Lake Wilson Hawaii Peacock stories!

My favorite way to fish Lake Wilson is fly fishing,
which also happens to be my newfound passion.
Although it could be difficult to do without
a boat or kayak, it’s extremely effective. I have
found that baitfish imitation flies draw far more
strikes than the surface flies you usually see on
fishing shows. I like to fish on or around points,
schooling fish or any fish I have found along the
shoreline. Sight fishing is possible if the weather
cooperates and is really fun.

If you fish in the spring when the bass are
spawning, be prepared to go “bassmaster” on
them. The peacocks will be in pairs along the
shoreline and sitting on their nests. They will
bite, but you have to put the lure right into
their nests and entice them into biting by
making them mad. It’s the same principal that
the professional bass fishermen use to catch
spawning largemouth bass. I learned this technique
when I lived in Texas and did a lot of
bass fishing.
I like to use some kind of brightly colored
plastic bass lure like a tube or small grub in this
situation. It has to be bright so you can see it
on the nest as well as see when the fish takes it.
My favorite fly pattern to fish is the Clouser
minnow. I have caught everything from salmon
to bonefish with a Clouser, and the fly did not
disappoint me on Lake Wilson. I tie my own
flies, so I had to experiment with the color
scheme of the fly. I came up with a combination
that outfishes any lure or fly I have fished with
on Lake Wilson. The fly is tied with chartreuse
thread and has chartreuse lead eyes. The body
has a yellow belly/bottom and purple back/top
with a few strands of gold Krystal flash running
down the sides of the fly. I like to make the fly
about 4 inches long, because I can start fishing
it at 4 inches and then cut it down to a shorter
length if I feel the need to downsize my fly.
This fly just slaughters the bass, especially
when they are schooling and get stacked up on
the points. I have had days where I caught fish
on almost every cast on certain points around
the lake. I fish this fly on a sinking tip line, but
you don’t have to because the lead eyes will
sink the fly. You just may need to use a longer
leader to get the fly down to where the fish are
if you don’t opt for the sinking tip. I usually use
around 2 feet of 8-lb tippet with a 3-foot
section of 20-lb shock leader.
The retrieve of the fly should be short quick
strips of about a foot to 11⁄2 feet. This style of
retrieve has been the most productive for me,
but don’t be afraid to experiment, especially if
you are not getting any strikes. I hope this info helps anyone going to Hawaii that wants to catch a peacock bass. It is alot of fun!