www.nzfisher.co.nz 1

ISSUE 20 December 2012

www.nzfisher.co.nz

FREWZA! The NZFisher boat launch

OffShore Landbased FishingWIN an OKUMA Salina Combo

2 www.nzfisher.co.nz

Pg 10

1220

Pg 21

CONTENTS

NZ FISHER BOAT

4 NZF Boat No. 2 Unveiled

COMPETITION

8 Win a Rod & Reel with

OKUMA & NZFisher!

10 Reader Pics

BOATFISHING

12 Making the Most of Summer Fishing

HOW TO

14 Building Your Own

Mechanical Jig Rod

LANDBASEDFISHING

16 Off Shore Landbased

20 Gear Reviews

21 New Products

22 Regional Reviews

26 Fishing Video of the Month

www.nzfisher.co.nz 3

TWO YEARS INTO the story

of NZFisher we’re stoked to be

introducing the new NZ Fisher Boat.

We chose the Frewza F16 side console

for a whole lot of reasons that we’ll

get into later in this & future issues,

but we are so proud to show it off. All

going well we’ll be showing it off with

plenty of fishy pics and stories too!

NZFisher hasn’t spent a whole lot of

time testing gear for our readers, but

the little bit we’ve done before has

been well received so we’ve chosen a

couple and hope you find our reviews

helpful. We’ll be adding more to the list

and due to the wonders of the internet

over time you’ll be able to search

them forever. Let us know if there’s any

specific product we can research for you

too. This month we kick off with the

Okuma Makaira 5 two speed.

With Christmas just around the corner

and a decent holiday for most hopefully

you’ll be spending some time on the

water. Not only do we want you to be

safe, but we’d like our readers to feed

the family too. We’ll put a few ideas

together that we hope you will find

useful when the fish have their mouths

closed – but remember to always be

ready for when the big one strikes.

From the whole NZFisher team, have

a great Christmas, drive safe, catch

plenty & enjoy your break.

Tight lines!

Derrick

//From the EDITOR

editorial

ABOUT /Short and sharp, NZ Fisher is a free e-magazine delivering thought provoking and enlightening articles, and industry news and information to forward-thinking fisher people.

EDITOR / Derrick Paull

ART DIRECTOR / Jodi Olsson

CONTENT ENQUIRIES /

Phone Derrick on 021 629 327

or email derrickp@NZ Fisher.co.nz

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES /

Phone Richard on 09 522 7257

or email richardl@espiremedia.com

ADDRESS / NZ Fisher,

C/- Espire Media, PO Box 137162,

Parnell, Auckland 1151, NZ

WEBSITE / www.NZ Fisher.co.nz

Cover Image: Andrew Evans with one of two great spring Puka he landed in October

This is a GREEN MAG, created and distrib-uted without the use of paper so it's envi-ronmentally friendly. Please think before

you print. Thank you!

Here are a few snap-shots of

the all new Frewza F495 Side

Console decked out to NZFisher

Specifications. We’ve partnered with

Honda to bring the very best of small

boating to our readers. Once again

we’ll document the build over the

next few issues but this time we’ll

also be bringing you on-board images

& video explaining the usefulness

and usability of the boat itself, the

electronics and the outboard. We

will endeavour to make your boating

easier, safer and more enjoyable

through sharing our adventures and

product specification processes.

Cost is always a consideration and

we looked hard at every dollar

spent. We’ll offer some insight

the most cost effective options

for outfitting your boat and all

going well you’ll be spending

more time on the water fishing!

SPECS:Frewza F16 Side Console (16ft)•

Honda BF60 4 Stroke Outboard •

Coast A16 Trailer•

Lowrance HDS-7 Touch GPS •

NZFisherBOAT

NZF Boat No. 2 UnveiledFREWZA Side Console, the new way to go

4 www.nzfisher.co.nz

An safely wrapped EPIC lager sacrificed to christen the bow

www.nzfisher.co.nz 5

NZFisherBOAT

FREWZA!

The heart & soul

6 www.nzfisher.co.nz

landbasedFISHING

Coastal Trailers Cost Effective Boat Trailers for Light Boats

 Website:  www.coastaltrailers.co.nz  

FN47

18

LEADERS IN BOAT TRAILERDESIGN & PERFORMANCE

Trade in your existing boat trailer for a new Voyager, and receive minimum 10% DISCOUNT on the value of your new replacement trailer• We service, repair and re-galvanise any boat trailer• Parts, servicing, multi-roller and tandem conversion

6 Kaimiro St, Pukete Industrial Estate, Hamilton – Ph 07 849 3158

www.voyagertrailers.co.nz

Used by‘Superbly Built’‘The boat goes on and off the trailer like a dream’‘it tows like a breeze!’

Matt Watson, ITM Fishing Show

COASTAL BOAT TRAILERS are cost

effective trailers that are specifically

designed for smaller light weight

watercraft up to 5.4 metres in length.

e.g. light weight fibreglass runabouts,

personal watercraft (PWC) and open/

centre console aluminium boats. We

provide owners of these types of

boats access to a trailer that is not

typically overdesigned to suit much

heavier boats and in doing this we can

offer a more affordable trailer.

While we aim to keep the cost as

reasonable as possible Coastal Trailer

Chassis are all New Zealand made of

sturdy steel construction and hot dip

galvanised. We then assemble using

locally sourced trailer components

and materials. All trailers are fitted

with LED submersible lighting,

jockey wheels and 1 7/8” couplings.

Mudguards are lightweight plastic

except for the CA10130 which has

steel guards. Springs and fasteners are

hot dip galvanised with the exception

of the coupling fasteners that are high

tensile zinc plated.

