2020
Fishing report 21 August
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8 Sept Harbour boat - some nice snapper, gurnard and trevs have been caught recently from Pt Halswell to Falcon Shoal as well as south of Ward Island. the edge of the shipping chanel and around the harbour entrance have been going well for some big bluecod, gurnard and kahawai shore - its nice to see the return of the the kahawai along with whitebait pretty much all over the harbour at different times and days. Evans bay has been particularly busy with kahawai mayhem from the Coastguard building along to Cobham drive and to Miramar wharf. There's been a nice spring run of gurnard at places like Greta Pt (Niwa) and various other points around the bay as well. South coast boat - good cod and teris from 40mtr down to 100mtr at most reefy spots. As a gerneral rule, Karori is better for the Cod and Turakerei is better for the tarakihi with other places like baring head, the wreck, around the marine reserve and airport reef. Fitzroy bay is a nice calm spots for a feed of cod, teri, gurnard and trevally if conditions are a big rough out wide. shore - Kahawai, the odd nice bluecod, gurnard and trevally are around places like Fitzroy bay, Wainui, Pencarrow while White rock and 'the Spit' are a good bet for spotty sharks, a possible moki or elephantfish and a general mixed bag of other ooglies West Coast boat - still some puka getting caught off Makara and Ohau but the bigger ones are harder to get at this time of the year due to spawning. There's been some good schools of warehou around place like Boom, Ohau, Hunters and fishermans. Snapper are biting better in the deeper water (over 50mtrs) but there are still some shallower ones especially from Pukerua bay northwards.Plenty of kingis have been hooked out at Hunters bank lately. Its been quite productive over the last two winters but of course not every day. The fish tend to be a bit deeper in the winter (50-70mtr). shore - Its a good time to target tarakihi, tervally and warehou on the shingle beaches from Titahi bay down to Ohau pt. The odd snapper may still be on the cards Kapiti - Better snapper fishing in the 50+ mtr areas. good tarakihi on the south end and still Kingis on the North. Durville - Big snapper and Kingi time at Stephens passage (80-120mtr) The surfcasters are happy at the moment, because it’s whitebait season. That doesn’t mean that they will be downsizing their hooks, it means that the kahawai are on the chew, especially in close around any of the river mouths, estuaries, or any places inshore that they can herd these little baitfish. Fishing from shore with small spinners is a great way to have some fun on light gear, and any small shiny lure or even little soft baits can provide epic action. Back in the day we used to throw the ¼ oz Stingsilda around, who’s out there that’s old enough to remember those classic weapons ;-) You’ll see a few hopefuls out with their nets in the river inlets hoping for a few grams of river gold that are certainly a delicacy when generously spooned into a pan with the fritter mix. All the big species are fishing well at the moment, plenty of big puka, bluenose, snapper, terakihi, cod and kingies coming from all around the usual popular spots we talk about in our reports. It’s good to see the puka fishing pick up from a few weeks ago off the west coast too. Some really good results in both size and numbers coming in from the popular 150 to 200 metre mark, and puka fishing out at the Trench and beyond is still going really well. Snapper have been steady for this time of year mostly out deeper in 70 – 80 metres, but you’ll still find them in closer to shore. The kayak fishermen do really well with soft baits in close, and winter is a good time to use the bigger seven inch patterns moved nice and slow for the big fish. Big Zman and Catch livie bodies go well in either natural or orange colours. Otherwise it can be good stray lining or casting whole pillies into the wash for the win. There’s truckloads of kingies out at Hunters still, and generally jigs are firing them up so it’s worth a crack out there. Also off the south coast just on the edge of the Trench where there are bluenose has been producing some nice kings too. August 8 It’s been a fantastic run of winter weather here in the balmy capital, with three good weekends in a row and packed boat ramps. Sure enough the fishing has also been worth the wait with some really good results from around the Wellington region, particularly off the south coast. There’s been a big influx of Puka out of the south coast, and deep dropping the Trench and beyond appears to have been far more productive than the west coast. We have had some good intel from one of our commercial operator customers about some great puka and bluenose fishing spots that are out about twice as far as the Trench. I’m happy to elaborate a bit more on precisely where these spots are if you pop in to see me in person at the shop. Another commercial operator we know well is pretty impressed by the number of fish out there at the moment, and the general state of the Hapuka fishery. They believe the fish may be moving