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2 more Phenix Rods to try! 6’6″ Black Diamond Heavy boat rod and 6′ PE 2-4 Megalodan jig rod.

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I had purchased two “live bait” style rods from Phenix Rods last year, as a dealer and liked their lightness and build quality. Shipping of those two rods from California to Hawaii was about $50. Since then, Phenix Rods was purchased by the outdoor company GSM Outdoors, and moved to Texas. The new company worked out some kinks and is back to servicing their dealers so I ordered two more rods to see how the shipping experience would be. This time, shipping via FedEx costs $86 and took 8 days.

I got the 6ft 6in Black Diamond Heavy rod since the 7ft Extra Heavy version is a little too stiff for the 10 – 15lb fish I’m mostly catching, which caused me to pull some hooks on jumping fish. Angler error did play a role. 🙂 The shorter length is easier to work with from the seated position of the kayak. Most offshore kayak guys use rods 6ft 6in or shorter and I’ve been stubbornly using longer rods and losing leverage on bigger fish.

The Avet MX Raptor pairs nicely with the new Black Diamond Heavy rod.

The Megalodan jig rod series has a lot of backbone and guys in SoCal use the larger rod sizes for big bluefin. The one I ordered is rated for PE 2 – 4 (about 30lb braid) and 100g – 200g jigs.

Game Type J on top, Megalodan on the bottom.

Compared to the Shimano Game Type J rod I have that’s rated for even heavier jigs, the Megalodan is stiffer in the tip and has a thicker blank. The Game Type J has a more sensitive feel whereas the Megalodan feels much more robust like it could take the rigors of kayak jigging.

Megalodan on top, Game Type J on bottom.

The Megalodan, with the long EVA foregrip is really made to battle big fish.

After giving both new rods a good shake out, I’ll let you know how they performed and whether I recommend them.

BKK Hooks – Small bait hook, wide gapped jig head, offshore live bait hook, treble hook and assist hook. How did they work out?

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BKK Hooks are designed in Japan and manufactured to exacting standards in China. They are known for making very strong, sharp, long lasting hooks that meet specific fishing needs. They were tested by our various Holoholo reviewers. Here’s how they performed.

Red Octopus Beak

Tested as damashi/sabiki fly hooks for akule and opelu.

Product Description: The offset hook point provides much more contact with the fish’s mouth, resulting in a better hook-up rate.

Additionally, the red coating increases the concealment of the hook (matching the color of the bait used) and also guarantees great saltwater corrosion resistance.

Results: Akule and opelu flies were made with these. They kept their point and didn’t rust after 5 uses. Recommended.

Silent Chaser EWG Round Head

Tested as jig hook for oio whipping on the flats.

Product Description: The BKK Silent Chaser 1X EWG is a versatile round-head offset jighead featuring a wire jig hook with an Extra Wide Gap round bend, super sharp needle point and SS nano coating to enhance penetration when fishing with very light gear.

Predominantly used in finesse approaches close to the bottom, the Silent Chaser 1X EWG is designed for stealthier presentations and to be snag proof. Size range goes from size 1 to 4/0 for Texas rigging a wide array of soft lures.

Results: Multiple large oio were landed whereas other premium brand jig hooks bent open. Recommended.

Beastly Cat

Tested as rear live bait hook for offshore fishing.

Product Description: Designed with a thick wire, it features BKK’s signature Hand Ground hook point technology boasting an excellent penetration capability, being able to penetrate through hard bony jaws and reducing the overall weight of the hook structure.

The Super-Slide coating additionally minimizes piercing resistance and provides an instant and deep hook up.

Results: Used as an offshore live bait hook. More positive hooksets than other hooks used but corroded and lost its point after 1 use. Not recommended.

Raptor Z treble hooks

Tested as replacement hooks for plugs and poppers.

Product Description: The BKK-RAPTOR-Z incorporates BKK’s latest manufacturing technologies, being engineered to hook strong and aggressive “monster” fish and stay hooked to the very end.

Thanks to BKK’s Hand ground technology and Bright Tin coating, it is equipped with ultimate impaling power, being able to penetrate even the hardest bony jaws and superior corrosion resistance.

BKK’s Slim Ring Technology further allows for an easier attachment of split rings.

Results: Multiple ulua have been landed on these. The treble hooks don’t open up under intense pressure. Recommended.

Sea Ranger+ assist hooks

Tested as assist hooks on micro jigs.

Product Description: Developed to tackle big fish using a small jig.

Comes pre-tied with BKK high quality solid core assist cord, which is very robust yet retains its softness. Shimmering and glowing fibers increase the attractiveness of the jig, triggering more strikes.

It features a heavy gauge providing excellent strength to the hook and BKK’s Hand Ground hook point technology lightening the weight of the hook, providing an outstanding penetration performance. Additionally, the U-spade Slip Lock feature keeps the assist line securely in place.

Last but not least, the bright tin coating ensures sharp hooks in saltwater environment, preventing saltwater corrosion.

Results: Glow tinsel attracted small and large fish; hooks stayed sharp and corrosion free after countless uses. Never tangled on the jig. Recommended.

We didn’t sell these hooks in the Store except for the Sea Ranger+ assist hooks. Please let us know via the Contact Page if you’d like us to special order a box of hooks for you.

Shh… What the shoreline tungsten jig fishers don’t want you to know.

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Jig and BKK assist streamers glow

About fifty 40g and 60g compact tungsten jigs were sold or given out in the last 2 years to the early adopters. My kayak friends said that the jigs were catching all sorts of fish, but I hadn’t heard back from the boaters and shore jiggers.

Recently, a shore jigging friend placed another order of both the 40g and 60g jigs so I asked him how they had been working. He was initially secretive but said the small, heavy jigs have worked very well when the papio/ulua and other inshore predators were chasing small baitfish.

He fished this past weekend, using the BKK Sea Ranger Plus assist hooks as shown above, and caught and released 2 papio on Saturday but a shark took the next one along with the 40g jig. He switched to a 60g jig and caught and released another papio before the bite slowed.

He fished again on Sunday and caught a few moano but no papio. He reported that his hookup ratio with the BKK assists was excellent.

He offered a bit more hard earned wisdom: the small jigs cut through the wind well and out cast bait and every other lure he could use. There have been times when the small jig have outfished live oama, since the small size looks like nehu/iao and the assist hooks don’t easily snag the reef.

He shore whips with a 10ft JDM rod, Shimano Twin Power 4K, and 15lb braid. He’s landed ulua this way and is trying for his next one. I’d credit him for the amazing photos but he’s trying to do his thing on the down low. 🙂

So I think it’s safe to assume that the other jiggers are quietly catching fish with the heavy micro jigs and they don’t want the word to get out.

You can find the jigs and assist hooks in the Store by clicking this link. Sorry, we only ship to US addresses. Mahalo!

We are a Phenix Rod dealer! Anyone interested in trying these premium rods?

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Update: 4/24/24: Phenix Rods was purchased by a larger company and the factory has been moved from California to Texas so the shipping cost to Hawaii has increased. We’re currently working with Phenix to bring more rods in. Stay tuned.

We’ve been a Phenix Rod online dealer for half a year now and I’ve been trying to verify that the rods are as good as I’ve been hearing from the bass, trout and salt water guys. Been using a 7ft Heavy and a 7ft Extra Heavy live bait rod on the kayak and they performed well so far, but haven’t gotten really big fish to stress test them. I do like the lightness, sensitivity, components and durability of both rods.

