Fishing Reports 2006 / 2005 / 2004

"On The Hook" with Ross and Glenn Hunter
18th December

Summer is well and truly with us and with it has come some most changeable weather patterns Where are the days of light sea breezes and flat calm seas? It seems that we are destined to be blasted by strong northerlies backed up the very next day with blustery south winds …..Ah! The joys of the off shore charter skipper and crew.

Marlin have appeared right on que especially for Rob Curry on his brand new boat "Marquis". Rob not only caught a 70 kg striped marlin but also then went on to catch a 120 kg blue marlin a bit later on. Both fish were released unharmed and a lot wiser for the experience.

There were a couple of other fish hooked and lost as well The Botany Bay boat "Minx" hooked a 60 kg Striped off the twelve mile.

On Billfisher and Broadbill we saw a few tailing black marlin in 30 fathoms off Maroubra and Coogee but did not have any success in catching them.

However we plan to turn that around this weekend. The marlin are scattered at the moment with no particular pattern it's a matter of driving past one and you’re the lucky duck that day.
We fished Friday only having to return due to the 30 knot winds, come Saturday it was still blowing 20 knots and rough but we continued out and managed to get the day in with a few small yellowfin tuna the result.

Then Sunday at last a reasonable day both Glenn and myself trolled and worked hard all day for little result, a few tuna and a couple of dolphin fish.

We both saw marlin but could not catch them, it can be frustrating fishing the early part of a season you know the fish are there and are worth fishing for, but there is a lot of water mixed with them. The skill factor tends to go more to luck, if you drive over a fish you may get lucky, but it is early days and it does look like being a great season that's for sure.

The marlin were worth fishing for and whilst it is early in the season they are worth fishing for.
There were probably 5 fish tagged on the day off Boatny. The warmer 3 knot blue currents are flooding down and over the festive season will produce blue , black and striped marlin and some great dolphin fish

Small yellowfin to 10 kg are still frequenting the wide grounds and with them there can be a blue marlin on the prowl.

A beautiful striped marlin about to be tagged anad released	A sydney striped flys high
Another Pt Stephens marlin takes to the air	Deckie Jonny Glles The Human Bollard Traces a nice black for James Sears
Swanny's hooked up on his first striped at Pt Stephens	The magnificence of Port Stephens Broady heads out for another wild days marlin fishing
A few different types of teasers used for marlin fishing	Artificial sauries work well on yellowfin and marlin
Heading back after catching 8 marlin for the day

PT STEPHENS '07………FISH ON BROADBILL OR BILLFISHER
"CATCH THAT FISH OF A LIFETIME"

We have the following spots available on a share charter basis:(IE sharing the boat over the three days with 5 other anglers)

COSTS…….Three days fishing the most beautiful and productive waters of Pt Stephens on Broadbill or Billfisher sharing with five other anglers, including accommodation for the period at $1050.00 per head

Visit "FISHING STORIES AND HINTS" section for a great yarn on a typical Pt Stephens day

DATES AVAILABLE ……BILLFISHER………February……Arrive Friday 9th Fish Saturday 10th Sunday 11th and Monday 12th.
This is prime season when Broadbill tagged and released 21 marlin in one day.

DATES AVAILABLE…….. BROADBILL ……..January long weekend ……..Fish Friday 26th Sat 27th Sunday 28th.

COSTS…………$1700.00 per day or on a share charter $1050.00 per head (including accommodation).

February Fish Tuesday 13th…………………. One day only Cost $290.00 per head (2 spots available)Reef fishing is reasonable. If you like mowies and assorted reef species then the 30 to 35 fathom reefs off Maroubra and Coogee are worth a drift.

Tips for the festive break:….. Marlin in close and out wide, dolphin fish around the FADS and small fin out wider.

To all the readers of the web site have a safe and Happy Christmas from Glenn and myself.

"SO YOU WANT TO CATCH A KINGFISH" by Ross Hunter

It was 1968 at Currarong camping reserve when Paul D ' Auri a said to me " Have you ever tried these things?"……….. I looked at him in astonishment "No one eats kingfish for Christ sake" was the reply.