around a lot more than people give them credit for. They are also not necessarily glued to structure, but will venture out onto the sand a fair distance, so it’s worth keeping an eye on the sounder and possibly continuing a drift a little further than normal off the main foul ground if you have not hooked up.Especially at this time of year prior to spawning, the fish can be quite mobile, so if they are not at old favourite spot X, they may well be out further on the sand. Recreational anglers are also picking up good fish on jigs at the moment too, up to around 30 kilos.The puka are heading deeper, and it can be 300 metres down, so fishing the turn of the tide is important as that’s the only window that will allow lines to stay vertical in the current. Good numbers of bluenose are also being caught, in fact, they are bloody near everywhere out by the Trench at the moment.There are even a few kingies out deep too, often just grabbing baits as a by catch, so keep the jigs handy and it’s well worth having a go for puka and kings with a good big jig in lumo patterns. Snapper fishing has been ok, with more individual fish than big schools. Although the odd good moocher will always be caught in close, often picked up by the kayak anglers or surf casters, most of the good snapper fishing has been out deep in around 70 – 80 metres, but even out to 120 off the west coast, in all the usual reef structures and popular areas such as off Boom down to Ohau etc.Having said that, Fisherman’s appears to have gone a bit quiet, but that can always change. If you are hitting it with no luck it’s probably best to move on fairly quickly to another area.The usual staples of blue cod, trevs and terakihi have all been pretty easy to pick up in general fishing, so getting a feed out there is pretty much a given. In any weather or wind direction there’s always somewhere around the coastline to pick up these species. The good weather can’t last forever, and it looks like another wintery patch heading our way soon, so best to get out there while you still can.
july 17 2020 FISHING REPORT This snapper season has been undoubtedly one of the best the Wellington region has seen in recent years, and they are still being caught in good sizes and numbers. Although there will always be big residential moochers in the shallows, sheltering in the weed and foul, it appears that most of the fish have moved out deeper now to around 70 metres. In particular, Vern’s reef has been producing really good fish. Traditionally a good terakihi spot, it’s been turning up some very nice snapper and trevs lately, again in 70 to 80 metres. In fact, most of the west coast has been returning some solid results, with the southerly swells rendering the south coast a bit lumpy and tough to get out to the Trench comfortably, the west coast has been a good option from Ohau right up past Kapiti. Hunter’s has seen some great fishing, and the kayak boys have been pulling several double figure snaps out from Pukerua Bay. The kingy fishing has also been good, and there are great specimens right in shallow at the moment. We recently put a young lad onto a king that pushed his limits, and with a bit of help from dad he pulled a 15kg fish out of 10 metres just in behind Mana Island. We also got stuck into some blue mackerel fishing the likes of which I’ve never seen previously, with big fish up to 3 kgs taking most anything on offer. That’s a meaty sized mackerel for the smoker or to be thrown straight back over as live-bait for kingies. Speaking of live bait, this method is the best ever for catching john dory, and the JD fishing has really started firing up now. Targeting john dory also gives you the chance of scoring a decent snapper or kingy, so it’s often worth the effort. For a bit more detail on how to catch them check this video article: https://www.nzfishingworld.co.nz/posts/how-to-catch-john-dory-and-why The other favourite eating fish that has been firing up is the old blue cod, and the cod fishing on the west coast recently has just been outstanding. Perhaps it was the massive southerly activity that was bad enough to cancel the ferries, that has forced the blue cod around the corner to the west coast up as far as the Makara Fenceline. The big cod are turning up all over the place, including in the harbour. We had some absolutely epic cod fishing last week off the fenceline, with cod up to 3 kilos running like kahawai. Pelagic cod! Didn’t get a jump or tail-walk out of them but they were great in the old frypan. Good luck over the weekend, tight lines and we look forward to seeing your photos in the comp. Cheers Pete June 2020 inshore fishing is pretty good on the whole at the moment, and better than this time last year for snapper. Plenty of terakihi, trevs, snapper, and kingfish still around the local inshore fishery including the harbour. In fact, just last week out on my little Mac off Point Gordon it was fairly easy to get a good boat load of terakihi, snapper and gurnard in just 20 metres. West coast and harbour has been the place to be, with the southerly swell roughing up the south coast a bit much. Out west snapper are still prevalent in shallow