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[fishingbuddha]

i am  in maui right now and only 15 minutes from a fishing beach. everyone is fishing from shore or with nets. it looks like they are using live (goldfish cousin) bait. i brought my bar rigs that i think i will beef up a bit and a larger rod and reel. does anyonehave any other techniques that they can pass on to me. i didn't bring my fly rod but i think i will bring my 10wgt next year!

cheers and thanks for any help advise you can give me.

[fishingbuddha]

just got back from a fishing a bay in wailuku. got some bites using shrimp and bar fishing but ended up exploding my rod while trying to set a hook. the guys beside me was float fishing with a live fish. he hooked into something big but lost it. he thought it was a big trevally. anyways, i found a spot where guys are catching trevally, jacks and ula?. will be trying again soon once i buy a new rod.

saw a large turtle swim by my line while fishing.  very cool.

[dennisK]

just got back from a fishing a bay in wailuku. got some bites using shrimp and bar fishing but ended up exploding my rod while trying to set a hook. the guys beside me was float fishing with a live fish. he hooked into something big but lost it. he thought it was a big trevally. anyways, i found a spot where guys are catching trevally, jacks and ula?. will be trying again soon once i buy a new rod.

saw a large turtle swim by my line while fishing.  very cool.

saw this on ebay..supposed to be the shite...ideal for travelling...even the guys i chat with on us surf sites agree

http://shop.ebay.com/i.html?LH_PrefLoc=3&_nkw=telescopic%20surf&_fln=1&_trksid=p3286.c0.m283

[fishingbuddha]

thanks for the tip. i will be checking this rod out.

[stan]

Aloha!  A lot of the stores like WalMart and the grocery stores like the KTA also sell rods and tackle.  Right now, I'm also on vacation, but in Kauai.  Sounds like you're doing better than I am.  Fished a place called Ahukini Landing on an incoming tide and didn't see any fish get taken.  It has a fishing pier and they say the water is about 15 feet +.  Had caught some sculpins in a tide pool and so tried them with a bobber and off the bottom.  No bites with the bobber and off the bottom it didn't take long for the crabs etc. to make short work of the bait.    I did see something interesting, though... the head of a small hammerhead shark  left on the pier.  Was about 9 inches from eye to eye.  Had picked up a copy of "Pacific Shore Fishing" by Michael Sakamoto from a used book store in Kona on the Big Island 2 weeks ago and he does talk about using small hammerhead fillets as Ulua bait.  Like you, also had a turtle just hanging out in the middle of the bay.  All in all, it was a good day fishing (someone pointed out that there's a difference between fishing and catching...LOL!).  Good luck with the rest of your vacation and let us know what you catch. 

[fishingbuddha]

good to hear that others are experiencing the hawaiian fishing. i notice most guys have the big shore rods but the one guy that hooked into a trevally was using light gear. i would guess his rod was simillar to our steelhead rods. 10.6ft casting rod. all this guy was doing was throwing out a weighted float with a 6 foot leader with a live bait fish. i don't know if i am going to fish live bait but i might try the same method with a whole shrimp. was even thinking about trying a buzz bomb.

will keep you posted.

[dennisK]

gt LOVE buzz b's.

[stan]

Aloha again.  Just reading from Sakamoto's book, here are a few ideas that might help you.  Trevally ('Omilu) inhabits inshore areas and feeds on reef fishes, moray eels, jumping jacks, octopi and various crustaceans with the best baits being the jumping jack (those blennies that you see jumping from tide pool to tide pool) and wrasses.  Whip these around white water areas and close to the ocean bottom.  Often caught whipping plugs and jigs black in colour resembling the jumping jack.  Yellow and green in jigs and spoons also work.  Recommends working spoons in a see saw pattern with deep strokes so it sounds like a buzz bomb would work well. Ulua is an ambush fish of the inshore reefs.  Effective techniques range from whipping bait across the surface like a scared baitfish or jigging in deep water in an erratic pattern.  Best places to fish using wrasses as bait is the where there is a lot of white water and reef, and the edges of white water and blue water.  Working the bait by twitching the rod tip to imitate a hurt or dying fish is the most effective.   In both cases, apparently a lot of strikes occur in the white water right near shore.  He also writes about using shore crabs as bait  and describes using the whole crab and a "floater" (bobber) to catch parrotfish (Uhu).  If you're using shrimp, this might work but you'll also need a wire leader if you're going to target parrotfish.  Apparently they also love to dive into rock crevices when hooked so they need to be muscled out.  I saw this behaviour with a humuhumunukunukuapua'a while snorkelling recently.  It dove straight down and wedged itself in the coral.  The porgy fish (Mu) also loves crabs and will take it in midwater.  Again, a wire leader is needed...I think the general rule of thumb is that anything that can eat hard shelled crustaceans like crabs has teeth that can easily cut monofilament!  Anyways, hope these tips help.  P.S.  Octopus and cuttlefish are mentioned as baits so you might want to check out the freezer section of the grocery store is shrimp doesn't work.  Good luck. 

