Katherine Winson releases a blue marlin for her first billfish
Katherine Winson releases a blue marlin for her first billfish: This last week we had Bruce and Katherine Winson from Texas with us. They have been long standing light tackle winter clients for many years who we have always had a great time with and truth be said great fishing!
Back in 2021 Katherine caught her first Sailfish with us, here is that story… as well as some great fishing we had a couple years later!
Last year we once again had some awesome fishing and for the first time ever since we have fished together we did a couple hours of heavy tackle trolling and we did pull the hooks on a very decent Black Marlin.
As they normally do and because Bruce grew up in Zambia, before getting to us they did some tiger fishing on the Vamizi and Katherine had some good fish to show for it…
This time around and for the very first time ever they experienced some tough light tackle fishing conditions. It’s been an odd winter and total lack of bait and after a couple days with only a few nice king mackerel and a pulled hook on a sailfish we decided to change tactics on their third and last fishing day!
After a slow start on the light tackle where we got a beautiful bluefin trevally and a king mackerel (that would later make for a great barbecue lunch) we decided to bring out the heavy tackle and go out wide…
The seas were absolutely flat calm and we had not trolled for more than half an hour, still on the mid way from where we wanted to be and we hooked up to a small frisky small 150 pound Blue Marlin that shook the hook off after a series of jumps.
We worked the area and it is as usual this time of year and certainly the last couple weeks the humpback whales were giving us a show. But not only the Ocean was just alive and as we hooked into a Tuna double header ad slowed down we had this huge pod of spinner dolphins playing on our bow, three humpback whales and a calf not 50 yards to our port side and a pod of big bottle-nose dolphins showing of to out starboard!
Very special indeed!
We carried on further east and as we were approaching the area we wanted a bomb exploded on the Pulsator tube on the long corner and we hooked up.
Katherine’s first time in the chair – we had set her up and given the full briefing but not always easy when you used to the light tackle stuff – but as she always does she really excelled on what was a very a difficult, non jumper (pics are from library :-), deep fighting fish which we eventually got on the leader for the release.
An estimated #350 Blue Marlin.
Katherine Winson first Marlin!
I told the boys to loosen the straps a tad on the harness – now we only had to find another one for Bruce!
Not half an hour later we had another one, a decent fish, come on the short rigger Pulsator Marlin magnet but missed it altogether and never came back for seconds.
Unfortunately we had to start heading back and while enjoying the fresh fish barbecue lunch we still had a fourth fish.
Again took the Tube on the long corner, pulled 50 yards but never found steel!!!
Hard Luck!
We had not been out there for a while but it was pretty impressive to see as many fish right in peak of winter – hopefully good sign for things to come as water heats up!
And we will get Bruce’s next time!
Duarte A. M. Rato
Sportfishing Charters @ Vilankulos & Bazaruto Archipelago
MOZAMBIQUE
Email: dudas7mares@gmail.com
FB & Instagram: fishbazaruto
Phone & WhatsApp: + 258 84 639 0466
Go Katherine…