NZ Fisher Issue 34

ISSUE 34

March 2014

Huge Snapper on Livebait

Marlin, marlin everywhere!

www.nzfisher.co.nz 1

Live and breathe boating?

Introducing the new Honda BF80 and BF100.

“

“

Since I’ve changed to a Honda outboard I’ve experienced considerable fuel savings across the rev range. I can’t believe how quiet the engine is and the performance is outstanding. I have to say “I love my Honda.”

- Graeme Sinclair

Call for a quote, you will be amazed at Honda’s value!

Freephone 0800 478 765 or visit www.hondamarine.co.nz.

Contents 6...Live Baiting for Big Fish 10.. HONDA Reveals new 80hp and 100hp Engines

12.. What does a charter skipper do on his days off? Go fishing of course!

14..The Accidental Marlin 18..Beef Jerky 20..Flats on the flats 22..Risky Business 24..Fly flinging in the Queensland Sun 25..The art of fishing 26..Green Lipped Mussels 30..Mussels Rebuidling Gulf Health 32..Reader Pics 34..Competitons 36..Last Word

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Editorial THIS YEAR HAS kicked off with a flurry of marlin captures, many of very impressive size and a few really notable captures, not least the striped marlin taken on a stick-bait aboard the charter vessel Enchanter this month.

I’ve dreamed of hooking a marlin on a stick bait – it’s a thrill that will only ever be limited to a small number of anglers. The second capture is another stripy landed aboard ‘Sanity’, skippered by Toby Kemp, by angler Deric Fairley. Deric’s fish took a live bait intended for a kingfish on jigging gear rather than Marlin. The most surprising thing is how quickly Deric landed the fish; just 20 minutes from hook-up to tagging. Sensational on this tackle.

In other areas, things are not so great.

“The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope.”

John Buchan

And hope we do. Sadly, reports on the state of fishing in the Hauraki Gulf are of very poor snapper returns. Some of the anecdotal reports from the charter fleet put catches at 50% of last year and the worst season in 20 years.

Not a good look unfortunately.

This downturn is a slap in the face after our bags were cut and the minimum size reduced while there’s still blatant destruction of fish and ecosystems in the same shared fishery by the hands of commercial trawlers. The insanity of the situation is gut wrenching.

Please keep in touch with the team at Legasea.

The next species we’re facing the loss of is the very commercially dominated Crayfish fishery.

There’s a shonky process being forced upon us with little time to prepare and respond.

Please, do your bit or we’re up for another whitewash.

Again, on a more pleasant note we’ve had a stellar month chasing Flounder across Auckland. Check out the story later in this issue.

There’s also been such a great response to Leanne’s Sailfish article last month, we’ve included a few videos from the trip for your viewing pleasure!

Tight lines NZFishers,

Derrick

ABOUT / Short and sharp, NZ Fisher is a free e-magazine delivering thought provoking and enlightening articles, and industry news and information to forwardthinking fisher people.

EDITOR / Derrick Paull GROUP EDITOR / Nick Harley ART DIRECTOR / Jodi Olsson CONTENT ENQUIRIES / Phone Derrick on 021 629 327 or email derrickp@NZ Fisher.co.nz ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES / Phone Richard on 09 522 7257 or email richardl@espiremedia.com ADDRESS / NZ Fisher, C/- Espire Media, PO Box 137162, Parnell, Auckland 1151, NZ WEBSITE / www.NZFisher.co.nz

This is a GREEN MAG, created and distributed without the use of paper so it's environmentally friendly. Please think before you print. Thank you!

COVER: Darren Parsons with a 20lb+++ Snapper taken on a livebait, see page 6 for the full story INSET:Deric Fairleys Marlin Image credit: Toby Kemp

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NEWTECHNIQUESANDTACKLE

Live

Baiting for Big Fish It’s not the only way to go, but it’s pretty damn effective!

By Derrick Paull

6 www.nzfisher.co.nz

I MUST ADMIT THAT the idea of live baiting in the shallows for both kingfish and snapper is not new, but it seems to have been a bit forgotten with all this stick-baiting, jigging and soft baiting we’ve been focusing on. So here we are to reinvigorate this tried, true and bloody effective method of landing the big ones.

I fished a spot in the 90’s with a couple of other guys. To be honest, it was their spot, and techniques. And I’ll get skinned alive for this article, but the story needs to be told! We found a likely piece of Northland coast with a bit of current, heaps of kelp and a bit of a rise for the current to flow over from the sandy bottom to the reef. Burley was dispatched and we waited, no lines in the water yet, until the koheru (which are pretty rare these

Whatever your quarry, we strongly recommend a dose of live baiting if you’re ready to up the ante and get into the big league! days) began to show. We spent what felt like a lifetime catching a few dozen, then as the current began to really flow, they were dispatched, endowed with hook-like jewellery and a headache to die for. Much like the technique shown in this video, actually.

