Tauranga Harbour Kingfish Season
Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: Saltwater Fishing
Forum Name: Saltwater Flyflingers
Forum Description: A forum for saltwater fly fishing enthusiasts
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=130855
Printed Date: 11 Jun 2026 at 10:17pm
Topic: Tauranga Harbour Kingfish Season
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Subject: Tauranga Harbour Kingfish Season
Date Posted: 24 Apr 2019 at 9:30am
| It's been a very tough fishing for kings on the flats this season compared with past seasons. Don't really know what to make of it. My hours of fishing effort has been comparable with past seasons, but with each season, my catch rate of kings per hours of effort is declining. This season started with a flourish, but during the warmer summer months there was a decline in kings seen on the flats. Water temperature may be a factor, having an affect on the kings, the bait fish, the food of the bait fish, or perhaps all. Five years ago, the majority of the short tail stingrays carried multiple riders. This season, the number of ray riders is well down, with most of the short tails being empty. One day during summer, I counted 50 to 60 short tails while wading, and none were carrying kings. About a third were carrying half a dozen or so medium size kahawai and I had a few days of action with the #2 catching these. Most of my kings this year have been caught on or close to channel edges, a mixture of riders and freeswimmers. There are two commercial fishing operations within the harbour, one that targets piper and grey mullet, and the other which targets trevally. The guys netting piper sometimes catch hundreds of kilos of these fish on each daily outing. The other operation targetting trevally, uses a drag net and gets a by catch of kings. The commercial size limit for kings is 65cm. There is a lot of recreational pressure on the kings from boat fishers, and shore based lure and live bait fishers. Not all fish caught by the latter group are kept which is encouraging. Two of my mates who primarily fish with piper have caught over 30 kings this season and all have been tagged. I don't believe the population of harbour kings is particularly high. Some of the tagged fish have been caught multiple times. As winter approaches, attention will be on the channel edges where the piper congregate and eventually get smashed by kings. For future seasons wading the flats for kings, who knows? |
Replies:
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 24 Apr 2019 at 1:47pm
Thanks for the Tauranga update MM  It all sounds a bit worrying. The fact that piper and trevally betting are allowed to go on in the harbour is absolutely ludicrous! The value of those fish stocks to the local community and the Tauranga tourism economy far outstrips the money that those few individuals will be making out of dead fish. What a tragic waste! |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 24 Apr 2019 at 3:56pm
| There are other concerns that aren't helping the harbour kings and bait fish in general. Heavy grazing of the intertidal sea grass meadows by swans and geese. The sea grass is vital to the health of the harbour ecosystem , invertebrates, larval fish and the food of bait fish. Parore are also the food of kingfish although perhaps not preferred, and these at times are taken by the piper/mullet guys. On 13/10/2014, I saw them with a good 500kg of parore on their boat, all fat fish, each between 1.8kg and 2.4kg. About a month ago, I understand they took just under a ton in one day. The tagged kings I have caught have been captured a few kilometres from their tagging point about 12 months later. |
Posted By: FISHBYFLY
Date Posted: 24 Apr 2019 at 5:42pm
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thanks for the insight Dick. Similar problems in Auckland. Im seeing a increased value/demand for kingfish. My wife loves to eatout regurly, and I have noticed the increase of kingfish being offered on the Menu in pretty much all establishments.as with anything in the outdoors, as soon as it aquires a value, it gets stripped. Im assuming the restaurant demand is being supplyed by smalltime inshore operaters. Hard to prove,but seems to be the most likely scenario. ------------- By Fly, Nothing Else,Just Fly |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 13 May 2019 at 4:03pm
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Hi Silvio. They are here but being elusive. Over the past few weeks the big free swimmers have been targeting the 1 to 2 kilo grey mullet. The jumps from the mullet are significantly higher when they have a yellow tailed demon hard up their caudal fin. Some of these kings are seriously big. May is the month that we see these bigees. I'm not sure if these buggers are in the harbour all year, or they enter the harbour to specifically to hunt the grey mullet each late April / May. Been seeing a lot of big tight schools of grey mullet lately. Tight lines mate. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 20 May 2019 at 10:54pm
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I have NEVER caught a kingfish in Tauranga harbour. Any tips or spots would be greatly appreciated. I generally fish during the day (afternoon to just after sunset). I usually get a few small kahawai or medium Piper and hang one under a balloon, but never have any luck. What am I doing wrong, or does anyone have any tips or spots? |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 21 May 2019 at 5:35am
Try getting out of bed early  Dawn is the kingfish hour 
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Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 21 May 2019 at 7:22am
| Any tips apart from an early start? I have sport in the mornings til lunchtime on the weekends so the earliest I can get out is 12ish. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 21 May 2019 at 9:45pm
