If you are in New England and you make the decision to tackle the tuna, you will probably be going out for Bluefin. Bluefin tuna are huge, fast and beautiful. They can grow up to 10 feet long, and weigh more than 1,000 pounds. In fact, the largest ever caught weighed 1,496 pounds and was landed off Nova Scotia in 1979. Why tackle the tuna around our neck of the woods? New England is actually one of the best areas for finding Bluefin.

This species has a seasonal feeding migration that takes it to the Gulf of Maine. Massachusetts has been the top Bluefin tuna state since the 1940s. If you can believe it there is so much money spent in Massachusetts on tuna fishing tackle that it is tracked as an economic force.

But as much the Bluefin is a big part of tuna fishing in New England, tackling this monster fish is still a challenge. They are real fighters. Rod and reel catches requires the largest high quality reels fitted with 200 pounds test line. But never fear! Trolling with rigged natural baits or artificial squids on spreader bars and bait fishing on anchor with live baits or chunks of local prey are also effective methods of landing this magnificent fish.

As for how to go about tuna fishing in New England, we recommend you charter a boat as the Bluefin tuna can travel scores of miles from shore. Finding schools of Bluefin in the open ocean is a skill that takes decades to learn. Sure, you could rent a boat and go hunting on your own, but having a guide who knows the ins and outs of tuna fishing can make your excursion a bountiful one.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) adjusts the General category daily Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) retention limit to 3 large medium or giant BFT per vessel per day/trip Effective June 3 through August 31, 2011.

The commercial General category fishery will reopen on June 1. The default retention limit of 1 large medium or giant BFT per vessel per day/trip will apply June 1 and June 2. NMFS takes this action after consideration ofthe regulatory determination criteria at § 635.27(a)(8) regarding inseason adjustments.

The General category daily retention limit applies to vessels permitted in the commercial
Atlantic tunas General category and the Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/Headboat
category while fishing commercially. These limits are effective for all areas except for the Gulf
of Mexico, which is designated as spawning grounds for BFT and where NMFS does not allow
targeted fishing. Regardless of the duration of a fishing trip, the daily retention limit applies
upon landing. For example, whether a vessel fishing under the General category limit takes a
two-day trip or makes two trips in one day, the daily limit of three fish may not be exceeded
upon landing.

Bluefin fishing takes strength, endurance, and of course, patience, but there’s nothing quite like landing one of these amazing fish. We might even say it’s a truly natural thrill – bluefin tend to be fighters, either running like the devil and taking your line with them or doing a circular dance that makes them difficult to reel in. That being the case, bluefin fishing isn’t the easiest way for an angler to get his or her fishing fix, but the rewards are well worth the effort expended. With that in mind, here are 7 bluefin fishing tips to make your experience a little bit easier.

1. When you’re fishing for bluefin tuna in the summertime, you’ll have better luck fishing closer to the surface. That’s when these so-called warm-blooded fish are basking in the sun’s rays, right up near the air. In the winter, bluefin fishing gets more difficult, with the fish hunkering down in depths that make landing them difficult.

2. Bluefin tuna have great eyesight and are easily spooked. Sometimes a single strand wire trace will outperform a multi strand trace, just because it’s less visible and so less likely to scare off a tuna that is otherwise interested in the lure.

3. Pay attention to nature when you’re out there hunting for bluefin tuna. See a whole bunch of sea birds circling the water, skimming the surface? Go check out what’s got them all fired up. Where there are schools of baitfish, there may very well be bluefin tuna looking for a snack.

4. There are so many places to enjoy bluefin fishing, from Australia to the Atlantic coast of the U.S. As long as you’re not inland, there’s a chance that there are bluefin tuna right in your backyard, and that a charter boat captain can take you on an amazing bluefin fishing adventure.

5. Bluefin tuna are strictly regulated, so if you’re doing the fishing on your own, you need to have a permit that specifically allows you to engage in bluefin fishing. However, if you’re fishing as part of a charter excursion, your captain should have the necessary permits already in place. In either case, if you do not have a commercial license, you can keep, but not sell, your catch.

