The Fishing

Anglers travel from all over the world to fish Kona. Most come for the chance at big Pacific blue marlin: in Kona, more “granders” (1,000 lb. and over fish) have been caught than anywhere else in the world. While of course huge marlin don’t get caught every day, unlike many other blue marlin fisheries, they are always a possibility in Kona. And, in the meantime, we have plenty of the “little guys,” running in the 150 to 300-pound range!

But blue marlin are not the only reason to fish Kona. We have shortbill spearfish, striped marlin, yellowfin and big eye tuna and mahi-mahi, among many other fish. In fact, Kona is arguably the only spot in the world where the elusive shortbill spearfish can be targeted and caught with any consistency.

Additionally, Kona has plenty of bottom fishing for fish like snapper and monchong. And then there are all those strange creatures that live on the bottom of the Pacific that sometimes end up on a fishing line. It makes for a great time for even the littlest of the kids, as we are all but guaranteed to put some fish on the boat when out bottom fishing.

Beyond the super fishing, an extremely attractive aspect of the fishery is that all the fishing is done on the protected lee side of the island where the ocean and winds are calm and light and land is almost always within sight. As a little extra bonus, the runs to the fishing grounds are typically fairly short, which means even after a full day chasing fish, you can still be back in time to catch the sunset or whatever is best for your schedule.

All in all, the fishery surrounding Kona is simply outstanding on all fronts.

  • Our bread and butter is conventional tackle fishing, and we are well equipped for this pursuit. We have all new tackle from top companies like Shimano and Melton International Tackle and a state-of-the-art fighting chair from Release Marine. We also have electric teaser reels to run a full complement of teasers. And Sweet Sadie has a huge cockpit from which to fight fish and maneuver.

    We typically either troll lures “Kona-style” or troll live bait, or, depending on the conditions, will use the “bait and switch” technique. We have the gear to fish 130 lb. tackle all the way down to 2 lb. ultralight. So whether you like to fish heavy or light, from the chair or stand-up, or bait and switch, or want to try a new technique for the first time, we’ve got you covered. We can even set you up to try different techniques on any given day. Our goal is always for you, the angler, to have a great day, so all styles are welcome.

  • At Sweet Sadie, we’re all avid fly fishers and there’s nothing more we love to do than chase bluewater fish with fly rods. We target shortbill spearfish (probably our most sought after fish on a fly rod), mahi-mahi, several kinds of tuna, and striped marlin (all depending on seasonality and conditions). Our trophy target species is the blue marlin, which can top 1000 pounds, but we like those in the 150 – 200 lb. range for fly anglers, giving them a more realistic chance of landing the fish – but any marlin on fly is a trophy, no doubt!

    Of course, Sweet Sadie is exceptionally fast and agile, allowing the captain to effectively fight fish in ways many other boats simply cannot. In large measure, this makes the difference between landing and losing fish on the fly – and we land fish!

    We have gear and flies, you just need to show up and follow our instructions, and you’ll be good to go.

  • Tournaments are exciting and intense and a great way to hone your skills and focus (and give you a chance to walk away with a big check). We concentrate on the Hawaii Marlin Tournament Series, but we are open to fishing any Kona tournaments our clients would like. Among others, some of the annual tournaments we fish include (dates depend on the year):

    •  The Lazy Marlin Hunt
    •  The Kona Kick-Off
    •  The Marlin Magic Lure Tourney
    •  The Firecracker Open
    •  The World Cup and Kona Cup
    •  The Kona Throw Down
    •  The Skins Marlin Derby
    •  The Lure Maker Challenge
    •  Big Island Marlin Tournament
    •  It’s a Wrap Tournament

    We book up quickly during tournament season, so please contact us as soon as possible if you’d like to fish a tournament with us.