Hatteras Heavyweights

By Nick Honachefsky

“Typical Hatteras seas, 6 to 8 foot Northeast and pretty nasty, but let’s give it a shot,” steeled up Captain Dan Rooks of the 50 foot custom Carolina Tuna Duck as 30 knot winds howled through the outriggers dockside and hot coffee got cold quick at 4:30 AM on a late February morning.  Sea spray fireworked over the bow as we plowed through Hatteras Inlet out to the tuna grounds - Diamond Shoals tower 30 miles offshore- when trolling lines were deployed. Rooks noted immediately “I’m markin’ em get ready!” The port stern bent butt 130 class setup started screaming and Ween guitarist Mickey Melchiondo was immediately strapped into the fighting chair, doing serious work. “Drop the jigs down now!”  Rooks then commanded and jigging gurus Sami Ghandour and Paul Chua of Saltywater Tackle deployed jigs over the side, clicked over the bails, each making one swooping jig motion, and two bent rods went down. The three ring circus was on. It quickly ended with three bluefin tuna of 100 to 130 pounds tagged and released. That was the first ten minutes of fishing. But we weren’t into the fabled freight trains we’d come looking for – yet.

MY BLUE HEAVEN

Since the mid 90’s the Outer Banks area has held a wintertime bluefin tuna bite close to shore, real close, enough for surf anglers to witness them crashing striped bass schools, but mainly they can be found 10 to 30 mile range as the speed torpedos began to modify their migratory patterns a decade and a half back from the Northeast canyons down to hug the Carolina Coast, along the Diamond Shoals expanse. These aren’t  the schoolies either, but wintertime, fat and portly bluefin between 150 and 400 pounds, with occasional true giants to 700 pounds plus that scare the life out of local prey.  This big time fishery has attracted recreational anglers by the hundreds down to the area to sample the pain that they can dish out year after year, but as years have gone by, contemporary tackle and technique has lessened the brute fighting to make it easier on both the angler and the fish.

THE NEW STYLE

Trolling ballyhoo on Ilander lures in NC has been the standard practice for hooking up with the big blue Volkswagens, but flat out, I am a convinced man on the perks and advantages of new-style composite rod jigging. Ghandour and Chua of Saltywater Tackle, both standing not much over 5-5 put the boots to 250-pound class bluefin like school was in session, using miniature composite rods and beefy spinning reels. On our trip, Ghandour walloped an 80 incher in just under 15 minutes, and that kind of fastidiousness is desirable when you are releasing many of these large bluefin due tight federal regulations, and to the fact that the less time you fight them, the better chance they have to survive. You would think a steroid set up of 130 class reel and bent butt rods would out duel a big bluefin better than a dinky 5-foot spinning rod and reel setup, but my eyes saw it differently. Composite rods and large spinning reels, matched with heavy duty braided lines, offer sensitivity to allow the jigs to flutter freely, but they have stalwart hook setting power, and can withstand the rigors of pumping in a large tuna. Jigging is a lot of work, make no mistake, but once fish are marked, it can be a clean up method to get solid strikes, many times with multiple hookups for all involved.

“We always rely on trolling up bluefin first to locate schools and seeing what depths they are staging at, but when I take out seasoned guys that know how to jig, we stop on them and they can really reel ‘em in.” Ghandour uses Japanese made Medusa rods matched with Shimano Stella 20000 heavy duty reels. “I will tighten down the drags to 30 or 35 pounds of pressure”, says Ghandour, and that might be fine for the 100 to 250 pounders, but Chua hooked up with four monster fish on our second day out, battling each for at least 30 minutes, when the 200-pound leader snapped as the leviathans made a strong surge, claiming four of his jigs. More sensible drag sets would be in the 25 to 30-pound range to insure that large bluefin don’t break the bank, but it’s a feeling out, seconds dependent, type of game to know when to loosen the drag a bit on a decidedly larger fish to prevent a breakoff.

