Made the annual pilgrimage to Ningaloo over the Easter break. Was a great trip this year, ticked off a few firsts and some PB's as well.

First couple of days were slow. Nothing taking on the troll and the bottom bashing was only producing a few fish. We have put this down to the full moon. Very few birds working the bait, and everything was a little quiet except for the sharks. They are worse every year and this year was no exception. 2 out of three solid fish lost bottom bashing, only way to beat them was to fish shallow, or continually move around when they arrived.

Day 3 and after the moon had passed and the fishing turned on! We were getting solid fish past the sharks and the pelagics were on the chew. This year the wahoo were everywhere! We regularly would get multiple hookups. The mackerel were present but finding them amongst the wahoo was a challenge. One fish on my list was a 20kg+ Mack. I tried for days, and the deckies were getting macks and all I could get was Wahoo, lots of Wahoo... It became a running joke as I would lose my temper when a 15+kg Hoo surfaced not a Mack... Noticeably missing this year were the Yellowfin tuna. Last year we were getting 2 for every three fish but not a single one this trip.

We had 6 days of magic weather, with regular glass offs and the ability to fish dawn till dusk. We were all exhausted but with the weather due to turn bad over the weekend we had to make the most of it. After 6 days the deckies headed home as their freezers were full and I was on my own for the last week of the trip. A trip into town for fuel, water, beer and the weather report was made, and the report was ugly. Strong wind forecast for 5 days straight. It was too late to run the boat up coast to the ramp and the decision was made to hold out and hope for a change in weather.

The wind arrived over the weekend as forecast and with it came the seaweed. This made trolling singlehanded near impossible as the sea condition was extremely rough and the lures would weed up within minutes requiring a full reset. Over the next few days I scavenged deckies from other camps and we fished through the bad weather for not much. The wahoo that were thick throughout the week had vanished and bottom fishing wasn’t possible in anything more than 30-40m as the swell and wind made caused excessive drift speeds. Much beer was consumed while we waited for the weather and the fishing to improve.

After a couple of days of wind and weed, there was a small improvement allowing me to get out singlehanded again. I was on the hunt for my 20kg+ Mack! Again the fishing totally changed, and the bait was showing thick all through the water column. I had a solid hit on one rod, but after a short fight the hooks pulled... Whatever it was had serious power and weight, and lacked the high speed of the wahoo we had been catching. I set the lures back and began the troll again. With suspected weed on the center rod, I left the boat running into the swell at 6 knots and went to clear the line. Halfway through the windup the lure got smashed and the fish took off. There were some acrobatics as i had to keep the pressure on the fish, get back to the front of the boat to switch off the engine, and dodge the other lines that were still out, all while rolling in 2m seas. Miraculously the hooks held and after a long battle i got to the leader and my first look at the fish. Even down deep I would see it was a mack and a BIG one! Again, some more acrobatics and I had the fish boat side, the leader in one had and the gaff in the other. Somehow I managed a perfect gaff shot (something my deckies can attest isn’t common!), and hauled my fish over the side. FINALLY, my 20+ mack was on the deck and I celebrated with a lot of hooting, a few selfies and self high fives!

The fish was way too big for the kill tank, and I considered heading back into the beach to clean it. I decided to wrap it in cloth and continually water it under the gunwale so I could continue fishing. I trolled for another hour without a strike and then bottom bashed for a few emperor, but the drift was too fast still. I dropped the lures back out for another troll towards home, and decided to throw out a skirt my deckie had left behind. I have never fished skirts, and expecting little from it, it was sent out on a cheap BCF rod with missing eyelets coupled with an ancient penn slammer that has been living under the seat of my boat. (my other trolling reel had a melt down after a wahoo smoked it and was seized). After a while I noticed the rod tip pulling down intermittently on the skirt and assumed again it was seaweed. Again with the boat jogging into wind I went down try to shake the weed off the lure. After a few jerks the lure pulled back, this happened a couple of times before BANG, it connected properly and the reel was screaming. I was fast running through the line on the spool, when the fish started tail walking towards the horizon with my boat driving itself the other way! As soon as I saw it was a billfish, I resigned myself to the fact I would most likely lose the fish without someone to assist and settled in to enjoy the show. I managed to slow the fish but the boat was blowing down on the line with no way for me to clear it over the cab and the rods in the rocket launcher. So while rolling in the swell with the rod in one had, I gingerly shuffled around the cab onto the front deck where I could fight the fish sitting on the windscreen!

After a long fight I got a hold of the leader, and then realised it wasnt a small marlin as i thought, but a sailfish! (my first sailfish) I managed to walk the fish to the transom to get it in through the swim door so I could get the hook out. A few photos later, I swam the fish boatside for 10 minutes until it recovered its colour and managed a successfull release! ANOTHER first and ANOTHER fish ticked off my list! As dissapouinting as it was not to share the moment with someone, landing these fish singlehanded is a memory I will never forget! 

