Cark the Handlines

[Tinman]

Gentlemen, I read here that you harvest tuna with meatlines, until the boat can physically hold no more, and then swagger to the fish cleaning station to "cark" the lot of it. I thought we left such practices back in the 19th century, or certainly back in our own adolescence.

Elsewhere in the world, anglers seek tuna on light tackle. On Southern California party boats, experienced anglers don't want to take their turn on the heavy trolling rods -- they would much rather catch tuna on the lighter bait rods. On 15 pound line, a 20 pound tuna is a screaming freight train, testing drags and skills alike.

When the tuna are spooky, the best fishermen drop down to 12 pound line. I have caught many a tuna this way on slow days.

I make no moral judgement, but guys, you are missing out on a world-class sportfishing opportunity.

So cark the handlines, service your drag washers, and troll with 12 or 15 pound line. And if you manage to cross the bar, pilot your craft to the offshore grounds, find the tuna, land a couple or three, and return safely, you have had a very good day indeed.

[Popeye]

[ 08-14-2003, 03:01 PM: Message edited by: Popeye ]

[Phil Layer]

And then eat cat food the rest of the winter?? :whazzup:

[WildHawg]

Must be one of them purists :tongue: .
What sport is there in battling a 20# fish for an hour on 12-15 pound test, while it burns its reserves of adrenaline and accrues high levels of histamines which can lead to Scromboid poisoning?
In doing so you have made far less palatible tablefare.
Even if you release, that fish's chances of recovery are low after such an epic battle. Very likely to become sharkbait.
Handlines are the quickest way to bring in quality tablefare with as little stress to the fish (before I KILL IT!) as possible.
I fish for tuna to feed my family, and make great gifts for my friends. We can case after case, and will eat 100 pints ourselves in a year easy.
I caught them on 8' salmon rods out of Winchester Bay in the first big El Nino, and frankly, it just wears ya out.
I like fishing for some species with light line (steelhead, coho, big trout), but they live in cold water, and don't build up internal temperatures of 90 degress when you fight them either.
Ya know what I always say: "everybodies got their own way of doin' things". I like mine just fine.
See ya,
WildHawg, Master of the Tuniverse

[kamloops]

What do you mean "If you manage to cross the bar
etc, etc AND RETURN SAFELY".....

There are more than a few fisherman in the Northwest that have been born and raised and
taught to Cross the Bar Safely and how to catch fish. In some states it's still illegal to fish with live bait and chum.

[CATCH AND EAT]

and the berry award goes to? [img]graemlins/berry.gif[/img] With respect to your opinion on this matter Tinman I love to eat tuna. BBQ'd some up last night soaked in Italian dressing. It was just terrible. :grin: I really felt bad that I was unable to NOT bring home any more than 2.5 fish after my trip with Miss B Haven a few weeks back. I need MORE tuna!!!! But the likelyhood of another trip in my future is bleak.

As far as the hand lines are concerned if you are in for the meat of the deal they are great. You can score a lot of fish. If you want sport then sturgeon rods packed with 50 to 80 lb tuff line are the trick. 12 to 15lb main line? Sorry, that is just torturing the fish, ruining the meat and wasting valuable fishing time in my opinion. Sounds like a sure way to get spooled if that is you game and what sounds fun. I guess it might be fun if you go do that once in you life just to say you can.

Now your analogy comparing us to the netters of the dark ages. Sorry. Don't buy into that. To each his own I guess.

[Mello-Yello]

[ 08-17-2003, 02:55 PM: Message edited by: Mello-Yello ]

[Popeye]

[ 08-14-2003, 03:02 PM: Message edited by: Popeye ]

[CATCH AND EAT]

Mommy! :grin:

[fish assassin]

POPEYE writes:

"I wanna be a SWORD boat captain."

Heck Bruce, I'd just be happy with being a TUNA! boat captain at this point!!
Fished a poopy ocean on Saturday for a total of 10 fish ... although they *were*
big at 22.8 lb. average ...
and fished a MUCH worse ocean on Monday for only 3 fish. Someday I'm gonna have
to learn how to catch TUNA!! :blush: :grin: :blush: :grin:

-assAssin-

[ 08-14-2003, 08:33 AM: Message edited by: fish assassin ]

[Pilar]

Nice ... Tinman.

