Fish for supper
I have been reading and watching your Bluewater Sailing Techniques online (www.yachtingworld.com/bluewatersailing). The fishing episode was very interesting, and from my perspective in the Mediterranean, I catch a lot of bluefish, which are called Lüfer in Turkish. They are absolutely delicious.
We catch them for around two weeks in autumn as they migrate south. They are voracious and will take almost anything when they are feeding but strips of fresh fish are best, especially barracuda. They can be tricky to unhook and if you catch one, be careful as they have been known to do fair damage to fingers.
In Greece, a tip I have heard was to take a long length of brightly coloured wool or cotton, wrap it around your hand and tie it off so it forms a loop, then if you are ever sailing past a concentration of fish you can tie the loop onto the end of a line (don’t use a weight) and troll the line. I am told this is a good way to catch garfish, as they strike the loop and cannot let go, and you can keep them in a cool box as live bait. Then if you put these on a line with at least a 30ft long trace and a detachable lead weight, and start to troll very slowly, you will bring in bigger fish.
Max Müller