New South Wales Fishing Monthly April 2019 by Fishing Monthly

HOP INTO SOME ROCK FISHING THIS EASTER!

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Boating & Kayaking • • • •

Pedalling at Pebbly Beach Prepping for those winter woes Three Savage boats put to the test New Polycraft 300 Tuffy

Tried & Tested • • • •

Strike Pro Guppie sinking glidebait Bone Voyage rod series Bassco Tornado with 115hp Mercury Pro XS Stessco Breezaway 460 with Yamaha F90hp

Features Wrangling fish from the rocks • Victory on vibrations Planning for the Darling’s future •

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April 2019, Vol. 24 No. 9

Contents 26

From the Editor’s Desk...

Website: www.fishingmonthly.com.au Managing Editor: Steve Morgan s.morgan@fishingmonthly.com.au Editorial Manager: Jacqui Thomas Sub-Editors: Bob Thornton Nicole Penfold Annie March Publishers: Steve Morgan Matthew Drinkall

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the years, including from companies that court events to come to specific council areas, estimate the spend of tournament competitors at around $1000 per competitor per event. That’s a big boost for a weekend in some regional areas. I’m all for commercial fishing – just not for longlived species, with nets, in areas that rely on tourism. GREENBACK TAILOR COMP Speaking of tournaments, the 32nd Lions Greenback Tailor comp is being held on 8-9 June, at Pottsville in Northern NSW. You can fish any tidal waters in Queensland or NSW, as long as you bring your catch back to the tournament venue at 9am on the Sunday. If you buy an earlybird ticket you’ll be in the running for a Fishing Monthly subscription, and you can find out more at www.lionsgreenback.com.

they start calling you names! If the pros created their Facebook page to help build their flagging social licence, they definitely need more compelling arguments. In any case, we are sure that the local businesses, accommodation providers and food outlets loved that fact that the travelling roadshow came to town, spent money and left with 100% of fish caught returned to the water. Numerous studies over

for their licences. I don’t know about you, but if and when my business becomes unviable I won’t be baled out with public money. It’s far more likely that the ATO will take my house! Of course, the online discussion went the same way as all discussions go on social media: first propaganda, then a bit of fake news and then playing the man and not the ball. You know you’re getting the upper hand when

We’re fresh back from a couple of weeks on the road, including some boat tests and BREAM tournaments in Victoria. The weather was great, the fishing was pretty good and the locals were friendly, no matter where we were. The only negative feedback we got was from the nameless complainer behind the Australian Professional Fishermen’s Facebook page, who thought that our sharing photos of caught-and-released fish from a tournament weigh-in showed that the Gippsland Lakes net fishers have been hard done by. The fact is that the net removal was an election policy, the people voted for it and now it will happen. Even better, the remaining netters in the increasingly unproductive fishery will be compensated

APRIL 2019

AUST

REGULAR FEATURES Back to Basics 49 Black Magic Masterclass 29 Cooking 84 Dam Levels 74 Fun Page 82 Tides 88 Trade Directory 86 Tournament News 62 What’s New Fishing 58 What’s New Boating 90 SPECIAL FEATURES Landing fish from the rocks 8 Lure vibration success 26 Darling’s plan for recovery 83

PRO

BYRON COAST The Tweed 30 Ballina 32 Yamba 34 COFFS COAST Coffs Harbour 36 Nambucca 38 South West Rocks 39 MACQUARIE COAST The Hastings 40 Harrington-Taree 43 Forster 44 HUNTER COAST Port Stephens 45 Erina 46 Swansea 47 Hunter Coast 48 SYDNEY Sydney North 12 The Hawkesbury 14 Sydney Harbour 16 Sydney South 18 Pittwater 20 Botany Bay 22 Sydney Rock and Beach 24 Western Sydney 25 ILLAWARRA COAST Illawarra 50 Nowra 51 BATEMANS COAST Merimbula 52 Narooma 52 Batemans Bay 56 EDEN COAST Bermagui 54 Tathra 54 Mallacoota 57 FRESHWATER Batlow 73 Lithgow-Oberon 74 Snowy Mountains 75 Orange 75 Hunter Valley 76 New England 77 Albury-Wodonga 78 Yarrawonga 78 Robinvale 79 Wagga Wagga 80 Canberra 81 BOATING AND KAYAK 89

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Successful fishing off the rocks SYDNEY SOUTH

Gary Brown gbrown1@iprimus.com.au

I have been fishing off the rocks since I was a kid, and have learnt so much from the many anglers I have fished with over the years. This knowledge has enabled me to catch Australian salmon, bream, drummer, groper, luderick, mulloway, silver trevally, snapper, squid, tailor and yellowtail kingfish.

