Bay of Islands

fishing report

May 22, 2020

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Hi guys. Well, with the move down to level two lockdown finally here, I'm sure there were hundreds if fishos amped to get out there and wet a line, and maybe a few still to do so yet. After a break from us recreational anglers, the conditions in the bay were really not much different from pre – lockdown. There were lots of anchovies around, but surprisingly not a lot of other bait fish such as the jack mackerel that we prefer as live baits.

If you are after big fish, right in close is going off with plenty of solid snapper giving the magic nine kg mark a good nudge.

Soft baits have been working really well, the preferred colour for us has been the pilchard coloured ‘Livie’ from Catch Fishing, and big jack mackerel.

We’ve just started using the Catch JG3000 reels which are a great all-round reel capable of handling the big strong fish we get up here, but still being of a compact, comfortable size.

Fishing all along the front of Long beach down towards Rawhiti is a great place to start this time of year.

A bit of berley will get them on the bite on the cooler mornings.

The kingfish have been a bit hard to find so far, but the outer reefs such as Whale Rock, should be hosting some nice models. It’s just a matter of picking the right conditions with a bit of current and the bite on.

If you can get a few good live baits on board then it will inevitably happen.

The next few months are going to see the snapper move into the weed lines and small reefs feeding up on shellfish and kina, so fishing the white water and edges of the sand banks is a good plan.

During the colder times I like to throw some ground bait in to get things wound up a bit as the fish metabolism is a bit slower.

As the water cools off the deeper reefs will start to hold some good kingfish, and just a little bit further out the puka will be starting to move in onto the 250 metre reef systems.

There is a lot of fertile ground, and plenty of deep water species around off the Cape, so get out there, be safe, and remember to always file a trip report or let someone know where you are going.

Now the traffic is down, it’s good for the fishing, but there aren't as many boats out over the winter period to assist you if you run into trouble.

Tight lines

Regards Darren

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PS: Feel free to ring me if you are out on the water and having a hard day 😉🎣

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