tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53844479852952288652024-03-06T21:14:59.417+13:00fishingnews.co.nzYour one stop for often fairly minimal and sometimes biased fishing news, normally focused on New Zealand.Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comBlogger115125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-14500980490987932502023-01-24T22:52:00.001+13:002023-01-24T22:56:16.967+13:00Throw some sand in<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCjuvKL-M7yW2p8jkb_BoowGDxYeoDUvZTUkWiclTqHmh4BWQf8x7W66QdLjAoq-vA0q9JFlPhDZ_FIXiSN7oqTpJYyZ-RRv0Vw6i8pIOaWgfRaekhUTvVz8M4xwXmApnRgcPslz9kV6Mt_fipSI6Vffq2BNZrvM-mib4ep0ZAX0DFuqu3dDTWFA/s1003/20230124_101537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1003" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCjuvKL-M7yW2p8jkb_BoowGDxYeoDUvZTUkWiclTqHmh4BWQf8x7W66QdLjAoq-vA0q9JFlPhDZ_FIXiSN7oqTpJYyZ-RRv0Vw6i8pIOaWgfRaekhUTvVz8M4xwXmApnRgcPslz9kV6Mt_fipSI6Vffq2BNZrvM-mib4ep0ZAX0DFuqu3dDTWFA/s320/20230124_101537.jpg" width="319" /></a></div><p>I've been taking my son Arthur out with me to look for trout on the river a few times this year.</p><p>This morning we went to a spot where I'd seen a trout yesterday.</p><p>We watched the water for a while, then Arthur started exploring the steep bank down to the water.</p><p>After climbing down to the water's edge, he threw a clump of sand into the water while making his way back up.</p><p>"That's probably not going to help attract a trout. Wait! Don't move!"</p><p>A trout had immediately appeared where the sand had landed.</p><p>I'd never thought of trying it before, but it makes sense that trout would investigate where a bank has slipped into the water from the continual erosion. There's bound to be worms or insects coming in with the sand and dirt.</p><p>The trout then came over to look at my cicacda imitation that I'd lowered into the water and leisurely took it into his mouth. I was unable to set the hook, so he swam away after some brief splashing.</p><p>I plan on adding throw-a-clump-of-sand-into-the-water-before-leaving to my methods of finding trout. Arthur convinced me to buy some plastic worm imitations a while ago too, so that should be a perfect match.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7GOfwIA2G7FqNcYy_UMcSZ0OCqTXimpmXEMO8kIXuHonS72GOnrBNllBZVoe9I3NYi1X-FxhcEEVhMdrkj3kKFdwqvD26pAwqTLbNzciv-t_-3cFWkArqDlxEyVng6OIBae0gYDpYHWWaO99_O6vaaUxP-l2LGOcFvrrf4vBJEFFoCvd4993tIA/s1000/20230124_101401.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="658" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7GOfwIA2G7FqNcYy_UMcSZ0OCqTXimpmXEMO8kIXuHonS72GOnrBNllBZVoe9I3NYi1X-FxhcEEVhMdrkj3kKFdwqvD26pAwqTLbNzciv-t_-3cFWkArqDlxEyVng6OIBae0gYDpYHWWaO99_O6vaaUxP-l2LGOcFvrrf4vBJEFFoCvd4993tIA/w264-h400/20230124_101401.jpg" width="264" /></a></div>Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-27325154971429432652022-12-31T10:30:00.003+13:002023-01-24T22:57:23.809+13:00A good start to the day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQK_cOhTNxj3MuyfqJh2ijriA6KNsnQjwToHFVz_bYzHpEzLMe0giEGRTRC4Fqqfrj7TGZHeIaJYuQmomlPmAiH4q2Zsb77lf3Jd3NQavq6WSB9EHWt4Yt7OqcZ2gHPOZTMvYtsv-AmQ8ONFHYdth9s_38Bz0RTwqIcwoxNV6vtRPexeXJfs6xvg/s1000/20221224_070557.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="563" data-original-width="1000" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQK_cOhTNxj3MuyfqJh2ijriA6KNsnQjwToHFVz_bYzHpEzLMe0giEGRTRC4Fqqfrj7TGZHeIaJYuQmomlPmAiH4q2Zsb77lf3Jd3NQavq6WSB9EHWt4Yt7OqcZ2gHPOZTMvYtsv-AmQ8ONFHYdth9s_38Bz0RTwqIcwoxNV6vtRPexeXJfs6xvg/s320/20221224_070557.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>I lost a lure around high tide after snagging it on a submerged log near the Spring Creek township, and was able to retrieve it without entering the water the next day around low tide. </p><p>Over 11km inland from the mouth, the Wairau River is still affected by the tides.</p><p>I picked up a couple of empty bottles and a can that someone had left by the river. On my way to the recycling drop-off point, I decided to have a fish in the Wairau around the Tuamarina bridge. Been a while since I'd fished there.</p><p>Ended up landing a nice trout in some mixed currents almost under the bridge. Enjoyed by the family for dinner.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivcqhAb_qJd1GLIf_PfFjMqjT4Zafr-EkhUqsOLOgRwvcRE5oyxhkEISNJqe104JNoIEpAO1yysYbqDSVlIEAtTYWduVPO8cUhZjmYJgyDWYuvBzsD9ycsbg9Zv3tVNCo3g9uEfthtYcZa4syzcRR3ocvMAWqlZRZSRabyBT9WaC5L23vFo-bPGQ/s1000/20221228_073635.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="563" data-original-width="1000" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivcqhAb_qJd1GLIf_PfFjMqjT4Zafr-EkhUqsOLOgRwvcRE5oyxhkEISNJqe104JNoIEpAO1yysYbqDSVlIEAtTYWduVPO8cUhZjmYJgyDWYuvBzsD9ycsbg9Zv3tVNCo3g9uEfthtYcZa4syzcRR3ocvMAWqlZRZSRabyBT9WaC5L23vFo-bPGQ/s320/20221228_073635.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-55858430049579126642021-11-21T15:24:00.005+13:002021-11-23T13:26:54.776+13:00Getting back into it<p>I hadn't been fishing much at all over the last year. Last few years, really.</p><p>In September I was crossing one of the bridges over the Wairau and noticed the water was quite high, with a bit of colour - ideal for spin fishing.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO9D-bN86eTnZsyHnE26N1IlC4BmqSrUZmFCL7jOTeSVL6XWKSHZqUVp51iKN8hTmCiqB5jG0hNoCwY1PsUEPGghT6TCIS1iGi8UxwLCP8-pdgjWuoLFUh2WJm7P0WQ9WL0S3Eurzk7w/s1212/Wairau-River.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="682" data-original-width="1212" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO9D-bN86eTnZsyHnE26N1IlC4BmqSrUZmFCL7jOTeSVL6XWKSHZqUVp51iKN8hTmCiqB5jG0hNoCwY1PsUEPGghT6TCIS1iGi8UxwLCP8-pdgjWuoLFUh2WJm7P0WQ9WL0S3Eurzk7w/s320/Wairau-River.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>My trout license had been languishing in my wallet for almost a year. With the season about to end, I figured I'd better get some use out of it.<p></p><p>Returning to the river soon after, I had a strike below the bridge within a few casts. I was not ready for it, and a leap soon after saw my lure coming to shore with no fish attached. Didn't manage to get any more interest from the trout, but returned the next morning around the same time, prepared for a strike. Landed the nice small brown quite quickly.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi-osT9zmtmOh1rEDwt2RHlgxC8o8_vwcXCsD4Omxdas4r6EoCU4BWis9HtXizyrx2eXzE_OauU9l9pPgBn3APM6kXr6XZL5qBHebN5IqCdms95VOtCwGbQOgWE9Zczm0WfMLnRgbllQ/s1212/trout-in-grass-with-lure%252C-rod%252C-reel.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="682" data-original-width="1212" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi-osT9zmtmOh1rEDwt2RHlgxC8o8_vwcXCsD4Omxdas4r6EoCU4BWis9HtXizyrx2eXzE_OauU9l9pPgBn3APM6kXr6XZL5qBHebN5IqCdms95VOtCwGbQOgWE9Zczm0WfMLnRgbllQ/s320/trout-in-grass-with-lure%252C-rod%252C-reel.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>The family enjoyed the trout for dinner.</p><p>I obviously now had to get a new license for the upcoming season.</p><p>Landed a larger brown not too far upstream a couple of weeks later.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSq0SQ7qRi4KaYYGN1ksJARRjvJWIh69rVnOFL5de9f6Sm-gfC3HoycthC_NhbocmSG5n7ayFPRoeBJExtzj81rSGni0JMVFXCli8WfsJz92QPwRx_igIhHNds_WAq0arMqUI2BaFyPg/s1212/second-trout.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="682" data-original-width="1212" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSq0SQ7qRi4KaYYGN1ksJARRjvJWIh69rVnOFL5de9f6Sm-gfC3HoycthC_NhbocmSG5n7ayFPRoeBJExtzj81rSGni0JMVFXCli8WfsJz92QPwRx_igIhHNds_WAq0arMqUI2BaFyPg/s320/second-trout.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>Both caught on the same lure.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfegkve9BqW1cIegi69qwH9clsOQgqvMKEJND3oGCoIWR3s0fnQZ3tVvuztEf7A0bUk-WIT7iR5o38u3DVhpdgehE6PebjaDdort2RGKejbkTxSq7AyDp5KAEsxQRNqsx19eqM9Y7KmA/s1212/6g-lure-that-caught-the-trout.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="238" data-original-width="1212" height="63" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfegkve9BqW1cIegi69qwH9clsOQgqvMKEJND3oGCoIWR3s0fnQZ3tVvuztEf7A0bUk-WIT7iR5o38u3DVhpdgehE6PebjaDdort2RGKejbkTxSq7AyDp5KAEsxQRNqsx19eqM9Y7KmA/s320/6g-lure-that-caught-the-trout.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-9515638083653320442018-12-30T21:20:00.000+13:002018-12-30T21:45:12.354+13:00A seafood chowder recipeI've been a fan of seafood chowder for years now, but have seldom made it myself for some reason.<br />
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Yesterday I had some groper cheeks, quite a lot of mussels, a couple of salmon steaks and some smoked salmon that all needed using before long, so decided to make a chowder.<br />
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I looked through my cookbooks and decided on Martin Bosley's 'Easy Winter Seafood Chowder' in Kirsty Cameron's <i>The Kiwi Bach Companion</i>, despite it being the middle of summer and one of the hottest days of the year.<br />
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I used some parsley, sage, and dill from the garden in place of the thyme (potato was also freshly dug), and aside from my seafood being different to what's in the recipe, I cooked it as per the guidelines.<br />
