Pretty much resigned myself to a weekly reports on the action..so here it is for those 1 or 2 that have been wondering..it gets a little blurry but I do remember the hgihlights..Got back from vacation last week fishing Monday with the Bell family; everyone got to catch a yellowfin even the boys - Max age 9 and Josh age 5 both handled the rod and Max all by himself..pretty cool moment..thats the nice thing about the fighting chair! we had 8 yellowfin before 10am leaving early to go get a limit of snapper and 3 grouper..
Tuesday I had Tom Harmon Jr and his daughter MD and her two friends Annie and Alex all age 13..we stopped at 4 yellowfin since the goal of the trip was to put the girls on dolphin..in hindsight we should have probably stayed on the tuna..not one bite on the troll..nice bluewater and the current was ripping to the east..ended up again with 12 red snapper on the way home..Wednesday was a great overnight trip with my good pal John Hunsucker and Jack Dulaney and Jim and James and Don..very hot day today..nothing would go right at the start..plan was to marlin fish and bottom fish with the possibility of drifting for swordfish..
I arrived at the marina well before our scheduled 10am departure to add provisions this all after getting the boat ready the night before..half the party showed up on time but it didnt matter..there was no fuel availbale since some nice guy had pulled in before me and taken the last 2000 gallons in the tank..well the commercial dock was overloaded with boats waiting on the pump so I ran further down the jump to the Asco fuel dock..it too with a wait for fuel..and to make along story short..when I did get fuel it came rushing out of the hole after the dock hand had switched tanks; this spraying just about everywhere and worse into the live well, cockpit, and all over my marlin baits I had set out..what a mini-catastrophy...I kept it cool though - no putter throw today..
Now its 10:15 and I still have to idle all the way through the jump and get back to the marina to pick and come right back..I ended up changing the skirts on 3 of the baits and soaked the other two in pogey oil and soap..(none would catch a fish so you can rule out deisel as a fish attractant)..got out offshore about 1pm and put out the billfish spread in open bluegreen water..did alot of open water trolling as in the days before and sadly with the same result ...big zero...pulled on a good color change for a while 12 miles out and didnt get one bite..and I had almost given the D-TODD gauarantee too..oh well cant always be right..about 6pm we decided we would try the "hot tuna bite" I had told them about..well guess what..it was cold to luke warm..managed one good yellowfin, pulled the hook on another and boated two small ones (which we use as bait late the next morning) just before we packed up two of the fattest blackfin I have ever seen inhaled as we were picking up..about 30 to dark I gave the order..no more tuna fishing..we headed up on the shelf for a try at swordfish..got set up about 8:45 in 200 fathom line and set about to wait..we would get a double strike 15 minutes later..just as everyone was settling in to sleep..fish number one took the shallow tip rod and as I was setting him fish number two grabbed the deep tip..doubled up..Jack was sure he had a shark and I thought otherwise when I saw both lights up on the surface..two jumps from the larger fish would cancel out the shark idea..Jack fought his sword about 15 minutes while John hauled him aboard for the Balancing Act's first swrodfish catch ever a small keeper by inches..fish number two would prove to be a handfull..took 2 anglers 45 more minutes to bring it to gaff..
103 overall and 62 inch fork..very thick..fish cleaner estimated the fish at 130-140#..we got set up about 45 minutes later and after an hour's soak and building seas it was decided we would try bottom fishing....bottom fishing was a little slow as compared to recent trips (commercial snapper season opened 2 days before)..not counting amberjacks we had a tough time with big fish..only caught one big mama snapper about 25 pounds..the rest 18-24 inch fish..not sure where the jacks showed up from but they managed to chase away all the grouper..not one..ended up with a limit of jacks 12 snapper 5 tuna and 2 swords. Lance and Leger ran an overnighter out on the other pole finding cooperative fish..they ended with 12 yellowfin, 2 dolphin a wahoo and a handfull of blacks..Eric Capetta the customer called to tell me that Lance was frustrated that it took more than 3 hours to get the boat limit..they repeated this performance the next night in kless time allowing them plenty of time to try for thier first swordfish..and sadly missing a sword just beofe ewsun-up..My friday trip cancelled but Sonny went out ahead..he had a mixed catch of tuna and bottom fish..Everyone cancelled yesterday myself having driven back down ariving at 530am to wait a few hours and drive back home..
Sonny had the Big Fish TV crew today for a quick and dirty tuna show..they had 8 yellowfins stopping for a jack on the way home..we have boats available just about any weekday between now and Christmas should anyone want to get ut on the bite and avoid the weekend crowds..Paradise Outfitters - 985-845-8006 or 1-888-347-4987
