May – June – July 2017
TASMANIAN FISHING and BOATING NEWS — ISSUE 127
5 Learning to Fly Fish
18
Jurassic Bream
23
Coastal catches
Print Post approved 100003074
27
Game Fishing
Winter, but still good Fishing Matt Sherrif with Elle the elephant fish. See more inside
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Summer has gone, but it just means shorter days and less time to fish. But the fishing can still be hot.
There are plenty of fish you can target and large ones at that. Jumbo Southern bluefin tuna abound and deep water fishers can load up on delicious bottom fish such as trevalla, gemfish, rays bream, hapuka and more. Inshore there are still plenty of bream, Australian salmon and calamari to name a few. There is no sea breeze to worry about, but that doesn’t mean it’s not cold. So rug up.
The shorter days mean less fishing hours on the water, so make sure you are well prepared before heading off for a fish. Be even more vigilant about informing people where you are going and when you should be home. If you have any dramas you may end up trying to resolve them in the dark.
Learning to Fly — Frank Fisher
5
Canning Fish – A Taste Sensation — Michal Rybka
11
Dressed to Kill — Steve Starling
16
Jurassic Bream — James Sinnamon
18
Garfish time
23
Game On — Kelly Hunt
27
Tamar Elephant Fish – Searching for Elle — Matt Sherriff
33
Marine Fisheries News
37
T
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COL
: 08
BULLDOG CRANK
New publishing schedule
• 38mm • 10 Colours • UV Colours • Dives to 2m • Weighs 4g
Dec-Jan Feb-April May-July Aug-Sept Oct-Nov There will be no less news or stories. In fact most editions will bigger. Since its inception over 20 years ago the readership has never dropped off and the website www.tasfish.com gets huge visitation. If you are ever looking for fishing information take a look there. It has an amazing backlog of stories. Anything on Tasmanian fishing will be hiding in the huge archives.
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: PR
TANGO SHAD
• 50mm • 15 Floating colours • 15 Suspending colours • Dives to 1.6m • Weighs 4g
he big news is we are changing the magazine schedule to five issues a year. I have been at this job for over twenty years now and this seems a good way to have a little bit of a break. We will combine three issues between February and July into two, when fishing can be a little quieter. All subscriptions will continue as normal and a two years subscription will now be $60 instead of $70. This issue was late off the mark possibly because I am getting old/er. My search for a new Editor has borne some results, but we will take some time to get that up and working effectively.
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For more information please visit
All material is copyright and cannot be reproduced without the permission of the publisher. Print Post approved; 100003074
Fishing News - Page 2
If you have a story or idea to contribute we would love to see it. If you fish, and I assume you do or you wouldn’t be reading this, you have a story. You just need to get it on paper with a few good photos. Sens an email mike@tasfish.com with your idea or outline and he will guide you from there.
Trout Weekend 20-21 May
Liawenee is a big weekend for IFS and like always it will be a huge success. For many years it draws a fantastic crowd and becomes the hub of all Tasmania for a weekend. This year it is being held May 20-21 so organise your mates or family and get along.
Get out and fish
I have had some of my best fishing in Winter. Yes, it can be cold, but rug up and get on the water. There is a story on Winter garfishing. It is a doddle to follow and is a pretty easy way to have fun with the kids or mates. You just need to pick the tide, do a bit of preparation and away you go. It is quite a visual way to fish and you can see the garfish charging around in the berley trail. They are as good to eat and easy to prepare. Why not invite some mates along and have some fun. Mike Stevens
Mike Stevens talks fishing with Chris Wisbey ABC Statewide Saturday mornings 6.40 a.m.
Tasmanian Fishing and Boating News Published by Mike Stevens: PO Box 7504, Launceston, 7250. Mike Stevens – P: 0418 129 949 or E: mike@tasfish.com Stevens Publishing, ABN 79 095 217 299
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Fishing News - Page 3
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H
Learning to Fly Frank Fisher
A
Watch the back cast and stop at 2 o’clock.
t exactly 1pm on Sunday January 8, by the banks of Bronte Lagoon in the Tasmanian Highlands, John Hepburn, President of the Devonport Fly Fishing Club addresses 100 people. “Welcome to our fly fishing school.” Twenty four of us are here as ‘beginners’. We will wear the green name-tags for the duration of the course. Some have used a fly rod before, but most are
approaching the sport for the first time. For the next five days our eyes will be opened to the world of fly fishing. We will be taught by experts. We will study and practice. The class of 2017 is nervously hoping that, by Friday, we will leave with enough skills to head out on our own. Many are already imagining the taste of that first trout. As I’ll learn in the days ahead, the club members who donate their time are thinking about the long game, that
another generation of fly fishers will be born; that if we don’t have all the skills, at least we’ll have their passion to keep trying and loving the sport. I have always had reservations about ‘learning to fly’. I even held some of those reservations as I drove up to the lakes, loaded with my hopes and camping gear. I’m a keen fisherman. I love throwing lures at fish in estuaries, in rivers and on lakes. Will learning to entice
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Fishing News - Page 5
‘I am about to show you why it is essential to wear a wading belt’. There were many practical demonstrations that pressed the point home. fish to take a fly, and all the skills that are required to do it, be worth it? What additional satisfaction will I gain as I bring a fish to the net if it’s been deceived by feather and fur, rather than plastic or wood? Perhaps it was the vests that had raised questions for me. Spinning requires a small roll of spare flouro leader and a few extra lures. Fly fishers always seem weighed down by a library of vest pockets filled with who-knows-what, and an assortment of surgical tools on retractable wire. What is so complex about the sport that all this is required? To some extent I was calmed by a delivery from your editor, Mike Stevens. ‘You don’t need a vest’ he assured me. I opened a small paper bag that he had dropped to me at camp. It contained a necklace with three things attached. Line clippers, some floatant, and a small spool of five pound line. With the addition of ten basic flies he assured me I could walk anywhere ready to fish. Was it possible to add enough of the foundation skills of fly fishing in a one week camp? We were about to find out at Bronte. I mention the precise time of the start of the course for a reason. It is the time mentioned on the course syllabus. This is the syllabus that I showed to my deeply sceptical partner who had assumed I was leaving our
little family for a week of drinking and fishing by a lake. The reality is closer to five days at trout university, a lakeside summer-school if you will, with lectures set to a timetable that aims to cover as many aspects of fly fishing as you can manage in a week. Participants had come from around Australia. There was a majority Tassie contingent as you’d expect, but participants had driven in from South Australia, Victoria, NSW. Queensland and the ACT. The interstaters seemed to have a lot of camping style; nice caravans, all the mod-cons. The locals were in a collection of caravans and tents, some more wind and rainproof than others but together we all tucked in to tussocks and swales of the southern end of Bronte to spend our week together. There were the inevitable and necessary safety briefings, an introduction to the air horn that would signal a countdown to the start of each class and a heartfelt message from big Max, that the camp was a family friendly place and that the behaviour of all attendees was expected to protect that reputation. And then it was down to the water’s edge to learn about water safety in waders. Did you know you needed to get your knees up to preserve air, valuable buoyancy,
in the case of a fall into the drink? Wading belts were compulsory and in the first session I learned why, to keep water out and air in. Club member Matt even jumped into the water to show the right and wrong ways to handle a spill. Then it was time to set up our gear. For about half the group, myself included, this involved starting from scratch. We were literally taking the wrapping off rods and reels and putting it together for the first time. Backing was attached to reels, line to backing and leader to line and then everyone handed their gear to an instructor who made sure it was fit for purpose for the week ahead. I had chosen a $295 six-weight combo that just needed to be taken out of the case and a fly attached. A few chose to hold off on their investment and borrow club gear for the week. At the other end of the spectrum some were rolling out some extremely high end equipment. My camp neighbour, Mark, almost sheepishly busted out his ‘House of Hardy’ rod and reel combo. Some beginners kit! I was envious. But it wasn’t time to start casting yet. Wax-on, wax-off. Remember the training of the Karate Kid? Before he could fight he needed the foundations. Day 1 finished with casting theory, the
It was a captive audience that was captivated as well. Fishing News - Page 6
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w
Where the wild ones are. In the heart of the Western Lakes region on Tasmania’s Central Plateau, Thousand Lakes Lodge is the ultimate base for your next wild trout fishing adventure. Known as the land of a thousand lakes, the area has many alpine tarns formed by ancient glaciers. The Lodge, only 1.5hrs drive from Launceston or 2hrs from Hobart, has undergone a remarkable transformation — from former Antarctic training facility to premium alpine accommodation. Experience world-class fishing in this remote yet stunning World Heritage Area, then retreat to the warmth and comfort of the Lodge. Enjoy premium guided experiences or create your own adventure. Explore the Lakes and discover the real Tasmania. Book now at thousandlakeslodge.com.au
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Fishing News - Page 7
principles that make casting a fly so different to what most of us are used to, casting a lure or bait. I will never forget instructor Adrian explaining the importance and beauty of a ‘tight loop’ and then showing us out on the grass. His loops were sweet things of beauty, generated with little effort. At the end of day one I put away my rod hoping that tomorrow I’d be making some tight loops of my own. The Devonport anglers are a broad church. The volunteers who dedicate their time to make up the annual fishing school take on responsibilities from keeping the camp clean to running the event. Partners are heavily involved too. The casting is taught by members who are experts, with qualifications through the international teaching body. What this means for the students is that, as we gathered for day two, the beginning of practical casting practice, the sessions would be beautifully simplified with foundation skills emphasized and then built on in the days ahead. All teachers worked from the same foundation principles so they could pick up where others had left off without confusing the student.
