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Who's been saltwater fly fishing? Auckland

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=76582
Printed Date: 29 Mar 2024 at 6:40pm


Topic: Who's been saltwater fly fishing? Auckland
Posted By: FishMan
Subject: Who's been saltwater fly fishing? Auckland
Date Posted: 08 Mar 2012 at 8:00pm
For older postings on Auckland Saltwater Fly Fishing refer to the original 'Who's been fishing?' thread (particularly pages 1 - 38).


New postings for Auckland SWF start here..





Replies:
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 08 Mar 2012 at 8:10pm
It may be a good idea to kick off with a montage of some of the good Auckland pics that have graced these pages.

I tried copying and pasting directly into the topic, but the system wouldn't let me do that Angry.

I could save onto my hard drive and paste, but it's much easier if people post up some pics they've posted before. Would be good to have a gallery of pics first up for people arriving here for the first time Thumbs Up.




Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 08 Mar 2012 at 8:24pm
well to kick things off , I just went for a snapper fish at pt chev , landed three and kept one. Thinking ahead I put a popper on as I waded back to the car park - and sure enough there was a little kingie snuffling around the shallows . I got close enough and got a couple of shots with out any action. I decided to just wait  for a while and then turned around to check behind me and about 2 mtrs away is a bow wave coming directly for me, with the sun in my eyes I plonk the popper down and he takes a strike , but with slack in my hand I do not set the hook well and he bolts ! I will post a picture of the snapper soon.


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 08 Mar 2012 at 9:04pm


Posted By: Troutzilla
Date Posted: 08 Mar 2012 at 10:08pm
Nice one Matto!

Okay heres a couple shots -

My best AK SWF snapper last season - 48cm and in tip top shape! An interesting thing is the date - 30th April.

PB ( and only! ) land based kingi on SWF.

Lastly how my fly caught, ikkied and iced snapper typically end up!





Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 09 Mar 2012 at 8:57am
Nice conditioned snapper their Matto.

Thought I'd better add yet another pic of my Auckland one-and-only legal landbased snapper on fly and another pic of that beautiful terrain.








Posted By: Mike.Thomas
Date Posted: 09 Mar 2012 at 10:45am
Here's a few from Auckland.


Posted By: Troutzilla
Date Posted: 09 Mar 2012 at 10:58am
Thats some real dirty fish porn there Mike....LOL



Posted By: Troutzilla
Date Posted: 09 Mar 2012 at 11:05am
Perhaps some Auckland specific terminology too ?

Meoled - as in "my flyline doesnt shoot or float anymore, in fact its pretty much Meoled"


Posted By: EditB
Date Posted: 09 Mar 2012 at 11:10am
No longer do you need to say " Honey I'm off for a fish" now you can say " Honey I'm going on strike" cause you're off to join the picket line


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I do not lie about fishing, I willingly participate in a campaign of misinformation.


Posted By: Muppet
Date Posted: 09 Mar 2012 at 11:24am
Anyone making those skullhead flies. I fancy my chances of flicking those out better and have got some mean spots to try in the yak.


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 09 Mar 2012 at 2:42pm
Yep, they work well. Proven on snapper and kingis. However, hook rides down in standard configuration. This can make them snag prone. You can turn the head over to make them ride hook up, but this only works with a light gauge hook. 


Posted By: Pole Dancer
Date Posted: 09 Mar 2012 at 3:09pm
Originally posted by troutzilla troutzilla wrote:

Perhaps some Auckland specific terminology too ?

Meoled - as in "my flyline doesnt shoot or float anymore, in fact its pretty much Meoled"


Get your self 1 square meter of shade cloth. Put a 2 oz sinker at each corner... Just throw it down over the rocks and strip the line onto that. easy to pick up and carry when moving and keeps your line safe from the oysters.


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http://www.clarkreid.co.nz" rel="nofollow - www.clarkreid.co.nz    FFF Certified Casting Instructor / Umpqua Designer Tier


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2012 at 3:06pm
If anyone wants a good snap shot of what is in the harbour today , make it along to the weigh in and fish auction at Te Atatu boat club - harbour comp. Next year we might see a fly section with prizes from Rod and Reel. Personally I don't go for the fishing comp thing however a fun day and chance to see what us flyflingers can catch would be worthwhile - also a chance to catch up at the club afterwards. The chance to win a fly line for our section would be coolSmile 


Posted By: Mike.Thomas
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2012 at 5:29pm
Okay, since my last post was indeed filthy, here is a cleaner one from early this week.



