Rex, a commercial is given a quota that most stick to ... how is that greed?

It still doesn't alter the fact that fish are just a short distance offshore but they are not coming into the beaches. There must be a reason for this and it requires a little more thought than simply blaming everything on commercials. There have been people commercial fishing since Adam was a lad, they are not something new. There are commercials working from Tauranga and Gisborne but I don't hear local anglers putting up the hue and cry of those in this area.

Since I originally moved to Hawke's Bay and that is nearly forty-five years ago, snapper have never been a fish that were landed regularly in this part of the Bay. I have said this before but it's always ignored, simply look back on the Pania committee minute books, all catches in competions are recorded - I know this for a fact because I wrote the minutes and was the originator of sending out the club's newsletter. If members wanted to catch snapper they went to Mohaka ... nothing has changed. The club had a batch there right on the beach, it also had a Gnat for easy access.

We have five rivers that run into this part of the Bay all run through flatland that has in recent years been changed to dairy. It is recognized that dairy runoff is a strong contributory factor in pollution. It may not be the only reason but it sure could be one of a few. Add to this the way the harbour has been altered and this in turn has changed all the beaches north of the harbour. Has this upset fish feeding patterns, especially as snapper eat shellfish. There has been a lot written about those beaches in recent weeks. they used to be top swimming beaches and a child's playground. Now they are rubbish, requiring constant attention from heavy machinery, this could also be affecting bottom feeding fish coming close to shore.

Fishing has changed out of sight in those years. In three years of recording competition results, red cod were never seen or tope and spiney backs were a rarity. Why are they quite happy to come ashore now whilst gurnard and snapper aren't? There are two sides to this problem and it needs looking at the overall picture. Commercials haven't driven these fish in close, they come here because the feed suits them ... why? Is this simply ecology, everything changes over time.

Answer that question and you may have solved the riddle that is a burr under your saddle.

This is how I view fishing from the beach here in Hawke's Bay. I can't help but wonder which one of the two of us gains the most enjoyment from our chosen sport? This is the video record of Monday morning 11th of May, just two days ago.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZfBK51FXto