bluefin tuna

On the bluefin tuna fishing season from September 1st to 3rd, I went to Hokkaido and joined the Blue Blue pro staff.

The members are expert anglers from Hokkaido.
Hiyuru Yamamoto

Worldwide Angler French Angler
Gotchan

My local junior high school senior, the tuna expert
Senior Kinoshita Makoto

And my four friends who fish solely by luck

We met at New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido for the first time in 16 years and headed to our accommodation in Tomakomai by rental car. Our accommodation was the Hachinohe Business Hotel.
This is 6,800 yen for one night with dinner (super cheap!)
Toyoko Inn priced at 15,000 yen due to Hokkaido inbound tourism bubble

The ship departs from Yufutsu Marina
I am grateful to Captain Kudo of SEA RISE for his kindness and for teaching me so many things.

The first day, September 1st, was cancelled due to rough weather. We went to NORTH CAST , a famous fishing tackle shop in Sapporo.


I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Otsuka and Mr. Nishimoto from Studio Ocean Mark.
Tuna fishing trip with Blue Heaven Magbrake (also canceled due to rough weather).
Thank you for sharing so many interesting stories with us, and thank you to Mr. Hiranaka, the representative of Northcast, for accommodating us so kindly despite our sudden visit.

Kinoshita-senpai's system check from the previous day ↓

The forecast for the 2nd was calm, so it rained from the morning until heavy rain before noon. We returned to port before evening, and the captain only spotted two tuna (monster size).
The next day, the wind was expected to blow in the afternoon, so I went to bed early.

The weather improved on the 3rd, but Hiro-kun, who had planned the Hokkaido tuna tour, fell ill and was unable to participate.
We set sail with the wind blowing and the sea surface choppy, and patrolled until noon but didn't catch any tuna, but suddenly Go-chan spotted a boil. I was wondering why birds that weren't supposed to be there had suddenly started gathering together, and before I knew it, the continuous boils had developed into a school of fish. Go-chan got his first hit straight away. There were moments when he was in agony, but his core strength was different and he went for it with plenty of power. It was his first experience catching bluefin tuna, and he caught two in a row! And released two.

The bait was anchovies, and schools of tuna began to appear one after another, creating a belt of tuna all around the boat, with Kinoshita-senpai fighting continuously, catching one with each cast! This guy always catches fish right away.
As usual, I was completely late, so I was in charge of fighting the tuna that Kinoshita had caught. There was a school of around 50kg in all, but some were in the 150kg class. The waves got stronger, and I did my best despite the boat rocking and the strong wind, but everyone else had quickly changed to No. 6 tackle, and without realizing it, I was using No. 12 tackle and only got one bite and one miss, so nothing good (lol). I was also allowed to use various prototype lures, and filmed many release videos with the Platico releaser that I wanted to try, and I learned a lot from Kinoshita, so both the work output and the fishing were great fun!

The Platico is a prototype carbon model, and its appeal is its light weight of 2kg. However, the opening is lighter than the stainless steel model and it lacks rigidity, so it's difficult for the tuna to get into the mouth. The sturdy stainless steel model is more rigid and easy to use, but the lightness of the carbon model is appealing. I think it's also attractive because it's light enough to carry on an airplane when traveling.

Tackle introduction
Gachi Pop took it in one hit.
The small, narrow silhouette made it an obvious predatory pattern.

50K-100K TACKLE
Reel: 25 Saltiga 14000XH
Rod: Zenac Tobizo 84/100G main PE6, leader 130lb
Lure: blueblue Gachi Pop
150K+ TACKLE
Reel: 25 Saltiga 25000P
Rod: Zenac Tobizo TC77 Monster Buster with PE12 and 240lb or 250lb leader
Lure: Prototype plug etc.

I still have a lot to learn - thank you to everyone who accompanied me and Captain Kudo for all your help.
Let's improve ourselves again, Furyu-kun.

In Hokkaido, bluefin tuna season runs from spring to summer in the north, mainly in Shakotan, and from now until December in the south.
SEA RISE also has ships in Shakotan and can depart from the north.
If you are considering fishing for bluefin tuna in Hokkaido, please contact us.
Tomakomai is just a 30-minute drive from New Chitose Airport!
It's very convenient

Tuna regulations and recreational fishing boat rules are getting stricter every year...
The Fisheries Agency's Tuna Room page can be found here
Isn't the structure the same as vested interests, amakudari, and collusion with other economic companies?
As a sport fishing, I wish we could follow the example of other countries and come up with clear and satisfactory regulations.

And the second video of Paisen's Blue Blue France Challenge will be released soon!
The first one is attached below. Once again, this 59-year-old is fighting with ease from start to finish, amazing!