They do alot of things back east that I am in no hurry to do here. We get at most 5 to 10 trips a year. The Pacific Ocean is not. Oregon offshore fisherman routinely fish in conditions considered too rough to fish in the Gulf, Florida Keys and New England.

As the Summer winds on and the cases pile up I am much more likely to standup fish for tuna. Casting into a bait boil with a salmon mooching rod and 30# line is great fun. Attend a Tunaholics meeting and watch the video of Tom P. doing just that.

But until the pantry is full I am fishing for groceries. And as stated in previous posts handline fish make the best groceries. Why don't you meet us out there, 30 miles offshore and show us the way, Tinman???

I thought so.

[CATCH AND EAT]

:shocked: :shocked: :shocked:

[Popeye]

[ 08-14-2003, 03:02 PM: Message edited by: Popeye ]

[Sea Jypzee]

As others have said already...I'm out there to stock the freezer with meat, and the pantry with canned fish. Once my annual supplies are completed, then I may consider going out to try some Catch and release fishing, as the meat isn't going to be worth eating anyway.

[fish assassin]

Oops, sorry about that! I fixed it ...
it's ME that wants to be a TUNA boat captain!
-assAssin-

Originally posted by Popeye:
No Mark....I Wanna Be A SWORD BOAT CAPTAIN :grin:

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helv">

[ 08-14-2003, 08:35 AM: Message edited by: fish assassin ]

[Burner]

Looks like someone was trolling right through the Salty Dogs with handlines and baited words . He caught a bunch of jumpers too . Isn't an inflammatory post in violation of the Ifish rules :grin: ?

[ 08-14-2003, 08:41 AM: Message edited by: Burner ]

[Miss B Haven]

It's all fishin' and it's all fun at times. I switch around as the occasion warrents. Sometimes you just wanna drive around out there on a nice day with no gear out at all :shocked: . Just enjoy the blue and the wildlife! That's fun too!
:smile:
Enjoy!

[DriftR]

Tinman,
You know I believe every Salty Dog on this page should catch at least one Tuna on rod and reel just for the memory. I've done my fair share of tuna fishing off the Oregon coast over the years. Yup, I caught my first albie off a rod and reel. Guess what? That albie was the last one I ever caught that way. Try heading out 20-30 miles in a flat bottom dory launched off the beach. Bucking seas, wind, sun, rain, fog and lightning then stand in there with that graphite pole in your hand and tell me your having a "SPORTING TIME". Don't think so. Albies are tough enough to get in Oregon. Only so lucky some years to have them within our range. As for rod and reel, you stay with it. Myself, give me handlines with Zukers and away I'll go.

[Killertraylor]

Tinman - kudo's to you for expressing your opinion in a polite manner, as unpopular as it may be. I agree that Tuna are a real kick in the pants to catch on rod and reel, but you can't compare our fishery to that of California where calm seas are the norm, not the exception.

Nobody is breaking any rules here, and it would hardly be worth the cost in fuel and gear to come back with only a few tuna. Nobody is wasting this precious resource either. Tuna makes excellent canned fare that we can enjoy year round. Thanks for your opinion, but please realize there are many good people here who have legitimate reasons to disagree.

[Tinman]

You guys show a lot of class in your responses to my unpopular opinion. I appreciate that. To take the discussion one step further, would the grocery fishermen take Coho with handlines if regulations allowed it and the limit were 25 fish per day? Handlines with divers or cannonballs would do the trick.

Drift R, I run the Netarts bar sometimes in my 16 foot skiff, and land through the surf on the way back in. I would like to know more about the Pacific City dory fishermen...we should talk.

Miss B and Killer Taylor, thanks for the balanced response. As for the grocery fishermen, I have no beef with your methods, and it is good to understand your reasoning. I prefer the light gear, so flip me a couple of jars of tuna, ok?

[Mr. Fisherman]

I'm gonna open a window and go get some air...

I WANT TO BE A SWORD BOAT ANGLER!!!

