With no fishing to be had, I thought I'd share a few memories.
It's nearly 60 years since my Grandparents bought what was no more than an old bach right on the beach at Mairangi Bay and my love affair with the Waitemata/Hauraki Gulf began. While many people are very pleased with how the fishing is nowadays, it's literally not a patch on what it was in the early 60s.
The first time we stayed with the Grandies was Easter 1962. Dad had Thursday afternoon, Friday and Saturday off, and had to work Sunday pm and Monday. A very rare thing in those days where everything, literally everything, was closed from 5.00pm Easter Thursday until 09.00 the following Tuesday.
We arrived mid afternoon Thursday and Grandad immediately said, "Let's go fishing!" No daylight saving in those days so we didn't have a lot of daylight. We went a short distance off the beach and dropped the pick in some random place. In no time at all, Grandad, Dad and I caught 12 snapper and 9 gurnard.
Good Friday we had to go to mass in the morning so headed out at about 11.00, returning to base about 3.00. We went a long way out, perhaps 2/3 to Tiritiri Matangi. We caught 33 snapper (No thought or need to limit the take in those days), all between 3 and 6 pounds. God knows how Dad and Grandad (He only had one leg) managed to fillet and dispose of all that lot. I was knackered and had to have a nap.
The next day (Saturday) we went out early- 09.30.
Everywhere we looked as we launched the boat were workups. There were literally dozens of them, and they were huge. We didn't know in those days that snapper were under the workups. We had to work hard to find a spot away from the kahawai and kingfish.
This day we caught another 42 snapper, again all between 3 - 6 lbs. (I so cringe when I think of all that carnage.)
To be fair, we had 3 very good days. But as good as they were, they were not exceptional for the time.
More posts to come.