Bluefin Tuna Video

The Bluefin Tuna game is hard. I was first introduced to tuna during my commercial fishing years. We would set a course for the Gulf Stream off the Northeast Coast in a tiny 70 foot fiberglass long lining boat. Out there a 70 ft. boat becomes tiny quick. After traveling a couple hundred miles off-shore to the tuna and sword fishing grounds, we would carefully analyze the eddies, micro currents and water temperatures. The captain was the final decision maker and his decision on where and when to set 1,200 or more hooks was at the root of a successful or unsuccessful set. Long line commercial fishing or any commercial fishing is exactly the same as any other type of fishing. The only difference is that everything is exaggerated. Catches are measured in the thousands of pounds. Instead of a couple rods, reels, lures or flies there are thousands of hooks. Instead of going out for the day, you go out for 15 or 30 days. Four foot seas are common, it’s the 10+ foot seas that become troublesome. Instead of 10 hours being a long day of fishing, the fishing never stops. It is a 24/7 operation and sleep is a rare commodity. So, every night we would set the long line. It floated for miles on the surface of the Gulf Stream waters with 1,200 or more individual baited hooks hanging 6 fathoms below the main line. We would then pick up the line in the morning, assuming a freighter did not run over it and get it caught in its prop. The premise was much like any other form of fishing. The long line was reeled onto a huge spool of heavy mono line that was attached to the deck of the boat. As each hook was brought to the boat, there were only two possible scenarios. The hook either caught a fish or did not. But, just like any other form of fishing, there were contingencies to the scenario. What kind of fish was it? We were targeting Big Eye Tuna, Yellowfin Tuna, Mako Shark and Swordfish. So, anything else was not preferable. If the captain made a wrong decision and chose to have us set the long line in bad water, it was possible to end up with hundreds of  Sharks. That was not a pretty situation, for the sharks or us. The sharks would roll themselves in the mono and tangle the mono to the point of being unrecognizable. But, nonetheless, we had to get all of our expensive hooks back and untangle and splice all the mono back together. Needless to say, a bad set such as this resulted in countless hours or days of work. Assuming the captain made a good decision and we set the lines in “good fish” water. The hooks would come up to the boat and many would be empty but many would have “good fish.” Typically, the majority of “good fish” would be Yellowfin Tuna or Swordfish. The Big Eye Tuna had a way of staying one step ahead of us. But, when we did get into the Big Eye Tuna, we were a happy crew. A few Big Eye Tuna could really make the hard work worthwhile. Fast forward to present day. I no longer commercial fish and I mostly only fly fish. And, to be honest, if not for fly fishing I don’t think I would fish nearly as much. A recent Bluefin Tuna fly fishing trip was amazing on every level. It was fun because the factors that determined our success with the fly rods were nearly identical to the factors that determined success with the long line. We had a great captain, new quality gear, a combined wealth of knowledge and experienced and skilled fishermen. Our Captain, Mike Warecke, understood the waters and the fish. Without Captain Mike and his good decisions, I truly do not think our trip would have been the success it was. We had, Pete, a knowledgeable boat man. Pete is the editor of Boating Magazine and his knowledge of boating was obvious. We also had Tom Rosenbauer, the fly fishing guru at the Orvis Company and author of “The Orvis Fly-Fishing Guide.” Tom’s gear was perfect for this trip. Tom outfitted our crew with 8, 10 and 12 weight fly rods and reels. Tom also rigged the rods and reels with color coded backing, tested knots, fly line, leaders, tippet and flies. Above all of this, a huge thanks goes out to the Fishing Gods. We were blessed with good weather, warm air and water temperatures, baitfish, Bonito, Skip Jack Tuna and Bluefin Tuna. It is truly magical when everything and everyone comes together. Thank you Mike, Tom and Pete for making this one of the best fly fishing trips of my life.