Aloha, I went fishing at one of my regular spots yesterday. When I went to go to my truck and head home, a local man was helping his son gear up. He asked me how I had done. I told him I had gotten a couple of small bonefish and a small jack. He asked me if I was going to eat them. I told him I had released them and he commented on how good the bonefish were to eat. I told him we should release all the bonefish here in Hawaii. I asked him if he had ever caught a large bonefish on light tackle? He said he had speared them, I told him it was not the same. If he had fought them on light tackle then he would respect the true value of the bonefish. I told him they were prized fish in Florida and each one caught brought in thousands of dollars in revenue to the state. He told me I was ridiculous, that he had netted hundreds of pounds of bonefish on Oahu and had sold them for profit. I told him that a guide would make the same money in one days guided trip and release the bonefish for the next client. He told me that would never happen here. I told him it already was happening, but for it to grow it would take a change in attitude. I told him good luck. I hope he didn't have fish cake last night for dinner. They take the bonefish and crush all the meat with a coke bottle, then make a slit in the tail and squeeze out the meat and make fish cake. It is OK to eat, but makes me sick to think about a dead bonefish. I just love catching those guys! Mems.
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