New Caledonia trip report (pics added)

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    Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 6:54pm
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Just got back forma  wondeful trip to New Caledonia fishing for GTs.
Had a blast, this place really should be on anyones must do list if they want a big GT.
 
Check out the links for the detailed report and picutres.
 
 
 
Cheers Mark
www.extremesportfishing.co.nz.
Agent for Carpenter, Orion and ASWB products



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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote YeeHaa Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 7:10pm
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very nice report Mark
Choice

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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Accident Prone Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 9:21pm
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Awesome Mark, Steve eh, the Monster Class Magnet that boy! top fish for top fishermen. Well done lads look forward to seeing more of the pics. Thumbs Up
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote kaveman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Jun 2011 at 9:53pm
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Great trip Mark, cant wait to see the picsThumbs Up
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Aaron32987 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Jun 2011 at 11:05am
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Probably a dumb question, but is GT > Kingfish kg for kg?
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Hard question Aaron, they are quite different.
Pound for pound they are both tough dirty fighters.
I think for the first part of the fight the GT is more powerful, kings will keep on fighting right to the end.
Both are world class sportfish
www.extremesportfishing.co.nz.
Agent for Carpenter, Orion and ASWB products



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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Legacy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Jun 2011 at 4:26pm
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Good reading on the news letter , on the to do list, did you take your rods ? How did they go ?
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Ocean Blue Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 Jun 2011 at 2:44pm
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Hey Ginga,

Glad it all went to plan, it's a special place with great hosts, all in all very addictive.

As for the kingy v GT debate, I think GT's use their deep body in the current so damn well and that mixed with the nasty terrain they hang around means it often end in tears..quickly!
The other thing about New Cal is the bycatch, big coral trout, cod, Maori wrasse and red bass will quite happily take you to the reef in a split second, dirty fighters the lot of them.

Cheers David

Fishing Vanuatu - Trees & Fishes Anglers Lodge | Vanuatu Mothership Adventures | New Caledonia | Malaysia
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote ReelAppealLures Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 Jun 2011 at 4:04pm
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Nice Mark Thumbs Up ....Another for the list, which is getting rather long.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Reel-Appeal-Lures/300309486704362
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Nice Job Mark, Would love to go there some day.  Say Hi to Steve for me.  He has got some serious big fish luck.
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Great report and pics. Sea conditions looked pretty good too.  
"Luck is when opportunity and preparation coincide"
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As you can see the Orions were the lure of choice.
They outfished all other lures by quite a bit
www.extremesportfishing.co.nz.
Agent for Carpenter, Orion and ASWB products



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Must be a 'French' thing Ermm
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Here is the report for those that didnt manage to download it. 

 

 

 

I have just returned from an unforgettable experience fishing for GTs in New Caledonia, I was really not sure what to expect on this trip but it delivered the goods on all fronts.

Firstly Ocean Blue did a great job of putting it all together, especially with a last minute time frame, the guides Étienne and Manu are world class I just can’t say enough good things about these two hard working guys.

New Caledonia is a special place, it has a giant lagoon that surrounds a fair majority of the country and this gives the angler an all-weather option. The wildlife is stunning with countless turtles, plenty of dugongs and an array of seabirds all calling this place home. But the stars of the show are the fish, we caught an quite a number of different species including, GTs(of course), Red Bass, giant Coral Trout, Blue fin Trevally,  Spanish Mackerel, Wahoo, Long Tom, Blue cod, Barracuda and we also stuck the hooks into some Sharks, Yellow fin and another species I will elaborate on later. All of these fish were hooked on surface lures with both poppers and Stick baits doing the damage. You will also get to see plenty of sea turtles and dugongs as well while you are out at sea.

Day 1 and 2 were the pretty quiet compared to the rest of the trip but we still managed to get into some nice fish, a couple of Gts over 30 Kg were landed and some bigger ones hooked and lost including a real ripper inside the lagoon which stripped some real line off before tangling in the coral. These two days were spent at the Ouanu surf camp which has a neat little bar and the hosts looked after us with huge meals and some nice local beers.

