Friday October 16, 2020 my wife and I set out on a 3/4 day freelance trip aboard the Gentleman out of CISCOS (Channel Islands Sportfishing) in Oxnard, CA. This was my wife's first experience fishing offshore.
We boarded the Gentleman at 6 A.M. and set out on a one and a half hour steam to Arch Rock at Anacapa Island. We first targeted Ocean Whitefish. The fishing started slow but picked up throughout the day. Eventually after a couple of sets we were on a decent Whitefish bite.
Later in the day we moved on to target Calico Bass and Yellowtail fly lining with live bait. Several nice Calicos came across the rail. There were several hookups with what seemed to be Yellowtail but only one came across the rail. It was about a 16lb fish and the jackpot winner for the day. Other notable fish that came over the rail are Perch, Sheephead, Scuplin, Johnny Bass and Ling Cod.
At the end of the day we moved on to target rock fish. Most of the day the fishing was fairly slow. The rock fish bite was decent and several nice Blue Rockfish came over the rail. At the end of the day we all came home with some nice fish.
The weather was decent and the waters were calm which made for a nice day for my first-timer wife. She had a good experience and is already looking forward to the next trip.
Now for a quick review of the boat. The Gentleman is an older boat built in 1947. It is well maintained and comfortable. It is 65' x 22' making it a spacious boat. The angler load is limited to 30 anglers so there is plenty of room to fish and not be shoulder to shoulder as can be the case on a lot of party boats. It is equipped with a nice galley that serves up good food, beverages, beer & cocktails. One really nice feature on this boat is the sundeck. This is a great feature for first-timers and kids to get a break from the fishing deck.
On our trip the crew was great. Our Captain was Jeff and he knew a lot of great spots around the island. In the galley we had Johnny; he cooked up a tasty burger and was also very helpful on the deck. There were three deckhands. Two deckhands stood out and gave my wife a lot of assistance throughout the day. Sam, and in particular Chad were always there to us whenever we needed anything. They really made the day enjoyable and were very knowledgeable.
Overall the Gentleman is a great boat for novice and seasoned anglers. 3/4 day trips are offer a good balance of fishing time versus travel time. We departed Oxnard for Anacapa at 6 A.M. and were fishing by 7:30 A.M. We continued to fish until 2:30 and were back on land by 4 P.M. CISCOS is a recommended landing. They have a large fleet ranging from small boats with maximum loads of 10 anglers to larger boats like the Gentleman. They run trip durations from Half Days up to 2 Day trips. Make note that the Half Day trips out of CISCOS are longer than a lot of other landings by at least 2 hours giving the angler more bang for their hard earned bucks.
Thanks for reading this post and check back often for more posts. Our next post we will review the Bassdash Fishing Backpack & Lunch Bag. In the meantime keep on fishing. - Chris
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