Those of you that got my report last week would have read that I predicted the weather to come good and the fish to come on the bite at the end of last week, well the weather threatened to settle for the weekend after a beautiful Friday but it was more of the same, a howling south westerly and rain keeping most fishes at home.

Everyone I spoke to that did get out did well with both good numbers and good sized fish. So I got it half right then I guess?!?

Snapper

Once again Snapper is the mainstay of the catch at this time of year, with the channels, and the 20-40 m depths still producing the bulk of the fish. Although there has been a run of school fish move in on some of the east coast beaches too. The west coast swell has kept the fishermen away over that side but surfcasters, kontiki’s and kites have been doing well on the east coast beaches.

Local guys up here in the far north have been doing well with mullet and fresh tuatua baits and there have been plenty of gurnard amongst the snapper too.

 Tiri Channel and the Firth of Thames are both fishing well in Auckland, but please remember, ‘limit your catch’ rather than ‘catch your limit’

Scallops

Its a bumper season for scallop’s every where from all accounts. The Manukau Harbour, Coromandel, Northland and B.O.P harbours seem to be full of these delectable morsels.

Not only are there plenty but they are in great nick with the meat and roe fat and bright in colour (when the roe is bright orange, and the meat bright white, ‘scallies’ are at their tasty best)

Kahawai

Kahawai have also been seen schooling in close around islands and bays around the coast. You’ll find the kahawai schooling in areas where the current is broken up by a headland, island or reef. If you see kahawai foaming on the surface sipping the tiny baitfish, use a small fly about 3 inches long, or if you don’t have a fly to troll, a thin strip of white cotton rag about six inches long threaded through the eye of a hook and doubled over will make a nice little 3 inch lure that will catch plenty of kahawai when they are feeding on small bait like whitebait. 

If you see the kahawai shoal moving fast and they are making big splashes and swirls, this is when the kahawai are feeding on bigger baitfish like pilchards, anchovies or sprats – this is when a small spinner or jig will work, or the most deadly of all kahawai lures, a soft plastic lure like a ‘Squidgy’

As with everything else the tarakihi are fat at the moment and a lot of school size puka are being taken on the tarakihi grounds of on the east coast too.

Hopefully the weather will be better next weekend so I can have a little more to report.