Fish Stories - Bloody Knuckles, Sore Bodies & Big Grins

“It looks like a baseball bat!” Screamed Nathan Varnadoe, long time crew for Maggie Joe, as he realized there might be something special on the end of their line. The initial bite was unassuming, short corner went off, 14” bait on the line, second and a half wave. But as they saw the bill swaying back and forth, leaving a 10’ splash on top of the water, they knew that this was no guppy.

The lines were cleared as guest Captain, Mike Hennessy, reversed the boat towards the fish. Marvin Bethune, out of Ft. Pierce, Florida, had the pleasure of angling this beautiful beast. Marvin “felt a spiritual connection as soon as he held the rod and reel.” Both Captain Hennessy and Nathan later commented that it is unusual for novice fishermen to feel the tension and pull of a fish in such a way. The fish took out line three times, and jumped in large series of figure eights, like a fish a quarter of the size. 

When the fish was finally at leader, in a little over 40 minutes, she was still swimming strong, never once rolling in the fight. Nate took wraps on the leader pulling for all he was worth, arms and back exploding with tension. Captain Hennessy placed the first flier in the fish followed by two stick gaffs, and the fight was over. Now came the hard part: getting the fish in the boat without harming anyone, the guests especially. In 25 knot winds and 6’ to 8’ swells, Captain Hennessy described it as “a nightmare.” It took the strength of seven grown men, of all ages, four gaffs, a sturdy block and tackle, and a lot of innovation to bring the fish into the boat. Finally after the longest hour of their lives, teamwork finally brought the fish in the boat, tail first. Everyone, including the 5 guys on the shared charter had bloody knuckles, sore bodies and the biggest grins on their faces. High fives and shouts could be heard back in Honolulu.

As I saw the boat turn around to park in their slip at Kewalo Basin, my first reaction was “Holy crap! That fish is HUGE!” I had never seen a fish so large, and this means a lot to the daughter of a longtime Kewalo Basin fisherman. Of course, lifting the fish out of the boat is almost as large a task as getting it into the boat; the electric winch Maggie Joe has on the dock was a definite back saver for many of the friends and family that came to see the monster they heard about through the coconut wireless. 

The fish was so long that even at the highest the winch would take her, she was still too large to hang over the sidewalk, so she was photographed over the water. It was with great honor that I read the exact weight of the fish from our digital scale. “1245 Lbs!” I screamed; everyone on the dock began to hug and congratulate each other.  Nathan must have hugged every person on the dock twice, strangers included.

As I placed the official weight slip so Marvin and the other guests could get their photos with the fish, Nathan squealed “1200?!” He didn’t realize how big the fish really was. Nathan then went around for a third round of hugs.  “It is every Marlin fisherman’s lifetime dream to break the grander mark,” said Captain Hennessy, “1200 is an extra star.” 

While celebrating with a rum and coke, I asked both captain and crew their thoughts on the whole life changing experience.Captain Hennessy said to “stay close to a big fish, never let her get too much line out. Have a crew ready to sacrifice his life for the cause. Nate is that man.” Nathan, affectionately known as ‘Nate the Mate’ encourages to “hold on and never let go, never give up, your dreams will come true.” 

Captain Hennessy wants to thank owner Michael Derago for maintaining a top notch boat and professional operation to make a fish of this caliber possible.