ISSUE 6
March 2011
Goin’ deep for the
big
Ones!// // Northern adventure scores
large for newby crew
Landbased – from the boat?//
www.nzfisher.co.nz 1
THE RUM THAT INVENTED RUM www.mountgayrum.com Enjoy the adventure, drink responsibly
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Pg 6
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6
Land Based Fishing out of a Boat
Coromandel – last weekend
of official summer 2011
12
Boat Fishing
Newbie takes a shine to soft plastics
14
The King & I
On Kingfish in the Hauraki Gulf
18
Underwater
Moments that get you amped
22
The Clubhouse
Ngawi Sports Fishing Club
24
Regional Reviews
27
New Products
Killer series stick baits
28
The NZACA National
14
Pg 22
www.nzfisher.co.nz 3
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ABOUT / Short and sharp, NZ Fisher is a free e-magazine delivering thought provoking and enlightening articles, and industry news and information to forward-thinking fisher people.
EDITOR
EDITOR / Derrick Paull ART DIRECTOR / Jodi Olsson GROUP EDITOR / Trudi Caffell
would like to extend our sincer-
had the pleasure of putting on to a
CONTENT ENQUIRIES /
est condolences to both our fellow
few personal bests in the past, but this
Phone Derrick on 021 629 327
fishers, their families and friends in
summer Chris set out on his own and
or email
the results were fantastic.
derrickp@NZ Fisher.co.nz
Christchurch and more recently, more terrifyingly, the people of Japan. Kia kaha. We
We’ve bought a new underwater writer,
mourn with you and wish you the speedi-
James Gordon (creater of the Flikee Moi
est, safest path out of your troubles.
– watch this space), who shares the story
I was pleasantly surprised by the
of his first big king. James has a few
ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES / Phone Alastair on 021 866 036 or email
positive, albeit it reserved feedback I
years experience under his weight belt
alastairn@espiremedia.com
received on my editorial last month.
but we look forward to more firsts and
ADDRESS / NZ Fisher,
Licensing is going to be the elephant in
big fish tales from James.
C/- Espire Media, PO Box 137162,
the room for a long time to come and I
The NZ Angling and casting
have enjoyed the opportunity to discuss
championships are being held from
the subject with a wide and varied
Orewa from April 20-23rd. The champs
kaleidoscope of fishing enthusiasts and
include both fishing and casting and are
a fair few intellectuals. So, while plenty
well attended. The difference between
of you would like to see me hang myself
the champs and most competitions
and put my stake in the ground, I’ll ask
(aside from the fact that there’s no
that you take the opportunity to talk
monetary prizes) is that anglers fish
about the future of our fisheries with
for the heaviest combined weight of a
your fishing buddies and decide for
multi-species bag over two days. Shore
yourselves – for all of us, what is the
compete against shore, Boat against
best way forward. It’s your fishery.
boat and now, kayak against kayak.
So, on to the important stuff. Fishing
year and welcome readers to join us.
of great readers stories – good ones,
For more info, please email the editor
with great results as some real newbies
on derrick@nzfisher.co.nz
Hadlee is an old mate of mine who I’ve
WEBSITE / www.NZ Fisher.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!
NZFisher is looking to enter a team this
is cool! This month we have a number
getting into some serious fish. Chris
Parnell,Auckland 1151, NZ
Most importantly though – go fishing! The time is always right to fish!
Happy Fishing!
Derrick
www.nzfisher.co.nz 5
landBASED feature
Land Based Fishing Out of a Boat! //Coromandel – last weekend of official summer 2011
By Forsyth Thompson
ell it’s been a great summer for fishing so far, having been able to fit in 2-3
Thursday saw the remnants of yet another tropical cyclone hit the north,
trips a week around Rangi soft baiting
meaning that the swell at the top of
out of the baby Stabi I’ve been well
the Coro was going to be really big,
served. But as always happens at this
coming in from the NE – far too much
time of year, I really start to miss land
for safely getting on and off a small boat
based fishing. So I headed down to
on the rocks. So we headed up the w
Coro with a keen young mate of mine
coast thinking we’d fish Blair’s ledge
for 2 ½ days to have a go at some land
up near Port Jackson. By the time we
based kings.
got to Fantail Bay though the wind was
I’ve taken Andrew on a couple of land
a good 20k SW and building, making
based trips previously and we’d got
fishing that western side no fun at all.
him his PB snapper at all of about three
Back down, round to Colville and up to
kilos but he’d never caught anything
Sandy Bay added even more time to
bigger, so I was confident we’d smash
the journey and we were itching for a
that for him with some land based
fish. In went the boat, I drove round to
kingy action. As it turned out, was a
Stony Bay to set up camp and we loaded
bloody good thing we had a Plan B!
the boat and set off round towards the
Both my best land based fish have
6 www.nzfisher.co.nz
any time I’m heading up that way.
Pinnacles – a part of the country lots
come from that area – a 21lb snapper
of readers have probably fished and a
and a 21kg kingy so I always get a
place those who haven’t realy should,
bit of hyped up form anticipation
it’s some amazing country up there.
