# Fishing while at Sea



## dvharman (Oct 27, 2015)

I know fishing isnt for everyone but would love to hear people techniques and stories of fishing underway. Great way to cut down on the grocery bill too?


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## cshrimpt (Jun 8, 2015)

Here's a good article about it.

FISHING FROM SAILBOATS: For Whom The Bait Trolls


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

I don't fish, I hunt. Fishing is an art form, carefully matching the strength of your gear and the perfection of your technique to the gamesmanship of man vs. wild and removing all unfair advantages, such as barbs on the hook. Often the prey is released to fight another day.

Rather, I put out the heaviest braided line I can find, with razor sharp barbed hooks and hundreds of spare yards of line on my bullet proof sea rod, with rollers for guides. I'll drag the fish to death, before I fight it for an hour, then eat it.

Ironically, the fish avoid me.


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## chuck5499 (Aug 31, 2003)

We use to use rod and reels and lost to many fish from line breaks - had 60+lb test- and took to long to boat 
Now we use a hand line on a bunge and boat fish - so far only one break off when a big fish broke our 100lb test -

As for lures you need to talk with locals or cruisers that are fishing successfully to see what they use - case in point -- we caught fish in the Caribbean and when we got to the Med we were using lures that we used in the Carib and catching no fish -- we went to a bait store and showed them what we were using and the owner and all the customers started laughing - the owner said those lures are bigger than most of the fish we have here - we switched to something small that we got there and started catching tuna


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## xort (Aug 4, 2006)

"The Cruisers Handbook Of Fishing" will tell you just about everything you need to know!


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## TomMaine (Dec 21, 2010)

dvharman said:


> I know fishing isn't for everyone but would love to hear people techniques and stories of fishing underway. Great way to cut down on the grocery bill too?


We keep fishing rods and some tackle on our sailboat. A stiff boat rod with about 20 pound test line for trolling and a couple light spinning rods. We keep these under the deck in a long cockpit locker, out of the way hung from screw hooks. A small tackle box holds all the lures, etc. we'll ever need.

We've caught fish trolling up and down the east coast. It's something we'll do when the urge strikes - often by seeing fish activity on the surface around us. And we'll usually eat what we catch. Not so much out of necessity but more of the treat of very fresh fish to enjoy(we love fresh fish).

The smaller spinning tackle gets used at anchor, mostly for an occasional mackerel these days(one of the few fish you can still catch on coast of Maine).

Fishing tackle was a must when our kids were younger. If you fished as a kid, it's just something you'll do with your kids. Sort of like sailing.

Over the years, we've often sailed into harbors and anchorages, with a fishing rod leaning against the stern rail. It's probably my imagination, but I think that fishing rod has been a thin bridge between the large fishing community and recreational boater population that is typical on the New England coast. There's historically a divide between fishermen and 'yachties'. We're not that much different.


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## TQA (Apr 4, 2009)

No rods or reels. 100lb minimum line. Mostly monofilament. Swivels are essential one at boat and one about 6 ft from lure. 5 in pink squid worked for years but am currently doing better with blue green ones.

If using stretchy line then ignore this, if you are using something inelastic with a short length of mono then use a bungee at the boat end, about 3 feet.

If I am serious I troll 3 lines one at 300ft one at 150 ft and one between them just behind the boat with a splashy surface lure. [ Flat front ]

You need to keep tending them, at least that is the case in the Eastern Caribbean due to the amount of sargassum weed around. At times it was pointless fishing due to the amount of weed.

There are two schools of thought about what to do when you hook a big fish, one says tow it for twenty minutes then boat it after it drowns but this can result in you boating a head after a shark takes the rest. The alternative is to get it onboard as fast as possible. I use leather gloves and pull in the line by hand.

Keep a small spray bottle filled with strong rum to hand. A spray in the gills puts them out.

Dorado, tuna, wahoo are ok to eat anywhere but be cautious about eating big barracuda esp in NE Carib. I release sails and marlin.


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## SVAuspicious (Oct 31, 2006)

Dragged a line across the entire Atlantic Ocean and caught nothing. I am not a fisherman, and least not a successful one.


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

There are very few species of fish that I have not caught, all of which were by rod and reel. The advantage of a rod and reel is that first and foremost, you can match the tackle to the species you are seeking. 

