A WHOOP, A HOLLER - IT'S AN ALBACORE HIS FIRST BIG CATCH A MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE.

Byline: Randy van Vliet Special to the Daily News

Boarding the Cat Special out of Cisco's Landing in Oxnard's Channel Islands Harbor, the anglers' faces didn't instill a lot of confidence for a good day of fishing for the king of tuna, albacore. There were worried looks and a couple of disparaging comments about the boat's previous day's catch: three albacore.

But they were gamblers all. After all, two days before, they caught 78 albacore on the boat, with fish weighing as much as 35 pounds, although most were in the 25- to 30-pound class. Some were worried the albacore run had ended in the Triangle, about 75 to 90 miles out.

The Triangle is formed by San Clemente Island on the south, Santa Barbara Island on the West and San Nicholas Island on the north.

Cat Special captain John Fuqua had been following the albacore for at least four weeks. In the cockpit of his boat sat a Furuno bottom-and-side- finding sonar, a Lorance guidance unit and a GPS tied in to a laptop PC, with a cartographic map of every spot imaginable off the coast of Southern California.

With the GPS, he had marked nearly every strike he had received trolling for albacore in the past month.

So if I had little doubt we would find schools of fish, the only question was if they'd take the bait.

At daybreak, someone yelled, ``Fish on! Fish on!'' The boat's engine chopped off, signaling the start of some serious fishing.

At 8:45, the first jig strike created chaos as everyone ran for their live-bait rods. The view of an occasional long fin streaking along the surface brought cheers and screams from the anglers on board, each jostling for a choice position on the rail.

I watched as my 3/4-ounce rubber core sinker took the 20-pound line and No. 2 bait hook with anchovy attached, out of view, away from the boat's side. Carefully, I kept a finger under the line where it came off the spool of my neighbor's custom-wrapped rod and reel. He had insisted that I take his 20- and 30-pound rods because one never knows if the fish were going to be line shy. My right thumb occasionally brushed the free-wheeling spool of line, to keep the rotational speed of the spool in check and to prevent the dreaded backlash.

With a subtle change, the speed of my reel picked up and I flicked the lever of my bait-casting reel to the engaged position after a few seconds of hesitation. The tension on the line loaded up and I took a mild swing, setting the hook firmly somewhere, I hoped, in the fish's mouth, and the battle was on. Ten .. 15 ... 20 ... 30 seconds of a line-burning run, followed by pumping, reeling and pumping trying to regain the lost line.

It pulled me down the boat rail, over some rods, under others, trying to keep my line clear. I got to the bow of the boat, and in about five minutes I finally called ``color.'' In a second, a deckhand was ready with the gaff. One swoop and my first albacore was on deck. I whooped, I hollered, I let everyone know within earshot that it was my first albacore ever.

That's when I found out about the tradition of an angler catching his first tuna having to eat the fish's heart. No sooner had I made it to the back of the boat to put on more bait, than I was presented with the heart of my first albacore.

Fuqua has been at this for seven years, alternating between San Diego as his home port in the winter, and Channel Islands in the summer. The albacore season is his favorite, and the effort he made to get us into fish shows. He takes pride in being the first in most years to get in on exploratory albacore runs early in the season as the fish migrate from Mexican waters.

Booking early, especially on weekends, is strongly advised at all landings running trips because they fill quickly. If possible, try a weekday booking. But don't hesitate too long. Some years the albacore run last days, other years, it's months.

IF YOU GO

Bring a jacket, an old pair of pants, old shirt, boots or galoshes and a spare pair of dry socks.

Motion-sickness medication is a must unless you're a seasoned veteran.

Eye protection such as polarized glasses, hat, sun block with a minimum UV30 and bandages or tape to wrap around the first joints of your fingers. One start of a searing run, and dry fishing line will cut your finger like a knife, something of which the surrounding saltwater will make you painfully aware.

A rod and reel loaded with 20-pound test on a sturdy, saltwater-rated bait-casting reel, along with one in 25-pound test, and another in 30-pound test. Check with the landing before you go; conditions change from day to day.

Hook sizes and weights required vary as much as the fishing conditions. Find out what the landing recommends based on bait size and currents. Good jigs include cedar plugs, light and bright colored feather jigs for bright conditions and purple and black or dark blues and greens for low-light conditions for high-speed trolling from 5 to 8 mph, and Rapala 14 and 18 CD magnums in blue mackerel, green mackerel and purple/black for low-light conditions, under private-boat, slower trolling conditions, up to 5 mph.

A good attitude and reasonable expectations go a long way in ensuring a successful trip.

Fresh-water fishing licenses require an Ocean enhancement stamp, available for $2.65 at most landings.

There is no limit on albacore kept.

WHERE TO GO

Here's a partial list of area landings. Checking the daily fish counts, which run in Scoreboard, will tell you which landings are doing well and which were running albacore trips.

Sea LandingSanta Barbara [phone]

Harbor Village Sport Fishing Ventura [phone]

Captain Hooks Ventura [phone]

Cisco's Sport Fishing Oxnard [phone]

Port Hueneme Sport Fishing Oxnard [phone]

Redondo Sport Fishing Redondo Beach [phone]

22nd Street Landing San Pedro [phone]

L.A. Harbor Port Fishing San Pedro [phone]

Long Beach Sport Fishing Long Beach [phone]

Davey's Locker Newport Beach [phone]

Newport Landing Newport Beach [phone]

Helgren's Sport Fishing Oceanside [phone]

Fisherman's Landing San Diego(619) 221-8500

H&M Landing San Diego [phone]

Islandia Sport Fishing San Diego [phone]

Point Loma Sport Fishing San Diego [phone]

Seaforth Landing San Diego [phone]

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(1) IF YOU GO (see text)

(2) WHERE TO GO (see text)