
So I was sitting in the office on the 18th floor this morning, looking out over the viaduct and inner harbour. I was feeling depresed, looking at the glorious weather and knowing that the forecast for the weekend is so bad. When am I going to get a fish? Then a plan started formulating.....a quick check of the calender confirmed that I had nothing to do that afternoon that couldn't be just as easily done from home while it is raining cats and dogs over the weekend. A quick word with the boss, and my plan was a go.
I haven't been able to get out on the water for about a month due to weather and other commitments, and the last 2 times I've been out off Eastern Beach I've come home empty handed, so was desperate to get a feed of Snapper! But where to go? Eastern Beach was out. With the tide as it was it would be easier to walk out to the reef than take the kayak. But I had a plan.......
11:30am: Meeting with a clent in East Tamaki
1:00pm home in Howick scoffing down lunch and loading up the car
2:00pm drop into Fergs Kayaks and pick up the NRS guide gloves they got in for me
2:30pm on the water at Kohimarama heading for the reef at the eastern end
The tide was still going out, so I started out flicking some softbaits around the westen side of the reef for half an hour or so with no takers. I'm yet to catch a fish on softies. What am I doing wrong?
By 3:15 the tide was starting to turn, so I paddled around the other side of the reef, and found a likely looking spot, dropped the anchor and burley and started putting some of the stuff I learnt at the Smart Marine winter snapper fishing seminar into practice. It was slow at first, but after about an hour the bites started coming, and pretty soon I had a couple of small snapper on board. They were bearly my boat size limit of 30cm, but I was desperate not to go home empty handed so kept them.....
After that the bites started getting quite regular, but I was making dumb mistakes that lost me fish. (Like birds nesting my new tld15 trying to cast it, and stiking with my egg beater reel in free spool ) So after swearing at my self lots, and putting the overhead rod aside I finally got my act together.
By this time the fish were on the bite big time. Every bait was getting hit within minutes of being cast. They weren't big fish, but I landed two at 40cm and another around 35cm. One of the 40cm fish got it's revenge, flicking a hook along my finger leaving a gouge 2 cm long an deep enough to paint the cockpit red. By now it was starting to get dark, and I don't yet have a light sorted. Plus I was a bit worried about how much blood I was putting in the water. (I wasn't bleeding to death, but the Jaws sound track was playing in my head ) I recon if I'd stayed another hour I would have had my limit easily, and the fish seemed to be getting bigger.
Anyway, I'm happy! I got a feed for tomorrow night, got out on the water, fished a spot I've never tried before, and got to try some of the tips I picked up at the seminar. Actually 5 legal snapper is the best I have done so far in my short yak fishing history! Now it can rain all weekend and I won't care :)