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Big reds, giant trev - Far North softbait heaven

Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: Saltwater Fishing
Forum Name: Fishing Reports
Forum Description: Share information about your latest fishing trip
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=133676
Printed Date: 29 Mar 2024 at 10:29pm


Topic: Big reds, giant trev - Far North softbait heaven
Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Subject: Big reds, giant trev - Far North softbait heaven
Date Posted: 05 Jun 2020 at 10:07pm
I've just returned from a fantastic mission to the Far North - based on the Karikari Peninsula - with my little FC465 Te Korora in tow. 

From the first night's fitful sleep with typical anxiety over the forecast and general anticipation of the coming day's fishing; to the last weary morning washing the boat and motor thoroughly with unrestricted water and a powerful hose before returning to Auckland, it was worth the wait after being cancelled in April due to you know what.

The last day saw me land and release my PB softbait snapper within minutes of each other - 73cm followed by 74cm and built like absolute tanks (at least 16lb and 17lb based on the 'average' conversion charts). My decision to push through a stiff SWer across to the desolate coastline towards Parengarenga had paid off in spades. One crushed a Z Man 7" Fusilier (and the end of my finger when I tried to extract it!), and the other on a Z Man 8" paddle tail Magswimz in Calico Candy. Two fish in the mid-50s rounded off a spectacular day's fishing in a spectacular place. 

My trusty little FC runabout took me far and wide: up the Rangaunu Harbour and out on the open ocean - including a run to the group of craggy islands near the tip of Cape Karikari, where big NE swells rose up and crashed against the rocks. I pulled two nice snaps out of the wash on 7" Z Man Motor Oil, but felt pretty insignificant once the other boats out there drove off. I prudently followed soon after, riding the following swells home.

I also racked up a good john dory on a 7" Nuked Pilchard from 23m under some bird action out in the middle ground, and saw two big kingies lurking as I wound in a snapper from the same thick bottom sign. Tried winding a big softie on a 1.5oz jighead fast through the activity which got hit - but surprisingly by a 50cm snapper, not a kingie.  I tussled with some horse kahawai during the trip, and two hideous barracudas, but had no joy towing a big Rapala around the harbour entrance in the hope of a kingie.

The trip had got off to an unforgettable start in the shape of an absolutely stunning PB trevally - 77cm and 7kg (15.5lb) - from over the sand in Rangaunu Bay. A long-held dream realised. The full story of that capture will hopefully appear in a future NZ Fishing News.

As usual, the marine life up there was amazing - a huge pod of dolphins jumping and carving in the bow wave at the harbour entrance one day, and squadrons of korora (little blue penguins) honking out at the 20m mark. I also slowly passed over a massive bronzie cruising on the bottom in 3m of water off the beach one early morning, which gave my heart a flicker. Apex predator, for sure.

It's a magical place, and it was hard to point the Hilux south to the re-emerging rat race. But the Far North will call me back. With a trevally trophy of a lifetime nailed, hopefully there is a monster softbait snapper swimming around up there with my name on it.

Some photos from the trip:
 









Replies:
Posted By: brmbrm
Date Posted: 05 Jun 2020 at 10:25pm
Really good stuff - nice trip, nice report, jealous "locked down" (by domestic duties) in Auckland.


Posted By: Motorhead
Date Posted: 05 Jun 2020 at 10:57pm
Great story capturing your trip. That Trev is a monster at >15lb.


Posted By: Muppet
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2020 at 5:49am
Very nice Lester


Posted By: Snappa Geoff
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2020 at 8:05am
Top report lester! Congrats on the PB'sBeer


Posted By: kitno
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2020 at 9:29am
Awesome trip, not jealous at all
Great boats those FC's from what I hear. Perfect for the Grunter Hunter

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Top 10 finish
2024 Grunter Hunter.


Posted By: Sufishent
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2020 at 12:43pm
Great report Lester. 

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You can never have enough fishing tackle


Posted By: foulplay
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2020 at 1:47pm
Fantastic report. Captures the magic and adventure of fishing well. Took my fc390 up round the tip of cape karikari with decent ground swell running. Know the feeling. Felt like being at the edge of the earth when no boats around. Cool place. I look forward to reading the nz fishing news if this is anything to go by.


Posted By: Telecaster
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2020 at 4:49pm
Man that trev must have been a great fight!


Posted By: MB
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2020 at 7:10pm
Cool report Cool


Posted By: Transformations
Date Posted: 06 Jun 2020 at 9:42pm
Great report, thanks for sharing with us👍

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We don't know what we don't need till we've got it


Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2020 at 8:39am
Thanks very much for the positive comments, team. 

