OBSESSION CHARTERS MIDSUMMER NEWSLETTER 2013
NEED A GROUP FOR THE PIRATES COVE BILLFISH TOURNAMENT!
 My regular Pirate's Cove Tournament group, due to business obligations and a planned 'bucket list' adventure will not be fishing the tournament with me this year, so I am looking for a group to fish it.... I have missed only one or two of these annual events in the last 20 years and Richard and I really want fish!
The 30th Anniversary Pirate's Cove Billfish Tournament, held Tuesday- Friday August 13-16 (3 out of 4 fishing days), always has great marlin fishing as well as entertainment, food, and fun for anglers & their families (Website). This is a big money tournament, with $250,000+ awards being handed out in the past. We have never won this tournament, but have taken many prizes home, including $75,000 several years ago for a third place finish and a daily; two years ago we were in second after our last day, ended in forth, but won a $16,000 daily. We have won numerous meat fish prizes of several thousand dollars over the years, for tuna last year, and dolphin the year before, If interested in fishing this tournament, please contact me to discuss particulars. Also, I would be glad to help you put a group together if interested but do not have a full group. The group I put together for last years VBBT was comprised of 5 separate guys, and they are all doing it again this year. I would be happy to provide more details upon request by Email or phone (252-480-0094).
HIGHLIGHTS OF SPRING 2013
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We didn't fish much in April this year. In 2012, we had outstanding bluefin and yellowfin tuna fishing in late March & April, with 'gaffer' dolphin mixed in the later part of the month, but this year, unusually cool weather and water resulted in slow fishing. However, things turned around as May rolled in. Warmer waters resulted in excellent mahi mahi fishing the first part of May, and the best yellowfin tuna bite we have had in several years got going in mid-May, held up through June and is still good. While yellowfin tuna fishing will slow down in the summer months as waters warm, bigeye and yellowfin should still be available in July and billfish, dolphin & wahoo should become more plentiful. The great showing of yellowfin this spring could bode well for our late September-November yellowfin season. The following are some highlights of a few of the many great catches we were blessed with this spring.
May 8: We had a nice catch of 'gaffer' dolphin when Conrad Schmid caught a 300# blue marlin! Were just getting lines back in the water when we hooked another blue marlin..... a smaller fish, but on lighter tackle, it drug us around 3 miles and 3/4 hour before Mark McCulley released a 175 lb blue marlin.
MAY 13: Long time customer Jim McCurtain and crew had steady light tackle action and loaded the fish box with from 5-26# dolphin, as did most of our groups the next 2 weeks. Robert Crowder, from Prince George, VA released his first blue marlin, about a 175# fish the following week.
MAY 22: Started on a grass line and boated 25 nice 7-20# 'gaffer' dolphin; in the middle of all that, Don Wright caught a sailfish while we fighting some dolphin. Later we hooked three fish, which I figured were all tuna, but damm if one didn't come up jumping.... Alex Giarrocco caught the white marlin, his partner boated a 35 lb yellowfin and 72 year young Will Lindsey (15 years fishing on the OBSESSION) boated our seasons largest 82# citation earning yellowfin. If that weren't enough, right before going home, we hooked and boated 4 more 30-40# tuna. That's fishing!!
JUNE 4: Hooked double header of tunas 5 minutes of setting out, then 5 more a few minutes after that, and I don't think we went more than 10 minutes without a bite, triples and doubles and quads and by 10 AM Paul Race, John Proctor and crew had their limit 15-50# yellowfin tuna. That's catching!!
JUNE 8: Ken & Ken Jr Henry, in their 10th year fishing with us, had a limit of yellowfin tuna by noon, Ron Henry released a 200# blue marlin and Bill Whildon released a sailfish.
JUNE 10: Mike Kalinski & friends loaded the boat with yellowfin tuna, a 125# Mako shark, and Jason Vermillion released a 350# blue marlin.
JUNE 13: Israel Lau and buds did a great job loading the fish box and the ice chest with 30-50# yellowfin tuna before noon.
JUNE 16: Justin Smithson & and crew had non stop action, rarely going more than 10 minutes without a bite from 20-40 lb yellowfin and 5-12 lb mahi; by 11 AM we headed for home with no more room for fish.
JUNE 21: Bruce Sampson and crew have fished with me for 19 years. They caught a few yellowfin right out of the gate, then hooked a dolphin and while fighting that, had a couple of explosions on the teasers and baits ..... as luck would have it, the lightest rod out bowed over ...... 2 1/2 grueling hours later, Bob Burgee boated a 205 lb bigeye tuna. They boated a few more tuna and mahi and then, while fighting another 25 lb yellowfin a dark shape appeared behind it..... 20 feet from the boat the big blue marlin enhaled the tuna..... what a bite! Jim Gillespie did great job during an 45 minute epic battle..... lot of close to the boat wild jumping... and earned his release of a 600# blue marlin. Nice way to end the day!
JUNE 25: Jeffrey Laine and Jack Monhan boated a double header of bigeyes, a 142# fish in one hour and Jack's 180# bigeye after 1 1/2 hour battle. Richard Watkins & crew also boated a few other yellowfin and pulled the hook on another bigeye.
