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My First Marlin


tonez

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Gday Raiders

I rarely post reports as i rarely have worth reporting and dont get out fishing nearly as much as i love to. But i am lucky enough to work with Pete, owner of "Akuma", a 30 ft Rampage game fishing boat. Akuma usually lives at Nelson Bay marina but this year Pete brought her down to sydney for the winter.

Here is a pic of akuma

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So on Saturday Pete calls me saying that he is taking Akuma back to Nelson Bay for the marlin season and would i like to come along on the trip? We would head straight out to the bait station, throw some lures out and troll north until we head back into Port Stephens. Sure I said. Now i had been on Akuma a few times and each time landed huge fish such as Dolphin fish and Wahoo both over 1.2m, and had raised but never landed a marlin. So i guess you can say Pete knows how to find fish.

So off we went, straight to the bait station, spread 4 skirts out, auto pilot on and we settle in for the long journey ahead. Seas around sydney were about 1m and were expected to rise to 2m further north. Wind was light, about 10 knots.

After a couple of hours we had seen no bait, no birds, and certainly no fish. Then on the radio to another boat, we hear that they had tagged 3 marlin further north at this place called the car park. "get those lures in and lets go" said Pete. So we did. And he gunned it North for an hour straight, along the shelf. Then engines wound down to trolling speed and Pete said we were now about 7 miles south of the car park so spread the lures. So we did.

As soon as the lures were in i decided to make a sandwich as i was feeling peckish in the long journey. I was still cutting the tomato and the lures had been in the water for less than 10 minutes when I hear Pete shout "Marlin" and at the same time, the starboard outrigger detaches the line and we hear a loud zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz as line comes off the Tiagra and then nothin. :ranting2: its gone we thought then we both see a dorsal fin rise up on the same lure, then a splash then zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz the Tiagra 80W is screaming off strike drag and the T curve is bent pointing in the direction of the fish. We scramble to get the other lines in and Pete orders me to grab the rod. So I did.

I picked up the 24 kg outfit out of the holder while it was still screaming and held it while it continued to scream. When it slowed down, i looked at the Tiagra and more than half of the line had been taken. So the long fight began, with several jumps and several runs and me saying to Pete some time in between "you didnt tell me this was such hard work".

My arms were beginning to hurt but it was me or the fish. About 35 minutes into it, and after some precision boat manovering by Pete, i can see the wind on leader and a huge shape in the water. Now it was only 2 of us in the boat so Pete grabs the leader, i put the rod down in a holder and grab the tag pole and after a couple of air swings i managed to tag it. Then i grabbed the camera and took this lovely pick. Pete called it for 80kg stripie.

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It was hooked in the lower jaw perfectly, although one of the 2 hooks on the rig was broken. Pete pulled the hook out and grabbed it by the bill. We swam the fish to get it goin again and off it went.

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I was huffed and puffed, big smile on my face, Pete handed me a beer and it went down like silk. Not long after, we pulled up gear and powered into Port Stephens to beat the oncoming storm. Flags were raised on the way in.

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Thanks Pete for an awsome trip.

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Well done on your first marlin. I did the same this week and what an experience it is to catch one, feel their power and then to release such a magnificent creature.

Mike

Congrats mate. It sure is an experience to be remembered.

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  • 4 months later...

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