All Coastal Boat Trailers are

adjustable to suit various types of

water craft so the purchaser can

easily adjust the hull support to fit

their particular type of boat.

All components are covered with a 12

month warranty and the Chassis’ have

a 5 year structural warranty. Chassis’

are load tested and load rated to

ensure safe operation within the

parameters defined.

ADVERTISEMENT

The day you caught your first fish. The first time you climbed into a boat. These moments make up the beginning of the future.

Today, Honda’s forward thinking comes together to bring you a reliable, fuel efficient range of outboards.

The Beginning of the Future

Contact your local Honda Marine Dealer todayFreephone 0800 478 765 www.hondamarine.co.nz

From 2.3hp to 250hp.

Scan me for a free cap!

BeginningFuture190x225 Traderboat.indd 1 15/11/2012 8:59:10 a.m.

The day you caught your first fish. The first time you climbed into a boat. These moments make up the beginning of the future.

Today, Honda’s forward thinking comes together to bring you a reliable, fuel efficient range of outboards.

The Beginning of the Future

Contact your local Honda Marine Dealer todayFreephone 0800 478 765 www.hondamarine.co.nz

From 2.3hp to 250hp.

Scan me for a free cap!

BeginningFuture190x225 Traderboat.indd 1 15/11/2012 8:59:10 a.m.

8 www.nzfisher.co.nz

COMPETITION

Win a Rod & Reel with OKUMA & NZFisher!Every subscriber is in the draw!

JUST POST A pic of you with a fish

to our Facebook page and you’re

in the draw to win an Okuma Salina

II Rod and Reel combo plus tackle

worth $750.00.

Not only that but every month we’ll

give away an Okuma Hoody and

ReelWear T-shirt between now and

April 2013. Every image you enter

has a chance to win each month and

also the big prize. The more and

sooner you enter, the better your

chances so get fishing and posting

those images to Facebook!

www.nzfisher.co.nz 9

COMPETITION

Hasn’t Okuma come a long way?The exciting sound of the clicker, the subtle

take of the fly, the explosive strike that

comes from a rapidly retrieved popper...

fishing rewards the senses in so many

ways. From mountain lake to offshore

waters, at every turn Okuma Fishing

Tackle embraces your passion for the sport

of fishing.

Our 2012 introductions continue our

commitment to dynamic and innovative

rods and reels for both freshwater and

saltwater anglers. Within each, our goal is

to advance your skills and deliver a better

experience from every day on the water.

We accomplish this with advanced

materials, cutting-edge design and by

having one ear to the ground at all times.

Never wanting to limit your possibilities,

Okuma creates the tools to unlock endless

angling experiences.

www.cdrods.co.nzo nz

10 www.nzfisher.co.nz

READERpics

Alan McKinven’s got the worst view on the water - skippers need to fish

Paul Steffenson - A 20lb+ Snapper released

Ruben Ryan with a typical inner gulf spring time pannie

Michael MacKinven with a perfect Springtime snapper from the back of tiri

www.nzfisher.co.nz 11

READERpics

This month’s winner is Ruben Ryan.

Ruben wins a Reel Adventures,

ReelWear Tee-Shirt for his spring

Snapper Pic. Ruben, drop us

a line to arrange your size &

delivery details.

Keep sending in your pics for

the great OKUMA prizes up for

grabs every month.

Win this Reel Wear tee shirt next month by sending in your fishy pics to ?

Coverboy Andrew Evans with his haul ‘Out the back’

Asleigh with a her best snapper, taken at Whatuwhiwhi during ROctoberish

Hamish shows there ARE 30lb snapper in the south Island (Credit Jean Willis)

12 www.nzfisher.co.nz

SOmETImES, YOU JUST need to get

a couple of fish in the bin and it’s not

all about the trophy fish, but we don’t

say no when they turn up!

3 things to improve fishing

over the summer:

HAVE A PLAN: the days we

tend to do best are when

we have a clear plan of what

we’re going to do, where we’re

going to fish, what we’re going to

target and so on. If we’re going to

target kings seriously, then we’ve

learned to stop snapper fishing and

to really put the effort into cubing,

keeping the berley going, throwing

poppers and stick baits, tending to

livies, swapping them out if they’re

looking sick and doing everything

we can to get a shot at one.

DON’T CUT CORNERS:

big fish put big pressure

on your gear and you will

get found out. Make sure your reels

are re-spooled; don’t risk your fish of

a lifetime for the sake of a few bucks

on new braid/mono. The same goes

for all your tackle, especially if you’re

specifically targeting big fish rather

than a feed.

SPEND AS MUCH TIME

OUT THERE AS POSSIBLE.

We’ve waited a long time

for some decent weather, and last

summer was pretty ordinary. Don’t

spend weekends building decks,

doing gardening or other household

chores. More time fishing = more big

fish caught, it’s a simple equation. (It

helps to have an understanding wife

of course!) I have mates who moan

about not having got any good fish

for a while, but you just have to look

at the amount of time they actually

spend out there doing it.

In the last couple of seasons I’ve

caught numbers 5 and 6 kilo snapper

just in and around Rangitoto, the

biggest being a 76cm that never got

weighed and I’d put that in large part

down to the amount of time I spend

out there, probably 2 or 3 times a

week even if it’s just a couple of hours

after work or dinner in the evenings.

The extra effort to get out there more

always pays off in the end. And as

a fisho, where would you rather be

anyway?!

1

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5 simple rulesto help you stay safe:

Life jacketsTake them – Wear them.

