Big numbers of bluefin sent the fleet to the grounds between Marthas Vineyard and Montauk this week as fish chase sand eels around the area. Crazy numbers of white marlin are in the canyons, with a few trickling inshore. Giants are eating bunker off New Hampshire, New Jersey, and off Massachusetts.
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New Hampshire and Massachusetts
Bluefin arrivals are still a bit late, but activity is building between Ipswich and Scantum. Bunker in 200 feet water are triggering explosive, surface-feeding tuna when encountered—but the bite is intermittent. Around Jeffreys Ledge, live whiting have been effective when fished deep, but the porbeagle sharks can be relentless. Reports of giant bluefin beginning to bite on trolled bars near Stellwagen— it’s been sporadic but encouraging. Some fishermen are switching to wire and live baits to enjoy the wide-open fishing for big porbeagles.
Cape Cod to Long Island
Tuna are spread from Montauk to the Claw south of Martha’s Vineyard. Fish range from 60- to 70-inchers to 40- to 50-inchers. For the first time of the season in this area, there were a few days when jigging out-produced trolling, but the most productive method still varies day to day.
There’s no one area where the fish are stacked up. It seems like there are pods of fish throughout, with moving and looking for signs of life the best move. Dropping a live whiting has been the ticket to catching some of the bigger, recreational sized tuna along with RonZs.
A few white marlin have moved in from what seems like a major number of them in the canyons. Boats fishing the Oak Bluffs Bluewater Classic reported as many as 47 white marlin on their trips this week, but a few anglers on the tuna grounds were treated to white marline acrobatics, such as Devin Acton, author of the Weekly Salvage newsletter. A popper cast near a pod of dolphin this week instead raised a white marlin.
Captain Connor of Tall TailZ Charters out of Rhode Island also put his crew on a big skillie amidst the tuna on a trip this week.
There’s good bigeye action in the canyons, along with yellowfin and swordfish.
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New Jersey and Mid Atlantic
There’s some giant-sized bluefin around, feeding on bunker and small bluefish, and taking live baits and jigs. The smaller bluefin seem to have moved on, but some yellowfin, including fish in the 60- to 80-class have moved onto midshore structures, and the bite with poppers and jigs has been good.
Billfish action has improved off the mid-Atlantic Canyons, and blue marlin to 510 pounds hit the scales in Ocean City Maryland for fishermen in the Jimmy Johnson Quest for the Ring.
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Stay safe, fish hard, and check your drag.