Offshore

On the first cast another large coral trout ate my plastic and swam straight into a bommie. I have never felt so out-gunned when using such a high calibre of gear. After hits and misses, a few little reefies such as stripey seaperch, a spanish mackerel and various sweetlip, we left the area with a score of coral trout five; …

NSW Minister for Primary Industries Niall Blair recently welcomed the passing of legislation through NSW Parliament with bipartisan support to expedite a trial of shark nets on five North Coast beaches. “Passing this legislation is an important step towards getting the shark net trial in place on the North Coast by the summer school holidays by streamlining the approvals process, …

The 20,000-litre fuel tank provides plenty of fuel capacity for the long haul out to Wreck Reefs and back..  As for your freshwater needs, she holds 13,500 litres of fresh water for showers, cooking and hosing off gear and the deck. Upstairs on the bridge, she’s equipped with all the latest electronic equipment such as a 64 nautical mile Furuno …

SHARK control nets on the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast are being removed from the water due to forecasts of strong winds and dangerous sea conditions. Fisheries Queensland Manager Shark Control Program Jeff Krause said a total of 22 nets were being removed. “With the Bureau of Meteorology forecasting winds in excess of 70km/h and ocean swells over 5m from this afternoon to Friday, we are …

“MBC and its partner agencies are committed to protecting Australia’s natural wildlife and resources. “However, the Australian public is also a valuable partner in helping MBC to identify maritime threats, so if you do encounter a ghost net I would urge you to report it to Border Watch on 1800 009 623.” More information on how Australia is working to …

Some good pearl perch were caught on the new moon in May, so definitely give them a go on the same moon in June if the weather allows. Pearlies really are one of the delicacies of the reef. The 50-fathom line is also holding a lot of squire but they are so small it’s not worth the effort and half of them …

On Wednesday it was still blowing, so they decided to try something different – chase squid at the mouth of Carlo Creek. Not saying it was breezy or anything, but the parachute had to be deployed just to slow the drift enough for the poor squid to get a look at the jigs. Just when the anglers thought it couldn’t get any …

As the squid come in towards the light you can use the squid net to scoop them up quickly.  The dimmer switch comes into play if the squid are staying out of reach of the net.  Once you have attracted the squid to the light, slowly dim the light and the squid will come closer until you can reach them. …

I landed a couple and had several wipe-outs when I hooked what I initially thought was just another small kingfish. But then I looked over the side and saw something orange coming up. Perplexed, I gave the handle a few more turns and saw a mangrove jack of 4-5kg nearing the surface. In that split second when I recognised what the fish …

With the fish now in range, I placed the gaff under the fish, lifted it into the Esky and quickly closed the lid. Dolphinfish have a habit of going absolutely crazy when you lift them into the boat, and there is a real likelihood that a flying hook could penetrate a leg or arm, so placing the fish into the confined …