Innholdsfortegnelse for April 1992 i Hawaii Fishing News

Mokule‘ia-White-Water Mystery ■ Hawaii’s famous winter waves began their march to O‘ahu’s northwest shoreline, and the raging white water and surf soon reached Mokuleia. Along with those waves came a highly respected predator, the white ulua, the “king,” one of Hawaii’s largest shoreline game fish. These silvery, scaled beasts reach weights of more than 100 lbs, and a 50-pounder can exhaust your arms and back in a flash during a grueling battle. Jon Nakamura and Fish Arabia looked forward to such an encounter last October. The dark moon phase and fast-rising tides were promising for the “virgin” Mokule‘ia shoreline and the shallow reef they had scouted two weeks earlier. Fish felt confident, and his partner shared that feeling. The men weren’t neophyte casters or club “Bananas.” Jon had caught a…

Dear Chuck: Thanks for the February issue of HAWAII FISHING NEWS, which I read with interest. I note the feature article on the bonefish. I wonder if the fishermen of Hawai‘i are aware that there are two species of bonefish here. We used to believe there was a single circumtropical species of bonefish, Albula vulpes. Twelve years ago, Dr. James B. Shaklee, then the ichthyologist in the Department of Zoology of the University of Hawai‘i, telephoned me to say he made an electrophoretic analysis of the proteins of some specimens of bonefish and noted two patterns so distinct that he believed they represented two species. But, he added, he could not find any external differences in the two. His counts of scales, fin rays and gill rakers showed no obvious…

■ “Georgia Peach Jo Jo. Georgia Peach Jo Jo.” The wattled honeycreeper in the lime tree outside my window laughed at us at 4:30 a.m. It was also time for roosters to crow, pigs to grunt and squeal, and church bells to ring. “Wake up, Tongans,” the heralds seemed to say. This cacophony was rising up and around the Evaloni Guest House where our party of four fishermen was bedded down. Half an hour later the morning was quiet, and we could go back to sleep. Unbelievably we had arrived in the Kingdom of Tonga two days before minus our main fishing rods. When we left Hawaii we strapped our three rod cases together in order to track them better. But the Hawaiian Airlines’ counter clerk sent them to Pago…

■ Wherever the WILD WEST shows up, it looks like the circus has come to town. “Bart Milter said that,” volunteered Capt. Bob West, “we like to clown around a bit.” Then he described the circus catch that lassoed first place in this year’s Kona Calabash Fishing Tournament. Bob’s team had been fishing north of Kona in seas roughened by gusty trades and a distant storm. “The grounds were bumpy, and we were bouncing around, trolling lures and seeing no action.” Faced with uncomfortable and unpromising conditions and with time running out on the second day of the two-day event, Capt. West turned his 38-foot Topaz south. “Capt. Ray Nibert told me he had lost a nice fish down there the day before, so we figured we’d head south of…

■ After a slow start, the fishing got better later in the month as the weather improved to the point where you could fish without fear of frostbite. Boy, it was cold! El Nino is really causing some unusual changes in the weather and fishing, too. During the last El Nino, fishing was poor but the weather was basically all right except for Hurricane ‘Iwa. This time, the weather has been cold and windy from the north but the fishing for most fish except maybe aku, which is plentiful yet very small in size, has improved slowly. Bottomfishing has been slow, and the fish have been small. Trolling has been the way to go, especially for Mike and Roxanne Rawlins who went out on a borrowed fire fighter’s boat, the…

For tetters received during the month of April we have special gift designed by Gary Au of Kaku Lures—a specially designed Anniversary Key Chain. Kaku Lures celebrates their 5th anniversary of making top water plugs and trolling lures “Made in Hawaii” and HFN celebrates 15 years of serving Hawai‘i’s fishing community…our way of saytng thanks for sharing your catch! …Hana pate, Chuck Send to: P.O. Box 25413, Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96825 Dear Chuck, We had a great time diving in Kailua Bay. Here’s a picture of my fishing buddy, Dave Hamm (He’s the one who looks like Santa!) and me with our catch. The only bad thing was maneuvering the ramp! We started the night with one dive and caught the lobster and speared the uhu and loulu. We also did…

■ The long stretch of snoreline was littered with small inlets and protruding points that looked perfect for whipping with ultralight gear. Numerous tidal pools lay scattered as far as the eye could see as I slowly made my way through the lava field. It was uncomfortably hot, so I shed my hiking boots and stood in a shallow tide pool. The water felt all too good. As I inspected the tide pool I noticed a long object on the opposite end of the pool. I walked over to the object, and instantly recognized it as a moray eel skin. Apparently, there had been ulua fishermen here the previous night and this moray eel had been skinned and used for bait. I quickly grabbed the 3-foot long section of skin…

