Karratha

DAMPIER/KARRATHA Troy Honey

The Pilbara region in Western Australia is well known for its vast array of red dirt, which in many parts runs all the way to the coastline where it meets the sea. But just off the coast in Karratha is where you will find some of the best fishing for reds anywhere in Australia.

From Fortescue River to the south and Point Sampson to the north of Karratha there are several locations a boat can be launched and from here it is not too far offshore you will find plenty of ground holding solid reds. Species of reds in WA include, red emperor, saddle-tail snapper (large mouthed nannygai) and to a lesser extent, coral trout. All three species are at the top of any angler’s list when fishing for demersals off the northwest coast.

The waters off Karratha hold great numbers of reds and, this year particularly, we have seen them being caught in waters of less than 10m at times. Red emperors and saddletails are more commonly caught in depths around the 40m mark or more and this is where you will find numbers and size larger than in shallower waters. Coral trout on the other hand can be found very close to the mainland or around any of the islands in depths as little as 2m.

Fishing for reds in Karratha is usually done by bottom bouncing baits such as squid, octopus, mulies or a strip of fish fillet on a paternoster style rig or using the wide

For rods and reels, it really comes down to personal preference and will alter if you are using jigs or large sinkers. For many years it was the strong overhead rod matched with a large overhead reel. This combo has proven success when using large sinkers and fighting big fish, as well as out running the sharks to the top. But times have changed, and it is much more common to see lighter longer rods with smaller spinning reels for either bait or jigs or a dedicated jigging rod and reel combo.

All options have their good and bad points, so it A double hook-up for the Barret brothers while trolling lures around Hamersley Shoal in the Dampier Archipelago.

Matt Biluta has done well to bag a few nice red emperors on his recent trip to Karratha.

Mac tuna are everywhere throughout the Dampier Archipelago all year round. They can be finicky to gain a strike on trolled lures, but when the speed is matched to the mac tuna’s preference, it is game on. They fight all the way to the boat as Brad Barrett found out and once they see the boat for the first time, the mac tuna are renowned for going for another hard run.

variety of metal jigs or soft plastics. Everyone has their preferred option and success can change on any given day. My recommendation is if one style is not working when you are seeing fish on the sounder, try changing it up until strikes are achieved. really comes down to your personal preference or style of fishing you prefer. Things to consider when choosing your setup to use for red fishing is the likelihood of sharks, in which case you will need to put a lot of pressure on the fish to beat the sharks, what depth you will be fishing in and more importantly, what duration of the tide you will be fishing.

The tides in Karratha can be as big as 5-6m and between

tides this can create a lot of drag, to get to the bottom in this situation will call for heavy sinkers and jigs or down scaling your braid gauge so it slices through the water. On the top of each tide the drag will ease off and allow you to change your options. For these reasons, many anglers who fish North Western tidal areas will use two or more combos pre-rigged throughout the day, which enables them to change set ups to match the tidal and/ or shark conditions.

Now you are all set with your preferred tackle it is simply a matter of finding the fish. Well, not so simple in reality. Red emperor and saddletails can be found on the many lumps and bommies offshore from Karratha but here you will tend to be more likely to encounter plenty of smaller fish that can be frustrating as the constant

hook ups and releases weigh heavily on your time on the bottom. You are also much more likely to find sharks congregating in these areas and with the constant retrievals of the smaller fish stirring the sharks up, if you do hook up on a solid red, you will have an almighty challenge on your hands to boat him.

My preferred method, and one shared by many local anglers I fish with, is find fairly flat, coral bottom with ledges as low as half a metre that run for some length. This is where your 3D down scan comes into its own. Often anglers motor straight out past the fish in shallower waters. When you find this type of bottom, either try and set your drift so the boat runs in parallel to the ledge or keep motoring along the ledge until fish appear on the sounder. Any area offshore from Karratha with this type of bottom will be an area where reds can be found.

One trick I learnt from my time fishing in the Northern Territory was often when you are heading out to your favourite spots, or searching for new ground, try motoring a bit slower so you can read the bottom on your sounder well and if you see a small blip on the bottom that looks like it could be a fish, stop and drop straight on it. Nine out of ten times when you are in red country, it will be a good red emperor and his partner. You can pick up some great fish this way and significantly lower the impact of sharks on your days fishing.

Red emperors and saddletails prefer the cooler water, so it is at the bottom where you will find them searching for food such as squid, octopus and even crabs. Saddletail will feed higher in the water column at times as

they chase bait schools, which is a common trait of many snapper species.

The waters off Karratha are now well on their way to warming up and as such, the majority of larger reds will start to make the annual pilgrimage to stay in the cooler, deeper waters. Reds can still be found in close during the wet season, but numbers will be thinner, and sharks will become much more active, so it is recommended to stay away from bommies and try and fish areas less well known.

Coral trout have been caught in great numbers and size during September all around the islands of the

archipelago, offshore from Fortescue and 40 Mile as well some great catches coming in from the waters just off Point Sampson. The reef only a few miles out from Point Sampson which extends for many miles northeast of the shipping lane is an area that has been producing exceptional catches of not only coral trout, but ranking cod, blue line emperor, cobia, chinaman as well as reds such as saddletails and red emperors. Live bait fish caught around the channel markers have been working best and putting a short while in to fill the live bait tank before a few hours of fishing is a worthwhile investment.

Alongside the sensational demersal fishing in Karratha during September, the Spanish mackerel and sailfish have been firing and even a few reported black marlin captures have come in. The parking area for the iron ore ships has been the most productive for the sails and blacks as well as larger Spanish mackerel. For smaller macks between 900-1200mm, all the shoals surrounding the archipelago, Bare Rock to Kendrew Island and the reefs around the shipping channels off Point Sampson are holding good schools. Look for the birds feeding as an indicator to when the macks will be feeding.

Being out on the hot spots as the sun rises is always a winner when it comes to red emperor. Matt Biluta put the hard yards in and was rewarded with this prime example and a magic photo to boot.

Brad Barrett with a great red emperor landed in waters just 3nm from one of the islands in the Dampier Archipelago.

Trolling with PE4 gear while chasing Spanish mackerel behind Bare Rock in the Dampier Archipelago is always interesting as to what might strike. The author had a challenge on his hands when a thumper of a GT decided to take the lure and head straight for the rocks. After an epic fight and some good skippering by his mate Reuben, he managed to boat this GT that was easily in excess of 15kg.