DISCOVERING THE WALL

The wall is known by many as Woods Wall, Captain Norman Wood was one of the first to explore the area in the early 1980's. In 1981 Captain Wood better known as Storming Norman for his fast trolling, invited Miami Hearld sports writer Jim Hardy down for a days fishing aboard the Petty Coat lll. Captain Wayne Hunt a long time friend of Normans agreed to ride along and mate for the day they wanted to show Jim Hardy some of the excellent marlin fishing on the wall. Little did they know that day was to go down in history for marlin fishing on the wall. It was a cool morning in September for the Florida Keys with a 10 to 12 knot wind from the northeast as the Petty Coat made the run from Oceanside Marina on Stock Island just out side Key West to the wall some twenty miles to the south. Captain Norman slowed the boat to his usual eight knot trolling speed and Wayne began to hang the first lure in the outrigger, Norman heard a commotion in the cockpit and turned just in time to see Jim Harty push the lever drag foreword on a loading Penn International 80W and a 400 pound blue marlin break the surface. As Wayne was hanging the rigger line the marlin had struck nearly taking off his fingers. That blue marlin was the first of seven blue marlin hooked that day including a double header. Jim Hardy needed a marlin release for master angler in the MET that year and needless to say he achieved his goal. The next year the Key West marlin tournament was formed in October by Captain Wood and is still the largest and most successful Marlin Tournament in the Keys. In l986 Mary Jo Spence fishing aboard the Mary Jo caught the first 500 pound blue in the event on the first day of the four day tournament. On the fourth day a second 500 pound marlin was weighted in to take second place. In 1987 Martha (Rossie) Morrison fishing aboard the Sea Boots with, Capt. Jim Sharpe set a new tournament record when she weighted in a 520 blue. In 1989 angler Glenn Bennett fishing aboard the Thunnus with Capt. Brian Bennett broke the record once again with a 580 pound blue. Captain Woods largest marlin on the wall was a 578 pound blue but was not taken in his tournament. In 1990 the crew of the Rapa from Fort Lauderdale, fishing in the Gallon Round up Tournament in Key West weighted in a record blue for Key West waters a 665 pound blue marlin.

THE BLUE MARLIN

Blue marlin are most commonly found in the deep blue waters beyond the Continental Shelf an inhabit the oceans of the world. Marlin will obtain a size of fifty pounds in the first six months of life and weight one hundred pounds on their first birthday. This rapid growth rate declines as the marlin ages and a 500 pound marlin would probably be thirty five years old. The female blue is the largest of the species, growing to a weight of over two thousand pounds. The male blue rarely grows to a weight of more than 250 pounds and the largest male recorded is 239 pounds. Blue marlin are world travelers with the longest recorded tagged fish traveling l,290 nautical miles, from San Juan Puerto Rico to Nantucket in 1991.* (NOAA TAGGING PROGRAM) 

FISHING FOR BLUE MARLIN

Fishing for marlin can be very frustrating to some anglers, hours and hours of trolling with not even a knock down. Many marlin fisherman wonder if there are any marlin in the ocean after several days with no luck. Here are some techniques and information that can shorten the search for the man in the blue suit. I will explain each of these areas but for now lets just skim over some of the techniques and objectives. Tackle must be suited to the marlin, depending on the time of the year. Off lower Keys and Key West you could catch and release a marlin on 30 or 50 pound test in the summer however you could get your clock cleaned in the early winter when the larger marlin arrive. The phase of the moon plays and important part in the number of potential strikes and of course technique and rigging is all important. Lets cover each of these areas in depth so that you have a new bag of tricks to take into the gulfstream and look for the man in the blue suit.

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