He threw a cutlet on the barbeque, marinated in teriyaki sauce.
I begrudgingly took a nibble at it thinking the worse and surprise, surprise it was good.
You see back then no one would eat a kingfish they were Quote "too strong and not worth eating.'

That all changed when NSW Fisheries promoted Kingies as a "great table fish" within five years every commercial fisho who could work a lead line or even a jig was making a living catching these most abundant fish…..the price went from nothing to cats food to $10.00 per kilo, so all the commercials geared up to catch the hell out of them.

Back then we fished the Sir John Young Banks very regularly and was not un common to actually re anchor to get away from the 15 to 18 kg kings that had been plaguing all morning.
We really did not want to catch another one there was that many fish available and they were hurting us.

This is an excerpt from my memoirs of a typical day.

Kingy jigs they all work	Circle hooks the best invention since sliced bread
A live bait tank is also vital This one on Broadbill holds 40 gallons of water which is recirculated by the driven engine	A thumper of a king caught at The Peak on a split tail slimy

A DAY ON THE KINGFISH SOMETIME IN THE DARK AGES OF DINOSAURS AND THINGS
My fishing mate John Ashley and myself had spent a considerable time fishing together; through him I met a fisherman at Currarong, Paul D'Auria. Paul was a professional fisherman and worked a 21-foot Swiftcraft Sportsman out of the creek at Currarong. We would leave Sydney at some ungodly hour and drive to Currarong, fish all day, and then drive home that night—bear in mind the trip to the south had no expressways so it took close to a three hour drive each way. That makes me tired just thinking about it, but we were young and really enjoyed fishing with Paul.

The boat was moored at the entrance to the creek. I had not spent a lot of time at sea, having stuck mainly to the rivers and estuaries, but it was those offshore trips to an area called the Sir John Young Banks that introduced me to a world of offshore fishing that was to become my life's passion. Currarong is a sleepy little fishermen's village on the northern peninsula of Jervis Bay. To get there a left turn is made at Nowra …… it is one of those little out-of-the-way places that no-one would visit unless there was a reason to do so. Most people who went to Currarong were fishermen; they would stay in the caravan park, launch their boats on the tiny sand ramp and fish out the front on the many shallow reefs in the Shoalhaven Bight.

Snapper were special fish; they were there in large numbers and of herculean size. It was quite a social event when arriving back at the ramp for the fishermen to crack a coldie and start the bragging. After a few beers, their arms weren't long enough to describe the size of the "big fella that got away" or, as a very wise old fisherman, namely my Dad, said:
"Son, a good fisherman will never let the truth get in the way of a good story."
I still smile to myself today when I'm around a group of fisherman telling tales and I think of his words of humour.

As we rowed out to the boat in the dory I had a good feeling about the day, the light nor'-Easter had brought dew and a light fog, making the air moist, but not unpleasant. The sea was calm and there was a light roll on the bombie on the point.

We cruised to a small reef called Plutas, here with the first light we caught live yellowtail and slimy mackerel then pointed the bows for the Banks, about five nautical miles to sea. The Swiftcraft furrowed a wake in the glass-like surface of the ocean; it almost seemed a shame to disturb the serenity. Visibility was about 500 metres, so the compass bearing was set on a nor'-easterly course, as the old Furuno FG 200 sounder clacked away, writing out the depth in black and white. The paper had been through the sounder three times, so you had to be a Rhodes Scholar to work out the current printout.

That was the norm. for all owners of paper sounders, mind you not many people had a sounder at all …… standard equipment on the average boat in that era was a compass. "Start 'er up 'n on ya way, 'n don't look back, beaudy!" A pro fisho's fishing gear is not always up to scratch, not by enthusiasts standards anyway.

Paul's gear was terrible: the old Everol reel was loaded up with some kind of line that was as thick as tennis racket string; the reel had bits missing and had a solid covering of some kind of white substance that continually oozed out of it. We called it the "bird scarer", because when it was wound, it would squeak so much from lack of lubricant that it would frighten every sea bird for miles around.

