Fishing: There's a knack to soft bait casting, but big fish are waiting

The white water around kelp is a prime target for casting lures and baits. Photo / Geoff Thomas

Some huge snapper are being caught by casting soft baits into two metres of water around the rocky shoreline of Great Barrier Island. While this type of fishing is quite specialised, it can be adapted to any situation where current and white water are present. It is particularly effective around offshore islands.

But it will also work anywhere a point or peninsula protrudes from the shore, and spots closer to larger populations like Waiheke, the Noises, Rakino and Kawau Islands, the far north and the Coromandel Peninsula are all targets for those accustomed to flicking out soft baits.

It can be exciting fishing, for you are using a slender but strong rod, ultra fine braid line of about seven kilos breaking strain, a shock tippet of 15 or 20kg monofilament and a spin reel. The reel is important and cheap models should be avoided as the drag will probably not do the job, for it is important to be able to stop a large snapper getting into the thick clumps of weed or sharp fangs of the surrounding rocks. The drag on the reel will be set strongly and the rod lifted high in the air to try to keep up the head of the hooked fish.

Shore-based anglers can also target this type of fishing but will be using floating baits and berley to attract passing fish for, unlike those in a boat who will be idling slowly along casting to new water, they are stuck in one spot.

It is more about small numbers of quality fish rather than catching large numbers.

For the rock angler, casting floating baits of fresh mullet, jack mackerel, kahawai or pilchards will work. Berley will also increase the chances of success and a berley bag is easily employed and anchored with a rope around a sharp rock.

The land-based game fishermen who specialise in catching large kingfish also do well at this time of year, concentrating on the occasional large specimen. They use berley to attract bait fish like kahawai and mackerel, then deploy the live bait under a balloon which is cast out.

Choosing the location is important and, as with all fishing, local knowledge is invaluable. But if fishing a new area, a visit at low tide will reveal details of the underwater topography. The elements to look for are a channel and guts, weed beds and currents. A point protruding out from the shore will always hold more fish than a sheltered bay nearby.

The cold, unstable weather of mid-winter makes safety precautions even more important than in summer; with lifejackets, warm clothing and a hand-held VHF radio or cellphone in a waterproof cover standard equipment on a boat.

Rock fishermen should always watch the sea, for the best fishing is where white water and currents stir the water, but the occasional rogue wave can catch out an unwary person. Warm clothing and boots do not make for great buoyancy so a life jacket makes good sense. Some will even use a light rope to anchor themselves as an extra precaution. An awareness of the tide is also important, for the best time to fish for kingfish is at low tide but of course six hours later the water line will be 2-3m higher. The high tide mark is usually clearly delineated by dark weed on the rocks. An escape route if cut off should be identified in advance.

Fresh water

There has been some great fly fishing in the Hinemaiaia Stream, at Hatepe on Lake Taupo, where the spawning runs started in late April and really took off in the first three weeks of May. One angler reported catching 10 trout in top condition ranging from 1.6kg to 2kg and lost several much bigger ones over a few days days from the rip and in the stream up to the first main bend in the river.

The Tongariro River and the Tauranga-Taupo and Waitahanui Rivers are all fishing well this winter, and the rain this weekend will no doubt trigger more runs of trout from the lake. The fresh-run fish are always the best to catch, both in terms of their condition and their willingness to take a fly. While a tiny nymph representing a natural one cast upstream, often in conjunction with a small globug, is the preferred approach in low, clear water, the traditional downstream wet fly works well when the water is discoloured after rain. The red setter, rabbit and woolly bugger patterns are popular with a short trace for this style of fishing.

Tip of the Week

When casting soft baits among rocks and white water, the lure should be dropped as close to the edge as possible, then allowed to sink a little before retrieving with short jerks of the rod while winding in the slack line. As with bait fishing, keeping in touch with the lure is a critical part of the process. Fish will sometimes grab the lure while it is sinking so the line should be kept tight so a bite will be felt.

Baits can be allowed to sink slowly, but if left too long will snag among weed so should be moved slowly by lifting the rod and carefully taking up the slack with the reel. For the strike, steady pressure is better than a sudden heave on the rod.

Bite times

Bite times are 12.15pm today, and 12.50am and 1.20pm tomorrow. More fishing action can be found at GTTackle.co.nz.