6. Fresh bait is where it’s at when it comes to bluefin fishing! Fresh bait will give you a definite advantage over artificial lures, but tuna more often than not prefer the real stuff. We recommend: squid, mackerel, herring, or skipjack.

7. Bluefin tuna don’t spend a lot of time near the coast, so the right way to approach bluefin fishing is offshore. Way offshore. The benefit – other than, of course, the fish being there – is that it’s easier to spot bluefin tuna activity in open waters.

Today, NOAA Fisheries will host a Constituent Briefing on its announcement that Atlantic bluefin tuna currently do not warrant species protection under the Endangered Species Act.  NOAA has committed to revisit this decision by early 2013, when more information will be available about the effects of the Deepwater Horizon BP oil spill, as well as a new stock assessment from the scientific arm of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas. NOAA also announced today that it is formally designating both the western Atlantic and eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean stocks of bluefin tuna as “species of concern” under the ESA. Today’s call is free and open to all interested constituents. Details are listed below.

For more information on the Atlantic bluefin tuna decision, go to NOAA Fisheries’ Atlantic bluefin tuna webpage at: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/stories/2011/05/bluefin_tuna.html.

When: Friday, May 27, 2011
Time: 2:00 – 2:45 p.m. (Eastern)
Toll-free call-in number: 888-606-5917
Audible pass code: Callers will need to say the word tuna to gain access to the call

The City Island Boys will tell you Gloucester Bluefin Tuna fishing on Tuna Hunter Fishing Charters is going strong now and will be for the coming weeks.

These folks fought a two-hour battle on the Ken Matsuura titanium reel to boat a 513-lb giant bluefin tuna on a recent tuna charter. This fish pulled all the stops out, making the bow run, the dive, the pect fin caught in the line at one point. Captain and crew and luck prevailed as these guys landed this beauty late in the day.  By the time this fish hit, the guys were all in practice after fighting a smaller bluefin tuna on a standup reel to the boat for a release.  Certainly a full day of tuna fishing!

Seth Michelsen and friends have good luck with bluefin tuna, every time they go for them.  On a recent bluefin tuna charter aboard Tuna Hunter, they succeeded in boating a giant bluefin, plus two smaller bluefin, tagged and released.  That makes for a great day of tuna fishing, plus some tuna steaks for the grill.

The giant was an awesome hit on the kite – what a way to start a good angling battle.  The next fish hit on dead bait, different depths seem to be working, making the hit hard to predict, but worth the captain’s extra efforts.  The final fish was again on the kite. Kite fishing is a standard these days. We have several kites and balloons on board to meet the wind and sea conditions of the day – we have to, to consistently produce fish.

Sore arms for all, but that’s a welcome part of good fishing!

Captain Gary & Karen Cannell

TUNA HUNTER FISHING CHARTERS

captain@tunahunter.com

978-407-1351 captain

978-546-7992 land

http://www.tunahunter.com

Please call us at 978-407-1351

as we are at sea fishing this time of year!

Hello Boston Big Game Fishing Club Members and Friends!

 The Soth Shore Tuna Tounrament  is a little over a week away (Aug. 20-22), so let’s keep our fingers crossed for good weather. 

If you plan to sign up at the Barker Tavern on Friday Aug 20^th, be sure to arrive around 5:00 PM so you can get through Registration quickly.  Here’s a link with directions to the Barker Tavern: http://barkertavern.com/directions.html 

 I will award $10,000.00 to the winner of the SSTT Commercial Division and $5,000.00 to the winner of the SSTT Recreational Division assuming we have a combined total of 40 boats between the two Divisions.  This shouldn’t be a problem but please mention the SSTT to your fishing buddies to ensure that we achieve the minimum 40 boat count.

