Kingie fishing is a busy, high-octane sport. Some by catch of quality are … I was now determined to hook up too, so began casting while Greg chucked out our last bits of piper. You gotta reach out to them!” While Grey is fishing the Ship Bottom surf other kingfish and snapper surf reports have came in. Grant Dix... more >, The remoteness of the Mainland's West Coast has ensured its rivers and lakes have remained both productive and pristine, offering plenty of ... more >, Mainland angler Dylan Booth shares some of his best memories from fishing his local water – the Taieri River.... more >, Sam Mossman reviews the FC 465 CC, and has no complaints. This renowned soft plastic will catch demersal species such as snapper and mulloway when bouncing them through and under the wash line along the rocks. document.getElementById('date_time').value= date ; Yamaha has just released what it is calling its most feature-rich v6 outboard ever. My preferred way is to bridle-rig them, as they tend to last longer this way and allow circle hooks to be used (normally Owner Mutus when I can find them). minDate:new Date(2007, 1 - 1, 1), As a rule of thumb, poppers make more commotion while stickbaits offer a more realistic swimming action. var year=mydate.getYear(); Anything under about 10kg is described as a ‘rat’ (meaning small); what other inshore species can you say that about? Change of light, the last hour of the tide can be good times although bite times aren’t usually as long for the bigger kingfish. When targeting kingfish off the rocks you could also suspend your bait under a bobby cork or a party balloon that has only been blown up to half its size. In part 3, we'll overview some factors that are often overlooked, but which can greatly influence the outcome of a day on the rocks. How to catch Sydney harbour kingfish. Not long afterwards, Greg spotted some nice kahawai off to my left, and while moving over to have a look, Dan yelled out as a kingie chased his stick-bait in, finally nailing the lure in an epic crash of water at his feet. $.ajax({ Egiing for squid NZ off the rocks. catching big Kings from the rocks is not for the feint hearted. My live-bait set is rated to 24kg (though I often use 37kg line for its extra abrasion resistance) and I also have a spinning set rated at 15-24kg, which is great for throwing poppers and stray-line baits at kings. The best months in the Gulf are January, February and March and the amount of kingfish we catch in these months is anywhere between 10 and 30 in one day. This, however, made Greg more determined than ever to see some action around his lure. When talking about the art of jigging, don’t be afraid to experiment with different speeds, strokes and movements. Kingfish are voracious eaters and can be targeted using lots of methods. Then, upon doing so, it came off, much to Dan’s disappointment. Shorter rods will help you control the fish by putting maximum leverage on the fish and minimum on the angler. dataString = $("#caldata").serialize(); Fish City have produced another fine boat which is perfect for inshore fishing.... more >, Herb Spannagl investigates the effects of UV on trout lures, and concludes that adding a UV coating to lures can be an effective way to catc... more >. $("#date2").html("

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"); Kingfish are apex predators that get their kicks out of bullying and feeding on live baitfish such as kahawai, piper and yellowtail mackerel, picking up on the vibrations that panicking and injured fish send out. Alternatively, cast them out wide, let them sink and burn them through the water column up to the surface for pelagics such as tuna, kingfish, trevally and queenfish in the tropics. Hundreds of crayfish lined up neatly alongside fish. $('#loadingmessage').hide(); // hide the loading message The latter aspect was particularly important in this instance: I work full-time as a chef most evenings, so only have limited opportunities. Make sure you can get the knot through the rod guides though. var mydate=new Date(); It certainly is very different from fishing for smaller species like kahawai and snapper, simply because kingfish are the biggest and most powerful of New Zealand’s inshore scale-fish species. On each occasion the kingfish sped off over the sand, taking about 100m of line. var year=mydate.getYear(); Lures to Suit You – Whether you spin from the rocks or or troll or cast from a boat you have the freedom to find trolling lures for kingfish, kingfish jigs, spinning lures and more from our all-encompassing online fishing tackle shop. Onion bags or sacks of mashed fish hung on a string or a bucket brew of mashed fish, oil and bread all … Next 30 lb mono, still lost a lot but caught a few more. ).datepicker("getDate"); I also like the technique’s simplicity: it’s quick and easy to do, so even if you only have a couple hours in the morning or evening, you can still enjoy success. Learn how they do it. It sounds like a rustic fish market, but it's not. Your leader strength, hook size, etc. Struggling to keep the rod tip up and clear of the ledge, I steady and brace myself, but this fish won’t stop. Now I realise I’m playing a new ball game – new to me, that is. This one was a bit bigger than his first, so upon being successfully brought in, Greg decided it would be his keeper - and he was extremely satisfied. My top tips