The Flats, Honolulu, Hawaii,
July 3-22, 2008
I was in the islands to visit family and friends for a few
weeks and since I was there, I also wanted to unload the
9-weight on some large bonefish that cruise the south shore
flats.
I tried to fish every morning from 5 to 11am. SteveT was in
town from California and my brother Eric and SteveL also
joined in. The moon phase was not optimal and the tides
were not quite right but I was there to fish, not complain.
But it wasn't like there weren't any fish on the flats. The
fish were there. we could see them. They just weren't
interested in eating what we put in front of them.
On my first day I hooked into two large fish that went
screaming off over the outer reef, breaking off 15 and
20-pound tippet. That was to be a teaser. The following
days were very frustrating. I hooked several different
types of reef fish but no bones, or oio as the Hawaiians call them.
Our fishing day would begin as the sun
was slowly lighting up the night sky. We would spread out
and wade slowly out from shore. Usually the fish were in
close--thirty yards from the beach and tailing or cruising
with their backs exposed in water just a hair over ankle
deep. I had fish feeding all around me but none were
interested in what I was throwing.
Eric, who has just begun fishing with the long rod, was
sometimes surrounded by bonefish swimming around him.
SteveT finally caught one a few days later and got rid of
the skunk.
It wasn't until a week had passed that I finally landed a
south shore bonefish. It hit the fly hard and I was into
backing in seconds. The fish ran for the breaker line and
sharp coral but I managed to turn it back onto the sand and
we brought the fish to net. Eric then measured,
tagged (the yellow tag can be seen sticking
up from the fish's back) and released the fish.
I spoke with the folks
at Nervous Water and they said the full moon was
affecting the bite. There's enough light on the flats
for the fish to feed all night and when you catch them
tailing and feeding in the shallows, they're extremely
picky about the size and shape of the meal they will
take.
EQUIPMENT:
We used 7, 8 and 9-weight
rods rigged with floating line and flies from size 2 to 8.
You must be able to cast in high wind because it can really
blow on the flats. Trade winds can gust from 15-20 mph and
the deep valleys funnel the breeze straight out over the
water, so you've got to have equipment and the technical
know-how to lay that line out there.
