Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2002 i Hawaii Fishing News

■ It has been an extremely busy summer for the Ulua Tagging Project. Here is a brief recap on some of the numbers of ulua/papio that have been tagged up until September 23, 2002. This has been an incredible year! So far, our anglers have doubled the amount of fish tagged compared to the same time last year. Our volunteer anglers have done a fantastic job of tagging and educating other fishermen about the Ulua Tagging Project. A big mahalo to all those who have continued to support our project. We look forward to your continued enthusiasm, dedication and involvement in our project. Tagged and Released Fish as of September 23, 2002 Number of Tagged Fish per Island Locale Data reflects only those numbers that were entered as of September…

■ If the idea is to hook an ulua, many times the best single bait is a live reef fish. Strong fish like mamo, nenue and palani make superior baits. Because they struggle so hard and for so long on the hook, the chance of a big ulua zeroing in on them is high. As bait they are much better than a slab of moray eel or a long-dead octopus. Other fish that aren’t easily taken by hook and line make good baits, too. Fish such as kole, manini, pakukui and maiko are staples for ulua. Such fish are very abundant on the shallow reef where the big ulua prowl. The best way to land these fish is by using a thrownet or by spearing. I’ve used such speared fish,…

Kaneana, or Cave of Kane ■ ‘Ano ‘ai me ke aloha no ho‘i! Pehea ‘oukou i keia kawela? Laki ho‘i, ina loa‘a ia ‘oukou he i‘a nui! Aue, he makemake au i ka i‘a nui, aka, hoka. Hele ka i‘a me ka awiwi mai ko‘u hanalima! Eia nei, i keia mo‘olelo ‘uhane e pili ana ‘o Kaneana, o ka moku o Wai‘anae. Ua kipa i wahi pana i ka hala. Greetings! How did everyone’s summer go? You’re definitely lucky if you caught big fish! Ah, I wish I could get a big fish, but, aghast, the fish run away quickly from my hands! Thus, this ghost story is about Kaneana in the district of Wai‘anae (on the west end of O‘ahu). We visited this famous place not too long ago.…

Dear Chuck, Here are two pictures of the results of a recent banner day experienced by two boats from “D” Dock at Koko Marina, Hawai‘ikai. The first is a picture of me and my dad, Tom, and the ‘ahi we caught on our boat, the HIOLANI. The second is a picture of the crew of the HANALEA and the large marlin they caught (clockwise from the back are Lyle Hamasaki, Mike Shibuya, Stanford Carr, Stanford Carr Jr. and Ron Hoopai). Normally, we would troll in the same area. However, that day, the HANALEA headed north to T and MM buoys, and we decided to fish “the Banks.” When we reached the Banks, the action was slow till we got close to the southern tip. There were a lot of birds…

■ North Atlantic swordfish have recovered to 94 percent of levels considered healthy over the last three years, according to a new report issued by the scientific arm of theInternational Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas. In 1998. Give Swordfish a Break campaign organizers SeaWeb and the Natural! Resources Defense Council (NRDC), along with other conservation organizations, successfully advocated for recovery measures to restore North Atlantic swordfish. North Atlantic swordfish had been severely depleted after decades of overfishing and mismanagement. The new report is the first assessment of North Atlantic swordfish since those measures, which included reduced international quotas and protection of swordfish nursery areas in the United States, were adopted. “This report shows that if we give fish a break, they can recover.” said Lisa Speer, senior policy…

■ Webster partially defines an addiction as “surrendering to an obsession.” In all likelihood, most addictions are bad for us. There is one, however, that frees the spirit and soothes the soul like nothing else can, and that is fishing! In this context, being “hooked” seems so appropriate. Because my “addiction” has paralleled the course of a clinical progression, I thought it might be something fun to write about. In October 1986, my wife and I wanted to get away to some place quiet and peaceful. Our travel agent suggested the Kona Village Resort on the Kona Coast of the Big Island. From the moment we checked in and went to our hale, the perceptiveness of our travel agent was immediately evident. This magical resort was just what we were…

■ In Hawai‘i, a hunter, prior to entering a public hunting area, must sign in at a designated hunter check station. There, harvest data and information pertaining to hunting is posted. Check in here at the “Hunter Check Station” every month for information on organizations and hunting in Hawai‘i. Pittman-Robertson Act The Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act was sponsored by Sen. Key Pittman (Nevada) and Rep. A. Willis Robertson (Virginia). In 1937 President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed it into law. This restoration act became known as the Pittman-Robertson (P-R) Act. It established an excise tax on firearms, ammunition and archery equipment. This P-R tax money is available to states to buy, maintain and operate wildlife management areas. It may also be used for surveys and research to restore wildlife.…