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NEWTECHNIQUESANDTACKLE This year we also had a new tool in the arsenal, the FisherKing Balloon clip, which simplified things even further. Check the 2014 video here.

baits or soft baits and we generally only go

Live-baiting is actually pretty easy and there’s options beyond kingfish and snapper too; trevally get caught on livies sometimes, Kahawai too (often when you’re chasing kings), but some of the wilder targets are tuna, marlin (which are boring to wait for and mind blowing when hooked up!), sharks of course and even some tasty bottom dwellers like granddaddy hapuka and the ubiquitous john dory.

baiting is current, and some burley to float

There’s little difference in tackle between 1990 and today. I’m still using a Shimano baitrunner, a Kilwell Jellytip and 15kg mono, but nowadays I prefer a single recurve hook to the double Gamakatsu 8/0’s of the ‘old days’.

the right level. That’s not to say we haven’t

Live baits are more of a big-fish bait than cut

ante and get into the big league! •

8 www.nzfisher.co.nz

to the effort when there’s prizes or pride on the line. What is almost essential when live down that current.

The way we live bait is either on the surface (using a balloon rig) or near the bottom, with a 1/4oz sinker for snapper or a 4oz when it’s kings or john dory we’re chasing.

This means we place the burley accordingly; on the surface or on the anchor chain – you want the tasty oils to be attracting fish to landed snapper on surface livies or vice versa with kings.

Whatever your quarry, we strongly recommend a dose of live baiting if you’re ready to up the

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NEWTECHNIQUESANDTACKLE

HONDA

reveals new

80hp & 100hp Engines

HONDA MARINE IS TO strengthen its New Zealand model line-up with the introduction of its first 80hp and 100hp outboards.

The new BF80 and BF100 are set to deliver new levels of performance in their sectors by utilising Honda’s world renowned technologies.

With a lightweight and compact design these new engines will provide optimum levels of performance while ensuring best fuel economy; with the streamlined engines fitting and complementing many choices of boat.

These motors will be very popular in the New Zealand market with the large number of mid-size vessels that require engines in this capacity range.

Advanced engine technology for optimum power, performance and efficiency. The new models make the very most of the unique advanced Honda engine technologies for which the brand and its range is renowned: 10 www.nzfisher.co.nz

BLAST™ (Boosted Low Speed Torque) Intelligent technology to achieve the improved off-the-line acceleration. Honda’s own acceleration technology in which the ECU provides optimum control for the fuel injection quantity and ignition timing at a rapid acceleration to increase torque.

ECOmo ™ (Economy Controlled Motor) Honda’s proprietary Lean Burn Control technology uses sensors to monitor air/fuel ratio in cruising mode, adjusting it to achieve optimum fuel economy. Combined with Honda’s unique PGM-Fi™ (Programmed Fuel Injection) technology, the result is high fuel efficiency and low emissions.

With a lightweight and compact design these new engines will provide optimum levels of performance while ensuring best fuel economy; with the streamlined engines fitting and complementing many choices of boat.

VTEC ™ (Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control) Variable valve timing system “VTEC” VTEC is a technology to adjust intake air flow by changing the opening / closing timing and lift volume of the valves at low to high speed.

Enhanced features to ensure optimum ease of use and compatibility The new BF80 and BF100 offer a range of enhanced features to ensure optimum ease of use.

Firstly they offer Honda’s trolling control, allowing precise slow speed with automatic adjustments in 50rpm increments, ideal for certain types of fishing and slow speed maneuvers.

Both outboards are also fully compliant with NMEA 2000® allowing simplified connectivity to other devices. The new models also allow the customer to purchase as an option, the new Honda digital NMEA 2000® compliant multi-function gauges. These are designed to provide simplified and standardised connectivity on board and to give vital engine information to the operator.

The Honda gauges display information on key functions including engine rpm, trim angle, maintenance reminders, engine temperature, battery charge levels, oil pressure and engine management. These new gauges also feature Honda’s unique ‘Eco Light’ which informs the boat operator when the engine is in ECOmo / lean burn mode, and therefore at its most fuel efficient.

Celebrating a 50 year tradition for innovation and environmental awareness The launch of the new models comes as Honda gets set to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary in the manufacturing of marine outboards.

Ever since the introduction the first fourstroke outboard in 1964, the GB30, Honda has pioneered the development of fourstroke in line with founder Soichiro Honda’s philosophy that “products that are used on the water should not pollute the water”.

Both engines come with Honda’s 5 year warranty. The new models will be available across Honda’s network of Authorised Marine Dealers from early 2014, with pricing to be confirmed.•

www.nzfisher.co.nz 11

GAMEFISHING

What Does a Charter

Skipper do on His Days off?

