Innholdsfortegnelse for October 1993 i Hawaii Fishing News

■ For Hawaii waters, summer is over and winter is approaching. October may preview the upcoming winter’s weather. There will be a greater variety of weather, but the severity of bad weather has not reached its potential. The following are potentially bad weather events, listed in order of decreasing expected occurrence: (1) northwest swell and surf (2) gusty trade winds (3) weak cold front (4) Kona low (5) north swell and surf (6) hurricane. Other than the northwest swell and surf, the expected frequencies of the other events are low. The frequency of trade winds is going down, but trades will still be the most common winds. The number of gusty trade wind days should be low-about four days. Northwest surf picks up while southerly surf is down at Sunset…

Dear Chuck, I heard a rumor that the governor will be advocating fishing on Moloka‘i be restricted to that island’s residents only! Can this be true? If we on O‘ahu and elsewhere won’t be allowed to fish on Moloka‘i, then maybe those people there shouldn’t come here to go to school, or shop, or see our doctors, etc. Besides, don’t my taxes help subsidize many of the government services provided to the people of Moloka‘i? Can the state really accept my tax money and then prohibit me from fishing on certain islands in the state? If it’s a matter of Hawaiian sovereignty, then maybe it’s a different story. I suppose it is only fair that we allow the native Hawaiians (who by the way enjoy all the privileges of being…

■ If the 35th Annual Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament had run one day longer, Capt Bill Hoey, of the Hawai‘i-based Tournament Angler’s Association, believed that his team had a good chance of winning the prestigious event for the second straight year. Capt. Hoey’s team, the 1992 winner of the HIBT, got off to a good start with a 558-lb Pacific blue marlin taken on 50-lb test line by Tom Snyder the first day of the August 23 through 27 tournament. Later in the week, the team added a tagged-and-released Pacific blue marlin (scored by Phil Parker) to their list. After five days, their total point score qualified the team for fourth place. “One more day, and we could have cinched it,” said Capt. Hoey, whose team easily took the Hawai‘i…

Five Degrees From the Equator ■ A long cast into the froth of the break on the Walung reef was rewarded with an explosive splash. My MULI lure was sent skipping like a flat stone across the back of the next wave. A cobalt-blue dorsal fin knifed through the clear water and pressed the attack on the lure. ‘“Omilu!” Again the stout MULI was airborne. “Hana pa‘a!” I shouted to my fishing companions, Richard Murakami and my brother, Norbert Watanabe. I was hooked up at last. We had arrived on Kosrae two days earlier. The eight-hour trip aboard Continental Micronesia’s “Island-Hopper” included stops at Johnston Island, Majuro and Kwajalein. Upon our arrival we were greeted by Ariel Ablao, the manager of the 8-year-old Coconut Palm Hotel (the oldest hotel in…

■ The bite during August was inside the Kealai-Kahiki Channel between Lana‘i and Kaho‘olawe. The “Factory” area was the hot spot, producing 90 percent of the month’s fish. There were 26 blue marlin, one striped marlin, five spearfish and seven tagged-and-released billfish reported. Nearby storms brought a lot of debris into the channel and made it a haven for mahimahi. During one week, the charter fleet boated over 350 of the tasty mahimahi. The local boaters caught just as many. The North Shore of Moloka‘i also produced some large floaters, and several hundred additional mahimahi made it into the fishboxes of boaters in that area. Besides all the mahimahi, there were large schools of tuna and flocks of birds in the area. The billfish also found spots to feed. Many…

■ Once again the Western Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Council (WESPAC) has met, and once again it has surprised a great many people. However, this time the surprise is on those who are out to exploit the fishery. At the meeting, held September 14-16, the Hawai‘i Fishermen’s Foundation (HFF) lobbied hard for measures to control the growth in the longline fishery. The HFF is now considered one of the leading organizations in the nation involved in the council process, and many feel it has had more of an impact on the council process locally than any other organization in the Pacific. Cooperation with other organizations, a sound basis for our recommendations and the lack of political influence over our positions have made us potent. Amendment 7 The main focus of…

■ Some days just start out wrong: a tire on the boat trailer goes flat; the winds blow too hard; a rod breaks while you’re getting into the car; a crucial fly box gets left behind…. And then, at the other end of the spectrum, there are those rare days when everything and everyone clicks: perfect weather; perfect fishing conditions; an angler who can do no wrong. I had just such a day last fall. I have been in awe of Hawai‘i fishermen since my first visit to Kona in the early ‘60s. My heroes back then included the great Arthur Spinney, Charlie Spinney and those crafty Japanese mullet fishermen casting limu in the Hilo Lagoon. Hawai‘i locals have pioneered so many innovative angling techniques that their prowess is now…

■ Maybe the reason there have been so few articles written about ATLAPAC’s Kipapa Island outings (an annual event for 60 years or more) is because it’s hard to know where to begin. The history of shorecasting as we know it today could have began right here on Kipapa Island as early as 1927, the same year ATLAPAC Fishing Club was formed. Maybe I won’t start with your average “B” grade article about who caught what in this year’s event. For the many HFN readers who have never been to Kipapa Island, and probably never will, we’ve prepared a little map. I’ve even taken the liberty this year to name a few landmark areas (all subject to change, of course!). As I sit here in my HFN sport lounge, the…

