Capt. Chase Camacho, who spent his early days cruising the legendary big tuna grounds off Montauk, N.Y., understands the thrill of Bimini, fishing the same waters that fueled the creative fire of Ernest Hemingway and spawned more than 50 international records and hundreds of big-game trophies.
“To me, this is the Mt. Everest of sportfishing, a place where legends were made, a place where every sport fisherman hopes to make his or her own mark,” said Camacho, who regularly plies the waters off this Bahamas out-island aboard the Miss Kethleen II, a 58-foot Viking Sportfish.
As Tournament Director for the Wahoo Smackdown series, hosted by the Bimini Big Game Club Resort and Marina in Alice Town, Camacho says wahoo are the catch du jour during the November-February season. Anglers chasing these greyhounds of the sea have landed nearly eight tons of Wahoo in four previous Wahoo Smackdown outings.
“With all this action, it sort of feels like the Bimini of old,” said Camacho. “For the previous tournaments we’ve averaged four to 12 wahoo per boat and between 40 to 100 pounds per fish.”
The entry fee for Wahoo Smackdown V (which includes four anglers per boat) is a $1,250, with $100 for each additional angler. At stake is $30,000 in cash and prizes. For information regarding the next Wahoo tournament and to register online, visit http://www.biggameclubbimini.com/big-game-tournament.htm or
call (800) 867-4764.
For Hemingway, Zane Grey and many others, Bimini was the place to land record fish from the 1930s through the early 60s. World-class tuna, marlin, swordfish and sailfish migrated the Gulf Stream. Including the apex game fish, big grouper, barracuda and schools of snapper are found on the reefs. Bimini’s flats have long been among one of the world’s most sought after spots for bonefish and permit.
Captain Manny Legakis and Tournament Director Chase Camacho. Photo Courtesy of the Bimini Big Game Club.
Hemingway, who lived and fished in Bimini for two seasons in the 1930s, is credited with putting the tiny island on the international sportfishing map. During its heyday, Bimini anglers caught many hundreds of blue marlin, bluefin tuna, sharks and other game fish for display and trophy mounts. Today, the blue marlin granders and huge bluefin are rare. Catch and release is the norm for billfish and sharks, though Camacho said wahoo, yellowfin tuna and dolphin are still prevalent.
Big Game tournaments and Bimini were synonymous. The International Annual Bacardi Rum Billfish Tournament had its roots in Bimini. Over the years Bimini was a Mecca for big-game anglers and was host to numerous competitions including the Frankie Brown, The Hemingway and the famous Cat Cay tuna tournaments.
Grand Central Station for tournament hosting was the Big Game Club, which opened for business in 1947. The current owners, the southern California-based Hankey Group, put the iconic fishing resort back in play in 2010 following a $3.5 million renovation.
“We are back in the game,” said Camacho, who expects 30-plus boats for Wahoo
Smackdown V.
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