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Your Fishing Photos
Picture: Good catches of squid are coming from Lancelin Jetty (Photo courtesy of Squid Hunters Western Australia).
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Supercharge Your Fishing Experiences: Part 1
This is the first part of a three-part series on batteries. In this article, we explain how to link batteries in a series circuit and a parallel circuit to obtain your required voltage and desired amp hours.
Read the full article here.
Broome Catches
Picture: Chinaman cod have been picked up within Roebuck Bay (Photo courtesy Dylan Picken).
Boats
Bluewater enthusiasts have been encountering good numbers of sailfish and spanish mackerel in waters off Barred Creek and Gantheaume Point. Reef fishing has been productive along the 10m to 15m depths off Cable Beach and within Roebuck Bay where coral trout, blue lined emperor, estuary cod and chinaman cod have been picked up. Cobia have been appearing in a range of depths and areas and there are plenty of mack tuna about.
Shore based
Barramundi between 55cm and 75cm, and the odd bigger fish to a metre, have been caught in the upper reaches of the Fitzroy River. Threadfin salmon have been a little hard to find at times near the mouths of the local creeks. Poppers and stick baits have been working well on queenfish, golden and small giant trevally along Cable Beach and Roebuck Bay. Spanish mackerel are occasionally being caught from the shore at Gantheaume Point.
Exmouth Catches
Picture: Dolphin fish, those trolling off the coast of Exmouth have a good chance of catching one of these beauties.
Boats
Gus McAdam hooked an estimated 100kg black marlin before it threw the hooks 30 minutes into the fight at the weekend. He then went on to land an impressive 15kg dolphin fish that was hooked while trolling the 200m depths. Sailfish have been encountered off the west coast as well as in the upper areas of the Gulf. Yellowfin tuna to 40kg and wahoo have also been caught off the west side. Brody Laroux and Dan Macray used soft plastics to catch golden trevally and bluebone near Exmouth Reef during a recent session. Trolled bibbed minnows are working well on Spanish mackerel, especially near Helby Bank.
Shore based
Mangrove jack have been caught at the marina on baits and soft plastics. Small queenfish, trevally, yellowfin bream and estuary cod have also been picked up from the inside and outside rock walls there. Squid have been picked up in better numbers in the evenings at the marina and Learmonth Jetty. Tantabiddi boat launching facility has also been producing squid. Whiting can be caught along the town beaches and those stretching to the lower areas of the gulf. Try VLF Bay for bigger queenfish, golden trevally and giant herring.
Esperance Catches
Picture: Looking for black bream? You can find them at Bandy Creek Boat Harbour along with some King George, herring and skippy (Photo courtesy of @Massamone).
Boats
The crews who put in the miles and ventured well east of town scored bigger nannygai than those who worked the waters south of Woody Island. The waters east of town have also been producing better catches of pink snapper. Southern bluefin tuna in the 10kg to 20kg range have been encountered between 70km and 80km offshore. The small boats continue to do well on sand whiting and squid in close.
Shore based
The Taylor Street Jetty has herring, squid and garfish most days while Bandy Creek Boat Harbour is worth a try for King George whiting, herring, black bream and skippy. Salmon Beach, Blue Haven, Fourth Beach, Nine Mile and Roses Beach were among the spots where salmon were picked up this past week. Skippy in the 2kg to 3kg range have been turning up at Thomas River and Dunns. Some nice mulloway have recently been caught at Fourteen Mile, Thomas and Rossiters.
Albany Catches
Picture: Bonito is commonly caught when targeting tuna but is still a good table fish and enjoyed by locals (Photo courtesy of Fab Fishing & Tours).
Boats
King George whiting are about the sound and both harbours in reasonable numbers, but finding the 30cm to 40cm fish requires some effort. Juvenile and mature salmon are also through the inshore parts as are herring, sand whiting and flathead. Bonito and small southern bluefin tuna have been caught on trolled bibbed minnows near the headlands. The boats that worked the 65m to 90m depths picked up fair catches of pink, red and queen snapper. Some fishers also caught breaksea cod and dhufish while others tested their gear and strength on samson fish. Blue eye trevalla and small hapuka were brought up from the deeper waters.
