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Stewart Island Fishing with Sails Ashore

Blue Cod … Parapercias colias

Stewart Island is the home of “Blue Cod”. Technically a member of the weaver fish family rather than a cod, we can thank Captain James Cook for the name, although he actually called it Coal Fish when he first saw it in Dusky Sound in 1773. The name since slipping into the now familiar “Blue Cod”)

A Fishing Trip

Blue Cod have no swim bladder, and live mainly on rocky or “hard” bottom. If they stop swimming they sink, and are often seen resting perched on their pectoral fins and tails

For many of our guests at Sails Ashore a fishing trip is a “must do” and so it was that several decided on a days blue cod fishing with Antony O’Rourke aboard Tequila. Tequila is a typical Stewart Island potting vessel, and as well as taking charter fishing trips also works as a commercial cod boat. As well as using traditional hand lines Antony takes along a commercial cod pot and shows his guests just how it’s done, and also how to fillet the catch. One of our guests was a surgeon who went through Med school with our daughter Anne. The general consensus was that she not give up the day job.

The Days Fishing

The Crew, about to depart

F/V Tequila, sailing for the fishing "Paddocks"

How the commercials do it. The skipper setting up a cod trap (cod pot)

A happy fisher, with a full house. Both hooks with a fish

A good mornings catch of excellent Blue Cod

Filleting the catch.

Shy Mollymawk alongside waiting for his dinner of the waste fish frames.

Some of the catch, ready to bring back to Sails Ashore

On the way home, enjoying a lovely day and the sea birds

Preparing dinner at Sails Ashore.

The Chef, Peter with a pan of just cooked blue cod fillets.

Simply the best. Blue Cod fillets, lightly floured and cooked in butter. No garnishing to disguise the flavour...... delicious

Dinner And of course afterwards what better way to end the day is with a good meal of Fresh Blue Cod. The cooking could not have been simpler. I rolled the fillets in a little flour, and fried briskly in good New Zealand Butter. A little parmesan with the flour might have been a good idea, but care need be taken not to overwhelm the delicate flavour. We had new potatoes fresh from Iris’ garden and a fresh lettuce salad, which included Vietnamese pickled vegetables, again from our garden…We were introduced to these by Tu, who also trained with Anne, and they are now a regular part of our summer salads. You can find some of our fish recipes on our food pages

Ulva Island for Disabled Visitors

Both Sails Ashore & Kowhai Lane Lodges are disabled friendly, and we are often asked if those less mobile can actually go to Ulva Island with us. The short answer is yes, as long as I can get you on and off Talisker. Once on the Island the trails are excellent, although there are many flights of steps. This does limit where we can take a wheelchair but we can still give our chair bound guests a great visit, and have done several times. Recently we had a guest with a leg off at the hip. I took him right over to Boulder Beach on his arm crutches, a distance of around 2k, with probably over 100 steps. And a couple of days ago my guests and I were astonished to see a group which included a woman using a Zimmer Frame (walker). And although I didn’t see her there she apparently also went over to Boulder Beach as well, and we saw her several times around the village. So for folks planning on visiting Stewart Island, please don’t be hesitant. Visiting Ulva Island is part of the Island experience and we will do our best to ensure our disabled guests can also enjoy it.am text block. t.