salt water fishing

24
Nov
2013

The correct way to remove a fishing hook from a human, painlessly and safely.

There seems to be a rash of videos about removing hooks from people, all feature the  ‘line-loop’ method. Some even show some brave souls sticking hooks in themselves to demonstrate the method.

Unfortunately all these videos make a mistake that almost certainly means the hook extraction will be painful to a lesser or greater level.

All the videos make a point of placing the loop at the middle of the bend and then pulling straight back in-line with the hook shaft. This is wrong, if pain is to be avoided.

The loop should be in the upper half of the bend, and the pull should be up and away, at about 30 degrees to the shaft.

hookout

Because the hook will roll out the same way as it went in, the barb will not catch, and a barb catching is what causes pain.

To see the whole story see this (link corrected), and see:

  • a method that uses forceps to achieve pain-free hook removal
  • a method for removing a hook in yourself, even if you cannot see it.

 

Posted by Tony Bishop in Fishing Safety, fly fishing how-to, Fresh water how-to, salt water how-to and tips
29
Jul
2013

Massive Yellowtail Kingfish

Mark Kitteridge who worked with me at my tackle shop in Auckland NZ for ten years scored this huge yellowtail kingfish off Tairua, NZ. Weighed in at 40 kg (88 lb.)

Released it too!

40kg yellowtail kingfish

Did you know that the IGFA has two records for Yellowtail kingfish, the so called California Yellowtail and the Southern Yellowtail yet they are exactly the same fish. Way past time the IGFA fixed this.

Posted by Tony Bishop in New Zealand Fishing, salt water fishing
30
Oct
2012

New Tagging Research Reveals Remarkable Mako Shark Journey

A satellite reporting tagging device know as a SPOT tag, attached to a shortfin mako shark dubbed “Carol” in New Zealand five months ago, is providing scientists with remarkable and previously unknown details of the timing and long-distance migratory movements of this species.

makotag

See more on Sportfishing magazine.

Posted by Tony Bishop in environment and conservation, New Zealand Fishing, salt water fishing
21
Apr
2011

Pretty accurate hook size chart – if you print it

Finding an accurate hook size chart has been difficult, many are wildly inaccurate, even from reputable manufacturers – but at last I found one.

I have just uploaded a PDF document of Tiemco fly and salt water hooks. The sizes appear to be fairly accurate, but only if you print the chart at 100%. Sizes on your screen are not accurate as they are distorted by the pixel setting your screen uses.

The hook styles and shapes do not cover all hooks, but all the basics are there, so it is an excellent overall guide.

For full run-down of hook information see this.

Posted by Tony Bishop in Articles and stories on fishing in general, big game fishing, fishing flies, fly tying, salt water fishing, salt water fishing tackle
22
Jun
2010

Separating Stuck Rod Joints

There can be a problem that affects all rods with joints, sometimes they just stick and it is the Devil’s own job to separate them.

With the exception of strong surf rods, one of the worst ways to try and unstick the joints is to have a friend grab one side of the joint and you the other side, and pull. It is very hard to keep the rod dead straight and a broken rod at the joint is a common result. Even worse is for you and your friend to try and twist the rod in opposite directions as you pull. Result – same as above. This is especially true of light spinning and fly-fishing rods.

There are two methods that work for me – but I am totally at a loss to know why.

First, put the behind your back, clasp the rod with each hand on either side of the joint and pull apart. I have seen this work, and experienced it myself, on apparently immovable joints.

Second method, and again I do not know why it works, is to pack the joint with a bag of ice or frozen peas for about ten minutes, then pull apart.

Stuck rod joints can be avoided by a couple of quick tips:

  • Before joining the rod give the male joint a good rub down with a cloth to remove dust or fine sand.
  • After cleaning the male spigot rub it a few times up and down the side of your nose. The natural grease imparts a very fine lubricant.

When joining the rod pieces, just seat the two halves firmly together, never force down on the joint. Ramming the two pieces together is a definite ‘no-no’.

And finally, it is a good idea to test that the joint is firm regularly during a fishing session. A loose joint, can lead to a broken rod, because the overlap between the male and female parts becomes too short. This is especially important when fly fishing.

Posted by Tony Bishop in Articles and stories on fishing in general, fly fishing how-to, salt water how-to and tips
10
Dec
2008

If You Want Fresh Fish Chill Out!

This Christmas holiday and right on over our Summer Holiday period the following sad story will be repeated ad nausea – and nausea is the right word – all around New Zealand’s coasts.A perfect example of how not to keep fresh caught fish fresh.

The crew sets out in the morning and over the next four or five hours catches a feed of fish. As they are caught, the fish are chucked into the fish bin where they flap and struggle as they slowly drown in the air. As more fish are caught they are thrown on top of the fish already dead and dying in the bin.

By the time this bin of fish, as exemplified in the photo, gets to shore it should not be eaten. The fish have ‘cooked’ in their own blood and slime. What a waste!