Here’s a short video of the first day using the Black Diamond Heavy rod.

Phenix sells finished freshwater, saltwater, and travel rods in spinning and casting models, as well as the blanks of each. They are known to be very light in weight, yet strong in backbone, and are less expensive than the comparable high end brands.

Phenix offers a lifetime warranty on the rods that is basically this: If you break the rod, you send the pieces back to Phenix in California, and pay a bit more than 50% of the cost of the rod to have a replacement shipped back to you. That’s better than a lot of rod manufacturers these days.

These are just a few of the products the Hawaii angler may be interested in:

Black Diamond Surf – 2 piece Spinning rods 9ft to 14ft

View details on Phenix website.

Redeye Travel Saltwater Spinning rods – 3 piece, 7ft 6in, rated 15lb – 40lb and 30lb – 80lb.

View details on Phenix website.

Megalodan Jigging rods

Spinning: 5ft 6in PE 4-8 to 6ft PE 6-10

View details on Phenix website.

Casting: 5ft 6in PE 2-4 to 6ft PE 6-10.

View details on Phenix website.

Shipping of the rods from TX to HI is pretty expensive so I plan to order a batch of rods at a time. If you’re interested in trying any of the premium rods you see on their website, I’ll drop the price to make it worth your while. Please get in touch through the contact page.

Mahalo!

Fish bite way better in the dark, rainy conditions than on calm, clear days

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For boat, kayak and even from shore, calm days with little swell are much more comfortable to fish. But those days are often extremely slow.

As an unplanned experiment, I kayak fished the same area 3 times. The first was overcast and a little choppy; second time had cross swell and a rain storm chased me off the water. The third time was glass calm with no swell all day.

On the first outing I stumbled upon biting fish in the early afternoon that happened to coincide with the solar – lunar bite time. The bite was surprisingly good and a 25lb ulua landed on the light jig rod ended the day.

The second outing was a little slower because it wasn’t during a good solar – lunar period but when the rain storm rolled in the fishing got really good. Akule, opelu and lai were hunkered down in relatively shallow water and biting on every drop of the damashi. Unhooking the lai slowed me down and I left when it got too cold to fish. Akule normally don’t bite during the day and must’ve thought it was night time!

The third time was so pleasant to fish. Easy to paddle, no current to push me off the spots but only the less desirable fish like taape, moana and hawk fish bit well.

I slow trolled a bite size opelu out to 200ft and back to the shallows with no interest from predators. Bait stealers eventually ripped it apart at 100ft and a big kawalea took a frozen opelu later.

The water surface looks like a mirror in this photo!

I had to work really hard to catch some nabeta to salvage the trip, chumming around and baiting my damashi rig with opelu skin.

So why do fish bite better on the darker days with more chop on the water? It seems like prey fish such as opelu and akule feel safer when they’re harder to be spotted by larger fish, and the predatory fish feel they can ambush prey fish better when it’s not as easy to see them approach. So on the calm, bright days, you’ll see the smaller fish on the food chain moving around carefree, while the larger fish are taking naps some where.

What should you do to help generate a bite? Chum around to start a feeding frenzy and use the freshest bait possible.

Holoholo: We’re Deep 7 Bottomfishing now!

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Holoholo writer Hunter Young has evolved from a shore fisherman to a diver and now a boat fisherman and is still in high school. He’s recently been focused on getting better as a Deep 7 fisherman.

Hunter:

If someone told me 4 years ago that in 4 years I’d be primarily targeting deep bottom fish on my boat, I would probably have asked them “what’s a deep bottom fish?”.

When I first started fishing many, many years ago, I stayed simple, targeting reef fish. During summers I would catch oama and halalu and use them as live bait for papio. During winters I’d baitcast tako legs for oio. Main point being I was a very casual shoreline fisherman, and it remained that way for a while. Throughout the years, I gained knowledge from experience and old timers at the spots. 

During the summer of 2020, my dad brought home a small 15ft Mikuni boat. It had an old and beat down outboard which would die out every 5 minutes.

Though I now look back and realize just how sketchy that boat was, at the time I thought that I had just unlocked an entirely new world of fishing. We owned that boat for a little over a year but during that time, I discovered the deep bottom fishery. My first time hearing about the Deep 7 was when I saw one of my friends post a picture on Instagram with a lineup of weird looking yellow striped fish (gindai). I was intrigued by the colors on this fish so I did some research and found out about the Deep 7. I kept researching and the deeper I went the more and more amazed I became. To me, it was absurd that fish could even thrive in waters that deep. From that day on, I made it a mission to learn how to catch these fish. 

We were lucky enough to be gifted two Daiwa Tanacom electric reels from a friend of my dad. These electric reels allowed us to explore the deep dark waters 600 ft deep. On our first trip I vividly remember catching a big gindai on my first drop. I was so happy that I kept looking in the cooler and staring at the colors on the fish. I was so happy in fact that I forced my grandma to cook it up that same night I caught it!

Fast forward 3 years and we arrive at the middle of the summer of 2023. During the 3 years that have passed, I learned tons of techniques and information on bottom fishing. Still, I was only catching small fish, like ehu (squirrelfish snapper), kalekale (Von Siebold’s snapper), gindai (Brigham’s snapper). I hadn’t caught anything big yet. This was also around the time that I made my first trip to the infamous Penguin Banks. Funny story, on that first trip to Penguin Banks, I didn’t catch a single bottom fish! Just a bunch of aku. 

On my second trip I decided to try a pinnacle that came up to 800 ft from around 3000 ft. I ended that day with a good lineup full of big ehu and hogo (scorpionfish) . My trips remained this way for a while. Catching ehus and hogos, but never really hooking any big fish.

Until one day I decided to try a different rig and change up my bait. It seemed like the trip would be another lineup and ehus and hogos but on my 5th drop my line went slack on the bottom. “What?” I thought to myself, there was no way I could be on bottom because I had brought my rig up 40ft. I pushed the jog lever on my electric reel up to bring in some line. When the slack disappeared and the tension came back my pole tip started going crazy! Then the line from my reel started peeling out. I quickly tightened the drag and stepped back. I waited anxiously on the boat hoping the fish would not come off. When the number on the reel screen read 30ft I still could not see a fish in the water.

As I reeled up the last few feet of line I grabbed my rig and started handlining it up. I was confused because it seemed I had lost my lead and my rig was floating up. Then all of a sudden this big mass of the most beautiful hue of red I have seen in my life appeared out of nowhere. Onaga (longtail snapper)! I quickly reached down and grabbed the gills of the fish pulling it up into the boat. “NO WAY!” I screamed over and over. The onaga ended up weighing just over 12lbs. That was my first experience with the true intensity of deep bottom fishing. 

Every trip after that provided me with onaga ranging from 3lbs to my biggest ever 16lbs.

It seems like the closer we get to the winter months. The more onaga are caught and the bigger they are. Around the end of November I had an especially crazy day where the onaga seemed to bite on every drop. I even got a triple onaga on one of my drops!