Over the last few days of the trip, the weather and seaweed didnt improve much, but the fishing did. I got myself a couple of deckies from another camp and we hit the demersals one last time. Fishing was slow initially, and we worked to find the fish without the sharks. After some exploring new ground we found them, and managed our bag limit within an hour! Its amazing how you can find the energy to wind from 100m when the fish are biting! 

The final day I had to run the boat down coast in some nasty head sea, and as soon as I cleared the sanctuary zone, I dropped the lures in for a troll as I wasnt making much ground fast in the copnditions. Trolling home boated a couple of mack tuna (my first tuna in 2 weeks!) and another nice spanish to top off the fewwzer for the long drive ahead. 

Its only been a week, but Im already planning next years trip! This time we will bring electric reels to fish deeper and hopefully beat the sharks to some of the bigger fish. Ningaloo is a truly special place! 

With a week off work, had to get in a fishing sesh to calm the soul.

Wednesday was looking good and I t'd up my bro in law for an early morning start at my usual around hillarys.

With only 2 1/2 hours sleep we hit the water around 5am.

Burlied up the water and bang on sunrise an 83cm pink that nailed the unweighted mulie like a road train.

My bro in law continued with the belly burley while trying to stay positive.

He had a steaming run that broke him off on the anchor rope, called it for another good sized pinkie, but will never know.

We ended up with one snapper, one skippy and a good size cuttlefish.

The skippy and cuttlefish were cooked up that night and kept the tentacles for future bait.

Was a good few hour sesh but now thinking of the return to work on Monday...

Below are a few of my favourite images from 5 days at the Abrolhos Islands last week.  I have never been there before and it was epic, once I learned how to fish it.

Was thinking of writing up a report, however the content would be too long for one report, or I would have to do a really abridged version.  Just wondering if people would be interested in reading the longer versions over the next week or so, or just do a short one?

 Had a mate coming to Broome for the first time. He talked about coming last year but never got around to it.

I said to him what would you like to target and he responded I wouldn't mind getting into some light gear mackerel.

So with the water temp still at 29.3 degrees I thought it would still be too hot for them but was going to give it a good crack as he was here for 5 days that would be enough time to get into some.

So Sunday we headed out just off cable beach and started trolling, not much bait around and then wanted to hit up some marks that I have caught good flag and blue bone the fish were there but so were the Sharks we hooked some great fish but they didn't last long till the Sharks got them.

So after 5  fish were lost and my mate getting frustrated I though we better move. So we kept heading out further towards some barges I could see a few other boats in the distance.

As we were getting closer towards the other boats there were flying fish and Gardies everywhere. At this point I was getting pretty excited as we found the bait and the tide was just about to turn.

When we got to the spot it was mayhem I have never seen so many mackerel in my life hundreds upon hundred of school mackerel bait everywhere sailfish free swimming. There we 3 other boats that looked like they were all targeting the sailfish so looks like all the mackerel were there for us to target.

In the lures went and in the 5 minutes I landed a big spotted mackerel then from there we were averaging a mackerel every 15 minutes.

My mate got his spaniard on the boat that he was after and another 2 not long after where I just kept getting the spotted mackerel. Might have had something to do that I was running shallow diver and he had a deep diver.

Wasnt long until we had a our bag limit. Most fish were around 110cm and 7-8kg.

Chris 

Spent a bit of time back around the islands off Onslow recently engaging in some shallow water sportfishing. Full moon made things a bit tough at the start and then towards the end, a crap southerly eventually drove us home early.

Just fished my own jigs for the week (no bait) and ended up with 27 different species. Had some great sessions in 3-4m of water with a light berley trail, awesome watching queenies, shark macks, trevs etc hitting your jig at speed just below the berley pot.

Got bricked in the shallows quite a few times but didn't lose too many fish to sharks.

Mate started fishing with stinky bait but he was soon reaching for the jig box.

Here's some pics.

 Gday all,

Here are a few photos and details our annual camping trip to Exmouth...

We left home Friday arvo (last day of the school term) and drove to Galena bridge - arriving at about 1am for a few hours sleep... about 2km out from Exmouth we shredded a trailer tyre, and then about 600m from the caravan park the clutch started slipping in the car (the joys of towing a 1982 Quintrex with a 198& Landcruiser)...

The first couple of days were pretty quiet - sorting the car and tyres, but we got out to Cooper Shoal and lost a few lures to Macks, had a Spaniard 'torpedo' out of the water in front of us, had 2 big tigers eat a Spaniard next to the boat, and finally landed a little Spotted Mack for tea...