Boats, especially ones under 6m in length, can sink very quickly. Wearing a life jacket increases your survival time in the water.

Skipper responsibilityThe skipper is responsible for the safety of everyone on board and for the safe operation of the boat. Stay within the limits of your vessel and your experience.

CommunicationsTake two separate waterproof ways of communicating so we can help you if you get into difficulties.

Marine weather New Zealand’s weather can be highly unpredictable. Check the local marine weather forecast before you go and expect both weather and sea state changes.

Avoid alcohol Safe boating and alcohol do not mix. Things can change quickly on the water. You need to stay alert and aware.

For more information about safe boating education and how to prepare for your boating activity, visit www.adventuresmart.org.nz

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

The Boating Safety

Before you go boating on our seas, lakes and rivers, get familiar with New Zealand’s Boating Safety Code, no matter what kind of boat you use.

CODE

www.adventuresmart.org.nz

The Water Safety The Outdoor Safety

CODE CODE

Also available:

By Forsyth Thompson

boatFISHING

Making the Most of Summer Fishing

1

2

3

Make hay while the sun shines

Sometimes it IS the little things that matter - a gurnard is a sweet treat!.

www.nzfisher.co.nz 13

1

2

3

4

5

5 simple rulesto help you stay safe:

Life jacketsTake them – Wear them.

Boats, especially ones under 6m in length, can sink very quickly. Wearing a life jacket increases your survival time in the water.

Skipper responsibilityThe skipper is responsible for the safety of everyone on board and for the safe operation of the boat. Stay within the limits of your vessel and your experience.

CommunicationsTake two separate waterproof ways of communicating so we can help you if you get into difficulties.

Marine weather New Zealand’s weather can be highly unpredictable. Check the local marine weather forecast before you go and expect both weather and sea state changes.

Avoid alcohol Safe boating and alcohol do not mix. Things can change quickly on the water. You need to stay alert and aware.

For more information about safe boating education and how to prepare for your boating activity, visit www.adventuresmart.org.nz

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

The Boating Safety

Before you go boating on our seas, lakes and rivers, get familiar with New Zealand’s Boating Safety Code, no matter what kind of boat you use.

CODE

www.adventuresmart.org.nz

The Water Safety The Outdoor Safety

CODE CODE

Also available:

14 www.nzfisher.co.nz

howTO

Building Your Own Mechanical Jig RodEasy, right? Part 2 of 3

Rod building 101: Part 2 Building the bottom end:

You should already have the reel seat

position marked out with masking

tape. The bone of the rod also needs

to be marked out. Rather than being a

perfect circle, the profile of any blank

is asymmetrical.

As such, when the blank is loaded,

it will try and return its most stable

axis. It is therefore important that

the guides and reel seat are aligned

with this axis, otherwise you will be

fighting the twist of the rod rather

than the fish.

To find the rods bone find a hard flat

surface (tiles are good). Place the

butt of the rod on that surface and

use one had to push the butt of the

rod towards the ground, and the

other hand to bend the tip of the

rod upwards. In this position the rod

can be rotated. It will have a natural

tendency to be stable and then to

flip. The stable part is the bone. Use

your china marker to mark the top of

the upwards facing surface when the

blank is in this stable position. You can

now mount your but cap or gimbal. As

this cap is likely to have a much larger

internal diameter than the rod butt is

wide you will need to build a couple

of ‘arbours’ with your masking tape.

Carefully wind the tape around the rod

butt until the diameter of this arbour

is the same as the internal diameter of

the butt cap. Now mix your glue well,

apply with an ice block stick and push

the butt cap on, cleaning up excess

glue immediately. If you are mounting a

gimbal, remember to position it so that

it lines up with the bone. Also, you may

want to consider taking the cap off the

gimbal so that it doesn’t accidentally

get glued in place. To mount the butt

grip you should not need to build any

masking tape arbours. Simply apply

the well mixed glue to the area where

the grip will end up as well as inside

A tidy finish comes from taking the right steps Testing tne curve

www.nzfisher.co.nz 15

howTO

the grip itself. Put the rod butt on the

ground and then push the grip on.

The glue should help to slip the grip

into place, but a reasonable amount of

pressure may be required. Only push

from the end of the grip; squeezing

the grip as you push it on can create

resistance. Again clean up excess glue

immediately. It is also a good idea

when mounting the grips and reel seat

to cover them up with masking tape to

avoid any glue ruining their finish. The

bottom grip I purchased was longer

than required. This is easily remedied

with a razor and fine (>300 grit) sand

paper to restore some shape to where

you made your cut. The process for

the reel seat and fore grip is similar to

that above. I used three masking tape

arbours under the reel seat. The final

part of the bottom end is the winding

check. This is simply mounted with rod

building glue.

Testing tne curve

Homemade rod jig

16 www.nzfisher.co.nz

howTO

Guide spacing: There is no exact formula for figuring

out the spacing of your guides. There

are guidelines to help with initial

guide placement (see http://www.

acidrod.com/acidrod_layout.html).

At this stage you need to consider not

only how the guides are placed down

the rod, but also whether you ‘acid

wrap’ the guides around the rod. This

technique is popular with conventional

jigging rods because the large amount

of pressure over the road when

hooked up can cause the rod to twist.

To avoid this guides can be placed

in a rotating fashion so that by the

time the line gets to the rod tip, it is

directly under the rod. There are many

ways to do this, but the most common

way in New Zealand is as follows. The

striper guide is placed as normal (0°),

the second guide is rotated slightly

in a clockwise direction, so that the

inner left edge of the guide is aligned

with the centre of the striper guide

(this ensures that line comes onto

the centre of the reel). The third

guide is rotated anticlockwise (45°

from the striper guide). Continuing

anticlockwise the fourth guide is set

at 90° from the striper guide, the fifth

guide at 135° from the striper and

the remaining guides at 180° (i.e.

directly under the rod). From here it’s

all about trial and error. Secure your

guides on the rod with masking tape.