During one of my trips at Penguin Banks It seemed like the onaga bite had slowed down early, so I decided to take some dead opelu onto the banks in 150-200 ft of water. I hooked up an entire opelu and dropped it down onto some big marks on my gps. As soon as I closed the bail on my reel, I was hooked up! And it was big. As I brought the fish up I saw the silver flash of a big uku. That was my first uku weighing over 10lbs. After that day I devoted some time to learning how to master this, and although I have only dedicated one day to strictly ukus, I managed to get some good sized ones. My biggest one weighing in at 18 lbs.

I’ve learned quite a few things over the past few years but I have 3 tips which I think are the most helpful for people starting to get into bottom fishing. These tips might not work for everyone but in my experience they work for me.

  1. Bait quality matters. Don’t leave your bait out in the sun on the boat and don’t use bait that’s been sitting in your freezer for a year. Fresh bait is always best, and I’ve found bottom fish like bloody baits. 
  2. Check tides and current. Bottom fishing in strong currents is like asking for trouble. It’s harder to stay on the spot, easy to tangle lines, and I feel like the fish just don’t bite as good. You can’t control the current but if it’s too strong you might be better off trolling around the area until it calms down. 
  3. Rotate spots. I made the mistake of hitting the same spot over and over again and I regret it. You should be giving your spots time to replenish themselves. This will ensure that there are fish there in the future and those fish bite well. 

Oh also if you’re getting sharked, move spots! The sharks will keep taking your fish without mercy.

2023 Wrap-up – Shoreline to Boat (Oahu)

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2023 was better overall than 2022 but fell a bit short of expectations. A weak El Nino did warm up the water in the late Spring but faded, and it was a windier than normal year. Overall water temps didn’t get that high and there were less fishable offshore days than the previous years. Thanks to the Holoholo writers for summarizing their season.

Shoreline:

Oama:

Some spots were very good and consistent, holding oama through September. Other spots that normally hold large schools were dry. The oama came in late July and left by October, which is the typical timeframe. Overall, an 8 out of 10. Papio weren’t hitting the piles much though.

Halalu:

It was a very good halalu season on Oahu. The regular spots held fish for a long time despite getting pounded. Papio were seen and some caught near the halalu piles.

Oio Flats Jigging:

Matthew:

The O’io fishing this year has been great in general. Unlike previous years, I chose to completely forego the summer Papio run and instead focus on only flats fishing for O’io. It got a little tough this year with the presence of many new anglers on the flats, but spot rotation is something that I’ve found extremely valuable. Rotating between four or five spots has kept each one fresh for the next time I fish it. I never fish the same spot twice in a row. With the increase in pressure, I’ve hardly seen any fish in the shallows, instead being forced to go to deeper water in search of those smart fish. 

This summer showed a really impressive number of O’io, but most of them were smaller fish (under 4 pounds). This winter has been very cold and while the numbers of O’io have decreased exponentially, the quality of fish has also increased exponentially. Recently I’ve been fishing for most of the trip without a nibble but depending on that one 5lb+ fish to come around. I haven’t had much numbers, but nearly all of my fish in the past month have been over 5 pounds. For example, I went through the entirety of August, September, and October without catching a single Oio over 5 pounds, although I was catching more numbers in smaller fish. I’ve also shifted my strategy from “stay in one area you’re really confident in” to “cover as much ground as you possibly can” recently. They’re still out there, you just gotta hope for the best sometimes. Good luck🤙

Fly Fishing:

Jason: The year overall was a fairly productive one, with all of our usual flats producing bonefish, along with the occasional 10-12” omilu (a trophy on our flats).  By October, the action started to taper off, but this is perfectly normal for those of us hunting roundjaw o’io on the flats (versus the deeper water sharp jaw variety). Looking back at my catch logs for myself and friends (aka our group text string) I’d say our numbers were pretty much right around our averages, however we did focus a bit more on the windward side of the island this year than years past.  This is partly due to the Navy’s closure of a popular flat, which remains closed as of this writing, and partly because exploring new waters is part of the fun in fishing!  

Plugging/Whipping:

Thad: I dedicated more time during the summer of 2023 to throwing plugs instead of bubble/fly, so my papio catches were down.  Did that mean I caught more of the bigger predators like the elusive ulua than in the past?  Nope.  But my fishing partner Dino had a year to remember with his back-to-back big ulua on consecutive days.  I did have in increase in big strikes so the opportunities were there but I suffered from the rubbah hook/bent hook curse so I caught less fish overall.  The plugging action picks up around the summer months but the timing is a little different every year.  The 2023 action seemed to start a little earlier than the year before.  Whipping the flats for oio was more productive for me this year as we’ve been able to dial in some new spots.  People say the winter months are better for oio but to me they seem to bite equally year-round.  Hopefully the oio action will continue through 2024 and I’ll be able to make the summer plugging strikes stick.

Dino:

2023 has been a really weird year as far as fishing goes. It was really up and down for me. I accomplished what I feel I will never be able to accomplish again. I hit uluas on back to back days in July.  A white ulua in the 35 ish pound range and an omilu in the 22 pound range. Lost another one at landing some time after. The oio action on the flats has been hit or miss. Some days it’s good. Some days it’s dead as can be.

The Summer was good and the plugging really slowed in the Winter so I’ve been doing flats fishing for oio which has been a little bit of hit and miss for me. Picking one up here and there.

Hoping that 2024 can bring some good action for the bigger shoreline game. Gathering and prepping the plugging gear as we speak.

Nearshore:

Kayak Fishers (West and Northsides of Oahu): Largest shibi (yellowfin tuna under 100lb) of the season were caught in the Spring, along with mahi. Summer to early Fall were consistent for shibi and mahi. Aku popped up in the early Fall. Ono were caught in early late Fall. Bite has slowed in Winter but there are still pelagics to be caught if you’re in the right place with a lively opelu. Uku seems to be available year round.

Scott: (Windward side kayak) Slow ’til March when aku schools moved in shallow. Then the wind blew ’til October. When the weather finally allowed offshore kayaking, the small shibi and small mahi were in shallow but that only lasted a few weeks, water temp was 79 degrees. In December the temp dropped to 74 degrees and the pelagics were scarce. Currently, nehu bait balls are getting pounded by small kawakawa and opelu from below, and birds from above. North swell often shutting down exposed spots.

Dive:

Kayak diving

Pono: Didn’t get a ton of diving in this year due to having a busier than normal schedule and a windier than normal summer (my usual dive season). However, the few outings that I were able to go on were very productive! I had a lot of fun down-sizing my speargun, kayak diving, and trying new recipes. Diving deeper has shown me that Oahu still get fish if you know where to look! I think there were more nearshore pelagics in the Fall compared to other times of the year, we were seeing shibi and kawakawa on reef dives.

Boat:

Erik: 2023 brought two new boats into our fishing experiences, a 21’ Force and a 17’ Boston Whaler.  The year started steady and progressively got better with October being our best month.  We are blessed to have landed Ahis in both boats this year and have caught enough fish to share with friends and family.

Offshore fishing is still good but the wind and high surf have been limiting factors.

We look forward to more fishing adventures in 2024 and hope to see more of our fishing family out in the ocean.

Spring 2022 Shore to Boat Fishing Report and Summer Forecast

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The guys quickly summarize how fishing has been in the Spring, and what they expect in the next few months. Spring is normally a slow time before the bite picks up in the late Summer/Fall so it’s interesting to see how the different fisheries have performed.