Shore based
Salmon have continued to appear along the beaches in better numbers. Pat Allan hooked four salmon in four casts during an entertaining session at Salmon Holes Beach about noon last Friday. Only one of Pat’s salmon managed to throw the hooks. Good salmon sessions were also experienced at Shelleys, Bornholm, Mutton Bird, Nanarup, Cheynes Beach and Bluff Creek. Herring are still about in good numbers and there have been some nice skippy around the kilo mark caught at Nanarup and Bluff. The lower reaches of the King and Kalgan rivers are providing better catches of black bream than the upper parts.
Kalbarri Catches
Picture: When the weather has been good, fishers heading south of town are getting their hands on some spangled emperor.
Boats
An assortment of reef species including pink snapper, baldchin groper, coral trout and dhufish have been caught in 10m to 20m of water west of the cliffs located south of town as well as in the depths leading up to 30m northwest of the river mouth. When the weather has allowed the boats to venture out farther, red emperor, dhufish and spangled emperor have been caught. Spanish mackerel are still about, but catches are becoming less frequent as the cooler months progress. Schools of longtail and yellowfin tuna are more common in the northern waters.
Shore based
A customer of Kalbarri Sports and Dive caught several mulloway ranging from 66cm to 1m near Gregory’s Rock last week. Black bream are being caught in excellent numbers in the middle and upper reaches of the Murchison. Wayne Dewar scored estuary cod to 50cm at Dance Floor early last week. Mornings and evenings are producing tailor and the odd mulloway at Red Bluff, Wittecarra Creek, Chinamans and Frustrations. Pink snapper would be worthwhile targeting from the cliffs and the beaches north of the river mouth following the rougher conditions.
Geraldton Catches
Picture: Great to see some action shots coming out of the Geraldton & Districts Offshore Fishing Club.
Boats
A strong Leeuwin Current has been making reef fishing difficult. Those who persevered and perhaps were equipped with heavier sinkers managed dhufish and pink snapper near African Reef and the back of Pensioners Bank. Spanish mackerel catches have mostly been coming from the waters north of town and the near the Abrolhos Islands.
Shore based
Dhufish were caught from the shore between Flat Rocks and the Greenough River mouth before the rough weather hit. Tailor and mulloway have also been coming from along this stretch while the first and second points at Greenough have been good for herring and pike. Mulloway are occasionally turning up at the back of The Lives, which has also been producing catches of mixed bread and butter species including whiting, herring, yellowtail and chopper tailor.
South West Catches
Picture: Salmon schools were encountered off Cape Naturalise last week (Photo courtesy of Dan Coughlan).
Boats
Dinghy and small boat fishers have been getting among some nice pink snapper in approximately 15m of water within Geographe Bay. The pinkies have been caught in better numbers between first light and dawn or around sunset. Schools of small southern bluefin tuna and salmon were encountered off Cape Naturalise last week. Squid catches are improving along the seagrass beds located off Eagle Bay, Quindalup and Abbey Beach.
Shore based
Before the rough conditions arrived, there were still plenty of salmon being caught at Hamelin Bay, Injidup Beach, Bunker Bay and Eagle Bay. Herring are still about in excellent numbers and there are some nice skippy around for when the conditions allow the west coast beaches to be fished. The deep gutters formed during the big swells would be worth visiting for mulloway, jumbo tailor and pink snapper.
Mandurah & Surrounds
Picture: The groynes around Silver Sands are a great spot to target whiting and tailor (Photo courtesy of Tony Tropiano).
