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I was able to get out on the water for a day of bluefishing. It was a perfect day...unfortunately, the bluefish weren't cooperating. As it turned out, I followed the birds, but they never seemed to be really agressive/swarming near the water, but more spread out across a large area. I did see fish breaking the surface from time to time but didn't have much to show for it. I tried jigging, fin-S, poppers and clams but nothing really seemed to grab their attention. Was there anything else I could have tried? One thought that came to mind was to anchor and chum, but unforunately, I didn't have any. Would that have bought the fish to the boat or were they just too spread out for that to work. Honestly, this was the first time I've ever really targeted bluefish so I'm not really up on all the techniques. No one seemed to be catching anything, I saw some people trolling but nothing was pulled over the rail.
Thanks for the help...
__________________ If you think education is expensive, try ignorance
..."Vegetarian - old Indian word for bad fisherman."
Buy a bucket of Bunker chum, although it's not usually needed at this time of the year. Clams almost never work. AVA27 jigs, poppers, & swimmers are all you really need.
Be it Blues. or Bass, when fish are scattered, trolling is often the ticket.. When I'm puttin around looking for fish, I'll always be pulling something.. I will usually troll until i find a good concentration, than stop and jig/bait or whatever.
I'm guessing that the fish breaking water were not blues- maybe bunker or shad maybe? If the fish breaking wer blues, the birds would have been swarming tightly to them (most of the time). If blues are around, almost anything will work.
I have often found that whenever I use a soft bait lure that costs more than $25, I will attract bluefish. I know this because sometimes I get them to the boat, and other times I have to purchase Tsunami swim shads, 200lb mono and crimps for no good reason.
I happen to love smoked bluefish and do take them occasionally, but if you really want some, follow me out on Friday and get the ones we're throwing back!
Enough funny stuff- all of the other advice here is sound, not the least of which is to fish for bass. Bluefish are God's idea of a practical joke. Awful, nasty, vicious, with no redeeming qualities whatsoever, but still fun to catch.
__________________ Frank 30' Hydrasports Vector "Jolly Roger"
blues are pound-for-pound the best fight going. I think they are tasty too if you limit them to about 5 lbs, and bleed them or fillet right away. also, the meat needs to be cooked and eaten fresh- freezing ruins the texture and taste (IMHO).
Thanks for all the information, it's greatly appreciated. Last week was really the first time I had tried to target bluefish. I had a couple of young kids in the boat and I really wanted to just have them catch something that would fight back...I've been holding out winterizing my boat because I'm hoping for one last trip this season...if the weather could cooperate, maybe we'd land a few stripers...
Thanks again...
__________________ If you think education is expensive, try ignorance
..."Vegetarian - old Indian word for bad fisherman."
That's for the heads up...I must be getting old...the kids I took were 13 years old...but that was something I never really thought about saying to them...they were a couple of freshwater warriors most of the summer...big difference between a 12" catfish and a 30" bluefish!
Thanks again...
Dave
__________________ If you think education is expensive, try ignorance
..."Vegetarian - old Indian word for bad fisherman."
Location: Boat,Town Cove, Cape Cod. Live south of Boston.
Posts: 815
When dealing with bluefish I find gloves essential, grab by the gills and if your going to keep them knock em out with a billy club and gut them over the side. Keep cool and eat fresh. Love it.
Gotta watch them "freshwater warriors" around bluefish.. they're used to seeing those guys on tv jabbing their thumbs into all the fishes mouths, and kissing them on the lips Like I told my cousin who was visiting from down south on the way out on his 1st bluefish trip.. he asked "can I lip 'em like a Bass?".. Only the first couple
For blues, I like to use avas and if im using bait, bunker, sardines, and mullet. Using bait on a boat, just use a leader with a ~ 6/0 hook.Sometimes you need a split-shot. Most times however, I get away without using one. fin-s usually works well (although I do not recommend using them, they do work but they get way too chewed up.) Poppers work great too. There ain't nothin like watching a big blue attack a popper. I dunno why they weren't chasing what you were throwing... They were prob lookin for live bait. Everyone says the cocktails are the best eating. I personally don't notice any difference in a 2-4 pound fish and a 10+ pound fish. People complain about the taste because of the darkest portions of the fillet which are the omega 3 fatty acids. You can cut around these sections. I personally like the taste. Also, there are so many ways of cooking them, I would recommend experimenting until you find something that works for you. I prepare my blues with some white wine, lemon, butter, breading, and serve with rice and red and green peppers. It comes out very good. As for handling them, no need for gloves. Hold them by the top of their heads just above the gills. They'll stop squirming around. You can then easily use pliers to remove the hook. Throw 'em in the cooler on some ice and then catch another one. Yeah, you can say I love bluefishing
Bluefishing question 
Like I told my cousin who was visiting from down south on the way out on his 1st bluefish trip.. he asked "can I lip 'em like a Bass?".. Only the first couple 
