2006 Season

29th Sept 06
Today was the last day of our fishing season and the weather was really good at last. Ian went out to Condor Bank where they raised 2 blues. The first one didn't take any interest in the lures, it was about 600 lbs. In the late afternoon they pulled the hooks on the second blue after a “windscreen wiper” session, estimated at better than 600 lbs.
So we say goodbye to Chad, Phil, Danielle and Amanda, who have been extremely patient, and remain cheerful, upbeat and enthusiastic through all the days of bad weather. We look forward to seeing them again next year.
We also sadly say goodbye to SteveO, who is off to fish Cairns and then Panama before he returns to us again next year.

28th Sept 06
We spent the 26th in port – again – and at last the wind dropped yesterday and we got out to Condor Bank. Brasilia hooked a blue marlin, about 500 lbs, which pulled the hooks. We caught a dorado!
Today the wind was forecast to be light so Ian went out to Azores Bank. They hooked 2 blues but both got away. They did not see the first one well enough to estimate the size, the second was 500 to 600 lbs.

25th Sept 06
We managed to go out on the 21st, as did Brasilia and Double Header. The wind was from the North West so we all fished in the lee of the island. No one saw anything.
Since then we have had nothing but bad weather. Hurricane Helene passed to the North of us, giving us storm force winds and a big swell. Chad Raines and Phil Sims who have been planning this charter for 10 years are waiting patiently in the hotel. I hope we can provide a more exciting time for them out on the ocean tomorrow.

20th Sept 06
Hurricane Gordon turned away from a direct on Faial and passed south of Pico, which offered us a good deal of protection from the strongest winds. The boats in the marina are safe and the wind has dropped but the seas remain extremely high and too dangerous for fishing. Hopefully the swells will diminish by tomorrow.

19th Sept 06
Fishing cancelled due to a hurricane warning issued for the Azores islands. Hurricane Gordon was heading straight for Faial and, although the weather was still good, we had to spend the day “preparing to protect life and property” as the hurricane warning stated.

18th Sept 06
Not even one bite!

17th Sept 06
1 for 5! The first strike came early in the day, a 500 lber, then we had a double header about an hour later. One of the blues was about 400 lbs and it got off the hooks quite quickly. The second was about 600 lbs and fought for about 20 minutes before it pulled the hooks. The fourth strike was early in the afternoon, about 500 lbs. This is the one that we got to the boat. It was an extremely aggressive fish, thrashing and slashing with it bill and after a couple of attempts to remove the hooks we decided it was way to dangerous so cut the line. The last fish, the biggest of the day, struck late in the afternoon.
Meanwhile the charter on Brasilia is fishing for world records on light tackle. They raised a few which would not switch to the bait but hooked one towards the end of the day on 20 lb line. We do not yet know the outcome because they had not returned to the marina by 23.00.
Paulo Gaspar speared a blue marlin which he hoped would beat the world record. It weighed in at 637 lbs, which was just 30 lbs too little.

16th Sept 06
Great weather, but not one bite. Brasilia was also out today but they did not see anything either.

Update:
Got one! Right at the end of the day we raised another blue, about 600 lbs, which stuck on the hooks this time so Ed was able to get it all the way to the boat, so 1 for 4 again.

15th Sept 06
More frustration. Rather windy today so we are fishing the lee of the island. By mid afternoon we had had 3 bites, but we have not been able to get any of them to the boat. The first one was average size, the second was a monster, definitely over 1000 lbs, and the third was also a big blue which managed to break the hook, snapped it clean in two, and these are special ultra strong hooks. Until 13th Sept our hook up rate was a respectable 70%, but in the last week we have released just 3 blues from 15 strikes. We have to find a solution!

Update:
On 14th we released 1 blue for 4 bites. We saw all 4 bites clearly and had a couple of the “escapees” on for a good length of time. The characteristic of the bite has changed suddenly, and we are now sure that all 4 bites on the 13th were in fact blues although we called one a white and one a mystery bite at the time. Now we must work out why these blues are biting but not sticking on the hooks!

14th Sept 06
Just after mid-day Ian reported that they had had 2 bites. The first one was a mystery bite, they didn't see the fish, the second was a blue marlin, much the same size as yesterday's (550 lbs), which they released successfully.

Update for 13th: In total they had 4 bites: 1 for 2 on blues, zero for 1 on whites and 1 mystery bite.

13th Sept 06
Ian reported that they released a blue marlin of 550 lbs. Ed was the lucky angler, or perhaps he will consider himself unlucky because the fish was foul-hooked and it took an hour to get it to the boat.

