A
fter the July school 
holidays, I saw a 
good mid-week 
weather break with 
light winds over 
two days and made 
plans with my old 
fishing mate, Lanza 
Rod builder Graeme Paterson 
to fish up off the Coromandel.
We met up at the Te Kouma 
boat ramp around 8am on the 
Wednesday with the Oceanpro 
535 centre console in chilly one 
or two degrees but otherwise in 
perfect conditions, with no wind 
and sunny skies.  While we were 
setting up the boat with gear and 
getting ready to launch, Graeme 
paid the $35 launching fee online 
and a local TCDC officer was 
checking and ticketing the other 
vehicles with boat trailers.
I enquired how much it was 
for a ticket if you had forgotten, 
and it was double the fee at $75, 
so it pays to remember before 
rushing off to find the fish!
Heading out in the boat, we 
were eager to see if any early 
workups were happening ahead 
of the best spring work-up 
season off the islands where the 
gannets live in their colonies. But 
it was surprisingly quiet with 
only terns out early feeding.
We fished out around the 30m 
mark dropping jigs on small bits 
of sign we found under bait fish 
sign on the Lowrance sounder but 
only picked up a few small snapper 
which were released.  While 
Graeme carried on jigging, I used 
the binos to search for any working 
gannets across to Waiheke and 
up north towards Port Jackson.
With nothing sighted after nearly 
an hour, and only small just legal 
snapper on the jigs, we made 
the call to head up past Colville 
to hunt south of Fantail Bay.
Heading out from Te Kouma boat ramp in 
flat calm conditions in the Oceanpro 535.
Searching the shallows 
(5-15m) north of Colville, 
there was plenty of fish sign 
showing on the Lowrance.
Feature
30  FISHING IN GODZONE MAGAZINE

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