■ On Saturday, October 12, 2002, at 6:30 a.m., 31 boats departed Koko Marina in Hawai‘i-kai for the first Koko Marina Center Fishing Tournament. At approximately 2:15 p.m., the fishing boat IT’S TIME notified tournament control that they had a marlin hookup. At around 4 p.m., the IT’S TIME notified tournament control that the marlin was “boated” but it was too large to get into the boat or on the swimstep. The marlin was estimated to be 400 lbs. Tournament rules required all boats to be back at the Koko Marina entrance bridge by 6 p.m. The marlin was secured behind the IT’S TIME and was towed 20 miles to Koko Marina. The team arrived at the bridge 15 minutes before the tournament deadline. A very large crowd gathered at…

■ Morgathin from Yap! This is one of the most exciting times to sport fish in Yap. The season is changing, and the bigger fish are coming closer to the island. The wahoo are back, and the big trevally are chasing mackerel inside the reef. The stormy summer weather kept these fish back for a bit, but the action is wide open now. Many of the local fishermen have been coming back with coolers full of fish. Wahoo seem to be dominating the trolling catch with a few quality yellowfin in the 30- to 40-lb range. The mahimahi are starting to show a little earlier this year. When the fishing is like this, you can bet that all the fishermen have plenty of soy, lemon and Tabasco with them. A…

Chuck, I went for “a short ride” this past Labor Day Weekend with friend and Hilo Casting Club member Kinney Louie. We drove down to Manuka State Park to visit another HCC member, Howard Kawabata, and his family on their annual camping trip. Howard showed us an unusual catch, which he’d made over the weekend: three black papio in the 2- to 3-lb range. They were a nice surprise as he was trying to catch hage with a floater and California shrimp. After some reel-screaming action on 6-lb test tackle, he had to crank down and lift each fish up the cliff because he was away from camp and without a net. Comparing the black papio’s fight with a like-sized ‘omilu he later landed, Howard commented that those seldom seen…

■ Our story began several years ago on a Maui Casting Club ulua fishing tournament on the backside of Maui. The event is usually held during hurricane season, creating unpredictable sea conditions and weather. On just about every tournament trip, fishermen take a beating from the elements. Our trips were no exception. On previous fishing trips a couple of my friends had been bitten by 8-inch reddish-purple centipedes, and that really put a damper on the outings. We spent the nights on heightened alert while trying to get a few moments of shut eye. Being a fisherman for nearly all my life, I like to improve different fishing gear. One of my longtime goals was to do something to protect my friends and myself from rain, wind, mosquitoes, centipedes, scorpions…

Carpet-Bagging Mahimahi ■ Harry Aoki has caught hundreds of big mahimahi. The amazing part is that none of them kicked, jumped or struggled in the boat. After the mahimahi is laid in the boat, Harry merrily holds the fish’s head down with his gloved hand and sends an ice pick through the gill plate and into the fish’s brain. We all know mahimahi are considered very dangerous. Most fishermen flip these fish directly into the cooler. Sometimes they slip and the mahimahi land in the boat and kick the fisherman overboard or hook the fisherman with a trailing hook. My friend got a 12/0 hook in his right palm. Ouch! This is Harry Aoki’s innovation. He lays the mahimahi on a piece of carpet. The carpet can be wet or…

■ By 1999, 62 boat slips at the Ke‘ehi Small Boat Harbor had been removed from public service because they had become unsafe due to deterioration caused by lack of maintenance. Despite the fact that there has been much public criticism of the Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DBOR) for this neglect, there are now at least 84 slips that have been declared unsafe for public use due to the collapse or imminent collapse of their piers and catwalks. Public resources are being allowed to wallow in disrepair, depreciating the value of the harbor resource and losing more than $100,000 a year in slip fee revenue. Recently the Honolulu Advertiser featured an article about the Wai‘anae Boat Harbor, highlighting the fact that “one-third of the 73 catwalks in the…

For letters, with photos, received during the month of November we’ll send you HFN’s New ‘Embroidered 25th Anniversary’ Fishing Cap, a Holoholo Style Koozia 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 Aloha Chuck, Here’s a picture of my stepson Travis. His father and I decided to buy him a thrownet for his 13th birthday. His father took him to the Kalapana Coast for his first throw on August 3rd. Wow! What a first throw! He got 17 aholehole and one nenue! On his second throw he caught 37 more aholehole! What a catch of the day! Thanks for letting me share this special moment in the HFN. Mahalo,Loranett DednickPuna, Hawai‘i P.S. Happy Birthday,…

■ Winter-type severe weather in Hawai‘i waters begins this month. Some of the worst weather in the islands has occurred in November. It is likely that there will be some bad weather days during the month. Mariners are cautioned that the change from good weather to bad weather can be fast. The following are the possible bad weather conditions that can occur: high northwest swell and surf, gusty trade winds, heavy rains, strong southwest Kona winds, squalls, thunderstorms and waterspouts. Southerly surf is down while high swell and surf activity from the northwest direction greatly increase. More than half of the days of the month will have higher than 5-foot surf at Sunset Beach, O‘ahu. There’s a chance of a very high surf, greater than 20 feet high. The frequency…

