Striped Trumpeter on the Jig

How to target Tasmania’s premium fish

Jarvis Wall

It’s no secret that striped trumpeters are one of the most sought-after table fish in our southern waters. While plenty of fish are caught using more conventional methods such as bait, one thing that does seem to go under the radar is targeting these fantastic fish on artificial lures. Recently I have been spending quite some time putting in the hours to find out just how effective using metal jigs and even baited jigs can be and the results have been speaking for themselves. In this article, I’m going to share with you the tips and tricks that I’ve learnt over the past months of targeting striped trumpeters which will hopefully help you get the confidence to go out and find yourself having just as much fun as I’ve been having.

What is a Striped Trumpeter?

Striped Trumpeter or more commonly called “Stripeys” is a robust medium-sized fish capable of growing to around 120 centimetres in length but they’re more commonly found in the 50-80cm range. They can range in colour from plain white and brown to yellowy/ gold and brown and they’re easily identified by their 3 stripes that run horizontally down their top quarter. Although they do have little teeth inside their mouths, they have big blubbery lips which once a hook goes in, it doesn’t normally come out which is a massive bonus!

Habitat - Where to Find Them?

From the information I’ve gathered in my experiences with trumpeters, is that the correct type of bottom structure plays a huge part in finding success. I try to stay away from the really hard reef as you get so much unwanted by-catch for one bite from a trumpeter. I also believe that the trumpeter prefers the broken rubbly silt/gravel bottom for their hunting grounds. I’ve encountered a large number of trumpeters coming into the boat that are covered in silt coming out from their gills and all over their flanks. I’m a firm believer that they dig up the bottom and suck up crabs and other molluscs living in the silt and rubble on the ocean floor. Quite often these grounds are given away by huge showings of fish tight to the bottom which are usually huge schools of ocean perch. The trumpeter absolutely loves hanging around these massive schools of fish so never stray too far from a mark once you have found it as you’re certainly in the right area. It can be very hard to pick the bottom structure with your sonar as it’s generally not a big rise up off the bottom or a solid hard return like reef as the ground is still partially soft. If you find a likely area on your charts just spend twenty minutes driving around watching your sonar, putting the time into scout ground properly will pay off in the long run.

Techniques and Lures

This has been the most enjoyable aspect of spending the time targeting trumpeter with jigs as it’s been a completely blank page to start with. Trying to find out what they like hasn’t been that difficult though as it seems they’re quite happy to take a variety of lures from traditional metal slow pitch jigs through to soft plastics and baited jigs like the Vexed Bottom Meat. One question I often get asked is what size jig for what depth and a simple method I like to go on is for every one metre of depth add one gram to your jig and work up from there until you find what feels best on the given day, for example in 80 metres I’ll use an 80-100gram jig or if I’m fishing the West Coast in 140-160 metres I’ll use a 150-200 gram jig depending on the day. On the east coast, you can find fish pretty readily from 50 metres all the way out to 120 metres or deeper so your smaller jigs will work best here. You can find yourself having some amazing fun in the shallower water with light metals and light tackle. I like my metal jigs to be small but packing good weight, I believe the smaller profile definitely helps, not just for trumpeters either.

If I’m targeting trumpeter in shallower water with metals it’s generally a very energetic retrieve, with four to five slow-medium mechanical jigs up off the bottom then a complete un-braked free spool and fall back to the bottom. I’ve found with the slowpitch jigs, if you do try and brake the fall with your thumb they don’t flutter on the drop and actually sink dead straight which is far less effective. A lot of the time you’ll feel the trumpeter clunk your jig while it’s in total free fall and that’s because the jig is falling slower by fluttering correctly than it actually would be if you were trying to aid the fall by slowing it manually. It’ll take a little to get your head around it but the results will speak the truth. When picking brands to use my go-to’s are Little Jack Metal Addicts in 80-150 grams and Vexed Dhu Drops in 110 and 130 grams.

When it comes to the deep water side of stripey jigging, I always find myself going for something like a baited jig to begin with as it’s generally going to be dark and if it’s the West coast for example the fish are more scarce than the East but usually larger on average. A slowly worked Vexed Bottom Meat in either a 150gram or 200-gram weight would definitely be my first pick. Dressed up with a strip of squid, these lures are extremely deadly on striped trumpeter. I’ve found you don’t have to work the Bottom Meats as thoroughly as the scent of the squid works most of the magic down in the darkness. It’s easy to get excited when you feel a fish bite but be patient as the little pickers can be annoying, especially if you are constantly hooking them and winding them up 140 metres. The desired trumpeter will just come in and annihilate it, there’s no mistaking their bite. Set the hooks and hold on!

Gear of Choice

Slow pitch jigging rods are a very specifically designed piece of equipment. Finding the correct rod for you can be as easy as matching up the jig weights you plan to use with the ratings of the recommended jig weight on the blank of the slow-pitch rod you’re looking at. I have found that PE ratings are far too inconsistent between brands which makes it hard to match one brand’s ratings to another so basing your choice on a rods jig rating is far more reliable than trying to go off of a PE rating. For example, if I plan to mainly use 80-150 gram jigs I’ll look for a rod that has a jig rating in that area as that rod is going to work the jigs I plan to use most effectively. My set-up is a Howk Hot Spot 150 slow pitch jig rod with either a Shimano Ocea Conquest 200HG spooled with a 15kg Gosen braid for when I’m in shallower water on the east coast. When I’m fishing deeper on the West Coast, I opt for a Shimano Ocea Jigger 2000nr-xg spooled with 15.8kg Tasline and I tie on a 20kg leader for both scenarios. Try to avoid using thick heavy braids as they’re more at liberty to the currents and finding drag which causes an unwanted belly in your line, direct contact is imperative.

One of the most important tools you can use is your sonar unit and transducer set up, being able to sound up the correct areas to fish and the fish themselves will make your success rate go through the roof! Quality gear equates to quality readings which end up leading you to better results so if you’re dead set on getting into jigging of any sort it’s definitely worth investing in a top-quality set-up. I run a Garmin 8416xsv with a Garmin TM275LHW 1kw transducer which is a great option for the deeper water and I also have a Garmin 953xsv set up with a Garmin GT56UHD transducer which is great for the areas from 50 metres out to 80 metres.

One gram of weight for each metre of depth will help you select the correct jig for your location.

Hopefully, this helps you find some striped trumpeter next time you’re out on the water and also gets you enthused to try to catch one of these amazing fish on the jig as it’s a bundle of fun and a great way to find yourself with an ice box full of beautiful table fish!