Wellington / Kapiti

fishing report

May 26, 2023

Supplied by

Pete Lamb

Pete Lamb Fishing

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 current fishing conditions in the Wellington region have been somewhat patchy, in line with the weather patterns, and winds making the waters pretty murky at times. However, when it has been fishable, there have been some good catches reported, particularly of snapper.

Interestingly, the pattern of the snapper population seems to be changing for the better, with solid fishing all year round now.

This is seen as a very positive change, as snapper is quite a dominant species, and seeing them flourish around all our coastlines is certainly welcome.

The west coast fishing has also been reported as good, with some nice catches of snapper off the shore, and from boats fishing the popular reef haunts around Makara etc.

The fishing conditions have improved over the last month, with good snapper being caught all through Palliser Bay.

Some impressive catches have been reported, with fish up to five or six kilos. There have also been a couple of larger catches reported, up to 10 kilos even.

Off the shore, fishing has been going really well particularly off the south coast and Palliser Bay. There’s been good moki fishing and plenty of solid snaps and trevs being landed.

On the kingy front, it’s a bit quiet but this is not too unexpected for coming in to winter.

The really big news is bluefin fishing. With a dozen or more fish being landed bluefin fever is on.

These amazing gamefish have been captured off Cape Palliser, trolling around the thousand-meter mark generally, and quite a few boats are now heading out when the conditions allow.

Bluefin can be pretty aggressive, and you don’t need a full-on game-setup to be in the hunt, a couple of good lures trolled with solid gear and you are good to give it a go.

I reckon we are seeing the effect of the commercial and recreational set nets restrictions off the west coast of the North Island since October 2020, which might have impacted the quantity and variety of fish coming in close to shore.

See more here:

In Wellington region, for instance, I really reckon there has been an uptake in productive in-shore boat fishing, with fishers reporting catches of better and better snapper amidst the tarakihi and Cod.

I’m just speculating, but it’s good to see improvement whatever the reason.

The harbour is still fishing pretty solid, gurnard, snapper, trevs all in decent numbers right through the harbour reef systems.

Out wide, it’s bluenose and puka season coming up, but this is one area where the fishing has been a bit tougher lately, from our reports anyway.

A few puka have been caught in the South Coast area, although not in substantial numbers.

In case you have not caught up, there is anew regulation on hapuku/bass fishing, with a limit now of two fish per person. Full details HERE:

We’re still seeing a few fish out of the Trench, but nothing spectacular to report.

Changeable, typical winter conditions, means you take your opportunities where you can, but overall, the Wellington region seems to be experiencing an exciting time for fishing, with some positive changes in local fish populations that promise good fishing opportunities in the future.

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Cheers

Pete

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