around the structure, out off the sand and even out deep. Brilliant season. Use a good bit of berley when you find a decent spot and that should get them on the chew usually, although drifting with lures such as soft baits or kabura style jigs is also well worth a crack. The full moon last week made it a little tougher, but that has passed now and there should be some great fishing coming up over the next week or so. Right now it’s puka ‘season’ so to speak as they are in roe and in prime condition. This does raise the argument that we should be leaving them a bit to spawn for the future, but in reality if we all manage our take and don’t get too greedy there will be plenty of fish for the long term. A puka is a big unit and you don’t need more than one per person to make a bloody substantial feed, and have some left for the freezer. Puka spots to explore are just north and just south of Fisherman’s. Just take some time to look for the fish and when it fires it really fires. Just out behind Mana Island can also be good if you can spot some little features in about 135 metres. It doesn’t take much structure at all to hold fish, so spend a bit of time looking for the rewards and mark your spots for a quicker job next time. Heading out wider you need to be looking in 200 -300 metres for your sign. The Trench is starting to fish well for bluenose when you can get out, and a few guys that come into the shop are doing better pushing it a little bit deeper. Electric reels and decent braid means there are a lot of good spots yet to be found out there in all that bottom detail. Sunday looks like a pretty good day to get out there at this stage, or give us a bell in the shop if you’re keen to join us on a charter to see how we go about it first-hand. above) Peter Otis Yiannoutsos with an 'almost' 20lber caught at Paraparaumu in level 3. I’ll tell you what! The snapper fishing here in Wellington is as good as I have ever seen it anytime, including the height of summer. They are everywhere. The surfcasters are getting them, the boaties are getting them off every coast, it’s a really exciting prospect for the fishery to see this popular fish in such decent numbers here. It’s incredible, no matter where we fish we are getting juvenile snapper, good pannies, and more than the occasional big banger. One of the local surfcasters got his limit from the shore over the weekend, fishing the beaches from Paekakariki north, with fish up to 8.5 kilograms. Night fishing is proving very successful, with at least two fish over the magic twenty-pound mark caught last week that we know of. Out on the boat we have been exploring new spots in behind Mana Island with great results, by getting in close, as shallow as 20 metres sometimes, it’s surprising what good fish are in there when the conditions are favourable with not too much tide. Even though all the common reefs and popular areas are fishing well, it just goes to show that sometimes it pays to try something new and take the gamble that a bit of patience will pay off. The kingies are still around too, and land based anglers are commonly landing them on everything from lures, cut baits and livies. The usual reefs are producing nice kings for the boaties as well. Check out this 31kg beast caught by John Crawford on the south end of Mana. The usual spots such as Hunter's and Fisherman's are also producing good results. Kev from KP marine with an epic bluefin tuna catchFor the more adventurous, we have a customer Kev, from KP Marine, that landed a 60kg southern bluefin tuna out wide from Cape Palliser. If you are keen on a bit of that action, you could launch at Ngawi. Feel free to come in and have a chat if you want to know a bit more about fishing out that way. Kev reckons there are more out there and is heading out again for another go this weekend. One thing we have found a bit harder is the puka fishing. Despite everything else going well we’ve had a lot of feedback that chasing bluenose and puka out at the trench has not been great. I’m sure they are there but it might take a bit more prospecting to find them. Report provided by PETE LAMB FISHING https://www.petelambfishing.co.nz/ 0274439750 Shop - 15 Kingsford Smith St, Rongotai
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Summer 2019/20Fishing report 20/3/20 What a great weekend it was for fishing just past. It doesn't look as good this coming weekend but hopefully it will change. With northerlies forecast the south coast and harbour should be ok particularly for surfcasting and rockfishing. The snapper have been a bit harder to catch recently and the deeper spots - 50 to 70mtrs have been more productive. There's still been good action in close but not in the same numbers as the last few weeks. The southerlies havn't helped much as they reduce the water temp and put some fish off the feed. Kapiti - the 50-60mtr mark has been better for snapper. A few albacore tuna have been but certainly not in big numbers. The hapuku fishing has been pretty good apparently. West - There's been plenty of gemfish at the 78mtr rise with a few puka too. Fisherman's has been a bit quiet but north of fisherman's has been better