Finally somewhat rested from my trip so here comes a REALLY REALLY long report.

went aboard the Capt Casey out of Freeport on my first 48 hr trip.
left the dock on Friday at 4 pm and returned at 4 ish Sunday.
first and foremost I had a BLAST!!

Lots of people have asked about the boat/fishing style etc.
So lets get that out of the way.
Boat was your typical partyboat. id guess maybe 80 ft long and 20 ft wide
Load was in their opinion light at 19 but I am not sure i'd have liked there to have been 35
Capt Frank was the first capt and we had a second Capt and 3 deckhands (forget their names sorry guys).
the boat has no bunks and sleeping/resting was difficult at best.
there were maybe 8 sets of "airline" style seats. you know 3 buts wide small aisle in between.
if you werent smart enough to grab a set of seats you were SOL.
I must say even with 19 on board there were people sleeping on the floor in the bathrooms in front of doors etc.
it was very difficult to move around (take a leak etc.) once underway since seas were probably 6-9'
and I didnt want to step on anyone in the dark.
Cabin windows leaked so nothing in your bag was going to stay dry on the floor (bummer)

for some unknown reason they had the cabin like a meat locker AC was running and it was 70 or below all the time.
it was warmer outside so warm in fact I put on shorts on sunday

the first night they were chilling the tuna in an ice bath in a large 5X5 drum.
on the second day/night the capt agreed that we could use it as a livewell.
so we had live hardtails and such untill they threw em all out to make room for tuna (they werent catching fish)

I have to admit on a full boat with every angler bringing 3-5 rods I could easily see them running out of holders.
the capt crew were very courteous and worked their butts off.
they chummed sardines, bft, and runners...
they even put a kite up the second night just trying to buy a freaking bite! (more on that later)

Boat seemed somewhat loaded with what id call tourists.
I guess thats a bad term but basicaly rental rods no tackle seasick alot. etc etc.
nothing wrong with it just thought id mention it for those whove asked.
id say average # fishing in the night time was 10-12 sometimes as few as 4-5
now the yellowfin may not have been bitting but these guys didnt really have tackle for em anyway most were going
after bft.

Almost everyone on the boat got sick even those with patches or dramamine.
I must have icewater in the veins as I did ok.


Now on to fishing.
As I said we left at 4:00 PM
seas were a bit bumpy to say the least...
arrived at the first floater at 9:00; I am assuming it was the rig I had heard was at the hilltops.

jigged for bft for 3 hours made 2 or 3 drifts... caught as many as you wanted to reel in most were kept for
eating/chum.
took about 4 of my diamond jigs geting cut off in about 30 minutes before some guys around me realized "no angles no
tangles" didnt loose another the rest of the trip.

Took off around midnight to go to boomvang/nansen as we were departing the capt announced we'd be going there instead
of the originally planned hoover/diana
as we approached boomvang at around 3 Capt noticed 2 other boats (I now assume DSH boats)
and decided to go to nansen.

got there somewhat after 4 (we were going extremely slow as it was very very sloppy im guessin we were goin 5 kts)
as soon as we got there chum went in and yellowfin started blowin up on the surface hitting flyers.
guys who had topwaters chunked them out everyone else jigged for bft.

I watched to see how topwater tuna was done and immediately realized I was overmatched...
so I did my best while watch yft blow up after yft blowup on other people I tried throwing the bps popper with my
avet 2 oz just isnt gonna get it,
switched to a bull gt clone 4.5 oz was better but still not enough distance.

at this point I made 2 decisions Id later question.
1. no harness
2 sticking with the avet when I had a perfectly good tld 25 I could have used. (the 40 lb mono topshot I had made
this choice for me)

I was in pure awe at how fast those tuna can run off 100-200 yds of line.
watched 3-4 more fish in the 80-125 lb range get decked on spin gear and large ambassadeurs
so I am trying hard to cast farther and a few more casts and I hook a tuna that they later estimated to go 100+

after getting pulled up the port of the boat over under and around people and watching the 100+ yd topshot disappear
I am standing on the bow alone wondering what in the hell I just did to piss this tuna off.
then I am wishing for that harness I decided against.
about that time im out 250 yds of line and am making some small progress on this fish.
and then all hell breaks loose and down the starboard side of the boat back to the stern I go chasing a fish as I am
watching all the 80 lb spectra zip off.
mind you all of this is at strike setting of 17lbs.
I crank it up past strike and then the weight of the pull is so much I am starting to think I am going to loose
everything...

then this thought crosses my mind
"how am I going to explain to my wife I lost a 600$+ rod/reel in the gulf"
then I make the smart move get a level head as I visualize seeing my wife having a conniption!
then I put the reel in low gear and start to make some of the line back. get all but the last 15 feet and tuna is
circling.

