LONG LINE INFO

[148148]

May be a stupid question but I have only ever used bottom and mid drift lines that are anchored. Saw a surface long line go out today on another boat and it didnt appear he anchored the end. If a 100kg sword grabbed the line he could swim with it to Tunisia, did I miss something or did he do it wrong?

[LapsiBoy]

Swordfish longlines are miles long mate so it has lots of area that keeps it back, the longline might not stay straight but the wish wont pull it to tunisia forsure!, it will move more with current

[148148]

Thanks Lapsi, how long are they keeping the lines afloat? Pull them in before the fish drown or if they drown they drown? Also are they relocating the lines with tracking signals and how many markers per 1km line roughly?

[LapsiBoy]

The lines are layed before sunset so you have to think before because it takes time to lay them, then if you finish lets sat at 8 leave them  till 10 or so and start hauling. the fish can drown but the longline wont because every 2 hooks wich is about 50fatoms you tie a plastic bottle or something that floats which isnt to big because they will takes a lot of space and you need quiete a few.
Every 50 hooks you throw in a flag with a beakon light attached on top this is pulled down with something heave (a brick or something) and is pulled up by  some jerrcans or something like that. the important thing is that there is more floats then weight so it wont sink but will be stable.
The ideal thing is to mark them each with a gps just incase a ship cuts the longline you will have an idea where it might be.
Bigger ship use something different then a flag its  like a metal shaped diamond which is tracked with sonar.
In 1km i dont know how many markers exactly but you can work it out. every 25 fatoms a hook, every 2 hooks a marker/buoy/floater.
What i told you is a basic idea then everyone has his own way

[bigboy]

148148 it is exactly as lapsiboy has explained to you. We use the same method aswell. The only thing which we have different is a flag every 25 hooks with a light beacon so if a ship cuts us we dont waste so much time searching for the line.

Regarding the 100kg sword wellll dream on You need to at least venture out more than 50nm to encounter one that big. Right now you can more hook onto a tuna.

If you are going to start this king of fishing make sure that prudence comes first out there. It is a first come first serve as the first thing you sholud do (on the east coast) is to call on channel 6 and ask where the others will be fishing so as not to come close to the others. Last night we were about 8 boats all fishing 0.5nm away from eachother.

Lately fisherman from st pauls bay are fishing from NNW then they face 090 towards hurds bank. On the other hand people who leave from the marsamxett harbout usually go out NE, E, N and the face 330 on the compass. With this way you will surely have no problems. If currents are strong or maybe a big fish (happened to us last night) takes the line into another you should be very cautious not to do any damage to the other vessel's lines.

Regarding time we usually start letting out the lines by 2.30pm and we are ready by 6pm. If the line comes out well we speed up the boat at 6kts and everyone is at his attention. We then stay with the line untill 10pm and we start hauling in back the lines. Very important thing is to always look on the compass to see what bearing you are hauling the lines in so as if a ship cuts the line you know where you should look for the line. Another important thing is that as lapsiboy said every flag you let out you should place a position on the gps and always use the track so you will know where you have let out the line. When ready from letting the lines every half an hour take a reading on the gps to see how much the longline is drifting so if you look for a cut from a ship you would know how far to look for. Last week a cut drifted over 14nm towards sicily and we found it due to this knowlege we aquired through the years.

Any more info just ask my friend

[fisheye]

This is some very interesting information even if I am not in this kind of fishing  I love to read about such tricks and  trades. Such information in my humble opinion is treasurable and unfortunatly not everyone is ready to share with others especially on a fishing forum. Thanks big boy and lapsiboy.   

[bigboy]

10x Fisheye!!! I try to share most of what i know with my friends as many can vouch for. Fishing with surface longlines is not like fishing with bottom longlines where one will find a good place and keep it for himself. Surface longlines are like the super 5, you have a ticket and you are with the others.

Obviously there are some tricks of the trade which i cannot disclose on an open forum.

[148148]

Thanks Bigboy you have both given some good info on longlining, anything in particular I should be looking out for with bottom or middrift lines that may differ from Aus, ie: nm out?, positioning? Depth? Or is it par for par?

[148148]

One other thing I forgot on longlining in Malta, best or usual catch distance out in nm?

[bigboy]

It may differ for both.

Bottom longlioning for pagri etc say 0.5nm +

Longlining for swordfish 5nm+