Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2002 i Hawaii Fishing News

■ We set the alarm for 5 a.m. and drove the 45 miles from Makapu’u to Ka‘ena Point on March 2 to join other Atlapac Fishing Club members and volunteers in a club-sponsored project to clean up other folk’s rubbish at the point. On our arrival, we were greeted by humpback whales breaching offshore. The sun was rising, and this looked to be the start of a fun and interesting day. Cammie, the 14-year-old daughter of Atlapac President Paul Okouchi, and I decided to team up and signed up to clean Section #1, the closest area to home base in the parking lot. The saying, “one person’s trash is another person’s treasure” proved untrue in this case. We were amazed at what we found. Certainly, we picked up lots of…

■ During a recent adventure to the wilds of Kenya, our family explored and fished from the Tsavo River to Lake Victoria, touring 250 miles in 10 days. The Manaut party consisted of Alison Manaut, her long-time friend Beverly Jenkins, three of her four children and their spouses. We began in Tsavo West Game Reserve in southern Kenya. The Tsavo River, a crystal-clear spring-fed waterway, was our first fishing opportunity. Using our 6-weight fly rods with Mrs. Simpson’s wet flies, we nailed several barbol (Barbus species). They look like a cross between a mullet and a shad with the dorsal fins being close to the tail. Our guide, Nigel Dundas, long-time fishing buddy Mike Manaut (my brother-in-law) and I each caught several of the aggressive-hitting, hard-fighting river fish. Catching fish…

HAWAII FISHING NEWS STATE SALTWATER RECORDS Fishing Competition… ■ Once upon a time, long, long ago there was a presidential election that was too close to call. Neither the Republican presidential candidate nor the Democratic presidential candidate had enough votes to win the election. Therefore, it was decided that there should be an ice fishing contest between the two candidates to determine the final winner. There was much talk about ballot recounting, court challenges, etc., but a weeklong ice fishing competition seemed the (manly) way to settle things. The candidate who caught the most fish at the end of the week would win. After a lot of back and forth discussion, it was decided that the contest would take place on a remote and cold lake in Wisconsin. There were…

Murder Mutiny Off Hilo Somewhere offshore, southeast of Hilo, Lei Shi, a 21-year-old mainland Chinese cook, had enough of longline fishing. After demanding the longliner return home to China, Lei Shi mutinied. Taiwanese Capt. Chen Chung She, standing strong at the helm, was murdered. According to facts corroborated by Lt. Commander Craig Peterson of U.S. Coast Guard Investigations Honolulu, the deranged cook tossed the captain’s body overboard. First Mate Li Da Feng was then stabbed with a kitchen knife. He bled to death and was cold stored in the fish freezer. Wielding a blood-stained knife, Lei Shi held the 30 crewmen of the 195’ Seychelles-registered FULL MEANS NO. 2 hostage. As renegade captain of his own ship, the cook steamed for home. When radio contact evaporated, the ship was reported…

To Lure or To Attack? ■ To me the word “lure” has the meaning of enticing something or somebody to do something they really ought not do. In other words, a fishing lure is something that is supposed to be attractive to fish with often fatal results. Then, how come most casting/spinning anglers go about using a lure as if it were an item for flogging or attacking the water? The lure is cast out repeatedly to the same place, usually with a splash that can be heard from a distance. Next thing you know, this “lure” is being retrieved with the speed of an express train. Nowhere in Mother Nature’s world is there an item that has that kind of behavior, not even a frog, unless very frightened. Sure,…

■ Spring is looking good on the Windward Coast. The weather has lightened up, and the fish are coming around. Lots of open schools of mahimahi have been located, and so have nets that have some fish around them. We heard that Clinton Gorai on his boat, the KAHEALANI, got a 137-lb ‘ahi. Everyone is hoping for a good summer season of fishing. On the way to Moloka‘i for a few days of bottomfish fishing, Walter Rosehill, Wayne Roxburg and Wallace Hamaguchi aboard the BARBARA ANN caught a fish they did not expect. A marlin came up and took their lure that was out just for fun. It was so funny to see them come back to He‘eia Kea with a 324-lb marlin in tow, hoist it on the scale…

Hale‘iwa Boaters Come Out of Hibernation ■ With the recent light, variable winds, lots of boaters have come out of hibernation. Dusting off their trolling rods and reels, polishing their lures, sharpening their hooks and spearguns, trollers, divers and bottomfish fishermen have been taking advantage of the nice weather and water we have been experiencing on the Hale‘iwa side of the island. Trollers have been seeing some hot and heavy action with mahimahi and aku. A few picked up some good-sized marlin. Bottomfish fishermen had good catches during the night and while day fishing. Good-sized uku seemed to be the catch of the month. The akule and ‘opelu fishermen also picked up good-sized catches. The diving was hot as lobster season drew to a close. Many of the divers took…