Dear Chuck, This is a story of a “16-lb eel.” Here’s the scenario: We were fishing a point with 4- to 6-foot surf pounding it. Then Beau’s pole started ringing. Without hesitation, we all said the same thing, “Eel.” Just then I heard a short spurt of drag go out. I told Beau I heard it, but he didn’t believe me. I finally convinced him, and we both walked to the point. As he grabbed his pole, he felt the telltale signs of an eel. As this was going on, his pole right next to him broke its leadline so I had to grab the pole and reel it up. Beau finally broke his leadline and started reeling up the “eel.” Just as the “eel” was about to come up,…

“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. World’s Largest ‘Landfill’ in the Middle of the Ocean There is a large part of central Pacific Ocean that no one visits and only a few ever pass through. Sailors avoid it like the plague, for it lacks the wind they need to sail. Fishermen leave it alone because its lack of nutrients makes it an oceanic desert. This area includes the “horse latitudes,” where stock transporters in the age of sail got stuck, ran out of food and water and had to jettison their horses and other livestock. Surprisingly, this is the largest ocean realm on…

■ In order to preserve the quality of an ‘ahi as well as the commercial value of this fish, the ‘ahi must be gaffed in the head or in the gills. ‘Ahi have a habit of coming up next to the boat, and as the angler or deckhand tries to gaff the fish using a traditional rounded gaff, the fish often swims under the boat and is cut off. Too much time is required to get the fish in position to use a rounded style gaff, and often all the fisherman gets is a chunk of the fish. The Sea Lance gaff can be used to secure the fish before it reaches the underside of the boat, thereby maximizing the number of fish in the boat. Assembling the Sea Lance…

■ Big rogue ono break the rules. The giants of the wahoo tribe don’t get huge by copying their smaller cousins. In Hawai‘i the typical ono weighs 20 to 40 lbs, hunts the 30- to 40-fathom ledges to graze on ‘opelu and is usually hooked on a metalhead lure trolled fast. Once they get over 50 lbs, however, ono are full of surprises. Just ask a bunch of ono fishermen, as we did recently, and you’ll hear a litany of oddities. Take, for example, the largest ono caught off Kona so far this year. Skipper Dee Bradford on the boat HIGH NOON hooked the 83-pounder on June 9. There’s nothing peculiar about that date, but the lure and location are novel. “It hit a Bomboy Llanes Magilia Gorilla lure on…

Monster Crayfish ■ In the last issue I mused about the oversized crayfish at Ho‘omaluhia. Young Bryce Fukunaga, 11 years old, from Waipahu caught these two specimens. Lobster size, eh? Worms and Their Use The lowly earthworm by far is the best bait for fishing venues where the fish have become finicky. There are many ways of using earthworms. One must never forget that the plastic twister tail worms were built originally to imitate the real thing. So why use plastics when the real thing is better? Tip a Jig If you are fishing at Lake Wilson, the bass or tucunare may not take your artificial lure, but a worm properly presented can make a great difference. If you are fishing with jigs, try tipping the jig with a worm…

More Shark Fin Soup ■ Honolulu admiralty attorney Bryan Ho, representing the KING DIAMOND II, E-mailed “Splash!” to straighten out problems he saw with last month’s column’s piece “Hawaii Boat Skinned for Fins.” The KING DIAMOND II is a Hawaii-based, former fishing vessel that was boarded, searched and seized by U.S. Coast Guard authorities 350 miles southeast of Acapulco, Mexico. The 82’ boat was towed to San Diego for “allegedly violating the Shark Fin Prohibition Act.” NOAA enforcement agents, believed working from an anonymous tip, questioned the KING DIAMOND II on the high seas. They returned with the U.S. Coast Guard, which seized the vessel. The KING DIAMOND II’s cargo of 12 tons of shark fins was impounded and placed in cold storage. Bryan, who once managed a fleet of…

■ The ‘ahi were a no-show this year for Kane’ohe, but there is hope for a fall or winter run. This happened before, and it was very nice to have fresh ‘ahi that had just been caught off the Windward Coast for the holidays. Aku continues to be a very rare fish. After a short run of large fish, they were gone. More consistent action has been provided by the mahimahi that are being caught by those who can handle the distance and time that it takes to find the right rubbish line or piece of debris. One of the stray ‘ahi that showed up for the fall season was caught aboard the NACHAN by Ryan and his friend Danny Vitug. They took a blind strike somewhere outside the bay.…

■ Once again, almost half the blue marlin reeled in by our boats here in Kona were tagged and released. Sixty-nine were captured, and 33 were reported as released. Eight of those blue marlin weighed more than 500 lbs, and the largest weighed 816 lbs. The largest estimated tagged fish was a 700-pounder hooked by Capt. Brian Wargo on the BITE ME. The boats that caught 500-pounders were the LIKO II, the ON THE FLY, the PAIR‘O‘DICE, the ROD BENDER, the SEA WIFE II and the TOPSHAPE. The HAPPY TIMES caught a 651-pounder. The 816-lb blue marlin currently stands as the eighth largest fish of the year caught in Kona. The long-time charter vessel ILLUSIONS was the lucky boat, and Rueben Rubio was the lucky captain along with his trusty…