Sworfish -NDR

J

JimO

Member
Duck season just opened up here but I decided to make one last trip to the gulf stream (90 - 100 mile run for us). Sea conditions start getting rough around now so for a small boat to run that far is not always possible. Ran out with my two sons and two friends. Ended up catching 3 swordfish, one Yellowfin Tuna and a whole bunch of mahi mahi. Great trip!

Pics attached. Can provide more details for trip if anyone is interested, but it was a great time!

Jim O'Brien


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That looks like a bunch of fun Jim! I would love to try that again one day. My wife and I did a trip like that on our honeymoon 16 years ago, but thirty minutes into the trip she got seasick and we had to abort :-(

Congratulations on your successful outing,

Todd
 
Suweet!!!

Only made it out once this last summer & landed (2) two keepers.

I wasn't on the rod for either one but it was a great time!!!
 
Nice job on the swords! I took advantage of the nice weather window down here and trolled up some football bluefins and a mahi.

Nice weekend for me, north zone NJ opener Saturday, had a couple wood ducks then tuna fishing on Monday.
 
I like the second picture best. That is my oldest son holding the fish and my youngest son is in the background fighting a mahi that we hooked up. That was my last canyon trip for the season, I will likely go Bluefin Tuna fishing a few more times east of cape cod this summer and then focus on duck hunting! I have not been duck hunting as much as I used to, since I have been fishing more and can only get so many "kitchen passes"!

On Cape Cod I personally don't like to start duck hunting until the weather gets a bit colder and the tourists, beach walkers, marsh hikers get a little more scarce. They certainly have the right to enjoy the natural resources as much as I do but it is better hunting when no one is around!

Jim O'Brien
 
Great pics Jim.

Glad to see that the last long trip was a good one.

Thanks again for the hospitality and help with hunting the cape when we were up. Matt had a kid this past summer and Chris is up in Alaska killing salmon so there won't be a trip north for me this year. Happy hunting.

-D
 
three swords in one night! that is some awesome trip

I fished down in the hudson saturday for a big goose egg
on the tuna.

caught 16 tilefish and headed home
 
Nice job! A couple stupid questions from an inlander....What do you consider a small boat for that trip? How long does it take to make that run in normal conditions?

Thanks for sharing,

Chuck
 
Nice job! A couple stupid questions from an inlander....What do you consider a small boat for that trip? How long does it take to make that run in normal conditions?

Thanks for sharing,

Chuck
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Chuck:

Sorry for not replying earlier, just got back from a two day business trip. Your questions are not "stupid" at all, but not that simple to answer. The first question on boat size really depends on weather conditions, fuel capacity, type of boat etc. The trip is approximately 80 to 100+ miles one way, so fuel is a big issue. Also the amount of safety equipment (Epirb, Sat phone, survival suits, life raft etc) can be pricey and are not often found on most boats. That being said, people make the run in boats as small as 26 feet (center consoles with 2 outboards). That is about the smallest boat that can make that run in good conditions. I have a 45 foot convertible (flybridge) with twin diesel engines. There are obviously much larger boats that make the run as well. In the northeast in October where weather can change quickly and sea conditions become dangerous, I would consider my boat to be about as small as I would want to take out there and be comfortable with the risks involved.

The amount of time to make the run also depends on boat speed. There are bigger center consoles (38 to 41 feet) that have triple or even quad outboards that can go 60 to 70 MPH. So they can make the run in about 2+ hours. My boat cruises at about 24 knots, but on these runs I take it easy and cruise at about 20 knots to conserve fuel. It takes me about 4.5 to 5 hours to get to the canyons.

We typically make it a 2 to 3 day trip, shutting the engines off and drifting at night. The generator stays on so I still have a full kitchen, Sat TV, bathrooms etc. We catch swordfish at night on the drift primarily using dead and live squid as bait.

I hope this answers your questions, please feel free to ask me anymore you may have.

Thanks

Jim O'Brien
 
Jim

Great info, very interesting. I have fished 4 of 5 Great Lakes from boats ranging from kayaks to 34 footer with twin big block Chevys. Knowing first hand the potential of these bodies of water, was curious what was considered "safe" for such a run. You get that far out in a 26' boat and the wind comes up unexpectedly, it would be a long trip home. Sounds like fun with your set up.

Thanks
Chuck
 
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