We spend most of our time down the bottom of the gulf, and the spring tides made it tough! The water was filthy! We managed a few Cod on lures and I speared a couple of Bluebone and Jacks, but next year I will try for neaps!

After 10 days it was time to head home - straight into a headwind for most of the trip - so I was forced to sit on 90 to keep the temps under control..... getting passed by every grey nomad in their 200 series towing massive vans....

Until next trip!!!....

Got up at sparrows this morning to chase some snapper well inside FFB, anchored a little too close to the reef as it turns out and, as I was chasing snapper had rigged all rods with light mono as you get far less tangles than braid particularly when fishing several rods in the dark. First fish was a huge port Jackson but then the snapper turned it on, I know they were snapper as twice I managed to get then close enough to the boat to see them in the torch light....WRONG! Bloody things went ballistic, one went around the berley bucket and broke me off, the next around the prop same result, then hooked what I called for a big ray on the lightest gear I had, coaxing it to the the boat I looked down to see a huge flash of purple and silver before it dived back down, at least a metre long it was a huge dhuie, re rigging I dropped half a fresh pike down the burley trail only to hook up again....this one was played to a standstill ...another dhuie, 70cm,  all out of 17 metres of water and all before dawn.  Snapper turned off the moment the sun poked its head over the island.  Sambos and salmon then became a nuisance do I pulled the pick and headed in.  For a supposedly crappy solunar day I had an absolute ball....will anchor fUrther from the reef next time and might upsize the mono to 15kg 

 Hi all, just wondering if anyone is still getting crabs in mandurah ? 

Cheers 

First time poster alert...

Purchased my first boat about 3 months ago (2006 Trailcraft Trailblazer 660) which im obviously still learning more about each and every trip out.

We've had her down south and out from Hamelin Bay for a week in early March which had fished a few spots we had previously worked on my uncles old boat (2nd photo down south) and tried anumber of no spots without much luck.

Although, I've certainly found metro/cockburn sound fishing is a lot of trial and error - all part of the learning experience. I've had days were i thought i picked the wind right & swell, arrived early to woodies & we've caught nothing and been bashed around a bit in the process - but hey thats fishing.. Then we've had days like Good Friday which is what this post is mostly about, where we have struck gold.

Again taking off from Woddies around 6:30am, (car park littered at that time already) and headed out to a few previous owners spots marked behind Garden Island, not luck for about 30 minutes. Dad & I have always wanted to head to the FAD's, although my Garmin GPS model is now 10+ years old (like the boat) & doesnt allow the option to enter specific marks to be able to set a correct track to the FAD locations - again probably something i need to learn some more about.

however, we tinkered off from behind Garden and spread a bit wider and back north to the back end of Rotto. Saw a few boats sitting all pretty close together, so though we'll keep out distance and track around try to find some ground.

after a few bad days previously, i've not had much faith in my Garmin Fishfinder250c model in picking up good ground. however, found a great lump that picked up a reasonably quick depth change & thought lets have a drop.

Trial and error never really had us burley up, which i was cutting up some mullie every now and again and dropping that over. I got slammed by something, which we pulled up & was a reasonable 4kg pinky, my first Metro one also.

Picked up the sea anchor and slid back up the drift line we had come down on, and Dads Rod went bang.

I get excited thinking about it now, as i was yelling, screaming, & trying to get ourselves sorted around the boat for when he hopefully got it surfaced.

It wasnt the biggest Dhui i had seen, although first to crack the 10kg mark on my new boat & no one better then the old man. For the 3 of us at home, there was enough fillet for Friday lunch on the Pinky, but topped the day off being able to get the grandparents over for a lovely feed of Dhui & Pinky.

Dad's apart of a local Beach & Rock based Amatuer Fishing club, (which im not sure if Admin will let me give a plug to, as they're always welcoming new members). Although to see the enjoyment he had with this dhui is something you can't trade in the world.

He dropped something else big, which we reckon was another dhui & looked to had frayed line in a similar area that hadh tangled over mine when i grabbed the pinky earlier (god send to get the first dhui up also).

We're off to the Abrohlos with Apache at the start of May, which after last years week trip, i cant wait for.

Now - got the long part out the way & as mentioned always looking for some help with the boat,

Hoping someone can point me in the right direction for a reasonable Marine Trimmer, who'd be able to make me a custom fit full cover for the boat - she sits out the front at home & looking for that bit of protection to help in keeping her condition for a few more years to come.

Also, GPS/Sounder combos, im looking for a new combo which i've had a couple freinds tell me about their Lowrance Elite 7ti, and getting the upgraded transducer / structure scan etc.

