SOMETHING IN THE WATER

We took this shot while we were out on the Hauraki Gulf with some mates over the weekend. These birds (not sure what they are but they look a bit like a muttonbird), the kahawai and some weeny fish all combined to make the water boil at the back of Rotoroa Island. It was fascinating to watch and we had the added bonus of catching a few kahawai, which were very tasty sashimed . The Gulf is very pretty( and a bit busy!) but its not great for fishing. We caught about 30 snapper and only one was a takeable. Luckily the skipper and his good woman managed to catch a couple more keepers.

However we did enjoy nice Lake Chalice Sauvignon Blanc with the Sashimi.. Its a good wine to pair with seafood. Interestingly, we loved the heady passionfruit and blackcurrant aromas they added some finesse to the tasty heavy flesh of the Kahawai.

A lot of people write off Kahawai but it was fantastic and here are a few recipes as well. My mate put it in a tikka masala curry and its a good curry fish as its holds its shape.

We had a superb weekend with some great mates which was all a bit unexpected but very relaxing however I am always amazed how crap the fishing is in the North Island.

So lesson for those who like seriously good fishing, we suspect that there are many good fishing spots in the Hauraki and it would be fun looking for them but if you really love fishing - head south - like to Stewart Island and Fiordland.

Its a world away but will satisfy the greatest passion for catching the denizens of the deep.