to capturing kingfish. Course Overview. $('#loadingmessage').show(); // show the loading message. The Paternoster rig is a versatile rig that can be used for small or large species. Kingfish are targeted offshore near the reefs, wrecks, rock piles and oil rigs. The gaffman should be ready with gaff in hand, and all eyes should be on the fish, alert for things that could go wrong. Required fields are marked * Comment. When kingies first came into my consciousness via glossy magazine covers and TV shows, I used to think “Yeah, yeah, but how can I really hope to catch one of those off the rocks?” However, the reality is that kingies are still relatively abundant, and if you put in the effort, you can give yourself every chance of catching one – they really are there! Landbased Kingfish Downunder in NZ – How to Catch a Yellowtail Kingfish off the Rocks – Including Excellent Advice for South Island Anglers By Scott Hollis-Johns. 3. There’s lots of kingfish and snapper blues on the beach. The author with a 16.8kg yellowtail kingfish taken on 10kg line. Rigs for Rock and Beach Fishing . After long stalemates, with the fish lazily arcing around in the distance, I was able to slowly work them both back towards the ledge. While I’m an advocate of keeping it simple, access to a freezer full of piper encouraged me to bring along some to cut up and hang in a tethered berley net. Read more. In many areas, livebaiting is the best method to consistently catch our distinguished inshore gamefish. }); All information © 2021 The Fishing Website, Raymarine YachtSense modular digital switching, West Coast Freshwater Fishing Opportunities. // The type of request. 40/50lb leader. catching big Kings from the rocks is not for the feint hearted. The rod cover material is also used for insulating catch bags (also manufactured by Penguin), so it works well protecting the catch from the sun. Your email address will not be published. if (year < 1000){ Soon afterwards, we spotted a school of smaller kingies just off our rocks, encouraging the boys to cast and retrieve hard in an effort to turn a memorable morning into something really special. Post navigation. Sorry this content is for subscribers only. Yamaha has just released what it is calling its most feature-rich v6 outboard ever. Fishing with topwater surface lures is the most exciting way to catch kingfish but it can also be challenging. Off the rocks, I use a Shakespeare Ugly Stik Gold, 8-12kg, a 3.6m rod mounted with a 6500 Pflueger Salt threadline spooled with 10 and 15kg Fireline. I live baited for Kingfish off the rocks for near enough to 20 years. } As for the kingies themselves, the phrase ‘bigger, faster, stronger’ comes to mind. We arrived nice and early, and although there was some swell, the water was glassy and looked promising. Use a float and swivel, and cut slivers of bait that cover the bend in the hook and a part of the shank. Greg managed to get it in close a couple of times, but his lighter drag let it head back out again, before finally coming in close enough for measuring in the water: around 70cm. In my experience heavier jigs catch bigger fish. Setups like this give you the stopping power and abrasion resistance required to survive a scrap with a good kingfish in rugged ground. It might be pricey but Fluorocarbon leader makes all the difference. Shimano TLD20 or TLD25). dataString = $("#caldata").serialize(); Daiwa SLX50/Sl50SH) and one spooled with 24kg (e.g. When targeting kingies, one thing you discover quickly is that once a fish is hooked there is greater potential for things to go wrong compared to other species – and things can go wrong FAST! Smoker kingfish have inspired big tournaments like the SKA series and smaller meat fish tournaments in the South East United States. $('#date_time').datepicker( They are also important for the next stage. Increase your hook-ups. minDate:new Date(2007, 1 - 1, 1), 5. It’s important to check weather and boating forecasts the night before you intend to go fishing. Fighting and landing fish It has been written many times before that a kingfish hook-up represents an instant quality-control check on your tackle, with any vulnerability ruthlessly exposed. Dan grabbed his camera while I went for the gaff. Change your routine to induce the bite. Try one month for $1. He was better prepared this time, and after successfully battling the kingfish in, we determined it to be a keeper, so I gaffed it. Wettie have added a series of insulated cooler bags to keep the catch in pristine condition... It’s 10am on a perfect April morning on the rocks near East Cape and my 2kg kahawai livebait is getting twitchy under a yellow party balloon. The waters off Tauranga, in the Bay of Plenty, cater for all types in the fishing community. Next post: Trolling for Yellowtail Kingfish at Rottnest Island. And, sure enough, this strategy brought some kingfish around within just a few minutes. Now we all had a kingfish each - I’d never seen top-water action from the rocks like before! Kingfish are attracted to fast moving or erratically moving lures. After getting it in close, with Dan on the camera and Greg on the gaff and measuring, we saw it was about 80cm so decided to keep it. The Bamboos, Tiparra Rocks and The Gap are all great land based fishing spots where King George Whiting can be caught. }); Had I actually hooked up, I would have been taught