Now, if you are using 60 to 100-pound test monofilament line and breaking the line on a fish, the very first thing that comes to mind is that you do not know how to properly tie a knot in monofilament line. A simple overhand knot weakens the line by 50 or more percent, while an improved clinch knot weakens it by 30 to 40 percent. A standard clinch knot usually slips and becomes untied long before it breaks.

Learn how to tie a Palomar knot, or better yet a Bimini Twist, both of which test at 100 percent or more than then actual breaking strength of the monofilament. 

Next, handlines are only effective if there is some sort of shock device utilized. It the handline is just cleated off to a stern cleat, then if a big fish hits, there's a good chance that the line will break, either at the knot, or where it is attached to the cleat - both are weak points. A rod and reel has the advantage of a drag system and the spring action of the rod as a shock absorber. Keep in mind, though, that fishing is a system of leverages and the angler is at the wrong end of the lever, which is why it's fun.

As for the lures to use, there's an old saying in fishing - "Match the hatch!" Essentially, you must present a lure that resembles the size, shape, color and action that the prey species is eating. If you don't put something out there that resembles what they've been eating they have no reason to even take a second look at it.

You also have to troll at the correct speed. For example striped bass rarely take a lure traveling at more than 1.5 knots, while tuna prefer lures moving along at about 6 knots. Mackerel are speedsters, preferring small spoons zipping along at 8 or more knots. Same is true for marlin and mahi.

Good luck,

Gary


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## capecodda (Oct 6, 2009)

Fishing from the sailboat means trolling to us, and we don't do it locally anymore because we don't like bluefish, and around my neighborhood, that's the most likely catch. I'll bring a light fly or spinning rod to fish from the dingy for striped bass in the evening which make a fine meal.

In the Caribbean, we troll a couple of heavy mono hand lines, wire leader, and plastic squid. One way back, one closer. Also had some luck with jets (fancier plastic squids that like to make bubble trails). Keep only small pelagic fish such as tuna, wahoo, and mahi. All good to eat. All pretty happy to hit something towed at hull speed. Good advice on dragging them (particularly wahoo that are toothy), and using a bit of rum in the gills to keep the cockpit under control, and slow the boat a bit by easing sheets...but keeping it moving forward a knot or 2.

Locally, we do some tuna, white marlin, and mahi fishing south of the vineyard on a power boat, using rod/reel. We are never back there under sail, so never tried, but 50+ lb tuna on a hand line would be interesting on a sailboat. I'm sure there are some on here who have done it, love to hear the stories. On a power boat, it's a team effort with a driver to keep the fish off the quarter, fisherman with rod/reel, and someone to work the pit (gaffing/lining). We bring along one of us old guys kids when we can for the pit. Permits required for this fishery here, but not expensive.


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

Sorry to be the one to have to tell you this, but it seems the days of counting on fish to eat at sea are gone. For years all I had to do was get a line in the water with a good dolphin or tuna lure on it and I could eat fresh fish.
Not so today. The same line, the same lures, the same waters and it is so hit or miss that I couldn't count on a fish if my life depended on it. I talk to the local fishermen and they back me up. Just yesterday I was in the commercial fisherman's store in St George's and when I asked about grouper, they just laughed. No more grouper at all and snapper are getting rare, as well. I used to get a huge laugh at folks who said you couldn't troll grouper. Well they are right, now.
My go-to lures now are the Billy Bait mini-turbo lures, but they still can not produce if there are no fish. It seems they have killed my oceans and I am but another maritime relic, destined for some dusty shelf in a museum.


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

Capta, there is still some good fishing in the Leeward and Windward islands, but not in deep water. The pelagics have been wiped out by commercial exploitation and there's little chance those stocks will ever recover to levels they were during the mid 1970s and early 1980s. The best fishing is along the inside edges of the reefs, where yellowtail snapper, mutton snapper, red snapper, small grouper and various species of mackerel reside. Those fish are still abundant in those areas because it's not accessible to draggers, which do the most damage to offshore species.

From my perspective grunt and porgy are the best tasting in those areas, but only a handful of locals every fish for them.

All the best,

Gary


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## hpeer (May 14, 2005)

Very sad statements. Yet the human population keeps climbing.


