Waiwera Catches

by Paul Barnes

This is a great winter spot.

Best for small Dropper Rigs like the Flexiwing or Pocket Sled Rigs although we have run bigger rigs.

We caught a chilly bin of snapper up to 10 pound last time we were here.

The day we fished Waiwera five kitefishers at Orewa caught no snapper.

Don't even think about running a longline here. Only experienced Dropper Rig fishers should fish here and there is only room for one rig to fish. The only clear area is highlighted in light blue.

Standing on the boat ramp the gear needs to be set 200 to 300 metres clear of the Island. The water here is twice as deep at 1000 metres out as nearby Orewa Beach. There is intermittent flat papa rock on the east coast beaches.

Make up some spare sacrificial ledger rigs and reduce the length of the leader section to 10 metres. Use a safety trace of 70% or less than the breaking strain of your mainline. We snagged and lost three hook sections here before we found a clear shot.