I have been itching and itching to go bluefin fishing the spring. Reports streaming out of Hatteras and Oregon Inlet over the last month have driven me bananas. It seemed like, if the boats could get out, they were on fish. That being said, weather was so tough to predict that I stayed away.
After a week's worth of monitoring the Marine Forecast and calling Oregon Inlet to learn about makeup charters, I took a shot on Sunday. In between two fronts, the report called for light westerlies Saturday night changing to light N then S winds, creating 2-4 foot seas. Even though I am going out of Morehead this Saturday, I couldn't fight it anymore. At 1:30PM on Friday, I used Oregon Inlet's online tool to sign up on the Makeup list. They charged my card $275, and told me that if fewer people signed up, I could pay the difference at the dock if they still went.
I called to check in with the marina at 4:00PM on Saturday. The lady said "YOU ARE GOING FISHING TOMORROW! We will see you at 5:30AM." I was so juiced! I went to the store to get snacks, sunscreen, cameras, and Dramamine. I realized at the store I neglected to ask which boat I was supposed to go on. I came home, and laid down to take a pre-drive nap, but stupid me... I read the Saturday report before I did. BIG MISTAKE! Boats had limited out on yellowfin and picked up some bluefin. Try sleeping after reading that! Luckily, I was able to sleep from 6:30-8:30PM, then I hit the road at 9:30PM.
I arrived at Oregon Inlet around 2:30AM after several stops, and took a nap in my car. I woke up at 4:30 and talked with some of the Captains while I waited to check in. I checked in at 5:30 AM and learned that I would be going out on The Rigged Up http://www.riggedupcharters.com/ , a beautiful 50 foot Carolina Custom with 3 fighting chairs. I was welcomed aboard by the mate and the other fishermen; a father and two sons from the Winchester, VA area, a gentleman from Florida who now lives in Manasas, and a fellow from Philly. We should have carpooled!
We headed out of the dock around 6:00AM, and went hard Southeast towards warmer water. On the ride out, we drew cards to see who was in the chair first. I pulled THE ACE OF SPADES! Holy crap what a good omen! The ride was smooth in the 2-4 chop, but the non-drowsy dramamine was a little weak, so I was a tad green when I got out there, although my breakfast decided to stay inside of me
We started to troll rigged ballyhoo on 8 rods, 6 with 80lb test mono and Tiagra 50 2-Speeds, and 2 heavy Penn Internationals with 130lb mono. Baits were in about 20 minutes, and we got a strike. I got in the chair and started to work. For about 5 minutes, the fish pulled hard, then the pressure eased up. I thought I lost the fish, but the Captain saw the line coming at us and yelled for me to reel. Great catch by the Captain! I kept pressure on the fish and got it to the boat. What a suprise when I saw it was a citation sized wahoo (my favorite fish to eat!)
( a side note, the wahoo was on ice for 10 hours, and ended up weighing in at 38lbs, 2 short of citation. )
Between 9:00-1:30PM, the fishing featured lulls and action. Basically, we would double up on yellowfin every hour or so. We had a double at 10:00, a double at 11:15, and a single yellowfin at 12:30 to get through the chair cycle. After John got his around lunchtime, I was back in the chair. We trolled for about an hour, then the Captain yelled loudly "WE ARE GOING TO GET HIT HARD!!!!!" Sure enough, the big Penn on the outrigger blows up. I get in the chair and it is on. Within a few minutes, 4 other rods blow up, and huge bluefin are blowing up on bait all around the boat. It was amazing! Two of the guys put on belts to try to hold their ground while the 3 of us in the chairs worked on our fish. One fish broke off when the line touched another guys rod tip, but Mate Graham and the Captain did some amazing work to keep everyone hooked up with 4 fish still on!
Here I am hooked up, while Sean and John's Dad keeps my chair lined up with the fish. This is before the other 4 rods blew up!
We got 3 clean releases! My fish ended up at 60 inches forklength and 123lbs back at the dock. We trolled another 30 minutes before heading back.
Waht a great day! I am telling you, if you can't book a regular charter but you want to try offshore fishing, the makeup deal really worked for me! It allowed me to sign up last second when I knew the weather would be good and when I had time and the cash. It was a great trip!
Here we all are with our catch back at the marina!
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