Table of contents for June 2021 in Fishing World

THE NSW coastline offers a diverse array of fishing options, from calm water estuaries and rivers targeting bream, flathead, whiting and mulloway to offshore sport, reef and game fishing in search of snapper, kingfish, tuna and marlin. The NSW charter fishing sector provides a range of fishing opportunities for anglers and their families looking to expand their fishing horizons and have a fun day on the water. Operating out of most ports and in many estuaries along the entire coast, NSW’s licenced charter fishing operators provide a great opportunity to fast track your fishing skills plus access local fishing knowledge and explore new waters and fisheries. LICENCING Only licenced charter fishing vessels can take paying passengers on recreational fishing trips in NSW. This licencing arrangement, which is administered by DPI…

“Mud Crabs can be prolific after a flood. These creatures are very sensitive to salinity.” IN March this year there was a very significant flood event on the east coast of Australia, extending from well south of Sydney to southern Queensland. The inundation saw a lot of damage to many areas as the many long coastal rivers from the Hawkesbury to the Tweed broke their banks inundating many coastal communities. As I write this things are starting to settle down although the clean-up is a massive task for many thousands of people. From a fishing perspective however, the recent floods offer many opportunities. Floods fertilise rivers and bring plenty of new life in the months after they occur. Many species are displaced by flood water as they move towards the…

KAYAK ANCHORING Anchoring a kayak safely in tidal waters can be trickier than it seems and generally requires the use of an anchor trolley. An anchor trolley is the pulley system used to attach an anchor rope at the side of a kayak and then send the point of attachment to the front or rear of the vessel. This set up allows an anchored kayak to point in the direction of the wind or current flow. You would be unsafe and uncomfortable if you were anchored side on in windy conditions or a strong tidal flow. Westernport Bay not only has a strong tidal flow to make anchoring challenging, but also incredibly soft mud. I use a folding grapnel type anchor which is common amongst kayak anglers as they are…

“When bushfires destroy the vegetation on riverbanks and adjacent slopes, there is a danger that the top soil will erode into rivers.” JUST as the water was clearing after two minor floods here on the North and Mid-North Coasts of NSW, we copped the 1 in 50 or 1 in 100-year flood (depending on who’s speaking). Currently leaches have moved up out of the gully and are waiting for my tasty feet when I’m in my outside shower, the track to the beach lies in about 1.5 m of water and once again the estuaries are spewing chocolate-coloured floodwater eastwards as far as the eye can see. By this stage, it feels like it’s been raining for months and river fishing is but a distant memory. However, it’s possible that…

IT’S hard to believe we’re half way through 2021 already! This time last year, the world was in the midst of uncertainty as the Covid pandemic took hold and changed the way we lived our lives. Thankfully, for now at least, locally things are looking more promising and most of us are getting back to “normal”. A positive that came from the pandemic and ensuing lockdowns was the boom in fishing popularity. During 2020 the appeal of leaving enclosed spaces and enjoying the great outdoors was more popular than ever. Some people took up bushwalking, others bought a caravan, but so many others recognised the simple pleasures of spending time outside fishing with their friends and family. I’ve mentioned this before and with the surge in fishing participation still climbing,…

RECREATIONAL fishing tournaments have always provided significant socio-economic benefits to regional communities, but now these popular events are also helping with monitoring of our inland fish populations. A great example of this is the new Codcatch program, which allows NSW DPI scientists to work with anglers and tournament organisers to monitor native and non-native fish populations in key waterways across the State. Codcatch is a citizen science-based initiative similar to the previous Basscatch program where data is collected on the number of fish caught, the effort anglers expend to catch these fish and the size of all fish caught. This key catch, effort and biological data is used to better understand fish populations, size structure and changes in catch rates and fishing efforts while also helping fisheries managers to make…

When compared to southern states, winter in Queensland is relatively mild and the fishing on the offshore grounds is generally very good. The current slows down a lot, giving good access to the wider reefs that have largely been unfishable through the warmer months. Despite this, it is rare to see water temperatures less than 22 degrees beyond the continental shelf and game fishing can be quite good throughout the winter months with all three marlin species still turning up for those who are persistent. Fishing the deeper reefs in winter produces a wide range of species, but the main target fish are snapper, pearl perch, kingfish and amberjacks. In closer to shore mulloway and teraglin are very common, and some of the biggest Spanish mackerel turn up in June…

MANY anglers pick up a rod in a tackle store, flick it around, put a bend through the blank and check for action without closely considering the components used in the rods manufacture. Guides, reel seats, handles, and grips along with gimbals and butt caps are all important features of a fishing rod that not only impact the performance of the rod but may also influence knots, casting, and comfort. Having a better understanding of the components and design of the rod can greatly assist in choosing a rod that is optimally suited to your fishing style and gives a better overall user experience when out on the water. GUIDE FRAME MATERIALS The guides on a fishing rod for the critical interface between the rod and the line. The frame…

