Braving the cold on Jan. 16, Jeff Tomaloff climbed aboard Capt. Eddie Brown’s Down and Dirty, a 39ST Contender with triple 350-horsepower Honda outboards, at Cypress Cove Marina (www.cypresscovevenice.com) in Venice. He planned to fish two days and experienced the trip of a lifetime, catching a pending state record.
The captain cruised the Gulf looking for baitfish. From mid-October through March, giant yellowfin tuna come closer to shore chasing schools of pogies or other baitfish. When they spot some, the tuna herd the terrified baitfish to the surface. Birds notice and dive for their share. Brown found what he wanted in 300 feet of water about 12 miles offshore.
“We were running and gunning looking for bait,” said Brown with Fish Venice Charters and Lodging (732-963-5534, 985-788-5080, fishvenicecharters.com). “Big tuna feed on top. We’ll see explosions of white water with birds diving. We ease in and throw topwater poppers at them. Generally, we need to make casts at least 30 to 40 yards long. Working the bait with a quicker pop works better on big tuna. They are fast fish.”
Tuna exploding on the surface
When in casting range, Tomaloff tossed a clear 170-gram, 7-inch Mad Mantis (maddmantis.com) topwater popper into the fray. He ran it over the surface, attracting attention. Soon, the surface erupted with a massive explosion as if someone detonated dynamite under the water.
“It was chaos out there,” said Tomaloff, a retired Air Force master sergeant originally from Wisconsin who now lives in Vero Beach, Fla. “Seeing all the birds diving and giant tuna exploding on the surface, it’s awesome. I’ve seen videos, but seeing it in person is just crazy. It doesn’t even look real.”
Brown uses Zach’s Custom Rods (zackscustomrods.com) spinning tackle. He loads the reel with Cortland (www.cortlandline.com), C-12 Hollow Core, 80-pound test line tipped with a 220-pound Varivas (www.varivas.fishing) nylon leader.
“I fish for bluefin tuna with spinning rods out of New Jersey,” said the captain who lives in Highlands, N.J. “I run out of New Jersey most of the year, but in the winter, I come down to Venice to chase yellowfin.”
Tomaloff fought the powerful leviathan from the boat bow. At the same time, others in the stern battled another large yellowfin. That day, Brown’s crew also landed a 165- and a 207-pounder, all on topwater baits. The next day, they caught a 110- and 120-pounder, but none approached Tomaloff’s fish.
“The fishery in Louisiana is really second to none,” Brown said. “If a person gets excited watching a redfish hit a popper, think what a strike from a 200-pound tuna is like! It’s exhilarating, an event that must be experienced to be believed. Just incredible.”
Plenty of big fish
Tomaloff’s fish weighed 256 pounds, a pending state record. It measured 71 inches long with a 54-inch girth.
“At first, I didn’t think Jeff’s fish was going to be that big because he only fought it for about 30 minutes,” Brown said. “When that fish came up, we couldn’t believe how big it was. When I saw that big yellowfin, I had a feeling that it was a new record, but it might not stand that long. We saw a lot of bigger ones out there. I wouldn’t be surprised if the record was broken again soon.”
Tomaloff’s giant tuna beat the 251-pounder Elliot Sale caught in 2012 to set the current state record. Sale caught his fish in West Delta Block running out of Grand Isle.
“It’s awesome to catch a fish like that,” Tomaloff said. “I never thought I’d catch a fish that big, especially on top. Just unbelievable. I can’t wait to come back to Venice.”