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Hi Coastbusters. I have no idea where you live, but if you are in TAURANGA, I'd be happy to meet up with you and show you the ropes. I fly fish around 350 days in the year so any time that suits you would be ok with me. Got a nice king yesterday and lost another two. The Aussie swoffer with me lost one. Saw around a dozen kings yesterday, and all were riding short tails. Today, we saw three tailing while in the company of a medium size short tail. Bear in mind that the kings are only on the flats for around another ten days, then it's a long wait until they return to the flats mid October to early November. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 24 May 2019 at 8:15am
| I'm interested. What gear would I need? I don't have any fly gear. I've got a baitrunner 1200d combo and a tld25. I suppose the 1200d will cast. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 24 May 2019 at 10:59am
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Hi Coastbusters. I'm sorry, I took it for granted that you were a saltwater fly fisher as that is where my knowledge lies. There are at least two clubs in TAURANGA that specialise in topwater fishing for kings. You should be able to locate these, perhaps Uncle could be of help. Failing that why not consider taking up the sport of swf fishing? It's highly addictive and contagious. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 24 May 2019 at 1:11pm
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Ok, thanks. Pm me some spots I might be able to access by boat if you have any tips Thanks |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 24 May 2019 at 7:16pm
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Have done. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 27 May 2019 at 12:18pm
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On the flats at daybreak this morning and waded out to my hot spot to be ready for the first of the incoming. Visibility was pretty tough in the low light and I didn't see the medium/large short tail stingray until it was very close and obviously aware of me. Riding it were three kings in the 85cm to 95cm size class, typical May kings for the TAURANGA flats. Of course they had no intention of eating my fly. About an hour later, there was a big bust up of piper and if I had to put money on it, I would say that they were kahawai. I put the fly ahead of the fleeing piper, but nothing happened. Soon after, a small/medium size short tail cruised out of the glare with two riders, both around 65cm. Again, no interest in the fly. I cut inshore into knee deep water and slowly made my way back hoping to come across either tailing kings or bow waves. I saw a bow wave from a kakawai and several schools of bait fish, probably yem. I left the water at 1045hrs, after a few hours of therapy and good medicine for the soul. I'll be back out there tomorrow morning. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FISHBYFLY
Date Posted: 27 May 2019 at 5:41pm
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Nice yarn, that's a great way to spend ya morning!  ------------- By Fly, Nothing Else,Just Fly |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 27 May 2019 at 6:55pm
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Great story Just goes to show how difficult ray riders can be.
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Posted By: otdrmn
Date Posted: 27 May 2019 at 8:12pm
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Wow, certainly not seeing this sort of action on the kaipara, will keep looking and learning thou. I’m sure they’re here and it’s just a matter of where and when. Spotted a few over summer but not enough consistency to be sure to be sure. 😀 ------------- The 4 R's ~ Rods, Reels, Rifles, Rooting |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 27 May 2019 at 10:25pm
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A few years ago, I used to see far more kings on the flats with the odd day counting 20 plus and on one day, close to 40. But in recent years, those numbers have dropped away. This season started well but went tough during the hot summer months. April and May haven't been too bad. May is the month that we see the biggest kings on the flats. I don't know why this is but it could have something to do with the tight schools of grey mullet. Occasionally, I have seen 20kg plus kings on the flats but these are pretty wary. When you do hook up, they absolutely own you for the first part of the fight. I fight kings hard and a legal king will not get into the backing. Using that same drag pressure, a 20kg king will take 150 metres of backing. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 27 May 2019 at 10:37pm
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Most of my big kings have been caught on popper flies, particularly Pat's blockheads. When I fish popper flies, I use a 20kg shock leader because big kings will go into deep water if they can get to it and they rub the popper on the bottom, sometimes shredding the leader. I used to use 15kg leader and lost a few. I have had no trouble with 20kg shock tippet. Sometimes you can see that the kings have been rubbing the bottom because they have severe scrape marks on their nose. My biggest king on the flats wrecked the leader, but it held together and I landed it. It weighed 22kg and when it was close near the end of the fight, there were two kings swimming with it, one was around 25kg, the other around 20kg. The interesting thing is that kings hooked on bait fish flies don't tend to try to rub the fly out, well not in my experience anyway. Hope this information is of assistance. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Snuffit.
