Hook, Line & Sinker

State Secrets

From the open ocean to wild trout in highland tarns, Tasmania is an angler’s paradise. The local lads from Hook, Line and Sinker spill the beans.

There’s no doubt Tasmania is currently the ‘in’ place to visit. I spent the best part of the last two decades being the butt of jokes whenever I told ‘mainlanders’ that I lived on the Apple Isle. These days the reaction is different. More often than not people ask me if they can come and stay!

That’s right, Tassie is an angler’s paradise!

The Apple Isle is a perfect road trip destination, but beware: it’s bigger than it looks. That means that, along with itineraries for fine wine and modern art, it pays to make plans if you’re heading down here to fish our pristine waters.

If you bring your boat (or even book a few charters/guides), the rewards are even greater, allowing you full access to some of the most stunning locations in the world.

Here are three spots (and species!) to add to your Tasmanian bucket list.

1 Southern Bluefin Tuna / Eaglehawk Neck

The Tasman Peninsula is just a 90-minute drive from Hobart. The deep water comes right in close to the coastline, which is made up of massive sea cliffs. The most popular place to launch your boat is at Eaglehawk Neck. This boat ramp offers you nearby access to many of the Peninsula’s tuna hotspots including the Hypolite Rocks, The Lanterns and Tasman Island. This place is unique in the world because you can catch giant Southern Bluefin Tuna just a few metres off the rocks as the sea cliffs tower a hundred metres above your head.

The fishing is easily done in a trailer boat, but there’s also a couple of really good charter operators who can take you out if you don’t have a boat. The most popular method for catching these tuna is trolling lures. You’ll need to make sure you have

strong gear as they can grow to more than 150kg in weight, although the average fish you’ll catch will be about 20kg. Best time to catch them is from March to July, although you can realistically catch them year-round these days as the population seems to have exploded in the past 20 years.

2 Wild Tassie Trout / Central Highlands

Once you have finished experiencing the wilds of the Tasman Peninsula, jump in your D-MAX or MU-X and drive about two hours into the Central Highlands of Tasmania. The best place to base yourself is the Great Lake Hotel. There’s a pub, shop and even a hire boat service.

Once you are at the Great Lake, you literally have hundreds of different trout fishing options available to you. The thing many visitors to Tasmania don’t understand is that pretty much every little lake, creek, river or even puddle holds trout!

If you fly fish, Tasmania is famous around the world for its wild brown trout in the shallow lakes, which are all eager to eat a dry fly over the warmer months. It’s very much a sight fishing destination, which means you can watch your trophy trout come up and eat your tiny fly, really getting the heart pumping.

But if you haven’t mastered the art of fly fishing, lure fishing with a normal spinning rod is another great option and should catch you one of the state’s trout. Basically, every river you drive over is worthy of a few casts.

My favourite place to fish is in an area called The Nineteen Lagoons, which is found in the Central Highlands and is the gateway to the Western Lakes wilderness fishery. You don’t need a boat here—just walk from lake to lake and keep your eyes open for big cruising trout. Blue sky days are best.

3 Striped Trumpeter / East Coast

Tassie has a species found off the coast which it could be argued are the best eating fish in the world. They’re called the Striped Trumpeter and they grow to more than 10kg in weight. They also fight really well and look great, meaning they tick all the boxes from an angling point of view.

‘Stripies’ are found along both the west and east coasts, but it’s the upper east coast that is a real fisho’s nirvana. You’ll need a boat as they are found in waters from 50 to 120 meters in depth. Find some reefy area and drop down fresh fish or squid baits.

The species also eats jigs, making them really fun to catch. Once you get one, look after it in ice and prepare yourself for some of the best fish you’ll ever eat.

As well as the fish above, Tassie is home to giant Black Bream, Big King George Whiting, Snapper and kingfish, as well as Swordfish. There’s also the Southern Rock Lobster and Abalone and … well, I’m out of space. It really is a seafood sensation!