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The salmon added more oil to the mix, which showed on top. In some leftovers today I sprinkled over and mixed in some White Crest Arrowroot Substitute, a gluten-free thickener, which mixed in well with the salmon oil and made a nice thick chowder. I plan on using that next time I cook it.<br />
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I also threw together a loaf of bread in the bread maker - which I haven't used for ages - following the <a href="https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/17256/jos-rosemary-bread/" target="_blank">recipe</a> I mentioned back in the <a href="https://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2016/05/every-trout-has-silver-lining-or-what.html#more" target="_blank">trout pate recipe</a> a while ago (this time using sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, rosemary, and oregano).<br />
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All tasty and recommended.Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-44459224927558187102017-05-08T15:10:00.000+12:002018-12-30T21:41:53.081+13:00Farewell to a Fishing Companion<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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One day Tee Tee followed our neighbour Sonjia home from one of her jogs in Barker's Park, on the north-western chunk of Grand Cayman Island. The vet said Tee Tee must've been left in the park pregnant or with pups. We adopted her (she adopted us?) after Sonjia moved to Miami.<br />
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I've probably now spent more time fishing with Tee Tee than anyone else.<br />
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Tee Tee would be with me any time I fished for tarpon in the mangrove canals behind Morgan's Harbour. She would fossik around looking for green lizards (now a big pest on the island) and spooking the odd flock of birds while I was fishing. She'd normally come over to examine anything I landed.<br />
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After she came back to New Zealand with us (Thanks to Davina's superior admin skills and determination), Tee Tee would always be eager to accompany me for a fishing mission across the road to Monkey Bay any time I went.<br />
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She adapted well to the contrast of a cold winter compared to her tropical upbringing, comfortable with her spot by the fire. Also taking it in her stride when one, then another boy turned up in the household.<br />
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No matter where we lived, Tee Tee always seemed at her happiest when out on the beach or adventuring somewhere.</div>
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We made her a garden grave in the front yard, near where she often used to lie in the sun.<br />
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I miss hanging out with Tee Tee.<br />
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Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-30556882030108721742016-11-30T14:19:00.000+13:002016-11-30T14:19:57.895+13:00The roads to the Wairau Bar and Diversion after the Kaikoura earthquake<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I heard that there had been some damage to the road to the Wairau Bar after the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Kaikoura_earthquake" target="_blank">Kaikoura earthquake</a>, so a few days after the quake I rode down on the motorbike to take a look.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc24R4SoHtPw3E_xS7_ZiWpaJlwLNPSmo69iVM6UGdv2-n6JtcSGct09I5yo7i99v9zjD1LOL9TRUv4gsWBzz6ybcW17fRN97Xi3KPC50ppzT086U_6KeQnR91Esih1kzIbR2kqM5c1Q/s1600/bar1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc24R4SoHtPw3E_xS7_ZiWpaJlwLNPSmo69iVM6UGdv2-n6JtcSGct09I5yo7i99v9zjD1LOL9TRUv4gsWBzz6ybcW17fRN97Xi3KPC50ppzT086U_6KeQnR91Esih1kzIbR2kqM5c1Q/s320/bar1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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You could still get to the Bar easily enough dispite part of the road looking like it'd been plowed. The road splits before that point so you could avoid that part.</div>
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The end of the Wairau Diversion road was closed due to similar destruction but without an alternative route.</div>
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I walked down to the mouth and all appeared normal down there.</div>
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Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-22991609544760242332016-10-15T22:00:00.000+13:002016-10-17T05:44:58.708+13:00The wily trout of Spring Creek<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOtFfsN-qh3lt8T7S1nUUw6dA0tbA1xXNmR-dG6wjo4q9qH2VRT1UE-3BfCNQXM1N8pnikAdhxzpE1xBtmEyxH5cD6motwnx0ku6RrsnhTA7nxclPGEEXeQ2LmCa0eFxPFMGpqoEvMOw/s1600/springcreek1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOtFfsN-qh3lt8T7S1nUUw6dA0tbA1xXNmR-dG6wjo4q9qH2VRT1UE-3BfCNQXM1N8pnikAdhxzpE1xBtmEyxH5cD6motwnx0ku6RrsnhTA7nxclPGEEXeQ2LmCa0eFxPFMGpqoEvMOw/s320/springcreek1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">I often see trout in Spring Creek, and have tried fishing for them, but never landed one. They'll follow a lure, but probably more out of curiosity than considering it food.</span></div>
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Today I parked the motorbike near the train bridge that goes over Spring Creek beside State Highway 1 for a quick look. There was a trout feeding just downstream of the bridge, so I set my rod up and had a few casts.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBBwYm1FoZSWY3X84xaQ_Wu07Uy6mXiRGqlMAx17KCFRF2CRFmyJ0v1IKwTkQOLD-47BWZe2lwU8RbmaCZnChvixqmbAXAMmLHsa18Oh5ewD0HnAWBYX1GgVuWjLDgqpXbp2jxmCv2Q/s1600/springcreek2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBBwYm1FoZSWY3X84xaQ_Wu07Uy6mXiRGqlMAx17KCFRF2CRFmyJ0v1IKwTkQOLD-47BWZe2lwU8RbmaCZnChvixqmbAXAMmLHsa18Oh5ewD0HnAWBYX1GgVuWjLDgqpXbp2jxmCv2Q/s320/springcreek2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">The trout followed my lure on the first cast, but that was as good as I could do.</span></div>
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I almost had a heart attack at one point - all of my attention was on the trout, and I didn't notice the freight train approaching until it barreled over the bridge above me. As much as I appreciate a lovely and accessible spot like this, there's something to be said for getting away from it all...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU7im_JsCa957f6BF8hGHN82vcApDhqBXtnpg5SDskoBCDUaHCnOzefSHrJYYLuZKdS_lxEXW2ZKoutEXBXG8o0fYDdwa0XG8a_XBvNcLwqMHJ9jndMuqkzxw0oswGJT4xwwNR1403IA/s1600/springcreek3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU7im_JsCa957f6BF8hGHN82vcApDhqBXtnpg5SDskoBCDUaHCnOzefSHrJYYLuZKdS_lxEXW2ZKoutEXBXG8o0fYDdwa0XG8a_XBvNcLwqMHJ9jndMuqkzxw0oswGJT4xwwNR1403IA/s320/springcreek3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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There is something very cool about trains too, though...</div>
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Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comSpring Creek, Marlborough, New Zealand-41.449771247575235 173.96399974822998-41.452746747575233 173.95895724822998 -41.446795747575237 173.96904224822998tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-85277268805962924362016-08-26T18:28:00.002+12:002016-08-27T18:38:31.557+12:00Sea TroutFrom <i>Game Fishing: Trout, Salmon, Sea Trout</i> by W. E. Davies<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgti_CMHx1fE0oY9lQq1jpGt3hlw6DIFt-FHlgjFhGUibITrxsgfHaVGjprqLN_t6LXvarNR9h4d2-laqrqKRMUMPoj5mqf0mlQJkPs2ZNP4AkHGBT8NI-AIH7gTCfR8d9WZ15O77hebg/s1600/seatrout1.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgti_CMHx1fE0oY9lQq1jpGt3hlw6DIFt-FHlgjFhGUibITrxsgfHaVGjprqLN_t6LXvarNR9h4d2-laqrqKRMUMPoj5mqf0mlQJkPs2ZNP4AkHGBT8NI-AIH7gTCfR8d9WZ15O77hebg/s1600/seatrout1.gif" /></a></div>
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<i>Here is a fish I never tire of talking about. </i><br />
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<i>It is one of Nature’s finest examples of streamlining and inside its small but well-shaped head is a brain capable of setting many tests for the angler.</i><br />
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<a name='more'></a><i>On the question of gameness it is the equal of anything that swims. Bold words, maybe, but they are backed by years of experience with this splendid breed. </i><br />
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<i>Unlike a salmon, which often sulks after its first break for freedom, a sea trout will fight to the last. I have yet to meet a sea trout that included sulkiness in its repertoire. When the barb goes home this ocean-loving trout generally jumps into top gear and tries to put as much distance between the angler as possible and in so doing takes to the air in flashing leaps as many times as strength will allow.</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtPvv11izg5G1DMvvybXbNiziPnQbc5FLTJNcxLD-EvI7juOisAqNL4CYlw3G2PKDZDb78j1Dr2TNMyb76ZR53-apjcy62zgknallCtpUbJnZCCZ4mLtY3oAqHjSf1i4Jsra028gYN0A/s1600/seatrout2.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtPvv11izg5G1DMvvybXbNiziPnQbc5FLTJNcxLD-EvI7juOisAqNL4CYlw3G2PKDZDb78j1Dr2TNMyb76ZR53-apjcy62zgknallCtpUbJnZCCZ4mLtY3oAqHjSf1i4Jsra028gYN0A/s1600/seatrout2.gif" /></a></div>
