‘Blue Makaira’ is Captained and crewed by passionate fishermen who’s primary aim is to place our clients into a position where they can catch a Blue Marlin of a lifetime in the warm seas of Madeira.
The Captain
On the 4th July 2016 Captain Nuno captained Blue Makaira to win the ‘Blue Marlin World Cup’ with a Blue Marlin of 983lbs https://www.bluemarlinworldcup.com/records-fall-in-2016-blue-marlin-world-cup Incredibly, this fish was the fourth-largest ever caught in World Cup history, surpassed only by the three thousand-pound-plus “granders” caught in 2010, 2004 and 1993. In another notable twist, Blue Makaira’s Capt. Nuno was the also on the winning boat for the 2015 World Cup.
Madeiran by birth, Captain Duarte Nuno Vasconcelos Goncalves has been fishing the waters of Madeira since he was a young child, guided by his uncle who had also spent his formative years on a similar learning curve.
As Nuno entered in to his teens his passion grew stronger, putting to sea with his brother in a ten foot boat (with a 4hp engine!) to explore the waters of Madeira, where they fished for their supper, an idyllic life for a young man.
Fascinated by the sea and fishing, Nuno’s big opportunity came when in 2004 Calheta Marina opened. With the arrival of the Big Game boats, his moment had arrived, crewing and working on the boats whenever he got the chance beside some of the great Big Game Captains and crews that had flocked to Madeira to fish for the best Blue Marlin that the oceans had to offer.
In 2013 Captain Nuno was certified as an ‘IGFA Captain’.
Captain Nuno has many strings to his bow, one of which is his intuitive ability to locate Blue Marlin and the other Big game fish found in the seas of Madeira.
Nuno Speaks excellent English as well as some German.
The Crew and Wireman
‘Blue Makaira’ is crewed by Madeirens and International crewmembers, all of whom have experience on ‘Blue Makaira’ and lengthy backgrounds in Big Game fishing. Not least of all they all share our common passion for fishing.
The Owner
Mark Rideout, Mark has fished for greater than half a century! He is a fanatical fisherman who has no limitation as to when, where and what he will fish for.