few of them were actually too drunk to crab, so they may have driven the average down. Tomales Bay by boat was fairly typical, with the best crabbing being from Tom's Point to the mouth. The guys that have their spots figured out and usually catch, caught. Those that are still learning mostly caught less, although a few newbies brought home more crab than they expected. Numbers there ranged from limits to zeroes with a median around 6 or 7 per boat. Outer bay? Mostly good if you monitor your gear and move the unproductive rings around until they start producing. Ten Mile? Good for the few that made the trip, and best of all, everybody there was running their own gear and not "sharing." One fellow tried up at Salmon Creek for nothing, then brought his rings down to the outer bay and got quick limits. They're out there if you look for them and the crabbing probably won't get any better this season.

    The Coastodian sent over a few pictures on what it looked like in other local launches. These photos are from Miller Park and Westside. The boat without a plug was at Miller. I had heard that it almost sank, but this photo ain't almost. That's sunk. As far as I know, though, it sounds like nobody died out there today. Good job, everyone! 

   Here's your obligatory crab pictures, also provided by the Coastodian; "Some mean crabs caught today.

The guy that belongs to the hand got bit hard while they were cleaning them. His buddies gave him a hard time to which he replied "hey, I already lost one finger"" Yes, folks, even half a crab can still pinch hard. Save your fingers. 

 

  

 Here's the post I've been waiting for"

Proverbs 13:19: “A desire realized is sweet to the soul.”

 

Thanks to Willy, Gage, Vern S., Ryan G., Danny at Fisherman’s Warehouse, Alan Tani and Tony Pena for freely sharing your intellectual property. Also, thanks to the one gal and all the guys who tried with me multiple times and struck out, and to my buddy Erin who cranked on this one with me today. NorCal BFT has quickly transformed this expensive hobby into an expensive sickness!

 

64”, 26x35 just west of the football, 240mm pink madmac 650’ back (using Rapala Digital Line Counter), blind strike, 11/2, 1:40pm, 20-minute fight. Hooked in the red of the gills and came in easy at the end.

HarvestTime" You thought the addiction was bad before, Steve. Now you're well and completely  f****d, Welcome. I'm actually happier for you than for my catch. You earned yours more. Many trips without a bite. I'd like to say they get easier but that's probably baloney. Good on you for sticking it out for your first, and good on you for sticking out for number two. I hope it's easier, but there ain't no guarantees in fishing. It could be worse. But now you'll keep grinding, because you know. They say the tug is the drug, but the pull that wants to drag you over the side is something else entirely. 
And not we earned your thanks by any other measure than by "if those jackasses can do it, so can I" inspiration, but you're welcome. When we assemble a 12 step group we will try to include you. Glad you got 'em.

   That report weas from yesterday. Today at the Landing...

   Kapulani Chong took out this motley crew today and caught this 115 pounder (gutted and gilled). Kapu has put in his time, and Eddie P? No comment. But they got 'em today, and no matter the money and time you spend chasing one of these critters, once it happens, it's all worth it. Bluefin are pretty notorious for pulling hard, but at least in the warmer water down south they'll overheat or run out of oxygen. Up here in the cold, oxygen-rich water, the fight is different. Hang on. And an addiction is born. Nice work, Kapulani and crew, and it even harder work with Eddie on board. I know. Good on ya'.

   

     Finally! Gage, Alec and I got one at the Football today. 104 pounds gutted. We saw the usual bird and tuna show but no whales there (they were all off of Bodega Head in 40 fathoms). In the holes in the fog we saw several other boats with fish hooked up. In some of the thick fog we saw the boat Blue Money run over and break off one of out MadMacs, Normally I wouldn't name names, but the Blue Money ran over our lines on July 5, too. Twice gets you outed. TWICE! Apparently not saying anything supports bad behavior. Anyways, we finally caught one after sliding our lines back further. Go figure, two days of no bites with our lines at 40 and 60 seconds out, then less than an hour after going to 50 and 75 seconds me hook up on the long line. 

    I'm trying to talk Gage into going to 90 seconds for the long line. Maybe 100?

 

    

From yesterday, not two fish, but one fish twice. Nice damn fish, though. This one went 122 pounds. Tom Brodsky and Vern Sasaki caught it well beyond the Football around noon on a pink Halco Max 190 (or 220). Not many bluefin caught yesterday, so Tom thought he'd try his luck again today.

   Tom also brought along his lucky Ron Johnson. Ron did all the reeling and grunting for this one. It went 108 on our scale, gutted, but it felt and looked heavier to me. This fish also bit the pink Halco, but it bit just after sunrise on the north side of the Bodega Canyon. Pretty serious work for a couple of retired guys.

   Peter Kim and crew (yes, that's Doug in there) caught this 108 pound (gutted, gilled) bluefin at the Football today. The saw many nonbiting tuna but finally found a biter at 10:30 or so this morning. It liked Peter's green mackerel Madmac 200. Peter earned this first bluefin for his boat after seven trips. Your time was up, Peter. Nice work, but watch that gaff work. The fish didn't like getting punctured and took a five minute tour of the area before returning with Peter's gaff. There was a noontime bite at the Football, or at least it seemed like it to me, as I watched boat after boat hook fish around me. Gage and I hooked zero fish today. There were other boats with zeroes, too, but watching other people catch makes it hard to tell yourself that the fish aren't biting. Then guy crying for help on the radio because he needed a gaff (or maybe another gaff and a guy to work it) to land his fish was kind of the straw that broke this camel's back. I may have yelled vile things at the radio. You researched, bought the right gear, ran to right place, trolled the right way, hooked a fish, got it to the boat, but forgot that you might catch a fish as big as you? That might be difficult to get into the boat? Isn't that kind of the point of this fishery? I have five gaffs on the boat when tuna fishing. I've never needed more than three. I guess I had too many gaffs and hands to catch a tuna today.

   On the crabbing front, it looks good for the opener. There were a few people poaching from shore today and they caught some very nice Dungeness (The person I heard this report from saw the crabs but the poachers in question assured her that the season opened on November 1. It doesn't) Assuming we can CalTip any future season jumpers, it bodes well for the rest of the law-abiding fishermen. Decent crab on the beach should mean good crabbing where the crab should be. Time will tell. We did score a few fish heads for bait for the opener from a commercial fisherman, so we will be selling those for as long as we can get them. Demand is likely to outstrip supply.