Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2005 i Hawaii Fishing News

Aloha Chuck, Thanks for a fine publication. I just wanted to say one word about MPAs: that word is money. Why do you think the government keeps pushing the closing of our lands and our oceans? Money. You see, these lands and these oceans belong to us, the taxpayers. After reading all of the debates on MPAs, I felt it was time to set the record straight. In every case, the end result is the same. Someone gets paid, and we the public are locked out of our lands and oceans. Let me give you an example. When I was a dirt bike rider, there was a famous, even historic, race called the Barstow-to-Vegas, which is no more. You see, when the government closes off a bunch of land, people…

Environmentalism Agenda: Stop Traditional Island Fishing ■ As I’ve mentioned, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are coming our way. If not created by Rep. Ezra Kanoho (Kaua‘i), Brian Schatz (Makiki) or any other legislator, they will be coming from within the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNIR) MPAs focus on closing off the shoreline waters to fishing. Fishermen of all practices (diving, netting and recreational, to name a few) are in jeopardy of losing their fishing spots and won’t be able to use the ocean for recreation or food. Recreational and commercial fishermen just recently suffered a tremendous blow when Gov. Linda Lingle signed into law a fishing ban in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, creating the state’s largest marine refuge in the history of Hawai‘i. According to WESPAC, the NWHI…

■ In the next several months, the Big Island’s southern Wai’ohinu/Ka Lae Coast will undergo a facelift with the help of marine debris cleanups scheduled to begin on Saturday, November 19. The clean-ups will be led by the Hawaii Wildlife Fund, an environmental not-for-profit organization known for its work in research, conservation and education about Hawaii’s native wildlife. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Marine Debris program within the National Ocean Service’s Office of Response and Restoration has dedicated funding for this project, and support will be provided by NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuary Program and Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. Clean-ups will be held on Saturday, November 19, December 17 and January 21 and for two days during President’s Day weekend, February 18 and 19. Bill Gilmartin,…

www.EnviroWatch.org PO Box 89-3062, Mililani, HI 96789 envirowatch@envirowatch.org ph/fx: 808-625-2175 September 27, 2005 The Honorable Mufi Hannemann Mayor, City and County of Honolulu 530 South King Street Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 Dear Mayor Hannemann: RE: Public Access Plan for the Ko Olina Development On September 12, 2005, we wrote you a letter regarding the public access plan for Ko Olina. To date, we have not received a response. In the event that you do not recall, we presented certain facts regarding DPP’s March 10, 2000, letter to Ko Olina’s agent, signed by former Director Randall Fujiki (who now works for Ko Olina). We asked for your response to one simple question, pertaining to the statements made by Mr. Fujiki in his March 10, 2000, letter, in which he referenced the requirement…

■ I got up early Friday morning to get at the front of the camping permit line. Waiting in the line, I spotted Asa, a long-time fishing buddy. By chance, he was also trying to get a camping permit for the same place and time. Luckily, I was ahead of him, but it was good to know we’d have a friendly fishing neighbor. Garrick later informed me that he secured the adjacent site. That being done, the Kakaako Kasting Club’s sanctioned outing was off to a good start. Club members Derrick, Wayne, Clifford, Chad, Jeremy, Misti, Ray, Elisha, Kida, Keith, Jaren, and Garrick along with guests Glenn and Karl made up the first party. As fate would have it, Glenn had the first catch, which was a 2-lb white papio.…

■ Congratulations to Tanya Beirne and Brandi Easter on their first-place win at the 2005 Freedive Spearfishing Nationals Championships! Free-diving is one of Hawaii’s oldest extreme sports. The art of spear fishing has been passed down through generations. On the islands of Hawai‘i there are only a handful of women who keep the sport alive. Spear fishing, generally perceived as a sport for men, is not supported in the islands by local or national sponsorship programs. Only one year ago (2004) marked the first world championships that included a women’s division. The vote to include women participants at a world level was met by only one vote. Until 2004, women spearfishing champions were only allowed to compete on a national level. Men have always been able to perform on a…

Aloha Hawaii Fishing News, My buddy and I went fishing out of the Kihei Boat Ramp on his 19-foot Boston Whaler. We were going bottom fishing for uku off Makana Lighthouse. On our first drop we came up with a uku about 15 lbs. My buddy Alfred Franco, owner of Grandma’s Coffee house in Kula, made his first drop and all of a sudden the line started whipping off the side rails of the boat. Alfred grabbed his line and started pulling it up nice and slow trying to slow down this fish, but it started pulling harder so he started pulling back harder, I yelled to him that he was going to break the line so he eased up, pulling a little slower. At that moment I saw the…