We all had to stay put and miss so much prime fishing time over the autumn, so it was great to have a trip that definitely redressed the balance. 

The weather windows are shorter as we sink into winter, but I had some luck in that sense and was rewarded for hard yards on the water. Great memories.


Posted By: FISHBYFLY
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2020 at 9:55am
Great Report LesterClap,

Awseome catches in a wonderfull place, cant get any better than that!


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By Fly, Nothing Else,Just Fly


Posted By: Clifftastic
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2020 at 12:32pm
Lovely trip report Lester. Congrats on the PB's and glad to hear that Fusilier was doing the damage!

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Posted By: shaneg
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2020 at 5:40pm
good one mate, can’t beat a big Trev.. haven’t caught one for long time now.



Posted By: Speedy
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2020 at 8:27pm
Wicked trip - wicked report!!

A place very close to my heart too!

Thanks for taking the time to share....

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Proud supporter of Ronald McDonald House & the team at Legasea

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Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2020 at 5:17pm
Originally posted by Motorhead Motorhead wrote:

Great story capturing your trip. That Trev is a monster at >15lb.

Funny, last night I put away all the jigheads I used on the trip from the 'wash box' into their correct storage and noticed the one I got the trev on was a bit bent out - a 5/0 TT Lures 3/4 oz with 'heavy duty' Mustad hook. The fish certainly had some pulling power. Luckily all my knots held together!! I was using 20lb braid and 20lb leader.


Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2020 at 5:24pm
Originally posted by Clifftastic Clifftastic wrote:

Lovely trip report Lester. Congrats on the PB's and glad to hear that Fusilier was doing the damage!

Thanks Tyler. Haha, yip I actually thought back to our charter with JW as some of the territory looked very similar to Little Barrier - very clear water and you could see bommies interspersed with patches of sand. I remembered my luck on the Fusilier during that trip and put one on! It still looks like Z Man got the colours upside down, with chartreuse on the top and blue on the 'bottom', but the fish don't seem to mind.


Posted By: Motorhead
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2020 at 6:50pm
Originally posted by The Tamure Kid The Tamure Kid wrote:

Originally posted by Motorhead Motorhead wrote:

Great story capturing your trip. That Trev is a monster at >15lb.


Funny, last night I put away all the jigheads I used on the trip from the 'wash box' into their correct storage and noticed the one I got the trev on was a bit bent out - a 5/0 TT Lures 3/4 oz with 'heavy duty' Mustad hook. The fish certainly had some pulling power. Luckily all my knots held together!! I was using 20lb braid and 20lb leader.


That Trev would have pulled like tractor.

Do you run braid that heavy all the time or is it terrain dependent?



Posted By: pjc
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2020 at 7:21pm
Well done TK beats howick shallows

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Sex at 58.Lucky I live at 56


Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2020 at 7:36pm
Sure did. I honestly thought it was a kingie.

I luckily hooked it on my 'heavy' set with a Penn Slammer that I put Tasline 20lb (PE 1.7) on from Kaveman. The spool said it breaks at an average of 34lb. It still casts and sinks really well (quite thin for the rating) and gives me more confidence when in rough country. 

The other reel I used on the trip - a Shimano Stradic - has Varivas PE1 which breaks at "max 20lb" and "average 18lb" on it. i got a kingie on softbait on that last year, so trust that braid over open ground for sure. 

I normally use 16lb fluorocarbon leader around the Waitemata etc, but up it to 20lb for rocky areas and where I'm hoping for a bigger fish. 

Also, I reckon I would have probably lost a couple of the bigger snaps on this trip if I hadn't been using a Mustad Fastach clip - they really wolfed down the softbaits and all that was protruding through their teeth was the clip. A Rapala loop knot would have been right in the danger zone.


Posted By: Motorhead
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2020 at 9:12pm
Originally posted by The Tamure Kid The Tamure Kid wrote:

Sure did. I honestly thought it was a kingie.

I luckily hooked it on my 'heavy' set with a Penn Slammer that I put Tasline 20lb (PE 1.7) on from Kaveman. The spool said it breaks at an average of 34lb. It still casts and sinks really well (quite thin for the rating) and gives me more confidence when in rough country. 

The other reel I used on the trip - a Shimano Stradic - has Varivas PE1 which breaks at "max 20lb" and "average 18lb" on it. i got a kingie on softbait on that last year, so trust that braid over open ground for sure. 