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 7:31am
Agreed; also a lack of short tail rays. There are tons of mullet and the fish I've spotted have been smashing them. Lots of scouting to still do. ------------- You cant eat my toast fish |
otdrmn wrote:Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 7:37am
| I read somewhere that the riders are waiting for the Ray's to kick up the flounder, and that people have had some success with sinking flounder type lures, even some successfully using little squares of carpet!! |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 9:50am
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I will mention a few things about the kingfish/ray relationship but will have to do it a couple of posts because my computer keeps freezing and I end up losing the lot. I have studied kings and rays in the TAURANGA Harbour for over eight years. I am retired and so spend every available opportunity on the flats, mostly at the TAURANGA end of the harbour. This works out to a bit under 350 days a year. There are three species of ray in the harbour, two stingrays, the short tail, the long tail and the eagle ray. Kingfish prefer to ride short tails, but I have also seen them riding long tails and I have caught riders off long tails. I have only once seen a king riding an eagle and after watching it for several minutes to make sure they were a couple, I caught the king which weighed 2kg. Small, but a king nevertheless. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 9:59am
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I have seen kings riding short tails as early as late September and as late as early June. Most of the riders are seen from early November till late May. However this year, there were plenty of short tails over the hot summer months but very few with kings. On one day I saw 50 to 60 short tails on the flats and none had kings riding, but about a third of them were carrying medium size kahawai which provided great sport on the #2. I have seen more than a dozen kings riding a single short tail but it is usually one, two or three riders. As each year passes, I am seeing more short tails without riders ands those that have them are carrying fewer riders. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 10:10am
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When a short tail is travelling on a mission to get from A to B, it is travelling relatively quickly and the kings are travelling over the ray's disc. If the short tail is mooching around at a slow to medium speed, the riders will range out five metres or more from the ray hunting for anything that moves. If the short tail has riders and is not moving much or is stationary, the kings range out a little further and will be seen tailing, showing their dorsal and tail fin. This is when they pit their heads into snapper holes and eagle holes foraging for protein rich crabs and shrimps, as well as cockabullies. I once was watching a resting short tail for perhaps twenty minutes, when a group of six 60cm to 70cm kings showed up and swam tight circles at a fast speed around it. My belief is that they had arrived at the bus station and wanted the bus to depart. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 10:20am
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Just because kings are riding a short tail doesn't mean that they are going to eat. It is my belief that they do not feed just because the opportunity arises when they are riding a short tail. I have seen them go past bait fish that are within easy range an yet they weren't interested. Much the same way that reef kings will swim amongst their prey on a reef without showing interest in feeding. When there is more than one rider, it is far more easy to get a take, and the more riders, the better your chances. Single riders can be hard to get to eat sometimes. Sometimes when you hook up on a rider, some of the riders will decide to go with the hooked fish and if you trust your mate, you can end up with a double. Likewise, if you hook up from a short tail carrying riders, your mate can also hook up off the same ray. I have hooked up and landed a king, gone back to the ray and hooked up again. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 10:35am
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As far as why kings associate with short tails, I believe it is totally a one way benefit for the king. They are a Carangid and many members of this family ride rays and sharks. Pilotfish are one example. One school of thought is that the short tails put up flounder which are pounced upon by the riders. A school of though from a noted swf colleague is that the ray acts as a cloaking device allowing the riders to take their prey by surprise. To me, this makes more sense. I have just received a Private Message asking about locations. I do not disclose locations. If a fellow fly fisher is keen, I am happy to do my best to put him onto a king on one understanding, the kings are released. They are under tremendous pressure in TAURANGA Harbour both from recreational and commercial interests. I have seen a drop in their numbers and see a continuing decline. It is my opinion that they are more important going back into the resource than going through someone's butt hole. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 12:57pm
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That last line is a classic Great information as always Dick Thanks for posting. |
Posted By: FISHBYFLY
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 7:09pm
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totally with ya on that one, Its a fragile fishery, not a neverending chilly bin filler. ------------- By Fly, Nothing Else,Just Fly |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 28 May 2019 at 7:50pm
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I appreciate your comment FISHBYFLY. 99% of fly fishers would agree with us. What sucks is that they are under commercial pressure and the commercial size limit is 65cm. There is a lot of pressure from recreational anglers with many targeting kings. Even amongst these anglers there is a growing concern for the harbour kings. Two of my mates live bait for the local kings and all are tagged and released. Another problem is the lack of care in handling kings that are to be released. I told one of these guys if he would like me to knock him down and drag him over the rocks. It didn't go down very well. We probably have around 200 tagged kings out there now. It is my understanding that one tagged king has been recaptured three times and seven have been recaptured twice. This has not been told to me officially, but was told to a friend. Hopefully the tagging will gives us information that will help authorities to manage the kingfish resource but I'm not holding my breath. I would prefer the harbour to be out of bounds for the commercial guys and the kings in the harbour to be catch and release only. That's bound to get someone going. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 30 May 2019 at 12:17pm
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Wandered down the hill and waded out on the flats at around 0915hrs this morning. Keen to get out to one of my hotspots and catch the first of the incoming. While waiting I watched a gannet diving. A good sign and hopefully a promise of action to come. A big eagle with no tail cruised past. I decided to blind cast, as the visibility was difficult despite the clear sky. I had a follow that I reckoned was most probably a kahawai. There was a big bust up of piper well out of reach of my cast. Perhaps ten minutes later I had a big bow wave behind my fly and despite speeding up the retrieve the fly wasn't eaten. I fired the fly out again and had another follow but again the fly wasn't eaten. Further casts into the same area were without action. I reckoned there was a short tail out there with one or more riders. They would be wise to me so I didn't bother following them up. My faith in my candy was destroyed, so I changed to one of Pat's piper flies and continued fishing. I caught a glimpse of movement and turned to see the upper section of a kingfish tail showing above the surface 40 metres from me. As I waded to within range the dorsal also showed and I could see that it was a good size king. I fired the fly out, put ithe rod under my arm and stripped as flats as I could. The king launched itself at the fly and ate. I struck hard and hooked up. The king fought hard and got into the backing. A high speed 180 degree arc had the line zizzing as it cut the surface. I fought it hard as I backed out to the shore. The hook pulled just as I was about to step out onto the edge. I could have waded back out and perhaps I may have hooked up on another. But no, I was very happy. I'd lost the fish, but kept the experience. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Snuffit.
