Top Catch

The Author

– John Eichelsheim

John Eichelsheim is author of Top Catch: Hook up New Zealand’s top 12 species, a celebration of New Zealand’s top fish species and a practical guide on how to catch them. He himself got hooked on fishing as a child, and is still passionate about piscatorial pursuits. John is a regular contributor to NZ Fishing News, Boating NZ and other publications, and was the author of the successful Mad Keen Fisherman’s Road Trip (2007). A former teacher, then editor of New Zealand Fisherman, John is now a freelance writer and editor, and subedits NZ Fishing News and Boating NZ as well as providing editorial services to a range of marine businesses. He is active in fishing television and radio, and has been a Boat of the Show judge at the Hutchwilco New Zealand Boat Show for many years.

Top Catch looks at species with appeal for anglers in both of New Zealand’s main islands and which are accessible to the average angler, as well as some more ‘aspirational’ species that need to be caught with specialist gear: snapper, kahawai, blue cod, trout (brown and rainbow), kingfish, trevally, apuku/groper, tuna (yellowfin and albacore), tarakihi, salmon, gurnard and marlin (striped, blue and black). Drawing on over 40 years of experience fishing around the country, he tells personal stories of his own ‘top catch’ for each species, then provides biological/geographical information on the fish, the nuts and bolts of tackle and technique, including the peak season, and the current records (biggest fish ever caught, etc).