photos courtesy of Bloody Decks Outdoors click for BD Outdoors Story

I’ve been telling you to click on the Punta Mita Expeditions banner to the right…

If you listened then likely you have been keeping your mouth shut and enjoying trips filled with 200+lb Yellowfin, Wahoo, Sailfish and Marlin not to mention the best Pargo diving in Central America all on the same day.

If you haven’t been, then you are missing out on the chance for huuuuuuge Yellowfin Tuna, like this 430 lb (potential World Record) one taken just two days ago there.

You can go with another charter, fisherman, whatever but there is no substitution for the Punta Mita program which Sebastian Melani has put together.  Fisherman have the ability to cover a lot of ground and depths and this doesn’t necessarily transfer to being able to put divers on the right spot consistently and having dove this area for many years and trained his Captains to set you up for the drifts, chum, handle the gear, and take care of you from the time you land to the last taco and cerveza.

I can’t promise you are going to see a 400lb Yellowfin Tuna, but I can assure you there is no where in the world that compares for delivering monsters and no better place to find them.

Book your trip today and get on it while it is going off!

CK

Note:

To help convince your wife, girlfriend, or pretentious diva dive partner to go down there, here is how to do it right, in style but affordable while still crushing the fish.

Punta Mita is the northern point of land closest to the fishing/diving spots. You fly in to Puerta Vallarta and stay in Punta Mita which is a quiet fishing town turned high end resort, golf, sportfishing, surfing destination.

Through PM Expeditions we stayed last time here:  St. Regis Punta Mita which was phenomenal.  They booked everything for us and the price was nearly half the advertised I could find anywhere else on the internet and the accommodations were unreal. Check it out.

Checking out the surf from our balcony. I surfed every day in an empty line up all to myself just steps from the bedroom

Not your typical spearfishing crash pad but after fighting big Yellowfins all day it was nice to come back to this

Morning wave waiting for the boat to pick me up out front...

Morning Dolphin Mahi Mahi

From Brandon Wahlers
“For the past 3 years Ive been putting a lot of effort and research into putting a trip together to this spot, and this year I was able to finally set it all up and get out to these few spots where I have heard of monster tuna being taken.
I managed to get out there twice before, and both trips were good, with fish up to 250lbs, but no chances at anything in the 300lb range.
This trip it was just Justin Allen and I on the panga diving, so I was stoked to have half the pressure on the fish as we had on the last two trips.
As soon as we made it out to the spot late that afternoon, we could see action all around: birds diving, bait popping, and nice tunas jumping. We tried dropping a marker buoy, but there was so much current that even with plenty of line we couldn’t get the marker to hold. Scrapping that Idea I quickly made the decision to start our drift about a mile up current of the spot, just in front of where the birds were working.
On my first dive to 50ft, I found the vis to be only about 15-20 ft, but I was immediately schooled by tuna from 80-200lbs that followed me up to the surface. The next dive I made was a to 60, and I saw some bigger fish in the 200lb range. Things were looking good, and I knew we had a chance for a monster.
Justin was still getting his rig ready in the boat and I told him what I saw. Him and the Pangero both hinted that I shoot one quickly so we would at least have some fish to cook on the grill that night since we were camping.
The next dive I saw mostly 80-100lb fish, and I lined up on one 5ft away, ready to get a brainshot. I ended up missing the brain by less than and inch, but fought him up to the surface quickly and clipped the buoy off to my shooting line. I went down to brain the fish, and saw my slip tip toggled perfectly. Struggling and spinning around a few times trying to dispatch the fish with my knife, the slip tip somehow pulled back out and stabbed me in the palm, opening up a fairly deep wound.

