Sunday Hike to Shellandria

That's what we did today - hiked along the beach to find some shells. Charlie kept getting drawn closer to this mysterious device - Got some stainless hardware salvaged from it. Lots of bait hanging out in pukas... Nice beach day!!!

Lunch Break and Seeking Out the Assassin

La and the kiddoroosters were in town and free during lunchtime, so they picked me up and we went out to lunch!!! I took them to a spot I have been wanting to try out, but haven't had the time to get to - Ahi Assassins. Note the business hours - these guys go out on their off days and catch the fish they serve on the on days. Delicious food - well worth every penny Smart people work here and make wonderful food for savvy customers - and they get to go fishing as part of their job!!! Go check them out - near UH where Berentania St starts.

New Commuter at the End of the Road

Our new house is 22.7 miles doorstep to parking garage from work. And it is through some of the most congested traffic known to mankind. I talked it over with La and to get through the commute, I got a new bike. I picked it up on Saturday afternoon and took it for a long ride to get the feel for it. This is the end of the paved road below Kaena Point. There is an unpaved road that keeps going and even at the start it is muddy and full of ruts. I figured I should at least break in the bike properly before hitting a road like this ;) What a wonderful bike!!! With the speed limit on island being no more than 55mph, you really don't need more bike than this. The seat is a little stiff, but that should change after some break in. I know this isn't amphibious, but there is a beach in the first picture. I made the commute in to work on the bike this morning and it is way nicer riding in the HOV zipper lane than fighting traffic in the main lanes. I'll be varying the times I come in this week to see what works best. I left at 5 am this morning because I had some work that needed to get done and the surface roads feeding into the freeway were jammed. It'll be fun figuring out the commute patterns - especially on an upright, standard bike.

I think I've posted this before...

Sears at Pearlridge. Copper carp. I'm pretty sure I've posted this before... at least it feels like it...

Charlie Does Surf

This and the next post are pictures from the Sunday swell. On the sets the waves were well overhead and if you picked the right takeoff spot, you would have a long ride ahead of you. Here's a short sequence of Charlie B taking off on a bigger one. I shot these with the GoPro 3+ Black. I really like the GoPro cameras - portable, capable, and they can take a beating. But there are limitations. They make my belly look WAY bigger than it really is, they shrink the size of the waves you are riding, and they don't take distance shots. Good session!!!!

Bones at the Hawaii Ocean Expo

Bonefish jaws and some of the foods they eat. The booth was to educate the public about tagging (I signed up for a kit). Crab nuggets and Mantis Shrimp butts are among the carnage in the petri dishes. And check out the teeth on the fish jaws!!! Now I just have to "catch" bonefish... hmmmmmmm....

Yes - Those are Some Big Trevally in the Pond...

I went to the Blaisdell Center today to check out the Hawaii Ocean Expo. Actually I had wanted to go to the Bishop Museum - the YMCA was sponsoring a free day at the museum - but so did everybody else. I drove around a couple of time to see where I could park and walk to the museum but so did everyone else. So I beat feet to the Ocean Expo. This was the first time in a very long period that I had been to the Blaisdell. When I got there, I stopped by the pond and to my surprise, there were a bunch of trevally (bluefin and black) swimming in about 16" of water. They all were sporting tags, but I wasn't sure of the circumstances that got the fish in the pond. I wonder how many people walk past this pond and think "man - I could come back tonight with my flyrod and have a really good time!!!!" Come on - I can't be the only one!!!!

Hors d'oeuvre

When you think of hors d'oeuvres, you think of a fancy meal. Well - considering the bonefish I've been stalking have snubbed everything I've thrown at them, it has become apparent to me that I have to take it up several levels and bring out the fancy dishes. These fish want to play snobby, I'll lose the redneck and break out the bow tie and toecapped shoes. Behold the "Hor d'oeuvre"!!!! With all the time I've been spending on the flats, I have seen a lot of details that could easily go unnoticed. I've been studying the rocks and what lives on, in and under them and besides the mantis shrimp, these crabs are pretty prevalent. I also tied a "weed guard" on to the fly to prevent the other most frustrating thing on the flats behind the prissy bonefish laughing at you all day long - getting the fly hung up on a rock just as a bonefish is closing in on the fly. We'll see if the bones will eat this crab...

Lots of Activity on the Flats - Part 1

I got to cast some fly line this morning - low wind, bottomed out low neap tide, and only the flyrod out (no spinning gear and cut squid today). I wasn't getting any strikes for the first hour or so. But I did see this guy from the corner of my eye. It's because of opportunities like this, to see different flats occupants doing what they do where they live, that make fishing awesome (I still prefer catching, but I'll take what I can get).

Giant Snail

No kidding...

Cool Hawaiian Art

I enjoy walking around Native Books in Ward Warehouse - they always have the coolest art.