fishing. Snapper and trevally have been more consistent down towards Ohau but there is still the odd good catch from Makara up to Mana. Many anglers have reported tough fishing but most have been getting a few snapper mixed in with tarakihi, gurnard, trevally and kingfish. This season there certainly hasn't been as many kahawai around but the ones that are out there are in peak condition prior to spawning. Tarakihi fishing has been pretty good at spots like Verns, Makara fencline and the south end of Kapiti Harbour - Just south of Ward island (6-8mtrs) has been good for snapper of late with some good trevs and gurnard too. Kingfish out in 15-20 mtrs at Ward have been around as well. The kingis have been a bit harder to catch off the shore in the harbour and many have gone deeper. Point Gordon, the Wreck and Falcon Shoal are generally good for kingis at this time of the year. Point Halswell and Jenningham are great in a southerly for gurnard, tarakihi and a mixture of other species (20mtrs). There have been a lot of smaller kahawai around the harbour this season. More to come.............. 13/3/20 Have you ever heard of a butterfly tuna? Also known as a butterfly mackerel, there have been several of these very unusual fish caught this week out off the west coast among the albacore. Imagine a cross between a tuna, a tarpon, and a kingy and that is sort of what you have. A bizarre species that is certainly an eye opener at the boat. These fish grow up to 40 plus kgs, but the specimens we’ve been seeing a bit more modest. The most distinguishing features are the large silver scales, unusual to tuna, and the flattened head profile . Actually a member of the mackerel family, these fish are absolutely delicious pan fried crumbed, floured, battered or grilled. 20 feb Fishing Report A pretty good looking weekend ahead, choice!! A good forecast is in store for Wellington for this weekend coming up particularly late Saturday through today until Monday, best day Sunday with seven knot variables on the cards. Mid-week goes a bit pear shaped, but it looks to be clearing up again for the following weekend too, finally a bit of cooperative timing for the nine to fivers. There has even been marlin seen at Tora and Terawhiti recently. West Coast There are plenty of tuna out wide from Kapiti, so this could be a great opportunity to get out and target the little speedsters for the table, and search for a few puka marks while you’re on the move out deeper. The KP marine tuna comp winning albie weighed almost 13 kgs so that’s a great fish on light gear. Check out this article for a bit of albacore inspiration: https://www.nzfishingworld.co.nz/posts/how-and-where-to-catch-fillet-and-cook-albacore Boom rock and Makara have been producing good terakihi and trevally in around the 20-40 metre mark, as well as fishing pretty good for snapper on occasion, both from boat and surf casting. Out wider off the west, Hunter’s has been fishing well and the warehou have been making an appearance again. This week should be a great opportunity to target Kapiti, Fisherman’s, Hunters, or even take the opportunity to get down to Ohau. It’s great conditions for puka dropping on Sunday with dead high tide at 09.50 so good fishing window is from 08.00 until lunchtime. The kahawai have been in short supply but the ones were getting are very fat and getting ready to spawn, so if you are keeping a few for the smoker the extra fat will add to the taste. An avid bait fisherman, I am slowly seeing the ways of the lure working well, and I got my first Wellington gurnard on a lucanus the other day (my 2nd fun fishing trip this year!). Snapper are commonplace up and down the coast, and the surf casters are getting into some good ones now as well. Kingfish (and puka) are getting caught at all the usual haunts - Hunters, 78, Fishermans, back of Mana, Makara and Ohau. There’s some really good sized cod coming out of Mana at the moment too, if you like that for the pot. South Coast There is good bluenose and gem fish turning up from the trench, plenty of snapper off the airport reef and Red Rocks. You’ll always find plenty of cod and teri’s at all the usual haunts there as well. Inner Harbour We’ve seen some good catches of land based game kingi action out at Sunshine Bay. There’s also nice kings and snapper off Point Gordan and Ward Island. Tight lines Pete Fishing report 13 feb 1. Albacore are getting caught out wide from Kapiti and Hunters at present. The water temp is around 19-20 deg. Hapuku spots often have albacore around them at this time of the year so it’s worth having some tuna lures in your kit. 2. Puka, bass and bluenose - the trench is fishing pretty well when you can get out, particularly for bluenose. Good numbers of small to medium fish south of Baring head with bigger ones on the far side spots. 3. Snapper - they are pretty much widespread up and down the west coast now. Limit bags and 20lbers are on the cards. Fishing on the sand or reef (25 -70mtrs) will produce fish with the help of Berley or slowing drifting over hotspots. There's been alot of small ones (1-2kg) around Mana and down to boom with bigger ones (3-5kg) northg of Pukerua bay. Slow jigs have been working well as well as bait and berley. 