JULY 1 The Rosenbloom family caught some yellowfin tuna, lost a bigeye tuna in the morning, and then we hooked two whoppers! With father and son both doing battle, son Adam fought his bigeye for 2 hours when finally it popped up to the surface... a shark had bit off its tail.... Adam cranked it to the boat and it weighed 193 lbs without a tail..... Father Glen boated his lunker after 2 1/4 hours (I think he wished the shark would have gotten its tail too).... it weighed 215 lbs, the biggest one caught to date on the OBSESSION.
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SAILFISH IN MEXICO 2014
 My plans are to again run the OBSESSION to Isla Mujeres, Mexico for the light tackle sailfish season in winter 2014. This will be my fourteenth season fishing down there. The waters off the northern Yucatan Peninsula hold the world's greatest seasonal concentration of Atlantic sailfish, and provide some incredible light tackle billfishing. Visit our website for information or give us a call.
The OBSESSION will be available for charter from January 3 thru March 10, 2014. You can reserve dates by Email or phone 252-480-0094. If you do not have a full group and are looking to split some days with a few others, let me know....in the past I have put groups together.
MY AVAILABLE DAYS AT THIS TIME ARE:
JAN 3 - JAN 11
JAN 15
JAN 18 - 21
JAN 23
JAN 29
FEB 9 -10
FEB 12
FEB 14 - 28
MAR 5 - 10
The cost of chartering the OBSESSION is $2000/day. The OBSESSION provides all bait and tackle. We encourage angler participation and enthusiastically work with everyone interested in hooking their own fish. We use circle hooks to reduce injury to the sailfish. We will leave the dock at 6:30 AM and return around sunset (6 PM). We provide lunch, including sandwiches, munchies, fruit, yogurt, and drinks including a case each of water, soda and cervesas (beer) !
TOURNAMENTS
Thinking of fishing in a tournament? We have spots open!
WANT TO GO FISHING BUT NEED A FEW MORE TO SHARE COSTS???
Need a few more to fill out your group or want to join a group to share costs for a charter, please email captjeff@mindspring.com or call me (252-480-0094) and I will discuss several options with you and hopefully hook you up with a full group. Most years I put 4-6 'makeup' groups together composed of folks that did not have enough people to book the whole boat.
OBSESSION T-SHIRTS
I have S, M, L, XL & XXL T-Shirts with front pockets in Bluish, Greenish, Blackish & White Short Sleeve for sale. The original Obsession T-shirts logo are in blue and white, and the Mexico version are in green and black.
If you would like to order shirts, you can do so by email or phone (252-480-0094). Costs are $20/shirt + shipping(approx. $5 for one shirt; $6.50 for two shirts; $7.50 for 3 shirts).
ABOUT THE OBSESSION
The OBSESSION is a 55 foot custom 'Carolina-style' sportfishing boat, the last and largest in a long line of vessels built specifically for charter fishing by Capt. Sheldon Midgette (for Capt. Sheldon Midgette). You will not find a more comfortable, seakindly boat when the ocean gets rough. This is one of the dryest boats ever built, and with a large keel, she is extremely stable when trolling. The OBSESSION was repowered in 2010 with a 1000 hp 3412 Caterpillar. The OBSESSION carries state of the art electronics including radar, color fish finder, and two GPS chart plotters. Its large salon features: heat/air, microwave, stereo, VCR and a refrigerator. Enhancing your fishing comfort, the hugh cockpit has a 130 lb class giant tuna chair, 2 additional fighting chairs, and a large built-in bait box, ice chest and fish box. The OBSESSION has a ladder to the flying bridge to allow customers/guests to join Capt. Jeff on the bridge for a different perspective.
 ABOUT CAPTAIN JEFF ROSS
Captain Jeff Ross grew up fishing New England waters, working on 85 ft headboats for big bluefish and school bluefin tuna, and private sportfishing boats for giant bluefin tuna, sharks and marlin. He received a B.A. degree in Zoology at Ohio Wesleyan University (1974) and a M.A. degree in Fisheries Biology from the College of William & Mary (1979).
Since moving to the Outer Banks in 1982, and during the time he was a fisheries biologist for the NC Division of Marine Fisheries, Captain Jeff worked as a freelance mate on charter boats fishing out of Oregon Inlet. Since 1994 he has owned and operated his own charter boat, first the 48 ft Ocean OBSESSION and currently the 55ft Sheldon Midgette built OBSESSION.
We guarantee 110% effort to show you a great time and hopefully catch you a bunch of fish and maybe a fish of a lifetime! My wife Ruth Ann and I are always glad to offer any assistance and/or recommendations for your travel, lodging and dining on the Outer Banks or in Mexico.
Best wishes and tight lines....Cap'n Jeff
Obsession Sportfishing Charters
Outer Banks - North Carolina
Captain Jeff Ross
3102 S. Ocean View Ct.
Nags Head NC 27959
252.480.0094
CaptJeff@mindspring.com
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