Holoholo: May – August shore line report

September 13, 2024 By Scott 1 Comment

Merik Chun returns to share how this summer’s bait fish, whipping, shore casting and throw netting season has been. We’re very blessed to get his insight from all the hours he spent on the water.

Merik:

Potentially the most rewarding time of the year for any fisherman. The summer months. This usually ranges from mid-April into May, and can last all the way till August, and as of recently maybe even September.

Throughout these last few months the primary focus was shore fishing. To be specific bait casting and even throwing net (ʻupena). There was definitely a presence of fish, but knowing how to catch them is always the tough part.

The first form of baitfish to show up this year were the nehu, followed by small schools of halalu and sardines. This attracted predators such as papio, kaku, and moi. This summer the main baitfish which I had focused my attention toward was the halalu and sardine piles. I usually target these baitfish by whipping for them, using a light game rod, with a smaller size reel. Using a California style rig with at least 2 arm spans of 2# mono to a small hook with an aqua strip, with the right stroke it was possible to catch these small baitfish. While the halalu in particular are good eating fried whole, I usually just caught enough to free line in hopes of Papio or other predators. The best time of the day I’ve noticed was right as the sun was going down, and that’s where the action came. I managed to get lucky with a few small papios, the occasionally kaku snip, and even an out of season moi, all on live sardine/halalu.

This summer has also proven to be productive in the shore cast category, which was primarily baitcasting with the occasional slide bait. Baitcasting is a popular way to catch a large majority of Hawaii’s nearshore fish, using a long casting rod, and a reel (conventional/spinner) usually spooled with monofilament line. From the beaches to the rocky shores, bait casting has proven to be productive. I managed to get lucky with everything from Oio’s to mu’s and even another out of season moi! While baitcasting, I usually like to fish around the tide changes around 2 hours before and 2 hours after the slack tide. This is when I’ve noticed fish feeding actively consistently, but it’s also a variable which is heavily dependent on location and time of year.

Another focus for myself this year was throwing net (ʻupena kiloi) which is the art of using a cast net to target fish along the shoreline. In Hawaii, there is a legal size requirement for the eye of the net which is 2”. This ensures that smaller fish are able to swim through which would be too small to take home. Knowing the size requirements of your net and the fish you’re after is a must. For the most part, the fish population in the areas I usually try are quite normal. Schools of kala and manini grazing on the reef was a sign of a healthy reef, but were not my main targets. One thing I’ve noticed this year was an influx of uhu and pananu close to the shoreline. This is a fish I haven’t seen much of in the past. Everything from blue and brown pananu, to even red whiptail uhu’s were plentiful in numbers in an area where I haven’t seen them before. They proved difficult to throw on always sitting right out side of throwing range. Though every once in a while when they climb up the reef or a flush of whitewater covers them, I’d get lucky. This was a good sign that the parrotfish population was present in what seemed to be sustainable numbers.

When it comes to throwing artificial lures, I hadn’t gone on as many trips as I would have liked. I would go on the occasional flats trip bringing along a light-game setup with the hopes of hooking into an oio, while really the main goal was to find some fresh bait! Ironically although I wouldn’t have much luck in the bait department, I happened to consistently get lucky with oio strikes. It’s always the case when you go out with a goal in mind, and it happens that you get lucky in some other way shape or form. Whenever I walk the flats with the hopes of targeting an oio, I end up finding tako. I guess that’s why the Hawaiians never speak about what they’re targeting and just keeping it simple by saying that they going go “holoholo”. I was quite surprised that I was hooking into so many oio as during the summer months they usually are a bit harder to come across. In the few trips I had gone on, I managed to get lucky with a handful of strikes, and a few solid fish landed. A fantastic sign that the oio are still actively feeding and are around.

Before the summer months came around, I told myself that I was going to try go on more plugging trips. That never really came to fruition as I only managed to get out and try three times. Although I never landed any fish, I did get action two out of the three trips. These trips were dawn patrol trips which I’d get out to the spot at around 5:00 in the morning before the sun peeks over the mountain. I would work a stretch of grounds where I have gotten action in the past, until around 8:00 where I’d feel like the action had shut down. The first of the three trips came in early June, where the grounds looked fishy, only to find myself cast after cast with no action. I had seen one small omilu in the 5# range and casted at it only to have it ignore my lure and swim off.

14 inch White Papio on Live Sardine (Freeline)

The next two trips came around Mid-August and these trips are where I had noticed an influx in fish activity. As soon as the sun peeked over the horizon, I’d find myself watching omilu in the 10+ pound range following the lure up to my feet. Then no more than five casts later, Hanapaʻa! The strike came following the sweep of my stickbait, and was strong enough to pull me off my feet. I had a hard time keeping the rod up as it stripped line from my reel, but out of all my strikes this was the first where I felt like I had a chance. But to my disappointment with the dense reef structure and intricate ledges it managed to get pinned down and spit the hook.

