Coastal Angler Magazine May Issue
GEAR CONSIDERATIONS
For the past year I have had the privelege to write for Coastal Angler Magazine with circulation over 480,000 Copies Per Month as the Kona, Hawaii voice. As the articles have a month by month forecast of fish to come and chronicle the fishing adventures we have each month. This publication is free and is available on line too.
Wahoo! Fishing in Kona Hawaii. One word sums up today. Textbook. Rick and his family from Massachusetts boarded the Fire Hatt for a fun filled day of fishing down to Captain Cook Bay, getting in the water for a little snorkeling adventure and then fishing back to the harbor. On the way down the coast, one line goes down, then another, then another. J.T. is in the chair, Mom Peggy and Rick are fighting theirs out of the gunnells. We call this “Controlled Chaos”. Three lines hooked up, three fish landed. Everyone is still excited about their morning catch as they are getting into the incredibly clear pacific blue water to snorkel. With much anticipation about the trip back up the coast, and Suzie the only one that has not caught a fish, we leave the cove and put lines back in the water. Heading offshore this time to hopefully find a Blue Marlin, we are hooked up again, Suzie is in the chair and she brings in her prize. Her first Wahoo! (Also known as “Ono” here in Hawaii)Suzie’s parents now realize they have just created a fishergirl for life! She couldn’t get enough and her excitement was a sheer joy to watch. I think we will see this family again….
Father and Son Tag Team Releases 500+ lb Blue Marlin. As the Froehlich Family boarded the Boat it was evident that the avid fisherman of the group was Mike’s son, Cole. Dad and the family was along for the ride. Cole’s largest fish to date is a 20 lb freshwater species. The family had never been fishing in Kona Hawaii. Once we left the harbor for todays adventure we had Cole in the fighting chair giving him the rundown on the do’s and don’ts on bringing in these fish. Now the morning had passed without a single bite. It was starting to weigh on all of us. As we cruised in the warm tropical sun, lures had been changed out, we changed depths and direction, still nothing. Then we made the turn and headed back to the harbor. As we passed another boat that is skippered by Lure Maker Bomboy Llanes the short corner lure just exploded! We are hooked up! A big Blue Marlin hit a “One on One” lure ironically made by Bomboy! Karma! The fish jumped 6 ft out of the water and put on quite a show. Cole is in the fighting chair giving it all he has when shortly into the fight it is evident that he needs a little help. Dad steps up and helps bring in the fish. Earlier I had explained to our guests that the fish here, especially the Blue Marlin are “World Class Athletes” and are difficult to stop. It is not uncommon for more than one angler to take a turn at fighting the fish of a life time. This is a prime example of the sheer strength of the Blue Marlin. After a 53 minute fight on a custom 50lb Marsuura Reel, Mike has the fish to the boat and Adam quickly grabs the leader and gently brings the fish to the side. It was another textbook tag and release. The fish is tired but is revived and swims away. The wonderful memories shared by this Father and Son Tag Team duo hopefully will be remembered and shared for a lifetime. After all, It was Cole that was at the helm with me being given an opportunity to see what it was like to steer a boat when the fish hit.
First Striped Marlin for Illinois Friends. Johnny G, along with Mike and his dad Bill from Huntly, IL have a story to tell when they arrive back home! While visiting the Big Island during a convention they were attending, the group decided to take time off for a Kona fishing adventure. And an adventure it was! We waited almost all day for our first bite. The two best friends awaited the first bite by spending time on the bridge, on the bow, in the salon and cockpit. We checked out every single sign we saw from floating debris and birds to another boat that was hooked up. Finally, while circling that boat a safe and respectful distance away, our long rigger went down! A Bomboy “M16” lure has tempted the fish! The fight is on. Johnny is in the chair and remembering every single detail from the “chair talk” earlier today while he sucessfully lands the 80lb Striped Marlin in just under fifteen minutes with no help from the crew! Awesome Job! Once the Striped Marlin was successfully tagged and the hooks easily removed, Johnny was able to assist in reviving the fish. We explained the importance of releasing the billfish and the impact this makes on our fishery. By letting this one go, it insures more fish for them to catch later. These two Seventh Grade friends will share this memory for a lifetime. Hopefully, Mike’s Dad will bring him back soon to catch his first Marlin too.
Johnny featured in photo above assisting release of his Striped Marlin. Best friend Mike along with his Dad featured in main photo.
Kathy’s Kitchen Owner visits Kona Hawaii. Kathy (Illinois State Fair Winner for over 30 years) along with her Husband, Darrell spent the day fishing with us, what a treat to finally meet her. For Years we have been purchasing wonderful products from Kathy’s Kitchen, a family owned business from Virginia, Illinois. Most notably for us, we use her Vidalia Onion Relish. Some of you probably saw my recipe in an article I write for Coastal Angler Magazine. Back to fishing… once we left the harbor we returned to an area where we had several bites the day before. Once we got there we found a porpoise school we headed for it. After just a few passes we are hooked up. Adam’s new favorite lure that had been getting the bites all week is bit. Light tackle, porpoise school, screaming reel and five other lines to clear, you get the picture. Kathy gets to the chair, Adam transfers the rod to her and after just a few moments the line goes slack! Ouch! Now we realize that not only is the fish off, so is Adam’s lure! Another painful loss. (Last week Lucky Linda was lost.) Luckily, we have photos of the lure and now the search is on to find another one just like it or one similar. I always tell our guests, “The best lures made are on the bottom of the ocean”. Adam is now going through all the lures on the boat looking for a temporary replacement. Do they have support groups for situations like this? We finished our day with several more strikes with nothing sticking. Still very exciting.
