Left OC 430 Put out the spread deep in the Washington. Ran into some pots and started to bail Mahi. After 20 we stopped and started trolling again. Had a naked, chin weighted horse Bally on my 80 wide Tiagra 300 yards back. We are trolling along and something almost rips my downrigger off my boat with my brand new, never used 36' Ballyhoo dredge from Trophy Teaser on it. I didn't see anything, nothing in the spread so I hit the up switch and bring up the dredge to see 2 strips are gone and 2 more look like they were closed in a trucks door. The next thing you know the Tiagra in the T Top goes off and doesn't stop. The crew is looking around and I’m screaming to clear lines. I almost couldn't get the rod out of the holder. By this time 3/4s of the line is out and its not stopping. I get the boat turned and start moving to where I think the fish is going. But the line was around a Lobster pot so I back down on the pot we get the line free and the line rips through the water and goes to the front of the boat almost wrapping around the frame of my T-Top. So I floor it and to turn the boat when my friend says "I see something pumping way over their and its HUGE. I look and 600 yards away this Blue is flying out of the air and is landing on its side and it looks like a freaking whale with all the water coming up.
I will end this one sided battle where it left me, another boat a Black hulled 28 to 30 foot who is stopping to bail mahi runs over my line and breaks me off.
I’m a 38 year old, 6'2 255lb welder and tears came to my eyes as we all looked at each other and said WHAT THE F@*%!!!!!!!! Can I be mad at that man for breaking me off YES, but is it his fault, NO it's not. I didn't know where the fish was so how was he when our boats were 700 feet apart. I was almost spooled in the middle of a cluster lobster pots with a crew that was as green as the color of the mans face who was pukeing his guts up and the 4th man was ME. It just wasn't my day, I wasn't supposed to catch this marlin, just see it. I'm by no means a expert when it comes to Blue Marlin. I have reeled them in and have been on boats that have got them all 150 to 300 lbs. I have only seen fish this big in pictures, never live on the end of a rod in my boat.
After that we didn't see a fish the rest of the day. Stopped at a dragger in 30 Fathoms and they said they haven’t seen a blue fin around them in 7 days, so we tossed them up some cold SODA and started home.
- Get one side clear and turn after him ASAP.
- Follow the line rather than the fish, hi vis line REALLY helps! Your priority is to keep line on that reel.
- Monitor the amt. of drag on the reel, if you down to a half spool and line is still going out fast, reduce drag. A fish pulling a long length of line through the water can break you off.
you got to be a little fortunate to survive that first run, but if you're still attached after that your chances are good, Good luck!
Christ man, not for anything, but i would give my left leg just to SEE something like that.
Everyone has there specialties. I can find tuna in a puddle on the side of the road. But...if there is two things i can't find for the life of me its a mako, and of course Mr. Blue or White suit.
First, thanks for the reply from all, I will never forget seeing that fish. And Marty we fished from the 500 Fathom tip to the 100 Fathom Bight. I would think that he was in their eating all those chicken Mahi we where catching We watched one more nice blue landed in that area. Good luck Dave
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