02/17/11
bonefishing hawaii:
the goings ons.
my good friends harold and grant were just in town from the o. so we, along with brother harry and doug have been out checking on locales pretty much all around the island, just taking whatever the gods were kind enough to give out (including an absolute beating on k bay when the last front rolled through). between guiding fly fishermen from afar and serving newlyweds and their entourages, e.t. was not able to fish with us. hickam is apparently still fishing extremely well, grant went out with deano the first day he was here and reported catching the most and biggest fish of his trip. the rest of the time we fished hi kai, ke’ehi, and k bay. the upside is that for the most part we all managed at least some fish everytime out. no spectacular days by any means, but okay enough to keep it fun for all involved. the down side is that i don't have many good pics of the guys for this blog.
when fishing, we kind of just hit a certain area, spread out, do our own thang and report back as we pass each other during the day or when the whistle blows. this combined with the oregonites not sending me any pictures as they said they would when they left, leaves me to blog with what some in the photo industry may call a less than ideal pictorial representation of the events that unfolded. i think the technical industry term is “crappy pictures”. anyway, i do believe strongly in keeping the pics current rather than using good stock photos of big fish caught ten years ago, so i’ll just go with what i got.
clays rigs this week:
rod: g. loomis classic glx 8wt. (best casting rod ever made.)
reel: abel super 6 (deep green w/ yellow drag plate... get it?)
backing: 30lb cortland micronite
line: airflo ridge bonefish
leader: hand tied with (approximately) 6ft. .021 mono with a perfection loop looped to the fly line, 3ft. .019 mono joined with a blood knot. 3ft. .015 fluorocarbon tippet joined with an albright knot.
fly: orange charlie
all around sight fishing/bombing set up... perfect... so sweet to cast.
rod: beulah classic switch 6/7
reel: abel 3n. the best abel ever imho.
backing: 30lb cortland micronite
running line: rio slickshooter 35lb.
line: rio skagit short 325gr.
tip: 10ft. clear intermediate
fly: small banger... natting (nothing) chucking this but sometimes gotta try just in case.
this set up was okay but i wouldn't say it was completely dialed in, at least for me.
rod: sage 7126-4 tcx (the deathstar!)
reel: pate bonefish direct drive... a nod to old skool.
backing: 30lb cortland micronite
running line: rio powerflex core .030 intermediate shooting line.
line: rio skagit flight 575gr
tip: 12ft. clear intermediate
leader: 5ft. 20lb fluorocarbon
fly: gold/tan charlie w/pink tail... yeah i'm still stuck on this one.
this rig is the bombarama special for those times and places when you gotta (or just want to) reach out and launch intercontinental ballistic missiles.
dougie and a borderline micro/rat.
sometimes you just gotta play the hand you are dealt and take what they're givin'.
another victim of the "deathstar".
and another from the far reaches of the hi kai galaxy.
i guess you could say the story of the week was rats.
doug, the thunder stealer, got this day saver at the twilights last gleaming. it also turned out to be the biggest fish of the week.
grant swung his 14 ft. winston all week...
and ended up this trip with a handfull of bones as well as a nice awa 'aua.
we ended the week with the traditional gigantor barbeque at daryl's (harolds brother) house. pretty crappy pics... pretty good times.
clay.
02/06/11
bonefishing hawaii:
quickie at the bay.
the other day (wednesday, i think.) doug and i stuck our heads over the koolau’s to see what all was what over at k bay on the windward side of the island. we didn’t get on a whole lot of fish, but we made the relatively few shots we had count (as i always advocate is the most important part for successful sight fishing), caught a few nice fish, and made it back before traffic. perfect. i’ve decided to start including the rigs we used from cork to fly partially for those inquiring minds out there who wanna know and also so that i can remember too. i use all kinds of different stuff and combinations of stuff and it gets hard to remember everything (or anything for that matter). so here goes.
clay’s rig.
rod: sage tcx 8wt.
