Join Capt. Mike on a midsummer bluefin tuna mission in The Gully, south of Martha’s Vineyard. This trip focused on targeting 40–60lb tuna feeding on suspended sand eels with a light tackle jigging approach. Instead of trolling, the plan was to slow down, rely on sonar, and drop heavily weighted Hogy Protail Paddle Swimbaits directly into the strike zone. Calm seas, disciplined boat handling, and a patient search-and-drop method turned scattered sonar marks into hookups, proving how effective Protail Paddles are for suspended tuna in open water.

Approach: Slow Jigging Protail Paddles to Suspended Marks

By idling slowly and searching for mid-column arcs on sonar, Capt. Mike dropped 5oz Protail Paddles into the 50–70ft band where tuna were staging over 150–170ft depths. The paddle tail’s drag slowed the fall, creating a natural swim that held in the strike zone, making it possible to trigger strikes from tuna feeding on suspended sand eels.

Techniques Overview

Search-and-Drop on Sonar: When birds and surface feeds are absent, sonar is everything. Idle slowly, mark bait or arcs, and drop directly on the picture. Stay disciplined with passes and reset clean lanes to maximize time over fish.

Slow Jigging Protail Paddles: The 5oz Protail Paddle drops fast but its tail acts like a brake, keeping the lure suspended in the 50–80ft strike zone. A slow lift-and-escort retrieve mimics sand eels, tempting mid-column tuna that ignore bottom jigs.

Timing the Current: During moving tide, bait compressed into tight schools and tuna stacked beneath them. At slack, fish scattered and became harder to trigger — but staying consistent with paddle tails still produced key bites.

Tips for This Technique

• Fish the Drop: The paddle tail swims on the fall—escort the lure down and stay tight, as many bites come mid-drop.
• Weight for Control: Use the heaviest Protail Paddle you expect to need (typically 5oz). The action stays consistent across sizes, giving you more depth control without losing swim.
• Read the Current: During moving tide, bait compresses and tuna group up deeper—fish slower and stay in the 50–70ft band. At slack tide, marks scatter higher, so shorten drops and reset passes more often.