Corresponding wind and tide take you to the action

Channels such as the Rangitoto are holding plenty of fish. Photo / Richard Robinson

"The snapper are going nuts in the firth," is the message from one Coromandel charter skipper. He should know, because he's out fishing every day.

It is not just around the ever-popular mussel farms - some of the best action has been further out in deeper water. People are either looking for bird activity, going to favourite spots, looking for schools on the depth sounder, or looking for contour lines or patches of foul on the seabed.

The pattern is similar in the Hauraki Gulf. While some big snapper are being taken stray-lining in shallow water in areas such as the Sargent Channel and Rakino Channel by experienced anglers, the main activity is further out. Channels such as the Rangitoto are holding plenty of fish, but they are predominantly small snapper. However, it was not difficult filling a box with snapper from 35cm to 48cm while fishing north of Tiritiri Matangi Island during the week. There were large numbers of gannets circling and diving and dolphins were churning the surface.

The activity was so widespread that it was simply a question of dropping anchor among a patch of birds and going for it. Or you can drift through, but this does pose challenges for less experienced anglers as it becomes difficult keeping a bait on the bottom when the boat is moving and it's harder to detect bites. There are so many fish in the area between Tiri and Kawau Island, where the bottom varies between 35m and 40m, that anchoring and dropping a berley bomb will do the trick even if there are no birds around.

The most important thing is to have the wind and tide running in the same direction, otherwise your lines are pulled under the boat.

The big question when heading out from the city at this time of year is whether to go left or right, because bird activity and snapper can be found north of Gannet Rock and often straight out off Waiheke Island. It is the wind that provides the answer. If it is blowing from the west or south-west, as it was early in the week, then you turn left (depending on where the boat is launched) and head north from The Noises towards Tiri until you find some action. Or you anchor east of Tiri or further north, and set out berley.

If it is blowing from the east, you head towards Coromandel and Gannet. Basically, you always head into the wind, as the sea conditions will improve the further you travel and you will have a good ride home. Conversely, the other side of the gulf will be too rough. Dropping chunks of pilchard on 6/0 recurved hooks on a ledger rig is basic and works well.

Newcomers can feel the bites because the sinker is below the baits and, if they can be convinced to let the fish bite and not jerk the rod and so pull the baits away from the fish, the snapper will hook themselves.

Mixing the baits with small chunks of squid is a good idea, as the pilchard will excite the fish and the squid will hang on better. A chunk of squid sweetened with a small piece of pillie on the same hook is even better.

Blue mackerel are welcome arrivals. These are large varieties which are here to spawn and are often hooked on a snapper bait. They can be targeted by leaving a baited flasher rig set in midwater and they make such good snapper bait that it is well worth the effort. Their flesh is rich in blood and oil, the two best ingredients for bait, and when fresh will stay on the hook.

Those anglers chasing trout with a fly rod were out in force after the upper reaches of spawning streams running into lakes Rotorua and Taupo opened on Thursday. A 6.1kg brown was taken in the lower part of the Ngongotaha Stream, and the water above the road bridge, which had been closed all winter, was said to be full of fish.

The prospect of hooking large trout which have run up from the lake into a small stream attracts hundreds of anglers and fishing is usually excellent when it first opens. The Ngongotaha and Waiteti streams are renowned for producing large browns, and fly-fishing for big, wild trout is among the best angling in the world. It is similar on the Taupo tributary rivers, which will be holding large numbers of trout. They will have spawned and want to get back to the lake, so their condition will not be quite as good.

But the occasional fresh-run fish in top condition can always be expected and there are few places where trout can be hooked in such large numbers.

Fishing on the lakes with all methods is producing good results, with trout of 4kg coming from Lake Rotoiti. Jigging is starting to produce large catches as the fish school up, although bite times are short.

More fishing action can be found on Rheem Outdoors with Geoff at 5pm today and on the internet television channel www.FishnHunt.Tv