THE RIDE
THE OFFSHORE LIFE IN ANY WATERS
Sport Fishing Magazine:
Upper Gulf Fishing Adventure - a New Approach
Excerpt from the November/December 2018 issue of Sport Fishing Magazine. Written and photographed by Jim Hendricks.
The world-class offshore fishing in the upper Gulf of Mexico is a fairly easy run in good weather for boating anglers departing from the mouth of Louisiana’s Mississippi River Delta. But the folks at Regulator Marine proposed a slightly different approach to fishing these rich grounds, one that would help prove the offshore fishing mettle of Regulator boats, both new and preowned.
Instead of doing things the easy way, late last May, two Regulators departed from Alabama’s Perdido Pass Inlet and ran some 120 miles to fish offshore oil rigs and rip lines off Louisiana for blue marlin, mahi, yellowfin tuna and wahoo. One boat was a new Regulator 31, owned and captained by Bennett Long of Bluewater Yacht Sales; the other boat was a 2000 Regulator 26 Classic, owned, restored and captained by Maclin Smith of HMS Marine Electronics in Orange Beach.
Nowhere is the transition from green to blue water more abrupt than along the offshore rips off Louisiana. Sargassum weed piles up along the rip, attracting flying fish and other forage that in turn attracts game fish. All told, the boats covered more than 360 miles without a glitch or hiccup from either, all the while enjoying good weather and great fishing.
Look for the full story in the November/December 2018 issue of Sport Fishing Magazine, and check out the image gallery at www.sportfishingmag.com.