Reports received from our growing list of correspondents around the country show that with the oncoming of summer and associated increase in water temperature combined with the variety of different species congregating to spawn, the fishing is really starting to hot up. South Island Down in the deep south, rough seas have prevented fishermen from venturing to far out, but Labour weekend marked at definite improvement and great catches of cod were made from Moeraki down to Karka point. Sporadic reports of salmon catches are starting to come in but the big runs are probably still a few weeks away. A good time to get your gear serviced, as these fish take no prisoners and will expose any weakness in your gear. There are some excellent sea-run trout being taken in the lower reaches of all the southern rivers as they settle down after the heavy rains. This is especially so in the Tairei and the Waitaki. Fish and Game is forecasting an excellent trout season on all the hydro dams and the rivers should provide excellent fly fishing conditions. The whitebait have been conspicuous by their absence on the West Coast this season but to the delight of many East Coasters, they have been showing up on mass in some of the south east rivers. Catches of up to 40lbs from the Shag and the Waikouaiti rivers have delighted some of the regulars. I called Nigel Fergurson, the South Island Composite Developments agent yesterday to see if he had any news to report and it was obviously a very opportune moment. He was on holiday in the sounds and was at that moment getting stuck into some good snapper. He’d just caught a nice 12lber! Expect good snapper fishing all around the sounds, especially around French pass and the mussel farms. The Nelson area is also producing good snapper as they come into spawn. North Island The Wellington rivers have unfortunately taken a hammering from the recent floods and it looks as though they could take years to recover. The upper Waingawa and Ruamahunga catchments look as if a bulldozer carrying thousands of tones of gravel has gutted a highway down the valleys. All holding water and I seriously mean all, in the upper sections have been wiped out completely, no boulders bigger than the size of pea's remain, and nymph life is non-existent. The fish that have survived are in a bad way, some fish just wafting in the margins scrambling for any hint of food! They will feed avidly in the coming months on terrestrials. Pete Lamb had more encouraging news on the saltwater scene, with great catches of hapuka. Over the Labour weekend a 90lber was caught at Fisherman’s rock and they were apparently thick on the bottom. A few kings up to 50lb are starting to show around Hunters Bank, as are warehou, trevally, and gurnard. The surfcasters are doing really well on blue moki around the southern coast. Big snapper are still being caught throughout the Hawkes Bay and east coast, especially in close and off the rocks. The kings are also showing up in great condition off around the offshore reefs. Rick Pollock has been catching some excellent hapuka, bluenose and bass in the Bay of Plenty as well as kings up to 70lbs. The sharks at Ranfurly are abating which is allowing anglers to get to the bottom, where their baits are getting devoured by all of these hungry bottom feeders. The water temperature is around 16 degrees in the Bay which is still a couple below where it needs to be before the yellowfin start congregating, but the bait fish are already there and apparently in impressive numbers. All looking good for the coming game season. Further north the snapper fishing has been superb for those fortunate enough to find the school fish. The worm beds off Auckland’s East Coast Bays have been awesome this year with gurnard also showing up amongst the schools. Expect the big fish to be in relatively close, as Mavis from Coromandel Safaris can attest. He had 5 or 6 snapper between the 20 and 30lb mark cruising through his berley over Labour weekend. A couple of young kids with him nervously dropped there bait's into the middle of them a proceeded to get blitzed in very short order. They were however, delighted to be able to take three great fish over 15lb. Up in the far north the snapper fishing is improving as the barracouta slowly dissipate. Spectacular kingfish action is being reported around 71-metre reef off Cape Brett. The warm water is flowing in and yellowfin have been taken by the commercial long liners as close as 40 miles offshore. The waiting game for the first recreational yellowfin and marlin of the season is now on. The first marlin has already been seen by Nick Brownlee, while driving past Taheke Reef. The fish was a black marlin, and Nick estimates it was around 180kg. The Rotorua lake and Taupo are producing the best results for those harling and trolling deep during the day. Fresh runs are still being reported in the Taupo runs at the same time of year as the evening rise is coming on. A couple of nights ago a South Westerly wind blew a fresh run of fish into the lower reaches of the Waitahanui river and he managed to hook 14 beautiful fresh run trout, and its late October! Lake Aniwhenua would be my pick on the freshwater scene at the moment, with hundreds of browns cruising the edges including several up around 10lb reported. Could the big fish be making a come back? That’s it for this week. Stay tuned to fishing.net.nz as we go live with our new upgraded and refreshed site next week. I think you’ll like the changes! And don’t forget to fill out our survey relating to the soundings document. Submissions close at the end of November and your input is vital. The decision will shape the future of recreational fishing in NZ so stand up and be counted. Tight Lines
Peter Francis

 

From The Fishing Website

Report type: Saltwater and Freshwater

Report date: 01 November 00

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