What we Catch on offshore hatteras boats

 For a combination of power, speed and magnificent jumps, The Blue Marlin is the Atlantic Ocean's premier gamefish. Many are caught each year in excess of 700 pounds. Like other local charters, The Marlin Mania usually practices catch and release. The hatteras boats have caught Blue Marlin as early as March and as late as November. The sight of one of these creatures popping up in your spread is something you will never forget!  Lets go find one! The blue marlin world record is (1,402 lb).

 The White Marlin is a smaller, but more acrobatic cousin of the Blue Marlin. However do not let the size of this fish fool you. We use lighter tackle and this matched with the acrobatic, high flying antics of the White Marlin is a real crowd pleaser. It is not uncommon to have two, three or more of these fish come into your spread at any time! Hooking a White Marlin can be a very tricky, if not frustrating feat. They usually do not attack a bait as aggressively as the Blue Marlin, but once they are hooked they start a very impressive series of jumps. When the bite is on there aren't very many places in the world that can match the fishery of white marlin found off the outer banks. 

We do get quite a few of these beautiful fish here. Especially in late spring early summer, when the water tends to warm up in the more shallow waters. It is not uncommon to have two or three in your spread just like the white marlin. So if you go fishing on the Marlin Mania in the billfish seasons make sure you bring a good pair of polarized sun glasses because you will not want to miss the excitement of a billfish appearing in our spread.

These hard fighters are excellent table fare and are a year-round resident of our waters, although yellowfin action usually slows during July and August. Yellowfins range in size in this area from 20 lbs to 100+lbs. The average size is probably between 30-50lbs. The Yellowfin is usually caught trolling, however we will sometimes try chunking. As for the Marlin Mania crew, there is nothing better than hearing nine reels screaming when we get "covered up" with tuna.

The Bluefin tuna is the largest of the tuna family, with the all tackle world record exceeding 1400lbs, which was caught off Prince Edward Isle in the North Atlantic. This Tuna is primarily a winter resident off the Carolina coast south of Cape Hatteras. The Marlin Mania occasionally encounters Bluefin Tuna of all sizes from pups to giants as they migrate thru our waters in the spring and fall.

These brutes will test your strength and your tackle.

In recent years they have made a remarkable comeback.  Blackfins are now a regular part of our daily catch.  Most are 5-10 pounds and can range up to 40 pounds.   Most of the largest ones are caught while live-bait fishing for King Mackerel in the Fall.  Pound for pound they are the strongest tuna..