I had just cracked open a drink when the fish came up. I set the brew on the bait tank, buckled in as a tuna slurped the bait, lifted the 80-wide Tiagra out of the holder and went to work. My beer was still ice cold when we gaffed the 192-pound yellowfin.

That short, effective fight depended on the 200-pound Seaguar fluorocarbon leader, 40 pounds of drag and a true winch of a reel. But the gear doesn’t matter if you don’t use it right, and that means using its power to hurt tuna instead of yourself. I’m a big guy and I’ve caught hundreds of tuna over 100 pounds, but size doesn’t matter. I’ve seen little old ladies use the right techniques and catch fish much bigger than I ever have. My friend caught a 300-pound yellowfin on stand-up gear when he was 78.

Use a Harness and Pad to Fight Big Tuna

The key is a good harness and pad, and the ability to use it. One of my favorites is from AFTCO, designed by Greg Stotesbury. Stotesbury’s stand-up experience, like mine, is grounded in the San Diego long-range fleet. No offense, East Coasters, but most of you don’t know how to use a harness. Here’s how it works.

If you learn anything here it should be this: When fighting a fish, you should feel all the force transferred by the harness from the point of your hips down. You want the belt around your butt, not the small of your back.

In preparation, wear the harness before the bite. Wait until the fish is solidly hooked and pulling drag before you put the rod in the belt and clip in. Many fish are lost early when folks fumble with their gear instead of fighting the fish. Once you are fastened to the fish, attitude is everything. Stay calm and relaxed. Don’t let adrenaline and bad form hurt you.

How to Fight Tuna in a Fishing Harness

Proper form means good posture: Put your left hand on the reel to guide the line, with your right hand on the handle. Keep your back straight, and bend your knees enough to distribute the pressure across the tops of your quads and your backside.

Modern composite rods do all the work when kept at right angles to the rail. When the tip comes up, wind it back down. If you can’t turn the handle, switch the reel to low speed. Can’t keep up? Go to high speed. Don’t impart wild pumping motions. Instead, focus on the rod tip. Call out deep color when you see it, and wind the fish up to the gaff.

Safety Tips for Fighting Big Tunas

A couple of safety notes should be added. Every tuna is an individual, and where the hook ends up influences how the fish acts. Yellowfin tuna hooked in the upper jaw by the snout are notoriously squirrelly. You have to be prepared to react to the predictable and unpredictable, and that often means getting out of the harness.

Use S-hooks instead of clips to attach the harness to the reel lugs so you can get out quickly if necessary. And remember to back off the drag ­(gradually, don’t dump it into free-spool) when you need to get the rod out of the gimbal pad for maneuvers such as keeping the line out of the props.

How to Gain Line When Fighting Big Tuna

When you sit back and put on a lot of pressure, a fish will often run out high in the water column. Enjoy the fact that now the fish is on the losing end of the energy equation. This is the only time you can take a breather. When the fish stops, bear down on it. Try to get a turn on the handle, going to low gear if necessary.

Tuna will often respond to the ­pressure by diving in the direction of the boat, which provides you the opportunity to win back a bunch of line with no more effort than turning the handle. Be ready to go into high gear when the fish sounds, and take that easy line.

Once the fish goes into the final stage of the fight — straight up and down — it’s time to really put on the heat. Stay in one spot and keep the rod straight out from the rail. The tuna’s tail beats are reflected in the pumps of the rod tip as the fish circles — the more pressure, the tighter the circle. The tip of the rod will come up as the fish leaves the inside (closest to the boat) of the circle. That’s when you get those precious feet of line with several quick turns of the handle to bring the tip back down and keep the fish moving up. Don’t waste energy by stubbornly trying to turn the handle when you stop gaining line.

Most important, stay relaxed so you reserve the burst of energy and sharpness of mind that is usually called for at the end of the fight. Sometimes, a truly mean fish will say to hell with this and bust a big move. The telltale is an irritated shake of the head. You have to be ready to respond and follow. It’s usually over soon after that — one way or another.

The post Tuna Fishing with Stand Up Gear appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Ascent to Glory

A heart-throbbing scene unfolds on the deck of a sport-fisher as a marlin pops up in the trolling spread, dorsal flung high and pectorals aglow. With powerful, staccato sweeps of its massive tail, the billfish bursts toward the right flat line. All hell breaks loose as the billfish attacks. The crew scurries to action. A rod bends double. A clicker screams. Line melts away in a high‑speed blur. It is what offshore anglers live for.

Yet when it comes to big-game fish, this scenario seems to repeat more for some boats than others. Such “lucky” sport-fishers seem to possess mythical powers, raising innumerable fish from the depths as if by tractor beam.

But do boats really attract offshore species such as mahi, marlin, sailfish, tuna and wahoo? Are some boats more apt to raise offshore fish than others? And if so, what is it that causes fish to home in on such an unnatural object as a boat? These are the questions to which I sought answers from a variety of offshore-angling experts who have fished around the world, from Hawaii to Cape Hatteras to Guatemala.

Boats as Fish-Aggregating Devices

Animal Magnetism

More than one expert has likened a boat to a floating object on the offshore grounds, where game fish are attracted to things such as weed lines and kelp paddies, as well as discarded pallets, offshore weather buoys and man-made FADs (fish-aggregating devices). In their shade and sanctuary, these floating objects often harbor a community of marine life spanning the food chain. So why wouldn’t fish view a boat — despite its transient nature — in the same way?

Anecdotal evidence suggests that a boat in and of itself — whether moving or stationary — will attract fish, according to most of the experts I talked with. What’s more, most believe that visual cues associated with the boat have a stronger influence on fish than do sounds or vibrations.

Supporting these assertions were observations by the late Jim Rizzuto, a beloved Hawaiian fishing authority and writer, who told of two large yellowfin tuna swimming in the shadow of a 30-foot sport-fisher as it trolled for marlin. “The ahi were snuggling up against the hull and seemed not at all upset at the sight and sound of the boat,” Rizzuto said.

In addition, a big blue marlin showed about the same time. He estimated the fish in the 1,000-pound range. “All of these big fish seemed to be attracted to the boat and didn’t want to swim away” Rizzuto said. They appeared to make the boat their home, at least until the crew caught the yellowfin, though they failed to get the marlin.

A Sport Boat is Just a Big Teaser

In some ways, a moving boat might be even more attractive to predatory fish than a stationary object. This is due to what some might call the big-teaser effect. Like a large, hookless teaser lure designed to create a commotion on the surface to simulate a school of fish attacking bait and draw the attention of a curious predator, the prop wash, froth, and splashing of the boat hull may accomplish the same thing.

Most big-game anglers assume that a boat moving through the water is your biggest teaser and the first thing that notifies a billfish of your presence. A boat is larger than any teaser, attracting fish from a distance. They see the boat, the teaser, then your bait.

Some captains believe that the boldest fish are also the largest ones, at least when it comes marlin, and so they are more likely to get close to the boat. “In Hawaii, the lures closest to the boat often draw strikes from the biggest fish,” Rizzuto used to say. Yet, the longer trolling lines usually take smaller fish.

“As a result, big-game trollers generally position their largest lures just a few wakes back,” the Hawaiian angling expert explained.

