Police are praising the preparedness of two Mosgiel fishermen who flipped their 4.3m Stabicraft boat at the Taieri Mouth bar just before midday.
The fishermen, who were wearing life jackets, managed to right the boat in shallow water before the Otago Regional Rescue Helicopter and water rescue crews arrived at the scene.
The Brighton Surf Life-saving Club responded with an IRB and two police units attended.
The fishermen, aged 42 and 60, launched their boat about 7am and were returning to shore in relatively calm conditions when they took a wrong turn as they tried to follow the channel through the low surf and the boat overturned.
They managed to retrieve most of their fishing gear but lost their day's catch.
The fishermen praised the quick response of emergency services, saying they were quite comfortable in the warm conditions but in winter it would have been a different matter.