Date Posted: 30 May 2019 at 1:18pm
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Thats awesome Dick! ------------- You cant eat my toast fish |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 30 May 2019 at 3:55pm
Yep  well done on finding a hungry late season kingfish.
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Posted By: FISHBYFLY
Date Posted: 30 May 2019 at 6:37pm
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Yes Sir good times ------------- By Fly, Nothing Else,Just Fly |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2019 at 6:22pm
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Headed down the hill and out on the Tauranga flats late morning to catch the last of the outgoing and first of the incoming. Cast at a small short tail and a rider came off and launched itself at my green eyed bait fish fly, hit it but didn't hook up. That was it! It is the latest in the season that I have ever seen a rider on the flats. Hopefully I will get another shot over the next few days. Caught a cracking kahawai which solved the what are we going to eat for tea tonight problem. Tomorrow however, it's back to the #2 and hopefully the opportunity to land a cracking kahawai. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 22 Jun 2019 at 3:01am
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I did an analysis of my records this morning for the 2018/2019 kingfish season on the Tauranga Harbour flats. This is only for kings caught wading so there are no boat hours included. For the purposes of comparisons, I recognise the kingfish flats season as November 1 to May 31 inclusive. So for the 2018/2019 season, it was 43 hours per king. The past seasons are as follows: 2017/2018 season -27 hours per king; 2016/2017 season - 18 hours per king; 2015/1016 season -17 hours per king. The combined number of kings caught during these seasons is only 137. An expert at analysing statistics would no doubt find a lot of holes in my method, but these figures show a concerning trend. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 22 Jun 2019 at 5:29am
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Very interesting stats Of course it would be easy to pick holes in records like that, but the broad trend is very obvious... and a little worrying. What I like is the level of commitment it portrays. Nobody just rocks up to a Tauranga flat and catches a kingfish... it requires plenty of work! Mostly though it really does make you wonder about how many new kingfish come into the Tauranga system every year? Your stats would suggest there is a high number of resident fish, which is worrying. It will be interesting to see what happens in the future. Excellent work as always and thanks for sharing. |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 22 Jun 2019 at 6:28am
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Very interesting reading alright. Good stuff MM
------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: FISHBYFLY
Date Posted: 23 Jun 2019 at 9:10am
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thanks for that MM, shows the value of independent record keeping. ------------- By Fly, Nothing Else,Just Fly |
Posted By: Humpy
Date Posted: 24 Jun 2019 at 9:06am
| Great experience Dick! My boat should arrive soon so we will have to chase some together in comfort next season? Cheers Kerry |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 24 Jun 2019 at 7:17pm
 Good to hear from you Kerry. Looking forward to seeing your new boat. Since you are a Forum member, I am taking the liberty of showing fellow swoffers your tagged king from early in the season just passed. Cheers------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 25 Jun 2019 at 6:36am
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Great pic. The epitome of NZ saltfly summertime happiness
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Posted By: Marligator
Date Posted: 26 Jun 2019 at 12:21pm
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Mudfish M - Out of interest did you keep a note of the number of stingrays you see on the flats each day you go out as well. There could also be a link between a decline in stingray numbers and kingfish numbers you are seeing. I am not a fly fisherman, but what was interesting was that I went down the harbour a number of times and fished around the end of the container wharf chasing Jack Macks for live baits very early in the morning and there were always a number of kingys on the surface around the end piles which would I am sure would take a fly. Might be something for you guys to think about next summer, might have a bit of fun getting them away from the piles though. ------------- http://www.legasea.co.nz" rel="nofollow"> 
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Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 26 Jun 2019 at 2:13pm
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Good afternoon Marligator. Many thanks for your comments. I will answer you in two posts because my computer freezes if the message is long. I do keep records of the numbers of short tails seen, dates, times, tides, locations, number of riders, and so on. I'm a boring old bugger who carries a waterproof notepad with me so I don't have to leave it to memory. The number of short tail stingrays has remained much the same over the past five or six years. Fewer of them are carrying riders and generally those that do are carrying fewer. During the hotter summer months, I was still seeing short tails, but rarely seeing riders. Temperature perhaps. One day I saw 50 to 60 short tails and none were carrying kings but about a third of them were catching medium size kahawai. That is the first time I have seen this. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 26 Jun 2019 at 2:24pm
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The north end of the container wharf is a hot spot for kings and I have caught them there on live mackies both at anchor and slow trolling. A few guys specialise in fishing for them there from small boats and I am sure that you know them. The outside wall of the Sulphur Point Marina is another hot spot. What lights my candle is wading for them and at the end of Popper Point, I can wade out and cast into the channel edge halfway between the marina entrance and Popper Point, for the last of the outgoing and first of the incoming. Holding onto them there is something else but I have been successful there. The big problem around wharf piles is losing gear, hooks are cheap, but flylines are around $150.00. Thanks for your comments and I look forward to meeting you. Is your boat Marligator? Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 26 Jun 2019 at 2:32pm
