Fishing Reports

 

The fishing has been absolutely fantastic and we have had bookings on most days. The little time we have off is spent doing the important things in life, like giving you guys and girls an up to date report. Best we start close to home, where we have spent a lot of our time fishing. The area of worm beds has been producing snapper, john dory, kahawai, gurnard, blue mackeral and a few sharks over the last few weeks. All this only 20 minutes from the marina! The snapper have been ranging in size from the very smallest specimens you could imagine, up to around 16-18lb. It is not unusual to pull a few very nice snapper from this area on a trip. We have also released a number of these big spawning fish to complete the most important task they are here for. It’s a great feeling releasing a fish and knowing that it has a chance to spawn. The Tiri Passage has been fishing really well - in fact it has been epic! The snapper have been around in huge numbers and are in excellent condition. Some trips have produced fish up to 18lb (that is some trips – more than one or two) and the average size is better than in previous years. We are favouring the top of the banks at present and the northern end, out in 29m over the sand. A good sounder is essential in locating the schools, but once you have found one you can almost guarantee they will be in the same location the next day or even a few days afterwards. We have had a few really stunning sessions out in the open over the past few weeks, with our clients enjoying bag limits before lunch. In saying this, we promote the fact that these fish are here to spawn and that we should only take what is required for the table. This is unfortunately not always met with a positive response. The area of sand and mud between Tiri and Anchorite Rock is currently the home to numerous work ups of gannets. Under these wonders of nature are huge amounts of bait fish and under these huge amounts of bait fish are- you guessed it- really nice snapper! Locating the work ups can take a bit of time and often we won’t see one during the day. When we are a little lost for what to do we sometimes resort to searching out a good, thick looking patch of fish on the sounder and setting up a drift. On most occasions it has paid off big time. The rig you use in this style of fishing walks the fine line between successful hook-ups and missing the bite altogether. Those of you who read this report on a regular basis, will no doubt have heard the phrase “Flat Rock Special”. This rig is proving time and time again to be the most successful rig we have used. You can’t buy them in a tackle shop and you won’t see one till you’re on board with us. In fact some anglers have been on board with regulars of ours and found themselves changing rig to match the person they are standing next to, without even knowing what they are actually onto! When I see you I will fully explain the rig to you and show you how to tie one up. The area between Tiri and Kawau is holding a heap of fish at the moment. Just look at the number of longliners hammering the area. We counted 5 one morning! That’s a heap of hooks in the water. We use the Flat Rock Special out here, both when drifting and when anchored. Closer to Motuora and its’ surrounding foul, we often use a simple running rig with good success, provided we don’t have a large group on. Dropper rigs are also pretty good if anchored on the edge of the foul around the island, and also out on the sand in the channel between Motuora and Motuketekete. Try a flasher rig from ‘The Bait Station’ in Parkway Drive, Mairangi Bay. We have found these to be of equal quality to pretty much anything else on the market and you won’t need a crutch and a sling when you walk out of the place. When you’re there also ask about Lolago Squid. But I’ll get to bait in a moment. The foul and huge bank of horse mussels at the southern end of Motuora Island, has been home to some rather large snapper and kingfish in the past. Looking at the area on a chart you would think the location would fish well on an outgoing tide and it does, BUT, a snapper recently taken on the incoming tide by one of our clients topped the 8 kg mark and others around 3-4 kg were caught. There wasn’t an abundance of fish on the bank, but it made us look at each other in a funny, wondering sort of way. I’d love to do another dawn raid on the place with a steady berley flowing. So, it’s onto bait. It’s that Lolago squid again that is doing the damage. Try picking up a defrosted NZ squid and a defrosted Lolago squid and holding them both in your thumb and forefinger for a comparison. The difference is quite clear. The Loago squid is a lot firmer, the skin is thicker and the colour is basically white, not purple. The firmer skin and body of the squid means that it doesn’t crowd the barb of the hook like a NZ squid can. With the colour being almost white it is visible to fish in low light situations. Snapper are basically sight feeders and a lump of purple squid in a low light situation, is not going to be seen as readily as a white flash of the Lolago squid. Just ask Kevin at the Bait Station. These guys know bait and only import the best of the best. They source the best deals to pass onto the likes of you and I. Check out the NZ pilchards while you’re there as well. We use these on a regular basis and have found them to be a lot firmer and of better quality than the imported pillies. Skipjack is also fishing well, but being that it is a bit softer than a lot of other baits it tends to get destroyed by the ever present “pickers”. Kevin will have elastic bait cotton there for you to hold the bait together long enough for it to fish successfully. Try a big slab of skippy launched out the back and let it get picked at. Check it every 10 – 15 minutes or so and change it when required. By the end of your time you may just have been visited by a big schooling snapper or two. If you manage to get into a few of the many blue mackerel that are around at the moment, try a big slab of that too. A running rig, with only enough weight to keep it on the bottom should suffice in your attempt to latch onto a big snapper. Try to keep in mind when you’re holding that big fish in your hands, that we live in one of the most productive fisheries in the world - let’s do what we can to keep it that way. A photo lasts a lot longer than the fish will and who is going to believe you without the evidence that you smoked and ate! The summer newsletter is still coming and we are trying to keep up with all the emails and phone calls we are getting. Don’t forget we have a new email address so you may have to update your address book in Outlook or whatever email program you use. It is now deepsea@clear.net.nz Be quick to book any Christmas trips or work dos. We still have dates available - even some weekend dates and we will always look after our casual clients. If you wish to join the casual list or book a group or book a boat for just your group, give us a call on (09)4260604 or call me on the boat (025)2446346. My wife said if I didn’t quit fishing, she’d leave me. Gee, I’m gonna miss ‘er Life is for living – fish on! Damian Clayton THE CHARTER CONNECTION LTD

 

From A Charter Connection...

Report type: Saltwater

Report date: 28 November 01