Q WHEN DAD AND I CATCH SNAPPER SOMETHING  COMES OUT THEIR MOUTH, WHAT IS THIS? Cooper E-mail A Fish can regurgitate their stomach contents. They will generally do this when hooked up to try and rid themselves of what they believe is the wrong meal. However, I believe what you might be referring to with snapper could be an inflated swim bladder from being brought up from deeper water. If the fish is brought up very quickly the pressure will cause the gases in the swim bladder to inflate, this is called barotrauma much like if a scuba diver that surfaces too quickly. This can be fatal in some cases, especially for some other species and survival rate can be low. Thankfully, snapper are quite resilient and the survival rate…

THE CSIRO has launched its “White flesh fish project”, which aims to identify more farmed fish species that can produce sustainable, affordable white fleshed fish for Australian consumers. Most current farmed white fleshed fish is either barramundi or yellowtail kingfish. Over the years, cobia, mahi mahi, mangrove jacks, snapper and mulloway have all been trialled by aquaculture researchers and producers, but the CSIRO’s current favoured candidate might raise a few eyebrows with the fly fishers as it’s the pompano, which they describe as “a hardy, beautiful fish with high quality white meat that is firm but finely flaked” with “a sweet mild taste and large bones which makes it very easy to eat”. They note that 110,000 tonnes of pompano are already produced in aquaculture facilities in the Asia /…

YETI CROSSROADS BACKPACK 27L THOUGHT you couldn’t have a backpack tough enough to go from the train to the trail or that out of the way fishing spot? Think again. Yeti’s Crossroads 27L pack yearns for a detour from your daily routine. Made from 700D, water and abrasion-resistant TuffSkin Nylon, this bag makes no compromises. A large main compartment, with two Rambler Bottle ready pockets, opens wide for easy loading and unloading, with enough room for all the gear you need. When you’re travelling, secure your pack to the top of your roller with the luggage pass-thru sleeve. This is the universal backpack that’s ready for whatever the day throws at you. $349.95 More info at au.yeti.com BERKLEY BENDER 76 & 100 THE Pro-Tech Bender is a unique lure that…

For many years I have been actively fishing, climbing and exploring Sydney’s beautiful sandstone headlands, scouting out premium drummer holes in the midst of winter. Many of these lay hidden below 100+ metre cliffs, some seeming almost Jurassic and untouched, yet only a 30 minute walk from an over-populated suburban suburb. This provides a short-lived, yet refreshing escape from reality. After chasing the abundant species such as snapper, kingfish, and drummer for a number of years, you regularly find yourself situated on that last piece of rock closest to the ocean for hours. While your eyes naturally gaze up and out towards the horizon, watching birds, boats and bust ups, you may find that you have missed the distinctive blue giants mooching inches from your feet. It’s hard to ignore…

“Booking a helicopter for a day between four anglers would not be out of the reach of many people.” OUR thirst for adventure and to access fishing waters where the fish are uneducated to the ways of artificial lures, flies or a baited hook is just a dream to many, but to others, it’s an everyday reality. For those old enough, the name Brazzaka invokes thoughts of helicopter adventures in the tropical north of Queensland. Dennis “Brazzaka” Wallace is famous for his adventurous nature and the use of helicopters to access those places that are rarely, if ever, visited by the adventurous angler. Flying up and down the east and west coasts of Cape York landing next to untouched waterholes, little fished creeks and rivers and being the first one…

1 Lucas with a big snapper he caught. It was 9.5kg and 94cm. 2 Samuel, 10- years-old, off Busselton with his largest skippy to date caught on squid. 3 This is eight-year-old Tayten La Spada with a baby salmon he caught all on his own at at Bawon Heads in Victoria. 4 Monty Pakula, 4-years-old, with his new biggest whiting at 40cm. His brother Hunter cast the yabby out and Monty reeled it in. SEND YOUR DIGITAL PHOTOS AND A DESCRIPTION OF YOUR CATCH TO PICTURES@ FISHO.COM.AU FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN. WIN BIG! Each month we will select five lucky winners for our Grin & Win section. Grin & Win winners will each receive a cool Shimano cap and Squidgy DVD! E-mail your entry and contact details to: pictures@fisho.com.au…

Fishing World’s latest project boat is the Bar Crusher 535XS centre console. Replacing the 535XS rear console, the new addition to the family offers true versatility in a solid boat, purpose built for fishing. I sold the old Bar Crusher in June last year and immediately ordered the new one. Despite the Melbourne lock-down, Bar Crusher did fantastic job keeping the factory going and pumped out an impressive number of boats, including mine. Meanwhile, the sudden surge in boat ownership meant a possible shortage of boat parts and accessories, even engines! I was keen to purchase one of Yamaha’s F90 four-stroke engines. I first checked out the F90 when Yamaha released it in 2017. At the time, Yamaha had a F90 attached to a Bar Crusher 535C for an on-water…