I got back in the boat completely confused and in pain, telling Justin I was done diving for the day, and he should take my big gun in and look for a monster. After his first dive he yelled that he was seeing big fish everywhere. I checked the sounder and it was lit up with tuna from 30ft all the way to 150. With my hand bleeding like crazy and nothing on the panga to fix it, I grabbed Justins 140 euro gun and got in the water. I made 3 dives in a row getting schooled by 80-200 lb tuna each time, with some fish coming within 3 ft of my face. This was as wide open as I’d ever seen tuna while diving.
The next dive, I was again schooled by fish in the 150lb range. I sank down to 67ft trying to see if there were bigger fish deeper, when looking up I saw a super long bottom sickle fin behind 5 fish in front of me. That being the sign of a monster, I had to almost push the 150 lb tunas in front of me out of the way, and I finally got a full view of this MONSTER tuna. Its sickle fins almost made it back to its tail, and it was an incredibly tall and fat fish, not swimming how the other fish were at all, rather it was waddling. As soon as it saw me, it started to move off pretty quickly, so I lined up and shot it just as it was going out of visibility from about 14ft away.
The fish took off like a freight train and towed me over 3 miles in over an hour. I was using Justin’s rig with 50ft of hard floatline and 50ft of bungee, and the clip on his buoy was not holding the bungee very well. For the life of me I couldn’t get the fish above 80ft, so all my dives trying to second shoot the fish were to at least that depth. The first 4 times I tried to get a second shot the fish would see me from 10ft away just as I was about to shoot and take off for another 5 minutes. I finally got a second shaft into the fish and it started to bleed a lot, really slowing him down. Soon enough I had the buoy clipped off at the shooting line and took my trusty Riffe 130 Euro down to shoot him in the brain.

Only once I got my hands in this fishes gills did I realize that he was WAY over 300lbs, an absolute toad!!
It took 3 of us to get him in the boat, and he ended up 77inches long, with a 61 inch girth.
Using the girth squared X length, divided by 800 formula the fish came out to 358lbs, truly the fish of a lifetime! Unfortunately I wasn’t able to find a certified scale within 100 miles to weigh him on, but Im still on cloud 9 after shooting this monster!!”

For more on Brandon Wahlers check out Team Riffe at: http://www.speargun.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=74&Itemid=37

World Record White SeaBass on 20 lb line

As everyone that hunts White Seabass already knows, the big girls show up first and this year it looks like its no different. Each year the fish have been getting bigger and despite some complaints at the strict regulations and MPA’s over the past couple years it has been great for the fishery and the size of the fish reflect that.
This stud was 76.4 lbs which is a benchmark fish and I’m hoping in the coming months that I’ll see some Spearo’s with fish of similar size or bigger. Judging by Ernst current WR and reports that divers have seen some in the 90-100# class in recent years… the record will be broken again soon.
Most of you will dismiss this because it is fishing but you need to read between the lines here and become a better spearfisherman by noticing the key decision these guys made that let to catching the fish of a lifetime.
Think outside the box, the plan can always change.
It never hurts to investigate activity that you see on the surface and can lead to some of the best diving of your life. Always be flexible in your plans and be ready for anything.
Have any of you found big White SeaBass in open water before on bait schools?

From the looks of it this is one of the biggest Mahi Mahi Dorado, Dolphin fish I’ve seen and makes me look forward to the coming Season for them at home.  Big ones like this are still surpisingly young fish as Dolphin can grow as much as 20+ lbs in one year.  One this size is still probably less than ten years old. 

I have seen a few other monsters caught in the Florida Keys a friend caught one that was in the 70+lb range, Panama I know there are some giant ones and I have heard claims even from Spearo’s that say they have gotten them over 80 lbs!!    There was another story rolling around on the internet a few years ago about a 100 lb Dolphin caught by a tug boat off the coast of Florida but once again it wasn’t weighed and it just continues to fuel rumors about the biggest one ever caught…  I can easily call BS on this one as it is about the same size as ones I have seen put on the boat and reckon its in the 60+ lb range.  Either way it is a great fish and I’m stoked for these guys but as fisherman and Spearfisherman unless you are a commercial fisherman who’s livelihood depends on the exact weight of fish day in and day out and you are dead accurate guessing weights I want to see it on an official scale! I have been guilty of this many times and way way way off on some of my claims of sizes of fish so having a Certified Scale has take some of the BS out of my claims:)

Tug caught Dolphin claimed to be 100lbs? Hmmmm

A 100lb Dophin would be damn near 7 1/2 ft long if not bigger.  That is a big damn fish!  The head on a 65 lb one is as broad as your shoulders!

Here is another one from Mexico that was weighed:

90 lb Mexican Dolphin World Record?

