by Louie the Fish!

Aloha Ya'll!

I got up this morning, looked outside my small apartment near the University of Hawaii in Honolulu and saw an almost clear blue sky, with very light trade winds. I had time to kill and an urge to fish, so I grabbed my gear; a 6-weight TFO Axiom fly rod with an Orvis Mid Arbor V reel, floating line, my pair of the locally-made, neoprene, felt-soled reef booties, My FishPond USA Seychelles waist pack, shooting basket, polarized sunglasses, hat etc., and off I went in my beat-up, old Toyota Tercel.

Ten minutes later I arrived at a spot on the south shore of Oahu, near Aina Haina, we call the Park. In another ten minutes I had waded out to my hot spot coral ridge about halfway out on the flat and was standing in ankle deep water. I began blind casting downwind into a big area about waist deep where I know the elusive Hawaiian bonefish often cruise. I had a very long leader, un-tapered 17 pound Vanish Fluorocarbon almost two rod lengths long, and an orange fly, similar to a Crazy Charlie, size 6, with large sinkchain brass eyes.

The ticket with blind casting is to cast long, 60 to 70 feet if possible, to get out to the "stupid zone" where a passing bonefish is not yet aware of the angler's presence. A slow, jerky strip, with pauses to let the fly sink almost to the bottom, will often inspire a strike. A shooting basket really helps to keep line organized, and even though you can make a lot of casts before getting a strike, in the long run, blind casting is the most effective way to fish many areas on Oahu.

On this particular morning, with the tide just starting to come in, I had only made about ten casts or so when something stopped the fly. I set the hook and a bonefish headed for the reef's edge in a sizzling 100-yard run. Eventually, a nice six-pounder came to hand--about average for Hawaii. That's how easy it can be, but like all fishing, it can also be very hard.

Bonefish are found all over Oahu, which has the best flats of any of the Hawaiian Islands. Access is easy, and we have a fly shop here that basically pioneered the sport in this area and they're always willing to help visitors (see www.nervouswaterhawaii.com). I guide a bit for them, along with my buddy Ed Tamai. I have been guiding about eight years now, part time, along with my 21-year-old, New Zealand born son, Joaquin, who does most of the guiding (see www.louiethefish.com). We try to do as much sight fishing as possible and have a small boat to access the few offshore flats here. These offshore flats, and a few select spots on the south shore, on the right tide and without too many clouds, are good sight-fishing areas, but we resort to blind casting when needed. We seldom fish out of the boat, as wading allows us to get closer to cruising bonefish.

I tie a lot of my own flies, re-inventing the wheel many times over, but generally our fish like orange, tan and brown flies. I add weed guards on most to prevent snagging the coral bottom. Crazy Charlies, Gotchas, various crab and  mantis shrimp flies, and most standard bonefish flies work well here. The fish are not leader shy, and some guys use 25-pound leader, but I stick to 17, in case I get that IGFA record fish! Spin fishing with jigs can also work well on our bonefish.

The bonefish can be very big, with double-digit fish landed on occasion. My biggest is 14 pounds, but I know of a guy who landed one about 18 pounds, 37 inches long--a potential IGFA record, had he killed it and weighed it in. But we are almost all catch and release fly fishers here.

Hiring a guide for first timers can make a huge difference, but Oahu is fairly easy to figure out for the do-it-yourself anglers too, especially with Google Earth. The entire south shore from Kokohead to Diamondhead is one long flat, only about knee deep on average at low tide, and about 500 yards wide to the break zone. I can call my guide buddies and find out where on this ten mile long stretch the bones have been appearing, so networking helps. West of Diamondhead is Waikiki, seldom fly fished at all, loaded with bonefish, slightly deeper wading, and of course, you might have the misfortune of having some gorgeous surfer girls in bikinis paddle right over your floating line. We suffer through these moments.

There are two lagoon areas, Keehi lagoon and Kaneohe bay, with big flats which can be accessed by boat or kayak, and kayak rentals are easy and inexpensive here, so that's a good option for the adventurous do-it-yourself angler.  Hawaii's outer islands are not as easy as Oahu.  Only Molokai and Kauai have decent flats, and access and fishing can be a lot harder.

When the fly guys visit here, I also like to turn them on to our fun freshwater fishing. We have one long reservoir, Lake Wilson, that is loaded with peacock bass up to eight pounds or better. My friend Stan Wright is a longtime guide there (see www.Hawaiibassfishing.com), and I have had some great days on that lake, both fly and spin fishing. Oahu, and Kauai also have some great stream fishing. On Oahu, Nuuanu Stream is easy access, and when I creep around in the bush there with my wee 3-weight fly rod, I usually catch 10 to 20 smallmouth bass, from six inches long, up to my biggest, a hefty 17-incher. I use nymphs, mini-jigs and big drys. Kauai Island also has good trout fishing up high in Kokee State park. I am the secretary of Hawaii's only Trout Unlimited Chapter (see www.tuhi.org), and we are currently working toward enhancing this rainbow trout fishery. Also on Kauai, an adventurous angler can find great peacock bass fishing in the streams and reservoirs. But, that takes a bit of research.

One of the perks to having your fishing holiday here is that Oahu, Honolulu and Waikiki are very much favored by the fairer sex. While you are off fly fishing, wives can shop till they drop, kids can swim, snorkel, surf, boogie board, or enjoy all the countless tourist attractions available here, including the Zoo, the Aquarium, and the gorgeous Hanauma Bay Marine reserve. There are restaurants of every description, from Sushi bars, to Italian, Mexican, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, and just plain "local" food. Transport is easy--you can even fly fish by bus--and hotels are offering great deals these days.

I think Oahu is the most beautiful of all the tropical islands. I am sure it gets just as warm back there in Florida, but here it's year round and we have almost constant trade winds that make our climate arguably the best on the planet. The ocean water is warm and clear, offering great snorkeling and scuba diving, and teeming with fish if you know where to go.

So why wait? Jump on a flight to Hawaii and try your hand at fly fishing in Paradise!

Louie the Fish!

www.louiethefish.com