After the action from that day, I decided to try again two days later. Same plan with similar conditions, get to the spot crack of dawn, and play the rising tide. This time the action came later in the morning around 7am. It’s a type of excitement that you must experience first hand in order to truly appreciate. Being able to witness an ulua chase after your lure. In this case I was able to watch the fish swimming chasing my lure only to take a single swipe at it and miss the hooks completely. Immediately next cast in the same area, I had another black Ulua follow my lure up to the ledge only to turn last second. These two fish were just above rat size around 20-25 pound range, but the excitement was there nonetheless. A few casts later, a pair of proper Omilu around the 15# range followed my lure up to my feet, only to lose interest in my figure eight’s. This amount of action in Mid-August was no surprise. During this time about a week prior, oama schools began appearing at some spots in the area. The past few of years the oama have been making a late summer appearance in around Mid-August to early September, which would make sense on why the omilu seemed to be more plentiful at this time. Soon enough oama and papio action is going to be a part of a Winter report.

The action during these summer months never ceases to amaze. From slinging lead to casting lures, there is always something to do. This year’s summer had been filled with action in every shoreline department. Main thing is that you just get out there and try. Just remember, it’s an amazing gift to be around the ocean, and any catch is simply a bonus. With the winter months ahead and oama still around there is a good chance that the action will continue. Just gotta get out there and go fishing!

Holoholo: DOUBLE – Double Digit Oio!

July 20, 2023 By Scott 6 Comments

Matthew Ikeda, our young, on-the-water intrepid reporter, shares the details of his back-to-back fishes of a lifetime catch.

Matthew: I was in bed when Sean from Nervous Waters Fly Shop asked me if I wanted to tag along with him and Frank to their spot, which I was only vaguely familiar with. I had just got my wisdom teeth removed hours before, so I was in a lot of pain and bleeding quite a bit. While I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able in a day’s time, being able to watch fly fishing masters at work was an opportunity I didn’t want to miss. I accepted the offer and arranged to meet them at the spot.

That morning, I was still bleeding a little bit but most of the pain had subsided, so I figured I was okay, plus I figured the adrenaline of sight fishing would help numb the rest. I met them at the spot and we walked out into the water. I had brought both my fly rod and a spinner rod, but I decided to start off with the spinner as I got used to the spot. We split up pretty far from each other at first. I decided to take a long loop around, wasting 15 minutes just to get in position to cast with the wind into a spot that looked good. I saw a few fish initially, but they didn’t want anything to do with the neon orange grub I was using. I switched to a darker grub that looked more natural, and immediately the fish started to show more interest. I started to feel pretty good about my chances.

Twenty minutes later, I was on my phone changing the music when I saw the outline of a big fish passing just 15 feet in front of me. I quickly put my phone in my bag and flipped an underhand cast in front of it. To my surprise, the O’io rushed the lure, ate, and immediately took off at breakneck speed. Within seconds, half of my line was gone and the fish had almost made it to the ledge, which would make my loss certain if the fish reached it. I started backpedaling and tightened the drag a little, trying to slow the fish in any way. Eventually, it did slow down and I was able to regain some line. But I had a long fight ahead of me.

Because I chose to carry two rods on me, I had to bring the smallest spinning rod I owned (so it fit in my backpack). I’ve used the same rod to catch Halalu before. The rod, a 7’10” light action, is perfect for sight casting accuracy, but that combined with the 12 pound test I chose to run made for a challenging fight. Over the next 40 minutes, the O’io ran in circles, taking line before I would eventually regain it, like a never ending game of tug of war. But the fish eventually got tired and I was able to grab it by the tail, and that’s when I realized how big it was. “Double digits” immediately came to mind as we took some pictures. Sean had a boga grip so we hooked it up, and I was stoked when the scale read right at 10 pounds. We took a couple more pictures before I released it. I took some time to relax and take it all in while Sean and Frank went back to fishing, completely satisfied with the day.

Sean and Frank had started to walk into the wind, and were pretty far away so I decided to follow them. I decided to look in the shallows for some tailing O’io, because I had never hooked a “tailer” before. I saw one pretty quickly and casted at it… but was disappointed when the lure landed right on top of the fish and spooked it, causing a big explosion. I continued on, trying to catch up to the guys. The water started to get very skinny and even though I knew O’io could get up that shallow, I questioned whether it was reasonable.