we’ll look at how you can improve your casting and retrieving techniques, and when should you strike to maximise your hook-up rates. TIMES TO GO FISHING Groper can be caught year-round, but I have found that the best time to target them in my area is when there has been an offshore wind for a couple of days. This will usually flatten the seas for a few days and clear up the water, giving you a chance to get closer to the edge, and also make it easier

throughout the day at all tides (bream, drummer and luderick). At low tide it has about 50cm of water, and if you use a small bobby cork and have the bait suspended about 25cm below it you can still pull fish out. Early in the morning as the sun starts to rise there is still enough shadow on the water to allow the fish to feed in close. Late in the afternoon when the sun has gone behind the cliff and a shadow starts to form, the fish come back into the shallows to feed. When the

bream, trevally, drummer, snapper and luderick to snack on under the white water. Berleying with green cabbage and weed for the drummer and luderick, smashed up sea urchins and crabs for the groper and snapper, and bread and old pilchards for the bream and trevally work a treat. Safety is something that should be on your mind at all times when you are fishing off the rocks. Before you start fishing at your chosen spot, check out the conditions of the swell for 10-15 minutes before you start your fishing. Ideally you want no signs that waves have come over the rocks. At the very least, if they are coming over the rocks, you want to be sure they’re not the kind of waves that could knock you off your feet. Berley plays an important role when come to fishing off the rocks. It can come in many different forms – bread, chicken pellets, old squashed pilchards, finely chopped green weed or cabbage. Make sure that you berley, as it does make a lot of difference. It doesn’t matter whether you are fishing in a wash, gutter, off sloping rocks or a flat platform, there needs to be some kind of water movement when fishing for

At 77 years old, Bill Lyons has still got it. This 1.15kg bream was eased out of the wash on 3kg Schneider Klear line. BAIT FISHING When targeting bream, drummer, silver trevally, snapper and groper off the rocks I use a variety of baits. One option is to thread two half pieces of cunjevoi onto a hook, and push them over the eye of the hook onto the line, then put half a cut crab onto the hook by going through one leg hole and out another on the opposite side. This combination of baits is deadly for drummer, bream and groper. The smaller fish pick at the cunje, creating a bit of berley and commotion,

resealable plastic bag. Then, if I am going for a quick fish off the rocks, I only need to take one bag. This saves a lot of waste and money. Keep an eye on the water’s surface for baitfish that have been herded to the surface. Cast either a lightly-weighted pilchard or small metal lure around the edges of the school and then retrieve it. If you don’t get a take, allow the pilchard or lure to sink for a few seconds and start your retrieve, as the larger fish are usually below.

A nice brace of bream that were caught in the washes. Running 00 ball sinkers down onto peeled prawns and Alvey reels were the choice of tackle for the morning’s session. In this article I will share some of the important things that I have learnt over the years. We’ll look at the best times to go fishing and, when you are there, some of the critical things to look for. I’ll also discuss the tackle and accessories that I bring, and explain how to maximize your fishing time. Finally,

for you to gather those red crabs that groper love to eat. It also means that you don’t usually have to cast as far to get to the fish, giving you less line out in the water for the fish to snag up. I live on the South Coast of NSW, and there’s a place that I fish which faces the south which can produce

day is very overcast you can fish right through the day. When there has been a bit of an onshore blow for a few days and the swell is up too much to fish off the rocks, I wait until the seas have abated slightly so that it is safe to fish. During a rough spell the seas dislodge plenty of food for

Prepping your gear before you start fishing is essential when it comes to fishing off the rocks.

RINCON

Like the California point break it was named for, the Rincon has a classic West Coast straight bridge, wrapping style lines and edgy curved temples.

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APRIL 2019

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luderick or drummer off the rocks. This comes in the form of the change of tide and the swell. Most of the places that I fish for luderick and drummer off the rocks you will find small tufts of either green, brown or black cabbage. It is this growth that you not only use for bait, but scrape off with the cleats or spikes on your shoes. The swell and tide will carry the berley away from the rocks and hopefully bring the fish to where your float is. You should scrape some off before you start to get your gear rigged, and then every time that you move about on the rocks.

and this attracts the attention of any passing bigger fish. The half crab has the added benefit of helping to hold the cunje onto the hook. If you are going to use frozen baits, one tip is to have a look at the build-up of ice on the inside of the bags. If there is a lot of ice it means that the bait has been in the freezer for too long or the bag has broken somewhere. This will lead to the bait drying out and getting freezer burn. A good option is to buy your bait in bulk and then re-package it. As an example, I buy my pilchards as IQF (individually quick frozen) and then put 10-15 in a

