Virginia Beach Fishing Report, Matador Offshore Marlin Dolphin Charter

09/15 - On Tuesday, I had the crew from AJ Gators aboard for a day offshore. Plan was to go straight out front to the break and fish for marlins and dolphins. We put in lines at the 805/390 working the little half mile wide sliver of 74.7 degree water between the 75.5 degree water offshore and the 73.2 degree water inshore. The water color was a good blue and the clarity was excellent. Good marlin fishing conditions. Put out our spread and within the first half hour had the first white up, following behind the teaser bar. Mate switched him, perfect hookup on the circle hook and release 2 minutes later. Get lines back in and 12 minutes later had the next one up. This one came on the shotgun blue marlin bait and I thought he was a rat blue when I saw him back there. Teased him up and I fed him the circle hook from the right long. This one ended up being a 100#-110# class hatchet. Blue marlin nose. Blue marlin pecs. White marlin dorsal. I guess there have been a bunch of those around this year. Fish would have easily won ocean city. Thought about gaffing it but didn't. 20 minutes later, we got whammed by gaffers. Ended up catching four of them that time. Rerig put lines back in and have a single come on my right long, which I hook on the circle from up top.
This is where it got interesting for a minute. After clearing lines, I begin backing on this fish. While I am backing down, I see another white free swimming and go streaking across the transom. I drop back the left long while we are in reverse and I instantly feel this fish pick up the bait. Nobody downstairs sees whats going on. They are all concentrating on the fish that I am backing on because that fish is jumping all around putting on a good show. Well I slowly slide up the drag on the TLD-15 and the fish on my left long is hooked up and comes out of the water. I try to get their attention downstairs, but in a split second, the fish I just hooked starts greyhounding right towards us. I start yelling and screaming and finally they see the fish just as it jumps into the back of the boat. This whole thing happened within a matter of about 15 seconds. Thank god nobody got hurt. This fish landed in the cockpit doing about 40 mph. The mate looks up at me like WTF? and the charter starts clapping and giving each other high fives while the mate finishes the release on the first fish of the double. I guess I got the release there?
20 minutes later, we had a pair come in real quick and follow the teaser bar and the dredge, but they left as soon as the came up. By 11 am we had released four and thought it was gonna stay hot for the rest of the day. Not. In the next two hours we had nothing but a couple mahi bites, catching 2 or 3 or those on the circle hooks. At 2 o clock, we have a white following the dredge. The mate switches it, and five minutes later, we are billing our fifth white at the side of the boat. Some quick photos and she's gone. Fished until 3:30 with a couple more dolphin bites before we went home. Good day on the water. Ended out fishing in a very tight area all day 5 for 7 on the whites and I think we had 8 dolphin.