Haz anyone dealt with Hummingbird or alternative combos and would recommend something around the $1500-2000 mark?

appreciate the help, and happy fishing to all.

Hi

This is my first post and happy to say it's one that I'd like to see one day.

I've been fishing for smaller reef fish and skipjack near tub rock south of Safety Bar. Happy to say I've caught two jewfish (and a number of undersize and lost a monster) over last three weeks. Might be worth a try.

 G'day all , haven't heard any reports as yet , mustn't be far away but ? 

Cheers Andy 

the salmon provided many a holiday maker some great fun yesterday and today.   Many fish caught within 20 metres from shore.    Even the dolphins enjoyed the swell and a feed.   Was also great to see many fishers showing patience with others during the frenzy with only the occasional crossed lines.    Was also great see the bulk of fish returned to the water to live another day 

How good is it when a plan comes together. With the weather looking good and leave pass from the misses a mate and I headed out from Freo with a plan to have some fun on Salmon, and hopefully a snapper or two. Arriving at Leeuwin ramp at 7 we were lucky to be one of the last in before the car park was too full. My mate hadn’t caught a Salmon for a long time so the plan we to get him on to one early then move out deeper. We were pretty pumped heading out between the heads with a light easterly blowing and all day to hit the water (too rare an opportunity these days) Arriving at “the spot” it was absolute mayhem. I remember some chaos chasing Salmon around Mewstones last year but this was another level. Either way, I wanted to make it a sure thing he got one, so we snuck in for a couple. First fish was pretty funny as we both hooked the same fish. After that we went for another drift and he got one solo. Happy days, we got that ticked of the list. With all the chaos we decided a move off was wise and headed out to the five fathom to chase Snapper. Arriving we saw birds working everywhere and big schools of Salmon busting up. Old mate was keen to chase the Salmon but I insisted we give the pinkies a try. Arriving out our spot around 9:30am we went for a couple of drifts for nothing. We decided to anchor up and see if we could bring em around with burley. Once the burley was in the water it didn’t take long for a couple of pinkies to hit the decks. Soon the salmon moved in again and after landing a few of these it seemed the pinkies had moved off and we decided to head in. If only every Friday was a day off!

 hi all heading up that way next week is it worth while taking your pots ?

targeted species for this trip where billfish and ruby's. ticked of both in what was a great trip away. had no real desire to fill the fridge with fillets 

we lost 3 days to weather but still managed to push on and scored some great fish.

went 1-1-1 on sails and 2-2-1 on blues

handfulls of ruby's and a solid 18kg 8 bar

by catch trolling was 2 wahoo one of them was a hooter of a fish needed to be bent in half to fit in the big esky

no real shark problems had a few circling the boat but only lost 1 fish to sharks

chrisG hooked and fought a well WELL over 200kg blue for just over an hour before the little tld 25 couldnt take no more and the blue decided to take 400m of line straight down giving us no choice but to try and lock up the drag and unfortunatly....pop. the reel was to hot to touch after the run that finished us off

the other 2 boats in our convoy struggled till late in the trip with dirty water but managed to clean up on macks last couple days

not nearlly enough photos but to much high fiving and beers

huge thanks to matty for leccy reel usage and a massive thanks to mick and the team at shore catch, your time and effort sorting our bait was much appreciated 

thanks to all the members ive hassled for tips and techniques as well

next years already booked bills bills and more bill fish 

thanks for reading guys, 

 spent all day throwing my guts up but late in the day and after a swim with the sharks to refresh we hooked this sail and it put on a nice show

my first ever marlin had me grinning for days

chris getting worked over by a big marlin on the smallest reel of the fleet

lay day shallow water fun

solo run today, came home with 3 squid & 3 decent sized salmon!  

Lachlan Bell caught this ripper in the sound this week

Bluewater Tackle World
Fishing Report Friday 13th April 2017

Do you remember going fishing as a kid? Kids love fishing and nothing beats seeing the look on their faces when they reel in a fish, no matter the size or the species. Fishing is a great way of getting the kids out of the house and connect with the outdoors. So, whether you’re heading away or staying local for Easter, why not take advantage of the mild Autumn weather and build some memories that will last a lifetime?

If you haven’t already, check out our Easter Escape Catalogue (click here). It’s full of great deals and if you’re not sure where to start, come in to one of our stores and let our expert staff talk you through everything you need to know. We’ll even rig it up for you and show you where the fish are biting, as part of the service.

The past week can be summed up in one word… SALMON. Love them or hate them, they’re here and it looks like being another epic season. Schools are already entering Fremantle Harbour, which means last years scenes of salmon terrorising baitfish as far upstream as Mt Henry Bridge are likely to be repeated in the coming weeks. What an opportunity this represents. Whether you’re a spinner or a fluff-chucker, the prospect of catching a salmon on your ultra-light gear, at your regular bream spot, must get the heart pumping.


