b'KAYAK FISHINGWETSUIT for combating those icy morning fingers, The best form of cold protection isthe water is always warmer so a quick a wetsuit, especially for those surfdunk will help keep some feeling in them.launches on a freezing morning whichIf you fall out of the yak in the middle can really ruin the day but wearing theof winter, you really want to be back correct gear can make the outing thatonboard quickly or sending out a speedy much more comfortable. Wetsuit bootsdistress call. Winter water temperatures are such a warm and comfortable pieceaverage anywhere from 12 to 14 degrees of footwear that I end up using themand lasting more than an hour, minus year-round. When launching a kayak, itsa kayak is very difficult in the wrong hard to keep your feet out of the water.equipment. Carrying a radio and PLB The boots take advantage of the coldover the winter months is a necessity. water, sandwiching it against my feet andI dont mess around with how cold the using my own body heat to warm themwater can get; I always plan for when I up. Cold toes never again, even on frostytake an unplanned dunk into the water mornings. Full fingered gloves are perfectrather than if.Booties are a great piece of footwear toThree layers of clothing wear year-round, buttop to bottom, plus beanie priceless in winter. helps to keep warm.Blair wears a pair of Bison PVCWINTER SPECIESover-trousers to help keep dryNow that Im set up in my warm gear while fighting fish from the yak. and the kayaks ready to go, time to jump onto the water.The lower north island is a bit of a tough cookie to crack once the water temperatures drop down below 15 degrees. Unlike the upper north island, the Hawkes Bay snapper migrate off to very deep water to winter over, leaving the inshore fishery barren of them. The occasional inshore monster does appear from time to time, but these fish are difficult to find.Weather patterns from year to year heavily influence Hawkes Bays winter fishing, sometimes its an early cool off with snapper disappearing before June even starts. Other years, snapper persist right through to mid-June if a good northerly flow stays over the country.After the snapper, kingfish and trevally 40FISHING IN GODZONE JULY/AUGUST 2022'