In an August 26, 2010 article by Charles Levine posted on MarlinMag.com, the author details the top sportfishing destination world wide with the highest probability of catching a “Grander” (a blue marlin over 1,000 lbs). What makes Kona an ideal location is that it sits in the middle of the pacific ocean and the waters off of Kona remain protected by the huge volcanoes that created the Big Island of Hawaii. Fishing in Kona Hawaii is close to the shore with most fish caught within five miles of land and the waters most every day are very calm and deep (500 to 1,000 fathoms within 5-10 miles of land), making it an ideal location for tourists and vacationers to try their luck at catching a big blue marlin.
Excerpt from article on MarlinMag.com follows. Read the WHOLE STORY HERE.
“You can catch a grander Pacific blue on any day of the week in these waters, but the best big-fish months occur during the summer. Jim Rizzuto, who has chronicled the local fishing scene for the past few decades, counts 76 marlin topping 1,000 pounds since 1960 (and that does not take into account any granders released).
The Big Island is literally the top of a mountain that drops down to the seafloor. The depths fall away to 1,000 fathoms within sight of land, and you can catch marlin, tuna, wahoo and more within a stone’s throw of the harbor. It’s not uncommon to see an 18-foot Boston Whaler trolling with a 130-pound setup. The average blue runs between 300 and 500 pounds, but most of the fleet sticks with heavy tackle — and for good reason.
Capt. Jeff Fay, who runs Humdinger, a gorgeous 37 Rybovich, says he prefers baits for the big ones. Fay knows what he’s talking about. He’s won the Henry Chee captains award in the Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament four times — the most of any captain.”
CLICK HERE to read the whole article on Marlin Magazine, the authority on Blue Marlin.
Fishing Trip Reviews
Had the chance to book a Kona fishing charter on our trip to the big island and was fortunate to find a half day charter on the Humdinger on short notice. Having done a lot of deep sea fishing on party boats, I wasnt sure what to expect on a private charter. We never fished far from shore, maybe a mile or two at the most. We caught a small blue marlin and a rare speafish and missed a mystery bite. All in all it was a great day and the crew was fantastic. I would highly recommend them.
ShortBait1966, Visited June 2016
Realized it with a really nice Blue Marlin.The crew worked really hard on a couple of days were the fish were not. Itting so well. Kona is a beautiful place. It is also an excellent place to fish for Blues.
Carlton K Austin Visited June 2016
An absolutely wonderful excursion! There were 3 of us that booked a 4 hour charter on the Humdinger. One in our group had deep sea fishing on her bucket list and she is thrilled that Captain Jeff and his son Brett were the ones to see it through! At first it looked like it would just be a 4 hour boat ride but we were still having a great time. We got to visit with Brett and talked about everything from fishing to places for great local plate lunches. Brett is a very polite, professional and friendly young man. And if you get a hit you can watch him fly into action, an impressive sight! On the way back our bucket list friend got a hit and reeled in a 30 plus pound short nosed spearfish – a blast for all of us!! After tons of pictures Brett filleted the fish, packed it in bags and put it on ice for us. Fortunately, we were staying in a condo so we could enjoy the catch. We had it grilled, pan sautéed, lightly breaded in pano, etc. Definitely ate more fish in two weeks than we usually do in a year! We also shared some with a friend that lives on the island. Captain Jeff is a very pleasant and knowledgeable man but we didn’t get to visit much with him during the charter because he was upstairs piloting the boat. Before we left the mainland we called several charters for information and pricing. Having never gone deep sea fishing we were clueless about everything and had tons of questions. Captain Jeff very patiently answered and re-answered all of our questions. He was also the best priced charter of the ones we called. We highly recommend the Humdinger and it’s awesome father/son team to anyone looking for a great experience deep sea fishing!
chastikea Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Visited May 2016
