Fishing Reports

Some readers may not appreciate just how good the snapper fishing in the bay is right now, or that it should continue to be so right up ‘till Christmas. Now is the season when a useless fisherman can land a memorable snapper, even if it has to be foul-hooked.

Large mobs of plump and raunchy snapper are schooling in the Bay as part of an annual piscatorial event that has been occurring here since long before the arrival of the first human beings on our shores, a thousand or so years ago.

Personal confirmation of this event occurred on Friday afternoon when I passed over a well know haunt and found the bottom obscured by a dense school of fish in the middle of the water-column. Picking them to be snapper, we anchored and within ten minutes had accounted for five snapper from 4-6kg.

In deference to Tangaroa, we managed to return the second to the ocean, only because the first was gut hooked and seemed unlikely to survive release.

Furthermore, right now, the whole Bay is filled with schools of baitfish, some of the more extensive schools reputed to be pilchards. I know for sure that some of the schools in more sheltered reaches are tribes of yellowtail or jack mackerel and blue or slimy mackerel.

Pillies are harder to identify than the mackerel because they don’t take baits or flies, so I am assuming that the visual identification reported by other good keen men can be relied upon. As for identifying both species of mackerel, I know because I’ve been catching some while stray-lining for snapper.

So how can you join this feeding frenzy and actually catch a memorable snapper or three?

If fishing gentlemen’s hours is your bag, then be prepared to struggle.

Look for tidal cusps such as low or high water, an hour or so before or after either and prefer depths of around 40m in locations such as the middle ground fouls and the deeper water off Whale Rock. If the sky is grey or the water discoloured or choppy, then try shallow; say around 20m, behind the islands.

            Where, is the million-dollar question? Try the line from Tapeka Point to Red Head. This line runs very adjacent to Mita’s foul off the back of Roberton Island. While Mita’s is always well worth a look, the whole line can be very fishy at this time of year.

Experience swings solidly in behind mid-afternoon ‘till dark fishing. Again, the coincidence of the top or bottom of the tide with dusk is a substantial bonus. If some fish are about, I’d say your chances are now close to 100%.

The effort to land some fresh mackerel is time well spent. Look for them on the edges of drop-offs/rises between Capstan Rock and the Paramena Reef. Float them whole, slightly damaged with big hooks well out from the boat, and wait. Set your drag to 30% breaking strain max and let the fish have a good run before striking.