Go Fishing of Course!

A day off to catch marlin AFTER A FAIRLY BUSY start to the year chasing down Northland kingfish. It was a relief to finally get to a diary page with a line through it. A couple of beers and a look at the SSTs and currents with local guru Stef, saw a plan hatched for Matt and I to finally get a good father/son day of marlin fishing out of Whangaroa while Stef took his boat and crew to Ahipara for a Westie day. It was going to be interesting to compare results at the end of the day.

Well the beers had quite an effect on my ability to sleep and it was a leisurely 9.30AM before we got ‘Reel Life’ to the ramp. Not really a problem as we had figured on a bite time of around 11AM. Plenty of time to get some livies and get out to the good water.

Imagine my surprise when I saw Stef’s trailer in the car park. He had decided that it just looked too good out east to leave it alone.

Now imagine how hard I kicked myself when a phone call revealed that not only had he just dropped a fish but the boat next to him had just 12 www.nzfisher.co.nz

landed one off a double and another boat had dropped one beside him also. We had not only slept in but had stuffed up the bite time and missed it.

There followed the fastest bait catching session ever and a 40mph dash out to the area they were in. We set some lures in the hope of the new Honda raising our first fish of the season but were even more disappointed when the Maori radio informed us that the bite had gone off and the bait had dropped down. (More kicking myself while unsuccessfully trying to find a reason to blame Matt).

With the other boats heading off for bluenose fish it was temping to do the same, after all, a feed of fresh bluenose goes a long way towards making it a good day. I just had one more thing to do before we followed.

The area we were fishing was definitely ‘right’.

Converging currents, temperature, colour and most importantly food. The fish weren’t coming up to the lures so it was simple. We had to get the hooks to them. In short time we had a

deep run saw me drenched in sweat in no time, I hoped the hook was well set because there was some serious pressure on the fish giving it no chance to get its head away, and in less than 15 minutes we had one very annoyed Stripey going stupid at the side of the boat. Undaunted, Matt got on it and took a good old beating while I had a closer look, figured it was worth keeping and tagged it with the curved pole. A quick clean up and with a bit of a struggle we dragged it over the rail and there it was, our first for 2014 and almost too easy. The bite time...11AM. A call was made to wander back in, planning to fight it out with a few kingies on the way. A dozen or so good scraps with shallow water kings and we were almost done, but not before swinging into Stevenson’s Island and having a beautiful cray dive to finish a mean day off.

Stef in the meantime was toughing it out, knowing that he would get another bite and badly wanting a fish for the day.

lively Skippy bridled up and ready to do some work for us. We had marked a couple of fish on the sounder deep down so I was pleasantly surprised when the livey started to go down at pace with me madly stripping line to keep up with it. About 20 seconds and maybe 30 metres of line went out when a brief stop followed by a higher speed run signalled that our day was about to change. Another 10 seconds (always seems like a lifetime), drag up, wind and load.

The comment to Matt was almost too casual “yep, we’re on mate”. It took a further second or two to remember why I like other people on the rod, but too late now so may as well get the pain over with quickly.

Some spectacular surface action followed by a

The call came in at 6PM, not only had he got his fish but it was a goodie, finally weighing up a bit shy of 150kg. A well-earned fish and a real cracker of a stripy to boot.

What a day, three local boats, all mates and all with fish for the day, it doesn’t get much better than that. You can probably imagine the clean-up session but that’s a whole different story. All I can say is there was a sizeable contribution made towards the brewery profits and it was well into Thursday before anybody saw their beds.

Tomorrow the weather is easing and we will be back into chasing kingfish etc. No doubt there will be more Marlin for us before the season is over and they will all be different. This one, the first for the year is always memorable but even more so when just you and your son get to work as a team and come away with such a great result.• www.nzfisher.co.nz 13

GAMEFISHING

Accidental The

Marlin Live bait does it again Words by Deric Fairley Images by Tony Kemp

14 www.nzfisher.co.nz

Editor: Here’s a few words from Deric Fairley, a customer aboard Sanity with Toby Kemp in early March who dropped a live bait & hooked something extraordinary.

We planned this day to get my Father-in-Law into some big kingfish and have his arms stretched before heading back to South Africa. Sanity skipper, Toby at Epic was the obvious choice for putting us onto some quality fish in a stunning location. We shared the boat with some good guys, Blair from Wellington and Alex from Auckland.

The first couple of drifts were doing the job with everyone on board landing nice kingies, my Father-in-Law landing a 15kg fish, Blair landing his PB mid 20’s kingie, Alex landing them as fast as he could get livies down there and me only managing a few rats.