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Two posts ago, should read ....a third of them were carrying medium size kahawai.......(not catching). Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Marligator
Date Posted: 26 Jun 2019 at 3:37pm
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Dick, Yes my boat is called Marligator a 5.8m AMF. I presume you are the same Dick Marquand who wrote the article in the 1978 Australian Modern Fishing on the Fiordland Bluefin Tuna and Thresher Sharks. I loved that article and still have a scanned copy of it. ------------- http://www.legasea.co.nz" rel="nofollow">
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Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 26 Jun 2019 at 3:53pm
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Yeah, one and the same. Still have all the old game gear, right up to 60kg. I've seen your boat at the Sulphur Point ramp and you have gone past when I have been fly fishing at the end of southern end of the "ankle breaker." Look forward to catching up with you sometime. The kings here are a bit bigger than the ones we used to catch in Fiordland. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Marligator
Date Posted: 26 Jun 2019 at 4:08pm
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Yes it will be good to catch up sometime Dick and I bet the kingys are a bit bigger alright. ------------- http://www.legasea.co.nz" rel="nofollow">
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Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 22 Aug 2019 at 5:57pm
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Hi Dick, I heard rumours that kingfish were back on the bite in the harbour at the moment because of whitebait coming in. Lots of kahawai too. Is there any truth in that? Thanks |
Posted By: bigred1
Date Posted: 22 Aug 2019 at 9:40pm
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Evening all, This maybe not the correct place to ask as I'm not after a kingy... but can anyone help me catch anything in the habour? I've put a lot of time into fishing outside and found a few spots (Marligator also kindly proved a spot close to the entrance and I try to save it as a last resort when all else fails as it is not my spot) so I am usually happy nowadays, but this weekend I have a fishing mad 11 year old coming to stay and the weather is not looking good outside. Any advice would be appreciated---I'm not after your spots---just some leads, as I usually focus on going outside. Boat name Big Red 1(a red 5.7 mac---no secret squirrel stuff here). Thanks, Frank.
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Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 22 Aug 2019 at 11:08pm
| I only ever fish in the harbour, and pretty much only during sunny afternoons, so I'm not a serious fisho. But I find that generally if you put heaps of berley out the kahawai will find you. It will take a while but they will. Big ones too this time of year. Anywhere really. Cast or strayline big baits out the back of the boat and drop a sabiki with slivers of squid on and you will get some if you have lots of berley. The sabiki will get loads after a while. This weekend you will want to be out of the strong wind. From looking at the forecast for wind direction, down in Hunters Creek might be calm, by the old Rangiwaea wharf or tucked in behind the big container wharf by sulphur point. You would get plenty of kahawai there. Berley berley berley! Have fun. I might see you out there! |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 23 Aug 2019 at 6:21am
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Sorry for the late response. I'm struggling at the moment. Last three outings for a total of no touches, not seeing much at all. No diving birds, or bait fish. If I was using a boat, I would anchor up on the edge of a sandflat so that the tide takes your burley into deeper water and burley up big time. Weather has been crappy, but the tide times are getting better, well for my fishing spot anyway. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: bigred1
Date Posted: 23 Aug 2019 at 7:11am
| Thanks for the responses, maybe my lack of patience is the biggest hurdle to overcome. I will throw out a heap of burly and just wait it out for a change. In a perverse way it is encouraging when other people mention they are struggling too. Cheers. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 23 Aug 2019 at 7:48am
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Hi Coastbusters. I don't know why I am not seeing more evidence of white bait feeding kahawai. Saw some definite action a few weeks ago at the channel edge close to the bottom of the tide. Where I fish, I used to see the flocks of terns and gulls on kahawai schools against the darker background of the Mount. Haven't seen this sort of action over the last three months. I do see the odd purse seiner heading out through the entrance to target schooling fish offshore. I wonder if there is a connection. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 26 Aug 2019 at 4:00pm
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How did you get on Skoolinfish? Did you get into the harbour at the weekend? The mornings looked bearable but rough. More importantly, did you catch anything? |
Posted By: bigred1
Date Posted: 26 Aug 2019 at 6:00pm
| I did not go fishing (too windy-the other kid would've been alright but my youngest child is not so keen, so I try to pick the days for him now). That said next Sunday is looking good, and scallop season starts too. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 27 Aug 2019 at 7:44pm
| Totally agree. When you are taking kids out it has to be a memorable occasion for them for all the right reasons. Nice weather, flat water, let them have a drive of the boat, no seasickness, lots of snacks and maybe catch a fish or 2 as a bonus. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 28 Aug 2019 at 11:12pm
| Hi Dick, I was talking to someone today who was at the marina at the weekend. He said kahawai were smashing any lures they threw at them, even kingfish lures! He thinks it was because whitebait were running. Have you seen much evidence of it yet? I am hoping to get out this weekend. I'll maybe try Te Puna mouth to see if there are any kahawai feeding on whitebait there. What do you think? |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 29 Aug 2019 at 5:20am
