DOUBTLESS BAY / 
CAPE KARIKARI
The best ledges in this area are 
accessed by an inflatable boat or 
kayak. Berghans Point and Knuckle 
Point are ledges of interest, and 
guys have been spooled here. I 
encountered a mako at Berghans 
and have had some of my most 
memorable fishing on this coast.
Marlin, sharks and kingfish are 
all contenders on the outer ledges, 
and in late summer marlin have 
been known to venture inside 
the bay, as have yellowfin tuna. 
I’ve been fishing off the Karikari 
Peninsula and had yellowfin 
within a couple of hundred metres, 
smashing food on the surface, so 
bring the big guns if you dare.
Berley and spinning gear will 
secure the live baits, and once 
you have a live bait out, you 
can target the snapper that 
mooch around the ledges.
COROMANDEL
This whole area also has a lot of 
history of big fish. However, I think 
the eastern side of the peninsula has 
a greater propensity for big kingfish 
to swim past these days. The area of 
coastline between Fantail Bay and 
Goat Bay, and up to the new marine 
reserve south of the western end of 
Port Jackson, has accessible ledges 
"One of these islands was 
the one and only location 
where our crew had a 
marlin attack a live bait. I 
landed a 30kg kingfish 
here the day before"
A 30kg reef bandit taken 
from a Coromandel island, 
also the site of a 300kg 
black marlin hook-up within 
100m of this ledge.
Feature
26  FISHING IN GODZONE MAGAZINE

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