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Fishin' with Capt. Gus! ~ Big Blue Marlin
7-25–2010
A few weeks ago, a long time friend and Captain of the Sea Horse, a charter boat that plies the waters off the coast of Islamorada, FL, had an encounter with a very large blue marlin. Below is Captain Rick Rodriguez’s account of the experience.
“Have you ever put new line on a reel and wondered how important it is to tie a good knot on the spool? Most of us tie good knots; however, it is not uncommon to think it will never be tested on the fish of a lifetime. Well, there we were fishing in the Gulf Stream off Islamorada when a big Blue Marlin came up behind the Sea Horse to inspect the lures. The Marlin jerked a small blue and white lure out of the right rigger clip. After a brief moment of excitement, it made a huge splash, rolled over in the boat wake and revealed its side and pectoral fins.
At this point, we were surprised to see such an enormous fish that close to the boat. Next, the marlin focused on the chrome Alien Lure on the left rigger, set ninety feet behind the boat. It swam quickly toward the lure and ate it like Paul Bunyan eating a biscuit. Then the great fish swam forward at a high speed past the boat. A few minutes later, all but a few feet of the 500 yards of 60 pound test line had been stripped from the reel. Running the boat at full throttle in the same direction as the fish, enabled us to get a few turns of the handle and gain back some line. Thank goodness, we had a great knot on the spool and thank goodness for Pete Jacobson, the mate, who did a super job of handling the rod during the first few minutes while the line was ripping off the reel.
We were grateful that the marlin bit the lure, and lucky to have new line, good knots, perfect terminal tackle, new equipment, and the skill and patience to finally land it after an 8 hour and 42 minute saga. Unfortunately, while landing the fish, it was attacked by sharks – similar to the great Ernest Hemingway novel “Old Man and The Sea”. The marlin was reduced to one third its original length. We will never know the true weight of the fish; however, the head and shoulder portion weighed in excess of 300 pounds at the dock.”
Tips from Capt. Gus:
To beat the summer heat and catch fish too, try to fish between the hours of 10:00 PM & 10:00 AM.
Upcoming Events:
Thursday, July 29, 2010, Light House Marine Services is offering an instructional course entitled, “How to Safely Navigate Lake Norman.” Topics to be discussed will include “Understanding Lake Norman’s Marker and Buoy System,” “Identifying and Learning how to avoid Dangerous Shoals” and “How to Use and Interpret Lake Maps.” Registration fee is $25.00 for the two-hour course conducted by Capt. Gus. The class begins at 6:30 p.m. at Gander Mountain, Exit 36 Mooresville, and NC. To register, or for more information, call Lt. Scott Spivey – 704 587 0325 or visit www.lmservice.org.
Hot Spots of the Week:
White perch, spotted bass and flathead catfish are being taken on jigging spoons in Little, Reed and Davidson Creek. Stripers and blue catfish are hitting at the Cowan’s Ford Dam (best fishing is at night.) Channel cats are hitting a wide variety of baits fished from piers and boat docks.
The lake level is about 3.0’ below full pond and the water surface temperature is in the nineties.
Captain Gus Gustafson of Lake Norman Ventures, Inc. is licensed by the US Coast Guard, a member of the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association, and is an outdoor columnist and a full time professional fishing guide on Lake Norman, NC. Visit his web site, Fishin' With Gus! at www.FishingWithGus.com or call 704.617.6812.
For additional information e-mail Gus at Gus@LakeNorman.com
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