Some things never change. At least that's what I've heard. Of course, I've also heard that in life, the only constant is change itself.
So which is it?
Well, that depends on what you're fishing for. Those who chase sailfish have a host of techniques to choose from that are everchanging and always evolving. Off Palm Beach, you'll find boatspulling dead baits. Just a little down the coast, live baits onkites are the only way to go. In Mazatlan, you must have split-tailmullet, while bait-and-switch takes the cake in Guatemala - oncircle hooks, of course.
For marlin, it's the same story. Dead bait, live bait or lures allwork, and in any given location any one of the above is likely tobe considered the top producer.
Swordfish, however, are another story entirely. Other than the raresurface-basking fish that might take a live mackerel, things havenot changed a whole lot for swordfishermen. Whether you're fishingthe Northeast canyons, Venezuela, California or the coast of southFlorida, you're pretty much relegated to the old game of soakingsquid with Cyalume sticks. Sure, the finer points vary from boat toboat and place to place, but drifting over deep structure remainsthe only productive swordfishing technique.
Until now. Thanks to years of experimentation by boats fishingKenya's swordfish-rich grounds, there's finally something new underthe sun (or, more appropriately, moon) for those who fish for themighty broadbill. So what's the fuss? Try trolling for swordfish,at night, with lures.
Seriously.
How It Started
"It sounds crazy, but to catch that fish, you have to be a littlecrazy," says Capt. Mark Rider Haggard, formerly skipper of the B'sNest, a 35-foot Bertram from the Hemingways Sportfishing Fleet inWatamu, Kenya. "Or have a lot of confidence."
In this case, it's confidence. Haggard spent a long career fishingKenya's famed North Kenya Banks, developing the know-how andtechnical expertise that allowed him to improve an entire fleet'sfishing techniques.
Haggard first began modifying his approach to swordfishing back inthe early 1990s, when he and fellow Kenyan skippers Peter Glover,Angus Paul and Ali Al-Harazi devised and perfected a system offishing for broadbill that most charter captains worldwide nowemploy. This rig was among the first that allowed the heavy sinkerto slip free on a strike, dramatically improving hookup ratios.
As an avid broadbill angler, I have fished the Kenyan coast manytimes. I remember an unforgettable trip in 1993 when I drifted onedark night with Haggard at the helm. While employing his new baitrigs with success, Haggard confided in me that he wasn't satisfied,that he still imagined a whole new way of catching swordfish. Hehad begun some experimental attempts at trolling for these fish,using Murray Brothers Konahead lures with light sticks shoved intothe hard-resin lure head.
Haggard classified the attempts as "timid," but he experienced someremarkable results. He also found the new technique addictive. Tryimagining a 200-pound broadbill thrashing a surface lure under thegleam of a star-filled sky, and you'll understand why. Also, thetrolling approach allowed for the use of lighter tackle thanconventional methods - 50-, 30- or even 20-pound gear - making eachfight a remarkable one. The result was a swordfishing experiencethat few would forget.
During the introductory phase of this method, several big names inthe charter-fishing industry have visited to learn Haggard'stechniques. Among them are Tim Choate, who operates the renownedArtmarina charter fleet in the Pacific. After a number of nights,Choate left convinced the system works. And as a bonus, flyfishermen have modified Haggard's approach to successfully teasebroadbill up to the surface for a fly caster. Jeremy Block caughtthe first broadbill on fly here in 1998, though the feat has sincebeen duplicated.
In the intervening years, Haggard continued to refine histechniques until he left Kenya to fish the coasts of Guatemala andBrazil. Capt. Ali Al-Harazi inherited Haggard's compilation ofknow-how and has been using the technique regularly since 1997 withgreat success. To date, more than 200 broadbill have been taken onthe troll off Kenya, leading many visiting anglers to adopt thetechnique in their home waters. When offered the opportunity to seethe technique firsthand, I jumped at the chance.
How It's Done
The basic premise of trolling for swordfish proved simple: Gettheir attention with the boat and spread of light sticks, and waitfor the action of the lure combined with a strip bait to enticethem to strike.
