By now many of you have read the report on our annual 5-day trip. You may have asked yourself, "How did we plan this trip to Guadalupe over a year in advance and know that the fish would be they’re waiting for us?" Well we did not. We just figured that by using some usually patterns that the time we choose could be good. What patterns you ask? Well those are some of the secrets that have made our annual 5-day trips successful for many years.

    The first reason was the moon phase. Now many people will tell you that the moon phase does not play that large of a role in the fishing. Dark moons, full moons or quarter moons it makes no difference. That may well be true but you will not get me to believe that. . One of the reason that Ono Custom Rods has their 5–day trips on the Red Rooster III is that we are able to have different dates each year based on the moon phase. All of our 5-day Ono Custom Charters on the Red Rooster III are around the Dark of the Moon. Meaning no moon in the night sky. With the results we have had over the last 5 years we are not going to change this pattern.

    Skippers can make or brake a trip. It is also hard for skippers to take a chance on going to a spot that has not been producing to give it a look. With Andy Cates at the helm of the Red Rooster III he is always willing to listen to our ideas. Maybe Andy is just being nice to "Mr. Ono" or maybe he figures that after fishing long range for 20 years Mr. Ono might actually know something. Either way Andy listens. We put the idea of going to Guadalupe Island the year before and Andy was put to the task.

    Keeping track of water temperatures also can be of great benefit. Knowing trends both locally as well as worldwide will improve your success. With this summer water temps affected by last winter’s La Nina, going a little later in season was a good choice for yellowfin tuna. With a prediction another La Nina this summer and fall, we have planned next years trip at the end of August next year.

    Targeting a particular species of fish also makes planning a trip easier. If you want Yellowfin Tuna then you need water temps of 68 degrees or warmer. The only place you might find YFT’s would be down below Cedros Island or at Guadalupe Island. But it is also good to have a back-up plan. Luckily we did not need one this year. Who knows about next year?

    If you keep the anglers informed about what to use and to be flexible helps improved your chances. We try to make the anglers know what tackle to bring on these trips. Not because we want to sell them more tackle but to have the correct equipment. Besides many of our regulars on these trips are from southern California, so they buy their tackle elsewhere. If the tuna are only biting on 30- lb. line we let everyone on board know what is working. If they are biting on anchovies, we ask everyone to switch to anchovies.

    The another reason is the passengers that are on our charters. No matter how good the fishing is you can still have a bad trip. All it takes is a couple of people in your group of 30 to ruin the trip for others. We try to weed out the undesirable anglers. The angler could be one of the best fishermen around but if he is a pain we really do not want him. We would rather have a nice guy with limited fishing skills on board. Catching tons of fish important but have a great time is the prime objective on our trips.

    Which brings us to our final reason for going on the Red Rooster III, Jorge Nicifore. I have known Jorge for almost 20 years now and he is like family. Just about anyone who has fished on the Red Rooster when Jorge was in the galley remembers him. Good trip or bad trip, the passengers remember Jorge. If Jorge ever retires, I will try to talk him into coming out on our trips. We just have so much fun when he is on board.

    You can use these "secrets" to help you plan your next trip. They will improve your chances of having a great time too. So starting planning your trips well in advance so you can get the correct dates on the boat you want. If you want to fish with Jorge and the Ono Custom Rods group, just drop us a note and we will send you all the information about next year.