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IGFA Corporate
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Marlin Adventure in Watamu, Kenya in the Indian Ocean
Andy Little |
 Marlin are the most prized big game species on the planet, but after 25 years of near misses around the globe I was beginning to think I’d never succeed in catching this amazing, missile-like billfish. Then came one last, determined roll of the dice. I flew 4,500 miles to the Indian Ocean and gambled on a dedicated marlin Adventure to change my bad luck – only to suffer another six days of near misses! Big marlin hit the lures OK, but they all evaded the hooks.
Then on the last afternoon, with just a couple of hours remaining, I finally boated and released my first blue marlin, estimated at between 130 and 150 lb. It was an emotional, extra-time victory after 25 years of trying! The egg-timer had almost run out, as that same evening we were hastily packing for the Kenya Airways flight back to Heathrow. The last-gasp marlin was the climax of six days remarkable sport with skipper Mark Jury, the popular New Forest fishery owner, who escapes UK winters by charter fishing off the Kenyan coast from his own 33 ft Aquabell, called Tega. We met Mark at the stunning Turtle Bay Hotel, following flights to Nairobi and Mombassa and a two-hour bus drive to Watamu along the coast road. |
 Turtle Bay is a paradise location on a palm tree lined, white beach where Mark’s boat is moored just offshore. Mark predicted I’d catch numerous different species during the week – my actual tally was 14, multi-coloured varieties – and raised my hopes of a marlin by reporting that one Turtle Bay skipper had boated 27 in January alone. That compares with an average of just 30 marlin for each boat for the whole season, which runs from October to March. But Mark also warned that one skipper lost 14 fish on the trot before finally bagging one. It appeared the marlin were in a strange feeding mood, possibly because they were gorging on shoals of small tuna. Lures trolled reasonably quickly at 8 knots had produced most marlin strikes, from specimens between 100 and 400 lb. Our main line of attack from the first morning was to spread out various lures on six or eight rods. Mark has a sporting attitude and generally fishes 50 lb stand-up gear, or occasionally 80 lb class. The trolling lures are spread out across the back of the boat with the top rods fished the furthest back, two on each of the outriggers staggered at varying distances slightly closer to the boat, and then a flat line and downrigger straight off the stern. We tried various combinations of colours and sizes, and mounted some lures with strip baits. We had marlin strikes for five days, but all came out of the blue and all escaped within seconds of hitting the lure. One of the best chances was when crewman Adam Lenga spotted a sleeping marlin, 200 yards from the boat. They often lie just under the surface with their dorsal protruding through the waves like a twig. Mark carefully steered the boat around the marlin to see if he could induce a strike. The noise of the boat usually makes the marlin investigate and chase the big bubble trail and pulsating lures being trolled behind. The idea is to mimic a shoal of bait fish that look like an easy meal. |
 The sleeping marlin, estimated at between 350 and 400 lb, fell for the trap. It kited around behind the boat and hit the flat line without getting hooked, then completely missed the tag line on the outrigger before briefly getting hooked up on one of the top rods. We had three chances, but none of them stuck. On the final day, we were thinking about motoring in and calling it a day. Suddenly, there was a cry of ‘marlin!’ as the flat lined rod closest to the boat screamed off.
In the first few seconds, the marlin jumped six times and line was smoking off the reel. Crew member, Sunday Murira, helped me into the fighting chair as Mark slowly started to back up on the fish that had now half emptied the spool on the 80 lb class outfit. The fish was 200 yards off and greyhounding across the surface.The line went slack and I feared the worst, but it had only changed direction and I reeled in like a lunatic. After spending so much time on the surface, the fish was now heading for the basement. The rest of the fight was unspectacular. Once Adam had touched the leader, the marlin was declared caught . Now came the task of tagging it and removing the hooks. The welfare of the fish comes before anything else. My marlin was a blue and estimated at between 60 and 70 kilos, which is below average for the area. It was small enough to bring on board for a quick shot before swimming it to fully recover. |
 It was a fantastic experience and I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening wearing a grin from ear to ear. I can understand why anglers get so obsessed with these fantastic creatures. They are indeed at the pinnacle of our wonderful sport.
Mark Jury charters his boat at £400 a day in October and November and £450 from December to March. This covers up to four anglers fishing and all tackle and drinks. The day normally starts at 6.30am and finishes at 4.30pm.
Contact Mark on 00254 721723396 (Kenya) or 079392 73388 (UK).
Also, see www.fishingkenya4marlin.com
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Andy Little
