Innholdsfortegnelse for February 1986 i Hawaii Fishing News

■ It’s still winter but February’s weather is normally less severe than January’s. Good weather will prevail during the majority of the days in the month, but bad weather periods can cause problems: gusty trade winds, high northwest swell and surf, cold front with thunderstorms and heavy rain. The fast and sometimes unexpected appearance of these strong winds in local waters should be considered by those planning activities in the water. Wintertime high northwest swell and surf action is gradually winding down. At Sunset Beach, O‘ahu, expect about four days of surf higher than 10 feet but less than 20 feet and surf heights between 6 to 10 feet on about 12 days. Trade winds are expected on over half of the days in the month with gusty trades on…

■ Hawai‘i’s shore fishermen haven’t been idle over the holidays, and fishing for the first month of the year has paid off for the persistent fishermen. Waianae Coast According to Butch at Shyrl’s Fishing Supply in Wai‘anae, the annual ‘o‘io run, which started in early December, has been excellent and is expected to continue through February. Good catches have been reported along the Leeward Coast of O‘ahu. Many fish are in the 10-lb range. Surprisingly enough for this time of year, white papio, big guys—5 to 8 lbs, have been coming up in good numbers on the Wai‘anae Coast. Wai‘anae shore casters are also boasting to have captured the first 100-plus-lb ulua for the year with reports of two fish over the century mark landed in January. Big Island Hilo…

■ Many of Kona’s charter boats were out on the beautiful blue ocean on New Year’s Day, 1986, when one of our top charter captains, Jack Prettyman on the charter boat SUMMER RAIN, hooked up to a big marlin early in the morning. After one hour, that Pacific blue marlin, which had taken a lure, was secured to the SUMMER RAIN and was towed to Kailua Town Pier where it was weighed and photographed. Angler Richard Hartom, Capt. Jack Prettyman and Jack’s son, John, the crewman, really caused some extra New Year’s Day excitement when they weighed their fish. The large crowd watching saw a 1,229-lb Pacific blue marlin, a fish larger than any of the five super marlin caught in 1985. Many captains on other boats called over the…

FOR LETTERS AND PHOTOS RECEIVED DURING FEBRUARY 1986 A NINE-PIECE ASSORTMENT OF PLASTIC BAITS FROM HAWAII AN TACKLE COMPANY Howzit Chuck, This is a picture of my first ulua. It’s a 14½-lb ‘omilu. It was caught early in the morning of December 3, 1985, at one of my favorite spots. I was using puhi fillet as bait and four spark plugs taped together for weight ‘cause I had run out of lead and wanted to make my last cast before going home and then heading to work. I’ve been shore casting actively and patiently for eight months now. It was worth every moment. It feels like a real early Christmas present. I always read HAWAII FISHING NEWS and enjoy your Holoholo section. It’s great inspiration to see what other fishermen…

Fishing Forecast is compiled from catch statistics gathered over the last 30 years. (Data sources include both commercial and recreational catches.) Therefore, the forecast shows general trends that have occurred over many years. From year to year, however, fishing success can vary a great deal for the same month. Changes in sea conditions here, and elsewhere, can mean poor fishing in a traditionally excellent month or great fishing in what is normally the off-season. Furthermore, the catch statistics are also influenced by fishing effort. During the summer months, for example, surface fishing is good and few anglers fish the bottom. As a result, the poundage of snapper caught during the summer is far less than throughout the winter. Yet, on some grounds summer bottom fishing is often just as good…

■ More and more of Hawaii’s anglers are beginning to learn that using a shoulder harness is not the most advantageous way to fight a big fish on heavy tackle, nor is it the most comfortable. It is better to use a bucket harness, which translates an angler’s weight into lifting power without a great deal of effort. One harness that allows anglers to take advantage of their weight and leg power is the Chair Harness, manufactured by Faulkner Sea Products. This unique fishing tool, inspired by the “Monster Bucket” of giant bluefin tuna fishing fame, is comfortably padded across the lower back and under the seat, and it allows an angler to slide on the chair and rock comfortably back and forth against the rod while using very little…

■ Obtaining insurance for commercial fishing boats in Hawai‘i is going to become more difficult before it becomes easier. That the problem of obtaining insurance for commercial fishing boats in many other parts of the United States is also worsening is not likely to be of much consolation to Hawai‘i’s fishing fleet. In fact, fewer marine insurance underwriters want to write policies on commercial fishing boats in Hawai‘i, at least for the time being, said Dennis Smith, president of Marine Surveyors and Consultants Inc. in Honolulu. Smith recently returned from San Francisco where he attended the annual banquet of the Association of Marine Underwriters. He talked with more than 20 marine insurance underwriters, most of whom write policies for commercial fishing boats. “Only three or four of them are interested…

