Innholdsfortegnelse for January 1990 i Hawaii Fishing News

■ The strong surge zone became a white foamy abyss as each wave smashed into the rocky shoreline. Through the white water I could easily see an abundance of colorful reef fish that were bouncing up and down with the strong current. I could easily make out the bright yellow bodies of yellow tang and the dark brown outline of numerous filefish and humuhumu. Just outside of the strong current I caught a glimpse of a familiar sight. The bright green bodies of mamo were shimmering just below the water’s surface and creating a “rubbish line” appearance in the water. I took a second look and was convinced the schooling fish were mamo when 1 saw the distinct dark vertical bands that are associated with the damsel fish family. I…

■ January is one of those blah months for me. The holidays are over, the kids have gone back to the mainland, those New Year’s resolutions I shouldn’t have made are hounding me, the weather is colder and wetter, and I’m looking ahead to tax time (notice I said “looking, ahead”; I usually wait until March to race around and look for all those check stubs and receipts). So what’s good about January? From a culinary standpoint, fish prices are lower after the holidays, and many of us receive at least one new cookbook to drool over. From every other view, there are lots of good things about January, so the blahs never last too long. But, if you can’t shake them, remember that the next December is only 11…

■ What is your life worth? A hundred dollars? A thousand? A million? Is your life and the lives of your loved ones priceless? Most of us probably think so. That is why it amazes me when I see fishermen consistently deny spending a few lousy bucks to insure their safety should they run into trouble on the ocean. I speak from the perspective of depending on the captain to faithfully execute the unspoken agreement that he will make certain the vessel is safe and equipped with devices to insure survivability of a worst-case scenario, and that his boat handling skills are sufficient to weather any on-board emergency. That just makes sense to me and, I presume, to most people who spend time at sea. Why is it then that…

■ Fishing continued to be slow off Central O‘ahu. Some gusty winds and high seas kept fair-weather fishermen on shore. Most of the marlin action was concentrated in Wai’anae. Pearl Harbor Trollers Pearl Harbor Trollers announced the following new officers for 1990: president-Jim Hayes; vice president and tournament chairman-Jim Sposato; secretary-Sarah Clark; and treasurer-Kathy Stanley. Larry Fisher on the KAIOPUNA was the winner of the-Pearl Hafbdr Triiliimirrtstthent. Larry’s mahimahi weighed 37 lbs. Joe O’Neil caught a nice 81-lb ‘ahi on the 26th. Big ‘ahi have been hard to find lately, so that was an unexpected and welcome catch. Keehi Boat Club Only three marlin were reported by Keehi members during November. Ono continued to be scarce, and almost no kawakawa or ‘ahi showed up. The HH-buoy produced plenty of small…

Dear Chuck, Enclosed is a picture of our friend Audrey and her 12-lb ‘omilu. She caught it in Makena on the morning of June 11, 1989. We were so excited for her that we decided to write and share the great news. We drove out to Makena the day before to set up our poles for nightfishing. We were hoping for a big strike that night, but as usual nothing happened. We just caught a few menpachi and other reef fish. The next morning, Audrey caught a moano while whipping and decided to use it as live bait on her ulua pole. Within a half hour or so, she had her strike. She had a few problems, but with the assistance of her husband, Alan, she was able to land…

Rarotonga ■ At the northwest edge of Rarotonga, just after “Black Rock,” Richard Murakami, Chris Watanabe, Ron Lum, and I stopped our Suzuki minivan to survey the fringing reef 300 yards offshore. Here, we thought, the breaking waves might be small enough to give us a chance to fish. Rarotonga, the capital of the Cook Islands, is a five-hour and 30-minute flight from Honolulu on Hawaiian Air. Rarotonga lies directly south of Hawai’i across the equator. All around that small (about 16 miles in circumference) but high island the reef sits close to the land. In many places the lagoon between the reef break and the land is shallow enough to wade. In situations like that, the reef predators (trevally, barracuda, sharks, snapper, and some grouper) patrol a narrow corridor…

■ If you are fishing from a typical rocky seashore with nearby tide pools, there is a ggod chance you are being watched cautiously by little blue eyes. “No way, Jose,” you may say, but it is a scientific fact that some of the small but interesting hermit crabs that often occupy our tide pools have pretty little blue dots on the ends of their eye stalks. Often a youngster’s first introduction to a hermit crab is a surprise. The youngster (perhaps any of us long ago) is playing in a tide pool. Did that small seashell on the bottom just make a quick move? Out of curiosity the shell is picked up and held in the open palm of a hand. If the hand is held steadily and unmovingly,…

■ When I first started spinning for fish as a kid, it almost seemed impossible to me that a 1-lb or 2-lb papio could be landed on line any smaller than 15-lb test. Each time we went fishing, there I was using a reel more suited for light, 4-to 6-lb test line, filled with at least 10-lb test because I thought I needed at least that strength of line to land a nice-sized fish. The line always seemed stiff for the size of the reel I was using, and it didn’t flow through the guides on my pole very well. But back then I was just a kid who didn ’t know better. I often fished with my father, who was strictly a big-line conventional shorecaster, and spinning was something…

