Overnighter

[TunaTeaser1]

Have an overnighter planned loosely for next week.

We want to try for swords at night, but being that I've never ever done it before it's gonna be interesting. All I've heard from people is that 1200' feet of water is the spot to be....can anyone from OI narrow that down with any knowledge?

Also, if anybody has been thinking about doing an overnighter, this might be the time if your looking for a buddy boat.

Any help appreciated...

[bluffman2]

nah not @ 1200 feet....they are in 1230 feet.....seriously i cant help ya there but i bet Capt Fred,redweiser or ironwoodtuna can......

[dawiggs]

Contact Capt. Fin Gaddy (Qualifier) at Oregon Inlet. He is a nice guy and will give yoiu some pointers. He did one last friday nite. Caught 20+ Sails and Whites plus meat. I think he fished up north around 000's and came in close to one of the towers at night.
Sounds like a great trip... Have fun!
Regards,

[Capt. Fred]

Sorry, can't help much on location out of OI. I do know that the long liners fish down near the point but I believe that is in the late winter early spring as I recall. In general you do want to be deep. 1000 to 1500 feet. A temp break is a good thing and of course if you can mark some bait then all the better. At night, fish several depths. 30', 100', 200', and 300'. Heavy 20 foot leaders and light sticks. Medium squid is a great bait. They will tend to slash the real big squid and this can bunch it up on the hook. The commercial guys do not use those monster squid baits for just that reason.

[TunaTeaser1]

Thanks for the advice. I guess bricks are a good way to get bait down- how do you secure it to light leader in order to break it off? How far up the leader should the glow stick be?

I know our chances are slim, especially considering our knowledge about this style of fishing but man it would be sick just to hook up to one.

[fishbard]

The bricks are for fishing for swords in the daytime, when you are dropping down to 1000' or more. You won't need that much weight to get down to 300', and if you do 'cause the current is running that hard, you are in the wrong spot at the wrong time. Maybe Capt. Fred will come back and answer your other questions. Having a light in the water at the boat is a good idea, as well. I would recommend being ready for a big shark if you try the overnighter.

[Capt. Fred]

Yup, bricks are for the deep deep daytime dropping.

Put the light stick at the snap swivel with a rubber band. Put your sinker there too with a rubber band. Hopefully they both will come off during the fight. If not, be sure to break them off as soon as you can get a grip on them so they don't konk you in the head or teeth. Let your baits down real slow so they don't tangle. Let the current stretch out the bait and then ease it out slowly. Deepest baits furthest away. The 30 foot deep one right off the rod tip. The rest on balloons.

Depending on current you'll want somewhere between 8 and 20 OZ sinkers. I haven't done any night fishing down here but up in the northern canyons the current can be running different directions at different depths so some serious weight may be called for. Other nights almost no weight worked fine.

We used balloons for bobbers and my mate came up with this trick. Use long balloons and put a light stick inside the balloon. Really helps to keep track of them. Tie your balloons on with clean hands so the sharks don't come up and chew on them.

Great suggestion on being ready for a shark. If you get cut off get a cable or steel rig out quick. Be very careful at night if you get a mako up to the boat. I've killed a bunch at night and sometimes they will come right to the boat very green. If they jump with a flying gaff in them they can end up right in the cockpit. When I was commercial fishing up there I always used a harpoon and bangstick but just be careful and make sure they're real tired and you'll be fine.

Keep your searchlight handy so you can signal any boats that are trying to run you down and it is a great way to see deeply below the boat at night. Helps to see what you've got on. It can make some fish a bit cranky so if you notice that then shut it off.

Have some way to get something warm in you in the morning. Some fresh hot coffee and a decent breakfast is a wonderful way to end the night and start the day with a good attitude.

Start trolling in the dark in the morning. You want the whole spread out before the horizon starts to get orange. Big eye time.


By the way, regarding the depth to run too. Remember the whole picture. If you find a good break with bait on structure in 700 feet of water then try there!

[TunaTeaser1]

Thanks for your help guys...I'm sure I'll have some more questions shortly

[fishbard]

Better ask 'em tonight, Capt. Fred and I are headed for Hatteras tomorrow morning. Be careful and good luck on the overnight, if we don't catch you before you go.