The type of wake a boat lays down can also affect success, according to Randy Ramsey, co-founder of North Carolina-based Jarrett Bay Boatworks. “Billfish are sight feeders, and a clean wake allows them to see the baits or lures more easily,” Ramsey explained. Three factors that help create clean wakes include a hull that’s free of fouling, properly aligned running gear and well-tuned propellers.

Raising Fish Like the Pied Piper

Most experts agree that sound also plays a role in how well a boat raises offshore fish. While no one has conducted empirical testing, boats emitting the thrum from a pair of big diesel engines certainly catch a fair share of offshore fish. Yet, could this be the result of the greater number of twin-diesel sport‑fishers out there trolling? Plenty of fish have also been caught by anglers trolling with multiple four-stroke outboard engines. That number seems to be on the rise as more and more supersize center-console boats head out to pursue big-game fish.

Many assert that the key seems to be the resonance set up between two or more marine power plants, rather than the type of engine. This results in a pulsed low-frequency sound underwater that draws in fish from a distance. It has been long established that sharks are attracted to low-frequency, pulsed white noise, much like the sound of injured baitfish or a pair of out-of-synch diesel engines. We can only assume that billfish are attracted to this noise as well.

The correct harmonics make a big difference in whether fish will come to the boat to look at the lures, according to Capt. Brad Philipps, who runs Guatemala Fishing Adventures and has released more than 25,000 billfish.

“A captain’s preference for a particular trolling speed may reflect his boat’s ‘sweet spot,’” he says. “Engines turning at a certain rpm range may produce a set of harmonics that raise billfish like the Pied Piper.”

How does he know when he has achieved this? The fish tell him so. “I know I’m pulling at the right speed when we’re getting as many or more bites than the boats around us.”

The type of hull construction might also play a role, Ramsey explained. “I look at boats such as Big Oh, Chainlink, Inspiration and Sensation — boats that have been successful with different crews,” he says. “One thing they all have in common is that these are wooden-cored boats. While these hulls might not be popular, wooden-cored boats might make them better at raising fish.”

Stay Tuned

Sometimes the harmonics can turn sour. This was the case with Kona, Hawaii, Capt. John Bagwell, according to Rizzuto. Bagwell and his boat, Silky, had been on a hot streak. He and his crew had won a Skins Tournament with a 645-pound blue marlin, and followed it up a few weeks later with Henry Chee Award for the highest-scoring skipper in the Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament.

“Later in the year, however, Bagwell began to wonder if his 45-foot Viking had lost its competitive edge,” said Rizzuto. “The captain began to think the engines didn’t sound right.”

The fish evidently felt the same, as the boat was not getting as many blue marlin strikes as earlier in the year. So Bagwell had the boat hauled and ordered tune-ups on the twin 485 Detroit diesels, transmissions and running gear. After the tune-up, Silky was again running as smoothly as its name, according to Rizzuto. And the fish returned to its wake. Silky and its crew picked up the pace, releasing a steady stream of billfish, just as before.

The lesson here: Sport-fishers require regular tune-ups if they are to maintain the harmonics that attract fish. “A squeaky bearing or bent prop blade could blow up into expensive problems,” said Rizzuto, “but none bigger than dragging down the fish count.”

Echoing that sentiment is Jarrett Bay’s Ramsey. “One thing is for sure,” he said, “if a boat has a bad vibration, bearing noise, bent prop shaft or other issues, this hurts the boat’s ability to raise fish.”

Ramsey pointed to evidence based on the success of new boats. “Have you ever noticed that new boats seem to catch better than older ones?” he asked. “I think it is because the bearings and running gear are tight. Crews and owners should pay attention to this as their boats age, and ensure everything is running properly.”

Size Can Matter

Large and In Charge

It seems that bigger sport-fishing boats consistently rack up higher scores than do smaller boats. But again, this might simply be a matter of numbers: In most parts of the world, there are more large sport-fishers offshore at any given time than there are smaller boats. And because of their size, larger boats can go big-game fishing on days when marginal weather and large seas force smaller boats to stay in port.

Yet, according to many experts, fish don’t care what kind of boat you are on. In my experience, I have found success in raising striped marlin off Southern California behind even smaller boats, including a single-diesel-powered 26-foot convertible and a single-outboard-powered 22-foot center-console. Yet in most cases, the marlin were as thick as fleas offshore. On tougher days, the larger boats with twin engines seemed to hold the advantage when it came to trolling.

Running large hookless teasers, daisy chains of artificial squid, or dredges can help create more commotion and enlarge your offshore “footprint” while trolling in a boat that’s smaller than rest of the fleet, and this can help level the playing field when fishing among the big boys.

Sounder Proof

How can you tell if your boat’s fishy? There is a way to test its fish-attracting power, according to Rizzuto, but it relies on keeping your eye on the fish finder. Sport-fishers equipped with high-quality fish finders can mark fish such as marlin and tuna as deep as 20 to 30 fathoms.

“When you spot a marlin or tuna down deep on the fish finder, turn your head around and look at your wake,” Rizzuto said. “Then count to 20.” It takes about 10 to 20 seconds for a curious blue marlin to swim to the surface to investigate.

“If you don’t see the fish slashing at your lures or tracking them, mark the spot on your GPS chart plotter and circle back after you are sure your lures have cleared the area with no interest from a billfish,” he added. “Troll over the area again, and give the fish another chance to investigate.” Raising fish such as marlin or tuna in this manner will prove that your boat has fish-attracting power.

Men and Machine

Of course, a boat alone will not catch fish. The experience, knowledge, and hard work of an energetic captain and crew rank as essential elements of offshore success. It is the crew’s intimate understanding of how to take advantage of a boat’s fish-attracting characteristics that proves critical. The crew’s ability to select the best lures, gauge the proper trolling distances and choose the right speed — not only for the boat, but for the ever-changing sea conditions — can often mean more than anything else.

Just as a fine guitar requires a talented musician to make music, a modern fishing machine requires the skill of its captain and crew to make fish rise to the trolling spread. And when it comes together, there’s nothing in this world that’s more exciting. That’s why I call it raising havoc.

The post Raising Havoc: Attract Pelagics to Your Boat appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

It was a slow summer at Hudson Canyon off New York, but we were headed out anyway, because you can’t catch tuna when you’re dry on the dock. We weren’t halfway out when we saw life — a half-dozen whales rolling, and tails rising among what must have been 100 or more tightly packed bottlenose dolphin. Dozens of shearwaters flocked around the ­commotion. Extending outward for 100 square yards, storm petrels dabbed the blue 75-degree surface waters. The sonar screen read 180 feet.

One cast into the mayhem created instant action. As soon as the bail closed, a fish grabbed the lure, and the rod doubled over at an impossible angle. Line easily peeled off the reel against a good 30 pounds of drag. The mate looked over at me with a big smile on his face and said, “Well, I guess we’re not going to the canyon.”

Running way offshore for big pelagics is ingrained. Want to catch tuna? Hit the “deep,” the “edge,” the canyons. And whether you see life or empty ocean, deploy a spread and troll blindly for hours. But in recent years, most of the good fishing has occurred well inshore of the canyons, and trolling isn’t required.