■ The event was our annual Labor Day fishing trip. As we did the last two years, we went bottom fishing off Kona. This year was extraspecial for me. My son, Dodge Jr., was invited along. This was the first boat-fishing trip we went on together, and it was a blast. He caught a lot of fish. He used a Penn 5500 with 50-lb test PowerPro line and a Shimano Saragosa 6½-foot boat rod. He used No. 4 SPRO swivels, 40-lb test J Line leader, 25-lb test J line branches, Owner 1/0 Mutu light circle hooks and 6-oz leads. With this setup he landed four waha-nui, one red ‘a‘awa, one ‘omilu and three ta‘ape on the first day. On the first day I landed two kagami papio. One of these…

■ Winter-type severe weather in Hawaii 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…

■ State wildlife officials announced plans recently to revive a program to create marine reserves along California’s 1,100-mile coast. The program would set up restricted fishing zones expected to serve as models for protecting ocean habitat. Plans for the state-mandated network were shelved months ago because of budget woes. State agencies have now secured $2 million from private donors and $500,000 in state funding. “This governor is committed to protecting and restoring these oceans, particularly in California,” State Resources Secretary Mike Chrisman said. The program represents a new approach to marine conservation. Rather than protecting individual fish species, reserves seek to protect entire marine ecosystems and restore fish species depleted by overfishing, pollution and other human activities. The marine reserves would only cover state waters, which extend 3 miles from…

Lingle Ends NWHI Angling ■ As expected, Gov. Linda Lingle has banned, except for Native Hawaiian cultural practices, all fishing in state waters out to 3 miles in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI). Peter Young, chairman of the DLNR, said that the state would now petition the federal government to eliminate NWHI fishing out to 50 miles, as well. Why should Hawai‘i fishermen care if the 1,200-mile NWHI island chain is the world’s largest No Fishing Area (NFA)? No Fishing Areas mock fish conservation science. NFAs are “in perpetuity”: no fishing forever. MPA evangelists think they have fishermen hooked and running. For three years they have introduced MPAs in the Hawai‘i Legislature to lasso the main Hawaiian islands with a large-scale kapu fishing hangman’s noose. With the NWHI and its…

■ Perhaps the reason why we have been so preoccupied with older ships and older things in general is that things are changing so rapidly. Computers have hastened the pace of living, and things are changing too fast. No wonder, then, that many of us look back with longing at the times now long gone, or are trying to preserve the past and things representing our former lives. Fishing and fishing methods are a couple of these things that are really changing. Politicians are trying to restrict fishing by using the environment as the restrictive tool. Fishermen will always reminisce about the good ole days when fishing actually meant catching lots of fish. I want to savor part of the aku fishing industry of the past by making a model…

■ On September 25, 2005, the Kakaako Kasting Club (KKC) along with other clubs, organizations and volunteers gathered together in support of National Hunting and Fishing Day. This event is held across the nation each year, observed on the fourth Saturday in September, focusing on promoting outdoor sports and conservation. On O‘ahu, National Hunting and Fishing (NHF) Day is held at the Koko Head Firing Range on the fourth weekend in September. The KKC supports NHF Day each year since it changed location. The event originating from the Big Island of Hawaii. With the help from KKC members, the public enjoyed fun activities and educational displays, and got a better understanding of what the KKC is all about. Keoni G. provided a tent, while Derrick, Tosh, Dexter and Wayne set…

■ How many times have you overheard an ulua fisherman telling a story that sounded something like this: “I wus fishin at da secret spot on da moon phase. I had a few ringas early in da night. At 10 o’clock, da barrage started. I took two screamahs. Da first wun wen throw da hook, da second wun was holding ground, den I felt rubbing and da buggah got pinned. Later da fish came free so I wen boost em and he wen bent. My friend wen stick um wit da slide gaff. “? To the seasoned ulua fisherman, this story makes total sense. To the layperson, this conversation probably sounds like a foreign language. What has developed over the years are slang terms unique to ulua fishing. What is…

Another Eco-Friendly Sinker ■ Mature anglers are getting concerned over the continued loss and waste of lead sinkers. Several times we have seen acceptable substitutes such as spark plugs, golf balls and various sizes of glass beads, which are my personal preference for children. At one of the Nu‘uanu sessions, I became aware of a new acceptable substitute that borders on genius. It is from a seasoned master angler of Okinawan origin. This master angler manufactures his own sinkers from 1-inch rebar (concrete steel reinforcing rods) by cutting them into suitable pieces, then drilling a hole and providing a fastening loop made from 40-lb test nylon fishing line. Any other eco-friendly inventions out there that we should know about? Wieners for Catfish Bait? Berkeley manufactures a catfish bait that comes…

For letters, with photos, received during November we’ll send you HFN’s New Ulua Hook® Embroidered cap logo design…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, If you’re gonna be off Wai‘anae all day on a 15-foot Whaler with only one hit, make sure it counts. This 110-lb ‘ahi was caught by Lane Nogawa using a lure combination selected by his fiancee Lureen. Lane sure knows a good catch when he finds one. Mahalo, Steven Lee Kane‘ohe, O‘ahu Hey Chuck, Here is a photo of a 8½-lb kahala caught at Wailua Beach on Kaua‘i. I used 15-lb test and good ole ‘oama for bait. Thanks to brudda Mark Morioka for the ‘oamas. It was good fun and will…

