Get into Day Dropping for Swordfish

Try this for big Swordfish, Get into Day Dropping

​By Ted Lund
It is time to get into day dropping for swordfish if you want to enhance your catch. Daytime dropping for swordfish is becoming more and more popular with anglers from Texas to the Outer Banks. Some truly large broadbills are being taken, as evidenced by Capt. Nick Stanczyck’s recent catch of a 757-pounder.

Get into Day Dropping for Swordfish, Photo Credit: Capt. Nick Stanzcyk

Traditional Methods vs. Day Dropping for Swordfish

​The traditional method of fishing for broadbill swordfish entails drifting offshore in Deepwater canyons at night. Rigged squid are fished at staggered depths of 75, 150 and 300 feet on long wind-on leaders with Cyalume glow sticks or battery-powered commercial fishing lights that attract small prey items and in turn, swordfish.
But thanks to the development of high-capacity electric reels, recently, anglers have perfected an innovative method of targeting swordfish.
The idea is to mark bait around drop-offs and ridges from 1,400 to 1,800 feet of water, where the swordfish spend their days.
Once you’ve located bait on the sounder, anglers get up current of the mark by as much as a ½ mile. Using heavy lead sash weights, anglers set up the drift and deploy baits until they hit bottom. Once they make the bottom, anglers power drift — using the engines to align the drift up with the mark.
A daytime swordfish bite is typically very subtle. Anglers watch the rod tip carefully for the slightest movement. It isn’t uncommon for a fish to react to being hooked by swimming at the boat and towards the surface, leading anglers to believe they don’t have a bite until the fish is jumping at the surface. Thanks to the advent of the new electric reels, anglers can catch up with slack quickly and then settle down into fighting fish.

​Rigging A 320 CC for Swordfish Success

​There are a number of different platforms available to anglers interested in day dropping, but one of the better ones is the recently updated 320 CC by Tidewater Boats.
Tidewater’s flagship center console, the 320 CC Adventure provides a dry, comfortable ride to the canyons thanks to a 22-degree deadrise and 10-foot, 8-inch beam. When drifting, the boat is stable and offers the security of high gunwales.

​Rated for up to 700-hp, and with 290-gallons of standard fuel capacity,  the 320 CC Adventure has the legs to make long runs in bad weather to make the most of your fishing day.
With just about every creature comfort available on a center console, anglers are sure to enjoy their ride to and from the swordfish grounds, as well as their day on the water.
In order to make sure the boat is prepped for day-dropping, new boat owners can work directly with their Tidewater dealers to outfit it with power plugs for today’s modern 12- and 24-volt electric reels.
And if you do happen to luck into a monster like the one Stanzcyk caught, Tidewater’s side swim door comes in handy as an impromptu tuna door.
Once the big broadbill is on board, anglers have plenty of insulated storage to help preserve their catch on the way back to the dock.
The Tidewater 320 CC Adventure is available in a variety of colors.  Additional features include underwater lighting, digital control systems like Mercury’s Vessel View and Yamaha’s Helm Master as well as a variety of T-top and windshield options to help keep anglers cool when the fishing heats up.
For more information on the innovative Tidewater 320 CC Adventure, the entire lineup of Tidewater boats or to locate a dealer near you, visit www.tidewaterboats.com.