A buddy of mine Bill Delabar caught what we could start claiming as a World Record Dolphin had it not been for him actually weighing it.  If you are looking to dive in Central America Bill is the best kept secret there.  He grew up in Panama and has a charter operation there that is better and more knowledgeable than anyone south of Mexico.  He as speared more 100+lb Tunas and 80+ lb Wahoo than anyone I know of down there and knows where and when to fish and has good boats.  He is a world class diver and a great guy. He will set you up to experience the best Central America has to offer, send him an email bdelabar@yahoo.com  or www.panamafishingcharters.net  Check this one out:

Bill Delabar with Monster Dolphin in the Gulf of Mexico

AS the water gets warmer and the bait shows up in force the Dolphin will follow.   I caught a 25 lb one yesterday and I can only dream for now of the chance to get a 80 or even 100lb one down the line.    As one of the easiest Pelagic fish to shoot they are a blessing for us bluewater Hunters.   I can’t wait to get home and get on it! 

If these pictures of World Record Mahi Mahi, Dolphin, Dorado or whatever you want to call them hasn’t done enough to get you fired up to go hunt them, check out some of our past dives in the video section.

Lastly is the current spearfishing world record for Dolphin also taken in Mexico

Spearfishing World Record for Dolphin Dorado Mahi Mahi

So what do you think of the sizes of each of these fish if you had to guess for #’s one through  five above?

Cameron

Over the next few weeks I’ll share a couple of my favorites with you…

Joseba Kerejeta is the best spearfisherman you will ever meet.  After a trip to Venezuela a while back a friend put me in touch with him saying that he was the only person he had ever heard of that traveled and speared as much as I did.  Joseba and I kept in touch over the years and usually just missed each other in the different hot spots around the world and through our travels dove with a lot of the same people. Last year he won the World Spearfishing Championships and that combined with his bluewater and reef prowess confirms that he is the best in the world.  For more on Joseba check out his website.

This picture had me thinking and frothing a bit but knowing the location where it had come from I wasn’t too worried. Joseba has placed a great shot on this fish but he isn’t straining to lift it which was my first tip off.  Also the Doggies head has the telltale marks of little sharks teeth which can be confused with scrapes on the bottom when they take you into the rocks but I am pretty sure those are Reef Sharks marks, Lastly he doesn’t look nearly as excited as I know all of us are when we land a monster fish so I didn’t stress to hard about this one and called out the photographer on it and waited for the reply.

Here is the whole picture:

Joseba with all too common of a sight when hunting Dogtooth tuna

Send me your best Dogtooth Tuna story and any pics you have of them getting chawed by sharks to blueh2oboy@yahoo.com

The best one will get a slot on Spearblog.com’s VIP access membership when the first round of spots opens up just after the new year.

No one is immune to the Dogtooth curse!  Join in our misery and send me your best and biggest

Jill Riffe working the Cryptic Camo Bathing Suit from www.riffeapparel.com

Julie Riffe, Suited, Smiling and ready to slay

Cameron, Kelsey Albert, Jay Riffe, and Craig Clasen with big Calico Bass and huge California Halibut

Thanks to Yeti Coolers for keeping my first limit of White SeaBass happy in their badass coolers. www.yeticoolers.com

So thats what a White Sea Bass looks like! My fish from the first day. Thanks Jay for the pep talk!