Recipe for Vidalia Onion Coated Fish: (Spearfish and Ono our favorites, works wonderfully on skewered shrimp too.) Basically, we soak a cedar plank for hours and then prepare the relish along with real mayonaise and coat the fish. I place very thin sliced lemons or limes under the fish and arrange them on the cedar plank. Dust the fish with a little smoked paprika and place on the grill on medium and cook for about 20 minutes. You should try it!
Contact Kathy at 217-452-3035 for everything from Beet Pickles to Jalapeno Jelly
Trucker’s Chucker aka Shortbill Spearfish. Trucker and his buddies, fellow horticulturists from Northern California just wanted to do some fishing in Kona Hawaii. The group boarded Fire Hatt and we headed for the “Grounds”. What started out to be a three quarter day quickly turned into a full day as the bites started coming. Final count two Shortbill Spearfish and four bites. Not a bad day on the water. Credit being given to a small lure from Adam’s collection by an unknown maker…. we could not keep the fish off of it! I’m thinking it could be the follow-up for the lost Lucky Linda Lure. We are now on the hunt to try to find more of the hot little number before we loose it! Having had such good luck, the group will be returning later this week for another chance at what they hope will be a Blue Marlin. Once back to the dock, Crewman Adam Ludwig cleaned and packaged the fish for the group to take home with them. If you have never tasted our local Spearfish, you are missing out. Commonly seen on local menus as Hebe, the flaky white meat is almost sweet to the taste. Prepared on a cedar plank, grilled or pan seared you should try it while you are here.
Family Fishing At It’s Best! Our Cutest Little Angler Yet. We love having families, especially children on board. This family from Michigan marvels at the determination of their 8 yr old son as he brings in a nice size Ono. I know we mention this many times…but watching the thrill on a child’s face whent they are hooked up and when they land their fish is priceless.
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International Youth Angler Scores in Kona HI while on a fishing trip with his Father. From the Country of Kazakhstan, the Father and Son duo spent two half days fishing in Kona aboard Fire Hatt. Kazakhstan is the ninth-largest country and the largest landlocked country in the world. It is equivalent to the size of Western Europe. This being said, they began their first day under a beautiful tropical sun with silky smooth water. The conditions were perfect! Immediately after leaving the harbor headed towards Kaiwi Point we were hooked up. Two lines go down, two anglers headed for the screaming Shimano Reels and one busy crewman sorting out the mahem. In the end both fish are landed. A 17 lb Ono and a 24 lb Ono! If you are wondering who got the big one, it was the proud son! That was all the action for the first day. With the anxious thought of what could have been, the two wanted a chance at a Marlin. On Day two, we headed offshore. With one bite early on the stinger, a quick zip and an estimated 200+ lb Blue Marlin was off. This was the highlight of the day until the half day charter was winding down, we finally got another bite on the stinger line! The fish came in, ran off a few seconds of line and was off! A nice Striped Marlin had escaped this time. We look forward to having this team back in the future to take care of unfinished business. Landing a Marlin!
A big Blue Marlin for Christmas. Riley Wight from Heppner, OR brightened his Christmas Holidays this week in Kona with a beautiful 524 pounder. It had been a slow couple of days with only one official marlin strike to report until this day. We left the harbor and headed north to the “grounds”. Just moments after Crewman Adam Ludwig finished the chair talk with Riley, the stinger line was screaming. We instantly knew it was a big fish and likely a blue marlin. With lines cleared and cameras manned, Riley is in for the ride of his life. The fish ran, jumped and charged, finally becoming tail wrapped. After determining the fish was dying, we planed the fish up and unfortunately could not revive it. We boated the marlin and came to the scales to weigh and unload before we headed out for more Hawaiian adventures. Later in the afternoon we were just outside “F Buoy” and the same lure was bit again. Line was screaming off and then nothing! May have been a Big Tuna!
Long time friends Russ and Deborah Whitman from Redondo Beach, CA have been fishing in Kona Hawaii for years. Arriving this week, they already have one trip under their belt. The Goal, simply catch Russ his first Blue Marlin since his massive heart surgery last year. Russ is not a beginner. He has fished Marlin, Tuna and Mako for at least 40 years from Coast to Coast. Most of those years from his home port of Marina Del Rey, CA. So far this week, we have a 28+ pound Mahi Mahi to brag about. We went deep offshore early in the day and found a nice bird pile and lots of bait. After working the area for a while with no luck, we decided to head back in closer. Just outside the 500 fa line the long rigger was bit. Although it was not the prize, it was a nice Mahi Mahi. Russ, transferring his own rod to the chair had the fish landed in no time. Did I mention it was caught on the “Lucky Linda Lure?” We are ready to go after the prize Marlin now.