[Pilar]

Mr. Light Tackle fisherman,

No, I would not harvest Coho that way. It is not necessary and it would not be much fun. Not to mention the primary reason most people fish for these silver acrobats ... the fight. The only fish we catch locally that has issues with excessive fight times, overheating and scombroid toxicity is Thunnus Alalunga. Handline gear solves most of these problems. You can catch Salmonoids all day using any method and have no issues with improper cooling or spoilage.

I'll split a Tuna salad sandwich or feed you caught yesterday, teriyaki, longfin off the grill any time you say.

Sincerly,
Grocery Fisherman

[Popeye]

[ 08-14-2003, 03:03 PM: Message edited by: Popeye ]

[Threemuch]

Nobody gets scombroid poisoning from rod and reel caught albacore. And I don't buy that handline caught fish are better table fare. I did the experiment, and I think the difference you taste is in your head.

I am with tinman, but to each his own.

I do think that a sensible boat limit should be in place, and on my boat, that's five per angler. More than that is too much.

I sure hope we aren't all standing on the dock some day talking about "remember when we used to catch 20 or 30 a day?!?! I can't believe the limit is one now. Is tuna open next Saturday? I hope they give us more than three days this year."

Bottom line, take no more than you need, use everything you take. I think most of you are doing that, even if you use hand lines.

Tinman: 12 pound gear on the troll? No way. Maybe on live bait, but that would get shattered on the troll. You wouldn't be able to run enough drag to drive trolling hooks into the fishes mouth. 30 minimum. Now casting swim baits, that can be done on light light gear, like tinman talks about.

[Popeye]

[ 08-14-2003, 03:04 PM: Message edited by: Popeye ]

[Gregotis98]

I'd love to do a taste test between the two, because every tuna I've caught has been on a rod. I've never had a person drop dead next to their bbq that I've given tuna to, infact EVERY person I've given this spoiled, overheated, worn out fish to has told me they've never had fish that good before.

I can completely understand guys running handlines because of the limited chances to catch tuna.

The most rewarding part of taking people albacore fishing that have never been before, is watching their eyes bug out as their reel melts.

[Beer Waggin]

To each his own, but I'll take a meat trip anyday of the week.
Tuna is one of the best foods you can put into your system and one of the easiest ways to get protein. We won't even mention the taste test. :grin:
I eat a pint of tuna almost every day and I'm going to hate to have to go back to cat food in about 60 days.
I think if you have the time to care for your fish, take a limit. If you can't care for it, take only what you can. I had no problem cooking lunch for 10 people everyday and staying up till past midnight for three days canning when I returned from my first trip. I hope to do the same after the second.

[Tinman]

Popeye, your right. I was a bit harsh to call handlining "adolescent". In retrospect, it seems....er.... adolescent of me to say that. I apologize to all hands.

[Tinman]

Threemuch: Twelve pound line won't drive a big Zuker-style twin hook into a tuna. But 12 pound is fine for trollng "bonito feathers", which are streamlined leadhead jigs, weighing an ounce or so, with a single fixed hook. Sometimes the tuna favor these small feathers, and sometimes tuna are even line shy so the light line works well.

[Booja 1]

Wow you've got great discussion going here Tinman..I agree that sometimes albies like the smaller feathers but going 5 to 7 kts and getting bit on the troll would break 12 lb everytime..Getting a 20 lb bluefin on 12 lb or a 25 lb albie on 15 is great fun or nerve racking but one small thing that helps a ton is that little "live" anchovie or sardine on the hook which, unfortunately, is not available here in Oregon..As you know it is mainly a trolling show in our state..

Another thing too is most of the party boats in the San Diego area drag two boat lines, one on each corner of the stern weighed down with a big sinker fishing deeper than the trolled feathers..I know this doesn't happen a whole lot but if you go thru a school of 50 to 100 lb Big Eye and get bit on the boat line, that to me isn't a matter of meat fishing but "survival" if your the one trying to pull the fish in without ripping your arms out of their sockets..

