The mystery of the salt

The 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 Jim 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.

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 mystery that you don't have in the river.

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.

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!

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.

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 discovered a while ago 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.

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.

Don't go swimming off Kumutoto Point

I love driving around the last corner that brings you to the water's edge in Waikawa Bay. You never quite know how the conditions will look.

Monday had a good forecast, and the boats were sitting quietly on the calm water as I rounded the corner.

Waikawa Bay.

The plan was to go out and try to catch a barracouta by trolling a lure, then use it as bait before landing and freezing whatever was left for crayfish pot bait.

Allports Island.

I motored over to Allports Island and anchored up in a little bay on the West side of the main island. I caught quite a few young barracouta here using a jigging lure a while ago. There was no interest in the lure after a few casts, so I attached my bigger lure to the other rod, ready for some trolling.

Allports Island.

I towed the lure up the north side of the island, then headed north for Kumutoto Point. I've caught nice-sized barracouta both times I've trolled around the point in the past.

Seals and birds on the rocks at Kumutoto Point.

I was busy watching some seals as I passed the point, when the reel started clicking with line running out as the lure reached the point. The fish on the end of the line made a run while I took the engine out of gear and got myself organised to reel it in.

Barracouta.

After a few lively runs, I landed the barracouta that was about a metre long.

The rods out in Whatamonga Bay.

I headed south to Whatamonga Bay for some fishing with my freshly-caught bait. There were quite a few bites, but I was unable to land anything except a small spotty when I got close to Karaka Point.

Karaka Point.

Easter Fishing Part 4 – Tuesday 10th April

The weather forecast was good, and our boat was long overdue for some time away from her mooring in Waikawa.

We motored over to Kumutoto and anchored after retrieving my cap that got blown into the water by an unexpected gust.

The aim was to let my son Henry catch his first fish, and troll a lure on the way back to see what might hit it.

Some pleasant time was spent bringing some spotties onboard, with Henry pulling his first fish aboard with some help; and flicking out softbaits with no more luck than a few tentative pulls at one point.

Towing a lure around the bay before heading back towards Allports Island yielded a barracouta near Kumutoto Point - a fun end to a good day.

All fish were released.