a tough lesson in moments. Our efforts started slowly with a nearby spot failing to fire before it got dark. Smoking fish is a great way to prepare your catch for the table, and the Kilwell Sawdust Selection Pack helps you do exactly that. var montharray=new Array("Jan","Feb","Mar","Apr","May","Jun","Jul","Aug","Sep","Oct","Nov","Dec"); Due to the extra drag, my rod is now bending over seriously for the first time. The good news is, there are plenty of opportunities to do so. data : dataString, Fish City have produced another fine boat which is perfect for inshore fishing.... more >, Herb Spannagl investigates the effects of UV on trout lures, and concludes that adding a UV coating to lures can be an effective way to catc... more >. On any given day one can fish dead baits or live baits from 1 mile off the beach to 30 miles off the beach and have an unforgettable day catching smoker kingfish. The dudes I know catching big king fish in Sydney are using specialist gear, custom pe8 10ft popping rods, 14,000 Stella and 100lb braid and 100-150g popper and stick baits. Only then have you unlocked the door to kingfish success. Dan snapped a couple of quick photos, then Greg released his first kingfish! If your fishing background is surfcasting (as mine is), rock fishing for kings will represent a big step up for you physically, and there is far less room for error. dataType: "json", Read more. $.ajax({ Fighting a kingfish off the rocks Pick the fight and be prepared to finish it. Catching a Kingfish is something that every person who fishes in Sydney eventually wants to do. $('#date_time').datepicker( Historical hot (and sure to be crowded) spots include the Blind Pass Drop, Redington, Indian Rocks, Sand Key and Mandalay hard bottoms. Kingfish from the rocks pt 1. If fishing amongst rugged foul it may be necessary, but it pays to match your approach to the environment you’re fishing in. An afternoon rock-fishing session upon returning to dry land for lunch became even more appealing. Sign in. Kingfish from the rocks pt 3. Please enable JavaScript to use this form. Id go 30lb main with a long (8-10m?) Re-publishing elsewhere is prohibited, Originally published in New Zealand Fishing News. Rat Kingfish Big King fish and summer. Land-based. The conditions couldn’t have been better. I have three outfits I use when targeting kingfish – off the rocks, offshore and in the bays and estuaries. Fortunately, with a light northwesterly coming in and the tide going out all morning, I knew a couple of good locations - depending on how much of a mission we were up for. In these places it can be beneficial to allow kingfish to burn themselves out over the sand before bringing them to the gaff. As one of my longtime fishing comrades from university days, Greg had seen photos of me with kingfish, and hoped I could do the same for him over his short stay here. I just missed out the on the Kingie jigging fad that swept the boat fishing scene on the east coast throughout the sixties and early seventies. kingfish off the rocks; Uncategorized December 5, 2020 0 Comment. Link to post Share on other sites. When Summer hits so do the schools of kings. Kingfish. THE first trickle of warm water moving down the coast heralds the beginning of the land based game season, and species like longtail tuna, Spanish mackerel, kingfish and cobia start to travel down the coast of NSW. The writings of Gary Kemsley and the late Steve Sneddon in the mid-eighties got me excited about chasing kingfish off the rocks. The bad news is if you want to have one of those days of non stop kings, or if you're chasing one of the really big ones, persistance and thoughtful fishing is required. Try anchoring about 6-10m up current of a marker buoy or channel marker. A kingfish when hooked close to the shore will head at speed for the nearest rocks, and a kingfish caught on a jig in offshore waters will dive for the bottom. $("#date1").html("

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"); 31kg kingfish off the rocks. Started off with plain 650 no drag 20lb mono- too light, caught a few, lost heaps. What does MPI do with confiscated seafood. kingfish off the rocks; Uncategorized December 5, 2020 0 Comment. will be determined by the species you are targeting. It sounds like a rustic fish market, but it's not. Here is his story. var date=(daym+"-"+montharray[month]+"-"+year); This will allow the balloon to be blown away from the rocks while stopping the bait from swimming back down. success: function( data ){ This article is reproduced with permission of    Your Instructor. ).datepicker("getDate"); $("#minor4").html(" " + data[1].minor2); There’s nothing quite like a kingie hook-up from the rocks! However, there has been a growing trend towards using poppers and stickbaits, particularly for kingfish and Spanish mackerel. When Summer hits so do the schools of kings. These small fish rely on the protection of these structures to hide from predators, so if you get an offshore structure such as a reef, add a bit of baitfish, then you should have the recipe for kingfish. Whereas you might get away with a dodgy knot or sticky drag on other fish, you won’t with kingies. This approach was spelled out to me clearly one afternoon at Rodholders ledge, when I accidentally hooked two kingfish over 6kg on a light spinning set whilst targeting kahawai. var month=mydate.getMonth(); Sight-fishing kingfish from the rocks is hard to beat and a good pair of polaroid sunglasses is the key. Kingfish plus rock equals snap. url: 'https://www.bitetimes.fishing/cgi-bin/fishing.cgi', { $("#major3").html(" " + data[1].major1); I settled on a nice 4WD adventure for Dan and Greg down a nearby bush track, followed by a walk down to a quiet beach with some decent rocks to fish off. Worse, I don’t do well on boats once anchored up, even on the calmest of days, so managed to berley up my breakfast soon after. There are numerous ways of hooking up a live bait and plenty of information. I especially enjoy the explosive takes, although landing one is always a challenge when land-based. $("#date1").html("

