Posted by Waiopai Sport Fishing Charters on Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Sometimes it takes a giant catch to really put things in perspective. While this year brought several mythic fish stories of anglers who caught 500-pound marlins – one even by spearfishing – nothing comes close to a blue marlin caught in Kona, Hawaii earlier this summer.
The gigantic marlin landed by Guy Kitaoka off the big island of Hawaii weighed 1,368-pound, just eight pounds shy of a world record and the biggest blue marlin off Kona in 23 years.
The whopper was caught on board a 22-foot boat, making the catch just about six feet shorter than the vessel. Photos of the giant were captured by Waiopai Sport Fishing Charter boat and posted to the company’s Facebook page. A look at the page also reveals that at least seven 1,000-plus pound marlins have been this year in Kona, making it one of the best fishing seasons in recent history.
In reeling in the latest massive billfish, Kitaoka reportedly spent 90 minutes getting it to the boat. But even then it was far too big to get fully on board, so they hauled it back with half the fish hanging off the stern.
Observers speculated that the marlin was likely feeding off 100-pound yellowfins in the surrounding area. On a previous trip, Kitaoka reportedly fought a grander for nine hours but lost it in the end. On another trip he caught a fish that would have won a fishing tournament but his boat wasn’t registered.
Kitaoka, who owns a commercial fishing license, said although the giant blue marlin was just shy of a world record, it's a huge redemption for this longtime fisherman.
Posted by Waiopai Sport Fishing Charters on Tuesday, July 28, 2015
