The Bluefin Tuna game is hard. I was first introduced to tuna during my commercial fishing years. We would set a course for the Gulf Stream off the Northeast Coast in a tiny 70 foot fiberglass long lining boat. Out there a 70 ft. boat becomes tiny quick. After traveling a couple hundred miles off-shore to the tuna and sword fishing grounds, we would carefully analyze the eddies, micro currents and water temperatures. The captain was the final decision maker and his decision on where and when to set 1,200 or more hooks was at the root of a successful or unsuccessful set. Long line commercial fishing or any commercial fishing is exactly the same as any other type of fishing. The only difference is that everything is exaggerated. Catches are measured in the thousands of pounds. Instead of a couple rods, reels, lures or flies there are thousands of hooks. Instead of going out for the day, you go out for 15 or 30 days. Four foot seas are common, it’s the 10+ foot seas that become troublesome. Instead of 10 hours being a long day of fishing, the fishing never stops. It is a 24/7 operation and sleep is a rare commodity. So, every night we would set the long line. It floated for miles on the surface of the Gulf Stream waters with 1,200 or more individual baited hooks hanging 6 fathoms below the main line. We would then pick up the line in the morning, assuming a freighter did not run over it and get it caught in its prop. The premise was much like any other form of fishing. The long line was reeled onto a huge spool of heavy mono line that was attached to the deck of the boat. As each hook was brought to the boat, there were only two possible scenarios. The hook either caught a fish or did not. But, just like any other form of fishing, there were contingencies to the scenario. What kind of fish was it? We were targeting Big Eye Tuna, Yellowfin Tuna, Mako Shark and Swordfish. So, anything else was not preferable. If the captain made a wrong decision and chose to have us set the long line in bad water, it was possible to end up with hundreds of Sharks. That was not a pretty situation, for the sharks or us. The sharks would roll themselves in the mono and tangle the mono to the point of being unrecognizable. But, nonetheless, we had to get all of our expensive hooks back and untangle and splice all the mono back together. Needless to say, a bad set such as this resulted in countless hours or days of work. Assuming the captain made a good decision and we set the lines in “good fish” water. The hooks would come up to the boat and many would be empty but many would have “good fish.” Typically, the majority of “good fish” would be Yellowfin Tuna or Swordfish. The Big Eye Tuna had a way of staying one step ahead of us. But, when we did get into the Big Eye Tuna, we were a happy crew. A few Big Eye Tuna could really make the hard work worthwhile. Fast forward to present day. I no longer commercial fish and I mostly only fly fish. And, to be honest, if not for fly fishing I don’t think I would fish nearly as much. A recent Bluefin Tuna fly fishing trip was amazing on every level. It was fun because the factors that determined our success with the fly rods were nearly identical to the factors that determined success with the long line. We had a great captain, new quality gear, a combined wealth of knowledge and experienced and skilled fishermen. Our Captain, Mike Warecke, understood the waters and the fish. Without Captain Mike and his good decisions, I truly do not think our trip would have been the success it was. We had, Pete, a knowledgeable boat man. Pete is the editor of Boating Magazine and his knowledge of boating was obvious. We also had Tom Rosenbauer, the fly fishing guru at the Orvis Company and author of “The Orvis Fly-Fishing Guide.” Tom’s gear was perfect for this trip. Tom outfitted our crew with 8, 10 and 12 weight fly rods and reels. Tom also rigged the rods and reels with color coded backing, tested knots, fly line, leaders, tippet and flies. Above all of this, a huge thanks goes out to the Fishing Gods. We were blessed with good weather, warm air and water temperatures, baitfish, Bonito, Skip Jack Tuna and Bluefin Tuna. It is truly magical when everything and everyone comes together. Thank you Mike, Tom and Pete for making this one of the best fly fishing trips of my life.
Book
- Alaska
- Guide & Fisherman
- Guiding: Choosing Your Guide And Choosing Your Customer
- Guiding: Do It Yourself With A Guide
- Guiding: Evolution Of A Guide
- Guiding: Freshwater, More Than Meets The Eye
- Guiding: Friends For Life
- Guiding: Know Where You Are
- Guiding: More Than Just A Fisherman
- Guiding: Mystery Of The Fisherman
- Guiding: Payment
- Guiding: Saltwater, A Different World
- Rough Fish
- Fly Fishing For Rough Fish: Why Do It?
- Introduced Rough Fish: The Carps & Other Invasive Species
- Methodology: Gear & Tactics For Pursuing Roughfish On A Fly
- More Roughfish: Bullheads, Whitefish, Goldeye, Burbot & Drum
- Rough Fish Environments: Where To Look For Rough Fish?
- Rough Fish Species: The Suckers
- Rough fish: A Lifetime Of Learning
- Rough Fish: Fishing For Dinosaurs (Gars & Bowfin)
- Rough Fish: What Are They?
- The Hook: Some Common Rough Fish Fly Patterns
- Spey
- Spey: Applications, Where Can You Do It?