You will now need to mount the tip

top. Simply glue it on with araldite or

rod building glue (ensure it is lined up

exactly opposite to the rods bone).

Once the glue is set tie a short length

of braid to the tip top and a hook to

the other end of the braid. This will

be hooked onto something heavy

(a bucket of water works) to put a

working bend in the rod (I secured the

butt end of the rod to a work bench

with a ratchet tie down). You can

now put a reel on the rod and thread

the line through the guides, pulling

it just tight so you can see how the

line follows the curve of the working

rod. This is a ‘static test’. Look at the

rod from side on and on top. Ideally

the line should smoothly follow the

rods curve and not come close to

touching the rod. You will likely need

to reposition the guides several times

to get good spacing.

www.nzfisher.co.nz 17

howTO

Rod building jig: Once you have your guide spacing

you are ready to start binding. You

will need a jig to aid the binding

process. You can easily and cheaply

build one yourself using plans from

the internet. I built mine with wood

and components I had in my garage.

I splashed out $2.50 for felt to coat

the rod mounts. You wont need any

motorisation for the binding process,

but you will need some sort of a

motor to rotate the rod to evenly

set the overcoat (after your binding

is complete). For this I used a BBQ

rotisserie motor. A drill with pre-set

speeds would also be a cheap option.

Part 3 next month

The makers mark

18 www.nzfisher.co.nz

landbasedFISHING

ANDREW AND I HAD been trying

to make this trip happen since the

Bounty Hunter back in June, so with

a good light wind forecast for Fri

and Sat we packed up on Thursday

and with the Baby Stabi on the back,

headed for Whitianga.

Getting there late in the evening

we caught up with Craig Farr from

R&R Charters and his mate Mark for

a few beers and some bait catching

practice down by the marina and

hatched a plan for the morning.

With so many little islands, rocks and

secret spots through the e coast of

the Coromandel, Andrew and I were

busting to get out there. For once,

though, we didn’t spend the evening

packing the little Stabi: not only

does Craig do fishing charters, but

as a keen LBG man himself he does

drop-offs for LBG fishos in some of the

best-looking spots I’ve seen in a while.

Friday was a day off for Craig so he

and Mark were joining us for a fish.

Leaving from Whiti in the morning we

headed north to do a drop-off to a DOC

team on one of the Mercs who were

spending 2 weeks there. Having run out

of batteries, the only way to get more

was to get some dropped off, so we

swung by as one of the girls swam out

to collect (she clearly hadn’t counted on

the water temperature being as low as it

was. Rather her than me!). Then it was a

trip straight out to Whale Rock. Coming

straight out of 70m and with 40m

of water straight in front, it’s hard to

imagine a more likely looking kingi spot.

And with several having been caught by

the boat guys there recently we were

itching to get into it.

Craig’s 8m alloy walk-around was a

hell of a lot more comfortable than the

Stabi, and with a specially made rail at

the front and a step, getting on an off

the rocks was a dry feet experience for

the first time in a long time! It would

be hard to recommend it too highly

as a way to go land based fishing. I’m

a huge fan of boat access for LBG but

this was a whole new level of comfort.

And it meant we could bring even

more gear than usual, even my mate

Brenton (famous for bringing the

kitchen sink) would have been hard

pressed to take too much gear on

this trip. With 2 popper sets and

3 livey sets as well as all the usual

snapper and bait catching gear,

Andrew and I were serious about

getting a legal land based king and

breaking what has turned into a really

awful run of luck for me with the

green and gold buggers!

The anticipation was high as we

waited for the kahawai to turn up

in the berley trail. And waited. And

waited. Poppers were thrown all over

the place but not a single follow, the

only sizable animal we saw being a

seal cruising past. A couple of massive

runs on the snapper gear fishing

whole big jack macks ended in bust

offs and still nothing in the berley so

we headed off to the other side of the

island (via the noisiest and smelliest

seagull breeding area I’ve ever seen).

Here there was more current, white

Off Shore Landbased

By Forsyth Thompson

landbasedFISHING

water and deep water up to the

ledge. It couldn’t have looked more

likely if it tried. Again, in with the

berley. Again, no kahawai. Not one.

Endless popper casting produced

the same result. And the one run we

had on the big snapper bait failed to

hook up. With not a cloud in the sky

we pulled the pin, went back to where

Mark and Craig were fishing, and had

a lunch break to try to turn our luck

around. Craig had just lost a massive

snapper with the net ready – after 15

minutes on a locked up 6500 it finally

put its teeth through the 80lb trace.

And with numbers 20-pounders to his

name, he’s a man who knows what a

massive snapper is!

With nothing further happening, we

decided to load the boat back up

(still keeping dry feet! I could get

used to this) and head for another

rock. This was one neither Craig nor

Mark had fished before, but just off

it plenty of really good snapper had

been caught and they were excited

to give it a go. We were about to

find out why!

In the first hour or two we found out

why Mark fishes 24kg and locked up

drags for snapper. I thought it was

a bit of overkill until we saw him get

smashed again and again, fishing huge

jack mack and bonito baits, and simply

not able to stop these fish getting

back into the kelp.

