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50lb Bluefin on a 12wt?

2K views 18 replies 13 participants last post by  SilverFly 
#1 ·
If a 12 isn't up to snuff, I might have to get a 14wt. At least if this report from a saltwater gear forum can be believed:

Apparently he followed a large group of porpoise for quite a while with 'large' tuna in front of them jumping. When asked he said 50+ in size. He tried for quite a while to get them to bite, tried to head off the group but the fish were very skiddish and would sound when he got close....

Take it at face value here, but might be a sign of things to come with some unusual visitors to our state with the warmer than usual water. First thing that came to mind is the standard California size Bluefin in the 30-60 lb range. If you come across this out there, drop lines waaaay back, switch to purple/black combo's, or run waaaay back rapalas. Of course live bait is the obvious choice if you can head off the pack but hard to get outside of illwaco. Just so happens that Winchester has live sardines right now I've heard which would be exactly what the doctor ordered for this size of tuna.
And yes, I have a slightly crazed look in my eyes right now.
 
#3 · (Edited)
Back in the day 1967:
"The light-tackle aficionado may hook ten fish for every one he catches. But the one is worth it. Last August, off Conception Bay, Newfoundland, Veteran Angler Lee Wulff, 63, set a world record by landing a 597-lb.bluefin tuna on 50-lb.-test line. Wulff played that bulldog of the deep for 13½ hr. before finally coaxing it to gaff. "Now I know," he sighed afterward, "what a guy feels like when he has climbed a mountain for the first time."

There's a video of this event, available through Royal Wulff Products
www.royalwulff.com
 
#4 ·
The light-tackle aficionado may hook ten fish for every one he catches. But the one is worth it. Last August, off Conception Bay, Newfoundland, Veteran Angler Lee Wulff, 63, set a world record by landing a 597-lb.bluefin tuna on 50-lb.-test line. Wulff played that bulldog of the deep for 13½ hr. before finally coaxing it to gaff. "Now I know," he sighed afterward, "what a guy feels like when he has climbed a mountain for the first time."
Sickness!
 
#7 ·
Sure you can do it. I've done a 35 lb yellow on a 12. The wear down is done by the drag, not the rod. "Raising the titanic" will just take forever, and you might actually tear up when someone yells "Color!":D. On a panga with one other person, they may be patient enough if there are skippies or other fish around. A charter with 5 or more... They won't want to wait.
 
#9 ·
"Excellent" in the sense of dead-on accurate (as usual from Philster). I'd say more like "sucky" when faced with the options of shitting on everyone else's trip, or breaking off a PNW unicorn. Trust me, among the sport albacore fleet, a 50+ BFT would be equivalent to a 30lb steelhead to this crowd.

That said, this can happen to some degree even with albacore. Several years ago a guy brought his 12-ish year old son who hooked a fish in the high 20's. Something like 40 minutes later the fish finally came over the rail. Even though we had long since drifted away from the school, everyone was cool with it when seeing the look on that kid's face. After a 2 hour brawl, it's doubtful a fat guy in his 50's would receive the same level of patience - in spite of the child-like grin on his face.

It's probably a moot point though. Even if these beasties show in real, fishable numbers, hooking one on a fly would be very difficult. As mentioned in the original quote, these fish are very boat shy (based on what I've read). Without a ton of live bait for chum, the only real chance would be drifting down on a school of jumpers close enough to get a cast or two before they sound. That or, dragging a big fly on the troll way back. The later method, however, could result in multiple hookups - a situation that would be very "interesting".
 
#10 · (Edited)
I was wondering about charter tuna fly fishing trips. From what the spin guys at work tell me, tuna do not come easily to hand and if this is the case, as Philster mentioned, does everyone else on the boat want to wait for one client to land their fish? Once it comes to paying for a fishing trip, anglers are not so willing to stand around and wait for someone else to finish catching their fish.

How long does it typically take a fly angler to land a tuna? I know how long it takes to land a dorado because I was on a group trip to Loreto along with Jerry so I have an idea how long it takes to land a dorado but no clue when it comes to a tuna. There were two of us plus the Captain per panga in Loreto so the time to bring a fish in wasn't really a concern... the other guy could keep fishing.

I can see where the landing time might be a problem when using fly gear for tuna.
 
#15 ·
Obviously, depending on the skill of the angler, about 10-20 minutes for most 15lb.-25lb. Albacore on 12 weights.
As to the first question, what are you going to do... not cast??? I bet you'll wish you had something bigger, but if we made more rational decisions about these things we wouldn't find ourselves standing on a boat, 40 miles offshore with a fly rod.
 
#18 ·
I did manage to not cast while in a "pond" in the middle of a mangrove channel while fishing in Belize. We just pole out into the pond and I see an 80 to 90 pound Tarpon. I stood up front with my 8wt fly rod. Just before I casted I played the whole thing out in my mind and realized the futility of it. So I did manage not to cast for a full 2 seconds, at least. The fish never even looked at my fly and then just slowly swam off amongst the mangroves.
 
#19 · (Edited)
A whole 2 seconds? I'd say you exercised remarkable restraint. Yes, it would have been futile but a few of the most memorable seconds of your life. When I was in Belize I couldn't help chucking a charlie at a 4' cuda. Amazingly it eased forward, and neatly nipped it off my leader.

And here's a little something I tied up in case something bigger than albacore show up:



It's modeled on a "jet-head" style troll lure used for large tuna and marlin. Steelhead aren't alone in liking black and purple. It's a proven combo for many large pelagics, including bluefin tuna.
 
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