Fishing Guide on Ogasawara Islands

Whenever we visit any islands, we can not resist to go fishing. Ogasawara Islands are the best place for anglers, and here is how to enjoy fishing on Hahajima and Chichijima Islands.

Fishing on Hahajima Island

When other guests who were staying at the same Inn told us they had rented rods at Hahajima Island Sightseeing Association Center at Oki Port, my kids’  faces lit up. I hadn’t checked whether we could do fishing on Hahajima Island before.My kids started to fidget and insisted to do fishing after dinner, but sadly the local store had closed already. We rented rods and bought frozen mackerel for bait on the next day and spent a half day for fishing. Life jackets were available at the Hahajima Island Diving Center near the Wakihama Beach next to Oki Port.

Wakihama Beach

Wakihama is the nearest beach from the center of the main area on Hahajima Island. Local people come here for relaxing, swimming and chatting with their friends. We came to Wakiyama two or three times a day for fishing and met one or two other groups who were also fishing. The weather was so moderate with a mild wind, so we could stay there more than one hour but it’s possible to stay for up to three hours if you wish. When we were tired of fishing, we had a chat with local people who worked for guest houses, wandered the beach to find Hermit Crabs and observed the movement of fish under the water from the seawall. Crabs are all over the beach and rocky areas, so we just continuously chased and dug them up. We saw Whitetip Reef sharks which come to Hahajima Island from June. We saw some of them even in August. The Whitetip Reef Shark is very gentle and doesn’t attack people, if we don’t give them a big surprise. Wakihama Beach is also fun to laze around on the sand with a good book and music. 

Anglers on Hahajima Island

Fishing is one of my favorite sports to make friends across all generations. Anglers usually seem very quiet and concentrate so much on fishing, but they observe the situation around. If my children got snagged during fishing, people around them supported kindly. My children caught a few fish during our 3-day-stay at Hahajima Island and had nice mates for company while fishing. While I was dropping off our rental car, their new friend kindly taught what kinds of hooks and baits were appropriate for fishing and generously gave some lures to my children after fishing. One of our heroes was a guy who came to Hahajima Island to work. He was fishing with his very simple rod and was using frozen mackerel bought from a local shop as bait. He kept moving from Wakihama Beach to the bank to find the best place for fishing. We stayed with him for 30 mins and he caught a huge fish. I really like the uplifting feeling of catching fish. The feeling can be shared with others and we can all enjoy the moment.

Visitors Information:

Hahajima Island Sightseeing Association Center at Oki Port: Open hours: 8:00-17:00 (12:00-13:00 Lunch break) *Closed days: Saturday, Sunday and National holidays that affect Ogasawara Maru departure. Rental fee of fishing rod: 1,000 yen

Maeda Grocery Stores: Open hours: 8:00-18:00 *Closed days: Sunday and National holidays

Noukyou (Agricultural Cooperative) store: Open hours: 8:00-17:30 *Afternoon and the next day of Ogasawara Maru departure

Gyokyou (Fishery Cooperative) store: Open hours: 8:00-18:00 *Closed days: Sunday and National holidays

Fishing on Chichijima Island 

Futami Port on Chichijima Island

When we arrived on Chichijima Island, we immediately tried to find fishing tackle shops near Futami Port. There were two shops and we visited Otsukame-ya shop. At Otsukame-ya, you can rent rods for 500 yen a day. Finally, we bought two rods for my kids instead of renting them for one week. The owner of Otsukame-ya had passion to develop two anglers and he advised on fish hooks, baits for fishing and tool boxes. For beginners, he recommended cutting frozen asari clam into very small pieces. Every early evening, we went to Blue Lighthouse near Futami Port and did fishing for one to two hours. Anglers near us helped us to release Aigo fish and my kids supported a beginner family to do fishing. We shared the enjoyment together. We bought frozen asari clam as bait to do fishing from the breakwater near Futami Port. We caught Aigo fish which are so dangerous that we needed to release them soon.

Fishing boat on Chichijima Island

We joined a fishing boat for 4 persons and got many Umeiro fish in the morning. One of the anglers was going to leave for Tokyo that same afternoon, after fishing. He was able to send his fish to Tokyo on the Ogasawara Maru which departed at 15:30. He packed the fish with lots of ice and kept it in the refrigerated locker. He would be able to enjoy very fresh Umeiro fish he had just caught in the morning at his home. We were leaving after the next day, so we asked Marujo restaurant to cook our Umeiro fish to make Shima Sushi and ate fried and stewed fish there. 4 days after catching, the rest of our Umeiro was sent home for us to cook later. It was still so fresh and tasty.

One point:

It is best to confirm whether your guesthouse can cook your previously caught fish. In high season, it may be difficult for them to cook it. In that case, you would need to release your catch of fish.