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Big Tilefish! Rudee Inlet 4-13-13, Sat

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  • Big Tilefish! Rudee Inlet 4-13-13, Sat

    Since I caught blueline tilefish a month ago on this boat, I was hoping to target grouper, golden tilefish and wreckfish this time. Turned out we didn't go to really deep water (900+ ft) for that kind of fish. We went up to about 400 ft for blueline tiles and black sea bass. (Even though the VA sea bass season is closed, the Captain had a special permit so we could keep sea bass, and boy, did we catch sea bass)

    We departed at 2:35 am Saturday on the Rudee Angler with over 30 anglers onboard for this 17-hour trip. It turned out to be a beautiful day. Mostly sunny with winds about 10 knots. Seas were maybe two feet, so fishing conditions were very good.

    We rode over 5 hours to get to our first fishing spot. It was pretty rough going out and many guys got sick. Anyway, the standard bait was squid, and so we dropped our double and triple hook rigs in about 150 feet of water with 24 ounce sinkers. We caught black sea bass and tiles. We went on to several other spots and had a pretty good day of fishing with up to 400 ft depths. Everyone pretty much had full coolers.

    Ok, the highlight of my day. It was in the afternoon. We were at the third or fourth fishing spot. I looked left and right on the starboard side of the boat and saw well over a dozen anglers with their lines in the water. We were almost shoulder to shoulder. Ten minutes went by and nobody was getting hooked up, not even a nibble. I even commented to the fellow next to me that we ought to move to another location. Then, I felt a tap-tap on my 6' 6" Ugly Stick.

    I set the hook, and it was FISH ON! The thing pulled hard. Spooled my reel a few inches. I reeled and pump very gently as I felt strong head jerks. This was not a small fish. During the ascend, the thing made a couple hard pulls. At the most, maybe two feet of line was spooled at any one time. There were several pulls of a few inches. The thing was deep, over 300 ft, so I took my time. I played the fish and patiently worked it up. Every now and then, I'd stop reeling to let the thing have its way as I watched the rod tip jerk down several times. I was in no hurry (plus I needed the rest). After nearly ten minutes, the thing surfaced.

    It was a blueline tilefish triple! The mate gaffed the big one and pull the load up. The tiles measured 32, 28 and 24". As I was unhooking the fish, the small one got loose and slipped under the rail and dropped back into the water.

    My 32" big one turned out to be a citation at 15 lbs. It came in second place. The winner of the fish pool had a 17 pound tile (see pic, fellow with white cap).

    It was a great day. Most everyone had full coolers. My 52 quart cooler had lots of black sea bass, lots of blueline tiles and one blue fish. Next time, I hope to bring a larger cooler.
    Attached Files
    Last edited by tufnik; 04-14-2013, 12:47 PM.
    2015 Hobie Outback (yellow)
    2011 Hobie Outback (yellow)
    2009 OK Prowler Trident 13 Angler (orange)

  • #2
    Nice going! You are one hardcore dude!!
    <insert witty comment here>

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    • #3
      WTG Deep Drop Tufnik!!!! LOL. Man those are some niiiccceee fish! Great pics and report as always!, Looks like your getting addicted to the deeper waters! My dream is to hookup with some Grouper at some point my life! LOL. I guess now I get to read how your enjoying fresh Tilefish!!!

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      • #4
        Yeah, MYTM, I didn't think I'd like these boat trips, but I do. Blame Moc for my Deep Drop addiction...he's the one that first raved about it with his giant sea bass posts.......lol...... Anyway, as the wx warms up, the boat will more likely go to deeper water for grouper, wreckfish and golden tiles. I hope to catch one of these trips. For now, I'm going to start yak fishing for togs and flounder.

        Now that I have sea bass, I'm going to try Metro's blackened fish recipe. Will try it on tilefish too.
        2015 Hobie Outback (yellow)
        2011 Hobie Outback (yellow)
        2009 OK Prowler Trident 13 Angler (orange)

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        • #5
          Great catch. I have never had three fish on at once -- particularly not three large fish that needed to be winched up from large depth. That must have been exciting but tiring.
          John Veil
          Annapolis
          Native Watercraft Manta Ray 11, Falcon 11

          Author - "Fishing in the Comfort Zone" , "Fishing Road Trip - 2019", "My Fishing Life: Two Years to Remember", and "The Way I Like to Fish -- A Kayak Angler's Guide to Shallow Water, Light Tackle Fishing"

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