“Middle-aged” volcanic islands in the tropics are often capped by dramatic mountains. (Younger mountains are taller and smoother, like Maunakea on the Island of Hawaii; older islands have sunk, leaving low, flat islands like Kiritimati.) Although they are not actually that tall, for example Mount Kaala, the tallest point on Oahu, is just over 4000 feet, these volcanic ranges are quite majestic. covered in verdant foliage, shrouded in mists with slopes that have been eroded into steep and manifold cliffs. When it rains, the cliffs come alive with waterfalls, which make their way to lower ground and then combine into streams and small rivers, eventually winding their way to the shoreline. Tidal currents and wave action from the ocean often create sandbars at the mouths of these rivers, blocking the freshwater from entering the sea. However, after a heavy or prolonged rainstorm, the flow of the stream can overcome the blockage and burst through the sandbar.

Back in April, we had a hard night of rain. In the morning, there was several inches of standing water in a plastic container I had left in the garden. I drove down to a nearby stream in the late afternoon to scope out the fishing. The massive outflow of freshwater often attracts fish of many species to feed in the current. Sure enough, the stream was flowing briskly into the ocean and I found bonefish sneaking into the sandy estuary in search of an easy meal.

I wasn’t sure what they were eating, but I finally settled on a small shrimp pattern. The brackish stream mouths are often home to opae, small, translucent shrimp, and I thought they might be flushed out with the current to provide an easy meal for the bonefish. I wasn’t disappointed. I spotted a couple of fish just leaving the area and threw my fly out to intercept. Unfortunately, I accidentally toggled the video button on my camera and wound up with a silly little video of me posing with the fish and then releasing it back into the water. The fight seemed to scare the other fish off so I headed home shortly after. When I came back two days later, the stream had stopped flowing and I didn’t see any fish in the area.

After a week or so, we had another night of hard rain. I returned to the same stream the next day and this time the fish were feeding in large numbers. I used the same fly and managed to hook five before the tide came up and the fish mostly disappeared.