Big Game Fishing - Jigging - Popping worldwide

Andy Little, the angler referred to, did even better the day before - 17th February - Uwe when he released an estimated 900 pounder! There's a picture of the 'beast' on Olaf's web site - http://www.marlin-web.com.

There're certainly some BIG fish around at the moment. On the 20th they released one that was called '950' - isn't that skipper speak for a potential grander? Here's Olaf's latest update:

Quoted

22.02.2010
We had a quiet day until 5pm when we raised a 700 -800 pounder that didn't seem excited at all and faded off. Half an hour later a bigger fish came agressively to the RPP and I thought she had it allready when she suddenly shot off to the side and disappeared. She must have seen something more interesting. We also had a bite of a sailfish and caught dorados.

21.02.2010
Today we caught a 400 pound blue on Roddys Andromeda and a sail. We had a couple more knocks from sails.Blue Marlin number ten for Shaun and Andy ! Olaf Ascension

20.02.2010
Another excellent day in Ascension !
We caught 3 for 3 bites today !
The first one was a 250 pounder on the RPP. An hour later a big mama came up behind the Fox lure and after I spead the boat up two knots she eate it. Another long fast run on the surface and forward chasing followed until Colin finally got the leader on the totally green girl . He had a hard time to get her under control and finally the hook bend and freed her.
-
This fish was big and we called her 950 pounds !? (My emboldening not Olaf's. There's a picture on his web site - http://www.marlin-web.com/. It does look BIG!)

After that we caught another smalish marlin on the RPP and had a bite from a sailfish.
Cheers

Olaf

Quoted from "milchner"

Quoted from "PanamaJack"

There're certainly some BIG fish around at the moment. On the 20th they released one that was called '950' - isn't that skipper speak for a potential grander?

Well, a grander from Ascension? Crossed fingers to Mathias and Olaf and of course to the angler on their boats! I think that area has a very high potential when you want to catch a biiig fish. Sailfish in Ascension? Is it the right time for sail there?

It is a phenominal fishery Uwe. We've encountered Sailfish there in March and April and I recall Denis, our Club Secretary, missed out on a Sail on 4th July one year. Denis was competing in the 4th July World Marlin Championship on Harmattan - he released a Spearfish and a White Marlin, then missed the Sail, before finally completing his GRANDER SLAM - unfortunately just after lines out - with a 1046lb Blue Marlin. As it turned out it didn't matter because the global tournament was won with an 1100lb plus fish from Bermuda that year.

I want to know the jigging and popping report! Any tuna? Big Amberjack? wahoo on jigs? grouper jigging? i'm very very interested in trying to charter a trip later this year, and we will not be looking for billfish on the troll. all jigging/popping

Quoted from "BretABaker"

I want to know the jigging and popping report! Any tuna? Big Amberjack? wahoo on jigs? grouper jigging? i'm very very interested in trying to charter a trip later this year, and we will not be looking for billfish on the troll. all jigging/popping

Hi Bret
Matthias Henningsen - http://www.atlanticfishingcharter.com/ - who posts to the forum is the man to ask. (Matthias posts under the Nom de Plume 'Matthias'.) Although the vast majority of his charters on Harmattan are targeting Blue Marlin there have been individuals interested in jigging and, just one I recall, Matthias had a 125lb (57kg) AJ in March 2007. (There's a picture on Olaf's web site - http://www.marlin-web.com/.) But I know they've also had big Almacos and Grouper whilst jigging and, way back, on our first trip down there one of our members had a YFT on a jig.

But the YFT are there in phenomenal numbers - the 175 pounder in my Avatar came from there ... trolling - and I've had them to 225, BUT they get bigger. And occasionally when the 'Google Eyes', a species of Scad, are there the Tuna have been caught from the shore and I've also seen footage of big Amberjack corralling baitfish against the shoreline by the side of the pier.

One species you'll definitely get bored with VERY quickly are the Black Jacks - up to 30lbs or so - they're everywhere!

But really the potential's untapped.

Bret, looking at your Hatteras post you'll find there's a restaurant on the US military base - the Volcano Club - that serves reasonable food and ... you can pay for it and the beer in 'greenbacks'.

Quoted from "PanamaJack"

Quoted from "BretABaker"

I want to know the jigging and popping report! Any tuna? Big Amberjack? wahoo on jigs? grouper jigging? i'm very very interested in trying to charter a trip later this year, and we will not be looking for billfish on the troll. all jigging/popping

Hi Bret
Matthias Henningsen - http://www.atlanticfishingcharter.com/ - who posts to the forum is the man to ask. (Matthias posts under the Nom de Plume 'Matthias'.) Although the vast majority of his charters on Harmattan are targeting Blue Marlin there have been individuals interested in jigging and, just one I recall, Matthias had a 125lb (57kg) AJ in March 2007. (There's a picture on Olaf's web site - http://www.marlin-web.com/.) But I know they've also had big Almacos and Grouper whilst jigging and, way back, on our first trip down there one of our members had a YFT on a jig.

But the YFT are there in phenomenal numbers - the 175 pounder in my Avatar came from there ... trolling - and I've had them to 225, BUT they get bigger. And occasionally when the 'Google Eyes', a species of Scad, are there the Tuna have been caught from the shore and I've also seen footage of big Amberjack corralling baitfish against the shoreline by the side of the pier.

One species you'll definitely get bored with VERY quickly are the Black Jacks - up to 30lbs or so - they're everywhere!

But really the potential's untapped.

