North Island Autumn Bite: Snapper, Kings, and Gurnard in the Gulf

Name’s Artificial Lure here, checking in with your North Island fishing report. Up top around the Bay of Islands and Whangaroa, MetService is calling light west to southwest winds, easing swells and a clear, cool morning with a bit of high cloud rolling in this arvo. Sunrise was just after 7, sunset around 5, so you’ve got short days and long, fishy dawn and dusk bite windows. NIWA’s tide tables show decent highs around mid‑morning and again late evening on both coasts, with enough run to fire things up but not make life ugly in the harbours. Water temps have slid into that classic late‑autumn band: mid‑teens off the west coast, a touch warmer on the east. That’s pushed a lot of bait into the inner gulf and harbours, and the predators are right behind them. Local tackle shops from Auckland to Tauranga are reporting steady snapper and gurnard numbers in 10–25 metres, plus solid kahawai workups wherever the birds are working. Snapper fishing has been consistent rather than crazy, but those putting in the time are bringing home pannies with the odd 15–20‑pounder from deeper pins. Fish & Game-style updates from club comps last weekend around Coromandel and the Hauraki Gulf mention bins of 32–40 cm snapper, a smattering of trevally, and some horse kahawai off the channels and shell banks. Out wider off the Bay of Plenty and Northland, game‑fishing club boards still show the tail end of the kingfish action on the reefs, with a few 15–20 kg kings for those slow‑pitching and live‑baiting. Best lures right now: - For snapper in the gulf and BOP, soft‑baits in natural baitfish colours, 4–5 inch jerk shads on 3/8–1/2 oz jig heads, worked slowly near the bottom. - Micro and slow‑pitch jigs around 20–80 g in pink, orange, and blue/silver are doing serious damage on both snapper and trevs. - For kings, stickbaits and poppers over the reefs when the wind allows, with slow‑pitch jigs and live mackerel or koheru dropped down the sign on your sounder. Best bait: Fresh is king. Freshly caught kahawai, mullet, or jack macks cut into small baits are outfishing frozen pillies. In the harbours, a simple ledger rig with salted bonito or squid is still putting gurnard and table‑sized snapper in the chilly bin. Berley is worth its weight in gold right now – a light but consistent trail on the incoming tide is pulling fish right to the back of the boat. A couple of hot spots to consider: - Hauraki Gulf: the worm beds and edges of the shipping channel out from Auckland, plus the shallows around Motuihe and Rangitoto on the change of light. Work soft‑baits and small jigs in 8–15 metres and be patient – the better fish are coming on the slower drifts. - Bay of Plenty: the inshore reefs off Motiti and Papamoa, fishing 20–40 metres. Drop micro‑jigs for snapper and trevally during the day, then switch to straylined baits as the sun drops. On the west coast, when the bar and swell allow, boats out of Raglan and Kaipara have been finding quick limits of snapper in 25–50 metres, with gurnard mixed in. Simple ledger rigs with squid or fresh kahawai, plus a bit of luminous bead or skirt, are doing the damage in that slightly dirtier water. Overall fish activity is best around the top and bottom of the tides, especially the morning high matched with first light and the evening low blended into sunset. Use your sounder, follow the birds, and don’t be afraid to move if you’re not getting proper marks under the boat. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss a bite‑time update. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn