CAPTAIN MIKE ALBRONDA

631 668 2056

MONTAUK MONSTERS

454 LB THRESHER

300 LB MAKO

Heat Is On, Fish Are Biting

By Russell Drumm

    As anyone who visited the ocean over the weekend will tell you, the water was, and continues to be, a beautiful light emerald green, and clear as quartz crystal. It’s also warm, 77 degrees only 10 miles from shore, and filled with tropical and Gulf Stream-migrating fish including those that fly.

    “Bluefins, mahimahis, flying fish were spotted, and a lot of bait — mackerel. The water is as clean as it gets,” cooed Joe Gaviola, who went shark fishing on his Finest Kind boat on Sunday about 10 miles south of Montauk Point. About noon, in the same general area, the threads of a great fish story were being woven aboard the charter boats Montauk and Mistress II.

    Capt. Mike Albronda of the Montauk had just begun towing a monster thresher shark before hoisting it aboard when Bart Ritchie, captain of the Mistress II, radioed to ask if he might move into the chum slick that had produced the big fish, Captain Albronda answered in the affirmative. Shortly thereafter, a rod bent deep on the Mistress, bowing to a thresher that later tipped the scales at 372 pounds.

    On Friday, Manny Puig of Ultimate Predator Productions went offshore on the Montauk to swim with the sharks. Captain Albronda said that after a dusky shark was chummed up, Puig entered the water to hand-feed it. The free-diver and crew realized the big shark had swum into a plastic bag that was wrapped around its body, and was cutting into the animal. Puig was able to free the shark from its plastic bondage.

Looking for the world's greatest salt water fishing, Capt Mike Albronda came to Montauk on vacation and never left. That's not exactly true, but its not far off. He started his career in fishing straight out of high school, mating on Captain Al Coley's BETTY W out of Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn. This was back in 1964, and he has been making his living on the water ever since, except for a two year stint working for Uncle Sam.
In the summer of 1968, he and his wife took a busman's holiday, spending a week in Montauk. He wasn't here to fish everyday, but he did manage to make one trip on Captain Dick Vigilant's TRITON, which at the time was sailing as an open boat. The fishing was great and Mike left his catch with the crew to sell. When Dickie asked if he was coming back the next day Mike said he could only afford one trip.

Dickie didn't see that as a problem and invited him to fish for free, whenever he wanted. All he had to do was leave the fish to be sold at the dock. That was the beginning of Mike's life in Montauk. The next spring he returned as the mate on the TRITON. Mike continued on as mate until 1972, when Dick decided to change over to commercial fishing. That was no problem for Mike. He simply got another job, working with Captain Paul Sundberg on his charter boat,

the MONTAUK. When Paul's wife died and he started to develop health problems, Mike bought the MONTAUK.
The original MONTAUK was a big Chesapeake built wooden boat and was aging rapidly. The upkeep was getting to be more than the boat was worth and in 1985, Mike sold the old boat and brought a 36' fiberglass one, the SEAWEED, that formerly sailed out of Connecticut. It wasn't as big as the old boat, but it was much faster and more economical, both to run and to maintain.

In 2007, Mike upgraded to a 42' Bruno & Stillman, a much larger and more comfortable boat with a giant cockpit. Mike sails out of DURYEA'S DOCK, with much of his business devoted to family groups, and is especially good with kids.