Matt, Oahu whipper: The Papio fishing has been pretty good as of late, and the O’io action has been great since March. It’s sometimes frustrating to see crowds of fishers in my usual spots, but I’ve been moving to other areas and exploring new grounds. I was rewarded for my trouble two weeks ago with a three-hour O’io blitz in which I caught nine fish ranging from one to eight pounds.

Since late March, I’ve caught more O’io than I caught in all of last year but there’s signs that the action will start to slow down. While I wasn’t able to get out this weekend, there were multiple reports that the usual spots were completely dry. Perhaps the action has to get worse before it gets better again.

However, the Papio action seems to have picked up recently, with a bunch of my friends being able to land some nice fish. There are one or two spots with Halalu in right now, and just a few more with Oama, so try to get in on the Papio action while you still can. We can hope that this first wave will be refreshed by the usual June-July run, but it is uncertain. Good luck out there and tight lines!

Jeremy, shore jigger:

(click to enlarge)

Every year, I like to set a fishing goal for myself.  This year, I’m really trying to get an ulua on a jig on a lighter setup (PE2 mainline or less), so I’ve spent a lot of time this year primarily focusing on this tactic.  

The year started strong with some massive strikes that couldn’t be stopped.  But, from around March till May, the action was relatively slow.  Some of our usual spots that used to be pretty consistent, have been fairly quiet and only a few fish caught here and there.  So we did some exploring and have found a couple new spots that have been pretty hot.  We’ve found some schools of papio up to the 3# range, so hopefully that’s a good sign for the upcoming summer months.

If you’ve never tried jigging from shore, it can be really fun, but get expensive in a hurry.  Besides the obvious challenges of possibly getting stuck on the reef, knot getting caught on your guides and snapping your line on the cast, you also have the risk of getting cutoff a lot.  In just the past few weeks, I’ve lost about a $100 worth of jigs from fish cutting me off on the reef. 

But, I love jigging since it allows you to work the entire water column and you will take strikes at any and every depth.  Sometimes the strike will be when the jig is falling or right when it hits bottom, or it could be at the very surface.  You just never know and that’s the best part about it.  Just be ready for that sudden tug and hopefully luck is on your side.  Good luck to everyone.  Hopefully it’ll be a HOT summer.

Shea, Big Island offshore kayaker: In April, ono and mahi were biting. Opelu was somewhat plentiful. In May the opelu was hit or miss. The pelagic bite really slowed. Hoping the bite picks up soon but realistically Fall is the peak season.

BJ, Oahu night whipper:

Whipping at night has been productive since the beginning of the year. The menpachi and aholehole have been good sized, biting well, and have been around in high numbers. Papio are also coming up occasionally. Night fishing should continue to be effective throughout the summer and into the early fall, especially as the presence of bait fish fill the shoreline. 

Scott, Oahu offshore kayaker:

Wind limited the number of fishable days in the last 2 months and the bite was still slow when guys could get out. Opelu has been sighted recently but they aren’t biting well. Kawakawa and small mahi mahi have been the most common catch. Ono have recently been landed.

This is the NOAA water temperature graph of inshore Kaneohe Bay last year, from May through December. Because of the placement of the sensor, the recorded temps are higher than the deeper areas of the bay. Temps rose before the end of May, to 83.5 deg F which was actually the peak for the year. That may explain why the offshore kayak fishing picked up before June and remained somewhat consistent until the water temps really dropped off in November, falling to 74 degrees. By the end of November, the bite really slowed down. Since this year is a La Nina year like last year, the water temps may follow the same pattern so I’m expecting the bite to pick up soon as the water warms!

Erik, inshore and offshore Oahu boater: Bite seems to be picking up offshore. A lot of guys have been getting ahi recently. We’ve found smaller cane-size mahi (5-8lb) nearer and aku piles further out. The opelu bite was good in the mid-morning but the size of opelu was on smaller side. Overall the bite seems to be picking up and should hit its stride in the Summer.

St Croix Mojo Salt Conventional Boat Rod – Purpose built for my offshore kayak needs

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Quick background: I’ve been using a 7ft 7inch G Loomis Bucara conventional trigger stick rod purchased in 2004 and put into offshore kayak use in 2018. It’s a super light rod with a lot of backbone, sensitive tip and a fat cork foregrip that brought up heavy sharks and target fish. I liked the length for getting around the bow of my 14ft kayak, and for trolling from the front, keeping the line out of my rudder. I didn’t have any complaints at all but started looking for a backup rod in case the Bucara needed repair.

Offshore kayak fishing is pretty rough on rods so I was looking for a graphite – fiberglass composite that I didn’t have to baby, was close to the 7ft 7inch length, had a comfortable foregrip, medium fast forgiving tip and a light mass to match the compact Avet SX Raptor reel.

I looked at what the name brand rod makers had to offer and the closest match was a St Croix Mojo Salt Conventional rod that debuted in 2018. I reached out to St Croix through their website, asking if they would consider selling their 7ft 6inch Medium Heavy, Medium Fast conventional rod rated for 40 – 65lb braid and weighing only 12.3 oz, at a reduced price if I would properly review it. Instead, big wave surfer, canoe and paddleboard paddler, well respected Costa Del Mar and FCS Fins marketing rep, and all around nice guy Keoni Watson contacted me. Keoni, who also reps for St Croix, managed to convince the marketing team that I would be able to provide a fair evaluation of their rod in the adverse Hawaiian offshore conditions if they sent me one.

Beyond grateful, I received the rod yesterday. The Mojo Salt Conventional boat rod is resplendent in purple like the G Loomis Bucara, but different in many ways.

Bucara on top, Mojo Salt on the bottom

The foregrip is much longer, comprising of EVA foam instead of cork.

Bucara on top, Mojo Salt on the bottom

The guide eyes and supporting structure are much larger and stronger.

The butt cap can be removed, revealing a gimbal butt. The tip is a more forgiving medium-fast taper.

G Loomis opted to keep the Bucara as light as possible, using less fiberglass fibers, smaller guides and cork on the fore and aft grip. In 2004, the Bucara retailed for $250 which is $380 in today’s dollars (I got it for $200 on sale). The Mojo Salt Conventional sells for $240, even less than the Bucara did 18 years ago.

The Bucara was really meant to be held all day, casting big baits and lures, or bottom fishing. The Mojo Salt is a much more versatile, durable boat rod yet still light and at a very good price point. Here’s what St Croix says about this beauty.

Avet SX Raptor on Mojo Salt

I can’t wait to see how the Mojo Salt + Avet SX Raptor feels on a big fish.

Shoreline to boat, the doldrums had set in! What to expect in coming months.

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Every year, there are a few months when the bite comes to a grinding halt. The slowdown is normally exacerbated by cold fronts dropping the water temps quickly, but this year, the water has stayed relatively warm at about 75 – 77 degrees and yet it’s been super duper slow since mid-January for the shore guys out to the boat guys.

We’ve had stretches of very calm water which actually slowed the bite even more. The less desirables, above, although tasty, bit because nothing else would.

Inshore

The papio at heavily fished spots probably won’t be in until the end of May at the earliest. According to the late Jim Rizzuto’s Fishing Forecast, it’s also a slow period for moi and ulua but the aholehole bite should be good. Papio and ulua should improve in April. Kaku is a wildcard, according to Mr Rizzuto.

Best bet: The guys fishing for oio with bait and lures (flies and small weighted jigs) have been doing well lately. Get in the water and get it to where they are feeding, for your best shot at the silver bullets.

