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One Day Was Not Enough Fishing in Kona

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A swing and a miss!  Sightings of fish either jumping in front of us or in the distance, we could not get one to go!  This group of six friends and family came to fish Kona last week.  They booked their family fishing trip a few months ahead of time and anticipated the trip from then on.  The group arrived early and we headed out.  We had so much fun with this group from the time they boarded till they departed that afternoon.  Linda was the deckhand today, she was a busy girl. The day was just getting started when one of the girls spotted a tuna roll out to the side of the boat, I turned that way and in seconds we are hooked up with the line peeling off the reel. Unfortunately it dropped it after a couple of seconds. We ended up having an excellent day with porpoises swimming beside the boat, great snorkeling in Captain Cook Bay and many sightings of fish, even a huge blue marlin jumping 50 feet in front of boat.  This proved to be so much fun for them that they called the next day and ask if we had an opening so they could go again because one day was not enough fishing in Kona ….we did!  Needless to say, the second day was equally fun with no fish to report.  They are good sports and assured us they are avid fishermen and women and understand you don’t catch all the time.

Watch Cameron Bring In His First Mahi Mahi

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Cameron along with his family from San Antonio, TX had a mission. Catch a fish! Last year Bob Collins brought his family to do some fishing in Kona, Hawaii and we had two days of terriffic fishing! His two daughters pulled on everything from rainbow runners to mahi mahi and Ono and even a shot at a marlin. Now he is back with his Grandson, Cameron hoping for a little action for him. Sure enough, we had some fun. The first day was a little slow with a small mahi mahi. Now on the second day things pick up. We had a few shots at an elusive Shortbill Spearfish that hit two lines and did not stick…Arrgh! Then as we headed offshore, this nice mahi mahi strikes. We are hooked up! Cameron lands the fish effortlessly. Fun Family Fishing! Cameron will be attending college in the fall on Oahu, I think the Islands agree with him.

15 lb Ono for 7 Yr old Tommy

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A 15 lb Ono for 7 Yr old Tommy.  Have you have ever witnessed the face of a child on a fishing rod fighting a fish of any size and anticipating what he is about to land? It is absolutely the most innocent display of sheer ecxitement you can imagine.  Tommy is that story.  On a half day family fishing trip with his Parents and Grandpa, we left the harbor and saw the Spinner Dolphin playing around the green buoy at the harbor entrance.  We headed south.  Having had no activity for hours, we were headed back to the harbor.  Not a good feeling when you have a child that wants to catch a fish.  After all, he was “Fishing”.   This was an extremly patient young man that spent most of the time on the bridge looking for birds, splashes and any sigh that might bring a strike. As the day was winding down, First Mate Adam Ludwig switched out the stinger lure to a Bomboy Bullett and with about 30 seconds left before he was to start bringing in the lines, the stinger is bit!  A Hail Mary Bite!  7 year old Tommy landed the 15 lb Ono and has a great story to tell.  ( And a meal to share.)  Happy New Year Tommy.

Mahi Mahi Surprise for New York Brothers

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Mahi Mahi Surprise for New York Brothers.  As 14 year old brothers Max and Dillon were boarding the Fire Hatt along with their parents David and Dawn for an afternoon family fishing trip, we were told that  Dillon was the lucky one.  Sure enough!  Just moments after the chair talk, we were talking and laughing when the short rigger went off.  As luck would have it, the “Lucky Linda Lure” was the choice for the Mahi.  Dillon is in the chair and the fight is on!  The Mahi Mahi fought hard and Dillon fought harder.  A short 10 minutes later he has his nice 20+ pound Mahi Mahi to the boat.  Crewman Adam Ludwig leadered and gaffed the prize and the fight was finished.  Now the family is trying to determine where to take the beauty to have it prepared for dinner.  There are several restaurants that will prepare your catch.  Have your crew make sure the fish is properly chilled and keep it cold until you get it to the chef.  It is always good to call ahead and let the restaurant know you are coming.

Look at these faces….that tells it all!

Family Fun with Fire Hatt

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This post is shared with you from one of our guests that posted their experience on TripAdvisor.

“What a great family fishing trip! We were initially a little hesitant about bring our 2 y/o girl and 4 y/o boy, but were assured that children were most welcome. The boat was absolutely beautiful, complete with drinks/snacks (which the children loved) and a lovely doggie, Abby!  We had an incident at the beginning of the trip where Captain Chuck showed such high integrity! He was informed by radio that another charter boat was in distress and needed a tow back into port.  Without a second thought, he immediately swung into action to help. He assured us that we would just extend our time out on the water to make up for the extra trip towing the boat back to port. We loved the extra time on the water and I was very impressed with his obvious involvement and support of the others in the fishing community.  Back to the fishing-their equipment was very obviously top notch. We had so many lines out for fishing, it was amazing. Even though we didn’t catch anything, we had a great time sitting in the “fishing chair”, sitting on the bow, up top with the Captain, etc. Chuck and Linda gave us great information about the waters, fish, geography, including info for the kids! We had also opted to take a couple of hours off from fishing to go snorkeling with our son-they had great gear for adults AND for him! He had his first snorkeling experience at Captain Cook Bay-he was squealing so loud underwater with excitement, you would have thought all sea life would have fled the area. To the contrary! As we left the area, a pod of spinner dolphins ran with the boat for around 5 minutes!! And I mean, RIGHT next to the boat. We could hear their blowhole breathing!  All in all, a fantastic trip. And the to travelers who fear the embarrassment of suffering from seasickness. Have no fear. We discovered our kids have this same ailment…both at the same time. Yuk. But Chuck and Linda handled it just like it completely the norm, even with a little cleaning having to be performed. And they both appeared to still love our children afterwards-God bless ’em!  Fire Hatt is truly a family business who can take you on a world-class fishing charter, and also modify their trips to suit a family. Thank you, Fire Hatt so much!”

We are humbled and honored by the feedback from our guests.  Our goal is for every guest to have a memorable experience to share with others.