Some may ask the question; "how do you know what fish are being caught in Kona?" The answer is simple. Flags. On the way in at the end of the day, the boats fly a variety of fish flags from the right outrigger to brag about the days catch. There are different flags for different fish. August is supposed to be a peak blue marlin month so there should be marlin flags flying all around the harbor but there isn't. This whole summer has been less than impressive for marlin. Spearfish have a flag also but sometimes an upside down marlin flag is used instead. Peak spearfish season is the spring with very few being caught during the summer.
We also had a less than impressive ahi season this summer but only here on the Big Island. Oahu and Kauai had one of the best seasons they have had in years and Maui was pretty good. It's currently otaru tuna season and there are some but not like what it should be. I'm hoping they're just running late this year.
As I've been saying for the last few months, we've been having an awesome ono season. The best we've seen in several years but ono season has officially come to a close. We were hoping it would continue for a little while more. Since ono like it close to the shoreline, what usually sends them running away from Hawaii is high surf because the water gets all churned up. We had high surf in the middle of the month so the ono are gone with the exception of just a few stragglers. Mahi mahi season starts in another month and we are already seeing some show up.
Bottom fishing has produced mostly 100+ lb. shark catches. One shark that's been showing up lately is the oceanic blacktip, sometimes called a coastal blacktip but very different from the blacktip reef shark. These guys often leap, jump, spin and fight with everything they got when hooked. Because of that, they are more successful at breaking line or pulling hook especially when near the boat.
Covid is still on the rise in Hawaii but the government hasn't shut us down..... yet. I had no idea that there were so many ant-vaxxers here and our hospitals are being overwhelmed and at the current pace, the government may not have a choice but to lock us down again.
See 'ya on the water (for now) , Capt. Jeff Rogers , http://FISHinKONA.com