The boat was set up on the mark again and we all dropped fresh livies, Jack Mackerels, down 40m to the fish. First to hook up on this drift was Blair who went tight on a good kingie, I was next, but instead of line pulling

off the reel straight down towards the reef it went sideways and before I knew what was going on the water exploded about twenty meters in front of me. Marlin!

The next 27 minutes flew past and my aching arms and back were the only things reminding me that this was all real. The marlin put on a superb aerial display, effectively tiring itself out.

Finally getting to hold the fish alongside the boat for a few pictures before releasing it was surreal. What an awesome animal. A marlin on a jigging setup should not have ended up this well, but expert skippering by Tobes and 100% support from my Father-inLaw, Blair (who busted his kingie off so we could chase the marlin) and Alex, meant I could release my first marlin. Thank you guys.

Stoked as! www.nzfisher.co.nz 15

GAMEFISHING

Derics Marlin in Toby’s hands You can see the hook.Perfect!.

DERIC FAIRLEY

The stats: Striped Marlin es timated

Deric and his Marlin

16 www.nzfisher.co.nz

at 90kg Rod: Shimano B lue Rose B5310S Reel: Accurate B X2 500 Line: 37kg Sufix Performance Bra id Leader: 5m of 45 kg Shimano Ocea

EX Flourocarbon Hook: Epic Advent ures Circle Hook Bait: 25 / 30 cm Jack Mackerel

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Phone 0800 40 80 90 or visit www.boatingeducation.org.nz

SURFNTURFCOOKERY

Beef

Jerky WHILE BEEF IS suggested, any meat can be used. Pork, or any meat that may contain trichinae, should be heated until the internal temperature is at least 160°F (71°C).

The following jerky seasoning formulas are not true marinades, and they are not true brines either. They are somewhere in-between.

Nevertheless, these cures work very well for jerky, and they can be used as models to make countless other jerky seasoning formulas.

SEASONING FOR 5 LBS. (2.25 KG) OF SLICED MEAT Ingredients 3 Tbsp. (45 ml) Bradley Cure — any flavour (Do not use more than this amount.)

4 tsp. (20 ml) ginger powder 4 tsp. (20 ml) garlic powder 4 tsp. (20 ml) pepper, black 1 tsp. (5 ml) liquid honey marinade 1 1/2 cup (360 ml) orange juice 6 Tbsp. (90 ml) soy sauce 1/2 Cup (960 ml) cold water Note: If the meat weighs either more or less than 5 pounds (2.25 kg), the amount of cure mix applied must be proportional to that weight. For example, if the weight of the meat is 2 1/2 pounds (1.15 kg), then each ingredient, including the Bradley Cure, needs to be cut in half.

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Preparation and seasoning 1. Begin with hunks of meat, rather than with meat that has been cut into steaks or chops (Steaks and chops are cut across the grain of the meat. This makes them unsuitable for jerky).

2. Chill the meat thoroughly. Cold meat is easier to cut, and bacterial growth is retarded.

3. Trim the fat from the meat. It is impossible to remove the streaks of fat that are marbled into the meat, but you should remove all fat that can be removed easily.

4. Use a long slicing knife or an electric meat slicer to slice 1/4 inch (7mm) thick strips.

The strips should be 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5cm) wide. The meat must be cut with the grain, not across the grain. If the meat is cut across the grain, it will be too fragile after it dries. You can determine if the strip has been correctly cut with the grain by pulling on the ends of the strip. If it has been properly cut with the grain, the strip will stretch; if not, the muscle fibres will separate, and the strip will tear.

5. Chill the meat again while preparing the seasoning mixture.

6. Immediately after these instructions on how to process jerky, there are two jerky recipes: California Jerky and Wild West Jerky. Select and prepare one of these seasoning blends. Stir the seasoning blend well until all ingredients are dissolved.

Chill the mixture well. Add the meat strips and stir them from time to time, especially during the first few hours of curing.

Refrigerate overnight.

7. During the morning of the second day, use a colander (or the like) to drain the curing liquid from the meat. Do not rinse!

Drying and smoking the jerky 1. Place the strips on jerky racks. A thermometer is not required for beef, pork, or any other kind of meat if the suggested high temperatures and long processing times are followed. You may use a common smoker with a heat source inside. To facilitate drying, the smoker chimney damper should be fully open.

2. Smoke at 140°F (60°C) for the first two hours.

3. Raise temperature to 160°F (71°C), and smoke for two or three hours.

4. Raise temperature to 175°F (80°C) - for poultry, raise the temperature to 185°F (85°C) and continue to dry with no smoke until done. This final drying and cooking step will require about three hours. When the jerky is done, it will be about half the thickness of the raw jerky, and it will appear to have lost about 50 per cent of its weight. The jerky will not snap when it is bent, but a few of the muscle fibres will fray. If the jerky is dried until it snaps when it is bent, the jerky will have a longer shelf life, but it will not be as tasty. Let the jerky cool to room temperature, and either freeze or refrigerate it.

