Insane Bay Blues!

[scoota]

Have never targeted Longtails before and have only landed one 8kg model years ago and lost a few.
Heard there were a few showing up off Bribie so headed out this arvo with slugs and soft plastics and sashimi in mind.
No action on the water at all just a few birds here and there but ventured right up to 4th lagoon in search for surface action but none to be found.
Drifted some bait schools for no success.
Decided to head for the beacons for some livies and check out the banks hard up against the green zone on my way back into the bay. Livies were at every beacon and high in the water telling me no predators so I made an ice slurry and excess livies will be offshore baits in future.
Second last beacon for the day I found the livies hard on the bottom and lots of shadows above so deploy 2 livies and yep both baitrunnners go off and yep, none from two.
OK one livey and seconds later screaming reel and off chasing I go.Twenty minutes on 40 pound gear and I see colour and size doing circles under the boat and the single hook pulls.
Arms burning and light all but gone I put a 12/O live bait hook on and deploy another and seconds later on again. This one wasn't fighting as much so I was hoping for a smaller version but then he realised he was hooked and twenty minutes again and really puting the 40 pound spectra under test I sunk the gaff in and dragged a 140cm Northern Blue into the boat. Gaff shot was a bit low as I was aiming for a bottom jaw shot but on your own with no light I was lucky to even hit the fish!!
Too much fish for me so I was hoping I didn't damage him and happy to feel him kick hard out of my hand after running him along for a while.
6pm and now with a serious sweat up, a glassed out trip home and mission accomplished.
They are a serious fighting fish and a true test of your gear.
No sashimi but an afternoon to remember..

Scoota...

[grinnerking]

Good one Scoota, great to see you scored your target on the last shot of the day. I bet your arms were burning!

[BayDog]

Well done they are a hell of a fish to fight, big screaming straight runs. I have had some success with big white plastics. Hope you don't buy tinned tuna cos if you do you should be ashamed.

Here's the go, just fillet em and cut out all the blood line. I just wrap up however much meat i will be using at the time in alfoil and bake in the oven. The rest can be wraped and frozen. Then simply use as you would tinned tuna, I do tuna mornay's, pasta bakes, sandwiches, fish cakes, anything you can use tinned tuna for. Mack tuna goes well too and with the way tuna fishing is done nowadays you'll be doing the environment a HUGE favour.

[nathank]

great fish... they go like the clappers!!!!!

[B U Z Z I N]

well done scoota, they do go very hard. lost a couple myself out that way on 50lb gear . great fun doin it
troy

[Scott Mitchell]

Congrats on some great fish - some good ones up here in Hervey Bay at presnet as well

So many fish - Scotto