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captbogan
09-28-2020, 12:42 PM
Pennsy Guy had Gambler canyon report for Weds trip and I can't think of anything to add to it.

The Gambler got back from another 36 last night. Good trip again, although there were fustrating moments.

We steamed out at 8AM on Weds, headed for our last location. The reports were not encouraging. Set the Gambler on a drift by noon. I was anticipating the 1PM bite that we had last trip. By 2PM, I saw some goods marks on my machines, but no bites. Gave it a good 2+ hours. Heard a little chatter to our SE and went to check that out. Just a few bites but no landings.

Headed off to try a drift through the Hudson. During the night, we caught a handful of mahi. Released a small sword and landed a hundred-lber. Released a mako shark, too. The crew and some of the fishermen did pretty well catching squids for bait.

Cruised back to the flats before day-break. Hooked and released a 6ft tiger shark but not much else.

Got a report a few miles away about whale activity and shot for that. So much amazing whale, porpoise and bait life around us that I half-expected David Attenborough to start narrating from my pilot house. Caught a big yellowfin and released a huge White marlin. Big clouds of sandeels filled my screens. --But for two hours, barely a sniff.

At about 11, I got a call. A few miles North of us, some fish were starting to bite --almost exactly where I had started my first drift, the day before!

Before I got to the numbers, I saw a school of skippys and albies on top. We stopped on those and within 5 minutes, yellowfin mayhem! We held 2 to 6 fish on for two straight hours. Very good fishing on mostly 50 to 75lb yellowfin. By 2:30 the bite had waned and a school of chicken mahi swept in to take up the slick. Just amazing. The customers and crew were happy and I breathed a sigh of relief.

There was a point when I was tempted to make a long ride to try something else, somewhere else. Thank God I did not. I would have found a way to kick my own butt if I were 30 miles away when it broke loose. I spoke to the captain on the Miss BL and we both agreed --not too much sleep for either of us in 30+ hours.

There are tough decisions, sometimes, to be made: 24 passengers and 4 crew depending on you to make the right choice. It's hard to be patient at times. I don't know a captain that does not want to catch fish but there is a very fine line between patience and prudence --and often they are the same thing.

That trip was not the first time that customers had asked me to go mahi fishing when the tuna bite was off. And I get it. But if I think there is a chance to catch tuna, I will always set my sites on tuna. If the tuna bite is strictly on a night chunk, I will happily hunt mahis until dusk. But we need to work on tunas when the tuna bite has been around at a certain time of day.

Also, when I make my dockside anouncements, I remind our guys:

Fish one rod at a time.

Wear boots on deck.

Don't lock your reel-up in a rod holder --seldom catch tuna that way

Fresh dead squid is just as good as live squid (kills me when I see someone throw a perfectly good, fresh squid away because it's not moving its tentacils)

Don't get upset if a deckhand takes your rod to get you out of trouble while you are fighting a fish --you'll get it back.

Unfortunately, we are going to cancel this Weds 36 hour due to weather. We have room on upcoming Canyon trips.

Hope to see you aboard

Capt Bob

rwp2101
09-28-2020, 02:28 PM
Lots of great advice there, and I appreciate the insight into your thought process. Should I stay or should I go, the age old question and the outcome of the trip hinges on the right answer, that's a lot of pressure.

Thank you Captain!

And the amount of meat on those tunas out there is just so many multiples of those chicken mahi.

captbogan
09-28-2020, 02:47 PM
Lots of great advice there, and I appreciate the insight into your thought process. Should I stay or should I go, the age old question and the outcome of the trip hinges on the right answer, that's a lot of pressure.

Thank you Captain!

And the amount of meat on those tunas out there is just so many multiples of those chicken mahi.

Thanks RWP

Love catching mahi and tiles and swords but tuna is our prime target

Pennsy Guy
09-28-2020, 03:22 PM
Capt. Bob, you always seem to make the correct decision to find that "magic X". I second what RWP said...
I figured Wednesday's 36 was cancelled...

capt74
09-28-2020, 09:16 PM
I learned most of my tuna knowledge from Capt. Bobby and his brother Capt. Mike. I have had the good fortune to have been given the opportunity to run a norther head boat season. There is not a minute that goes by that i don't say to my self what would Capt. Bobby or Capt Mike do. They are some of the best in the business . Thanks Guys.

lettman2
09-29-2020, 07:46 AM
Hoping the weather is good and the fishing is great for next weeks 36 hour trip!

Jsnake4444
09-29-2020, 07:52 PM
I was on this trip and caught the sword and my limit and lost another sword. Have to say the captain and crew were awesome. I agree with a lot that he said. Even though I was fishing it isn’t good for anyone to be negative. I had to keep telling a cpl guys that it can go from zero to hero and a cpl that weren’t happy ended up catching a limit. I think real good advice is to keep your chin up and stay positive. You know a good captain and crew will do everything they can. Sometimes fishing is fishing. The whole experience is what you pay for, enjoy every minute of it. It’s about friends and family not just killing fish. Best trip ever. Brother and me will be back out end of October. Thanks again Gambler.

AndyS
09-30-2020, 01:25 PM
Those canyon memories last a lifetime ! I think this was 30 years ago and still remember it well.

Pennsy Guy
09-30-2020, 02:02 PM
I was on this trip and caught the sword and my limit and lost another sword. Have to say the captain and crew were awesome. I agree with a lot that he said. Even though I was fishing it isn’t good for anyone to be negative. I had to keep telling a cpl guys that it can go from zero to hero and a cpl that weren’t happy ended up catching a limit. I think real good advice is to keep your chin up and stay positive. You know a good captain and crew will do everything they can. Sometimes fishing is fishing. The whole experience is what you pay for, enjoy every minute of it. It’s about friends and family not just killing fish. Best trip ever. Brother and me will be back out end of October. Thanks again Gambler.

That's so true---not always about the catching---what you can and do see out there will fill a memory bank...almost every trip brings something new...
If your on the ...10/28 36hr trip, I'll see you and your brother on board.
Very nice on your swordy and limit---very nice indeed!

shrimpman steve
09-30-2020, 02:58 PM
What a great report. Thanks cap. I wish I was up there now. I haven’t tuna fished for five years now.

Florida is great but I’ll still take the fishing in the NE!

Jsnake4444
09-30-2020, 08:23 PM
That's so true---not always about the catching---what you can and do see out there will fill a memory bank...almost every trip brings something new...
If your on the ...10/28 36hr trip, I'll see you and your brother on board.
Very nice on your swordy and limit---very nice indeed!

We are on the 24 hr trip leaving 10/23