Tarpon fishing is an experience. Imagine battling with a 6′, 150+ pound fish that’s putting on an unforgettable aerial extravaganza while you hold the line. The fight is spectacular. Tarpons do an impressive job of trying to throw the hook and are surprisingly successful. Tangling with a tarpon is, for many, a once in a lifetime event, making this monster fish highly prized. Catching one? Now that’s something to celebrate!

For those unfamiliar with the tarpon and tarpon fishing, we’ve compiled a list of fish facts about this very cool species.

• Marine biologists believe that large female tarpon can lay up to 15,00,000 eggs. During spawning, dozens of fish will swim in tight circles as the males fertilize the eggs released by the females.
• Tarpon, in a pinch, can breathe surface air.
• Catch and release is the way to go when fishing for tarpon. While the flesh of this fish is quite tasty, it’s also very bony, and permits are often required to keep a tarpon catch.
• Tarpon rise to the surface periodically to gulp air. This is called rolling, and it’s a sure giveaway that there are more tarpon under the surface. Sometimes hundreds of these fish can be seen rolling near river mouths.
• There are two species of tarpon, though most people think of the huge Atlantic tarpon rather than its smaller Indo-Pacific cousin.
• Tarpon is the official state saltwater fish of Alabama.

• When stressed, tarpon will bite. Combine this with their tendency to jump and you end up with a unique problem. A tarpon minding its own business may accidentally jump into a nearby boat – and when it does, watch out!
• Juvenile tarpon, which generally weigh about 20 pounds, make for a fun catch experience because they jump aggressively in protest when hooked.
• Tarpon fishing requires quiet because as soon as these fish hear you coming, they’ll book and you’ll have to hunt them all over again.

Walk into any sporting goods or fisherman’s outfitter store and there will be an immense fishing tackle section. You will see, among other fishing equipment and accessories, rods, reels, lures, tackle boxes, nets, and boots. A woman or man who’s been bitten by the fishing bug could spend an entire year’s earnings without leaving the aisles!

All of which brings us to the natural question: How is the fishing enthusiast supposed to take it all in and then make an informed decision about what she or he needs? There’s no one perfect answer, of course, which is why we’ve written up three tips to help you get your money’s worth when you’re shopping for fishing equipment.

Tip 1: Know what type of fish you want to catch. The type of equipment you will need to catch a small mouth bass while standing at the water’s edge will be quite different than what you need to land Bluefin tuna on a boat. The small mouth bass will be happy to bite on a bamboo pole, stationery line, and a wiggly night crawler. The tuna… she’ll take some more planning and some heavy duty gear.

Tip 2: Know where you will find the fish you want to catch. Whether it’s standing on the bank, standing on the boat, sitting on a rock, or wading knee deep in the stream, you’ll be shopping for gear that’s venue-specific. Some scenarios require live bait, some artificial, some light-weight flies for casting. Specialty clothing is sometimes involved. If you can’t answer the question of where you will be, you need to head to the library before you buy any tackle.

Tip 3: Know your budget. Once you have figured out what fish you will be after and where you will be when you catch it, sit down and calculate exactly how much you’re willing to spend and on what. Do you need waders? Do you need a casting rod and reel? Will a charter boat supply some of the gear you need? List everything. Go online and estimate the cost of each item you are considering buying. Keep in mind that each piece of tackle comes in several quality levels. Choose wisely and within your budget.

When you have done your homework, go to a fishing outfitter that specializes in the type of fishing you want to do. Ask questions and listen to the answers. The specialists there can give you the advice you need to have everything in place before you ever put a hook in the water.

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.

Trout is popular in fish dishes, even among those who might usually eschew fish. And yet many people avoid cooking fish because they’ve heard that cooking fish is difficult and best left to the experts. We disagree! Cooking fish doesn’t have to be difficult, and the results that even an average home cook can achieve can be pretty extraordinary. It all depends on the recipe, and today we want to share a fish recipe that is as simple as it is delicious. Baked Trout Saratoga takes this humble and common fish to new levels with flavorful tomatoes, fresh parsley, and of course, garlic.