Kayak

Bait has been hard to locate and catch, and if you’ve been lucky enough to have live bait, they generally went unmolested. Even the bottom fishing has been slow. Mr Rizutto’s forecast says that uku is normally slow until April, but Mahi normally return in March and some were actually caught this week. Kawakawa should be around now, though we haven’t heard of much.

Best bet: Fish the best conditions (low visibility, good current, some chop on the water) with the liveliest, freshest baits and drop down to where the fish are holding.

Boat

Winter/Spring trolling season hasn’t been too good. Some billfish and aku have been caught but not in great numbers, and the mahi and ono haven’t really shown in consistent numbers yet. Just this past week, there’ve been reports of large shibi/small ahi off the west and south side of Oahu, but the bite has been on and off. The Deep 7 snappers are biting but nabeta has been slow. Sailfish and kawakawa should bite through April according to Mr Rizzuto.

Best bet: Plan to round out the day by bottom fishing with the best baits and conditions possible. Things hopefully pick up in March.

We’re an authorized Avet dealer!

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Avet reels have been around for 20 years and are known for their small-footprint frames billeted from aerospace grade aluminum in the good ol’ US of A. Because their machining tolerances on their stainless steel gears are so small/exact, the reels don’t have to rely on excessive bearings to run smoothly. Instead, the reels are very easy to maintain workhorses that can take a lot of abuse in the salt and keep on performing at a high level.

Just some of the lever drag series available

There are 6 lever drag series and have recently added a star drag series. The base models start with a single speed gear and a single drag washer, and their largest reels have 3 speeds and 4 disc drags. A magnetic brake to minimize back lashes can also be added. Then there’s all the colors you can choose from. Really, it’s like building your own custom reel.

Raptors of each series

I’ve been kayak fishing with an SX Raptor for almost 2 years. The SX series is their smallest frame, but the Raptor model added magnetic cast, 2-speed and a max drag of 26lb in a 17oz reel. It’s been awesome to grind up ulua and sharks in low gear, and when I took it apart to clean it, there was very little residue to wipe off.

Hawaii shorecasters have been loving the medium sized Avets to cast effortlessly and bring in big game, and the boat guys have been running the large trolling reels.

The Avet reels have been underpriced for so long that they did raise their prices this year, but are still much cheaper than Shimano and Accurate when you compare features.

Drop me a line if you’re interested in an Avet. I’ll order the reels as they are requested and while I’m prohibited from selling at a discount, I can provide a rebate on other products purchased in the Store.

You can learn more about the various Avet reel options by checking out the Avet Reel website.

Deep diving Rapala XRap Magnum 30 – the Ono Killer

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Ordered some XRap Magnum 30s for my buddy Capt Erik. His dad and uncle had the XRap Magnum 30 out with a medium sized spinner and 30lb braid so they had to baby the ono. Sharky took his share at the end of the 15 minute fight. They now run the proper gear since the XRap always gets bit!

Here’s an intact ono caught on a trip before then.

I ordered extra to share with boaters, jet skiers, OC1-ers and kayakers that can troll above 5mph. The Xrap Magnum 30 dives to 30ft.

Lowest prices on the internet, in the best colors so get ’em while they last.

Sub-surface lures in the Store.

Jigs, Jigs, Jigs

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This is what I currently take out on the kayak. All but 3 are tungsten jigs, from 20gm up to 100gm. Jigging is my third option after damashi and bait fishing, so I haven’t had a recent catch on them but when the fish marks on the sonar are active, or the damashi rig gets destroyed, almost certainly the jig will get bit.

(top to bottom) 80gm 2.5″ and 100gm 2.75″ tungsten jigs

The more compact, non-elongated jigs above could easily be fished from shore, if you were casting into deep enough water. A flutter blade makes the jig look even more alive when retrieving diagonally.

We’re finding that the specific jigs work best when they match what the predators are feeding on. When they’re on inshore bait fish and krill the small tungsten jigs work really well.

(top to bottom) Williamson Benthos 100gm, Little Jack 100gm lead jigs

According to Big Island kayak fishers Haru and Shea, when the deeper water fish are chasing opelu, the longer, slender jigs get nailed, and the jig length helps keep toothy fish like ono from biting off the leader.

These two are my only long, opelu looking jigs. The bottom one from Little Jack (JDM) really looks like an opelu (please zoom into the picture), and the top one from Williamson has bevels that are supposed to make it fall and swim enticingly.

Looking at these jigs is making me want to move jigging up to a higher priority! What do you guys think about these jigs? Good shape” Good colors? All but the top two have already hooked fish. Hooked doesn’t equal landing though, when the hookee is an angry ulua.

Cool products: Rogue Fishing Company phone tether and rod/paddle leash

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We’re always looking for new products that will enhance our fishing experience, and sharing recommendations with our readers. An ad for an improved phone tether showed up in my Instagram feed recently. I’ve been using a waterproof pouch on a lanyard attached to my pfd (personal floatation device) when I kayak fish, and it’s kept my phone safe, but I often can’t unlock my phone through the pouch. Even if I can, I have a hard time texting through it. Since my Samsung Galaxy S8 Active is waterproof, I really didn’t need the pouch. I checked reviews of Rogue Fishing Company, and their products, and all looked very positive.

So I joined their email list to save 15% off my first order, and ordered their 3rd generation phone tether ($19.99) and their rod/paddle leash ($17.99). A few days later the products arrived. I was very impressed with the ergonomics and quality of the components.

The leash of the phone tether is a compact fabric covered coil, the loops that hold the 4 corners of the phone are a durable silicone, and the carabiner and metal ring are corrosion resistant. The position of the silicone loops are designed to not interfere with the phone’s camera, and should stretch to fit most phones. Here’s Rogue Fishing’s product description and video of the Protector 3.0.

Even though my phone is supposed to be waterproof, if water gets in the charging port, a warning is displayed so I taped over that port temporarily. I took the phone tether and rod leash out to the deep this week. I could text on-the-water fishing reports to my buddies and ugh, answer phone calls freely. I resisted the temptation to take photos on the water, and instead used the GoPro on my cap.

I had been using a hard plastic, coiled paddle leash for years. It does the job and is very strong, but is heavy and rattles around on the deck of the kayak when I paddle. Rogue Fishing’s rod/paddle leash is much more streamlined, lighter, quieter, and the clip that attaches to my kayak doesn’t rattle. Even the elastic loop that cinches to the paddle has less resistance when I rotate the paddle, so it’s less taxing to use. Here’s the product information and video for the Defender Rod and Paddle leash.

Both the tether and leash were big improvements on what I had been using. I’ll post an update in a few months of hard use.

Update 6/5/21: The Protector phone leash and Defender Rod and Paddle leash are in the Store now.

How the Avet SX Raptor held up after a year of kayak fishing

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The Avet brand of reels is not well known in Hawaii. You won’t see them in local tackle stores. I had heard of the brand but hadn’t seen a recent ad for them in years. Accurate is the much better marketed brand that also builds 1-piece aluminum framed reels with stainless steel and anodized aluminum components.