Staff Member Geoff with salmon on fly!

If you want to target salmon specifically, high tide at the North Mole has proven to be a reliable location in the past few days. If you’re lucky enough to have a boat, head to the offshore reefs from Fremantle; Mewstone, Stragglers and Seal Rock have been holding fish for a while now and their numbers keep growing as the bigger schools make it to Perth waters.  

Salmon lures needn’t cost you the earth, we’ve got Samaki Flash sinking stickbaits in 35g and 55g for $8ea at the moment and not to mention 30% off all Arma Metals! If you're struggling to make the distance to those just out of reach schools, metals are a great option for lures that cast like a bullet but still maintain the small profile that the fish are likely to be feeding on.

Fishing tip: using single hooks makes for a solid hookup, easy dehooking, whilst also making it safer for the angler, and fish if you are going to release it. Above: staff member Geoff dehooks a salmon before release.


Strada Tera's rigged with singles are dynamite on salmon

For those more interested in putting fish on the table this Easter holiday, there are plenty of options, with herring being plentiful along the beaches and demersals fishing great in a large array of depths. Great catches are coming just 5 minutes from some boat ramps, however for those willing to put the distance in to reach the 40's have been well rewarded. Fishing for snapper in and around the Cockburn Sound has continued to be a popular and productive place to fish the week. With depths between 5-15m usually holding a good abundance of fish, you just need to find them on your sounder. Soft Plastics in the 5-7 inch are an ideal lure choicer with the Madeye Paddle Prawns being the go to lure of many successful anglers.


Staff member Kelvin with a solid ‘pinky’

For those who have been able to get out far enough for a deep drop, they have been reporting great catches of the likes of bass grouper and blue eye trevalla.

Squidding has started to really turn on lately and it presents a great opportunity for some Easter fun whether you are by yourself, with mates or the whole family. Drifting anywhere around weed beds from two to ten metres of water has been productive. If you are fishing the dirtier water around Fremantle Harbour red and purple jigs have been doing very well, whilst in the clearer water jigs with UV on them have been the standouts.
 
If you want to venture in and around our estuarine systems this long weekend, the bream have been caught around Nedlands on soft plastics by anglers fishing the areas near boat moorings and piers, as well as along the flats in the Canning. The crabbing has been relatively good the past couple of weeks as the water has started to clear up somewhat. Deeper areas around Black Wall Reach have produced reasonable catches of the tasty morsels lately.
 
Lastly on behalf of the Bluewater Crew we wish you all a happy and safe Easter. Tight Lines!

Haters will say it's photoshop.

 Entering in the ORSSC Mason's Bar Classic for the second year in a row, dreams of winning a Stella were in the air and hopes of some good fish were high.

After a somewhat delayed start waiting for a member of the crew, we hit the road and arrived at Guilderton just after dark. The wind was pumping and the swell was up but on first inspection there didn't seem to be too much weed in the shore break.

We set up and began fishing. As soon as the first line went in I could tell it wasn't going to be easy with the large swell magnifying what weed there was around, making it hard to keep baits in the water. My solution to this was to bomb out an 8oz grapnel with a mullet/yakka combo on a couple snelled 6/0 circles on my heavy Beachmaster.

The bait wasn't in the water for more than a few minutes before I heard the ratchet on my torium go off and as soon as I saw my line heading straight down into the waves I knew there was weed on. I cranked up the drag and winched in what I thought was a huge clump of weed. It pulled a bit of drag as the wave receeded and I had thoughts of a fish but thought I knew better and kept cranking. 

A small amount of weed hit the beach around my leader knot and as I shone the torch at it I thought I saw a glimpse of silver behind it so kept pulling and up washed a fish! I ran down and gilled a reasonable mulloway which came in at 96cm and just over 7 kilos. I was very lucky the circle hook had pinned it securely in the corner of the jaw and I didn't lose it considering the pressure I put on it and the fact I was only using 60lb leader. 

After the good start things were very quiet for the rest of the night with only one more hookup (big dirty ray which spat the hook eventually) so I decided to have an hour or two's rest. I woke up at 3:30 and got to work resetting the burley (was using a bunch of frames along with Mick's mulie shred blocks from Shorecatch) and put out some fresh baits.

An hour passed and as I was sipping a lemonade for a sugar kick I heard my big lethal screaming in protest as a good fish had the rod buckled over. A very violent fight ensued with big headshakes and dogged lunges. I was thinking either a shark or a good mulloway had picked up my bait but when a big waves washed up my PB pinkie of 86cm and 6.5kg I was stoked! Never before have I caught a legal snapper off the beach and now I'd picked up two in as many weeks!

