About Huli Cat

  
 
 
 
Tom Mattusch
Owner and Captain of Huli Cat
 

Tom Mattusch is the owner and Captain of the Huli Cat, a 53 foot charter boat, operating out of Pillar Point Harbor and has fished the West Coast since 1967.  He’s an IGFA Certified Captain, and can be heard on four radio stations giving fish reports or discussing fishing politics.  Tom has worked closely with the Recreational Fishing Alliance, PCFFA, the Half Moon Bay Fisherman's Marketing Association, United Anglers of Southern California, and United Anglers. 


One of the most respected charter boat captains, Tom has a number of firsts to his credit: 
  • the first charter trip out of Half Moon Bay to take anglers to catch Humboldt squid
  • the first white shark viewing charter trip to the Farallon Islands 
  • the first albacore trip out of the Marine Warehouse to demonstrate the albacore were again accessible by boat off the Central California coast
  • the first charter boat Captain out of Half Moon Bay to get certified to marry people, and has married people on the Huli Cat 
 
Tom Mattusch - Owner & Captain of Huli Cat

click photo to enlarge

Tom held/holds positions on:
  • Salmon Stamp Committee for California
  • DFG License Agent Advisory Committee
  • NOAA’s California Sportfishing Action Team
  • Central Coast Regional Stakeholder Group Member.for the MLPA
    (California Marine Life Protection Act Initiative)
     
Tom is on the Board of Directors of:

In an effort to contribute to research, Tom works with NOAA’s PFEL tagging chinook salmon.  He also worked with NOAA’s Santa Cruz field office gathering stomachs and beaks of Humboldt squid.  He recently completed a study with the Point Reyes Bird Observatory collecting lingcod, salmon and halibut stomachs and is currently involved in a study with Scripps to gather albacore stomachs.

He was an avid skin diver and participated in Cen Cal Freediving Competitions progressing to A Division diver. He has appeared on television and in books for his Blue Water Hunting abilities and has speared tuna over 200 pounds breath hold diving.  Tom is also an avid hunter.  In 2006, he hunted in Argentina, Canada, Africa, Kansas and California.

His Bachelors degree from San Jose State included a thesis on the sea urchin industry in California.  He has an MBA in Management, with a minor in Marketing.  Tom ran the Cardiology Department for a community hospital with an open-heart surgery program in southern California.  He also ran a Cardiology practice in Texas and a Nuclear Medicine facility.