When a Lake Perris bluegill stole the thunder of the super cows
There have been a lot of amazing long range tuna catches over the years, but I'll always remember a catch on the Royal Polaris more than any other.

The crazy lightning, thunder and rain this morning made me think back to that time the RPbrought home four yellowfin tuna over 300 pounds in that early 90s firestorm of true monsters.

Weather had nothing to do with the tuna catch, but everything to do with the catch Mark Gasich and I made on Lake Perris the week the Royal Polaris>/i> came home to Fisherman's Landing. Just like today the weather was nasty here in the Southland, although it seemed more appropriate for the very early spring. And the worms were floating along the sidewalks and gutters adjoining any island patch of grass or greenery. Just like the worm I saw swimming for all it's might this morning as I waded to my car.

Well, if you collect those worms after/during a storm, they make fantastic panfish bait fished on a 1/32 leadhead and 2-pound test and one of those whippy 7-foot spinning rods Mark used to tie up out of 4wt fly rod blanks while at Angler's Center.

Anyway, the weather cleared, the bluegill were on the spawning beds at Perris and we took Mark's skiff out to the lake and just had a blast catching Florida-strain bluegill so fat they looked like they were going to burst -- genuine 2 to 3 pounders. I got a great shot of Mark with a hawg 'gill that made the cover of Western Outdoor News.

And the four yellowfin over 300 pounds didn't. They were on the inside. What really makes it stick out is one of the anglers who caught the huge fish complained. That was Tony Garza, who had the right to complain because he was also an advertiser, at the time partners in Mako Products.

Poor Tony. Not only did he not make the cover, his was the smallest of the four tuna and he didn't even get any jackpot money for his 300-plus pounder

But I still maintain it was one helluva bluegill. And it sure tasted good.