Tip's from the Pro's - Bite Me Gamefishing Charters - awesome Sailfish, Marlin and Wahoo Fishing in Kadavu, Fiji

Tricks Of The Trade Belly Flap Teaser

It’s another beautiful day out fishing for Pacific sailfish along the Great Astrolabe barrier reef. You were off at dawn and now your two pink squid daisy chain teasers are skipping along in the wake, your party of anglers waiting patiently around the cockpit with their pitch baits ready for the first sailfish attack.

Suddenly a bill pokes out of the sea, right behind the left hand daisy chain and a sailfish has a couple of half hearted swipes at the teaser tail.

Deckie Joe swings into action and starts to work the teaser back to the boat as the first angler pitches a bait and skips it back to the billfish…….But something is wrong…….The sail doesn’t light up and charge after the teaser. It takes one last swipe with its bill and slides away, disappearing off to the left.

It’s the New Moon and the sails are doing what they always do here around the New Moon…..Being finicky !

Pacific Blue Marlin - Lures That Work Here In Fiji

When trolling lures for Blue marlin aboard ‘Bite Me’, we run a standard spread of four lures off bent butt chair rods and use Penn International 80STWs. We run a long and short corner from the transom rod holders and a long and short rigger from the chair. Sometimes we run a teaser such as a spreader bar or a Pakula Witchdoctor.

We never run a shotgun. We always aim to tag & release all billfish and use Billfish Foundation tags. We generally use lures that imitate or approximate to the baitfish in the area such as skipjack & Yellowfin tuna, mahi mahi or flying fish.

Although We use wire rigs a lot because of wahoo, we don’t double the wire inside the skirt to make a stiff rig. We just use a single wire to the hook allowing some flexibility and swing. Lures are tooth-picked or hooks set with the point or points upwards. Two hook rigs have the hooks offset at about 45 degrees.

Our recommendations are for normal general fishing on a reasonably calm day in bright or slightly overcast weather when targeting fish of any size. This is what works for us. Its not necessarily what will work for you !

Trolling Lures For Pacific Blue Marlin

Although most of the Gamefishing my clients enjoy aboard Bite Me is light to medium tackle, I occasionally get the opportunity to break out the bent butt 80s and go after marlin. Every encounter with these monsters is a learning experience. We have learnt a few things along the way and for what its worth, I will be posting a few examples. You can learn from them, or laugh at them. I recommend both.

2.30pm heading away from the Kadavu Seamount

1. Trolling a spread of 4 lures near the Kadavu seamount – A purple Hollowpoint Cabo Killa on the long rigger, and a blue/white/yellow/pink Black Bart Hot Breakfast on the short rigger, both lures with a single 10/0 Stainless steel hook stiff rigged on wire. 19 feet of 400lb wind-on and 9 feet of 300lb Ande leader. Short and long corners were a huge silver / yellow custom MBT Monster and a John Lau Linda, both 12/0 double hook loose shackle rigged at about 45 degrees. (Pakula style)