4. Tarakihi and other species - out west These places have gone well for us - Boom rock (50-70mtr) Makara (25mtr), Verns (70mtr) and south of the bridge (40mtr). 5. Kingfish - it’s going well in the harbour for land based anglers. Lures, live and dead baits have all been producing fish up to 20kg over the last week. Live mackerel and slidebaiting have been the best method and all these places have produced good fish up to around 20kgs recently - Oriental bay, Sunshine bay, Greta point & Flat rock. 6. harbour - if the weathers good Ward island has been good for kingis, snaps, trevally, gurnard and kahawai. Around the leading light is a good place to start. Point Gordan (20mtrs) is always worth a crack as well as falcon shoal. point Jenningham and Halswell in 20mtrs are good southerly spots 7. Surfcasters have been doing well on snapper and they are in real close on the west at present so if you want snapper off the shore, now is prime time! There has been a sprinkling of moki around but kahawai and gurnard are the mainstay for shore fishers particularly in the harbour. Tight lines Pete
3 Feb 2020 Weather - What a windy period we are just coming out of. It’s looking lightish wind from Wednesday to Friday so get ready for a few good days out on the water. 1. Albacore should be around the 100mtr + marks out west and south. Hapuku spots often have albacore around them at this time of the year so it’s worth having some tuna lures in your kit. 2. Puka, bass and bluenose - the trench is fishing alright when you can get out. Particularly in bluenose. Good numbers of small to medium fish south of Baring head with bigger ones on the far side spots. 3. Snapper - they are pretty much widespread up and down the west coast now. limit bags and 20lbers should be reported soon I’m picking. Fishing on the sand or reef (25 -70mtrs) will produce fish with the help of Berley or slowing drifting over hotspots. 4. Tarakihi and other species - out west it’s been boom rock (50-70mtr) makara (25mtr), verns (70mtr) and south of the bridge (40mtr) which have been good mutilple species - JDs, trevs, warehou, bluecod and gurnard. 5. Kingfish - it’s going well in the harbour for land based anglers. Lures, live and dead baits have all been producing fish up to 20kg over the last week. Live mackerel and slidebaiting have been the best method and all Good luck if your fishing the charity fishing comp at Petone this weekend. Shore and boat sections and over 50k worth of prizes up for grabs. Fishing Charters - we have a bit of room Thursday / Friday if anyone’s keen on a 4 or 6hr trip and possibly Saturday night as well. Tight lines Pete https://www.petelambfishing.co.nz/ 0274439750 Shop - 15 kingsford smith st, rongotai 24th Jan Fishing is just one of those things that goes up and down, some with factors we know about like full moon, temperatures and tidal run, and some factors that will forever remain a mystery affecting the way our favourite target species behave. Spots that fish hot one day are almost dead the next at the moment, but luckily there are a few areas that are more consistent and that is where it pays to start. We can never expect every day to be grouse for fishing but that’s why we love it. With a line in the water anything is possible, and just like gamblers we all roll the dice waiting for the good times to roll our way. We’ve certainly had the southerlies, and that has put the focus of most fishermen to the west coast, which has continued to produce some nice fish albeit in patches. Anniversary weekend last week just about cleaned out all our bait stock, so there were a lot of fishos out there doing it, even though we found the fishing a bit on the hard side. We found some good terakihi and puka fishing off Boom Rock and Makara, but our usual favourite spots around Pukerua Bay and Mana have proven to be patchy at best, especially for snapper. A north west forecast for the next week will be very welcome, as it should bring the warmer sea temps back to these areas and really fire up the bite, so expect some great fishing in the next couple of weeks. Snapper fishing further north up the Kapiti Coast has been pretty solid, and there are good fish right in to 5 metres, so this should only get better with warmer water. This will also apply to the east coast of Wellingtons outer fishing limits, where albacore tuna are there to be caught out from Tora, as well as a few sightings of broadbill. The south coast is doing it pretty tough after the recent weather, and we don’t really have a lot to report from that way given the lack of traffic, but there are certainly good fish there, including some bluenose up to 20kgs that have been boated by those who have the wherewithal to get out there. Over the next week I’d be focused on the west coast and targeting puka, kingies and terakihi. Kingy fishing has been great, both from boat and from shore. The slide baiters are getting some fantastic catches with fish around 20 kgs plus off Eastbourne. Grab your livies off the local wharves first, and head to the coast with your aerated baitfish ready for action. Here’s a