I checked out the Ocean Expo on its first day and missed the GT Masters tourney weigh in on Sunday. Heard the winning ulua weighed 43.1 lbs. Not 100 lbs like last year but still a legit tournament winnah.
Saw a couple friends manning booths, made some new friends and learned a lot about the local fishing and fishery management. It’s definitely worth attending to get a better understanding of what the various conservation groups are doing to improve our local fishery. Not to mention the ono seafood grinds and special deals on clothing and gear.
I talked with DLNR Officer Vance and he said, despite rumors to the contrary, the DLNR do follow up on reports of fishing violations. For example, someone sent the DLNR pictures of a guy illegally throw netting, and included the license plate of the offender’s truck. Officer Vance was able to locate the offender’s house and searched the home and found a set of illegal nets. The nets were confiscated, the offender lost his court case and was fined hundreds of dollars. Officer Vance stressed that we keep calling in the reports of offenses and if there is a pattern, the DLNR will stake out the area and wait for the crimes to be committed. While there is a shortage of DLNR enforcement officers they do look into every reported tip. You can reach DLNR at 643-DLNR (643-3567).
[…] checked out the Hawaii Fish and Dive Expo this past weekend, and unlike the Ocean Expo held in April, there were many more products at show prices for sale. I saw dive masks, fins, […]