Excitedwith Andrew Best Personal apper ‘LBG’ Sn
www.nzfisher.co.nz 7
Well, Plan A fell through really quickly:
it wasn’t and she’d dragged all the
as soon as we got out of the bay we
way across and out of the bay, but had
could see just how much swell was
caught the anchor on a submerged rock
hitting the ledges and there was just
not far from the point but far enough
no way we were going to landbase.
off to be completely undamaged in
So we switched to Plan B which involved land based fishing out of a Stabi 349! Anchored up just off some
any way, and not lost. The day turned from disaster to relief in seconds! Once the skipper had composed
great looking rocks, we got the berley
himself we loaded up with as much bait
going, cubed some pillies in and got
and berley as we could and headed
set up. Of course we had no boat
off for my Spot X thinking the swell
fishing gear with us at all just our LBG
had dropped off. Which it had - but
gear which was interesting in such a
nowhere near enough to fish where
small boat. But with a good sense of
we wanted. So on to Plan C we went,
humour, a couple of cold drinks and a
picking our gap in some big sets to
steady supply of snapper around the
get off at the Pinnacles and get set
40-50cm mark, it turned into a really
up. We’d got the berley in, the livie
fun afternoon – just two bloke bobbing
rigs set up and were getting towards
around the top of Coro in a tiny tinny
mid-tide when the sets started getting
with rods longer than the boat!
bigger and bigger and washing right
We didn’t look like being in any
over the ledge. Never seen it that big
danger of breaking Andrew’s PB
at that stage of the tide so we had to
but at least the weather had come
do the only sensible thing and get off.
right. Or so we thought….
It’s rare that I find myself in a lifejacket
Being such a nice calm night we didn’t
on the rocks but this was certainly one
bother getting the boat out of the water
of those days. By now it was fair to say
and just anchored in the bay and swam
things weren’t going according to plan.
in to shore, leaving all the gear on the
But after the previous afternoon we felt
boat. Nor did we bother putting the
like we were land based boat fishing
second anchor out. And that is the first
experts (!) so figured some LBG out
and last time I’ll ever make that mistake.
of the boat was the best option. Turns
In the night the wind got up and just
out Plan D was my best one so far – I
kept rising, howling down the hill and
guess in fairness the others hadn’t been
making the tent feel like it was going to
that great so I was probably due one!
take off. You can imagine how worried
We fished just off our chosen ledge
about the boat I was but at 3 in the
in about 20m of water which had gone
morning in the pitch black there wasn’t
from green on Friday to brilliant clear
a lot that I was going to be able to do.
bright blue by Sat. We could see the
As soon as there was any light I raced
burley a good 10+m below the boat
straight out only to be confronted with
and before we even had a line in the
a perfect view of flat seas all the way
water, a reasonable snapper sniffing
to Great Barrier. But no boat anywhere
at the bag. The horror morning was
to be seen. Raced down to the beach
quickly being forgotten as baits went
and all the way over to the eastern side
in the water and livey rigs got set up in
of the bay, just near the point, was a
anticipation. 5 rods in a 349 is something
very small shape that just might be the
the manufacturers probably never had in
boat, floating nicely off the rocks but it
mind. Fair to say it was a bit cramped!
seemed too much to hope for. Thankfully
Within minutes the snapper were on www.nzfisher.co.nz 9
Forsythhis with first Boat ‘LBG- per’ Snap
the bite, going to 55cm and feeding
at a time, only to lose it all again in
With trace in hand and net in the other we just couldn’t net her (the berley was tied on the other side of the boat), but we got a great look at her for a couple of minutes and had decided to let her go when the hook rolled out before we could get the camera. She was too big to go in the net and would have pushed 7kg. Andrew was one happy man but gutted that he’d not for the photo (His brother Nick Evans, former All Black is a mad keen fisherman working in the UK now and there’s more than a streak of competitiveness between them!). Thankfully the snapper weren’t done yet. Again the 8kg set went off and Andrew set the hook. If the last one went off
hard like I find they so often do after
another long run. 10 minutes later we
hard, this one was something else. 50m
a big swell, both of us fishing an 8kg
still had no colour even with the water
of braid later he was on the backing and
set and a 15kg. Before long my Stradic
being so clear and the fish was keeping
this wasn’t slowing down while I cleared
started making that high pitched noise
its head down but thankfully out of the
the other 3 rods. Then the mono started
when line is really being peeled off
foul. Andrew kept working it with a
to run out until I could see the spool
under pressure, and just didn’t stop.
lot more composure than you’d think
so there was nothing to do but put the
Andrew was clearly onto a PB but as
from a man who’d never even caught
hand on the spool and hope like hell we
the braid ran out and he got onto the
a 3.5kg fish. Eventually (Well, it felt like
got lucky. The rod bent round further
mono backing I started to wonder if it
for ever!) it came into site under the
and further till I could just about hear
might just be a ray. But then he started
boat but as she came to the surface the
the bust off then miraculously it slowly
getting some line back, a few meters
keeper hook caught the berley line…
came round as the fish’s head turned.
10 www.nzfisher.co.nz
It was a great weekend of fishing an d adventures in a really magic part of the country. And the best bit? We know the fishing up there is just going to get better and better of the coming months.
But with an empty spool it was going
got turned straight round as a livie
small snapper to the boat. They were
to need a bit more luck. Andrew worked
and out the back under the 24kg set
both legal sized but not big enough for
the fish slowly back but every time he
while we continued snapper fishing.
the 3kg kahawai livebait but a whole
got 10m back it’d peel off another 9 ½
This was just like an LBG day but
pilly ‘skipbait’ later and I was hooked
so things were pretty tense. Surely it had
without the L! Minutes later the kings
up, the second fish following the first
to be a king with these huge runs and no
arrived, chasing everything they could
to the boat where Andrew hooked it!
head nods? Somehow it stayed out of
see – berley, cubes, baits, livies the
the foul and 20 minutes later we could
whole lot. Unfortunately they were all
for the net and with both of us on
see some colour and it was another big
on the small side, legal or just under
fish I lost mine at the boat trying to
snapper. Quickly got the berley line out
but when they’re around like that,
trace it. The second one wasn’t so
of the way and got the fish in the net
they’re just so much fun it’s rude not to
lucky and ended up in the very full
and into the boat. Another great fish
catch a few. So I hooked a jig onto my
bin. By this point we were more than
for Andrew, a little bit smaller than the
Rocky 2 (another first for the day!) and
happy to call it a day and head back
previous one but the best fight I’ve seen
proceeded to jig up 6 of them in about
to camp. But not before unloading the
out of a snapper of any size. It just never
40 minutes. Jigging to fish you can see
boat and getting it out of the water.
gave up and those little Stradics put
under the boat was another first, a lot
Lesson well and truly learned there!
out plenty of drag. You can see in the
of fun, and something I don’t expect to
pics how happy he was far better than
replicate off the rocks any time soon!
