Motuora Island

During a particularly fine October week, Clay and I decided to go on a fishing trip out to Motuora Island in the Inner Channel of the Hauraki Gulf. We picked out a weekday, in which there were very light north-westerlies, making for a still day on the water.

We towed our trusty tinny, Iris May (named after our little sister) and launched her from Big Manly beach in Whangaparaoa at first light, hoping to get out to the Inner Channel for a spot of fishing enroute.

While cruising, we spotted a few small Kahawai work-ups and decided to try our luck, fishing off the bottom for Snapper. We dropped line and managed to catch a nice Snapper for lunch.

It was then time to set course for Motuora Island, a DoC island reserve that serves as a sanctuary for young Kiwi. Kiwi chicks are released to feast on the abundance of insect life on the island and once grown are returned to the mainland. The island itself has a nice beach, walking tracks and a campground, making it an unreal summer spot!

At about 11am we landed at Home Bay on Motuora, anchored up and went for a quick dip in the crystal clear water. We dried off, visited the DoC office, and then settled up on a nice spot on the beach for some lunch.

I had earlier managed to cook up our snapper fillets on a small gas cooker, so we popped those in between a few slices of Mackenzie bread with some salad and had fish sandwiches on the beach, which we washed down with a can of Pals each.

All in all it was a nice quick getaway to an awesome spot. We are so lucky to live in such an amazing country where you can getaway to a rugged little island paradise in under a few hours.

Cheers!