russel_pollard

probably more like this one. http://www.fishbase.com/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=5893 Given moderate to high vulnerability - worth chucking back, as like most sharks they dont have a high fecundicity.

Looks like a member of the carpet shark family - most probably a blind shark http://www.fishbase.com/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=5892

Yeah - still do that with the shotgun line and you are right we are mostly in it for the meat and this method is the most effective and least hassle. But its not the most entertaining way to fish and so when the freezer is full its nice to have a go on the rods .. depending on boat speed and wind of course! Pretty productive over 2 weeks sailing in Fiji with king mack, spanish mack, trevalle and tuna obliging us with their presence. All caught on deep divers on the long side and delicious

Hey Roberta, Out of interest what is the broad range of price on one of these beauties? Need to know if selling the tinny will cover it Also, as the resident yak expert and a swoffa - do you do much fly fishing from it? Thanks for any info Later!

As kids we used to catch alot of big Morey eels. The preference for consumption was either to smoke, which resulted in quite an oily fillet or to chargrill as steaks on the BBQ. Biggest problem is its pretty oily fare which I think is the point of the boiling in milk part. To skin, cut behind the head and use pliers to pull toward the tail. Nowadays as there are far better options I simply wouldnt bother, preferring to see them diving rather than on a plate

Oh yeah - forgot about that!! All depends on what is being fed upon, for Salmon feeding on micro bait you will need small white epoxy minnows or equivalent. Cast in front of the shoal and the slowly and evenly strip back. There will be a sudden resistance and then the line should start heading for the bottom! Otherwise its the normal assortment for those feeding on baitfish; decievers, clousers and flashy profiles in a mix of chatreuse, white and blue combos. Doesnt hurt to stock up on a broad range and other colours as these flies will work on almost all predatory fish you come across. Have fun!

You could probably have a punt on Salmon using a 6wt and if they are gulping micro bait off the surface then its not like you need to cast a heavy fly - it would be one helluva fun ride. But personally I reckon an 8/9wt is a more credible option which would also allow you to hit up any kingfish along the way without being seriously undergunned. floating line should suffice to get the small micro bait flies in front of the shoal. I always carry 3 spools for all situations, 1 Scientific Anglers Mastery bonefish WF floating, 1 rio clear sink tip WF and Rio super fast sink deep sea line. Admittedly the first two are more for inshore but I have used the Floating line in most situations except when targeting sub surface blue water species Bring on the summer salmon hordes!

Hey mate - having spent many a year in London for my sins I feel your pain. There are two main trout options available to you. One - farmed trout, this is going to be your starting point while you are learning and are the easiest to catch. I recoomend the Aylebury estates down toward guildford like Powdermills. They are a touch pricey but stock at 5lb on the rainbows and have browns specifically for dry fly and nymphing. They have a location at Syon Lane which is in Syon park bang in the middle of the city, trout are smaller but it is a good place to work on your action. There is another farm toward Southampton that specialises in big trout name called Dever springs, I hit my PB of a 12.5 Lb rainbow there. Otherwise there are plenty more depending on your price, most are catch and keep to reduce stock contamination. Option 2 is wild trout - but I think stick with the farms until you are ready for the fustration and joy of the chalk streams As for gear, start with a 6wt. Anything less is a bit whippy when you are still learning and you will need distance over presentation to cover more water. Sage do a good 6wt you can pick up for 160 pounds - the Fli I think, couple with a decent reel like the Orvis battenkill and gelspun backing and you can take on pretty much everything including a head wind. The most important thing is the fly line - get floating, and sinking. You will need the latter to get the fly to fish clutching to the bottom of the resevoirs in the summer afternoons. Buy a spare spool for the reel so it is easy to swap between. Cant go wrong with Cortland 444SL as a line. This whole setup will stand you in good stead for most situations. When you want to start flicking dry flies under overhanging trees or in streams then look to a 4wt Damsels in green or black are the most deadliest fly and will work most days summer or winter and have account for about 80% of the trout I have caught globally. Last but not least - get a fishing license. You dont want to go to court for not having one and they do check...oh and some gum boots wont hurt as it is the UK and water and soil = mud, lots of it Thats all I have off the hip - but enjoy and good luck as the trout fishing is pretty good and makes it a bit more bearable

probably an old question to the wise heads that reside on this forum.. Basically Im hoping to do some trolling in Fiji in the coming week. This will be from a sailboat which bring its own problems but that aside my old man has recently respooled the reels with braid which is not something Im overally familiar with tying things too. So I was wondering if there are any recommendations in terms of conenctions, leaders etc I was thinking tying a double in the braid using a 50 turn bimini and then either tying that to the leader with an improved albright or terminating with a swivel. Any thoughts on that? Im leaning to the swivel as I can then replace the leader at will. Speaking of the leader, if I go with the swivel idea then length could be an issue - but given this would be the only piece of the line with stretch I probably wouldnt want it too short? Would I also want to double the leader to the swivel to increase the shock absorbtion? or am I making things overally complex? Any tips from the pros would help immensely!

HAHA - add to the list as of last night first Arrow squid!

