Childhood delight in wharf fish

The Orakei Wharf on Auckland's waterfront is a popular fishing spot. Photo / Geoff Thomas

Sunburned neck and shoulders, the tang of Coppertone oil, bloody fingers and sandwiches with crusts curled by the heat and fish slime overpowering the Marmite and lettuce but still tasting marvellous; then a long ride home on the bike.

Such are the memories which surface as summer holidays approach and people pack the car with camping gear or supplies for the bach.

For youngsters the anticipation as wrapping is torn from boxes is bettered only when the first bait is dropped into the green water sliding past the wharf pile crusted with oysters and barnacles.

The oily surface in the dawn light hides a wonderland of delights, and the pull on the line kicks the heart beat into overdrive. Suddenly the boy is connected to something that jerks and pulls, and his whole world is concentrated on the flashing gleam deep in the water. It is a small fish, but it is a miracle of symmetry, scales sparkling with a silver that no newly-minted coin can match.

It nestles in his hand, mouth gasping and eyes sparkling, as he carefully twists the hook free and slips it back into the sea.

Fifty years ago the small fish would have joined a growing pile on the jetty, but today unless the fish is wanted for dinner or fresh bait it will be returned to the water.

So the world has changed but the wonder is still there.

For this is how most youngsters are introduced to the world of fishing.

They cast a bait from a jetty or wharf. The green hemp hand-lines of yesteryear are long gone, and the first outfit is a long rod with a shiny spinning reel. More than likely it will be a cheap start-out rig, but to the young angler it is the best rod in the world.

There are wharves in every part of the coast. Like all fishing spots, the more remote the location, the better the fishing.

Places like the Paua Wharf on Parengarenga Harbour, Pukenui at Houhora and the wharf at Mangonui are highly regarded by serious anglers who know they can hook large kingfish, trevally, kahawai and other species from their planks.

At popular Coromandel holiday spots like Whangapoua and Whangamata, the wharves can provide a dinner of john dory fillets for those canny anglers who know what to do. They are easy to catch. First catch a sprat or one of the small cockabullies which hang close to the wharf piles. A sprat hook and a scrap of bait will do this, then the wriggling fish is hooked through the back, just in front of the dorsal fin.The hook should not be too big or it will kill the live bait. A size 3/0 or 4/0 is fine.

This is attached to an 8cm loop about 15cm above a sinker heavy enough to prevent the bait from swimming around in circles and tangling the line.

Dory hang around wharf piles where they sneak up on their live prey. A long-handled net is good for scooping up Dory, as they can fall off the hook. Kahawai and yellowtails, or more correctly jack mackerel, are other common catches from wharves. They will take small baited hooks which can be cast out under a float and floated with the current, or rigged above a sinker. The pre-made flasher rigs with several hooks are also fine and can be baited with cubes of bait like pilchards or squid. Both of these fish have been regarded as only good for bait or for smoking, which illustrates how spoiled for choice we have been in this country. These fish are fine as fresh fillets or raw fish in its different forms of preparation.

But don't leave the catch lying in the hot sun. Take a chilly bin packed with ice.

Occasionally snapper can be hooked from a wharf, but such fishing is better at night when these shy fish move closer to shore. Trevally are another common catch, and can be targeted by using small baits of shellfish like tuatua which is secured to the hook with bait cotton. Small hooks are needed and, as they have soft mouths, a landing net is advisable. Gurnard can also be hooked from the Shelly Beach Wharf near Helensville, and from the rocks below the signal station on the southern side of the Manukau Harbour entrance.

Check the regulations for size restrictions which may apply, for example snapper 27cm, trevally and gurnard 25cm, while kahawai, mackerel, john dory and sprats have no minimum length requirement.