Racking up the species

TATHRA

Darren Redman djsxstreamfishing@bigpond.com

If you like to chase a variety of fish species, Tathra is the place for you. It’s quite possible to rack up multiple species in a very short time.

A good way to accumulate several different species is by hugging the coastline or doing some rock hopping. Fish encountered may include small tuna species such as stripies, bonito and mac tuna. In addition to this, frigate mackerel, kingfish, salmon and tailor often make their presence felt.

Underneath these fish you may find mid-water species in the form of snapper or trevally, which are only too willing to pounce on an artificial jigged down deep.

If you are shore based, the wharf is a good starting point (just be sure to get there early to avoid crowds). Both lures and live baits are producing the goods. Between there and Kianinny Bay boat ramp you’ll find many a good rock platform in which to use similar

Early morning is the prime time, as predators look for remaining stragglers from the night-time activity.

Berleying is a great way to attract fish, and can be done both in the estuaries or off a beach. Striped tuna, mackerel and pilchards are very good for this form of attracting fish, berley bucket along with the tuna. If you don’t have a bucket, just use a small mesh keeper net and make some cuts into the fish to allow it to break apart. This works very well on the beach in conjunction with the wave force.

Lots of fun can be had in Brogo too, as the insect can take advantage of this by using them as bait, or imitating them with lures and flies. A good time to fish is in the afternoon and into the night, and early mornings can be productive, too. The magnificent beauty of fishing this area at this time of year is the balmy methods. Here the predators regularly patrol the fringes in search of small baitfish.

If surface action is quiet, you can try bait fishing from the rocks. The area is famous for its drummer and groper fishing.

Having a boat gives you more scope to go further afield. Once you leave Kianinny, there are many rocky headlands to target, with the best way being to troll. Trolling allows you to cover more water to find where fish are concentrated, which will often be around bait schools. Once you have located the fish, you have several options at your disposal. You can stay on the troll or try other methods including jigs, lures, or bait.

A boat also allows you to go further afield if things are quiet in close. Autumn is a great time for billfish, with the warm currents bringing black and striped marlin in very close to shore as they follow the bait schools. Keep an eye out for showing schools of this bait, as it will often mean there is a predator in the area. You then can match the hatch with either lures or bait.

Moving away from sportfishing, there is good table fare on offer for anglers wishing to target bottom-dwelling species. Snapper have been in good numbers up off Goalen Head and south to White Rock, with some mid-range kingfish mixed in. Flathead are also on the chew, with plenty of sandies out from most beaches, while the tigers are out in the deeper water. The deeper water clear weather, the multitude of fish and of course the variety of fish on offer. There is action on the high seas at the moment, with most days out of Bermagui at this time of year producing stories of marlin fought, lost, captured, or tagged. Everything is here – blacks, blues and striped – and nothing is more spectacular than a mighty blue carving up the water or a striped greyhounding. And blacks, well they are just spectacular!

The Twelve Mile Reef is the prime spot at present, especially for striped marlin, although blacks may be encountered close to the coast, with those big blues patrolling out around the Canyons. Lure fishing is probably the simplest way to encounter a billfish; many fish are being taken in this form, and a lot more raised. A good spread of lures working the deep water out beyond the Shelf will attract any willing blue, often with spectacular results, plus you have the added bonus of picking up tuna species and shortbilled spear fish.

As good as lures are, when marlin congregate around bait schools, live baiting becomes the number one option. Slow trolling live mackerel and small tuna will tempt any marlin’s taste buds, and there’s always a friendly mako or two only too willing to sample a wellpresented bait.

For the most spectacular form of bill fishing, go to switch baiting. This is done by running hook-less lures, often sweetened with a belly flap from a stripy sewn in to taste. Once the marlin come up on the lures, you allow the fish to grab the lure briefly before removing it from the water and replacing it with a bait. It’s really good fun.

Not only are the marlin on the chew, so are a lot of other species, and now you can fish for them as you wish.