# Weather window



## 34trip (Mar 7, 2017)

Hello all. New to the forum. Have followed for years. Wave report has Friday and Saturday looking promising for an tuna trip. Is anyone else thinking of giving it a go? We would be running out of OB on friday and back on saturday. Thanks


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## Realtor (Oct 1, 2007)

might be doable, still pretty early, watch it for the rest of the week.... how big of a boat are you going to be in? Welcome to the PFF


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## 34trip (Mar 7, 2017)

34 fountain with triple 300's. Hope the window stays in place or improves! Thanks for responding


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## JMS (Mar 20, 2008)

I am planning the same thing. Leaving Friday morning coming back Saturday. Weather looks good at rigs right now for those days. 2 ft or less and minimal wind. Full moon on Sunday so it will be well lit all night. A chance of rain and cloudy on the beach Friday and Saturday but my forecast shows sunny and 70 at the rigs. I agree with previous post. Watch weather close this time of year. I made a rig trip first weekend of February and had to postpone departing 24 hrs because the forecast changed at the last minute. Im fishing on the BOONDOGGLE. If you see us out there holla. Welcome to the forum and good luck!


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## Realtor (Oct 1, 2007)

34trip said:


> 34 fountain with triple 300's. Hope the window stays in place or improves! Thanks for responding


good god, a big boat like that hell go, go ,go lol


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## Topdog (Jul 2, 2015)

Weather permitting, We are coming down from Atlanta Early Friday morning, launching from Orange Beach, should be at Patronius in the afternoon, will set up trolling spread between the rigs, then jig and chuck over night, returning Saturday afternoon. Boat name is Chillin & Reelin, give me a shout if you see us out there.


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## 34trip (Mar 7, 2017)

Good to hear that other boats will be potentially going (weather and wave conditions permitting). Helpfully water quality in the VK area is decent. Haven't looked at hilton yet but will before we go. Had to go to ensco 8505 in july to get to blue water and even that was at the inner edge of blue water.


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## GRADYMAN (Mar 7, 2017)

*Heading out*

Been watching forecast and getting better each day. New to forum and area. Second trip to rigs, any advice which rigs are better to fish this time of year? Heading out Thursday to Ram Powell, coming back Friday. Be up 68, boat name precious catch.


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## 34trip (Mar 7, 2017)

Pretty much all the rigs from petronious and on farther south have always produced blackfin for us. Jigging for blackfin after dark and through the night is fun but exhausting! YFT,s for us have taken more effort. We usually set up a chunck line on the drift. Usually cleaner water has a better yield.


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## 5tmorris (Jan 17, 2013)

We will be heading out of Dauphin Island for an overnighter also.


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## Vandellism (Feb 4, 2017)

Question for you old salts. . I am relatively new to the offshore, I have made a Tuna trip to Venice last year with no luck. After all the research I can handle, planning overlays, yada yada. My question is bait. I have never been one to drop $100 on bait. I know you are chunking with "Bonito" and using verticle jigs, so question 1 is what's yalls average plan for bait? Buy it in bulk? Catch it over the summer and try to plan for enough in the spring? Or do you troll Bonito on the way out and Sabiki and just hope to have enough for the trip. If this has been address before I am sorry, also new to the Forum.


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## GRADYMAN (Mar 7, 2017)

Usually I grab poggies at the store for chunking, but grab hard tails on the way out. Then take bait blocks for a slick. Catch black fin and then chunk. You will see them come up on sonar or pop at the surface


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## syrupdawg (Dec 4, 2013)

Vandellism said:


> Question for you old salts. . I am relatively new to the offshore, I have made a Tuna trip to Venice last year with no luck. After all the research I can handle, planning overlays, yada yada. My question is bait. I have never been one to drop $100 on bait. I know you are chunking with "Bonito" and using verticle jigs, so question 1 is what's yalls average plan for bait? Buy it in bulk? Catch it over the summer and try to plan for enough in the spring? Or do you troll Bonito on the way out and Sabiki and just hope to have enough for the trip. If this has been address before I am sorry, also new to the Forum.