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"); For example, there are a number of good kingfish spots in Northland (including various harbour spots and the famous ‘Rodholders’ ledge in Spirits Bay) with relatively clean sand bottoms. One man, alone on a SW of Western Australia rock, one 20 kilo kingfish, very impressive. If you are targeting kings off the rocks, you should definitely consider going up in leader size or you will be only realistically looking at landing small fish. data : dataString, Another point to think about is if the kingie busts off in the rocks there is a good chance of it taking a large quantity of line with it. On the plus side, I know a fair few spots within striking distance of my home base in Kuaotunu. My first was a fish of around 10kg on a small livebait. if (daym<10){ daym="0"+daym;} No doubt forgetting the bait and berley didn’t help our chances! There are numerous ways of hooking up a live bait and plenty of information. Things go wrong faster. Kingfish are dirty fighters. I hoped to hear a good story later... That didn’t happen. With many aspects to consider in rock fishing, there are some exiting and very effective forms to target relatively common prolific species. Upon returning to home base, we found Greg, then revisited the previous evening’s spot to try our luck. Close in along the rocks off Cronulla we have a few techniques that almost always produce some fish and plenty of by catch. The next morning Greg was on his own, as I had to pick up my English mate Dan, who was flying in to Auckland Airport from Wanaka. The time of the day is important too. Some days we have fish on almost every cast. … Then, although we joined a boat heading to the Mercury Islands the next morning, a few hours of stick-baiting yielded only one kahawai. New Zealand Fishing News The first is a 15-24kg rod approximately 2-2.4 metres long with guides designed for an overhead reel, paired with two suitable reels – one spooled with 15kg line (e.g. Teamwork and communication are important too. 3. Most rock fishermen find a rock pool and dump their fish in, hoping they won’t go off. ‍ ‍ Previous Next Spearfishing Kingfish NZ Spearfishing Kingfish NZ. Then, when it finally came into view, we couldn’t be certain it was legal, so made sure I had the measuring tape handy. I have three outfits I use when targeting kingfish – off the rocks, offshore and in the bays and estuaries. $("#major4").html(" " + data[1].major2); Only Dan remained unsatisfied: it just hadn’t been his day. Lures to Suit You – Whether you spin from the rocks or or troll or cast from a boat you have the freedom to find trolling lures for kingfish, kingfish jigs, spinning lures and more from our all-encompassing online fishing tackle shop. 2. This means coming prepared with the right tackle. year+=1900; This is how he did it. $('#tbodyid').html(''); // Clear #tbodyid div var date=(daym+"-"+montharray[month]+"-"+year); I normally fish 50lb leader off the rocks , and still get busted up regularly on the bigger kings. url: 'https://www.bitetimes.fishing/cgi-bin/fishing.cgi', Grant Dix... more >, The remoteness of the Mainland's West Coast has ensured its rivers and lakes have remained both productive and pristine, offering plenty of ... more >, Mainland angler Dylan Booth shares some of his best memories from fishing his local water – the Taieri River.... more >, Sam Mossman reviews the FC 465 CC, and has no complaints. Obviously outgunned, I took a long-term view of these fights and applied steady pressure. I’m not trying to put you off, far from it: kingies add a new dimension to land-based fishing, turning it into an exhilarating adrenaline sport. Many anglers have hooked a kingfish only to lose them when they swim close to sharp rocks to get away. } Read more. Most forms and styles of fishing are available in Tauranga. Fish the low tide and walk out on the bar. { Better still, just as a gannet was swooping towards Greg’s stickbait, a kingfish decided to steal it first. I’m still calm and in control, waiting just long enough to dial my reel up to strike drag (4kg), before sending the hook home. Finally - hook-up! document.getElementById('tzone').value= timezone.name(); ... How to catch squid from the rocks. $('#tbodyid').html(''); // Clear #tbodyid div Outcomes like that are sometimes unavoidable, but it pays to make sure you are switched on and light on your feet after hooking up. $("#date2").html("

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"); Catching piper can sometimes be harder than landing the kingfish, so here are a few tips to help catch these small fish: Use a light 2-3 kg leader with a size 12-14 trout hook.