A large rectangular grassed area had been prepared with some target hoops in the centre. We lined up, some into the wind, some with it, and started flogging the air. Instructors would move up and down, taking four or five students each, suggesting improvements, providing encouragement and then demonstrating how, with seemingly no effort, they could achieve the same casting result using timing, rather than power. Like trainee soldiers with wooden guns we whipped our bright orange pieces of wool back and forward at the end of the line. A knot tying session followed with lots of chances to practice, a session on leaders, and then more casting, with the addition of theory on striking and playing fish. The evening class was on fly tying, with three instructors setting up their vices and demonstrating the art of ‘making your own’. Many of us chose to finish the day taking advantage of Tassie’s long summer evenings with a sunset trip to the water’s edge to try our luck on the fish. Gordon, from Mount Gambier, returned to camp triumphant with a handsome brown to show for his efforts. It elevated his status for the rest of the camp.
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The next couple of days combined theory and practice in equal parts, from studying the contents of a vest, to the contents of a trout stomach, to the insects that live by the lake, their life cycle, and how to find a fly to match. Stream craft and strategy were a focus too. These lessons were administered under the club’s giant marquee which could accommodate 100 camp chairs and protect the camp participants from the cold winds, beating sunshine and rain that blessed the camp in alternate half-hour blocks. As the course progressed friendships were formed over morning coffee and evening meals. Students found common interest with other students, and, importantly the instructors and club members all seemed to be ready for a chat about anything at anytime. This wasn’t an annual event that the Devonport fly fishers had marked down as a week for them to just talk with
their mates. In my experience this isn’t always the case in other group settings. Often, while chatting over a beer in the evening you could see the young camp members, keen as mustard, practicing their casting or fly-tying. There is a real family atmosphere. Instructor Adrian even brought his six week old along. In the days since the course wrapped up I’ve tried my fly gear on salmon and flathead, I’ve caught up with a fellow class mate for a trip to the Tyenna and, as I type this article and an insect lands near the light of the screen I look at it and consider a fly pattern to match. The Devonport Anglers Bronte Fly Fishing School is a special place, the club members and their families bring their passion and experience to put on the camp. It costs less than $130 to attend and it couldn’t be more welcoming. If you’re thinking about becoming a member of the class of 2018 jump on their website and have a look. All that remains for your author is to catch my first trout on fly.
Learning to cast was an initial goal of most, but there was so much more that helped future fly fishers understand the whole spectrum of fly fishing.
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Fishing News - Page 9
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Fishing News - Page 10
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Taking smoked fish to a whole new level Michal Rybka
Canned - or jarred in this case, has long been an outstanding way to preserve food of many types without refrigeration. Many believe it enhances the flavour. You can preserve any fish, meat, or vegetables.
Introduction
S
moked trout is a true delicacy in my household. I have been smoking trout since I was a child, carefully guided by my father who passed on the skills that I use today. There are many ‘fishos’, like me, who like to prepare their trout this way. Typically, it involves curing the trout fillets or whole trout in a brine or dry rub, and then hot or cold smoking them. Those of you who already smoke your own trout will agree that this is a truly rewarding hobby that compliments trout fishing. The end product can be eaten on its own, made into a dip, stirred through pasta or used on canapés. One of the other benefits of smoking your own trout is that you are eating something that is not farmed! The shelf life of smoked trout can vary, depending on the method used (i.e. hot smoking or cold smoking). Either way, you generally can’t store smoked trout past one month in the fridge (in a vacuum sealed bag). So how do you extend the shelf life of fish and other products without freezing them or the use of chemicals or preservatives? The answer is to ‘pressure can’ your smoked trout. This method can be safely used on all forms of food, whether it be tuna, venison, beef, chicken, fruit or vegetables. Pressure canning involves sealing food in jars, then putting the jars into a large, pressurized pot that raises the temperature of the food products inside the jar far above boiling point for a given period of time. Pressure canning preserves flavour, nutrients, and tenderises tougher cuts of meat. Typically, home
pressure canning is done at 115° C. This type of temperature can only be achieved in a purpose designed vessel, which is basically a big pressure cooker with a pressure gauge. You certainly won’t be able to just do it in a water bath on your stovetop like grandma does with her jam preserves. Three things are done to the jars as a result of the pressure canning process: Removal of oxygen: the jar expels any oxygen inside it, which could spoil food. Heat sterilisation: any nasties that could interfere with food safety are killed. Sealed jar: as a result of the expelled air, a vacuum seal is created inside the jar so that nothing can re-enter the now sterile environment inside the jar. The end product is very tasty and shelf-stable. That’s right, no refrigeration required! You are making a homemade version of canned fish, just like the ones found in the canned produce aisle of your favourite supermarket, but, in my opinion, the homemade version is far superior. This is because you can use wild caught trout and avoid using artificial preservatives. You can even add flavourings such as hot chilli sauce, barbecue sauce or your favourite herbs and spices. The flavour possibilities are endless.
Getting back to the matter of shelf life - you can store your canned trout in a cool pantry, out of direct sunlight, for up to 5 years! It is hard to believe that this is even possible, but you will find that most pressure-canned foods have a similar shelf life. If you are familiar with the American TV show, Doomsday Preppers, you would have seen people regularly use this method. The yanks use it to fill their cellars or bunkers with food so that it will last for many years in storage, without the use of refrigeration.
What you need to do it:
You will need a pressure canner. The canner typically consists of a large pot. You get a ‘rest’ that slips into the base of the pot to stack your jars on. This prevents the jars from cracking when boiling. There’s a lid with a gasket to seal the unit. An easy to read pressure gauge is attached to the lid. To control the pressure, there is an old-fashioned pressure cooker bell fitted to the lid. You simply add or remove the provided weights onto the bell to reach the desired canning pressure. Different foods require different canning pressures and times – this information is provided in the instruction manual. As you can see, a pressure canner is nothing more than a big pressure cooker with an inbuilt pressure gauge - a very simple device that should last for many years. While a pressure canner is not overly expensive, it is also not cheap. I use a ‘Presto’ branded canner, which has
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Fishing News - Page 11
Step 3
Check the jars, lids and bands for proper functioning. Look for jars with nicks or cracks and rims or lids with sharp edges or irregularities – these things may result in problems with lids sealing or jar breakages. There should be no scratches on the underside of the lids and the sealing compound (around the edge) should be complete and even (this is why new lids should be used each time). Bands should fit on jars. Wash canning jars, lids and bands in hot, soapy water. Rinse them well in hot water and leave to dry.
You will also need jars that are suitable for canning. The only jars that are thick enough and safe enough to do this with are the American ‘Ball’ mason jars. They are constructed of thick, heat resistant glass and come with a two-piece lid. You can sometimes find these at your local supermarket and at some home ware stores. I use the half-pint size versions (240 ml), although you can get them in much larger sizes, up to one litre. The 240 ml version retails around $4.00 each. Although they are pricey, you can re-use them over and over again. As a side note, you will need to use a new lid each time; however, these are relatively inexpensive to buy. Note that the lid is a two-piece assembly and you only need a new lid – you can reuse the band.
Pressure canning smoked trout Step 1
a huge 21-litre capacity. This means that I can process a lot of food at once, saving time and effort. A canner like this generally retails at around $200– a sound investment in my opinion. I have not seen them in Tasmanian stores, but they are readily available online from mainland suppliers. The power of Google will point you in the right direction. You could also try your luck at your local tackle or kitchen supply outlet – if they don’t have one in stock, they may be able to order one in for you.
