My Account
Typically at this time of the season the snapper schools are in good numbers and feeding ravenously to put on condition for the cooler months.
Meanwhile, the kahawai will be feeding on the white bait and anchovy schools and the kingfish are never far behind. Although there are a lot of fish feeding, we still sometimes have to refer to the ‘bite times’ to maximise our chances. Basically you can expect a bite time when the moon is overhead and under foot (around the other side of Earth) and again when it is rising and setting. There are many other factors too that can influence ‘the bite’ such as the weather, your location, the species you are targeting and other environmental influences like seismic activity or fresh water runoff.
Dawn and dusk are great times to fish and if you can get all your ducks in a row with good weather, a bite time and good bait and lures then you will surely succeed. I prefer a dawn session as it is always going to get lighter and there are more options during daylight as some fish hide during the night. In saying this rock and beach fishers can do very well on a rising tide during the night as some fish come right up into the shallows to feed on crabs, worms and shellfish.
Areas to try this month are in 40m east of Tiri, in 50m east of Kawau, the Tiri Channel, Flat Rock for kingfish and Whangaparaoa Bay especially out in 18m–20m off Waiwera and Hatfields Beach. Keep your eyes peeled for diving gannets, shearwaters fluttering busily around on the surface and kahawai schools on the surface. On a windy day you might find a good catch from places like the Mahurangi Harbour or the mouth of the Weiti River where fish often congregate and feed in the nutrient rich flow.
Rock and beach fishers could try slide baiting. This technique of sliding a livebait down the line has been proved to be successful. The rig itself is simple and easy to set up and allows land based fishers to target big snapper and kingfish from the shore. We can show you how in store.