Unfortunately the fish was too big
The next morning the wind turned to a cooler SE and the fishing died with
I can describe. 2 PBs in 20 minutes!
The kings moved away, the kahawai too
Finally everything had come good
and we were back to snapper for a while,
It might not have been LBG in the
and we’d got a great fish for Andrew,
nothing big but steady 2-3kg fish until
strictest (ok, in any) sense of the word
smashed his PB and really got the hang
we saw the blue water being replaced
but it was a great weekend of fishing
of LBG in the boat! Meanwhile I’d put
by murky green and sure enough the
and adventures in a really magic part of
a 4.5kg in the bin and we’d got a few
small fish came out of hiding. By this
the country. And the best bit? We know
more around the 2.5 – 3kg mark.
point we’d had a few hours of constantly
the fishing up there is just going to get
special fishing and really just didn’t care!
better and better of the coming months.
smaller than about 50-60cm and
About when we were calling it quits we
Time to put away the softbait gear
smashing baits as they do. First one
saw a couple of better kings chasing a
and get back to the LBG. I can’t wait.
Then the kahawai turned up. None
it so we packed up and headed home.
www.nzfisher.co.nz 11
boatFISHING
Newbie takes a shine to soft plastics
By Chris Hadlee
By Chris Hadlee
Doubtless bay pannie
ust before Christmas I was lucky
had a parent’s batch in Rangiputa with a
enough to receive an early gift
nice new Surtees 4.7 available for us to
in the form of a 7ft Penn soft
use once the olds had had a morning fish.
the 14m mark of some of the beaches
plastic rod and reel set, thanks to a
Perfect for us- sleep off the hang-over then
around the Karikari Peninsula. For the first
very special lady. As is understandable
smash some nice late-arvo snapper. Our
bait I ‘had’ to go with the Nuke Chook that
I was gagging to get some new jig
first trip out was in the afternoon of New
I had heard so much about their fishiness.
heads and baits and get a line in the
Years Eve. I was all excited about having
One cast and “Bang” - I had my first hook
water. After enduring a rather shaky
my first turn at soft plastics and couldn’t
up straight away! Wow - so much fight and
Christmas holiday in Christchurch I was
wait to get out there. One wise piece of
kick on this light gear- I could feel every
even more enthusiastic about getting
advice was handed to me on launching the
head nod and my reel was making those
away from that fault line and up to the
boat from my mates Mum; “You know you
funny pinging noises that I usually only
Far North to try out the new gear.
have to throw you first fish back on that
hear on fishing TV shows- Awesome.
Our friends were back from overseas and 12 www.nzfisher.co.nz
new rod for good luck?”to which “yeah for
sure” I replied. And off we went. We decided to take a tip of drifting over
Once I got first fish on board the call
went out that beauty was not going back
out and getting one on the tuna lure and
and in fact had dinner written all over it.
a hook up on the soft baits then a kingie
Not ever being one for superstitions I
amongst the tuna – life is good.
the Gulf – too easy! After a long battle with a Barracuda, my good friend Charlotte (fresh back from the
‘thought yeah keep it, get one in the bag’.
We decided to give the soft baits a flick
U.K) had another fight on her hands and
Well minutes later when my reel screamed
around some wash. Again not being one
it wasn’t until we saw that reddish colour
off again I thought this is easy! This one
to muck around I was the first to get a bait
coming up from the deep that the boys
was much bigger than the first and a call
in the water. Bang, big snapper right on
realised they had lost the ‘best fish of the
for the net went around the boat and a
the surface. Well that monkey didn’t last
day prize’. A quick weigh in revealed an
foldable net was deployed. When a mate
long. That great snapper (a new PB) was
18lb snapper followed few minutes later
went to scoop the fish the net collapsed
soon followed by a large rat kingie which
by Callum with a nice 15lber - both were
and the fish kicked about and I watched in
gave my gear a good test. We shifted and
successfully released. What a spot.
horror as my biggest snapper to date dove
found some good sign on the sounder,
for the bottom, with a nice new bit of nuke
so decided to throw the drogue chute
Peninsula on my soft plastics and was
chook bling to show his mates.....then
out and drift in from 40 metre mark over
amazed at the variety of fish I caught
nothing. Dam superstitions.
I had so much fun fishing around the
the good looking bottom. What followed
on them, Snapper, Kingies, Skip jack,
After the haze of new years we gave it
was one of the most amazing afternoons
Trevally, Dory, Kahawai, and a few less
another shot; I had to get this monkey off
fishing ever. We filled up the chiller bag
desirable species too. Now I can’t wait
my back, this time we headed further out
with nice pannies, also added two nice
to get back up there later in the season
to the Moturoa Islands. After running into
blue cod on soft baits. I threw back fish
and through winter and see what we can
a feeding school of Skipjack on the way
that would have been catch of the day in
get our hooks into.
Chri
s’s P B
www.nzfisher.co.nz 13
boatFISHING
The King & I Story and photos by Espresso
Snapper Free Zone
boosting the fun factor.