Part of the secret to getting any smoked fish right is the brine. It is the first part of the preserving or curing process and is a crucial step that cannot be overlooked; however, when you are canning your smoked trout, this step is not required (you will see why later). The first step is to place your fresh trout fillets (skin left on) into your smoker. Cold smoking is the best way to prepare trout for canning; however, most of us don’t have a cold smoker. The solution is to just get a lot of smoke going in your hot smoker. Try to get the temperature as low as it will go. You may need to leave the door slightly ajar for this to happen. Stick the fillets on your smoking racks and give them only 15 minutes or 20 minutes in that intense smoke. The aim is to not cook the fillets, but rather just lightly smoke the fish. The fillets need to be practically raw when you take them out of the smoker.
Step 2
Next you will need to skin them. This is achieved by running a sharp knife between the skin and the fillet. Any bones left in the fillet are fine – they will melt when the trout is canned! Cut the fillets into smaller pieces. The size will depend on the jar size that you intend to use. Fishing News - Page 12
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Fishing News - Page 13
Step 4
Place the trout fillet segments inside the jars (there is no need to add water or oil). Arrange them neatly against the glass and squeeze as many as you can into the jar. Just squish them in! Aim to minimise any air pockets. Also, remember to leave an air gap between the lid and the trout fillets. A couple of centimetres will do – this is important.
Step 5
The finished product can be stored without refrigeration and enjoyed anytime. It is similar to canned tuna, but so much better.
Add half a teaspoon of sea salt per every half-pint sized (240 ml) jar. The salt just goes on top of the fillets – no mixing required. This step replaces the need to brine the fish prior to smoking. It is designed to enhance flavour. Plain sea salt is perfectly good to use, and nothing else needs adding.
Step 6
Clean the rim and threads of each Mason jar using a clean, damp cloth to remove any trout residue. Centre the lids on each jar allowing the sealing compound to come into contact with the jar rim. Apply the jar bands and adjust until they are fingertip tight.
Step 8
For canning any type of fish, I set the canner on 10 lbs of pressure. The jars will need to be processed in the canner at this pressure for not less than 100 minutes.
Step 9
Once the canning time is complete, turn your stove top off. Let the canner sit and cool naturally so that the pressure returns to zero. Don’t open it unless you want an explosion in your kitchen! You will hear the jar lids ‘pinging’ as the unit cools. This is a sign of the jars vacuum sealing and it’s perfectly normal.
Step 10 Step 7
Place your jars, filled with smoked trout, into your canner. Fill the canner to the correct level with warm tap water. Seal the lid and follow the manufacturer’s instructions to get it up to pressure. Fishing News - Page 14
Once the canner is cool, remove the jars. Add labels to the lids (I always put the date and what’s inside). You can then open a jar and eat the trout straight away, or store it in your cellar or pantry.
Conclusion
The end product is similar to a can of smoked tuna that you find at any supermarket – only much better! You will find that the salt has penetrated every part of that fish, bringing out the superb natural flavour. Forget adding olive or vegetable oil - the smoked trout fillets will be floating in their natural oil. Any bones will have melted, leaving a pure delicacy for you and your family to enjoy. Pressure canning is another great method for storing trout (and many other foods). Although I have discussed smoked trout here, you can use exactly the same method for canning unsmoked, fresh trout, or any fish for that matter. Just skip step 1. The end product will be the same, minus the smoky flavour, which some of you may even prefer. TIP – To all of those who like to catch tuna – this method is also perfect for making your own canned tuna! See you all at Liawenee in May. Mic Rybka (Strike Tiger Lures)
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Fishing News - Page 15
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Up close and personal
Dressed to kill
Applying finesse to fishing clothing Steve Starling
I
believe the clothes you choose to wear when you go fishing can have a direct impact on your catch rate. Those familiar with my work in magazines, videos and on TV will know that the concept of “finesse” has become a personal mantra for me over the past couple of decades. The more I study fishing in all its forms, the greater my faith in the power of finesse becomes. Without exception, I believe that anglers who apply extra effort to concealing their presence from the creatures they pursue will hook more fish. This boils down to the ability to present a bait, lure or fly to a fish without that target becoming aware that a trap has been set. Over the years, I’ve talked a lot about refining our tackle to achieve this goal: using longer, finer and more neutrally coloured leaders, skinnier main lines, smaller sinkers, less obtrusive terminal connections and so on. But we also need to think about concealing our own presence from the fish. This might mean hanging further back and making longer casts, or trolling with an electric motor rather than an outboard. It could even mean drifting our boat or kayak quietly into position with the wind and tide rather than powering straight up to a spot. Being sneaky definitely pays dividends.
See without being seen
I’ve always tried to take this sneakiness one step further by avoiding wearing brightly coloured clothing and flashy accessories that could be more visible to the fish I hunt. This is especially critical when “sight fishing” for any species. There’s an old saying that if you can see a fish, it can see you. In many instances, this is true. Years ago — when I was first learning the fundamentals of fly fishing in some fairly marginal and difficult trout rivers out around Crookwell, Laggan and Taralga in southern central NSW — I repeatedly had the importance of stealth hammered home by my on-water experiences. One particular stretch of stream we favoured in those days was heavily overgrown with willow trees. Narrow enough to jump across in many places, this secretive little creek twisted between banks composed almost entirely of the matted, red tendrils of densely packed willow roots. Fishing News - Page 16
Matching your clothing to the environment when fishing doesn’t necessarily mean giving up on comfort, style or looking good! This hidden jewel would occasionally open into slightly larger pools, completely canopied by a dense roof of impenetrable greenery. Fishing in that dark underworld was a wonderful game of hide-and-seek, characterised by painstakingly slow movement while constant scanning of the dappled water that gurgled between twisted tree trunks. Some nice brown trout lurked way back in there, but they were tricky critters to catch. Conventional fly-casting was virtually impossible. This game was all about close quarters engagement: hands-and-knees approaches and short flicks, daps, dangles or bow-and-arrow casts to get a fly into the water. Trout were often hooked with just a rod length of line and leader outside the tip runner, sometimes much less.
Starlo is a great believer in wearing fishing clothes that help you blend into your surroundings, no matter what species you chase. There is no blending in here...
Being close enough to your quarry to literally count its spots was an illuminating experience. The importance of concealment was glaringly obvious. Detection of the slightest suspect movement or unnatural patch of colour amongst the foliage was enough to send a trout sliding quickly away into the dark recesses of undercut banks. Only “happy” fish that continued to swerve freely from side-to-side sampling current-borne morsels were susceptible to our flies. Maintaining that “happy fish” behaviour hinged entirely upon remaining undetected as the angler crouched above. Over the seasons, I became choosier and choosier about what I wore and the gear I carried on this secret stream — and elsewhere. Jungle-style camouflaged clothing was a no-brainer, but I eventually took this level of subterfuge a step further, cutting down an old fly rod and concealing its outline with random daubs of green and brown paint. In the end, I even bought a tub of that camouflage make-up style greasepaint that hunters and soldiers sometimes use to disguise their faces. Did it work? Definitely! I was blown away by how close I could crawl to feeding trout before ever so slowly extending my rod out through a handy gap in the branches above them and gently plinking a nymph into the current. Thanks to this adoption of the ultimate in stealth mode tactics, I firmly believe I hooked a lot of fish that would otherwise have remained virtually untouchable.
Finessing lessons
Those lessons have stayed with me down through the years. Today, I’m a big fan of camouflaged clothing and dull, non-reflective fishing accessories. I’m also a keen observer of other anglers whenever I’m out on the water. It’s fascinating to note the colours and tones that blend in, compared to others that jump out. Sometimes, the results are unexpected. For example, while cruising the waters of certain lakes or estuaries and watching distant anglers walking the bank, I’ve noted that people dressed in black or other very dark hues are often much easier to spot against some backgrounds than fishers in pale or even reasonably brightly coloured clothing. It’s all about horses for courses, but genuine camouflage patterns that tally reasonably closely with the terrain itself are the hardest of all to detect visually. After years of pondering this subject in considerable depth, it has been extremely rewarding to finally have the chance to develop my own signature line of fishing clothing embodying all of these finesse concepts. Over the past year or so, I’ve become closely involved with the good folks at local clothing company, Mad Keen Australia. I now get to design and test my own signature range of purpose-made fishing apparel; balancing comfort, form and function with that over-riding desire not to be too obvious to those fickle fish. It probably won’t come as any great surprise to hear that I’ve named this gear Starlo’s Finesse Fishing Wear. It’s been a fun project so far, and I’m looking forward to seeing where it ultimately leads. Hopefully, my fellow anglers will find this gear as useful and functional as I do. To find out more about Starlo’s Finesse Fishing Wear, and even buy this gear on-line, go to www.madkeen. com.au
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Cast the Radian at essential Flyfisher — 105 York St, Launceston. Ph: 03 6331 8944
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Fishing News - Page 17
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James Sinnamon with a bream on the trout gear (with a few tweaks).
