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Apple Backs and Bones; Fishing For The Small Tuna That Visit New England! Capt. Joseph K. LeClair
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It has occupied my mind off and on since the very last days of fishing in the fall of 1998. They seem to haunt my imagination and play on my weak strings of good sense until they arrive again and I can feel the line peeling off the reel into the open ocean. I started fishing for these little buggers around the same time I realized they exist. It was quite by accident one day out in a 13 foot Boston Whaler with some of my teenage friends. We were used to catching the usual schools of blues cruising through the afternoon sun, eating about everything in there path, but this was different. We launched our atom bombers into these breaking fish only to come away with nothing. This then meant to me that there was a new challenge abound but little did I know I would be working to achieve the my goal 11 years later. The goal is to establish and master a method for catching False Albacore and Bonito on the waters around Cape Cod and the Elizabeth Islands. The most productive days I have had fishing for these little devils have almost always been those days where there is a slight North-West breeze. Usually we get several of these days in the fall , the sky so blue, and the visibility is awesome as there is little or no humidity in the air. I find myself scouting along the back side of the Elizabeth Islands and near shore between Woods Hole and Hyanis Harbor with great anticipation. I will Search for these fish on days like this, almost expecting that when I do find them that everyone will catch at least one. That is not to say that we always do, however my success rate has been increasing over the years. This beautiful weather combined with all the colors of fall and the spectacular colors of these fish has been the kind of stuff that sticks with me, and now I am ready for it all to happen again.
I think part of the draw for me to these fish is the fact that it is not easy, and my goal has not yet been achieved. I have spent several days in the midst of these little buggers and not boated one, and that’s what keeps me going back out there. I will hunt again and again until I find the right circumstances and cast another time just for the possibility of catching another. I know I will be out there, let me know if you are interested in trying one of these little gems on for yourself. I also keep an ongoing report on my web page and put up the latest catches. Tight lines and screaming reels. |
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This year we began targeting the Bonito in the last
couple of days in July. This is quite early, but we were catching small stripers in the
first couple of days of April after all, and the water is 75 degrees in several places in
and around the Vinyard Sound. The usual rigs require that I have at least two fly rods
ready to go. I probably only need one but what if it breaks and the fish are ready? Then
a couple light spinning rods in the event that the wind wins out over all and this has
proven to be a smart move on many an occasion. The fly rods are usually an eight or seven
weight when the wind is light and a ten when the wind is strong. They are usually rigged
with an intermediate line and a long leader built entirely of fluorocarbon. I build the
leaders to be about 10 feet with 40 pound test in the top and usually 12 or 10 pound test
to the fly. With almost all of the flies I have been using for the past two years I have
been tying them on with a loop knot to increase the action. The light spinning rods have
been rigged with 10 or 12 pound mono line and about a 36 inch leader, usually 15 pound
fluorocarbon. Again I like to tie on the lures with a loop knot to help improve the action
and to prevent twisting in the case of certain types of small metal lures. The flies
comprise a wide variety of small bait flies ranging from the sparsest clouser minnow to
the largest deceiver I have (not including offshore deceivers that rang up to 12 inches in
length). There have been some days where the Albies will take anything, usually the days
they are feeding on larger bait. Another time the size of the fly is less important is
when we put the anchor down on the rips and dead drift the flies below or behind the boat.
On some occasions they will hit quite well in the rips and this is usually a good fall
back plan if they are not breaking on the surface where we can get to them. There are two
small metal lures that I have done very well with. The "Deadly Dick" and the
"Swedish Pimple". They are great for casting into schools of breaking fish and
also working in the rips. Targeting these fish is a challenge and sometimes it means
changing the way you are going about it quite often, but when it pays it off it is all
worth it !
Competition with the other fishermen out there has been one of the greatest
difficulties to overcome in the past couple of years; as there are more and more fishermen
interested in doing the same thing I am, catching fish. I have gotten into the habit of
looking to find schools away from the main group of boats or fishermen as much and as
early as possible. This sometimes means I need to take an hour or even a whole day looking
for new schools when I know where they are. I have found, however, that if I can find a pod
of fish in an area where there are no other anglers, my chances are greatly improved.
Another technique I have been utilizing, and hoping others will adopt, is to work an area or
rip and motor back to the beginning of the drift by going around the activity and starting
above the fish and the boats. This may seem like common sense, but we all forget the small
things that we should do to be polite to the others around us when our blood is rushing
and the fever is in our heads. Clearly it hurts everyone’s chances when someone runs
their engine through the heart of the activity and puts the fish down. 