WHAT TO BRING When fishing off the rocks I like to bring as little gear as possible, so that I can move about with ease. To this end, I take only enough tackle for the session, contained in two tackle trays. The first tray has hooks, swivels, sinkers and a metal or two. I keep them separated in film canisters, but old pill bottles would also be good for this. The other tray has six compartments in it with six different ganged hook set-ups. They are as follows: 6/0s in sets of three and four hooks, 5/0s in sets of three and four, and 4/0s in sets of three and four. This will help

you accommodate different sized baits. I also wear a belt with a knife, pliers and a bait bucket. Slung across my shoulder is a tailor bag that holds my tackle trays, spare baits and any fish that I catch. Every time I need to grab another hook or swivel, I

so caught up with catching fish that I forget to keep the small and steady berley trail going. You can avoid this by putting your berley into a small meshed bag and tie it close to where you are fishing. Alternatively, you could try using the filleted frame of an oily fish like

Cubing is not just a technique used by offshore anglers who are fishing for yellowfin tuna – it is also extremely effective off the rocks. The most critical part of cubing is the size of the cubes that you put into the water. For example, if I am targeting bream off the rocks

An essential piece of tackle when fishing off the rocks is the shoulder bag. You can store a small tackle tray and bait in it, freeing you up to easily move from spot to spot.

The wash in this shot was sweeping from the right to the left, causing the waves to wash our berley into a small, sandy gutter. All we needed to pin the bream and trevally were 00 and 0 ball sinkers and 1/0 hooks. spray a couple of shots of Inox or Tackle Guard into the film container where they are kept. This will stop them from rusting and it will not put the fish off from biting. MAXIMISING FISHING TIME Berleying can become very tedious at times, and on a few occasions I have gotten

tuna, bonito, salmon or tailor and tie a rope around the tail, and secure it to the rocks where you are fishing. The filleted frame washes around, causing small pieces to break off every now and then. This berley will go out with the tide and current, drawing the larger predators in closer.

with half pilchards, I will cut the cubes into about 1cm pieces. Just before I cast, I will throw three cubes out into the wash. Every five minutes or so I’ll flick out a couple more pieces. If I am using tuna or bonito strips off the rocks, I will thin the thickness of the fillet down and then cut up

the leftover flesh into small pieces. I throw these small pieces into the water, the same as the pilchard cubes. CASTING AND RETRIEVING It is paramount that you are able to cast properly, as this will allow you to cast very lightly-weighted baits like pink nippers and peeled prawns at those times when you need to get a lightlyweighted bait or paternoster rig out wide. This is where you will need to refine your casting techniques. When I first started out,

I went down to the local football field for a couple of hours to perfect my cast. I find that if I have one hand at 90° to the reel and the other hand up as far and comfortably up the rod. My feet are spread apart so that I am balanced. It is just a matter of casting straight over your head so that your left hand will end up just behind you, and your right hand will end up out in front of your body (or the opposite if you are a left hander). Once you have mastered the cast you will be amazed at how far you can cast a bait or lure.

Drummer can live in some very nasty terrain, and can at times be very hard to get out. They love to feed under and around washes, rock ledges, kelp and boulders. This is where the use of a running ball sinker down onto the bait needs to be calculated to suit the conditions. Sometimes you will only need the weight of the bait to help you cast into the wash. Fishing as light as possible will allow the bait to wash around. When using To page 10

APRIL 2019

WHAT’S NEW FISHING NEW NEDLOCKZ COLOURS

With the growing popularity of the Ned Rig in Australia, the TT Lures NedlockZ, ‘mushroom’ style stand-up jighead is now available in two new colours, chartreuse and orange. Originally available in black and green pumpkin colours, anglers were looking for a couple of strike trigger colours. Chartreuse and orange are popular highlight colours on hardbodies and blades, and are the perfect fit for pairing up with plastics to attract fish and trigger strikes. The orange head is particularly good for teaming up with natural coloured plastics. The team from TT’s say that the NedlockZ combine perfectly with the buoyancy of ZMan ElaZtech plastics to create a presentation that is either fleeing when retrieved or standing up vertically in a feeding or defensive pose when paused, much like a crab, yabby or prawn. NedlockZ are available in four weights: 1/15oz 2H, 1/10oz 1H, 1/6oz 1H and 1/5oz 1H. Price: SRP $9.95 (5-pack) www.ttlures.com.au

SHIMANO REVOLUTION TRAVEL 2 Shimano have refined the travel rod concept even further, with this excellent seven rod Revolution Travel series that are perfect for the highly mobile angler. Travel rods aren’t necessarily just for jet setters though. In the car, on public transport – even people who don’t know have a lot of storage space at home shouldn’t miss out on using quality fishing tackle. Like the standard Revolution series, the Revolution Travel line-up now feature soft touch reel seats for greater comfort in the hand, full and split custom shaped EVA grips where applicable, and Fuji O Ring Guides, where the insert is protected by the frame from knocks and scrapes. Most importantly in a travel rod though, the ferruling system is pretty well undetectable, and in no way diminishes the feel and performance characteristics of these great baitcast and spin rods. They all break down in to three pieces, with the 904 Spin into four. www.shimanofish.com.au

