We did not get in on this bite as we continued to troll targeting Big Eyes when the chunking boats got things going really good on chunks and jigs. We knew the Big Eyes would show up and we wanted to get ours on heavier tackle with lots of drag compared to our chunking outfits that are set up for daytime chunking on those 25-30 lb. Yellowfins that we expected at night from the recent reports we had gotten. We planned on turning over to the night chunk bite after boating a Big Eye and spend the rest of the night playing with the small Yellowfin and the sharks that show up once the sun sets. Well we did get our chance on one the most powerful Big Eyes to date on the Hooked up II that came close to dumping a class 50 reel with up to 35 lbs. of drag on the pins and this particular reel has 500 yards of 130 hollow core spectra and a few hundred yards of mono top shot. We had the Big Eye to the back of the boat and in its death circle but the line buried in the side of the reel and popped just yards before we could get a harpoon shot.
No big deal as we had all young anglers under mostly around 14 years old and their fathers wanted their sons to see what it was like to fight a Big Eye and a big Blue Marlin which the boys got to do on the trip. We had plenty of meet with a load of Mahi-Mahi and a 40 lb. Yellowfin we got on the troll around the chunkers at about 5:30 pm. We finished the trip by putting the young boys on some nice big sharks which they loved doing catch and release on. This trip was how about the young boys fighting fish and we did provide this and the fathers were so happy they reserved a trip for next summer when we got back to the dock.
The chunk bite started around 5:00 pm and lasted to night fall and then it was over as quickly as it started and the rest of the night there was not much caught except a few a sharks including the grey light conditions in the morning. It all happened between 5-9 pm but when it was on it reminded me of very similar conditions last August when the night bite never happened but it was red hot in the late afternoon until the sun set. Even the big eyes disappeared after about 9:00 pm. We also talked to a few boats that chunked during the day and left the canyon about 4:00 pm and they never had a bite had all day as it all started up around 5:00 pm. We will be at the dock the next few days with the weather but will be back out as soon as the weather improves.