By the time our intrepid crew get back to the bach, crib, campsite or home, the fish is a smelly, slimy mess. Cleaning and preparing the fish to cook is a long, slow job – the soggy, flabby-fleshed bundles of slime are hard to handle. But eventually fish fillets make their way into the fry pan where foul cooking smells begin to fill every nook and cranny in the immediate vicinity. The whole performance, in a word, disgusting. What a waste.

It is a sad fact is that much of the fish served up by amateur fishermen is passed its used-by-date. By the time it reaches the table it is well on the way to being rotten.

Many fishermen would be better advised to go fishing on an exclusively catch-and-release basis, and buy some fish to eat on the way home at the fish shop. The fish in the shop would be in better condition – the shop would not be allowed to sell (apart from legal problems) the amateur’s catch because of it’s poor condition.

If you want to keep your catch fresh all the way to the table read this..

Posted by Tony Bishop in salt water how-to and tips
27
Nov
2008

Who’s Name Goes in the Record Book

I get a lot of questions and some I can even answer, or find an answer, for my Answers page.

But this question was very interesting:

“I have two friends that went fishing in the Michigan U.P., USA. and on this particular trip landed a very large Muskie.  The first fisherman owns the cottage on the lake and has caught Muskies before, the second none.  As you listen to their individual stories they both claim to have caught the same fish.  Both took separate pictures holding it, both plan on having their own mounts made, both continue to brag about catching it.

I was raised in believing that a fish is caught by one fisherman, the person who hooked it, while the other person being a participant by netting the fish or holding the pole while the fisherman that hooked it brings it into the boat is just a witness or bystander.  Boy…. did the arguments start.  

I asked them if it was a record holder who’s name would it go under?  I can’t seem to get a straight answer to that question either as they each said themselves.  Can two people be listed as the catchee?

Even though it was just the two of them and not a charter, the second fisherman tells me that when a boat is chartered everyone on board catches all the fish.  Is this true?  Can you help me sort the rules out….  

Thanks, Curt    aka… milwpacker”

Here was my answer:

On one hand, it is just great that two friends got such a kick out of catching the fish – and if they both want a mount of the fish that is their choice – whatever floats their boat, I say. If both of them believe the fish would not have been boated without the active participation of each of them, then that is for them to call.

But on the other hand, and it is a big but, as far as records go, only the angler who hooks, plays and lands the fish can claim the record, and only that one angler’s name can go in the record book.

This applies to all fishing records, even big game fishing, where the active involvement of all the crew is necessary to boat the fish, but only the one angler’s name is recorded . So your comment about everyone other than the angler playing the fish being just a bystander is I am afraid way short of the mark as well. It may well be that the angler could not boat the fish without the aid of one or more other people in the boat.

In fact it is usually true that a big game angler would not be able to get the fish to the boat without the skipper moving the boat around to help recover line, prior to all the crew action at the end. This can also apply in small boat fishing.

So, I am not sure if this clears anything up, except the one-name one-record business, but this has been one of the more interesting questions I have received.

Posted by Tony Bishop in Articles and stories on fishing in general, big game fishing
10
Sep
2008

Big and Biggest

tunacatch_180

A New Zealand woman’s claim to a world fishing record has came with a  twist in the tale. Earlier this week, Sue Tindale of Auckland caught a bluefin tuna weighing 219 kg’s (483#), setting an unofficial world women’s record.

But she may have only held it for a matter of minutes, as another Kiwi woman also caught a whopper the very same day. Lyn Salvidge’s bluefin tuna weighed in at 223 kg’s (491#) – an astonishingly four kilos more.

"To sort of have two ladies weighing in a fish together was amazing," Ms Salvidge says. "So they put Sue’s fish up at 219 and I was looking at mine thinking oh, so I was really quite nervous."

Despite losing the record, Ms Tindale was not at the very least envious of Ms Salvidge’s four extra kilos.

"I just did the fish for myself and Scott anyway," she says. "And I just wouldn’t swap the adventure. And good on her if she beats me, it doesn’t worry me at all."

The two tuna very nearly beat both keen game fishers.

"I’d never felt anything so powerful," Ms Salvidge says. "I mean, I’ve caught marlin and stuff before, but never anything like this. This was like a horse."

"The bait got cast and just about instantly we were hooked up, and I thought ‘oh no.’" Ms Salvidge says. "This fish just about pulled me out of the chair and then the fight was on and it took three and a half hours."

The Tindales say it will be tuna for dinner every third night from now on. Of the 219 kilograms of tuna, 180 kilograms was cut off for eating.

It will be a few months before the US-based IGFA world record scrutineers verify both catches.

(Footnote: It can only be guessed at how many thousand dollars these two fish might have fetched on the Japanese market – but it is highly illegal for non-commercial fishers to sell fish in New Zealand.)

Posted by Tony Bishop in big game fishing