By the end of the day with just one ext

5-6kg fish landed, we reckoned he’d

had probably 8 truly huge snapper

encounters none of which had

turned into a landed fish. Sure as hell

frustrating, but still, amazing to see

just how big some of the (resident?)

fish up there are. But all these big

encounters were limited to Mark

– Craig, Andrew & I couldn’t seem

to get into a big one despite trying

everything. However, as the current

picked up, the snapper came on the

bite and we caught fish after fish,

every bait getting nailed as soon as it

got towards the bottom.

All great condition fish, mostly in the

40-50cm and range and sensational

land-based fishing in just about

anyone’s books. They were endlessly

hungry and taking anything thrown

to them so we put a dozen in the bin

and then just fished for fun. With the

sun setting and us just about to have

to pack up, the kahawai finally turned

up in the berley trail, just to rub our

noses in it! But with just minutes left

before we needed to get underway,

we let them know what we thought

about their timing and packed up for

the day.

Getting back to Whitianga about

9:30, it had been a long and often

frustrating day: on the hottest day

in a long time, the fishing had been

hot too. Granted, it hadn’t produced

the kings we’d come for, and we had

nothing to add to the trophy photos

album, but we’d had a fantastic day,

fished with a couple of great guys, and

fished the kind of spots that increase

your pulse rate just looking at them.

If you’re looking to go and get into

some serious LBG action and to fish

some spots that you just wouldn’t get

onto otherwise, most definitely give

Craig a call – even if he’s got a charter

booked, he’ll still drop LBG guys off

on his way out if you ask nicely! http://

www.rippinandreelin.co.nz/

With just 5 weeks left of 2012 for

Andrew and I to land legal kings off

the rocks, we hatched a plan to fish

the Saturday taking the Stabi out of

Whangapoua and heading up the

coast. But that’s another story!

Off Shore Landbased

20 www.nzfisher.co.nz

GearREVIEWS

A heavy weight in disguise

THE INTRODUCTION OF Okuma’s

High Performance range of tackle has

confirmed Okuma’s place alongside

the top tackle companies. In the case

of the Makaira, Okuma supersedes

the competition.

When it comes to mechanical jigging

reels there are many pretenders.

Most of these more versatile reels

just don’t cut it though. Unlike less

specialised fishing techniques, you

really need tackle that suits the job

when it comes to mechanical jigging.

While the Makaira was not designed

as a jigging reel (it was designed

as a top of the line game reel), the

smallest model, the Makaira 8II,

is more than suited to the trying

demands of mechanical jigging.

At less than 700 grams in weight with

the ability to put out more than 15

kg of smooth drag the Makaira 8II is

a heavy weight in disguise. Just the

combination of grunt and light weight

that is needed for mechanical jigging.

On these two aspects alone the

Makaira 8II has few competitors.

Combine with this the ergonomic

handle and narrow spool and you

have all the aspects that a jigging reel

should have. Many so called jigging

reels just don’t stack up across all of

these aspects. On the downside the

Makaira doesn’t have infinite anti-

reverse. I was concerned that this may

result in the handle moving slightly

backwards while jigging, making it

difficult to maintain a smooth jigging

action. So far this hasn’t happened, so

I’d put infinite anti-reverse down as a

nice to have, but not essential.

A really great little feature on the

Makaira 8II that you won’t find on

most reels of this size is the two speed

settings. I didn’t think this feature

would come in handy, but when I

recently hooked a 15 kg king using

the Makaira paired up with a rod that

was too long, dropping down to the

2.1:1 gear ratio was just what I needed

to get me off the rail and to get the

fish moving. A real life saver; well, not

for the kingfish.

Despite the poor initial choice of rod

(we quickly swapped that for one

better suited to the job) the Makaira

8II performed flawlessly during our

field test, where the Makaira was used

to jig up a couple of nice kings from

around 60 m of water.

For this test I spooled the reel with

350 yards of 50 lb Tufline, giving the

Makaira 8II sufficient capacity to fish all

but the deepest of locations. The drag

was more than sufficient, stopping the

biggest fish in its tracks when I put the

pressure on. More importantly, the

drag was impeccably smooth. The reel

and handle were very comfortable,

and after quite a few hours of jigging

I didn’t have the aching arms I have

often had in the past.

Finally, the narrow spool laid the

line with minimal effort. I was left

wondering what more could you

ask for? Durability; one of the most

important expectations of any high

quality reel. Having only had the

reel for a few months I can’t answer

that from personal experience, but

if you have any doubts about what

Okuma have achieved with their

High Performance line of reels, have

a look at this testimonial from the

independent reel guru Alan Tani.

Alan provides detailed tutorials where

he completely breaks down and

rebuilds a wide range of reels. So

when Alan says “this reel gets my vote

for best in its class” about the Makaira

8II, I stand up and listen. Finally, price

is always an important consideration,

especially when purchasing high end

tackle. At $589.95 recommended

retail the Makaira 8II is competitively

priced and likely to be a great seller

for Okuma.

Okuma Makaira 8II

Portside

Starboard

www.nzfisher.co.nz 21

boatFISHING

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P R E V I E W T H E N E W H D S G E N 2 T O U C H A T L O W R A N C E . C O M

www.enl.co.nz

What’s New in the World of Fishing?

NewPRODUCTS

REEL ADVENTURES & REEL WEARNew to the retail market, check out Leanne Dixon’s

(‘Wahoo Woman’ to F.Netter’s) new project; Reel

Adventures. Leanne’s kindly donated some cool gear –

check out the Readers pix section to get in the draw.

OKUMA ‘NANOTECH’ RODSFrom Okuma:

Latest technology resins and carbon make up this

stunning blank resulting in a light, powerful and

amazingly sensitive rod. Accompanied with the best

Fuji components available, this rod is ideal for soft

bait casting and even stray-line fishing.

