Anglers were surprised when sizable schools of small bluefin appeared along the canyon edges at the beginning of the season. Meanwhile yellowfin were absent, at least in the first weeks. Inshore, where bluefin were supposed to be, anglers found hordes of enormous bluefish which destroyed nearly any lure fished. Setting four lines would not be possible before all rods would go down.
Just 3 to 4 miles away, lucky boaters could be in small bluefin, while those inshore were facing the monster blues. Eventually the bluefish invaded even the canyon waters, something that simply does not happen, ever. Tournament anglers in search of the season’s first marlin suffered horrific tackle losses as the hungry bluefish bit thru hundreds of ballyhoo rigged on mono leaders.
Eventually, the bluefish subsided, and anglers began to key on the tuna. Most experienced boats enjoyed excellent catches in the troll using a variety of daisy chains and spreader bars. Initially the bluefin were small, and their behavior was quite odd. They would eagerly attack 6-inch squid daisy chains while 9-inch lures were ignored.
Small squids rigged on a spreader bar were equally effective. Many of the normally effective lures went untouched.
