There are workups everywhere, and nowhere, depending on what time of the day you happen to be out there at the moment.

We’ve been out in the gulf for the last three days, a mission that pretty much covered the whole area, and the amount of life was amazing.

Whales, dolphins, gannets, it’s all on if you are out there just about anywhere from the top of the Firth to the top of the Coromandel.

It’s peak spring spawning and pre-spawning time, and the fish are feeding up hard on the massive amount of bait schools that are spread right throughout the Gulf currently.

There’s almost no point asking where the workups are, as they are popping up literally anywhere, and an area that can be on fire with gannets going in everywhere, can be as barren as a desert only an hour or two later.

We had a couple of hours where workups could be from west of Channel Island as far as you can see with binoculars down the coast of the Coromandel Peninsular.  

Later in the day massive workups were appearing in the top of the Firth as we were mooring for the night at Waiheke.

Interestingly, the size of the average snapper was a standard 35 -40cm pannie, out there in massive numbers, and feeding voraciously.  We even caught fish this size on live baits meant for bigger fish.

Snaps this size make great eating, but you will catch a limit of them very quickly if you are anywhere near where there has been workup activity, which is a pretty big zone at the moment.

The big ones are in there, and we managed to catch and release a couple of nice fish.

You don’t have to go far, as the top of the Firth was littered with sign on the sounder across a huge area and a single drift using lures would have steadily filled the bin without chasing birds or other clues.

The coastline from Tiri to Kawau can also light up at the drop of a hat at the moment too.

Just cruise around with an eye on the sounder and you’ll pick up fish eventually.  It’s peak fishing season, and easy to fill a bin, so be aware of your needs and think about the health of the fishery when considering keeping bigger specimens.

We fish only lures, and live baits, and by far the most effective lures for prospecting were kabura/slider style lures in any shape/brand or colour.  

You simply can’t miss with these, once bite time is active.

When the going got hectic around workups, the slow pitch jigs were a go-to, and rarely even made it to the bottom without being hit.

The best areas to fish are those that have consistently produced workup action, which is heavy around the top of the Coromandel to Anchorite, and down the Coromandel coast, but you won’t have to go that far to get solid fish generally, as they are also coming in to spawn all the way to the Harbour Bridge.

If you are heading out with all this promise on board, and drop your lures to find nothing, or the sounder is throwing up a blank table top, just keep looking and give it time.  When the bite is off it’s off, but patience will prevail.

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Birds sitting on the water always indicate a good place to try for a fish, but not necessarily big ones as the pannies are pretty aggressive and dominating from recent experience.

We tried our best for some kingfish for a change of pace, and although we managed a few rats, it was pretty hard going.  

It’s a little early in the season for the best kingy fishing.  We trolled and dropped live baits all around Channel Island, and over a few reefs in the area, and had some success doing the same around Gannet Rock, but the baits tended to get hit by small kings and snapper.

Fishing for kings around the old faithful’s, Flat Rock and Anchorite, will produce fish on occasion and live baits would be a recommendation this time of year rather than relying on just jigs and topwater gear.

It’s a magnificent time of year to be on the Gulf, and usually very productive, with plenty of wildlife pointing out where the fishing is best.

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Tight lines.

NZ Fishing World

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