Tuna Feed on Sand Eels

We owe this success to one thing, and one thing alone: sand lances, Ammodytes americanus (known locally as sand eels) — long, slender, 6- to 8-inch ­low-trophic-level fish with a pointy snout.

In past years, when the sand eels have shown up — usually by mid-June — they’ve appeared in extraordinary numbers. Anglers know about it pretty quickly because often the entire list of oceanic predators also find them. Not just those with fins, but those with wings as well. Everything appears to eat sand eels.

To be clear, this bait does not reside in deep water. As the name suggests, sand eels prefer relatively sandy habitat in 40 fathoms or shallower. They also burrow at night into the soft substrate and spend their days feeding on zooplankton. They’re not equipped to frequent deep, high-­pressure water, thus don’t expect to see big ­concentrations at the canyons.

Why do they gather, and why recently have they flooded the 20- to 40-fathom area from Maryland to New York from mid-June to mid-September? Those are more-difficult questions to answer, but it seems likely that the mass migration involves a food source. Adult and larval sand lances feed primarily on copepods (immature crustaceans) and other tiny animals, so they might be focused on a new zooplankton bloom.

Regardless of the reason, the ­sand eels now congregate so thickly that once you’re into them, you often can’t read bottom on your sounder. And it’s clear that when they’re abundant, they attract a host of predators — most important of which are bluefin and yellowfin tuna — that gorge on the smallish baits with reckless abandon.

Where to Find Sand Eels and Tuna

“It’s all about finding life when you make these midshore tuna runs,” says New Jersey charter captain Gene Quigley (shorecatch.com). “I’d say we look for whales more than anything, but there are certainly other indicators.”

Not only do whales and tuna feed on this same prey, but both bluefin and yellowfin tuna often swim directly beneath the whales, possibly slurping up stunned sand eels after a whale has lunge-fed.

“We look for [bottlenose] dolphin too,” Quigley continues. “Not just the rolling ones, but the ones that are clearly smashing sand eels.”

Finding cow-nosed rays in 150 to 200 feet of water in July or August might be one of the best tuna signs. “Man, you run across a school of cow-nosed rays, and you’re a fool not to stop on it,” says New York captain Cory Crochetiere. “Drop a jig under them, and it’s often an immediate hookup.”

On a clear, calm day, you can see rays pushing water when they’re on the surface. But often they swim 10 feet or more down. When they pass under your boat, they’re easy to see. For better or worse, rays also hit a jig or soft plastic.

Rays often appear accompanied by storm petrels, or what we call “tuna chicks”—small unassuming birds that seem to dance on the water. Just the presence of these birds, with or without the rays, can indicate sand eels, and subsequently tuna.

The petrels clearly don’t feed on sand eels. More likely they’re eating the same planktonic animals as the sand eels. A mother lode of storm petrels signals a mandatory stop, but even if you see just a half-dozen, give it a try. “We had our largest bluefin one year, casting a stickbait at a flock of what was maybe six or seven tuna chicks,” Crochetiere says. “A 250-pound-class bluefin came out of nowhere and crushed the plug.”

Shearwater birds also can suggest the presence of sand eels. If you see shearwaters circling high above the water, make a stop. They might be seeing something that you can’t, such as big pods of sand eels or even cruising tuna.

While you’ll likely see such life fairly close to shore, inside 20 fathoms, you probably won’t see tuna, at least during the June-to-September period. We really don’t stop on anything inside 20 fathoms, unless we see obvious signs of tuna feeding. Generally, we find the sweet spot in the 30-fathom range.

However, even in that depth range, if the water looks green or dirty, most of the time we just move. You occasionally might find bluefin in less-than-blue water, but rarely yellowfin. Look for sand eels in cobalt-blue offshore water. That doesn’t guarantee tuna, but work the area. Nearby tuna eventually will find that bait.

Tough Tuna Fishing Gear

We fish these sand eel aggregations with soft-plastic and hard baits, using stout spinning tackle. Our favorite reels include Van Staals , Shimanos, and Daiwas. For a more affordable alternative, try the newest Penn offshore spinners. Reels should be spooled with at least 80-pound braid and 6 to 10 feet of 80- to 125-pound fluorocarbon leader.

Rods must be specific to the tuna-popping-and-jigging game as well. Popping rods measure 7 feet, 6 inches to 8 feet, 4 inches long (casting distance is important), and they should be strong in the butt section for extended fights and real lifting power.

Rods to fish soft-plastic eels can be shorter, at 6 to 7 feet, but they should demonstrate the same parabolic composition. Madd Mantis makes an affordable 7-foot all-around rod.

Summer Bluefin Tuna Fishing

Sand eels usually start to show in the 30-fathom range by mid-June. “It’s generally a water-temperature thing,” says noted New York offshore angler Ray Phelan. “Right around 65 degrees, we start to see them, and they get more abundant as things warm.”

Late spring also marks the appearance of larger (for spin-fishermen) bluefin in the 200-plus-pound category. Moving into July, the bluefin become more manageable in size—in the 80-pound range.

“Yeah, we get a few on poppers and stickbaits,” Crochetiere says, “but during the past couple of years, the shearwaters were so bad that you’d waste valuable time untangling birds. Most of the fish we catch [when that happens] are on RonZ soft-plastic baits.”

The soft-plastic tail wiggles so easily that you won’t have to impart much action to make it resemble a sand eel. Even when working this bait very slowly, it still features a ton of movement. “Tuna will often grab it on the drop,” Crochetiere says. “And we’ve certainly caught fish just dead-sticking them,” or leaving the rod in the holder.

We’ve learned over the years that bluefin like a slow bait presentation. Even with plugs, a long, slow retrieve draws way more strikes than a fast one. Once you get the RonZ below the surface, avoiding a shearwater attack, it works really well. Yes, metal jigs can and do work, but not as well as these 10-inch soft plastics.

When the birds abate, Crochetiere mixes in some poppers and stickbaits such as the Nomad Riptide. This 200 mm (8-inch) translucent floating stickbait features a single strip of reflective tape on its sides, and closely mimics a sand eel. Work this bait in a slow, sweeping fashion. Other effective plugs include the Siren Deep Seductress, Shimano Orca and Daiwa Slider.

“Poppers are pretty awesome too, if for no other reason than the often-violent blowups,” Crochetiere says. His popper choice: the Madd Mantis Atasi. “Not so easy to find anymore, but there’s something about this plug that draws crazy strikes.”

Late-Summer Yellowfin Tuna Fishing

By late July or early August, you might catch a yellowfin while targeting bluefin in that same, general 30-fathom range. And then, in what seems like the span of a few hours, the bluefin can disappear, presumably shooting up to New England and farther north.

“I’m not sure if it’s a ­temperature change, or it’s just that so many yellowfin show up that they push the bluefin out,” Quigley says, noting that the water warms to 74 or 75 degrees in midsummer.

The bait doesn’t change, however; the sand eels continue to swarm. Fishing yellowfin on sand eel aggregations remains similar to targeting bluefin, with a few nuances. Yellowfin seem to swim with the dolphins to a greater extent than the bluefin. A popper placed in front of a school of feeding dolphins often results in an explosive strike from an 80-pound tuna. Cow-nosed rays also dependably indicate nearby yellowfin; the fish often swim directly underneath the rays.

