Fishing the Manukau – Inside and Out

For some, the Manukau Harbour is small and muddy, and crossing the bar is far too daunting; but for Adam Clancey, the harbour is full of often overlooked opportunities, and these only grow once you venture out into the open ocean. He explains…?

I grew up fishing the Manukau and have many fond memories of days fishing off the Onehunga Wharf (when you were allowed) and trailing spinners off the old Mangere Bridge. In winter, we would ride our bikes to surfcast off the end of Ambury Farm for big kahawai.

----- Advertisement -----


Later in life, I spent a lot of time fishing the Manukau Heads chasing kingfish, snapper, sharks, and kahawai off the rocks at Whatipu. I was lucky enough to be involved with a lot of the early small boat explorations over the Manukau Bar in search of the many gamefish that come along the West Coast during summer. It is fair to say I pretty much did my fishing apprenticeship on the Manukau and still love fishing there to this day. I know that the Manukau, although a smallish harbour considered muddy by some, is packed with great fishing to satisfy any angler who’s willing to spend a bit of time getting to know that area.

A typical Manukau kahawai.

A typical Manukau kahawai.

The Manukau is a great ecosystem with prolific supplies of shellfish, crabs and baitfish, as well as algae rich water that feeds fish like mullet and piper. The reason the Manukau is so muddy looking in its mid to upper harbour areas is not pollution but the type of light sediment on the sea floor. This sediment is easily stirred up by current and choppy seas, and then takes a long time to settle.

----- Advertisement -----


For surfcasters, the Manukau offers easy access at some places, but this isn’t always the case, particularly on the southern and northern sides, as well as around the heads. The Mangere Bridge is still a constant producer of kahawai, but you will see little in the way of snapper action in the upper harbour. If you want to target fish from the shore, the best areas would have to be from Mako Point to Titpitai Island on the southern side of the harbour and around Pupunga Point and from Little Hula up to Whatipu on the northern side.

The most effective method is surfcasting with smallish baits cast into channels or off the rocks. Grip sinkers are essential to hold the bait in the strong current areas. Livebaiting off the rocks or wharves will also produce the odd, good kingfish. The best spots again are most of the deeper rock ledges, as well as Cornwallis Wharf. The latter is a great spot to take the kids for a fish as there is always plenty of willing piper and sprats to be caught. Use small trout hooks and a float to catch the baitfish which can in turn be used for livebaits. Kingfish usually show up in the harbour around November and stay until late May. The best livebait without a doubt is a live mullet, followed closely by piper.

A solid traditional bait fishing setup the writer uses in the Manukau.

A solid traditional bait fishing setup the writer uses in the Manukau.

Although the Manukau can get nasty in bad weather due to its shallow nature and big tides, in the right weather conditions it is an ideal harbour for small boats and kayaks. Fishing the edge of channels and banks with both traditional bait fishing gear and soft-baits will produce snapper, kahawai, trevally and, during the cooler months, plenty of big gurnard. The favoured rigs for bait fishing in the Manukau are dropper or flasher rigs with 3/0 size hooks. These are ideal for gurnard and trevally, especially when baited with a little salted bonito or a soft-bait grub.

Snapper fishing can be challenging in the Manukau with many spots holding a lot of juvenile snapper that feed like ravenous piranhas, stripping baits in seconds. The better snapper spots are usually in the areas that have stronger currents and are on mussel banks or have some foul. Fishing these spots can require the use of fairly heavy sinkers to hold on the bottom. My favoured setup is a running rig with a trace of a metre and half plus and a 5/0-8/0 circle hook. Sliding sinker booms can be very useful in preventing tangles and for quick changing sinkers. The Manukau Harbour is not renowned for producing big fish but when you get onto them, they usually feed freely and the odd big one will turn up when you least expect it.

The classic running rig the writer uses to target a variety of species in the Manukau.

The classic running rig the writer uses to target a variety of species in the Manukau.

One of the jewels in the crown of the Manukau is a trip over the Manukau Bar. This is a treacherous bar that has claimed many boats and lives and should only be attempted by experienced boaties. If you’re inexperienced, make sure you go out a few times with someone who knows the ropes before you take it on yourself. The best time to cross the bar is at slack tide and when the swell is under a metre. Light easterly winds and small tides usually offer the safest conditions.

----- Advertisement -----


Once over the bar, the fishing can be fantastic, with plenty of snapper, kahawai and gurnard being found at various depths dependant on the time of year. You will catch fish all year over the bar, but October and November are the best months for snapper. Unlike inside the harbour, big snapper are common over the bar and baited dropper rigs are the ‘go to’ rig for most in the know.

Big runs of gurnard happen in winter on the Manukau.

Big runs of gurnard happen in winter on the Manukau.

In the summer months, the gamefish come close to shore and trolling from 40 metres deep out to the edge of the continental shelf will produce loads of skipjack and albacore if you use small feather or squid lures. Using bigger lures or large livebaits around bait schools will turn on plenty of gamefish action, including some red-hot marlin opportunities.

The Manukau is a productive fishery and if you unlock a few of its secrets you may be surprised how a day on the Manukau will change the way you think about this muddy little harbour that pretty much flushes inside out every tide.

??????
May 2021 - Adam Clancey
New Zealand Fishing News Magazine.
Copyright: NZ Fishing Media Ltd.
Re-publishing elsewhere is prohibited

Fishing bite times Fishing bite times

Major Bites

Minor Bites

Major Bites

Minor Bites

Latest Articles

Gear Preparation for Marlin
March 2024

Ben Brown shares his tips and tricks for prepping gear for marlin fishing... Read More >

One-pan Tomato Poached Snapper with Leek Recipe
March 2024

A one-pan tomato poached snapper recipe is shared... Read More >

How Social Media Is Influencing Fishing
March 2024

Social media is changing people's perception of fishing, writes Sam Boothroyd... Read More >

Raymarine Axiom Pro Fishfinder/Chartplotter and Cyclone Radar Review
March 2024

Nick Jones Reviews the Raymarine Axiom Pro Fishfinder/Chartplotter and Cyclone Radar... Read More >

Brent Condon - Fishing Art
March 2024

An artist profile on illustrator Brent Condon... Read More >