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## outbound (Dec 3, 2012)

Use Cuban yo yo s. Just two with mono and a bungee tied into the line close to the boat. When the bungee is pulled taut check the line or every ~1/2h for weed. Drag something on the surface and something deep if using hard bait. If dragging an umbrella rig drag only one. If there's left over meat or fish from dinner it goes on the hooks. Don't fish near the islands due to fear of getting sick except on open ocean side away from reefs. 
Will get a rare Mahi-Mahi so fish mostly for kicks and giggles. But up north do get stripers with some regularity. Then usually have an eel out or soft bait and a diver. See blues pull in the lines. Feel if you aren't going to eat them don't catch them. Believe unlike fly fishing with the barb squeezed in you traumatized the fish so bad when fishing from a sailboat not as likely fish will survive after being boated. Lazy so just pour cheap gin on gills if we get something. Find although we carry rods on the boat I can't get the hang of using them underway but like to cast off the sugarscoop when at anchor. 
Although tuna and other pelagic fish seem gone stripers and blues have been good so it's worth dragging something up north.


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## chuck5499 (Aug 31, 2003)

Fish can be a bit more than a meal or two. We have caught so many tuna in the Med that if I never see another tuna it will be too soon. Saying that we were doing an overnight sail from Lampedusa to Port Yasmine Tunisia and caught 3 nice size tuna. We started on one for dinner and put the other 2 in the reefer. In the morning when we were checking in the police and customs came aboard and we knew they were excepting something. The year before we gave them a carton of cigs but forgot them this year. So we gave them the 2 tunas we had. Boy were they excited. 
The entire time we were in Tunisia we saw them on occasion and they remembered us and always went out of their way to say hi to us. 2 fish went a long way.


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## norsearayder (Dec 19, 2006)

On your trip to Maine stop on top of Jeffries ledge on ne corner.use bait or jig to catch cod and haddock on the bottom in around 200 feet of water.you will catch 1 per hook until your arms fall off.this place is a sanctuary and no commercial allowed...many other species abound on the bottom. Luck not needed.iset a drouge to slow down and sometimes an opposing current together with the wind will hold you in 1 place


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## dvharman (Oct 27, 2015)

I would say if youre in the area for Tuna drag whats called a "Cedar Plug" probably the best go to Tuna lure ever. Make sure you get the ones that truly are cedar color and not painted. Also if youre serious about wanting dinner buy a pack of Ballyhoo pre rigged or rig if you know how and drag those. Salt them and keep cool will last a few days.


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## Omatako (Sep 14, 2003)

We used to use a strong hand line on a bungy but found that it took too much watching. Sometimes had fish that were caught in the evening and got dragged through the night. Or even in the day if they drag long enough something else eats them before you can.

Now we use stiff game rods, a decent size lever-drag reel and braid. When a fish hits the lure, the reel screams and the game is on. And it's fun.

We also believe the right size lure is important - we don't want giant fish, only what is easy to handle on our smallish filleting table. We mostly troll feathers for small tuna, skipjack, etc. We also don't troll unless we want fresh fish for dinner - we don't keep fish in the freezer.

A voyaging sailor saying he never wants to see another tuna is like a Texan saying he never wants to see another steak or an Indian saying he never wants to see another curry ;-).


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

Omatako said:


> We also believe the right size lure is important - we don't want giant fish, only what is easy to handle on our smallish filleting table.
> .


Interestingly, some of the biggest fish I've hooked while sailing have been on 6" plastic squid. I really don't use anything much smaller.
Please notice I said hooked, not caught.


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## HankOnthewater (Jan 26, 2007)

Generally use a hand-reel, and wind the line 3 or 4 times around a winch on the windward side, so if anything gets caught (including seaweed), the force will pull the line and rattle the reel that lies on on the cockpit seat, and that often slides down to the cockpit floor. Boat has aft cockpit.
I use lures that dive 1-3 metres deep, catch what we call Bonito here, or otherwise garfish, pike, tailor, or mackerel more to the north of Oz.
Yes, sometimes you have to get the fish on board quickly, as the sharks will beat you to it.
For a big fish, happy to slow down the boat to get it on board.
I will stop fishing if I have enough for a meal or two.