When I was at the 2020 Fred Hall Show in Long Beach, I was taken over to the Avet booth and explained to long time rep Ben Frazier how I needed a light, powerful reel to land strong fish and sharks as safely as possible on my kayak. Specifically, I wanted to troll my baits with very light drag and clicker on, and then increase the drag quickly once the fish was hooked. The problem I was running into with my star drag Shimano Trinidad, was that I took a while to spin the star drag to proper fish fighting tension, and the high gearing of the reel, while great for bringing in the bait quickly, was hard to winch sharks off the bottom. Ben suggested the small framed lever drag SX in the fully loaded 2-speed Raptor version. The Raptor came with a max strike drag of 17lb, full max at 26lb, with low 3.8:1 gearing and high 6.3:1 gearing. It even had a magnetic cast control to pretty much eliminate back lashes. The SX Raptor weighed in at only 17 ounces, and retailed for $395.

I had fished that little reel for a year, landing small ulua and large sharks with ease. In fact, anytime the high gear was feeling a bit bogged, I switched to low to bring fish in quicker. The lever drag mechanism was much easier to adjust properly while fighting a fish, and I liked how light it felt on the rod.

It was my first lever drag 2-speed reel and it exceeded my expectations. But then it was time to break it down and see how corroded it got. I watched a video on how to open it up and clean it, and it didn’t look hard at all but was very different from my Shimano casting reels. I played and paused the video as I took the reel apart. There was no trace of salt or corrosion in the reel. I was amazed. And no breakdown of the drag washer material despite fighting sharks at high drag, to try to bust them off. I couldn’t believe how pristine the innards were. I could have easily gone another year without opening it up. Later, I read that lever drag reels are sealed better at the reel handle than star drag reels, and don’t let much water in.

I just use the Avet as my bait trolling/bottom fish reel so I’ve never casted it. Never jigged it either. But for what I use it for, it has been excellent. From what I read online, the comparable Accurate reel is smoother but more expensive and requires more maintenance.

I definitely recommend the Avet SX Raptor as a light-in-weight workhorse reel and am looking to add another Avet as I step up into larger fish. Please let me know if you’re interested in purchasing an Avet reel. If there’s enough demand, maybe I could become a dealer for the Hawaii market.

Coach Haru: Love/hate relationship lure fishing for ono

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I love to catch Ono and hate them also. I lost so many lures by them. Of course it’s a part of game but…..   usually ono fights very hard in the beginning then slows down in the end. Once I see the ono near surface, ono is pretty much done. Easier than Mahi or ahi even bigger Kawakawa, they fight even on surface. When I fight hard then suddenly lose the tension of line, what? @#$%! Ono cut the line! That feeling is very bad. $20 jig, leader, assist hooks sometime cut PE line sucks. It’s not fun to tie PE and leader on yak. 

I lost one of front assist hook. It had 150lb coated braid. I can feel when I lose one hook during fight. I thought I lost this ono but thank god, tail assist hooks snagged on his bod,y that saved it. Here are some tips for fishing for ono. My friends use a foot to 2 ft long wire leader connected to leader but I snapped connection many times when fighting fish. Also I catch much less than without wire leader. Maybe distracts jig action??? So I use thin wire assist hooks. 

There are many kinds of wire hooks, plastic coated, outside is braid line, inside has wire. I don’t use short or small jig, too easy to lose. Because jig fits in Ono’s mouth then tooth touches leader. Most of time I caught ono when jig falling. When line gets slack ono run over the leader or PE main line, lose without notice. Especially PE is not strong against sharp objects. Jigging is basically vertical fishing. Way up with jigging is not the only way to catch fish, letting the jig fall down to the bottom also catch fish. Jig is falling to imitate wounded bait. Center balanced jig stays sideway position when line is slack, but no tension no feeling. Ono cuts line without notice., When line gets tension, jig’s head goes up to be diagonal or vertical. Need technique to keep the jig sideway with line tension. As soon as fish bites, set the hook hard and never slack the line. About tail hooks, when jig is sideways, it is 50/50 chance fish attack head or tail. Also back up hooks. Like I had ono break one of front assist hook line, the other was slightly hooked on lip but tail hook hooked on behind gill to save the fish. Long center weighted jig goes sideways well and also fall more slowly so jig can stay in water more longer than fast sink rear weighted jigs. Ono bites mid section and with long jig will not reach to the leader. So have length of assist hook line(maybe wire) longer at least 1/3 of jig length or an half. 

I get bite at between from 100-250ft drop off. But always bite at mid range and a few feet below surface. I’ve never caught on surface lures like poppers and minnows. Always a little deeper. Seem to me they always hang out with Kawakawa and sharks. Kawakawa hit surface lure all the time. Even though, I still drop the jig to the bottom. Because not only ono I look for when falling, pay attention to depth, colored PE remember the color when hit the jig on the bottom. So stop the jig at the right color depth, when you feel the fish on the jig set the hook. Also fast retrieve is good too. That case fish bite on the tail go jig, want to have good but smaller hooks.  Time to go near shore fishing. Aloha

Coach Haru: Right handed people should use a right handed bait caster

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Coach Haru explains why right handed people should use right handled bait casting reels, and why he takes both a spinning reel and bait casting reel on his kayak. Very good tips, pay attention! 🙂

Coach Haru: I don’t like too many stuff on yak.  I usually carry 2 rods. I don’t fish with dead or live bait.  So I don’t need a rod for catching bait. Reason I don’t fish with bait, when fish bite bait, many time they swallow deep so that fish’s survival chance is less than lure fishing. I only take fish for my friends and myself. Others gotta go back to sea. I don’t even like treble hook much. I clip barb to make barbless or use single hooks on plugs too.  

On the photo below, bait cast reel is left handle model but every other bait cast reels that I have are right handle model. Basically bait cast is made to crank with right handle for right hand stance. Editor’s Note” Coach Haru is a striking coach. 🙂

Many people who cast with right hand stance use left handle model because no need to change grip when reeling. Bait cast reel is made to cast with handle side is top because weight of reel is designed to cast easy and far. If handle side is down and cast with right hand stance, it’s not good as the other way. Manufacturers designed it that way. Left handed people should have left handle, right handed for right handle. People say not convenient for switch hands every time cast, but cast grip and reel grip are different.  

Casting grip.  The hook on the rod is between first and middle fingers. Thumb is on the spool to control backlash. 

Reeling grip. The hook on the rod is between ring and pinky, thumb on the reel not on the spool. Some right handed people use left handle model because don’t like to switch hands but cast less and grip gotta change anyway. When fight big fish,  fight fish with spinning rod is pull up and reel. Bait cast is reel vs fish straight reel without pull with rod. Especially bait cast rod is soft to make precise jig action.

Slow jigging is good with bait cast. But off shore jigging are vertical fishing so no need to cast no need to switch. I use right handle because I have used right handle bait cast so many years that easier for me. Also I switch to spinner with left handle when one arm gets tired. 

Usually I take 2 rods. Right handle bait cast with metal jig.  Left handle spinning reel with right bait casting rod with plug. I set spinning in right pole holder, bait cast on left holder. Go to the destination, I troll with the plug, when I get the point or found fish in fish finder, stop and drop jig with bait cast. While jigging if I see boil on surface, switch to spinning cast the plug to the boil. When I go to next spot, troll plug again.   I put left handle spinning rod in right side of holder. And right handle bait cast in left side, because location of handle. Pick the rod with right hand, reel with left hand. Cast with spinning rod, the other rod is in left side that can cast without the other rod in the way. Left handed people should do opposite. 

