The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper


Vol. 17 No. 25 - April 5, 2017

reel time

You don't know until you go

Reel time

STEVE TRAVES | SUBMITTED

The lines of a little tunny hint at their incredible speed and power

 

 

Spring is a wonderful time on Gulf coast inshore waters and can be filled with pleasant surprises. You never know what you might encounter, so it's a good idea to carry a number of rods, reels, lures, plugs and flies. You'll still want to go out with a plan of action, but be flexible and able to change plans when the opportunity arises. Kingfish, cobia, Spanish mackerel, little tunny, and triple tail are just a few of the species that inhabit the Gulf in spring. Most of these require a different approach, and you don't want to miss an opportunity because you are not prepared.

One day recently that very scenario presented itself. AMI Outfitters owner Steve Traves and I had been on a mission to target cobia that were purported to be swimming the local passes and the beaches over local nearshore reefs. The plan was to check Longboat Pass and then head to New Pass checking crab trap markers and an artificial reef along the way. We had 10-weight fly rods rigged for cobia, but had eight-weight outfits on standby. We checked the markers in Longboat Pass, but despite a favorable tide, didn't locate any cobia or see signs of any other action. The next stop on our plan was an artificial reef about five miles south of the pass. We decided to run a line of crab trap markers looking for cobia and tripletail on the way.

Once again, the Gulf was seemingly barren, but when we pulled up to the artificial reef, we were excited to find large schools of baitfish hovering over the structure. In addition to the baitfish, the sonar showed a number of large fish suspended over the bottom. Conditions looked perfect as I tied on a popper to investigate. Traves elected to use a Clouser, and we set up a drift and worked our flies over the structure. I've fished this reef on a number of occasions under similar conditions and had some spectacular action on large Spanish mackerel. While I haven't caught a cobia over the reef, I have seen a number of them nearby.

There was only one problem. The fish didn't have any interest in our flies. Just as we were trying to make up our minds what our next move would be, Traves noticed a cluster of birds diving about a mile off the beach. Thinking it might be a school of Spanish mackerel under the birds, we headed out to investigate. We found some mackerel, but really got excited when a group of little tunnies crashed through the bait. We broke out our eight-weights again, but despite or best efforts, could not get close to the fish that were up and down faster than we could react.

More than a little frustrated, we decided to continue with our plan and head to New Pass. We would look for triple tail and any signs of cobia or little tunny along the way. During the run, we did see several schools of tunny, but they too were up and down and spread out. When we got to New Pass empty handed, we were a bit dispirited, but that changed quickly. Just outside the pass, schools of little tunny were ravaging shoals of glass minnows. Breaking out our eight-weights again, we were pleasantly surprised to find the fish staying on the surface long enough to give us a chance. We ran up to several schools and both had a number of follows, but the fish turned off at the last minute.

On my next cast, I hooked up with a fish that took me close to 300 feet into my backing. The fish was so strong that thinking it might eventually spool me, we started the motor and gave chase. After retrieving enough backing to spot my fly line, we stopped the boat to fight the fish again. Incredibly, the little tunny took off on another explosive run before my line went slack. I had screwed the drag down trying to stop the fish, and I expected to find that the leader had parted or the fly had pulled free. I still had a fly but when I inspected it, it had been straightened. Long runs into the backing are a common occurrence with little tunny. Generally they will run off a maximum of 200 feet of backing before turning and racing back towards the boat, but I had never experienced one with the power to take so much backing so fast or straighten a hook.

When we returned to the area, the fish were still on the surface, and we hooked up again on the fourth cast. This time as the fish took off, a big ball of fly line got jammed in the guides, and the line parted. Another fish gone! The third time was a charm, and I watched as a large tunny chased my Clouser, inhaling it right at the boat. This time I was able to clear the line and settled into an action-packed fight. Several long runs and several passes around the boat later, we were able to land photograph and release the little tunny. The long fight had taken us far south of the pass, and when we returned the tide had changed, and the fish had disappeared. We searched for half an hour, but there was no sign that any fish had ever been there, so we decided to head back north before the sea breeze blew up. On the way back, we saw several schools that were up and gone so fast we didn't even attempt to chase them. I had hopes that when we got back to Longboat Pass, the big outgoing tide would yield some action, but it wasn't to be. Still we were happy with the action we did have. Little tunny hadn't been on the radar when we headed out, but we were ready for them when they did appear.


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