[fishingbuddha]

thanks for the tips. i have been looking for these books. have you had any luck over your way.

unfortunately its been really windy and choppy over where i have been fishing. the other problem is that i try to go out after i put my kids to bed and unfortunately it gets dark at 7:30pm! i will have to start trying the mornings.

cheers.

[stan]

I know what you're talking about..the kids (I've got a 4 yr old and a 7 yr old - both boys), the early sunset and the tides.  Was out this morning at 6:00am with the hand net trying to catch some bait.  The tide pools in front of the timeshare dry up at low tide so it traps fish like sculpins and ocassionally baitfish.  This is our first time to Kauai and the surf here is bigger than what I've seen on the Big island or Maui and there are more warnings about rip tides and unsafe beaches.  Also it rains daily here (We're in Kapaa) although only for a short while.  On the Kona side of the Big Island where we generally go, its hot and dry.  Talked to a local guy who I bought a scrimshaw knife from on Ebay and it turns out he fishes a fair amount.  He gave me a tip for a location so I'll try to get out there over the next day or so.  We're headed for home on Thursday and the family is not too keen on doing anymore beaches (this is our 5th week in Hawaii).  Bought a 2009 Ocean Tides calendar last year in Maui so currently the high tide is 2:42 pm in Honolulu and where I am the correction is - 26 min.  Where are you in Maui?  If you're in Kihei, the high tide tomorrow (Honolulu) will be 3:15 pm and your correction is -12 min. If Lahaina, the correction is - 38 min.  There seems to be a weather front coming through so I hope we can get out fishing.  Anyways, good luck.  Post some pics  when you land a "big one" or ... at least a unique one. 

[CALI 2 B.C.]

I have a large saltwater tank with some exotic fish im just curious what type(s) of wrasse you are using for bait

[stan]

I, personally, have not caught any wrasses much less use any for bait.  The author of the book I was reading from said that the person he was talking to swears by the common green and blue saddle wrasse Thalassoma duperrey.  I've seen some of the other more colourful Christmas wrasses,yellow tail Coris etc. and it would be hard to use some of those as bait just because they are so exotic (at least for us).  I'm sure the local fishermen don't suffer from the same perceptions .... nor do the predatory hungry gamefish. LOL!

[fishingbuddha]

finally caught my first maui fish. ended up being fairly large puffer fish. caught it using a float and a shrimp attached to a weighted spinner.

the guy beside me was bar fishing and caught an eel and the other buy beside me was casting a weighted float with plastic bait and was catching small silver fish.

[stan]

Congrats!  Any pics?  I'm back home now and the closest I got was while I was retrieving a dead aholehole (small silver fish resembling a shiner) in the surf, a 2 foot long torpedo shaped fish followed it in...oh well...maybe next time.  Did the guy that caught the eel keep it?  In the book, moray eel is rated as one of the best baits for ulua.  Apparently they are stinky and irresistible when split longitudinally to get the blood flowing and hooked through the head!  My son and I actually caught one in a tidepool and I seriously considered it for bait but his mom objected so we let if go.  Anyways, good luck. 

[fishingbuddha]

happy to report that i caught my first ulua.

i went out fishing today in the tropical storm. unlike b.c., the storm is still pretty warm so i was fishing in a downpour with just my swim shorts and shirt. (a lot cheaper than buying simms rain gear!). anyways, i was bar fishing from shore and chucking out large shrimp. after not getting a whiff of a fish i decided to throw my line closer to shore into the waves. immediately i got some big bites and ended up catching a 14 inch ulua.

i tried to release the fish but unfortunately it washed back onto shore so i gave it to some locals.

i wil be trying to get a larger ulua from shore and will be going deep sea fishing this saturday.

pictures to come when i get home.