DAIWA EMERALDAS LT

Light as air and strong as steel, the famous Emeraldas name receives the LT treatment with the release of the new Emeraldas Air LT spin reel. Gifted with Daiwa’s latest design innovations, and featuring the famous Emeraldas styling the new Emeraldas Air LT is the ultimate combination of technology, looks and performance. Daiwa’s new LT Concept heralds a new age of lightness and toughness, and the new reel also benefits from Daiwa’s famous Real Four design. The Emeraldas’ Tough Digigear heralds a revolution in gear design, with its high-precision cutting technique achieving perfect gear meshing and ultra smooth performance. MagSeal protects from the elements, while Air Rotor, ATD, LT’s new Longcast ABS spool, Perfect Line Stopper, and Air Bail combine for unrivalled performance, power and precision. Loaded with Daiwa’s latest design innovations and the legendary Emeraldas swagger, the new Emeraldas Air LT is the perfect combination of style, technology, and performance. www.daiwafishing.com.au 58

APRIL 2019

PRODUCT GUIDE

BASSDAY BACKFIRE

Bassday’s expertise in the surface lure market is second to none, with the Sugapen one of the deadliest surface lures available. Bassday’s newest creation, the Backfire, was originally designed for black porgy (sea bream) in Japan, but it has proven itself in our local conditions already. And like the Sugapen, this new lure is set to be a runaway hit. The Backfire is 65mm long and through wired, making it strong and dependable. It weighs 7.5g and casts exceptionally well for a small lure. The large cupped face is capable of both dramatic pops, and subtle, rippleinducing pops, when using a slow and light touch. The slim profile produces little wind resistance. The action is that of a classic popper and will be excellent for bass, bream and other surface feeders. It works best with a ‘pop, pop, pause’ technique. The new model comes in eight colours, and all but one have been designed exclusively for Australia. For more information visit the Bassday website or like them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BassdayAus. www.bassday.com.au

UNIQUE ANYSINK

Brisbane inventor Creig Adams has set out to change the way Australians go fishing with his new AnySink. The AnySink lets you change sinkers easily and quickly with out having to cut and retie your line. The invention also allows anglers to change from using toxic lead sinkers to anything that sinks – hence the name ‘AnySink’. “As I entered my 40s and my vision started to deteriorate, I found that cutting and re-rigging was becoming more and more difficult,” Mr Adams said. “I set out to find a better system.” After experimenting with different designs, Mr Adams settled on a spherical plastic design that splits in half and allows the angler to place a weight inside it. “This weight can be a lead sinker, a pebble, nut, bolt or even berley,” Mr Adams explained. “Once you are ready to drop down your AnySink, you can also crush berley into the grated casing of the device, where it will slowly break off and attract fish.” Price: SRP $10 (pack of 10) www.anysink.com.au

RHINO-RACK GRAB HANDLE

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Rhino-Rack’s Pioneer range continues to grow, and the latest release is the Pioneer Grab Handle. It has been designed to aid in loading, unloading and securing your gear onto all Rhino-Rack Pioneer systems. We’ve all been there – you’re shifting item upon item up onto roof racks, tying your load for the trip and being left with nothing to hold onto while you make your descent. The new Pioneer Grab Handle solves this problem. Its large and sturdy form allows for a sturdy grip when used as a handle, and provides a strong anchor point when securing gear. Made from diecast aluminium that is powder coated to prevent rust and corrosion, the Rhino-Rack Pioneer Grab Handle has a 120kg load capacity, and installation is quick and easy. For more information on this and other products in the Pioneer range, visit the RhinoRack website. Price: SRP: $59 (2 pack) www.rhinorack.com.au

visit www.tacklejunkie.fish for the latest tackle news - AS IT HAPPENS!

