Even for us freshwater anglers, it’s nice to get away from the norm on occasion. Every couple years I have the opportunity to visit friends in Mobile Alabama and fish the big water of the Gulf of Mexico. It’s always an incredible trip and I think this year had to be the most enjoyable trip I have ever been on. Last year, the oil rig Deep Water Horizon spill had the Gulf coast fishing industry all but shut down with a very unclear future at the time. Since the accident, people have now come to realize that the enviornmental impact of the 
accident was not as first thought. Marsh lands were protected by levy’s being opened in the Missippi river and the actual amount of oil spilled into the gulf was small in comparison to the volume of water that the ocean holds. Although a spill can never be a good thing, the impact was far less than a catastrophe. The fishing is back and better than ever!
Our journey started out at Dauphin Island Alabama aboard the Lady Ann who’s captain Mike Thierry lead us 
several hours out into the deep blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico. This trip was scheduled as a two day event for Tuna, Marlin, Mahi Mahi, and Wahoo and the weather and seas cooperated for us! A beautiful blue sky and small swells made our journey comfortable and built up the excitement as we came closer to the destination.
Our destination was several hours out and the prime target area was the giant oil rig platforms that are everywhere in the Gulf. Fishing in around 5000 feet of water, the oil rigs provide the areas where large 
amounts of bait, primarily Bonita, congragate where larger gamefish can feed. All day and all night the Bonita and smaller Blackfin Tuna would thrash on the surface in large numbers. Around the pods of bait, the large Yellowfin Tuna would hunt in packs, leaping out of the water 10 feet in the air while feeding on the bait. Trolling around the large pods with different jigs and teasers proved to be to much for the Tuna to resist! Although we did not raise a Marlin on the teaser’s, we hooked and landed several Tuna around 100 lbs each! Also caught several Wahoo, 
Mahi Mahi, and smaller Blackfin Tuna. The two day event went by so quickly and all on board had a great time. Captain Mike Thierry has been guiding these waters for almost 40 years now and I highly recommend him if you are looking to take a deep water trip to the Gulf.
Captain Mike Thierry
Dauphin Island AL
Email: CapThierry@aol.com
website: www.captainmikeonline.com