Note: If the salt taste is too mild, the next time you make this product, add about one teaspoon of salt to the ingredients list. If the salt taste is too strong, reduce the amount of Bradley Cure by about one teaspoon. •

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THEOTHERSPECIES

Flats on

the Flats In keeping with the ‘other’ species articles of the last few months, here’s one for the average Aucklander

By Derrick Paull

MY WIFE LOVES flounder. I’m not the biggest

net a few years ago, based on a bit of research,

fan, but if there’s fish to be caught, I’m in.

as it was small enough to handle easily,

In recent years I’ve had the added energy of an

including from the kayak.

Oscar, my three and a half year old who wants

I bought it especially for the off-the-beaten-

everything to do with fishing, hunting crabs and

track trips we used to take up north. Just find

now, floundering.

an estuary, set the net at half tide and collect

Because I’m only ever after a handful of

on the outgoing. Probably with flounder, often

flounder for the wife (and the odd filleted one

with Mullet too which served my bait fishing

for me) I only need a small net. I chose a 10m

needs the next day. I learned pretty smartly

20 www.nzfisher.co.nz

where to set the net to get a better haul and where to avoid to reduce shells, weeds and logs getting caught up.

The net hadn’t seen daylight for a few years but now we’ve moved to the shores of the mighty Manukau I thought it might be the right time to give it another whirl, with Oscar in tow.

need to wait over the high tide.

The flounder make their way up the channels and onto the flats hunting crabs. I’m always amazed at how many crabs a flounder can eat.

At low tide their guts are chocka! If your beach has too few crabs, there will not be flounder.

It’s pretty much that simple.

Here’s a brief video of my trip out, setting and recovery. Not the best haul, but four 35-40cm flounder feeds a family of three for a few meals.

A lot of people set and leave their nets on dry ground, allowing the tide to rise around them and then fall before they recover their net. This is actually not legal. You may only set your net below the waterline and it must be retrieved before it ‘strands’. This is so you can release any live, undersize (or undesirable) fish you catch inadvertently. In fact, there’s a whole world of rules about nets that you should check out before even considering buying one, let alone setting it. Check out the rules here on the Ministry of Primary Industries website.

The setting and collecting takes about half an hour at most (we luckily live only a few hundred meters from the shore), but you do

Once you’ve got a handle on the rules, netting for flounder is really fun, get out and give it a go! •

Our little bay has an oyster bed in the centre and it appears on the ebb tide that there’s two small, barely perceptible channels that direct the draining tide past the oysters and away from the crab infested flats. The closer, less muddy of these channels has become my ‘local’.

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KAYAKFISHING

Danger at dusk

Risky

Business Handling dangerous catch from the kayak By the Viking Maniyaks

ONE THING THAT CAN be rather difficult in the confines of a kayak is handling fish with sharp teeth and dangerous spines. We have to be extremely careful with fish like barracoutta, scarpie, and the various species of shark found around the New Zealand coastline. It is quite interesting that the species most commonly considered as by-catch are some of the more dangerous caught.

With the Maniyaks being based down in Wellington our most common by-catch is the barracuda, spiny dogs and scarpies. We have ways of handling each species to minimise the risk of injuries from them. What you need to be aware of is not only sharp teeth, but also dangerous spikes and fish that can catch you by surprise by wriggling out of your grip, unsettling your balance from a fright and ending with you in the drink.

Sitting in a kayak and trying to remove a hook from some fish can be a pretty scary experience but done right it can usually be done safely and efficiently.

22 www.nzfisher.co.nz

Scarpies and similar fish are one of the easier fish to handle on the kayak. They are reasonably calm to handle and the one danger with these usually deep-water fish is their spikes that are adorned over their bodies.

When you have these little guys up to the surface they are easily lifted out against the side of the kayak. Using your hand place your thumb inside their mouth on the bottom lip and hold them while removing the hook. They can then be dropped back in the water to swim off back to the depths. While you will feel the scarpies small teeth on your fingers they are not sharp enough to break skin.

Barracuda are one of the more dangerous fish to have up beside the kayak. They have very sharp teeth and are very fast and unpredictable. Care must be taken when doing anything with these fish. While most will usually bite through the line and steal your hook before getting them to the kayak you will eventually find yourself in the situation of dealing with them at some point. Let the fish

Watch the spines!

Not ideal!

Dangerous at one end ;).

run and play it longer than usual, tiring it out as much as possible. Bring it along the side of the kayak and grab them just behind the head firmly. The only dangerous part is the teeth so as long as your hold is good they will be unable to bite you. De-hook and face them away from you before releasing your grip on them.

