Fishing Reports

Easter weekend has come and gone – with it a full range of fishing and weather scenarios.  One beauty of the Far North and only if you are mobile is the ease of flexibility here.  With a short drive you can be fishing off the beach, rocks or your boat in calm or at least acceptable conditions on either coast.  This is exactly what happened for many anglers over the changeable long weekend and with good success.  We’ll concentrate, as per normal, on the East Coast.

Doubtless Bay

Same old – very consistent but quality again an issue.  Many are limiting out on snapper in a short period of time but all pannies – few over two or three kilos in size.  Also a few more Johnnies are making their way into the frying pan with as much light tackle fun as you want on nice sized kahawai.

Cape Karikari – Great Exhibition Bay

Again, great snapper fishing and the quality of catches improve exponentially over the previously mentioned area.  Still the best area to access a marlin but frustration still reins supreme with very changeable currents and water quality.  Prime example was one day, less than 10 miles directly off Houhora, was a pretty decent bite.  One boat had eight (8) shots on lures while the “Headquarters” tagged three stripees while using bridled skippies.  The following day with a steady nor easterly blowing the water turned green and dropped nearly two degrees – go figure?!?! 

A few marlin also being seen in relatively shallow (100-140 metres) water all the way to North Cape.  Once there just watch your temperature gauge and cry!  Skippies are thin on the ground.  If you find a patch stick with them as there’s no telling where, or if, you’ll find the next mob.  Also the marlin are showing a real tendency toward smaller lures of dark patterns just lately.  Bottomfishing off the Garden Patch just keeps truckin along in its productivity.

Tom Bowling Bay

Some excellent snapper fishing here, particularly for those lucky enough to be there on either end of the day.

The Shelf – Hook - Fingers

Water quality, as mentioned, falls right off as you proceed past the Cape.  Some decent bottomfishing on mainly longnose (hapuka) and a sprinkling of bass in shallow (100 metres or less) water.

Three kings – Princes Group

Pretty steady here, particularly Great Island.  If you can catch koheru or have stick baits you’re in for some fun on kingis.  Otherwise some light tackle fun on snapper, terakihi and trevally is also a productive pastime.

King Bank

No thanks, hear very little positive reports about this area in any regard.

Middlesex Bank

Still the darling of the Far North for quality kingfish.  Recent visits have yielded some great results on big fish; either bait or jigs scoring well in the strong currents.  You’ll need plenty of weight (500 gram jigs – 24 ounces on the bait) to get your offerings down into the bite zone in these continually strong currents.  “Enchanter” recently has one fish at 40 kilos with another two over 35 to exemplify the quality currently here.  Sharks still a problem, get ready to move after only two or three drifts.  Also decent bottomfish here as well with a nice mix of puka and bass with as many king terakihi as you like.

Summary

Where we go next, if anywhere, with marlin is anybodies guess.  Till next week ……