■ Kona charter captain Jeff Fay made history in die 35th Annual Hawaiian International Bill-fish Tournament. He was the first to win the I coveted Henry Chee Memorial Award three times. The Henry Chee Award, named after pioneer Kona charterboat Capt. Henry Chee, Is given.to the charterboat captain scoring the most points for his five different teams during the tournament. Jeff shared the award with his summer co-captain, Butch Chee, Henry’s son. “Winning the Henry Chee award three times was special, but doing it with Butch made it unbelievable,” said Jeff, who has been a charterboat captain in Kona since 1966. “ft is so easy fishing with Butch; he’s so competent. I guess that comes from his father’s genes and a lot of hard work over the years. “ Jeff…

■ Congratulations to all of Hawai‘is small-boat trollers and handliners! On Thursday, September 16,1993, the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council (WESPAC) voted 7 to 5 to limit the amount of longline harvest capacity when the longline moratorium expires in April of 1994. There was never any disagreement that a longline limited-entry program needed to be in effect at the end of the current moratorium. Instead, the controversy was directed toward the fisheries data, or, in this case, the lack of data, covering the swordfish stocks in the waters north of Hawai‘i. The longline fishing industry and the seafood industry proposed that all 166 currently permitted longline fishing vessels be issued limited-entry permits at the conclusion of the moratorium. They also proposed that all of the permits be freely transferable…

■ Since the whales left our waters for the season, the ride to Lahaina Town has lost its usual mega-traffic congestion. That was until Chester Hayase and his wife, Charlotte, decided to visit their favorite fishing spot on Maui. The Hayases decided to go to a spot now known as “1,000 Peaks,” right off the pali leading into Olowalu. Charlotte told me it was the first time this year that they’d tried their luck there. Chester made a cast with his Abu Garcia reel and patiently waited for a bite. He soon hooked up, and the battle for the fish was on. Chester is one of those old-time fishermen we talk about with great respect. The coral heads that dot the bay and the large wave swell made his battle…

Kona Marlin Center 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) =Black marlin and (T) = Tag and release, weight estimated. Marina Seafood Catch Report Kona Marlin Center Tag and Release Records…

■ Elmer lived in one valley (holler), while in the next valley over lived Sara Sue. They had been courting for three years. They had really known each other since they were in the first grade at the one-room school house. But it was only after Elmer was 15 that he noticed Sara Sue. Every Saturday night for the last three years Elmer walked down the wagon tracks that led from his holler and around the hill to the holler where Sara Sue lived. Usually, Henry, Elmer’s coon (raccoon) dog would follow along after him. Actually, Henry was not really a coon hound; he was a hound of’ questionable linage. A true coon hound will only chase raccoons. Henry would chase anything that moved as long as Elmer was around.…

■ The ghosts in the ground at Kipapa Island are really wedge-tailed shearwaters or ‘ua’u kani. These shearwaters nest in colonies on the island by using natural crevices in the rocks or by burrowing with their bills and feet under the ground. On Kipapa, the shearwaters are the source of haunting, weird groans, moans and walls that emanate from the ground and float through the night air. According to the Hawaii Audubon Society, wedge-tailed shearwaters carry the nickname “moaning bird” and their calling intensifies prior to egg laying. (Thankfully, only one egg is layed!) Of interest to fishermen, the shearwaters start arriving at Kipapa at dusk and continue showing up for several hours. They often bump into fishing lines in the dark, ringing the bells and causing false alarms. One…

■ It was the last day of the Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament Pro-Am, and the Balboa Angling Club team on Capt. Dale Leverone’s SEA STRIKE wasn’t winning. “We had about 600 points; the top team had something like 1,800,” Capt. Leverone recalled. “Everyone thought we were out of it.” But like the old saying goes, “It ain’t over until it’s over.” By the end of the day, Capt. Leverone had found the team of California anglers a 1,166-lb Pacific blue marlin and Ray Hawkes had landed the fish on 50-lb test line, a feat that not only won the tournament but also broke the previous International Game Fish Association record. Joe Mojica had tagged and released two marlin earlier in the tournament, and Ray, a retiree from Torrance, California, was…

Everything’s ‘Grand’! ■ “I don’t want to catch a big marlin like that,” said Fred Patricio as he watched Joe and Bert Awa pull their 719-lb marlin out of the water at the He‘eia Kea scale. Joe and Bert took about three hours to bring the giant fish to the boat because it died shortly after the hookup and it took a long time to pull all the line back up to the HOLO KAI. Fred and Tran Patricio on the AIGLE DE MER planned to go out the next day to take Freider Boeck on his first deep-sea fishing trip. Freider is a landscaper who never fished much in Germany and wanted to give it a try. In fact, where he comes from, the local river has no fish…

■ Sometimes I cheat in the kitchen! Remember my August column in which I raved about the creativity of the chefs who competed in the Hawaii Seafood Culinary Excellence Competition? I wrote, “If you are one who thinks there are only a handful of ways to prepare seafood, I wish you could have been there.” I was referring to the creative seafood dishes prepared by brilliant chefs, and I meant what I said-then. But when it was time to create recipes for this issue, I drew a blank. I was reduced to thinking fast, so I cheated. I took old (nonfish) favorites and hoped they would taste good with fish. I figured readers would appreciate rumaki without the chicken liver, but would you accept sukiyaki without the meat? How about…