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Hi Coastbusters. I have only seen evidence of kahawai feeding on what I believe were whitebait once just before low tide at the edge of the Otumoetai Channel recently. I usually see kahawai smashing whitebait around the Wairoa Channel, but not yet this season. That I haven't seen it doesn't mean that it's not happening, it's got to be. I'm heading out this morning further up the harbour with a bunch of wader clad swoffing mates so may have something to report later. Tight lines. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 29 Aug 2019 at 7:44am
| I know the kingfish are renowned for being in the harbour in summer, but I would have thought they would be in on the whitebait action too? |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 29 Aug 2019 at 3:07pm
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Hi Coastbusters. The winter kings may well feed on white bait, but I have never witnessed this. The winter kings that I have seen feeding, are hitting adult piper. Their metabolic rate must slow down a bit with the cooler water, so I imagine that they don't need as much food in the winter. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 29 Aug 2019 at 5:03pm
| Thanks. Did you get out today? |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 2:56pm
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Made the decision to start the 2019/2020 kingfish season this morning so headed out onto the flats in a moderate to strong SW and rain showers. The gear of choice was my custom built Kotare/CTS Quartz #8, Billy Pate Bonefish, Rio intermediate and a 1/0 hometied candy. Picked up a 2 pound kahawai on the first cast and another on the second. Ended up with five kahawai, all peas in a pod. Saw no kings or short tails but it's very early. Saw my first rider last year on 23 September. Very pleased with the gear performance and I will be back out tomorrow morning. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 3:35pm
| Dick, we get large aggregations of spawning sprats (yellow eye mullet) at this time of the year. There can be kingfish hanging around the sprat schools in the Far North harbours. There might be something similar going on somewhere in Tauranga? |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 4:31pm
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Ok Craig, you have my attention. In what part of the harbour am I most likely to find yem spawning? I can remember there were some issues with the "government or local government experts getting it all wrong about yem spawning in the southern part of the North Island. If I remember right, it had to do with a hearing about harbour work?? Can you shed some light on where I should look for spawning yem please Craig? Much appreciated. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 4:44pm
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Sincere apologies Coastbusters, I have just found that I didn't answer your question on 29 August last. Yes, I did fish that day, wading the harbour with a bunch of mates. We didn't see any kings, but caught some nice kahawai. One of my mates Larry, landed an 8 pound kahawai (weighed on my Bogagrip) on a 6 weight, by far the largest kahawai I have seen in Tauranga Harbour. My heaviest from the harbour is only 6 3/4 pounds. Again, my apologies for a very late reply. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 6:31pm
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Thanks Dick, I find Kahawai much bigger in winter than I catch in summer. Never seen one that big though. How long was it? |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 6:37pm
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Unfortunately, I didn't get a length for Larry's fish which is annoying because I have started recording condition factors for the bigger kahawai. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 7:09pm
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One of my mates Larry, landed an 8 pound kahawai (weighed on my Bogagrip) on a 6 weight, by far the largest kahawai I have seen in Tauranga Harbour. [/QUOTE] Could start an argument with this - I reckon an 8 pound kahawai would be tougher opponent than same size kingfish💥 ------------- The Auckland Swoffer www.AucklandSwoffer.wordpress.com |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 8:12pm
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Dick, we have them at the Russell wharf and I have seen them at the Whangaroa, Opononi, Mangonui and Houhora wharves. The last two wharves had them around low tide and then they moved up harbour with the tide. So possibly somewhere a little more in the upper reaches of Tauranga? Sorry I can't be more specific than that. I have heard of kings hitting them in Houhora, Mangonui and Hokianga at this time of year, but it is erratic action and the spawning YEMs tend to give out after a few weeks. Unfortunately no kings chasing them here in Russell. We do get John Dory hanging around the sprat schools though. |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 8:14pm
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Yep, 8 pound kahawai on the scales is a big fish. Haven't seen a kahawai like that inshore since the 'good old days'
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Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 8:19pm
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Good evening Wolfie. In my opinion, I reckon the king is more powerful than an equivalent size kahawai. Don't get me wrong, I have had kahawai fight very hard but generally, I would put my money on the king being more powerful. I would love to fight a small king on one of my #3 rods, but I'm sure the fish wouldn't survive the lactic acid build up in its muscle tissue. If I accidentally hooked one on ULF, I would snap it off. The kings are more cunning (without meaning to sound anthropomorphic) with regards to using a wading angler as structure and trying to go between the angler's legs. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 8:23pm
Could start an argument with this - I reckon an 8 pound kahawai would be tougher opponent than same size kingfish💥[/QUOTE] For what it's worth: on softbait and light braid, not fly, I've caught a 'mouse' kingie that I thought was some kind of giant jack mack at first, kahawai and one skipjack tuna that were all about 5lb. The most powerful by far was the skipjack (an absolute pocket rocket), followed by kahawai and then the little kingie. I reckon you fly merchants would have a ball with skippies. Not very common in the Waitemata flats, unfortunately, Wolfie.