 Lower downrigger between 120 and 130 feetdeep. Troll as many as three surface lure/strip combos - one on a flatline and one or two from the outriggers. |
To fish this method, Al-Harazi uses conventionally rigged 30-and 50-pound outfits combined with a lure/strip-bait combo at theend of a 15- to 20-foot leader (200- to 300-pound mono will do).The strip baits generally come from the body of a skinned squid,but Al-Harazi says belly strips from a small dorado or skipjackwill work fine. For the lure, h' prefers Mold Craft's 8-inchSuper Chugger or Hooker rigged with two Mustad 9/0 stainless-steelsalmon hooks, positioned at 90 degrees. His favorite colors:purple/black/silver, blue/pink/white, yellow/pink andpink/white/yellow.
Using a heavy rubber band, Al-Harazi straps the light stick ontothe leader about 12 feet from the lure. Any closer, and you stand achance of the fish tangling in the leader and foul-hooking shouldit mistakenly strike the light stick instead of the lure. SomeKenyan skippers disagree, setting the light stick only 5 to 6 feetin front of the lure. Wherever you put it, be sure to bind ittightly on both the top and bottom of the light stick so it doesnot come off or slip down the trace during a long fight.
| 200- 300- poundmono | Light stick/ Rubber bands |
 | |
| Soft Head/ stripcomo | Hooks at 90deg |
The trolling pattern is set as follows: One standard squid rigis attached to a downrigger and lowered to between 120 and 130feet. Next comes the flat-line lure/strip combo, followed by eitherone or two outrigger baits. Al-Harazi likes to keep the number ofbaits in the water low. First, the minimal approach helps the crewkeep track of the baits in varying twilight conditions. It alsomakes clearing the deep downrigger line easier in the event of astrike.
As with all types of billfishing, the best place to start is aknown and proven area that's way-pointed on the GPS. Ratherthan trolling around blindly, the Kenyan crews will work provenstructure over and over through all hours of darkness. Because ofthe strong Kenyan currents, Al-Harazi prefers to trollcross-current, ensuring that he is actually covering ground ratherthan just holding his own in the face of a 3-knot current.
Al-Harazi prefers to troll between 3 to 5 knots with all lightsaboard extinguished. He maintains that darkness allows the crew torespond to fish more quickly, and says that eyes easily adjust toworking in such conditions. He also worries t'at a lit-up boatmight detract the fish�s attention from his light sticks inthe water.
After the hookup, they switch on the boat's cockpitlights so the angler, captain and crew can work as a team againstthe challenging broadbill. When the fish comes alongside the boat,Al-Harazi adds the power of a spotlight to ensure that tracing andtagging are effectively and safely undertaken.
Now the Hard Part
If all this sounds too simple, rest assured that it is not. Thedifficulty comes in the hookup, which is far different on luresthan with traditional methods of fishing for broadbill.
Al-Harazi is o' the firm opinion that the light stick attracts a broadbill's attention, and that attention is then diverte'to the commotion of the lure, which triggers the broadbill's instinct to strike. In his experience, a broadbill strikes from theside, slashing the prey with its sword before taking it in itsmouth. This strike often causes the line to be pulled from theoutrigger clip without a resulting hookup. The troll then continueswith the angler holding the rod because, more often than not, thefish will strike again. The angler then puts the reel in free-spoolfor a short distance before setting the hooks.
In some instances, strikes of this nature have resulted in 300yards of line coming off the'reel with no hookup. During the longretrieve, however, don't be surprised if the broadbillstrikes again right near the boat.
Once the hookup is acc'mplished, be prepared for a long, hardfight. The broadbill's initial run is usually long andsustained, although rarely at'a high rate of speed.'On the lightlyset drags of Al-Harazi's light tac'le, there's lessof a chance of pulling a hook in this fish's notoriouslysoft mouth. That, combined with the fact that these fish tend tostay on the surface if no spotlights are used, leads Al-Harazi tofight broadbill much like marlin or sailfish, backing down andusing the boat to create better angles for the fisherman in thechair.
As a charter skipper, Al-Harazi confirms that this trolling methodof fishing for broadbill has a numb'r of distinct advantages. Thefirst is that the anglers don't get bored of floating aroundon a drifting boat and, more importantly, anglers are far lessprone to seasickness while on the troll. The second is that thehigh incidence of sharks taking a drifting bait has been reduced tovirtually nil using the trolling method. Also, in the event of astrike, the crew and the angler have a far easier task of avoidingover-runs and tangles than when drift fishing.
Perhaps the most important advantage, though, is that thistechnique give' swordfish skippers something new t' try the nexttime they're on the 'rounds. Because if there's onething that never changes, it's the fact that fishermen arealways looking for a new way to catch an old favorite.