I think to each his own..if the boat was in a wide open bait stop I would be dumping at least 40 lb over and if they would hit 50 or 60 I would use that too..but that is just me talking..As was stated earlier many of us don't get that many albacore opportunities each year so when we finally get to go in some cases, using handlines may be our main option..Using that light "stuff" is a real challenge and my hats off to you Tinman for doing it but as long as you use what you catch and it's sporting and legal, it's just fine with me....... :smile:

[Dr Strangelove]

A few thoughts:

1. A completely exhaused tuna's flesh will be very high in lactic acid since this is the byproduct of aerobic metabolism gone anaerobic in red meat muscle. This may lead to early breakdown of muscle protein and make for a mushy filet. In humans this would be akin to rhabdomyolysis.

2. If a 40lb exhausted fish dies and starts sinking, 12 lb line may not bring it up against gravity and water resistance. Huge tuna are lost like this often even on 80lb gear.

3. You will not horse a fish away from a shark with light line. You'll end up with Clay's Smokehouse Grill emblem at 2932 SE Division if you get any back.

4. My preference is throwing blue and chrome irons off a Calstar 270H 8ft jigstick with an Accuframed Penn 500 with 30-40lb test. God is that fun.

[puffins crew]

I have been blessed with catching at least one Albi on my stand up gear each time I have been fishing for Tuna. The excitment and the battle are epic.

Those fish all went for canning. The hand lines get the fish to the boat much faster, and are by far better table fare when eaten fresh. IMHO

As long as the skipper of the boat I am on will let me use my pole, it is in the water, waiting for the drag to start SCREAMING!!

There is no question about getting a bite when Tuna fishing. Believe me, everyone on board knows.

Peace, Tom

[ 08-14-2003, 03:55 PM: Message edited by: puffins crew ]

[Deepslayer]

Nice rebuttal Killer. You sound like a lawyer! :grin:
,Ed

[Slugranch]

Had the same opinion as the tinman's shared with me yesterday by a charter boat operator. Apparently they think that all of us that prefer to use handlines are fish hogs. I do use rods and reels, and 2 handlines at the same time. In fact last friday, we had a quad hookup. two rods and two handlines all with fish on. We managed to boat all four fish, which helped us raise our total for the day to 8 fish for 3 people. Fish hogs? I think not,,,,,,,,,,

[Uglygreen]

I carry handlines abord the boat, but its pretty rare that I use them. I also dont use the light gear. Most of my tuna are caught on Stout rods, 6/0 penn senators spooled with 60 lb mono. Usually is 5-7 minutes from hookup to gaff.

Any of you guys know I can run up a score with the best of the salty dogs. Here is what I have found.

The rod and reel gear gets hit 2 or 3 to one over the handlines most days, at least on my boat. Especially if the fish are shy or scattered. When I run a rod and reel setup side by side with a handline the rod and reel gets hit first and most in my expirence. I think that sometimes the heavy tuna cord scares off the fish off.

Some days the fish like the gear in the wake, while some days they like it behind the wake, while some days they like 300 feet or more back. The handlines make it a pain to change the configuration of your trolling spread, while with rod and reel you can move it up and back till you find what works best. What works best is different every day and can make a huge difference in your catch.

Ask puffin about the day last year when we fished the same area for about 2 hours and he was circling me not getting hit while I was reeling one in every time I moved the boat. I was able to run the gear further back than he could. Which I think made all the difference that day.

Handlines seem to get tangled more in my boat. Drives me nuts.

For me personally, I have no problems with the guys running handlines, but I get bored with them fast. Rod and reel is more fun for me. With the heavy gear the fish still put up a fun fight, but you can still kick their butt pretty quick and bring home a pile of meat if you want to.

I just read up on scromboid poisioning a bit, and I think it is much more of a factor how the fish is handled after the gaff than how long it fights for. Anyone with proper ice and cooling on board the boat shouldn't have a problem with the quality of the fish, no matter how it was initally caught. This is reinforced by my expieriences down south where we have caught yellowfin up to 400 lbs that have taken 4-6 hours to land on standup gear. As I understand it the hystamine that causes Scrombroid Poisioning is produced by bacterial action in the red blood meat after the fish has expired. Bleeding, proper iceing, and trimming the red meat should prevent the problem, and the small initial internal temprature difference between a handline fish and a standup gear fish should make little diference as long as the fish is properly handled after the gaff.

