"Tuna
Blitz"
Brooklyn VI - Sheepshead Bay
(718) 743-8464
September 12, 2000
September 12, 2000
Late Sunday afternoon in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. We're loading our equipment
onto the Brooklyn VI...the street is bustling with Sunday strollers...it's
a picture perfect day down by the pier. I unloaded my gear and just took
it all in. Sheepshead Bay has one hell of a history and many stories to
tell...and this is just one more to add to the book.
Late Sunday afternoon in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. We're loading our equipment onto the Brooklyn VI...the street is bustling with Sunday strollers...it's a picture perfect day down by the pier. I unloaded my gear and just took it all in. Sheepshead Bay has one hell of a history and many stories to tell...and this is just one more to add to the book.
We
left at 6 PM...the weather could have gone either way for us, but St.
Peter had laid his hands on the water this day, so there were no waves
and little if any wind as we got on our way. Robert's brand new engines
shot us to the Canyon at 23 knots. The reports were sketchy at best since
the tuna had made a major move North in the last few days. Some cool water
had moved into the walls of the Hudson Canyon and the Fishtales had been
producing a bit...so we had a 6 hour ride out. Everyone was stoked to
get tuna busy, so a card game was started to pass the time and play the
luck of the cards. I should have bailed out on the cards early..Ouch!
We arrived at the Fishtales a little after midnight. The boats were lined
up around the Fishtale walls. The sea was a joke, it felt as if we were
in the bay!
The first bite was at about 1:30 AM and it was slow pick from there. At
3 AM the tuna fire started...rods were going off like M80's all over the
place. I was so busy videotaping with my brother Mark that I really didn't
get into the action until midway. I set up Mark's rod at 140 feet and
in no time he was off to the races. He brought up a nice 60 pounder. Then
I got my shot, dropped one of my rods down to 175 feet and I was off to
the races. About 35 fish came up in 2 hours. Capt. Robert and his mates
were flying all over the place trying to accomodate all of his customers,
which included alot of beginners (that means double time). The bite came
down to a trickle...a fish here and there, as the sun made her grand appearance.
I knew from many a trip, that the fish were not gone, but at the back
of the boat in the slick. Line shy in a major way. So here comes the fun...I
dropped a 7 foot, 30 pound fluoro carbon leader and a 3 ounce barrel weight
down 2oo feet. Wham! Tuna on his way to Ohio...see ya...bye-bye! I played
that puppy in with help from Tommy the first mate.
Landed that puppy, retied a whole new rig (which is a must when you play
these little stunts) and sent it all back. My line went slack...oh no...fish
on, in reverse! I reeled like the mother of pearl and came up to the fish.
At the first feeling of line pressure he did an about face and shot out.
I had a wee bit of a circle hook on as he made his run long and hard.
I put my harness on, this takes the pressure off of your arms and puts
it on your legs. Dennis Braid makes a mean harness that is great for fighting
tuna. I pumped this fish in pretty easily, but I knew that something was
wrong, very wrong, when the tuna came into sight. It was a 90 pounder
and it was tail wrapped. Tommy flew around and went to gaff the brute
in the head. He had the fish by the gill plate, when the fish suddenly
surged violently and snapped himself away from the gaff unwrapping himself
from the line at the same time. Now totally furious, the tuna took off
like a sky rocket...a half an hour later, we're doing the circle game...foot
by foot, inch by inch. The last 10 feet from the surface was a tug of
war and remember, this is all on 30 pound test, you can't just rip him
up like your using 100 pound test. Once again Tom went to gaff the fish
and stuck him good, but once again, the fish broke free. This time not
so far a run...he was half whipped and so was I. Tom said enough of this,
let's put an end to this, I pulled for the last time, the tuna did some
short circles, stuck his head to the surface, where two gaffs whacked
him good putting an end to this story.
We had a good trip, with over 40 fish coming into the boat and over 30
fish getting away. To Robert, Tom, Mike and the others...Thanks!
The tuna
are screaming, so get out there now, this won't last for long this year.
Trust me, the weather is not what we had last year. The run will be short
and sweet. So if you like to feel your heart racing and you're tired of
the same old fishing routine, book a trip for tuna and email me afterwards.
We
left at 6 PM...the weather could have gone either way for us, but St.
Peter had laid his hands on the water this day, so there were no waves
and little if any wind as we got on our way. Robert's brand new engines
shot us to the Canyon at 23 knots. The reports were sketchy at best since
the tuna had made a major move North in the last few days. Some cool water
had moved into the walls of the Hudson Canyon and the Fishtales had been
producing a bit...so we had a 6 hour ride out. Everyone was stoked to
get tuna busy, so a card game was started to pass the time and play the
luck of the cards. I should have bailed out on the cards early..Ouch!
We arrived at the Fishtales a little after midnight. The boats were lined
up around the Fishtale walls. The sea was a joke, it felt as if we were
in the bay!
The first bite was at about 1:30 AM and it was slow pick from there. At
3 AM the tuna fire started...rods were going off like M80's all over the
place. I was so busy videotaping with my brother Mark that I really didn't
get into the action until midway. I set up Mark's rod at 140 feet and
in no time he was off to the races. He brought up a nice 60 pounder. Then
I got my shot, dropped one of my rods down to 175 feet and I was off to
the races. About 35 fish came up in 2 hours. Capt. Robert and his mates
were flying all over the place trying to accomodate all of his customers,
which included alot of beginners (that means double time). The bite came
down to a trickle...a fish here and there, as the sun made her grand appearance.
I knew from many a trip, that the fish were not gone, but at the back
of the boat in the slick. Line shy in a major way. So here comes the fun...I
dropped a 7 foot, 30 pound fluoro carbon leader and a 3 ounce barrel weight
down 2oo feet. Wham! Tuna on his way to Ohio...see ya...bye-bye! I played
that puppy in with help from Tommy the first mate.
Landed that puppy, retied a whole new rig (which is a must when you play
these little stunts) and sent it all back. My line went slack...oh no...fish
on, in reverse! I reeled like the mother of pearl and came up to the fish.
At the first feeling of line pressure he did an about face and shot out.
I had a wee bit of a circle hook on as he made his run long and hard.
I put my harness on, this takes the pressure off of your arms and puts
it on your legs. Dennis Braid makes a mean harness that is great for fighting
tuna. I pumped this fish in pretty easily, but I knew that something was
wrong, very wrong, when the tuna came into sight. It was a 90 pounder
and it was tail wrapped. Tommy flew around and went to gaff the brute
in the head. He had the fish by the gill plate, when the fish suddenly
surged violently and snapped himself away from the gaff unwrapping himself
from the line at the same time. Now totally furious, the tuna took off
like a sky rocket...a half an hour later, we're doing the circle game...foot
by foot, inch by inch. The last 10 feet from the surface was a tug of
war and remember, this is all on 30 pound test, you can't just rip him
up like your using 100 pound test. Once again Tom went to gaff the fish
and stuck him good, but once again, the fish broke free. This time not
so far a run...he was half whipped and so was I. Tom said enough of this,
let's put an end to this, I pulled for the last time, the tuna did some
short circles, stuck his head to the surface, where two gaffs whacked
him good putting an end to this story.
We had a good trip, with over 40 fish coming into the boat and over 30
fish getting away. To Robert, Tom, Mike and the others...Thanks!
The tuna are screaming, so get out there now, this won't last for long this year. Trust me, the weather is not what we had last year. The run will be short and sweet. So if you like to feel your heart racing and you're tired of the same old fishing routine, book a trip for tuna and email me afterwards.