Same old story.
Big fish, hot ladies and good times.
I really do enjoy my vacation!
We had the Riffe Team in California this past week with Jay Riffe presiding over the daily design and hunting Forum. The opportunity to have some of the best divers in the world together to dive and use all the gear and put our thoughts on paper and into the new equipment is invaluable.
It is amazing to hear each of our varied tastes and techniques from around the world from five of the most travelled and experienced guys and girls and have everyone wanting the exact same equipment for the job.
Hearing and seeing the future of spearfishing equipment and putting it to use is something that I could only have dreamed of when I was still shooting Blue Tang and Slippery Dicks in the Caribbean with a three prong. Knowing that the Riffe Equipment that goes on the shelves is exactly what we want and the thought and patience it takes to design it is all worth it in the end.
DJ Struntz flew in from Costa Rica to document the week and as usual captured the striking photos that he is so well known for. www.djstruntzphoto.com
Mark Healey took some time off surfing 30ft waves to break the Croaker Curse and shoot a 45lb White SeaBass and some big Calico Bass at over 100 feet. He’s got some sick videos of 50+ ft Waves on the internet if you haven’t seen them and has had more tiger shark encounters than anyone I’ve ever met. Check it out: http://www.surfline.com/video/webiso…rfishing_22430
Kelsey Albert showed us all up by turning herself into the Hali-ho and shooting the hell out of the Halibut and landing a PB and potential WR for Halibut. Watch out for this one she has the mindset and the skills to be a contender for National Champ in the coming years.
Craig Clasen was his normal humble self quietly finding the biggest Bass each day and smiling each time he climbed out of the water knowing they were bigger than the ones I had. Dammit!!!
Jay Riffe shared his knowledge of each spot he has gathered over years of experience and networking through hundreds of spearos on the West Coast to put us on the best spots each day. With his guidance he led me to my first, second and third White Sea Bass within a few hours of each other on our first cold calm morning last Sunday.
All the White SeaBass I shot were stoned with a 120 Euro rigged with a 9/32 shaft with a Hawaiian Flopper.
The rest of the ones were stoned as well by the other guys with either the same 120 Euro or a 130 Euro with a mini icepick tip.
Those are big powerful fish but with the right techniques and patience in the water we were able to take 12-15ft shots and roll each of the ones we saw.
The Calicos on Catalina are some of the smartest I’ve seen so we were psyched to get our biggest ones there.
Kelsey used her Pole spear to land a good one at Bird Rock which is historically one of the areas that has the smartest ones in California.
Thanks to Beach City Scuba and the Sun Diver and Joel Olenik for getting us on the water and letting us do our thing. Can’t wait to do it again!
Pics courtesy of Rebecca Walker (Riffe cousin) and Richard Holbrook.
DJ’s photos will be in the Mags in a few months
The Riffe Life continues…

Choose your partner... for diving wisely. Don't trust them with an open bottle of Petron in the boat at night though

White Sea Bass. Big, good eating, hard to find, dirty water loving fish.

Notice the same exact shot placement on each fish, I stoned the first one so I figured that must be a good spot to shoot them, its worked every time since and doesn't mess up the meat so I think I'm on to something!

Having a 5 ft fish on your belt in Great White Shark land isn't the wisest idea

Mark with the Flying fish of his life.

Calico Bass can make you feel like a total ass. They are the #1 choice for all of us to hunt there because they are so challenging and fun to pursue

Big Halibut and stud Calicos

The haul of Halibut. Most of which were slain by Kelsey Albert, that girl is a killer

Planning another trip the Bahamas and I have a few weeks to make all the preparations… except I’m on the other side of the world and when I get back I will have less than a few hours to pack the boat, my gear, girl, food, water, gas, etc etc etc for a week long trip.
So what have I been doing to get ready?
Sending a ton of emails and being a bit bossy apparently but it seems to be working.
The number one ingredient for a good trip is the crew you pick to go with you.
Most of us have a short list of people that we ask to go depending on where and when the diving will be. There are guys I call when I want to go international and try new things that are iffy, third world, off the beaten track, malaria ridden, and sometimes down right foolhardy.
Thanks to all the guys that indulge me and usually come up with some of the same ideas or even gnarlier. That is part of the fun is planning the trips and gathering information and talking about gear before we go.
Then there are the last minute guys. The ones that you know will drop everything the night before when the weather goes perfect and the conditions come together and be there waiting with plenty of ice, guns, beer, lunch and more gas money then they should be paying. They are good houseguests, they clean up after themselves and thats why they get invited back.
Obviously those are the ones that get invited back the most and I wish that I could say that I was one of those people all the time but I’m definitely not. I have pissed off more than one friend leaving early and not helping clean the boat enough or leaving my credit card in another state or messing up the house or shooting their fish. Sorry doesn’t do it so I hope to make up for it in the future!

So back the Bahamas…
I will get home, load the boat with my mental checklist that I say over and over in my head when I’m trying to concentrate or relax (works better than thinking of baseball actually)
Mask, snorkel, fins, booties, weightbelt, gloves, knife, floatline, gun (pole spear in this case), float
1. Naida Mask with Amber and a spare with a clear lens (low volume great vision and amber lens makes things stand out better in lower light and blue water hunting)
2. Stable snorkel for choppy water
3. Riffe Carbon and Fiberglass fins
4. Riffe booties
5. Rubber weightbelt with good stretch, 1 lb Adreno weights and black nylon pin type buckle
6. Riffe kevlar glove with extra pair
7. new (unnamed as of yet) knife we have been working on… don’t know if it will even be legal in the states its pretty badass though and exactly what I want…
8. Armor Spectra Floatline 50 and 100ft
9. Pole spears:
a. Three prong 8 ft hybrid
b. Riffe Slip tip rigged 9 ft Hybrid
c. Same as above but rigged for pelagics
d. Mr Miyagi Japanese pole spear 12 ft
e. three prong 6ft Lionfish killer

10. Riffe 2 atm float

Thats my basic list then I start adding on depending what time of year it is
11. Green cryptic Rash guard
12. Blue Cryptic two piece rash guard/jelly fish suit (don’t know if these are out yet)
13. 1.5mil Blue Cryptic full suit
14. 1mm Riffe Top with cocking pad
Thats a lot of gear for one person. When we dive deep I get cold easily but would prefer to just wear the 1.5 mil top.

