Innholdsfortegnelse for May 1989 i Hawaii Fishing News

■ Judging from the response to last month’s column, many of you out there were “caught” by my little April Fools’ joke. It seems to have served its purpose: more fishermen are discussing the need for additional buoys off the Wai’anae Coast. Active discussions are great, but without some kind of follow-up action, they usuaily accomplish nothing. Think of it as trolling a lure without a hook. The lure may get a lot of attention from a marlin, but the fisherman will never get any results unless he takes the time to attach a hook to that lure. If results are what you want, take the time and call Alvin Katekaru at 548-3894 or Glen Higashi at 548-3044. Alvin is the assistant to Henry Sakuda, who is the head honcho…

■ The excellent fishing continued through March; the Lahaina Town boats weighed in 26 blues, 31 stripers and nine spearfish, a total of 66 billfish. That brought the yearly marlin count up to 275 for the first three months of 1989. The FINEST KIND weighed in the largest marlin of the month, and the fourth largest marlin of the year, a 420-pounder caught by Lance Brady. Capt. R. O. and crewman Kevin McLaughlin were working the FINEST KIND about 3 miles off the light on the backside of Lana’i when suddenly Kevin saw a large shadow behind the “bird,” run on the longrigger. R. O. told Kevin that he was just dreaming, but they both kept their eyes on the lure as the bird continued to flap its way across…

The First (And Probably Only) Jack Gushiken Freshwater Fishing Tournament ■ Have you ever heard of a Rube Goldberg devise? Some of you older folks might recall that Rube Goldberg was a Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist who drew outrageously complicated machinery that would perform basically simple tasks. For instance, his version of an ordinary mousetrap might work like this: A mouse would come along and nibble on some cheese, which was tied with a string to a ladle overhead. Because of the tugging on the string, the ladle would tip over and spill some water into a cup. The cup in turn would be delicately balanced on one side of a seesaw. The extra water from the ladle would tip the seesaw and cause the side opposite the cup to rise.…

■ Capt, Jay Mintern and first mate George Morrison are a team made in heaven, a team that makes other captains and crew envious. Why? Because they work together so well that each knows the other’s thoughts. The results are obvious; when others are trying, Jay and George are catching. It’s been said that a good man at the back of the boat can give you the leading edge, and George is that kind of mate. The MOKUNANI II charters out of the submarine base at Pearl Harbor. For an exciting day with a better than average chance of boating a good-sized fish, call Jay. The MOKUNANI H’s March catch report included a 35-lb striped marlin caught by the gang, a 35-lb striped marlin landed by R. Bradbury, a 57-lb…

■ I learned how to Hock uhu quite by accident, and it turned out to oe the Kind of accident every angler would like to have happen more often. One weekend, while fishing ’cr ulua and papio, I discovered that a neighbor of irme fished at the same spot where I had been fishing ’or years, but his quarry was uhu, or parrotfish. We o’ten talked about fishing whenever we bumped into each other in our neighborhood, but we never ran into each other at that particular fishing spot until one morning, when lo and behold, there we were, each geared for our own game, bumping into each other in the country. I was fishing for a while before he and his brother got to the grounds. 1 didn’t recognize…

■ The fillet of moray eel on the slide bait rig slid down the line, slapped the surface of the water and then slowly disappeared below the surface. Mel Hirayama, shirtless and clothed in a threadbare fatigue jacket, stood alone on the low rocky point and watched as his last bait slowly sank. “Morning-quiet,” Mel thought. He always loved these quiet moments when the silence was broken only by the soothing sounds of the rumbling waves and the squawking sooty terns as they left their nests. He stood perfectly still, listening, and then he tucked his rod in the bend of his elbow, slowly raised his two hands together and blew his warm breath into them. Cold; it was really cold. His breath gathered in heavy clouds as he neatly…

Kailua-Kona Catch Report Due to the limited space available and the large number of fish caught, catch reports are limited to tuna over 100 ibs and biiifish of any size, any species. (S) = Striped marlin, (B) = Black marlin and (T) = Tag and release, weight estimated.…

■ 1. What do you do when you’ve scratched the finish on a new fishing rod? a Maui reader asked. That depends on the type of finish and how deep the scratches are. Most fishing rods made in the past few years have a thick polymer coating that puts a heavy layer of protection over the wraps. If yours is like that, you can generally smooth out the scratches a bit to make them less noticeable. First, try an automotive polishing compound or some other form of fine-grit surface restorer. Some cleaning products are made especially for restoring fiberglass surfaces. Rub the scratches out as much as you can without wearing off too much of the resin coating. Then top with a coat of auto wax, and buff to a…

Long Winter Causes Trouble ■ After two years, one month and 25 days, I finally caught an ulua legally. I was excited and happy at the time I landed this ulua, but it later turned out to be a nightmare for me. It was February 24 at 9 a.m. when Harold Yoshikawa and I left for Kona. Our first stop was outside the National Park where we took a short coffee break. Our second stop was at the Ka‘u Fishing Supply Store where I bought some fresh tako. The third stop was at the Manuka State Park where we had our lunch. Finally, we reached our fishing grounds at about 12:35 p.m., and we met Rodney Raymond, who is Harold’s nephew from Kona. The first thing that we did was…

