Capt. G / Pacific Rim Specialist
Escolar in Wakayama, Japan
Nov. 19 2009, 9:47 AM
Nov. 19 2009, 9:47 AM
Escolar in Wakayama, Japan
Escolar, or oilfish, are found throughout the Pacific Ocean, and are sometimes caught off Mexico on 2-day-plus trips. I usually make two or three trips a year in the fall, which is high season for these fish. I have made all my trips out of Shizuoka Prefecture, which is considered the "Mecca" of Escolar fishing. My best to date is 81.4 pounds. I heard of a boat to the south in Wakayama Prefecture called the Yoyomaru, that has taken several escolar over the 100-pound mark, so I set up a charter.
Here is a pic of one that a customer on the Yoyomaru caught that went over 100 pounds and was over 6 feet long.
Escolar, or oilfish, are found throughout the Pacific Ocean, and are sometimes caught off Mexico on 2-day-plus trips. I usually make two or three trips a year in the fall, which is high season for these fish. I have made all my trips out of Shizuoka Prefecture, which is considered the "Mecca" of Escolar fishing. My best to date is 81.4 pounds. I heard of a boat to the south in Wakayama Prefecture called the Yoyomaru, that has taken several escolar over the 100-pound mark, so I set up a charter.
Here is a pic of one that a customer on the Yoyomaru caught that went over 100 pounds and was over 6 feet long.
Seven of us boarded the boat in the afternoon; the plan was to fish for some Japanese yellowtail (very similar to the ones you get in California), and when it got dark, head for the 80 fathom curve to fish the escolar.
We set up on some hard bottom in relatively deep water, 50 fathom, and sent some live aji (Spanish mackerel). The captain recommended that we use a dropper loop-like rig, with 8 oz. of weight.
Nao connected first, with this edible species of shark that we opted to release. The weather started to kick up quite a bit, as you can see in the background of the pic.
Dori bagged the first mejiro (Japanese Yellowtail)
Things deteriorated really fast after that, weather wise. Dori bagged this weird red fish that looked similar to the green colored trumpet fish I have caught in Mexico.
We were taking green water over the bow as the sun set, and the captain made the wise decision to head back in.
We were in full slicker gear, yet still managed to get soaked on the way in.
When we arrived back at the dock, Yama-chan, who is a sushi chef, expertly cut up one of the yellowtail, and prepared "chirashi-sushi" for us, which is raw slices of fish, placed on sushi rice, along with nori, denbu, and egg. The captain joined us, and one of the yellows soon disappeared.
We are going to reschedule next month for the escolar, and it will be one of the last escolar trips of the year for the Yoyomaru, as they only fish them until the end of December each year.
Post a Comment
All comments are moderated by the administrators.All fields are required.
December 6, 2009, 1:09 am
Very cool to get a perspective from the other side of the pacific... nice fish!