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<i>While I enjoy a day’s salmon fishing, if given a choice mine would be sea trout every time. </i><br />
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<i>The salmon, in my opinion, so far as courage and gameness is concerned, is a much over-rated fish. </i><br />
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<i>Invariably the salmon has pounds extra in weight to help in its fight for freedom, whereas the sea trout, with few exceptions, has only speed and a fighting heart. </i><br />
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<i>I appreciate that the tackle used for sea trout is much lighter, but even when a pound fish is hooked on salmon tackle he will put up a very fine show. </i><br />
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<i>If the salmon is king then the sea trout is the prince of freshwater.</i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7Tx-I_Xx81Ox2UUqGYZ8KLlo-p2gH5prKnEOEw1lxnVxon64GiGDvRz7gkg6hNwkaIaIbESZN4LiR0gDA0Xj40Ra5j-0WuWdZWqzZEyb-DPXplZAHVdkSTpq0KC2yZmGtGvYvps57A/s1600/seatrout3.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7Tx-I_Xx81Ox2UUqGYZ8KLlo-p2gH5prKnEOEw1lxnVxon64GiGDvRz7gkg6hNwkaIaIbESZN4LiR0gDA0Xj40Ra5j-0WuWdZWqzZEyb-DPXplZAHVdkSTpq0KC2yZmGtGvYvps57A/s1600/seatrout3.gif" /></a></div>
<br />Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-76323827640971258082016-07-23T17:13:00.000+12:002016-08-16T07:55:18.624+12:00Time and tideI haven't been fishing as much as I'd like this year, and haven't had much luck the few times I have cast a line in the water.<br />
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Some days, though, make up for all the fruitless efforts.<br />
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Earlier in the week I had been pruning some trees in the yard and trying to start the lawnmower, when I noticed my watch showed four fish.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_NQNpzp5SOdTlxj-hu5l9gwPzfEqNYvFqWVU3sySNkdRt-C_bkz_ySxdQiVObirdD-Yor4tcAy4xV3oVrqiUsmDZIiW0NsAvGrSiM6IErrDptGg_A1ZK5FHX0pnNKzrsQRIfrhx_8rw/s1600/fish-watch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_NQNpzp5SOdTlxj-hu5l9gwPzfEqNYvFqWVU3sySNkdRt-C_bkz_ySxdQiVObirdD-Yor4tcAy4xV3oVrqiUsmDZIiW0NsAvGrSiM6IErrDptGg_A1ZK5FHX0pnNKzrsQRIfrhx_8rw/s320/fish-watch.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Casio 3768 showing a 'good fishing' rating <br />
of 2 out of 4 fish at the time of writing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a name='more'></a>Once you have set the longitude for your location in the watch, it keeps track of where the moon is in relation to you (and the phases of the moon), and gives a 'good fishing' rating for each hour of the day; 4 fish = excellent, no fish = bad.<br />
<br />
Not a hard decision to make: keep trying to start the lawnmower or jump on the motorbike and go for a fish...<br />
<br />
I grabbed my fishing bag and soon arrived at my local river mouth at low tide.<br />
<br />
Ever since <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2016/03/you-know-your-lure-is-realistic-when.html" target="_blank">a shag grabbed my lure</a> a while ago, I've been using that particular lure more than others.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP47CooMn49uqzpcVDD3MstSmvOkw9z4RDjoK3-8xJKwyuMZ0RLzdpS_FiDck6Tlc_areo0qjwJzH3OGF5afqmpkn-ccKNPTe80MZMHyCLplGM7c1ag5ZQ4uceyR0JXuqoU-y20wNQAw/s1600/lure.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP47CooMn49uqzpcVDD3MstSmvOkw9z4RDjoK3-8xJKwyuMZ0RLzdpS_FiDck6Tlc_areo0qjwJzH3OGF5afqmpkn-ccKNPTe80MZMHyCLplGM7c1ag5ZQ4uceyR0JXuqoU-y20wNQAw/s1600/lure.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
After a few casts, I thought for a moment I'd snagged the bottom, but I then felt a tug on the line.<br />
<br />
The fish twisted and swam free near the water's edge after I'd fought it for a couple of minutes. I hate losing a hooked fish.<br />
<br />
I was expecting kahawai, if anything, but the fish seemed more agile in its movement than a kahawai.<br />
<br />
Continuing casting, letting my lure sink near the bottom, I soon hooked up again just as the lure was almost wound in. A quick fight that ended with me running backwards to drag the fish onto the shore and hopefully avoid losing it again resulted in a fine sea-run trout.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKLEuLCHyqLc-Rq9eBalyGgehXdeG0lx8KpuQBTFmiNRBQbEXUNz3eWezu2mq9MCdNeKKrA2iHSfbIE-SQtxwdGYkZ1xfXksPMZiro60wYGUbKuQVg4f4bepoMk695dRF4QAJnqG0NQ/s1600/searun-trout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKLEuLCHyqLc-Rq9eBalyGgehXdeG0lx8KpuQBTFmiNRBQbEXUNz3eWezu2mq9MCdNeKKrA2iHSfbIE-SQtxwdGYkZ1xfXksPMZiro60wYGUbKuQVg4f4bepoMk695dRF4QAJnqG0NQ/s320/searun-trout.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-25087124871373636112016-06-30T18:55:00.000+12:002016-08-13T12:20:15.707+12:00Hooks - from the 'Collins Gem' SAS Survival Guide<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<i>You can improvise hooks from all kinds of materials.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeBJEUFGLSDJpr4vqmoLrNuZpyMRjSOjsJVyBytxWgMc-I9xx6ax0xd_ZQj1Bs1XjbbNt3zub3jN1dTI_0ZSGLIRv8ck2JND43K6bKMaXt9vPgsraEl7xRnuib1Y0YU_jUPtCX0_aUnw/s1600/01pin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeBJEUFGLSDJpr4vqmoLrNuZpyMRjSOjsJVyBytxWgMc-I9xx6ax0xd_ZQj1Bs1XjbbNt3zub3jN1dTI_0ZSGLIRv8ck2JND43K6bKMaXt9vPgsraEl7xRnuib1Y0YU_jUPtCX0_aUnw/s1600/01pin.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVuCW5a-19LySVOYQoQe1uWZktoiqPyEiS9pdZOmrPS_jApXHEuZNje9ZBRKocKJ5G4hqGa4CgtDcXasSPOxTwnnd6EtE8_-3w0G6sjbBoKe_h5M9oYVo7ipGgst55DiwooXl_d-E9GA/s1600/02thorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVuCW5a-19LySVOYQoQe1uWZktoiqPyEiS9pdZOmrPS_jApXHEuZNje9ZBRKocKJ5G4hqGa4CgtDcXasSPOxTwnnd6EtE8_-3w0G6sjbBoKe_h5M9oYVo7ipGgst55DiwooXl_d-E9GA/s1600/02thorn.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A thorn<br />
<a name='more'></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBUfHM212ovDq-I_d-5Kl4Pj6h8t6eCGvSthYKj4IIJGupxbohvPCCt50xGFab8iNaVksOwICFfYzhKB9-sQeCJCms8o87lIo13yeygq9YFSZwnysJCQouq815d1a1EqhvegqW1QJ0gw/s1600/03bunch-of-thorns.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBUfHM212ovDq-I_d-5Kl4Pj6h8t6eCGvSthYKj4IIJGupxbohvPCCt50xGFab8iNaVksOwICFfYzhKB9-sQeCJCms8o87lIo13yeygq9YFSZwnysJCQouq815d1a1EqhvegqW1QJ0gw/s1600/03bunch-of-thorns.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bunch of thorns</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMoDN2vuyzQ0yYDvY4DcaFJnH9yrH9CaZz0odYSn9MErih0V8wxbQRs0EwGo5sauU8V1usCEZC91DWHmyRluBRrVcEQdVZEmYIURRuuLDQUSa9q9jclbaDXzuHx4KARWbCW_Qaq-5LuA/s1600/04nails.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMoDN2vuyzQ0yYDvY4DcaFJnH9yrH9CaZz0odYSn9MErih0V8wxbQRs0EwGo5sauU8V1usCEZC91DWHmyRluBRrVcEQdVZEmYIURRuuLDQUSa9q9jclbaDXzuHx4KARWbCW_Qaq-5LuA/s1600/04nails.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nails</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg521x3qWwirOafEJSRivymTGUicxg3abyDBE5zlYiurifOQJvDaSPffcj9j9fdsNGtNH9bzrwwai6qvxUEuw4lghApzjD9oQ7ggj-fHsDjfoI3Xxsk_346mMdh9x8ZmJym2-0R8mkrmg/s1600/05bone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg521x3qWwirOafEJSRivymTGUicxg3abyDBE5zlYiurifOQJvDaSPffcj9j9fdsNGtNH9bzrwwai6qvxUEuw4lghApzjD9oQ7ggj-fHsDjfoI3Xxsk_346mMdh9x8ZmJym2-0R8mkrmg/s1600/05bone.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bone</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE3IFu8OXrdO0GkhkFqLc0xOdP-PgBtmvybIBiWjMHnhEQtZSVPS3I7WMeFl-DervlCVBLWUQz2jznQzMLsqMELvtW0wWPud76FLqSzISws-Sz2P4OhD7AI-tyCbCvw3JhcIQ5wH9-8w/s1600/06wood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE3IFu8OXrdO0GkhkFqLc0xOdP-PgBtmvybIBiWjMHnhEQtZSVPS3I7WMeFl-DervlCVBLWUQz2jznQzMLsqMELvtW0wWPud76FLqSzISws-Sz2P4OhD7AI-tyCbCvw3JhcIQ5wH9-8w/s1600/06wood.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wood</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<i>Large hooks will catch large fish, but small ones catch large and small. A rod is not essential (you can fish with a handline) but it makes it easier to land fish and cast away from the bank.</i></div>
Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-64701790164849784212016-05-03T16:57:00.000+12:002016-08-16T07:02:21.212+12:00Every Trout Has A Silver Lining (or What To Do With Over-Cooked Trout)<br />
Despite the mental and physical benefits of fishing, let's face it - many of us like to fish to put some food on the table.<br />
<br />
Admittedly, my family would starve if they had to rely on my fishing, but I provide a meal every now and then.<br />
<br />
As <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2016/04/songs-about-rainbows.html" target="_blank">mentioned</a>, I over-cooked Henry's trout, but without the need to find a way to make use of the rather chewy flesh from the over-cooked trout, I may not have tried <a href="http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/fish-recipes/baby-yorkshire-puds-creamy-smoked-trout-horseradish-pate/#VLYLxAiJwF14auUc.97" target="_blank">Jamie Oliver's very tasty pate recipe</a>.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiUxOxGgVRd2KJUXI_xrpd1w_ktn2tteHCD_mw1oXlvvYG7V1TpH4ak99EUOR-dTlQ2TXXi8rig5ODqEMcKFwHjvSJcVFqF0vChT3MwUDraFf_xYpsSRn5aChJ0QH0Dmg-7bytthXtZA/s1600/trout-pate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiUxOxGgVRd2KJUXI_xrpd1w_ktn2tteHCD_mw1oXlvvYG7V1TpH4ak99EUOR-dTlQ2TXXi8rig5ODqEMcKFwHjvSJcVFqF0vChT3MwUDraFf_xYpsSRn5aChJ0QH0Dmg-7bytthXtZA/s320/trout-pate.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a name='more'></a>Yesterday I made the recipe as stated but without the oil on top at the end (only because I didn't see that step), and added some fresh chillies from the garden after spreading it on some home-made bread (based on <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/17256/jos-rosemary-bread/" target="_blank">this recipe</a>, but with fresh herbs from the garden in place of the Italian seasoning). Most enjoyable!<br />
