The Boat Left Without Him: 600m Offshore in Great White Territory | Hooked On Adventures

Rowan was diving behind an island in Foveaux Strait when he looked up and swore the boat had moved. His mate told him it was all in his head. A couple of crays later, there was no doubt: the anchor had lifted off a mound, and the boat was drifting away faster than he could swim. He swam flat out, towing a float, and got within arm’s reach but still couldn’t grab it. When he finally turned around, he was 600m offshore in great white territory. He tells us what happened next, what caused it and what he’d do differently.

Rowan runs Hooked On Adventures out of Invercargill, but he grew up in the Marlborough Sounds. His grandfather taught him to fish using old-school landmarks, and he caught a boat to school (with the odd line dropped on the way home). Since then he’s gone from a repowered 1997 Stabicraft to running 120km down the Fiordland coast out of Milford, deep dropping pinnacles where “it’s literally a lucky dip”.

We talk about the trick that cracked bluenose for him, why the big blue cod sit off the bottom, and the day 18 hours of nothing turned into a 30kg hāpuku on the last drop. He explains why southern bluefin now stick around for nine months of the year and why South Island game fishing is fast becoming a year-round fishery.

We also cover how Fiordland’s crays came back from the brink, and why using the whole fish matters more than ever.

Recorded live at the NZ Boat Fish Dive Expo, thanks to the legends at Daiwa.

Tight Lines, Loose Lips.

• 00:00 [Sounds Kid to Southlander] Grandad’s old-school marks, school by boat, and diving the deep south.
• 05:00 [Fiordland’s Lucky Dip] Resident bluefin, cracking bluenose, and a 30kg hāpuku on the last drop.
• 10:00 [The Boat Left Without Him] Big cod off the bottom, the rise of southern game fishing, and a 600m swim.
• 15:00 [Back to Basics] Relearning straylining in the Sounds, Daiwa gear, and fishing with the kids.
• 20:00 [Looking After the South] The drive into Milford, cray recovery, lower cod limits and sharks.
• 25:00 [Caught Out & Quick-Fire] Punching home through Foveaux Strait, then his favourite fish and feed.