Mahurangi: Up fish creek with a paddle

TIME Unlimited's Neill Sperath keeps the location of his favourite kayak-fishing spots to himself - and his clients. Photo / Jim Eagles

Weehaa, look at this, I've caught a fish almost as big as my boat. Maybe not as long but it certainly seems almost as wide. No, I'm not exaggerating, or at least not by much. The kayak I'm sitting in is pretty narrow and that makes the nice fat snapper I've landed seem even bigger. This is exciting stuff.

Adding to the excitement is the advice from guide Neill Sperath that when when you're out fishing in a kayak, you have to be particularly careful that the pull of a big fish doesn't tip you over ... and in a kayak you can get to great fishing spots where ordinary boats can't go, so you catch a lot of fish.

So many fish, in fact, that when Neill asks if we should let this one go I agree, even though it is a good size and I did catch it. Personally I think his philosophy of catching enough for a feed and leaving the rest for posterity is absolutely right. It's just a pity that we reached that point before I got my best fish of the trip.

Neill and wife Ceilhe run a company called TIME Unlimited, which offers a range of customised tours including guided tramping, personalised itineraries and - the trips that New Zealanders have proved most interested in - kite fishing and kayak fishing.

So, here I am, rolling in a choppy sea, trying to pose so Neill can take a photo of me and my fish, without losing either of my rods or my paddle and without tipping over.

The wind is supposed to be southwesterly today, so we launch the kayaks from Sullivan's Beach, in the beautiful Mahurangi Regional Park, made even more spectacular by the presence of the sailing ship Spirit of New Zealand anchored just offshore.

Usually, Neill says, this area would be pretty sheltered, but unfortunately the wind is getting stronger than any of the forecasts predicted and it is also turning southerly so the sea is starting to cut up.

Still I'm nice and snug in waterproof paddle-pants, jacket and lifejacket and the kayaks seem stable so the conditions aren't a problem.

As we make our way around Cudlip Pt at the southern end of the bay, the waves get steeper and because we are paddling into the wind - and because my arms are old and feeble - I find it quite hard going.

Neill, who has to keep stopping so I can catch up, tells me we can turn back if I feel uncomfortable.

"I'm fine," I say. "The waves aren't a problem. If you don't mind waiting for me I'm happy to keep plodding on."

So around the point we go, into beautiful, isolated Te Muri Bay and up the Te Muri estuary; tranquil, lined with mangroves and full of birdlife, where we raft our kayaks together and enjoy a wee snack. Croissants filled with smoked salmon and cream cheese. Yum.

Eating over, Neill gives a few lessons on fishing from a kayak, which mainly involve how to cast with soft baits. Usually, he explains, we would practice several fishing techniques, but because of the conditions and the fact that we're only doing a half-day trip, we'll get down to serious fishing right away.

So we paddle back out to Cudlipp Pt, Neill puts out a sea-anchor and we drift slowly before the wind, flicking out soft baits and jerking them in, while bouncing smoothly over the waves.

"We often see penguins and gannets out here," says Neill as he works his line. "And sometimes dolphins. It's a great spot."

Before long he hauls in a nice snapper while explaining, with mingled pride and embarrassment, that the guide isn't supposed to catch the fish. Good point, I think, as I flick my line out and pull it in empty. That turns out to be the limit of our success with soft baits, so after a while Neill puts down the anchor and we fish in more conventional fashion with fish bait.

"We'll catch something here," Neill says confidently. "This spot never lets me down. Just one thing. Please don't put the exact details of this spot in the paper. I don't want the world knowing about it."

No need to worry, Neill, after this taste of kayak fishing I'm thinking seriously about buying a kayak myself, so I don't want other people knowing the good spots either.

And, sure enough, within a few minutes the spare rod sitting in Neill's holder starts to bend. "You take it," he says. "That's yours."

Yippee. A snapper. A few minutes later it's the spare rod again. And again. And again.

How come it's only the spare rod that catches fish and not the ones we're holding? It's just one of the mysteries that make fishing so fascinating, I guess.

By now it's getting dark and we've got all the fish we need, so we head back to the beach. What a great day. And we've got a feed of fresh snapper. Who could ask for more?

Further information: To find out more about TIME Unlimited tours, see newzealandtours.travel.

Jim Eagles caught snapper as a guest of TIME Unlimited.