reel: abel super seven (desert sky without the desert, it makes a difference you know... just kidding).
backing: power pro 65lb. white with a single bimini loop looped to the fly line.
fly line: airflo bonefish
leader: hand tied with (approximately) 6ft. .021 mono with a perfection loop looped to the fly line, 3ft. .019 mono joined with a blood knot. 3ft. .015 fluorocarbon tippet joined with an albright knot.
fly: gold and tan charlie with a pink tail tied on the tippet with a non-slip mono loop.
doug’s rig.
rod: redingtion cps 8wt.
reel: ross canyon big game 5
backing: 30lb. dacron with a double bimini loop looped to fly line.
fly line: scientific anglers mastery redfish 8wt.
leader: hand tied (approximately) 5ft. .024 fluorocarbon with a perfection loop looped to the fly line, 3ft .020 fluorocarbon joined with a triple surgeons knot. 2ft. .016 fluorocarbon tippet joined with a triple surgeons knot.
fly: orange and tan charlie tied on with a non slip mono loop.
now don’t get all goo goo over this. it’s just what we happened to be using on this day. as you will see, or have already seen, i change what i use all the time and there are many many ways to skin (or should i say fishcake) a bonefish. part of the fun of this whole sick game we play (at least for me) is waking up in the morning and thinking what shall i use to go after these guys with today. or, as e.t. always says, what am i going to "play around with" today. i never know when, where, or with what i'll be fishing the next time out. all i know for sure is that it's gonna be fun and i can hardly wait.
cowboy vest man with a k bay boney bone.
you gotta yoy'em when fishing gnarly places. this guy never even got all the fly line off the reel... believe it or not.
doug with another bone... nuff already, let's go home.
what can i say... k bay... fishing was okay... we had a great day. guaranteed... when you roll with good times and clay.
clay.
02/01/11
bonefishing hawaii:
in between fronts... the bite is on!
i don’t have much to say. the “front a week” weather pattern has still pretty much been the deal this winter. fortunately for us all, the bite between these fronts has been solid to really good. some friends from the mainland were in town so the crew and i have been out poking around the island, both sight fishing and blind casting, in between (and sometimes during) these fronts and it seems that there are fish just about everywhere. still a bit spotty but much better than the shut down that e.t. and i were predicting earlier... just goes to show you never know unless you go. so get out there before that next front rolls on in. sorry this blog is so short but, i gotta get back out there.
sean with a couple of nice fish from the bay.
the kirksta, whitney, and i checked out the lake one afternoon. we managed a few nice peacocks and a bass, but it was like pulling teeth... pretty slow up there in wahiawa, at least when we went.
then the gang made an all out assault on the hickam flat from left to right nick curcione, craigy, e.t., some bum the guys picked up off the street, brother harry, brother harold, harold’s buddy jeff, doug, and deano (behind the camera). we also ran into the crew from the trinity fly shop (herb, scott, and kit), they hit it early and reported some crazy tailing fish action. hickam’s been fishing really well... i’ve only been out there a few times this winter but have been impressed with what i’ve seen and heard.
harry with a hickam rat. more about brother harry later.
nicky's first (but far from last) hawaii bonefish.
the hickam guru, deano. yet another bone falls prey to the bamboo spey.
even the bum caught fish... must’ve been biting up!
came off? what happened doug?
...now that’s more like it.
then it was out to ke’ehi, e.t. giving this fish lickin’s.
a word about brother harry. this guy lives here but fishes only once or twice a year (when our friend harold’s in town). still he somehow always catches fish. in addition to the two bonefish he caught on this day, harry hooked a stonefish which was subsequently grabbed by this tako (octopus). the lesson to be learned? a good attitude goes a long long way when it comes to fishing... brother harry has one of the best.
i got this guy right under the gun... the front hit, fishing shut down and we were outadare!
over the past four days the crew caught well over fifty bones around the island... to me that sounds a lot like a good bite and, definitely, good times.
clay.
Home