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PRODUCT GUIDE

ECOODA BLACK HAWK ROD V2

WHAT’S NEW FISHING

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

The Ecooda Black Hawk V2 puts Ecooda in the middle of the battlefield. The fast matt black blanks are ideal for lure casting off the banks or in the boat. With striking red aluminium anodized details, the cosmetics are appealing to a variety of anglers. The ultra-hard EVA grips and custom locking rings are comfortable in the hand, while stainless steel framed guides are light enough for blank reaction and smooth enough to let your line cast effortlessly through the insert. Whether you’re targeting bream or flathead with vibes or reef species with a plastics, there’s a Black Hawk II that’s perfect for the job. It’s available in five spin models (6’10 light, 7’0 Medium Light, 6’4 Medium, 7’0 Heavy and Extra Heavy) as well as two baitcast models (6’0 Medium Heavy and Heavy). Visit the new Ecooda website for more information and stockists, or check them out on Instagram and Facebook. www.ecooda.com.au

REVAMPED CELTA

Back by popular demand is the world’s most famous trout spinning lure, the Rublex Celta. The Celta has been retooled, and is now stronger than ever before. Of course, it still offers the legendary fish-attracting butterfly spinning action that has enticed thousands of rainbow and brown trout captures worldwide. The Celta has an inbuilt, anti-line twist system that rotates on the main shaft to prevent your line from twisting while fishing. Armed with VMC trebles, Celtas come in 10 natural fish-catching colours and three sizes, incorporating 2g, 3.5g and 5g weight variations. For more information visit the Rapala Australia website, or check them out at your local tackle store today. www.rapala.com.au

SILVER CREEK LT

Please email contributions to: nicole@fishingmonthly.com.au

Trout fishing perfection has arrived with the release of the new Silver Creek LT spin reel. Loaded with style and gifted with many of Daiwa’s most advanced technologies, the newest addition to the famous Silver Creek family features LT design, making it feather light and ultra strong. A Zaion body houses Daiwa’s high performance, ultra-strong Digigear II gear system, while Magseal provides unrivalled protection, ensuring ultimate durability and optimum performance. The Silver Creek’s Air Rotor enhances reel balance, strength and support courtesy of the highly sensitive, ultra-light, precision engineered Zaion rotor, while a lightweight aluminium spool, ABS, Air Bail and Twist Buster technologies combine for ultimate spool performance and line control. Other features include ATD drag, washable design, and a machined ‘screw in’ aluminium handle. www.daiwafishing.com.au

BONE FOCUS 130

The Bone Focus 130 is a multi-towpoint glide bait that is an ideal size for many fish throughout Australia. Featuring 4+1 towing eyelets, each with its own unique swimming action, this lure is truly revolutionary. The ability for anglers to choose the desired swim depth when fishing in different terrains is the focus of this lure. The first eyelet serves to create a swimbait with a seductive wide wobble and roll action, mimicking a lifelike swimming action. Attaching your line to the second or third eyelets gives the lure greater diving capability. A vibration mode can be imparted when the line is attached to the fourth eyelet, as it swims in a forward position with internal bearings knocking against the body. Additional weights can also be attached to the chin eyelet without impacting on the lure’s action, allowing the Focus to reach deeper in search of your prey. www.wilsonfishing.com

SAMAKI MAHIMAHI SHIRT

Bright, bold colours erupt from the water as this big bull mahimahi swims and attacks the baitfish and lures surrounding the FAD, revealing the true nature of the species. Capturing all the attractive elements of the warmer climate, with volcanic islands in the background, crystal clear waters and abundance of wildlife above and below the water, this new Samaki shirt has been a winner with all anglers. Samaki designs are brought to you by Australian anglers. These shirts feature lightweight fabric that’s perfect for all outdoor elements, protecting you from the harsh sun with Samaki’s UV50+ technology. The soft touch 100% polyester material is comfortable and very breathable, keeping you cool and dry. Samaki fishing shirts are available in adult, youth and kids sizes from a size 2 through to a 5XL, allowing the whole family to get in on the action and out onto the water. Price: SRP $59.95 (adults), $49.95 (kids) www.samaki.com.au

BONE HOVERJET

The Bone HoverJet brings together two topwater concepts in the one lure, and is unlike any other topwater bait on the Australian market. This multifunction lure is 130mm long and weighs an easy casting 28g. Its specially designed aerodynamic shape allows the plug to cast like a bullet and reach distant targets where wary fish hold. With its flaps closed, working the HoverJet as a topwater pencil bait on the surface is effortless as it slides from side to side, creating small splashes. With the flaps open, the HoverJet transforms into a topwater prop bait that can be worked with a variety of retrieves to produce aggressive strikes. In fizzer mode, a straight retrieve creates that classic chop of the blade on the water’s surface that drives fish like jacks and barra crazy. If a louder fizz is needed, sharp rod tip rips produce a distinctive fizzing chop which will draw fish from afar to investigate. wilsonfishing.com APRIL 2019

