Fishing for the Omaka run at the KMCB Pier, Kaneohe – June 6, 2012

Bummed about my recent finger injury from rock climbing, I have been quite restless and have somewhat been resorting to less demanding activities like fishing. Not that I don’t like fishing, but not having the choice of picking climbing is a real downer. Eric Aoyama, an avid fisherman that I met at the climbing gym had been posting some awesome pics of Omaka (Yellowtail Scad) he had caught on his Facebook/Instagram feed. Naturally jealous, as I had not caught Omaka in FOREVER, I asked if I could tag along on one of his fishing fiascoes…

For those of you who are not familiar with the golden fish, it is an inshore marine fish, belonging to the Jack family, Carangidae. It is most similar locally to Big Eye Scad or Akule (juveniles: Halalu) locally, but it somewhat more oily in flavor. They feed on small fishes and crustaceans, and often spawn in bays and inland areas throughout the Indo-West Pacific to Hawaii.

We (Eric, his friend Elise and I) headed out to the pier at Kaneohe Marine Corps Base, just after sunrise to an attempt to catch the morning bite.

One of the more common methods to hooking Omaka, is by using live-bait. Fortunately, there were large schools of Nehu (Hawaiian Anchovy) swimming around and under the pier, which can easily be caught using light tackle Damashi rigs (pre-tied string of ~6 flies/lures and hooks).

Elise was a pro at hooking them, and often hooked several on the same rig.

Another fisherman was netting the Nehu with a large coned-shaped net that he drooped over the side of the pier. He would sometimes chum (palu) and wait until the dense school of fish would swim over the net, when he would pull the cone upwards. I guess this is legal, but I had a hard time accepting this as “not cheating,” lol. Seriously, he netted them by the 100s and probably had thousands in his cooler.

Anyhooo… we had enough for ourselves. After allowing them some time to recover in the bucket, the Nehu were lightly hooked through the upper jaw, and using a dunking rig, they were dropped off the side of the pier and stopped several feet above the bottom. NOTE, hooking Nehu almost anywhere else on their body results in a preemptive death, as they are somewhat weak fish. This is also why most fishermen need a number of them, as they have to change their bait often.

A short time later, Eric hooks up with an average sized Omaka.

Which can be made to look “MONSTA’ (larger)” if held close to the camera, haha. Jedi mind-trick / fishermen secrets revealed. =X

Another fisherman next to us, who was using dough for bait (mix of bread, flour, water, sardines, and tomato paste, etc.), hooks up with something bigger than an Omaka, and struggles to get the fish in on light tackle.

After what seemed like an epic battle, we found out it was a nice sized Pualu that may have been almost 2 lbs. Pualu (similar to Palani) is a Surgeonfish which is common in Hawaii, and is known for a good fight and is decent eating.

Fishing for Omaka can be fruitful, depending on the time of year you fish. There always appears to be some around, but the best time is likely in the early summer months when they gather in large numbers in bays to spawn. I’ve heard stories of them attacking Nehu schools from below, making the water boil as the baitfish flee for their lives. Omaka can be prepared in several ways, but the most common recipes either include; light flour, salt and pepper, and deep frying them; or “Chinese style,” steaming and eating with ginger, scallions, shoyu (soy sauce), and peanut oil… recipes can vary, and might get slapped from my relatives for detailing this part incorrectly. Furicken hungry now. Hope you learned something.

To view this location on a Google Map also known as my “Adventure Map“, Click Here. For more adventures of the Lost Trailblazers, either look at my other blogposts and “Adventures with the Lost Trailblazers” photo gallery. Thanks for visiting and come back again soon!

Questions??? Just ask!!!