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22 www.nzfisher.co.nz

Coromandel Source: Carl muir – www.EpicAdventures.co.nz

regionalREVIEWS

Wellington Source: Steve’s Fishing Shop

Shore Report

The fishing is getting better by the

week in the Harbour as the weather

is improving and the temperature is

warming up. There have been some

really nice Trevally caught up to 3.5

kg, and the best areas for these fish

are Kau Point and Point Gordon.

My top tip for fishing these areas are

- use strips of fresh Squid bait, and

be very attentive to your rod tips as

Trevally often are very subtle in their

bait taking and will gently suck the bait

into their mouths. This will barely move

your rod tip so be on the lookout for

tiny movements. A good rig to use is

Kiwi Tackle 3/0 Lumo Lime Tarakihi 3

Hook Ledger Rig this is also a great

rig for Trevally and Gurnard, who are

attracted to the luminous squids.

Snapper numbers are on the increase

as well, with one angler catching a

brace of 2 kg fish at Miramar, these

are only two of a number we have

heard of. Big schools of small Kahawai

are around too with a couple of small

Kingfish being taken on Spinners.

The South Coast. Palliser Bay has been

fishing well for Spotted Sharks, Red

Cod and Kahawai with a few large

Conger Eels thrown in to test your

knots and gear. South Coast West

of Devils Gate has yet to really fire,

having said that there are Moki being

caught with the largest being a lovely

condition 5.12kg specimen caught

by Gary Whittaker of the Wellington

Surfcasting And Angling Club.

East Coast fishing has been excellent

with good numbers and sized Gurnard

being taken, as well as Moki and

Spotted Sharks. A popular spot has

been Castle Point, reef Gurnard

fishing can be spectacular at times off

here. Pictured is James Bennie with

a nice Moki and four Gurnard. The

Moki 100 Fishing Competition was a

huge success with a number of fish

caught and near perfect conditions.

Everyone had a great time and a

good catch up at this enjoyable event.

The eventual winner was Eddie Ski

from the Wellington Surfcasting And

Angling Club with a 3.8 kg Moki. Well

done Eddie, your shout for the boys

next weigh in me thinks! Tight lines,

enjoy the start of the summer fishing

and catch heaps.

Felix

Boat Report

Well it is that time of year when it all

starts to happen – YEHA! November

and December can be such an

exciting time of year to fish as often

the larger fish start to show up before

the big runs of smaller fish, Kingfish

and Snapper most notably.

Pukerua Bay south down to Pipanui

Point have been producing good

number of Snapper with Big Bay

just south of Pukerua Bay being my

preferred location for consistent fishing

for Snapper – and berley is a must.

A simple berley system is not hard

to make, yet is the most important

fishing tool in your boat. Not only for

Snapper but all fish, it is your way of

advertising where your baited hooks

are. Kingfish are being caught at the

usual places, Hunters Bank - North, and

Kapiti and inside ledges around Kapiti,

jigging being the most popular fishing

method. For those of us who are into

jig fishing – live baiting or trolling lures

works well too.

The water temperature on the West

coast has not really cranked up yet but

there are really good numbers of fish

out there despite the still cooler waters.

Trolling lures like Berkley Monster bib

lures rigged with a daisy chain of squid

lures in front of the lure is hard to beat.

The action of the lure brings the squids

alive, making for an irresistible lure.

South Coast. Inshore Tarakihi and Blue

Cod fishing has been good on most of

the reefs, Arabella Rock, and Western

Ledge have fished well along with

Lyall Bay and Fitzroy Bay for Gurnard

on the sand. Spiny Dogfish numbers

are declining which makes fishing for

Gurnard a lot more fun, try anchoring

in 20 – 30 metres of water, use Flasher

Rigs with fillet baits of Trevally or fresh

Kahawai, these baits or well or even a

jig will out fish bait at times.

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www.nzfisher.co.nz 23

The Hauraki Report Source: Espresso www.catch.org.nz

regionalREVIEWS

Damo from Charter Connection has

a few words on what’s been going

on in the Gulf.

New BeginningsSpring sprang and all that comes

with it has already happened, oh so

quickly, the local version of Swan

Lake typifies the season’s changes

and delight that accompanies the

big winter shake-off. From now

on it is all on, in fact it already has

been for a few weeks – I would have

reported earlier but I’ve been too

busy catching fish!

Spring urged an entire fish migration

early enough again this year,

perhaps even two weeks earlier than

last year, of many of the fish we so

fondly love – and they’re now in

Push-Play mode.

It’s game-on out there, every day

somewhere there are outstanding

sights and sounds of whales,

dolphins, gannets, shearwaters

smashing into pilchard and mackerel

schools with attendance from

snapper, kingfish, sharks and much,

much more! Everything is in full flight.

Where to goMost snapper have not entered

the inner Waitemata channels

quite yet, a bit of a stall in their

inwards progression recently has

held large schools of snapper in

the 30m depths right around the

entire gulf. This depth is also where

there are large pilchard schools

funnily enough. Some of the larger

snapper specimens have sneakily

swum into the waters’ edge for

some close quarters action, so land

based fishing or tiny tinnies come

into their own now around the gulf’s

borders. Many successful fishing

evenings have been had with bait

‘n burley sessions backed into a

reefy area around one of the many

islands in the gulf judging by reports

on the Fishing Website forums, but

also from what I’ve heard that has

remained unreported. Burley up for

a couple of hours on the incoming

tide, late arvo/evening – some big

boys to over 20lbs may destroy your

toys! Use the right gear and you

stand a chance, don’t and you won’t.