WHAT’S NEW FISHING BLACKWOLF DIRECTORS CHAIR

BlackWolf’s new Compact Directors Chair has a strong, supportive frame, non-slip foot design for all surfaces and a solid weight capacity of 130kg, the Directors Chair is safe, reliable and able to withstand almost any environment. The chair has padded seating, wide armrests and high back support for maximum comfort, and it also features a convenient foldaway table with a drink holder. The chair also boasts an accessory pocket with a safety zipper for stashing much-needed items such as your phone, keys, camera, sunscreen, or other gear, meaning you don’t have to get back up to get them. You can set up the Directors Chair in under a minute, and when you are ready to pack up, all you need to do is fold it down flat to its very compact size, and store it away for next time. Price: SRP $139.99 www.blackwolf.com.au

NEW BOMBER COLOURS

JM Gillies has just released new colours in the Bomber Long A and Longshot models. Bomber’s original Long A design is one of the most effective lures on the market, and is arguably Australia’s most popular barramundi lure of all time. The larger BSW16A (150mm) and BSW17A (175mm) sizes are the preferred choice for anglers chasing 1m+ barra in the big saltwater rivers of the Top End, and are also extremely effective in the impoundments throughout North Queensland. The new Long A colours are BMDI (brown back, pale blue belly), and ABM3 (orange head, green body, black stripes). The Longshot range of lures feature a weight exchange system that assists in super-long casts. The body is tough and durable as well as sporting saltwater hooks and hardware. It’s available in three sizes, 125mm, 150mm and 175mm. The new XM7 colour (black back, green body) is the perfect addition to the existing premium colour range. www.jmgillies.com.au

SHIMANO TEKOTA

APRIL 2019

NEMO HORNET

A lighter tent shouldn’t mean sacrificing a good night’s sleep. Trusted outdoor equipment brand NEMO have developed the master of ultralight hiking tents to save your back, without skipping on quality, comfort and livability. The NEMO Hornet is the ultralight hiking tent for adventures demanding a lighter load. The NEMO Hornet is the ultimate lightweight tent, weighing-in at a mere 900g for the 2P edition, and an even lighter 765g for 1P. The Hornet 2P is equipped with two doors and two vestibules, for ultimate comfort for sharing the space. And better still, the Unique Divvy dual stage stuff sack makes it easy to divide the load with your travel partner. The single-hubbed pole intersections of the Hornet allow for quick setup and spend less time setting up. The Hornet can be erected without the need for ropes and a fly. If you need more space, you can also pitch the triangular shaped cords for 15% more interior capacity. Price: RRP $549.95 (1P), $621.95 (2P) www.nemoequipment.com

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

150LB PINK SHOCK 17 LEADER Pink leader has been popular with bluewater anglers for some time, given that it is seen as less visible in certain water conditions. Although fluorocarbon options are common, Black Magic’s Pink Shock Leader is produced as a copolymer trace. This provides great value for money but still gives robust performance under stress – and Black Magic has now expanded the range up to 150lb. Features include: retains the high performance in abrasion resistance and knot strength seen in Black Magic tough and supple trace; coloured pink to provide less visibility, particularly when water conditions are a little murkier; and provides a more affordable option to anglers than fluorocarbon. Current breaking strains are 20lb, 40lb, 60lb, 80lb, 100lb and 150lb. www.blackmagic.com

OKUMA DISTANCE 15 SURF ARENA

Whether you’re bottom fishing for reef fish or trolling for pelagics, the latest Shimano Tekota is a great all-rounder. This enduring levelwind overhead has just undergone a big upgrade, with a number of new features that includes a main gear upgrade that is 50% stronger than its predecessor. The Hagane Body, coupled with the S-Compact Body Design, makes it comfortable to hold while waiting for a bite or fighting a fish. Gear size has been dramatically increased, and with it comes a super fast retrieve ratio of 6.3:1. A larger handle knob than its predecessor also helps in this regard. The CoreProtect system of seals keeps saltwater away from the internals, which includes three A-RB bearings and one roller bearing, and 11kg of drag will keep those reefies’ heads up and continuing towards the surface. Shimano recommends matching the Tekota to the Taipan 661 Overhead. It has quality Fuji componentry, and its graphite integrated fibreglass tip (G.I.F.T) construction can take the knocks. www.shimanofish.com.au 60

PRODUCT GUIDE

Okuma continues to offer anglers quality and excellent value for money with the release of the new Okuma Distance Surf Arena spinning reels. Features include a Slim Blade corrosionresistant graphite body, Worm Shaft transmission system, and a Hydro Block drag system (designed to ensure water and foreign materials do not enter the system and the drag washers perform to their optimum level), and FPD (Fast Progressive Drag). Designed for casting distance and handling big fish, with their lower gear ratios and 16kg max drag, Distance Surf Arena reels hold plenty of line on their machine cut aluminium spool, with the Even Flow line roller designed to reduce line twist. Other features include 3BB+1RB, Quick Set infinite anti-reverse system for rock solid hook sets, Rotor Equalizing System for precision balance and smooth cranking, Rigid Metal Handle and TPE T-shape handle knob. Built to take on the surf and its hard fighting species, the Okuma Distance Surf Arena is available in 60 and 80 sizes. Price: SRP $119.90-$139.90 www.okuma.com.au

18 visit www.tacklejunkie.fish for the latest tackle news - AS IT HAPPENS!

