Yellowfin Tuna Locale

[Skolmann]

If you coulld one port to sail out of in the U.S. with yellowfin tuna as your primary target species-which port would that be ?

I'd like to do something in 2015 to get in 2-3 days of yellowfin fishing. I know that the west coast of Mexico and Central America are all prime spots but prefer to stay domestic. I also know that the long range trips out of San Diego are very productive but from the research I've done-that seems very 'gear' intensive and I don't have that type of equipment.

I'm thinking Ocean City, MD......Outer Banks, NC....or Venice, La.

Not so much interested in specific boats/captains at this point-just ports/areas.

[tautog]

I would do Venice because if the yellowfins suck, you have so many options to save the day. Also if you get blown out, you can try to get a redfish charter.

[Dino]

OBX, ocean city, south jersey, long island... your all fishing east coast yellowfins.. every one of those ports/locales can get red hot or ice cold at a moments notice. venice/gulf yellowfins i've really heard some amazing things about.. but I know that fishery can get spotty at times. midnight lump, etc can be a parking lot and when they don't get the current down there and the right moon its not a sure thing. I would agree you have to think about fringe benefits... you can troll wahoo and king mackeral, or grouper drop the oil rigs in venice if the yellowfinnin' isnt great. at the same time, fishing the east coast would give you the shot at the bigeyes, marlins and other tuna that are often right in the same good water when the yellowfins are hot. there are some good boats out of port Aransas texas that get a really good whack at the yellowfins, blackfins, and all kinds of mixed bag species depending on the time of year. another idea might be the bahamas.. they get a nice bite off the west end at certain times of year. maybe research those options as well and make the final decision based on the secondary questions... are you purely looking to fill the boat? (east coast or obx), do you want variety and shots at snapper and grouper on the bottom? (texas, venice, the gulf, bahamas), would you rather jig and pop than troll? (mexico and panama), are you focused on getting 1 or 2 large cows? (cali long range). etc etc. let us know what you decide !

[O'Connor]

Southern California is currently experiencing the best Tuna fishing in decades. Even the half day boats are catching Yellowfins, Bluefins, Dolphin and Yellowtail. The typical size on the tuna is 10-30 lb stuff, with enough 40-70 lb models to keep it interesting. You can check the fish counts of reach boat daily. As for long range, they provide rental gear that is better then most have in their garage. cal star rods, accurate reels etc.

[Billfish715]

The Texas coast is very overlooked. Venice has fish but the weather windows always seem to be narrow. The fast center consoles from there get to the fish fast however. Port Aransas, Texas might be a better choice. Both spots are a bit of a drive to and from the airports. Check the seasons. Check the area fishing reports. One last thing, the money saved on airfare by staying on the East Coast might buy you an upgrade to fish in Maryland or (How's this?) Hatteras? ( Less time to the fish. More time on the fish.) Just my 3 cents!