I had a chance a quick flick at Ti point on Friday evening, did not catch anything but it is a good looking spot. I may return sometime soon with plenty of burly!
All the best.
Mike


Posted By: flygimp
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2012 at 9:31pm
Had six kings today - 4 over legal size, best 80cm. All lovingly returned and no fingers in gills...










Posted By: flygimp
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2012 at 10:12pm
 
Originally posted by Mike.Thomas Mike.Thomas wrote:

Okay, since my last post was indeed filthy, here is a cleaner one from early this week.



I had a chance a quick flick at Ti point on Friday evening, did not catch anything but it is a good looking spot. I may return sometime soon with plenty of burly!
All the best.
Mike

For the reef that is one spanking snapper on the fly Mike, fly porn star kudos to you bro!!!! Clap


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 11 Mar 2012 at 7:58am
Brent, that's a great line-up of kings off the buoys. Your average 'rat' does seem to be of good size this year, with a few over legal. I got nutted by a legal fish the other day when I made the mistake of casting in front of the buoy as I was drifting down one side. Of course the king just went down the other side and around Angry.

That is a beaut looking snapper Mike. It must be one of the biggest from Meola so far. But the camera angles do help a lot. I'm going to try that trick because a fly rod sitting higher than the fish always makes the fish look a lot smaller.



Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 11 Mar 2012 at 10:03am
If that was the fish Mike got when Troutzilla and I were there , I can confirm it was a goodie , fat and bigger than my biggest but maybe as not as big as troutzillas biggest? not that its a pissing contest! But I suspect we are all intrigued by what the possibilities are out on the reef. I heard a very reliable report of a 1.5 meter threasher shark caught in a mullet net up the Whau creek last week. Excellent work Fly gimp on the channel marker kingies !!I accepted an offer to go softbaiting in a 6mtr tinny with some old friends , and cast a hookless popper at the markers as we went down the channel, not wanting to catch them myself on non fly gear I was trying to set someone else up to take a shot , perhaps the tide was not running enough but I could'nt raise any. While there were no really big work ups  down the north side of Rangi there were a number of small fast moving bust ups from good size Kahawai feeding on very small bait- perhaps the first signs of the anchovie work ups? 


Posted By: nymphOmaniac
Date Posted: 11 Mar 2012 at 10:40am
I went out yesterday into the waitemata harbour and managed to hook up inot what i believe was my first snapper on the fly and i got smoked. Got down to the backing before it smashed my fly off on some rocks.
i am all hiped for some more action now.


Posted By: Pole Dancer
Date Posted: 11 Mar 2012 at 1:51pm
Good work all... Yes our Kings here (rats) are bigger than most years too...

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http://www.clarkreid.co.nz" rel="nofollow - www.clarkreid.co.nz    FFF Certified Casting Instructor / Umpqua Designer Tier


Posted By: Mike.Thomas
Date Posted: 12 Mar 2012 at 6:43am
That is some fantastic fishing Flygimp! Nice.
I never measured the snapper so not sure on excact size, but can confirm the fillets were very tasty!
All the best.
Mike


Posted By: RC17
Date Posted: 12 Mar 2012 at 10:50am
after spending a few 'work' hours going through these forums, as an Auckland based trout fisherman and someone who spends far more time thinking about fly fishing than my girlfriend would like, think its about time to give this SWF a crack! anything to put a bend in the fly rod after work - looks like a heap of fun! Later in the week looks pretty good for weather and tide?


Posted By: Mike.Thomas
Date Posted: 12 Mar 2012 at 11:42am
Hi RC17, Early Friday look good for Meola, I may hit from around 6:00, low tide is about 8:30 so a couple of hours at dawn should be good.
If you can make it drop me a pm.
All the best.
Mike


Posted By: RC17
Date Posted: 12 Mar 2012 at 3:45pm
For sure Mike! my thoughts exactly...


Posted By: Snuffit.
Date Posted: 12 Mar 2012 at 4:49pm
Originally posted by flygimp flygimp wrote:

Had six kings today - 4 over legal size, best 80cm. All lovingly returned and no fingers in gills...








Nice fish there Brent, sweeeeeeeeeeetttt

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You cant eat my toast fish


Posted By: Jofly
Date Posted: 13 Mar 2012 at 12:34pm
Was out the other afternoon chasing the kahawai schools off east coast bays.  Was good fun.  I caught some small ones on fly but was mostly driving the boat.  Lots of schools around but not a lot of big kahawai. Lots of juvenile and medium sized ones.

Probably heading out again this week thurs/friday.  Have to catch up on fishing before I head off accross the ditch.