Unique to yellowfin, however, are the skipjack schools. “We have a lot of success throwing big poppers in those skipjack schools,” Quigley says. “The big yellowfin come up from underneath all those skippies and hammer them.”

I don’t think the yellowfin eat the skipjack. Both species seem to feed on the sand eels. Almost every time we clean a yellowfin, we find a stomach packed full of eels, but no skipjack.

Sand eel fishing for tuna winds down in September mainly because the weather worsens and the water cools. Yellowfin, in particular, begin to migrate to deeper water. The eels do remain, and anglers can fish another brief run of bluefin in December as the tuna head back south. During that time, fishing occurs in much shallower water closer to shore.

For summer tuna, remember that farther might not always be better. Think twice about running long, or at least keep your eyes open on the way to the deep. Find the life, and you might score big without burning all that fuel.

The post Catch Tuna Near Sand Eels appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Do you have a photograph of a fish you can’t identify? If so, we’re up for the challenge, and would welcome the opportunity to share your photo and its ID with an international audience of enthusiasts. (Whether published or not, we will personally respond to every inquiry.) Email your jpgs, as large/hi-res as possible, to: fishfacts@sportfishingmag.com.

Some Fish Facts fans have been wondering about the difference between a “standard” yellowfin tuna and an Allison tuna. References to both names are commonplace. For example, Tom Pytel writes, “I often notice in photos some yellowfin tuna with very long anal fins. I’ve caught yellowfin to 100-plus pounds, but none has had those long fins. Is this strictly associated with size or perhaps sex, or some other factor?”

So Fish Facts thought it should, once and for all, clarify this tuna teaser. To cut to the chase, there is no difference: We’re talking about one species, Thunnus albacares.

But indeed, some yellowfin have clearly elongate second dorsal and anal fins. It’s the only species of tuna that exhibits this variation in fin length, says John Graves. Graves, for years chair of fisheries science at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, is one of the world’s leading tuna and billfish experts. He notes that the longer fins occur in only larger yellowfin. “In the extreme, the length of these fins can be greater than 40 percent of the total length of the fish. Some refer to these Allison tuna.”

Graves says this occurs independent of the fishes’ sex, but not of the location. “There’s a lot of geographic variation in the length of these fish.” For example, he says, across the Pacific, the relative lengths of yellowfin second dorsal and anal fins tends to increase from east to west.

In scientific terms, this variation in fin size for years “created havoc with the taxonomy of yellowfin tuna,” he says. As many as seven species of yellowfin tuna have been recognized, based on fin size. “It was only in the mid 1960s that the various geographic populations were combined into a single, circumglobal species.”

So while some anglers will remain convinced they’ve caught an Allison tuna, Fish Facts fans will know the truth: It’s a yellowfin tuna, no matter the length of its fins.

The post Fish Facts: What is an Allison Tuna? appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Many years ago, Kona skipper George Parker made ­headlines around the world when he caught the first certified, world-record grander Pacific blue marlin. Since that 1,002-pound giant in November 1954, Hawaii’s lee eddies have churned up a stream of 1,000-pound blues that continues today. Kona waters usually average two or three granders per year, along with more Pacific blue marlin IGFA records than any other sport-fishing hot spot. That parade of records continues. In March 2013, Alex Nuttall boated a 958-pound blue marlin with Capt. Chip Van Mols on the Kona charter boat Monkey Biz II to claim the IGFA women’s 130-pound-class record.

Kona’s consistent billfish success sparked a worldwide revolution in big-game fishing because these big fish were caught on lures pioneered and developed in Hawaii waters. Meanwhile, big-game fishermen elsewhere had been saying you could catch billfish only with bait. Even those doubters caught the Kona wave and started catching marlin on Kona-style lures. Kona is also the perfect starting point for novices who have never caught a fish in their lives. It happens every day, 365 days a year. Newcomers are well served by a well-maintained fleet of top-of-the-line boats and expert captains.

Plus, Kona’s big fish hunt in deep, calm waters near shore. The 100-fathom line is a 10-minute run from Kona’s two main fishing fleets at Honokohau Harbor and Keauhou Bay. What’s more, the biggest fish of any week is usually a marlin in the 500- to 900-pound range caught by a complete newcomer on a four- or six-hour trip. On any day of the year, a visitor can find a suitable charter and hope to catch one or more of Hawaii’s mighty four: billfish, ahi (yellowfin tuna), mahimahi (dolphinfish) and ono (wahoo).

Billfish of Every Kind

Blue marlin, black marlin, striped marlin, sailfish, shortbill spearfish and broadbill swordfish — Kona’s waters are home to every billfish found in the Pacific. But each has a different story, and you should know those stories when you make plans.

Big blues are the billfish that pay the bills in Kona. Blues of all sizes are here year-round, but they are usually most common during the summer tournament season, from June through early September. Mid-Pacific currents can supply a fresh run at any time, however. For example, sometimes April surprises offshore trollers with fish heavier than 500 pounds on every day of the lunar cycle. Catches like these show that the lunar cycle has little, if any, influence on billfishing in Kona (unlike the effect different phases might have in other fishing areas).

Kona granders have also been landed in January, March and July. March, which might otherwise be considered the offseason elsewhere, has turned up more of Kona’s historic granders than any other month, and that includes the 1,649-pound Kona all-time record in 1984. The 1,376‑pound IGFA record for 130-pound class was caught in May 1982. Indeed, granders have been caught in Kona waters every month of the year. Licensed commercial fishermen are allowed to sell blue marlin in Hawaii, but professional skippers prefer tag-and-release for clients who want to let vital fish go. In any given week, more of Kona’s blues are tagged than kept. Visitors should make their wishes known when setting up a charter.

Hawaii’s Striped Marlin

Striped marlin cruise through Kona water’s year-round, but the big run extends from December through March. The Hawaii state record, 212 pounds, turned up here at the end of March 2011. That’s big for a north Pacific stripe, which is noteworthy because South Pacific stripers max out at more than double the weight of their northern cousins. Striped marlin are most attracted to Kona when winter waters cool down into the mid-70s. During those “chilly” times, the luckiest trollers might get up to a dozen striped marlin bites, and hook about a third of them.

Those same striped marlin ­conditions also attract shortbill spearfish of world-record size. Kona’s frisky shortbills ­presently hold 16 IGFA marks for tackle as light as 4-pound-class, and even on fly gear. Record-seekers troll hookless teasers to draw a spearfish within range, and then present a lure, fly or bait on the most sporting gear available. For most visitors, however, the spearfish is a surprise catch when trolling for blues and stripes.

For black marlin, Kona is outside the normal migration range. The entire Kona fleet sees only a handful each year, and these are much smaller than the giants of the Great Barrier Reef far to the south. Old-timers will remind you that the state record weighed 1,205 pounds, but that once-in-a-generation fish was caught in 1980.

