Guy Harvey releasing a Blue Marlin during his year long effort to catch a Marlin-a-Month in the Cayman Islands
I trust you all are having a Happy Holiday with you families and friends. This time of year always makes us both look forward and look back. As I do so now I am reminded of my own family and friends and of the kindness so many people have extended to me. I am also reminded of the ocean, of how we all need to focus on learning more about it and taking care of the fish that call it home. I can’t help but think of the magnificence, adventures, and joy the seas provide.
One such adventure for me took place in January of 2008 while fishing in Grand Cayman. I released my first blue marlin caught alone. What a thrill! It was quite a milestone and set me off on a 12-month journey to see if I could catch a blue marlin every month of the year in my home waters. The Cayman Islands are better known for its diving than its fishing, as sport fishing has yet to reach its full potential. From my personal experiences and from local friends such as full-time fisherman, Charles Ebanks and his father Ferris, I thought this could be accomplished. This effort was not only a personal challenge, it would also help demonstrate the fact that the year round Grand Cayman fishery was stronger than previously known.
With my travel and work schedule I had to try and reach this goal fishing only on weekends when I was at home. Adding to the challenge was the fact that most of the time I was fishing by myself or with only one other person. Even with a passenger, the odds were difficult as two people play the roles of captain, mate and angler while one of the most magnificent fish in the sea does her best to make things as complicated and difficult as possible. What made this marlin-a-month journey even tougher was the fact that I fish from a smaller, outboard-powered boat. Bigger inboard boats create a bigger and better disturbance in the water which can entice billfish to check out the situation, as it can look to them like a feeding event for predators. In fact I have filmed both billfish and tuna rising to check out a boat’s wake even when no lures or live baits were being trolled.
As it turned out, my quest was quite an adventure. My friends at Marlin Magazine wrote about this in a 2009 issue and I thought you would also enjoy my reliving this experience with you each month during 2010 here on this blog. As 2009 comes to a close I wish you all much good health and good fishing in 2010.
Cheers
Related posts:
- Guy Harvey’s Marlin a Month | January 2010
- Guy Harvey Marlin a Month | December
- Guy Harvey’s Marlin a Month | February 2010
- Guy Harvey’s Marlin a Month | April 2010
- Guy Harvey’s Marlin a Month| May 2010
Tags: Big Game Fishing, Grand Cayman, Guy Harvey, Marlin, Marlin a Month
I would like to welcome you to the Guy Harvey Sportswear web site. Here we will feature my blog where I will report on expeditions, adventures, and various marine conservation efforts. We will also include various guest bloggers, videos and photos that I believe you will find interesting, whether you are a serious fishing or diving enthusiast, or simply someone who cares about the marine resource, loves living the coastal lifestyle, or just wants to learn more about Guy Harvey sportswear.