For those around here, check this site for fish info:
WESTERN AUSTRALIA | Western Australia | www.wanowandthen.com Home Page. | www.wanowandthen.com


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## killarney_sailor (May 4, 2006)

Won't pretend to be an angler but we have experimented with trolling at various times, in daylight only, and find that the catch varies enormously from area to area. In the Indian Ocean from Cocos-Keeling to Mauritius we caught a mani-mahi any time we put the line out. We tried, with the same and different lures, from Cape Town to Grenada and caught nothing. Mixed luck in the Pacific and North Atlantic. We use a strong line with a piece of speargun rubber for a shock absorber. We hold a bite of line to the stern rail with a clothespin on a string. When we get a hit the clothespin jumps off the line and line and rubber tighten. Probably 70% of the time we get a hit we land a fish. Landing is another matter. We bought a large net (used to fish on inland lakes as a kid) but it often was not big enough. A gaff would have worked but we found that just lifting the fish out on the handline worked fine. The fish seemed exhausted from being dragged behind the boat at speed. Never a problem with sharks.


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

I forgot to mention that for those using a handline, if you make the line loosely fast to a lifeline with a clothes pin, before the shock cord, when a fish strikes the clothes pin will snap off the lifeline and you will hear it or notice it soon enough. Weed won't often trip this alert system. Generally, if you drag a fish long enough some toothy critter will make off with the fish, your lure and even some of the line.
Most of the time dolphin travel in schools or at least pairs, so if you want more than one and you are sure the first is well hooked, leave it in the water and put out a second line and you are almost guarantied a second fish.
Like the man said, it's the best way to make friends with the officials. We gave a nice fish to the Park Rangers at the Tobago Cays last month.


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## Delezynski (Sep 27, 2013)

We "meat" fish. it's for food and we eat what we catch. Our lines is sized so that if the fish is to big, the line breaks! What it in action on our short video on our Youtube page.






Greg


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## uncle stinky bob (Feb 28, 2016)

Delezynski said:


> We "meat" fish. it's for food and we eat what we catch. Our lines is sized so that if the fish is to big, the line breaks! What it in action on our short video on our Youtube page.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Nice video. I enjoy watching your you-tube channel also and have subscribed. Nicely done!!


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## Delezynski (Sep 27, 2013)

uncle stinky bob said:


> Nice video. I enjoy watching your you-tube channel also and have subscribed. Nicely done!!


THANKS for the kind words!

Greg


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## DonScribner (Jan 9, 2011)

Minnewaska said:


> I don't fish, I hunt. Fishing is an art form, carefully matching the strength of your gear and the perfection of your technique to the gamesmanship of man vs. wild and removing all unfair advantages, such as barbs on the hook. Often the prey is released to fight another day.
> 
> Rather, I put out the heaviest braided line I can find, with razor sharp barbed hooks and hundreds of spare yards of line on my bullet proof sea rod, with rollers for guides. I'll drag the fish to death, before I fight it for an hour, then eat it.
> 
> Ironically, the fish avoid me.


Hey Minne,

Read that article and repent for your transgressions! (This is, after all, Easter Sunday)


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

The reason that most people fail to catch fish while cruising offshore, is that beyond the continental shelf, there is no structure to hold prey species, thus the predator species will not migrate through those open ocean areas. Because of this, many years ago, most nations enacted a 200-mile fisheries zone, thereby excluding anyone without a special permit from fishing territorial waters. Much of this began with the cod wars, cod being the highest commercially viable species in the North Atlantic and Bearing Sea. In fact, fishing was Iceland's only industry for centuries. 

Catching fish isn't rocket science, but it does require some degree of expertise and basic fisheries knowledge in order to be somewhat successful. There are lots of books available that will lead you through the pitfalls of fishing, while at the same time provide you with the basic information as to how to locate various species of fish and proven techniques used to catch them on a regular basis.