Posted By: flygimp
Date Posted: 13 Mar 2012 at 10:03pm
Originally posted by Nick F Nick F wrote:

Nice fish there Brent, sweeeeeeeeeeetttt

Cheers Nick, every angler gets one red letter day a year I reckon. 
Still trying for a big pink slab off the reef though. Smile


Posted By: RC17
Date Posted: 16 Mar 2012 at 12:02pm
went out for my first ever SWF this morning on Meola - success! Caught my first snapper on the fly 3rd or 4th cast (and thought hey this is pretty straight forward Tongue), ended up managing a couple more nice little snapper and a kahawai. Caught up with Mike and he was nice enough to show me a few spots and give me some tips! beautiful morning on the water, great fun on the 6 weight Big smile


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 16 Mar 2012 at 1:12pm
good work rc17 , easy eh!


Posted By: Mike.Thomas
Date Posted: 17 Mar 2012 at 9:53am
Went out Friday early morning, it is "interesting" crossing a thigh deep creek in the dark, while wondering if there any nice stingrays about. It was great to watch the sunrise from the reef.

I caught one nice pannie in the dark, then another just as rc17 turned up. He managed his first on fly.


and a few others as well, not bad for a first go rich!
Not long after that we moved a bit further out and I managed a nice Snapper from this spot, then rc17 had to head off to work.
I fished on for a few more fish including my best of the day


Just after this I hooked a very good fish that dealt to me big time, busting me off on the reef after I had coaxed him out of the kelp and was just thinking I might be in with a chanceOuch Estimating size is hard I know but I think it may have been in the 5 to 6 pound range. Ah well next time.
It was pleasure to catch up rc17, thanks for the company.
All the best.
Mike


Posted By: Bushkid2
Date Posted: 17 Mar 2012 at 10:37am
Myself, a mate and some random Hillbilly from up north went for a last minute fish at Meola picket fence last night surprisingly it was deserted of other flyflingers. Me and my mate fished with a bit of burley thrown in where ever we tried whilst the Hillbilly from up north went purist style refusing to use burley (he was however seen fishing downstream of our burley).
Hillbilly landed the first and most likely biggest fish on one of his flies that he found in my flybox whilst complaining about the lack of good flies in said flybox. We continued to try a few spots along the reef before being chased off by failing light and lack of a torch. All up it was a nice evening with good company and a few or more fish thrown in. No kingfish seen but never mind.
 Thanks for coming for a last minute fish Craig and hope the drive back up north was not  too much torture, yee gods it must have been late when you got home. I was in the pooh when i got home as I didn't ask if I could borrow Sev's rod but was forgiven because i said you used it not me (she gets real ratty with me borrowing her rods because I have habit of breaking them).


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 17 Mar 2012 at 3:23pm
Rod was beautiful (thanks Sev Thumbs Up) flies were awful. You really should steal some good ones Smile.

I was highly stressed after the maniac drive through Auckland traffic, then I had to share the reef with two others. Still a great place though.

I did note that if you want to be a purist and wander around a bit with an untainted fly you will find the snags Angry.

I did notice there are some nice patches of crushed oysters developing in the most popular spots..



Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 17 Mar 2012 at 9:21pm
Meola picket fence was 2 strong on Sat morning. I tried a bit of popping and hooked a small kahawai. Then RC17 wandered by on the way to Pool Number 1. I wandered over while he was pulling snapper out like a hungry otter in a trout farm. Interesting to see a real world example of selective snapper - he was getting hits on a small pink Yoshi thingy while my 2/0 interceptor was completely ignored - but then maybe the fact the originator had recently trespassed on Meola had put the fish off that pattern ...Tongue
So I changed to a size 8 whitebait fly and started getting hits despite the increasingly turbid water as the wind picked up and the tide rose.
One odd thing - about half of the snapper I hooked went into weed and stuck there. Luckily the spot was close in so I waded out and pulled them free! Has never happened before even with my bigger ones here- anyone else had this happen?
And burley does work - I found at least three large chunks of pilchard in one of my keepers - no purist snapper here, Craig!
 
Good fishing with you RC17!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Then I hooked a few keepers on the tiny fly ...
 
 


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 17 Mar 2012 at 9:47pm
So now the pools have names. Which one's are Wolfie's Reach and Matto's Mud Hole ? LOL

I really like being a purist Cool because it seems to make all you lesser mortals grumpy LOL .

I'll be out there again with my ghillie sometime soon.

Good to see the reel getting some use Thumbs Up.



Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 17 Mar 2012 at 9:55pm
And all my flies come with a clause that states "the fly designer is not responsible for the fishing ability of the bloke on the other end"  LOLLOLLOL


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 18 Mar 2012 at 9:23am
Hope someone got a last few moments in on Meola this morning. Raining here with weather collapsing. Looks like a virtual TC hitting us directly. It's going to be a fly tying weekend. 


