Launched out from two rocks and headed northwest to about 30 meters. There were Tuna busting up everywhere, every 150-200 meters or so a different bust up. I’m convinced of you stuffed your cast up that badly you’d only be closer to another school. Casted a little stickbait and was having a great time watching a bunch of stripeys push each other other of the way to swipe at the lure. Hooked one and had a 10 minute fight all around the boat, deep, shallow & circles. Gave the little 2500 stradic a work out and came out at exactly 5kg on the lie detector.

After that it was just 1-2kg southern blue one after the other until we got bored. We could have caught them all day and any other day I would have chased them but the mission was to nail a 20kg dhuie each and we weren’t going to settle for anything less. The next stop was an old mark from about 5 years back called double dhu.. we didn’t sound any fish at all and looked pretty barren but we were already out there so may as well give it a drift.

I dropped a 10” eel soft plastic - the plastic hit the bottom and I felt a telltale thud before I even clicked the bail arm. Yep I’m on!! Hell of a fight for about 15 seconds then busted off.. I knew straight away it’s because I had 40lb leader on and wound up to surface with my leader still tied on. I instantly grabbed my backup rod with a strip of tuna on a size 10 ball sinker and dropped while my mate hooked up big time - obviously the fish I just lost so half points to him.
While he was fighting the fish my line got caught in his leader knot and caused havoc; his fish was coming up and we could see colour and we didn’t want to lose it so in a mad rush he said fuck it I’m cutting my line and going to hold the leader - only he held the wrong end and watched his leader just fall into the ocean with a prized dhuie. Luckily the fish was beat and it floated to the surface. So while he’s figuring out how to net the fish my rod buckled over and it was on too! I free spooled so he could reposition the boat the net his fish, flicked the bail arm back over and it was on, a short tussle and a donkey of a dhue came to surface. High 5’s profanities and a beer later it was time to head back. One of the best days on the water and the final tally was a small pinky, a decent baldie 9kg dhuie and a 14kg dhuie. Not quit the double 20kg we were aiming for but I can grow the sizes every time I tell the story

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