July Fishing Report

The day was simply amazing, albeit a little crazy too. We set off towards the tuna grounds despite the dismal weather. The sky was gray, and the fog was thick, with the sea waves only measuring 1-2 feet. Wayne and Jenn were aboard and ready to go. Thankfully, the fog lifted a bit, giving us about a mile of visibility. We moved the boat around until we found the perfect spot and dropped anchor. Wayne and Jenn quickly caught mackerel, and we set up the three fishing rods at the desired depth.

Suddenly, one of the rods had a strike, and the fight was on! After about half an hour of intense struggle, we managed to bring a very large mako shark alongside the boat. It was an exhilarating experience! We reset the gear and not long after, another rod went off. This time, after about 45 minutes of battling, we were able to bring a 14-foot great white shark to the boat. The sight was both awe-inspiring and intimidating. The massive shark wasn't happy, so we decided to cut the line to avoid any harm to it. Once again, we reset the gear, and within 20 minutes, another rod had a strike. This time, we brought another huge Mako to the boat. All the sharks were released unharmed.

After replacing the leaders and hooks, we set out the gear again. An hour later, the stern rod went off, and the fish ran towards the bow. Simultaneously, the starboard side rod also had a strike. The lines crisscrossed, creating a challenging situation. George took on the first fish but unfortunately lost it when the hook pulled free. Wayne was dealing with the other fish, which was still swimming away at an incredible speed, with only 100 yards of line left on the reel. We chased the fish with the boat, managing to retrieve a good portion of the line. However, the real battle had just begun.

For the next two hours, Wayne struggled to gain one foot of line while losing two feet in the process. It was a back-and-forth battle until we finally got the fish about 50 feet from the boat and close to the leader. However, the day's fishing had restrictions, allowing us to retain only fish under 73 inches. The monster fish we had on the line far exceeded that limit. After some discussion among the crew, we decided to cut the line to avoid harming the fish or prolonging its suffering. We released the fish, allowing it to fight another day.

In the end, the count was two Mako sharks, one great white, and a tuna. Wayne complained that his arms were sore – no surprise there, considering the tremendous effort he put into battling those powerful creatures!