Posted By: RC17
Date Posted: 18 Mar 2012 at 12:27pm
great to meet you wolfie, was nice to fish without having to rush off to work afterwards Smile im still wondering what it was the gave you the working over...


Posted By: RC17
Date Posted: 18 Mar 2012 at 12:28pm
*that gave you . post st patricks day spelling....Dead


Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 18 Mar 2012 at 2:26pm
Originally posted by RC17 RC17 wrote:

great to meet you wolfie, was nice to fish without having to rush off to work afterwards Smile im still wondering what it was the gave you the working over...
Had forgot about that - think that the speed was more kahawai than snapper but in those few seconds was only certain that it had more weight behind it than the ones we pulled out. Another Meola mystery monster missed!
Drop me a pm if you want to see some of the other pics, Cheers.


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 8:13am
Trev at the Chev with his mighty six weight.
The man is a machine, it took a while for the fish to come on and for us to work out where they were , however when we found them we were shoulder to shoulder casting across each other , well I was behind him trying to sneak my fly to where  he was casting, we caught 20 between us, and only 5 were mine. It was a real pleasure to see him really working his fly system so well , 6wt , small fly , jerky retrieve , about 1 meter leader. I am convinced the sensitivity  all added up to him feeling the tease and turning touches into hook ups , I even started fishing one of his flies , otherwise I really am just a @#$% fisherman.



Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 8:31am
ClapClap

Gee, must be time for Trev to go home now..  LOL

Picture of secret fly please Smile


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 8:42am
ha ha , its a small marabou tail with a brown sparkle fibre head and dumbell eyes , he calls it a "interceptor " Yes time to go now Trev , put down the six weight and walk quietly away!LOL


Posted By: Snuffit.
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 11:09am
Well that's a fine way to end your trip Trev.

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You cant eat my toast fish


Posted By: Mike.Thomas
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 12:45pm
Nice one Trev, have a safe journey home, see you next time.
All the best.
Mike


Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 4:28pm
Originally posted by matto matto wrote:

Trev at the Chev with his mighty six weight.
 It was a real pleasure to see him really working his fly system so well , 6wt , small fly , jerky retrieve , about 1 meter leader. I am convinced the sensitivity  all added up to him feeling the tease and turning touches into hook ups , I even started fishing one of his flies , otherwise I really am just a @#$% fisherman.
 
This season has been quite different for me.  
In the last few years the routine was bigger flies, #2 to 2/0 and the snapper would virtually hook themselves 100% on the strike. This time round most success has been on smaller flies than previously and the snapper often seem to have "shy" phases where they are nipping the fly.
 
Maybe they're getting educated?Geek
Maybe I need to change down to a 5 kg leader from 10 (and get wiped out by a decent fish 5 mins later...)
 
 


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 5:33pm
we were both fishing 10 kg leaders Wolfie, perhaps they are getting shy , I think it's more likely food source, small flies have been working for me, and then I have been mixing it up especially once I have a couple of fish in the bag, then I have been going through my fly collection trying to see whats working.I am about to tie some new ones based on that session, Trev way out fished me.He also kindly gave me a spare 6wt rod that would not go in his luggage so that will be interesting to help figure that session out.It was also a very specific strike zone and once on the spot he did not budge !LOL


Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 7:35pm
I agree Matto, I have found Pt Chev to be a place where it often pays to search around for the fish rather than expect them in the same place all the time - but once you find them they will usually hold in the same spot for a while, even without burley!
To  "match the hatch" is always a good starting point for selecting a pattern. But like Craig was saying not too long ago, he will tie a fly with over-sized clouser eyes that wouln't shame a booby fly bouyancy aids for size. And it isnt to sink faster but to anchor it in position because snapper like slow/stationary presentations.  And not knowing that you could fish the fly "incorrectly" as a standard streamer and miss the advantage it offers over a standard dressing.
 
This could end up like a trout fly dressers who obsess over what breed of bird a hackle came from is correct or not - but the fish don't care, of course. I think the thing is to be able to present a fly in the best way that suits the water clarity, depth, prevailing current, lighting conditions etc and be representative of a prey form enough to attract the fish's attention.


Posted By: Pole Dancer
Date Posted: 19 Mar 2012 at 10:49pm
I think the "delicate" takes to standard takes are nothing to do with food source or "getting shy". I think it's just how snapper feed sometimes in most every season. They have been doing it a lot more this season because of the changeable conditions but it happens with them every year at different times... just probably encountering it more this season... just stay sharp.