MANDURAH
Some recent rains have activated the prawns and they are starting to move out of the estuary. Tailor and big skippy aren’t adverse to a feed of fresh prawns, so be prepared to use one or two as bait. There are herring being caught in the Dawesville Cut along with some good skippy and an occasional tarwhine. Reports from people fishing Tim’s Thicket, White Hills, Preston and the beaches further south tell of tailor, salmon, herring and some weed. Black bream are still biting well in the Murray and Serpentine rivers. Reports from the northern beaches indicate that salmon and tailor are still being caught but the main catches seem to be whiting and herring with an odd tarwhine or two for good measure.
SECRET HARBOUR / PORT KENNEDY / WARNBRO / ROCKINGHAM / SAFETY BAY
The beaches around Port Kennedy have produced a few salmon during the last week. The Rockingham jetties could be worth a few hours soaking a bait at night for a mulloway or snapper at this time of year. A good cast to get out into the channel and deeper water will improve chances of a good fish. There has been a lot of squid taken from the area by both land based and boat fishers. Becher Point and the Point Peron beaches have been producing some good tailor and a few salmon. There are herring, whiting and tarwhine along most beaches from Port Kennedy to Kwinana.
Metro Catches
Picture: Fishing report author Joachim, with a nice harlequin fish.
Boats
Kayak and small boat fishers have been catching samson fish to 15kg, pink snapper and salmon near the shipping channel off Woodman Point. More salmon have been caught near The Mewstone and Stragglers. Some nice dhufish have been caught in depths leading up to 60m of water off Rockingham and Fremantle. Three Mile Reef has been fishing well for mixed reef species including pink snapper, baldchin groper and harlequin fish. Squid were being caught in good numbers before the rough weather hit. Expect the southern calamari to respond well to jigs again once conditions settle.
Shore-based
Dozens of pink snapper ranging from 5kg to 8kg were landed from the northern and southern rock walls when the rough weather hit on Sunday. Expect more snapper to be caught from the shore this weekend when another low-pressure system is expected to pass through the South West. Some nice mulloway have been caught from Preston Beach, Golden Bay and Singleton. Smaller mulloway have been landed along the Cable Beach to Swanbourne stretch. Expect salmon to turn up along the beaches in better numbers following the rough weather. Black bream are likely to be pushed into the lower reaches of the Swan and Canning rivers.
Leader Line
Technical Rating: Intermediate
Whether connecting braided mainline to a shock leader for casting lures or choosing a bite-off leader for bottom bashing, leader choice can be all important for effective fishing. The market is dominated by three types of leader material, nylon monofilament, fluorocarbon and wire. Wire is self-explanatory and generally only used when targeting toothy fish. Single strand or multi strand wire can be used in non-coated or various coated forms. Generally, thinner coated wires are knottable and although stiff, some standard knots can be tied with heat shrink coatings on some. Uncoated multi-strand wires must be crimped to secure but a haywire twist may be used to secure single strand. Single strand is stiff in comparison and thinner diameter than multi strand which is more flexible allowing a more natural presentation but water resistance is less with single strand. Different situations lend themselves to different wires in more details than space here, but ask at your local tackle store for some tips.
Nylon is the most common fishing line material and commonly when people refer to “mono” line they are talking about nylon monofilament. Not to be confused with fluorocarbon which is also a monofilament line, the two have different properties which make them more or less valuable for different applications. Fluorocarbon is a clear, hard material which virtually vanishes underwater. The line has an internal structure somewhat like stringy cheese, that when ruptured will strip along the length of the line, rather than cutting across the line. It has low stretch and is much stiffer, or less supple than nylon line. Its benefits are that it provides greater abrasion resistance due to its robustness but is more difficult to tie and doesn’t provide much shock resistance.
Nylon line can come in any range of colours including crystal clear. A range of suppleness is also available from supple to tough/stiff. Generally though, nylon line is much more supple, soft and stretchy than fluorocarbon. It is easier to tie knots, has better shock absorption and is much cheaper to buy. The down side is what it lacks in hardness is reflected in abrasion resistance and line that has been compromised will give way sooner than fluorocarbon with cuts and nicks spreading across the line, rather than down its length. So give a few leader lines a go and choose your favourite for your style of fishing.