Coach Haru: Testing the little tungsten jig

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Coach Haru was able to give the compact 60gm tungsten jigs a solid test off his kayak just outside of Hilo Bay.

Coach Haru: This jig can swim, fall fast, cast far, and has less water resistance. When windy day from shore, or even against wind, small heavy bullet-like-jig flies very far. I use 10”6 jigging rod with PE 30LB, 5000 high gear spinning reel and can cast almost 100 yard.

“Match the bait” is key word for searching the best bait for the fishing. Often see a boil on the surface, cast a lure but fish don’t take. It might be the issue of size of bait they are feeding.  Need to find out what fish are eating by knowing each season what kind bait come to near shore. I gut the first fish I catch to see what is in fish’s stomach. Often the lure used is the same size of bait found in the fish. So if fish is not interested in the lure you’re using, change size to small like this tungsten jig.

I like 60g and 80g because they are not heavy and designed to cut the air to fly fast and far. Off kayak and boat, if used vertically, the jig drops very fast. Less water resistance that’s good for strong current or double current. When you see fish in the fish finder, jig can reach the fish zone fast. 60g can reach 300ft, 80g can go deeper depending on current.   For shore casting, on the first cast reel straight in as soon as hit the surface with rod tip up like 11o’clock position. It makes the jig to skip on surface like surface plug. I caught many Kawakawa (sumagatsuo) that way. A couple times try on surface , then next is straight reel in midrange, and next is start from bottom. If there no bite then change to jerking or mix with fast, slow, stop and go, short jerk, long jerk, slow jerk.    For shore cast with this tungsten 60g, I use 10”6 spinning rod and  reel 5000SW, colored PE 30LB( 8X), 40lb fluorocarbon leader 4ft-8ft depend on place. For kayak,  6”6 medium type bait cast rod and high gear bait cast reel, colored PE 40lb, 30LB fluorocarbon 15ft.  

I tuned up the demo jig Scott gave me. Changed eyes to red. Red eyes imitate wounded bait, 2 front hooks are Hirauchi (flattened metal) to shine those hooks. Blue assist line matches to the color of fish make it invisible in water. The rear blade is very popular in Japan now. Many makers make it now. What it does is imitate tail section. If the jig doesn’t wiggle well when straight reel in, this blade makes it to act like it’s swimming. Also blade is shinning more than jig so in murky water the blade shows up better. I thinks that fish takes the blade because it is small bait separate from jig. Rear hook is hirauchi hook too. I use Daiwa snap. It’s easy to change jigs, this small and thin snap has 75lb strength. But I don’t use deeper range and bigger jig over 100g I use solid ring and split ring.

This dobe papio must have thought the jig and blade was a tasty bait fish!

The other style tungsten jig I added a treble hook and blade to the rear and a single assist hook to the front. This white papio liked that look!

Compact Tungsten jigs have slayed nearshore and offshore!

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Top to Bottom: 60gm, 60gm, 80gm, 100gm

Last summer I requested some Tungsten jigs from two jig manufacturers , and was sent a batch of 60gm test models from the first company. A few months later the second company sent a couple 80gm and 100gm models. Both sets were painted but lacking the tough clear coat to make them puncture proof, and some were eye-less. I had a feeling they’d work, purely due to their small size, and resemblance to tiny bait fish.

The 60gm jigs came through just about every time I tried them off the kayak, catching fish as small as moana, and as large as ulua and kahala. They were so easy to fish because they got down to the bottom quickly, even in current, and didn’t have much resistance as I jigged them back up. As a control, I switched back to a lead jig of the same weight in the middle of a hot bite, and didn’t get a single hit.

These are some jacks that went wild for the compact jigs.

Wanted to see what these jigs could do in the hands of a jigging pro, so I passed a couple of the little 60gm jigs to Capt Erik. One day at the buoys the pelagics were showing on the sonar but not taking trolled lures. Capt Erik and his dad started with larger lead jigs that had caught fish in the past, but those jigs were ignored. So they dropped the little 60gm jig down and KABLAM! Shibi and aku fought over them and the guys had to stop fishing and drive away because they caught enough for their ohana. The tuna had tiny bait fish in their stomachs and the jigs had perfectly matched the hatch.

Thanks for making this video Capt Erik!

Tried the 80gm and 100gm jigs a couple times off the kayak and like them because they are heavier and get down faster when I’m fishing deep but I haven’t landed anything on them yet. I broke off two ulua and unbuttoned what felt like a small uku. These bigger jigs don’t look as eye catching as the 60gm jigs from the first company, but they still hooked fish. All this has convinced me that compact jigs dropped on hungry fish will get bit!

I ordered a small batch of 80gm and 100gm jigs from the first company with a few 60gm jigs thrown into the order. The production finish, with glow in the dark stripes exceeded my expectations. Almost too beautiful to fish, and coated with a tough sealant. I’m selling these at “friends and family” pricing to guys that catch fish and take great pictures. 🙂

Stay tuned to hear how effective those jigs are, from cliff, kayak and boat. Mahalo.

Update: Check out how well the tungsten jigs worked for Coach Haru here!

Holoholo: Our First Big Yellowfin Tunas

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Capt Erik and his dad Edwin continue to up their game. Just a few years ago they were new boat owners, now they’re on their new-to-them Boston Montauk chasing pelagics and dropping down on Deep 7.

Capt Erik: As usual, me and dad talked about what kind of fishing we wanted to do, the week leading up to the day I was free to fish on Sunday January 10th. Since we recently purchased two electric reels for bottom-fishing, I wanted to try and increase the odds of catching a nice bottom-fish by heading out to Penguin Banks and trying our luck there.  Continuing to watch the winds online while the week progressed, and realizing that my free time on my fishing day was getting shorter as we were packing the boat up the night before, I switched the plan and decided to stay at our local pier and just try trolling on our side.  Dad was pretty relieved to hear this because he just went bottom fishing on Thursday and Friday. 

We left the house at 5 AM, stopped at 7-Eleven to grab gas, food & ice and was in the water before six. There were a lot of boats at the pier staging to get ready and launch, but luckily with our small boat and simple set up we were able to avoid the mad rush and get out quick.

I had a plan in mind of the route I wanted to take and started my line from the head buoy. The sun started breaking the surface while we were about 4 miles offshore, the wind was low, the water surface had light texture and there were some long swells that were easy to handle.  The birds were just starting to wake up and move around and so we continued on our way dropping our Lures out right after the green flash. We had a Tsutomu 9″ bullet on the long center line (that I received while attending an Ahi course by Tsutomu), a 6″ Mark White smoker lure on the side and a 6″ chrome head lure rigged with flashabou by Derin Goya at First String Fishing (@firststringfishing) on the other.   

We didn’t see any birds that were working on our way to one of the fish aggregation devices, but did see someone jigging at the FAD. We decided to pull the lines up and try jigging since we saw that boat pull in a small shibi (5-10lbs?).  Dad dropped his jig on his electric reel down deep and I stayed up high since we couldn’t see any fish on the fish finder and wanted to work all columns.  After three drops and coming up with nothing and watching the other boat make three drops and coming up with zero as well, I looked around and saw there were birds now working the surface of the water approximately 500 yards from us.

