AlexandrA comes home

Happy birthday Sis! (How many people get to have their birthday in the middle of the Pacific and be with their Dad and Brother? (BG)). We have now made it 2/3 on this leg, currently we are at 5 degrees south, 123 degrees west, 1000nm to the Marquises . The wind goddess Blusterina forgot us for 2 days after half way. With 2 consecutive days of very light wind it was the first opportunity to put a line in the water. Well within no time Sandy was pulling in a mahi mahi or dolphin fish. Amazing with its colourful yellow and green colour, a perfect size to cook up for dinner for 3. alas as from previous fishing with no land in site and not catching anything we did not have the landing net ready and lost it pulling it up to the boat, bugger. At least there is proof of life here other than flying fish and squid. It makes sens as there are so much smaller things for them to feed.
Well back into the water with the lures and about an hour had past when both the trailing lines hooked. If it were a Looney Tunes cartoon there would have been smoke pouring off the reels as the line fed out of both at an amazing rate. Sandy grabbed one, me the other and max slowed and turned the boat. As both reels started to get to the end of the line we applied more and more brake to the spool. Sandy’s rig broke and mine held. The following 40 minutes saw me gain line and then loose it until we had the largest fish I have ever caught, a tuna at the rear step of the boat. The net barely got most of the fish in it and was impossible to lift out of the water. The rear step on the scoop of the hull is basically at water level and when a wave comes it has water flow over it. With the net around the fish we slid it onto the step. It was like pulling a wet bag of cement out of the water. Sandy and I pulled the fish up one step at a time into the boat. What a beautiful animal, way too large to keep for food. If were having a bbq for 50 then this would be fine. The hook had barely held as the rigs we had were really too small for this size fish. Fortunately the tail of the tuna is similar to the handle bars of those Razor scooters the kids ride and we could get a great grip to hold the tuna up for a photo then send him back home into the abyss. We hooked up another 3 times through the afternoon, Sandy landed an identical one and the others got off the hooks, again not big enough rigs. Sandy too took 40 minutes to get the tuna to the boat, the same effort to get it out of the water, photos and then back in. We have no scales to weigh them but assume a similar weight to a 20kg bag of cement. For the first time when I have been fishing I have wished to catch smaller fish.
While on watch at night there is plenty of time to star gaze. When overcast its impossible to determine the horizon’s edge, its like being in a dark room with sensory deprivation. For a good adrenalin gland work out watch the movie paranormal activity while on watch! When there is no cloud, which is most of the time’ there are more stars to see than I have ever noticed. With no light pollution from suburbia it is terrific. There is more than the occasional shooting star to be seen, some for an instant, others for half the sky’s length. Who ever named earth earth really got it wrong, Why is it not called more aptly water? There is certainly plenty of it here. Cheers,
Mark