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We haven't touched much on this topic this season, but Dr. Barbara Block's Tag-A-Giant program is still alive and well off of Morehead City.  This study is being undertaken this year on board Capt. Dale Britt's "Sensation."  This past weekend, good friend Bob Newell got to participate in the program on board Brick Brown's "Annie C."  They flipped the first fish in the pictures to the taggers on "Sensation."  The second fish pictured is one caught by the tag boat.  Good to see that even in these tough times there is still research being done to ensure the long term sustainability of these fish.

A combination of 4 straight days of fishing and a bad/getting worse weather forecast kept the covers pulled tight over my head this AM.  I felt guilty not going out fishing given the unique opportunity we have been given recently with the Bluefin fishery.  It looks like we'll certainly be on the hill thru Thursday, but then hope to pick things back up on Friday. 

FREE BLUEFIN SEMINAR- THIS FRIDAY, 1/9- 5pm: We invite and encourage anyone interested in participating in this fishery to come to the OIFC to get geared up and ready. Capt. Brant and staff are hosting a hands-on seminar/class on how to get hooked up and handle Giant Bluefin Tuna. There are specific techniques to having success, but beyond that, there are safety issues involved with handling fish of this size. If you are someone who is interested and licensed to sell Giant Bluefin Tuna, our Bluefin tuna broker, will be on hand to discuss how to handle the fish once boated. For information on what licensing you will need to sell fish, call Donald Diehl at 252-241-9944. However, it is important to remember that this fishery IS NOT just about catching and selling these fish. There is a great catch and release recreational fishery for the Giant Bluefin Tuna. You may also keep a Bluefin to eat if you like, however, they are truly not the best Tuna to eat and releasing them is encouraged. For all the current regulations on landing Giant Bluefin- visit www.NMFSpermits.com . The thrill of hooking up to and releasing one of these awesome fish is a challenge to any fisherman and a great accomplishment. If you are interested in the fishery, don't get discouraged if you don't have the license or don't want to kill these fish. It is highly encouraged you fish and if possible, tag these Giant Bluefin Tuna so more can be learned about them. If you are interested in participating in the recreational tagging program EMAIL Barbara Block with the Tag-A-Giant foundation for information.
Again, the seminar on Friday is FREE. The OIFC hopes that by helping you become successful, we can earn your business for this season and seasons to come.

Here are some pictures from Sunday's fishing.  We had outdoor writer Mike Marsh on board and he took some nice shots.

This is getting hard to believe, but the OIFC fleet has again brought Bluefin back to the dock.  However, today we were not the only ones.  We had a total of 4 brought into the OIFC today- 1- 76" BFT by Cane Fairclott, 1- 85 inch BFT by Tracy Huggins, 1- 75 inch BFT by Craig Hughes and 1- 83 inch BFT by Capt. Brant.  The bite continues good between the Knuckle buoy and the Raritan wreck-- There were probably 10 BFT caught today and maybe 6 or so more lost out of 30-40 boats fishing.  It certainly isn't a guarantee, but the odds are not bad either- certainly the best Bluefin fishing we have ever seen in this area.  The weather is going to turn bad tomorrow, and we need a rest, so we'll be on the land until Friday when the weather looks to settle and we look to get back at them.  We are offering a great charter fishing opportunity for these Giant Bluefin Tuna.  If you have ever hoped of having a shot, it looks like now is the time!

**** Special Giant Bluefin Tuna- HOW TO seminar this Friday evening at the OIFC at 5pm -- Capt. Brant and team will give hands on instruction on how to rig and how to handle these awesome fish.  Whether you are going to fish them to sell or for the sport, the OIFC can help you hook up to the fish of a life time-- see you Friday at 5pm **

Blue Fin Tuna fishing can be a long boring trip which explodes in a split second into a fight with a Volkswagen sized pelagic.  I've worked at the OIFC for the past couple of years, but this is the first time I've gone Blue Fin fishing.  The "fishing" starts with preparation....having the right equipment.  For Christmas, Jeff got a Shimano Tiagra 80W purchased from guess where?  Brian Aycock also got a new 80 wide.

Before going out they came to the OIFC and got Captain Chris to set them up with the proper line.  But the type of line is only a small part of the equation.  Captain Chris is one of the finest craftsmen I've met, especially when  it comes to spooling a reel and tying the proper knots to ensure strength and smooth action.  I've got a picture of him here practicing his trade.  The next photo is Jeff and Brian wet packing their line after Chris has loaded it up.  Chris always advises anglers to wet pack their big reels.

Then today I got my first exposure to Blue Fin fishing.  We left the OIFC at about 5:30 am.  Brian was the helm and Jeff and I were keeping a sharp eye pealed as we traveled the ICW, then cleared the Shallotte Inlet.  Once in the open sea, we were smoked by Mike Kennedy and Captain Brant in the  twin Yamaha 350 powered Yellowfin.

As the sun came up, the fog fell, so thick we couldn't see much past the bow of Robbie Robert's 23 foot Contender "King Hunter".  By the time we arrived at our numbers Mike and Brant had already landed  a Blue Fin.  Soon there were several boats in the area with the same mission.  We  were all slow trolling, with at least one long line out back.  We were pulling a variation of Blue Water Candy Jag 3's.  Everyone on the water was careful to give each other plenty of room and especially staying clear of boats with a "fish On"  That is with the exception of some @#%#! on a Triton bay boat, who was flying all over the place.  He finally managed to cut our long line.  As Brian would say, "you just can't teach that".