Broadbills are the secret sensations for fishermen who know when, where and how to catch them. Most of Kona’s rod-and-reel swordies are caught at night during ika-shibi (traditional hand line) trips that target tuna. With its giant staring eyes, the broadbill is readily attracted to lights at night and to the squid schools that gather in the glow. The state record 503-pounder took the bait in June 2006 at the start of what are usually the three best swordfish months. Only a few boats cater to the night-fishing trade.

Hawaii Tuna Fuel Jet Revolution

More than fifty years ago, Hawaii troller Henry Nishikawa ignited the jet revolution when he caught a world-record ahi on a metal-headed lure drilled through and through with holes. His 269-pound yellowfin didn’t last long in the record books after anglers in the eastern Pacific discovered a tribe of bigger tuna off Mexico. Yet the IGFA record book is still overwhelmingly Kona on the ladies’ side: Kona catches made by women hold the 16-, 20-, 30- and 50-pound-class marks.

Though Kona waters attract ­resident schools of yellowfin year‑round, ahi are most abundant in late spring and throughout summer. As schools migrate west to east through the islands, the big runs reach Kauai first by Mother’s Day in May and Kona by Father’s Day in June. When the action is wide open, lucky boats can catch as many as 10 a day, all in the 100- to 220-pound range, by trolling or live-baiting with aku (skipjack tuna) or opelu (mackerel scad). During the rest of the year, ahi specialists target them with green-stick gear, and continue to catch a few each trip.

Hawaii’s state record ahi (a July catch) of 325 pounds is unusually large for central Pacific yellowfin tuna. Kona’s biggest ahi each year normally hits 250 pounds (258.5 in 2013). The state record bigeye (277 pounds in July 2013) and the biggest albacore (89.2 pounds in April 2011) both were caught on the Big Island’s windward (eastern) coast. The albacore weighed more than any on the IGFA record list but did not qualify for world-record status because it was caught on commercial-fishing gear. Kona ­fishermen regularly catch albies (tombo ahi) in the 60s and 70s on sport fishing tackle.

Mahimahi, Hawaii’s Gift to the World

Almost 70 years ago, Hawaii Big Game Fishing Club official George Perry set the 130-pound-class IGFA world record for dolphinfish with a 72.5‑pounder. That record didn’t last long, but the name “mahimahi” is Hawaii’s gift to the world, because it replaces the confusing name “dolphin” on restaurant menus. Though Hawaii has no current IGFA mahimahi records, the state-record 82-pounder confirms the potential. That record fish was a September Kona catch, but mahimahi are available any time the current drags a “floater” within trolling distance.

Mahimahi live up to their name (it means “very strong”), and the brightly colored, agile acrobats do their muscular tricks in Kona waters year-round. Occasionally huge schools gather around flotsam and jetsam for a wide-open bite that can go on for days. Then, skippers gear down to match the catch with sporting 20- and 30-pound-class rods. Unless a Kona skipper finds a floater, mahi are incidental catches on marlin and tuna trips.

By the way, the mahimahi record aside, Perry went on to catch the largest blue marlin in each of the first two Hawaiian International Billfish Tournaments (HIBT). The HIBT became an annual Kona fishing feature in 1959 and soon inspired dozens of other Kona tournaments. During the most popular tournament months of June, July and August, events compete with each other every week

Ono Blitzes, Summer Phenomenon

A Guide to Big Fish off the Big Island

Ninety years ago, a mysterious fellow known only as “J.B. Stickney” caught a 124.75-pound wahoo in Hawaii waters to set the world record. That was five years before the IGFA was founded, a time when records were compiled by Van Campen Heilner of Field & Stream and Francesca R. La Monte of the American Museum of Natural history. Ono — what wahoo are called in Hawaii — average 30 to 40 pounds, which makes J.B.’s catch even more extraordinary.

Big ones do show up now and then — state-record-holders Tom Brandt and Sky Mullins surprised their 133.2‑pound ono off the windward coast of the Big Island in December 2000. The major ono run reaches the Big Island in May of each year and hangs around into early September. Some ono are caught year-round, with early morning being your best chance. Kona skippers typically troll the 40-fathom line at the start of each trip to pick up any ono that might be harassing the nearshore bait schools.

To ward off the ono’s sharp teeth, skippers rig their special ono lures with single-strand stainless leaders. Ono slash at heavy-headed subsurface lures like weighted jets and lead-head feathers. On a typical trip specifically for ono, a successful boat might catch three or four fish. In years when ono blitz the summer currents, boats are known to hook as many as 40 on a single trip.

Other fishing areas might see the diversity of big-game fish that Kona has, but few have them in the sizes regularly seen here. In Kona, your next strike could come on any day of the year, in any phase of the moon, at any turn of the tide, on routinely comfortable seas, and be one of the Pacific’s biggest and most exciting game fish.

Shore Fishing off the Big Island

The post Kona Hawaii Offshore Fishing appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Yellowfin tuna attack in packs, like wolves descending on a flock of lambs. Often, these 50-pound footballs launch completely out of the water to crash bait from above.

On the hook, they fight like bulldogs with a headstrong run capable of pegging anglers to their limits. On the table, the meat tastes delicate, whether seared like a steak or sliced up cold and raw.

Among the top locations to catch this most-popular gamefish has to be Hatteras Island, North Carolina. Captains troll ballyhoo, cast topwater plugs, dangle baits from a kite or jig vertically. Fishing out of the famed Oregon Inlet, on the east side of Hatteras island, or the fabled Hatteras Inlet on the south side of the island, anglers find ample opportunities to catch the yellowfin tuna of a lifetime.

On the Line in Oregon Inlet

The combination of warm-water eddies and deep structure attracts tuna to the waters off Oregon Inlet from October through June. While blackfin, bigeye and bluefin tuna visit the area, yellowfin tuna remain the star attraction.

The charter fleet fishing out of Oregon Inlet developed the tactics that anglers all over the world use to score yellowfin. Based out of Oregon Inlet Fishing Center, Capt. Charles Haywood chases tuna on his 55-foot custom boat, Rigged Up.

Haywood has fished Oregon Inlet since childhood, starting as a mate for some of the most iconic anglers on the water and later becoming the owner operator of his own boat. After decades chasing yellowfin, Haywood and the rest of the tuna fleet have developed foolproof tuna tactics.

“We can catch yellowfin tuna all winter,” Haywood says. Later, the spring season heats up from early May to late June. While every angler prays for calm weather, Haywood says the best tuna days are a little rough. “Not hell-bent, but a 12- to 18-knot wind seems to get the fish moving,” he says. On a stiff northeast swell, he spots schools of yellowfin swimming downsea.

Getting to The Point

Haywood looks for yellowfin where the edge of the Gulf Stream crosses the continental shelf, anywhere from 30 to 50 miles offshore. Ground zero is a cut in the shelf called The Point. The warmer, clearer water of the Gulf Stream meets the cooler, dirtier water of the Labrador Current in a noticeable seam. As the currents ebb and flow, the seam moves north and south along the edge of the shelf. When the warm water crosses over a hill, cliff or canyon in the edge of the abyss, yellowfin tuna stage to feed.

“This time of year, yellowfin will hold inside or outside the stream,” he says. Haywood has caught yellowfin in water from 68 to 78 degrees; he says 70 to 74 degrees is ideal.

