NZ Fishing World spoke to five of the country’s most respected kingfish fishermen to find out the secrets to their success.

The stunning weather of summer compels us to get out there and fish but it can be a frustrating time of the season with snapper occupied by spawning rather than feeding, as John Durrant explains.

Fishos spend countless hours on the water but most of us tend not to get in and discover the whole other world under the waves. John Durrant fulfilled a long-held ambition to obtain his PADI open water certificate and quickly reaped the rewards that diving can bring.

A surfcasting cast, when performed correctly, is a thing of beauty. It’s all about timing and technique rather than power as some people think. Much like in golf, the biggest, strongest people don’t necessarily get the most distance. The approach to the cast is just as important as the cast itself. Safety is a paramount consideration so watch the surf for a while before wading in to make your cast.

Taking your boat in close to rocks as swells pound the coastline can seem like a daunting challenge for many softbait anglers but if you go carefully and do the preparation, it can deliver fantastic results. There's a heavy swell rolling in and the skies are hastily darkening, warning us of an impending downpour. But we don’t care.

We’re making steady progress on our course to the mighty Great Barrier Island from Waiheke’s Matiatia as a toothy southwesterly whips up the following sea on FQ Fishing’s well-equipped 10.5m Senator.

This huge island is aptly named the Great Barrier, for it stands the sentinel and guardian of the Hauraki Gulf.

With all the advancements in artificial lures over recent years, many fishers have abandoned their trusty bait gear. But bait fishing is still a great way to catch fish and, as John Durrant discovered, there’s a few advancements in the traditional methods too. Flash lures and scent-infused softbaits are all fishos seem to talk about these days.

Winter is traditionally a time of the year when fishing slows down and many people put the gear away until the warmer weather returns.