Stan Wright

Here are the pictures of Kiyoshi and Keiko. (see Last Cast, Big Fish) That 6 1/2 pound peacock bass is a real "Lunker", way above average for Hawaii. Are they having fun, or what??? Congratulations.

I'm waiting for the pictures, but this story is too cool. I'll add the picture later. On Thursday the fishing action was scattered with a few small peacock and largemouth being taken from all around the lake. Most in the 1 to 2 pound size. (on Friday everything broke loose with 1 to 3 pound peacock bass schooling and taking almost any thing tossed at them) (The only real excitement came about an hour before quitting time when Chris, who was sitting on a small cooler on the bow of the boat, kind of missed when he sat down and went over backwards into the lake.) Cell phone and all. Around 4:00 PM he announced "Last Cast", time to go home. The angler and his wife both cast out their lines and..... Wham. She hooks into a 2 1/2 pound largemouth and he had a 6 1/2 pound peacock bass grab his little surface popper. I'm surprised you didn't hear them yelling. After pictures and congratulations all around they headed in. What a great way to end a day of fishing. Aloha, Stan

"Why don't you bring the Florida strain largemouth bass to Hawaii?" We've been trying to do that for over 35 years. Here is one reason it hasn't happened..... Some 25 or so years ago while testifying before the Hawaii State Legislature... (yes, until recently the legislature, not the fish and game dept, made all the decisions and fishing laws.) Hawaii was the last state to allow the fish & game department, not the legislature, to make the fishing rules and regulations. Anyway, the Sierra Club brought in this giant photo... the famous painting "Florida Bass" by Edward J Bierly. They testified that if Florida Bass were allowed in Hawaii they would eat all of the endangered birds. It made no difference that the "endangered birds" lived up in the mountains on different islands than where the fish would be. This picture said it all... according to the Sierra Club: "Florida Bass equals an end to Hawaii's endangered birds." And that, boys and girls, is why we still haven't been able to import Florida Bass into Hawaii. Aloha, Stan

I saw this TV show about shiner fishing in Florida, Sooooo.... I think I'm a believer about that "Big Bait - Big Fish" idea now. I don't know about with lures, but it is working with live bait. 5 1/2 and 6 1/4 Pounds (assorted 3 and 4 pounders) Bait size..... 6 1/2 inches live tilapia. "Bigger bait, Bigger fish" ?........... Our state record for peacock bass is 9lb-4oz. Sure glad I had the big fishing rod and heavy line. Aloha, Stan

The state record Largemouth bass for Hawaii is 9 lbs 9.43 oz. The Peacock bass record is 9 lbs 4.2 oz. Both fish were caught on the island of Kauai. I've spoken with angleres here at Wahiawa Res on Oahu who have caught 11 pound peacock bass. An 8 pounder is the largest I've seen here at the lake. The tags are the little one inch spaggitti tags with a "T" bar on the end. It's the kind used to tag clothing.... same tagging gun is used. ($10 per gun) I don't know how much the tags cost. The state freshwater division bought them. Several of us fishermen are doing the tagging and keeping tabs on the taggs being reported. We turn the information over to the state.

It's been a wild summer here in Hawaii. The peacock bass are schooling and chasing shad most of the time. Cloud cover seems to be better. Average size fish is 1 to 2 pounds, but a 3 or 4 pounder will slip in take your lure making it real exciting for those ultra light line guys. Even a 2 pound fish on 4# test line is exciting. Now for those who like big numbers.... Live bait anglers have been going to Morgans Pt. every afternoon and it's not uncommon to catch 50 fish... per rod. We started a tagging program last month and in 2 hours I tagged 50 peacock bass. Five guys fishing and two of us tagging. It was a slow day. Aloha, Stan

Hawaii people must have their fresh sashimi for new years parties. Wanda Adams writing in the Honolulu Advertiser reports..... A sign that Island sashimi lovers may be becoming more knowledgeable and finicky is that a number of stores were using Japanese terms to describe types of sashimi-grade 'ahi. Abura, a term that means "fat," is used to indicate a cut that is particularly oily. It is not a section of the fish but a descriptive term, explained Takenaka. Toro, however, defines a section of the fish, the layer of fat that sits just inside the skin in the belly area. Chu toro is the place deeper within where the belly fat mingles with the red flesh; the character chu means "middle," said Tamashiro. However, he said that in Hawai'i, the terms chu toro and toro are often used interchangeably. Some toro is cut horizontally, so that the entire piece is belly fat. Some is cut in cross section, so that both the light-colored fat and the deeper-colored chu toro are included. At Marukai, the membership store where many Japanese nationals shop, chu toro was $22.99 a pound yesterday morning and chu toro block was a whopping $49.99 a pound. And if you wanted to grate your own fresh, imported wasabi to go with it, those little green knobs of delicious heat were selling for $69 a pound; a package of three short pieces enough to accompany a platter of sashimi weighed out at about $11.