Chasing monster kings in New Zealand (again!)

[redsetta]

Hi lads,
Just got back from a week at sea, chasing monster kings and bass off the top of New Zealand, out wide past the Three Kings Islands.
It was a sensational week with a cracker bunch of guys (none of whom I'd met before the trip).
One guy flew all the way from Nagasaki, Japan, another from Shanghai, China, and a third from Adelaide, Australia, just for the trip.
There were also three of us Kiwis aboard (me included), so six anglers in total.
While I love to speed jig primarily - usually at around 100m (330ft) deep, with jigs between 500-1000g (17-35oz) - there was so much squid around that the jigs weren't generating much interest.
We caught ~150 squid each night and burned through the lot each following day, with nearly all producing fish.
That meant we caught around 100 kings between 25-35kg (55-77lb) on the first day, before mixing things up a bit more with some time on kings and some chasing bass and hapuku on the following days.
Though I try not to have any 'expectations' on trips like these, I inevitably find myself hoping to get - or at least equal - a PB.
That wasn't the case on this trip, unfortunately, but I still caught more fish than I could count and some that would've been 'fish of a lifetime' size, if my current PB wasn't 40kg (~90lb).
While I didn't really get any photos, I thought you might get a kick out of this - one of the many bass we caught on the trip - @65kg+ (~145lb).
How's that tail?! So much power...



Righto - hope yer all keeping well, Justin
PS Rick (Roosterfish) - sorry you weren't able to make it. Would've been an even better trip with ya there. Deepest gratitude for the favour you did - I'm in your debt...

[alantani]

very nice!  there was some discussion about flying out.  i just wouldn't want to get yelled at for laying the rod down on the rail!!!!   

[redsetta]

Getting yelled at by the skipper is mandatory   

[Bryan Young]

Wow!!!  Sounds like a fun and amazing trip.

[Crab Pot]

That Bass was only 145 pounds???!!!!

Looks WAY BIGGER than 145.

Maybe the camera angle?

Kings are the same as our Yellowtail aren't they?

Steve

[Brewcrafter]

That is a great report and those are some incredible fish, thanks for sharing!  What do those 1000g jigs look like?  That a lot of metal! - john

[redsetta]

Hi Steve, yep - they're the same species (just the XL versions  )...

Hi John, here's one:



I don't know how pressure, density and weight work down deep, but they sure seem to feel pretty heavy when jigging 100m+ (330ft+)!
Cheers lads, Justin

[jurelometer]

Hi Steve, yep - they're the same species (just the XL versions  )...

Hi John, here's one:


I  know how pressure, density and weight work down deep, but they sure seem to feel pretty heavy when jigging 100m+ (330ft+)!
Cheers lads, Justin

That's one long jig!

Water is a tiny bit denser under pressure and at lower temperatures, but not significant enough to make it harder to work a jig on a deep drop.  It is pretty much all friction across and along the line.  The amount of friction is a function of line size and current vs boat position.  Jig weight, shape and action will also affect resistance, but won't change with depth.  Bouncing the rod tip isn't moving the jig at those depths, and jig-winding a kilo of lead is going to give you some serious Popeye arms! Curious how you guys work those big jigs.

My PB Eastern Pacific yellowtail (AKA king) barely cracked 20 kilos.  Can't imagine a  40 kilo beast, or even a 30.  I'm putting on the earplugs and railing the rod for one of those.  The captain can say whatever he wants

-J

[Brewcrafter]

Wow.  Just wow..... - john

[boon]

I need to book a trip up there.....

That Bass is a monster. Wow. Surely you initially think you've just got hung up on the bottom? Any idea what rod/reel combo it was caught on?

[Crab Pot]

Justin,

I thought Kings were the larger version of our Yellowtail.

That Bass was really only 145 pounds?

Steve

[jurelometer]

I thought Kings were the larger version of our Yellowtail.

Pretty much.  Same species the last time that I heard -Seriola lalandi.  For some reason, they get much larger ones more frequently off New Zealand.

Haven't fished for them in New Zealand, but have caught them in Australia and Mexico.  Didn't notice  any difference in behavior or appearance.

Update:  But there is talk among the scientists of splitting into three sub-species:

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Larry-Allen-3/publication/277928176_A_Tale_of_Three_Tails_Cryptic_Speciation_in_a_Globally_Distributed_Marine_Fish_of_the_Genus_Seriola/links/5579f18508aeacff2003ce47/A-Tale-of-Three-Tails-Cryptic-Speciation-in-a-Globally-Distributed-Marine-Fish-of-the-Genus-Seriola.pdf


-J

[redsetta]

Hi Logan, I run two Accurate Obsidian BX600NNs - one on a Jig Star Twisted Sista for livies and one on an MC Works Southern Blue 548SS for jigging.
All the boat gear is the same - Maxel Transformers on Jig Star Twisted Sistas.
It's definitely like you've hooked the bottom, until it runs... 
By 20-odd metres deep, the swim bladder comes in to play and the fish becomes buoyant.
They're wildly strong...
Hope you're keeping well mate.
Cheers, Justin

[redsetta]

Hi lads,
If of interest, the chap who flew over from Nagasaki sent me a pic of one of the kings that typifies the size taken over the trip...
Around the time this pic was taken, sister-ship Radar Blue (in the background) boated and released a 52kg (115lb) king.



All the best, Justin

[alantani]

if i kill one of these in 60 seconds, can i lay the rod on the rail?  it works great for yellowfin tuna!