We brought the lines up quickly and sped to the bird pile.  As soon as we got to the birds, I dropped my jig down and held my rod as I drove.  Dad put out a 5″ pink squid lure on his electric reel.  I slow down to about 5 to 7 knots and was able to hook an aku, about 7lbs.  We brought the aku in and bled it while trying to stay with the birds.  We continued to work the birds but about six more boats joined in and it became hectic to maneuver.  We couldn’t get another bite for ~10 minutes and watched as the other boats were successful in picking up smaller tunas about 10 pounds. We decided to leave that area and continue on the path I had routed and planned in my head.  


The path I made up was based on our previous trips in December where we saw lots of birds. Shortly after leaving the birds where the other boats were, I saw bigger sized skipjack tunas jumping in front of us and birds that were sitting down on the water and would fly over when they seen the fish jumping. I was able to observe some flying fish scatter at the top of the water very close and made a small turn towards it.  Right after I turned the Mark White lure line started peeling out.  The fish gave a little fight and then started surfboarding on the surface. The fish hooked itself in a way where it pulled the gills, bled out, then came up dead.  It was a good sized Aku about 15 pounds.  While bleeding the fish we made a big rookie mistake 🙁 We left the lines in the water and our leader line with the chrome head got caught around the prop and stopped it. It took us about 15 minutes to cut the leader line free from the propeller and then I circled back to where we caught the fish. I didn’t see any other fish jumping and while circling around again to make another pass in the area I could see a huge pile of birds very far off in the distance. When I troll with dad I’m usually always driving while dad sets lines watches the Lures and controls the lines according to which Direction we need to move in.  We work well together this way because my eyes are better at seeing the birds and dad doesn’t get seasick while not looking into the horizon (looking down at lures, tying down poles etc).

The bird pile I’m seeing way off in the distance is free of any boats and the birds are very actively working the surface, diving as well as flying high to move and dive. I instruct dad to pull up the centerline and watch the lines as I speed to get to the pile. Before we get to the pile, dad puts out the third line. I look at the GPS and realize that the spot we are in is the exact spot that I wanted to go to. It was a destination we had marked the month before when we took a double strike but couldn’t land either fish. About 3 to 4 minutes into working the pile I see the first fish jump out of the water!! It was a yellow fin tuna that I guessed about 60 pounds. I told dad “we are not leaving this pile. I don’t care if we don’t catch anything today I want to work this pile because I can see what kind of fish there are. “

We continue following the birds and I continue to see the fish jumping out of the water and now my heart is racing. We circle once within 1/4 mile of where we started and then get back down to the bottom where we started our circle when we finally hear it. . . Our 14/O Penn senator real starts peeling line end drag is screaming.  It took the Tsutomu 9″. Trying to remain calm we pull up the other lines and prepare ourselves. I had a good idea of what was on the line because I’ve seen the fish jumping around but decide to keep the boat moving instead of stopping and fighting it up and down like you normally would a tuna.  Once the deck was clear, dad takes the wheel and I take the rod and reel at the back.  I work line slowly back into the reel but we have a lot of line out at this point (100 yards?). I realize that if at some point we do get the fish boat side that someone will have to leader the fish up.  I asked dad to hand me my gloves get the gaff’s ready and the bat for dispatching.  Dad takes the rod and reel for a second while I put the gloves on in anticipation of leadering and tells me “we forgot the bat.”  I jump back on the reel and now the fish is close. I get the first glance and my adrenaline goes even higher. Neither of us have ever seen a fish like this before while on a boat.  I told my dad when i saw it “Big Fu$*!n Yellow!”


I grab the leader line and start working the fish toward us as it circles its way boatside trying to make sure I guiding it to Dad standing to my left. Once it’s in reach of dad ‘s gaff he sinks it in. The fish still had a little life left and frenetically kicked at the surface, dousing us with water and splashing dad’s hat to the side, blocking his sight. Dad holds the gaff with one hand, quickly tossed his hat off with the other and I reach over and grab a meat hook. As quick as I can I put it in the fish’s mouth and yank. We hoist the fish up over the rail and hear a thud of the fish hit the floor of the boat.  A huge relief overcomes the both of us as we realize one of our long-time fishing goals was just achieved. 

As we sit there physically tired and emotionally relieved, I tell my dad what my wife, Jessica told me the night before. I always ask my wife what kind of fish she wants to eat to try and see if I we can fill her request (in hopes that if we do then happy wife happy life:).  She has called two out of the last two fish that we caught when she has asked (she asked for shibi the first time and mahi the second time and got both).  The night before she asked for an Ahi for spicy poke.  I responded and said I think I can get you poke, probably got small shibi.  She said back to me “no I want ahi.”  I explain to her that that may be a tall order based on the season but we’d try.  I guess I’m not the only one who gives her what she wants. haha.  Mahalo ke Akua!  Thanks be to God!

I spike the fish’s brain, gilled and gutted the fish to honor it, and keep the meat as best as we can and we realize there was no way it was fitting in our cooler.  We grab the fish bag and transfer the ice from the cooler into the fish bag and maneuver the fish into it. After cleaning up the deck a little bit we decided to try for another one since the fish were still around jumping and we were still the only ones at the pile. At this point the weather had turned from a calm light wind day to now the front of the rain, so the air was chilly and the rain was toward land and blocking all view of land and blocking view of the pile from other boaters? The first long line went out with the Tsutomu again and shortly after the Mark White lure went out, we heard that beautiful sound once again but this time on the 12/O.  We knew to fight it up and down now.

It was dad ‘s turn to fight the fish and I was glad that I could film him. I took charge of the GoPro cameras while dad took charge of the rod and reel. I was amazed to watch him fight this fish because typically he’s so anxious when there’s a good fish that dad ends up horsing the fishing and sometimes pops the fish off. He took his time and methodically got the fish up crank by crank. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that we already had one in the cooler? I saw it was getting close to leader as my GoPro was underwater filming the fish come up.  I put the GoPro down and grab the leader line. This fish was swimming in a clockwise direction while circling up, opposite of the first.  Upon its fourth circle I could see it was going toward the propeller and feel it was stronger than the first fish. Our motor was still on and propeller was still in the water and the fish must’ve gotten spooked by the movement or sound because it took off on its second run. I let go of the leader line and let it do its thing.  Dad kind of laughed at the situation and took his spot at the reel again after putting the gaff down. Once again, he got it up to the surface and by this time once I grab the leader I could kind of tell that it was tired.  In fact, it looked as if it was defeated because on its last circle because it went straight for dad’s gaff and he was able to sink it in perfectly. It gave no fight and I reached for the second gaff and we lifted it slowly in. This time the feeling was more of a validation . . . A feeling of “ok, maybe we might know a little about what we’re doing.”  Opportunity met preparation this day.  

We knew it was our time and very lucky and blessed to have the two fish already in the boat so after quickly joking about going for more we took our time to properly gill and gut the second fish, ice it down, clean the deck and head in. 



When we got to the pier, we realize there’s no way we’re taking the fish bag out without pulling the fish out individually to properly wash boat and also knew that we really needed more ice for the fish. Instead of washing down at the pier (which was already full of boats anyway) we got ice and headed straight home. 

We don’t have a big fish scale so we weighed the two fish by standing on a normal scale, then with the fish and subtracting.  The weight of both gilled and gutted fishes came out to 72 and 74lbs. We took some pictures with the family and my friend Kelly came to help cut one of the fish in the early evening. 

We shared the fish with friends and family and kept replaying the events in our head.  You never forget your first and now we truly know what the feeling of “Ahi Fever” is like.