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Tuna dates 2013

1K views 8 replies 5 participants last post by  Grayone 
#1 ·
It's that time of year again. These are the hardest fighting fish in the Pacific Northwest. But, long hours spent looking for fish, typical rough seas and the probability of mediocre weather will keep many people away. On the other hand…



August:
15/16 (5 spots)
24/25 (2 spots)
September:
6/7 (full)
7/8 (3 spots)

-$350+tax/person Must be paid in full to hold you spot.
-1 night/1 day of fishing
-5 spaces per date
-12 weights or better highly recommended.
-Rental outfits available on a limited basis ($75 for rod/reel/line) ($100 for rod/reel/line/leaders/flies)
Puget Sound Fly Co.
253-472-2420
 
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#2 ·
UPDATED DATES

August:
15/16 (5 spots)
24/25 (full)
September:
6/7 (full)
7/8 (3 spots)

-$350+tax/person Must be paid in full to hold you spot.
-1 night/1 day of fishing
-5 spaces per date
-12 weights or better highly recommended.
-Rental outfits available on a limited basis ($75 for rod/reel/line) ($100 for rod/reel/line/leaders/flies)
Puget Sound Fly Co.
253-472-2420
www.pugetsoundflyco.com
 
#5 ·
Like all fly fishing, there are a variety of techniques and terminal outfits that will catch fish. I've been hosting fly fishing trips for Albacore since 2001 and here's what I've found to be the most effective:
Rod: 12 weight. Take your pick, faster and stiffer tend to work better for most guys in this setting.
Reel: Large arbor, strong drag. My current favorites are the Vanquish 12 and Tibor Signature 11-12
Line: After trying many, my top choice is the Rio Outbound Custom T-14. 35' of T-14 integrated seamlessly into an intermediate running line. At 490 grains it casts surprisingly well on most strong 12's.
Leaders: 20#-30# fluorocarbon furled leaders are what I use. The best stuff going is Seaguar Grand Max 03X, diameter of .014" and breaking strength over 25#'s. Think Fluorocarbon doesn't matter? Look at the size of their eyes...
Flies:

This is my favorite, but the key ingredients can be applied to a clouser or other baitfish as well: 5"-6" long, blue and green over and abundance of flash. On darker days Purple as a back can work very well too.
Having seen Albacore busting bait on the surface numerous times and also being able to observe this from the flying bridge of a boat, will show you that even when the fish appear to be surface oriented, the vast majority are well beneath the surface. Lines, leaders and flies that sink, will catch many more fish than those that don't.
 
#6 ·
UPDATED DATES -

August:
15/16 (3 spots)
24/25 (full)
September:
6/7 (full)
7/8 (full)

-$350+tax/person Must be paid in full to hold you spot.
-1 night/1 day of fishing
-5 spaces per date
-12 weights or better highly recommended.
-Rental outfits available on a limited basis ($75 for rod/reel/line) ($100 for rod/reel/line/leaders/flies)
Puget Sound Fly Co.
253-472-2420
www.pugetsoundflyco.com
 
#7 ·
2 Spots still available for the Aug. 15/16 trip. Any Tri-Cities guys interested? According to ifish.net reports, the traditional gear guys are hammering the tuna at +/- 25 miles. 25 lb. Albacore on a fly rod???!!! Sounds like fun!
 
#8 ·
Ok, so I went for this trip. I tried to enlist some of you to bite the bullet and come along.... But no takers.

So I drove down the gorge to Hammond, Ore on Thursday and met up with Joe from Puget Sound Fly Co., John, Andrew and Nathan. It was a short night of sleep, if you know what I mean. We got up at 3:15am and had coffee and headed out about an hour later. Capt. Chuck at the helm took us out about 31 miles looking for the warm water. Finally, the engine went quiet and we were on a school of tuna. We let out our lines and started the troll. About a minute later, Joe is hooked up on a 10 wt. A word of advice here.... Don't go after the Albies with a 10 wt. It's too light. About 30 minutes later, Joe gets the tuna to the boat and Chuck gaffs it. Chuck starts up the engine and we are on the troll again. I get bit on the 12 wt. I was amazed at how strong and fast these fish are. He took me into the backing about 200 yards in the blink of an eye. The reel handle was spinning so fast, it was a blur. Seriously. I got the fish to the boat pretty quickly and Chuck put the gaff to it.
It wasn't a great day, but we ended up with 7 Albacore for the 5 of us. So, it was a decently good day. My wife and I spent the better part of yesterday afternoon canning tuna in the pressure cooker. We ended up with a loin for the bbq and 18 pint jars of tuna for sandwiches or whatever.
So, if anyone has the opportunity to go after Albacore with a fly rod, I would recommend giving it a shot. We had fun, the seas were reasonably calm and the fish were reasonably cooperative. This was a good trip for the money and included a night's lodging. :)
 
#9 ·
Ok, so I went for this trip. I tried to enlist some of you to bite the bullet and come along.... But no takers.

So I drove down the gorge to Hammond, Ore on Thursday and met up with Joe from Puget Sound Fly Co., John, Andrew and Nathan. It was a short night of sleep, if you know what I mean. We got up at 3:15am and had coffee and headed out about an hour later. Capt. Chuck at the helm took us out about 31 miles looking for the warm water. Finally, the engine went quiet and we were on a school of tuna. We let out our lines and started the troll. About a minute later, Joe is hooked up on a 10 wt. A word of advice here.... Don't go after the Albies with a 10 wt. It's too light. About 30 minutes later, Joe gets the tuna to the boat and Chuck gaffs it. Chuck starts up the engine and we are on the troll again. I get bit on the 12 wt. I was amazed at how strong and fast these fish are. He took me into the backing about 200 yards in the blink of an eye. The reel handle was spinning so fast, it was a blur. Seriously. I got the fish to the boat pretty quickly and Chuck put the gaff to it.
It wasn't a great day, but we ended up with 7 Albacore for the 5 of us. So, it was a decently good day. My wife and I spent the better part of yesterday afternoon canning tuna in the pressure cooker. We ended up with a loin for the bbq and 18 pint jars of tuna for sandwiches or whatever.
So, if anyone has the opportunity to go after Albacore with a fly rod, I would recommend giving it a shot. We had fun, the seas were reasonably calm and the fish were reasonably cooperative. This was a good trip for the money and included a night's lodging. :)
That sounds like it was a very good trip!!!
 
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