Good luck,

Gary


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

travlineasy said:


> The reason that most people fail to catch fish while cruising offshore, is that beyond the continental shelf, there is no structure to hold prey species, thus the predator species will not migrate through those open ocean areas.
> Gary


Actually, when crossing the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans back when, it was a very rare day when I couldn't hook up a dolphin, tuna or wahoo deep sea, far from any structure at all. Even marlin and sails would occasionally go for my baits, not that I wanted them! Obviously there was plenty of food out there, for it was also a rare morning when there wasn't at least one flying fish or squid on deck at sunrise.
I spent some of my career operating sport fishing vessels and I sincerely believe the greatest part of fishing at sea is having a boat that 'raises' fish. One is not catching fish because they happen upon a fish or two out there in the big blue. One is getting strikes because the fish come over to the boat and find the lure. This is easily proved by sailing through a school of fish under a group of working birds. The fish will scatter and you will rarely hook up.
When the fish are there, fishing is as easy as presenting them with something that vaguely resembles food. They have no clue what a line is or a hook. It is my understanding they are colorblind, though some colors definitely work better for some fish than others. I've caught fish on commercial lures, plugs (though they are pretty expensive), jigs, flashers and bits of plastic bags of various colors. The fish don't seem to care.
Keeping the line outside of the wake by fishing on the quarter rather than the stern is more productive.
If you hold by the theory that it's the boat that attracts the fish, you will keep your lure in close proximity to the boat, though the Billy Bait Turbo Slammer works way out, even on a sport fisher. I have no idea why. No other lure I've ever used works as well, as far from the boat. Go figure.
The faster you go, the more productive you will be. I've caught fish (well the occasional fish and many lower jaws) at 17 knots. 8 to 12 knots is best for the ocean pelagics, though you can hook up at any speed, you will get more strikes at higher speeds. If you are going slow, bring the line closer to the boat, faster farther away. I always try to have the lure visible in the face of the second wave behind the boat off the quarter, bubbling about 30% of the time.
As I said above, this was a sure fire way to put dinner on the table for many years, but it is much less productive today. It still works, but the fish are fewer and farther between these days.


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

Capta, the structure was there, but in many instances, most folks never know what to look for. For example, Mahi, or dolphinfish, are quite frequently found lurking beneath small patches of Sargasso weed, or any other floating debris. Something as simple as a floating sheet of newspaper proves to be a great place to find mahi.

Bluefin and yellowfin tuna both follow specific migratory routes, which do not vary more than a few miles east or west throughout their lives. Yellowfin prefer the canyon edges, which is also the favorite haunt of marlin and wahoo. Bluefin tuna travel close to shore, often spending time foraging for small mackerel species over underwater humps and lumps. You can find some great charts of these migratory routes on various fisheries sites.

As for fish being colorblind, yes, that is true, however, they can readily discern various hues such as florescent reds, yellows, greens, etc..., colors that rarely occur naturally in nature. Thus, lures of those colors tend to be more productive because they contrast sharply with the natural environment. If course, the best lures usually have some contrasting silver on them as well. But there are other factors involved - mainly sound.

Many species, such as tuna, mackerel, bluefish, striped bass and wahoo, forage relatively close to the surface, often driving schools of baitfish to the surface and ripping through them at their leisure. One of the most exciting things anyone will ever witness is the carnage that takes place when a school of big, slammer bluefish herds a school of Atlantic menhaden into a tight ball then begins ripping through them. If the schools are relatively large, the noise is unbelievable, sounding like the roar of the surf along the California coast. When this is taking place, any surface plug, particularly silver, or blue/silver combinations, tossed into the melee is akin to rolling a wine bottle though a jail cell. It draws dozens of instant strikes the resemble a small explosion on the water's surface.

When fish are actively feeding on the surface, this is not a place for trolling. Trolling usually results in causing the fish to sound and if you are lucky you may catch one, but more than likely you will not. Under these conditions, a good spinning or bait casting outfit works best, merely by moving the boat to within about 50 feet of the fish, then casting into the melee. I've encountered large schools of breaking bluefish and striped bass mixed, both foraging on Atlantic menhaden at the time, and I just hove to and began casting, while slowly drifting along side of the schools. It has always been quite productive and you could easily fill the freezer with fresh fillets.

Many pelagic fish utilize sound to find their prey. Because of this, offshore anglers frequently employ the use of a teaser, which is a monster size lure with no hooks, but makes an incredible disturbance as it's dragged through the water in front of the lures. The fish are attracted from great depths to the teaser, then discover easy pickings on the smaller lures behind the teaser. It is very effective for marlin, giant bluefin tuna, wahoo, and big eye tuna.

