I’m headed to Kauai in June to catch Rainbow Trout planted and now are naturally sustaining their population. I have the intel (interesting story) from a reliable source. I am meeting my family on The Big Island afterward to spend a week on a family vacation.
I’m looking to share the experience with others although I doubt any one of you has done this for obvious reasons.
On the chance that you have, perhaps now you can Share it with the group, otherwise I have a info packet I can share with you…
I visited kauai years ago, before I was introduced to tenkara.
It is an interesting and whimsical place. The place is overrun by chickens. Like hike 7 miles into the mountains and take a break on an overlook and there are chickens hanging around way out there…hahhahahaha. I guess if one is a beach bum there…they would never starve.
I fished the surf exclusively.
The fresh also has some peakcock bass.
The interesting thing about the island is both its diversity and its corruption of nature. You would think that an island would be more natural, but man’s environmental mismanagement is long reaching. I went on a guided kayak tour where the guide noted that most visible vegetation was invasive and introduced. Even deep into the mountains. Sort of like the largemouth, peakcock bass and as you note rainbow trout.
Be sure to have good footwear and even consider spikes as it rains a lot there and the mud on the trails makes it like a slip and slide.
My recommendation in conjunction with the trout you consider to target, be sure to target the surf. Those are 100% native and wild and probably the most incredible and whimsical finned creatures I have ever seen.
My wife and I snorkeled Poipu Beach. We had one of those laminated fish identification cards with 20 - 30 different species of fish on it and saw almost every single one of them within a couple hours. Dense schools of reef fish. Mind blowing.
I was after jacks (ulua/papio) when I surfcasted, but caught some lizard fish and some reef fish. There is structure everywhere. The volcanic rock will tear you up so be sure to have wader boots and some neoprene socks.
If I were to go back I would fish for those reef fish with fixed line rods. They are so beautiful and unlike rainbows, those reef fish are what make those islands special. I bet with a fixed line or flyrod most of those fish could be easily caught.
Here’s one of the small rainbows I caught on Kaua’i. I love the copper color on the gill plate…the water was tea colored and the copper I’m sure is for camouflage.
Rumor has it there are fairly large wild rainbows as well in some of the harder to reach streams. It really was a great mini adventure just getting to the fish. I was trying to get some information from a park ranger and we were consulting the state park map…her comment was, “you want to fish there!?! I don’t even think there is a stream there.”
I lived on O’ahu for three years. The first time I surfed Poipu was 1976? My favorite break is Makaha. I learned to hang glide on O’ahu, camped on Mauna Kea for 30 days, lived all environments in Hawaii, water, desert, jungle, mountain, soared airwaves there.
I got this.
But, I don’t got what you got, your experience, that I want to hear about like Gressak and mak1277, thank you so much for sharing. I was there for a moment reading your words.
Really.
I have a set of instructions from a super cool guy, accomplished fly fisher, has a time share on Kauai.
Counting down, can’t wait. I’ll post my packing list, it all.
Wow, another case of - It’s a small world sometimes.
I had an apartment in Waianae for a few months starting about July 1974. Moved to base housing on Peltier Ave after completing my first submarine patrol. Someone busted our car window one day when my wife was at Makaku Beach, which if I recall correctly has the nickname of Pray for Sex Beach, though I think the official name is Pray for Sets Beach. The Waianae area wasn’t greatly law-abiding even when we lived there. Read online the other day that today the area is considered to be one of highest crime areas in the USA.
Occasionally we, my wife and I, would drive to the area on Oahu where people could be seen Hang Gliding. Somewhere between Hanauma Bay and Makapu’u Point, if I recall correctly. So who knows, I may have seen you Hang Gliding one day while watching the hang gliders. Anyway, completed my last submarine patrol early Nov. 1977, was discharged Nov 15th. But stayed in Hawaii until April 1978. Living somewhere along Salt Lake Blvd.
At that time two side by side highways ran from Honolulu to Pearl City. Likelike (not Like Like, it’s Leakyleaky) and Kamahamaha. Every afternoon about 3 pm a guy could be seen running backwards from Pearl City toward Honolulu, running in the median between the two roads. One of those guys who danced to the beat of a different drummer. Do you recall ever seeing that guy? Several years ago I attended a Philips training class and one of my classmates was Gary, who was in-house tech support at Queens Medical Center. He remembered the backward runner.
I looked up trout fishing on Kauai the other day. Read that they do not permit C&R. I wonder why they have that rule?
I want to answer you properly, I can’t on my iPhone so I will get back with you this evening.
You absolutely know intimate details of that side of the island.
Pray For Sex is a fickle break just a little farther down the road. You would not have known that if you didn’t know the locals and we’re not tapped in.