<br />
It makes enough to fill two of those small jars.<br />
<br />
This afternoon I made it again (yesterday's batch was consumed quite quickly) with more lemon juice - and oil on top this time. The first jar was filled essentially the same as yesterday; the second I chopped and mixed one and a half of those small (hot) chillies into it. Both very tasty.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzAuZxPnvle9ZUtdH9H1IHQVWZLbw8qw9_hyVHRmyHFeEeql1d6riEhpoQhLdeoZZv2bVie3UiRphlOYl9ppCp4KE623O-xaAe3leR8riOVWsCXU-hlZXCL73RtBkEg2YBhrhmOuBz-g/s1600/omelette.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzAuZxPnvle9ZUtdH9H1IHQVWZLbw8qw9_hyVHRmyHFeEeql1d6riEhpoQhLdeoZZv2bVie3UiRphlOYl9ppCp4KE623O-xaAe3leR8riOVWsCXU-hlZXCL73RtBkEg2YBhrhmOuBz-g/s320/omelette.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
I made an omelette for lunch today - halved cherry tomatoes with finely flaked trout amongst them, and grated cheese melted under the grill to finish things off. Also very tasty.Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-83937424957195277892016-04-30T20:11:00.000+12:002016-04-30T20:43:37.074+12:00Songs about rainbowsI received an email from Fish & Game about two and a half weeks ago. They were holding a 'Getting Kids Hooked on Fishing' event in Blenheim, releasing some rainbow trout into a netted-off area of the Taylor River near Blenheim's town centre for children to fish for.<br />
<br />
My son Henry was booked in almost immediately.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="180" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UnV-FZ6ZkPw" width="320"></iframe><br />
<i>Henry practising casting on the lawn at home.</i>
</div>
<br />
Today was the big day, and we arrived a bit early (just before 9 a.m.). It was a chilly start, and we had to return to the car to upgrade Henry's sleeveless vest that I thought would keep his arms free for casting. His teeth had been chattering while we were peering into the water before the fishing started.<br />
<br />
Set-up rods and tuition were provided; I helped Henry get going, and he was doing some nice casts - some a bit sideways, but all out where they should be. The rods had been set up with a bubble and little 'bait nuggets' on a hook. The bubble moved and bobbed down a few times, but Henry's interest started to wane when others were landing trout and he hadn't received more than a few tugs.<br />
<br />
Then he was on! After a few minutes of fighting to get the fish in close enough to be netted (he was winding, and I was helping hold the rod in case it all went in the water), a nice 1.5 kg rainbow was landed.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIm4jaNm1A196mMWcVrAap_p1RYv-k4OH7j-3V8roLJu8W8JY_8e594cBQnbPUpH8pPPdHSgDsqXx_ycONXnvgk8z4tFrQJY5RMs63DmwtWd5bGSPzdcpstq9GRfT91SLHRAdFzzKN9A/s1600/henry-rainbow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIm4jaNm1A196mMWcVrAap_p1RYv-k4OH7j-3V8roLJu8W8JY_8e594cBQnbPUpH8pPPdHSgDsqXx_ycONXnvgk8z4tFrQJY5RMs63DmwtWd5bGSPzdcpstq9GRfT91SLHRAdFzzKN9A/s320/henry-rainbow.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
It was a great morning on the river and a very well-run event. Hats off to all involved: Nelson Marlborough Fish & Game, Marlborough Freshwater Anglers Club, Hendersons (Blenheim).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzEbmfSHVEveDb4qqryxfEDTAN2eFTg2-phtp7hQm4iSnA9cFQsTxR5I4PioZsOaKeUsfdr_E9SP2Pf8dOSmLezBVUtXCg4e1j1sF_zpoNnn5tPjCym4RMnS6b7UQm0_mx2VSAkT25Hg/s1600/rainbow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzEbmfSHVEveDb4qqryxfEDTAN2eFTg2-phtp7hQm4iSnA9cFQsTxR5I4PioZsOaKeUsfdr_E9SP2Pf8dOSmLezBVUtXCg4e1j1sF_zpoNnn5tPjCym4RMnS6b7UQm0_mx2VSAkT25Hg/s320/rainbow.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Henry now has one up on me - I've only caught brown trout so far, and have been keen to track down a rainbow... I swear that has nothing to do with me over-cooking his trout on the barbecue when we got home...Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-50972617642470095212016-03-25T11:35:00.000+13:002016-04-25T15:16:20.295+12:00You know your lure is realistic when...Overcast and still - it felt like perfect conditions at the river mouth, but nobody was catching any fish.<br />
<br />
I was about to pack up when a guy hooked a decent-sized kahawai that leapt out of the water a few times. He had it on the line for a minute or so (I find 'time' takes on a different quality when a fish is hooked and have trouble judging how long playing a fish takes - more so when I'm the one playing the fish), but he ended up losing it.<br />
<br />
It renewed my urge to fish, so I started casting again.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvoOtnQhxFuembyHfqReH_uPmNbcnxRsH2b3uDA3vYVh-XqoH92tKuza58r7j2t2vNbjav_9tP7XCZWNIjKZEuzHPIGLNLDEN2UQUZ68l-74DtVphxFKysla_2i2YZ-akL1eqik9JZ6A/s1600/lure.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvoOtnQhxFuembyHfqReH_uPmNbcnxRsH2b3uDA3vYVh-XqoH92tKuza58r7j2t2vNbjav_9tP7XCZWNIjKZEuzHPIGLNLDEN2UQUZ68l-74DtVphxFKysla_2i2YZ-akL1eqik9JZ6A/s320/lure.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
I've had this lure for a while now, but seldom use it. I love the paddle-tail action of these types of lure, but this one always feels a bit big for some reason (it's only just over 8 cm long, so it's not really that big).<br />
<br />
Soon there was a tug on the lure, and before long a shag instead of a fish broke the surface.<br />
<br />
I pulled the lure out of his beak and was able to wind it in quickly before he got hooked (shag grabbing it once more and chasing it underwater to the shore).<br />
<br />
One more cast in case the shag had learnt his lesson; he hadn't. I was able to wind in again and change lures.<br />
<br />
I've never had a bird grab my lure before - they normally seem quite aware that they're imitations. Must be a good indication of future success (with fish!), surely...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAsgIC_p_cX-a91OfQuOwbhdDyjzihXpS9FtNM-xgI72h0C7Quh5pxZlbiL7q6E6CwTtg4FH1e_WTNAPGp43Jk-wGgKLwHmZ2BKHNkz3uHo7aSktoY7uABuOp7bg3QaR_z7CLqCFqrng/s1600/diversion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAsgIC_p_cX-a91OfQuOwbhdDyjzihXpS9FtNM-xgI72h0C7Quh5pxZlbiL7q6E6CwTtg4FH1e_WTNAPGp43Jk-wGgKLwHmZ2BKHNkz3uHo7aSktoY7uABuOp7bg3QaR_z7CLqCFqrng/s320/diversion.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-19429385481562928342016-03-15T16:54:00.000+13:002016-03-15T19:45:55.698+13:00Sanding and Savoury Muffins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Prep work for painting is never fun, but perhaps because of this, when the final stages of the painting are eventually done, there is that extra bit of satisfaction in the completed job.<br />
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Despite the hard work, there was a strange sense of melancholy at the thought of the relaunch, after working on her in the boat yard for four days.<br />
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There's a nice feeling of camaraderie with the others working on their boats and people passing through. Everyone feels comfortable stopping for a quick chat or a passing comment, and most do.<br />
<br />
~ At least it's not a 50 foot boat!<br />
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~ That looks like a tedious job.<br />
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~ At least you're up to the painting stage!<br />
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There's always something going on, something to watch or talk about - boats are getting lifted out of the water to be worked on; boats are getting put back in the water.<br />
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The <a href="http://marlboroughmarinas.co.nz/waikawa/" target="_blank">Waikawa Marina</a> has the added bonus of <a href="http://jollyroger.net.nz/" target="_blank">The Jolly Roger Restaurant & Bar</a> sitting at the water's edge, so that was the obvious destination for lunch/breaks/drinks while waiting for paint to dry. I highly recommend their savoury muffins, coffee, and <a href="https://www.macs.co.nz/" target="_blank">Macs</a> Three Wolves pale ale on tap. On the last day I saw a stingray swim in the water below my table on the deck.<br />
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The marina is quite sheltered from the wind, and despite strong winds being forecast for the relaunch, it wasn't too bad in the marina. The white caps just outside the marina entrance weren't overly comforting as I motored towards them, though. After motoring across Waikawa Bay in strong winds, I appreciated my telescopic boat hook that I bought a few years ago, managing to grab the mooring buoy between gusts, and securing her safely back on the mooring.<br />