 The SSTT tournament rules are now posted online at www.bbgfc.com

I plan to include optional Added Entry Divisions for both the Recreation and Commercial Divisions of the SSTT.   The Recreational Added Entry Divisions will be set at $250, $500 and $1,000 and the Commercial Added Entry Divisions will be set at $500, $1,000 and $2,000.  Entering the Added Entry Divisions can result in large monetary winnings but is completely optional.

 The Commercial BFT buyer NAT, plans to be on site in Green Harbor and Scituate during our event and I plan to use their trucks and scales for the Commercial weigh-ins.

The Barker Tavern will serve passed appetizers during Friday’s Reception Party (Aug. 20th) beginning at approximately 6:45 PM.  This will include Scallops wrapped in Bacon, Stuffed Mushroom Caps, Spinach Pie, Beef Satay, Maryland Crab Cakes, Chicken Satay in Peanut Sauce and Palmiers.  There will also be a Fruit & Cheese display.

On Sunday (Aug. 22^nd) beginning at 6:00 PM, the Barker Tavern will serve a Fruit & Cheese Display, Garden Salad with House Dressing, Cheese Tortellini, a Beef Main Entrée, a Chicken Main Entrée, Cookies & Brownies, followed by Coffee and Tea.  Our Awards will begin after dinner.

Please join the Boston Big Game Fishing Club with your family and friends for an exciting weekend of bluefin tuna fishing and exquisite dining at the Barker Tavern.

If you have questions, please feel free to call me at 781-834-2899.

Best Regards,

Steven James

Kite Fishing has been around for years now, yet not all fisherman are taking advantage to this exciting and new to some method of fishing.

The best way to picture how kite fishing works is to visualize how an outrigger works. You have a Separate Line with a Release Clip at the end, which takes you line away from the boat . When you get a bite from a fish the force gets transfered to the clip and your line is released.

The main items you will need to start kite fishing are:

1.) A Fishing Kite

2.) Kite Rod and Reel

3.) Release Clips

4.) Line to fly your kite

 Many different styles of fishing have originated in the hopes of catching sailfish, sharks, and other top water game fish.  Perhaps the most effective of these types of fishing is kite fishing.  Kite Fishing is a technique of fishing that involves flying kites, and using the kites to suspend live baits on the top of the water.  This type of fishing is highly effective for sport fishing off the coast of Ft. Lauderdale, where the Gulf Stream current and the natural reef running along the coastline, coincide.  Sportfishing charter boats have been using this technique for 20 years to hook into the wide array of big game species that swim through our waters.  This article is written in order to teach basic tactics on how to go about kite fishing.  �

For kite fishing, live bait is preferred.  Start off by catching or buying live baits. Only certain types of baitfish will work effectively in the kite.  These baitfish include Pogies, Mackerels, Bluefish and Herring.  There are some other types of baitfish that can be used in the kite, but these types survive the best and produce the best results. 

    Start out by selecting your spot to fish.  When kite fishing, you are mostly immobile.  You will drift whichever way the current is moving, but as far as covering ground with your engines, you can only make small corrections.  So first thing is to select a good area or depth of water to fish.  Off the shore of Fort Lauderdale, one of the best areas is the 90’-120’ natural reef that runs along its coast.  Other good areas are where there is a rip current, a temperature gradient, a color change or over the top of an artificial reef, such as a shipwreck.  These are all good areas to begin fishing, and bear in mind that winds and currents will push you around a bit, so plan ahead.

     Launch your kite from the highest point you can on your boat.  If you are going to fly 2 kites simultaneously, you will want to put a small lead on the lower corners of each kite, depending on which direction you want each kite to spread to.  The weight for this should be about 1/8 ounce for light kites and about ½ ounce for heavy kites.  If weighted properly, the kites should spread apart from each other enough so that when the baits are out, the baits cannot get tangled together.