The King and I
“Catch any fish”? One of the most
The outstanding fish, the King of fish
Hauraki Gulf with not a single solitary
common questions asked on return to
are almost everywhere in the Hauraki
snapper to show for the days fishing,
the local neighbourhood. What they
gulf (and many other areas) this season
and being happy about it? Absolutely!
mean is, were any snapper caught…
providing some of the most entertaining,
I know - it just doesn’t sound quite
no… What? “Whaddaya mean,
powerful running, hoodlum of the sea
right does it. And no it isn’t the sign
skunked” (often with a devilishly
attitude ever. Their speed and agility,
of being skunked and in denial, of
inquisitive gleam)?!
tenaciously dogged fight right to the
Heading in after a day out in the sunny
shedding ones right to claims of being
“No, had a fast action packed day of
boat, and the inevitably the several
a fisherman, far from it. In fact some
catching fish and filled the bin mate,
encore runs that threaten knots, rod tips,
of the best fishing days are where
arms are stuffed, legs wobbly, great
lines, arm strength and all are thoroughly
everything but snapper is targeted,
day…”
rewarding. Many are ‘small’ or rats to
and to catch a snapper is a ‘fail’ can
”Say what”?
what they can become, but this is no
be a fantastic days fishing. Right now
“Yeah kingfish, and the biggest
matter. Kingfish without a doubt are
in the Gulf we have a real opportunity,
kahawai you’ve ever seen, and a whole
some of the most sporting, dirty tricked
one of broadening horizons of the
bunch of skipjack tuna – let the good
filled, hard out barrels of muscle in the
given norms of (snapper) fishing and
times roll”.
ocean. Excellent.
14 www.nzfisher.co.nz
Smoked king and big snapper
This year is our chance to make the most of them, to go and experience that nitrous like burst of power on the strike, the sheer low down grunt of these fine looking fish with their beautiful racing stripe sheen
And this year is our chance to make the
lure, perhaps many times before one
kicks on route 66 – the kings highway
most of them, to go and experience that
take the bait so to speak. Then it’s all on!
so to speak, is always increasing,
nitrous like burst of power on the strike,
Whether you’re land based, spear-fishing,
being rediscovered or improved…live
the sheer low down grunt of these fine
in a dinghy, a Kayak, a trailer boat or
baits, stick baits, poppers, jigs, soft
looking fish with their beautiful racing
bigger – the kingfish really don’t mind.
plastics, dead baits…all good. And
stripe sheen, and a welcome lack of
Or maybe you like the livie approach,
right now the kingfish are here, there,
finger piercing teeth ticking an optional
perhaps a slow troll around your favourite
and everywhere ready and waiting for
extra box. In most places while many
headland or reef, or drop a livie down
the game to begin. Just a quick word
are under size, but many aren’t and the
the sides of a baitschool on the sounder
– cradle them well when handling as
surface takes and very visual aspect of
(whether being worked over by other
picking up by the tail can apparently
catching them takes your breath away,
predators or not)…feeling the change in
dislocate their spine, not good.
every time. Watching a gang of Kingfish
twitch of the livie as you let the line get
hone in on a fast retrieved soft plastic or
taken out by the king and after the turn
past trawlers along with other big
surface popper is always an eye grabber.
securing the hook in the jaw...their runs
predators and find their way into the
As they hunt down the fleeing prey and
heating the reel’s drag to ouch point. Ah
Gulf, north and east of Flat Rock has
it’s a wonderful thing, king fishing.
a few nice specimens at the moment,
work themselves into the strike frenzy. Bow wakes as they tail and harass the
The number of ways to get your
Skipjack tuna have managed to get
and trolling a little lure or SP at about
www.nzfisher.co.nz 15
5kts behind the boat (just out of the bubbles) can be just like big game fishing, just downsize your reels (to whatever you have), look for any surface blips, flips or activity (often mistaken for surface kahawai), current lines and a new summer thrill awaits. On light tackle the skippies just explode on their own nitro-circus act runs and look incredible with their chrome and iridescent blue all lit up. They make great catching and when prepped well immediately, they can be darn good eating smoked – by bleeding, icing down and removal of blood lines when filleting, then their taste is fantastic straight out of the smoker. Skippies are a fish not often found in the gulf so while they are here, certainly worth specifically targeting and such a ton of fun (especially that light tackle approach!). And they do make some of the best big snapper winter baits around. Between the marauding Kingfish and the flash-harry Skippies, the Kahawai have been in all shapes and sizes too. Some stunningly coloured and patterned ones of the small to mid size have been schooling in an around the Noises and David rock areas, along with the big-as ocean goers all hassling the anchovy schools that are right in the shallows all around the edges of gulf right now. While I love snapper, change is a good thing and it keeps the thrills and enjoyment factor way up. When heading out for a fast paced fishing day is first on the agenda….head over to a shoreline, or an inner harbor channel pretty much anywhere, and you’ll find all the fish you can poke your rod at. The kahawai and kingfish are hunting in big packs and so either trolling or casting into them with a fast retrieve on your favorite spinning reel has to be the go at the mo’. Without having to spend a small fortune and many hours/days 16 www.nzfisher.co.nz
trolling for big game fish – get into the smaller game fish approach and plenty of excitement is still to be had, without the time, huge expense and long hours of not much. Troll for some skippies watch out for a king strike or a monster kahawai that you’ll swear is a kingie with their dogged determination and hard-out explosions of line peeling speed. So whether it’s fresh kingfish steaks, smoked kingfish, crumbed kingfish, curried kingfish, battered kingfish…all absolutely divine especially when fresh. Similarly with the Kahawai when treated correctly from moment of capture, smoked kahawai flavor will often surpass that of Snapper and many others, it’s all in the technique of bleeding (I cut the jugular) then into ice slurry within a minute or two, then a simple boneless fillet at days’ end, cured in various flavour concoctions for 3 days, followed by a whole days cold smoke (hey use a hot smoker if that’s what you have). The flavor is totally mouth
What an encou nter!