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<br />Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comWaikawa Marina, Marlborough, New Zealand-41.266856087355833 174.03667688369751-41.268348087355832 174.03415538369751 -41.265364087355834 174.03919838369751tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-51211211338984780312016-02-02T21:43:00.000+13:002016-02-18T13:28:50.935+13:00Fish WordsI like words.<br />
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I stumbled across (and purchased) a copy of The Complete Crossword Companion recently in a second-hand store.<br />
<br />
It's a 1988 edition of two older books combined - Complete Crossword Reference Book (1932) and The Pocket English Dictionary (1976) (both also published in 1983 under the titles The Newnes Crossword Dictionary and Newnes Pocket English Dictionary, respectively).<br />
<br />
As I often do with all sorts of reference books, I see if there's anything specifically about fish or fishing in them. In this book I found words divided into letter length (to help with crosswords, obviously) under the title 'Fish, etc.'<br />
<br />
... and here they are!<br />
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<h4>
2 letter, 3 letter, 4 letter words</h4>
<br />
amia, bass, bib, blay, bley, bret, brit, burt, cale, carp, chad, char, chub, clam, cod, coho, crab, cusk, dab, dace, dar, dare, dart, dorn, dory, eel, eft, elva, esox, fash, file, fin, gar, ged, goby, grig, hake, huck, huso, id, ide, jack, kelt, keta, ling, lipp, lomp, luce, mago, mort, newt, opah, orc, orca, orfe, parr, peal, pike, pope, pout, quab, ray, roe, rudd, ruff, sapo, scad, scar, scup, shad, snig, sole, tai, tau, tpe, tuna, tusk, zant<br />
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<h4>
5 letter words</h4>
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ablen, ablet, allis, angel, apode, banny, beroe, binny, bleak, bleck, bogue, boops, bream, brill, charr, cisco, cobia, cuddy, cudle, doree, dorse, elops, fleck, fusus, gadus, gibel, gummy, guppy, julis, loach, loche, maray, minim, moray, morse, mugil, muray, murry, mysis, myxon, nurse, perch, phoca, piper, pogge, porgy, poulp, powan, prawn, reeve, roach, roker, ruffe, saith, salmo, saury, scrod, scurf, sepia, sewin, shark, skate, smelt, smolt, smout, smowt, snook, solen, sprag, sprat, sprod, squid, sudak, sweep, tench, toado, togue, torsk, troll, trout, tunny, twait, whale, whelk, whiff, witch<br />
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<h4>
6 letter words</h4>
<br />
alburn, alevin, allice, anabas, barbel, beakie, belone, beluga, blenny, blower, bonito, bounce, bowfin, braise, buckie, burbot, caplin, caranx, cepola, cheven, chevin, clupea, cockle, comber, conger, cultch, cuttle, dagoba, dentex, diodon, doctor, dugong, dun-cow, ellops, finnan, gadoid, ganoid, gardon, ginkin, goramy, grilse, groper, gunnel, gurnet, hilsah, hussar, isopod, jerkin, kipper, launce, loligo, margot, meagre, medusa, megrim, milter, minnow, morgay, mud-eel, mullet, mussel, narwal, otaria, oyster, partan, plaice, pollan, porgie, poulpe, puffer, puller, quahog, redcap, red-cod, red-eye, remora, robalo, rochet, romero, roughy, ruffin, runner, sabalo, sadina, saithe, salmon, samlet, sander, sardel, sauger, saurel, saynay, scarus, scurff, sea-ape, sea-bat, sea-cow, sea-dog, sea-egg, sea-fox, sea-hog, sea-owl, see-pad, see-pig, sephen, shanny, shiner, shrimp, snacol, soosoo, sucker, tailor, tarpon, tarpum, tautog, tawtog, tiburo, tomcord, trygon, turbit, turbot, twaite, ulican, urchin, vendis, wapper, weever, whaler, winkle, wirrah, wrasse, zander, zeidae, zingel<br />
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<h4>
7 letter words</h4>
<br />
abalone, acaleph, actinia, ale-wife, anchovy, asterid, batfish, bergylt, bloater, blue-cap, blue-eye, bocking, bonetta, box-fish, brassie, bubbler, bummalo, calamar, capelin, cat-fish, catodon, cetacea, cichlid, cidaris, cod-fish, codling, cow-fish, crabite, croaker, crucian, crusien, cyprine, dog-fish, dolphin, drummer, dun-fish, echinus, eel-fare, eel-pout, escolar, fiddler, fin-back, fin-fish, garfish, garpike, garvock, girrock, gladius, goldney, gourami, gournet, grampus, grouper, grundel, grunter, gudgeon, gunard, gwiniad, gwyniad, haddock, halibut, herling, herring, homelyn, houting, jewflsh, keeling, lampern, lamprey, latchet, lobster, long-tom, mahseer, manatee, manchet, merling, monodon, moon-egg, morwong, mud-fish, muraena, murexes, murices, narwhal, nautili, oar-fish, octopus, old-wife, pandore, pegasus, pen-fish, pig-fish, pointer, pollack, pollard, pollock, polypus, pomfret, quinnet, rat-tail, red-fish, reef-eel, ripsack, rock-cod, ronchil, ronquil, rorqual, sand-eel, sardine, sawfish, schelly, scomber, sea-bear, sea-calf, sea-fish, sea-lion, sea-pike, sea-wolf, shadine, silurus, skegger, smerlin, snapper, sock-eye, spawner, sphyrna, squalus, sterlet, stripey, sun-fish, thwaite, tiddler, top-knot, torgoch, torpedo, tub-fish, ulichon, umbrine, vendace, whiting, worm-eel, xippias<br />
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<h4>
8 letter words</h4>
<br />
acalepha, albacore, albicore, ammodyte, anableps, anguilla, asterias, band-fish, barnacle, bill fish, blue fish, boarfish, bullhead, cachalot, cackerel, calamory, cetacean, coalfish, corystes, crawfish, crayfish, dapedium, dapedius, dragonet, drum-fish, eagle-ray, errantes, eulachon, exocetus, file-fish, fin-scale, fire-fish, flagtail, flatfish, flathead, flounder, forktail, fox-shark, frog-fish, gillaroo, gilt-head, glass-eel, goatfish, goldfish, graining, grayling, green eel, grub-fish, gymnotus, hair-tail, halicore, hand-fish, horn-beak, horn-fish, jentling, John Dory, jugulars, kelp-fish, king crab, king-fish, lady-fish, lancelet, land crab, lump-fish, lung-fish, mackerel, melanure, menhaden, moon-fish, moray eel, mormyrus, nannygai, numbfish, ophidion, pickerel, pigmy-eel, pilchard, pipe-fish, polyneme, Poor John, porpoise, raft-fish, red perch, rock-cale, rock-fish, rockling, sail-fish, salt-fish, sand-fish, sardelle, saw-shark, sea-devil, sea-horse, sea-perch, sea robin, shore-eel, siskiwit, snake-eel, sparling, spelding, speldrin, speldron, spirling, springer, spurling, starfish, sting-ray, sturgeon, sun-bream, surf-fish, tarwhine, teraglin, testacea, thornbut, thrasher, thresher, toad-fish, trevalla, troutlet, tusk-fish, water-fox, weed-fish, wolf-fish<br />
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<h4>
9 letter words</h4>
<br />
acalephae, acipenser, angel-fish, Argentine, ascidians, asteroida, barracuda, blackfish, black sole, blue nurse, blue shark, blue sprat, bony bream, bulltrout, bummaloti, calamarys, chaetodon, cling-fish, cole-perch, conger eel, coral fish, coryphene, cover-clip, crampfish, crustacea, devil fish, dolphinet, echinidan, engraulis, finny-scad, fire-flair, fish-royal, fortesque, frost-fish, globe-fish, golomynka, grey nurse, hard-belly, hardyhead, hippodame, houndflsh, hybodonts, jaculator, jellyfish, John Dorée, jollytail, kingstone, mango fish, menominee, murray cod, pilot fish, porbeagle, pyllopodo, razor fish, red mullet, river crab, roundhead, sand-lance, saury-pike, schnapper, sea-mullet, sea-needle, sea-nettle, sea-urchin, sheat-fish, silver-eel, spear-fish, stargazer, stingaree, sting-fish, stink-fish, stockfish, stomapoda, suctorian, surmullet, sweetlips, swordfish, thorn-back, threadfin, tittlebat, troutling, trumpeter, tunny fish, whitebait, whitefish, wobbegong<br />
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<h4>
10 letter words</h4>
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amblyopsis, amphytrite, angel-shark, angler fish, banstickle, barracoota, barracouta, basket fish, black bream, black whale, blind shark, blue groper, blue puller, bottle-nose, brown trout, butterfish, cestracion, clouded eel, clypeaster, cock-paddle, coelacanth, cowanyoung, ctenoidans, cuttlefish, demoiselle, dragon-fish, echinoderm, fiddle-fish, fingerling, fistularia, flute-mouth, flying fish, ganoidians, garter fish, ghost-shark, giant toado, goblin-fish, great skate, grey mullet, groundling, hammerhead, hermit crab, holothuria, knight-fish, loggerhead, lumpsucker, mirror dory, morris pike, Moses perch, parrot-fish, pearl perch, periwinkle, pigmy perch, pycnodonts, rapier fish, red gurnard, red morwong, red rockcod, ribbon-fish, rudder-fish, Samsonfish, sand-hopper, sand-mullet, sandy sprat, sea-garfish, sea-leopard, sea poacher, sea-unicorn, silver dory, silverfish, silverside, sperm whale, square-tail, sturionian, sucker-fish, tailor-fish, tassel-fish, tiger shark, tongue-sole, triple-tail, turret-fish, velvet-fish, weaver-fish, whale-shark, white shark, yellow-tail, zebra shark<br />
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<h4>
11 letter words</h4>
<br />
balance-fish, banded toado, bellows-fish, black-angler, blue-pointer, bridled goby, brown-groper, brown-puller, carpet-shark, carp-gudgeon, chanda perch, common skate, common toado, crested goby, cycloidians, electric eel, electric ray, finner-whale, five-fingers, golden perch, green turtle, gurnet perch, herring-cale, hippocampus, jackass-fish, javelin-fish, Jumping-Joey, kingsnapper, leatherskin, leopard-fish, lepidosiren, little tunny, man-o'-war fish, Moorish idol, orange perch, peacock-fish, peacock-sole, pennant-fish, prickleback, pterichthys, rainbow-fish, red bullseye, red fire-fish, rock-whiting, salmon-trout, sand-whiting, school-shark, scleroderms, sea-elephant, sea-scorpion, silver-belly, silver perch, silver toado, smooth toado, soldier-crab, soldier-fish, starry toado, sticklebeck, stonelifter, surgeon-fish, swallow-fish, tallegalane, trumpet-fish, whistle-fish, wolf-herring<br />
