No More Balancing Act

[Ahnkochee]

On my last trip to Lake Wilson with my bro-in-law we found my 11' fiberglass canoe Lil' Vandi is a tad tipsy especially with 2 people so I brainstormed a simple removable ama & iako for her using 2- 6"x14" lobster trap buoys ($8.00 each) PVC pipe & fittings, and 1-3/8" wood closet rod and 3/4" wood dowel. The floats have a 1" diameter puka running down the center which fits 3/4" PVC pipe perfectly, and the wood dowel was placed in the PVC pipe for extra strength. The 1-3/8" wood closet rod also inserted into 1-1/4" CPVC iako also for strength. I chose close grained no knot Douglas Fir rods and had grain lying horizontal to allow flexing like a leaf spring up and down but less lateral movement fore and aft. I also added a rear reinforcing piece also of 3/4" PVC at a 45 degree angle to the ama to help reduce lateral twisting. I measured the freeboard of the canoe empty, then with me in it and the subtracted amount (2.5") I cut off the downward curving portion of the iako (arms) thus raising the ama up from the water 2.5 inches. I also adjusted the ama to be a couple degrees toe-in and nose-up thus making paddling much better it self correcting for it's own drag. The ama is attached to existing oarlocks via 3/8" stainless steel carriage bolts and wing nuts. The whole thing can be installed, and removed in 30 seconds. Sea trials in Kailua Bay out to 3 miles offshore in 4 foot seas proved a VAST improvement in stability. I'm very happy with the results, now I can stand and cast with no fear of huli hula.

[Ken]

Very cool and ingenious. Well done!

[Ahnkochee]

I made this from a $3.99 Toys-R-Us pool noodle, what do you think? A tad mote streamlined than the lobster float and according to calculations about the same buoyancy.

[Boatless]

If only there was bass in enchanted lake..........

[Ahnkochee]

If only there was bass in enchanted lake..........

I'm totally satisfied with the 'Awa'awa and HUGE Kaku in Enchanted Lakes, I'll come to Wilson for the Bass.

[Ken]

Nice 'awa'awa. What did you catch it on? What other kind of fish is in Enchanted lake? I thought about fishing it last summer...but it looked like there's a lot of private property and not a lot of public access.

Stan, do you think you can take me there next time?

[Ken]

Hey, if you don't mind showing me how you did the calculation for figuring out the right bouyancy, that would be awesome!

[Ahnkochee]

Nice 'awa'awa. What did you catch it on? What other kind of fish is in Enchanted lake? I thought about fishing it last summer...but it looked like there's a lot of private property and not a lot of public access.

Stan, do you think you can take me there next time?

Sorry to say this is strictly private waters, no public access which in a way is good. About 16 years ago people were accessing the lake thru some vacant lots along the shoreline and catching these large 40 to 60 pound Barracudas then snapping a picture then leaving them to die along the shoreline. I remember seeing a dozen large dead Barracudas rotting in the shallows along these lots, wasteful and shameful, no class. These idiots put a BIG dent in small breeding population of 'Cudas. Fortunately these lots got fenced and eventually houses built on them so only access is via private waters. The Barracuda population had a respite the last 15 years and recovered somewhat though not to the pre 1990 levels. I wish more people here practiced catch & release. I feel blessed to have access to this body of water.

[Ahnkochee]

Hey, if you don't mind showing me how you did the calculation for figuring out the right bouyancy, that would be awesome!

I based my calculations starting from a known figure, my original lobster pot float based outrigger float (ama). These are 6" by 14" long times 2 floats used. This original ama had more than enough buoyancy so anything close would work. I figured the cubic inches of flotation in this original ama, Pi times radius squared is the formula for circles, and allowing for estimated 50% taper of each end of floats came up with the total cubic inches. The 4" x 60" pool noodle with no taper came close enough to the lobster float to not make a practical difference. The pool noodle ama also distributes this flotation on a bigger surface area making for a more efficient and streamlined ama. I hope that made sense.

[Ahnkochee]

Nice 'awa'awa. What did you catch it on? What other kind of fish is in Enchanted lake?

Almost forgot to answer above question, I caught the 'Awa'awa on a Pro-Troll Rotary Salmon Killer: http://www.protroll.com/products/bait-h ... ry-salmon/ with a frozen anchovy bought at POP clipped on. They work using Oama for bait too. The head of the bait just clips on with no hook penetration of bait needed the free hanging hook getting the job done. Besides the Tilapia, 'Awa'awa, Kaku (Barracuda), and Aholehole, there is the occasional Papio, Moi, 'Awa, and O'opu Akupa. In my younger days in the early 1960s we used to see Ulua in Kaelepulu Stream but that's been YEARS.

[Ahnkochee]

Went out again yesterday afternoon from 5 to 7 pm into Ka'elepulu Pond slow trolling live 3" minnows (actually wild Mollies) caught in my backyard. I got numerous strikes too many I lost count, and brought in 5 'Awa'awa into the boat. They were all about 12" to 14" so not monsters but fun to catch on light tackle.

[Ken]

Thanks a million! One day, I hope to be able to have storage for a canoe. That ama and iako system looks great and I'm sure it works great. It'll be perfect for fly casting from a canoe

Thanks for the replies on techniques and fish species. It is too bad the lake is private only. I guess it keeps tourists like me away

Catching and tossing fish is a disguisting act anywhere in the world. Not only is it a waste, most importantly, it is an act of taking a life unnecessarily. It may only be acceptable if the fish is an invasive species that will disrupt the native ecosystem (and even then, I have some moral issues with it...)