■ I thought that the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council (WESPAC) was on the road to recovery after a bad case of manipulation; but, lo and behold, they had a relapse. After carefully orchestrating another set of committee and council meetings, the council once again became confused about their primary function. Was their obligation to the fishery, or to those who were out to own the fishery? That was the big question of the week. We still had the same council members in our corner, but those on the council staff and some of the council members really outdid themselves this time. They produced a show of which Ringling Brothers would have been proud. It’s unfortunate that the council staff took an issue-area closures-that could have been resolved very…

■ Heavy-duty 130-lb class standup gear weighs enough to sink you right to the bottom if you get yanked overboard. Does it make sense for marlin and tuna? And even it you could handle it, would you want to? For Ralph Mikkelsen, four-time IGFA world record holder, the answer to both questions is a well-qualified yes. Ralph is an unlikely looking fellow for such a challenge. He’s no Rambo by size, temperament or vocation. Ralph worked for the Disney studios for 28 years and is a bit of a character himself. With his wiry spriteliness and curled grey handlebar mustache, he reminds you of a cross between Roger Rabbit and Yosemite Sam. But braced against the transom of a big-game boat—when outmuscling, outwitting and outlasting a Pacific blue marlin, Ralph…

Marina Seafood Catch Report Duo 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 marin and (T) = Tag and release, weight estimated. Kona Marlin Center Report Kailua-Kona Town Pier…

■ 1. Lure Touring. Many of the best techniques in saltwater fishing are adaptations of ideas originated by freshwater fishermen. Here’s another one-useful whether you troll for aku or whip for papio. Tube lures are all the rage for largemouth bass. These soft plastic baits are brightly colored in a wide range of hues and are adaptable for a wide variety of presentations. A few companies even make versions that are specially scented and flavored for extra appeal. What’s more, they are very inexpensive. Ordering from tackle catalogs, you can buy them in batches of a dozen for around 20 to 30 cents each. For saltwater use, you will want to weight them with a jig head, and you even get a price advantage there. The jig head won’t show…

Joint Public Meeting on Proposed Rules to Establish a Permit System for Commercial Tours and Boat Moorings in the Molokini Deaprtment of Land & Natural Resources Division of Aquatic Resources Henry M. Sakuda-587-0100 Shoal MLCD ■ The Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Aquatic Resources, announces a public meeting will be held at 7 p.m. or shortly thereafter on Wednesday, April 15, 1992, at Kihei School Cafeteria, Kihei, Maui. The meeting is being held jointly with the Maui County Aquatic Life and Wildlife Advisory Committee to discuss proposed changes to the department’s Administrative Rule, Chapter 1331 Molokini Shoal Marine Life Conservation Dis- 1) prohibit trolling through the MLCD; 2) ban the feeding of any marine life; 3) ban boat anchoring; 4) allow only private, recreational boats to tie…

Rods: Custom-made fast taper tuna-sticks, 5 feet 2 inches from tip to butt, built on Calstar blanks. Most flex is in the top 18 inches, but the rod curves from tip to butt under pressure. Guides are heavy-duty rollers, not the “Big Foot” series because the blank is too slender. Hypalon butt and foregrip. Foregrip extends to within 18 inches of tip, swallowing the first guide, which pokes through a cut-out. For comfort and security, the foregrip is sculptured with finger holds the full length of the bottom. Reels: Penn International 80 and 130s, customized by Ray Lemme with two-speed (just over 1-to-1 and just under 3-to-1) gear boxes. Drag surfaces are machined to special tolerances. Of his rod and reel outfits, Ralph said, “When big fish move in, you…

■ The billfish catches were way down from those of the same period during the last four years. The southwest corner of Lana‘i seemed to be the hot spot during the month, with both the K- and MC-buoys being very productive. Overall the blue marlin were larger than those caught during the previous month, and one quarter of the fish were taken on live baits. Out of the 39 billfish recorded, 15 were blues, six were stripers and 16 were spearfish. Another two billfish were tagged and released. Paul Nolt angled a nice 75th birthday present for himself, a 345-lb blue marlin. He was fishing aboard the NANI KAI with Capt. Phil Harder and Jim Helton. They were headed out to the CC-buoy off Ka‘ena Point, Lana‘i, when they got…

Dear Chuck, I have been an HFN subscriber for several years now and look forward to every issue. One of my favorite sections is the “Holoholo Style” because of the variety of fish caught as well as the fishermen who caught them. However, as I was reading the February issue, I was dismayed to see a picture of some fishermen who had a “lucky” Labor Day catch of moi. The moi is always a prized catch because of its flavor as well as its fighting ability; however, its scarcity has caused the state to impose bag limits on this fish. It is difficult to determine the exact number of fish in the picture, but even 140 fish would be a conservative estimate. Even if eight people were fishing (only four…