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PRODUCT GUIDE

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

WHAT’S NEW FISHING

TESTED

Strike Pro Guppie sinking glidebait Cooler nights and shorter days mean that the prime time to target big Murray cod on large lures is almost upon us. More and more anglers are getting out there and giving it a go using a growing range of lures, and I would like to add one to the list: the Strike Pro Guppie. This lure isn’t new but it’s very effective, and it’s well worth considering if you enjoy this style of fishing. Everybody notices I was lucky enough to receive a box of Guppies, and everybody I showed them to commented on the quality of the finish on the lures. It is exceptional. There are seven colours available and each has the ‘I would like to swim that’ appeal. The layering of

pattern and paint gives them an almost 3D effect, and also increases the durability. They are an outstanding looking lure. Strike Pro Guppie 101 The Guppie is a wooden sinking glidebait with an interchangeable soft plastic tail. The lure comes with a soft plastic paddle-tail and a curl-tail that you can interchange using the wire corkscrew on the end of the body. It is simple and easy and also allows you customise the tail if you like. On a slow, constant retrieve it glides from side to side and screams “eat me”. Changing the plastic tail doesn’t change the lure’s action, but it does give it a different feel through the rod. The paddle-tail definitely sends more feedback

At 120g and 13.5cm long it is important to have the right rod and reel to cast the Guppie.

The Guppie comes with two soft plastic tails that are interchangeable using the wire corkscrew on the rear of the lure. through the line and the rod. The other thing to note with the Guppie is its hardware. From the packet it comes with sturdy hooks and strong split rings – there’s no need to upgrade anything, just tie it on and fish it. At 120g and 13.5cm long you will need a rod and reel suitable to cast the Guppie, otherwise casting something of this size and weight will be daunting. Field Testing I haven’t yet had many opportunities to swim the lures I was sent, but I did get the chance to try them out at Lake Mulwala when I visited. There are huge expanses of water with lots of structure and Murray cod in Lake Mulwala. I quickly learnt that long casts were not the go; the hooks of the Guppie grabbed the structure, which was quite frustrating. The hooks are sticky sharp, and with how the lure swims, if they touch structure they grab it. However, adjusting my technique and throwing shorter casts beside and along the structure made all the difference.

In a matter of minutes a 52cm fish snaffled my Guppie as it snaked along a laydown. Wind and weather cut short the fishing that day, but with that initial success in mind, I can’t wait for my next opportunity to swim the Strike Pro Guppies. Check them out yourself To find out more about the Strike Pro Guppie and the other Strike Pro lures available, you can go to www.jurofishing. com or ask for them in your local tackle store. - Peter Jung

Success! It may not be a big fish, but it’s guaranteed to be the first of many cod caught on these lures.

The sky is the limit with the Bone Voyage rod series In 2017 Bone fishing rods were introduced to Australia through the team at Wilson Fishing. There are a number of ranges and models available but my interest was sparked by the Voyage series of rods. It’s a travel rod series designed for the angler who doesn’t want to compromise with the gear they use while traveling. In my mind, the words ‘travel rod’ and ‘compromise’ have always gone hand-

in-hand. In years gone by, we travelling anglers have been content to use rods that weren’t ideal, just so that we could go fishing. Having to compromise was a necessary sacrifice when venturing far from home, but not anymore. My interest in the Bone Voyage BVC704 XXH was twofold. Firstly, I wanted to jump on board the swimbait/big lures for Murray cod revolution, and secondly, I knew that my only opportunities to do this type of fishing would be travelling.

The heavy-duty soft carry case makes storage and transport easy.

The technology behind the rod The blanks used for the Bone rods, including the Voyage series, are Toray hi-modulus graphite. The key with the Voyage series is keeping the integrity of what is an elite level blank in a travel configuration. The designers have achieved this. When loaded, the rod has a smooth bend (no flat spots) in a fast taper format. Fuji K-Alconite guides complete the package. There are 12 rods in the range in spin and baitcast configurations. Field Testing I have had the rod for over 12 months and it has gone to Lake Eildon, Lake Mulwala, Canberra and Glenlyon Dam with me. I cannot tell you how many big lures I have cast with it, from large swimbaits to 3oz spinnerbaits. I can say without a shadow of a doubt that I have not compromised with this rod. It is well suited to the fishing I have used it for, and on each trip it has gone into a mediumsized suitcase (the heavy-duty soft case it comes with is great). Having said that, I haven’t yet caught a big fish on this rod. You can see a photo of my most recent catch in the review above (a Murray cod at Mulwala), but I am yet to really test the Voyage BVC704 XXH on a better quality fish. I will continue to try, and am planning a trip north targeting barramundi on similar sized lures to really put the Voyage through its paces. Where can you find them? Bone rods are built to a high standard so they’re not cheap. The Voyage series rods start from around $350 depending on the model you choose, and in my opinion they are worth every cent. - Peter Jung

