Manukau/West Harbour Fishing Report 050418

  • General Saltwater, North Island West Coast - Kaipara to New Plymouth

Inside the harbour snapper fishing can be very productive, once you have found them. If you aren't getting any action or if the fish are small it pays to move. It's advice I've given out many times but that doesn't mean I always follow it!

Last weekend for example we fished the exact same spot that was productive just a week earlier. It took me almost 2 hours to realise we were wasting precious time! A short move away and we were onto them. Trevally are still around and most likely are kingfish too, but gurnard are still few and far between, at least in my part of the harbour.

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Over the coast the fish are shifting around. At the moment there are a lot of large kahawai that can cause havoc with tangles if they aren't controlled well but there are also good catches of snapper in all sorts of depths once you have found them. It pays to move around if you have nothing after 30 minutes or so. Kingfish can be taken on livebaits fished on the bottom and there are plenty of gurnard also.

Skipjack tuna are not too hard to find with schools as close as 30m. Marlin are still about too, I recently weighed a huge stripey for Craig McKie and Gary Box which pulled the scales down to 192.2kg. Caught on light gauge hooks and a 200lb leader, it was a great effort. Marlin have certainly been caught in April out west in past years and although the water temps are falling I wouldn't be surprised if we get a late run of fish this year. Another interesting story I heard of only 3 weeks ago was from a boat snapper fishing in 50m that had a school of small mahimahi come and shelter under their boat. The same day my son was fishing with a mate and they saw two marlin in at 70m. I'm sure the gamefish will still be around.

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Surfcasters are doing reasonably well off the west coast beaches when the swells are down, so regardless of what form of fishing you do there is something for everyone. It's a great time of year but be prepared to move if at first you don't get success.

Take care, Smudge

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