wcurrall

Would be worth investing in a decent dredge teaser or similar if you haven’t got one already. Will definitely help for the marlin especially. We raise 2-3 times the amount of marlin than we used to just using a witch doctor. Personal experience though, I’m sure others have had more or less success with others but made a huge difference for us. Works really well on mahi mahi too 👍

Great stuff mate. Haven’t targeted whiting in the deeper water what bait and rigs where you using? Have caught as a by catch when drifting for flathead

The tag didn’t look like the attached did it? If so if you log the details on the DPI website they will send you out a lure or something. Nice fish https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/about-us/media-centre/releases/2018/reward-for-rainbows-in-snowy-mountains-and-oberon

Yep, if you want charge them off the one 12v charger they need to be in parallel via a connecting lead (+ to + and - to -) attach the charger lead to the positive of one and the negative of the other other battery, that way they will charge evenly. As dmck said you will need a 24v charger to charge them in series

Hey mate what boat do you have? Kingies can be very hit and miss this time of year in my experience unless you can get out somewhere like allmark. I can Pm you some Flatty marks if you like? Forecast for Friday looks ok, but as of now looks like the southerly May pick up on Saturday/Sunday so maybe keep an eye on it

Great stuff mate! mate of mine lost his first marlin after a 30 min fight weekend before last, he’s absolutely gutted, still moping around haha the poor bugger When they moulded it could you keep the meat at all? Smoked marlin is amazing 👌

Well done mate you sure have the area figured out! Heading out wide off port fri/sat so fingers crossed🤞🤞🤞 what size did the skipjack go? cheers

Throw up a photo of you and the fish

Fairly sure ones a trout cod too mate, well done 👍

Thanks for the feedback mate, I’m in the same boat trying to get away from the overheads, we have 2 penn internationals with 80lb and 100lb mono which we inherited from a mates old man years ago which are a pain to fish with especially when trying switch baiting so can relate to what you are saying I’ll look at down sizing the reel, was only looking at the 20000 for capacity in case a big blue or something shows up haha. A mate I fish with got smoked last Saturday at port Stephens car park, fishing 50lb on an 8000 size reel we have on the boat and got down to the spool knot twice before busting off 😢 Where'd you get that stripey? That’s an absolute beast 👍 well done thanks again mate

1. Yes and yes 2. about 15 min for both 3. southern cove of boondelbah island, the 1st island straight out from the heads 4. ask Scratchie he’s the man

Raiders Am looking at getting a heavy spin reel to pair with a t curve deep jig 300 rod, stats below. Am currently looking at a Saragosa 20000, holds about 470yd of 65lb. Will be mainly using for game fish, marlin, sharks and am doing a trip to Tas chasing southern bluefin in May. What heavy spin reels/combos are other raiders using? Would obviously love a Stella but not too keen on throwing 1200 bucks at it haha thanks guys

Larger of the two

Thompson’s creek dam has been fishing ok, fish are really deep, 20m plus, which you can access on the SW corner of the dam. Fished 3 weeks ago with plastics on 1/16 jig heads, gulp 2” in black. 2 solid rainbows in 9 casts on the drop. Wind is a big issue but on a clear day you can fish the whole dam. Sorry for the rough photos but taken by a 7 year old haha. Kept the larger of the two, was full of tiny shrimp (max 20mm) and heaps of tiny snails

Just read the above replies AFTER posting mine 🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️ Realised I have repeated what everyone has already said sorry guys

Aside from a good knife I’d recommend booking yourself in to a course on how to sharpen knifes properly. Butchers and knife manufacturers run them, or even jump on YouTube and watch videos If that’s more your style. I find it much easier to learn in person. Had a butcher show me a few years ago and even though I am far from an expert, and even though I’d use a stone and steel regularly I was surprised at how much sharper my knifes could be if done properly. Also the sharper the knife the less chance of cutting yourself when filleting as you use way less pressure By the way I have 2 Dexter Russel knives I’ve had for almost 15 years And would highly recommend them. Really good grips that don’t slip even when wet or covered in fish

Totally agree. We upgraded our old unit to a GME GPS unit last year. Was surprised to find out the difference in the accuracy. Non gps units have an accuracy of around 5km diameter. GPS have an accuracy of 100m diameter. That’s worth the extra money compared to new batteries I reckon. The quicker we get found means the less time in the water with the sharks and I’m not the best swimmer haha

Was at Byron Bay 2 weeks ago and popped into the local fish monger to see what has been biting. Said the local pro fisherman had used up their quota with 2 months left on yellow fin and mahi mahi so the fishing should be good down further with the warmer water pushing down. Give the local fish co op a call and ask if any of the commercial guys are taking anyone out, I’ve done that a few times and is better than going on any charter

Water temp just above 23. Didn’t even bother trying the fad as apparently there were 40 odd boats there Saturday 😂

Fished Sat and Sun on the long weekend in and around port Stephens, launching from good old tea gardens. Started early sat by getting some live slimies and searching for bait balls inshore, along with 3000 others, with the slow trolled Slimies finally paying off around 11am with a solid hookup on a bait ball about 3km south of Broughton in 40m above a reef holding bait A quick but intense fight saw a female mahi mahi (could not find the bull😢) at 120cm and around 10-12 kg on board. Have caught mahi mahi else where this size but beat our port Stephens best by about 80cm haha, was definitely a surprise this close to Broughton Sunday the wind picked up, no game fish, but still managed a decent bag of blue spot Flatties, 11 between 45 and 60cm in close around 45m on cut baits. Very satisfying to get a decent feed this time of year with all the traffic. Bring on the marlin the next few weeks 🤞🤞🤞

We have a house at tea gardens and launch there on our way out. Adds 10 or 15 min but we throw our crab pots out on the way anyways so works out well 👍. If you have a plotter you can cut across the sand flats at Jimmy’s beach to save a few K’s

I can’t find it online anywhere but I remember in the early 00’s Rod Mackenzie using and Australian made jointed lure for Murray cod that imitated a water dragon that was around 500mm. I’ll see what I can find

Admis If you're up for a drive and want to target some tailor/salmon/bonito land based head up to dark point off mungo brush rd. Not sure where you are based in port stephens. A bit of a walk across the sand dunes, which are pretty awesome too, and fish the northern corner off the beach and rocks. I usually use metals and pilchards on gang hooks for the larger fish. Caught about a dozen or so 1kg+ tailor there about a month ago, and theres usually salmon and bonito about. You should be able to see the schools of fish and birds working so you may have to chase them. Get there at sunrise for your best chance. There is 4wd access but we just park at the carpark on mungo brush rd and walk in. Good luck

We stayed at tuross head this january with 11 people, great fishing and good swimming etc for the kids. No traffic as has one road in, try calling the real estate agencies down there or as berleyguts said look on stayz, have booked places off there plenty of times

Pic from near coxs junction