Honestly for me the bait is where I don't skimp. I'm more or less talking about ballyhoo, mullet, northern mackerel, pogeys, bonita, etc...
Id rather spend the money and know I have what I need rather than scratch my head wondering where I can find some 100 miles out if nothing is biting that I can use for bait. That being said we never throw back a bonito.


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## reel office1 (Aug 23, 2016)

We're leaving dauphin island Thursday night and headed to the vioska knoll area. If they're not there Friday were gonna head out to the floaters. Planning on getting back Saturday afternoon. We'll be on 68 reel office


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## GRADYMAN (Mar 7, 2017)

Sounds good we are heading to same place out of pensacola, tomorrow morning coming back Friday night. 68 precious catch


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## billfish (Feb 23, 2016)

i am going to be somewhere out there, just haven't nailed down where yet


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## 34trip (Mar 7, 2017)

In regard to bait. We always take ballyhoo and squid. Most universal bait in my opinion (trolling, finding a weed line with maybe mahi hanging out below) but when it comes to chuncking, blackfin tuna are almost always what we use. Vertical jigging after 9 or 10 at night has always produced some blackfin for us. Fillet them and cut the fillets into small chuncks. Dont use the guts or carcass. Just brings the sharks. We are no experts. Have been to floaters around dozen or more times and still learning. Good luck. We were planning fri into sat but am worried that window could close?. Good luck to all that get out there. More importantly "BE SAFE!!"


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## Topdog (Jul 2, 2015)

Left Atlanta at 4am Friday, launched around 11am, then we had engine problems as soon as we cleared the pass, turned around and came back home, what a long 24 hours.

How did everyone else do?


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## 34trip (Mar 7, 2017)

Wave report changed significantly for the worse as of thursday. Report had Saturday increasing to 3 to 4's so we cancelled our overnight. Disappointing part was that they missed the forecast. Come saturday, according to windfinder, waves didnt get much over 2'. Anyone else give it a go?


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## reel office1 (Aug 23, 2016)

We eased out Thursday night and got back to the marina Saturday around 9:30 in the morning. Tried to beat the front on Saturday but got caught in it right at daylight about 20 miles from DI and it went from flat calm to 3-4s with a couple 5s in the mix real quick. Caught some tuna and a dolphin though. I'll post a full report tonight.


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## syrupdawg (Dec 4, 2013)

We left out of Mexico Beach Friday afternoon at 1 and got to Marlin about an hour before sunset. Caught 3 30-40lb yellowfin on the troll and missed 2 more. Called a friend on sat phone who gave us a report the lump was on fire. We went there and was sitting there at daybreak. We had to leave before the bite started. Caught probably 50 bonito and several big kings. Started back to the house and had to change course. Saturday afternoon buoy was showing 5' at 5 seconds we ran into mobile bay and ran the intercoastal the rest of the way home. Had a great trip! Ready to go again.


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## GRADYMAN (Mar 7, 2017)

*Good trip*

Had a pretty good trip. Weather was good Thursday but got a little rough Friday. Got two yellowfin and missed two others. Went to the east lump and was there for about two hours. Didn't see much so went out to the rigs.


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## sniperpeeps (Mar 5, 2011)

syrupdawg said:


> We left out of Mexico Beach Friday afternoon at 1 and got to Marlin about an hour before sunset. Caught 3 30-40lb yellowfin on the troll and missed 2 more. Called a friend on sat phone who gave us a report the lump was on fire. We went there and was sitting there at daybreak. We had to leave before the bite started. Caught probably 50 bonito and several big kings. Started back to the house and had to change course. Saturday afternoon buoy was showing 5' at 5 seconds we ran into mobile bay and ran the intercoastal the rest of the way home. Had a great trip! Ready to go again.




You riding in a big yellowfin?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## syrupdawg (Dec 4, 2013)

sniperpeeps said:


> You riding in a big yellowfin?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Yea a 39


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