Adam,
Its pretty cool that you are already familiar with the island. It must have been great to spend time there surfing. That is one thing that I wish I learned to do in my life.
Snorkeling Poipu beach on the south side of kauai was hands down the highlight of our trip. If the water is calm and you can snorkel that beach it is both safe and wonderful as a family activity.
I am envious of your trip. I would go back there in a heart beat. The seafood shack across the street is not to shabby either. I am not sure if its the same joint we went to but where Brennecke’s Beach Broiler is …is where we ate. We has some Ono(wahoo) that was insane. Probably the best meal we had on the island and we hit a lot of joints.
Was digging through some pics on my phone and thought I’d post one of the little stream where I caught that trout, because who doesn’t like more photos in threads.
So, I started going to the islands in the mid 70’s surfing and skateboarding. We did trips every summer. In 83, I moved there in the Army. I lived in various places starting out on Wahiawa then over to Makaha Plantation, then over to the N.Shore. I was surfing, skateboarding and I learned to hang glide at Leia and then over to Kailua and on to Makapuu. Before I left I was going way down past the Pali highway to a place where they called it stairway to heaven. Anyway, sometimes 4-5 hour flights. I also did training on the Big Island living on that place for a month at a time. Now I go to Waikoloa and hang out there. I’m going to Kauai for a couple of days to catch the rainbow in Waimea Canyon area and then on to Big Island to catch up with my family. I’m no longer a kid so I just fish and snorkel and drink. My favorite place in the world is the Lava Lava. If I can kiss my wife, drink a Mai Tai there and watch my kids play on the beach, life is good. Big Island is the spot. There is trout there, I’ll find out and get them maybe this time, maybe next time. It’s tight and I have a rod in mind already.
Anyway, I am fortunate to have lived pretty hard when I was young, I just put together a skateboard, may go snowboarding next weekend.
I just turned 57, not letting old age get in the way but am definitely cautious.
Awesome!!!
Sounds like you had a serious adventure. You are so lucky.
In the 70s I was grade schooler living small town life. Hanging out playing pick up games with the neighborhood goofballs. We never went far on family vacations as we didn’t have the dough.
Adam, many familiar places or names of places I knew of but never went to. Unfortunately for me, when I was 22 y.o. four years seemed like a long time. I figured I’d have plenty of time to visit Kaui, Maui, and the big island Hawaii before my enlistment was up. And then my enlistment was up before I ever went to one of the other islands.
However, while I was at sea my wife went to Maui once with friends to watch a road rally race, and with another friend rented a plane and flew over the big island when Mauna Loa erupted in, I think, 1976. The pictures she took from the plane are still kicking around somewhere. I wasn’t into fishing, snorkeling or surfing, I’m not a strong swimmer. My off crew time salt water sport was sailing. In '76 I purchase my own Hobie 16, but probably spent more time sailing with a friend on his 28 foot Stiletto catamaran. And lesser time crewing boats during races with the Pearl Harbor Yacht Club. One of the members I crewed for during one race had flown one of the planes in the movie, Tora Tora Tora.
I attempted to stay in Hawaii after I was discharged, and did for six months before giving up. I only made it to Maui when I applied for at job at Science City, at one of the observatories on top of Haleakala. The unfortunate timing for me was when they got back to me about the job I had already moved back to the mainland. Going to Science City was an odd experience, you could look down at the top side of airliners flying past. And there was snow on the ground. An odd thing to see after living at 83 ~ 89˚ for four years. [ the only time I wore a jacket was during sub patrol when we were in the north Pacific were the water was cold and the a/c more efficient]
When I first moved to Hawaii I purchased a tee shirt that said, Ski Hawaii, as in snow skiing. I thought it was a joke, and it fit my sense of humor. It was a year or so later before I learned there is a place where you can snow ski on Mauna Kea.
Three or 4 guys from my sub crew still live on Oahu, and my wife has a couple of friends she worked with we hear from once in a while. Once ever 10 or fifteen years. It was through them we were invited to attend a New Year’s Eve Luau in Waianae. At the home of a family of Portuguese descent if I recall correctly. The start of 1978 was the last time I was in Waianae.
My legacy from living there is mostly fun times, a couple very sad events, and learning how to pronounce the Polynesian place names.
I corresponded some after my trip with one of the TU officers from the Hawaii/Kauai chapter, and he suggested that more people have climbed Everest than have caught a wild trout in Hawaii.
Well, wether that is true or not, it is interesting and actually made me think it could be possible.
I am spending quite a bit of money and effort in catching a rainbow trout.
But it is the adventure in Kauai, the fishing adventure that I’m after. I’ve caught a lot of fish in the islands on a fly rod, this will be my first and probably my last with a tenkara rod. Super excited.
