"New Skiff and September Santa Barbara Salmon!"

Hey guyz,
I know that I have not posted for a while, but wanted to share photos of my new skiff. It is a 15 foot Radon. I got it and on the first trip out, I blew a rod or sumtin in the engine a mile from Anacapa.

Tired of missing prime fishing due to crappy motors, I bucked up and bought a 'new' engine from Imotors.com. I decided to replace the 1985 75 hp merc with a 2001 75hp 4-stroke that spent one season at a freshwater resort in Canada, then returned to Merc to be totally spiffed up and 'like-new'.

Well, it was a little scary sending 6 grand to some guy in Salt Lake City for an engine I had never seen, but being an eternal optimist (arent we all, being fishermen?) I signed the check and low-and-behold, 2 weeks later my mechanic has a 500lb crate at his door.

The motor looked HUGE on my boat, and I have no more fingernails, for it was a week before I could get the boat down from my mechanic and into the water for the first time. It was supposedly only 75 pounds heavier than my last motor, but I was afraid it would sink stern first at the launch ramp, but it was fine.

http://www.whiteseabass.com/marcopolo.jpg

WELL, it did find, rides better than ever, and after my first trip to Anacapa on saturday, I got a whopping 67 miles out of about 12 gallons of gas! (5.6 gallons per mile) and it would have gotten better mileage, but I opened it up wide open a few times behind the island and near the harbor (31+ knots!)

I finally have a great boat, awsome motor and I am ready to fish!

Yesterday, I fished salmon at the rigs from dawn till 9:30. I trolled from the middle of the upper four to the bottom of the three for nothing. I might have had a short strike, but no biters. I think that I went through a spot of giant squid, I had line pull from one rig for a few moments, then nothing, like the hook pulled through. When I retrieved, the bait was all chewed up, but nothing stuck. (It should have, it was rat trapped.)

I then went in off carp and bounced for flatties, until about 11:30 for nada, then trolled a small mack that I caught and a rapala and yo-zuri for threshers until 1 or so. I then went in and cast plastics along the eelgrass beds for one short halibut.

I then buzzed up the coast fishing briefly at some of my shallow halibut spots in tight, for nada, then buzzed up to campus point, lots of weeds in tight, so I headed off moremesa and bounced for a half hour for a big fat nada....... Cant say I did not put in the time/effort.

http://www.whiteseabass.com/septsalmon.jpg

I did run into "Bird Dog" at the dock and he had 2 salmon that he got near the gap at 1:00 and 2:30!!!

SEPTEMBER SALMON!

Big south swell as well as a southern hemisphere swell, so the warm water should get pushed up here, hopefully with some exotics!!

Better dayz to come!

Marco Farrell
F/V Marco Polo
Santa Barbara
have2fish@yahoo.com
http://www.whiteseabass.com

Great effort and great story!

Where do you recommend getting a Mercury outboard (I have one)serviced in Santa Barbara (or close by)?

Thanks.

Bob

Call my buddy Scott of Scott Marine, local mobile marine mechanic....

805-680-7801

tell him I sent ya (then duck) LOL

Marco

Nice boat moondoggie! You'll get the salmon next time...if you had a squid jig out there, you could have slayed the squirters! Not sure if you would want them to mess up that boat though...lol!

Sweet lil Skiff! How does she take a swell out there in the channel?

The "Marco Polo" rides great, scary great. I am just starting to play with the motor trim, and it is getting better and better. It is very responsive, almost like a jetski. I also just installed 'dolfins' and the last trip seemed much more stable.

I have not had it in any weather, but it rode cross swell in 3 foot wind chop at 18 knots without too much slamming, and no spray coming off the bow.

LOVE IT!

Marco

Nice little set up, I am jealous. I was happy to be able to afford my little Sevylor "Fish Hunter" 12'. inflates, but u can add all kinds of helpfull things, a floor is next, I believe it's called a ridgid floor? Question, do I have to register this thing? oh, and any parts or additions available would be great.
Question; do you guys look at someone in a contraption like mine and laugh, should i get a clue and use my Sevylor inflate Kayak?, haha, just wanna know where my money would be better spent, hard skiff, float tube, or one of those awesone looking catamaran tubes? any constructive info and critisim would be appreciated.
I like the;
"slow to grow, let em go"
sign off.
thank you kind fellows
xsk8rgrl