Article by Larry Budd
This Week Last Year
• The canyon waters were still cool and in the low 60°s, still suffering from the Mother’s Day Nor’easter. Anxious anglers saw warmer waters to the east and several make the long run.
•It was not a good week to be a yellowfin tuna, especially in the southern Spencer Canyon! The charter boat “Boss Hogg” ran 90 miles to find some warm water and reeled in 20 yellowfins with several multiple hookups.
•The private boat “10-Seven” returned to Sunset Marina from the Fingers with a 373 lb. and 87” Thresher caught on a whole bunker. This was only the 2nd one for the season so far.
Oh boy has there been great tuna fishing, and we reported the first white marlin and blue marlin releases for the year! Several new Heaviest Fish for the season also made their way to the scales, so lots to share.
The release of the first white and blue marlins every year is highly anticipated and also a sought-after title for many anglers! In addition, it is generally seen as signaling to the start of the offshore season.
This year’s first white marlin release was on June 2nd from angler Joe Huk on board the “Restless Lady II”, whose captain happens to be Joe’s son Chris! The crew was actually trolling for tuna on the west wall of the Baltimore Canyon. Capt. Chris saw the white charging in from 40 yards from the starboard quarter and it started bouncing between two Sterling spreader bars! It finally bit on the spreader on the flat line, a unique way to catch billfish! Joe did not have to fight the fish long as it ran right up to the boat. It was estimated at 72” or 73” and around 70 lbs. This year’s fish was a little earlier than the last 2 years. Kevin Gibb on the “Wrecker” had the honor last year for his June 6th catch.
The first blue marlin of the season was also released last week. Anglers on the “Talkin’ Trash” had entered the new Battle for the Buckle fishing tournament associated with the Seacrets PBR Classic bull riding event (more on that tourney later!). Capt. Chris Little made the call to run south to the Norfolk Canyon where angler Steve Sylvester connected with the blue and made a fast catch. There is a nice picture on page 8 of the blue in the water, thanks to Jim Frazetti for that!
While the marlins where driving headlines, the real news over the past week was tuna, and lots of it! The yellowfins were snapping across our central canyons, but the clear leader was the Baltimore Canyon. That is where we got the report of the first bluefin tuna caught for 2023, or at least most of it! Capt. Mark Hoos on the charter boat “Marli” was in the southwest corner of the Baltimore when his crew connected with the big blue. It ate a purple and green Crazy 8 Sterling chain. All 6 of his anglers took turns to get the fish to the boat, but the last little bit got help from an unwanted partner. With the leader just about in hand, a mako shark snapped the tail right off the blue. Fortunately, the two mates quickly got the tuna in the boat before the shark could have another bite! The blue tipped the scales at Sunset Marina at 216 lbs., setting the bar for Heaviest Bluefin to date. The private boat “Kilo Charlie” made several successful trips last week including one as part of the Battle for the Buckle tourney I mentioned. They were fishing just north of the Baltimore when Brendan ‘Pure Lure’ Hanley connected with a bigeye tuna. At 164 lbs. it is the Heaviest for the season so far.
Outside of the Baltimore a couple boats bucked the trend and headed further north. The private boat “Full Service” trolled up 18 yellowfins at the tip of the Wilmington Canyon. The “Kilo Charlie” also ran 72 miles there and got their limit of 18. Several other boats found nice catches in the Poor Man’s Canyon. The charter boats “Spring Mix II” found 6 there and the “Restless Lady” laid out 14 yellowfins on the Talbot Street Pier.
Now, how about those cowboys fishing? As part of the Seacrets Classic Bull Riding event in Ocean City, the promoters hosted a 2 day fishing tournament where the winners would not only receive cash prizes, but also custom cowboy style belt buckles for Heaviest Fish, Heaviest Stringer and Best Mate. 18 boats entered for the inaugural event with $45K in prize monies. “Kilo Charlie” took the top spot for Heaviest Fish with their 164 lb. eyeball earning the top payout of $23,125. The “Game Changer” won Heaviest Stringer with 172.5 lbs. of yellowfin tuna, taking home $13,375. All that action was in the Baltimore. The Best Captain buckles went to Capt. Howard Lynch of the “Kilo Charlie” and Capt. Neil Brosnahan of the “Game Changer”. Best mate was Ricky Atkins.
The forecast for the upcoming week as I write this report on Monday shows some fishable days, however it looks like a strong system will be coming in on Sunday and last for a few days. As this week showed us, these forecasts can change quickly, but it appears something is on its way!
Inshore and back bay anglers also had to deal with pesky northeast winds this past week, but many did find windows to get on the water. They found great action on bluefish and flounder and a number of specks and weakies were reported. Check out details in our DE, MD and VA fishing reports.
So until next time, I will see you at the scales! §
Upcoming Tournaments
• The Annual Tuna & Tiara’s Ladies Tuna Tournament returns for it’s 3rd season on June 16 & 17 at the Ocean City Fishing Center. Scales are open from 4 - 7PM. Come by and check out the action.
• The last weekend in June, the 24th & 25th sees three separate tournaments!
- The Indian River Marina host the 8th Annual Kids Catch All Tournament. The event is for all ages and includes inshore and offshore categories. More at KidsCatchAll.com.
- The Ocean City Marlin Club’s is holding it’s 44th Annual Small Boat Tournament. You do not need to be a member to participate. Scales are at Sunset Marina from 3:00 to 6:30 PM.
- The Fish N Paddle Saltwater Slam returns to Atlantic Tackle for it’s 5th year! This kayak only tournament continues to grow attracting anglers from all over the East Coast. Last year’s winner was a 46.25 lb. cobia! Weigh ins are from 12-4 PM.
