And they were done; finished, roasted, toast, sated, fulfilled, and ready to head for home. The final morning in the world famous "Lunker Hole" where the world record yellowfin tuna that stood for thirty something years was caught; the last chance to soak a line in the legendary Revillagigedo reserve, and, one man, then two, then three were all we could muster for the last hurrah. These anglers are done.

There has been so much superb catching, so many opportunities to hook and land premium grade yellowfin tuna over the past twelve days, that the vast majority of anglers have reached their saturation point. Our final hit last night spoke volumes to this end. The festive atmosphere barely took into account the fact that three or four good tuna were hooked by the diehard half a dozen anglers at the rail. When I mentioned the fact, and encouraged everyone to give it their all, the vast majority looked at me as if I were nuts. Even the Thai masters preferred to observe and cheer on the indomitable "Stan" as he pulled on a final beast that required a back up to tame.

All told this is the exact atmosphere we seek to accomplish on any given voyage. This being the final Revilla tagging voyage for the foreseeable future sweetens the victory that much more. I'll keep the narrative going as the boat slogs up the line on what promises to be quite an adventure according to the forecasters; not good. We'll see. In the meantime I'll send full resolution shots from the beach as well as a few thoughts on events current and past. Capt. Sims now takes the helm tightening the chinstrap on his crash helmut with the resolve of a seasoned pro; all in a day's work.

Photo of the day features first time Royal Star angler Andre de Boton who made the trip all the way from Brazil to take part in the final Revillagigedo tagging adventure. What a pleasure making the acquaintance of such a fantastic man full of vitality, spirit, and knowledge. I, in particular, look forward to the opportunity to fish with Andre again as we shared many a fine conversation in time passing between fishing. Andre is one of those individuals who reminds me of how exceptional the opportunity to meet new people and share perspectives really is. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Tim Ekstrom

Photo Here...