little bit of info on this method in action from our Aussie mates ….https://www.nzfishingworld.co.nz/posts/slide-baiting If you are looking for kingies from a boat, Hunter’s is just a never ending kingy factory at present, so head out there with jigs and live baits and in 30 – 50 metres off the main pinnacles you should be good. Surf casting off Ocean Beach and Lake Ferry is improving with snapper starting to be picked up here on a consistent basis. With the northwest arriving there’s no better time to get off here or, in fact, anywhere along the Palliser Bay coast. Fishing report 7th jan The water is warm and when you can get out there is some amazing fishing happening. I’m happy to help you out with spots to go and techniques etc. Drop me an email [email protected] or text on 0274439750 or Facebook message me I’m also running plenty of charters and have space during the week and on weekends for individuals and groups coming up West coast Harbour South coast Surfcasting If you can add to this report please place your comments/photos /catches below Happy new year Pete December 20th Into summer now and it’s 17.5 degrees warm in the water. That means fish get active and we are seeing plenty of that. Heaps of snapper and kings in all usual haunts you would expect to find them. That is, where they are usually supposed to be, but often are not, they are now Weather always up and down but fishing pretty good when you can get out as per usual. We have a young customer who is a keen jigger, and to be keen on mechanical jigging you generally want to at least feel young, and he caught a 30kg specimen last week. That’s a lot of kingy and must have gone pretty good. They generally fight harder on a jig, perhaps it’s the lead rod banging about their head, but 65 pounds in the old books is a bloody good fish anywhere. Snapper wise, good numbers all down the west coast moving in nice and close now. If you are doing most things right, you should be into snapper all the way from Ohau up to Waikanae coast. That will please the surf casters who have been getting a few good early season moochers between Waikanai and Te Horo. It’s been pleasing to see the teri’s turning up again now. We’ve found them a bit scratchy this year, but now they seem to be back on the bite. Out wide has been rough conditions wise, but last time we got out the fishing was great. Puka are around but the bluenose are fishing better, with some great hauls out of the Trench. South coast has been a winner for snapper with Owhiro performing pretty well and some good fishing also off the airport reef systems. We have it on good authority that these spots are firing so could well be worth a look over the holidays. As we predicted the kingies have moved in close and we are now seeing the slide baiters and surf casters hooking and landing some nice fish from shore. Sunshine Bay, and downtown Oriental Bay seem to be the action stations for this, and the boatie brigade are getting kings in the harbour as well. There are a lot of juvenile snapper around which is a bit out of the ordinary. Hopefully this means there are greater numbers spawning and we are in for a bit of a snapper bonanza in the next few years. Wouldn’t that be nice? South coast is in good nick with the swell ideally dying down a bit for a few fishing windows. Try and get clear of the murky water if you can, and move out until you see some decent visibility. Have a great Christmas break, stay safe and take it easy out there. Wishing you all the best luck for the Christmas period, and we look forward to bringing you more info next year. Check our Facebook page or website for store opening, but we are working through so should be there to help. December 6th Despite some howling winds, there are a lot of positives to be taken out of this week when it comes to the fishing. Before the big blow we had some good action, and there is likely more to come in the next week or so. Hapuka are back on the chew and some good numbers have been taken from both out west and south out in the Trench, so it looks to be gearing up already for a bumper season if we are lucky. You don’t have to travel too far for puka at the moment. We had some great fishing straight out from Makara, fishing the big shelf that drops off from around 130 –150 metres. This is a big drop off and you can find puka all the way along it at the moment. I’d say this is the closest puka spot to land in Wellington that is a consistent producer of fish. We didn’t fish this drop last season, but trying it again last week was surprised at how well it was going. It just shows that you don’t necessarily need to go all the way to Fisherman’s or Ohau to get good Hapuka action. We also caught some big terakihi, gemfish and a few tope out off this area so all on board returned home pretty happy. Of course puka are a big fish and getting one or two on board is usually all you need. If you limit what you take and then move back in shore to target snapper, cod or other species that keeps the puka population healthy for next time. We only run several puka trips per season, but if you are keen on targeting this species best get in contact as we are booking