Bluefin Tuna on light tackle are great sport.

Light tackle Bluefin Tuna provides great sport and, when NMFS allows it, some excellent eating for New Jersey anglers. One of the most exciting ways to catch these fish is by trolling, and the most fun, in my opinion, is to catch them on under 30 lb. tackle, like the new Cape Fear 20-30 lb rods which are perfect for this fishing. Here are a few tips and tricks that will help you be more successful.

Setting Up the Boat

I like to troll as many lines as possible for Bluefin, seven rods when conditions permit. The thing that is different from the way we fish offshore is that we fish them up very close to the boat. I use outriggers to spread the lures out. I have my my 18 foot riggers double rigged with Blacks outrigger clips. I like the Blacks clips because they are easy to set and adjust and they are reasonable in price. This allows me to set out 2 lines from each rigger. How you place the lines in the riggers is very important.

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The farthest rod holder forward should be in the outside rigger clip, and the next one back should be in the short rigger clip and under the far clip. Set up this way, if the long rigger is hit, it comes down over the short rigger and doesn't tangle, and if the short rigger line is hit, it will come free under the long rigger and not tangle. Be sure to adjust these clips so that they will release easily on a strike or you end up with broken lines and lost lures, not to mention fish.

Another set of lines is run off the corner of the stern on either side. These are the flat lines. They are clipped down at the transom. The best for this is a clothespin type clip such as those made by Perko. The trick is that you do not clip the line to the clip but rather pass a #32 or #64 rubber band around the line and clip the band in the clip. This acts as a shock absorber and keeps the lures down in the water when they are close to the transom.

The last rod is usually run right down the center from an overhead rod rack or a center rigger. It is always the farthest back at the start, but it is the one that I move around a bit.

Speed

The speed that I fish for bluefin at generally is between 6 and 8 knots. Every hull has a speed that produces a nice wake that you can set your lures on. You need to experiment a bit with your boat to find that speed. The lures want to ride just slightly on the front of the crest of the wave except for the flat lines which I run behind the crest; it depends on the conditions. The calmer the sea, the easier it is to go faster. I start at about 6 1/2 kts. and see what happens. When you find a speed that works, note the tach reading and be sure to get that exact rpm after the battle is over. I have seen days where 50 rpms made a difference. Another trick is to find someone who is catching fish and match their speed.

Lures and Baits

The lures that I use are very simple. I have found that the simple 4-6" cedar plug rigged on 125 lb mono is a great catcher. They dart and spin and raise all sorts of commotion in the wake, and lighter mono almost always out fishes the heavier stuff. I often rig on 100 lb as well. I use the natural cedar finish as much as red and white, green, or any other colors. If you look behind my boat, there will always be several of these out. They work especially well on the flat lines and short riggers. Small Zucker feathers in green and white, green and yellow, purple and black, or black and white also are favorites of many. They are also rigged on mono with 4/0 - 6/0 hooks. Another lure that will often work, especially on the long lines is a green machine behind a daisy chain or a bird. Many people fish spreader bars and place the lures near the bars. Often the fish will come up on the commotion caused by the spreader bars, and eat the lures that are local. Whatever the lure, it needs to be smoking along the interface of the water and the air. Later in the season, when the larger (Large school - 47" and up) are here, I troll Ballyhoo that are rigged to swim under the surface at speed, but live bait trolling is for another article.

Location and Techniques

The area that most contains these fish is from just inside the 20 fathom line to the 30 fathom line. Most of the schools of fish are of the same size due to swimming speed, and can be handled easily on 20-30 lb. tackle. Every year, however, you hear of someone who gets spooled on a 30 by something he never sees. There are some 300 lb + fish that happen along and they are the culprits. If you fish tackle heavy enough for them, it would not be much fun on the schoolies. I fish my drags at a very light strike setting, and the reason for this is simple. As you may see on the diagram, there isn't much line out between the rod and the lure. These fish, even those in the 25 lb. class, hit and go off at incredible speeds. A light drag assures that you will not break off at the strike. You should know where the fighting drag setting should be by checking the drag with a scale before you set them out. After the initial run, set the drag up to that setting.

The lures should be fished at the locations shown in the diagram. However, if you find that one set of lures gets all the action, move others to that area. Also, if others are catching and you aren't, move the whole setup back a wave or two. Bluefin will come right up behind the boat and eat a lure 25 feet off the transom. I have had them hit as I was about to lift a lure out of the water.

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The most important things that you need to find to catch these fish is structure and bait. The new chart plotters make it easy to find structure. Remember that structure holds bait and so, holds tuna. Keep your depth finder on and watch for bait and the edges of structure. Fish onto and off of these edges. When you get a strike, immediately, even before you pick up the rod, save the location on you Loran or GPS. Then you can get back to it quickly after the fish is caught. Watch for slicks, with the nose to the wind for the smell of fresh cut grass - that's what bait fish smell like when they are being chopped up - and watch for chick birds, sailor gulls and breaking fish. When bluefin are breaking the surface they are not easy to catch unless you run in front of the school and then turn and run AWAY from them. Keep your radio tuned to the channels being used and keep a note pad handy to jot down the numbers that you hear where they are catching fish.

When you get a hit, don't touch anything except the throttle! Push it forward and add 100 rpms to the speed. This will set the hook and often results in multiple hook-ups as the lures look like scared bait jumping out of the water. After 10 seconds, or so, slow down. I usually keep my boat in gear with the throttle all the way back while fighting a fish. This helps keep the line tight at all times. Tuna always act the same during the fight. They make scorching runs then go straight down. When they come to the boat, they will almost always be circling under the boat. The trick is to keep the line off the transom with the rod and wait until they are headed away from the boat in their circle. Then you grab the leader and pop them to the surface and the waiting gaff.

An Important Note

The NMFS sets the season, size limit, and number of fish that you are allowed to keep. This changes, seemingly, all the time. Do yourself a favor and call 1-800-USA-TUNA and check on the latest regs before you go. Ignorance is not an excuse and the fines and penalties for breaking these laws are severe. You must have a permit to catch any tuna and that number will also tell you how to get one. It is imperative that you be absolutely sure what the differences between yellowfin and bluefin tuna are. If you keep a bluefin, thinking that it is a yellowfin, you are in violation. When in doubt, throw it back. I find it hard to believe that in a fleet of 20 boats catching bluefin and following the law, that one boat among them is catching only yellowfin and is keeping them. Truthfully, these regs at times seem to be hogwash and many, myself included, feel that the recreational fishermen always get the short end of the stick. However, using that theory to break the law is sheer foolishness on your part. I don't always agree with he regs, but I always follow them.