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http://www.clarkreid.co.nz" rel="nofollow - www.clarkreid.co.nz    FFF Certified Casting Instructor / Umpqua Designer Tier


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 20 Mar 2012 at 9:57am
Here is Trev's small interceptor version, reading wolfie's response and looking at the fly it would have a obvious head down stance when in pause mode , confirms what has been said, and the success of the CW interceptor pattern. I agree with Clarks comment's re soft takes , and find that the tentative nibbles can change to confident smashes with a tide change , time of day, weather etc etc -The other fly is a zonker tail fly that has been working for me, however I think I will go for bigger eyes and get that stance thing going on.These are small hooks my flyliner hook has a gape of 10mm.






Posted By: shoreefishing
Date Posted: 20 Mar 2012 at 5:58pm
Hi guys

Thinking of having a flick on meola tomorrow if the wind and rain stay away.

Any thoughts if that would be a waste giving water clarity etc ?


Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 20 Mar 2012 at 10:59pm
Hey matto, here's an interesting variation on the theme of a "stand up" fly ... possibly a bit more risky to snag, but maybe a better position to set the hook when striking?
 


Posted By: Pole Dancer
Date Posted: 20 Mar 2012 at 11:05pm
Nice... I like them all :)

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http://www.clarkreid.co.nz" rel="nofollow - www.clarkreid.co.nz    FFF Certified Casting Instructor / Umpqua Designer Tier


Posted By: Pole Dancer
Date Posted: 20 Mar 2012 at 11:06pm
You should see the sorry excuse for a fly he got the Kingie on... my God... it was not a Draper's Snapper Fly, it was a remnant of a Draper's Snapper Fly... I was simultaneously intrigued and disgusted byt he kingfish for eating it... LOL Can't argue it worked though.

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http://www.clarkreid.co.nz" rel="nofollow - www.clarkreid.co.nz    FFF Certified Casting Instructor / Umpqua Designer Tier


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 6:33am
I got to see that fly - shocker , worse that just a hook with a bit of fluff - that goes to show it's always easy to over think these things. 
I really like those flies Wolfie, will be interesting to see how we go after this discusssion?



Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 21 Mar 2012 at 6:56am
hi shoreefishing,
if you have a chance and  an inclination to go fishing I would say it's never a waste of time, especially with meola as it has so many little nooks that all do different things on different tides and weather. Personally a warm n/e wind is my favourite and really brings the snapper on the bite , I suspect there will be patches of clear water and I am sure you could fish the side with the wind to your back, however if you can fish into the onshore that might be where the fish are ?? 


Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 23 Mar 2012 at 11:06pm
Here's a google earth photo of the tip of Te Atatu Peninsula - so are these marine crop circles or some ancient Maori fish traps or ???
 And most importantly - are they any good as fishing structures?
 
 
 


Posted By: Millsy
Date Posted: 24 Mar 2012 at 8:05am
Are they not the old high tension power line footings? A guess I admit.

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http://www.revoflyfish.co.nz/" rel="nofollow">


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 24 Mar 2012 at 9:16am
Hey Wolfie , since its so close to home for me I should comment, they are rock structures designed to help the sand /shell build up and create those mini beaches ( enhances property value?) and minimize erosion? Thats a guess . but they are fairly recent additions. As for fishability , yes they do offer some structure for kingies or Kahawai to stalk around on the high tide , and there is sign of snapper grubbing , the bottom is a mixture of mud/shell and some underlying volcanic rock. I have only checked it a few times on the hightide from the shore looking for kingies cruising the shallows. I have seen one working a little gutter near some mangroves once.There is a little mangrove area with dry shell towards the top of the photo which I am sure would be fishable but have only waded out once to try.Like so much of Auckland Harbour fish will certainly appear at times , it just seems to lack an extra element to make it a consistent fish producer. Having said that , this season has shown me to not make judgements based on a just few attempts.


Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 24 Mar 2012 at 12:44pm
Thanks Matto for the info. Used to fish off the concrete piers at Mission Bay as a kid, spinning for kahawai - an easy way to extend your fishing zone. Which reminds me to try the new ones they built at that beach as they were a easy fishing spot into reltively deep water at high tide.


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 24 Mar 2012 at 9:06pm
Hi Wolfie , I went for a stroll at the local secret spot , with my 6wt for a  pure fly sesh, water was murky , the wind was strong and the rain was wet, however after a while of moving around looking for some clear patches I got this guy- made it worthwhile. I cannot do our date on the shell bank tomorrow hope you have a good one, out of sync again it seems .Smile
.


Posted By: shoreefishing
Date Posted: 25 Mar 2012 at 8:23am
Well done matto, I fished it briefly in Tuesday but couldn't find any clean water and came home empty.

Hopefully the weather gets better this week for a return visit.