I was watching Sean, who appeared to be taking a shot at a fish when I spotted a big tail around 30 yards out. It was at a bad angle, directly into the wind, but I decided to stalk the fish. Luckily, some clouds had come in, so I hoped that they would help mask my presence. As I creeped up closer and closer I realized that this was another big fish. Its back was nearly out of the water and it seemed really occupied with digging at a specific patch of seaweed. I made my first cast at it, which was terrible and landed nowhere near, but luckily it didn’t spook the fish. I reeled in the lure quickly, made the adjustment, and casted. This time it was a beautiful line-drive cast, flying just two feet above the water before landing at the perfect distance in front of the fish. I dragged the lure along the bottom, making puffs of sand in an attempt to divert the fish’s attention. The fish jerked and moved suddenly, and then, wagging its tail, it swam over to my lure. I kept dragging the lure, so sure that the fish would spook, just like all the other skinny water tailers I had casted at in the past. But this time there was a small tug, and then a tap-tap-tap. I set the hook hard, and there was a big explosion as the fish took off even faster than the last. Luckily I was all the way on the inside, so the fish would have to spool me if it wanted to get over the ledge. For a little while, I thought it might just do that. But it stopped and started to come back in, much faster than the previous O’io. Within 10 minutes, I had it doing circles right around me. I walked into even shallower water as I tried to beach the fish. The tactic worked and the O’io tired fast, allowing me to grab it. I was shocked. It was another very big O’io and the stoke was high once again.

Frank took pictures of me holding the fish up as he called Sean to get the weight. This time, the fish tipped the boga at 10.5 pounds, making it another double digit O’io to make the day even more special. We took a pretty cool release video and the fish was on its way. Again, I stayed back to rest because I couldn’t really believe what had happened. Sean caught a good sized O’io on the fly, and Frank sightfished two puffers and an eagle ray, so we all ended up catching. We talked story on the way back and then parted ways.

The high didn’t last forever, and when I got home my calves and forearms were cramped and my pain from my wisdom removal reappeared. But the memories of that day will definitely last forever, and it was well worth it to get out there. Catching two double digit O’io on the same day is something I’ll probably never do again. I’d be happy if I caught one a year. It was a crazy day for sure and I suppose the lesson is that you just have to get out there and take some chances. Sometimes, you might just get lucky. My thanks to Sean and Frank for inviting me to tag along. I learned a lot from watching the true masters of the art, and I am very lucky to have that chance. Stay safe, have fun, and good luck out there!

Holoholo: Whipping weighted flies for oio

April 25, 2021 By Scott 9 Comments

There was so much interest in the art of bouncing small lures for oio that Matthew decided to share how he transitioned from papio whipping to retrieving lures excruciatingly slow.

Matthew:

It was probably somewhere around December when I was a little annoyed about how dead and slow the Papio action was. I was doing everything right but getting no results at all. It isn’t like me to give up Papio fishing, but desperate times require desperate measures. I weighed my options at trying different styles of fishing, those that an average fisherman like me could do, some of which included shore jigging, plugging, ultralight fishing, and oio fishing. I tried shore jigging with a friend of mine who had the idea of shore jigging down pretty well, and that didn’t go so well. After a few trips I decided I didn’t like that kind of fishing, and I quickly decided that plugging was going to be even slower than regular papio fishing. My ultralight rod was broken, so I decided not to try fishing with a half-broken ultralight rod. I decided to try my luck at Oio fishing. I’m kind of a fisherman who doesn’t use bait, not because I don’t like the smell or the hassle of getting it, but because I just like the challenge of catching a fish on a lure, where it’s more of a challenge. I’d seen pictures of many Oio that a few guys were catching on lures, and I thought, “well, it can’t really be that hard, can it?”. I headed out to a spot that I knew pretty well with a bunch of misplaced confidence. Turns out, it was really that hard and the guys were just making it look easy. Catching Oio on lures was not easy. I must have gone almost ten times before I decided that it wasn’t for me and I shelved the idea for later. I returned to fishing for Papio.

It also turns out that going back to fishing for Papio was just like banging my head against the wall over and over again, and in the three months that passed trying for papio, I only landed a measly 12 incher. I decided to stop banging my head against the wall and considered trying for Oio with lures again. With a few tips from Jeremy (see his recommendations) whom I’d been messaging on Instagram for a while, I headed back out to the spot again, with newborn confidence, which once again… was misplaced. I went on a few more trips being completely whitewashed. I decided not to give up this time and instead take a more strategic approach this time. I looked on google maps and tried to find the areas that looked best within the spot, areas that just looked “fishy”. I marked them on the map and looked for landmarks that could help me find the spot once I was out there. The next trip, I tried the spots, running through a few, until I tried a sandy channel that I had marked on the map. I casted and thought I was hung up on more seaweed for a second, as it was coming in with little resistance. Then, I felt the kick of a tail and my reel started screaming. I’d finally hooked the fish that I had been chasing for months. It put up a spirited fight and I landed a… small three pounder. Damn! These things fight harder than they actually weigh. I tried marking more spots on the map and went more times, failing for a few trips before finally hooking a nice seven pound Oio on the lure. It put up a really good fight and eventually surrendered. I was stoked, and it was my new personal best at the time.