The zaniest thing I've used to catch fish was small strips of red rag attached to size 1 wide gap hooks and fished on a top and bottom rig in the lower Florida Keys. This produced a solid strike as soon as the sinker hit the bottom, mainly from flannel mouth grunt, small grouper and porgie. After putting a few fish in the cooler chest, the cloth strips were dredged through the fish slime, which made it even more productive. That bright red color was something that was not natural to this environment, which in turn, got the undivided attention of every fish in the immediate vicinity.

The grunts averaged about 10 to 12 inches in length, they were easily filleted, skinned, and the fillets were then rinsed in fresh water, patted dry, dipped in a mixture of egg and milk, then coated with homemade cracker crumbs and pan fried. Oh my! 

All the best,

Gary


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## T37Chef (Oct 9, 2006)

As my Grandfather said, they call it fishing nit catching for a reason. 

I will often throw a line over and see what i get. I've caught a few Stripped Bass aka Rockfish here on the Chesapeake. Last trip up to New England I caught a few fish, most exciting was a small, about 2 or 3 foot shark... although it got away lol. From my description, the fisherman in Cape May said it sounded like a small Great White with its straight white teeth and markings. I really don't know, but I'm glad we didn't actually land it because in all the excitement, I realized I was wearing only flip flops... and the sharks mouth with razor sharp teeth was at least 2 or 3 inches in diameter... I like my toes! On that same trip, fellow SailNet member, chef, and friend met me in Sandy Hook NJ to take me to a sail loft... when he graciously returned my sail from repairs.. he generously left a few steel leaders and lures in the sail bag hearing about our adventures... a kindness I will never forget... thanks again Tempest 

At anchor, I'll often cast a line for my kids. We gave caught trout, catfish, spot, and a few others... usually throwing them back. 

Its fun and peovides some entertainment.


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## outbound (Dec 3, 2012)

TE- against your wisdom (which I'm not denying) have caught fish trolling a lefty deceiver behind the sailboat running around 6 kts off the shelf. No noise, not much color and little action side to side or up and down. Rig was 400lbs mono, woven leader, 15lb finish. A couple of split shots to keep it in the water about 50 yds back.


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## uncle stinky bob (Feb 28, 2016)

Color means nothing to fish, it's about contrast and light reflection. At least that been my experience based on some 55 years of fishing.........not always catching but fishing anyway.......


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

Outbound, I'll pass that along to Lefty when I see him in a couple weeks. Just remember the old saying "Even a blind hog finds an acorn once in a while." A lefty's Deceiver is actually a fairly colorful fly, depending upon which colors you like for the back. And, if properly tied, there is some silver tinsel along the side, to provide a fair degree of reflection. I have a tackle box full of Lefty's Deceivers, and tied in some pretty wild colors. They tend to work very well for striped bass, bluefish, tarpon, and other inshore species. Lefty and I have been friends and fished together for more than 45 years. I watched him hook a blue marlin on a deceiver one day - craziest thing I ever saw while fishing with a fly rod. On the same trip, he landed a big mahi, probably about 35 pounds using the same fly. We were fishing out of Wachapreague, VA and about 26 miles east of the inlet over the 26-Mile Hill.






Sometimes, various species of tuna and mackerel, which are in the same family, stray off the deep edge of the canyons, mainly following the edges of warm water eddies, which attract various baitfish species. This things do happen, but not on a regular basis. When those eddies project inshore, which does happen a lot, then the bigger bluefin tuna and big eye tuna will often range to within 20 miles of shore. When that happens, every small boat angler in the area will congregate at those locations and quickly catch their 2-fish limit of monster tuna before heading back to the inlets.

If you look at the accompanying migration map, you'll see that along the US East Coast, the fish pretty much stay inside the shelf. This is mainly because of the water temperatures they tend to enjoy. Those same temperatures are what other pelagics also follow, marlin, mahi, wahoo, sailfish, etc... Like I said, they can stray outside the lines, but it's pretty rare because there is not much in the way of food out there.

Now, once they get north of Newfoundland, the giant bluefins, the ones that are worth a small fortune, tend to split into secondary schools and cover a much wider area, mostly south of the Greenland Banks. The fertile waters of the north Atlantic near Greenland and Iceland hold enormous schools of tiny baitfish, which in turn, attract monster bluefin tuna during the summer months. The mahi, yellowfin tuna, white marlin, blue marlin and sailfish rarely get to the Georges Banks, however, for some reason, swordfish tend to travel that area throughout most of the warmer months and can apparently tolerate the colder waters.










