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The line peeled from
the wide-spool reel at an incredible pace. The
angler struggled to lift the pole from the rod
holder and to place it in his previously strapped on
stand-up harness. His companion instantly took over
control of the cockpit, wedging himself between the
driver and the controls, and swiftly turned the boat
180 degrees in pursuit of the line heading off into
the distance.
"Don't stop reeling," he instructed, "until you can
get some line back on that spool."
The line was
replenishing fast, but for the time being, he could
only recover less than half of the 550 yards the
reel was originally spooled with. "Charlie," the
tuna that is, was not yet finished.
Two hours later, after wearing out 3 men and locking
up a new and very reputable reel, "Charlie" had to
be hand lined in the rest of the way for the gaff.
 Ol'
"Charlie," a 117 pound yellowfin tuna, had the odds
of being lost in his favor, if it weren't for quick
thinking on the part of an experienced fisherman
aboard that day. Obviously, catching yellowfin tuna
can in no way be equated with catching any inshore
species— no matter what size you have encountered.
More and more
northern Gulf Coast small-boat anglers are catching
on to offshore species and what the blue water
battle zone is all about. Notable places like
Venice,
Louisiana, make for easy access to the tuna grounds
out of both Southwest Pass and South Pass of the
Mississippi Delta.
When going after
tuna, newcomers try their luck with much
disappointment, but catch on quickly after finding
out the basic how-to and following through.
It’s definitely not a battle with a redfish! Novices
discover firsthand that hardly is there a fish,
pound for pound that can peel off 500 yards of 50
pound test line from a reel in less than 60 seconds—
something like snagging onto the back of a Mack
truck speeding down the highway.
These football-shaped, guided missiles are designed
by nature to move through the water with lightning
speed. They are literally meat building factories,
with a relatively small head and tail section.
Everything in between is finely tuned, explosive
muscle.
The yellowfin tuna
is the most brilliantly colored of tunas, with a
poorly defined stripe of golden-yellow on its upper
sides and much bright yellow in most of its fins,
hence the name “yellowfin.” It exhibits white spots
and vertical stripes on its lower sides and has a
dark bluish-black upper section.
Off the Louisiana
coast, yellowfin tuna commonly reach 60-150 pounds
and can reach over 200 pounds. The current state
record is 240.19 pounds caught by Anthony Taormina,
March 2005.
Connecting with one
of these proficient, elusive predators is perhaps
more easily accomplished than successfully boating
one. That's because they have the ability to wear
down and humiliate both the best of tackle and
tacklers, seemingly effortlessly.
Yellowfin tuna can be caught basically like many
other species: (1) trolling and (2) casting bait or
lures. Trolling, however, seems to be the most
popular and successful method for many anglers.
Compared to the offshore yacht owner, the small-boat
owner will need to dress up a bit more for the
encounter— much like a prize fighter preparing for a
match.
The first thing one needs in order to catch Ol'
“Charlie" is a stand-up harness. Of course if one
has a fighting chair, this
won't be needed. The purpose of the stand-up harness
is to attach the reel and rod to the body. It is
basically a leveraging mechanism to take the long
fight off of the arms and to disperse it onto the
back and leg areas.
The section that
attaches around the back has two hook latches for
attaching to the reel housing ears. These straps
should be adjusted so that the rod is in about the
two-o-clock position when standing upright. The
gimbal belt section should be adjusted to rest on
the upper thighs of the legs.
Once this is all
adjusted, the proper fighting stance will require
you to face the fish with legs apart, bending only
at the knees while pivoting forward and moving your
body to the upright position while reeling and
pumping the rod. It will take some practice, but it
is not hard to do and is generally caught on to
after one long fight.
It is important to
place the gimbal part of the rod butt into the cross
bolt or piece in the gimbal belt pole holster so
that the rod butt doesn't twist, holding it firmly
against the legs when fighting a fish.
The next thing you
will need is a good rod, between 5 - 6 ft. in length
and rated at least in the 50 lb. class. The shorter
ones will be best and, if you are using it for
stand-up fishing, make sure the rod eyelets are not
roller type. Roller eyelets are for use in fighting
chairs. It's okay if there is one roller at the end
and/or one ahead of the reel with the rest being
circular type eyelets. Rods with all rollers may
bend or twist when used for stand-up fishing.
A good one-piece
reel frame with ball bearings throughout and a
heavy-duty drag system is mandatory. Line capacity
should be no less than 450 yards when using 30 1b.
test and 350 yards when using 50 lb. test. Big game
type line should only be used. Always match the reel
with the rod rating. Most reputable sporting goods
stores will be happy to assist you if you let them
know what you are going after and how much you want
to spend.
It is very important
to use a lever type drag reel and to set the
specified fighting drag tension only after the drag
clutches have been properly warmed up by pulling
line abruptly from the reel several times at about
the drag setting of 410 lbs. (warm-up setting).
