Newburyporters Land Almost 3 Meter Bluefin Tunaff

That was the comment most of those on the city’s boardwalk had yesterday watching workers from the Yankee Fisherman’s Co-op haul a large bluefin tuna off the Erica Lee II.

Newburyporter Adam Foley, the man who hooked the fish and helped reel it in, was no exception. Foley, a fishing and hunting enthusiast - who is not small in stature himself - stood next to the fish, and with a wide grin, quipped: “I like this one; I don’t make it look small.”

The boat pulled into Newburyport Harbor about 4 p.m. yesterday, where a truck from the Co-op, located in Seabrook, was waiting. The large bluefin tuna weighed somewhere between 550 and 625 pounds, the fishermen estimated, and was 110 inches -more than 9 feet- long.

“It’s a nice one,” Foley said.

The catch is all the more special, said those at the boardwalk involved in the fishing industry, since there’s been a decline in the tuna catch in recent years. Bob Yeomans, who owns the Erica Lee II and has fished his entire life, last year caught no tuna. Yeomans helped Foley reel in the big fish.

Tuesday’s catch was his fourth of the season - a far cry from years past.

His wife, Lee Yeomans, who watched the boat come in and took pictures of her husband and Foley next to the tuna, said she remembers a season many years ago when her husband brought in 21 fish.

“It’s been bad,” Lee said of the tuna fishing. “The commercial fishing isn’t there anymore.”

Marvin Perkins, from the Yankee Fisherman’s Co-op, said the tuna Foley and Yeomans caught “is a larger fish than most this season.” He said it will go up for auction either today or tomorrow and could be expected to fetch between $8 to $12 per pound. He agreed the tuna fishing just isn’t like it used to be.

“It’s been slow for the last couple of years,” Perkins said.

Foley said he caught the tuna about 15 miles from shore, using herring as bait. He said the waters were rough yesterday, and there was only one other boat out on the water near them fishing for tuna. “It was real rough out there (yesterday) morning,” he said. “That’s the nice part about having a big boat.”

When he hooked the fish, Foley said it ran for about 300 yards, diving straight toward the ocean floor, which is normal behavior for tuna, unlike some other large fish, such as marlin, that jump out of the water when caught. He said it took a hour to reel the tuna in, taking turns with Yeomans.

“I’ll tell you,” he said, “it’s an experience, man.”