Fishing Reports

 

If you prefer to spend winter weekends wrapped up in front of the fire, then it’s probably because you don’t know what you’re missing. You’re missing some great fishing at the moment. Sure, it’s a tad bleak out there, but the fishing is great. Not super fast, just nice and steady. If you hang in there, then a bin full of great snapper, tarakihi and john dory should be your reward. So how do I know this? “’Cause I’ve been doing it’” that’s how I know. Haven’t had a bum-trip since late summer. Amounts to a bit of a personal record. This Sunday past with Julian Peters of Kawakawa, we landed our share of real nice noddies. Out from Deep Water Cove was the place. Snotty became the weather so home we went in time to fillet before dark. Big pillies for bait and perseverance was our recipe for success. And I’m not the only one. Anchored in 40m off Wiwiki Beach, Opito Bay odd-job man Warwick Malcolm and cousins caught their limits of nice snapper the other day. Plenty of berley with fresh koheru for bait is Warwick’s recipe for success. Catches his koheru inside Top Hat. Best fish weighed 7kg. Locals are cooking with gas in the Kerikeri channel. A tinny at dusk is the way to go. Especially when dusk and high or low tide coincide, reckons Bob Denham of Wharau Bay. Can’t miss then! Out wide, tide or time doesn’t seem to be so important over winter. The sun is so low that even on a clear day, light levels are still pretty dull. Terry Newcomb of Island Water Taxis took some Auckland punters down towards Whangamumu over the weekend. Kingfish were on the menu, but despite the live baits, snapper to burn were the result. A few nice john dory took up the invitation offered by the livies and joined the snapper in the bin. “Grunt” said the john dory. “Oink”, said the gurnard. “Yum,” said the mum. Earlier family trips proved tarakihi had taken up residence in the Onslow Rock - Howe Point regions. And don’t those tarakihi just love fresh shellfish for bait. Even skinny mussels off the Black Rocks! Crayfish are plentiful but most are with soft-shells or in berry. Shallow enough for experienced free-divers so I’m told. Visibility is great, especially in the Cavalli Islands where schools of large snapper are regular encounters. Rex Honeyfield of Opito Bay has been having it all. With son, catching tarakihi off the Pin over the weekend; with charter from Auckland, catching kingfish and trevally back of the Cape, then finishing up with a feed of prime snapper and dory from the Bird on the way home. But the bass of Mike Hogan has got to take the cake. 132lb! Couldn’t get his arms around it. Huge! Ruahine Reef reputed to be the place. And made a mess in his nice new boat, so I’m told. Tight lines!

 

From Steven Radich

Report type: Saltwater

Report date: 02 July 01