Originally Posted by
backman
Thank goodness the Hobbit jumped on board.
While some might have seen 6-8’s in Pollack Rip we managed to find the easier path with only 3-5’s. My poor little boat had to slow to 17-18 knots to stay in the water on the way up to Chatham. We deployed in close in ~100’ off the water towers with birds on baitballs, no visual signs of tuna but many marks and streaks deep. The shearwaters were voracious and hammered our long ballyhoo. At one point we had 3 on! In the chaos in the cockpit a shearwater line crossed a bar line in the rigger and Pinkie; my 5 or 6 year old pet bar was lost.
We saw one good baitball/birdpile 1/4 mile out and made our way there at 5 knots; 3 long minutes. Then from the south comes heavy metal AC/DC and a long grey hull leaping the waves. Riptide went to the right; we went to the left, nothing but feathers for us; Riptide was right in tight on breaking fish and also could not get a bite.
After about 3 more rounds of shearwater mayhem on long ballyhoo we switched up to 2 bar’s long and 2 ballyhoo Carolina style; 100 yards back on a pair of transom planers. We pushed out eastwards and deeper to where I saw gannets smashing. IN 180’ we found a line of gannets as far as the eye could see following the Crab Ledge contour line and divebombing bait with that world war II dive bomb action. Pretty cool to watch the big birds dive in at an increasing angle, rotating 270 degrees in mid flight and eventually hitting water past the vertical plane. Shearwater’s were sitting and dipping their faces everywhere. Huge balls of mid water bait, 75-100’ thick on the sounder and periodically green streaks from the bottom up to 75 to 100’ before going back down.
One of those “don’t leave this spot” moments! We went back and forth, gannet pile to gannet pile for perhaps 30 minutes – bait and streakers here and there. Passing over the spot of a dive bomb a few minutes back one of the planer rods bounced in that really cool motion of a strike – tip up, nothing, rod down hard and drag peeling as the rubber band popped off the planer clip 20’ down.
Kirk jumped on the rod. He hasn’t fished all year due to a new baby, but like many of my other crew he’s an experienced fisherman who always seems to be around big fish and good action. His last trip with me was a 69” big eye.
At first this fish wasn’t much; it was well in backing when we finally got 2 planers in and the rods cleared but that’s not unusual or cause for alarm. One we stopped the boat Kirk was able to consistently get line back and within 8 or 10 minutes we got the line/backing connection back on the rod. That was when the fun started. I wasn’t taking it too seriously; figuring yet another 45” fish, got the gaff down and ready on the covering boards when JJ pointed out the fish was staying high. Data point.
Kirk also kept bringing the fish in relatively easily, no runs, saying it was coming to the boat. Data point.
50 yards or so out things changed. The fish went down and out and went out fast. Data point.
The fight had changed from one sided in our favor to an even struggle. Still no cause for concerns in 160’
Then things changed. The fish that was down peeled out 100 yards and came up in the water column heading for the beach. Last data point and I sent JJ down to get the harpoon as I started circling inwards to follow the fish; Kirk hanging tight on the rod. Orange ball & flyer, green flag and flyer; 140' - shit we're in the pots.
Everything I had seen from this fish reminded me of a couple others like this over the years, bigger fish that was doing what it wanted and how it wanted.
At this point Kirk went past strike on the drag; JJ completely cleared the cockpit and rigged the harpoon and I put down the video camera and got serious about driving the boat. Real fish on.
The challenge now was working the fish amidst the gear; first what appeared to be gill nets in 140'; then lobster pots in 120'. It was marking side to side runs 50 yard circles to starboard, then too port, then coming at the boat again and again trying to get under us. The game was played out to work the boat past each line of gear and figure out how to steer the fish; back on it to stay close and up and down, or if the angle was right; to let it swim with us 50 yards out.
This went on for close to an hour before Kirk went another half inch past strike. With the fight approaching an hour it was time to get it done or break it off. Too much can go wrong in long fights; hook wears through, chafe occurs, fish wraps on gear; captain misses a shift and so on.
With the extra 5 pounds or so of drag he was able to turn the 50 yard circles, port, center, starboard, forward into a 20 yard circle.
My upper station controls have a 2 week old fault, still unfixed (hi Tim) so I was running the boat from the lower helm and could not see the fish. It came up on the surface and both Kirk and JJ said "big fish"; I saw dorsal and could not estimate size.
It had been an hour the the fish was still vertical and swimming in the water, now in a 20 yard oval; up on the surface behind the boat; coming forward on the starboard side; bump the boat forward and spin a hair to port as it went low 20' down under the transom; now swimming forward and trying to get past us to port, bump forward, spin to starboard and up it popped on the surface to continue the 20 yard stalemate.
After 3 of 4 of those Kirk cranked up another hair, and we realized that if I used the boat on its run to starboard, we didn't need to bump forward each time it turned and swam under the transom and the circle on the port side could be used to gain back a few feet.
Two more of these half circles got the fish within 10 yards behind the boat; still vertical as it came forward on the starboard side as we bumped ahead to guide it under the transom it would start to lean on its side each time it went to port. Just a prop turn or two on one engine and we had it controlled.
A couple more circles and the leader was showing. Time to make the decision whether I was going to leader with the boat in gear or take the chance on leadering in a dead boat. Kirk and JJ made the call that I had time to get to the leader once the fish was on its side to port.
Try one - neutral; leave the helm, scramble back and the leader just out of reach, good round fish mid 70" on its side 10' down and pointed away. Back to the helm to get ready for the next circle, regroup once, look forward, no gear nearby, this time, go, go go.
Kirk got the swivel up to a foot below the tip; I palmed and pulled, no wraps and the fish came on its side going from a 45 degree angle away and back from the port corner to follow my guide almost 180 degrees to now lie parallel to the transom that critical 8' down.
I used to love to leader but my hands have been shot the past few years and I've pretty much given it up. Old skills came back and I was able to guide it so JJ had a full deflection shot 8' back and 5' down. He missed! Didn't account for refraction and aim low enough, he recovered for another stab and missed again.
Calmness and gentleness is a virtue on the leader, I never jerked and let the fish swim a 10' circle on its same plane of depth while JJ reloaded; 2nd try I took one pull and leaned back closing the distance that critical 2 or 3' and lifting it just a foot or so more. This time with the fish only 3' down JJ nailed it perfectly, drilled and stunned it with a shot just behind the pectoral.
Kirk unbelted, put down the rod and grabbed a tail rope while JJ got a stunning head gaff on it. Between the lily iron in the gill plate and the gaff into the brain the fish was still long enough for me to walk it to the corner and let Kirk get a tail rope on it. Tied off and tail out of the water it woke up - too late!
A moment to celebrate, then carefully make sure all the various lines were clear of the prop, remove the gaff and...and..Houston we have a problem. JJ's gaff shot was in bone and it wasn't coming out from the angle we had the fish. We tied that off with the dart line, let the fish back a few feet and took it on a swim eastwards and out of the gear line.
15 minutes later; 2 gaffs in the head, me on the tail rope and a 75" fish, easily in the 200# range came aboard. Biggest fish on my boat since 2003 and Skipjack's trophy fish for 2009.
A few details:
Rigged Ballyhoo on a pink skirted seawitch on a 16 oz. planer perhaps 50 yards back and 20' down.
Reel - Penn 50; Rod a 30# class Penn rod which had been cannabalised off a 30 when we broke a 50# class rod 2 months back on a manta. You need an 80 for what???
Line - 100# test, leader 200# test mono.
Hook - 8/0 forged Eagle Claw ballyhoo hook courtesy of Stew at the Hookup.
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