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Wade whipping during the Stay At Home Shutdown

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Oahu’s Mayor Caldwell’s 2-week lock down had gone into effect this morning (8/27/20). Thankfully fishing in the water (wade fishing, diving, kayak fishing, boat fishing…) was still considered essential.

I took a drive down the Windward coast and there were a lot less shore fishers, but some were still standing on dry land or sitting in their trucks.

The tide was really high for most of the day, contradicting the steep rise and fall predicted in the Hawaii Fishing News Almanac. Guessing all that water was due to the King Tide phenomenon. On the way back from my scouting trip, it looked like the tide had dropped enough so I waded out to one of my reliable lure testing spots.

Started with a 3.5″ jointed rubber Vudu Mullet that got followed by not attacked. Maybe the kaku wanted a more aggressive swimmer? I put on the IMA Sasuke 120F with the clear body and lime/yellow top and was stoked on how that lure cut through the wind. On the second cast I hooked a kaku, turned the GoPro on, and got footage of the fish imitating a tarpon.

Then it purposefully leaned its head to the left to wind up and throw the lure to the right. Nonchalantly, it slowly swam away. So glad it waited ’til I had the leader firmly in my grip before it shot the lure sporting 3 treble hooks.

I reloaded, cast the Sasuke out again and caught a smaller kaku. Back to back! I let that kaku shake off before it got too close, and after that the bite went dead. There was a guy dunking near me, sleeping in his truck so he effectively cut me off from wading past him.

This was the first time I fished the Sasuke seriously and man was I impressed. The ball bearings roll to the back on the cast, and then roll forward on the retrieve, making it wobble and dart crisply. The 3 stock treble hooks are very sharp, going 2 for 2 on the hard-to-hook kaku, but be careful when you release your fish! The Sasuke dove more than 2 feet on a fast retrieve, but floated back to the surface when the line slacked. All you have to do is wind straight and hang on!

We still have the Sasuke in 3 color patterns in the Store. Sorry it took so long to test it.

Quick water test of new JDM lures

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Picked a windy evening to test the Little Jack Gorgon 125 and IMA Sasuke 120F. The minimal whipping gear needed (rod/reel, gear bag, wading boots) was a nice break from the stuff we have to take to kayak fish.

I had just started using a pair of entry level Simms Tributary Felt Sole wading boots from Cabelas ($100) because my neoprene $30 tabis didn’t fit well and kept giving me weird callouses. The high end tabis from Japan were more than $150 and I couldn’t justify that cost for the little I wade fished. The Simms Tributarys go on and off easier than my zippered tabis because of the speed lacing but because the felt bottom is flat and rigid, it feels like I’m an astronaut walking on the moon. Not sure if all felt bottomed wading boots are that way. Still something I’m getting used to, but at the end of each trip I barely notice that stiffness. It is comforting to know that I can kick jagged rocks and my toes are safe from eel bites.

I just had a short stretch of reefy water to cast in because dunkers were fishing both ends. Started with the jointed Little Jack Gorgon 125. It casted ok when the wind was light but didn’t do well into a strong crosswind because of the shifting center of mass. It swam incredibly realistically at slow speeds, and when I paused it, the head of the lure turned back towards its tail. At high speeds it leaned over to the side so it’s definitely a slow to medium retrieve lure. Since it floats, and submerges a few inches when retrieved, there was no risk of snagging and it wasn’t affected by the slight chop. I bet it’s gonna slay the picky fish that follow lures before deciding to eat.

It got windier so I put on the IMA Sasuke 120F. It floated, but barely, and swam in the 27″ to 36″ depth range, so I had to be careful in shallow, rocky water, but man did it punch through the wind. I was never at risk of backlashing my bait casting reel, and because it swam 2 to 3 feet under the surface, the predators would easily see its aggressive side to side head movement. Unfortunately, with no bait fish around, there was no reason for a predator to brave the cold, shallow water, so the two lures didn’t even get a sniff.

I am pumped to fish the Gorgon in areas that require finesse lures, and throw the Sasuke even when the weather conditions get a little nasty. Both lures are currently available in the Store.

New JDM Sub-Surface lures in the Store!

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In case you haven’t been checking, a bunch of hard to find and very effective JDM sub-surface lures have been added to the Store.

  • IMA iBorn 118F with new Magnetic Rebound System that improves casting distance.
  • IMA Sasuke 120F, extremely popular in Asia and Europe with rolling magnetic tungsten ball system to improve casting distance.
  • Little Jack Gorgon 125, realistically detailed, natural moving jointed swimbait scaled down for inshore fish.

Don’t wait to long to decide if you wanna try these, they are selling out fast now that the Store is open to the whole country and the prices, with shipping are … unreal!