12th Sept 2006
Nothing for us today. Kees Kik is back for the second time this season, this time with friend Ed de Bruin. Brazilia saw a blue marlin feeding on the surface (chasing a dorado) and had a bite from another that did not hook up. Aguas Vivas, the research boat for DOP, was also out today and saw 4 blue marlin close to the island, again.

11th September 2006
Yesterday we raised a blue marlin, 500 to 600 lbs, which kept coming back to the lures, having a look, taking a nibble, but it never hooked up properly in 3 or 4 attempts. Today was a zero day for us but Brazilia hooked up a large blue marlin, no size given, which took about 600 yards of line, jumped and jumped – and jumped off! Both Xacara and Brazilia were on Condor bank but a small open boat was fishing the North side of the island. They went out for just 2 or 3 hours, no fighting chair, no outriggers, no serious big game tackle, and released a 650 lb blue marlin! They tell us they also saw some white marlin which would not bite.

9th September 2006
Too windy – no fishing!

Update
At the end of the day, as Steve was busy bringing in the lines prior to running for home, a blue marlin appeared and tried to eat the last remaining lure in the water. It struck 3 times but did not hook up. Steve got all the lures back in the water as quickly as possible and Ian worked the area for another half an hour but the marlin did not appear again. So, final tally was 1 for 3. The 3rd blue was estimated at between 500 and 600 lbs.
Take a look at the new photos added to the Photo page.

8th Sept 2006
1 for 2 again today. It was Stuart's turn in the chair today and at last his jinx has been broken. This is his third visit to the Azores, but the first time he has seen a blue marlin here. He says he was beginning to think these blue marlin we keep telling him about are just a myth. At about mid-day he hooked up a blue marlin, between 400 and 500 lbs, but it got away. Not much later he hooked up again. This marlin, estimated at 700 lbs, was very aggressive. It jumped like crazy and Steve had the leader 5 or 6 times before it calmed down enough to remove the hooks. They discovered that it was not properly hooked at all; the hook was hooked back onto the leader, forming a lasso around the marlin's bill. Quite amazing that it didn't jump off.

7th Sept 2006
Xacara 1 for 2 (450 lbs); Brasilia 1 for 1 (850 lbs).
The weather improved significantly so Xacara and Brasilia headed out to Condor Bank. Our anglers, Sean Mason and Stuart Elliot have fished with us before and were keen to see some action after the bad weather. Brasilia hooked up first, a large blue marlin, possibly 850 lbs according to Louis, which they fought for about 3 hours. Unfortunately it was tail wrapped and died. Sean was taking the chair on the first day. He hooked up a reasonable size fish, 500 to 600 lbs, but it pulled the hooks, but hooked up again later in the afternoon and successfully released a smaller blue estimated at 450 lbs.

5th Sept 2006

Nothing but bad weather to report. Yesterday was extremely windy and there was no hope of leaving the harbour. Today looked a bit better, the wind had dropped but there was still a big sea running and the wind was forecast to veer from south to north-west during the afternoon, so Ian warned everyone that they may have to come in early if the new wind angle against the big swell became untenable. And that is what happened, but earlier than predicted, and Xácara was back in the marina soon after midday.

3rd Sept 2006
Jakob and Frank from Holland are fishing with us today. The breeze has picked up quite a bit over the last 2 days so again Ian decided to fish the North side of the island in the lee. This is where they raised the blue marlin yesterday and today they raised another. It attacked the teaser quite aggressively but disappeared under the boat and didn't switch to the lures. The second attempt was more successful. Again it came aggressively onto the teaser, switched to the short right but pulled the hooks, then switched to the long right and stuck fast. Frank was in the chair and did a good job to release the blue, estimated at 850 lbs.

Update on the blue marlin released on 31st August: Steve and Ian both agreed that this fish was at least as big as the 980 lber weighed last week so have decided to call it 950 lbs.

2nd Sept 2006
We have now said goodbye to the Nanz group and welcomed Daniel Goez on board yesterday. Daniel is an avid stand-up light tackle angler and has already released numerous bill fish, including 33 blue marlin. But the biggest so far was 350 lbs and he is keen to fight a much bigger one. He almost had his chance today. They raised a 500 lber, it took a look at the lures but drifted a way so Ian made another pass and it came back into the lure pattern and took another half-hearted look but was just too lazy to strike.

31st August 2006
The last day of charter and so far all had drawn complete blanks. Today, at last, their luck changed. Helmut drew the lucky straw and was in the chair when the strike came. He released a huge blue marlin, estimated at 900 lbs plus. She gave Steve a real hard time when he got hold of the leader, leading him a merry dance from one side of the cockpit to the other and back again.

