Fishing Reports

The last month in port villa we did 3 trips from the end of September to mid October. The trips varied in success from a “voyage of discovery” to the northern island,s to a pretty good blue marlin bite with every bite we caught a marlin and the final trip when the small fish moved in and we couldn’t get one to stick!

The first trip we ventured north to Pentecost, Maewo and Malekula. We finally got on the fish back down south of Malekula where on the De Chauliac bank we found good numbers of tuna and marlin. The trip finished with a photographic journal of some of the most beautiful bays, anchorages, villages and people Vanuatu has.  The fish tally’s wasn’t all that bad, but it just took us a while to find em! We let go 3 blue marlin, caught dolphin fish and tuna. One of the marlin was perhaps only 40kg and the smallest I have seen.

The second trip was a complete turn around. The first day we went one from one on a striped marlin, then in the vicinity of “Wot Rock”: we let go one of the bigger blues we have seen in Vanuatu waters….This fish was marked on the trusty Furuno sonar, and with young levi lewis on the helm we steered the boat 300meters to chase down this fish to finally get a bite.  I was too consumed in the sonar watching this blue track down our left rigger lure, when the rigger powed out and Levi and I were just quick enough to witness the fish casually turn and slowly swim off.  I wondered for a moment, that this reminded me too much of the black marlin bites in Cairns to be a blue?? and the size of the shape in the water was definitely large!  Another of the Lewis clan, Zarrad, was on the rod and made quick work of the fish as it sat a did virtually nothing.  After some time, it woke up and showed us a few jumps and gave us enough of an indication of the size to confirm that my initial thoughts of 700lb were well and truly enforced.  The fight time was now over the 40-minute mark and we were close to letting this fish go.  Zarrad was now fighting a different fish from the start, as the blue dug in and really poured on the sweat for the 14 year old.  Greg was finally able to get hold of the leader amongst water and spray as the fish woke up and made a last ditch effort for freedom, if only she knew we just wanted a look and would let her go! With incredible speed and agility, she turned and sprinted for the depths, snapping the 700lb leader before Greg could let go!  A cheer and smile of relief came from the angler, happy to see the fish swim away healthy.

Another of my favorite pieces of equipment from the boys at Furuno put us on the fish the next day.  The “X band’, or bird finding radar didn’t pick up the birds in the area like it would usually do, but rather, the turbulent water the thousands of tuna were making as they schooled!  We came across maybe a dozen or so large boiling schools of tuna, sharks, dolphin fish and marlin.  It is always a pleasure seeing that this kind of activity still exists with the commercial pressure the tuna are under these days.   The day finished with 3 blue’s raised, 2 bites and 2 caught.  The larger fish ended up tailed wrapped and died, so was weighed and taken ashore to feed the villagers at Lamen Bay.  The fish weighed 405lb.  Tuna and dolphin fish were also landed for the table. Yum!

The next day the wind got up and returning back to villa from lamen Bay we let go a small fish in the 250lb range.  On the last day our tally for 6 days of fishing, was 5 bites and 5 marlin and a bunch of table fish with every day finishing at a new calm tropical anchorage.  If this aint paradise, Im not sure what is!

The last trip we fished out towards cooks reef and back to villa for 4 days.  We saw the marlin, we had the bites, and we saw them all jump off!  So, from not missing a fish the week before, to missing every one, was frustrating.  October usually brings on the smaller fish, and this is exactly what we got.  For the 4 days we finished with 7 bites from blues, and 1 dolphin fish. So when you’re hot you’re hot…and enjoy it! Because it may not be long before it all goes AWOL.

Good Fishing.
Tom