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Jurassic Breamin Bream on fly secrets revealed James Sinnamon
Fishing News - Page 18
very now and then you stumble across something so amazing it captivates you in complete stillness. You cannot move, you cannot hear, as though you are paralysed! Moments later you are jolted back to life with a sharp, short, involuntary breath of fresh air. It’s in these moments, that you really feel embraced with time! This is how I felt with the pulse of a monster bream, in hand. Discovering where the bream are going to be on a particular tide can be difficult, however with more time and experience comes more knowledge. Thinking about what a bream eats and observing what is around on the low tide, can open a whole new fishing dimension. On a walk back to the car, after an unsuccessful morning fish on the run out tide, I walked over the sand flat and noticed thousands of small crabs, scurrying into their holes, this area of sand also had lots of craters, from both eagle rays and bream. Craters from bream are usually narrow and moderately deep, as eagle rays make much and wider ones. Keeping all this in mind I headed out to this exact spot the next morning, arriving one hour before the top of the tide, around sunrise. This area, which was dry the day before on the midtide, was now well above knee deep. The fly of choice was a small clouser with lead eyes – the reason that the sight fishing was not at its prime and I was going to need to make blind casts.
It was the 4th or 5th cast and I was stripping the last few metres quite aggressively, when out of no-where I saw a large fish hammer straight for the fly, I pause… and “BAMM” the fish smashed the fly – before I knew I was on the reel and losing line fast! This fish was not stopping, he was on a mission back to the deep water – it took me well into my backing and at this point I reduced the drag pressure, as the drag from the fly line would have been putting extra pressure on the leader. Needless to say, the 6lb tippet held up well and a short while later I was captivated by the amazement of this massive old bream. This fish measured at 46 cm to the fork, absolute beast – my biggest to date.
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Polaroids help.
Its times like these that you, account for all the parameters; weather, pressure, wind, tide time, etc. and you are on your way to understanding a possible pattern in the fishes activity. You should certainly keep a dairy or have an outstanding memory on the conditions. One of the most captivating aspect I find about bream, is the sheer age of a large fish. It is documented in Dr James Haddy’s PH on Black bream, that a fish at 46 cm in fork length is estimated at 40 + yrs. of age. Therefore it is crucial to look after the fish – if you are intending on releasing a bream you should keep them as wet as possible. Universally you should have wet hands when handling any fish intended for release, as this increases its chance for survival. This is especially what I like about wading the flats fly-fishing for bream – when handling the bream, they are only removed for the water for a split few seconds, for couple of sweet pics then straight back into the drink. When adventuring the flats I like the sun to be out with clear skies, as cloudy conditions make sight fishing difficult. Early mornings and late afternoons on a high tide can be great times to blind fish in the highways (channels) of the flats, as these are where most of the fish are going to pass, on a falling or rising tide. With a high tide and a strong mid-day sun, sight fishing can be at its prime on the flats, with your chances at spotting the fish before they spot you being much greater. Camouflage is an important aspect – not the greens and browns commonly associated with the army, but contrast of a variety of light colours. Ultimately you are aiming to blend in with the back drop from the fish’s point of view, in the case of saltwater and open flats, you want to appear within a similar contrast to that of the sun, clouds or blue sky. Bream can be extremely opportunistic at times, feeding on a large variety of crustacean and fish species. In these cases they will typically eat any well-presented fly – other times they can be completely shut down and become very finicky, refusing to eat. Exploring the flats in search of bream, I almost always resort to a clouser. These flies can be fished super efficiently, whether sight fished of casted blind into channels. Depending on the water colour and tide, I will use a variety of colours, some with lead eyes and some without, lead eyes attach on the top of the shank so the hook point rides up right, allows you to fish the fly on the bottom with minimal hook contact in the substrate. Around the bottom end of the tide, in particular estuaries, home to large sand flats near the mouth, I have in counted large schools of bream that seem to venture out of the estuary to forage on the surrounding shallow reefs. This can make for some very exciting sight fishing! A friend, Murray White, and I were fishing a flat at the front on an intertidal system, when the tide had exposed most of the flat and the fishing had slowed off – we decided to endeavour to the mouth of the system, along the headland. Here we came across a sandy bay surrounded by shallow reef, almost immediately we spotted large schools of bream cruising along the reef on the sand line. Racing to get into close proximity, we both made a cast at the school, only to spook the fish with our lines. After the excitement had settled, we realised that the fish were showing a pattern, so we made a game plan; ‘let’s wait for the school to come back our way’.
Moments later Murray yells “They are coming from the right”. I watched him put a cast in front of the school, giving the fly plenty of time to sink down to their depth – ‘twitch, twitch’ and a bream reacted instantly, munching the fly! Standing on the rocks puts you in bad place for attempting to land a substantial bream. Bream are known for fighting dirty and a fly rod is no quick way to land them. ‘You got to go hard’, I say to Murray, ‘or it will do you in the rocks’! From the rocks. Here’s Murray putting his 6 wt through its paces as he plays tug of war, directing the fish through the rocks. After, what seemed to be a long tense battle — but really it was only a matter of seconds – the fish was tamed, a fat 39 cm of prime ocean bream. The next 2 hours was ongoing chaos with double hook ups and bust offs, from unstoppable beasts! Once the tide had turned t h e s ch o o l s g r a d u a l l y disappeared, suspecting they returned into the estuary, Wading the flats is productive. When I am fishing the flats in water under two metres, I tend to use a floating line, this helps to slowly sink the fly and allow for long pauses with direct contact. I commonly use a 6 wt, 9ft rod, but occasionally — when the wind is up, I will use an 8 wt. Leader choice varies depending on the substrate being fished; over sand I like to use 4-6 lb, as there usually little danger of the fish rubbing you off on anything, however around rocks, oysters and heavy snags, I find 10-12lb sufficient. I was walking the flats for hours in search of bream waiting for the tide to be at its high point. Not yet had I seen a single bream, only a few flathead had been caught – I started thinking I had gotten it all wrong and the fish were feeding elsewhere. On my walk back across the flat in thigh deep water, I spotted what seemed to be four large dark figures swimming parallel to me not more than 20 m away. Instantly I was stripping line my reel and made a cast well in front of them, letting the fly sit on the bottom in front of the fish, “twitch twitch” and nothing, no interest at all. Quickly I strip in to tie on a new fly, and suddenly I am surrounded by 30- 40 bream over 40 cm within two to 10 metres. I was an instant mess and overwhelmed with excitement. I made a cast and they all vanished straight back into the channel. It’s moments like this, where everything you thought you knew about the fish, smacks you in the face and puts you back at square one!
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Trout season closed? Try breaming! Fishing News - Page 19
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Fishing News - Page 21
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Garfish time is also footy time I
f you ever wake up early on Saturday mornings in Tasmania — and happen to be listening to ABC radio you will probably hear me (Editor Mike). That time is around 6.35 am and I think most people set their alarms around then to get an early start to the day — not to listen to me. But over Winter the message on what to catch can be a bit garfish centric — and why not? These are a fantastic table fish and fun and easy to catch. They are an estuary fish and can be caught with bait, flies and sometimes grab a soft plastic jigged through the berley trail. They are one of Tasmania’s most sought estuarine fish during the cooler months. I call them footy season fish - as AFL pretty much signals the start and finish of their run. They are plentiful and you don’t need to go zooming around the bay looking for them. They will come to you. Kids love catching them — and so do I. Garfish are bluish green in colour along the back and a silver stripe bordered by a bluish stripe extending from behind the head to the tail. The belly is silver and fins may be translucent or tinged with green. Body long and rounded covered with small scales which come off easily when handled. They are commonly around 40 cm in length and often in Tasmania up to 50 cm. By weight they grow to 0.5kg or more and at that size they are around 8 years old. Spawning occurs in shallow water (2-5m) over an extended period from October to February but reaches a peak in December. An adult garfish female can produce 10,000 eggs which when laid sink to the bottom and attach to drifting algae. Growth is rapid following hatching with the fish reaching 22cm total length between 1-2 years. Maturity occurs between 2 and 3 years.
Abigail and Grace seem pretty happy with their catch of garfish. Southern garfish are a schooling fish found in sheltered bays, inshore coastal areas and estuariesespecially where seagrass meadows are established. They tend to be near the surface at night and on the bottom to midwater during the day. They are enthusiastic fighters when hooked on light gear, however they have small mouths and delicate bite and most anglers find using a float gives them a better visual key to hooking these finicky fish. Berley is essential to both attract fish and keep the school of fish nearby. Favoured baits include; bread, prawns, sandworms, fish flesh and raw chicken. Many favour a simple piec of uncooked chicken skin as it will stay on the hook and account for many fish. They will also take a small fly. Garfish are excellent eating, providing the time is taken to remove the numerous bones. The flesh is translucent when raw and cooks white. It is sweet to the taste. The meat will easily separate from the bones when cooked. They make superb, sweet sashimi. So maybe you should take a sharp knife, wasabi and soy next time. Southern garfish are mainly herbivorous with seagrass the dominant food item. They also eat plankton, worms and small crustaceans.
