Mokihinui Gentle Annie Beach – Westland

Mokihinui Gentle Annie Beach

You can catch snapper, kahawai, rig shark, conger eel, stingray, gurnard, and other species from Mokihinui Gentle Annie Beach. It is a steep, shelving, shingle beach with deep water well within casting range. I was there one year when a bloke caught a blue shark off the beach, and another angler landed a big stingray! One year, Ron Prestage caught a huge 38kg eagle ray to win the Christmas holiday surfcasting contest open section.

At times, there can be large numbers of red cod caught from this beach.

A fishing contest is held over the Christmas holiday period. It runs for 10 days and is popular with campers staying at the river mouth camping ground. This is a beautiful part of the world with excellent fishing. Also, brown trout in the river. Excellent white-baiting during the season.

There are also brown trout in the river, but they can be difficult to catch when the river is low over summer.

The Mokihinui River is popular with white-baiters during the season, which starts on the Coast on 1 September.

Half an hour by car north of Westport. Mokihinui Gentle Annie Beach is a fabulous surfcasting beach on the north side of the Mokihinui River mouth. This really is a delightful wilderness area of mostly unspoilt native bush. The place is also popular with white-baiters during the season. You can catch snapper, kahawai, rig, conger eel, stingray, gurnard, and other species from this steeply shelving beach, so try a variety of rigs and baits. Kahawai can also be present in big numbers, so be sure to carry some ticers and a spinning rod. Better still, why not target the kahawai from the beach and river mouth on light spinning gear? Indeed, this is one surfcasting place where every time you cast out, there is a good chance of catching a good edible fish.

The area seems to attract its fair share of sharks with rig and big school sharks in summer. It is always worth casting out a good-sized shark bait on one rod when surfcasting.

Try a variety of baits to appeal to different species. There are plenty of yellow-eye mullet around, which make ideal surfcasting bait.

Be sure to apply plenty of bug spray, especially in the evening, as there can be a lot of sand flies on the beach. Many people from other parts of the country often mistakenly believe that it rains all the time on the South Island’s West Coast. During the Christmas period, sure, it can rain sometimes, but the beaches on a hot day can seem positively tropical. The Mokihinui River, with its camping ground and Gentle Annie surfcasting beach, is a fantastic fishing holiday destination.

Gentle Annie, Accommodation, Camping, Cafe, and Photographs.