Honestly, if you're mainly after cutting glare and spotting fish more easily, the biggest thing to look for is polarised lenses. Doesn’t matter if it’s saltwater or freshwater – polarised sunnies make a massive difference either way. They cut through that surface glare so you can actually see what’s going on under the water.

Now, yeah, the top-end $300+ pairs will often have extra bells and whistles – better scratch resistance, tougher frames, slightly clearer optics, that sort of thing. But in terms of just seeing fish better, even affordable polarised sunnies can do a solid job.

If you’re in NZ, check out iPOP in Nelson – they do decent polarised sunglasses around the $30 mark. For that price, you get proper glare-cutting lenses without worrying too much if they get scratched or go for a swim. Handy if you tend to lose them like most of us do.

So nah, you don’t have to drop heaps to get good glare reduction. It’s more about getting the right lens type (polarised), not necessarily the most expensive pair on the shelf.

I travelled to the far north to Dad’s marae in Kohukohu. Our whānau had mahi to do at the marae. 

I couldn’t help but take my kayak and fishing gear to test the local waters, and boy, fishing was tough!  I found a honey hole and dropped baits, sb and microjigs on top of the fish, but I couldn't get a single bite!  

So far I fished 3 harbours in 3 weeks.  Manukau, Ohiwa and the Hokianga. And not a single fish worth taking home.  Unbelievable!