Arriving at the Banks we anchored on the Hump, the shallowest part of the Banks rising up to about five fathoms, or thereabouts. The water was so clear we could see the schools of kingfish milling around under the boat. If I said there were 1000 kings from 20 to 60 lb, and perhaps bigger, it would sound like an exaggeration. Well, for once it was fact: they were thick and they were hungry.

Somehow I had inherited "The Rod", the bird scarer, the one with the tennis racket line and the white ooze. As I fed out the first live bait, I was to find out very quickly what a 30 lb king feels like as he eats the bait and powers to the bottom. The runners on Paul's rod, or should I say tomato stake, were held on with electrical tape, none of that fancy underbinding or overbinding , no just good old electrical tape.

A 30-lb kingfish on full noise and heading to the bottom with the tremendous power that only a king fish knows how to produce, was as powerful as one could imagine. He pulled so hard against the 20 lb of drag on the old "ever clacker" that he was nearly busting my back and tearing out my Achilles tendons; yet, throughout all this, he barely put a bend in the rod.

From where yours truly was standing, catching a 40 lb king on this very stiff rod was a masochist's dream …… no matter who it was, that fish was going to pull your arms out of their sockets. Not that Paul thought that …… as he would cry out constantly ……"C'mon Roscoe, get up him, don't worry about his skinny legs." We caught 20 kings in the next two hours and, as a result, I was decidedly second-hand and begging for a lighter rod, anything to get me off the bird scarer….no more pain please!

We had 600 pound of Kingys in the tank and there were another 5 tonne of them under us still begging for a live bait a jig any thing that you threw at them Paul said "We've caught enough of these things lets re-anchore and get away from them Well try for a yellowfin I breathed a sigh of relief and murmured "There is a God!"
That's how it was when there was no commercial pressure on kingfish.

Then we saw the introduction of the deadly Kingfish traps that reduced the kingfish population by 80 per cent in a very short time In the year of 2006 the fish are returning but still have a long way to go …..So be kind to them people think about releasing the majority especially the just legals.

HOW TO CATCH KINGFISH
It amazes me that the fish that we only ever rated as bi-catch have grown into a boutique sporting fish by modern anglers of to day I was lucky in many ways to have been born into an amazing era of fishing The birth of sport fishing in Australia thru the 60's and 70's An era of plenty, an era of no commercial pressure we were spoilt there is no doubt about it.

I have include some photos of the era before the then Fisheries Minister Mr Bob Martin, a good man who called many of us fishermen to gether and asked our opinion on kingfish trapping.

We all said that they would be the ruination of the specie he listened and agreed. He banned the traps that year……Some of the photos are a bit of an over kill by today's standards, but bear in mind we took six anglers out in the early80's and we would catch five or six per person.

However they were that plentiful that we did not think that was too many, it is of course a different mentality to day in the modern era.
The tips we suggest here are for offshore waters only.

It has been many a long day since I have fished for estuary kingfish so let's look at the best techniques offshore

A normal day in the 80's	All caught on the down rigger on live and dead baits
Big kings from another era	Busy days on the jigs at the Peak

BEST TECHNIQUES
First of all before we go fishing for kingfish it is important to establish that they are in residency of your favourite reef. Remember that kings are a seasonal affair, especially off Sydney.

Generally speaking the best months are from August to November during these months the fish migrate from the south and inhabit The Peak and the Twelve mile and a few other popular areas I prefer to deal more with the areas that I personally have fished so much over the past 40 years.
These areas have produced some great catches especially in those early days before the lethal kingfish traps.
When I first started chartering on BROADBILL in the early 80's we would go to the Peak on the way out

This is a 4.9 nautical mile run from Botany heads We would sound the area carefully and once the schooling fish were located then we would either jig, live bait or down-rig half a dozen or so 12 to 18 kilo kings. Then ice them down and then head to the shelf for a days yellowfin fishing…even if they did not play ball we had some beaut fish in the box at the end of the day…………………………………………….that's how easy it was back then.

