Hooked on summer
Fishing expert Mike Rendle on how to ensure a good holiday haul
Ireckon we should have Christmas in November if you fish the Bay of Islands or Raglan; then I’d have Christmas in July in Auckland, followed by August in Westport. Why? Well, that’s when those places fish the best.
The same can be said for just about anywhere in the country. The holiday period and great fishing don’t always coincide.
Often, the wonderful fishing we experience during November and December becomes a run of smaller fish by Christmas. Relying on the summer holiday period for your big annual fishing adventure can be an exercise in frustration but not always; some years the weather patterns push spawning later and great fishing remains accessible during January.
The good news is that there are ways to remain consistently successful, even when there is an increase in boat traffic.
My first suggestion is to get up earlier, much earlier. Watching the sun rise as you head out (or have it come up over your shoulder if you fish the west coast) is the best way to start any day. The benefits are many; there is less boat traffic, parking is easier and it is much cooler.
My personal experience on the Hauraki Gulf is that the fishing doesn’t kick in properly until it is light, regardless of tide stage, but I want to be there in position when it does. In other parts of the country, I’ve found the better fishing to be on the change of light, whether morning or night. I have a Coromandel spot that remains shadowed by an island until midmorning. Casting baits into the dark area is the secret; the fishing stops once the sun hits the water.
The next trick is to choose the right bait. My personal suggestion is to forget pilchards. Before I get sharpened knives heading my way from every bait distributor, look further in their freezer and pick a much tougher bait. Squid are
Lowdown Mike Rendle is the author of How to Catch Fish and Where, How to Go Boating and Where and the newly released How to Catch Fish and Where 2 – the Big Fish Edition.
great, as are mullet.
My first choice is salted bait. We prepare our own using kahawai, mullet, squid and the best of all, skipjack tuna. The reason is simple: at this time of year we seem to experience the hordes of smaller fish that steal bait and instantly turn a perfectly rigged pilchard to mush. Fish a tougher bait and you will find that the bait stays on long enough for the bigger fish to join the party.
The next step is to drop your tackle size down and fish the baits with as little weight as possible. In depths to 50m I will still strayline using a 6kg baitcaster on a matching triggergrip rod. The baits are weighted using very small ball sinkers. The weight required changes through the tide. Start at around a quarter of an ounce. (Yes sinkers are mostly still sold in imperial weights). Light tackle is a lot more fun and usually far more effective than fishing a heavy weight underneath a flasher rig.
My final suggestion is to look seriously at lures. Drifting the channels and under work-ups with Kaburas, micro jigs, softbaits and Ocean Assassin Inchiku jigs will generally result in more and bigger fish. January is also the time to tow the game lures; the first run of big blue marlin and, hopefully, yellowfin tuna will usually turn up by the middle of the month.
Enjoy your holiday fishing.