The other issue in this thread is cost. I dont understand that at all. If cost was the issue, why wouldnt we all just buy our tuna from a commercial boat? Add up what tuna fishing really costs for any of us (boat, gas, gear, time off, ice, jars, pressure cooker, etc...) and I dont think any of us are getting a "deal" on canned tuna. Cost isnt the issue, fun is, and if handlines are fun for you, thats cool, if standup gear is your thing, thats cool too. I get bored with just running handlines, but would get just as bored taking an hour to land each albacore on 12 lb test.

UG

I think im going to bring a meat thermometer along next trip and measure the internal temp of a few fish caught with different methods. Should be interesting.

[ 08-15-2003, 08:13 AM: Message edited by: Uglygreen ]

[CATCH AND EAT]

You can only be a fish hog on days that you find tuna.

In an agreement with Tinman on one issue. Two years ago I brought home 7 tuna. They lasted me two years. Conterpoint to that. I did not tuna fish last year at all. This year I have 3.5 tuna to my name. I have purchased a canner, already have a great smoker and I sure love this stuff on the BBQ soak in Italian dressing. Oh yeah, and left over tuna sandwiches!

Thus a limit of 25 per person is excessive. 10 per person would be more than enough for a trip on big blue. So, I need more tuna for this year. Will I get more. Probably not. But next year will be a different story. My boat will be equiped to run with the Salty Dogs where ever they go and are. yee haw. Oh yeah, no offense Tinman but my boat may have a couple of hand lines. But, I prefer to tackle tuna on tackle.

[Mark Mc]

Tinman, yes you did a good job trolling here and getting plenty of Salty Dogs to bite. It's been a while since we've had this discussion.

Dr Strangelove gets the prize for correctly identifying what happens to the fish while it is still in the water. Good time for folks to review the UC Davis document. It appears that the most important factor in meat quality is how the fish is handled immediately after boating, and to a lesser extent how long it was on the line. There may be a caveot on this latter part though.

Kurt, I would agree with you....In my experience even fish that were fought for 15 minutes still turned out sashimi-quality. On occasion I have fought albies on 20 lb line for 15 minutes, but not much longer. So I can not speak to fish quality if a fish was fought for longer.

And UG, practically all of what you say resonates completely with me. Rods are so much more versatile, and tuna do indeed get line shy. Although we do use some heavy gear (equivalent to your 6/0 & 60 lb), my very favorite trolling rig is what the southern CA guys would call a 40 lb rig. Like a Calstar 700M graphiter, and a Calstar 870. With very good quality 40 lb line that is new or near new, we can pull in 20 lb albies in 3 - 5 minutes if we put the hammer down. Of course that is pulling at a pretty high % of the breaking test. And the nice thing about 40 is that it is still light enough to troll fishtraps for those finicky biters. Even a good 30 lb rig will subdue them quickly, assuming the boat is stopped.

If you fought a fish so long, until it was belly-up exhausted, then I suppose the quality could be affected even with the best in-boat care. But I've not had this happen to me with 20 lb. And I suppose that with a good 15 lb rig, a guy with good technique, and fish under 25 lbs, it probably wouldn't be an issue. But a 35 lb fish, on light line, fighting for over 1/2 hour, might indeed yield a noticably mediocre taste. Maybe we need to do an experiment. Any guinea pigs willing to sniff / taste some long-fought fish?

To quote the UC Davis document:


" Albacore store energy in compounds such as ATP. While the albacore is alive, ATP is used for swimming and other cellular needs. It is replentished through a process requiring oxygen. As albacore struggle during capture, they deplete their supply of ATP and oxygen and begin to produce ATP through an alternative pathway that also produces lactic acid....After death, albacore can no longer regulate body temperature or flesh pH. ATP is broken down by enzymes to compounds that are associated with off-flavors in "stale" fish...The harder a fish struggles during capture and / or thrashing around on deck, the higher the flesh temperature and acidity. Poor handling after capture can easily result in rapid quality loss and decomposition."

(This is why it is a good idea to spike the brain immediately. It stops the fish from pumping out more chemicals in a futile attempt at regulating its temperature. And they do mention higher acidity, but I have yet to notice an acidic taste. Have any of you?)