watering, and once smoked they can be frozen and keep well for months, especially
excellent fishing at the moment. The
bigger tuna and other predatory
when vacuum packed (for smoked fish
inner harbor channels, all around the
game fish are in the northern areas
cakes second to none).
big volcano, the Kawau islands, and
of the gulf!!) are all around, so take
over the eastern side of Waiheke,
off the snapper blinkers and go for a
rule, where the food is, the fish arew,
great results are being achieved on
new experience if you haven’t already
so the snapper are right in close too,
a daily basis. I hear so often, and fair
and enjoy a new way to spend the
have been for several weeks, and
enough lately that many times the fish
day, bring home some exciting tales
should remain there for a few more.
just aren’t interested…well yes the
of triumph and woe, as well as some
In some of the busiest water highways
SNAPPER may go off the bite, but
different tasting fish for a treat. Most
there are excellent snapper schools,
think a little more than just one fish…
excellent adventures are to be had and
the harbor bridge area for instance –
the kingfish, kahawai, tuna (some
yet return snapper-less.
Oh yeah and of course, the golden
www.nzfisher.co.nz 17
underWATER feature
Moments that you get amped Story and photos by James Gordon
here are some moments during
drivers in 6 metre plus boats who are
them are overseas and the remaining
winter when you’re reading a
thinking, “now where’s mummy and
few are ‘whipped’. Luckily, Nick, a
good fishing story that gets
daddy’s big launch?” This little boat has
Scottish fella from work, cut the mustard
you very amped for summer missions.
had some modifications, the obvious one
and we had locked in a date: a date that
After an infamously poor New Zealand
being a substantially larger gas tank to
neither of us would ever forget.
ski season, i.e. no snow, I had whittled
fuel the 30 mighty horses attached to
it down to two activities: running and
the transom.
pondering the next spearo mission in
Preparation for the day involved endless refreshing of the marine met
Warmish weather is the key to surviving
service page and metvuw.com. Never
in such an exposed little boat, so our first
mind the gear, it was all streamlined to
mission was saved for the beginning of
only the essentials and already packed
is the looks I get when I am 20-30 miles
December. Finding enthusiastic, marine-
into a pre-fuelled boat.
off shore and whipping along the coast
minded and endurance savvy boating
of an island. I get sideways looks from
mates can be a challenge when half of
my 4.3 metre RIB. My favourite thing about my little boat
18 www.nzfisher.co.nz
The day finally came and we were up at the crack of dawn and on the road
Nick hunting to Mangawhai. Nick was in good shape
-we could smell the kingis. We spent the
workout and had nothing to show for it,
this time - his last trip involved multiple
next few hours warming up and chasing
but we still felt the vibe that our prized
burley bombs over the pontoons after
baitfish, butters and a few porae - next
kingi would show up. Two more dive
trying to keep up with his kiwi in-laws
stop the copper mine.
spots, lunch and a few more fish for the
the night before. A quick launch and
Limited to a depth finder, we spent
bin saw us well into the afternoon.
two yanks on the pull-start had the tiller
a bit of time trolling round doing the
Our final stop was the reefs off
yearning to be opened up.
typical search pattern, trying to locate
Lady Alice. Still dead calm seas, the
the copper mine. With the help of
conditions were idyllic. The run in
surprises. Good strong currents and
a growing sun, a large white patch
saw us pushing out wide to allow for
peeling waves makes dodging surfers
emerged in about 7-8 metres: bingo,
two boats who were being swarmed
fun. Not this time -we hit the point to
anchor down. An hour of pushing into
by large ocean-going kahawai. We
find it a millpond: brilliant! We wound
the current with our guns, and one up/
anchored in two metres of water (the
up the 30 horses and hit the weed line
one down diving the reef, we came up
beauty of having such a light boat) as
inside from the copper mine reef in a
with nothing but a few rat kingies and a
it pushed over the semi exposed reef
good half hour. The water was alive with
heap of koheru - time to move on.
in the mid-tide. The game plan was to
Mangawhai bar is always full of
baitfish, blue maomao, trevs and the like
We were a little beaten up from the
be sucked out over the back of the reef
www.nzfisher.co.nz 19
d an ng hi fis of nd ke ee w t ea gr a as w It the adventures in a really magic part of the country. And the best bit? We know better fishing up there is just going to get and better of the coming months.
and work our way round. The incredibly
but I did what I’ve read in many spearing
and finger squeezing the trigger, and the
oversized dive flag went up and we
stories: turned again to face away, took a
spear ripped right through the fish as it
were out off the back of the boat in no
sharp breath and dove down. I kept him
thrashed to get the first shaft out. I came
time, in amongst the baitfish.
in view out of the corner of my eye as we
screaming to the surface claiming we’d
both swam into the current, but he was
got him! Nick obviously wasn’t convinced
steadily moving away.
as he wasn’t in the boat.