Thats very good to hear . I've actually spoken with Mtathias via email regarding trips to Ascension. I would really like to go later this year targeting large tuna, amberjack, grouper, etc on jigs and topwaters. Has anyone ever seen tuna busting on the surface?

I agree it seems like a completely unspoiled area, potentially incredible for jigging/popping anglers. I really hope I can get there soon!!

Quoted from "BretABaker"

.... Has anyone ever seen tuna busting on the surface?
....

Hi Bret
When Matthias revamped his web site he unfortunately left off all those earlier reports and pictures. Many are still recorded though on Olaf's site - http://www.marlin-web.com/. If you look in the posts for March 2007 and November 2004 you'll see the sort of action you're looking for. In that November 2004 report you'll also see some of the Grouper fry that can be present in unbelievable numbers and on which the YFT can sometimes become totally preoccupied - just like Trout. You try and mimic those though with a lure.

I think it was one March or April when we were down there that, with Matthias, we followed enormous shoals of YFT, Skipjack and occasional Marlin surface feeding on the Grouper fry. There were literally acres and acres of them, I've never seen Tuna in such numbers before - even off Coiba in the Spring - but we couldn't buy a bite that day. I'm sure you'd have more success on poppers when they're targeting the Scad during the Summer months.

If the trip comes off let me know. The only way realistic down to Ascension is via RAF (military) transport from the UK and we can get together for a drink or two.

Wow thanks for the link! Those pictures are great. I think there is a huge jigging/popping potential there. As you said, most guys go for marlin trolling, so I think it needs some trial and error. but those pictures are encouraging! I wonder if the fish would've hit a lure like the Tackle House Flitz? I'm not sure if you have seen it, but its a tuna lure that is only 90mm long. It can be killer when theyre feeding on little baits.

I will keep you in the loop.....not sure when I have the time but I need to hurry and find some

Quoted from "BretABaker"

..... I wonder if the fish would've hit a lure like the Tackle House Flitz? I'm not sure if you have seen it, but its a tuna lure that is only 90mm long. It can be killer when theyre feeding on little baits.
....

There're certainly some interesting models in that manufacturer's range - here's a link - http://www.tacklehouse.co.jp/saltwater/c…contact_en.html - for those who wonder what we're talking about - with adequate casting weight. I couldn't tell though from the 'blurb' whether they were through-wired.

Are there any 'Stateside importers of them? It's just that when we're in Key West, if the Shrimp trawlers are working that part of the Gulf, it would be fun to target the Blackfin and Little Tunny on light spin gear with lures.

Yes, there are. Dave Should know where to get them so that would be no problem . Another lure that worked great last summer in the gulf was the Skagit Lip Slider. Its another small lure, but pretty heavy for its size (70g) and its got a slim profile. There were nights that I would catch my limit on yellowfin (3) before anyone else got a fish with this lure.

Be careful what you with for on those shrimp boats - 200lb yellowfin have been known to hang out there!!!

Quoted from "BretABaker"

Yes, there are. Dave Should know where to get them so that would be no problem . Another lure that worked great last summer in the gulf was the Skagit Lip Slider. Its another small lure, but pretty heavy for its size (70g) and its got a slim profile. There were nights that I would catch my limit on yellowfin (3) before anyone else got a fish with this lure.

Be careful what you with for on those shrimp boats - 200lb yellowfin have been known to hang out there!!!

Thanks for that Bret, I'll get in touch with Dave.

Hopefully those Key WEst YFT should have run through by May but, what do they say, NEVER SAY NEVER. (Aren't they normally around in the Winter months?) I guess the only saving grace is that the water's relatively shallow even 40 to 50 miles out in the Gulf - I know when we tried speed jigging over the odd wreck there never seemed much more that 65' of water. Um ... not the same off Ascension I'm afraid. The island's volcanic and the bottom very quickly 'disappears'. You can see how close we are in the attached image - 16lb test was a tad too light for that fish though. The line popped soon after the picture was taken, when I was finally 'making ground' on it after 1 3/4 hours. The other picture's of a 225, the best I had, but that was taken on the 130lb 'stump puller'.

Hi Bret/Dave

first of all, you can look at the old reports on my website when you look on archivo of the blog and you click on the first posting far down and then once again and you have all the old reports of the previous years.

Bret, fishing is good year around and when you look for big tuna the month from april to december are the best....feburary and march are usually the worst for big tuna but we still have a lot of 50 to 100 pounders....the rest is good year around, like wahoo and jacks.
We always do a bit mixed fishery , only once we had a only jigging trip for 5 days of 5 guys...the result was unreal, I was getting bored, we caught wahoo, amberjacks, black jacks, small grouper, yellowfin and big eyes in 5 days we had at least 4 to 5 tons of fish.
I reckon on cape Verde the same results can be made....I would recommend the month from july to october....much calmer and usually you have the big yellowfin around there are plenty of spots for grouper, amberjacks and wahoo.On Cape Verde everyone is going for Marlin and just very few time has spent on jigging.
TL
Matthias
www.atlanticfishingcharter.com


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Matthias - 4 or 5 tons sounds crazy! That would be a great trip..........i'm really hoping to get a group together for july/august and see if we cant get there and beat up on some monster tuna and amberjack. Hey - if we have great jigging and popping for a few days, maybe some guys will even want to go troll for marlin :p

Also - how is the swordifsh bite? I've seen some of those pictures but not many are talking about it. Do you get good swordfishing? I hooked one on a jig back in November but lost it. i love catching them any way i can but that fight on a jig was awesome.