■ The beginning of a bright new year leaves us all with happy memories of the past holiday season. The annual Kewalo Basin Christmas party was an exceptionally enjoyable and fun-filled evening due to the tremendous effort and hard work put forth by coordinators Fran Corder and Electra Anderson. Many of our merchants contributed door prizes to the gala event. We would like to extend our thanks and good wishes for the new year to the following individuals and businesses: Fran and Electra; Mike DeRego, owner of Hawaiian Marine; Hobbietat; K. Kida Fishing Supply; McWayne Marine Supply; Ala Wai Marine; J & E Fishing Supply; Keehi Marine Center; Compadres Mexican Bar & Grill; Orson’s Restaurant; Fisherman’s Wharf Restaurant; and Mike’s Wines. And yes, Virginia, there was a Santa Clause—convincingly portrayed…

■ December exploded with some hot fishing action. Forty marlin were hoisted on the scale at Kona Fuel and Marine during the month. The largest fish weighed at the harbor was a 748-lb black marlin taken off Capt. Peter Hoog’s PAMELA. Caught on the 18th, the 13-foot fish had “grander” length, but not girth. She ate an 8-lb ‘ahi on the “top corner” of the grounds. Angler Forrest Pettigrew from Austin, Texas, fought the big black for over two hours. As the fish was lifted for the weigh-in, two large palani, a type of reef fish, fell from her mouth. This bore witness to the fact that this marlin’s habits included patrolling close to the reefs. The last marlin of 1985, a 162-lb Pacific blue, came off Del Cannon’s ANNETTA…

■ On a recent trip to Ponape, in the shadow of the ancient ruins of Nan Madol, I caught a 23-lb dusky black ulua. I thought this was the true black trevally (Caranx lugubris). Even its eyes were black. Later that afternoon, however, Chris Watanabe caught a 35-lb silvery white trevally with identical markings. Both of these fish had a distinct indentation across their rounded foreheads. The fact that the same species of fish could take on such different colors was amazing. The next day Chris caught a more traditional ulua that weighed close to 25 lbs, and it was easy to see that it had little frontal indentation and that its head was less rounded. Are these fish variations of the same species? I put this question to John…

■ Any Hawai‘i fisherman’s daughter has heard stories about a “moi hole.” That’s a secretly guarded location, a sandy hole near the shore where large schools of moi hang out. Fishermen in-the-know hang out there, too, hoping to catch the elusive fish. It isn’t easy to do, unless you can coax a moi onto a baited hook or can accurately throw a net that will cover many of the unsuspecting critters. Because moi, or Pacific threadfin fish, are hard to find in the ocean, they are hard to find in stores. These fish are worth the search, though; wonderfully moist and fine-textured, moi are considered by many to be the most delicious fish in the ocean. Try these recipes; I’m sure you’ll agree! Chinese-Style Steamed Moi 1 whole moi, 1…

■ Well, the holidays have come and gone, and it’s time for all of us to lose those extra pounds! Wet suits all over the island are stretching at the seams. It’s amazing how those things shrink every winter! The Annual HCDC Diver of the Year Awards Banquet will be held on February 22 at the Waikiki Aquarium. Contact your club representative or call me for ticket information. As always, there will be plenty of door prizes, and this year we are hoping for a lot of entries in the photo contest. All the winning photos will be displayed, and, space permitting, all the entries will also be displayed. Kahala Recently, Chris Takahashi and “Bwana” Woodman stopped by my house to borrow a backpack. One of them (I know, Chris,…

■ What a way to end the year! Waialua Sugar stopped drawing water in December, so the water level was stable all month. When that happens, the fish don’t move around as much, so when you do find a concentration of them, you can be assured of finding them there day after day. A lot of people took vacations during the holidays, and we all had our favorite spots where there was fantastic action. The favorite place by far had to be the spot in the basin that we call Condo Point. When the bass move to the points, that only spells one thing to me—live bait. That’s when I get spoiled. I was lucky enough to get a lot of bait this month, but I was going through it…

Due to the limited space available and the large number of fish caught, catch reports are limited to tuna over 100 lbs and billfish of any size, any species. (S) = Striped marlin, (b) = Black marlin. A first priority before venturing offshore is to acquire a basic knowledge of island waters. A good radio is also a must. Fortunately for Kona’s boating community, an active Coast Guard Auxiliary keeps close tabs on CB and VHF, and this aids in the rescue of many boats in distress throughout the year. A recent case in point involved an inflatable raft, manned by two malihini fishermen, which headed out from Kealakekua. These novices were interested in the light-tackle fishing they had heard about around C-buoy, a FAD (Fish Aggregation Device) off Kealakekua.…