It goes on to say that histamine (which causes scombroid poisining) is produced by the breakdown of histadine AFTER the fish dies. And the amount of histadine in the flesh is NOT affected by the fighting of the fish, or thrashing on deck.

Good topic...it's still a free country and everyone gets to choose how to run their own tuna show.

[Tinman]

Mark Mc: What you said about fish fighting times is right on, and I want to add a few comments. As you well know, tuna can be fought very hard and agresssively. Experienced tuna fishermen pull very hard on tuna and whip them in 5 or 10 minutes....very rarely 15 minutes even with 12 or 15 pound line. After the first few runs, the tuna end up circling straight down. This is when a good fisher will put the pressure on at a very high percentage of line strength, and gain some line with every circle. The fish never reaches an exhausted belly-up condition. Usually the fish is still pulling pretty hard and circling when the gaff goes in.

Tuna fight in an entirely predictable manner...a couple of long runs, deep circling interspersed with shorter dashes. Also, it is an open water fight with no rocks, kelp or anchor line to foul. Plus, albacore bites tend to be short-lived. So, albacore fishers soon learn to hurry, becasuse they can. Equipped with new line (as you pointed out)flawless drag washers, and good short-pumping technique, the guys whip a tuna in minutes.

[Thumper]

Originally posted by Uglygreen:
I think im going to bring a meat thermometer along next trip and measure the internal temp of a few fish caught with different methods. Should be interesting.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helv">UG --- :shocked: You're not gonna get all kinky on us, are you??

[Mark Mc]

Depends on where he sticks it.

[Martin85]

Hey I just want to catch one this year either way.

[WP]

Interesting conversation!
Last year I got out for just one trip and was hooked. I used stand-ups only (halibut gear)and went without tuna much of the year. This year I started much earlier and added a pair of hand lines. I have enough tuna to last and yet will make a couple of more trips (weather permitting). I have a couple of fishing partners who have not been as fortunate as I about getting tuna. Since I prefer to catch them on rod and reel, I think maybe I will leave the handlines in the boat. Tuna fishing is a mix of sport and food hunting (for me). It is true that it is hardly cost effective but since I am spending the money to go out for the sport, I may as well get my annual supply at the same time! I also find I get many more fish on rods and reels. I will be experimenting with lighter gear next year. I also want to do more with Fishtraps (I am a novice with them!) At any rate, the highest number of fish I have harvested to date is 26, for the boat. I agree that 10 per person is more than adequate, but I don't have an issue with people taking more as we have very few days to get out and the biomass, from all I( have read, is very healthy. My real complaint would be with wasting fish. Taking more than you can process properly, is wrong! I hope we have many more of this type of discussion. I know it has made me think and the result is a "lighter" approach next year!
WP :smile:

[Hamachi]

Well, I'm glad to see I'm not the only one that feels the same as Tinman. I tried to stir things up last month with this post... Stirring the pot Check this out tuna anglers!

But, alas, I was accused of "raining on the parade". Well, this parade NEEDS some rain! Rain is GREAT for fishing! Ask any fall river angler.

Yes, the albacore fishery is healthy. Let's all do our part to keep it that way.

And Tinman... bonito feathers? That really brings back memories of throwing the bubble and feather off the Redondo breakwall when I was a kid!

[Tinman]

Hamachi: I grew up down in Laguna Beach, and made many mid-winter trips to the Redondo bubble for bonito when I got desperate for some surface action.

I also worked at the tackle store at the Aliso Pier for several summers during high school. We used to make bonito splashers out of 6 inch sections of closet pole, painted red and white with a screw eye at each end. The lure was just a feathered hook on a 5 foot leader. What a blast it was to stand 30 feet abovet the water and watch the boneheads boil after the feather. Alas, they tore the pier down about 5 years ago.

Years ago I wrote articles for Salt Water Sportsman and South Coast Sportfishing. One of my articles was about John Law, skipper of a 3/4 day boat from Seaforth Sportfishing in Mission Bay. Law was locally famous for boating a 250 # broadbill swordfish from a 15 foot skiff that is much like mine. I interviewed Law for an article, and he said two things that have really stuck with me. The first is never hesitate to scrap a trip if the sea and weather don't look right. The second is that if you catch one tuna on a small boat, you've had a very good day.