■ May signals better weather for Hawai‘i waters-there is less chance of severe weather, like strong Kona winds, thunderstorms or heavy rain. There is still a small chance of bad weather in May, but normally it is a well-behaved month. Trade winds will blow about 86 percent of the time, and one should expect about four to 10 days of gusty trades. Northwest swell activity will continue to decrease. Surf at Sunset Beach, 0’ahu, will not rise above five feet on most days, but there is a chance that 10- to 15-foot surf can occur. Higher than normal swell and surf on the southern shores will be increasing through the month as storms in the Southern Hemisphere become stronger. Tropical cyclones do not normally occur in Hawaii waters in May.…

My friend Masaki Oshima, whose teacher is master Japanese ulua caster and world-record holder Fumio Suzuki, taught most of this system to me. Eric Lorehtzen of Art Marina in Guatemala, now opening up the Galapagos Islands, contributed, as did Lincoln Ahlo of Kona and Sam Scott of Sam’s Tours in Palau. ■ I rode my bike to the “secret” spot I had spent hours finding by cruising the island and scoping the cliffline. I had returned with my gear and planned to stay the day, fishing the zone and enjoying the interplay between the surf and cliff, praying my instincts were right and a monster fish would crash my popper. I planned nearly everything in advance, because to get a monster trevally or other fish to shore with a popper…

Cleaning Antique Reels ■ Since beginning to write about collecting old tackle here in this column, I have received several inquiries about what to do with old reels that people find. Many would like to know if they should clean them, polish them, or leave them as they are found and what effect any of that might have on their value. Some have asked if there are accepted restoration practices for antique reels as there are for other collectibles, such as cars, coins or furniture. Much of this subject was covered in the December 2000 issue of HAWAII FISHING NEWS “Lawafa Splashback” column, which weighed the pros and cons, or “dos” and “don’ts” of cleaning reels. Generally, if an old reel is intended to be a “wall hanger” for display…

■ “Fishing Tales®” airs five nights a week (Wednesday through Sunday) at 7 p.m. on Channel 16 on O‘ahu and on the neighbor-island cable systems. Here’s a preview of what host Mike Sakamoto has in store for you. April 29 to May 3-A Day on Kona’s AUNTY LEI Wayne Knight invites Mike and Paul Miyahara for a full day of fishing. They first do some deepsea trolling. The fish aren’t biting, so they head into shallow water and do some bottom fishing, picking up moana, munu, nabeta and wekeula. Then, on the way home, they hook a 25-lb ono that becomes dinner. May 6 to 10-Fishing Hilo Bay on the YOKOMARU The weather’s marginal but the fish are said to be biting, so Julie Weightman and Garrett Tokuoka join Mike…

Boating Legislation Update From a Recreational Viewpoint ■ As the 2002 Hawai‘i legislative session winds down, the number of bills affecting recreational boaters has also gone down considerably. Here is the status of five key bills that had survived as of April 11, 2002. Boater Fee Increases The Senate Ways and Means Committee made only one change to HB 2542 SD1 and passed it out as SD2. Only Section 4 was changed from, “This action shall take effect upon its approval” to, “This action shall take effect on July 1, 2050.” The purpose of this change was to continue discussion of the bill. This is OK because it still keeps our moorage fees frozen at the current rates (versus the 35- to 64-percent fee increase), which is to our advantage…

■ Most Americans and even some Americans of Mexican decent confuse the historic Cinco de Mayo events with Mexican Independence Day. Actually the two events occurred about 50 years apart! Cinco de Mayo is remembered as the day when an ill-equipped rag-tag bunch of about 5,000 native Mestizo and Zapotec “Indians” defeated the French Army in a battle that is now known as”La Batalla de Puebla” after the little town near where it took place, way back in 1862. In the United States, and especially in Texas, Southern California and other states with large Chicano populations, Cinco de Mayo has become an occasion for big parties with lots of Mexican beer and food. This is not a history lesson (though the history is really fascinating), so we will concentrate on…

“Ke kukui ka pili ia o ka uhu.” In traditional times, fishers spread kukui oil on the surface of the water to calm the ripples so one could see clearly to the bottom. Marjorie Ziegler is a resource analyst with Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund’s Mid-Pacific Office. She can be reached at (808) 599-2436 or E-mailed at <mziegler@earthjustice.org>. CO2 Sequestration Is Back ■ Kaua‘i residents were taken by surprise when a public notice from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) appeared in local papers in mid-March announcing a proposed experiment to sequester CO2 off the coast of Kaua‘i. Prior to the notice, there had been little to no communication between project proponents and Kaua‘i residents, despite significant public opposition to a similar proposal in Kona last year. Public concerns have been raised…

For letters, with photos, received during the month of May we’ll send you HFN’s New ‘Embroidered 25th Anniversary’ Fishing Cap, a Holoholo Style Koozie and an Official HFN Sticker…our way of saying thanks for sharing your catch!…Hana pa‘a, Chuck Send to: P.O. Box 25488, Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96825 Hi Chuck, Just thought I’d share our recent ulua fishing trip picture with you and your readers! This was taken at JR’s (Kahuku Ranch, Big Island) a few weeks back. Since the guys in this picture read your column religiously I thought that this would be a nice way to show off their latest catch! Layne Ohama (left), Richie Taga (middle), and Peter Tsue (right). Thank you and have a nice day! Sincerely, Kathy Tanita ‘Aiea, o‘ahu Chuck, On March 16, 2002 about…