The crew is laughing as they all know this is my first YFT. someone comments thats going to be the longest 10 ft of
your life.
well little did I know it was going to be... 15 minutes later fish is max 4 ft underwater and SNAP line breaks. I
was very tired and very upset.
total time 45+ minutes
total Yellowfin 0!

oh well... took about a 15 minute break from that fish as I was exhausted...
shortly thereafter it got daylight tuna turned off and we ran in to get some assorted rig fish

about 11 AM we made our first rig stop and I immediately took McGolfers advise and found the biggest hardtail I could
catch and hooked him up.

I must have lost a couple or 3 baits as I was using circle hooks on amberjacks something I
had never done. once I got it figured out I hooked up 15ish lb AJ
then I baited a bermuda chub of at least 5 lbs. some other guy caught by accident and didnt want

I brought in the biggest or second biggest aj of the trip on that thing.
aj weighed 38 lbs.
great fight..
went on to catch a few assorted snappers and a nice sized rainbow runner
threw snappers back.

saw a few b-liners brought up and a couple of 30-40 lb groupers. and some other rainbow runners.
stops were targeting AJs for those with the tackle. otherwise it was potluck.

that evening we made the run for gunnison which alot of us guys looking for yellowfin questioned.
why leave nansen where you know they were to hope they show at gunnison.

I suspect I know why.. as we left gunnison at daybreak and the boat ride was exactly the right length of time to get
home by 4 pm as gunnison is 40 mi further.

I think 2-3 yft were caught sat night with the largest on a diamond jig.
others were in the 30-40 lb range.
once it was apparent a yellowfin wasnt in my future I started catching some BFT as I have no tuna at home.
wound up with maybe 8-10 not sure
all were about 8-15 lbs.

upon nearing the jetties the mates passed the hat. somehow I got missed I must've been asleep or something.
just before they were starting to get the fish out they were all in one spot (didnt want 1 to get it all )
so I gave them 40$ as they had done a good job I thought.

about 15 minutes later we were docking and capt comes on horn saying "blah blah hope you had a good time.. blah blah
its my job to keep you safe and happy catching fish but its also my job to keep my deckhands happy... blah 10 - 15% is considered a good tip if you feel the guys did a good job. you guys havent even come close to 300$ thats not even
enough to cover their costs and they busted their asses for yall. They normally would expect upon completion of a
good job 500+$ so maybe as your exiting you could find something extra for them"

This didnt bother me too much because I feel I always tip adequate, yes I got missed but thats hardly my fault and I made it good
before the capt came on the horn, I have been on the other side of a tipping situation so I appreciated the capts
effort but when I told my wife she said it was rude...

heres my calculations
19 X $300 = $5700 X 10% = $570 = 95$ per 24hr day or 3.95 per hour
19 X $300 = $5700 X 15% = $855 = $142.5 per 24hr day or 5.93 per hour
what they supposedly got..
$5700/300 = 5.2% or $50 per 24hr day or 2.08 per hour

sure they get something from the charter company but I bet it isnt much what $100-200? that would = 2-4$ an hour.

I know I know 40$ isnt 15% but honestly I was not a math major I thought it was or was closer I wasnt trying to save
5$ lol

I guess what gets me is on the ride home I started thinking most guys probably lost more tackle $ than they tipped
the mates. imho thats sad.

ok sorry for the slightly offtopic but, I thought it was relevant

some other interesting things I noticed.
1. spinning reels took 90+% all yellowfin
2. there was no attempt at yft using chunks or any method other than topwater. is this normal?
3. they didnt troll except 1 guys wahoo lure during the day. I think that only happened because capt didnt know.
4. large rattle traps took plenty of bft
5. you can get a harness clamp for a spinner
6. ill have a spinner before tres tuna

some of the things I learned im sure theres more.
1. change your socks everyday your feet will sweat in boots and shrivel up then begin to hurt so bad you cant stand up.
2. ALWAYS wear your harness if you even remotely think you'll need it.
3. cold pizza doesnt work as it gets wet and is too greasy could cause queezyness
4. bring a griddle for tuna sandwiches
5. watch for people casting because they dont always watch what they are doing
6. always take a sleeping bag even if it isnt going to be cold as they run the AC inside
7. watch for flying buckets/pieces of chum
8. 100lb splitrings dont work for 15lb blackfin
9. 3x strong hooks only.. they work
10.always have rain gear in reach
11.your gonna loose that 15$ lure get over it
12 throw away your clothes before entering the house

ok guys thanks! now youve read the really long report!!!!

