You don’t always catch what you want

Every so often, a species of fish grabs my attention. Typically, it is a fish I do not know much about and subsequently catch infrequently.  

 

The species that has my attention right now is the blue marlin. So, for the past few months, I have been studying blue marlin habitat preferences, feeding behavior, tackle systems and techniques. It is a lot to learn, and I am a slow learner. At some point, you just have to get out there and fish. On Wednesday, that is what I did.

 

Elliott (my son), Brody (the amazing fish-finding and stock-trading dog) and I pulled away from the dock at 5:30 in the morning. It was still dark. Very dark. Even with high tech electronics like radar and FLIR, I am not completely comfortable running the boat at night. However, with a 70-mile run to fishing grounds, running the boat in the dark is something you just have to do.

 

Conditions offshore were calm. For most of the two-hour ride, Brody slept in his bean bag. Elliott rigged large island-style lures with magnum-size ballyhoo. I set the Yellowfin on autopilot and monitored the radar and FLIR.  

 

We pulled up short of the 226 Hole and deployed our spread of lures and teasers. Then, learning about blue marlin began in earnest.  

 

Funny thing about learning, in the early stages you don’t catch much. After trolling for five hours, we had zero marlin strikes. A few boats in the area released marlin. So, we knew they were there. Our technique was just lacking. We did not catch a blue marlin, but we learned a lot. Mostly what not to do!  

 

On the ride back, Elliott and I talked about the learning process and the adjustments we would make on the next trip. We agreed to stay committed to the process. Even if it meant not catching fish. About then, a school of blackfin tuna began crashing flying fish on the surface. I stopped the boat and grabbed a rod rigged with a Yozuri 3D popper. A blackfin ate the lure as soon as it hit the water. Not the target species but at least we caught a fish!

 

Contact Captain Greg Peralta at captgregp@gmail.com or call (843) 224-0099.