For the boat I make sure we have a full fuel tank as soon as we get within a few miles of the dock because I don’t want to fill up to early and be driving on the highway with all that extra weight.
Plenty of extra Outboard oil.
Foul weather gear
2 bean bags
Safety gear: EPIRB, flares, etc.
Boat documentation for customs

2 long sleeve shirts
1 short sleeve shirt
one nice button shirt for dinner out one night
light pants for mosquitos and hot nights
2 pairs of boardshorts
Yeti Baseball cap which is my favorite right now
and absurdly large straw hat for sahara hot days in the bahamas sun
basic toiletries:
1. tooth paste and tooth brush
2. deodorant
3. 2 in 1 shampoo
4. bodywash (also use this for cleaning suits to get the smell of fish and me out)

Supplies:
figure 6 waters per person per day so a few cases of water
case of gatorade
case of beer
pre made mojito mix
few dozen Uncrustables for easy meals
ceviche mix pre-made. just add fresh fish for on the boat
chips and crackers for ceviche
Spices, butter, tin foil, tongs, sauces, for grilling fish and steaks
Steaks
We also try to plan out at least half of the nights meals and pre-make most of it so we don’t have to do much more than throw some stuff on the grill or heat up some pasta at the end of the day.
2 gallon and 1 gallon Ziploc bags

Cleaning knives (serrated blade Dexter Russell and Riffe Filet knife)

Three trolling rods (Penn 30′s for Tuna)
2 light spinning rods for Yellowtail
1 heavy spinning rod for dolphin and tuna on poppers
rigs for all three types of fishing

Yeti 155 cooler with 6 slabs of dry ice and the rest filled with regular ice. Try and save this for at least the first day or two.
Yeti 65 cooler with 6 blocks of chum, 3 boxes of squid, and ballyhoo if the Tuna are around

Suntan lotion!

Fill the rest of the spaces on the boat with Ice and dry ice and try to keep it as long as possible. Ice is hard to come by in the Bahamas and it is as expensive as Gasoline and sometimes more so it sucks to buy it!

Lastly your camera, charger, batteries, tapes, cards, underwater housings etc.

There is so much stuff that goes into a trip we tend to forget how giant the list can get. When you add 9 people on the ride across it makes you try and think of everything because it gets crowded fast.
A bit of planning goes a long way. We have been dividing up the jobs of getting stuff ready and I’ll think of more stuff to bring and let you know…
Cameron Kirkconnell

I appreciate you helping me out. I’ve been to the Bahamas a few times this year but there are boats that run over every weekend and any help or suggestions that you have are always welcome from those that take long trips in their boat or plan meals for the boat etc.
Can’t wait to hear the words of advice and put the plan in action!

Cubera Cam and Silvio

After working in Brazil for the past few years watching Tuna and Marlin and Mahi swim all around I finally got the chance to do some hunting and get back at them.
The first few days were spent in the Blue water and we landed 5 Big Bull Dolphin from 25-46lbs and lost a Blue Marlin around 400lbs that broke the Cable on the slip tip. The shot was good in his head but he turned and ran back through the bungey and put some weird pressure on the rig and likely cut it with the bones in his head.
We found a good school of Dorado and took 5 of the 25 that were there and then played it cool waiting for a Big White Marlin we had seen to get a shot that would never come. Lots of Small tuna too but didn’t bother with them knowing the billfish were there.

Next few days were spent hunting in the deep caves amongst the boulders shooting Dusky Grouper which proved to be 1000 times smarter then their American Cousins the Red Grouper. As soon as they see you they haul ass to a “small” cave which upon closer inspections turns out to be part of a massive network of caves and you rarely see them again. It was about 50 dives to see one fish looking in caves with the light. Unlike us spoiled here in the US they have to work hard to find their fish. It was rare to see and shoot one out of the hole.