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<h4>
12 letter words</h4>
<br />
basking shark, black drummer, black rock-cod, blue trevally, coachwhip ray, cucumber-fish, dipterygians, dusky morwong, fan-tailed ray, fatherlasher, fighting-fish, forehead-fish, gargoyle-fish, giant herring, gray tusk-fish, oyster-blenny, painted saury, piked dog-fish, plectognathi, Plesiosaurus, rainbow-trout, rat-tailed ray, river garfish, rock flathead, scarlet bream, sentinel crab, silver mullet, smooth angler, Stout Long-Tom<br />
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<h4>
13 letter words</h4>
<br />
allports perch, banded-pigfish, barred-garfish, Barred Long-Tom, black king-fish, black-trevally, branchiostoma, climbing perch, dactylopterus, dusky flathead, entomostracan, findon-haddock, finnan-haddock, flying gurnard, giant boar-fish, horse-mackerel, leafy seahorse, leatherjacket, long-finned eel, magpie-morwong, marbled angler, mountain-trout, ox-eyed herring, porcupine-fish, Red-Indian fish, salmon catfish, salt-water fish, sandpaper-fish, scarlet angler, Sergeant Baker, silver batfish, silver drummer, snub-nosed dart, southern tunny, spiny flathead, spiny seahorse, striped angler, thresher-shark, tiger-flathead<br />
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<h4>
14 letter words</h4>
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banded sea-perch, black stingaree, branchiostegan, brown-sweetlips, butterfly-bream, enaliosaurians, estuary cat-fish, Greenland-shark, Greenland-whale, king barracouta, king parrot-fish, little nurnbfish, Macquarie perch, many-banded sole, marine annelida, one-finned shark, painted gurnard, purple sea-perch, red gurnet-perch, river blackfish, short-finned eel, shovel-nosed ray, Slender Long-Tom, smooth flathead, spotted whiting, striped catfish, striped gudgeon, striped sea-pike, white horse-fish<br />
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<h4>
15 letter words</h4>
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acanthopterygii, Australian perch, Australian smelt, beaked coral-fish, bottle-nose shark, common stingaree, crusted flounder, crusted weed-fish, edriophthalmata, frigate mackerel, hairback herring, little cling-fish, little conger eel, long-finned perch, marbled flathead, painted dragonet, short sucker-fish, small-headed sole, smooth stingaree, spangled grunter, Spanish mackerel, spermaceti whale, spotted cat-shark, spotted eagle-ray, spotted pipe-fish, white-spotted rayNigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-44397461591356633342015-12-27T15:32:00.000+13:002015-12-29T11:08:20.970+13:00Serenity RegainedBoxing Day: After we'd spent a couple of nights with my parents for Christmas, I took a detour on the way home on my motorbike - a spot I'd been meaning to explore for quite a long time.<br />
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I only saw one trout, but I think I'd rather see only one trout and no other people fishing any day. Must get back there soon.<br />
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Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-4425503558389379182015-12-22T19:03:00.000+13:002015-12-22T19:03:22.389+13:00Serenity (or the lack of it)Despite the <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2014/12/the-far-side-of-mouth.html" target="_blank">road to the south of the Wairau Diversion</a> being open during the whitebaiting season, I only went down there once. There's just too many people around during that time for it to be enjoyable for me now. Possibly getting grumpier with age.<br />
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I popped down to the mouth a couple of times about a week ago to see how things were looking. The whitebaiting season was over, so I figured it should be reasonably quiet during the day while most people would still be at work.<br />
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The first day I caught (and released) four young kahawai. Nothing great, but a bit of fun - better than hooking nothing. I saw someone had a decent-sized kahawai, so they must've been around.<br />
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Next ride down there, there were only a few older guys around. A couple of them were leaving not long after I got there. I asked whether they'd had any luck. One of them called back, he'd caught four medium-sized kahawai, destined for his 'jars'. Preserving them, I assume.<br />
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I overheard them discussing arthritis pills and home-brew whisky while I started to fish.<br />
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~ The Irish whisky is a nice change, easy to drink. Too easy to drink! It sneaks up on you!<br />
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Eventually everyone left and I had the mouth to fish on my own. It's a good feeling to have a nice spot like that to yourself. Normally the fact that nobody else is around means there's also probably not many fish to be caught, but there's always the chance.<br />
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There wasn't much happening, but I cast lures and changed them a couple of times in case it made a difference (I pretty much always use the <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2012/10/my-new-favourite-lures.html" target="_blank">Blue Fox jigging lure</a> in such situations these days).<br />
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Before too long a car pulled up on the other side of the mouth. A couple got out with their young child. They cranked up the car stereo and started fishing.<br />
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I left.Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comWairau Diversion mouth, Marlborough, New Zealand-41.439702317616678 174.03161287307739-41.44119031761668 174.02909137307739 -41.438214317616676 174.03413437307739tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-68553554727290376222015-11-28T16:48:00.000+13:002015-11-30T14:28:28.991+13:00It's not the same without you<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've come to realise fishing isn't the same without one of my companions. A recent forced break made me really appreciate the relationship.<br />
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It's my motorbike.<br />
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The last time I took her out for a fish about a month ago, the first corner didn't feel quite right... after another couple of corners I pulled over and confirmed that the rear tyre was fairly flat.<br />
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I slowly rode back home and went for a fish in the Pajero. Enjoyable enough, but something was missing. I realised that the motorbike is now a vital companion for an enjoyable fishing excursion.<br />
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Rear tyre has now been replaced (was getting quite worn), tube seems fine. As soon as this dry gusty westerly stops blowing across the Marlborough Plains, we're heading out.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Update (2015 Nov 30) : Perfect conditions this morning. Checked the tyre after I rode out the gate. Flat again. Took back to workshop. Tube replaced with no labour charge (I'd requested the tube replaced with the tyre originally, but that must've been forgotten while we were discussing the tyre). Anyway, bike is now road-ready again...</span>Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-60336791885254852152015-10-29T20:06:00.000+13:002015-10-29T20:06:47.329+13:00A new spot to exploreI've always loved 'exploring'.<br />
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I grew up on a farm, and started venturing into the nearby gullies when I was young, and as I grew older, going further afield around the coast and the hills behind us.<br />
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Being amongst nature and not knowing what was around the next corner or over the next rise was about as happy as I could be. I recall often thinking I had almost reached the peak of a hill, then realising there was another above it that I couldn't see before - and then usually more after that. The wilderness felt endless.<br />
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That love of exploring hasn't changed, but if it includes fishing spots, it adds a cherry on the top these days. Bonus points, of course, if I get there via motorbike.<br />
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I wrote about <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2014/02/a-perfect-morning.html" target="_blank">a perfect morning</a> a while ago, with these ideas in mind.<br />
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More recently, a 'tip-off' from a friend led me to a new fishing spot nearby.<br />
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First visit there, I went upstream with my fly rod - saw three trout, scared them away quite successfully.<br />
