A report from SteveL
We were drawn (lottery system) to go catfish fishing at Nuuanu Reservoir this past weekend. I was told by the clerk at McCully Bicycle that the water level was really low but nothing could have prepared me for the real thing.
We got there early and headed down the path loaded down with my long rods in anticipation of casting toward the back of the reservoir near the fish feeder. But I was shocked to see the water level was down over six feet.
You could walk right up to the main outlet tower and the place we normally fish was no longer surrounded by water. In fact most of the area we normally fish was dry and growing grass and the main fish feeder sat in a big pond, separated from the main body of water by at least a hundred yards of exposed bottom.
I was told by the biologist that the Department of Land and Natural Resources drained the reservoir to reduce the risk of a dam break disaster. This will likely doom recreational fishing at the reservoir as the reduced body of water is less likely to support a large population of fish. And I don’t know how they are providing food for the existing fish since the feeders are no longer in deep water.
I turned to Cy and said I didn’t know where to fish now. We planted ourselves along the edge and cast our lines toward the opposite shore by the cliff and inlet. Despite the setback, we still managed to pull in six fish that weighed in close to 30 pounds total. I invited Phillip Wang, director general of Taiwan, and his wife Meili and they had fun pulling in several 7-plus pound fish. We made the most of what may be the last season of catfish fishing at Nuuanu.
EQUIPMENT: Heavy, stiff surfcasting rods 9 to12-plus feet long with heavy saltwater tackle capable of slinging a 6-ounce or heavier chunk of lead the length of a football field or greater. Getting distance is the ticket to scoring big cats in this reservoir.