Silvio and Carlos were on top of the best diving and put me on it and were great guys to have. Thank you so much for taking care of me and sharing your waters.
Our three days Silvio took me out in his 30 ft Dugout canoe that was carved out more than 70 years ago from a single tree in the Brazilian Rainforest. He bought it to restore it and on a whim threw an outboard motor on there and it ran great. We cruised in flat seas at 20+knots and received a constant shower of spray as if we were in a hellish gale with 10 ft seas.
I loved every minute of it even when it did get rough and we were bailing buckets of water out of the bottom of the boat wondering which landmass would be the easiest swim if we went down.

Last stop on the trip was Cubera Island.

Rumor had it there were some monsters there and it wouldn’t disappoint.
First dive on the pinnacle the water was a bit off and I’m hovering at 80 ft looking into nothingness when I see a shape on the edge of visibility. Hunter that I am I start in that direction but quickly change my mind when the shape gets bigger, and bigger and BIGGER! I’m already heading for the surface praying this isn’t the last dive I ever make. 10ft? 20 ft? How long is this damn thing and why is it coming closer still!!!
At 50ft I’m starting to bring my gun between us when I realize that at more than 40 feet long it can only be a whale and seconds later a monster Fin Whale comes coasting by eyeing me as he cruises past.
Once my heart started pumping again and I cleaned out my wetsuit and made another dive.

at 50 feet I could make out some shapes below in the mid water with still no bottom or the pinnacle in sight. With 180 feet of water all around and the top of the rock at 90 and only the size of a car the chances of hitting it were slim to none in the middle of the ocean.
I can see fair sized Cubera Snappers slowing milling around another big White one that is just below them. The smaller ones begin to swim away as I coast closer revealing the monster and by the time he sees me its too late and I put a near perfect shot just behind the head.
Did I mention I was only using a Riffe 130 with a reel? Whoops. Not the usual choice for hunting big fish in bluewater and within seconds I was kicking hard for the surface and he was pushing hard for the bottom with the new Horizontal Reel proving its worth.

With the right amount of pressure and the easy to adjust drag I made it to the surface and kept him on the bottom and within a few minutes had the 86 lb Cubera in my hands.

There are more there. They aren’t easy to get but I know there are bigger ones there and we’ll be back. I hope that I never have to shoot another at 85 feet with a reel and don’t suggest it to anyone as it more often than not ends in lost gear or a blackout.
Thanks to the guys in Brazil I can’t wait to get back!

Da Canoe

This is what your face looks like a split second before you fall off the dock with a 86 lb Snapper in your hands

26 lb Dusky Grouper shot in a hole at 70 ft at Cubera Island

Kicked my ass but he's on the boat and I'm not on the bottom in 180 feet

Aaron Kirkconnell Scott and his big cousin Cameron. Same stoked smile on the first big yellowfin Tuna he has seen up close on his first bluewater trip

Yeah there were a few sharks around too....

Aaron and one of 8 Blackfin Tuna he shot in the few days we dove. He got the hand of it pretty quick and was only picking out the 25 lb'ers. Spoiled Rotten.

Aaron's first Wahoo at 50 lbs. I was on the surface beside him watching the whole thing screaming in the snorkel to swim towards them. On the drive over I had talked for 6 straight hours on how to hunt them and all the other bluewater fish, telling him things I don't even let on to my friends. He listened, and he already had a lot of raw skill and 15 years under his belt of being surrounded by the sport. He shot this first one from about 6 feet away and had his choice of the entire school. Mad skills. I'm scared he is going to be better than all of us...

Still smiling 6 months later I'm sure

Admittedly this one was a fluke. I was looking for Wahoo and a school of 10 big Yellowfins came up. I had the camera in my left hand and made the dive following them to a whopping 56 ft to take the shot. They all had long sickle fins back to their tails so I knew they were 130+lbs and was praying they were bigger. With a single Riffe 2 Atmosphere float and a 100 ft bungee I had him up within three minutes and Aaron put the second shot in him. Chad had the video camera so for fun I brought him up while he was very much alive and as he came to the surface snatched his tail out of the water. Predictably he went batshit and made a circle of whitewater about ten yards wide. His tail beat against my left bicep so fast and hard it was like getting hit with an axe. When I finally let him go my glove and my brand new dive knife got caught in the cable and I lost them both. Could have been my hand, or my leg or my neck. Just goes to show (practice what your preach) always kill your big fish before you try to get your hands on them. It happened the very next day with Lindsey grabbing a feisty one the same size and he lost all the bungee he had worked so hard to get to him and it took another 5 minutes to get the fish in.