 

 



The evening of Day 2 we moved up to the Nekweta surf camp and met Manu and Stephanie for the first time, upon arrival Stephanie whipped us up a delicious batch of fresh Wahoo and it is a fish that earns its reputation for its eating qualities. After a few beers some well-earned rest was in order, but about 4 Am I endured a gastronomical issue which threatened to put my fishing on hold for the next day.

Battling away with some stomach problems Day 3 went ahead and our new destination was proving to be a little bit more productive. A few good fish were landed but nothing to write home about, during the afternoon Etienne unleashed the secret weapon a sinking Orion big Numbas from this point on this lure become a legend. I had attack after attack from big GTs but I couldn’t get one to stick and was soon getting a hard time about my rubber hooks. My stomach issues combined with too much sun and not enough water saw me go downhill fast and my later in the afternoon I was not in a good way.

We did come across a patch of yellow fin Tuna and hooked into a few of these but they were soon torn apart from hungry sharks, one attack was brutal with 3 big sharks fighting over the carcass on the surface not far from the boat.

 

Thankfully on Day 4 I awoke feeling much better and ready to take on some of the big fish New Caledonia is famous for and this was the day things started to heat up. I don’t know if the bite was better or it may have been that all of us had changed to Orion lures but we were greeted with a steady flow of fish for the day. Nothing huge for the day but some quality fish including coral Trout to 18kg were being caught.

Day 4 was also the day that a fish come in and hit the lure right in front of me and I have to say it was a sight I will never forget. The fish was a giant sailfish that shot up out of know where and grabbed hold of the Orion stick bait, it then didn’t move for

about 30 seconds but just sat in front of us shaking its head from side to side.  After a while it shot off in a blistering run and then the hooks fell out.

 

Day 5 was the day of giants, we hooked plenty of them but landing them proved to be difficult. There were some pretty big bust offs on really big fish.

At the end of the day we ended up heading to a nice point with plenty of current and loads of bait. Time was running out for me to get my big GT with darkness approaching.

Right at the end a big swirl enclosed around the lure and the next thing I knew there was line ripping from my reel. This was going to be my last chance so I was very nervous to say the least, the monster Hunter rod was too much for the fish and soon after it was boat side a nice GT in the mid thirty Kg range.

With that I was happy and hung my rod up for the trip, I handed over the big Numbas to Steve for the last 5 casts of the day and on his very last cast another big swirl behind his lure and with some good technique he was locked and loaded onto a good fish. This beats proved to be a real fighter and it took some time to drag it out into deep water and even then it still battled hard. When in the boat this fish ended up being the fish of the trip in the mid Forty Kg range.

 

For those of you interested in heading to New Caledonia then I suggest you give Ocean Blue a call and try to get on with Étienne, he is a genuine top bloke and a great guide. If you do head up take a range of big poppers and stick baits, get Orion’s if you can they were lethal. Take a powerful rod and reel; these things are unforgiving even on heavy gear. Don’t expect any of them to come easy, some day’s bites are few and far between and you need to make the most of every one. Practice striking the fish, this was my downfall and I intend to work on this before I head back. You really do need to ram the hooks home to make sure of a good hook up.

 Cheers Mark

www.extremesportfishing.co.nz.
Agent for Carpenter, Orion and ASWB products



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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote corokid Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Mar 2014 at 12:04pm
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Thanks for the awesome report Mark , been researching for a GT trip and came across this.

Was originally intending to go to Raro but local GT fishing not top of the list unless you go to outer islands.
So looking at comparing a trip to New Cal or Atuitaki.(spelling)
Not interested in trolling lures for gamefish. Keen on casting lures and SWF. 

May be able to do a couple half day charters , budget wont allow a lot more than that as will be paying for boat myself , will have misses with me too.
So are there many shore based options for fish at NC for non charter days?

Also looking at end of July 

thanks


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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Barrie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Mar 2014 at 1:25pm
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Coro
If the aquarium is still open, have a look.
Luminous corals
Great tucker.
We went in August and enjoyed it but man was it humid at that time of the year.

It was a few years back when we went so plenty of changes Im guessing, we didnt fish at all but the diving was great
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