■ Fishermen, farmers and hunters are by nature conservationists. Their own well-being requires a sustainable relation to a healthy natural world. They not only appreciate the beauty of nature; they see themselves as a part of it and it as an important part of themselves. For most of the past century their views and concerns played an important role in conservation. Over the past few decades, however, a new vision of conservation has emerged with a quite different constituency. It’s called environmentalism. Like other “isms,” it has assumed some of the aspects of a religion. In this view, nature is something pure and perfect while humans are separate and apart from nature, by definition not natural. Any detectable effect of humans is unnatural, undesirable, a desecration. Fundamentalism For its more…

March 10, 2000 Dear Mr. Kurahashi: Public Access Plan for the Ko Olina Development This letter is a follow-up to your September 23, 1999, December 14, 1999, and January 25, 2000 correspondence and the January 20 and February 7, 2000 discussions among yourself, Lorrie Stone, representing Ko Olina Company, LLC, and Barbara Moon, Jeff Lee and Eileen Mark of our staff regarding issues related to the proposed Public Access Plan for the Ko Olina Development. We appreciate your efforts to prepare a master plan which clarifies the means by which the applicant will ensure that public access to the Ko Olina development’s ocean recreation resources is provided. The following is based on the above-referenced documents and discussions, and summarizes our understanding with respect to the basic elements of the plan:…

■ The Ohana Shoreline Fishing Tournament is sponsored by the county of Hawaii, Department of Parks and Recreation. This event is held each year over the Admissions Day weekend and is geared to provide an outdoor activity for the whole family. This year families from all over the island participated and gathered at the weigh-in held on Sunday, August 21, at the Kahilu Town Hall in Waimea. The event saw more than 240 participants in the following divisions: wahine; men; kupuna; teen; keiki; and ‘ohana. In an effort to be conservative, officials weighed only the biggest fish for each participant so anglers had the option of releasing smaller fish if they choose. ‘Ohana Division Results This year the champion of the ‘Ohana Division was the Guzman ‘ohana, Raynette and Bobby.…

20th Anniversary ■ On September 24, the North Shore Spearfishers (NSS) club celebrated their 20th anniversary with a “Three-Prong Freedive Spearfishing Tournament” that started at Waiale‘e Beach Park. Albert Lagunte (president of the club) once stated, “If this contest ever makes it to 20 years, we’ll celebrate with a three-prong contest,” and pa‘ina it was. The first North Shore Spearfishing Classic (NSSC) originated around 1984, when 11 divers gathered to test their diving skills without any indication of how popular this classic would become. In fact, I was the first invitee from out of town, a “city boy” asked to participate in a country tournament. How I got introduced, I don’t recall, but from that time on, the word spread all over the island of O‘ahu that the freedive spearfishing…

■ As a final test of a lure made from polyurethane, the engineering research team dropped it from the top of the four-story lab building onto the concrete patio below. Not even the slightest crack was found. My son Derek is an aerospace engineering professor at the University of California in Irvine. He assembled a group of graduate students to solve the problem of lures that are easily broken when created from typical resins. The urethane core lures that I invented were fragile. The thinner the resin surrounding the core, the better they floated but then they were more easily broken. Lures were made with clear casting resin, then sanding resin. All these lures were fragile. I thought I had found the solution by casting lures with epoxy (See HFN,…

Hale‘iwa Trolling ■ A few boats headed out to LL-buoy to get their share of some nice-sized shibi because fishing at the Haleiwa buoys has been very slow. The marlin action slowed down, and the ‘ahi have disappeared completely. Hopefully mahimahi will provide some action for the Hale‘iwa fishermen. Hale‘iwa Bottom Fishing The bottom fishing was pretty good; akule and ‘opelu came up steadily. Of course, lots of sharks were around. Many bottomfishing boats picked up papio on the inside. Wow, it’s November already! The year is almost over. The fishing has not been so good this year, but there is still some time left. You never can tell what is going to happen. Hale‘iwa Harbor Gets Cleaned Up Hale‘iwa Harbor is getting cleaned up slowly but surely. Lots of…

■ Aloha to all HFN readers. At the Poke Stop, we are fortunate to always have one of Hawaii’s favorite delicacies, ‘opihi. Usually you’ll find ‘opihi the size of dimes and nickels, maybe a few quarter-sized. But rarely you’ll find the halfdollar sizes and larger. This month we received a few dozen halfdollar sized ‘opihi from the Big Island of Hawaii. These ‘opihi, also called Hawaiian abalone, live in rocky areas where ‘opihi are hard to pick. You cannot harvest them by just strolling the shoreline. Usually professional ‘opihi pickers risk their lives to harvest these ‘opihi by taking their boats to the side of a cliff or even climbing down a cliff with a piece of rope. They must continuously check behind their backs for dangerous waves. If you’re…