Top kayak fisherman Lee Kennedy, takes seven species bag near Leigh with the help of mutant lure.

In Lee’s own words “the Leigh region’s been fishing awesome lately”. Always happy to experiment the respected kayak fisho took a Kabura head and modified to hold heavy-duty Beta Bug skirts. Remarkably, this mutant lure out fished everything, including softbaits.

Fishing in 50-metres of water Kennedy used several techniques to get results. Fishing it out of the rod holder while trying other gear worked well but the advised technique of a very slow retrieve seemed to be best. The seven species included kingfish, snapper, blue cod, kahawai, gurnard, porae and John dory.

The New Zealand Kayak Fishing Group

Kennedy and northern based mate Jason Kemp, put a lot of effort into the New Zealand Kayak Fishing Group. The Facebook group runs a number of competitions bringing some of the country’s top yak fishermen together with keen newbies. It’s a great way to learn the technically challenging and physically demanding sport in the company of those with plenty of experience.

We plan to keep track of the group’s activities and forward updates and invites as they come through. Lee mentioned his desire to hold an event in the Auckland region in the very near future, probably early March.

In the meantime, Kennedy plans to do a few more trips around Leigh where the weather’s been more settles and the water warmer.