What tackle?What you use is very much

dependant on where you wish to

fish – personally I prefer to fish out

in the Hauraki Gulf drift fishing. The

most common question I get asked

is where are the fish i.e. a sure fire

Spot X, but with the workup hunting

Spot X is misleading at best. Workup

style fishing requires attention, fast

action, speed and a

full tank of fuel, as well as good

observation, as Spot X’s rise and

fall in a matter of minutes – that’s

why it’s so exciting, and rewarding!

If the fast and furious way of fishing

isn’t you, there are fortunately many

more ways to fillet a fish or three.

Some excellent are results to be had

One of my favourite spots on this coast

is 5 Mile Reef. You just don’t know

what you will catch, big Blue Cod,

Tarakihi, Groper and Trumpeter can all

be caught here along with just about

anything else. When fishing 5 Mile

I prefer to anchor a couple of hours

before high or low tide in around 60 –

80 metres as this reef can be very tidal.

It makes it hard to berley so unless

there are small tides, I don’t bother.

Rigs should be strong and hardy 5-8/0

hooks tied on 80 – 100 lb mono. Bait

should be firm Squid or fish fillet i.e.

Trevally works very well as it is a firm

oily bait. 15 or 24 kg line on your reel

will handle most fish you hook here.

Often I will use a second rod with 24kg

line and 2 x 10/0 hooks on a ledger rig

with 100 to 150lb mono trace, a good

rig to use is Steve’s Pro Angler 3 Hook

Special Groper Rig which I make myself.

On the hooks I use whole fish i.e. Jack

Mackerel I take out with me to use, or

use whole Tarakihi that I catch out there

as Groper and yes, big Kingfish, will be

looking for easy prey like whole fish, this

also works well on the outer ledge at

Hunters Bank and all the reefs.

Out wide in Cook Strait Bluenose

have been very good not only in

good numbers but also in size with

many a 10kg plus fish being caught.

As usual we get mixed reports on

best Bluenose baits, bait versus jigs.

Jig fisho’s are doing well but so are

the bait fisho’s. It makes good sense

to me if one is not working try the

other, but always keep both options

available to you. Groper this time of

year do fish well, but the Bluenose

fishing is so good that most anglers

are targeting the Bluenose.

Now is one of the best times of the

year to go fishing, make sure you

make the effort to get out there. If you

need a hand with advice, just get in

touch; see you out there doing it!

Steve.

24 www.nzfisher.co.nz

regionalREVIEWS

Hauraki Report cont.

SOmE DECENT WEATHER, a nice

warming trend and changes is the

fishing throughout – that’s what late

spring should be about and this one

is finally conforming to that idiom.

With only a week to go till summer,

one would hope for warming temps –

both air and water.

Inshore

Well, it had to happen and finally the

near-shore arena followed suit with

the other more distant areas – that

is hit the doldrums. After reasonable

to good, consistent results for weeks

– make that months – its hit the

skids right throughout over the past

fortnight. Snapper, in particular, have

felt the downturn more acutely with

heretofore reliable places like Matata

failing big time. With the collapse

Bay of Plenty Source: Rick Pollock. www.Pursuit.co.nz

by simply going out into the gulf

(avoiding the no-fishing zones) and

anchoring , drop the burley to a metre

off the bottom and use bait or softies

or lures. Simple and highly effective

with the snapper swimming in large

schools all around the waterways

and they’re keen on feeding at the

moment. Breeding is just starting and

can preoccupy the fish for many hours

at a time, but when they bite, they are

very aggressive.

Lots of bigger healthy snapper in

the 10-15lb weight class/65-75cm

long like this one now, and the

great thing about this Websites

measuring (and competition) is

that you don’t have to kill the fish,

just a quick picture on a the wet

measurer and they’re good to

keep swimming like this one did if

you choose, brilliant.

A key note for drift fishing the gulf,

ANY surface life or activity – drop a

line, even when your sounder says

nothing. Snapper are flooding in,

4m deep schools on the sea floor at

times, swimming up several metres to

take lures – so try a slow retrieve up

10m or more when in 30m deep, it’s

that time again when they like being

teased with something they could

miss out on..trust me it can make the

difference between ‘the fish weren’t

biting’ and catching your limit.

King of FishJust a little thought into

targeting them can easily result

in an exciting and eye-opening

experience for all anglers as there

are some excellent numbers

out there. One of my favourite

methods is to use metal jigs by the

pilchard bait schools...snapper are

a side effect, oh the hardships in

life ay?! Use your sounder to find

the mid-water bait, and the surface

bird activity.

Whale TalesSuperb natural wonders are on

display every single day out there,

truly National Geographic stuff,

check out this Brydes Whale at

close quarters, this is not zoomed

in! Feeding on Pilchard schools

gives rise to absolute mayhem and

a mad dash of all creatures to eat

or be eaten, the intensity certainly

amps the adrenaline!

The pilchards have been on the

big muster, rounded up for a tasty

treat by all and sundry, a primary

reason why pilchard bait and soft

plastics like this Catch Bleeding

Pilchard are being used with such

great success (this being one of my

personal favourites naturally).

The sights and sounds of the

Gulf change like the weather,

and if you’re lucky enough to be

out there when these boats race

into view, well....wow! The sheer

exhilaration of these boats has to

be seen to be believed – oh and

give these guys plenty of room...

they can easily travel at 30-40 kts

and turn on a dime i.e. much faster

than many powerboats.

So really in my mind it is all about

how you want to catch fish now

that spring/summer is here. What

methods, tackle and place do you

want to be to catch your bounty?

