The magic of San Benitos produces yellowtail, aggressive bass and tough choices for those who want it all on the Fish Trap Qualifier 105 skiff trip. When the big boat slid into the "Bush" at dusk the day before, birds and sonar reading confirmed a good school of yellowtail was living in the Gap, the broad sheltered area between the two main isles.

"Are you going out on the skiffs?" asked Barry Brightenburg as the Q's crew deployed the boats. The unspoken, yet understood, part of the question...or are you going to stay behind and fish yellowtail? "I love fishing bass at this island so much, I can't pass up this chance," was the reply. "That's what I love about this trip," Barry said. "I can make my own decisions."

Travis Johnson was at the tiller as we climbed down in the skiff and Mike Mike McElravy and Robin Schuler told me it was my turn to fish in the bow. We started in a broad field of kelp stringers near the Fish Camp and there were no bites in the powdery blue water churned up by all the south swells. Farther offshore, however, the water cleaned up and a calico bass jumped all over the Waxwing topwater I tossed out. We were in 'em as long for a good long stretch until we drifted into open waters. Travis decided to make another run and it was a good choice as big calicos romped on the Waxwing. A 6 pounder ate Robin's 'Wing just four feet from the boat as another long, golden fattie turned a complete cartwheel when it hit the lure I threw.

I glanced over and the big boat was settle back on the anchor in the part of the Gap where we had seen the yellows. Birds were thick in the air behind the stern. Then I heard it...a primal roar I had heard many times before. It could mean only one thing, Barry had just come tight to a yellowtail on the surface plug. As we passed the Q on the way to fish the East Island, we saw a yellowtail hosted over the side on the end of a gaff.

Well, I made my choice, but any regrets were soon erased by a series of scalloped coves strewn with kelp and boiler rocks and blow up after blow up on the topwater lures. Shimano graciously lent enough Trevala rod and reel rigs for each boat to have a couple Waxwing setups aboard and many anglers brought their own. They were put to good use on this run. "This is the first time I've seen the bass bite the Waxwing like that," said Johnson. "It's a lot of fun."

We got back to the big boat and the great yellowtail bite was confirmed. Barry was the top stick with the surface iron, but there were plenty of others who connected. "Cole (Lennon) was up on me 2-0, but then I went to mint and it was game on," said Al Rentziperis. "I went 3 for 4, so that was 5 total for the Dana Point crew." The current shifted during the next rotation and only a few yellows hit, including fish for Joel Steinman and Josh Valerio, who asked me if I wanted his spot in the skiff so I could fish with my pal Steve Suveg. Capt. Joe Crisci moved the 105 to the "East of East" spot and found more yellowtail, including a surface iron fish for Jerry Coble and a yo-yo iron hookup by Wayne Caywood lost to a sea lion. We ran back to the gap to pick up the skiffs and the bite report was slow, although Alan Fay put Suveg's skiff on a good bite in deep water off a point at the end. "Dude, I'm running out of the good color (Fish Traps)," Steve said.

It was the point in the trip when people were wearing down and the combo of slow bass and the lure of yellowtail meant not many takers for the afternoon skiff run. That meant I got to jump in a skiff with Al, Cole and Barry. And that meant running to the rolling waters, big kelp and tight waters of the West Isle's Bay of Plenty.

The result was the kind of bass fishing skiff trips are all about -- topwater action and broad-shouldered bass pulled deep out of whitewater and kelp. Both Al and I got our biggest bass of the kelp, Cole caught fish after fish and Barry connected on both 'Wing and iron. It would have been the perfect capper for the trip, except that was the 37.5-pound yellowtail I caught on a mint Candy Bar that evening.

And, actually, there were two more days of fishing left that produced yo-yo yellows, epic tales of hidden caverns holding huge bass that snapped 40-pound and bent hooks, one gourmet meal after another from Chris Veratudela and Jacob Hensley, another wide-open early morning Waxwing run and a rockpile off San Martin Island that kicked out reds and lings every drift.

Many thanks to Qualifier 105 owner John Klein and to Capt. Joe Crisci and his crew Alan Fay, Tim Walker, Travis Johnson, Jordan Garcia and Oscar Marroquin. Also thanks Barry Brightenburg of Fish Trap for putting together a great trip with lots of giveaways and prizes provided by Shimano, AFTCO, Owner, Seaguar and SportfishingReport.com.

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