La Nina's breath delivers a marlin bonanza to Taranaki

By Geoff Thomas

Gone Fishing

Marlin continue to dominate the fishing news, especially the number being caught off Taranaki.

At the southern tip of the ocean current that sweeps down the west coast each summer, New Plymouth anglers experience game-fishing that varies from a bonanza one year to a virtual desert the next.

Add the west coast weather and sea conditions, and the fishing is indeed fickle.

This year La Nina has delivered consistent easterlies and Taranaki anglers are enjoying benevolent seas and the hottest marlin fishing in the country.

Each weekend a small flotilla of trailer boats head out through the breakwater on the edge of the city.

Sometimes the warm, blue water is so close marlin are being hooked within sight of the beach, in water as shallow as 14m.

A police fishing tournament this week produced a dozen marlin catches on the first day.

By 9 am on the second day five fish were being played on different boats.

The previous record of 104 marlin catches in a season was recorded by the New Plymouth Sportfishing and Underwater club in 1982.

This summer the 100th catch was recorded on Saturday, February 6, and by the middle of this week the total stood at 195, with at least 30 more fish caught by visiting non-club members.

Nineteen yellowfin tuna and 22 mako sharks have also been caught.

Another unusual feature is the early start to the game-fish season. Last year the first marlin was caught in mid-February but this year it was mid-January.

The north-easterly flow over the North Island has also pushed currents close to shore on the east coast and the water is 2deg to 3deg warmer than usual. This has brought rare tropical species such as wahoo and turtles to our waters.

The first wahoo seen in New Zealand waters was caught off Tutukaka in 1986. Two have been landed this summer, off the Cavalli Islands and Mayor Island.

A third wahoo catch was reported to the New Plymouth club on Wednesday. A boat had hooked the fish off Raglan and wanted it weighed at New Plymouth.

The unusual catches this summer also include a marlin caught off Takaka near the top of the South Island.

The conditions have also helped fishing for bottom species such as snapper.

Auckland anglers are enjoying prolific fishing in regular areas such as the Rangitoto and Motuihe Channels and in the Firth of Thames.

The only problem is the uncomfortable waves pushed up by the persistent easterlies, making early morning the prime time for getting out and catching fish, particularly when the current starts flowing after low tide.

The Whangarei Deep Sea Anglers' Club has announced details of the $165,000 cash prize pool for the New Zealand Game-fishing Challenge 2000.

The January 18 tournament, promoted as the biggest seen in Australasia, will be limited to 200 teams.

Interest is already strong for what is thought to be the first big game-fishing tournament in the new millennium.

The marlin section offers prizes of $50,000, $25,000 and $10,000 for the first three teams, based on a combination of numbers and weight of marlin caught and numbers tagged and released.

A second section for most marlin tagged and released has prizes of $25,000, $15,000 and $10,000, while the shark and tuna sections offer $10,000, $5000 and $2500 for fish weighed.