Northern Coromandel Peninsular

fishing report

August 7, 2020

Supplied by

The big excitement at the moment off the Coromandel is all happening with the migration of the southern bluefin tuna moving up from Cape Runaway in their trek north, and now are in reach of trailer boat fishermen leaving from the east Coromandel coast. These magnificent fish are definitely a bucket list ticker, and this year seems to have been one of the best on record for them.

Note: If map is showing it is created by LINZ / New Zealand Hydrographic Authority and made available by Creative Commons 3.0. Maps should not be used for navigation

The big excitement at the moment off the Coromandel is all happening with the migration of the southern bluefin tuna moving up from Cape Runaway in their trek north, and now are in reach of trailer boat fishermen leaving from the east Coromandel coast. These magnificent fish are definitely a bucket list ticker, and this year seems to have been one of the best on record for them.

The magnificent SBT now in 'easy' reach of the Coromandel

There’s everything to love about these fish. They are challenging but great fun to chase and fish for, go like crazy on their first run and can often beat up the angler for a couple of hours.

This year there are some big models around, from 60 to 150kgs or so, absolute barrels.

Once on board, and looked after properly, they make an incredible meal for the week for a lot of people.

Having these fish within reach is a limited time offer, so planning to get out there? The time is now. It is a fair way out to where they are holding though, so be well aware of your boats limitations and the weather conditions.

It’s about 40 nautical miles out from Whitianga, so almost the exact same distance from Auckland to Great Barrier as a guage.

I would estimate between thirty to fifty fish have been landed in the last week out at the Alderman Knoll. There are fish being weighed at Tairua, Whangamata, and Tauranga and it’s a rare treat to be able to see such good numbers in the schools heading north.

The knoll is pretty easy to find as it comes up to around 700 metres out of over 1000, and is obviously holding bait and providing a great stopover for the big SBT’s.

All the usual kingfish action has been up and down, with some good days and some tough ones thrown into the mix. We’ve had some good results at the Alderman pins, with several fish over 20 kilos being landed by happy clients.

The wind is doing its thing and limiting the days we can get out a bit, but that’s winter for you.

All the best

Tom

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Fishing Report provided by Tom Maxwell

MAD MAX SPORT FISHING NZ

Bookings contact: 0274 165 903

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Previous reports

October 11, 2023

Mid-Spring Coromandel update near the Mercury Islands from keen yak fisherman, Scott Macdonnell

June 30, 2023

One of the best times of the year to be fishing the mighty Coro, as long as you’re not suffering from man-flu like I am at the moment.

April 27, 2023

November 3, 2022

Sheltered spots all the way down the eastern coastline are starting to fish well in close for snapper, with some nice sized fish of very solid average size and condition being caught from shore by surf casters, drone fisho’s and kayak fishermen, best either at change of light or on bite time either side of the tides.

April 27, 2023

December 21, 2022

It’s so great to see yellowfin tuna in good numbers to kick off the season with a real bang.

June 23, 2022

Winter is such a good time to fish in the Coromandel, with light boat traffic, and some awesome mild days mixed in with the wild ones. The conditions change where the fish are holding, and the days are shorter, in fact right now the shortest of the year, which means a good session can be had without getting up too early or staying out too late to enjoy the benefits of change of light fishing.

May 20, 2022

Autumn is one of our favourite seasons to fish in the Coromandel, as the on-water traffic is down to a minimal and most fish are in superb condition when you do find them. The season can feel like the middle of summer one day, when the weather is in a settled pattern, and conversely can suddenly be like mid-winter, so it is a time to pick the windows.

February 4, 2022

It’s been a big year for the gamefishing so far, perhaps thanks to global warming or whetever else, marlin of all flavours, swords, yellowfin, have all been out there being caught in good numbers when the conditions allow it.

January 7, 2022

It’s been a while for many of us since we’ve been able to get to the Coromandel, and for many, it has been worth the wait. As expected, boat ramps are chocka, even from early morning on many days, as keen boaties head out for a fix of fishing targeting inshore and wider out for gamefish. A big run of easterlies has put a pretty good swell in place, with surfers likely enjoying the big seas more than fishermen

September 24, 2021

Biggest recent news is the closure of the scallop fishery for two years in order to restore the scallop population to a sustainable level. This from MPI...The east Coromandel scallop fishery will close for a period of 2 years from this Saturday, 11 September following a request from the Ngāti Hei Trust. The closure covers scallop fishing in an area extending along the east Coromandel coastline from Anarake Point to Ruahiwihiwi Point, where Ngāti Hei exercise mana moana, and includes Opito Bay. Other fishing in the area can continue under existing rules. Director of fisheries management, Emma Taylor says public consultation on the request took place between April and May.

August 6, 2021

Now that the southern bluefin tuna have moved on from Waihau Bay and are heading up past Mayor Island, there is still a chance of picking up one of these magnificent fish when the weather allows. We fished Waihau Bay last week, and although most are calling it for a done deal, there were only five boats out (as opposed to the usual 50 or so!) and two out of five still hooked up and boated fish.