JIGGING FOR KINGS
JIGGING……A couple of Californian Guys by the name Joe Gospel and Wayne Hansteadt came to Australia and introduced us to jigging in that early era of sport fishing They manufactured a metal jig called Irons and Assassins As well as these guys Tom Nairne also made some great jigs. Werner Kossman was another. These early metal jigs worked extremely well and were taken ravenously by the abundant population of big fish of the era.

Jigging is done by people with great stamina and arms like "Charles Atlas'. Here we drop a jig to the bottom and wind it up in staccato fashion as fast as you can through the marked schools of kingfish you have on the sounder screen.

If at first you don't succeed then repeat process. I recently had a session on some rat kings at the Peak and after three drops I was glad to give the rod to a client………jigging is hard work especially when the fish are scarce. If you can anchor on a school and the current is not too strong this will work well A little berley in the form of pilchard cubes will keep them under your boat and you can constantly drop jigs down to waiting kingfish.

DOWN RIGGING
Down rigging with live and dead baits a very efficient method for kings.
It was not uncommon to have 70 boats fishing for kings at the Peak this sort of fishing was so popular and the fact that the Peak was so accessible by small trailer boats it could get very busy.

Down Rigging is great way to stay at the correct depth once the schools are encountered especially if the fish are moving around a bit.
Down rigging was the method used to catch our all time record 38 kg king.

In those days we would split tail a slimy mackerel, this involves simply cutting a dead mackerel from the tail up about three quarters then remove the backbone then bridle up through the eyes and troll slowly.

The two halves flutter in the current and make the mackerel look like it's swimming. We have caught many fish with this method. An important factor is the freshness of the baits even a touch of brine is good to toughen them up a bit.

Naturally live bait yellowtail and slimeys, squid and small cuttlefish are dynamite.
Down rigging can have its limits especially when working around a lot of anchored boats…very sad when you lose your balls around one of these.

LIVE BAITING
Live baiting….I have left the best technique to last Live baiting with slimies or yakka is the most successful technique of all Once again we use a barrel sinker of enough weight to get the bait down to the schooling fish, a short trace of 60 to 80 lb is fine attached by a sampo swivel Hooks are a personal choice however these days we use circle hooks.
The sinker weight can vary on wind and current conditions on the day.

As a guide a 3 /4 pound sinker is about the norm. A bit heavier is better than to light. The baits need to get into the right depth and stay there. Fish with a light strike drag so that the fish can take line upon hook up for a few seconds before slamming up the drag and then hang on.
You will know when a bait is about to get eaten the vibes will be picked up through the line and then "whack" Its hit the fan and your on.

Hook manufacturer Mr Diachi with a typical catch	We would catch half a dozen or so and then go tuna fishing
Peacefully alone

PLAYING KINGFISH
Catching kings in shallow water is always a challenge, if this scenario exists then fish sensible tackle Maybe even 24kg These fish are not a light tackle specie and they are in major decline and although on the way back still have along way to go. So you are doing the species any favours by hooking them up on spiders web and having them smash you up in shallow water leaving the fish decorated with a heavy lure and a heap of gel spun line.

This does nothing for the fish other than a slow painful death. Fish sensible tackle always these fish are not to be taken frivolously when there are any obstacles around They will get you every time and busted line these days in dunces stuff…might make a yarn at the pub but the truth of the matter is you have just stuffed up!
At the Peak we have been blown away many times on 15 kg tackle and that is in 38 fathoms, deep water.

One a strike is encountered hang on for the first run which in most cases will be straight to the bottom. Once the fish has finished that initial rush you can work it up in short lifts and wind downs. Take your time there is no rush; kingfish once kept off the bottom will come reasonably easy.

A medium fixed head gaff is used A gaff with a gape of 100mm is ideal
Kingies are a great sportfish, they are slowly but surely making a comeback so be kind to them catch only what can be eaten and let a few go.

"ON THE HOOK" with Ross and Glenn Hunter
30/11/06

Well it's back, the wind that is. I cannot recall where we have experienced so many windy days and months . One day from the north at 20 knots and the very next howling from the south.

