Accurate encounters New Zealand Kingies

Well we have spent a few days preparing for our jigging trip with the boys from DeCorro fishing supplies with all jigs polished and ready to go, and all our knots tied and triple checked we head off to the outside reef in search of the elusive giant Kingie (yellowtail). After a fifty mile run from port in the early morning hours we find ourselves in the open ocean in solid 4 to 6 foot seas with about 20+ knots of wind on it looking extremely nasty. We end up taking a few drifts in 240 to 300 feet of water with our heaviest jigs unable to reach the bottom vertically due to wind drift and heavy cross current.

Our captain, Mark, a very experienced angler, sees this is not going to pan out and suggests running to White Island another twenty miles back to the main land. After a severe beating in a 23 foot aluminum boat riding back up hill in the crap weather we set up in a little better conditions and start some long drifts over some very fishy structures.

It didn't take long before Doug with his Bass Pro Shops Extreme jig hooked the first Kingie and the fight was on. It didn't take long before we got our eyes on the first fish with the new proto reel / and Xnergy rod making short work of the Wiley opponent.

This was the start of a day filled with smaller Kingie's and a great great learning experience for the yanks from overseas. With any type of fishing, the more you pay attention to all the small details, the more you can learn for future fishing use. I had a great time exchanging ideas with the local crew walking away with some new knots and a clearer idea of what their fishery is all about.

Jigging in New Zealand is still in its infancy but with guys like Mark, Kane, and Matt will continue bringing new ideas and techniques to their local fishermen to help them more effectively catch the local Kingies. Our last night we spent at a group dinner in the Tauranga Big Game Club being able to see all the beautiful fish mounts and see how they do it in their country.

This trip has been very eye opening for us and as we head to OZ for a week on the reef we look forward to better weather and bigger fish.

Until next time, hope all your fish are good ones.