Geoff Thomas: Water temperature key factor as winter takes hold

Photo / Geoff Thomas

Water temperature is the key to fishing now that the first frosts are appearing. There are still snapper to be found around Auckland, but they are only in patches and the best way to find fish is to look for changes in the temperature of the water.

One example was an experienced angler fishing the Clevedon flats this week who normally does well on a favoured spot but could not raise a bite. So he shifted 2km to where different currents were running with the tide and found a 2C difference, and that is where the fish were.

The winter style of fishing has improved, casting floating baits down a berley trail into weed-covered, rocky terrain. This approach has been bringing results in close to shore along the East Coast Bays and around the Noises, the David Rocks and the Ahahaas. Those anglers using soft baits and drifting the channels between the small islands and rocks are also picking up fish, and the small grub-type tails up to size 5/0 in orange-brown colours are proving successful. One theory is that the snapper are feeding on small crayfish and this lure makes a reasonable imitation.

Casting soft plastics into the shallows and around rocks and reefs should improve as winter takes hold, particularly around the edge of large structures like Kawau Island, Takatu Point, the bottom end of Waiheke Island and of course further afield at the Moko Hinau group and Little Barrier and Great Barrier Islands and the Mercury group.

This approach worked during a recent fishing contest where line weights were limited to 6kg line and two experienced anglers using soft plastics did well casting into the weed around Takatu Point, catching snapper up to 10kg.

Fishing generally has been reasonable at times in Kawau Bay all the way to Mahurangi, around Little Barrier and at the bottom end of Waiheke on the northern side of Shag Rock and Gannet Rock out to 50m deep.

Seasoned Manukau Harbour fisherman John Moran reports changing seasons there as well. "The good news is the small snapper which have been around in plague proportions - which bodes well for the future but has been a real problem this year - have gone." Gurnard were also starting to move into the harbour in numbers, and the movement of fish both in and out of the harbour was governed by water temperatures, which had dropped one degree to 16C.

"A few trevally are also showing up, and can be targeted on the top and bottom of the tide on the bank tops and the ridges, with shellfish baits of course."

A lot of anglers were starting to use berley as sharks and rays were not so common now, and shellfish berley was the most popular. Fishing out off the coast was running hot and cold, with some good results coming from water as shallow as 11m off the Waikato River for both snapper and gurnard.

Game fishing in northern waters is hanging on as expected after the late start to the summer season, with a patch of marlin still holding between Cape Brett and the Poor Knights.

The Hookin' Bull team of John Batterton and Guy Jacobsen have continued their record-breaking run of the current season with another world record claim. This catch was a 173kg striped marlin on 3kg line. The vessel Primetime has also weighed a 204kg striped marlin at Whangaroa, and Major Tom II boated a 266kg broadbill at the Garden Patch.

In the Bay of Islands kingfish in the 8-12kg range are running well, although sharks continue to be a problem at Whale Rock, and snapper are going well on the deep reefs when the weather allows fishing.

Trout fishing is also moving into winter mode at Rotorua and Taupo. As the trout move into spawning mode red-bodied flies and lures come into their own. On Lake Okataina fishing booby flies at the Log Pool continues to produce, although there are more fish at the Dogger Bank where the same method works well.