■ Strong trade winds kept many boats from going out in the early part of the month. Even the regular weekday fishermen were kept in by the adverse weather conditions. Fishing in general improved as the weather did, and this caused a marked increase in the mahimahi catch. The fish were out there, but no one could get out far enough and stay long enough to catch them. A few large marlin were caught, and that was really nice because we have not seen too many of them so far this year. The bottomfishing got hot when some unexpected Kona weather stuck around, allowing the bottom pounders to get some ‘opakapaka and other good kinds of fish. The fishermen have noticed an increase in the number of shark in the…

■ They were fishing for Jerry’s Kids on Saturday, March 18, off Kona, Hawai’i. “Saint Paddy’s Day the Kona Way-for MDA” was the slogan for the First Annual Shamrock Shoot-Out, part of a weekend fund-raising effort on the Big Island. The tournament drew support from numerous local businesses, charter and recreational fishermen and Hawaii’s Mayor Bernard Akana, among others. The one-day event drew 27 teams ready to ante up the $200 entry fee, ail of which went to charity thanks to the generous donations of prizes including four round-trip air fares to the mainland, sumptuous meals and tackle from Penn and Kunnan. Light-tackle angler Nancy Fann served as tourna ment director. The rules of the event allowed a variety of tackle sizes, and the final catch was a good indicator…

Hey Chuck, We’re a group of divers on O’ahu that still believe that our island isn’t completely fished out yet and r.ave proved it by our last overnight net catch on the east side of O’ahu. Our eaten totaled 140 fish which consisted of mostly akule and redfish with just three nets. Not bad for beginners, huh? Well, we just thought that we would share our good fortune with you and your readers and let everyone know that O’ahu ain’t what it used to be, but the fish are still out there. Much Mahalos, The Hit and Run Gang Deea-Chuck, Sorry. Pma little late with my renewal, but Tue been fishin’! Here are a couple of photos of my daughter Kendra, one from Maui last August and the other from…

Dear Chuck, In Kohala we start’em young. The Caravalho boys (from left to right) Brycen, Kolby and Torry, are new subscribers to HFN, but know a little about fishing. Before they reach our age they’ll be writing in and giving us all some tips. Mahalo, Mike Regan & friends Kapa au, Hawai’i Dear Uncle Chuck, We just thought that you would like to print these fish that our dad caught on a fishing trip last week with Uncle Bert. He had a great time and wants to go out again. He made us feel special when he appointed us in charge of fish cleaning! At first we didn’t like it but now we’re kind of used to it. Dad makes the best panko papio… he told us to say that!…

Hawai‘i Spearfish Pricks New England Interest ■ An interesting inquiry came to us from Boston, where spearfish have developed a gourmet following. Recently, there has been a “sudden rash of Hawaiian spearfish on the menus of a number of Massachusetts restaurants,” our correspondent wrote. Interest in this new entree has come after the implementation of a Federal Billfish Plan, which makes the sale of Atlantic marlin illegal. On asking the restauranteurs, the writer was assured that the fish sold were spearfish from Hawai’i, “where the species is abundant and in no trouble at ali.” The writer expressed worry that the fish are really blue marlin, striped marlin, or maybe even white marlin (an Atlantic, only, species) bootlegged as spearfish. And he’s not convinced any or all of the “spearfish” come…

Honokohau Catch Report 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) = Biack marlin and (T) = Tag and release, weight estimated.…

Dear Chuck, Greetings from sunny Alaska. I just wanted to show you that we grow ’em big in Alaska, too. This king salmon weighed in at 70 lbs. My family and I have been vacationing in your beautiful state for the last five years. My dream is to hook into one of those 100-plus-Ib ulua. I always read your excellent newspaper and have read both “how-to” books [Fishing Hawaii Style Volume 1 and 2]. I fish commercially in Alaska, so fishing is my whole life. We are getting systematically wiped out up here by the huge “squid gill net” fleet of 200’ to 300’ vessels that operate north ofHawai ’iand south of Alaska. This fleet numbers over 700 vessels, and new ships are being launched daily. Over 10,000 miles of…

■ Endangered species of marine mammals, birds and fish are dying because of marine debris, but little can be done to stop the killing because there is not enough information about the problem. At the Second International Conference on Marine Debris, researchers from around the world met from April 2 to 6, 1989, at the Ala Moana Hotel to present and discuss the latest on marine debris in hopes of moving toward a solution. Topics discussed at the conference included sources of marine debris, entanglement and ghost fishing, ingestion, economic impacts, technology, law and policy, and education. “Marine debris is an international problem, first because it’s killing, and may ultimately decimate, some of the world’s important marine species, and second because trash from one country’s boats or coastal areas may…