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Tuna!
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Ridgefield, WA
Posts: 1,673
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Confessions of a Tuna newbie - My Tale of 2007
My wife asked me the other evening, “Is fishing better than making love to me?”. After a long pause to gather my wits, I proceeded with caution and clenched my jaw tighter, before I slipped. “No honey, but it lasts a lot longer and all my friends like to join in.” She looked at me with an inquisitive stare, no witty reply, but THAT look while she prepared her response. She wheeled around and exited without a sound.
I had crossed that line in the sand, crossed a closed bar. I had passed from the occasional recreational fisherman, to the obsessed. When I get up, I think about the weather. When I go to bed, I wonder if the forecast is going to hold. I knew this was coming, I knew. I ordered my boat BEFORE I actually went Tuna fishing. My wife encouraged me to buy the boat, in fact, pretty much demanded that we buy a boat this year. I figured she must have a new boyfriend, our pool is remarkably clean these days. Strangely, I’m still really satisfied with the trade.
The past several months, I’ve been blessed to meet some absolutely fantastic people. I’ve even met a few pompous jerks, but they still had something constructive to offer, so I listened. John and AJ, Chas’NTail, turned me onto this fishery with my first trip aboard the 26’ Glacier Bay. AJ took me aboard, even though he knew I had already bought a 33’ Striper, and John saw my knot tying skills (lack thereof). They welcomed me into the fold, with a passion for this sport that continues to astound me. Today, I have a better understanding of their passion. The tuna fishing community has been great to me, the people involved in this fishery have been amazing. John and AJ are top shelf, thanks for showing me the light.
So much to learn. The bars, the marinas, the tides. Separating the players from the posers. Rigging, timing, terrafin reports. Lures, lines, knots. Weather, safety and regulations. The prep time, oh my, all the prep time. Is it really worth the effort? Is the energy and expense worth the sacrifice? I’ve answered this question for myself, with each cherished moment outside the jetties.
Standing on the dock, in a 2 AM fog, staring into the murky green bay. Looking for those glowing eyes and reflective bodies, flashing below the surface. Scaring them off with each toss of the net.
Now, 6 AM, crossing the bar, as the sun warms the back of my neck. Engines idled now, on a crisp, damp morning as the CG flare arcs across the sky. Throttle up boys, we’ve got about a 40 mile ride. The first jumper of the day and that feeling that races through your veins, the anticipation builds. The excitement is palpable.
The first reel sings the song we seek. It plays the song of the Saltist, with a 1000 yards of braided line paying out at 30 miles per hour. The harmony of the second reel sounds in, it is almost deafening. Now, a third note is heard, and then, the quartet is completed. Oh, this is what they talk about.
Redeploy the gear boys, get it wet again. We’ll clean the decks once the gear is back out, 5 knots under my keel, at the 125.02. Glancing over my shoulder, four tuna, huddled in the starboard corner, a mass of coagulated blood. Modern art, no. The balance of the food chain, perhaps. I know what it does for my body, and my mind. Now clear headed, we make headway.
Jumpers, 2 o’clock, 200 yards. A perfect cast into a school of jumpers. That Fishtrap doesn’t stand a chance. It doesn’t even get wet.
The sweat beads on your forehead, it slips down your face and across your lips as you pack the latest kill into the ice. The salt, is it your own or has it come from that calm sea beside you? The salt is what you seek. You think about it, you dream about it. You talk about it until your secretary rolls her eyes, your wife exits the room, and your kids drift off to sleep.
You, are a tuna fisherman. I am a new tuna captain. I have caught and packed my fish for the season. In time, I hope to be a real tuna fisherman, a real tuna captain. I will aspire to your heights of production. I bought my way into an exclusive club, and now I must earn my stripes. Until then, I will study. I will listen. I will learn. I will spend this offseason becoming a better mariners and fisherman, I’ll work on my communications skills with the spousal unit as well.
I’ve jumped from aircraft, dove on shipwrecks, travelled the world, driven at speeds that would frighten most motorheads, climbed mountain top and dropped from helis onto slopes that had never been skied before. The 2007 Tuna season, was better. The snow is flying tonight, my skis are waxed, but I check wetsand every morning before the snow report. I read ifish, looking for a nugget of information that will make me a better tunaman. My boat and it’s new off season bling, welcomes me each snowy morn. It knows the tuna season is coming. I know it’s almost here. The tension builds. The clouds will break. The seas will lay down. We all wait, nervously tapping these keys until we can run free again.
To each tunaman out there who has helped me out last year, a heartfelt thank you. John & AJ, thanks for showing me the path of enlightenment. Man, I must be really bored right now.
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Duck and cover boys, I'll see you on the beach!
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HugeDuckFan
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