The Chum Line July 2008
Welcome to the July 2008 issue of The Chum Line. In this issue we review:
- The International Light Tackle Tournament (ILTT)
- The 2008 Season... so far
- Club News
The 43rd ILTT
The Club's flagship tournament, the ILTT, was held over 15th to 21st of June with the fishing taking place on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday of that week.
This year 5 teams vied for honors - 3 local teams and 2 visiting teams. All teams used the same tournament line - 12lb Maxima. And despite a fairly sporty weather forecast for the tournament the conditions were very fishable, albeit a bit wet on the last day!
As has been the case in recent years the tunas were tough to find and anglers had to rely on Wahoo, Dolphin, Bonita and Barracuda to keep points ticking over. That said, first time competitor Scott Deal, fishing as part of the Goombay Hookers team, brought a beautiful 66.1lb Yellowfin Tuna to the scales on Day 2. That's a great catch on 12lb test line and was also Overall High Point Fish for the tournament.
Right up until the last day's fishing any of the five teams could have taken line honors. Sea Horse Anglers went into the last day's fishing holding a slim lead. But in the end, Wahoo Wayne and TNT, a visiting team comprising Wayne Booth, Jay Dowdy and local legend Danny Fox, took the top spot after a great day's fishing aboard Playmate down at Argus. Danny also took Overall High Point Rod for the tournament. Sea Horse Anglers snagged second followed by the Goombay Hookers in third place. For the second year running Equalizer was Overall High Point Boat. Playmate bagged second place with Overproof in third place. A full break down of each day's fishing and overall results is available on the Club website.
2008 Season... So Far!
With the onset of summer water temperatures the Wahoos have become Weehoos. The occasional hefty specimens still turn up from time to time - Captain Keith Winter recently bagged two (48lbs and 52lbs) on trolled marlin plugs.
As mentioned earlier, the tuna have been keeping a very low profile. That said, there has been some good fishing for small (sub-10lb) Blackfin Tuna on surface poppers. There have been some credible reports of very large Yellowfins in the chum trail out at Challenger. These fish have been in the 100lb plus category....fish that you definitely don't want to tangle with during the ILTT on 12lb test line.
The warmer water temperatures have got the Blue Marlin on the bite. Playmate released a 500lb plus fish at the end of June. And Club member Brian Lines recently racked up three Blue Marlin releases during a Sunday trolling session. David Lines Junior scored the first Blue Marlin for his boat on 10 July - an estimated 200lb fish released to fight another day.
There will be more action to come during the last of the big three scheduled July billfish tournaments held here on the island. The results from the Bermuda Billfish Blast and Bermuda Big Game Classic prove that local boats can foot it with the best visiting boats.
Inshore snappers and jacks have returned in good numbers. One novel approach to night fishing from local docks is to use a spinning rod and Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow (or similar) lure. Recently this has returned some productive fishing for jacks...and on a sultry summer night it makes for relaxing and easy fishing, especially with a beer close at hand.
And the fly fishers have been getting in on the action too. In last month's Brien/Pallot Fly Fishing Invitational Bob Cheers landed a 69 lb Yellowfin Tuna on 20 lb Tippet, which will eclipse Robert Trosset's 47lb fish back in 1991 as a Bermuda record. Another first time catch for fly angler Paul Van Pelt was a 51.7lb Yellowfin Tuna also on 20lb tippet. Remarkable stuff.
Club Happenings
As always there is plenty to report. We have just lost Club President Niel Jones to the Russians! For those of you that have not caught up with the latest news, Niel departed on 11 July for two years working with Conyers Dill & Pearman at their new office in Moscow. Niel has played a vital role in the Club and his contribution and enthusiasm will be missed by all of us. Vice President Peter Mitchell will be the new Club President.
Both the 2008 BFCAT and BAC Annual Tournament were fished on Sunday 29th June in pretty favorable weather conditions, save for the nasty rip tide that seemed to run from Sally Tuckers all the way to Challenger! At the time of writing the results were still be compiled and will appear in the next edition of The Chum Line.
Club Member Cindi Mitchell now holds the Women's IGFA line class records for Yellowtail Snapper on 4lb and 8lb test line. Long time friend of the Club, Bill Duval, has a virtual strangle hold on the Men's IGFA line class records for Grey Snapper on 8lb, 12lb, 16lb and 20lb test line. And to top it off Bill's son John Duval now holds the IGFA 4lb test line class record for the same species. Cindi's fish were landed here in Bermuda, while Bill and John's fish were all caught in Key West. Our congratulations to all anglers.
Finally, the next BAC Fun Tournament will be held on 27 July. And if you want to be in the running for Club prizes (and some generous gift vouchers courtesy of Fly Bridge Tackle) then remember to email Francis Patterson with your catches as they come to hand. Francis needs to know the species, the line class, and the weight of the fish, the date and the boat on which the fish was caught, along with any method of catch (fly, spincast or spinchum) other than conventional. Francis' email is fhpp@northrock.bm.
Contacting the Club
If you need to contact the Club just email us at bermudaanglersclub@bermuda.com.