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 25 Mar 2012 at 8:29am
Matto, that's a nice fish. I like to mix up berley fly with pure fly sessions. Both require different approaches and make you apply fly fishing in different ways.

Had good success on purple and pink interceptors yesterday (berley fly) in post-flood water that looks a bit like green tea mixed with milk Smile. This must have proved something as I have found bolder colours are better than white/silver/yellow in low viz water.

So yeah, I'm tying up some dull tan numbers for the sparkling waters of Aitutaki..



Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 25 Mar 2012 at 8:58pm
Got out to Pt Chev this morning. Bit breezy, water a tad murky, but also hooked up two small snapper fairly quickly in the main channel on a small fly I borrowed from Craig ( try to return it on my next visit!).
 
Then nothing for quite a while until tide turned and put on a large 2/0 interceptor-ish which got nailed by a kahawai with aerial capbilities ...
 
 
All on the 5wt which handled the wind and the heavy flies much better than I expected.
 
 
Also saw several large swirls which didn't look like predatory chasing, maybe mullet? Certainly no hits when I cast at them.Cry
 


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 25 Mar 2012 at 9:11pm
Aha! I've been wondering about that glaring hole in my flybox Wink LOL

Nice kahawai jumping pic.


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2012 at 6:54am

Here's some action for you. Kahawai and 'fish' plus muttonducks and terns herding anchovies and pilchards up onto the beach at Rothesay Bay. Interestingly, we had the same action at Longbeach in Russell, although it stayed just out of casting range.

Looks like no trouble getting to this lot.





Picture found on another site on the web. Action was yesterday - Sunday 25th.



Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2012 at 7:59am
Good work Wolfie, thats a great fattie kahawai and by the look of that east coast bays action we might be in for a few more.Nice timing on the Kahawai jumping pic.


Posted By: shoreefishing
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2012 at 3:10pm
Hi Craig

Well I couldn't resist after seeing those east coast bays workups. Dashed home from work this morning and grabbed the rod and heading around the corner to Torbay.  A large workup was developing between Waiake and Winstones Cove.

Well had a great fun hour landed about 12, both on popper and whitebait fly and now back to work ha-ha.



The whitebait were so scared they had beached themselves in rock-pools.


Anyhow lets hope for more of the same in the coming weeks.

Cheers

Wayne


Posted By: EditB
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2012 at 5:24pm
Matchin the hatch nice one

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I do not lie about fishing, I willingly participate in a campaign of misinformation.


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2012 at 7:54pm
That's cool Wayne. Gotta love the power of the internet.


Thumbs Up


Posted By: shoreefishing
Date Posted: 26 Mar 2012 at 10:23pm
Yeah Craig

I spent a couple of hours on Sunday having a beer with a few friends at the new pub at Browns Bay , looking out to see watching terns diving. So I needed to get amongst it today.

What are your thoughts abouh these workups are snapper in an amongst those kawhai in close?


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 27 Mar 2012 at 6:03am
More trevally than snapper in the beach work-ups usually. If you're over sand you've got to get your fly really low on the sand to get trevally, but there can be a lot there. This is in the Bay of Islands at least, don't see why East Coast Bays should be any different. If anything - it is better trevally habitat.


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2012 at 12:11pm
yep , the Kahawai have begun to move into the harbour after the anchovies , Cam got this guy and then a snapper that was almost 500mm by suspending a baitfish fly at rods length in the current. He had been seeing swirls and having mysterious follows, looks like the snapper had been ambushing baitfish at his feet. Hopefully Cam will confirm what diet both fish were on?. I managed a few snapper around the 30cm mark , but I think cams fly was a better match.Damn nice to see such a epic fight from a fat Kahawai , hope Cam's knuckles will be further encouragement to upgrade his 10 wt reel! BTW cam makes fish seem smaller than they really are.Smile


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 31 Mar 2012 at 3:53pm
Matto, that's good to see. Looks like snapper and kahawai are getting bigger as the season progresses. We get kahawai chasing anchovies around right up on the mudflats at this time of year. Good fun wading around in knee deep water casting at explosions everywhere.