Spiny dog fish (sharks) not only have sharp teeth on them but also two very dangerous spines along the top of them. One by their dorsal fin and the other further down the body by their second dorsal fin. They use these in defence whipping their tail round and can easily inflict a nasty wound, made worse by a small amount of poison that is left in the wound. They can be handled by holding them by their nose, turning them upside down and removing the hook. You will find they try to whip their tale and squirm round a bit before getting them upside down but just ensure they cant whip their tail round to you.

Whatever fish you catch, if you are unsure about handling them safely then don’t. It is better that you stay safe and in the kayak than

injured and possibly in the water. If this is the case cut the line as close as you can to the hook. A new hook and a retie of your rig is much cheaper than your safety.

Make sure you have a good rag or old towel to use when handling fish and a good pair of pliers you can use instead of getting your fingers close to the sharp sets of teeth that you will come across on your adventures. There are other items that can help you such as lip grippers and de-hooking tools.

Just remember that these fish are an important part of our waters and should be treated with care and respect. There is no point in using them to take your frustrations out on by slicing them or bashing them up just to get a hook back then sending back to the water injured or dead. •

The Viking Maniyaks are Wellington based duo, Shane Kelly and Bam Blaikie. Keep an eye peeled for more of their tips, tricks and competitions wins right here in NZ Fisher and on their new website, www.maniyaks.com www.nzfisher.co.nz 23

SALTWATER FLY FISHING

Fly Flinging in the Queensland Trev on fly with a stroppy Richard Hilton

HERE ARE SOME pics from Colin Shepherd’s recent trip to Hervey Bay, Queensland. Colin, of ‘Fly-fishing on the Radio’ fame, spent a week with friend Richard Hilton in the company of long time Hervey Bay Guide Paul Dolan.

Paul runs a 6m Key-West centre console. It has a forward casting platform and lean bar, perfect for novices and experts alike, but certainly well set up.

Paul generally runs about 80km out from the jetty, well into the Coral Sea and looks for work ups or bait balls to set his anglers on. For his guests it is then a matter of casting to the fish and hanging on.

Sun

By Colin Shepherd

I used a RIO clear intermediate saltwater fly line.

Pauls favourite saying was “don’t bring a knife to a gun fight” and he meant that! It takes too long to get the fish in and they easily fall victim to the marauding sharks.

Paul’s second favourite saying was “put the hurt on”. He suggested that 10 or 11 weights would be more suitable in future trips and would bring the fish alongside more quickly, saving them from the tax-man.

We had a great time in marvellous conditions and enjoyed Paul’s good

Both Richard and I lost many good sized fish to sharks. They are often in plague proportions.

company and expertise. •

We both used 9 weight rods and reels and

on Fly-fishing’ show, 6p.m. Fridays 104.6fm

24 www.nzfisher.co.nz

You can hear Colin Shepherd on the ‘Hooked

of Fishing

FISHINGVIDEO’S

The Art

My video of the year Not only is this marlin hook ed from a 4.5m boat, the video shows so mu ch of the madness experienced when marlin fis hing – Great work by the Black Dog Cat team! •

www.nzfisher.co.nz 25

BENISLAND.CO.NZ

Green Lipped

Mussels Great Barrier Island

AMONGST THE MANY delicious foods that you should try during your New Zealand holiday is of course a dish of fresh, big and juicy green lipped mussels. To make this experience more memorable, gather them yourself.

Sometimes, you don’t even need to get wet to collect a feed of mussels.Fresh, big and delicious green lipped mussels can be easy to gather and are easy to prepare as well.

You should be aware of limits and regulations that are set out by the Ministry of Fisheries before you start gathering any seafood. Yes, as strange as it might or might not sound to you, it is illegal in New Zealand to sell or trade any seafood. There are also daily and size limits.

The fisheries are regulated by the government.

Of course some will say this is good and will provide ecological sustainability, others might say, hold on, so perhaps one day it will be illegal to grow crops on your land and sell it. My take is that the government needs to address and manage the fisheries, however, 26 www.nzfisher.co.nz

Too easy to find when you know where to find them!

it should set laws that will support the people first and not export sales and economic sustainability. As it is now, commercial fishing is in the hands of a very few companies and the techniques they use are destructive (to fish stocks, sea beds) and non-selective.

Recreational fishers are forbidden by law to use similar methods. In addition, size limits do not exist for commercial fishing activities.

Politics aside, there are daily and size limits for most type of seafood, and also the processes used to gather them. My advice is to get informed before you go out looking to gather seafood for your table.

When it comes to gathering mussels, it certainly helps to do so at low tide. Mom and I

went for a stroll at a beach on a low tide and on our way back collected a feed of green lipped mussels.