4 lb. whole trout, cleaned

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for pan

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 c. white wine

1 lemon, cut into wedges

4 sprigs fresh parsley

• Preheat your oven to 400F, and prep a 9×13″ baking dish with olive oil.
• Season trout to taste on both sides with salt and pepper, then transfer the fish to your baking dish.
• Combine tomatoes, olive oil, fresh parsley, and garlic in a bowl until well mixed.
• Pour the tomato mixture evenly over the trout, and then pour half the white wine over the trout.
• Bake trout for 35 minutes or until the fish’s flesh is flaky, basting with the remaining wine at 15 minutes into the cooking time.
• Before serving, garnish the trout with lemon wedges and parsley sprigs.

Enjoy!

Fish long enough and you’re bound to end up with a fishhook injury. It’s just plain old probability – every time you fish, you’re stacking the deck against punctured fingers, snagged skin, and other unpleasant situations caused by fishhooks ending up somewhere other than in the mouth of a fish. Are fishhook injuries funny? We’ll let you draw your own conclusions in that regard, but we will say that fishhook injuries are definitely painful for those who are experiencing them.

In a best case scenario, fishhook injuries are avoided altogether by sticking to safe practices and paying attention to what you’re doing at any one time. Concentration while casting and care when picking hooks out of tackle boxes will go a long way toward never having to deal with fishhook injuries like a fishhook through a finger.

But even when someone is handling hooks with skill and care, accidents can and do happen. It pays to know how to remove a fish hook from a finger or other body part BEFORE you find yourself in a situation that requires such knowledge so you can calmly deal with the problem in front of you and a minor injury doesn’t become something more frightening for those involved. That’s where we come in. Below, you’ll find our guide to removing a fish hook from a finger or other body part.

1. Analyze the hook structure and its placement in the body. A fish hook in or near the eye is a serious medical emergency, and you should not attempt to remove it on your own. Go straight to the nearest emergency room or call an ambulance. The same goes for a fishhook embedded anywhere else in the face or very complicated hooks with multiple barbs. Don’t attempt to remove it yourself.

2. No matter what method of removing a fish hook makes the most sense in your situation, wash your hands with soap and water, and also cleanse the injury site before doing anything else.

3. If the person who has been injured is frightened or nervous about fishhook removal, take a moment to explain what you are going to do and reassure them that while extraction of the hook may hurt a little, it will only hurt for a short time. Some people find removing a fishhook basically painless, while others report the experience as much more uncomfortable.

4. In some cases, a fishhook can simply be backed out of the injury site without much effort or pain. If you can simply remove the fishhook – if it’s not a barbed hook, for example, or if only the tip is embedded – it’s better to do so than to attempt any more complicated removal methods below.

5. The push and cut method is useful for hooks with one barb or barbs only at the end and involves pushing the hook further in until the barb has come all the way through the skin. Next, cut the barb off using wire cutters – making sure to clean any tool used for this purpose thoroughly. Finally, pull the shank of the fishhook back through the original hole and clean the injury site with soap and water, applying antibacterial ointment if possible.

6. The string pull method involves tying a length of fishing line or string to the bend in your hook and pushing the shank of the fish hook down parallel to the injured tissue. This disengages the barb inside the wound site. Then the string is pulled, hard and fast, in the direction that the hook entered the tissue, removing the hook with minimal pain and damage to tissue.

7. For hooks with multiple large barbs or barbs on the shank, consider seeing a medical professional rather than attempting removal yourself because the risk of tissue damage and the chances for bacteria to enter the wound site are greater.

8. Avoid attempting to remove fish hooks near joints, bones, tendons, ligaments, or arteries – those are best left to professionals. When in doubt, leave a fishhook where it is because removing it yourself may cause more damage than simply waiting.

