There’s nothing quite like a personal play-day out on the water, and this time it was with my son—a professional golfer—a perfect chance to soak in the ocean’s surprises. As we scanned the horizon, searching for hints of action, we spotted an incredible sight: a seemingly endless stream of low-flying petrels skimming the surface.

Through the binoculars, the scene blurred into a spectacle difficult to comprehend—no gannets, no terns, just wave after wave of these high-speed little birds rushing in from deeper waters toward the local peninsula.

We set our sights further out for some soft baiting fun (check out the Espresso Pearl video below—make sure you don’t let this happen to your soft baits!), aiming for an encounter with whales and other marine life, using light tackle—6 to 15lb—for the thrilling pursuit of snapper and kingfish. The thought of returning to investigate the petrel activity later lingered in the back of our minds. After ticking all the boxes—whales, dolphins, fish on light tackle, and a fresh kingfish destined for dinner—we circled back to the area we had marked earlier. Sure enough, nature had hinted at what was to come.

Skies building with gannets above a surfacing whale

The entire ecosystem had kicked into gear: common dolphins, gannets, terns, and snapper were all working the bait in a sprawling frenzy. Dropping tungsten microjigs on spin gear provided one last thrill for the day. Smaller snapper were abundant close in, but some solid specimens showed up among the schools detected on our new Garmin sounder—another reminder of the value of technology combined with nature’s cues.

Offshore action

Kingfish are hounding the bait schools—light tackle nirvana!

It’s been a bonanza of fishing lately, with workups spread across nearly every corner of the Gulf. Distinct groups of common dolphins have been driving the action in multiple locations, miles apart, communicating across distances in ways that don’t rely on WhatsApp! Whales have also been getting involved—sometimes semi-expected (if you read the gannets’ distinct body language) or popping up unexpectedly, like the Bryde’s whale that surfaced right next to the boat, engulfing a mass of baitfish just centimetres from the bow.

Fishing has been solid near Anchorite in 50m depths, and further east by Fantail/Happy Jacks, while the Firth of Thames continues to produce great snapper, even in the shallows for those skilled in that style. On those windy days when offshore is a no-go, sheltered inshore fishing with friends and family remains a top-tier alternative.

Inshore excitement

Midweek has been especially rewarding, with seabirds crowding the Whangaparāoa Peninsula, North Shore bays, and Rangitoto. The spectacle alone is worth the trip, but fast-paced fishing for excellent-eating kahawai makes it even better. Casting 10–20g microjigs on light spin gear has been the way to go, while shore-based anglers have also found success with anchovies pushing in. It’s already been an extended season of this inshore activity—fingers crossed it lasts a bit longer!

Bottlenose dolphins have been frequenting inner shorelines near Auckland city this past week, delighting onlookers as they swim in shallow water, flipping and playing. Though great to watch, they don’t exactly help when it comes to catching fish nearby!

Ever had this happen with your soft baits? Easy to avoid!

Winter adjustments

Water temperatures are dropping—now hovering around 16.5 to 17.5°C—which means snapper are looking for a feed before their winter slowdown. Lately, smaller snapper have been dominating catches, proving that fish have no manners when it comes to striking a lure first. The silver lining? Plenty of younger fish in the mix bodes well for future snapper stocks.

Out deeper (50m chart depth), snapper sizes improve as many migrate for the winter—whether with workups, or simply on the drift. Interestingly, recent catches have shown snapper striking well off the bottom, often 10 metres up in the water column—a great reminder to extend slow-jig or slow-pitch techniques up beyond the usual sea floor depths for snapper.

Kingfish & gear prep

Kingfish have been aggressively hitting the workups lately, often identifiable by the distinct style of the activity. Solid legal-sized fish are taking snapper lures unannounced or responding well to targeted jigs. If you’re eager to battle these green machines, now is prime time to get out there and work the bait schools.

Come June, temperatures will drop further and gnarly weather will become more frequent. It’s the perfect opportunity for gear maintenance—replacing leaders, checking knots (compressed knots will haunt you later!), and making sure everything is in ‘just add water’ condition.