KAYAK FISHING for MAHI MAHI in Maui Hawaii - Double Hook-Up, Dorado & Uku (Snapper / Green Jobfish)

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Low wind and a small swell made for glassy conditions and we could not wait to get our Hobie Fishing Kayaks out on the Pacific Ocean around Maui, Hawaii to hunt down some monster pelagic fish! This was also one of those special days where the ocean decides to take it easy on us and provide lots of bait in the form of opelu (mackerel scad), which we all know good bait can make all the difference in your fishing trip. We had a solid group of hammahs out and it didn’t take long for the fish to start coming up. Yours truly had strike, after strike, after strike…followed by curse word, after curse word, after curse word. I believe I had about 6 strikes that I lost this day. I swear my hooks were made of rubber! (I did make a change after this trip, offsetting my hooks, and that has made a big difference) Of course the one fish that stuck on was a kaku (barracuda). I thought this date on the water was going to end with all teasing and no real action. Talk about some real frustration! Then finally a pelagic, in the form of a mahi mahi, got a good grip on my surface rig and put on a show for me. Unfortunately, my head cam died at the same time, so you only get a view of my questionable mug. Halfway through the fight my downrigger went off with a second strike. Talk about making up for losses! Thankfully the second fish stayed pinned until I had the mahi on deck. This time I was gifted with an uku (green jobfish / grey snapper). It is amazing how quickly your fortunes can change while out on the water and this is the reason we always want just ONE MORE CAST! I landed these fish right before the buzzer and it was time to go in, which was fine with me, since I was absolutely exhausted. When you deal with adversity all day, the fish feel even bigger when you finally do hook-up. This really goes to show that no matter how frustrating your time on the water, it is usually worthwhile to stick with it and keep pushing. On camera, this probably doesn’t look like the most amazing fishing trip, but it was very much a realistic experience with all the highs and lows.
So remember…
Go Big, Go Home, or Go Home with Something Big!