thecrab87
02-16-2006, 04:19 PM
Well, I just got back from Kona. There were no notable fish landed,
but we sure tried. We covered over 200 miles and hit every buoy on
the west side of the Big Island (XX, ZZ, OT, F, VV, C, UU, and B),
plus the fish cages and some ulua holes. We were blessed with flat
water, which made me happy, as the week prior was undiveable. So,
rather than stories, here are some "mental pictures" of our 2-day
bluewater marathon.
Willie "the crab" Mahin
Maui, Hawaii
Next time..........
-------------------
A 10-foot long porpoise comes spiraling in to look at me... no, to
challenge me. No wonder the tuna won't come up! He's thick, muscle
bound, and decidedly unfriendly looking. This is no smiley-faced
spinner dolphin. After flexing, he heads back down to the tuna.
-------------------
Deep in the shadows, I see tuna devouring our chum. If you blink,
they're gone, and you wonder if you really saw them or if staring into
the purple-blue water has gotten you seeing things.
-------------------
A manta ray loops underneath me, like some underwater fighter pilot.
He's sleek and beautiful, the epitome of grace.
-------------------
The tuna are up! They're small and fast, and picking one off is like
trying to shoot a buzzing fly with a rubber band. They're doing that
odd looping swim that tuna do when they're feeding. An aku pauses,
incredibly, and my dad's spear pierces it.
-------------------
A pair of mahis pass by, just under the surface. They're silver,
perfectly matching the mirror reflection of the surface of the water.
I position where I think they'll be, but they see through the ruse and
move on.
-------------------
A 2-foot long filefish decides that Mike is his new best friend. He
follows him everywhere around the buoy, so close that they touch. I
laugh so hard that I swallow water.
-------------------
I'm 30 feet underwater, slowly sinking through a cloud of chum. There
are three sharks surrounding me in the 20-foot wide circle of fish
parts, casually eating the pieces of anchovy. I try to focus on the
tuna rising from below.
-------------------
We are so far offshore, that in all directions there appears to be
ocean. I pop my head up, and on the surface, I see the dorsal fin and
tail fin of a large marlin that is swimming straight at me. I can’t believe
that we were able to get in front of him after following him for so long!
I stick my head back underwater and wait, hoping, but it is not to be. He
turns and descends into the depths.
but we sure tried. We covered over 200 miles and hit every buoy on
the west side of the Big Island (XX, ZZ, OT, F, VV, C, UU, and B),
plus the fish cages and some ulua holes. We were blessed with flat
water, which made me happy, as the week prior was undiveable. So,
rather than stories, here are some "mental pictures" of our 2-day
bluewater marathon.
Willie "the crab" Mahin
Maui, Hawaii
Next time..........
-------------------
A 10-foot long porpoise comes spiraling in to look at me... no, to
challenge me. No wonder the tuna won't come up! He's thick, muscle
bound, and decidedly unfriendly looking. This is no smiley-faced
spinner dolphin. After flexing, he heads back down to the tuna.
-------------------
Deep in the shadows, I see tuna devouring our chum. If you blink,
they're gone, and you wonder if you really saw them or if staring into
the purple-blue water has gotten you seeing things.
-------------------
A manta ray loops underneath me, like some underwater fighter pilot.
He's sleek and beautiful, the epitome of grace.
-------------------
The tuna are up! They're small and fast, and picking one off is like
trying to shoot a buzzing fly with a rubber band. They're doing that
odd looping swim that tuna do when they're feeding. An aku pauses,
incredibly, and my dad's spear pierces it.
-------------------
A pair of mahis pass by, just under the surface. They're silver,
perfectly matching the mirror reflection of the surface of the water.
I position where I think they'll be, but they see through the ruse and
move on.
-------------------
A 2-foot long filefish decides that Mike is his new best friend. He
follows him everywhere around the buoy, so close that they touch. I
laugh so hard that I swallow water.
-------------------
I'm 30 feet underwater, slowly sinking through a cloud of chum. There
are three sharks surrounding me in the 20-foot wide circle of fish
parts, casually eating the pieces of anchovy. I try to focus on the
tuna rising from below.
-------------------
We are so far offshore, that in all directions there appears to be
ocean. I pop my head up, and on the surface, I see the dorsal fin and
tail fin of a large marlin that is swimming straight at me. I can’t believe
that we were able to get in front of him after following him for so long!
I stick my head back underwater and wait, hoping, but it is not to be. He
turns and descends into the depths.