Long-lines set with torpedoes off west coast beaches are producing good catches of snapper like this one. Photo / Supplied
The west coast is fishing very well when conditions allow and anglers using torpedo long-lines set from the beach are doing well all the way up the coast, particularly in the evening.
This usually happens as spring sets in and water temperatures start to rise and it should only improve as Christmas approaches, then, as happens on both coasts, the fishing becomes hard over January. For boats heading out over the bar off the Manukau or Kaipara Harbours there are plenty of snapper at 40-50 metres, provided sharks don't turn up.
There is usually a run of large snapper up the coast from Taranaki northwards in October, and the beaches at Mokau, Kariotahi, the top end of Muriwai and Baylys Beach can produce some great fishing during the spring. Torpedoes are also producing good catches on Bay of Plenty beaches, also in the evening.
After months of miserable weather and patchy fishing, the snapper fishing has picked up. It is not yet like mid-summer when only a cupful of petrol is needed, but the big fish are lurking and they are not far away.
Massive work-ups out in the Firth of Thames have produced the hottest fishing recently, with dolphins, gannets and whales churning the water and snapper up to 9kg taken. This sort of action can't always be found easily, and a pair of binoculars are handy for spotting the circling white dots in the sky.
Large work-ups an also be found north of The Noises and east of Tiritiri Matangi Island where birds and other predators bail up schools of bait fish and while snapper are not always thick underneath, they can be found without too much trouble.
The best approach is to drift, employing a drogue to slow the drift if there is any wind.
Lures like the kabura slow jig and flutter jigs work well, and some anglers also use the older style silver jigs effectively.
The key is to get the lure quickly to the sea bed by casting ahead of the boat's drift then working it by jigging, or a very slow wind for a kabura. Work the lower few metres then drop it back down, repeating the action until the lure is well back behind the boat when it is retrieved and cast again.
Big snapper are also coming from the shallows around Rangitoto Island, but they can be harder to locate. The lighthouse is always a beacon for good fishing in the surrounding reefs, and it is a question of working the tides. Big tides produce the strongest currents but this weekend brings the smallest tides of the month so the better flows will be found in the channels.
The alternative is to drift, so baits and lures are moving across the sea bed. Other good spots around Auckland are off Park Point, on Waiheke Island, and off Rothesay and Murrays Bays.
Snapper are schooling prior to spawning and in aggressive feeding mode before getting serious about the reproduction business, which is why the first congregations can produce hot fishing.
The fishing has picked up in Bream Bay with snapper up to 9kg in water up to 20 metres, and drifting with lures can be productive although a a lot of local anglers like to drift with half a pilchard bouncing along the bottom.
In the Bay of Islands the Centre Foul and Ninepin are holding snapper, and straylining in the shallows around Tapeka Rock is producing at dawn and dusk.
Another feature of this particular time of year is the incidence of big snapper forcing their way into the small opening in crayfish pots.
The predatory fish are attracted by the trapped crays and the smelly bait, and commercial crayfishermen operating around the coast often find large snapper in their pots.
Lake Taupo rivers are clear and fishable, with a mixture of kelts returning downstream and some nice fish being caught. Wading the shallows around the lake and fishing for smelting fish in the early morning can be enjoyable and rewarding. Harling the shallows and along the drop-off should pick up over the next month.
Bite times are 9.45am and 10.10pm tomorrow and 10.30am and 10.55pm on Sunday.
On the west coast the most popular rig for snapper is the ledger or dropper rig, but just like when fishing work-ups in the Hauraki Gulf the biggest fish can be targeted with a whole jack mackerel (yellowtail).
It is easily hooked with a 6/0 or 7/0 octopus hook (to match the size of bait), inserted under the pectoral fin on one side and out through the gill plate, reversed so the point is facing backwards, which will hold the bait firmly as it is the toughest part of the anatomy.
A half hitch round the tail with the trace and a ball sinker running freely down on to it completes the bait. The sinker can be incorporated in the half hitch, so it sinks as part of the bait.
If using such a rig on harbour with strong currents, like the Manukau and Kaipara Harbours, a very long trace below a heavy sinker is the best approach. More fishing action can be found at GTTackle.co.nz.