BIG GAME FISH

Question
hey Rich, me and my friend anthony just recently bought a 21' trophy pro with a 150 merc.we come out of wantagh and we have been fishing for years in  jones inlet, few miles out off JI, and all in the bays. we finally have a bigger and more reliable boat.  I have fished for blues and strippers plenty. but now with our new boat i want to fish for shark, tuna, mai mai etc. I have heard and been to different fishing spots like the canyon, mud hole, cholera banks etc. but never by ourselves on our own boat.  I would like to know the best advice you can give me to obtain info on the best areas for big game and also, where i can get directions and locations of these areas.  I would also like to do alot of wreck fishing, and i have know one to ask about the locations of them either. Any help or advice would be very appriciated. thanks alot

Ryan

Answer
Hi Ryan;

 I guess the best one you can ask is me.  Especially since I have been fishing out of the same area for the last 30 years.  I used to do a great deal of big game off shore fishing, but more recently have evolved into a back bay light tackle fisherman.  Much of the off shore fishing was done on larger boats with different friends, but for a few years I was using my own 21 foot Wellcraft with a 140 HP engine so I know just what you should be capable of doing with your rig.  

 The canyon is almost 100 miles SE of Jones Inlet.  Not something for a 21 foot boat.  But there are a great many possiblilites much closer.  The big factor is time of year.  At one time there were 1000 pound class giant bluefin tuna in the mudhole, some 15 miles SW of Jones.  That run last only a few weeks late in the fall.  Unfortunately, that is no longer happening.  Sharking was a distinct possiblity anywhere you found bluefish during the late summer.  Often within a few miles of the inlet, though most boats would go much furter out hoping for more and larger fish.  That too is not what it used to be.  White marlin have been taken as close as Cholera, but that was very unusual and not something you can count on.  Your best chance at gamefish would probably be the school tuna and related species that generally show up at the end of July and are usually found within range of a boat your size.

 I would suggest you get into the offshore big game fishing gradually.  Put safety first and recognize the limitations of your boat.  Cholera, Three sister, the Mudhole, and a few other well known areas should be explored first.  After a little experience, you can probably venture furter and further, based upon weather, sea conditons, and limitations of your boat.  Fuel capacity will probably be the limiting factor.  You must have sufficient fuel to get you there, maybe spend several hours trolling, and then get you home.  You must leave at least 25% extra fuel in the tank when calculating distances and fuel consumption for the unexpected.  Things like having to come back against an unpredicted wind or storm front, heavy fog where you cannot run on plane, or any other similar circumstance that will increase you fuel consumption.  You should never just figure to go a far as you can on 1/2 the fuel and come back on the other half.  It rarely works out that way.  

 There are quite a few publications and charts that will give you the GPS numbers for most of the better known local wrecks.  Since you come out of Wantagh, stop by Causeway and I am sure you can purchase a chart or book that will provide you with these numbers.  Unfortunately, when I was doing that sort of thing, there was no GPS and Loran numbers is what I used.  

 I know this response does not answer all the questions you have, but I hope it gets you going in the right direction.  Please feel free to ask follow up questions.  The more specific the question, the more precise I will try to make the answer.

-Rich