I Once Caught a Fish This Big

On Sunday I had planned to go kayaking, but LB called to say that Dave was going fishing with Paul, one of the AGs. Paul had been fishing on Saturday and had found a great location where the wahoo fish were congregating. No one knew exactly why there was so many wahoos at that location, but it made for good fishing. Paul, Dave, and I headed out on Paul's boat heading southwest out of Koror. We went just outside the reef to the open ocean to do some trolling along the edge of the reef. To do trolling, you use a rod and reel and drop a metal lure into water behind a slow moving boat. You drag the lure along until something bites it and then you have to reel it in. Paul had one line out and Dave and I shared the other line.

We didn't have the lines out long until Paul caught a small mackerel that he then released. I then got a bite and began reeling in. Being a novice fisherman my reeling technique was a bit awkward, but I was able to work the fish into the boat. it took a lot of strength and Dave had to help steady me a few times, but we drew the fish alongside the boat for Paul to grab. I caught a Skipjack Tuna that we later guessed to weigh 9-10 pounds. We kept it and put it in the cooler. We resumed trolling and Paul and Dave each caught a barracuda that we then released. Paul caught the first wahoo, but as he was reeling it in a bigger fish bit part of its tail off. I then caught a needlefish that we released. On my next cast, I hooked something big. It was definitely stronger than the first two fish and I had to put every ounce of muscle into reeling it in. I got it to the surface and Paul pulled it in. I caught a beautiful Yellowfin Tuna that we later weighed as 21 pounds. Paul, an experienced Palau fisherman said it was one of the biggest he had seen. It was beautiful, with vibrant colors especially the yellow on its fin. It was very satisfying to catch it and we had to keep it.

After that, Paul caught another barracuda. Dave then caught a 10-15 pound wahoo. After that, our excellent luck dwindled and we didn't land anymore fish while trolling. Something very big grabbed my lure and ran out all of my line until it snapped the line at the lure, losing the lure that had caught the earlier fish. We decided to head inside the reef and do a little casting. Paul found a good spot and within a few casts he caught a snapper. Paul also hooked into something really big and that he fought with but ran his line out. The line snapped off at the reel and Paul lost all his line and lure. He was rather angry at the fish and his inability to land it as it would have been a great catch. With our bountiful catch, Paul's line gone, and the light waning, we headed for home. Paul took us the scenic route through the rock islands, which is always spectacular. It had rained earlier, creating a beautiful crisp rainbow in the distance.

Paul was very helpful and cut the yellowfin and Dave's wahoo into large loins and fillets. They yielded a large supply of meat and we gave some to Paul. I also gave some of the tuna to Christy. The Kregenows and I ate the tuna and wahoo for dinner. We got four meals out of it, so far, and I have two large chunks still left. The tuna was absolutely fantastic, the best I have ever had. The wahoo was also very tasty. On Monday, I gave the uncut skipjack tuna to one of the Palauans I work with at the Court who was very happy to receive it. It was an amazing fishing experience, one I will not soon forget.