Very new to tuna but very addicted Olny 2 trips so far both out of port a have any of you been on ling range trips out of California how do they fish

It is a whole different thing just because of the kind of fish out there, also depends on the boat and the kind of trip some are a mix of bottom fish which the go to Mexico first and then chase tuna, and some they just going to chase the big tuna , if you going in a mix trip yes you need you arsenal because you just never know what is going to work, the ones when you going only for the big tuna are more strait forward you can get by whit just 3 rods in a mix trip i seen guys whit 15 rods and mini bass proshop for tackle box LOL some guys just bring to much i think 7-8 rods is good for a mix trip , price is not bad if you consider the accommodations and the food plus the opportunity to load on fish, if you ever fish whit them one negative side effect is that you would find all the open charter boats in the GOM so obsolete and in bad shape that is like gonging for a ride in a Freeman and then get in to Panga at least that was how i feel when i started to fish in the GOM well except for the American Patriot that boat is on pair whit the ones in Cali , something else that a found in the way people fish in GOM is that they prove that simple things work instead of having to be worried a bout loading tons of sardines most trips i being every body is key on casting lures and it works ! heck also everybody is on the same lure , i remember my first trip on the NB i was amazed to see that everyone where keyed on trowing the same lure , all i bring whit me was my usual surface irons and a few other lures , i got hit on the surface iron twice but lost them lucky for me the lady in the galley sold me 2 halcos and bam got my frist YF in the GOM so always go whit what the locals are fishing they fish that way for a reason.

The San Diego Sportfishing boats are awesome (most of them anyway). There's usually really good food and drinks, comfortable galley, decent bunks and tons of bait. The last few years, there's been nothing but terrific fishing in which the fish stay around the boat blowing up on bait for hours while the boat brails bait. You can try to catch them any way you want to. Then there's the night time jig bite. It's a pretty awesome experience I would recommend anyone try at least once.

Most of the bluefin are anywhere from 10 to 100 miles out in the summer and fall. A 2.5 or 3 day trip is perfect if you time your trip right. You'll have two full days of fishing and that can be a totally unforgettable and exhausting experience if everything aligns just right. Some guys fly in just for a 1.5 day trip. I made a new friend on one of my 1.5 trips. He flew in that early morning, went straight to the landing, went out on the 1.5 trip with us that evening and flew back out after the boat came back in. Saved a lot of money on hotel costs for sure.

I went on my first long range trip last July and it definitely was a great trip. Expensive for me, but I decided to hold off on retiring so I could mark some fishing trips and other items off my bucket list. I went on a 7 day trip on the Independence and it was first class all the way.

I bought a few reels with me and used loaner rods from the boat, they also had complete loaner gear. First stop after we left the dock was to one of the bait barges in San Diego bay where they loaded up on around 700 scoops of live sardines.Then the next 20 hours were spent traveling to our first fishing spot. Some education on where we were going, rigging up your gear and other information was shared. A lot of great food, poker games, and beverages getting to know each other. Many of the people on the boat go on the same trip every year and have gotten to know each other well.

once we started fishing off some rocks in Mexico there was great yellowtail and yellowfin action. Everyone was using livesardines on fly lines for bait. When we did move we would troll for Wahoo. After a few day’s fishing off shore in Mexico we headed back to the California coast where there was fantastic bluefin action, both jigging at night, and with live bait during the day. I actually caught my first bluefin casting a Halco with my spinning reel, most people on the boat had never heard of Halcos and were surprised that I caught one of the first bluefins with one. The sight of seeing the giant schools of bluefin boiling on the surface is something I never will forget.

my total catch was around 20 tuna and yellowtail and one small Mahi with the largest bluefin estimated at 185 pounds. Adding to that the wonderful memories and friends I made and the trip was everything I had hoped it would be. I would highly recommend it if you can afford it and you can’t go wrong with the Independence.

Been on just 2 long range San Diego trips after watching a lotta YouTube videos. Eventually I had to see for myself. Went on a 8 day on the Shogun in 2021 and a 10 day on the Excel in 2022 and regret neither of them.

Some observations:
1. As others have mentioned their style of fishing is different than how we fish in the Gulf of Mexico. Very live bait (mostly sardine) focused. They have a whole industry that supports live sardines.
2. Also very much a conventional round reel scene. Spinning reels although getting more common are still comparatively rare on the boat. Also their tackle stores at the marina are to die for. Expensive but a lotta cool tackle and gear to ogle at.
3. The long range boats there are built for endurance and not speed. They are all monohulls so they aren’t as fast as the New Buccaneer. I’d guess they mostly cruise around at 8-10 knots? But they have tremendous endurance and can stay on the water for weeks at a time. With a monohull you get more internal space so now you have things like staterooms, flushing toilets, real sinks, real showers, hot water, a real galley with served meals, etc. It’s almost like being on a small cruise ship. Much more comfortable than our GoM boats.
4. Long range trips are not cheap but if you price it out per day it is actually not that far off from what we pay here in the GoM. Trips fill up quickly.
5. Those guys roll deep with their tackle. I was amazed at how many rods and reels they brought with them. There were guys with like 10 complete combos just for themselves.

If you wanna catch bluefin tuna the bite is on now and has been good for several years now. Bluefin are much closer to San Diego than say larger yellowfins so you can be on fish within several hours sail of the harbor. So that means smaller boats can chase them on shorter trips (1.5-3 day trips) and you have dozens of choices.

As for the truly long range boats that go out for a week or longer there are perhaps no more than 10 of those.

My advice is save your pennies and try a SoCal long range trip. If ur big into fishing you must try it at least once in your life. You won’t regret it. I told myself I wouldn’t do a SoCal trip in 2023 but seeing all the bluefins they’ve been putting on the deck this season I am really tempted.