What a great few weeks we have had here, the usual pounding surf over December has given a rude salute to El Ninio and given us many fishable days with a consistant
1 to 1.5m swell enough to keep some colour in the water and to stir up the sand bar off the front of the rock and keep the fish interested. Below, the white rod is mine, cast out towards the reef the top R corner, and parked well back from the front. Without the island and the reef which mute the swell we would not get as much fishing in. Sometimes the swell to the South can be 3 to 4 m, yet only 1.5 where we are.
Mid December I was pushing the conditions a bit and was bowled by a wave standing where the above photo was taken
lost a bit of skin from nuckles even though I had the rod behind me as a third leg, took my feet from under me, did not hurt at the time, but knocking it now sure does!
Relativly safe though, as there is plenty of rock behind us. And even a handy ledge to put gear on. Only been chased onto the ledge once!
Once the swell drops below .5m the water gets clean and the only chance of fish is the first and last hour of light. Most of the 8 times I went there were only 3 or 4 of us. Give or take a few tourists who wonder at the coat and leggings, there can be 10C difference in temperature between the beach and the rock
New years eve was a bit of a circus, with lines going in all directions. But a beutifull morning, just a very light offshore wind.
When I arrived at first light there were allready 5 there, some with 2 rods, luckily I managed to get a few fish before the rest turned up and made every retrieve a tangle, time to go home.
All silver trevally, the only one of the trevally family found here. 5 oz sand grip, running trace and 5/0 Gamakatsu Octopus hook, half a 100 mm pilchard with a half hitch around nose or tail and plenty of bait elastic.
New years day, Judy was going to the cinema with friends, bugger it! I'l have to go fishing again. Early start again, half a gale offshore and persistant rain, and yay, the place to myself. Low tide and 1.2m swell, with my 4.2 rod I could just get behind the break on the bar 100m out and green water, and the sort of bites we dream about, pick the bait up on an aproaching swell and go with the undertow, down goes the rod and the strike in to solid weight. Some days all we get are slack line bites, and if they do not hook themselves---
Snapper a bit over 1kg
The mornings catch, one snapper 2.9 kg, one nearly 2 kg and the trevally about 1 kg. missed a few bites as well. Very lucky with the big one, too heavy to lift up even with 15 kg line, so dragged it around to a ledge where a barnacle cut the knot to the hook, a quick look at the waves 16 seconds apart, climb down to the ledge 3 good steps but could not get a grip, drop it, retreat, 3 waves broke over the ledge, the last one leaving the fish hanging from one gill, down again and a finger in the open gills and up in plenty of time, a calculated risk! I only met one other fisherman as i arrived back at the car.
The ganet and white faced tern colony behind the rock.
Could be more good fishing end of next week, a tropical cyclone near Fiji a week ago has been meandering west and now is predicted to turn South straight for us, it will probably loose intensity as it cools but should give offshores as it aproaches. So much for the El Ninio drought predicted this summer, 80mm of rain so far this month, about the months average. Though some areas in the East of the South island have had little rain the last year,
Home 
Well done on the fish 