9. Always watch the site of a fishhook injury for signs of infection, like swelling, redness, pus, or skin that is hot to the touch. Fish hook injuries are almost always minor, but the bacteria that can enter a wound when the fish hook goes in or comes out can cause problems that go beyond a simple wound.

Who doesn’t love a good fish story? In our experience, of all the fish stories we’ve heard told over the years, nothing beats the story that takes us way back to that very first fish. We don’t mean the first fish of the season, but rather the first fish you ever caught. Maybe it was 50 years ago or maybe it was 5 months ago. It doesn’t matter when you caught your first fish, because we know that the excitement a person feels hauling in that inaugural catch is part of what inspires us to become lifelong fishing enthusiasts.

For a lot of anglers, landing that first fish was a childhood experience that included many firsts. Think about the first few casts you cast, the first time you baited your own hook, and the first time you filleted your own catch. Were these exciting moments? You bet, but probably not as exciting as reeling in what felt like a fighter for the very first time. Maybe your first catch was nothing more than a tiny common bream, but it was yours and that made it momentous.

For others, however, catching a fish for the very first time is an experience that is delayed until adulthood. Maybe it wasn’t until you were grown up that you were in a position to hit the water with some tackle in hand, or maybe fishing simply wasn’t something your family did and so you never had a chance to give it a try. It doesn’t matter. Beginner’s luck is rampant in the world of fishing, so adult first-timers tend to pull in at least a fish or two their first time out, and when you’re fishing for fun there’s not a huge learning curve to overcome.

Now can you understand why we think first catch fish stories are some of the best? Getting hooked on fishing is sometimes nothing more than the consequence of the rush you get when you land your first fish. Like we said, it doesn’t really matter how old you were when you experienced the excitement of reeling in an actual catch for the first time. The anticipation of pulling in the line and the thrill of netting what has latched on to your hook never really diminishes, but there’s still nothing quite like the first time.

How and when did you land your very first fish?

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.

We could write a book, probably a whole series of books, about saltwater fishing knots and fishing knot tying. There are as many saltwater fishing knots as there are fishing enthusiasts, which is why many hobbyists find knots intimidating. But relax! While there are hundreds of saltwater fishing line knots you can learn, there’s no one right way or wrong way to tie a knot and many different fishing line tying techniques will work in many different situations. Consequently, if you know just a handful of versatile saltwater fishing knots, you’ll be covered in almost every circumstance. Here are 10 of the best saltwater fishing knots, along with how to use them:

1. The Albright Knot

Sometimes known as the Albright Special Knot, the Albright knot should be used when you’re joining monofilament lines of unequal diameters – for example, when you’re tying your main line to a shock leader or single strand wire leader. A tight Albright knot is small, giving it an advantage over a barrel swivel. It’s not the easiest saltwater fishing knot to tie, but its diminutive size means it won’t catch on your rod guides.

2. The Blood Knot

This basic twisted knot is used mainly for joining two lines of monofilament that are roughly the same thickness – for example, when joining sections of tippet or leader. It’s a variable strength saltwater fishing knot, with the strength depending on the number of turns made on each side of the center and how short you clip the ends, but it’s also an extremely easy knot to tie.

3. The Improved Clinch Knot

One of the most-used knots in fishing, the clinch knot is a reliable way to secure a line to a hook, lure, or swivel. This strong, variable saltwater fishing knot is an angler favorite and easy to learn. The clinch knot works best in lighter lines, and the improved version includes an extra tuck under that final turn.

4. The Dropper Loop Knot

Also known as a blood loop or a snood loop, this knot creates a loop in your line that stands out at a 90 degree angle so you can attach a second leader or lure. While it does maintain most of your line’s strength, the sharp angle in the line creates points of internal weakness. While you can create a dropper loop long enough to place a hook, this isn’t recommended.

5. The Flemish Eye Knot

This saltwater fishing knot creates a reinforced loop in heavy mono, usually for the purposes of attaching hooks, swivels, and rings to wire. The Flemish Eye requires a sleeve to finish it off, so a crimping tool is required.