Law has caught thousands of tuna himself, in addition to the tens of thousands of tuna that had come aboard his 80 foot sportfisher. Yet he still appreciated a day where he took just one tuna on his own tiny skiff. He was still able to treasure just one fish, and honor it as a gift from the sea.

[corrirod]

Well if I blow $120 on fuel and $25 on ice to catch 1 tuna I'm not quite as inclined to feel honored by "the gift of the sea."

This isn't California or Florida and most of us don't live on the coast so we must pick only a few days to make our run. Lots of those days are cancelled due to poor conditions.

Perhaps if the money trees finally bloom someday I'll be more finicky about my sportsmanship, in the meantime I've got a family that enjoys all the "gifts of the sea" so I'll make sure they are provided for throughout the year first and then I'll think about MY sportsmanship later.

If you have trouble spotting me on the big blue just look for the boat with the 2-3 handlines hanging off the back. :tongue: They've really helped me cark the tuna this year. I've made 3 trips totalling 21 tuna divided amongst 8 people. Wooooo, hope there is still some left for the rest of you. [img]graemlins/stupid.gif[/img]

[Hamachi]

Corrirod, if you took the time to read my comments, you would notice that I was referring to the people that were going out weekly or more often and filling their boats, often giving most of it away. If I make it out this season, it will be only once and I would fill two 120qt coolers if I could. Since I didn't make it to Neah Bay this spring, this would be the only fish in my freezer. I also bought a 24qt canner that I'm eager to try.

By the sarcastic tone of your comments, I see that you've taken this quite personally. I never referred to you and am sorry that you've taken it that way. My original comments last month were to open people's eyes.

[Sea Jypzee]

Corrirod, if you took the time to read my comments, you would notice that I was referring to the people that were going out weekly or more often and filling their boats, often giving most of it away.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helv">Hmmm, in all honesty I have not seen anyone on ifish here, at least publically talking about this practice. Yes, there's been several of us who've made a few trips out.
Weekly? Nope, at least not me. Ocean conditions were great for only a few weeks. If going out a couple of times each of those select weeks counts as weekly, well I guess I'd fit in there.
Filling the boat? Nope, not me again. To fill my boat, I would have to take roughly 750lbs of fish. Never have taken near that much. And even if I had, when I've got 2-3 other people with me, the fish is split 3-4 ways usually. What's the big deal there?
Giving most of it away? Nope, nobody here that I know of is in this practice either. Do I give some away? Yes, of course I do, to my mother, my sister, my brothers and their families usually at Christmas as gifts.

None of it goes to waste. I enjoy grabbing a couple of standup fish each trip. Would I want to do every tuna I've caught that way on light line? I don't think so. The more meat I can put in the freezer and jars, the less expensive each trip gets. Is that why I do it? Nope....but it at least helps to think that way. :grin:

I know of people who do fish and give a good portion of their catch away. What difference does it make? It's not going to waste, and in most of the cases I know of, it's going to people who either have no opportunity to get out to get their own, and/or can't afford to go buy it fresh but have a great appreciation for good quality fish just like the rest of us here do.

[MasterCaster]

Very well said Sea Jypzee! [img]graemlins/applause.gif[/img]

I have never caught a tuna or halibut for that matter but couldnt agree more with what you just said.

I know of people who do fish and give a good portion of their catch away. What difference does it make? It's not going to waste, and in most of the cases I know of, it's going to people who either have no opportunity to get out to get their own, and/or can't afford to go buy it fresh but have a great appreciation for good quality fish just like the rest of us here do.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helv">Jon :smile: :grin: :smile:

Tuna/Halibut wannabe someday

[ 08-17-2003, 03:15 PM: Message edited by: MasterCaster ]

[WP]