And what type of fish? Snapper are

great but so are trevally, kingfish,

dory, mackerel, kahawai, gurnard...

oh and there’s scallops to gather,

mussels, even a few crayfish close

enough to Auckland if you’re a

diver, variety is definitely the spice

of life.

When all said and done, we have

a magic playground right on our

doorstep and now is the time

to enjoy it. All within easy reach

for everyone young and young

at heart. Forget the beanies, it’s

time for sunscreen, swimming and

watching the rod bend over under

strain of a big fish on your line.

Simply....enjoy.

www.nzfisher.co.nz 25

regionalREVIEWS

of the snapper fishery, many have

turned to both terakihi and gurnard

under duress but with good results

overall. Plenty of anglers on the water

are good to see but the productivity

has been disappointing. Will this

change? Undoubtedly! When?

Probably very soon.

Offshore

Some interesting happenings out

at the smokey isle, mainly centred

around kingfish. Depending upon

the day, this fishery can be absolutely

wide open or nonexistent! While

artificial are yielding their fair share

of fish, the quality continues to come

to bait – mainly live mackerel. Many

fish are good size and condition as

we approach their annual spawning

period. In saying this, there remains a

reasonable number of slabby fish as

well which definitely goes against the

suspected trend. A good example of

this disparity was two recent catches:

a 106cm fish which went nearly

20kgs (a real barrel) countered by a

119cm fish which went 16! With water

eclipsing 17 degrees C now we’ll be

looking forward to 18 which should

trigger that spawning response.

Some of the retained females show

quite ripe roe so can’t be far off

now. While a fair few are over 25k’s

and even 30, the whopper of the

week went to 74 year old visiting

American angler Phil Lambert.

On a blustery day complete with

two metre swells and genuine 30

knot westerly winds, Phil outlasted

his fish of a lifetime. After being sling

weighed and photographed, the

39 kilo horse gladly swam off into

the depths to hopefully spawn and

torture more anglers in the future.

Other fisheries are not nearly as

viable with deep water continuing

very poor with shallow water species

only marginally better. Not sure what

the deal is with terakihi and their

cohorts is but they are certainly well

below expectations. To get a feed

one needs to work hard and get

lucky. A few small bluenose in the

deep saves the day.

Ranfurly Bank

Plenty going on here, again

mainly centred around kingis. In

an anticipated move, these prime

fish have finally moved into the

shallows after a no show there all

spring. Some days now resemble a

battlefield on top of the Bank with all

manner of birds wheeling and diving

with kingfish driving bait to the

surface in explosive strikes. While

most are small, there’s a true cross

section of sizes available including

some huge trophy fish. Stickbaits, jigs

and bait are all attracting attention.

With a good number in the 20’s,

some fish stand out.

No less than three 40 kilo fish have

been taken including two matching

46 kilo monsters. Both were sling

weighed and released again. One

of these deserves special mention.

73 year old American angler Walt

Jeffrey came to NZ with the hope

of a fish of his lifetime – he wasn’t

disappointed!

One defining aspect of this catch

was the bait – a lowly yellow eyed

mullet, aka sprat! Ya just never

know!! Not really known as a trophy

fish bait!! Bottom fishing is far less

vibrant and even hard work some

days. Hapuka and bass are on the

small side with few over 20kgs.

Making a mockery of that was one

lonely bass at a stupendous 65k’s

– taken on a jig no less. Noticeably

increased commercial longlining in

the area certainly can’t be helping

the situation.

Back near East Cape the snapper are

going off, sometimes two at a time.

While not big (5kgs max) they are

lovely fish in the prime of their lives.

These one to three kilo average fish

couldn’t be better eating plus give a

good representation of themselves

at the end of the line – taking all

manner of baits and techniques.

Summary

Not far to go to the “official” start

of summer, always a month early as

far as I’m concerned. So nice to feel

some warmth and a distinct lack of

wind. Thinking gamefish? Not yet

to be perfectly honest. Expecting

a little wind over the next few days

after a full week of near perfect

weather. Till next week ...

Warning

Since the introduction of Telecom’s

3G network, we have lost a huge

amount of our former coverage.

In some places it’s in excess of

50% - hard to believe in this age

of technology. In short we’ve been

sold a pup and it’s now a dangerous

situation as far as safety is

concerned. Remember Coastguards

everywhere want you to have three

forms of communication. Heretofore

cell phones were an integral part

of that trio but now makes VHF

radio more important than ever. Will

things improve? We’re flatly told no

– unbelievable! If a viable alternative

shows up there will be a massive

migration away from Telecom.

And finally…. “PURSUIT” has unexpectedly had

two cancellations for its northern/

Three Kings season, both in prime

times. The last five days of April and

May 11-15 are available if anyone

may be interested.

26 www.nzfisher.co.nz

Fishing Video of the Month

DESPITE AN INCREASED awareness

of overfishing, the majority of people

still know very little about the scale

of the destruction being wrought

on the oceans. This film presents

an unquestionable case for why

overfishing needs to end and shows

that there is still an opportunity

for change. Through reform of the

EU‘s Common Fisheries Policy,

fisheries ministers and members of

the European Parliament can end

overfishing.

http://vimeo.com/42619545

And....for something a bit

lighter – check out this Rooster

fish caught from the shore,

somewhere In the States.

VIDEO

www.nzfisher.co.nz 27

regionalREVIEWSNEXTmonth

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f sherIN NEXT MONTH’S NZ FISHER

The best of Summer Snapper fishing• Finishing your new rod• Checking in with the new • Lowrance HDS-7 Touch