Sharky Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 Hey all. I read years ago a magazine article about catching swordfish out wide of sydney at night time during a full moon. From memory they caught 2 one going about 150 kgs using huge ocean going squid for bait.(That were attracted to the boats flood lights). Big sinkers we used or down riggers once again I cant remeber but one bait was positioned 150 m down and the other 300 meters down. You get the idea. What I would like to know is if there are any raiders who have done this type of fishing? What would be the best time of year to have a crack at them? Are they an extremly rare capture? Because they are rare or people rarely fish for them? What gear would you need to tackle them (Would heavy duty 50lb stand up with 800 m of line do the job)? And are there any charters that operate out of sydney that target them? Misc information would be great also (to do with catching swordfish) Thanks all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevvie Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 gr8 topic here... i'd be interested to know this info also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 I will try to help you in your quest. They are not actively fished for in Australia and the only dedicated tournament was sum years back out of Broken Bay and is no longer in existence. There have been some individual game boats that took on the quest, however eventually they gave up due to a lack of cooperation by the broadbill. Overseas they are often sited cruising the surface and bait is presented to them. In Australia it is extremely rare to sight one on the surface. They are a deep water fish and will rise during the night to hunt squid, so baits are set from 200m up at say 50 m intervals. Naturally squid is the prime bait and a glow stick inserted into the bait and another fixed about 500mm to a 1m above the bait. Winter is a good time, however the cold tends to put people off as you need to fish through the night and fish Norah Canyons or possibly Browns Mountain. You will more than likely come across Mako Sharks than a Broadbill. Only a hand full of game boats have gone out targeting them and been successful. You will probably get a crack at a 250kg Blue Marlin long before you get a shot at a Broadbill of any size. Best time is late Autumn, Winter to very early spring. There are no charter boats that specialise in broadbill in Australia. Those that do have the odd go are more a suck and see. They are a strong powerful fish and 37kg tackle is advisable, particularly due to the conditions you may have to fish in, eg at night, winter and it just may be lumpy with not to many crew on board keen enough to put the hours in. They are a rare capture and most of those caught are by accident and juvenile fish. You will occasionally see them in the markets caught by long liners. A few have been caught down Ulladulla way. If you’re serious about having a go, I would suggest it is cheaper and your probability of capturing one is greatly increased if you fish New Zealand. The best charter boat is called Prime Time. They have caught them regularly and taken fish 200kg plus. You can get there details out of a magazine called Blue Water sold at newsagents. If you also contact the magazine editor Tim Simpson he may be able to get you a back issue that had a story on fishing Broadbill in New Zealand Yes I have fished for them with very very very limited success, hence my suggestion that if you want one then fish New Zealand. They have a fishery and charter boats with proven results. I am happy to talk to you if you have any other questions or want more detailed information Cheers Martin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarlinMadness Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 Swordfisherman and MrsSwordfisherman, Can you help Sharky out lol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken A Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 We had a couple sessions at Norah using squid & got biteys only. I know several people who have tried & apart from 1 possible hookup on a Broadbill it's all just been sharks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bung Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 My mates went on xuxuxuxux last year with two other boats and fished for them with no luck, they used massive squid with glow sticks in them, they were fishing at Heatons Hill. a mate of mine (who incidentally used to be a deckie on prime time) may have gone on the same expedition. they did head out to heaton's but not really knowing what they were doing, drifted waay off heatons and ended some way past the gong. so for most of the night they were fishing dead water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bung Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 yes they did target swords out of merimbula with some success in the past (10-15yrs ago) dunno if they still do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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