Haywood relies on his fish finder to mark tuna and bait as the boat moves from one piece of structure to another. Once he finds fish on a hill or canyon, he works the area until he dials in specific locations and determines the best direction to approach them.

The Perfect Spread

To catch yellowfin, Haywood trolls skirted ballyhoo at 6.5 to 7.2 knots. He starts with a large ballyhoo rigged beneath a Sea Witch skirt. Haywood keeps a complete palette of skirt colors, from black-and-red to bright pinks and whites. He changes colors to meet weather and water conditions.

He pulls the ballyhoo using 50-pound-class tackle and spools up with 130-pound braided backing. To the backing, he adds a 100-yard topshot of 80-pound mono and crimps a 25-foot leader of 180-pound fluorocarbon between the topshot and the lure.

An effective tuna spread consists of a dozen baits fished from a web of lines. Haywood makes use of long riggers to long-short riggers, short-short riggers, two or three shotguns and flat lines splashing just a few feet from the transom.

Haywood recommends changing each lure’s position until it swims correctly: riding down the boat wake and popping out of the water every minute. Sometimes the fish favor long baits swimming deeper and other times, the tuna attack short baits splashing on the surface. With the right spread, a pack of yellowfin will attack every bait until every rod bends double.

After the first bite, Haywood keeps trolling, hoping to hook multiple fish. By the time he slows the boat to let the anglers work on the fish, he has moved away from the structure. With the swift Gulf Stream sweeping him away from the honey hole, Haywood turns his boat into the current while the anglers fight their fish.

When the spring bite turns hot, anglers descend from every direction to get in on the action. Chartering a professional captain can help you learn the ropes.

Haywood also encourages visitors to network with local captains to monitor weather conditions and navigation hazards. The channel markers don’t mark the channel, and a big winter swell can make the outer bar almost impassable. “We may be tough on the outboarders,” he laughs, “but the inlet is always changing. Don’t be afraid to ask for local knowledge.”

Chasing Action in Hatteras Inlet

Although it lies only 60 miles south of Oregon Inlet, Hatteras Inlet is a world away. While the fleet fishing out of Oregon Inlet enjoys steady action on yellowfin tuna, anglers fishing out of Hatteras Inlet chase tuna that ride eddies of cooler water spinning along the Gulf Stream.

Capt. Rom Whitaker has chased yellowfin out of Hatteras Inlet for 40 years. “Ten years ago, tuna fishing was excellent,” he recalls. Then, local anglers suffered a dry spell — until last year.

Whitaker says the behavior of the Gulf Stream eddies changed. “We had less current and more eddies,” he says — perfect conditions for yellowfin tuna.

The Gulf Stream current can rush faster than 5 knots up the coast, and that deep, blue water is too warm and turbulent for tuna. Instead, Whitaker looks for an eddy of cooler, slower, green water spinning up from the south.

“The water in the eddy can be 3 degrees cooler,” he says. “As the eddy moves up the coast, the current will change from southwest to nothing to a backing tide out of the northeast.”

For this reason, Whitaker starts each day studying satellite sea-surface-temperature images. While on the water, he monitors changes in the eddy with his Sirius XM satellite service. He also talks to captains who fish out of Morehead City to the south, asking about water temperature, current and other details for clues to where the tuna are holding—on the edge, in the center, or at the top or bottom.

Once he determines the most likely area, he looks for where the water crosses underwater structure. “The tuna ride the eddy like a train,” he says. The fish might stop at canyons and rock piles, but they continue to move with the water. “One day they might be south at the 800 line, then the next day they’ll be at the triple zeros, and the third day, they’ll stop behind the Rockpile,” he says, referring to Loran-C locations.

Shifting Tactics With the Seasons

Whitaker says the Hatteras yellowfin season runs from April until early July. As the months progress, his tactics change. He prefers trolling Sea Witches and ballyhoo. If that doesn’t work, he might try dropping a spoon on a planer, or adding a spreader bar into the mix. “I like the spreader bar in the middle of the spread,” he says.

If Whitaker marks fish on his fish finder, but can’t get a bite, he drops 200-gram vertical jigs. If he sees yellowfin jumping out of the water, he grabs a spinning rod rigged with a topwater popper. But his favorite way to catch tuna is with the kite, he says.

When the tuna feed on flying fish, they turn up their noses at trolled baits. Dangling a rubber flying fish from a kite can be just the thing to entice the tuna to bite. Whitaker uses 30-pound tackle spooled with 65-pound braided line. He attaches the mainline to a 4-foot section of 200-pound monofilament holding the lure. He can run two lures off one kite, trolling fast enough to keep the kite in the air and the lures bouncing off the wave tops.

Read Next: More Yellowfin Tuna Tips

“It’s a very visual bite,” he says, describing how tuna launch into the air to snare a flying bait. Yellowfin seem to prefer their prey hanging three feet off the surface. With a lot of line in the air, it’s important to quickly retrieve slack. Sharp hooks snare the fish until the angler can catch up using the reel.

On a typical day tuna fishing, anglers might have to employ several tactics before hitting the mark. Expect to switch from trolling ballyhoo, to casting plugs, jigging metal and flying a kite. But if you can find the right water over the right structure, you’ll find some of the world’s best yellowfin tuna fishing.

FAQ

The post Spring Into the Yellowfin Tuna Fishing Scene appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

“HOLD ON!” yells Capt. Shane Jarvis, and you’d better listen because he’s spotted diving birds and spinner dolphins on his Simrad radar. That means just one thing: surface-busting yellowfin tuna. He points the boat in their direction and guns the twin outboards in search of sashimi.

Jarvis has established an island retreat in Panama’s Gulf of Chiriquí, 30 miles from the Costa Rican border. No purse seiners are allowed in Panamanian waters, so the fishery remains fertile. Anglers can chase billfish, mahi and inshore species, often in the same day, but the marauding tuna are typically the biggest draw. Massive schools thunder around and anglers who can intercept them reap the benefits. His base on Isla Parida, 10 miles offshore, puts him closest to the action.

“The tuna are here year-round, but the bait really moves in with huge pods of dolphin from April to August,” he said. He’ll locate the action with his radar, and attempt to cut it off. “You want to figure out the direction they’re moving. When they’re in super-tight groups, you can do that, but some bait — like flying fish and squid — can’t be herded. They’re more erratic.”

Upon arrival to the action, anglers try to launch a Yo-Zuri Bull Pop or Mag Popper into the midst of the frenzy. At first, some are too awed by the airborne tuna to act. If the fish go down, it’s time to start all over again, searching the radar for action that could have moved miles away in the blink of an eye. All too often, though, one or more anglers hook up.

“The key is to loudly pop the lure one or two times so the fish can hear and see it,” Jarvis explained. “Then move it faster … pop-pop-pop-pop. When you hook up, apply as much pressure as you can from the get-go. It pays to be in good shape.” That’s because while the tuna tend to school up by size, a 200-pounder can suddenly appear in a group of 20- to 60-pounders.

Jarvis, as part of Sport Fish Panama Island Lodge, has outfitted his three World Cats and one Freeman with custom front casting platforms and protective rails. The latter prevent anglers from going in the drink when casting or battling a giant yellowfin. He uses specialized popping rods from Blackfin and Shimano Twin Power 14000 spinning reels spooled with 65-pound test Yo-Zuri Superbraid and a shock leader of 80-pound test Super Fluoro.

