Chunking

The chunk bite from the 1990's until a few years ago was outstanding. There were a couple years when trolling was almost non existent. It may have been a cycle or just one of those flukes of nature that caused mass schools of yellowfin to invade the mid Atlantic. Fleets of boats maneuvered to set up on their "secret" set of numbers on popular 20 to 30 fathom lumps.

Chunking is still popular with many anglers but the last few years most have resorted back to trolling. Nonetheless, I still carry a flat of frozen butterfish onboard when targeting tuna.

Considering the amount of expense spent for a day offshore, even anglers without an onboard freezer may find 25 bucks a small price to pay in case a chunk bite turns on.

Butterfish are the number one chunk bait and readily available in frozen boxes called flats. Usually three flats suffice for a full day of serious chunkin. Check flats to make sure they have not thawed and been re frozen. Fresh frozen butterfish will have clear clean eyes. More then once I've opened an inferior flat of bait 40 miles offshore.

Circle hooks out fish J hooks period. The beauty of the circle hook is that tuna can hook themselves with the rod in the holder when no one is paying attention. They also allow catch and release when a hot bite turns on. Butterfish are rigged by going in the mouth with the hook and out a gill. Then going under the fish and inserting back inside the other gill. Finish by embedding the hook within the stomach. Done properly, the hook is concealed with the leader coming out of the mouth. A spinning butterfish does not catch fish. In a strong current it is often better to drift then anchor. This keeps the bait from spinning since it drifts along with the current, assuming the wind and current are running the same direction.

Fluorocarbon leader must be used. The poundage can change depending on conditions. Bright sunny days with crystal clear water often causes tuna to become leader shy. Begin with fifty pound test leader, dropping down to forty, then thirty if necessary. Fishing at Lumpy Bottom one afternoon (26924 41780) I actually found it necessary to use eighteen pound fluorocarbon to get finicky yellowfin to pick up the bait.

A standard chunking leader is made with a six foot piece of fluorocarbon, circle hook and a small black barrel swivel which is tied to the main line. There is no need for wiring, the fish is wound to the gaff.

These tuna engulfed whole butterfish right off the bottom.

Butterfish are cut into five or six pieces and use to chunk. Throwing a piece of chunk spaced about every six feet with an occasional handful thrown in for good measure attracts fish. It is a good idea to precut half a flat in preparation for when the bite turns on. No one wants to cut up chunk when four rods go down.

The number one mistake I've observed after a hook up, is that chunks are not thrown with all the confusion in the pit. Everyone has a job, someone must continue to throw chunk to keep the school of fish behind the boat. This is important. A school of yellow or bluefin will stay behind the boat as long as the food source is present. If you stop chunkin, the crew gets to watch boats around catch "your" school of fish!

Also keep remaining rods in water for multiple hook ups. Once fish are behind the boat, a couple drops of menhaden oil every so often helps keeps them in the vicinity. However, tuna will not stay without the chunks thrown over. Fishfinder makes an IV style drip bag ideal for dispensing menhaden oil, available at most tackle shops. Similar to an IV bag used in hospitals. It allows you to control the flow of oil and maintain a slick.

Increased tuna activity can also be obtained by using a frozen bucket of menhaden or mackerel chum. Cut a couple holes in the bucket and suspend over the side. This provides four or five hours of chum flow (depending on water temperature) which attracts all types of baitfish along with tuna.

Note, these are only enhancements to the chunks of butterfish that must be thrown over.

Set up by suspending baits at various depths corresponding with the flow of the chunk line. The chunk 's rate of descent vary day to day depending on the current, lines are not always set at the same depths or distance from boat. Lines consist of floaters (no weight) to lines set all the way to the bottom.

Egg sinkers are used for weight. Slide the sinker at least twenty feet up the line from the hook and hold in place with a rubber band. Anywhere from one to six ounces of lead is normally sufficient. However, occasionally there will be a strong current below the thermocline making over one pound of lead necessary for deep lines. A bait positioned five feet off the bottom can be the ticket for bluefin action. Bluefin's metabolic rate allows tolerance for cold water and to feed deeper then yellowfin, but both can be caught anywhere in the water column.

Finicky tuna may be coaxed into biting by hand feeding the bait. The technique is accomplished by rigging a line with no weight. A piece of butterfish is normally used instead of a whole fish as bait. Throw in a handful of chunk along with the rigged piece. Set the drag so the line can be stripped off the reel by hand, keeping enough drag tension to prevent a backlash when a strike occurs. Strip line from the reel and allow the baited piece to drift along with the handful of chunk.

Once it has drifted out 100 yards, wind back in and repeat. Many times tuna feed in the chunk line fifty or more yards behind the boat and refuse to eat a stationary piece of butterfish, insisting on bait drifting with the current. You will feel the tuna pick up the bait. On occasions finicky tuna drop bait when slight pressure is felt from the drag. Times like these call for free-spooling. The drag is not advanced until the tuna swims off. Very light thumb pressure is required to prevent backlash until the drag is increased to set the hook. Push the drag level up slowly to prevent hook from jerking out of the mouth before setting.

Here are a couple additional tricks when the chunk bite is slow. Rig a line with a whole butterfish thirty foot from a float with no weight. Drift it 200 yards from the boat before winding in and repeating. Also set a line just above the thermocline with a whole butterfish and allow it to drift before winding in and repeating. A whole squid used with the hand feeding method is deadly. Allow it to drift out 200 yards before winding back in and repeating. Many days tuna prefer squid over other bait.

However, my number one way to turn on a bite for a charter is to use a cast net the night before and fill a five gallon bucket with peanut Menhaden. Use them in the chunk line to fire up yellowfin. It is not uncommon to have yellowfin boiling and breaking water behind the boat. The scales reflection of light is excellent in a chum line and tuna inhale them eagerly.

Live bait also opens the dinner door. Spot or mullet make an excellent bait swimming in the chunk line. In addition, they not only catch tuna, but everything else. I've taken several marlin on live spot while chunking.

Tuna are opportunist, feeding on what is available. In past years scallop boats invaded the 30 fathom lumps off the Delmarva peninsula when the northern zone was shut down. This resulted in a fleet of boats working in close proximity. Scallop guts being discarded behind the boats created a different type of chunking and became the choice bait which could be obtainable from trawlers in exchange for a dozen donuts or few cold drinks. Clams were carried onboard in case scallop guts were not obtainable. However, unless a fleet of scallop boats work an area, it does not seem to be worth the effort.

Finally, don't be left trolling around the fleet when the chunk bite turns on. Cooperate with other boats. When anchoring, give ample space for fighting fish and if the fleet is drifting…..drift! I know anglers have the right to fish where ever and however they desire. I respect that right. However, if you drop anchor in the middle of 200 boats drifting, don't be surprised when you hear your Mom was not married at your birth..