Did I mention I had a blast!!!
I think It would be better to do with someone you know or can at least talk to regularly though...
some pics of the fish I caught... took them home to clean as I thought it would be easier especially using an elect knife
nothing outstanding but a lot of fun none the less...

These are the reports I like...all the nitty-gritty stuff that noone ever bothers putting in, or you never think about until you get there and noone has told you about. Glad you had a good time and sorry you lost the big one!! Spinners you say - tell me more. What size, line, rods, etc. Thanks.

a few things I've noted

• Your favorite lure is lost first so carry more than 1
• the speed of loosing lures is related to the cost of the lure
• the size of the shark that eats your BFT and best popper is determined by cost of the popper
• split rings can be brazed shut
• buy a plate that is wide enough to allow you to stand on a rolling deck
• get a sit down type harness
• a waterproof canoe bag is great for keeping your clothes dry
• clean the hooks and pliers and others in the tackle box with fresh water

Now you see the value of fishing with a group of tunahead tackle hos!

DSG
lol, you damn near hit it on the head. I felt like I had a huge advantage over average joe schmoe because of you guys... I read every piece of info I could get my hands on even if it was mainly left coast based.

as for your comments.
favorite lure... yep first and only poper i lost
yep 15$ clones 6$ d jigs not .50$ bottom rigs
didnt see a shark all weekend
some split rings were brazed shut and still 100lb rings pulled straight. not usually so much that fish was lost but bad enough that they were 2 inches long
agreed on plate and harness. I have the braid brute buster 1 and when yours truly wasnt to manly to use it it worked wonderfully.
only other large AJ was handed off by a guy fishing with a 6/0 penn senator on a broom stick to a guy with my same plate/harness. he had to have it to get the fish in.
will have to try the canoe bag..
done but figured id go and spray everything out today.

bobaloo1
spinners appeared to be all types.
mainly the "ho's" had penn 9500's they were fishing 65lb spectra on any old rod apparently. some on penn slammer rods some on others that honestly looked like 49$ normal academy stuff
some guys were trying to use shakespeare spinners etc. one guy was respooling his new academy 69$ special combo with 40 on the way out.
many didnt even have gimball pins but the key is they were getting bit and most werent.
these others didnt catch as many fish or hook ups because of things like straight hooks/no splitrings changed etc. the ones in the know were mainly rigged the same. they used small (strong) swivels and about 18 inches of leader prolly 60lb flouro or 80 mono. that was it. threw those bps pencil poppers a mile. also seemed that the ones that had a rattel in them worked really well.
the set up I am hopefully going after (as soon as wife approves it)is going to be something like I saw a 9500 on a custom 40lb rod with the little harness straps that go around the reel made by braid. the rod I saw was a spining version of the rod I had made locally for my avet. since I know the guy and hes cheap enough I am probably going that route unless spinning rods are way more $

another thing I noticed the guys using spinners had more than 1 because they always seemed to die for some reason or another in the middle of the hot bite. they could usually be fixed in a minute or 5 but kept saying something about a keeper on a gear I dont really know. so they obviously dont like the abuse of yft but, do work.

is that my head I hear rattling? no wait its a post thats way too long

DSG,
You forgot that terminal tackle should at least equal the weight of the fisherman. You still won't have enough!

Re Tips: I've collected for the crew on a number of trips, the average for an 8 or 12 hour is $3.00 from tourist. On 48 hour about $15.00 from tourist.
I figure a 20 dollar bill at the start of a 12 trip let's the crew know I pay for good service. A $50 on a longer trip works also.

Great report Galveston!! Can't wait to go tuna fishing, How did the Penn 9500 handle the tuna?

Snagged, what suggestions do you have for tuna tackle?(rod,reels, line) I currently have a couple of Penn GTi 330, and a Penn spincast 9500 but I don't know if they'll handle it. I'm going on the Jan 7-9th trip with you guys!!!!!