I take more than my "share" of tuna and I do give tuna to others..both canned and fresh. I trade some of my canning for halves and I take more people out with me than the tasks require because I want to share the experience of catching tuna. To date I have had 9 tuna trips out this year and hope to have a couple of others yet. I happi;y do all this and I would consider myself on the "conservationist" side of the spectrum! I don't expect anyone to not have an opinion of my practices and actions but I do expect them to be civil and, if shared publically, lucid and well supported.
As for the impact to the species, like most fishes, the commercial take is the major factor. What we take on the Oregon coast, sport fishing, is a totally insignificant volume. These fish do not have extensive life cycles and harvesting them is not as big a factor as it is for ground fish. Spawning grounds are at sea and not in polluted river systems that concentrates the schools in coastal areas that make harvesting them in numbers too easy. In short this is a species that we )Oregon sportsmen, will not have the major role in threatedning and that currently is at no risk. When (not if) commercial harvests and ocean cyclic changes have a dramatic impact on the world biomass of albacore and the species is at risk, I will be in line to stop or drastically reduce harvest and stump for the elimination of commercial harvest. Until then, I will harvest happily to the extent nature and the law allow and share with those I care for, both the experience and the bounty, and will do it guilt free. Don;t waste, don't take exessive risks, and don't get too critical of others who have different views than you do...it makes conflict resolution way more difficult.
WP :smile:

[Deepslayer]

Very well said WP.
,Ed

[Mello-Yello]

It appears that a couple of folks' opinions have now turned to accusations, addressed only to a "few" individuals. I would suggest that they address their accusations to the individuals in which they are referring to. This should prevent the rest of us from feeling like we need to defend ourselves, as the original post(s) appeared to be addressed to all the "Salty Dogs". And, it will allow those accused to defend themselves directly.

That is...if these accusations have merit, and a couple folks aren't just bathing themselves in self glory.

M-Y

[MarlinMark]

Good grief. Sport fisherman bickering amongst themselves. It's a big enough sandbox for all of you. Live and let live. If you are advanced enough to log into an internet chat board, you should be advanced enough to realize you can't preach ethics to people who aren't breaking the law. To each his own, until he crosses the line. Sport and food gathering are sometimes extremely closely related in our modern society. Good luck with the tuna fishing. Let me know if anyone needs a deck hand on 8/30/03. I will more than pitch in for my share of expenses, and gladly fish your prefered method and like it. :grin:

Mark

[corrirod]

Don't get me wrong Hamachi, or Tinman, I don't take any of your comments personally. I'm just voicing my opinions just as you both did.

It appears by your posts that you believe the use of handlines makes a person less of a sportsman? Not hardly.

Actually, our views are somewhat similar. You say you'd be glad to catch just a few tuna in a day's trip on sport rods. In that respect my wish is the same as yours, I too only want to catch a few tuna on sport rods, but I'd like to be able to yard in a dozen on handlines as well! :grin: :shocked: Less work, more meat!

The question was posed earlier in this discussion, "Would you use handlines for coho if it were legal?"

My answer, YES I would if I had to drive 30-60 miles offshore to get them and they were not endangered.

[Mello-Yello]

[img]graemlins/applause.gif[/img]
snicker, snicker

[Hamachi]

Obviously, the Northern mentality is different from the Southern. I was introducing the Southern. I've done that and have nothing more to say.

[Gregotis98]

For the benefit of others I'll keep my relpy succinct. The above response has made things very clear to me.



CALIFORNIA TRANSPLANTS

[bait boy]

You have heard the difference between southern girls and northern girls haven't you? :grin:

[Pilar]

No, this is not the 'Life in General' board.

I had to hit the 'Back' key a few times to be sure. Yes, Greg, I concur.

You cannot stockpile Game. Giving away fresh fish is not wrong. I'd much rather see someone who loves it as much as I do eat it the same day the fish was caught than to can or freeze it.

Once upon a time it was 'OK' to hunt cougar and bear with dogs but I digress ........

I'd rather handline but I haven't been out live bait fishing with Hamachi yet so I can't say it's the best method. All of my jars will be full soon so I'll have time play.
As for coho on handline, gillnets are faster :grin:

[Mello-Yello]

It seems this entire thread was driven more by tact than tactics.

When will folks realize that the people of the Northwest do things "their" way because they choose to, not cuz their too dumb to know any different? It is this "mentality" that keeps the NW at least somewhat 'pure'.

Don't stop fighting!

Oh, and take a kid fishing and hunting, so they can see for themselves...

M-Y