Fishing methods
The most productive method for garfish is to set up a berley trail to entice them and then use of small baits. Flies can be also be used. Some anglers like to use a small bait under a float, whilst others will watch an unweighted bait intensely and drift it back in the berley waiting for a garfish to take it. If the light is good and you are wearing polaroids you can often see garfish eat your bait. A little lift and you are on. No angler ever tires of seeing any fish takes there bait.
Best time to fish
There must be some tide running and it depends where you are in Tasmania as to how much is suitable. Fast current doesn’t worry the garfish, but it will disperse the berley quickly and this makes the fishing a little
Where to find them?
Rule number one in most things is visit your local tackle store. They know. Most of Tasmania has some good garfishing close by. The best areas are shallow bays with good seagrass banks. Some rubbly bottom often holds garfish as well. Set your boat so your berley drifts back over these areas, rather than over deep water or sand. I love Georges Bay at St Helens.
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Another large, delicious garfish comes aboard. Fishing News - Page 23
Bag limit is 15, possession limit 30 and minimum size 25 cm. harder. Likewise if the is no run the berley won’t be dispersed and the garfish often won’t appear. So use your common sense here. Some places in Tasmania can be fish at any tide, whilst places like the Tamar River can be all but impossible on a fast running tide. It is desirable to set your anchor at the front so you can fish over the back of the boat. If there is too much wind and from the wrong direction you will have the boat blowing one way, berley blowing across the top of the water and the current taking berley the other way. Be aware of these factors and make sure you know what is going on. You may have to bridle the anchor or even use an anchor at both ends to stop the swing.
Berley
There is nothing more simple than berley for garfish. The smell of fish or tuna oil is often enough to attract them, but including bread is better. Buy a loaf of unsliced white bread. I am not sure why I prefer the unsliced as I am sure sliced is just as good. White bread is more ‘doughy’ and if using it as bait it stays on the hook better. Cut the bread into halves and pull the centre out of one half and put in a bucket. Eat the crusts-it makes you hair grow. Pour in some fish or tuna oil. Keep it off your clothes and hands if you want to get near your partner when you get home. It stinks and takes several days to disappear. My wife says it never disappears. Mix the oil in with the bread and when reasonably soaked add some salt water. Get working on this until you have a nice slurry. Lumps are the enemy, not because the fish don’t like them, but because it will attract seagulls. Seagulls are a real nuisance and frighten the fish and annoy the anglers. Some anglers add pellets, cat food or various other additives. I don’t find it necessary. You can use a fish based cat food if you have no oil and the cans with mackerel are best as they are oily. Fishing News - Page 24
Method
Start the berley with a spoonful every minute. It is best if you take a mate with you and give him the job. You will need a constant stream and a little bit often is what is needed. As well as the bucket mixture you can mix some tuna oil soaked pellets or bread and drop in down a little deeper in a weighted berley bucket. This helps keep a constant stream of aroma going, but the spoon fed mushy bread is certainly the best. You will often start seeing fish within five minutes, but it can take twenty. If no fish appear in twenty minutes I usually find moving is the best option. Once the fish appear you will see them in the water as well as dimpling the top. A variety of baits can be used. Soft white bread rolled on to a size 8 or 10 long shank hook works well. Fish baits tend not to be as good, but I have had good success with some scrappy bits of yellowfin. Small pieces of prawn seem good and some of the Berkley artificial Power Baits also do a good job. A small piece of squid works well and as mentioned earlier some just stick with a small sliver of chicken skin or the uncooked chicken. Don’t discount the bread though as it will do an admirable job.
Floats make it simple
The smaller the better is the rule. You will only be dropping your bait back a few metres and as long as you can see the float it will do. A size 8 or 10 long beak or long shank hook will suffice 60 cm under a float. Crimp on a split shot about 15 cm above the hook. Drift the baited hook back to the fish and watch the float intensely. Some times the float won’t have enough weight under it to tip it and sit vertically, but that doesn’t matter. All you want to see is un-natural movement from the float. When the float tips or moves lift the rod gently skywards and you should have a fish. Don’t jerk it, just a gentle
The easiest rig A small quill or bubble float makes it very easy to see if a garfish has taken your bait. A small split shot will keep the quill float upright and keep the hook in the strike zone. If the split shot is really small the float may not sit upright. It doesn’t matter as you will still see movement when a fish takes the bait.
lift is all that is required. If there is nothing there just drop it back again.
Float free
This is preferred by myself and some others. Just a baited hook on some 4-5 pound line. I put on the polaroids, cast out the bait-more drift it into ‘the zone’ really and watch the little white piece of bread. It is often easy to see the fish take it and when it disappears lift the rod gently.
Bait jigs
The little bait jigs you can buy in tackle stores also work extremely well. A maximum of five hooks is allowed though so check your rigs. Attach a very light sinker to keep the rig straight and put a little bait of prawn, squid or chicken skin on alternate hooks. This rig is deadly.
Look after your catch
Kill the fish you want to keep and put them on ice. They are messy when caught as they often expel vegetable matter and loose their scales quickly so a big bin is good. A scaling bag is a must and towed behind the boat for a short while will removed all the scales. Ask for one in your local tackle store. When cooking some people roll the backbones out of garfish while others just cook them whole or cut them into three or four pieces. Cooked in a pan, tossed in egg and bread crumbs, garfish are an absolute delight. Mike Stevens
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Fishing News - Page 25
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Game On! Ramblings and other offshore hoo har by
Kelly Hunt Tyson Digney with his first broadbill.
S
ome argue that May can be a slow month in Tasmania. I say NO ! So, if you are starting to drag the bottom lip and think fishing is done for the season‌ WAIT! There is a lot to be excited about. I am not going to argue with you, and yes, the weather gets a little cooler, but the good news are the still , settled days. The wind at this time of year can abate
Fishing News - Page 26
nicely and calm days — and a few in a row, are common. This means that we can get out on the water and enjoy some great conditions. YES!, daylight savings is a distant memory but the days are still ok, you just have to plan an early start. This means that a crew that plans a trip around the forecast can have sensational days on the water and there are a number of species that will put a smile on the dial.
Offshore
Anglers with a reasonable memory will remember that everything seemed to stretch out last year and the big albacore seemed to hang around for ages. Early signs suggest that this will be the same for season. The Bluefin are about in good numbers and the reports of barrel and jumbo sized Southern Blues are becoming more common.
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Naomi Wisby with a nice blue grenadier and rays bream - both delicious table fare. The amazing feats of Locki Nichols and his crew of Jake and Phillip Dance are noted as they caught an awesome trifecta of fish in April. The three fish were caught while engaged in deep dropping for swords. They managed a 70kg Bluefin, a 124kg Swordfish and a 103kg mako shark. The freezers of these families will be brimming with fine tucker, so get out there and maybe you will be lucky. Swordfish will still be around for a while yet so make sure you get into your local tackle store and build a package that will get you in the hunt. Deep drop combos are fairly technical and the independent stores have staff brimming with knowledge to get you right on the money straight up. The rod to use is a bent butt variation of the stand up gear that is commonly used. Reels need to hold a lot of line so you can reach the crazy depths. Water depth is often 400 to 600 m so line capacity is essential. The PENN fishing range of overheads caters for all budgets. Starting with the Penn SQUALL 2 speed in 50VSW moving to the Penn International in a 50VSW or 70VS. The 70 VS is a standout as it has more than enough line capacity, has a good line retrieval rate and is not as hard to handle as an 80 or massive 130s. Braid line to 80 and 100lb is king in this adventure and you will need a “top shot” of mono. Top shot is a fancy name for attaching and having around a 100m of monofilament line tied to the braid. The reason for this is braid has no stretch and the short amount of mono gives you some stretch to contend with head shakes and violent runs while attached to a monster of the ocean. This is attached in a number of ways, but the PR knot seems to be finding favor. Ask for this to be tied and applied instore. Once you have the rod and reel all sorted you will need some specialist rigs that are available instore and you are set. Breakaway sinker techniques are as varied as the fish encountered so ask in store or seek out a mate that has had some success and you are away. This type of fishing can lead to anything happening so be
Tyson with a chunky albie. prepared and keep your wits about you at all times. Gloves are a great idea and also some practice with a gaff. If you check out some of the videos getting about of swordfish captures you might want to pack a helmet as well. When these giants swing their heads from side to side the speed of the bill tip is swift enough to do some genuine harm so be careful!
