Gorgeous summer days in lush rural Wisconsin.

Trumpet but no Bone.

Today is the day I am to leave on my business trip to Seoul & Beijing, back into the hustle and bustle of city. I’ve been busy with work and with family for the past few days and haven’t been able to make it out to fish, which is a little insane considering that there are many fish to be caught in Hawaii. I broke away from the regular cycle of things to get in a little fishing time this morning. I fished the reef that I know, and upon arrival was greeted by the awesome Hawaiian skies and even a big rainbow. I fished for an hour without any bites or sighting of bone fish, but I felt a tug and the line started to strip out and turn around me. It felt too light to be a bone fish so I didn’t know what to expect, still it pulled out some line from the drag set reel. A trumpet fish, the first I have ever caught. I was a little bit freaked out because it was bigger than I imagine of a trumpet fish. I strolled the waters a little more then I saw another angler at distance. It was Ed! E.T. from Nervous Waters, on his day off- fishing for his own pleasure. We shared a smoke, talked a bit and he started to point out the bone fish all around us. It’s funny, just being with Ed, I was able to spot groups of bone fish that I wasn’t able to spot before. They were big, 5-7 pounders swimming in groups of 2-5, cruising at fast speeds. It was time for me to leave to go pick up the kids from school, but the fact that I saw so many fish around me was very promising. Ed and I will go out to fish many times in the month of July, as soon as I return back here end of this month. As I said good bye and walked off, I heard Ed yell to me … he had a fish on and his rod was jerking back and forth with the fish jetting away from Ed. Ed had a big smile and he yelled – see you back soon. Although I did not hook up with a bone fish, it was good day to be out.

Tuna fishing in Taiwan!!

Few days ago,
Wesley and two of our friends(not including me....sadly..) went to a small island which is located in the east side of Taiwan, called "Green Island", for about three days Tuna fly fishing!!!
Here is the photos.

Autumn Brook Angling – salt water guide service

Received a note from our friend James Capes that ABA is now running saltwater guide trips along the NJ coast! Take a moment to check out the flyer below for all the details. More info at: www.autumnbrookangling.com

The New F-Series from ER.

Roger B sent photos and link about the new F series by Ari 't Hart, from Exclusive Reels. Thanks again Roger. (check out more at: exclusivereels.com)

Getting into the routine

Arrived in Oahu and busy settling the family in for the summer. Got out this morning for a couple of hour to re check the old fishing spots near Honolulu, threw a line to get accustomed to the wind. Spotted a few bone fish too distant to reach with my poor cast, didn’t hook up with any. I was mostly checking out the situation this morning and wasn’t trying – still, found a smaller fish at the end of the line in the shallows. Getting into the routine...

summer lenoks

Summer's here.

It was 86 degrees on Saturday and water's almost 64 degrees-too warm for lenoks to be active. I spent 4 hours in sunny afternoon at Naerinchun, Gangwon Province and was lucky enough to meet 2 beautiful lenoks.

iPhone 4S

to eat or not to eat...(2)

One of the first topics I thought about starting out fishing a few years back was the debate about Catch & Release, and where I stood on it. At the time, I don’t think I had a clear view on it, and after some years of strict C&R, when it comes to the debate, my view is still a bit fuzzy. It’s fuzzy in the way that I have read and discussed the topic enough times that I generally understand the argument from both sides, and while I practice C&R and promote it – my own argument for C&R can be easily broken down, and this has happened more than a few times. I’m not going to go through the fundamental arguments here or try to describe the proper way to C&R, as there are plenty of reading & debate on going. But I can say is that for me personally I practice C&R but I don’t have a black & white view on it. I believe there are some species and regions where C&R should be mandatory mostly because the survival of the fish is at risk, but for places where the risk is less evident – then I thinkit’s up to the individual to make the choice. There are extreme views on this, ranging from the concept that “one should not fish at all”, to “let’s fill this ice cooler to the top”… and unfortunately, there will always be people that express and behave that way.

Recently, a friend sent a link to a site where a group of fishermen caught cherry trout on live bait, using Tenkara style gear, & cooked the trout up … and all very well documented in photos. When I first saw this, I naturally cringed at the sight of the cooked cherry trout, but I sat there and thought about why I felt so bad, and why many of our friends were so pissed off at this. I went through my own mind exercise about the topic, pulled up a few old articles to read, and thought hard about this – but still like a wobbling soft hearted, no conclusion. I went through the other well documented entries on this link, to find that he is an active member of the Korea Professional Fishing Association (game fishing pros) and that he’s just as passionate about fishing as any of us. He respects and follows local fishing restrictions like the rest of us, except that he catches and eats the trout we catch and release. I guess the real reason for the uneasy feeling that I had was that I automatically felt bad at the sight of cooked cherry trout and wanted to talk down about this guy, the fact is that when I thought a little longer about it, he’s done what is within his right and what brought him & his family joy – and mostly, I agreed with it (the concept of having a good time, catching some fish, and the joy of feeding your family your catch).

Like I said from the start, I have a very fuzzy view on this and I won’t ever be able to be a spokesman one way or the other. Like other things in life, I’ll try to practice moderation and sensibility, and keep an open mind to fight the fight (whichever way I lean) when it comes time to do so.

(below are some links on similar topic & photos from the link with cooked cherry trout).

http://about-flyfishing.com/library/weekly/aa030599.htm
http://globalflyfisher.com/fishbetter/10-rules-for-c-and-r/
http://www.bornfreeusa.org/articles.php?p=409&more=1
http://ambergrisdaily.com/belize-news/the-sport-fishing-controversy-heats-up/
http://www.acuteangling.com/Reference/C&RMortality.html

poor planning = feeling stupid

poor planning = 4 hour drive & no fishing. Headed down to Kankakee to fish, only to find the water high and stained. I kicked myself pretty good for not checking the water levels before heading down. I looked down from the bridge at Rock Creek for a while, imagining that I saw fish moving...even that didn't work.

The tight spot:

It makes more fun to do fly fishing because we have different kind of challenges. Last time when I was at eastern creek of Korea, I thought to found a great spot for cherry trout, but it was right below quiet narrow water way. Funny thing is that I didn’t have the confidence and just casted: On first cast I had a reaction, but I wasn’t ready to hook it. It was great spot and I look forward to try again soon.

Going Old School

Old School Forest Preserve that is… I broke away from my kids baseball practice to fish this local pond. Literally a fish every other cast.