Posted By: mike thomas
Date Posted: 02 Apr 2012 at 8:33am
Had a fish on Sunday with Matt, Lewis and Steve, the later two visitors from the UK, We started at Meola and fished it fairly hard for only a couple of small snapper, the currents were very strange, seemed to be flowing one way on top and the other way under the surface and I think this is one reason we did not do better. However Matt managed his first decent Kahawai on a Popper fly, it gave his 6# a real working over! I managed a good Kahawai not long after and then it was time to head off.
We had a quick bite to eat then headed to the shell banks at Point Chev, the fishing was again very hard, no sign of any Snapper, I wonder if they haver started to depart for the winter?
Anyway it was a good fun day and I know the two English visitors loved every minute of it, Thanks to Matto again for sharing his knowledge of the reef and the fishing with two keen visitors.
I will try to sort out a pic of the Fish tonight.
All the best.
Mike


Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 02 Apr 2012 at 10:43am
Originally posted by mike thomas mike thomas wrote:

Had a fish on Sunday with Matt, Lewis and Steve, the later two visitors from the UK, We started at Meola and fished it fairly hard for only a couple of small snapper, the currents were very strange, seemed to be flowing one way on top and the other way under the surface and I think this is one reason we did not do better.
 
Had similar experience at Meola during an easterly wind in Feb - currents in the channels looked to be going opposite way to normal in some places and got no result from those - but in the pools it fished OK.
 
Roll on Easter and next opportunity to get out there!


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 02 Apr 2012 at 4:28pm
"However Matt managed his first decent Kahawai on a Popper fly, it gave his 6# a real working over! I managed a good Kahawai not long after and then it was time to head off."
Nup it was Lewis how scored that Kahawai and then you got your thumper , gee do I have to keep all  the scores !
Great day thanks , and even though we were zilched at pt Chev its always interesting to fish two spots on the same day for a comparison. I think that s/e brezze and small tides were against us. Very cool to see those big fat Kahawai around.



Posted By: mike thomas
Date Posted: 03 Apr 2012 at 6:29am
Quite right Matto, a bit of a typo there!Embarrassed
Here is a couple of pics of the Kahawai
All the best.
Mike


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 03 Apr 2012 at 6:40am
its a biggie !Thumbs Up 


Posted By: Rudy
Date Posted: 03 Apr 2012 at 8:44am
Wow.  Rotund!Smile
 


Posted By: mike thomas
Date Posted: 10 Apr 2012 at 10:00am
Fished Meola on Sunday, looks like things are starting to change. Not as many snapper around but I did manage a few small fat ones and Matto got at least one keeper that I saw.
The tide was a big one, the outer part of the reef was walkable and Matto spent a couple of hours way out there. It was a lovely sunny day and a good way to spend a few hours exploring.
All the best.
Mike
 


Posted By: shoreefishing
Date Posted: 11 Apr 2012 at 10:06pm
Fished the reef on Tuesday , was a great day very calm .

Meet Matto's mate and had a very enjoyable but fruitless couple of hours.

Lots of baitfish around but no takes :(

Matt arrived and bet me his mortgage that there would be snapper in the hole we fished.

So how did you go Matto am I the proud owner of more debt ?

Wayne


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 11 Apr 2012 at 10:24pm
Yep,a hard won pannie buys me a life of leisure,I will send the paperwork tomorrow.i reckon the snapper sit in there until the tide starts again.wish I knew what fly or retrieve would make them bite?any more anchovies around the bays?


Posted By: [email protected]
Date Posted: 11 Apr 2012 at 10:48pm
Yes, did notice the water temp seemed cooler on Monday. End of the golden weather. Roll on soccer season ...Sleepy


Posted By: shoreefishing
Date Posted: 12 Apr 2012 at 11:21am
Haha nice Matt i'll await the paperwork.

Yep the birds are still working north of Browns Bay, heading to taupo Tomorow to catch some trout , will hook into them when I get back hopefully.

What fly did you get him on ? , nice to know those pools still holding fish.


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 12 Apr 2012 at 12:40pm
small white /pink closer, It was really hard work for 1 fish from that pool, I left it alone for a while and got another small snapper further out. When I went back to that pool I kept a low profile and a quiet approach , short cast's and minimum retrieve's. I suspect there may have been a few fish but they seem to hole up until the tide starts to flow. I wonder wether they might switch on to the easy feed of pilchard chunks , which probably waft past them if they sit in the right spot, which is why I left it alone for a while and went back with just the fly.I really don't know what to conclude, but it show's that saltwater fish can be easy at times but to consistently catch them it's alot more complicated. I say this as I often think trout fisherman perceive kahawai, snapper and kingfish are easy to catch based on an experience when the fish are on and smashing anything that is in front of them.


Posted By: flygimp
Date Posted: 12 Apr 2012 at 2:00pm
Originally posted by shoreefishing shoreefishing wrote:

Haha nice Matt i'll await the paperwork.

Yep the birds are still working north of Browns Bay, heading to taupo Tomorow...

Might see you down that way. I'll be spey casting on the Tongariro tomorrow afternoon.