A few yellow-fins appeared, had a quick look at us and moved on before we could point our muzzles behind their gill
Back to the surface, I yelled at Nick
plates. We pushed on around the side of
where the fish was heading down. “GO
the fish, fighting to not get tangled and
the reef, remembering kingfish generally
DOWN!” My excitement must have said
keep the buoys above the surface. After
do the rounds every 20 minutes. Nick
it all. I knew we only had once chance at
several grabs, we finally caught him by
was in front of me. I was getting tired
getting this fish, as he would check us
the gills and put him to rest with a quick
and trying to conserve my energy. To the
out once and move on. I swam towards
icky to the head. We put him through
left I saw a large figure swimming into
were Nick had dived down. It was then I
the fish stringer attached to the float and
the current with me. I made the mistake
saw the flash of the white belly and Nick
bear-hugged him as we swam through
of trying to approach it and got a flick
swimming wide eyed. He knew he’d
the current and back onto the reef where
of a yellow tail - a 20kg plus kingfish.
hit the beast. I took a breath and swam
the boat was. It was pushing 5pm and
From the surface I yelled at Nick to keep
down to plug it with a second shot. The
we’d been on the water for ten hours,
his eyes peeled and we pressed on.
fish was going nuts, luckily, it was only six
but we had a second wind and it got us
The front of the reef was dead and we
to eight metres, but the fish was quickly
back the 22 miles we had travelled.
moved on to the next side. I was starting
heading for deeper water. Nick had
to feel it now and didn’t want to cramp
taken the shot from a good distance but
always fun; it’s just a dilemma as to how
up so I told Nick I was heading back to
landed it in the softest part of the gut.
big you cut the steaks, with the result
the boat. He was a good ten metres in
Unfortunately the flopper didn’t hold
a reflection of how much you were
front of me. I put my head back in the
and was lost, pulling through the fish’s
salivating at the time. Cooked simply,
water and swung my body around to
gut as it fought frantically along the rock.
and if anything undercooked, kingfish
swim in the other direction. There on
I dove deeper and chased the fish until
is my favourite. Sharing the story and
my tail, cruising in for a look was the
I had it broadside. I fully extended my
eating good food with many friends
distinctive white jaw and green head.
arm with tip pointed for the money-shot,
and family is more than half the fun. Its
With no buddies around him, I knew he
right behind the gill plate. Safety off,
moments like these that get you already
would spook easily. My heart was racing,
two 16 millimetre rubbers fully tensioned
amped for your next mission!
20 www.nzfisher.co.nz
We spent the next ten minutes battling
Back home and filleting the beast is
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THEclubhouse
Ngawi Sports Fishing Club By Shona Zander
Prime Ngawai Snapper
Ngawi Junior, Sam with a sizable Groper
Ngawi Local, Craig with a good southern Kingfish
he Ngawi Sports Fishing
formed club decided to hold its first
anniversary this year with 487 anglers
Club was formed on 1st July
fishing competition.
and 141 boats - no small feat for the
1991with a financial member-
A large variety of fish can be caught in
small village with approximately 30
ship of twenty. This was quite an effort
the area, with the club having trophies
fulltime residents! The small fishing
for a small fishing village, but what bet-
for blue cod, groper (hapuka), tarakihi,
village swells to capacity with bachs
ter place to start up a fishing club than
trumpeter, kingfish, tuna, kahawai,
chocker and all the free camping area
on the southern-most (and fishiest!)
snapper, shark and billfish.
packed with campervans and tents.
coast of the North Island. Less than 3 kilometres out from the
Although the club has not (yet)
The Ngawi Sports Fishing Club runs a
weighed in a billfish, a broadbill of
full calendar for all it’s members. Club
coast, you can be in 100 fathoms (Thats
300kg was netted by a trawler off
days aimed at Children and small fry,
180m to the rets of us – Ed.) of water
the Ngawi Coast and it was taken to
and Woman anglers, with the Interclub
so the prospect of being able to catch
Wellington for weighing.
contests with Wairarapa, Pukemanu,
large sharks, both Mako and Blues, and
Our annual Ngawi Big 3 Fishing
Plimmerton and Kapiti Fishing Clubs,
broadbill being sighted and caught the
Competition which is held on the third
for the more serious anglers. These
odd occasion around the area, the newly
weekend in February had its 20th
Club days are fantastic fun, everyone
22 www.nzfisher.co.nz
gets to know someone new, and a lot of
trailers with 6m plus drawbars. Every
laughter, threats, bribes and big white
trailer is hooked up to a bulldozer and
Deere tractors for its members to use
lies, in true fisherperson fashion, become
every breed of bulldozer imaginable can
when launching and retrieving their boats.
the order of the day.
be found there! Some have had a little
The Ngawi Sports Fishing Club, along
The Club has purchased two 3140 John
With no ramps, launching can be a
spruce up, new paint jobs - pink, purple,
challenge as the beach is of small shingle
with the Ngawi Hit Around Golf Club,
green!! - and some are in dire need of
which can change with each tide and
use the local community hall as their
one! To the bulldozer enthusiast, it is
rough seas.
Clubrooms. It is in this hall that the
definitely a must see.
tournament office is run from with an
The Ngawi Sports Fishing Club is
The Club has a large number of
proud of its history of participation in
18mx18m marquee, purchased by the
sponsors and it is the continued support
the fishery management, with delegates
club this year, being the competitors
of these wonderful sponsors that make
attending meetings around the country
base for prize giving’s and the necessary
the Ngawi Big 3 Fishing Competition
and submitting submissions on species
bar facilities!
the biggest in the Lower North Island –
pertaining to our club, trying to ensure
check out the photos along side.
that there will always be fish in the sea for
I believe Ngawi is one of the most photographed places in New Zealand
On top of the Big Three, the Club also
its members and their future generations.
with not a day going by without
has ten monthly ‘Club Days’ for members
someone taking photos. The small
with prize money jackpotting for any
with a fantastic group of people willing
Ngawi Bay is lined with commercial and
species not caught or a cancelled club day.
to ensure that all fisher people have a
Many a yarn is told after a day on the
great time, this is more than evident in
recreational boats, the former mostly
Ngawi is truly a great club to belong to,
for crayfish harvesting with a couple of
water over a beer with food and prize
the number of financial members the
wet fish quota holders, on large beach
giving at the end of the day.
club currently has.
