Fishing – More great catches

Queen’s Birthday weekend saw the annual Warkworth Game Fish Club’s 10kg fishing competition play out. The weather did not play the game at all with winds of more than 15 knots, rising to 25 knots-plus by Sunday. This did not deter more than 100 anglers from fiercely competing in a measure-only format. Everybody caught fish and lots of them. The winning snapper came out at the Mokohinau Islands and was measured at 80cm long. Also, among the top 10 longest snapper was one that came out of the Kaipara Harbour at around the 70cm mark. The Kaipara has been producing some great snapper over the last month and, going by all the feedback, a lot of them have been near-20 pounders. The winning kaiwhai measured 57cm and the fish of the tournament, a trevally, measured in at a whopping 72.5cm long. Caught by Doron Anderson, this was truly a huge fish and deserved to win the overall prize and 10kg tournament trophy.

Right now, it is all on as the bluefin tuna have just started their annual run up the East Coast of the North Island. Waihau Bay is where the most action happens every year. Only 10 minutes from the ramp, and you are in some of the best fishing waters ever. What makes this such a great spot is the continental drop off that is very close to land and so easily accessible by smaller boats. What a large range of species are found here, including snapper, kahawai, trevally, yellowfin tuna, bluefin tuna, bigeye tuna, albacore, skipjack, blue marlin, black marlin, striped marlin, spearfish, kingfish and tarakihi. Last weekend, three bluefin tuna were landed to kick things off. This is only the start, so if you have any plans to give this species a shot, now is the time to plan a trip.

Anthony Roberts, Tackle & Outdoors
tecnisportnz@gmail.com