These conditions make oceanic fishing very tough and as we don't take our clients fishing in rough weather, it can make the fish catching a little tough especially when your trying to catch them in the lounge room.

We did manage to fish Friday and Saturday last week and caught heaps of small yellowfin up to 30kg.

These school fish are quite prominent at the moment as they were the same time last year.
A tip………. look for the sunfish as they follow them using them as a security blanket.

On Broadbill we were trolling the wide grounds and having just found the temperature break a double strike was encountered. After a bit of organised chaos the lads landed two 10 kg yellowfin .

We reset the gear and zzzzzzzzzzzzzz…..off goes the Shimano Tiagra, however this time it screams extra loud as 100 metres of line pour off in no time flat .

It was Kiet Lee's turn on the rod he grunted, groaned, pumped and wound but the big fish had other ideas as he bolted for the bottom.

After 20 or so minutes the fight ended when a 30 kg yellowfin landed in the cockpit…….a good effort for a first time angler.

We were probably lucky to encounter a couple of good tuna on the lures and it makes you wonder wether a good old fashion cube may work.

We had a visit from a pod of oceanic dolphins on the way home. These huge dolphins that would weigh 150 to 200 kg love to visit boats and ride the wakes , sometimes for miles I managed to get a couple of great pics. from the bridge.

We may have a go this weekend if the southerly ever stops blowing.

First time yellowfin angler poses proudly with his catch on Broadbill last Saturday	Take the photo this things bloody heavy
Bow riders we love them	The oceanic dolphins join us for a game on the way home
The Finn and his viking mate Bruce, Did they have agood time..what do you reckon?	Broady spent a lot of time going backwards all season

On Billfisher the catches have been similar mostly small fish with the odd rogue in amongst them
The next trip we caught a swag of small yellowfin tuna, we kept one each per angler and released the rest.

Always remember that these small ones grow to be big ones and our oceans are already copping a pounding from overfishing by long lining so every little bit helps.

Inshore on the reefs fishing has been good and bad, plenty of mowies on the Maroubra and Coogee drifts. A few flathead and big jackets on "The Plonkhole" and huge schools of salmon around the heads, however these are here one day gone the next as they move on.

PT STEPHENS '07………FISHERMAN'S PARADISE
We are all but booked for Pt Stephens '07 but still have a couple of days available for individuals or groups of six anglers. Remember you don't need any experience, we have that and will be looking after you.

It is the best medium tackle fishery in the world …We have achieved many records over a long period of time on a our boats, of course with a little help from our anglers.

The best season was '91 and '92 when on BROADBILL we tagged 159 marlin for the tour, then in '97 we tagged and released 248 for the season inc 18 marlin in a day.
Enter Glenn Hunter's Billfisher and he tagged and released 158 marlin in 2004 .

In an endeavour not to let him show the old man up too much, we tagged 21 marlin in a day in 2005 As well as marlin we catch giant mahi mahi and tuna………Costs as low as $290.00 per head per day.

It is the most consistently good fishery I have ever fished and we still have some bookings available If you would like to join us ring 9534 237………..look in "Fishing Adventure Packages" on this site.

While you are on the site visit Fishing stories and hints See our update on "Marine Parks and how to beat them".

I have included a collage of some of the brilliant action from previous years at Pt Stephens…….come and join us you will not be disappointed.

A big black flies high at Pt Stephens in '02	Another fine black tagged and about to be released at Pt Stephens
Great fishing that stayed with us at Pt Stephens all season	it is one of the best medium tackle fisheries in the world
Paul Finetty took this great shot of a black in flight	Pt Stephens Yeh! can't wait to get up there in '07
Steve Issacs crew had a ball each year ...Getting the stretch out on some great Marlin	Traced and released ...One of 12 marlin caught that day

"On the Hook" with Ross and Glenn Hunter
20/11/06

Just a short report to keep you abreast of the off shore scene .It has been a difficult 3 weeks what with strong winds blowing every other day making access to the wide grounds very difficult.