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Second visit, I had a look downstream with my spin setup, again seeing three browns, hooking and landing the third.<br />
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I've been back and explored downstream as far as I can easily go with a rod, and still have more upstream for my next visit.<br />
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This area isn't too far from a highway, but nonetheless at least ticked most of my boxes for the ideal fishing trip:<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">☑</span> explore a new area<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">☑</span> ride the motorbike (or a boat)<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">☑</span> have a walk<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">☑</span> solitude<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">☑</span> see some fish, ideally catch at least one<br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">☐</span> not hear traffic while exploring<br />
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Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-4342625981434173162015-09-29T20:52:00.000+13:002015-09-30T16:22:34.198+13:00Grand Cayman Tarpon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My first go at snorkelling on my own on Grand Cayman was the first time I saw a tarpon. I was standing on the beach, about to put my mask on, when I saw two long fishy shapes show in a swell before the wave broke.<br />
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They looked rather shark-like to me, but I hopped in the water anyway, feeling wary. After swimming around for a while, I saw them again, looming towards me, and decided it was time to exit the water. I hadn't seen anything like it. They were big fish (the adults will often grow to over two metres long.)<br />
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Afterwards, I was informed that they were probably tarpon.<br />
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I was only visiting the Cayman Islands at the time, and ended up coming back about a year later after landing a job there.<br />
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Some of my favourite memories from my time on Grand Cayman are of fishing for young tarpon in the mangrove canals (man-made canals and roads through mangrove swamps.)<br />
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I assume the adult tarpon must come inland into these areas to spawn, and the young slowly move out to the sea as they mature, although <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarpon" target="_blank">Wikipedia says otherwise</a>: "Tarpons breed offshore in warm, isolated areas," so I'm not really sure whether it's something specific to Cayman or there's an in-between inland stage that's not very well documented. Wikipedia also states, "Since tarpons are not commercially valuable as a food fish, very little has been documented concerning their geographical distribution and migrations."<br />
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I was informed of a pool where the young tarpon should be found, and started fishing there with a 10 cm. paddle-tail lure. I hadn't used anything similar before, and was impressed with the realistic action of the lure, and the success I had with it.<br />
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The youngest tarpon were quite easy to land, but once they started getting bigger - around the 40 cm. mark - they were very strong and would leap high in the air and consistently throw the lure.<br />
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I found that I had more success just winding them in as fast as possible when they got to this size - you couldn't play them, as they'd always jump and seldom stay on the hook.<br />
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I used that one lure for a long time. It lost the tail quite early on, and eventually was just a weighted hook with no 'body', which seemed to work even better than the proper lure did.<br />
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As they tarpon grew, they slowly moved out from the pool to the sea. I was fishing the pool a few times without hooking anything before I realised they must be on the move. It was then a matter of hunting around 'downstream' until I started getting hits on the lure again.<br />
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A Facebook 'memory' (where you're shown some old post from the past by Facebook and offered to share it again) reminded me of my time fishing for tarpon on Grand Cayman. It was from seven years ago to the day. I tried to locate the spot on Google Earth, but it appears a highway now runs through my old fishing pool.<br />
<br />Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comWest Bay, Cayman Islands19.373583625302977 -81.39083862304687519.371711125302976 -81.393360123046875 19.375456125302978 -81.388317123046875tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-47552388889134915702015-08-27T18:24:00.000+12:002015-08-29T15:12:01.186+12:00Don't forget what you knowThere were kahawai around, and they were curious, but I couldn't get one to grab my lure.<br />
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I was using the lure I normally use when targeting kahawai these days - a Blue Fox jigging lure. I like the look of them, the way the move in the water, and the fact that most people seem to use the tried-and-true hex lures for kahawai, so I assume that using something different will often give me the edge (one can always live in hope).<br />
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After fishing in the river mouth for a while, I shifted slightly more up-river, inside the mouth where it's a bit deeper, and was almost ready to call it a day when I remembered how I usually fish these lures (I tend to hibernate over winter and haven't been fishing much at all).<br />
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Back when I <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2012/10/my-new-favourite-lures.html" target="_blank">first discovered the lures</a>, I found a jerky retrieve of three or so turns of the reel handle followed by a brief pause to let the lure drop seemed to yield the best results, with the kahawai often grabbing it during that pause.<br />
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Soon after changing my technique I hooked and landed a nice kahawai that ended up smoked and in a fish pie the next day.<br />
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<br />Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-42658437188437977992015-07-04T17:02:00.000+12:002015-07-22T19:04:32.485+12:00Superstition<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I wouldn't call myself superstitious, but I do often talk of luck in fishing, and I often ask someone fishing if they've had any luck.<br />
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Over summer I thanked <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2012/01/monday-fish-3-wairau-diversion-spring.html" target="_blank">Jim</a> for a landing net he'd passed on to me, and told him of the trout I had landed with it. He said he was pleased that the net had proven lucky for me, as it had had for him in the past.<br />
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At least half-hearted superstition seems ingrained in most fishers. Denis Pain has a chapter titled 'Always Appease the River Gods,' in his book <i>... The Hours Spent in Fishing</i>, where he tells of one season where he went against his usual rule of releasing the first trout of the season - keeping it to feed friends - and the bad luck that he had for the rest of the season.<br />
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<i>A Dictionary of Superstitions</i>, edited by Iona Opie and Moira Tatem, tells of some old beliefs using trout, including:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Administer an ailing cow a live trout. (1852)</li>
<li>Put a trout's head into the mouth of a child with whooping cough and let the trout breathe into the child's mouth. (1866)</li>
<li>Put a live trout on the stomach of a child with worms as a cure. (1866)</li>
<li>Bind a trout with bandages around the bowels of a child with worms and leave overnight as a cure. (1879 - The writer remembers this being done to a boy about seven years old, circa 1830)</li>
<li>Let a trout swim in cow's milk and then drink the milk as an infallible cure for whooping cough. (1922)</li>
<li>Take a pie dish full of cider to the River Rea and catch a decent sized trout and drown him in the cider. Fry the trout and make the patient eat the fish and drink the cider to cure whopping cough. (1932)</li>
</ul>
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... and another cure for whooping cough - drink beer in which a live fish has been drowned. (1883)<br />
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The same book tells of cod fishermen believing that if a ling was the first fish pulled up after a boat has reached the fishing-ground it must be thrown overboard immediately to avoid bad luck (1886). During herring fishing, the scales of the fish must not be washed off the boat, neither must they be cleaned off the fishermen's sea-boots. If this is done good luck flees away (1885). The first hook baited is spit upon, and then laid in the scull (1886).<br />