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Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 8:26pm
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Okay Craig thanks for that. We tend to see the bigger kings on the flats early and late in the season. The late season ones are often seen pursuing grey mullet, which jump about twice as high when they have a yellow tailed demon trying to eat them. I'll put a bit of time in and see if I can nut out the yem spawning locations, etc. Many thanks for the information, much appreciated. ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2019 at 8:34pm
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The skippies on fly are unreal. They are the fastest fish I have ever experienced at getting into the backing. Line management is really important. I bring my rod butt against my forearm, twist my hand so the reel is away from me and use my other hand like an extra rod guide, well away from the rod hand. I don't look up until the line is coming off the reel, and that only takes a couple of seconds. Skippies are intense. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2019 at 6:03am
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Yes, but they totally frustrating. We have numerous scattered aggregations of skippies in the BOI's that work their way along current lines feeding on tiny krill and fish larvae. They can be massively difficult to catch. I hear the Bay of Plenty skippies are a lot easier to catch on fly. I have learned to avoid them if they are not in a very thick school. As you say Dick, they are intense. They're about the best practice you can get for big Aitutaki bonefish. Those line clearance moments are insane. |
Posted By: Fraser Hocks
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2019 at 8:46am
Heheeh you want to try GT's then. Just super big skippies really. Imagine the same, but in the 20kg+ bracket. Wild times hey! Great to hear your out there early and checking it out Dick. Make sure you dont land too many though... got to leave some for me when I hit the NI in the new year
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Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2019 at 1:01pm
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No action today. Only stayed three hours and saw nothing. Wind 30 knots gusting 35 knots. Nearly got blown over a couple of times. Still very early for a flats king. Looking forward to catching up with you Fraser. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2019 at 8:18pm
Must admit king battles are very intense in a rocky/reefy envoronment but on the virtually snagless flats I've found the main challenge to be tactical is terms of keeping as close as possible( ie follow that fish) as they seem to basically go sulky like a brown when they realise they have no structure to run into. I see a big kahawai going berserk, changing directions and hopefully jumping - whereas even my 19 lber got to a point at about ten minutes into the fight where it definitely had hit a mental block, and just thrashed about and didnt run any more from that point on. THe biggest challenge Ive had with a king was a sub legal rat of 60-65cm who used the ebbing tide against me for over twenty minutes - could not believe it was so small when I got it to the beach. Maybe Tauranga kings are a bit more feisty than their Auckland cousins. ------------- The Auckland Swoffer www.AucklandSwoffer.wordpress.com |
Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2019 at 8:35pm
I reckon you fly merchants would have a ball with skippies. Not very common in the Waitemata flats, unfortunately, Wolfie. [/QUOTE]
Yeah it's a pity - I drool over US swoffers into false albacore off breakwaters on their 9 weights ... ------------- The Auckland Swoffer www.AucklandSwoffer.wordpress.com |
Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2019 at 8:36pm
For what it's worth: on softbait and light braid, not fly, I've caught a 'mouse' kingie that I thought was some kind of giant jack mack at first, kahawai and one skipjack tuna that were all about 5lb. The most powerful by far was the skipjack (an absolute pocket rocket), followed by kahawai and then the little kingie. I reckon you fly merchants would have a ball with skippies. Not very common in the Waitemata flats, unfortunately, Wolfie. [/QUOTE]
I drool over youtube videos of US swoffers into false albacore off the beach or breakwaters ... ------------- The Auckland Swoffer www.AucklandSwoffer.wordpress.com |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2019 at 9:11pm
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Both kings and kahawai are powerful fighters that's for sure. I have had some long, tactical and powerful fights with kahawai on #1, #2, and #3 outfits and having them get 50 metres of backing off the reel is not uncommon, especially when using a 3.0 pound leader. I have caught similar size kings and kahawai on #6 gear, while wading (not from boats), and in my opinion, a king is a stronger fish than a similar size kahawai. Don't get me wrong, I love kahawai on ULF, and I look forward to the end of the king season so I can concentrate on kahawai. A 5.0 pound kahawai on a #3 is a lot tougher proposition than a 15 pound king on a #6. Pound for pound on identical fly gear, the king gets my vote. Just my opinion, for what it's worth. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 06 Oct 2019 at 5:29pm
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Spent a lot of time looking for flats kings this past week, out every day. Last year, I got a nice one on October 2, but haven't seen one yet this season, in fact I haven't even seen a short tail either. Plenty of juvenile kahawai, so the kings have got a good reason to come into the shallows. Took my 1960s rebuilt #9 Tasman Regent today, cast surprisingly well but didn't get the opportunity to bend it in anger. Perhaps tomorrow. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 06 Oct 2019 at 8:47pm
 This image is used with permission by the owner David Smith. It was taken last season in Tauranga Harbour and shows a short tail with two riders. Thought that it may inject some enthusiasm into fellow swoffers. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 19 Oct 2019 at 3:51pm
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I've spent a lot of time late September and this month wading the Tauranga Harbour flats at the Tauranga end without seeing any kingfish or short tails. One day at the other end of the harbour, I saw one certain short tail and another possible, but neither had riders. The odd king has been picked up recently by stickbaiters. This morning, my mate who was fishing for kahawai using my #8 pink/white clouser caught at least 25, I caught one kahawai on the big blue/brown bucktail deceiver. Hopefully a king will come my way this coming week. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 19 Oct 2019 at 4:15pm