When you’re on the rocks, you should never turn your back to the ocean (unless of course Mom wants you to do so for a picture), and be mindful about your safety. Water is quite dense and a small wave can knock you off your footing and you’ll be dragged along pointy rocks and mussels, cutting yourself would be the least of your potential problems.

The experience of eating fresh seafood can easily be diminished by inappropriate preparation methods. When it comes to mussels, sand can be a huge issue and overcooking can be too.

BENISLAND.CO.NZ SIMPLE GREEN LIPPED MUSSELS RECIPE 1. Wash the mussels in the shell properly in cold water.

2. Do this another time.

3. Bring a small amount of water in a pot to the boil.

4. Add the mussels, put the lid on.

5. Allow the steam to cook the mussels.

6. Any mussel that has opened should be taken out immediately.

7. Shuck the mussels using a spoon or fork.

8. Sea weed may be attached to a part of the mussel. You need to get rid of the sea weed obviously and with a bit of practice, you can remove the part of the mussel that the weed is attached to easily. This part is actually a bit chewy, so why not get rid of it completely. The chicken seem to love it and it would be a good source for compost too.

9. You’ll have a bowl full of shucked mussels now. Rinse them again in cold water to get rid of remaining sand.

10. Now it’s time to jazz them up. I like to stir fry vegetables and add the mussels later with a bit of flour.

Simple stir fry, but hey, there will be books with hundreds of recipes of what you can do with your mussels once shucked. Why not grill them, make a chowder or mussel fritters.

By the way, did you know that mature female green lipped mussels have orange flesh and mature male ones white? Check out the life cycle of green lipped mussels.

28 www.nzfisher.co.nz

So simple and so tasty!

Apropos by the way, I heard that the mussel farms on Great Barrier Island have been sold to one of the biggest commercial seafood harvesting companies in New Zealand.

Businesses go belly up for various reasons and I suppose only a very few will ever know why the business was sold. It would be naive to believe that the mussel farms were operated by local Great Barrier Island residents in the first place and I can’t find much useful publicity about it at the moment.

The issue that I have with this, and feel free to disregard anything from here on, is that Great Barrier Island hosts a few yearly events for which we are famous and which attract many tourists. The Mussel Fest is or was one of them. Personally, I would have rather had the Auckland Council – yes, they have so much on their table and politics isn’t black and white – step in, buy the farms temporarily and support a framework (in the long run) in which the local community could find appropriate means to take over the farms.

I believe that it is also the Auckland Council’s duty to enable communities to be in a position to operate businesses, especially in areas of fisheries and agriculture, sustainably both ecologically and economically.

Any business that hires local people, in which the stakeholders have more than financial interest, and offers their produces

from the prisons of full time labour and can actually spend more time with family and the community and do their bit to develop more wealth for the entire country, rather than being set in a framework where one is inclined to create wealth for one’s own first and foremost.

Wicked feed!

locally, creates vastly more wealth for the communities and the people living therein (yes, this is my claim. Feel free to research peerreviewed journals about it. I’m sure there will be hundreds of publications about this claim).

Something is wrong when the line of thought and entire rationale in operating businesses, especially those that deal with what is essentially a ‘commodity’ of all citizens, is to focus on maximum profits by utilising cheap labour and exports. The price for meat and seafood is horrendous in New Zealand. New Zealanders must work even harder to be able to buy produces that are abundantly available and should be available to all of us, and not only those who are able to gather them themselves or have the money to buy them.

Imagine a country in which building a home from timber is affordable, seafood, dairy and meat are affordable and people can get away

This is New Zealand, we have heaps of sun, wind, timber, water, sea foods, agriculture, we can grow many, many crops due to our climate, we have an extremely small population density and are quite far away from ‘the rest of the world’. To excel, to do this beautiful country justice, we should focus on adopting measures and practices that reflect our fortunate circumstances, create sustaining wealth for the people and safeguarding our resources.

Our goals should be 100% renewable energy, a massively reduced carbon foot print and making New Zealand’s resources available to all who live here.

By following (economical) paths that have never been proven to be fair or actually helpful to the people as a whole, and celebrating short-term successes in forms of exports, monetary profits, GDP and employment opportunities, we are disregarding our special circumstances and will never achieve our potential as a country and people. Worst of all, we sacrifice our independence. What is this potential I’m talking of, you ask? Be one of the richest and happiest countries in the world. •

Reproduced with the permission of Ben Assado. Ben Island lives permanently in the hills of Tryphena, in a rugged and stunning bush block, and pursues his dream of living in harmony and sustainably from the land. Land based fishing and blogging about the simple, yet utterly fulfilling life on Great Barrier Island are his favourite pastimes. Follow his fishing adventures for big snapper and kingfish off the rocks on www.BENIsLAND.co.nz.

