Tuna and Haddock!
Capt. Rich Antonino
July 19, 2009
Stellwagen Bank - Saltwater Fishing Report
Thursday, July 16, 2009
What a day! It was supposed to be an all-day striper trip. Casting light tackle for stripers. I asked "how about casting for tuna first?". The bite has been good, so we did it. Good call, even though we didn't land a tuna. Nathan's Dad, Rob, down from Ottawa, hooked up pretty quickly. Now, let me tell you something about the progression from freshwater fish (even muskies) to tuna. There is no comparison. Nothing you have done before can prepare you for this type of battle. Nothing. Watch videos and listen and learn.
First hookup tore off 50 yards of line before spitting the hook. The second fish came minutes later and was on for 15 minutes. It was a battle. We were winning. He had stopped the fish and was in the process of palming, pumping, and reeling. And repeating. The fish thought otherwise and ran hard. Not the time to palm the reel. Snap. Lesson learned with experience. We were using our Okuma VS80 reel on these fish. The drag was awesome and I was very happy with it's performance. Very smooth (and less than $200).
The next fish was a hit and run and throw the hook. The 4th hookup for Rob (he was the man) was insane...A tuna nailed his TunaCandy lure on the surface, 15' from the boat. He set the hook as the fish hit, which caused the fish to jump and tailwalk!!! Yes, it was like a sailfish, all 300 pounds of it or so. Giant! It must have grabbed the hook sideways, so it pulled free almost immediately. My heart is still racing. Get out there!
So it was off to striper fishing off of Provincetown. Insane is the only word. We got them on plugs, poppers, jigs, and bait. Fish to about 20-25 pounds. Insane blitz at 11:00 as the winds cranked up. It got too rough, so, happily, we headed back to Green Harbor. Everyone caught fish; Nathan, his Dad, and his Mom. She did great on the light tackle. She's done that before!
See you out there; I'm getting ready for the Oak Bluffs Monster Shark tourney next weekend. I can't wait. Capt. Rich Antonino, Black Rose Fishing Charters, 508-269-1882
Target Species:
bluefin tuna and haddock
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