    Your kites are flying now, and are about 50’-75’ off the back of your boat.  Along your kite line, you should have a small barrel swivel tied every 40’ or so feet along your kite line.  Use a snap swivel and attach your first kite clip to the kite line.  You can buy these kite clips all made up for you at a bait and tackle store.  Set the pressure of the clip release by tightening or loosening the setscrew on the clip.  You want the clip to release with slightly more pressure than the baitfish will likely be able to put on it himself. 

    While the captain is launching the kites, the mate should be setting up the rods and baiting up.  I like to sew my baits on with a wax line bridle.  This gives you the most possible hook exposure and increases your hookup chances.  Use a needle and sew the bait through the back of its neck, just behind the head of the fish.  Don’t go too deep.  About 1/4 of the baitfish’s body is as far as you want to stick that needle.  Catch the loop of the wax line bridal on both sides with the hook and twist it up.  Then stick the hook back underneath the entire bridal, making the hook tight to the body of the baitfish.  Basically, the fish will be angled with his head up when he is dangling, forcing the baitfish to struggle to keep his head below water so he can breath.  This will cause a lot of vibrations which is the desired effect when kite fishing.

    OK, the baitfish is all baited and ready to launch.  Hand the leader up to the captain to put through the pressure release clip.  The captain snaps the line in, and begins to let the kite out away from the boat.  The mate has to coordinate with the captain and let line out from the fishing rod at the same time.  Once the bait is the desired distance from the boat, the mate must make constant adjustments to keep the bait right on the top of the water, struggling.  The bait should be under the water, but the hook, leader and fishing line should all be out of the water.  A lot of captains put a colored ribbon on the snap swivel of the fishing line, which is about 8’ out of the water, just above the bait.  This helps visibility if there is a glare and the bait can’t be found at a quick glance. 

When the big game fish comes up to feed, he will have to stick part of his body out of the water to get the bait.  Indicators that you are about to get a bite are:�
• The bait fish is going nuts and splashing more vigorously than normal
• You see splashes and “boils” on the top of the water around the bait
• You see a sailfish or shark fin out of the water next to the bait
• An unidentified dark spot under the water in the vicinity of the bait
• The pressure release clip just snapped and you don’t see anything

    You will be alerted some way or another that you are about to, or just got a bite.  The best thing to do when you get a bite is to free spool the fishing pole and let the big fish eat the bait and swallow it down.  Wait till the big fish is taking line off quickly before you lock up and begin to wind to set the hook.  This means that either the game fish is trying to swallow and wash the bait down his throat, or he has felt you and knows that something is wrong.  In either case, lock up the rod into strike, tell the captain to “go ahead” with the boat, and start winding as fast as you can to get the slack out of the line.  When you come tight, the line will pop out of the pressure release clip and there will be even more slack to take up.  Keep winding until you come tight on the fish.  When you come tight, set the hook with a couple gentle but firm tugs with the rod.  This will hopefully set the hook into the fishes jaw. 

    Kite fishing is a very exciting way to hook into big game fish.  You get to see the whole bite sequence and the hook up ratio is usually very high.  It takes quite a bit of practice to become proficient with kite fishing technique.  Keep trying though, it will pay off!

The Stellwagon Tuna bite is red hot!

The Bait on Northern Stellwagon is mainly Sandeels and Lures like our Custom Slug-Go Spreader Bars and Custom Rigged Single Slug-Gos  and Daisy Chains have been the ticket (troll these rigs slow!!) Our customers are also reporting many fish holding 50-75′ down and Butterfly Jigs and Braid Jigs are the weapon of chioce for these stubborn fish!

There are tons of Pogies down around the Southwest Corner of Stellwagon and on the Backside of the Cape towards Peaked Hill Bar. The best way to fish this bait is live. You should either slow troll them or fish them off a Kite.

If you can’t net some live bait, lures such as the Braid Lil Speedys are doing a great job mimicking this great bait. Also producing great numbers of fish is our Custom Black Magic Spreader Bar!

For more reports give us a call at the store at 978-281-0858

Good Luck and Tight Lines!