Report 037 First of day of two at Tairua enjoying Jetskifishing... 2nd of July 2010

With a few days free, I decided to head down to Tairua for some photo opportunities with Mike from Parkside Media. With the easy access to the local fishing grounds, staying at Tairua was a great base to head out to places like the Aldermen Islands. We booked the same bach as my last visit, costing only seventy per night, hosted by Bachcare.

The launch site for the skis is only a couple of minutes from the bach, but you need to be conscious of the tide, as access is limited at dead low.

The first session included a ride out to the Aldermen Islands, where we were greeted by some strong southerly winds… For me there was not much success on the jigs in these conditions…

We fished for a few hours, and with Mike having a few Snapper in his chilly bin, we called it quits and decided to call it a day!
The next session was much better conditions so I decided to head off the back of the Aldies, while Mike fished around the reef for Snapper with Gulp plastics.

On arrival at the seventy, I spotted one boat at the spot, out in what you could say, the middle of nowhere!

He soon asked how I was going and said he follows my fishing reports… After some introductions, his user name was Dorjam, from the Fishing.net forum, definitely a social bunch us forum contributors!

Once settling in and spotting some sign on my trusty Raymarine, I set for my first jig. On the first retrieve, I felt a hit on the jig, so quickly I dropped the jig back down again and reattempted a strike. It worked, that familiar tug, with the great feeling, when the Daiwa Monster Mesh loads up! It makes all those hard yards finding the fish worthwhile. This Kingfish was in no way a big one, and nothing of the beauty I lost after seventeen minutes of struggling last week at Mayor! With a few short runs the fish was at the ski in about five minutes. I was assuming it was close to being out of energy, but as I gaffing it and lifting it on to the ski, it gave one last effort for its survival. The fish with all its strength gave a big flick, with me dropping it back in the water! With the gaf still attached, I only just managed to restrain it and finally got it secured in the chilly bin. (VIDEO ATTACHED)

I decided to head back to check on my fishing buddy Mike, he was still enjoying the Snapper fishing at the reef at the back of the Aldies.

With plenty of food for dinner, we decided to head in closer to shore…

The experience at the Aldies, with all the different fish life is amazing. We even had the company of a friendly seal hanging around our skis… For those who haven’t yet ventured to the Alderman Islands, at a leisurely cruise from the Tairua ramp it takes about twenty minutes to get there. Any considering the trip, be sure you have completed your green hours and follow all safety procedures. Make sure you are riding a reliable late model ski and own and know how to operate a handheld VHF (also take a cellphone).
As if we hadn’t done enough fishing already, we made a stop at Slipper Island to get plagued by the local soft bait menaces. If the Gulps avoided all the reef fish… we could actually land some more Snapper.

Was a great day out, we cruised back with smooth waters to fillet our fish at the bach and enjoy a few coldies.