Fishing – Good news for fishers

For those of you who have been out on the water in the last month, you will have noticed some good workups around the front of Kawau Island and up towards Leigh reef. There is a lot of baitfish around and solid workups mean good snapper below, with the kahawai and kingfish chasing the bait on the top.

We are heading into the annual snapper spawning season, which hits us, depending on water temperatures, around November each year. Many reports of snapper with roe are coming in. Just a reminder that it is good practice to leave the bigger fish to do their spawning so that we can replenish our food source. The snapper will be moving out from the shallows to the deeper waters during this time.

There have been good sized ocean-going kahawai caught in the last month. These fish are great to catch as they are prolific fighters for their size. Jumping and head shaking are all part of their makeup as they try to throw the hook. Always try to keep the line from going slack so there is less chance of them shaking the hook out when they jump.

Kingfish are also in the hunt and, as always, there are a lot of rats (undersize fish) hanging around. However, with the right approach you can land the bigger boys, as can be seen from the photo. These were caught using lipped lures while trolling off Kaiwhai Island. This specimen was lifted using a lip grip, which gives you the weight of the fish before releasing. By not touching the fish, it has a better chance of survival. Interestingly, while hanging from the lip grip, the fish does not struggle at all. This photo wins Nola a $25 gift voucher. Tight Lines!

Anthony Roberts, Tackle & Outdoors
tecnisportnz@gmail.com