PUMP AND REEL

Hooking fish on technique is one thing, outmuscling a tuna is an artform, and many anglers fight themselves out of the game without proper technique. The pump and reel technique consists of hooking the fish, letting him do his initial run, then pumping the short leveraged rod up and reeling down, all the time turning his head upward to the surface to cajole him to the gaff. When the tuna runs forward, the captain will put the boat in gear to get ahead of him, but Rooks notes that when that happens, the tuna is getting more oxygen through his gills and is invigorating the fish. It’s paramount importance to keep the fish at the stern as much as possible and keep him on an up and down approach, that’s the key to besting big bluefin before the best you. An old saying goes, “ When you rest, he rests,” so when you are lollygagging letting your muscles regain composure for the next round that tuna is doing the same. You can make the fight last longer by giving in when you least want to. Always keep pressure and direct the fish where you want it to go, otherwise, you could literally be there for a half day or longer as the fish rests and regains composure when you are too weak to reel. This is a heavyweight fight, make no bones about it, and you have to be physically and mentally prepared for it, don’t go into the trip out of shape and out of mind.

When the tuna are inshore, you can be marking fish in only 50 feet of water, allowing the shallow depths for trolling that can beat fish faster as they cannot sound like they would be able to in deeper waters.

FOR THE RECORD

The first day’s tally on our voyage was 6 for 9 on bluefin to 130 pounds, but the second day’s bluefin had some shoulders to them, big time. Ghandour and I landed two fish of 270 and 250 pounds estimated, and Chua broke off at least those four more that were too big to stop. How big is too big in NC? A week after our trip a new state record bluefin of 805 pounds was muscled in, maybe with one of Chua’s jigs in its gut! 

Sidebar - CONSERVATION AND HANDLING

The bluefin fishery off the Outer Banks has been pretty solid, but without a doubt, giant bluefin tuna stocks are in trouble worldwide. It can be debated to death on what the demise of the species is due to, but all arguments seem to agree that the callousness and direct ignorance of the laws by the Mediterranean commercial fleets are a major factor. As US recreational anglers play catch and release with bluefin it is of paramount importance to minimize exposure for any tuna. Beating a fish as fast as possible is the first key, but getting them boatside snap a photo and extract the hook with the tuna in the water. If you do have to bring the tuna on board to measure for the ice box, Tuna Duck mate Mike     has the method.  Slip the tuna through the transom door as carefully as possible with gaff in the lower jaw, insert a running saltwater hose in its mouth to keep the oxygen flow moving over the gills, measure, then determine if it is to be released quickly, slip it right back through the transom door headfirst. Everybody loves a money shot, especially for their first large tuna, so if you do take photos for a release, either lay down next to the fish or hold it by the tail but do not lift it up. The tuna should not be in the boat for more than 45 seconds if you are releasing it, so plan accordingly and execute fast to insure the survival of the magnificent fish. 

Tag-A-Giant

SWS PLANNER

The Outer Banks bluefin tuna fishery really only opened up in the mid 90’s and has had some up and down years since then, but the Diamond Shoals area consistently holds tuna close to shore and within relatively easy access out of Hatteras, Morehead City, and other Outer Banks ports. Hatteras seas are as unpredictable and volitaile as a scorned woman, and you really need to plan a three day window to insure some fishable time as seas can range from 1 foot to 14 foot and back on a day’s switch. 

What: Medium class to Giant bluefin tuna ranging from 100 to 800 pounds

When: December through March with federal regulations constantly changing 1-888-USA-TUNA

Where: Diamond Shoals and surrounding areas out of Hatteras port

Who:

Capt. Dan Rooks

Tuna Duck

SWS TACKLE BOX

Bluefin jigging and popping has been going on in the Northeast for some time now, but just caught on in the Outer Banks with some ferocity.

Rods: Trolling gear has always been bent butt rods matched with 130-class reels, but new composite jigging rods are taking over fast. Shimano Trevala, Penn Torque Medusa 5 foot

Reels: Trolling reels 80 to 130 class, conventional 16 class reels or Shimano Stella 20000 spinning reels for jigging

Lines: Braided line reigns supreme for jigging. 100-pound braid running line with wind on leader system

Lures: Trolled ballyhoo, butterfly and flutter jigs