I though I was a shoe in for the Twinpower 10k and Assassin prize with this good fish but alas I got smashed as two monster snapper over 7kg were also weighed in. I can't complain, I got well and truly beaten by quality fish and don't think I could've have done anything else.

For the rest of the weekend we tried to build up our bags with the smaller species but the sizeable swell made things difficult and we struggled. 

All in all a great weekend and another well run comp by ORSSC. Ill be back again next year to hopefully get on the winners list!

Hutch

It has been a couple of weeks since I have been out on the water.  Poor weather, boat repairs, work commitments and assisting my daughter with painting her house has kept me away from my passion.  With my dad visiting from the other side of the world I decided to try for an outing on Saturday, even though the wind forecast was not that great.  We launched at about 8h00 (very late) and made our way to the back of Garden Island so that we could escape the south easterly.  We eventually found fish announcing their presence on the sounder and dropped the anchor before introducing a moderate amount of burley to the area.  

Within 5 minutes of his first cast, my dad was hooked up to something solid. He has not caught a decent fish for a number of years and I was worried that he would loose this one.  The head shakes and short bursts indicated a fish of note and when I saw the first glimpses of colour I called it a sambo.  As the fish came into full view, my jaw dropped and my hands started shaking as I identified the fish as the largest snapper that I have ever seen.  After a couple of nervous minutes we landed the fish and the measuring tape confirmed the largest snapper to grace the deck of my boat - a whopper of 99cm.  Where is the fairness in this game?

We continued to catch a number of snapper in the 70s and 80s before the skippy and then sharks moved in.  We pulled the pick at about 13h00 and were off the water before the wind picked up. 

A great way to spend quality time with my old man.

For those who are interested!

Well done once again to everybody who won this year! The conditions weren't fantastic and there really were some absolutely outstanding fish weighed. Thanks again to all our sponsors and to all entrants who supported the event this year.

For those of you who don't know, for the juniors section, we drawn a random weight before the weigh in. The winner is the angler with fish that is the closest weight to the random weight drawn. We find this makes it fair for juniors big and small.

Results are below!

JUNIORS:

TAILOR: Random weight 0.725kg

Brodie McQuat - 0.878kg

HERRING: Random weight 0.171kg

Blake Farnell - 0.176kg

WHITING: Random weight 0.126kg

Luca Gugliotta - 0.070kg

WRASSE: Random weight 0.257kg

Luca Gugliotta - 0.298kg

OPEN:

MULLOWAY: Graeme Doodson - 15.950kg

SNAPPER: Lochy Sevaas - 7.810kg

SALMON: Chris Dixon - 5.510kg

TAILOR: Nathen Busio - 2.770kg

SAMSONFISH: Chris Gaston - 10.250kg

HERRING: Doug Gilbert - 0.383kg

WHITING: Tim Devereux - 0.338kg

SKIPPY: Chris Dixon - 0.761kg

BREAM: Robbie Riches - 0.722kg

Headed out this morning in perfect conditions with a light ESE breeze, left Woodies just before dawn and stopped in 15 metres of water the other side of GI seeking some small western King wrasse for dhuie bait but could get past heaps of good skippy and sand whiting.  Giving up we headed for the mid 40's around 12 NM further west, first drop resulted in a good dhuie, undersized snapper and more under sized dhuies then everything switched off.  Around 11 the few mutton birds hanging around the boat got the shock of their lives when several shark mackerel decided to try and bite their feet, pandemonium of boiling water and screaming birds with at least one seemingly loosing a bit of its foot.  Then the rods went off all together, I called mine for a good dhuie until it suddenly stopped boring for the bottom and shot up the water column to the surface, mack???, no a superb salmon just a little short of 5kg.  Other rod the same, a little smaller but still a brilliantly conditioned salmon......but on western King wrasse fillets being bottom bounced ......they must have been hungry ! 

 Would just like to thank the committee and sponsors for the effort put in over the last couple of days  running the competition.

Though the weed made fishing into the evening difficult congratulations to the crews who were able to get amongst some nice fish with the juniors and seniors weighing in some quality fish.

Good prizes and fantastic company .

Many thanks to all involved. 

Today's session started a few weeks ago, having a chat with a good mate of mine. He was saying his brother in law who is vision impaired and is originally from Sydney relocated a couple of years ago is a mad keen fisho who used to go fishing most nights and would love to have a go on a boat. No probs I said, we'll tee something up.

I checked the weather forecast on Friday and tee'd us up to depart Hillarys on Sunday around 4:30am.

We headed out to my usual ground in 12-15mtrs and got there well before sunrise.

