Fishing Reports

But that doesnt mean the fishing stops - heck no!

There are still alot of fish around and it is just a matter of getting them to bite. Sometimes this means thinking outside the square a bit and trying some different tactics eg; we drift fished in 6 metres of water the other day and nailed fish to 6kg under a few diving gannets. Not normally where you'd find gannets diving but the kahawai were there rounding up pilchards in the lee of the land (which was great for us as it was pretty rough round the corner where we'd been). Nailed some nice fish and got a bit of footage of the gannets ploppin in too - have a look here: http://www.fishing.net.nz/asp_forums/forum_posts.asp?TID=21648

Kawau provides good shelter in rough conditions and we have been doing well in behind the island and a few good trips on the inside too. The important thing to remember is too keep your eyes open. The tiniest of splashes and a few wheeling birds can be the big giveaway to a snapper bonanza. Watch out for the terns too even though they indicate bait fish and kahawai they often lead you into a bit of action under the bait.

Alot of bait fish in Whangaparaoa Bay has certainly got our attention too with good numbers of dolphins and whales giving the schools a work over. Sadly though the snapper have not played ball in here for me in the last few trips and we 've only managed a few smalls and a few sharks from the action. It was pretty darn good for a while though.

Barracouta are around on the foul causing all the usual problems so I try to keep off the tops of the reefs and work the edges where they are not so thick. Ther are some monster 'couta around too! Further out in the Gulf they can be in plauge proportions at times and getting a bait through them can be a challenge in itself but once down you normally do pretty well especially at Great Barrier. The last trip out there was pretty good with a good selection of species including a frost fish and few small puka in with the snapper. No kingis on this last trip but we did mangage one of about 850mm from in behind Kawau the other day so they are still around.

Haven't been to Little Barrier for a while now after getting chased out of there by the 'coutas but will give it another go when the weather settles so we have more options. Same deal for the top of Coromandel (where I'm heading tommorrow) but the problem there is the sharks. Catch a snapper then catch 2 sharks. A mate of mine currently longlining was saying he lost 375 hooks in the area the other day as the sharks swam the line nipping them off! But the snapper were there, and pretty good sizes by the sounds of it. keep your eyes peeled for some of those late autumn work ups out in the middle of the Gulf too - it can be pretty good when it happens for you.

I've loaded the next dates for day trips and overnighters on the website - www.charterconnection.co.nz for you to have a look at but give us a call or email if there is other dates that suit you better. We are running trips all winter for individuals again and the overnighter are lot of fun not to forget some good fishing action!

Cheers

Damo

Charter Connection - Where fishing is catching!