I normally use 16lb fluorocarbon leader around the Waitemata etc, but up it to 20lb for rocky areas and where I'm hoping for a bigger fish. 

Also, I reckon I would have probably lost a couple of the bigger snaps on this trip if I hadn't been using a Mustad Fastach clip - they really wolfed down the softbaits and all that was protruding through their teeth was the clip. A Rapala loop knot would have been right in the danger zone.

I need to get a spool filled with higher rated braid than what I currently use over the sand.
Have hooked large fish following weed lines softbaiting only to be unable to stop them reaching the foul.


Posted By: kaveman
Date Posted: 09 Jun 2020 at 7:14am
Great writeup Lester. Trip to remember for sure. Well done mate Thumbs Up


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www.kavemantackle.co.nz


Posted By: Snotrag
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2020 at 12:37pm
Cool Story mate. Heading up to doubtless next week for 3 weeks of fishing and this story got me excited :)

3 loooong days of work to go!!!


Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2020 at 2:48pm
Cheers for the comment. Three weeks! Lucky bugger. 

There's so much good looking coastline on the Doubtless side, up the Karikari and also around from Mangonui towards Whangaroa. Most of the weather was coming from the east or north east when I was up there, so I didn't seriously consider fishing that side. But I've always wanted to explore it.

You'll have some awesome fishing, I'm sure. Good luck. Look forward to a report.


Posted By: JW
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2020 at 5:52pm
Just got to this. Great stuff Lester, well done. That huge trevally would have been fun. Calico candy :)

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www.northsideadventures.co.nz
www.facebook.com/northsideadventures


Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Date Posted: 14 Jun 2020 at 7:15pm
Originally posted by JW JW wrote:

Just got to this. Great stuff Lester, well done. That huge trevally would have been fun. Calico candy :)

Haha, yip I remembered your success with the Calico colour Jonathan and decided to give the big 8" paddle tail a bash - bingo! Two great fish in two drifts. No idea what they took it for in 18-20m, maybe a squid flicking up over the kelp etc? But that orangey red seems to be one of those colours, like Motor Oil, that looks average to the human eye, but transforms in the water.

It's great to see on Facebook that Northside Adventures is back up and running. Looks like your customers are having some great catches, mate.  I hope to be in a position to sign up for a trip one of these days.


Posted By: Snotrag
Date Posted: 15 Jun 2020 at 5:54am
Thanks mate, I'll def do some reports. I'd like to think in 3 weeks I'll have some stories to tell!!


Posted By: Perchase
Date Posted: 20 Jun 2020 at 4:12pm
Great report, looking forward to the fishing news edition! I was interested to see all the horses caught on larger soft baits, wondering if you had a crack with smaller,4-5 inch ones but the big ones got the best fish?


Posted By: The Tamure Kid
Date Posted: 20 Jun 2020 at 7:11pm
Originally posted by Perchase Perchase wrote:

Great report, looking forward to the fishing news edition! I was interested to see all the horses caught on larger soft baits, wondering if you had a crack with smaller,4-5 inch ones but the big ones got the best fish?

Thanks for that. 
yes, I was surprised that I got the big trev on a 6.5" Nemesis, as the previous ones I got up north have been on the 5" Gulp Crazy Legs or Z Man 5" (mostly in natural colours). I have read they  normally prefer smaller lures.

On this trip my mate and I mostly used 5" Z Mans (curly tail and shad) and the Gulp 5" Crazy legs in the harbour and out in the bay over sand, and we got plenty of pannies on those sizes. I think they are more representative of the stuff they feed on in those areas, and more suitable for the average size of the fish. I occasionally put on a Gulp 6" grub or the Nemesis to mix things up and see if there was a bigger model around - and fortuitously that's what connected with the big trev.

But I fished 7" Z Mans almost exclusively around the rocky islands and coastline, hoping for a big snapper or a stray kingie. And as an experiment put on the big Magswimz after reading the thread in the softbait forum where someone recommended it. And it worked a treat in those conditions. Wouldn't bother with it in my local Waitemata areas, though, other than trying for a marker pole kingie.


Posted By: Johnny Watson
Date Posted: 21 Jun 2020 at 9:32am
Congrats on the PB Trevally Lester. You know it's a trophy when its longer than a legal King! No doubt it scrapped like a demon.

A really enjoyable trip by the sounds, a great report to read, and gets me looking forward to a far north adventure late Summer/Autumn next year.



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