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Yeah, it's been a bit of a slow spring. We really need some northerlies or easterlies to push things along. We normally have big snapper to chase in amongst the shallow reefy stuff at this time of year, but so far it has been very quiet. Just heading out with the boy now to throw some big flies and softbaits around a likely bit of coast. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 19 Oct 2019 at 5:46pm
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Softbaits????? You're not tending towards the dark side are you Craig? Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 19 Oct 2019 at 8:18pm
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No. That's the boy. He uses softbaits I use fly. It's always interesting to see how the two techniques perform side by side. The fly is always the more enjoyable and exciting method to use... in my biased opinion
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Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 20 Oct 2019 at 10:33am
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I'm just in from an early morning wade at the bottom of the tide and first of the incoming. Plenty of medium size kahawai, perfect prey for the kings which were absent. You are right Craig, we need the warm water inshore. 18 degrees Celsius is what we need. Reckon that it is still in the 15s. Come on kings! Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 24 Oct 2019 at 12:53pm
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Well, finally made contact with a king this morning an hour before the bottom of the tide. Just a brief contact which came to an end when the 30 pound bite tippet was cut through on shells. The fly was a Bronwyn Wilson baitfish pattern that was tied for me at the Saltfly Hookup a few years ago. It had already caught me two kings and will be missed. I've previously lost a few from this behaviour on popper flies but I can't recall it happening before with a baitfish fly. Looking forward to another round tomorrow morning. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Hengemaster
Date Posted: 24 Oct 2019 at 1:28pm
| That does it. That's all the encouragement I need to make the trip down to Tauranga over the weekend! |
Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 24 Oct 2019 at 3:42pm
18C is the magic number for upper harbour snapper on the Waitemata too. ------------- The Auckland Swoffer www.AucklandSwoffer.wordpress.com |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 24 Oct 2019 at 4:50pm
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Consider this. There are fly fishers, stickbaiters and livebaiters, who are actively tagging and releasing kingfish in Tauranga Harbour. They do so because among other things, they care about the future of the species. The commercial size limit for kings is 65cm. A commercial operation in the harbour drag nets trevally and has a bycatch of kings. A keen young angler visited me last night for a chat. He hold me that he approached the commercial operation and helped them haul the nets. There were about eight kings in the net and four of these were tagged. He asked the operator if they would be reporting the tagged fish and was told probably not. The young fellow managed to retrieve one of the four tags. A lot of time, effort and good faith goes into the tagging operation. I'll let you guys work this out for yourselves. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: FISHBYFLY
Date Posted: 24 Oct 2019 at 5:20pm
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Yip youll find those kings on the menu in some restaurant this weekend, F@#$Kn waste! ------------- By Fly, Nothing Else,Just Fly |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 24 Oct 2019 at 10:13pm
| It's outrageous that there even IS a commercial operation in a harbour. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Oct 2019 at 6:32am
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There are two commercial operations in Tauranga Harbour. The other drag nets piper, grey mullet and more recently the are targetting eagle rays. On occasions, they have netted parore, perhaps as much as 1500kg total in the two instances I know of. Piper are kingfish candy. Grey mullet are also prey of kingfish, particularly late in the season in May. Eagle rays are an important part of the ecosystem , by digging the seabed when feeding and this provides habitat for other species. Parore while being omnivorous, mainly feed on vegetative matter, most notably filamentous algae and other alga species such as sea lettuce. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 25 Oct 2019 at 7:38am
| All for what? Fish oil or cat food? They are not exactly table fish or sold in supermarkets. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Oct 2019 at 8:02am
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My understanding, which may not be correct is: Piper - For food, could be bait. A good day may produce 200kg to 300kg. Grey mullet - For food, probably smoked, Auckland market. Eagle rays - For food, perhaps for the fins (shark fin soup?), Asian market? Parore - For food, Auckland market? The parore are impressive. A few years ago, I saw about 500kg in the net aboard the boat and all were in the 1.8kg to 2.4kg size range. The recent big haul, perhaps nearly a ton, was taken around 6 months ago. I didn't see this with my own eyes but one of my mates did. The commercial guys were worried that their boat trailer might not take the weight. Incidentally, kings will target parore too. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |
Posted By: Coastbusters
Date Posted: 25 Oct 2019 at 2:23pm
| Let's just hope that someone with some sense is putting restrictions on the frequency and amounts they can take so it is sustainable. |
Posted By: Mudfish marquand
Date Posted: 25 Oct 2019 at 3:35pm
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When it comes to the management of the Tauranga Harbour fisheries there doesn't seem to be any common sense. Personally, I don't believe that commercial fishing should be allowed in the harbour. I believe that the emphasis should be the protection of seagrass meadows and black swan populations should be lowered substantially. The seagrass is vital to the health of the harbour ecosystem. Healthy seagrass meadows mean more invertebrates, baitfish and a more healthy population of kings, snapper and trevally. I was told a few weeks ago that larval bluenose have been recorded in the harbour. Recreational fishers can to their bit too by being responsible users of the resource. Cheers ------------- On the fly or not interested. |