I welcomed aboard the Lady Diane Robert and his dad John (aka the Juice Man) Ploss on Friday for a day of cod fishing. Robert and John are good customers who have been chartering with me since I began three years ago. Being the excellent fisherman that they are I was anticipating another great day on the water…little did I know it was going to be a very special day.

We had planned to fish a couple times together during the week but Mother Nature changed the itinerary by throwing a strong Nor’easter our way earlier in the week. By Friday the seas had calmed enough for us to make the long offshore run to the cod grounds so we departed at 0500. Passing eastern point we found 2-4 foot seas but I was still able to cruise south at 20+ knots as the wind was from the northwest and at our backs. 

We arrived on the grounds around 0620 and sent our iron clams into the depths. We were fishing in about 35 fathoms and before long the first keeper cod hit the deck. Soon afterwards more cod and some haddock filled the box. Bite was fair and I was just about to move to another spot when it happened.

Bob was fishing his own rod a 50-100 class jigging rod and a Penn Torque 300 reel. A year ago I loaded the reel with 100 lb Jerry Brown Hollow Core braid (best braid on the market) and spliced on a 35 ft 80 lb Momoi mono leader. I also use a 130 lb bite leader on the bitter end so this rig was made to tackle any ground fish that swims. Unfortunately this  bite was not from a ground fish.

From the bow I heard Bob yelled he had hooked up something very big. At first I thought a big shark had taken his bait but when I got to his side and saw the reel being dumped I knew he had hooked a tuna. We had a drift sock out and 2 other lines which had to be squared away before I could move the boat. The “juice man” had no trouble as he simply hit the up button on his electric reel…I was extremely jealous as I reeled as fast as I could. Lines in and drift sock on board I fired up the big Zuke and we were off to the races. 

The reel was nearly down to its last 50 yards when Bob was finally able to take back some line. The next problem was that Bob needed to get into a harness,  so I took the rod as he raced to gear up. When I felt the fish for the first time I knew we had big trouble on our hands. This was no football as the weight was greater than that of other tunas I had taken in the past. Bobs secured the reel to the harness and the battle commenced.

I maneuvered the boat, to put as much pressure as possible on the fish. Drag was nearly maxed out a 28 lbs but this fish swam at will for the first hour. I constantly tried to keep the fish pulling against the boat as our only hope was to make this fish work every minute he was hooked. During the fight John helped rig the harpoon, gave encouragement and support to Bob and drove the boat while I fought the fish. He was the best first mate I have ever had!

Around the 1 hour 50 minute mark we actually saw leader but the fish sounded as soon as I touch the throttle to move the boat. At the 2 hour mark we had the leader started on the reel and I climbed on the gunwale to see if I could see color and color I did….huge fish which easily pushed 90”+ by my estimate and then came the sound you don’t want to hear. One of the clips on Bob’s harness actually was snapped away from the harness. Fortunately I had put on my harness and as I tried to get the reel transferred to me,  the harness Bob was wearing actually tore from his back! This was a devil fish for sure.

I attached the little Penn reel to the Black Magic and assumed my fighting stance. This harness is the best made IMO and enabled me to put maximum pressure on the fish. Unfortunately, this rod and reel was just over matched and at the 2 hour and 15 minute mark the leader, which we had again on the reel, popped. The battle was over and the fish had won. This is the longest fight I have ever joined with any fish and without a doubt the biggest fish ever hooked on the Lady Diane.

Bob was physically and emotionally exhausted after fighting this fish for over two hours on “light tackle”. He demonstrated fishing prowess and a determination I see in very few anglers. This fish was lucky that Bob didn’t have the 50W in his hand as we would have stuck him for sure. Even though the fish won this time the angler was rightfully praised. Seldom will anyone fight a fish like this and come so close to landing such a trophy on such tackle.

After an 8 mile run back to the cod grounds (that’s how far we went during the battle) we resumed cod fishing and before the end of the day the guys limited out on great cod along with some haddock and pollack. Bob even managed to take this 20 lb steaker on his last cast…perfect end to a great day.

Days like today is why I love offshore fishing as you never know what you are going to hook. The tuna took a bare cod jig and gave us all a thrill of a lifetime. While we didn’t boat this fish the memories of this day with live with all of us for a very long time.

Tight lines,