At night, anglers return exhausted to the lodge’s compound on Isla Parida, and the biggest decision for the following day is whether to go on another hunt for tuna, or to focus on billfish and inshore species. Fortunately, it’s not a single decision that must be made. In fact, while this may be tuna popping paradise, and there’s nothing wrong with chasing them exclusively, variety is the region’s true calling card. Just don’t fall into the trap of thinking that the other species will give you a rest. Befitting the Jurassic Park-style scenery, everything here is prehistoric, mean, and willing to fight to exhaustion.

Planning a Trip

When to Go

The yellowfin are in the Gulf of Chiriquí year-round, and can be caught on surface lures any month, but prime popping takes place from early April through the beginning of August, when the bait is bunched up the best and the seas are calm. The rainy season starts in late summer and runs through the end of October, plus Jarvis closes down the lodge in September and October. The fishing is still good, but it may be uncomfortable to be out there. Opportunities to catch billfish and mahi increase on the edges of the rainy periods. Inshore fishing for species including roosterfish and cubera snapper is good all the time.

Where to Go and How to Get There

Getting to Sport Fish Panama Island Lodge. Anglers fly into Panama City’s Tocumen Airport, the largest in Central America, which is served by numerous major airlines and has direct flights from over a dozen North American cities. From there, the package includes expedited immigration, all transfers, and a night at the Hilton. The next morning, anglers fly to the city of David on a Copa jet, take a five minute ride to the airport, and an hour boat ride through the estuary to Isla Parida.

Panama City is exceptionally cosmopolitan and safe. During the stopover, tours can be arranged of the Panama Canal or Casco Viejo portion of the city. Isla Parida is in a national park, which includes World Heritage Site Isla Coiba, known for its incredible diving and whale watching.

The post Panama’s Topwater Yellowfins appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

With a wealth of well-established marinas, resorts and fishing charters all along Costa Rica’s 630-mile Pacific coastline, visiting anglers will find no shortage of options in this small heavily jungled Central American Mecca for tourists. Besides its pristine beaches, Costa Rica offers visitors tropical rainforests, mostly protected and teeming with wildlife, as well as mountains (as high as 12,500 feet) and volcanoes to explore. The country has become known internationally as an eco-tourism center.

But of course, it’s also well known for its great sportfishing, with many options and well-established infrastructure for enthusiasts. Those options include entirely different fisheries on Pacific and Atlantic coasts. The Pacific side is larger and receives the lion’s share of sport-fishing effort in three major areas: Guanacaste in the far north (Tamarindo, Flamingo, Papagayo); the central coast (Los Sueños, Quepos) and the southernmost coast (Osa Peninsula, Golfito). 

These are the major game fish that anglers come to Costa Rica to catch:

Marlin – It’s possible here to catch all three marlin species in a day: blue, black and striped. Blues are particularly prevalent and the advent of anchoring FADs — fish-attracting devices — to offshore seamounts has led to some amazingly productive blue marlin fishing, mid spring through mid fall on the central coast. Since the FADs are 60 to 130 miles out, most FAD operations book trips for two, three or four nights out. Dorado (mahi) are a likely bonus on FAD trips.

Sailfish – They can be numerous enough that double-digit days are not at all uncommon. These are big fish — bigger than western Atlantic sails, running 75 to 100 pounds on average and sometimes much larger. The majority are caught on trolled rigged ballyhoo, but there are good opportunities for fly-fishermen as well (it’s worth noting that 10 of 15 tippet-class fly-rod records for Pacific sailfish came from Costa Rica).

Roosterfish – Central America’s high-finned, high-status inshore game fish, roosters are abundant all along the country’s rocky/sandy Pacific coastline, making it an iconic species for the country. Slow-trolling live blue runners or small tunas provides most of the roosterfish hookups though the powerful fish will hit poppers and stickbaits and at times, flies as well.

Yellowfin Tuna – The Pacific off the coast of Costa Rica is definitely tuna country, where anglers look for big pods of spinner dolphins, knowing well the symbiotic association between the mammals and yellowfin. Often where you find one, you find the other. Add in diving birds and get ready. And tuna action for anglers has gotten even better in recent years, thanks to a 2014 Tuna Decree that prohibited big purse seiners from operating within 45 miles of the nation’s coast.

Planning a Trip

When to Go: Like most great fishing destinations, plenty of opportunities await year-around, but peak times vary in part by area. So, on the central and north coast, late spring/summer offer the best chances of blue marlin while winter might be a better bet in the country’s southern reaches. For sailfish, hit the north coast in summer and winter/spring along the central and south coast. Yellowfin all year for the most part, though the far north is generally best in the summer. For roosterfish and Pacific cubera: any time, any place. The Atlantic-side tarpon fishery is all year, though October-November often prove to be peak months.

Where to Go and How to Get There: Most visitors fly into the country’s capital city, San Jose. The other alternative for international flights is the newer Guanacaste airport in Liberia. The San Jose airport requires a 30- to 45-minute ride to most of the city’s hotels. A variety of small airlines offer in-country service to both coasts. Winter into early spring on the Pacific is a bit drier and a bit windier in general, while summer through mid-fall days are usually calm but often with heavy interior showers spreading out toward evening. Whenever you plan to go, booking far in advance is advisable.

What to Expect: Costa Rica offers fishing resorts, marinas and charters all along its Pacific coast and several in the Rio Colorado and Parismina area on the Caribbean. Boats available for charter can range from small pangas for inshore/nearshore fishing (always check for basic safety equipment including VHF radio) to convertible sport-fishers more than 60 feet long for offshore/FAD trips. While Spanish is the official language of Costa Rica, it’s common to find locals who know at least some English. You’ll need a valid passport to enter the country — and a return flight ticket, proof of which you’ll have to provide to immigration at your time of arrival. Exchange rates for Costa Rica colóns are usually better at the airport, though U.S. dollars are generally accepted and desirable, so bring some U.S. currency. Pay the $29 departure tax before your departure day if it isn’t included in the return flight cost, as lines to pay can get long at the airport.

Helpful Links

There is so much more to do in the country in addition to fishing — ziplining, whitewater kayaking, mountain hiking, horseback riding and more.

• Essential Costa Rica
• U.S. News & World Report Costa Rica Travel Guide
• Crocodile Bay Resort
• Zancudo Lodge
• Los Suenos Resort and Marina
• Marina Pez Vela

The post Costa Rica’s World-Class Sport Fishing appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Gorgeous sugar-sand beaches, swaying palm trees, turquoise waters, and upscale resorts are often associated with fishing paradises — but you’ll find none of that in Venice, Louisiana. Rather, you’ll find a few homes on stilts in an unincorporated community (population 162 per 2020 census) and a dirty skyline dominated by the oil and petrochemical industries’ refineries, plants, storage tanks, oil derricks, chimneys and tall flare stacks, spouting burn-off flames like enormous torches. It’s a backdrop few would call appealing.

