Hosting the old foe

Hosting the old foe

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Fishing

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At the ITM Fishing Show we receive truckloads of requests from people from all walks of life who want to go fishing with Matt.

Most read along the lines of: “Hey man, hear you’re heading down to ... (insert town name here). Reckon you could take me out to catch a massive ... (insert fish species here)?” Unfortunately, with our busy filming and editing schedule, it’s often impossible for us to spend a day out fishing with our own friends and family, let alone the hundreds of hopeful fishers who take the time to write in to us.

However, every now and again an offer pops up that is too good to refuse. Recently, we were presented with the opportunity to host a fishing trip for former Springbok Captain Bobby Skinstad, a keen angler back in his native South Africa, but a complete novice in New Zealand waters. So we thought we’d get into the Rugby World Cup role of Kiwis hosting the rest of the world, and pull out all the stops to give Bobby a day he’d never forget.

For starters, our mate Bob wouldn’t be staying at any old hotel. No, we thought we’d show him the cream of what’s on offer here in the beautiful Bay of Islands – and there’s none better in the Bay, or New Zealand, or the entire world for that matter, than the Eagle’s Nest, recently awarded the title of the world’s number one luxury coastal hotel.

Now, instead of unleashing a barrage of superlatives about the place, I’ll simply say that the Eagle’s Nest is beyond description and leave it at that. However, it wasn’t just the jaw-dropping extravagance that attracted us there; it’s also situated in a prime fishing location just around the corner from Tapeka Point, a renowned haunt of big snapper and kingfish. The plan was that Bobby and the lads would simply take a leisurely stroll down the hill from their luxurious digs and get stuck straight into the action from the rocks – after Matt had peppered the area with NZ King Salmon Burley Bombs the previous night.

So, with a solid plan of attack, it was shaping up to be a great show. However a rather angry weather system decided to drop anchor off the Bay Of Islands, and as shooting day dawned, it was obvious that our preferred spot was going to be unfishable. Luckily for us though, a quick call to our old mate Kingsley Thompson and his Heli-Ops chopper saved the day. Of course, Matt made out to Bobby that this was simply an everyday occurrence here in New Zealand – having a mate with a chopper pick you up from a five-star luxury resort to head out rock fishing after dining on smoked salmon and prawns for breakfast.

“Par for the course, mate!”

Anyway, after a half hour in the chopper scouring the coastline to find a place that could be deemed safe enough to fish, Kingsley spotted a sliver of rocky outcrop that seemed exempt from the pounding waves that the rest of the Bay was being subjected to.

The berley was deployed, and soon kahawai arrived like a pack of ravenous mongrel dogs on a poorly-tied rubbish sack. Numerous kahawai gave Bobby the chance to familiarise himself with the mechanics of the Shimano Baitrunner outfit. (Playing the role of the gracious host to perfection, Matt had presented Bobby with his brand new Baitrunner 8000D and his favourite Shimano rock rod, while he used his decades-old 6500 set-up.) He then made sure Bobby had unused VMC hooks and Suffix Fluoro leader, gave him the likeliest looking perch on the rocks, and directed him to cast into the best part of the berley trail (he’s never done anything like that for me!). Soon Bobby was on the board with a few respectable kahawai, which Matt hurriedly prepped as baits for his guest.

Now I don’t want to take anything away from the ‘people’s fish’, but a fishing show featuring just kahawai simply doesn’t cut it for our audience, so after an hour of continuous kahawai, Matt and I were both anxious for something with a little more grunt to turn up. As hosts, we wanted Bobby to experience the best of what this form of fishing has to offer.

However, another hour passed and still no flash of red in the berley trail. Perhaps the weather conditions in close had forced the larger predatory fish out into deeper water?

Fortunately, our fears were allayed just after lunch, when Bobby’s Baitrunner started singing that special song that only a big snapper can produce. But Bobby let the fish have too much of a head start, and he was eventually busted off in the kelp. On the plus side, at least this gave us some hope that the one big fish needed to really make the show was still lurking out there.

For the next few hours, the preceding sequence played out about a dozen times for poor old Bob. The snapper were all over his bait like Johan Le Roux on Fitzy’s ears, but still the big man just wasn’t hooking up. So small wonder his frustration began to show, as his competitive streak came to the fore. Accompanying each successive lost fish was an angry growl, and the occasional smattering of cussing – quite out of character for a genuinely nice guy like Bobby, but I guess you don’t get to be a world champion without the steely determination to come out on top.

By this stage, we had a few reasonable snapper on ice – enough for the evening’s BBQ dinner – although the pressure was mounting on Matt and me to ensure that the episode had a happy ending and that we could complete what we’d set out to do: guide Bobby to his first New Zealand snapper.

Then, with just a couple of hours of fishing time remaining, Bobby finally got his opportunity, with the fish finally sticking following a jaw-breaking strike! After a brief battle, the snapper was netted, and Bobby’s trademark smile returned. He’d landed his first Kiwi snapper, and so in the words of Matt, “it was all gravy from here on out”.

Indeed, just five minutes later the gravy train well and truly arrived, as Matt found himself hooked up to an absolute donkey. After 10 minutes of rock hopping, tight lines and even tighter nerves, the fish of the day was hauled up onto the rocks to the amazement of Bobby, who finally got a good look at what had been causing him so much grief all day – a fighting fit, 20-pound-plus New Zealand snapper, which, after a couple of pics, went back to fight another day.

So, all in all, it was a hell of a day for our South African guest. Bobby’s since promised to return the favour and play host himself, taking us on a mission chasing tigerfish in his backyard sometime in the future. It’s an offer too good to turn down, so look out for that episode in a coming season!

David Shaw is the cameraman for
The ITM Fishing Show

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