Epic Far North Session off the Sand

Jason Neute has made a habit of catching big fish, but a surfcasting trip to the Far North put his skills and knowledge to the test…

There is a spot off the sand in the Far North that I always look forward to fishing. It’s a location that’s either very quiet or crash hot and off the hook. A nice little hole is hidden in a harbour not too far from the water’s edge. My long-time fishing buddy Stevo and I try to time our fishing, so the low tide coincides with the dark. Early mornings usually produce the best bite but we’ve had some epic evening sessions as well.

The writer hooked up and pulling a snapper out of the hole where the fish hold.

Over the years, Stevo and I have caught some solid fish at this spot to 15lb, and 90% are released strong and healthy to fight another day. The coastline is pristine with crystal clear waters that wash over pure white sand. When tides and time align, we wake at 4:00am to fish those magic hours when fish are on the bite.

On this adventure, the tides were not favourable. High was around 7:00 am, giving us a low tide around 1:00 pm, so surfcasting wasn’t looking too good for us. We never fish this spot during the day as experience has proven it to be fruitless.

With this in mind, we decided to have an early morning surfcast at the main beach instead of our normal spot; however, the morning was very quiet and not much was landed. We left the main beach with our tails between our legs and feeling a bit frustrated with the thought of not getting on to any solid fish this trip.

On our way back to camp, we drove along the main road and caught a few glimpses of the harbour that holds our usual spot. Conditions looked favourable with an overcast sky and a 15-20knt onshore wind that was stirring up the usually clear waters. Despite the time of day, I had an urge to fish our spot as the conditions and tide aligned.

There are many potential 'spot x's' in the Far North.

The tide was dropping as we made our way around the coastline. It was nice and choppy and although it was going to be a little uncomfortable, it looked fishy. The thing about fishing is that there are no rules and you just never know what’s going to happen – it’s always worth a shot when conditions suit.

I was hoping for some better fish to really put a bend in the new Okuma Matrix rod and some strain on the Trio Salt reel. If a place was going to test my gear, it was here because a 5-10lb snap in a strong current will pull a bit of string.

In this spot, I usually use a running rig with a breakaway sinker. Braid can make this a little difficult, so I now use two traces with this rig. One trace is approximately half-a-metre long, allowing my sinker to run up and down between the two swivels, and the other trace holds my main and keeper hooks. With strong currents we have to run a tight line, so the sinker doesn’t get a lot of room to run.

Every time I fish here my heart is in my mouth and my expectations are very high – it’s an amazing and beautiful place to be. Landing a 5-15lb snapper here is pretty cool as you get to watch them come up through the crystal clear water.

After setting up, we flicked out our first baits. The wind was blowing straight in our face, so I parked the car right at the rods for a bit of shelter and a seat if needed. I wanted to give it a good go before giving up, even if it meant sitting in the car for an hour.

After casting our first baits, we sat in the car and hoped for a strike, but after 10mins without a bite, my heart sank. Even though the conditions were perfect, it was still the middle of the day.

Just as we were going to call it a day, we had our first strike but missed it as we were sitting in the car – stupid wind! If this was a snapper, it was probably a solid fish as the rod bent like a horse-shoe.

Slowly, the strikes started to come on. We missed a couple more, but the signs were saying we could be on a hot outgoing tide bite. I baited up again and flicked out into the head on wind, but it didn’t matter too much now that the hole was close – a 20-30m cast put us smack in the middle of it.

Putting the rod in the holder, I stood beside it, and it didn’t take long till the first couple of twitches of the tip saw me grabbing the rod. The strikes you get here are pretty insane and instantly, my new rod was buckled over and was hooked up to a nice fish. The new Okuma combo was awesome and made it a breeze to work the fish. It was a good fish at around 65cm – a top fish off the sand. Even though the wind was strong, I didn’t feel anything apart from the rush of catching such a nice fish!

The average size of the snapper was impressive.

I quickly baited up so I could get another offering out there while the fish were on the bite. I placed the rod in the holder but while setting the drag, it buckled over, so I quickly grabbed it and struck. I was hooked up again. The bite was getting hectic! It was another solid fish and great fun on the new combo – it even pulled a bit of string.

We usually run two different rigs, and this time was no different. Interestingly, my running rig already had multiple strikes while Steve’s dropper rig was yet to get a hit. I slid my fish up into the shallows and could see it was another good specimen around 70cm. Stevo got his camera out and started taking a pic, but then his reel began to scream – he was hooked up at last. Stevo’s fish wasn’t as big but at least he was on the board, and it was still a cool 45cm fish.

We both flicked out some fresh baits and waited for another hit. Stevo needed to stand at the ready more than I did, but the wind chased him back to the car. When the bite is hot like this, you have to take advantage of it as you will generally only get 30mins of action, or maybe a little more if you’re lucky. Moments later, I was hooked up again. It didn’t feel as big this time but so far all the fish were way over the size limit and this one, although small, was another around the 45cm mark – it was just going off!

After casting another bait, I stood at the ready. Hits out of the blue are so awesome. You’re just standing there and then without warning – no nibbles at all – the line goes instantly tight and buckles. This is exactly what happened next and it was all over in a second. I got a huge hit and although I run a loose-ish drag, it busted me off. I could tell it was a solid snapper when I reeled in the line as it had bit through the knot at the hook as I struck. I was gutted but that’s fishing and that’s what makes you flick out another bait and keep coming back for more.

I geared up again and after flicking out a new bait, I had another fish on soon after. This time I was mindful of the little lip that lines the hole (where sometimes our lines and sinkers dig in) and dragged the fish up over it, but I pulled the hook and lost the fish.

The tide was now just about low and the bites had slowed. Every now and then we would just get a huge strike while the rod was in the holder. I managed a little kahawai, so it gave us some fresh baits – a little late but at least it would stay on the line longer if we missed a strike.

Stevo got smashed on his first fresh bait and it was a solid fish pulling string, but it wasn’t to be as it let go mid-fight. He was gutted as it felt like a solid double figure fish. The tide then turned and our mayhem turned into sitting in the car once again, so we called it a morning – and what a morning it was!

We managed to release all the fish but one that had swallowed the hook. Watching these solid fish swim away made the day even more special, particularly as they were in spawning mode.

Overall, it was another awesome fishing session with a mate in the magical Far North, and you can’t ask for much more than that!