- Spey: Atlantic Salmon, A Significant Fish
- Spey: Defined And Demystified
- Spey: Gear, The Nuts And Bolts
- Spey: Lines, They Are That Important
- Spey: Steelhead, New Traditions & A Modern Movement
- Spey: The Energy
- Spey: The Flies
- Spey: The Swing
- Spey: Two Critical Casts
- Striped Bass
- Striped Bass: Fishing Rocky Shorelines
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Beaches
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Flats
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Reefs
- Striped Bass: Fishing Tidal Rivers
- Striped Bass: Flatwing Swing
- Striped Bass: Fly Line Options & Choices
- Striped Bass: Gear, The Nuts & Bolts
- Striped Bass: Migration Patterns
- Striped Bass: What They Eat
- The Art Of Escape
- Fly Fishing: A Natural Drug
- Fly Fishing: A Validation Of Freedom
- Fly Fishing: Don’t Fight The Current
- Fly Fishing: It Is What It Is
- Fly Fishing: Socialization For Asocial Individuals
- Fly Fishing: The Allure Of The Fish
- Fly Fishing: The Art Of Escape
- Fly Fishing: The Simplicity Of It All
- Fly Fishing: Time Flies
- Fly Fishing: Times You Remember & Try To Forget
hey, check this out .. if you want to fully appreciate the speed at which the Bluefin Tuna travels .. (especially after being hooked!) .. watch the video .. notice at 3min and 20 seconds when I hook my first ever Bluefin Tuna … NOTICE THE LINE in the water …. you can SEE the fly line cutting and rooster tailing from left to right through the water … amazing …. i will never forget the power of that fish and its first run …. even words, pictures and video can’t describe … but it comes close … thanks.
Astounding fishing! I’m salivating.
Holy COW! Can’t wait till it’s my turn. Hope the weather holds. We’ve got a hurricane moving up the gulf right now. Anyway, sick video. Sounds like you guys had one of those near perfect days. Amazing.
A Truly amazing video, were I you Tom, I would include a DVD of it in my next publication on fishing for Tuna. Seriously thats one of the more heart pounding video experience I have had without being there!
That was unreal, the rooster tail of that fish taking the line across the water. I was reading that a 33″ bluefin tooka guy 25 mintues to land with a 12 wt. I know steelhead can fight, but not like that. It’s great to see it on video. Looks like you guys really got into them. Thanks for sharing such a memorabel trip.
unreal!!! Great job!!! What a trip. something you will dream about for a long time!
Damn dude!!! That is just awesome. After viewing all the great videos on this site for a couple of years now, I have to say I don’t think I have seen a fish look like it pulls as hard as those Tuna did. The first fish looked like it almost ripped the rod clean out of your hand when it started taking off. Even after they have tired and are about to be landed they just look like they pull more than any other fish that I have seen. Thanks for sharing and great work as always.
By far the best video fliesandfins.com has ever seen
Austin
Absolutely incredible footage… tuna on the fly…that’s perfection…
That was the most intense fly fishing I have ever seen. The bait slashing sequences were unreal, my heart is still pounding. Looks as though the orvis equipment really stood up to the hard tails. Nice work on positioning the boat Capt. Mike, i’m sure that is an art form as well.
Hey everyone,
FYI … Capt. Mike has become a regular person on my cell phone list … his name in my cell literally says “RI – Tuna-Albies – Mike” …. Believe it or not, the Tuna fly fishing opportunities have NOT even really gotten underway … The ALBIES are gonna come in … hard .. and they are very similar to the Bluefin Tuna .. put it this way .. your reel WILL SCREAM… So, I am on the phone at least every other day with Mike saying…”Dude, are they in?” He says, “They are off Montauk now .. should be any day.”
Point being is this … If you are looking for a similar experience to this video … and interested in getting very solid shots at seeing and catching Albies … Give Capt. Mike A shout .. here is his cell — Mike Warecke (860.304-9131) … Tell him Jeremy from fliesandfins.com sent you … I really can’t say enough good things about Mike .. He is ALL ABOUT the fishing … and goes the extra distance to make it happen … So, this is the time (Sept 1 – Nov 1) … …… If you want to catch Tuna (Albies/Bonito and Possibly Bluefin) on the fly … I highly recommend Mike …. He will trailer his boat to whereever ther fish are biting thing best .. typically for the Albies/Bonito .. he does very well in Southern RI and CT areas …. One could argue that “the race” is one of the best inshore tuna stomping grounds on the northeast coast .. and that is Mikes home water …
This is something I highly recommend to anyone looking for the experience of a lifetime … Ideally the trip is best with 1, 2 guys .. maybe 3 + Mike .. give him a shout …. you won’t regret it…and you’ll never forget it…
I’ll second that Capt. Mike is an excellent guide who really knows his home waters. Without him, this all probably would have been just a bluefish story. Plus, his “Mike’s Minnow” fly is deadly.
Mad footage! Just mad!!!! Wow!
I’d love to put the new nautalus up to the test of the false ablies and bonito!
come to block island … give them a shot on foot… and/or go out with capt. mike .. i swear he tells me of spots that he has where there are acres of albies … …. ACRES! … i’m goin’ … stay tuned for that video! anytime i hear the words “acres” and “albies” in the same sentence …. you can pretty much bet that i am in…..
but dude — you got a real good shot on foot on block island … actually — an excellent shot … last weekend i had bonito blowing up ….. up and down the beach every 20 minutes and first light was like a freak show in the harbor …
Jeremy…..
All i can say is WOW! The power of tuna is nuts, you guys really got into them….
I had a great time w/ Jesse and my Dad chasing them around….
That style of fishing is a blast… RUN AND GUN!
fast fish = fast fishin’
Hey Jeremy. Great video. Can you tell me the name of the tune playing in the background. It’s also great.
John D.
hey .. thanks man, glad ya liked the video .. the tune is actually me .. during winter months when not allot of sun in sky and time spent in car to steelhead destinations i write allot of tunes … i like the guitar and songwriting .. and many of my fly fishing buds do too … so it kind of goes hand-in-hand with many of our fly fishing outings ..
if ya want to see the lyrics and download the song “rat race” that was with this video for ipod or whatever .. here is the link to both (lyrics and download) …Rat Race – Lyrics And Download ….
i think i wrote this song a while back when i was living and working in boston, mass. … and the “rat race” was kinda gettin’ to me … hence the references to 128, I-495, mass pike and allston tolls …
Hey Jeremy. I downloaded it. Thanks. Awesome.