I was wondering if I could get any more distance on my casts, as I felt that I wasn’t getting enough distance with my papio whipping rod (you have to use light lures for Oio to not spook them). I bought a lighter whipping rod from a friend and went out to another spot I hadn’t tried in two years. I waded out to a sandy channel that looked good on google maps and bam! First cast I had a nice Oio on. It put up a real good fight on the lighter whipping rod and my lure was casting further, so I was like, “yeah, this was the right decision”. I kept marking places on the map that looked fishy and put a mark wherever I caught a fish.

Eventually, after a few more trips, I landed two more nice Oio before hooking into a really nice Oio on the light rod, which put up an awesome fight. It was probably one of the longest fights I’ve ever had, lasting around fifteen minutes. After taking a monster first run and bringing me down to my mono filler line, I was able to gain some line back before it just took all of it out again. I had to chase the fish halfway across the flat before I finally got it in my sights. It didn’t seem to like seeing me and took off on another run. I got it close again and we proceeded to draw circles around each other for what seemed like forever. I finally got impatient and made an attempt at it when it was on the surface, but I ended up flopping and embarrassing myself. I had to wait even longer before it finally surrendered on the surface and I netted it, with the tail sticking out of the net. I was stoked to land the nice Oio, which was 24 inches and around eight pounds. At this point I had started to make my own lures to catch the Oios, so it was even more gratifying. I kept marking more spots and trying new things, which leads up to now. Between that I landed a smaller Oio on my lure and missed a couple more.

It was a rough journey to learn how to catch Oio on lures, and I really have to thank Jeremy who provided crucial information in the beginning. Without his help, I might still be struggling right now. I’m glad I have something to do when the Papio bite is dead now, but I am still learning every trip and I am nowhere near the level as some of the real hammahs that nail a few Oio per trip without problem. I’m considering trying fly fishing next, but that’s a whole new challenge and I think I’ll hold off on that for now. Anyways, good luck to you all, and tight lines??..

Holoholo: Whipping report, 2nd week in January

January 13, 2020 By Scott 5 Comments

Jeremy is a long time fisherman who loves whipping, but will be adding fly fishing to his game this year. He’s been posting catches on his private IG account @jeremy.poi while the rest of us have been getting skunked, so I asked him if he’d mind sharing his most recent catch report with us. There’s a lot we can take away from this!

Jeremy:

Everyone knows that during the winter the bite really slows down, but can’t catch fish if you don’t go fishing so I try to get out there as much as I can. This past weekend I braved the weather and was glad I did.

On Saturday morning, my friend and I decided to do a dawn patrol session. It was super windy and rainy, but we love fishing so we just threw on our jackets, grabbed our gear, and headed to the spot just as the sun was about to come up. The tide was really high and the water was a little dirty, so wasn’t the best conditions for wading, but we slowly worked our way out into the water. I continuously made casts as I walked the reef and about 15 minutes into our session, I got a nice hit. It’s a decent sized fish and I can feel the head shakes, so I know it’s a papio. I get it to hand and see a nice 14” white papio on the end of my line. I take a few quick pictures and release him safely. First white of the year for me, so I’m happy and the pressures off.

I continue to work the reef and cast into “fishy” areas. About 30 minutes later, I feel a strong tap on my lure…miss…then another miss. And then finally, on the third hit, I get a solid hookup. Hanapa’a! Line starts ripping off my reel and I know it’s a good sized one. It takes about 60 yards on the first run before I get it to turn. I’m only running 8# braid with 10# leader, so I need to be patient and not horse it in. I slowly gain line, but the fish is still strong and takes multiple smaller runs. I could feel the line rub slightly on the reef a few times, but after a back and forth battle of about 10 minutes, I was finally able to see the fish, grab my leader, and land this 5# o’io. Chee! Took some pics and thanked the fish for the awesome scrap before releasing it. And that’s when I notice my hook. The fish wasn’t hooked in the mouth, but on the side of his face on the gill plate, and my hook was opened up. Got lucky on landing this one.

Tip of the day: Set your drag only as strong as your weakest link. I run my drag on the light side since I’m running light line, but the wire of my hook is thin as well, so my weakest link in my setup was my hook. Thankfully my drag was just loose enough and I didn’t lose this fish.

Another fun session in the books. Always nice to be able to get out there and do what we love. And catching fish once in a while is nice too. So all the guys not fishing due to the junk weather, take a chance and make some casts. Fish still have to eat, so hopefully it’ll be your lure. Good luck and tight lines!