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regionalREVIEWS
Coromandel/Tairua Source: Carl Muir www.EpicAdventures.co.nz
ell there are still plenty of
trolling, once again a striped marlin
marlin around and some
choosing to devour the Bonze Apache,
big kingfish to boot. We
in black over orange skirt. The angler
had some good fun over the weekend
Darren Cade who has been watching
fishing the Tairua Ladies comp, and the
our website for the last two years and
crew we assembled took out 1st, 2nd
in the end he just had to come and
and 3rd kingfish regular fisho Hayley
get into some kingfish action! The
Bonnici taking out biggest fish overall
stripey came from some very good bait
with this 23.5kg kingfish, caught in
sign in on the 100m line close to the
front of a big audience of other boats
Aldermen Islands very close to Tairua.
fishing the comp, and awesome effort! Well done Hayley!
The stripey was an added bonus and Darren managed to get his arms
It was an awesome week building
well and truly stretched on some solid
up to the comp and we managed to
kingfish in his three days of fishing.
bag another striped marlin on the
For more from the last week check our report and photos here.
new Senator from an hours worth of
Hauraki Gulf Source: Grant Bittle ‘Espresso’ www.catch.org.nz
ow what a wonderful fish-
Workups have been few and far
ing season this has been,
between over the past month or so
models are around, using lighter gear
and it continues. Good
further rout, but nothing lasts forever
and watching a youngster catch a king
healthy snapper are still in the 10-20m
good or bad and the sea ‘n sky vortex
is thoroughly rewarding even if the fish
depths all around the edges of the gulf
of gannets is a happening thing again –
is undersize and released, the thrill just
and the big sleepy volcano, with every
much to the pleasure of storm chasing
lasts and lasts.
type size shape and species of fish too
fishermen. Mostly though I’d keep
– like kingfish, kahawai, mako, thresher,
the gas budget for multiple close-in
on lightweight jigheads (1/2oz say)
even orcas in so shallow they must be
evening or morning fishing sessions
anywhere around islands and channels
scratching their bellies!
rather than the gas burner of heading
between islands, a flick of a popper at
out to 50m depths.
marker buoys or over surface schools of
The moons influence has been strong
gulf. Excellent fun even if lots of smaller
My pick – a morning drift with softies
and around that full moon the fishing
Skippies have returned and are out
various fish – again all in close, and keep
generally slows, but when the moon
east of Flat rock which are great fun to
your eyes peeled, you’ll see the anchovy
calms down along with the wind, the
catch surface trolling a tiny lure as you
schools in numbers (and some prawns!)
inner channels have been the place to
would for kahawai. Kingfish, well they
right into very shallow water – no
be rather than ‘out wide’ in the gulf
seem to be popping up pretty much
wonder all the big fish are there! That’ll
burning lots of gas leaving the best
everywhere, and near every marker
tell you what’s working bait or imitation
fishing behind.
pole or buoy in the entire harbor and
bait wise ay.
24 www.nzfisher.co.nz
Bay of Plenty Source: Mark Armistead www.extremesportfishing.co.nz ishing over the past few weeks
just enjoyed one of the
has been a bit up and down, the
most memorable days
good run of kingfish that were
fishing I have ever had,
greedily taking down any jig on offer
with a couple of Aussies
seem to have moved on. But the good
on board we ventured
news is the snapper have moved in close
out to a secret location
in big numbers and there are some
and hauled in fish after
pretty big models in amongst them. We
fish right from the start.
have been landing some good fish but
We landed a few good
we have also been humbled by some of
fish but the really big
these monsters as well with some big
ones just kept eluding
bust offs occurring.
us, one pulled the
Big news for the past week was the
hook and another
A Snapper on a stick bait – and a 20lber at that!!
capture of a giant snapper on a stick
monster got mauled
bait, snapper on stick baits are a pretty
by a shark. Then finally
rare capture but this one was even more
at the end of the day we hooked up to a
special because it cracked the 20 pound
freight train, this fish fought well above
mark. This big snapper took an Angel
its weight class and it was a pretty tense
Tackle lure which are now available form
battle in shallow water. Eventually up
us for under the $100 mark, pretty good
popped a beautifully conditioned kingfish
value for top quality stick bait. The fish
in the mid to high 20kg bracket. But
was duly released and swam away well.
the most interesting thing we witnessed
Only two days later we hooked another
during the day was when a monster
big snapper on a stick bait but pulled the
kingfish come up and tried to eat a
hooks before we could land it.
smaller kingfish we had hooked up, it was
Even with the patchy fishing we have
absolutely huge.
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regionalREVIEWS
Taranaki/ The NZ Sport West Coast Fishing Nationals Source: Bought to you by The Taranaki AMF Team – www.amfboats.co.nz he marlin have finally arrived off the Naki and boy are they hungry. Just days before going
The 2011 NZSFC Nationals were held in February and there were some outstanding results. In total 1,492 Anglers fished from 422 teams and 39 Clubs took part retuning 738 fish to be weighed and 642 were tagged and released. TOTAL FISH WEIGHED & TAGGED DURING THE 2011 NATIONALS The total number of fish weighed during the contest
738
to print (the week before the AMF boats 2011 Gamefishing Competition) ten marlin were landed in just one day including a 110kg beauty by Kevin Moratti, New Plymouth Sportsfishing and Underwater club stalwart and local fishing personality, caught on board
Total number of Billfish weighed
40
Blue Marlin
40
Total number of Striped Marlin weighed
32
Total number of Shortbill Spearfish weighed
12
Total number of Shark weighed
21
Duncan McIver’s AMF 660, Narcosis. Shot boys!