As a charter boat company we will not go to sea in a "gale warning" mainly because of insurances We will consider a strong wind warning if the seas are reasonable prior to it. If however the winds have been blowing for three days at 20 knots …and the seas are 2 metres and rising…….forget it .

That is not we enjoy and that is not what we think you pay us to be smashed around an ocean of white caps and wind all day.

In these instances we postpone the trip until the weather is more acceptable. After all do you think that us Captains enjoy getting hurled around a fly bridge all day? No!………… I have a saying "The flatter it is the better I like it".

It is not as though we haven't had our fare share of run ins with big seas and gale forced winds any mariner worth his salt has experienced these.

Having been through 100 knot winds, been hit by lightening, steamed into a water spout in a bad storm in the 80's in the pitch black, it only teaches you that the ocean is to be enjoyed but at all times respected with a capital "R"
It also drives home a warning to always be on the cautious side of decisions when it comes to weather.

As the pioneers of the gamefishing charter business in Sydney we are proud of our reputation and we certainly have not achieved that without giving our clients some great fishing trips and long lasting memories along the way, but isn't that the way it's suppose to be!

A GREAT WEEKEND ON THE YELLOWFIN TUNA
We have just had a great weekend on Billfisher and Broadbill with our groups catching heaps of yellowfin and whilst the fish were on the small side never the less all enjoyed the action.

On the Saturday we fished a lovely calm ocean fanned by a zephyr of a nor easter, superb conditions.

Billfisher's group headed up by Simon McDonald were into the action early when Captain Glenn found the tide break about 5 nautical miles east of Browns. There were anglers running across decks in an attempt to handle the constant double and triple hook ups on tuna. The boys were "As busy as one armed paper hangers with the crabs" as they galloped around the decks knitting one then pearling one, in the mayhem of action.

On Broadbill we weren't as active but scored OK at the end of the day. My crew headed up by Roy Mc Adams struggled to keep up with Glenn as he seemed to just keep on driving over them.We seemed to be turning right when we should have turned left, I am sure that has happened to all of us before, but perseverance pays off and we ended up with a good feed of sashimi and barbequed tuna steaks .

All yellowfin were taken on the troll on Bloodshot and bib less minnow lures.

School tuna are very common from now right through to January ....Garry Smith gets lucky	Small fin like these were caught all weekend....fun on light gear
There were the occasional better fish around .....up to 20 kg but in the minority	Nikee with her first yellowfin tuna

Then on Sunday the breezes had freshened and whilst the morning was great the nor east sea breezes kicked in at 20 knots.

Naturally I headed for the same water where we did well the day before, however as I gazed at the temp gauge for miles it point blank refused to move off 19.7 degrees The previous day we had 21.7 degrees which meant the iso-therm had moved but where, it’s a big creek out there, miles and miles of water and if it's not the right water it will be a marine desert.

I had a hunch that the temp break would be north and out so I headed that way at 10 miles north of Browns the gauge climbed to 21.5….as I spotted a pod of sperm whales feeding in the warmer currents.

Off screamed the rigger and flat rod we had found the action at last it was the right decision.
It was Joe Abouriszk's team who were about to enjoy a few hours of wild yellowfin action as they now galloped around the cockpit of Broadbill on double hook ups.

See photos of George and Mick with their tuna ……………………."Now! do they look Happy?"

A happy angler Harry caught these fish this time last year	A rouge in amongst the small ones Peter get's a line burner
A stack of yellowfin caught last week on Broadbill. The fish were trolled	Happy! You bet! Some of the catch on Sunday George and Mick with their catch

We had great day fishing with a bunch of beaut blokes. We had to leave the grounds at 2.30 pm to tackle the 32 nautical mile run home As we backed the boat in her pen at 6.45 pm we realized it was along day but a most successful and enjoyable one.

PT STEPHENS '07 on BROADBILL AND BILLFISHER
We still have a few three day trips for individuals and groups of six in March and April.

Visit "Fishing Adventure Packages" for details on the Web site home page.
These trips are unforgettable fishing Days of multiple marlin catches as well as mahis and tuna
It is a full on tour with the accent on having fun ….Come and join us in '07 you will not be disappointed. Ring 9534 2378 for details and bookings.

