The first flush of spring It might not seem like it, but spring is already underway.

That’s certainly true beneath the water, even if it isn’t apparent on land. Sea temperature may not have budged much since hitting the yearly minimum some time in July or August, but during September snapper herald the coming of spring by going on the bite in a big way.

With spawning only a month or two away, snapper are desperate to build up enough condition to give themselves the best possible shot at reproductive success. Hormones trigger a feeding frenzy and the biggest snapper lead the charge, taking advantage of whatever food they can get their teeth into.

BIG SNAPPER MONTH

In the Hauraki Gulf, September is the month for big snapper. Fish move into the area from the north and south along established pathways. After an initial influx of large fish, snapper spread out over reef and rock in shallow water, while schools of large fish roam deeper water, taking advantage of abundant baitfish and invertebrate food sources.

Commercial fishers are familiar with this annual, big fish migration. Similar movements occur in the Bay of Islands and elsewhere, though the timing is slightly later in more southerly waters. In Hawkes Bay beach fishers catch large snapper from the shore during October, but these fish disappear in November to be replaced by much smaller school snapper.

For inshore fishers it’s quite a short big-fish window. The biggest snapper mostly leave shallow water within a few weeks of arriving. Their place is taken by far more numerous school snapper, which over a period of many weeks join bigger snapper in deeper water as they prepare to spawn.

PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE

If you enjoy the challenge of finding and catching large snapper, it’s worth making a special effort to go fishing in September.

The first snapper to arrive are the big males which tend to turn up weeks before the females, so many of the large fish you catch in September and October are males.

To chase these big snapper, fishers need patience and perseverance. They might have to put up with unpleasant weather conditions too. During the short, big fish window before the schoolies arrive en masse, anglers are fishing for relatively few large snapper spread over a wide area. Occasionally you’ll encounter schools of big fish over the sand when the fishing can be red-hot, but for the most part you can expect long waits between bites.

As a small boat fisher, in spring I tend to fish rocky shorelines and shallow inshore reef areas around the Hauraki Gulf and Northland. I like fishing soft plastics, hunting out big fish by casting into likely looking areas and using my eyes and the sounder to identify snapper habitat. Fishing can be hard work with long periods of fruitless casting, but the bites I do get are usually from large fish.

A big snapper hooked in shallow water is a real challenge to bring to the boat. Good boat work is essential: my fishing buddies and I have become adept at chasing hooked snapper as they seek their freedom among submerged rocks. The shorter the distance you can maintain between a hooked fish and the boat, and the closer you can keep the line angle to straight up and down, the less chance there is of being broken off on an underwater obstruction. When hooked, big snapper have an uncanny knack for burying themselves in the kelp or ducking under rock ledges. They know exactly where to run.

BAIT AND BERLEY

Fishing soft plastics is one way to target these fish, but bait fishing is more popular and possibly more effective. In shallow water it’s

all about stray-lining down a decent berley trail, although years ago in Northland we used to enjoy good success fishing baits in much the same way we now fish soft plastics.

The tactic was to row or slowly motor along a length of coastline while casting unweighted baits into gutters and towards structure. It was and remains a good way to put baits in front of many fish, which is equally true of fishing soft plastics. We caught a lot of big snapper this way.

I’ve not tried this boat fishing technique with an electric trolling motor, but I’m sure such a stealthy approach would only improve fishing success, just as it has when used with soft plastics.

A more traditional approach is to select a place to fish, anchor the boat and then set up a berley trail. If you’ve chosen a location that holds fish, berley will draw them to your baited hooks. It can be a waiting game at this time of year, but you might get a shot at some really big snapper.

HERE TODAY, GONE TOMORROW

Not all big snapper are found close to shore. In September large snapper feed on deep reefs and roam over the sand as well. If you are lucky or knowledgeable enough to locate them, fishing with baited ledger rigs, plastics or various types of jig will catch them. Slow jigs work particularly well, especially those with sliding heads.

Because snapper move along established pathways, anglers in the know can intercept them at will. Commercial fishers follow them as they migrate, so finding out where the professionals are fishing is a good start.

To use Hauraki Gulf as an example, fish that typically turn up off Tawharanui in early September may be found off Tiritiri Matangi Island a week or two later and by the end of the month are spread all over the inner gulf.

Much the same happens on the Coromandel side where snapper move around the top of the peninsula and down into the Firth of Thames.

Similar migrations occur around New Zealand – the schooling season is a recognised annual phenomenon in the Bay of Islands, for instance – and large female snapper use the same migration routes a few weeks after the males. Later again, the main snapper run migrates along the same pathways.

Fish travel the pathways in waves or pulses. They can be present in good numbers one day but gone the next. Thankfully, knowing roughly where they are from day to day is much easier now with the internet and social media, but fish move quickly: if your information is inaccurate or out of date you can still miss out.

TAKE YOUR CHANCES

As spring progresses angler catch rates steadily improve, but targeting large fish becomes more difficult. It’s a numbers game: the more fish there are, the harder it is to snag the large ones from amongst the mass of average fish. So if you’re after big snapper get out on the water during the first few weeks of spring and take your chances. B