Over the years - the old man has caught and boated a few monsters, 50Lb+ Wahoos, 4ft Great Barracouda, Longfin and Yellowfin tuna up to 40kg as well as some really big bull Dorado. A bit impractical in that size when you are cruising due to storage so often they are released. but in general most of the fish above are beaten by a combination of the old 130lb/80Lb rigs he carries and the speed of the yacht going forward pulling them onto the surface. This works against you when the fish is large/powerful enough to fight the momentum of the boat and the tackle resulting in the reels being spooled, line breaks, pulled & straightened hooks, and twice I had the butt of a short boat rod snapped off in the holder - thank goodness for the snap shackles and nylon rope or we would have had to replace more than the lures... after one excursion where the rapala had survived I pulled the sorry thing in only to watch a YFT elephant I estimate well in excess of 100Kg (it was over 6ft long) slowly trail it in and then veer off 4m from the back of the boat. It or its mate had straightened 2 of the bottom treble hooks and 1 on the underhanging treble. It was at that point I changed them to large doubles but I have even had to wire them together as they too have been pulled apart or straightened...In case you are wondering this incident was about 7-8 days out from Cape Town on route to Brazil and off the sounder... but in answer to your question - yes there are a few pulled hooks or line breaks but due to the nature of the tackle and boat momentum it takes a significant beast to carry this out.. like the above sized tuna, the odd bill fish and occasional Mako

I always find this is the way - It seems bloody ridiculous went you put hundreds of hours more into fishing and someone casually comes along for the day and catches larger or more specimens than yourself. Take for example I have been fishing this little spot in Manly for awhile catching small flatties, the odd small snapper and the like on SP's. So my sister is over visiting and I decide (more for my own benefit) to take her fishing. So I take her to the same spot and gave her a slightly heavier outift with a 7g 1" smelt hardbody that she found easier to cast (having no experience) and lo and behold, while doing an action I personally thought was way off she hooks and lands a 65cm flatty!!! but then what did I expect I suppose after taking her YFT fishing once and she only boated the biggest on the day at 55Kg! not bad for a girl that weighs about the same! The only good thing I suppose is both were an outrageous but delicious outcome..

Terrific report and time there Roberta - proof again in what they say about keeping the skills in touch with a little park/backyard practise. Feel that I will digging out my 4 wt later to do just that!

In South Africa - no eggs on board and generally whomever is on strike must be on the bog/asleep/making lunch. First YFT/big tuna and you get warpaint in blood...can make for a gruesome return to shore with alot of newbies

First Aussie Salmon on Fly First double figure rainbow trout at 12.5 lb on Fly Some good size Dorado/Dollies First Flatty/s on SP's First Snapper/s on SP's Didnt manage to fish as much as I wanted due to being the UK but sneaked the following related accomplishments in - flyfished Iceland - Moved to Australia - Got into SP's - Bought a tinny Im sure 2008 is going to magnificent for expanding my repotoire in fishing

Now that is a good run!

Did that but only the bottom half to keep them at the depth of the float line - I suppose if I trim a bit of the top that should do the trick!

Cheers for the feedback - again it great to talk to peopl in the know. Having had a flick around I figured it was a toss up bet ween the Tyrnos and the TLDII Ultimately Im going to reccomend the TLDII Model TLD50IIWLRSA, purely on the basis that it packs alot of grunt and line capacity. Having stood on the back of his boat going 9knots forwards and having a Tuna go the other way I reckon he needs both Cheers

Land & boat based - but been using the float from the land, havent had a chance to fish livies from the tinnie yet but aim to this weekend. As for catch - anything and everything but would like to catch my first Ozzie Kingy if poss or a decent sized Tailor Cheers Rod - much appreciated info that Im looking forward to putting into practice this week

Cheers Flightmanager - harbour will have to be calm as I did that trip to the white channel lighthouse outside Watsons on the weekend and it was pretty tough going with the chop and wind..not to mention the millions of sail & power boats eager to see how close they can tack/drive next to you Swell depending I will probably have a go around Dobroryd early Sat or work my way around the lee of the inside of the heads Thanks all for the info!

Fishos - Anyone had any experience with the above reels? My old mans missus is thinking of getting him one for his birthday for trolling behind his boat. Personally I think it might be a little under powered for catching large tuna/dollies/wahoo etc - Note this is a sailboat so is generally still doing 6-8knots in the opposite direction of the fish when it has to be brought in. personally I think a Tiagra might be a better option but these seem pretty reasonably priced Any thoughts welcome!

Gulp definitely - although I also find them less resistant than the squidgys they seem to attract far more hits

Fishos QQ What would be in your esteemed opinion be the best way to rig livies such as Yellowtail. Im currently pinning them just behind the head and suspending them about a meter and a half under a weighted float. The poor littel bugger does a pretty good job of towing the float around, perhaps too good as they seem to be able to flee the area Im focusing on and constantly casting them out cant help their health! Squid - same as above?

Aish baba inhlanzi, Shot for the info - have been picking up pieces as I go along and what you have said about fishing techniques being different is very true. Have started catching livies and other baits etc but think I need to work out where the channels and structures exist to present them and like you say perhaps stick to one thing as at the moment Im working 2-3 different presentations at a go. Also good call on the sounder, certainly on my Christmas list for mapping out a few spots when I get the boat out. Thank again for the info Later

Gents pray tell how a man may get to this illustrious spot and if it would be suitable for fly? e.g. bushes/trees & other foliage fish that tend to hit the fly on the ol' back cast