01/09/2026
𝐁𝐈𝐆 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆: 𝐅𝐔𝐍… 𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐃𝐄𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐋𝐘 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐘
That moment when a big fish takes the bait, the rod bends hard and the reel starts screaming… yeah, that’s the part everybody loves. Some guys are so addicted they spend half the day watching fishing videos on TikTok.
But once you actually go offshore, you quickly realize something: big game fishing is not just driving the boat out, dropping a line and waiting for a big fish to come up.
Even getting offshore can already be a challenge. Some people absolutely love fishing but get seasick the moment we leave sheltered water. On some of our trips, especially with Asian guests who are not used to being offshore, most of the group can end up feeling seasick. The fish haven’t even started eating yet, and the fishermen have already stopped wanting lunch. 😆
Then there’s the cost. Proper offshore fishing isn’t the same as dropping a line near the coast for a couple of hours. You need the boat, fuel, an experienced captain, bait, tackle and time. It adds up. And after paying for all that, nobody can honestly promise you an 8 or 10 kg fish today, or tell you exactly how many fish you’re going to catch.
That’s also where complaints sometimes start. A few hours without a decent fish and somebody will say: “I could have taken this money to the market and bought a whole lot of fish.”
Well… if catching big fish were that easy, we’d probably stop running tours and go fishing for a living every single day. 😂
Small reef fish are a different story. Find the right reef or structure and you can usually get plenty of action. That’s fun too, but big fish are a completely different game. There simply aren’t as many of them, and they’re predators - they’re not stupid. They move, hide around structure, wait for smaller fish and feed when conditions suit them.
So we watch the tide. More importantly, we watch the current. Is the water starting to move? Is the current too strong or too weak? Which way is the wind blowing? Where is the reef edge? Where does the bottom suddenly drop? At what depth are the fish holding? And even when everything looks right… are they actually in the mood to eat?
It sounds funny until you spend enough time fishing. Fish really do have feeding windows, just like us.
And sometimes the most frustrating thing happens: we arrive at the right spot, the fish finder clearly shows fish underneath us, and the captain says, “They’re here.”
Yep. They’re there.
We drop the bait.
Nothing.
Change the bait.
Still nothing.
That might be the most annoying part of big game fishing - knowing the fish are right below you and they simply don’t care.
Out of all these factors, though, I still think the captain is the biggest one. A really good fishing captain has to be a bit of a “sea wizard.” When I look at the ocean, I see water and waves. Years ago, I honestly thought fish could basically be anywhere.
The captain sees an entire landscape underneath the boat.
He knows where the reef is, where the edge drops away, where the current runs, where predators are likely to wait, and where to position the boat. Even anchoring is part of the calculation. You don’t simply anchor on top of the fish. You position the boat so the current carries your bait naturally into the feeding zone.
Miss it by a few dozen metres and you might spend the next couple of hours drinking coffee and admiring the beautiful ocean. 😅
Bait is another game by itself. Some fish will eat almost anything. Others want a certain smell, a certain freshness, live bait, cut bait or a particular jig action. The exact same spot, the same tide and the same bait can work like crazy one day… and produce absolutely nothing the next.
The longer I fish, the more I realize there is no perfect formula for the sea. Experience only increases your chances. A great captain increases them a little more. Reading the tide and current helps. Knowing the structure helps. Choosing the right bait helps.
But the final decision?
The fish still gets a vote.
Some days we travel a long way offshore looking for the right fishing ground and come back with almost nothing. You’re tired, sunburned, smelling like bait and diesel, wondering why on earth you chose to suffer like this.
Then another day, you’ve been sitting there for hours talking nonsense with your friends and suddenly
BANG. Fish on.
That’s fishing.
And sometimes?
Nothing.
That’s fishing too.
Then somebody asks:
“Going again next time?”
Of course.
So if you hate waves, don’t have enough time, don’t want to spend the money, or expect big game fishing to guarantee a big fish every trip… this probably isn’t your game.
Because if dropping a line automatically meant catching a big fish, it wouldn’t be big game fishing.
It would be shopping.
It has to be a little difficult. That’s what makes it frustrating. And somehow… that’s exactly what makes us addicted to it. 🎣
See you at sea.
