Posts by hank

  • Cobia in the Pacific?

    Quote from makoa

    Yes, I have had the same experience with cobia as Hank. A meal well earned. Not sure how they would compete with native species though. Roi are decimating native reef fish in Hawaii, lion fish in other regions, striped bass in lakes and Colorado river decimating fresh water native species. Seems like non native species, once introduced to a new environment begin to dominate as predators and local species of fish begin to diminish. It will be interesting to see.


    Hank, good luck in Vietnam. I was in Thailand this summer and almost went to Vietnam. Love that part of the world. Hope your boy is killing it over Kona side. We should be headed home to BI for a few weeks this summer and will make sure to give him a call.


    My son Kawika with a few roi shot over Kona side. I used to eat them...good grouper meat...until they got known for ciguatera. Too bad. Now we shoot every roi we see and throw them in the garden for fertilizer.


    Thanks Makoa. I'll get Jake's number and PM it to you. He works a lot of overtime right now. He's at Shrimp Improvement Systems near the Kona airport and that deep sea water intake system.
    He's really getting into body boarding and recently bought a 5'9" surfboard. Knowing his kamikaze style, it won't surprise me if he's riding 15 foot Sunset in a few years. :thumbup:


    Also, I never knew this….Mike Stewart, the world boogie board champ a few years back is from Kona. Jake says the waves get pretty good. And he hasn't been there for a summer yet. The south swells must get unreal.

  • Cobia in the Pacific?

    Quote from Oscar

    Hank- the move is permanent? Didn't you just build a house in Belize? Are you starting a new family in Vietnam? :nono::nono: <img src= " class="smiley" srcset="https://spearfishing.world/forum/images/smilies/emojione/1f606@2x.png 2x" height="23" width="23" loading="eager" data-tooltip="biggrin" aria-label="biggrin"> <img src= " class="smiley" srcset="https://spearfishing.world/forum/images/smilies/emojione/1f606@2x.png 2x" height="23" width="23" loading="eager" data-tooltip="biggrin" aria-label="biggrin">


    How us the diving in Vietnam? Should be great I would think :thumbup:


    Who knows where this will lead, Oscar. I was offered a job that I couldn't refuse. I get to do exactly what I love to do….besides hunting fish, surfing, playing guitar and sex……^^…


    But at least, if I don't like it, I can say, "screw this, I'm going home". I'd never had my own house before because my jobs always provided housing.


    And no, I won't be making a new family in Vietnam…..gawddammit…. <img src= " class="smiley" srcset="https://spearfishing.world/forum/images/smilies/emojione/1f606@2x.png 2x" height="23" width="23" loading="eager" data-tooltip="biggrin" aria-label="biggrin">…at least not with anyone other than Araceli.


    My buddy Jorge (aka the Spaniard in my old posts here) had been here five years. He says it's pretty fished out. But so was the Philippines. We'll see. Not sure if they allow spearguns here.

  • Ouch

    I think it was Marco that posted on Facebook, "Why haven't I gotten any tattoos? For the same reason you don't put a bumper sticker on a Ferrari".


    I never got one. But I think that now, it's like not putting a bumper sticker on a beat up 1955 Chevy pickup truck. <img src= " height="23" srcset="https://spearfishing.world/forum/images/smilies/emojione/1f606@2x.png 2x">

  • Cobia in the Pacific?

    Quote from Marco

    So you won't live in Belize anymore?


    Probably again someday. I just have to make enough money to put my two little ones through Harvard Medical School. 8)Then maybe back to Belize and spearfishing….if I can still dive. ?(


    Every time I moved to someplace new in my life, it never turned out the way I thought….so, we'll see.

  • Cobia in the Pacific?

    Quote from Marco

    I was in a fishing trip in the Pacific side of Panama recently and believe me, if they were not there is because they haven't made their way up here... :rolleyes:


    Maybe soon... I don't know the consequences, but there's plenty of food for them here. And I mean PLENTY. I don't think they are going to be a problem. Plus, a tasty, fat stupid fish in my waters? :thumbup:


    Carry an extra gun. I've only stoned one, of the 8 or so that I've landed. I've had them spin and tear a well placed shaft right out of the body, almost cutting it in half, and it swam away. :@
    They're docile until you touch the shaft that's stuck in them. They don't seem to mind if you have the shooting line in your hand and will swim around. I've let them bleed….more blood than I thought I had….but when I grabbed the shaft…..holy shit.
    Shaft benders for sure. You're going to love them Marco. :thumbup: <img src= " class="smiley" srcset="https://spearfishing.world/forum/images/smilies/emojione/1f606@2x.png 2x" height="23" width="23" loading="eager" data-tooltip="biggrin" aria-label="biggrin">


    PS, I think I know the company that they escaped from. It's owned by the daughter of the owner of Walmart. They were buying cobia fry from Belize, the place where my buddy Jorge worked. Now, we're both here in Vietnam. Crazy baby…..haha

  • Cobia in the Pacific?

    It is found in warm-temperate to tropical waters of the West and East Atlantic Ocean, throughout the Caribbean, and in the Indo-Pacific off India, Australia and Japan.[1] It is eurythermal, tolerating a wide range of temperatures, from 1.6 to 32.2 °C.


    It's not new to the Pacific. Just the west coast of the Americas.

  • Gearing up and getting out


    I agree on the 14 mm, small ID bands.


    The shorter single wrap kind of makes sense…but if it's a good size fish, it's going to run out line on your reel anyway unless you stone it. I don't see a disadvantage with single wrap though. And I have shot a few good size fish farther away shooting down on them from a ledge. But we have great vis in Belize.


    And a float line is simpler but I had more fish hole up on my using that but I was using a breakaway. I couldn't grab the floatline quick enough and had fish hole up deep.
    With a reel, if the fish starts to run, you can slow it a bit holding the line as it comes off the reel.


    I'm not arguing with you Marco….just thinking…..sitting in this damn hotel in Ho Chi Minh…..wishing I was diving….:(

  • Gearing up and getting out

    I've done a bit of blue water hunting. The places are far from me and my boat isn't really a blue water boat. (25 foot skiff)


    The north end of Turneffe is supposed to be a spot for wahoo.


    Also the east side of Glovers also has. Glovers Reef Resort or Marisol Resort could put you on them.

  • Gearing up and getting out

    I use a Wong 55 hybrid. I double wrap and use a reel. Two 14 mm, small hole bands from Dan. Mine are 26-27 inches but that's specific to my gun. I like the softer feel without so much recoil.
    Never really tried single wrap though.
    You're right, the Speardiver guns are high quality.


    The best spots along the reef are the cuts. In between you'll find the occasional lone snapper or grouper but they're few and far between. But if you're in the cuts, make sure you have a good boatman and or buddy. The currents in Belize are generally not too bad overall, but the cuts can rip.


    I'd be happy to hook up with you but I'm off to Vietnam right now and won't be in Belize much in the near future. But Brian can hook you up.


    Check out the Fricken Jake thread in the Belize forum. You can see the fish we get here in the cuts.


    Good luck and be safe out there.