6. The Haywire Twist Knot

Connecting single-strand wire leaders to swivels, hooks, and lures is often accomplished with a haywire twist, an extremely strong knot that creates a loop where conventional knots won’t work. Creating this knot requires a two-part twist, and some fishing enthusiasts prefer to use a tool made especially for tying a haywire twist.

7. The Palomar Knot

This simple saltwater fishing knot can be used when you’re attaching a hook or other terminal tackle to your line, and is considered both one of the easiest and one of the most reliable knots. The most difficult part of tying the Palomar knot is passing the loop over the hook or tackle, which can necessitate making the loops larger than you might anticipate needing. Once you get the hang of it, however, it’s one of those knots that can be tied in the dark.

8. The Rapala Knot

Use this non-slip loop knot when you’re attaching a lure to a monofilament leader of less than 150 lb breaking strain. The Rapala is tied directly to the lure and supposedly adds more freedom of movement while holding tightly and maintaining line strength because the structure of the knot transfers the force to the loop itself. For larger mono, a crimped connection is sometimes required.

9. The Snood Knot

Also called the Snell Knot, the snood knot is used to connect a leader to a baited hook and was originally used with eyeless hooks, but has since come into use with other styles of hook. The benefit of the snood knot is that it aligns your fishing line or leader with the shaft of the hook. This is one of the oldest known saltwater fishing knots, and its fans claim it maintains line strength much better than newer knots.

10. The Uni Knot

One of the easiest knots to tie with a breaking strength that is only slightly less than that of the line by itself, the uni knot is quite versatile in that it can be used for multiple applications. Sometimes called a Duncan knot or Grinner knot, this is the knot to know if you can only tie one saltwater fishing knot!

It may have felt like this winter was never going to end, but it is over!

With that being said the 2011 Fishing Season has started and looks to be a good one. It is time to get your reels loaded and the boats in the water!

The Spring Cod and Haddock fishing has been producing great numbers when the boats can get out. Boats have been catching their limits in the usual spring areas such as Tillies and Stellwagon Bank, the northwest corner of Stellwagon has been particularly hot lately as well as down towards the LL’s.

Flounder and Stripers will be here any day and soon after that the Bluefins will be showing up. Judging by the way the early season action has been in North Carolina it should be a pretty hot season!

If your gear as not been serviced yet we suggest you bring it in and get it tuned up before the mad rush starts!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/stop-the-wasteful-discarding-of-bluefin-tuna/

The proposed 2011 bluefin fishery Specifications recently published by NMFS will lead to the lowest quotas ever seen in the directed commercial and recreational bluefin fisheries. This is due, in large part, to the dead discards in the longline fleet. The agency is proposing to penalize all traditional commercial and recreational fishermen by deducting the longline discards off the top of the overall U.S. quota instead of requiring the longline fleet to stay within its own allocation. Furthermore, the proposed rule fails to provide disincentives that limit or control longline discards now and in the future, allowing for an open-ended accumulation of dead discards by that fleet in the years to come.

This year, the bluefin longline dead discard estimate is 160 metric tons or approximately 1,500 individual fish. Given the growing bluefin stock size here in the western Atlantic and the increase in longline effort, interactions between longline gear and bluefin tuna will continue to increase; in turn, the levels of dead discards and the impacts on the traditional user groups will only get worse. Unless steps are taken now to reduce the bluefin bycatch, traditional user groups will be seriously impacted!

ROB J BUCKLER wrote:
The long line bycatch of Bluefin Tuna is an insignificant drop in the ocean
when contrasted with the indiscriminate, wholesale, and illegal harvesting of
Western Atlantic Bluefin, 90% of which ends up in Japanese sushi restaurants.
The REAL reason our quotas are reduced every year is because no other country
abides by international quotas, which have no enforcability. Now’s the perfect
time to trade international aid to Japan for a sane approach to tuna
conservation bfore it’s too late.