Posted By: FISHBYFLY
Date Posted: 12 Apr 2012 at 5:50pm
that anchovie action is the stuff to target
had a blast on monday at a spot north of auckland
huge school of big kahwai attacking those litttle morsels
forced into a little bay were youd hook up, fight like hell, release, literally drop the fly at your feet,
hook up again and on and on it went!!!
seen a big Trevally cruising deep helping himself  to all the regurgetated chaos,
mate busted his 6 weight on a fish, threw the broken bit behind his back, cast out and hooked up again, epic. i ripped one o my shoes nearly in half on a oyster clump when i fell flat on my face while  running to keep up with the school, chaos!


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 15 Apr 2012 at 7:26am
Adam, yep, that anchovy action is brilliant when it comes in close. It was all on around here a couple of weeks ago after the rain. Now it seems to have died a bit. Got the youngest armed and ready with a spin rod but not seeing any terns in close... yet.




Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 15 Apr 2012 at 7:29am
With regard to meola and upper harbour fishing I thought this article of Geoff Thomas' was interesting. The 'seasonality' of the place and the best times for it firing (northerlies, easterlies) sound very familiar. It seems Auckland fish like it warm.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10798832 - http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10798832




Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 15 Apr 2012 at 9:01am
I have to admit I get excited by a drizzly 15 knot northerly, intrigued by a brezzey westerly, deflated by a cold southerly, and depending on wether the easterly has an angle of warm tropical air or cold antarctic, I swing either way. Best bet is always to go fishing! I think different spots respond to each wind and how hard and long its been blowing.I find a day of south-easterly seems to shut down the harbour fishing but if it persists then the fish seem to move into feed in pockets of water then become active. The best session with Trevlett at pt Chev was in a howling southeasterly ,but because it was in effect a sheltered corner the food and water clarity meant the fish were condensed and hungry. Unless its really murky or un-castable I would go for a brezzey onshore anyday.


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 16 Apr 2012 at 7:29am
I went for a look at meola yesterday evening , I  started fishing after 5  so had limited time, but the conditions were superb , the light onshore dropped away to glass and snapper with swirling under the pilchard pieces that I sparingly lobbed in the water. I was surprised to only catch two snapper(each about 30cm) as they were being really bold , also lots of Kahawai around the 20cm size. It's not over yet !


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 16 Apr 2012 at 7:32am
Good onya Matto. I was just looking at the seven day forecast and thinking this big high with light easterlies for Auckland are just about perfect conditions for the upper Waitemata.


Posted By: RC17
Date Posted: 16 Apr 2012 at 10:07am
went out on meola for a couple of hours first thing sunday morning. seemed to be less snapper activity, but managed 2 snapper around 30-32cm, a couple of undersized ones, 1 massive kahawai which strangely didn't put up much of a scrap on the 6 weight (maybe it didn't feel the hook?), and 1 kahawai which smoked me (i assume it was a good kahawai)... 


Posted By: mike thomas
Date Posted: 16 Apr 2012 at 11:02am
Good to hear they are still there! Will have to try to get out after work one day this week!
All the best.
Mike


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 16 Apr 2012 at 12:17pm
I think I found a surf candy fly of yours then RC17 - Good to hear you got smoked , I did see a kingie out there 3 days ago, however some of those big kahawai go really hard , and funny how some just give up and let u wind them in, perhaps defeatist fish with low self esteem?


Posted By: RC17
Date Posted: 16 Apr 2012 at 2:36pm
yea it was really strange, heaps of weight, but just kind of cruised on in, got it to shore, then i think it realized what was up and starting thrashing around... ironically it had one of my burly chunks in its mouth also which i recycled haha 

there was a massive smash of the surface about 100 yards to the left of where i was fishing, can only assume it was a bronzey or a very decent kingy


Posted By: BigEarn
Date Posted: 16 Apr 2012 at 2:48pm
There have been a bunch of very decent Kingies around Meola, when I fished it Monday last week. Have seen lots of Kingies there before, but not to that size. They were chasing the sprats a few meters away from where I was fishing, but as most of the time, they ignored my offerings. Seems I only hook (and lose Ermm) them, when I don't see them before. Wolfie tried to convince them with poppers, but while I was there, no success either. Ended up with a small Kahawai and a nice Snapper for dinner that day. 


Posted By: matto
Date Posted: 16 Apr 2012 at 3:40pm
sheez , thats just the sort of news to interupt my attempts to think 
about doing some workSmile


Posted By: shoreefishing
Date Posted: 19 Apr 2012 at 5:03pm
Hi guys

I'm posting this from the comfort of my taxi on the way into the city for dinner.

Big work up southern end of browns bay just now all within casting distance, will have to take morning off work tomorow and hope they will still be around !

Just thought you may like to know haha

Cheers guys

Wayne



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