| Once again it came down to a last minute split decision
and I had to truly choose between the home on the sand or the obsession on
the water. YT had his hopes dead set on the floater for the weekend and with
the Tuna running, it became decisive that I would get one last chance
at revenge (for now anyway).
Sleek, furious, and able to turn on a dime, a Yellowfin Tuna
is quite like a sports car... lets say resembling a Lamborghini Diablo in
the automotive world to be exact. Both the Tuna and the Lamborghini cost
big bucks to actually obtain and once in possession, you treat it more gentle
than a new-born of your own... yet only difference is one goes on ice and
the other burns up the highway. And even more amazing, if you end up losing
one of these highly-tuned beasts of nature during an endless fight,
it is quite similar to crashing that perfectly designed Diablo into a gas
tanker truck at 220mph and blowing up.
With that being said, I have landed several low-end 'sports
cars' the past few months, but have also crashed and burned several yellow
Aston Martins as well. The question is will myself or the rest of the crew
drive away in that $200,000 sports car, or will we crash and burn? Only way
to find out is to venture out to the deep.
The 'contestants' for this trip were a slim few brave souls
willing to battle what was being predicted as moderate marine conditions.
While being spoiled with the calmness of summer, Scott, Ronnie, Jay, YT,
and myself were the 5 man army of the trip... adding to that a couple Marlin
groupies. After a back and forth decision whether to go, Capt YT made
the executive decision late in the afternoon and we decided to salvage the
rest of the day and head out for the night-time Tuna bite at the floater
and troll in the morning. We cruise out in a moderate chop and begin fishing
within a couple hours after sunset.
We see a couple other boats hanging around but they don't last
for long and head out on a drift of their own for the night. Meanwhile the
crew of the Nyati starts hammering endless Blackfin Tuna and Scott immediately
lands a small Yellowfin. Lea begins the night as the official chum girl and
starts chopping up goodies in hopes of attracting more Tuna of the larger
variety. Not long after and Ronnie gets hooked up on a decent fish.
Ronnie gets the fish to the boat after a short battle and Scott sticks the
Yellowfin.. yummmm
We get baits back out for another drift and I get a fish that
falls prey to a flying fish. Thinking it is a solid Blackfin it comes up
to the boat very quickly. We soon see it is a quality Yellowfin and Ronnie
sticks it before the fish having a chance realizing it was hooked. Within
less than 60 seconds, it becomes the new Nyati YF speed record and a fine
addition to the fish box.
Another hour or so passes and the crew begins getting tired,
but also continues to hammer Blackfin. Jay and YT take turns slaying Blackfin
on Topwaters. Despite the wind howling and the waves noticeably picking up,
the fish remain active. After a couple more drifts Ronnie strikes again and
gets his 2nd sexy Yellowfin of the night. At 1:04am in the morning, Ronnie
lands the first quality fish of Rocktober.
The Blackfin slaughter continues as the top-water bite really
takes off. At this point we decide to release all Blackfin that are likely
to survive. Flyingfish continue to evade the hunting Tuna by dive-bombing
kamikaze style hitting the boat (and anglers). Catching the flyers in
the castnet and dipnets were almost as fun as catching the Blackfins themselves.
I continue to stick with live bait and throw another flyer out and this time
hooked up to a better fish. After a couple minutes we get a nice Yellowfin
in the boat. While not a grander nor a Lamborghini, it is probably the equivalent
to a Porsche Carrera... and a respectable addition to the fish box.
By now it is close to 4am and the wind and seas are blasting
the boat. Lea goes to bed and Scott briefly takes over chumming duty on a
long drift. After a while we see a larger figure come into the lights. We
then notice it is a shark. A couple minutes pass and Scott notices that it
is not a large Silky, but a hungry hefty Mako feeding on our chum. Running
in and grabbing a shark leader, I come back and we chunk out a fillet of
Blackfin. I let him suck in the bait and then hit him for the hook set.
Not knowing he is hooked the shark cruises around just a couple
feet under the surface as normal and we keep him close to the boat. Ronnie
decides to see if he is just a sucker and then begins to leader the fish.
As Ronnie begins pulling the shark closer to the boat it finally realizes
it is now hooked... who's the sucker now! The shark takes off and launches
out of the water just several yards from the boat.. then once more before
turning on the jets. The predatory purple missile then dives deep and the
fight is now on as I can only hang on strapped in.
The battle wages on and each attempt at getting him up to the
surface results him diving back down for a few minutes. During this period
we are greeted by yet at least one other Mako cruising around the boat looking
for either chum to feast on or his missing buddy swimming 100' below him.
