Jeff DeBuys docked Independence at Pt. Loma Sportfishing August 25 after a five-day trip to Benitos/Cedros and open waters north. His 25 anglers made a good mixed catch of tuna and yellowtail on the SportfishingReport.com charter, with owner Chad Woods as chartermaster.

"We spent two days fishing offshore," said Jeff to dock reporter Bill Roecker, "and two days at the islands, They were biting with all methods there, with limits of sea lions. We had excellent yellowfin and bluefin fishing offshore.

"That offshore scene isn't going away," he continued, "there's no sign of a slowdown, and the setup looks good for fall fishing." There were prizes and awards for the five best yellowtail and the best tuna. They included some new Seeker rods and an Avet reel to go with the jackpots.

Don Padick of Alta Dena won first place for his 35.4-pound yellowtail, a fish he coaxed with a mackerel on a dropper loop with eight ounces of weight and a 7/0 Owner gorilla hook. He said he used 50-pound Big Game line, a Penn 30 reel and a Calstar 760 H rod to crank the fish up in short order.

Doug Stewart of Angel Fire, NM won second place for a 34.2-pounder, and Omesh Persaud of Simi Valley took third place for a 32.6-pound yellow. Bart Williams of Oceanside got a 32-pound 'tail and Homan Khaki of Camarillo produced a 31-pound yellowtail for the lineup shot. They were joined Greg Moore of Goleta and his 22.4-pount yellowfin tuna.