PREDICTIONS FOR THE NEXT FORTNIGHT
The continuation of school yellowfin, the start of the marlin season and the mahis will be here on que.

Good fishing see you all out on Mother Ocean

"ON THE HOOK" with Captain Ross and Glenn Hunter
6th November 2006

YELLOWFIN ARE STILL WITH US
As we look back on one of the great tuna seasons in the past decade we wonder when it will end .
We have caught a lot of fabulous fish on BROADBILL and BILLFISHER this season, however the past four weekends we have not been able to get out because of the strong to gale forced winds that seem to arrive every Friday.

We did manage to fish last Friday and caught half a dozen yellowfin on the troll. They were small school fish but never the less, yellowfin tuna.

Once again the winds reached 25 knots from the south in the afternoon making fishing a little tougher then, otherwise I am sure better results would have been achieved.

Small fin but fun to catch on light tackle	scotty Cooper with a 30 kg tuna Happy you bet
Billfisher scores in June some nice Fin	Nathan Giles with a Spring fin
Key Corps angler caught his first tuna	Paul Hobbs and friend with a couple of tuna
So many happy anglers all winter

GREAT CURRENT FLOW ON THE WAY DOWN
Having looked at the current flow charts there is some excellent 22-degree water flowing down as we speak. So what will this next puddle bring with it? …………Striped marlin, yellowfin, spearfish and mahi mahi…

Yes! All of the above will be here……………………..along with T-shirts and sun cream.
We are due for our summer species and whilst we are in no hurry to say goodbye to the tuna we soon will be greeted by the summer stock.

We have quite enjoyed the tuna season leaving port at 10 am and fishing into the dark We really have had some nice weather all winter (until recently) to do that sort of fishing and it has been most successful with our boats catching some great fish up to 60kg but most of all enjoying the excitement of watching many first time anglers catch their first yellowfin.
The average fish for the season have been 30kg.

It really has kept both Glenn and myself extremely busy and we have enjoyed the fabulous run of fish.

SUMMER IS ALL BUT WITH US
Well! Summer arrives in a few weeks and the species will change but that's what stops us fisherman from getting bored with any particular style of fishing.

In the marlin season we start with our bait preparation for the season, switch and pitch fishing and live baiting and so on.

We will fish the Sydney season until late January and then we head for our second home Pt Stephens 100 nautical mile to the north.

Last year we arrived and the fishing was red hot from day one, we released 150 marlin in February between the boats and had a wild and active time on the billfish. The fish were a mix of blacks, blues and stripes .

leavingPt Stephens for a days marlin fishing	Garry Swan on Gary Swan on his first marlin
this time its James Sears turn to break his marlin virginity	Decky John Giles traces up a nice fish
monny and dollies	Cobia
Day one 6 marlin tags no more marlin virgins on this boat

I recall a tough blue of 220 kg we spent 3.5 hours on in early Feb. much to my horror, I hate long drawn out fights on blues. It means that we could have caught a couple more fish instead of charging around the ocean for hours on one a pig of a fish.

Will it be a good season?…………….. Crystal ball gazing is difficult, but my gut feel is Yes! it will.

PT STEPHENS ' 07
We still have a few days available for any anglers who would like to join Glenn and myself at the Port.

These three-day trips are most enjoyable we have some share spots where you can join a group or if you had your own crew then you there are a few spots available for that. At a cost of $ 1050.00 per head including accommodation for the 3 days it is a great opportunity to experience the wild marlin, dolphin fish tuna and other piscatorial monsters of the great place

See "FISHING ADVENTURE PACKAGE SECTION' on the web site for details.
We have introduced a new page for your interest "FISHING STORIES AND HINTS". We intend to keep you abreast of all kinds of issues, techniques and general fishing stories in this new section.
We hope you enjoy the page.

Look forward to more fishy report once the winds stop blowing and we can actually go fishing again In the meantime browse back a year or so on this page check out some great winter action on BROADY and the BILLY.