Keep your eyes peeled for Recfishwest’s Tip of the week, see below!
Your Fishing Photos
If you want to see yourself or your kids feature in our weekly state-wide Fishing Reports, send your best fishing photos and a description to bronte@recfishwest.org.au
Tip of the week banner images courtesy of Shutterstock Ruggiero Scardigno, Smiltena & Garry L.
In case you missed it: 30,000 Fish Dead!
There are no stronger advocates for healthy aquatic environments than recreational fishers. This is why much of the recreational fishing community has been up in arms over the recent fish kill in the Murray River, near Mandurah.
Read the full article here.
Esperance Catches
Picture: Poady with a nice land based yellowtail king taken between Bremer and Esperance. Great to see the life jacket too!
Boats
Dinghy and small boat fishers have been regularly bagging a dozen big squid a session together with plenty of sand whiting, herring and snook around the inshore parts. A nice mix of reef fish including nannygai to 2.5kg, queen snapper, breaksea cod, samson fish and pink snapper have been coming from the waters beyond the islands. Southern bluefin tuna are occasionally being spotted out wide.
Shore based
The Taylor Street Jetty is producing garfish, herring, skippy, squid and barracouta most days while the Bandy Creek Boat Harbour has King George of around 30cm, herring, skippy and black bream. Salmon were found at Salmon Beach, Fourth Beach, Nine Mile, Roses and Warrinup this past week. Alexander Bay has mulloway and big tailor on offer. Dunns and Stockyards are worth a try for skippy to 2kg and salmon.
Albany Catches
Picture: Decent Sambo caught on jig (Photo courtesy of Harley Brown). Learn more about jigging here.
Boats
Squid numbers seem to have improved along the seagrass beds, located through in the inshore waters, following increased catches of the popular cephalopods in King George Sound, both harbours and Two Peoples Bay during the past fortnight. Jack Dawson caught several squid together with a huge cuttlefish during a recent session. King George whiting have been picked up in reasonable numbers and, similar to the squid, catches should increase as the winter month’s progress. Herring, skippy and sand whiting can be found in most of the inshore parts with little difficulty. More pinks and sambos have been caught along the 60m to 90m depths together with red snapper, queen snapper, dhufish and breaksea cod. The bigger boats that ventured beyond the shelf scored hapuka and blue eye trevalla.
Shore based
Surf fishers have continued to enjoy good sessions on salmon at Cables, Nanarup, Little Beach, Bornholm, Shelleys, Cheynes Beach and Bluff Creek. Cheynes and Bluff Creek have also been fishing very well for big herring and skippy while Bornholm and Nanarup have tailor some mornings and evenings. The King and Kalgan rivers are both fishing well for black bream in the 32cm to 38cm range. Mulloway catches have been fewer in both systems.
Squid Tactics
Technical Rating: Novice
When it comes to the retrieve there is no clear cut rule as most techniques will produce a squid or two. In Japan, ripping a jig a couple of metres through the water in one whip of the rod is pretty much considered standard fare, however the critical part of the Japanese tecnique is when the jig is falling back down to the bottom. This is generally when the squid grabs the jig, so they put a lot of concentration into watching the line for any movement as a squid tries to make off with the lure. Once this is spotted the jig is set with a firm strike and then fought into the net.
Another point worth mentioning about the Japanese tecnique is that they don’t move the jig at all while it is falling. The only time the jig is moved is when it is being ripped away from the approaching bottom to get the squid’s attention or to set the hooks on a squid that has already taken the jig.
While it might take a hell of a lot of will power not to move the jig too often, the Japanese style of jigging for squid is certainly a system that works very effectively on our southern calamari, no matter where you fish.
Once you catch your squid it is best to look after them properly so that they taste their best. Check out the Catch Care and Cooking tab in the link below to find out how to ensure you get tender squid every time.
For more on catching squid and some of the tactics and jig tips, you gotta read this!