For the rest of the day, the fog hung low and heavy with limited vision, but the seas were as smooth as a lake.  The sun sure didn't shine on us as we failed to land a Tuna.  But a bunch of other fishermen did,  including Brant and Mike Kennedy and Chris and Joe Seegers, who boated two giants.  Even Though we came up empty I learned a lot.....make sure your electronics are working right, have the right rod, reel and line combo, and use proper etiquette when fishing.  Most of all enjoy yourselves  Keep a check on our reports and come get some of this action.

On a finale note, I've computed all the Rodeo standings and purses.  As soon as Brant and Diane check it for errors, I'll post the results and Brant will get the checks out.

What a weekend.  Lots of fish on the docks, lots of people in town, lots of hooks in the water.  I was ready to give it a try myself.  So when good friend Joe Seegers gave me a call Sunday evening and asked me to fish with him today on the "Hooked Up" out of Southport, I was all over it.  Jamie Blue had no plans today, so we decided that we would all meet at 5 at South Harbour Marina and head out after a bluefin.  Josh Timbers (inshore guide in Southport) would also be joining us.  Neither Jamie nor Josh had ever caught a bluefin tuna.

The first few hours of trolling in the fog near the Knuckle were fruitless.  We heard of several hookups, but no fish had come our way.  We decided to get some dinner and headed over to the Horseshoe, where we put a one-sided beating on the jumbo bass that winter there.  After filling up a few buckets we were satisfied, so we headed back toward the Knuckle buoy.  Fifteen minutes after our baits hit the water again we saw an enormous school of porpoise and marked bait from top to bottom.  A few laps around the area and the long rigger got torched.  Jamie grabbed the rod and and put his first ever bluefin in the boat, in just under an hour and fifteen minutes.  The fish was 82 inches long and later cored at 267 pounds.

You can probably guess the rest of the story.  The same spot produced another bite ten minutes later, only this time it was the planer bait that got nailed and Josh on the rod.  His first ever bluefin hit the deck just over an hour later.  This fish went 78 inches and cored at 207.

What a day.  Nothing beats a successful day of fishing with friends.  Very cool to see Jamie and Josh each catch their first bluefin on the same trip.  Also, it is an encouraging sign that these fish are hanging around our waters.  We have seen good numbers of fish on each fishable day, and there is a good class of fish around.  We have heard of very few short fish this year.  Let's just all keep our fingers crossed that this fishery remains in place for years to come.

It's early Sunday and the fleet is back in action today.  Waking up this morning, I had a flashback to early 2007.  With a light easterly wind on the beach and fairly dense fog, the conditions are identical to the day when Capt. Brant and Capt. Barrett caught three giant tunas at the Shark Hole.  Bryan Aycock got in the action late in the day and caught one himself.  Let's hope history repeats itself. 

We are getting a lot of calls at the Ocean Isle Fishing Center regarding the proper gear and setup for these fish.  My feeling on the matter is that you don't want to go to a gun fight with a knife, but you really don't have to break the bank either.  We offer a variety of combos that you can successfully target these fish with at various price ranges, but it is vital that you (A) have a stout enough rod for the fish to set a hook and pressure him throughout the fight and (B) have enough line capacity on your reel to withstand the runs of the fish.  I don't recommend a rod more limber than 80# class or a reel smaller than about a 30 wide.  We have seen a lot of fish caught on the new Shimano TLD II 50WLRSA.  This reel will hold 500 yards of line if you spool it correctly with PowerPro, which we do right here.

Also, as far as terminal gear, it is vital that you use fluorocarbon leader to get bites from these fish. It seems like these tunas get more line-shy every year, and they are not going to go near another type of leader material that stands out in the water.  I have yet to hear of a fish this year being caught on a monofilament leader.  Also, the teeth in the mouths of these fish act as a rasp on whatever leader you are using, and fluorocarbon is much more abrasion resistant than monofilament.  I have heard of bluefin being caught on as light as 130# flourocarbon.  Just remember, the lighter you go, the more you increase your chances of getting bit, but you also increase your chances of breaking the leader.  Most anglers are reporting success with 200# fluorocarbon.

Hope that helps.  The weather looks good through tomorow, and as we all know, these fish seem to favor rougher water over calm.  Maybe the rougher water makes it tougher for them to see the leader.  Whatever the case, we are here to answer your questions (910 575 FISH), set you up for success on the water, and if you are set up to sell your tuna we will help you offload and chill your fish at no charge.

Blufin  fever is at a high pitch here at OIFC. Just look at the web cam and the dock is empty; all our boats are on the water with charters in quest of the ultimate prize in sportfishing. Catching a Giant Bluefin Tuna on standup tackle from a center console boat is equal in it's requirement for conditioning to a 10 round boxing match. It's the ultimate challenge, pure tee mano-y-mano. No giant oversize reels, no fighting chair; just you and the fish, strapped together into a harness with a 30 class reel, and a test of determination of who comes out on top. This is world class fishing, and it's available right here at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. Who'd of thunk it!

The weather looks good for next couple of days until Tuesday and then gets good again Thursday hopefully on thru the weekend. By Tuesday, everyone will be ready for a break and by Tuesday we will have the store restocked with everything Bluefin. Call us now and we can get you geared up for next weeks action.

We still have plenty of our Baitmasters Horse/Large Ballyhoo; without question the best, most durable Bluefin bait available. Come on down to OIB, the "Bluefin capital of the World!!!"