This can be accomplished by attaching a snap swivel
directly to the line by means of an improved clinch
knot. Then attach a hand-held fish weighing scale to
a fixed object, perhaps a tree or fence post, and
affix the snap swivel loop to the scale hook and set
the drag tension to the "warm-up setting"
aforementioned. Warm up the drag clutches by lifting
the rod tip up so line is pulled from the reel while
someone reads the scale. Do this several times,
reeling it in and pulling it out by lifting the rod
tip, while staying within the warm-up setting.
Now you are ready to
preset the drag according to the pound test being
used. On 50 lb. test, preset the drag around 10-11
lbs.; on 30 lb. test, preset the drag around 8-9
lbs.
When contending with
a yellowfin tuna, you will fair much better by
exercising patients rather than brut strength. When
the equipment is all set and adjusted properly, a
person with minimal strength will be able to contend
with the fish for a reasonable time before wearing
out.
Most fish are lost
before they are ever seen, due to impatient drag
tighteners. Leave the drag alone after you have
properly set it— unless you are very adept at
catching heavyweight contenders in the open sea.
Expect to fight a fish of about 60-80 lbs. on 301b.
test for at least 40-60 minutes— with no lunch
break.
While many different
trolling lures catch yellowfin tuna, one of the more
preferred lures is the Rapala Magnum CD 18 or its
larger cousin the CD 26. These are deep diving lures
with a wide fin blade in the
 head
section. This is a tapered, cylindrical, fishlike
lure, very effective in enticing yellowfin to
strike, as well as various other species that abound
in the same waters. Ironically, these lures come in
various colors but it seems to matter little to the
yellowfin.
What does matter,
however, is the inadequacy of the hooks furnished
with the CD 18's. They will not suffice and need to
be changed to the identical size hooks (4/0) but in
heavier gauge. Changing to a different size is not
recommended since it will throw the lure out of
balance. The larger version of the Rapala needs no
hook alteration.
These lures need to
be trolled between 5 and 6 miles per hour. A good
indicator that the lure is moving through the water
properly is by observing the rod tip action. The tip
should have a steady vibration up and down in very
short strokes.
Place the lure in
the water at the designated speed and count 1,000,
2,000, 3,000, etc. with spool in free setting,
thumbing it lightly so not to backlash. Count to
25,000 and set the lever drag to the strike
position. Then place it in the rod holder. If more
than one rod is trolled, stagger each by at least a
ten count differential to prevent entanglement. Down
riggers may be used but are not normally needed
unless you are trolling in mid to late summer.
Always keep at least one flat line— a line with
nothing more than the lure attached.
 Once
the lines are set out, troll around structures like
oil production platforms in the blue water zone.
It’s a good idea to staying 100 yards clear of
production platforms, especially if you are deep
trolling. Deep diving lures trolled with down
riggers can hang up on cross pipes from these rigs
which extend out under the water. Circle the rigs,
broadening the circle each time you complete the
route.
For rigs less than a
mile or so apart, make figure eight patterns around
them broadening the course each time you complete
the route until you find fish. If a good rip line is
found, troll the green water side near its edge but
stay clear of floating debris.
You’re not going to
flip tuna into the boat like speckled trout. Thus,
other essential items are a long-handled gaff, kept
easily accessible, along with a "subduer" (club) and
a 1/2" nylon rope of about 12-15 ft. in length for
lifting the fish from the water. The latter is not
needed, of course, if your boat is equipped with a
boom winch. A 6 inch eye splice should be fashioned
at one end of the hoisting rope so that the opposite
end of the rope can pass through the loop for
tightening.
Once the fish is
brought to gaff, it will be better to place the rope
around the narrow section ahead of the forked tail
and pass the length through the loop, pulling it
tight rather than making a lasso and trying to place
it over its long forked tail while it's thrashing.
The fish should be gaffed in an area away from the
fishing line and lure. A miss-gaff can readily set
the fish free if it strikes the lure, hooks, or the
taut line. If you are confident, go for the head
near the gill area.
If the fish can be
lifted and boated with the gaff by one person, then
the lifting rope doesn't have to be used. In any
case, the fish after being gaffed will need to be
subdued before it can be brought aboard, unless you
are one to welcome wildly whipping hooks which can
snag someone if not careful.
With the fish
securely gaffed, strike it on top of its head even
with its eyes several times until it is relaxed. Be
careful not to strike a hole in the boat.
Be prepared for a
big fish! Don’t find yourself out in the open sea
miles from shore with a fish 4 times the size of the
ice chest you brought along. Hence, an 8 x 10
tarpaulin can be used to wrap the fish in if it is
unable to fit into an ice chest. Even better is an
insulated fish bag, normally found through an
internet provider rather than at your local
Wal-Mart. Canyon makes some very nice ones and you
can do a search for a source: “Canyon
insulated fish bags.” Ice may be placed
around the fish if the trip in will take more than
several hours in hot weather.
Now, with any good
fortune, catching Ol’ “Charlie” will be a cinch!
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