When we awoke the next morning, we were greeted with a red sunrise and angry seas, with the winds blowing from the NE. It was a rough ride out past Bazaruto Island, but the water became calmer, Poseidon seemingly out of breath.
Trolling for live bait, we’ve got various lures out on our light Nor-Fin Santiago 50’s. Marlin lures are out with Kona’s on Penn International 80’s, the left long line with a birdie to make a splash. Neil is up on the bow with a spinning rod casting into the little Bonita skipping on the surface. We see a nice Cuta jump as the twin Suzuki 175’s purr along at 2000 rpm.
All eyes are on first mate Gildo as he holds the leader in his hand, crouched on the transom leading the docile Bonnie, unaware of the hook in its head, placidly along. We idle gently through the deep blue waters of the Indian Ocean, as the lighthouse and white sands of Bazaruto recede in the distance. We observe hundreds of dolphins frolicking and feeding in the rich waters, watch as a hammerhead shark swims lazily in the distance, and delight to the sight of mating sea turtles.
Hour turns to relentless hour as Gildo stands stoically on the transom, line in hand. Stately, regal, proud, his ebony features chiseled by decades of sea and sun and proud African heritage. His wispy braided beard, curled tightly under sharp prominent chin, give him a sense of ageless gravitas.
Just as the little bonita seems to have run its course, we get a nice hit on one of the lighter rods. I reel in a beautiful 6kg yellowfin on a daisy chain with feathers on 50lb test. Marlin M&M’s!! We quickly replace the tired and done for baitfish and continue trolling.
“Marlin! Marlin!” cries Gildo. We leaped into action as the water lighted up with the big fish’s excitement. Fins illuminating the water with an otherworldly blue hue, the big Marlin moved in on the hapless yellowfin. The plucky tuna was having none of it, however, as it swam excitedly between the big Suzuki engines. Gildo swiftly pulled the baitfish out of the water and tossed him back to the foraging monster that we were intent on bringing to the boat. Three times the desperate tuna evaded the monster, and three times Gildo tossed him back. Suddenly, the brightly glowing marlin charged in and struck the panicked yellow fish with its massive bill. Blood erupted in the frothy water just behind our boat as the efforts of the big hunter turned the sea behind us into a washing machine. Gildo swiftly and skillfully let the leader slip through his fingers as the stunned tuna dropped further behind the boat. The frenzied marlin leaped in from the side, hitting the flapping tuna with the side of his face and firmly grabbing the leader in his gaping mouth. As he shook his massive head, bill shaking left to right spectacularly, the yellowfin spun around the huge bill as though purposely trying to tie his greedy mouth shut. Bill-wrapped! Captain Charles laid on the throttle to tighten the line as the big fish spun and dived. Ziiing! Hundreds of yards of 130lb test came spooling off the big Penn 80 as I tightened the drag. Strapped securely into the chair, I waited for the bruiser to show signs of tiring. After what seemed like ages, the line stopped screaming off the reel, and I leaned back to begin the long laborious process of reeling the monster to the boat. As soon as he felt the pressure increase, the big Marlin was off again. The fight was on! Slowly, I began the long negotiation, tiring him little by little, convincing him gradually that mine was the path of least resistance. Lean back, lean forward and take three or four winds. Over and over, pump and wind, pump and wind. The big angry black gave me a fight to remember, but 45 minutes later, Gildo touched the leader, and we began the process of releasing the worthy beast. The 10-foot marlin was tightly bill-wrapped, with leader and line also having wrapped his broad torso 2 or 3 times as the explosively powerful fish turned and rolled, futilely trying to escape, turning suddenly left, then right, turning unexpectedly to swim directly toward the boat, then reversing course in a massive burst of power and swim straight away – the crafty beast had used every trick in the Black Marlin book, but had only managed to further entangle himself. The circle hook was lodged in his back, just ahead of the dorsal fin, while the yellowtail lay quivering alongside the powerful predator. Two small remoras clung to his side as we cut the big fish free. After a couple of photos, I released my first Black Marlin ever back into the Indian Ocean, 350 pounds of dark, angry predator, to hopefully give another angler on another day the challenge and thrill I had just experienced.