HOKIANGA BIG GAME & SPORT FISHING CLUB Inc.
PO Box 81, Omapere, South Hokianga 0444
www.hokiangafishingclub.co.nz
President: Shane Percy (09) 4057 515 Secretary: Linda Pattinson (09) 4058 889
or 021 811 286
Holy sh.. everyone, today is the 1st of March. Already ! Then what’s the first thing I hear on the radio this morning ? Some newsreader feeling he had to tell us it is now officially Autumn. I already knew that, he didn’t have to rub it in. As far as summers go this years was a bit of a non event.
On to the fishing, last week was the NZ Sport Fishing Council Nationals which ran from Feb 15th to 22nd. We had a lot of out of town boats in the area for this as well as a few larger launches who chose to use the Hokianga as their base for the tournament. In a stroke of luck for the anglers, the bar was actually crossable for all eight days of the comp with the conditions on the last day being exceptional. For most days there were an average of 40 boats crossing the bar but on that last day there was 57. Lets just say, it was pretty chaotic at the boat ramps around 5pm every day. From a safety aspect it was good to note that 99% of these vessels took the precaution of lodging a trip report with Coastguard before any bar crossings.
The marlin put in an appearance during that week with a total of 27 being weighed and tagged from the Hokianga. There were a few others landed also but not weighed in so what a great week for everyone.
On the 22nd there was also a 205.8 kg broadbill weighed in by angler Grant Sagar on the vessel Profishionals. Nice one Grant.
On the club front, we are now halfway through our Marlin Hunt and Fishing Bonanza comp. It would be great to see a few more anglers supporting us and taking part to help increase the prize pool at the end of the comp. Last day for fish to be weighed is on 31st March and then we will have our Prizegiving at the Copthorne on Saturday 5th April. On this day we will be running our kids comp and carnival day. This is aimed at juniors 12 years and under. As well as fishing we have a few games and activities for them all. Last years event was well attended and no one went home without a prize of some sort. This is a great opportunity for the young ones to get out there and give it a go. There is no entry fee, all they need is to turn up on the day. Events start at 10 am and finish at 3pm with the fishing section running from 12pm to 2pm.
Anyone with a bit of spare time, we would love to have a few helpers on the day. Please give us a call.
Don’t forget we also have Ladies Day. This is only a couple of weeks away now, 15th March is the date. At only $5 pp it’s a cheap day and loads of fun, so ladies put together a team, get yourselves a boat and get out there. Oh, it would probably pay to also organise a skipper. Entries are to be paid one week prior to that date to give an indication of numbers. If you are wanting an entry form phone me ( 021 811 286 ) and I will get one to you.
Our web page is looking pretty good thanks to Janice. She is continually updating it and posting photos, it’s good to have someone proactive doing the job. We are always after information to add to the page to make it more interesting so if you have anything to add we would love to hear from you.
www.hokiangafishingclub.co.nz . We are continually asking members for any photos or information of interest to post there but have had next to no response to date.
To finish off, our poor President Shane has encountered another set back in his road to recovery. It all turned downhill for him in April last year when he had a quite serious motor bike accident in which he broke his leg. Since this he has suffered several further complications. Things were finally looking that the end was in sight until this week when he took a tumble apparently ending up with a broken hip or something and is now awaiting yet another operation. Come on Shane, how many more excuses are you going to devise to avoid Ladies Day Prizegiving ?
I wish you all the best with your recuperation.
Until next time
LInda