Florida Keys Blackfin Tuna Fishing
Put the camera phone away. Resist the urge to email photos of the beautiful Keys sunsets to your friends back home. Refrain from texting that it's "75 and sunny" and you're heading out deep sea fishing or planning to spend the day at the beach. Trust me; they don't want to hear it-especially those who are still dealing with the snow and ice and freezing temperatures up north.
Ah never mind, rub it in, that's why we're here right? And we couldn't be here at a better time. The weather has been downright spectacular, and the fishing is just as good-especially if you want to head offshore and catch delicious blackfin tuna.
This past week the tuna fishing has been red hot from Key Largo to Key West. Here in the Middle Keys especially, we've been having great success at the Marathon Hump. The combination of calm seas and the lack of sharks have allowed us to get out and land big fish on nearly every trip.
If you're planning a trip to the Hump, or to your local tuna grounds, there a three ways to target these fish. The first is trolling feathers, which is one of the simplest ways to catch blackfins and also a great way to entice plenty of action. Trolling generally produces smaller fish, but it allows you to load the coolers and locate the larger fish in the process. One thing to keep in mind while trolling is that if you aren't getting bites, you may need to lighten up on your leader. Tuna have excellent vision and in these calmer conditions you may need to lighten up your fluorocarbon to 30 or 40 pounds.
This past week I have trolled to locate the fish, and then used butterfly jigs to catch the larger fish that are down deeper. Get up tide of the tunas, and then drop jigs at different depths to find the fish. Proper technique is essential when jigging for tunas, but once you get it down you should be able to land fish considerably larger than the ones caught trolling. In addition, if you want to wrestle with one of the ocean's strongest fish, drop your jig down to the bottom and you have a great shot at catching big amberjack upwards of 60 pounds!
Another great thing about jigging for tunas is that you don't need live bait. However, if you do have a well full of livies, live bait fishing has been the most productive method of targeting the larger blackfins. On the past few trips we've caught tunas in the 20 to 30-pound class on live bait. So if you can throw a cast net and catch live bait, I recommend doing so. And don't be shy about how many baits you take out-when it comes to tuna fishing, the more the better.
Another thing to consider while tuna fishing is to keep a big rod ready in case a billfish shows up. We encounter blue marlins every year at the Hump, especially in the spring, and it's smart to have a heavy rod ready to rig with a blackfin in case one pops up.
In addition to the excellent tuna bite we've also been having good success on the reefs and wrecks. The mutton snapper bite has been good, and there are plenty of smoker kings around. On the patches we're still catching good numbers of mangrove snapper, as well as excellent numbers of catch-and-release groupers.
Your Best Bet for the Week Ahead: Blackfin Tuna
Take advantage of the beautiful weather and make the run to the tuna grounds. The blackfin tuna action has been phenomenal!