29.08.06
Helmut Nanz, wife Britta, brother Sebastian and friend Jason Goldberg are back again. They have been fishing with us since 2000. That means they more like close friends than clients. Unfortunately, the first 3 days of their charter have not provided them with a chance to fight a fish. Yesterday they went out to Condor Bank but moved to the north coast of the island when the wind picked up as forecast. Conditions looked excellent, “really fishy”, but they didn't raise any. Less than 2 miles from them a local boat was out pleasure fishing and raised 4 white marlin!

26.08.06
Keith's last day and at last he found what he came here for. Around mid-day he released a 600 lb blue marlin and about and hour later hooked up “a beast”. Unfortunately it pulled the hooks and got away.
Brasilia released a 900 lb blue marlin, the first of the season for Louis, so lots of celebrationsfor all!

25.08.06
Keith's third day – a great big flat sea and lots of sunshine. We raised 3 white marlin and one took a bite but did not hook up. Bralisia also had bites from white marlin, the first we have seen for many days.

24.08.06
More wonderful weather but even less action than yesterday!

23.08.06
Another beautiful day as we welcomed our new client, Kieth Julian, who is fishing with us for the first time. We saw a blue marlin tailing but it was not interested in the lures.

21.08.06
Just half a day of fishing seeing Jim and Adrian are leaving the island this evening. No wind, thank goodness, so we went out to Condor Bank, but didn't see anything. We will not be fishing tomorrow.

20.08.06
A late start today due to the extremely late night last night. The wind was back and conditions not too comfortable. We fished round the north side of the island and raised a blue marlin which took a nibble at the lures but did not hook up

19.08.06
What a day. We trucked all the way out to the Azores bank and spent the day trolling back and forth across the bank. Basilia was there too but neither of us saw anything. The wind started picking up and Adrian was not feeling too well (bad ice in the Bacardi and coke last night, he says!) so we decided to head in early, trolling all the way.
In the channel between Pico and Faial, just 3 miles from port, we saw a large marlin take a look at the lures so I turned and started to work the area. At just about 19.00 we hooked up. Jim was in the chair and it took almost an hour to get the marlin to the boat. Steve had it on the leader twice but had to dump it as the marlin took off. Although Adrian has released 3 potential granders here, for his brother Jim this was very special. After some discussion Steve reckoned it was possibly bigger than the grander he weighed last year so we got the gaffs out. Jim was suffering at this stage so Adrian took over and it took about another half hour before we could subdue the giant. It was really late before we finally got a crane and scale organised on a Saturday night, with a lot of help from Double Header's Capt Sandro and owner Jorge Medeiros so many thanks to them.
And would you believe it, she weighed in at 979.8 lbs, just 20.2 lbs shy of a grander.
Well done to Jim, Adrian and the crew.

18.08.06
After days of lousy weather, yesterday was fine enough to get out to Condor Bank but it produced a great big zero. So today, with the weather even better, we went to Azores Bank. As we scouted around it looked really good: lots of bait and bird action, so our hopes were high. It started to happen at 12.15. We hooked up on the long right and Jim Graham reeled in a very aggressive blue marlin, estimated at 450 lbs, with almost no bill. Things went quiet again and we began to wonder if we had already had the best action of the day - but we had not. At 16.15 we hooked a big fish on the Andromeda on the short. The fish did a bunch of jumps way off in the distance, too far for photos. There was lots of noise in the cockpit but after half an hour Adrian Graham had the fish alongside. Steve reckoned it was bigger than the grander he weighed in Ascension but, seeing we released and did not weigh it, we are calling it 950 lbs. Adrian is looking for a 1200 plus on 80 lb tackle or 1400 plus on 130 lb, so we did not bring out the gaffs. Adrian has plenty of experience with big blues, this is the third potential grander he has released on Xacara! Last year he fought a really, seriously big, potential world record for 6 hours, so he is not interested in killing a fish just to prove it is over a thousand pounds, he wants a world record! A great day for us. Brasilia was on Condor Bank but did not see anything.

10.08.06
Another news flash: Out on Condor Bank again, in the middle of a heavy rain squall, a large blue marlin struck the long left but pulled the hooks immediately. Capt Ian turned and made another pass of the same spot and up she came again. This time she struck one of the shorts and stuck fast. It was Jon's turn in the chair and he got her in successfully. Estimated at 850 lbs – a big girl!

10.08.06
Update on yesterday's “catch”: It was still fairly breezy and bouncy in the morning but Ian decided to head out to Condor because conditions have looked so promising there. They trolled over the shallows for ages with no success so he decided to try deeper water and moved off the bank. That is where it happened. The blue marlin came up out of the depths, lunged at the lure and bingo: she was hooked. She put up a good fight with some real good jumps close to the boat. Ian Thorpe was the angler. He has caught striped marlin off the East coast of Africa in the past but this was his first blue, and the biggest fish he has ever caught. Unfortunately the video footage did not produce any good quality still shots for the website.