I won't be doing that again. It didn't even make my muscles look bigger

Chad Morris with a stud Wahoo. WE never seem to have a bad trip when we go together.

Nothing better then seeing your friends happy. Chad Morris with the biggest fish of the trip and a huge smile on his face

Why you need an Official Scale. World Record Dogtooth Tuna

Yesterday I was moved to tears by the most incredible fish i have ever seen in my life. 
Diving in Indonesia is one of the most frustrating and difficult projects I have ever embarked on and without an amazing amount of patience, stamina and skill there is no way that you can be successful in a diving environment such as this.
Starting the day we jumped in to a mere 4 knots of current and drifted for 4 hours landed two Dogtooth tuna 40 and 100 lbs which are both excellent fish in any locale. 
Taking a break during the day we went and visited a deserted beach on a faraway shore and as we explored teh little spit of sand and the surrounding countryside Craig and I gave thanks for such a beautiful and unspoiled place on earth that we were able to enjoy.
With the two fish in the boat and our time expired we decided to head back to the mainland 2 hours away. Something in me felt wrong though and I persuaded the boat driver to stay another hour ($15 more) so that we could dive in the ever increasing current for one last shot. 
With a rain squall coming hard on us and the visibility darkening we decided on one last drift. Craig had just broken one blade on his fin and told me, “This is the last drift, make it count, I’ll ride shotgun and bring the second gun so you can shoot your fish twice…”
5 minutes later i was relaxed and diving down through the warm surface layer to the cooler water below relishing the change in temperature that these type of Tuna love so much. At 50 feet i stopped kicking and glided down to find a school of dogtooth tuna surrounding me from 15 to 120 lbs. Patiently i glided deeper and caught sight of the black back of a slightly bigger one on the bottom at 90 feet. Passing the other smaller tuna the big fish turned slightly just as i reached the end of my float line and i squeezed the trigger.
Thunk!
The fish immediately shook his gills and then made two circles on the bottom banging the shaft against the coral in an attempt to break free of the object now lodged in his after half. 
As the great fish strained for deep water i pushed hard for sunlight and grabbed my passing floats on the surface just in time to tell Craig, ” I shot a TOAD!!!!”
Nervous the the fish would pull out i fought him as gingerly as possible and within a few minutes we had him in sight. As he neared the surface I could see he was hurt bad but there was no way i was going to lose this fish and I grabbed my 115 Omer America with a reel from Craig, cocked it, dove and approached him. At 12 feet my lungs were screaming for air at the exertion of the last few minutes and I prayed that my shaking hands would aim true.. whoosh! The fish went stiff and i surfaced pulling the ever growing fish to me.
Oh my god. Oh my god.
I can’t wrap my arms around him! I have never screamed so loud in my life. The rocky cliffs a mile distant reverberated with the sound of my voice and then mingled with that of Craigs and the boat driver. 
With a raging 10 kt current approaching I handed the tail of the fish to the boat driver and jumped in the boat to relieve him but even with Craig and I pulling we could not budge the fish from the water. Trailing the fish to calm waters the three of us pulled the beast into the boat and then there was complete silence.
Looking at the 6 ft long fish at my feet my mind shut down and I was flooded with emotion at what I had before me. Never in my life could i have imagined this possible. Craig and I stared in utter silent disbelief. 
Dogtooth Tuna. What I have always preached as the most challenging and difficult fish in the world to land. Diving 30 miles from civilization in 6-10 kts of current. The whitewater rafting we had done the week before doesn’t even compare to the whirlpools and down currents and 5 ft standing waves we encounter every drift here. 
I can’t describe to you how incredible this day is and how meaningful it is to me. Of all the fish in the world this is the one record i have coveted the most. 
200.6 lbs. 6 feet long and 4.5 feet in girth.
I am the luckiest man alive. 
Cameron

VIDEO:

World Record Dogtooth Tuna on boat

Craig Clasen Enormous Dinosaur of a Tuna and Cameron Kirkconnell

Craig and Solid Doggie over 100lbs and the Porpoise looking 201lb WR