out available spaces between now and the end of January pretty quickly. The moki comp we talked about last week, out at Ngawi, was fished in near perfect conditions and we saw some really good results, with around 300 rods out, and 22 moki weighed in. Undoubtedly many more were caught and not weighed, possibly as many as 70 – 100 we estimate. My mate, for example, caught seven fish but only weighed in the two biggest. Winning fish was just under 5 kilo’s. A lovely moki. Cape Palliser is such an awesome spot if you care to make the journey and have an explore. There were people out there climbing into the water and gathering crayfish, not something you can do in very many places nowadays. The fishing is awesome from land and by boat,so when the weather allows perhaps get over there and check it out for yourself. So after that, we had some crazy winds this week, with Wellington making the news again for it’s famous, as yet un-named, wind. The good news was that this wind was from the north-west, which blows up a storm but generally brings in warmer water, and this, plus all the stirring up of the ecosystem can often mean a really bumper fishing time to follow, especially for snapper. From what we can tell, the temp of the water has come up in shallow at least, and the results could bode very well for fishing right up the west coast. Usually you’ll find awesome snapper and kingy action gets pushed in nice and close, and areas like Pukerua Bay, Makara, and the southern coasts of Mana and Kapiti even, could really fire up. If you can get a day off mid-week, from Monday night to Weds morning looks like a fantastic window, and we are looking very forward to getting out there ourselves. It might also be a good opportunity to give the Trench a go,as we had reports of some very good bluenose fishing last Saturday, one boat landing 24 fish for their efforts. There are a lot of smaller fish about, but a bit further, the far side of the Trench in around the 250 metre mark, seemed to produce bigger specimens. The terakihi have been a bit thin on the ground lately, orat least they have been noticeably harder to catch, however the blue cod are making up for it, turning up in a few places we don’t normally expect to be catching them. After this big blow we might see the south coast start turning up the great fishing for both these species that we are used to though. The inner harbour is still fishing well with plenty of gurnard, and the surf casters are regularly catching snapper now. Snapper will be moving in to Evan’s Bay, and then usually move in around Eastbourne if they follow the traditional pattern. Out west Pukerua Bay in around 40 – 60 metres, The Bridge,and south of Mana should be producing good snapper now, so let’s hope we are proved right out there in the coming weeks. FISHING REPORT 22 November Fishing is great in Wellington, there’s plenty of snapper around at the moment, and they are spread all over the place which is encouraging. Straight out from Mana and Pureua Bay getting good fish in 40 – 60 metres off the sand The puka seem to be back on the chew with quite a few boats doing well at Fisherman’s and the 78 metre rise, around behing Mana and behind Hunters are good places to try. There’s a great forecast tomorrow and every man and his dog will be out there if they can. Moon phase is good and there’s a long morning bite time forecast so fishing could be epic. We’ve had reports of plenty of bluenose out in the Trench, and boaties who have been frustrated by the swell should have a narrow opportunity on Saturday to get out before the winds pick back up. Kingies are in the harbour getting caught from boats, and pretty soon now the land based guys will be picking them up we expect. Kapiti is firing up nicely with some good snapper fishing off the north and south reefs. The fish seem to be moving further south however, with Pukerua Bay and Mana being better and not to mention easier to get to. Warmer temps of 15 – 16 degrees now mean the snapper are there to party. With the big crowds on weekends, Kapiti could be worth a go though, if you prefer a bit of space. It has not been fished too heavily of late due to the conditions, so may well turn out to be worth the effort to get there. Surf casting There’s been no swell on the south coast for some time now and the fishing’s really picking up as a result. This weekend sees the moki 1000 surf fishing comp based in Ngawi happening, and there should be a good influx as conditions look to be great. If you want to target moki in the future, the comp is a good opportunity to get out there and see where people fish, what baits and gear is working and where the fish are being landed. Watching and learning from other anglers is a great way to lift your own game so perhaps check out the event if that’s of interest. The surf casters are picking up a few nice snapper and still some good gurnard around most of the popular coastlines. Palliser Bay will be a great area to fish both from boat and shore over the next few days, with Sunday forecast 6 knot north-west wind. This huge area is one of the best places in the Wellington region to fish bar none. You’ll pick up a