Photos taken over the last few days:


Ian with the first spearfish he has caught


Jon proudly displays his dorado

09.08.06
News flash: Capt Ian called me from Condor Bank to say they had just released a blue marlin estimated at 600 lbs. More details to follow.

08.08.2006
During the 10 days that we did not fish, the weather was magnificent. The day we started our charter with the Zambetti family, it changed: the flat calm gave way to a strong breeze from the South West. It was not strong enough to make it unfishable but restricted us to fishing off the north coast of the island. Unfortunately, that proved totally unproductive for marlin, although young Michael did get the opportunity to catch a couple of small line fish, just for fun at the end of the day.
We are now fishing with Ian and John from Worcestershire, England. Again the wind has been stronger than we expect at this time of year, which has not made for the most comfortable conditions aboard, but at least we could get out to the banks. Yesterday, on Azores bank we released a small spearfish, and today on Condor we hooked a white marlin, which unfortunately pulled the hooks!
Double Header was also out today for the first time in more days than anyone cares to remember. They had on board the crew of a cruising yacht who were keen to experience life at sea from a different angle, but unfortunately they returned to port empty handed.

22nd July
A very uneventful week. We fished 4 days but had no luck whatsoever. Double Header was also on charter but had no luck either. It has been a bit windy and rainy but the bait is good and the sea temperature is good. After a flurry of activity in the first 2 weeks of the month it has gone very quiet. We now have 10 days off and will start our next charter on 2nd August and Double Header will be out of action for a few days too.

16th July
Last week our crew had a few days “off” (no charters) but Double Header fished 2 days and released a blue marlin of 800 lbs.
Kees Kik, who had a great charter in September last year, came out to visit us from Holland just for the weekend and fished 2.5 days, but with no result this time. Nada, nada, nada but lots of sunshine and no wind the first 2 days and a little rain today. We know those Big Mamas are still there. Capt Ian could see them on the fish finder but they would not come up. Too much bait around, perhaps?

9th July
July 6th and 7th were very quiet, no bites, no action. Yesterday a large blue took a swipe at one of the lures, felt the hook, jumped clean out of the water and spat it out. It was a really good size fish, minimum 700 lbs but could have been a lot larger. Today – nada.

5th July
Today they hooked a biggie, about 800 lbs, 3 times. The first time it went for a long lure, unsuccessfully, came back and took swipe at a short lure, unsuccessfully, came back through the lure pattern for the third time to inspect the shorts again, shaking it's head and got foul hooked as it drifted back through the longs. It stayed on for about 10 minutes then got away. What a pity. At that stage it gave up and didn't come back for a fourth attempt. Lynn, the angler, said she went weak at the knees when she saw it and realised she would have to fight this beast, and was almost pleased when it got off the hook. She is hoping for something a bit smaller today. Later in the day they hooked another mako which also got off.

4th July
No luck in the competition! Yesterday we continued the recce of likely spots. The Azores bank had good bait but not better than Condor bank so we decided to return there to fish the competition seeing we released a big one there on Sunday. Conditions today were ideal, and we hooked a mako shark, but unfortunately no marlin.

2nd July
Our mates Steve and Duarte had arrived, our clients had arrived, the captain and boat were ready, and everyone is excited and keen to get start fishing.
We have 4 anglers from the Botte family aboard Xácara, brothers Jose, Joao and Pedro and his son, also Pedro. Jose and Joao have travelled all the way from Mozambique to take part in the Blue Marlin World Championship on July 4th. Today was "feeler" day to test the waters and see what is out there. Capt Ian started by going to the north side of the island but found only cold water so they ran to Condor Bank where they hooked up and successfully released a 750 lb blue marlin!

June has arrived and the 2006 season starts in just over 3 weeks. Our first charter day will be July 2nd with 2 clients from Mozambique who will fish the July 4th Blue Marlin World Cup tournament with us.
We have heard reports that 2 blue marlin have already been seen south of Pico island. I must admit I find this hard to believe – it's just too good to be true! Perhaps they were not blues, but they were definitely billfish and surely that must be a good omen. The water temperature has started to rise with official reports putting it at 19 degrees C, and 20.5 recorded in the shallower water of the Azores bank.
We are awaiting the arrival of our two mates, Steve Hall from the States and Duarte Rato from Mozambique. I have asked them to send me photos for the Crew page but this may have to wait till they get here and Ian can catch them with his camera.
After nearly 7 months away from home, Ian has done some major work on the engines, is still busy with the usual annual maintenance jobs, and the furniture is being re-upholstered. We can't wait for July 2nd!