Blue Shark
8
Bronze Whaler
3
Mako
10
Total number of Tuna weighed
2
Yellowfin
0
Bigeye
2
Total number of Slender Tuna
Kev’s 110kg Marlin
Total number of Skipjack
273
Total number of Albacore
106
Total number of Yellowtail
20
Total number of Kahawai
110
Total number of Snapper
70
Total Number of Trevally
32
Total number of Mahimahi
20
The best fishing has been just north of the port in anything from 60 meters or
Total number of Fish tagged and released
642
Total number of Billfish tagged and released
39
greater. With water sitting at above 21 degrees almost everyday and blue water everywhere, it might b hard to miss out. There are plenty of Albacore and
Black Marlin
0
Blue Marlin
39
Skippies too, but size hasn’t been great. For those hitting inshore species, there’s still snapper about but in reduced numbers than January. If you like kingfish, now is the time. Some of
Total number of Striped Marlin tagged and released Total number of Shortbill Spearfish tagged and released Total number of Shark tagged and released
the best kingfish in the last decade have been coming in and special mention has to be made of Kane Wrigglesworth’s
fish beat the club record of 21kg by a huge margin! Well done Kane – that’ll take some beating! 26 www.nzfisher.co.nz
7 233
Blue shark
52
Bronze Whaler
11
Hammerhead
3
Mako
167
Total number of Yellowtail tagged and released
146
36kg (ish?) Landbased king landed ‘south of Whanganui’ last month. Kane’s
217
Total number of tuna tagged and released
0
Congratulations to all who took part whether you landed fish or not, this was an exceptional competition.
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Killer Series Stick-baits By Derrick Paull ast month we presented a brief on what stick baits are and this month I’m keen to expand
’re Killer stickbaits - they lethal on kingfish
on that somewhat with a short video showing how stickbaits (should) act when they’re worked correctly and they’re a well balanced product. The lure in the video is a Killer Series handmade and sourced from Japan. The new Killer series stickbaits are available from Yeehaa in Panmure. [Image: Killer; and kilfish; Caption: N/A] Click here to see this very clear video on the action of a Killer stickbait -how could fish possibly resist?!?!?!? (Scroll down to see video).
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nationalbody REPORT
The NZACA National Championships 2011 //Taking it to City of Sails NEW ZEALAND ANGLING & CASTING ASSOCIATION 2011 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS he North Shore Surfcasting
the upper Hauraki Gulf is recognised as
are just minutes away. The Hibiscus
Club and Hibiscus Kayak Fish-
the best kayak fishing location in New
Coast is lined with stunning white
ing Club in association with
Zealand with many 20lb plus Snapper
sand beaches perfect for picnics and
the NZACA are excited to invite you
caught here by kayakers in 2009 and
summer swims with few waves to
compete at the 2011 New Zealand An-
2010. Early captures in 2011 have
burden the little ones. When the fishing
gling and Casting Association National
included 20.
is done you’re in the country’s biggest
Championships to be based at Orewa
For those chasing Kingfish they are
neighbourhood with 100’s of bars and
on the beautiful Hibiscus Coast north
abundant throughout the gulf until
of Auckland. The 2011 nationals are to
May and can be found chasing live
be held 20-23rd April 2011.
baits and jigs all day - if you can them
Charter Boats:
is the question!!!???
Gulf Harbour, on the Whangaparaoa
The Nationals are the highlight of the
restaurants within 30 minutes.
modern and very competent Charter
NZACA’s annual fishing calendar and an awesome event for all keen anglers
Accommodation:
fleet happy to take you to where the fish
and casters.
Rodney is a tourist focussed region
are. The Kaipara Harbour on the west
with many options for accommodation
coast also has a strong charter fleet, but
gateway to the amazing Hauraki Gulf
from DoC Camping grounds in
be quick they’re in hot demand.
and stunning wild West Coast beaches.
Mahurangi, Motels on the Hibiscus
The 2011 Nationals will have extremely
Coast to rustic beach bachs at Snells
Casting:
generous boundaries extending from
Beach. Finding a place to lay your head
The casting will be held at a very new
Bream Tail and North Head of the
will never be a problem.
venue (almost) tailor made for casting.
Orewa in Rodney District is the
The interest in this Nationals Casting
Kaipara in the North to Orere Point and
Family
event is already strong with many new
The event is being held to coincide with
casters testing themselves in preparation
these limits. These waters are extremely
the school Holidays and the Hibiscus
for the 2011 Championships.
fishy waters and produce fantastic fishing
Coast offers a great base for family
every year for those luckily enough to
holidays. Plan to bring the whole family
day for both Distance and Accuracy,
enjoy them.
along and involve fishing in your activities.
thereby reducing the time commitments
the Waikato River to the south. Specific boundaries may be set within
The Casting will be run on the same
to compete in all sections.
These boundaries include many easy walking and productive spots as well as
Entertainment
innumerable boatfishing locations that can
If you’re bringing the family (and
For any information or if you
be accessed from over 20 boat ramps.
perhaps they don’t want to fish –
wish to enter, please email
Horror!) the massive Albany Mall and
2011Nats@koruworld.co.nz and go to
new Whangaparaoa Shopping Malls
www.nzaca.co.nz
The new Kayak section will bring plenty of interest to the Nationals and 28 www.nzfisher.co.nz
// In the next issue of NZ Fisher… • The all new Ocean Kayak Prowler 4.1 – Tested • The NZACA Nationals – NZFisher’s efforts – Are we victorious? • A week at the Three Kings – A fisher’s El Dorado
Have you subscribed to NZ Fisher? It’s free!
Simply visit www.nzfisher.co.nz to get a copy of NZ Fisher delivered straight to your inbox every third Wednesday!
Next edition out 2011
Kayak Fishing Range Because one kayak won’t suit everyone
PROWLER ULTRA 4.7 Image courtesy of Rob Fort – Coromandel Kayak Adventures
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