range of species here, but try using crab for bait and the chances of catching moki and good snapper are really high. We like to use the smaller crabs whole, or halved and cottoned on to a recurve hook (2- 3/0 fine gauge). Bigger crabs need the shell and legs removed. Cotton keeps the bait on both during the cast and protects from the pickers. They are often a harder bait to find, but we stock them in the shop and are happy to talk to you about rigs etc if you drop in. The Bay fishes from Turakirae Head all the way around to Cape Palliser. It’s a vast fishery with massive scope for surf casting from the western and eastern rocky coasts to the shingle and sand beaches around Lake Ferry. Over the last few years the snapper fishing has been the best ever here so this weekend will undoubtedly produce some good fish. White Rock (on the east coast around past Cape Palliser) remains the hot spot for moki as it has been for quite a while now. It’s a distance but most great land based locations take a bit of getting to. The lack of swell over the last couple of weeks would make this a great destination this week if you were keen to give it a try. With a good run of decent weather, we soon start picking up more info about where the fishing action is happening, so stay tuned or drop in to our Rongotai Store for a chat anytime. 8th November 2019 There’s big bluenose action out at the trench at the moment. These stalwarts of the deep are always a great catch for the table and we’ve seen some good numbers of nice fish getting caught if you can get the weather and the time off to cooperate with each other. Bluenose often hang out up off the bottom a bit, so if you see sign sitting up higher than you might expect for puka then it can often be bluenose. This time of year we expect they will be there for a while so it’s a matter of keeping an eye on the conditions and being ready to go. Snapper and kingies have come on a bit but at this early stage of summer they are not exactly raging just yet. Mana and Pukerua Bay are producing good fish but not yet in the big numbers we expect closer to Christmas. We are now starting to see the south end of Kapiti fishing well too. It’s been a bit quiet there to date, but good to see some fresh action at one of our better fishing locations. Here you can get good terakihi off the southern contour changes and reefy pins, and off Pinnacle Rock (see map), and also trevally and the odd decent snapper. With strong north-west winds forecast the weekend looks a bit average for boaties everywhere but close in to the south and east coast. There’s no swell there at the moment though, and nice clear water so perfect for surf casting and shallower diving missions. Launching off Owhiro Bay and staying in really close watching out for the marine reserve could be an option, and it shouldn’t take too long to pick up some nice blue cod and terakihi at least. Five Mile reef is still good for big cod and terakihi in 50 – 75 metres if you fish the turn of tides when there’s not too much current running. The weather might be a bit uncooperative this week, but when you can get out Sinclair Head to Karori Rock, and out deeper around 80-100 metres there’s a good chance of catching Hapuka and trumpeter. Trumpeter are a fantastic fish, and they have been appearing in a few spots lately. Normally they are more of an east coast fish, but we’re seeing them more south now. There’s a good bank out past, and to the south of Nicholson’s Trench where some really nice specimens have been landed. It’s a huge area between 100 – 150 metres that gives you plenty of options to cruise about with the sounder and pick up sign. Being at least 10 miles offshore it’s a bit further to travel, but as such, has not had the angling pressure and can therefore produce unexpected results. Trumpeter are a fantastic looking fish, a bit like a big moki with distinctive horizontal stripes. They can grow pretty big, up to 25kgs, and they are a great fight and will scrap like a kingfish all the way to the surface. They make great eating so are a good reward for the effort. Trumpeter are usually caught on normal puka gear, but have much smaller mouths than the groper family so a smaller sized hook is better. Out west looks pretty unfishable in the short term, but those that have been able to fish Hunters are being rewarded with some really nice kingfish. These are mainly on jigs, but of course livies also work well, often a big live bait being responsible for hooking the bigger fish. South-west of Hunters we hear the 78 metre rise is fishing well for kings. It’s primarily a well-known puka spot but being a rise with a bit of current running the kings are there too. Surfcasting Where they have been catching gurnard the surfcasting crew are now steadily picking up a few snapper in the harbour now at places like Evan’s Bay. Greta point has been good but inconsistent, and it’s supposed to be a good time to be moki fishing at White Rock (even though the surfcasting club did not do so well off Wainui last week). |
latest catches (below) |
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weather linkuse this for forcasts metservice forcast |