Yet visitors travel to this industrial area at the southernmost end of the road in Plaquemines Parish, a two-hour drive south of New Orleans. Why? Must be a mighty big draw to get ‘em down there.

The answer, in a word, is fishing. For some game fish species, the fishing here ranks as some of the best in the world. In these productive waters, around and beyond the mouth of the Mississippi River, red and yellow rule. That is, red drum both inshore and nearshore; yellowfin tuna in blue water around deep oil platforms. There’s no shortage of guides to fish redfish and more from large, fast bay boats. Likewise, charter captains in big, multi-engine center console boats (huge catamarans are particularly popular) promise fast access out the river and to blue water where great numbers of oil rigs serve as FADs teeming with baitfish and predators — besides pelagic big-game fish, the list includes red snapper, grey snapper, cobia, tripletail, jacks (amber, almacos, crevalles), groupers and more.

Venice, in essence, sticks out into the Gulf of Mexico. It’s surrounded by fishing grounds on all sides. For anglers that’s a good thing, except when it’s a bad thing: when hurricanes prowl the Gulf in late summer and fall. Since 1930, more than 30 named storms have hit southern Louisiana. Some major blows like Camille in 1969 and Katrina in 2005 left Venice devastated to the tune of $108 billion, with more than 1,500 dead. Yet Venice always comes back, as do fishermen who can’t stay away.

It’s worth noting that while Venice is uniquely situated in the Gulf, a number of small communities across southern Louisiana are home to outstanding inshore and offshore fisheries as well, such as Grand Isle, Lake Charles, Port Fourchon and many others.

Planning a Trip

When to Go: Two certainties are that you can find good fishing any month of the year, and that winter is likely to be windy. Still, winter can be a good time to fish offshore when conditions permit, not only for really big tuna but large wahoo in numbers around the famed Midnight Lump (a salt dome rising to 200 feet, known as the Sackett Bank on NOAA charts). Summer offers a good shot at marlin, as well as yellowfin and blackfin tunas, plus mahi.

Redfish action can be great throughout the year. While summer months can be torrid, in the heat of summer, a good guide can get anglers back into clear “ponds” in backcountry shallows to sight-cast to laid-up reds. October is hard to beat for fishing in Venice. For one thing, normally in October the really big bull reds (30 to 40 pounds) move into inshore waters to join the smaller school fish. And offshore, skippers can fish the shrimp boats for big yellowfin and blackfin for non-stop action. Swordfish are caught here year-round, though spring through early summer is peak time.

Where to Go and How to Get There: As noted above, getting here is simple indeed. Whether in a rental car from New Orleans’ Louis Armstrong International Airport or driving down, you’ll take the only highway you can take — Louisiana 23 south through Belle Chasse (which is about a half hour in light traffic south of the airport) then another 65 miles (just over an hour) down to Venice.

What to Expect: You’ll find many charter operations in Venice that fish blue water and also nearshore Delta areas, plus guide services fish “the marsh,” as inshore waters are widely known. As for accommodations, they’re rather limited. Many fishing operations either have their own accommodations (rooms, sometimes entire houseboats) or work with others who have houses locally, and set up their clients routinely as part of their packages. Many of the charter operators who provide housing also arrange meals. With any luck, you’ll enjoy such an arrangement and, often, that means really unforgettable Cajun cooking.

A dependable all-in-one option is Cypress Cove Marina & Lodge. Full marina and launch ramp are available, plus 45 hotel rooms and limited numbers of townhome rentals. A host of inshore and offshore captains run out of Cypress Cove, so there’s no problem finding a captain specializing in tripletail, redfish, speckled trout, swordfish or yellowfin tuna.

Out-of-state anglers will need a non-resident guide/charter fishing license; private boaters fishing offshore must have a free Recreational Offshore Landing Permit. Other than fishing in Venice there’s not a lot to do, though duck hunting in the fall is an option for some.

Helpful Links

• Visit Louisiana
• Explore Louisiana
• Louisiana’s Delta Country
• Cypress Cove Marina
• Venice Marina
• Journey South Outfitters – Husband-and-wife captains Eric and Moe Newman are topnotch for inshore or offshore, with boats to match, with a small lodge just out of town. Also, Eric worked as a New Orleans chef for years.
• Super Strike Charters – Capt. Damon McKnight has been taking anglers out of Venice for 20 years; his clients stay in houseboats or at Cypress Cove Lodge.
• Redfish Lodge – Capt. Mike Frenette has been known for fishing these inshore waters for decades. The small lodge he runs with wife Lori, sits right in the Venice waterfront near the marina.

The post The Fishing Capital of the Gulf appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Best Time for California Yellowfin Tuna

Captain Andy Cates, of the Red Rooster III, says the season kicks off in September with 8- to 10-day trips to the lower banks including Potato Bank, Finger Bank and Morgan Bank. This is the land of giants, with the majority of yellowfin tuna weighing 200 to 300 pounds. “If you get a bite, it’s a big one,” Cates says.

The captain compares early-season fishing to big game hunting. He says anglers prepare for weeks for a shot at a true trophy. By January, the water on the lower banks cools down and the big tuna disappear. “We have no idea where they go,” Cates marvels.

That’s when he turns his attention to longer 15- to 18-day trips to the Hurricane Bank. Cates describes Hurricane Bank’s fishing as “action packed.” The bulk of the action is on 90- to 150-pound yellowfin. “Lucky anglers can get eight to 10 bites a day,” he says. 

The main goal of long-range anglers is landing a 200- to 300-pound cow yellowfins. Cates says February through April is the best shot at a trophy. In addition to tuna, Hurricane Bank offers top-notch wahoo fishing.

Cooler Water Temperatures Scared off Sharks

With the season wrapping up, Cates reflects on the trends he observed. “The water stayed cooler, so the fishing was better,” he says. Cates explains the cooler water discouraged sharks and presented a better opportunity to catch a tuna. 

In the beginning of January, Cates explained that the water temperature was in the mid-70s. As the season progressed, the temperature dropped to 72.5 degrees and the sharks disappeared. “It was absolutely brilliant fishing,” Cates remembers.

Hooks and Plugs for Tuna

Going toe to toe with a 300-pound yellowfin tuna requires the most advanced tackle. Cates says, “Lightweight and powerful rods and reels we use make it possible for anyone to land a cow.” The key connection is the hook, and Cates prefers the Trokar 619 series for strength and performance.

The hot lure for trolling for wahoo is the Nomad DTX. Cates laughs, “Everyone on the back of the boat has a DTX.” For the optimal action, anglers tie the swimming plug directly to the mainline. “Using wire makes the lure come out of the water,” he says.

Bluefin Tuna Fishing Heats up in June

As we interviewed Cates, he was preparing Red Rooster III for the last 15-day trip to the banks. When he returns, he expects San Diego bluefin tuna fishing to heat up. “Bluefin fishing is spotty right now but it should get better in June,” he says. 

Cates says the best bluefin action is at night, so he plans to bottom fish during the day and tuna fish at night. “We’ll catch 50- to 200-pound bluefin only 50 miles from San Diego,” he says. 

As for next season on the Mexican banks, Cates is hopeful. “If everything sustains and we don’t get a lot of warm water, I expect next season to rival this year.”

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