REVIVEOURGULF

Mussels

Rebuilding Gulf Health

The Revive Our Gulf project has released the first dramatic pictures of the recovery of mussel beds in the Hauraki Gulf.

30 www.nzfisher.co.nz

THEY REVEAL A vibrant community of fishes and starfish living among the seven tons of supermarket destined green-lipped mussels laid as trial plots in December.

The Revive Our Gulf project aims to restore the sub-tidal green-lipped mussel beds that occurred on soft sediments throughout much of the Firth of Thames and Tamaki Strait. They were extensively dredged between 1910 and 1960, and the damaged and denuded areas did not recover, being replaced by barren muds.

The surplus mussels were donated by North Island Mussels Ltd and seven ‘living room’ size trial plots were created in a sheltered bay off eastern Waiheke Island. The group has partnered with the University of Auckland and two students are studying the trial plots regularly for their doctorate work. “Initial results are very encouraging,” said project research director Dr Shane Kelly. “The mussels have matted together and despite some expected predation by snapper and starfish, they are functioning as a reef. Fish like triplefins and spotties, starfish and

invertebrates are colonising the beds and making it home, in stark contrast to the surrounding barren seafloor.”

Mussels are powerful filter feeders, a single mussel is capable of passing a bathtub of water a day through its gills. In their original, natural state they covered 500 sq kms and played a significant role in maintaining water quality and providing fish habitat in the Gulf.

Revive Our Gulf Chairman John Laurence said the group planned partnerships with mussel farms to utilise reject mussels for further field trials and initiatives to build awareness about the project’s potential.

“Our vision is to prove a technology and then provide it to communities around the Gulf to enhance environmental quality.” Similar methods have been utilised overseas.

The project has received financial support to date from the Outboard Boating Club, the Hauraki Gulf Forum, Auckland Council and a range of private donors. For more information: www.reviveourgulf.org.nz •

Reproduced care of www.reviveourgulf.co.nz www.nzfisher.co.nz 31

READERPICS Barry Corkill with 25kg king from Doubtless Bay

Brendan with 22kg Doubtless bay king

Jamie Corkill with her biggest Kingie 19.7kg from Doubtless Bay

Duncan getting taxed at flat rock Rae with 15kg Channel Island King

32 www.nzfisher.co.nz

READERPICS

Ryan Taylor & a long sought after Sailfish landed in Northern Queensland

ďƒ Winner!

Steve Futter getting into the big boys at Cuvier

Seaox having a rest after retrieving highlander from Taputupotu beach - proving one man can indeed move the earth!.

Steve with nice flat rock King circa 18kg

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COMPETITIONS

Competitions!

Reader Pics Competition WIN a Trip on Board Diversity with Charter Connection & NZFisher!

JUST POST A PIC of you with a fish to our Facebook page and you’re in the draw to win day trip aboard Diversity courtesy of Damo and the Charter Connection crew.

Every image you enter has a chance to win the big prize. The more and sooner you enter, the better your chances, so get fishing and posting those images to our Facebook page!

This month’s winner is Ryan Taylor!

34 www.nzfisher.co.nz

WIN with

Honda Marine THANKS TO HONDA MARINE we’re bringing you our freshest competition yet. We’re giving away a Honda Marine IceyTeck 70 litre Chilly bin and two Hutchwilco ‘Honda Marine’ inflatable Lifejackets! This is a prize that will keep your fish fresh and your whanau safe.

The next winner will be announced in our April issue so make sure you, your whanau and your friends subscribed this month!

Subscribe at www.nzfisher.co.nz •

All you need to do is be a subscriber to NZ Fisher and you will be automatically in the draw to win!

TERMS AND CONDITIONS Winner/s must email leanner@espiremedia.com within 14 days of publication to claim their prize. Competitions are only open to NZ residents residing within NZ. One entry per person for each competition. Prize pack product/s may vary from pictures. Prize/s not exchangeable or redeemable for cash. Winner/s will be selected at random and no discussion will be entered into after the draw. Winner/s will be announced in NZ Fisher e-publication. If winner/s fail to make contact within the claim period, Espire Media may redraw the prize. Secondary winner/s will be announced on the NZ Fisher Facebook page. Prizes must be collected by the winner unless courier delivery is specifically offered by the sponsor as part of the competition. Your contact details will not be given to any third party, except for the purposes of delivering a prize.

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WINTER IS COMING: -

Get geared up to land autumn moocher

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Outboard maintenance; Winterising your outboard

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Strip Strike Fly-fishing club – the heart of ‘Fishing your feet first’

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Simply visit www.nzfisher.co.nz to get a copy of NZ Fisher delivered straight to your inbox every month!

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