Get the chum line going

• Rather than trolling miles of open ocean, pick a promising area (or follow the captain's advice if you are chartering a boat), then start chumming. A chum is a mixture of ground fish, guts and blood, ladled overboard with a scoop while the boat idles slowly with the current. The goal here is to give the tuna something to sniff without feeding them outright. Don't chum with chunks of bait, as the tuna might get their fill and move on, while you wait in vain for a strike. Instead, grind up your chum and be sure to use a particularly oily fish such as porgy to get a slick going on the ocean surface.
  
  

Time to rig up and cast

• Rig up a 7 to 8-foot surfcast rod with a silver Diamond Jig, which is shaped like its namesake and is about 5 inches long, with a treble hook at the terminal end. You'll want a reel spooled with at least a 30-pound test monofilament line. Bluefin tuna may not top 20 to 25 lbs, but their yellowfin cousins can tip the scales at five times that weight and more.
  Tuna are skittish and not easily fooled. Unusual objects like swivels and other tackle between your lure and line are likely to spook them, so tie the jig directly to your line.
  If Diamond Jigs aren't producing after a while, switch out to different lures. Bait your hook with a chunk of porgy or long squid strips. Remember, try to keep your lure inside the chum line.
  
  

Fish near buoys and large light sources

• If you're fishing in the Gulf of Mexico, you'll notice the charter boats hang near the oil drilling platforms, patrolling around buoys and other light sources. The reason is simple: Baitfish are attracted to the light and tuna are attracted to the baitfish. No need to reinvent the wheel. If it works for commercial fishermen, it can work for you. It's also smart to make friends with the old salts who hang around on the docks---at least the ones who are busy cleaning and filleting tuna. They can tell you what the fish are hitting and the best way to present different baits. While you're chatting with the locals, casually ask which boats are catching fish and which are returning to port empty-handed. Hiring a skipper and a charter boat costs serious money, so you might as well go out on the water with a winner.