Albacore
Albacore are a great species. They are good fun to catch and a superb fish for the table. Good-sized albacore can provide heaps of quality meat if looked after straight away. Yes here we go again, “bleed them
straight away”, but don’t waste the blood. Those who have caught them before will know that tuna are the haemophiliacs of the ocean. Have some forethought and take a container that you can place a whole Albacore in as it bleeds out from the two small incisions you have made to the rear of the pectoral fins. There are a number of benefits to this. Harvesting the blood is good value for two reasons. The first is you will have some awesome berley for the next time you go mako shark hunting. Adding blood to a berley mix increases your potential of raising a shark ten fold. The second reason is that you don’t know when that next mako shark session may unfold.
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Fishing News - Page 27
Fishing is always about maximizing your chances and having some blood on the boat will have you in great form should a free swimming mako cruise along. You will be a fishing boss if you catch some Albacore and then upsize that to a nice mako shark.
Southern bluefin
Southern bluefin are thick in May and it’s the time of year old-timers start to whisper about jumbos. If you are down south trolling lures during May it is a good idea to prepare for the possibility of the fish of a lifetime.
Avoid gear failure - It’s easy
Check and double check all your gear. It will haunt you for a long time if you lose a giant bluefin to gear failure. Preparation is easy to do and must not be underestimated. Start at the lures and
how they are rigged. Check the leaders for wear or any nicks and replace if needed. Take the the kids out in the street and run 200m of line out and as it pulls off — and back on the spool, feel it with your fingers for anything that may cause a weakness. A jumbo bluefin will find any weakness. The hook up will be explosive and the pressure of the fish running and water pressure on the line will be intense. Double and triple check everything in the comfort of home. You can not do it at sea as easily as at home. Being hooked up to a jumbo will ensure a good long tussle and during the fight this is a time for your crew to be on the ball. Once there is a solid hook up the crew can get their minds on the job. Make sure everyone knows their job and who does what and when.
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Jumbo southern bluefin are a great reward. Get the cameras on if you have them, find the leader gloves and place them ready to slip on. Locating the gaffs and positioning them so they are at the ready in an instant they are needed is a good idea.(we will talk more about gaffs later) Once this is done the crew can relax and try and stay out of the vision of skipper and angler. The skipper must be able to see the ‘hooked up’ angler and the direction the line is going. It sounds simple, but not always. It is vital though and especially on bigger fish. The skipper will have his work cut out for him keeping the angle of line at the rear of the boat off the port side. Keeping the vision of the outboard and angler in clear sight will help immensely. This is not a hard and fast rule but for most boats it makes sense. It trims the boat better in having skipper on the opposite side to where all the action will take place — especially on smaller boats.
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Working as a team and having gear in excellent condition will tip the scales in your favour and hopefully bring in a fish quickly. There does not seem to be any great rhyme or reason as to where the school size fish can be found at the minute. The shelf and the 100m line is holding very good numbers of fish off all our coast. Those looking for albacore can try Bicheno and the area north of the Hippolytes. The traditional skirted lures are always a great way to find a few fish and the lures from Zacatak are worth a look. Australian made and stocked by most Tasmanian tackle stores. The albacore can be shy and on occasion won’t want to get their backs out of the water. When they are like this the go to lure is a Halco Max 130. These bib-less lures give no trouble and run sub surface allowing the most nervous tuna to find some brave pills.
Deep dropping for tasty critters
Still conditions and very little swell all lead to some solid opportunity to fill the freezer for when the weather really cracks up. I have really been enjoying some deep dropping for deep sea species of late. When the weather window is right it is enjoyable and you never really know what is going to come up. What you can be certain of is that it will be strange looking with big oogly eyes. Good news is that most of what comes up is very very tasty!!
Blue eye trevalla
Blue eye trevalla are top the list for me as far as the target species in this style of fishing. The fish that you encounter along the way while chasing Blue eye are also great eating so it is a great day out. These fish are found in many areas around Australia and New Zealand and as such have a few different names. Testament to their good eating is one of the names… Antarctic Butterfish. So what are you going to need to target Blue eye? A reasonable boat is the more obvious answer. Even with sensational weather and great conditions you are going to be well offshore. These fish are found in 400 plus metres over the continental shelf. This is going to mean traveling at least 11 nautical miles. The vessel chosen will need to be able to handle weather and sea conditions should the weather change and also be in good sea going condition. Gear will vary depending on your wallet and levels of keenness. The big trend of late is electric fishing reels with swivel tip rods. Back in the day we would use big Alvey reels mounted on a rail or rod holder mount. You can even use a big egg beater and take turns reeling up whatever you have jagged. It will not matter what you decide a day’s bottom dropping can be a huge amount of fun and also can provide plenty of really good eating fish flesh. Circle hooks are the only way to fly here as even with braid setting hooks at that depth is going to be tricky. The idea of a circle hook is to use the pressure of the sinker and the fish taking the bait and swimming off to pin the fish in the corner of the mouth. These hooks are also designed to be hard to de-hook and fish will stay on during the wind up. Baits are a hotly contested topic, but from my experience just have a few options. Squid and octopus are awesome and will stay on the hooks really well. Strips of striped tuna go very well as do chunks of couta. So don’t get caught up thinking one bait is best. Normally you have 3 or 4 hooks on a deep drop rig. Mix and match a few and see what is working on the day. One thing to be careful of is to not jam the gape up of the circle hook. Pin the bait once or twice on the point but have the bait sit down in the bend. Doing this allows the hook to work properly and will deliver much better results. It doesn’t really matter what method you use getting your baits down to the bottom will take a little while and a keen angler fishing braid will often see the baits being hit on the way down. This is normally evident of another species we have an abundance of here in Tasmania — Rays bream.
The scatter layer is something that shows up on good sounders nowadays and is made up of a variety of marine life. It used to do the sonar operators head in back during the Second World War as they were puzzled with what looked like the sea floor rising at night. The movement is caused by the small mesopelagic fish with swim bladders that show up on sounder equipment. It are these fish that the Rays bream are obviously interested in. When the Rays bream are thick you will see them on the sounder and work out quickly at what depth they are sitting. If you have metered braid that is a different colour every 10m you can count down to them.
It’s a pretty good pink ling when you get the scales out Johnny Valentine.
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Rays bream
Rays Bream are often found up a lot higher in the water column around what is called the scatter layer.
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Fishing News - Page 29
One of the tastiest fish from the ocean - blue eye trevalla. Even easier with an electric as you can just watch the digital display and stop at the right depth. This can be the case for any bio mass that you see mid water and makes for easy targeting. While sounders are an absolute godsend in finding and targeting fish, don’t despair if you don’t have the grunt to pound a decent signal down and back off the shelf. A lot of the units I have had from SIMRAD and LOWRANCE have great maps. You can find the contours when fishing down the side of the shelf and park on the deeper contours around 450 to 500. I have managed to find Blue eye by just blind dropping off contours at this depth and not seen anything on the sounder. The bottom at depth is a wild array or crazy creatures and you will and as I have said earlier they all taste pretty good. Even the ones that are not highly favored by the masses taste quite good and this is the case with Ribaldo. These fish also known as Ghost Cod will be found quite often when looking for Blue eye and are normally treated with disdain. This is misinformed and while not the treasure of some of the more favored species still eats ok. The secret here and with all fish is the post capture care. Bleed out as soon as you can and where possible place fish into a saltwater ice slurry. If this is not feasible the fish bin or esky with some frozen water bottles will suffice. Dragging down the temperature and keeping the fish chilled before and after processing will mean a better result every time. The other great invention in recent history is the affordability and access to home vacuum sealers. These little machines are worth their weight in gold when processing and freezing fish.
actually is. The Pink cusk – eel is the proper name for the ling that is also known as New Zealand ling and even Kinglip. The other usual suspect that hangs pretty close with all these great fish is the scary looking Gem fish. These fish are often found in good numbers and of varying size. The Gemmy is another species that is good to eat and will respond to good treatment after capture. Now I am sure you are wondering just where you can start looking for these fish and where to start. Here is some more great news! They are everywhere of the coastline of Tasmania. The only factors you have to really take into account are, as I always mention, and weather conditions and then possibly accommodation opportunity. If you have friends with a shack along any of Tasmania’s seaside towns that have good access to the shelf then you are in great form. We here in Tasmania are very spoilt with the shelf and beyond very close from boat access points from St Helens, Bicheno and Eaglehawk Neck. You of course can come out of Coles Bay but there is the added distance of the run down the bay. St Helens has long been seen as the place in Tasmania to nail some good numbers of deep sea delights but other areas are starting to find favor. People are quickly realizing just how wide spread these fish are and it is more about the depth of water than a “sounder mark” from a friend of a friend. Each destination has its own appeal so do some research and if you don’t have a mate with a shack, take advantage of some good end of tourist season deals. So don’t for one second think just because we have less daylight and the weather is getting a little colder the fishing stops. Make a plan, get the weather right and enjoy the calm settle days of May.
