Not the one from your high school cafeteria – one to actually look forward to!
It was like any other day of striped bass fishing in late fall of 2023, just searching for marks and catching fish in spurts throughout the day. I was in steady contact with my buddy Mark Winterbottom coming from the north as I steered toward him from the south. Finally, we converged while continuing to chase and catch striped bass on the troll a couple miles off the beach. After releasing a pile of bass, I looked up and could faintly see my friend’s vessel as it headed east; he was clearly sailing offshore but I was unable to get him on the radio.
I remained inside the line catching and releasing stripers, eventually getting a call from Mark on the other side. The wind and engine created plenty of static over the phone as Mark exclaimed that they were hooked up with a freight train bluefin and had now followed it out 7 miles! The fish was being fought by his partner in the bow as they chased from behind due to only being able to put minimal pressure on it given the Shakespeare conventional combo they had for the day of striper fishing. It was another hour later when I finally got the news; they lost the 60-inch class tuna boat side in large part because they simply could not put the adequate pressure on the fish in order to get in gaff range. They were very close, however.
Unplanned tuna hook-ups by anglers seeking other species is nothing new, but it has been happening with more frequency throughout the region, mostly with bluefin tuna most often since they traverse waters that can be as close as a few hundred feet off the beach. This was the fourth time this has happened to Mark, a veteran captain and angler who’s been pursuing bass after since they bounced back in the 90s. And the hook-ups have all taken place in the same general area along the South Jersey coast, with bites often occurring at lumps that he trolls over when searching for stripers. But those tuna, when the bait is present, wait for a meal as well picking at bunker, herring and sand eels as some of the most common forage.
With these increasing tuna encounters – either inside or over the three-mile line – there are simple measures that a captain can make to give themselves a shot at landing their tuna. First, anglers should analyze their gear. The Shakespeare combo my buddies had with them did phenomenally well considering, but an enhanced set-up with a more drag capacity and backbone in the rod would have gotten the fish to the gaff. The PENN Fathom series for example paired with PENN Rampage rod is one example that would work well for striped bass while offering a shot to land a tuna.
Line capacity is crucial; 400 to 500 yards of 50- to 65-braid may be some overkill for stripers, but it’s mighty helpful if a bluefin needs to get chased down. The same goes for jig, cast and live line anglers; sufficient gear preparation gives fishermen a shot. Captains should also have multiple gaffs on board and perhaps a tail rope stowed for just the kind of happy emergency. The most crucial time is near the end game. The angler on the rod must be ready to move around the boat and dig the rod in the water in order to keep the circling tuna and line clear of the vessel and prop. This is no time for novices, but rather the most experienced anglers to work the fish.
Reports and excitement of tuna nearshore spreads like wild fire so bass fishermen can be ready. Often bluefin can be seen on the surface blasting bait, but they just as easily might not announce their presence. Clearly tuna will hit mojos and umbrellas rigs that are trolled 2.5 to 3.5 miles per hour compared to the normal tuna troll at 5-mph plus. Captains that recognize the blistering run for what it is will have the best chance at wheeling the vessel around and following the tuna.
“So you’re telling me there’s a chance.” The words of Lloyd Christmas in Dumb and Dumber echo clearly because that’s all any angler really wants, whether you’re inside the line chasing stripers or working the deep for fluke and sea bass. Bottom line, it doesn’t take many tweaks to be ready for a surprise tuna. Just don’t forget your federal HMS Permit for the boat; get that now at hmspermits.noaa.gov – you know, just in case!