Department of Land and Natural Resources and Division of Aquatic Resources Regarding New Minimum Size Rules for Hawai‘i ■ Public hearings for the new minimum size rule changes will be announced at a later date. At this time, the new minimum size rules are not yet in effect. If you have any questions regarding this matter, please call Kimberly Lowe at (808) 587-0114. Mullet season (for ‘ama‘ama, or striped mullet) opened as of March 1 and will run till November 30, 2002. The minimum size for spear and/or sale is 7 inches. Waikiki Diamond Head Fishery Management Area is open to fishing until December 31, 2002. The area will be closed to fishing from January 1 to December 31, 2003. For those of you who have already put in your…

■ The chairperson of the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR), Gilbert Coloma-Agaran, thanks all the members of the Altapac Fishing Club and members of the public who helped in the March 2, 2002, cleanup at Ka‘ena Point. Special thanks also go to State Parks Director Dan Quinn, who contributed a truck and personnel that Saturday to help remove trash, and to Carroll Cox, the executive director of Envirowatch Inc., for his outstanding work in initiating the cleanup and working with the members of the Altapac Fishing Club to make it happen. Recently, questions have been raised about the rules for use of lands at Ka‘ena Point. Let’s set the record straight. Three divisions share jurisdiction over the two coastlines that meet at Ka‘ena Point: State Parks; Forestry and…

■ Northwest Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) fishermen are concerned about their future. NOAA recently announced that the Clinton NWHI Coral Reef Reserve is in place as an interim management measure before the designation of the reserve as a national marine sanctuary. The NWHI reserve appears to prohibit commercial fishing except for limited bottomfish fishing within certain areas in federal waters. During the recent Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council (WESPAC) meeting in Honolulu, Dr. Bill Hogarth, head of NOAA Fisheries, responded to questions about how the reserve would affect fisheries in the area. He told WESPAC that the reserve is now the “law of the land.” However, regarding the change of the reserve to a national marine sanctuary, he said that the reserve provisions were not cast in stone. He said,…

■ Sometimes the simplest ideas are right in front of you. Such was the case when we were bottom fishing off of North Kona on the 37’HANAMANA. We were working an area that was about 27 fathoms deep and was known to have some nicesized nabeta in residence. The problem was that we were also hunting for tough-fighting weke-’ula and using plastic curly tails as bait, and nabeta usually like bait only. Nabeta, or peacock razor fish (in Hawaiian, laenihi), like eating shrimp, squid and aku and ‘ahi belly pieces. They don’t normally take artificial lures, so anyone fishing for nabeta would remove their curly tail baits and send down aku and ‘ahi belly bits. Weke-’ula will also take aku belly pieces, but so will triggerfish and they can take…

■ Fishing, has been getting better on Kaua‘i. Mahimahi have been appearing in larger numbers, and boats have been coming in with regular catches of them. Capt. Scott Akana, on board the LAHELA, made impressive catches of 21 and 28 mahimahi during two separate days of fishing. WK-buoy has been holding a lot of aku and shibiko lately, and many boaters have been taking advantage of the good weather to stock up on some sashimi and poke. Many fisherman have been successful while baiting the FADs and have hooked up to marlin while using live aku. Brian Nagao and son Payton on board their 18’ Force bridled a live aku and managed to hook up to a Pacific blue marlin that fought for two and a half hours before it…

ROYAL CONTRACTING EMPLOYEE INVITATIONAL June 15, 2002 Jan or Verna—O‘ahu (808) 839-9006 6TH ANNUAL KONA CLASSIC TOURNAMENT June 28. 29 & 30, 2002 Tropidilla—Kona (808) 327-1440 P.O. Box 2158, Kailua-Kona, HI 96745 <info@konatournaments.com> PEARL HARBOR FISHING TOURNAMENT June 29 J.D. Okamura-o‘ahu (808) 473-3000 ext 3541 E-Mail <okamuraJD@phnsy.navy.mil WORLD CUP BLUE MARLIN CHAMPIONSHIP July 4, 2002 Jim Hardie-Miami (305) 559-8485 P.O. Box 2476, Miami, FL 33159 FIRECRACKER OPEN July 5, 6 & 7, 2002 Tropldllla—Kona (808) 327-1440 P.O. Box 2158, Kailua-Kona, HI 96745 <info@konatournaments.com> SKINS MARLIN DERBY July 11,12,13 & 14, 2002 Tropidilla—Kona (808) 327-1440 P.O. Box 2158, Kailua-Kona, HI 96745 <info@konatournaments.com> KBC PURE JACKPOT TEAM CHALLENGE July 13, 2002 Keehi Boat Club—O‘ahu (808) 841-7271 4 Sand Island Access Road, Box 44, Honolulu, HI 96819 WBC KONA LIGHT TACKLE SHOOTOUT July…