Child and rod a magical mix
Fishing off the jetty or wharf can open a world of wonder to a keen youngster
There is something timeless about a child, a line and a small fish. When the line suddenly jerks tight the child is connected to something that twists and pulls, and their whole world is concentrated on the flashing gleam deep in the water.
It is a small fish, but it is a miracle of symmetry, scales sparkling with a silver that no newly minted coin can match. It nestles in the hand, mouth gasping and eyes sparkling.
For this is how most youngsters are introduced to the world of fishing.
They cast a bait from a jetty or wharf. The green hemp hand-lines of yesteryear are long gone, and the first outfit is a long rod with a shiny spinning reel and monofilament line.
It will more than likely be a cheap start-out rig, not designed to handle the rigours of salt water and big fish. But to the young angler it is the best rod in the world. There may well be such a prize waiting under the Christmas tree on Monday morning.
There are wharves in every part of the coast, and some produce very good fishing by any standards.
Like all fishing situations, the more remote the location the better the fishing will be. Places like the Paua Wharf on Parengarenga Harbour, Pukenui at Houhora and the wharf at Mangonui are highly regarded by serious anglers who know they can hook large kingfish, trevally, kahawai and other species from their planks.
A yellowtail set under a balloon will attract any marauding kings, but tackle has to be sturdy — a 24kg outfit will stop most kings.
A visit to the Pukenui wharf many years ago revealed a most ingenious method of extracting fish from the water. A man had a wheelbarrow full of rocks and was enthusiastically firing them into the water. “These are Zane Grey rocks!” he explained.
When he spotted a john dory, which are common around the wharf piles, he would shoot a rock at it, driving it towards the shore like a sheepdog herding errant sheep.
When the dory, which are poor swimmers, reached the shallows it floundered on to its side and the fisherman’s Labrador retriever raced in and grabbed it. Dory can also be targeted with a rod and a live bait of a sprat, yellowtail or bully. The wharf at Whangamata is another where