Pink ling and Blue grenadier
Blue water - Season reflection
Pink ling are another of the by catch when bottom dropping off the shelf as are Blue grenadier. These fish look like a cross between eel and fish and the Pink Ling Fishing News - Page 30
This season was not as exciting as last season in regard to striped marlin and we would be wrong to expect such things all of the time. The currents are at the whim of
a number of factors and the East Australian Current just didn’t come down as strong long and as wide as the previous couple of years. This was possibly due to the southern ocean current pushing up and stalling it out and pushing most of the really warm water quite wide. The amazing number of marlin captures and sightings of the previous season was indeed lacking. I cannot recall of a marlin or Yellowfin tuna capture. That being said there is a billfish that again has ignited everyone’s imagination. The broadbill swordfish. There were some early catches towards the end of March and they started to thicken up through April. May is set to be a great month for deep dropping for swords and as mentioned the calm settled weather should be of advantage. These fish are a very specialised proposition in regard to tackle and gear. You must have a reel that will hold a considerable amount of line when fishing to 600m and beyond. The line needed is braid line and it is a must for feeling bites and being able to get your break away sinker system to work. You then must splice on a top-shot of mono. Top-shot is explained earlier, essentially a section of mono that you tie on after you have spooled on your braid line. This in gives you an amount of stretch and a bit of give and behaves like a shock absorber when the broadbill jumps or throws its head from side to side violently. Without this you would pull a lot more hooks out of fish as they can be hard to keep a hook in. All this line gets wound onto a large overhead reel with a good return of line ratio. The PENN 70 is a great choice as it holds more than enough line and can still be used for large mako sharks and jumbo tuna time. The bigger 80 and 130 size reels are ok, but are an expensive item to be a one trick pony
TACKLE TALK Gaffs
Gaffs and gaffing technique is something that doesn’t get spoken about much and so I thought I might spend some time this month doing so. There is often a mentality that gaffs can be a one size fits all approach and this is just not the case. A boat set up for fishing needs a minimum of two gaffs and if you are super serious should have more ! The two gaffs to get you out of trouble are a biggish one and a small one. I say biggish as the term “BIG” can be open to perception depending on what you are targeting. If you are out looking for some striped trumpeter and you are using what you would think is a big gaff with a 4 inch gape. That gaff becomes all together quite small when a mako comes up to see what all the commotion is about and you decide to throw it a bait. There are a heap of different design and materials that gaffs are made of and you can make up your own if you are handy like that. If you are not then take a look at the range of gaffs from Hookem Fishing. Mick from Hookem takes a lot of pride in his product and has an engineering background. Indeed his gaff business started as a personal interest in designing something better and has grown to be the product to have. When thinking gaffs you need to obviously take into account what you fish for, but always keep in mind what may happen out of the ordinary. On a boat that goes to the shelf and targets bottom species as well as a few tuna I would have four gaffs. One 2 footer with a 4inch
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The Miracle Worker
One gaff is not enough in a game boat - be prepared. gape. This is the general all rounder that is easy to use and take on most species and situations. I would then have a 4 footer with a 3 inch gape. This gaff is great for smaller fish and fish on 3 and 4 hook bottom rigs. The extra length is handy for getting the last fish on a string and de-weighting them over the gunnel. This gaff can also be used as a general tool in hooking ropes and boys on moorings and cray pots. A big 8 inch fixed gaff is handy to have in a gunnel on the chance you come up against a barrel tuna, big school shark and a smaller mako. Then the last gaff to have on board is a small flying gaff. Flying gaffs are very handy on bigger mako sharks and jumbo tuna. Let’s not forget that having a number of gaffs on board means you are ready for any occasion and are often used in tandem if needed. The bigger the fish the more you have to think about your technique with gaffing and with each species comes a slightly different game plan. If the fish has teeth then that’s something to take into consideration as well. Bigger fish will need to be drawn to the side of the boat and lifted vertically. It doesn’t matter what the gaff is made from or how strong it is. If you try and use a gaff as a lever you are going to do damage and possibly loose a good fish. Get the fish over to the side of the boat. Sink another gaff in the fish if possible. Make sure the gaff is sunk well into the fish and the weight is on the bend of the gaff hook and not the tip. Lift on the count of three together and the fish no matter how big will be in the boat. Adrenalin can do wonders and all of a sudden there is a monster fish at your feet.
Halco Max 130
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We love em. We have been using them for years and they work. They are well weighted and won’t let you down when the breeze stiffens. Nothing makes me more furious that cheap lures tumbling down a swell or lifting out of the water with wind pressure on the lines trailing back. The colours of the skirts available allow you to be wild and create a bite out of aggression or match the hatch when fish are being finicky. Most good tackle stores stock them and you only have to ask. They have a solid reputation based on performance here in Tasmania, mainland Australia and abroad. The small family team behind the lures stand by their awesome product and its pleasing that your money stays in Australia with a percentage used for competition support locally and local product development.
Get out there
May is not a time for putting the gear away, but for looking for gear to compliment what you already
If it is busted, bent, broken or dinged.
Dr Mark can do it Penn 70VS have. New species demand new techniques and slightly different gear. More often than not you will have a rod and reel that will work, but the terminal tackle may need a tweak. Head into a tackle store that has staff that fish every bit as hard or harder than you. They will hold a few key ideas and a couple of tips that will set you well on your way. Make sure you have some good warm wet weather gear and be prepared for every season. You don’t want to miss a hot bite just because of a little rain. You know that it may only last a little while and could come out brilliant again. Having the right gear will allow you to find fish, catch fish and stay on the water for longer. Kelly Hooch Hunt
Miracles - No problem Spongers, idiots and time wasters are not welcome.
Aluman Engineering 424 Hobart Rd, Youngtown TAS 7249 6343 3341
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Fishing News - Page 31
Fishing News - Page 32
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E
Tamar Ghosts Searching for Elle Matt Sherriff Trish Sherriff and Elle share a boat.
E
lephant fish are a funny-looking fish with an almost entirely scaleless elongated body. They have large pectoral fins and two widely separated triangular dorsal fins, with the first dorsal fin preceded by a large spine. Elephant fish have a single gill opening immediately in front of the pectoral fin on each side of the fish. The snout is covered in pores that sense movement and weak electrical fields, which are used in detecting prey. They are silvery in colour with iridescent reflections and dark, variable markings on the sides. Males mature at 50 cm and females at 70 cm, and the maximum length head to tail is 1.5 m. Common names include: Elephant Fish, Elephant Shark, Ghost Shark
They use their hoe-shaped snouts to probe the ocean bottom for invertebrates and small fishes. They are found in waters around Southern Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand, inhabiting depths of over 200m on muddy or soft bottoms around the continental shelf. From spring to autumn, adults migrate inshore to estuaries and bays and females lay their eggs on sandy or muddy substrates. Maximum age is estimated to be around 15 years. These fish make their way into the Tamar River over summer and numbers really thicken up from January – April. Whilst many anglers stumble across this species as by-catch whilst fishing for flathead, if you actually
decide to target them you can dramatically improve your success. As mentioned above the reason these fish move into the river is to breed and if you want to target them it is best to look at areas out of the main channels with less current with a soft muddy bottom. During daylight hours I have had success fishing deeper water along the edges of flats between Kelso and the Batman Bridge. The first one I caught years ago was at Kelso whilst targeting Whiting. We had anchored up along the beach and set out our lines in 2-3 m of water with one bait positioned in a gutter around 7 m deep about 25 m from the back of the boat. This bait was the first to go off
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Fishing News - Page 33
THE 2400 SUPERCAB HAS LANDED
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Fishing News - Page 34
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and the Elephant took some landing on the light gear that we use for whiting. After catching that first fish, every summer we spend a session or two targeting them as they are great fun on the rod and good on the chew. Without a doubt, our best success has been had fishing shallow mudflats around the bays and arms in the middle reaches of the river during the evening. The fish come up in less than 5m of water to feed on these flats chasing crabs and small fish and you can expect them to pull some serious string on light gear once hooked in this shallow water. My favourite bait is fresh squid tentacle rigged on a 4/0 Mutsu Hook. For the dedicated, I highly recommend heading out early on your trip and catching fresh bait as it will dramatically improve your chances of coming back to the ramp with a couple for the table. The 4/0 hook is tied to 60-70cm of 20-30lb leader and connected to the main line via a swivel. Above the swivel a running bomb sinker is utilised to keep the rig on the bottom ensuring only enough weight is used to keep baits on the bottom. When fishing depths less than 5m, out of the main current, you can usually get away with using weights as light as 1oz (28g). The bite of an Elephant Fish can be quite subtle and you will often notice the rod load up slightly several times before the hook will set. It is best to resist the urge to strike initially and I prefer to leave my rods in the holder with the drags set at strike and wait until the fish starts making the drag sing before grabbing it out. 4-8kg rods with a 7-8ft length and a relatively fast taper are ideal for this style of fishing as when the rod loads up initially the fish won’t detect the weight as easily as it would with a more conventional and stiffer boat rod. A light burley trail can help with results, however as mentioned in previous articles on Snapper, a heavy hand will see you dealing with some of the Tamar’s resident ray population which are not only time wasters but don’t mind taking your gear as souvenirs. Setting a spread of four to six rods is a good way to maximise your chances by covering ground, however if you’re fishing alone be aware that if you’re using more than a couple of rods things can get a bit hectic when you hook something larger such as a Gummy, Seven Giller or Ray. On a recent trip I lost 4 rigs in the first 10 minutes after an Eagle Ray hooked up and decided to do a lap of the boat, running through all the lines! Elephant Fish are quite tasty, with a flesh similar to that of Gummy Sharks. If you’re looking to keep a few for a feed, ensure they are bled immediately and kept
cool until they are cleaned. When filleting, be careful not to slice right through the fish as the cartilage running down the centre of the fish is very soft. Once filleted, I remove the skin, cryovac the meat and freeze for a week or so before eating. As with all the sharks kept for consumption, I find they seem to eat better after freezing. The bag limit on this species is two fish and the possession limit is four. Due to Elephant Fish being quite slow growing, and going through their breeding cycle in the river, it is best to only keep enough for a feed and release any surplus fish unharmed. When handling them, be aware of the spine in front of the first dorsal fin as it can inflict a nasty wound and if you’re planning on keeping one it is a good idea to snap this spine off before you bleed them. Elephant Fish are cool looking creatures that give a good account of themselves on light tackle as well as being very tasty. The areas they inhabit throughout the middle reaches of the Tamar River are easy to fish and they are an ideal species to target with the wife and kids when the weather doesn’t suit fishing offshore…get out on the water and give them a go!! Matt Sherriff
Some welcome bycatch and good bait.