HPM Inside the Breakwater Trolling Tournament ■ On November 12, the day of the HPM Building Supplies Trolling Tournament, the weather report called for sunny and hazy conditions and the wind was blowing southwesterly at 5 to 15 mph. The condition of the sea was beautiful. The entry fee for the event was $30 per boat. Fishing rules were strict, allowing only trolling and no live bait. Fishing was from 6 a.m. to 12 noon, and awards for the four largest fish were given at Wailoa State Park at 1 p.m. The tournament was monitored on Channel 8 on the CB radio. At 5:45 a.m. the nine boats participating in the tournament began to depart. By 6:15 all the teams had checked into control, had their lines out and were…

■ In the December 1989 issue Peter Dunn-Rankin reported on our trip to Kalaupapa to participate in the First Annual Kalaupapa “Jungle Rules” Shorecasting Tournament. This month I’d like to take you back to. Kalaupapa and share with you one of the most effective ways to catch large ‘omilu that Paul Okouchi and I had ever witnessed. You will recall that Paul and I were fishing with twoKalaupapa residents, Patti Colburn and Father Fernandez. Patti was fishing with a traditional Hawaiian “kau xau stick,” a 20-foot guava tree branch bleached wntto Yom many days of being exposed to the hoi sun oemg washed with ocean spray. Father was using a standard 12i-foot casting rod with a 4/0 reel. They were two very different but equally effective methods of hanging bait…

The Mop Returns What looks like a mop, acts like Velcro and digs deep furrows into the brow of your local International Game Fish Association official? Yes, indeed, after 20 years of hiding, the hookless billfish lure is back. A story entitled “Mop Up Your Bills,” in the December issue of Salt Water Sportsman is sure to restart a controversy that divided local billfishermen back in the early 1970s. Way back then, Kona captain George Parker had been very successful using trolling lures skirted with unstranded nylon rope but rigged teaser-style, without hooks. The bill of a marlin is like a file, covered with small teeth. Each tooth is a miniature hook, and a marlin bill is armed with more hooks per square inch than you can count. When a…

■ Gods and goddesses, demigods and supernatural beings were all part of the Hawaiian way of life. In a true native fishing family of Hawai’i, the stories of the fish god Ku’ula and his ‘ohana, wife Hina and Ai’ai his son, are passed on from generation to generation. Long time ago, an account was told about Ku’ula and his family, who resided at Aiea in the village of Hana, Maui. The story took place during the time that King Kahoali’i was reigning at his residence at the famous hill Ka’uiki. One day the king told his fishers, who were the Ku’ula family, to bring him some fish. That was the king’s customary practice. When the attendants of the king went to Ku’ula for the daily supply of fish, Ku’ula gave…

Risky Fishing ■ Twenty inches wide, 3½ inches thick and 6½ feet long with a PVC pole holder on the nose best describes Keith Okimoto’s surfboard. On that board, he gradually paddles out to sea, about 300 yards offshore out of Hakalau, Hilo, and attempts to catch some midsized fish. There the water is often brown and murky, a tempting place for sharks to satisfy their appetites. Yet, Keith dangles his tegs in the water to balance his board. Keith strongly advises people not to do this kind of fishing because of many factors. On a recent fishing trip out in the waters off Onomea, Keith got bumped (strongly jolted) by a huge shark, and that naturally gave Keith a cold chill throughout his entire body. According to Keith, he…

■ Happy New Year to all you fishermen out there. I hope you had some great holidays during the past year. Did you get that new rod orjeel you were hoping for? How about the new “secret weapon” lure that your “better half” gave to you for Christmas? You may have your doubts about it, but, then again, it could work. Have you made your New Year’s resolution yet? If not, here’s a suggestion. How about resolving to treat your fellow fishermen out there with the same respect that you expect of them. That includes being courteous while working bird piles, acting in a sane manner while fishing the buoys, and, most importantly, taking time out from fishing to investigate a mayday call if the distressed vessel is in your…

For tetters’:and photos received during the month January, ws wiH sand you a hanacarvec one-piece wood floater Our way of saying thanks for sharing your catch. … Hana pa’a, Chuck Send to: P. O. Box 25413, Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96825 Hi Chuck, Look at this 3-lb papio my brother Keith is holding. It was caught in Hawaii Kai waters on September 23, 1989 by my uncle, Pat Chang. Happy Fishing Days! Kiara Sakamoto Honolulu, O‘ahu Dear Chuck, Enclosed is a photo of a 1 74-lb blue marlin that I caught off Miloli’i. It was caught on 30-lb test line and stand-up tackle (Sabre Stroker rod and a Fin-Nor 6/0 reel). The crew included Capt. Bobby Brown, Leon Lange and Billy Dorr. Also included is a photo of my mother’s 379-lb blue…