Geoff Thomas: Bryde's whale a surprise visitor

A juvenile Bryde's whale cruises along the Motuihe Channel.

A whale surfaced beside a boat motoring through the Motuihe Channel last week, something regular boaties have never seen before.

"We see whales out in the middle of the Hauraki Gulf but I have never seen one in here in 17m of water," said charter skipper Grant Bittle.

While dolphins and orcas are often seen coming into the Waitemata and other harbours as they hunt stingrays in the shallows, this was a Bryde's whale. They are resident in the gulf and the Wavedancer charter boats that specialise in fishing the work-ups often see the whales as they rise up and engulf small fish such as pilchards.

"When we find whales we expect to find big snapper. They seem to accompany the whales, perhaps because of the volume of bait fish that fall out of their mouth. The snapper rise up from the seabed and wait just below the activity," said Bittle.

This whale was a young one of "about two tonnes" and its mother "would not be far away", he added.

The whale seemed unconcerned about the boats, surfacing right behind the duck board on one.

About 50 Bryde's whales are estimated to live permanently in the gulf and a further 150 visit occasionally. They can grow to 15m in length and 17 tonnes in weight.

Fishing the work-ups with the inchuku-style of lures is a new approach. While soft baits and jigs are dropped then worked back in sharp jerks, the inchukus are dropped then simply wound in slowly. They have a flat jig-like metal lure with a plastic skirt that is suspended on a short line that runs through the centre of the jig with twin very small, strong, sharp hooks hidden in the skirt.

"We never thought these hooks would hold a snapper but they work brilliantly, hooking big fish in the tough lip, and it makes it easy to release them," said Bittle.

The inchukus come under brand names like Intruder and Betabugs, and the technique takes a little getting used to as you can feel a tap-tap-tap on the line as a fish follows it up from the bottom. You must resist the temptation to lift the rod as this will only pull the lure away from the fish. Instead, just continue winding slowly until the line goes tight, then play the hooked fish as usual.

The Wavedancer boats cover a lot of ground searching for work-ups and gannets circling, and the skippers are expert at deciphering the behaviour of the birds and dolphins.

"You don't always find snapper. If the work-up is a short one it hasn't had time for the fish to be attracted. The ones which last for some time are the best. And you can often continue to catch fish after the birds have gone as the snapper are still down there feeding on the scraps."

Bittle has some advice for boaties approaching a work-up. "Slow down and approach at five knots for the last 200m. Driving in fast can stop the action, and you have more chance of accidentally hitting a bird or dolphin. We are uninvited guests at the banquet. The whales and dolphins have the right of way.

"Don't cast, as your line may cross a bird and their bones are hollow and can be damaged. Just drop your lures straight down. And turn your sounder off - the sonar may interfere with the dolphins' communication."

Tip of the weekTake a pair of binoculars when looking for work-ups. "Look for the circling white bees [birds in the distance]." Or, if gannets are travelling, head in the same direction.

Bite timesBite times are 5am and 5.25pm today, and tomorrow at 5.45am and 6.10pm. These are based on the phase and position of the moon, not tides, and apply to the whole country.

More fishing action can be found on Rheem Outdoors with Geoff,

6.30am Saturdays, TV3 and at www.GTtackle.co.nz