Jamuary. 2011
Just a quick note to say thanks for the most enjoyable fishing charter on 31st December. Although the fish were not in abundance we had enough for a great feed that night. The time on board was relaxing and we were well looked atter. All in all - a great day.
Leon (and Darren, Derrick, Cedrick & Peter)

Gordon with his 13 lb snapper

Ian McBeth, Murray Lornie, John Edwards, Gordon Brown, and Kieran Woods on the ride home discussing the lack of rain in the district! Yeah right!

Murray Lornie’s Prize



Jesse Soares, 5 yrs old

 

Great Barrier trip. Guy holding his Hapuka

Northland Veterinary Group Fishing Trip

During October and November we ran a lucky draw fishing trip for our clients who had purchased Merial Ancare Product during that period. It was a bit of a different way of saying thank you for your support from the Northland Veterinary Group and from Merial Ancare. For me it was a chance to meet some of the clients at the Hikurangi end of the practice that I see infrequently and meet some of the others away from work.

The trip was out of Leigh and for most of us it started early in the day to get to the Leigh wharf on time. One of the team ,who shall remain nameless, started the day lost! After navigating him by mobile phone for a period he says , “Oh! I have the Navman in the car!” . Well that was not a lot of use unless his wife shows him how to use it!

We boarded the Minerva II which is a 48 foot open decked boat ideally suited to line fishing. In fact it was that stable that it was like fishing off a wharf. Surprisingly the trip only got away from the wharf 10 minutes late. Flat calm seas and anticipation was evident. We had just driven 1-2 hours so we bloody well ought to catch something! We tried a few spots and then settled on a promising one. We were fishing for an hour and the fish were starting to get bigger! Todd Skudder stole the show at that point with a 13 lb snapper. 20 minutes later Murray Lornie trumped that with a 35 lb Kingfish that I am bloody glad I did not break off when my line tangled on his.Everyone was hauling in fish when Gordon Brown said to me he did not feel like he was pulling his weight in the fishing stakes. This changed 15 minutes later when he too pulled in a 13 lb snapper. With 110 snapper on board we headed off to find some Scallops for dinner. While not plentiful they were in excellent condition.

We arrived back at our accommodation early and Neil Carmen and John Edwards started filleting. With 2 people working at it, the filleting took 3 1/2 hours. John Edwards was the legend at filleting not handing over his knife to anyone and at the end he had surely earned his beer. Johny Jochems provided some of the entertainment for the evening and I am sure that Rod Blagrove will have sore ribs from laughing nonstop for 15 minutes.

I would like to thank Des, Gordon, Neil, John, Johnny, Ian, Rod, Brian, and Murray our farmers on the trip and for buying Merial Ancare product. It is you guys who made this happen. Thanks to Todd who came up with the idea. To Kieran my son who helped gather the Scallops and mussels. To Lynn at the Leigh Fishing Lodge for her tolerance and hospitality. To Raymon from Leigh Fishing Charters a big thank you for your local knowledge and skill.
I would like to think we can do this again next year so watch this space. ( And support the sponsors!)
Ross Woods

Blue Cod caught at Little Barrier 19.03.11

Snapper caught at Little Barrier 19.03.11

To Raymond and Pam, just a quick note to say how much all of my friends are raving about our trip on your boat to Little Barrier. It was defiantly the best charter I have ever been on for both getting a good catch and a skipper who wants to do a good job and takes every opportunity to ensure we enjoyed the trip. The boat is great, plenty of space and sits well at rest.
Top job, I would highly recommend you guys to anyone, from booking to fishing it was all very easy.
Well done, and thanks.
Tony Woulfe. 
27^th March 2011