All the best,

Gary


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## outbound (Dec 3, 2012)

Lefty is one of my heroes. You are blessed to know him. Believe he's a R.I. guy originally. 

Tie my own patterns. Think that one was white/ light pink with two long tinsel on either side. From the beach find deceivers on a Spey rod going past third wave then striped in is death on blues/stripers. But they even work on Spanish mackerel down south. Twitch you got a fish. . Biggest thing I ever caught on one was a tarpon at marathon.


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## Slayer (Jul 28, 2006)

Here's a cool video:


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## Davete (Apr 27, 2016)

Fishing while being at sea is a perfect combination for relaxation and compete enjoyment. I bought a lot of books with advices and tricks for a good fish catch that helped me a lot in fishing.


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

outbound, Lefty was born and raised in Frederick, Maryland. He moved to South Florida when a fellow outdoor writer got him a job as Outdoor Editor of the Miami Herald, where he also became director of the world's largest fishing tournament, the MET Tournament. He returned to Maryland about 10 years later and became the Outdoor Editor of the Baltimore Sunpapers and lived in Cockeysville, MD, where he still resides today. At age 91 he's still living out of a suitcase 5 to 6 days a week, traveling all over the globe to provide seminars and teach people how to fly-fish. He is an amazing person, to say the very least.

All the best,

Gary


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## outbound (Dec 3, 2012)

Maybe I'm confused because believe he's written a lot about stripper fishing in the R.I. area. Thanks for the backstory. Still think he's an amazing guy. 
My dad was an avid trout fisherman. Wanted to catch all the different types of trout before he died. Made a dent in it but didn't come close. But he did leave me with an appreciation of that skill and his kit. So thought that was fly fishing. Tying the hatch stream side and such.
Friend had a place on Chappy. When another couldn't make it got to do their annual tournament. Been hooked on beach/shore fishing for stripper ever since. When taught the tricks Lefty was the go to reference by just about everyone. Have read some of his stuff. Every word a jewel of wisdom.
Gary you bring good thoughts and memories. Thanks again.


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

I talked with Lefty yesterday and he was packing his bags to fly south and meet up with Tom Brokaw and Joe Humpheys for the Project Healing Waters Annual Fly Fishing Tournament 2016 Tournament. Lefty dedicates a lot of time to these veterans groups and he is a WWII vet himself, and fought in the Battle Of The Bulge where he got frostbite on his feet. This event targets big bluegills in a farm pond, which is one of Lefty's favorite pastimes. I have some photos here of Lefty teaching my daughter to catch bluegills with a fly rod in a farm pond near my home when she was just a tiny little girl. Lefty put her photo on the cover of several fly fishing magazines, many of which she has framed and hanging in her home. I'll try to find some of them and post them on this thread.

The reason you probably saw several striped bass fishing articles about New England that were written by Lefty is because he was a frequent contributor to Salt Water Sportsman Magazine, which is based out of Boston, and The Fisherman Magazine, which has a New England Edition based out of Mystic, CT. I also wrote for those publications, mainly covering the Mid-Atlantic region.

All the best,

Gary


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## outbound (Dec 3, 2012)

Did you ever meet Lou Tabory, Terry Tessein, or Ray Bondorow? Their writings have been helpful as well.


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

I met Lou many years ago at an outdoor show where he was providing a fly casting demonstration. I was introduced to him by Lefty - they were both at the same show and I was the MC for the event.

Gary


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## alctel (Jan 25, 2014)

I've been playing around fishing with my downriggers under sail, which confuses a lot of the other fishing boats around here. For salmon you have to be going around 2 knots, so I normally just use the foresail and play around it on the roller furling. A lot more pleasant than using the engine!


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

Down riggers can be very effective when the fish are feeding on a deeper thermocline, lake trout, northern pike, walleye, etc... are usual targets. Planers are also very effective for the same species, and also good for Spanish mackerel, which want the lures trolled at speeds to 8 knots just to get their undivided attention.

All the best,

Gary


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