With the burley in the water and the baits soaking, we waited... and nothing happened.

That was until way after sunrise.

Bang I got a nice skippy in the high 40's.

Rebaited and then Bang!..... ZzzzzzzZZZzzzzzzz

I gave my mates bro in law the rod and said here ya go mate, HANG ON!

This thing went on a steaming first run, I was calling it for a Sambo.

After around 5 minutes a big snapper going 89cm surfaced, the biggest I've seen on my boat, what a beast.

We had a few more takes and runs like this however we didn't manage to boat any due to gear failure or spitting the hooks.

I even managed a 47cm pinky on my symetre 500 and 4lb braid with a zman plastic. I'll tame a legal fish one day!

All in all a great day fishing with a fish of a lifetime that none of us will ever forget, here's to many more to come.

 The Black Ear Catfish in Thailand is a rarely captured Siluriforme and is a member of the Pangasiidae – Shark catfishes family of fishes and is easily identifiable by a large black spot above the base of the pectoral fin and a black longitudinal stripe along each caudal lobe.  The Black Eared Catfish has a pronounced dorsal fin and pectoral fins with a strong spine and long, filamentous rays which make it obviously related to the Chaophraya Catfish. The Black Eared Catfish is very similar to the Chaophraya Catfish in appearance with the addition of a large distinctive black marking behind its pectoral fins.

 Fishing Report

Bluewater Tackle World
Fishing Report Friday 7th April 2017

What a season we’re having for land-based metro anglers!
It seems every second customer is coming into our stores beaming, with a grin from ear-to-ear, and a story about landing a snapper or two from the shore. For many anglers, it is their first capture of this type, which makes it even more special. They’re not small fish either, with some topping the 80cm mark. It just goes to show the great work the recreational fishing industry is doing in protecting and growing this fabulous fishery.

If you don’t have a boat and you’ve always wanted to tangle with these hard-fighting, great-eating fish, now is the time. Customers, rightly, have remained tight-lipped about specific locations of their captures, but rock walls such as Woodman’s Point, The Moles and Hillarys are good starting points. If you prefer the feeling of sand under your feet, try Floreat Drain and Leighton. Snapper love an oily, smelly bait, so fillets of blue mackerel and mullet are ideal. Don’t be afraid to use a big bait with a pair of 6/0 Shinto Octopus snelled together.

If you want to get fancy, try wrapping a fillet of mullet (flesh-side out) around a mulie. Then use Black Magic Bait Buddy to hold it all together. Using this style of bait gives you the scent from the mulie and mullet flesh and durability provided by the thick mullet skin.

If you’re not sure whether your current set up is suitable for the job, bring it in to your closest Bluewater store and our experienced staff will give you all the help you need.

Staff member Jeremy had a cracker of a week and managed to get out two days in in a row. His report is as follows.

Monday 03/04/17
“Headed out from Hillarys marina with a mate, the plan was to fish a few spots in close before heading out wide to try our luck. First drop was an undersized dhufish and drop after drop was dhufish after dhufish until I caught a 75cm dhufish on a 7” Z-man coconut ice jerk shadz using a 2oz TT jighead. Ended up with a mixed bag of dhufish and snapper.”


Staff member Jeremy's dhu

Tuesday 04/04/17
Headed out from north of Two Rocks with a couple of good mates, ended up finding a school of mulloway and bagged out quite early, with my brother (Jeffery) getting a nice Spaniard on metal jig using 40lb leader and no wire. Jig used was a Haoli Lamble bait 110g.   


Staff member Jeremy and crew with their mulloway

Salmon are also on the mind of just about everyone.  Reports are coming in thick and fast of fish between the capes with huge schools swimming though every day. In metro waters there are a number of schools around with fish being caught around Freo, Rockingham and even Yanchep lagoon, as well as any inshore reefs also being worth a look. Who knows you might just catch a mammoth tailor or yellowtail king instead. This being said, the main schools are not yet here, but are not far off either and could come flooding into metro waters any day now.

Swan and Canning systems are starting to clear out now with good reports of solid bream coming from both. Fish are being caught on both lures and bait such as river prawns and bony herring. Mulloway also have been caught from E-shed through to the Narrows.

The squid are going off! The squid are flourishing in the shallows around the Cockburn Sound and Freo and even if they are not biting try mixing it up. Staff member Mike dropped his leader size to 4lb YGK fluorocarbon on Wednesday and tied on a jig with a purple base and caught and released 15 within the hour. Basically, if you are over any of the weed beds at the moment the squid will be there you just got to get them to take.

Lastly we simply had to share this pic of a mulloway good customer BK got a couple of weeks ago. Everything about it sums up why we all love fishing. Great capture mate!

