A chilly wind was blowing, but nothing was going to deter Len Davenport from heading out on opening day of the whitebait season to try his luck for a scoop of the prized delicacy.
“I’ve been doing it now for about 15 years, since I retired. It fills in my day nicely!”
The Richmond whitebaiter never misses opening morning, and the water’s edge at Rough Island was dotted with like-minded fishers, all hoping the first day of spring would herald schools of the little critters.
“Once upon a time there was only three to four cars and now you get up to 25 cars in the weekend.
“But it’s good company. You go and have a yak – I enjoy the company as much as catching the whitebait.
Last year, his best daily catch amounted to “one and a half pounds”, or about 0.7kg, to be cooked up as patties, put in the freezer for another day, or given away.
“I give some to neighbours and I enjoy that.”
Some days he goes home without any whitebait.
“You have your good days, and you have your bad days. It beats mowing the lawns!”
The whitebaiting season opened on 1 September and runs until 30 October. Whitebait fishing regulations are available on the Department of Conservation website.