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<i>The Concise Maori Handbook</i>, by A. W. Reed with A. E Brougham, informs us that the first fish caught with a new hook or line was dedicated to the ancestors of the fisherman, and that mauri were often used to help with the luck of a fishing voyage.<br />
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'Mauri' is essentially the life element of, for example, a forest or a lake, and assures the abundance of life abiding within. The name is also given to a talisman that represents the given life element. The talismen (often stones) were jealously guarded and secreted in a forest, near the banks of a river, and by the sea shore. If they were removed, the life principles departed and the food supplies could no longer be obtained.<br />
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I haven't had Jim's net with me for a while, and also haven't caught a fish for a while. I think I'll start taking his net out with me again and see what happens.<br />
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Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-10559694096561537492015-05-28T23:33:00.000+12:002015-05-29T07:15:47.402+12:00Monkey Bay Revisited... with surfContinuing with the <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2015/04/monkey-bay.html">Monkey Bay</a> theme, I popped over there yesterday to check out the massive surf that was coming in to Rarangi Beach.<br />
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From the lookout point you could see the waves pounding into Monkey Bay, so I walked down the track to have a closer look at the cave that runs through to the other side and opens out towards Whites Bay (I didn't go through the cave - the waves were coming all the way through to the entrance on this side).<br />
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The sound coming through the cave was deep and thunderous, so I tried to record it with a video on my phone.<br />
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I could see that the waves coming in to Monkey Bay had come right up and then down into the cave, but they seemed to stay at a safe distance after getting to the bottom of the track. Until I started recording some video.<br />
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Turns out the mic on my phone didn't pick up any of the bass sounds coming out of the cave anyway.<br />
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Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comMonkey Bay, Marlborough, New Zealand.-41.391362584318 174.05038833618164-41.397319084318006 174.04030333618164 -41.385406084318 174.06047333618164tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-1214065336997305122015-04-26T18:08:00.000+12:002015-04-26T18:11:20.371+12:00Monkey BayWhile browsing some <a href="http://www.marlborough.museums.org.nz/" target="_blank">Marlborough Museum</a> archive photos online recently, I noticed <a href="http://www.marlborough.museums.org.nz/mhs/vewebsite11/exhibit4/e40049a.htm" target="_blank">the photo below</a> and instantly recognised the view as Monkey Bay, just to the north of Rarangi Beach.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiseIdubx_Yy3e-FxUbGVg5vmC9SdyxuJbIz_c6Qaa4FAFwKtPIoPbWMqy9Gb9wJkz55XBO3iA2MPDXW81v75B52oVhgG3PFVDJAn74q_8zcLiHZXh9SVzf-Rj73_UlwmrUs0bg5253fA/s1600/Monkey+Bay+circa+1887.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiseIdubx_Yy3e-FxUbGVg5vmC9SdyxuJbIz_c6Qaa4FAFwKtPIoPbWMqy9Gb9wJkz55XBO3iA2MPDXW81v75B52oVhgG3PFVDJAn74q_8zcLiHZXh9SVzf-Rj73_UlwmrUs0bg5253fA/s1600/Monkey+Bay+circa+1887.jpg" height="228" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Copyright Marlborough Museum - Marlborough Historical Society Inc.</span></span></td></tr>
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Here's my photo today of the same scene.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-kr-8aFMpiFAI886fqXPCNKaX7WqHWhI2ZiE6UrAloz1pl59LMuH-B_BJwvqpoG2nfCPvAlpRO3c8S_LnnnVXBCVJBMwdZ7JIVq065hCelxHUAP_Rlf4jCchWcwnfPMip_3TOFw96Cg/s1600/Monkey-Bay-2015-colour.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-kr-8aFMpiFAI886fqXPCNKaX7WqHWhI2ZiE6UrAloz1pl59LMuH-B_BJwvqpoG2nfCPvAlpRO3c8S_LnnnVXBCVJBMwdZ7JIVq065hCelxHUAP_Rlf4jCchWcwnfPMip_3TOFw96Cg/s1600/Monkey-Bay-2015-colour.jpg" height="228" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking south from Monkey Bay, Marlborough, New Zealand.</td></tr>
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The people in the old photograph are listed as:<br />
<ul>
<li>Guard, Edward (Junior)</li>
<li>Baldick, Darcy</li>
<li>Baldick, Herman</li>
</ul>
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It's hard to be exact on a date for the old photo, but I also found <a href="http://www.marlborough.museums.org.nz/mhs/vewebsite11/exhibit4/e40047a.htm" target="_blank">this one</a> that gives the year as "about 1887."<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzD48PPKImfFt2PTAdd9CCluGPZhxQpae-zFalpUBlocTCIivTGXnJsUcOxNAhoSpsUvwjc1hc0LB-C64nXP3PfoEUtwPHvAZYlsAVzvaHHEe3zdh4dLEZRZau-80dMF5Voutlf1b8tA/s1600/e40047a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzD48PPKImfFt2PTAdd9CCluGPZhxQpae-zFalpUBlocTCIivTGXnJsUcOxNAhoSpsUvwjc1hc0LB-C64nXP3PfoEUtwPHvAZYlsAVzvaHHEe3zdh4dLEZRZau-80dMF5Voutlf1b8tA/s1600/e40047a.jpg" height="214" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Copyright Marlborough Museum - Marlborough Historical Society Inc.</span></span></td></tr>
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This one lists "Guard, Edward (Senior)" as the man on the right-hand side of the photo. If it is Edward Guard Junior standing beside him (no name provided), looking around ten years old, then the Monkey Bay photo might be 20 years later, where he looks around 30 years old (give or take ten years!).<br />
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A lot of speculation involved, but by my estimation the old Monkey Bay photo must have been taken approximately 110 years ago - circa 1905.<br />
<br />Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comMonkey Bay, Marlborough, New Zealand.-41.391889784357247 174.05015766620636-41.392262284357244 174.04952716620636 -41.391517284357249 174.05078816620636tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5384447985295228865.post-62729357507002179752015-03-25T16:49:00.000+13:002015-03-25T17:00:42.113+13:00The mystery of the saltThe river will provide you with trout and possibly the odd sought-after salmon (I've only ever caught one - that was before I even knew salmon came into the Wairau, and I ended up catching a salmon before I ever caught a trout); maybe a kokopu, which <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2012/01/monday-fish-3-wairau-diversion-spring.html" target="_blank">Jim</a> mentioned a while ago he used to hook every now and then back in the day, but I've never even seen an adult kokopu, possibly due to the mass-slaughter of their young which make up most of the 'whitebait' numbers.<br />
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But the saltwater systems, they have many different kinds of fish as part of their ecosystems. A recent outing with my five year-old son made me appreciate something that I think I forgot - saltwater offers that variety and <i>mystery</i> that you don't have in the river.<br />
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We were out having a sail, planning on stopping for a fish. We ended up anchoring a stone's throw off Karaka Point. We both had kahawai on our hooks for bait.<br />
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I thought I heard my line peel off in a quick run, but there was nothing on there. I took the rod out of the rod holder, wound in a little line and held on to the rod. Then he was back! I set the hook and spent a few minutes trying to get whatever was on the end of my line to the surface, and that's the beauty of it - you don't know what's down there!<br />
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The rod and reel were part of a cheap setup that I leave on the boat, and I didn't know how strong the line was any more, so didn't bother tightening the tension up too much to force the fish to the surface.<br />
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After some good runs, a decent-sized barracouta appeared. I would've brought him aboard to take as crayfish bait, but was convinced to let him go, so managed to get my hook (a weighted softbait hook that I <a href="http://www.fishingnews.co.nz/2014/07/jigging-lure-with-bait.html" target="_blank">discovered a while ago</a> gives that extra 'feel' when fishing with bait) dislodged with pliers while the fish was in the water. The other line had been severed, so must have had the same or another barracouta at the end of it. The longer shank on the softbait hook probably helped keep the line safe on my setup.<br />
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I won't be giving up on fishing the river, but think I'll start focusing on saltwater again for a while - seek out a bit more mystery.Nigelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16538384545674231187noreply@blogger.comOff Karaka Point, Marlborough, New Zealand-41.251532148983173 174.06416416168213-41.253024148983172 174.06164266168213 -41.250040148983175 174.06668566168213