Fishing Reports

 

With day time water temperatures now exceeding 20C, we are keenly anticipating the capture of the first marlin of the season. Major Tom II has made two forays out wide in the last week, the first of which saw us hooked to a very large tuna (probably a yellowfin as it came out of the dolphins), which we played for 90 minutes on 15kg tackle, before it beat us. Both trips resulted in large catches of albacore of about 6kg, and a few large skippies. While there have been a couple of reports of marlin sightings, I am one of those doubting thomases who wants to see the fish first before I believe it. Bruce Smith brought Striker back across the Tasman from Cairns this week, and while plenty of yellowfin showed on the Wanganella and other bank areas, he didn't come across any marlin on the way. Snapper fishing has been pretty hot out at Whale Rock, with best results coming on the drift with staylines, when conditions allow. Our deadliest bait has been large slabs of albacore, which attracts many small bites form grey maomao, but provides an irresistable temptation to the snapper, which seem bent on denying the 'sweep' their free lunch. The advantage of these baits is that it is easy to feel when the bait has been stripped, but is only possible when plenty of albacore or skippies are available. Kingies remain a bit hit and miss at Bird Rock and 71M, but occasional hookups on hapuka have compensated for the slow fishing. As always, drop me a line at MAJOR.TOM@xtra.co.nz if you have any queries.

 

From Major Tom II

Report type: Saltwater

Report date: 09 December 03