I need to get a list of tackle needed so I can forward it to my wife (my christmas presents)

Great report my friend! Best I've heard in a long, long time. The details are great for a newbie. Lots of mental notes for storing up on gear etc... Hoping to make my first long range trip next fall.

Welllll, your 330 is ok to catch bait. The 9500 is a good popper reel (I use one), to be honest the anti-reverse need to be changed in them as there is too much freeplay in the stocker.
I've caught tuna on the following:
Penn jigmaster 30# line and uglystick
Penn 4/0 with 50# on a 20 to 50 Mariner
Penn 6/0 with 80# on a Penn senator 9/0 rod
Another jigmaster 40# on a no-name rod
Tiagra 30wlrs with 80 JB hollow and an 80# topshot on a Calstar and a Penn 40-80 Tuna stick.
You don't need the most expensive gear. You do need dependable gear.
Both of the jigmasters needed new spools and drags when the trip was done.
The Tiagra need to be washed and sprayed with wd-40. The 4/0 and 6/0 just needed usual maintence.
My 9500 hasn't hit a decent YF yet (a 40#)and a few BF's.
I've a new Torium/Calstar combo I'm going to try for iron.
It realy boils down to how much are you going to use it. The strongest equipment that is balanced for your purpose.
A 30# rig for casting.
A 40# for iron.
A 50# for general use.
An 80# for serious fish and deep drops.
I like Penn and Shimano. I back all my reels with spectra. I make sure my drags work properly and with the single speed reels this is important.
Plate and harness. A lite day plate for general use and a heavier harness and plate for the cows.
Tony, both Tom's, McGolfer, and Tex can tell you more than I know.

Jerry,
in your experience how are most yft taken in the GOM? I was surprised to see them mainly targeted on topwater

I believe with the addition of a lg spinner I will be ready for most anything in the GOM on a 48 hr trip.

I have a penn 3/0 with 30 lb mono. for making bait chunking light iron and poppers at bft.

I have a tld25 65 spectra 40 lb topshot on an allstar rod for bft iron and smaller rig fishes.

I have an avet exw4/0 jb spectra 80lb with 60lb topshot on a custom 7' ex hvy for larger yft and amberjacks.

it may not be the perfect setup but, It seemed to work ok during this trip.

Great post! Makes the price of admission a bargain.

That is one of the best reports I've read on the 'net. Very thoughtfully done. This will help me for Tres Tuna. I've been considering buying a large spinning outfit for a while now, and this report clinches it for me. There's one salesguy at the Katy Mills BPS that seems to know YFT and he's been telling me this everytime I go in there. Thanks again.

Galveston,
Most YF are taken chunking, it is the preferred method as you can draw the school to you and keep them there. Top waters are more exciting and work very well sometimes, others you'll wear yourself out and not get a hit. Trolling takes a large number, but how many guys, myself included, can afford $1200 for a one day trip to catch one fish? Besides trolling can get to be boring, unless your in a sportboat with a cabin, ac, heat and good companions. Don't get me wrong about trolling, I think it is a best used to target other species and I can think of a couple of boats I'd love to troll, bottom fish, chunk, or toss poppers out of, their captians and crew have forgotten more about saltwater fishing than I can hope to learn.

I think a Torium 20 or 16 may be a better choice for poppers and they cost about the same as a 9500. Heck, if you put in the improved anti-reverse,heavier drag, and bail spring, the Torium is cheaper and doesn't eat your fingers casting it.
We need to get Earl to post uo his 9500 specks and cost.

Snagged,
Thanks for the info.
thats what I suspected. I was mainly talking about party boats.
I thought chunking was the case but almost all yft were taken on top waters and 0 chunking was done. they did throw out chunks of bft but none had hooks in them.

so you think toriums would be as good as a 9500
intersting... I may have to price what one of those beautys would be. im guessin 300$ total with a decent rod
is a tor 30 to big?

oh, also any advise on what to do with my reels upon returning? all were washed twice. but ive never owned an all aluminum reel. unless you consider calcutta's and I use those so much that I dont think they have a chance to corrode and go bad.

galveston
glad you caught a few fish and at least got to fight a good yellowfin. i am glad i was able to lead you in the right direction about amberjack baits....rick

thanks mcg,
im not sure why anyone would actually use a .025 lb piggie for bait. I assume that you might get some snapper or something small but for the big fish your theory of big bait was most certainly true

THANKS again!