 Thomas - A professional fishing guide and great fisherman in Texas, fished with me for 2 days chasing after wild snakehead in Thailand.

Finally the hours have paid off!!

So Ive had my boat for about 5 months now, I installed a new sounder/transducer and wasn't overly impressed with the returns I was getting. I've been spending a lot of time in the sound testing the minor transducer adjustments until I found the sweet spot.

Below is a picture of a wreck in the sound which i was quite impressed with - compared to my original readings (not the D9).

Feeling more confident with the sounder readings I was itching to get out to the FFB to sound some ground and hopefully land my first sized Pink in the boat. I had only been out to the FFB once in my boat prior to this trip so I had no marks.

I left the ramp at 6.30am and set out to the FFB, marked a few fish on the sounder and set up a drift over them. The first drift resulted in an undersized pink and a wrasse, unfortunately the drift was fairly quick so I thought a change of plan was needed. I decided to drop the anchor on one of the marks and drift some baits down until the current slowed.

I started a small burley trail in hope of some larger Pinks following it up. It didn’t take long before I had my first run, straight away I knew this wasn’t a Snapper - with no head shakes, long quick runs and the fish rising up in the water column. As I got the fish closer to the boat it started to do a circle pattern and I knew what it was, up comes a nice Tuna.

I reset the baits with hope that I might still be able to land my first size Pink, unfortunately it wasn’t to be. The Salmon had caught scent of the burley trail and were as hungry as always. I landed 4-5 Salmon with about 10 fish following the hooked fish to the surface.

By this time the conditions had improved so I thought I’d take advantage of it. I pulled the anchor and set out to search for some more ground.

It didn't take me long to find some promising looking shows on the sounder, I marked the spot and set up the drift. The scroll back function on the sounder really helped me pin point this.

I had a rod rigged with a bait and a PE2 set up rigged with a jig, I had the intension of dropping the bait to the bottom and then having a jig. The fish on the other hand had different ideas. As soon as my bait hit the bottom and I engaged the leaver drag I had a decent hit, I set the hooks and immediately felt some very solid weight. Line began to scream off the reel without any big head shakes, I increased my drag and tried to turn the fish. Every time I thought that I was winning the battle it would take long lunges back to the bottom leaving me counting the markings of my braid. At this stage I wasn’t too sure on what it was, I started to think it was a sambo but wasn’t convinced about the call.

After what felt like eternity and backing down on the fish 4 times I was ecstatic when my new PB Dhu at 91cm came to the side of the boat!!

It wasn’t the Snapper that I set out for in the morning but it’s the best bycatch I could imagine and was still a first on the boat.

 headed out from hillarys south towards hale road, anchored up about 5pm and got a bit of burley flowing. Action was good all evening and we bagged out and called it a day at about 8pm. Nothing massive but all quality fish. 

 Headed out with Kevin (Ashen) and Mark (Keg) again last night, with the plan being to launch at Mindarie before 4pm in order to get out to the 30s and anchor up with the burley flowing before the predicted bite time of 5-7pm. 

Upon motoring past 3 mile we'd planned to tow around a few lures and with a heap of bait getting harrassed on the surface things were looking good but unfortunately weed made things difficult and we pulled the pin on trolling without any takes and headed out deeper.

We anchored up on a spot that had produced for Kev before and hopes were high as I boated an undersized pinkie after being there for a few minutes but that was all the action that spot produced (other than a ray) despite pumping out some burley. We gave it until just after sunset before deciding to move in closer and anchor up on the 3 mile. 

As soon as we hit the reef we began marking fish left right and centre which had me wondering why we didn't just pull up here in the first place! We got set and had the burley flowing, still marking plenty but nothing wanted to bite.

That soon changed as I got a solid hit and my rod bent over, 20lb braid peeling from the reel. After a good tussle up popped the first Dhu of the night, not huge at 55cm but a Dhu nonetheless! 

I rebaited with another fresh fillet of herring and sent it back down. Whilst messing around on my phone my rod bent over in the holder and once again braid was peeling from the reel. This felt like a better fish and had me running around the boat, up the front, under the anchor rope and dragged me through the reef. I was convinced this was a ray and as a result neither of the other two paid much attention until another Dhu hit the surface. This one was a bit more solid at 64cm. Again not huge but a PB for me. 

After that the snook and good sized tailor followed the burley trail in and came on the bite. Kev also managed to boat a few reasonable skippy as well as a few rays (one of which led to a broken rod ).

We called it a night at 12 and headed in in  near perfect conditions, couldn't have asked for a smoother ride!

Once again a good night with great company, and a nice bag to top it off. Cheers Mark and Kev, look forward to next time. 

Hutch