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Fishing News - Page 35
RECREATIONAL SEA FISHERIES NEWS May 2017
MEASURING ROCK LOBSTER
Marine Police officers have reported recently that some fishers are not using their measuring gauges correctly when checking if their catch is legal size. This may result in some fishers wrongly keeping undersize lobsters and placing themselves at risk of prosecution. Incorrect measuring is no excuse for keeping undersize fish.
How to Measure Correctly Spread the antennal horns.
Place the chamfered tip of the measure between the antennal horns so that it fits hard into the middle notch. Measure from the notch to the end of the carapace. If the other end of the measure reaches beyond the rear edge of the carapace then the rock lobster is not legal size.
Measuring Devices
The onus is on you to check the accuracy of your measuring gauge and use it correctly. It is recommended you use a quality steel or bronze measure especially if taking lobster just above the legal size. If using an orange DPIPWEissued gauge, note these are a guide only. Plastic gauges are available free from Service Tasmania shops. Gauges made of bronze or stainless steel (which tend to be easier to place in the antennal notch because they are thinner) can be bought at larger tackle shops around the state.
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Fishing News - Page 36
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SEASON REMINDERS
Recreational rock lobster season closes for the entire Eastern Region and for females in the Western Region on 30 April 2016. Recreational scallop season is open from Saturday 8 April until July 31. All state waters except the D’Entrecasteaux Channel are open for scallop diving. The banded morwong season is currently closed statewide and will reopen on May 1st 2017.
Proposed spawning closure for Calamari on the North Coast
A spawning closure for calamari on the north coast is proposed for two weeks in October 2017. Calamari are currently assessed as ‘sustainable’ however there is concern that the commercial and recreational catch has significantly increased in the north of the State. A closure is being considered to protect calamari during part of their peak spawning period. Data from the IMAS north coast calamari research project indicates that spawning starts in early October, peaks in mid/late October and is finished by mid-November/early December. Whether the closure should apply to all squid species, similar to the closure on the east coast, is being considered. The proposed closure is for all waters from Woolnorth Point east to Musselroe Point.
SEE TASSIE’S LARGEST FLATHEAD AT AGFEST
Recreational Fisheries will be at AgFest from May 4-6 with the following displays: • Tassie largest flathead!! • Kid’s fishing pool; • Fish filleting and handling demonstrations; • Fishcare display trailer; • Live rock lobster; and • All your fishing questions answered! • Drop in to see us at Site 349 on Third Avenue.
The closure is being considered by the Recreational and Scalefish Fishery Advisor y Committees, TSIC and Tasmanian Association for Recreational Fishing. For fur ther infor mation or to comment, contact Recreational Fisheries at fishing.enquiries@dpipwe.tas.gov.au or phone 6165 3034.
Need more information?
Get a copy of the Recreational Sea Fishing Guide from Service Tasmania Download the Tasmanian Sea Fishing Guide app Go to www.fishing.tas.gov.au; or www. facebook.com/FisheriesTasmania Phone: 1300 720 647 or 03 6165 3233 Email: fishing.enquiries@dpipwe.tas. gov.au
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Fishing News - Page 37
The Leven
The Leven slide on camper is constructed from light weight fibreglass panel and has outstanding insulation properties. The aerodynamic shape of the Leven not only looks great, but is functional saving you fuel on those long road trips. The electric powered roof gives the Leven it’s stylish exterior and the camper is able to be used even with the roof down. Security features in the Leven include the Aussie Traveller security door, and double glazed windows with triple lock down points that ensure a strong and durable seal. The quality fitted interior is designed to allow the maximum use of space. The features include a pull out table which can be stored when not needed and comfortable face to face seating in a choice of durable fashion fabrics. The sleek kitchen design features overhead storage, plenty of draws, and a choice of gas or electric hotplate. A fridge is also included in the camper so you will have everything you need including the kitchen sink.
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䴀愀爀椀渀愀 簀 䌀栀愀渀搀氀攀爀礀 簀 䘀椀猀栀椀渀最 䌀栀愀渀搀氀攀爀礀 愀渀搀 䘀椀猀栀椀渀最 匀琀漀爀攀 䌀爀愀礀 䜀攀愀爀 愀渀搀 䘀爀攀猀栀 䈀愀椀琀
䄀氀氀 礀漀甀爀 昀椀猀栀椀渀最 愀渀搀 戀漀愀琀椀渀最 渀攀攀搀猀
㘀㌀㘀㘀 ㌀㜀㘀㠀
椀渀昀漀䀀昀爀愀渀欀氀椀渀洀愀爀椀渀攀⸀挀漀洀⸀愀甀 ㌀㌀㐀㤀 䠀甀漀渀 䠀眀礀Ⰰ 䘀爀愀渀欀氀椀渀 眀眀眀⸀昀爀愀渀欀氀椀渀洀愀爀椀渀攀⸀挀漀洀⸀愀甀
Fishing News - Page 38
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David Gillespie 6248 9080 or 0417 562 859
Michael Haley 0419 353 041 mhaleycharters@bigpond.com www.breamfishing.com.au
96 Clifton Beach Rd Sandford Tas 7020
Fish
World class fishing in the heart of the central highlands
Stay in a luxury art deco 3 bedroom cottage Atmospheric Highlander Arms tavern on the doorstep 3 course meal provided each night Catch your own salmon in Tarraleah lake and learn how to prepare it with expert chef 18 lakes within 30 minutes drive
(03) 6289 0111 info @tarraleah.com www.tarraleah.com
cosy wood fires
wine & whisky tasting
www.tasfish.com - Get the knowledge - Get the fish.
guided fishing trips
great pub
Fishing News - Page 39
Know your lifejacket
Better safety and facilities for Tasmanian boaters
Incorrectly worn or fitted lifejackets may not work effectively Make sure yours; • Fits • Is serviced regularly • You know how to use it • If it is inflatable - is it auto or manual inflate? Explain that to the crew
Scan the QR code above or go to www. mast.tas.gov.au to see MAST’s lifejacket awareness video. Incorrectly worn or fitted lifejackets may not work effectively
MAST spend $1,000,000 every year improving your recreational boating facilities around Tasmania. THE BOATWISE COULD
Apply any time for better boating facilities. Go to www.mast.tas.gov.au
SAVE YOUR LIFE. DOWNLOAD IT NOW.