We are fish’n the island of kauai this summer and so far its been an experience. First off, the good side. Went 3 times so far and landed YF in the 200lb class each time. Occasional you get something else like a uno’s ( wahoo) or marlin’s accidentally. Yesterday I did a 4 hour trip that scored 1 tuna and one marlin for me. Sounds decent right … well I was on a charter with 5 other people and that was just my catch, 4 hour trip.
Now on to the crime.
They kill just about every marlin for meat. The angler has no say and the meat does not head your way. They sell it. Sure they tell you they are going to share the catch since its more than what anyone can eat. The reality is much worse. Instead of getting my 200 lb Yellowfin the other day, the captain offers me some old frozen crap he had stored in a bait cooler.Wouldn’t be good bait, pure sh.t. Do you just cold cock on this news? Couldn’t believe it. Never seen anything like it anywhere. I will accept suggestions to even the score on that one.
Sorry to hear about that David. That’s a different world all together over there. I hope you make it back to the mainland before July 4th!!
quote:Originally posted by Hoppy
i love pics of interesting things and those pics were fantastic. i typically thank people for sharing good fishing pics. a picture of the inside of bessingers with 23 eating some mustard q does nothing for me.
wahoos are onos and while there are many charter boats that do kill marlin to sell, there are many that do not kill marlin as well. just ask around and tell the capt that you are not interested in a charter that kills marlin. selling the tunas is normal practice there, but i’m sure you could arrange for a different setup.
4 hour trips are $700, 6 hour $895. There is 6000’ of water in less than 3 miles, very short run out ! In fact we pulled two tunas not more than 1/8" mile from the mouth of the jetties. They start the troll through the jetties. Maybe burn 5-15 gallons on a trip total. They pull tuna rigs, but without ballyhoo and keep a rod ready for live lining in case you catch anything small.
Heres the deal on the fish. If your are a local, you always get all the fish. They play the tourists here in a game. I have now found a boat that will give me all the fish. I will have nice photos coming.
Maybe they needed some spending cash before that nuke hits us on the fourth ! Dang ! I sure hope all those missle sillows here on the mountain weren’t made in China.
Back to fishing, they do work out the details, but they don’t follow the plan is the problem. Pure greed. Some of these fish are bringing $500 each and they are willing to piss off customers for that. Plain and simple.
Throw the mate overboard and tell the captain if you dont get what you agreed to he is next. That is what I would do just so that everyone on the boat is on the same page as myself.
Just sayin
No one knows if YOU are THE village IDIOT or not until YOU open your mouth and speak!!!
That is a pure shame. When I worked on charters, I always thought it was my duty to cater to the charter folks. I.E.–If they want to release, we release. If they want to quit catching sails to catch a king, reluctantly we go catch a king in shallow.Maybe i am crazy…would not be the first time tho!
Glad the fishing was good but sorry for that kind of experience
I spoke with several charter capts. before I left for Oahu about releasing marlin all was good till I arrived 6 weeks later and was told that marlin was up in price and all bill fish will be kept that meet legal size. I decided after wasting half a day talking to charter capts.I would just say the hell with fishing and spend my time and money else where, after all what can you not catch here other then a possible Gander or a black marlin.
I was surprise how many good Capt’s changed there attitude when it comes to feeding the family and putting a little more money in the pocket.
" The seas was angry that day, my friend"
George C.
Just got back from Hawaii as well. Unfortunately the practice of the boat keeping all of the fish except for few scraps is the norm.
They all do it. Bunch of crap. Never again.
They’ve been killing and eating marlin for a long, long time in Hawaii. One of the reasons charters are cheaper there, comparatively speaking. While I agree wholeheartedly with your sentiment, you should have asked what happens to the catch once brought to the boat. They have many charter outfits there that practice C&R; that should have been known before you left the dock. Personally, I would not hire a charter that didn’t release all marlin caught.
“Never argue with an idiot…he will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.”
