This week the first real southerly system since October arrived. The timing is both apt and eerie - apt because today duck licenses go on sales and eerie because all of a sudden the trigger finger has the big itch on and its brought back all this deja-vu stuff that I've suffered since I was a primary school kid with the duck season fast approaching. Restricted/denied access to resource is raising its ugly head again, and again its proving to be the issue of our time. Refer the situation where Iwi, in consultation with DOC have closed duck hunting access to the Pencarrow Lakes under the guise of 'stopping the spread of didymo' and 'protecting the giant kokopu".
Arse.
I reckon that this is a bridge too far - I've long felt that supporters of shooting sports are more vocal, political and mobilised than anglers and the reaction to this will prove it. Politicos are on the band wagon and John Key has said 'sort it!' so maybe it will be. About time someone wound in the necks of those tree hugging fools in DOC. Maybe, just maybe I'll be able to visit and have a giant kokopu shoot.
On to the Kaingaroa, closed to sporting access subsequent to the transition of ownership from crown to Iwi. This situation is diaboloical - refer Easter F&G website for latest news & events (for some reason I can't get hyperlinks to work on my blog at the moment).
Although I hear through the grapevine that Iwi are pretty unhappy with the Kaingaroa situation, something big will have to change before Flaxy, Whio and Rangitaki are again viable summer fishing options. Oh, and as long as you only want to do weekends. Screw that. Pressure is on Eastern F&G to get something better sorted, because settling for this is just the thin end of the wedge.
Got off the plane at Ak airport last night, fired up the mobie and rang Marcia. While speaking a mini-flood of texts came in. Terminated the call and started reading:
1. "Moerewa!" - from Nik, our standard chit chat as he passes through the most god-awful township in NZ. (Barring Huntly. But Huntly has both trout and duck/goose shooting which gives it a distinct advantage).
2. "222.5 black marlin! Stoked!" - From Milo. I rang for the story. He woke up late, got on the blower to Roly who had a day off, so they set off for Astrolabe. Upon arriveal the skippes were being pushed smack bang onto the reef. Out with the soft plastics and 2 bridle rigged skippies were on the outriggers. 2 minutes later a strike - 2.5 hours later, a black marlin on the deck. Nice work fellahs!
3. "Roly and Miles caught 222 kg black marlin!" - From Nik. He and Roly fish together, amazing how good news spreads.
And to think last week i was saying the southerly will have killed off the marlin fishing. Just goes to show, if the food's there, they will be too
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