Fortunately this gave us time to think about the landing gameplan and whether
to keep and harvest or release to fight another day. Swayed back and forth,
the unanimous decision came to release the shark if all possible.
After about 30 minutes the 8'+ Mako is no match for a 50W.
Eventually getting brave and pushing the limits of the tackle I get him tired
and up after a couple minutes. Ronnie grabs the leader as YT gets the bold
cutters. The shark comes up and we get him to the stern of the boat.
Just as YT is about to cut the hook it fortunately comes free
and the Mako takes off past the shadows of the light. The end of the fight
resulted in perhaps the best and safest way possible for both the crew and
the fish. Thanks to the guys for being smart and strategic while landing
the 1st Mako of the year for the Nyati.
We get back to the grind and pull up for another drift in hopes
that the Yellowfin are still around. The seas are getting rougher but the
Blackfin are still going nuts. Jay continues to conquer the Blackfin on Topwaters
as we lose several flyers to the pest. Not long and Scott and Jay head to
sleep. Ronnie and I try to pick up the last remaining Tuna as the horizon
begins to light up with the sunrise.
The night wasn't as productive as would have hoped but we're
happy with the several Yellowfin we did land. Now we put the Tuna gear away
and get ready to troll. Ronnie gets the lines out as I drive us away. Aside
from a Blackfin or two things are slow and YT tags Ronnie out as he goes
in to crash. YT and Lea jump on top as I stay on the deck maintaining
lines. Barely awake I force myself with Red Bull to maintain watch. We soon
get a couple smaller Dorado in the spread and land them then get lines back
out. I continue to watch the spread as I see a lure get knocked. Shortly
after I see what I thought appeared to be a Wahoo exploded out of the water.
A line on the port side rigger gets nailed and starts screaming. I set the
hook as Lea hits the throttle.
Still thinking it is a Wahoo I get the fish in relatively quick
and we soon see it is actually a Marlin, and my first White at that. YT grabs
the leader and then the bill fixing to remove the hook.
YT manages to get the hook out and then the fish is ready for a couple quick
pics and the release.
I now join Moose aboard the Nyati with my own personal 'slam' for the year...
very cool.
By now everyone is awake and I am dead tired... happy but very
exhausted from the past 24+ hours. I tag out and decide to crash and go get
some much needed sleep for a bit. Meanwhile, we continue to troll a bit and
around mid-afternoon finally get hooked up again on a solid fish when YT
is able to drop a bait back to bill that was hitting the lure. YT grabs the
screamer and lays into the fish. We soon get him strapped in to battle another
Marlin on stand-up.
After a solid 25 minutes into the fight YT gets the fish close to the boat...
... close enough to see the boat and then peel back off 100-150yds
of line in no time. If I were ever to see YT break down cry about anything
ever, I thought for sure this would be the time. I would probably have broken
down like a little girl after dedicating 110% of hardwork and then instantly
getting it smoked back out into the deep. However being the humble warrior
he is, YT stuck with it like a champ and was able to get him back to the
boat while Ronnie was on top on the controls. After a few more minutes the
fish starts slowing down and gets tired. YT takes advantage and gets him
back to the boat As Scott and I grab the leader.
We swing the powerful fish around as Jay is in back shooting video.
The beautiful Blue Marlin does not give us time enough to decently
photograph him as he throws the hook while at the leader. This is once again
is good for us as well as the fish when it comes to safety. While we didn't
get any great pics of the Marlin, it was definitely a solid fish in the 300#
neighborhood. Congrats to YT on another beauty his second trip in a row!
YT is congradulated and about passes out on the deck. We get
lines back out and troll for a bit and then turn back heading to port. After
another hour or so and missing a Wahoo in the spread, we call it a day
and wrap it up. The journey back home allows us to clean much of the boat
and relax for a bit. We get back to the docks and get a quick group photo.
This trip broke us in for the fall/winter weather conditions.
We had become rather spoiled with the consistently calm seas during this
past summer but we went out and laid into some quality fish. And while we
didn't get the elite of sports cars, I guess it is safe to say we broke even
and acquired a nice porsche and a few yellow 'vets as a consolation prize.
On top of that we safely released a toothy night Mako and a beautiful Blue
and White Marlin to add to the mix.
So far it has been an incredible year and we can only hope we
are not done yet. If it is true when they say a boat is only as good as its
crew and Captain, then the Nyati is one of the finest and most productive
sportfishing vessels in the Gulf. Thanks to Capt. YT and Lea for another
great trip and convincing the guys to battle the elements. Til next
time...
Here cometh Rocktober...
- Oz and crew |