TESTED

NSW BONE ROD STOCKISTS Australian Bass Angler - Penrith Tackle World Wagga Wagga - Wagga Wagga Motackle & Outdoors - Coffs Harbour Compleat Angler Batemans Bay - Batemans bay Outback Angler - Dubbo

Just a few of the lures the author has been casting with the Bone Voyage BVC704 XXH.

APRIL 2019

TOURNAMENT CALENDAR 2019

APRIL

MAY

JUNE

JULY

AUGUST SEPTEMBER

6-7 Apr

Hobie Kayak Bream Series Round 4 Blackwood River

hobiefishing.com.au

13-14 Apr

ABT BASS Electric Round 2 Toonumbar Dam

abt.org.au

13-14 Apr

Family Bassin Round 2 Glenbawn Dam

Wayne Tiggermann 0412 634 288 or sanja@hwy.com.au

14 Apr

East Coast Bream Series Round 2 Lake Macquarie

www.wsbb.com.au or 0403 085 696

27-28 Apr

Hobie Kayak Bream Series Round 5 Nelson

hobiefishing.com.au

30 April-1 May

ABT BREAM Round 4 Albany

abt.org.au

4-5 May

ABT BREAM Round 5 Blackwood

abt.org.au

12 May

East Coast Bream Series Round 3 Botany Bay

www.wsbb.com.au or 0403 085 696

18-19 May

Hobie Kayak Bream Series Round 6 Woy Woy

hobiefishing.com.au

18-19 May

Family Bassin Round 3 Lake St. Claire

Wayne Tiggermann 0412 634 288 or sanja@hwy.com.au

25-26 May

ABT BASS Round 2 Glenbawn Dam

abt.org.au

8-9 June

Lions Pottsville Beach Greenback comp Pottsville

lionsgreenback.com

15-16 June

Family Bassin Round 4 Lostock Dam

Wayne Tiggermann 0412 634 288 or sanja@hwy.com.au

22-23 June

ABT BASS Round 3 Lake St Clair

abt.org.au

22-23 June

Hobie Kayak Bream Series Round 7 Gold Coast

hobiefishing.com.au

30 Jun

ABT BASS Electric Round 3 Maroon Dam

abt.org.au

6-7 July

ABT BREAM Round 6 Bribie Island

abt.org.au

13-14 July

ABT BASS Round 4 Cania Dam

abt.org.au

13-19 July

Evans Head Fishing Classic Evans Head

https://fishingcomps.com.au

21 July

East Coast Bream Series Round 4 Hawkesbury

www.wsbb.com.au or 0403 085 696

28 July

ABT BASS Electric Round 4 Lake Gregory

abt.org.au

27-28 July

Family Bassin Round 5 Glenbawn Dam

Wayne Tiggermann 0412 634 288 or sanja@hwy.com.au

10-11 Aug

ABT BASS Round 5 Somerset Dam

abt.org.au

7-8 Sep

ABT BREAM Round 7 Gladstone

abt.org.au

8 Sep

ABT BASS Electric Round 5 Wivenhoe Dam

abt.org.au

14-15 Sep

ABT BASS Round 6 Richmond River

abt.org.au

Add your tournament or competition to this list by emailing jthomas@fishingmonthly.com.au or calling 07 3387 0800 in office hours. Just supply a date, venue, tournament name and a telephone number and contact name. 62

APRIL 2019

2019 Open for registrations The 2019 Fitzroy River Barra Bash, Australia’s richest barramundi fishing tournament, is now open for registrations

Advertorial Anglers will be vying for a share of over $20,000 guaranteed cash and prizes on offer at the Rockhampton event, which runs from the 23-26 May 2019 and limited spaces are available. Frenchville Sports Club in Rocky are proud to conduct this prestigious event and Club General Manager Damien Massingham said that the 2019 event will be bigger and better, with the introduction of a number of new initiatives. “In addition to the actual two-day barramundi tournament, the event this year has three new exciting additions – a Family Fishing Competition, Family Fun Day at the Club and Iron Jack Ambassador, Nick Cummins aka the ‘Honey Badger’ will be the events special guest,” he said. “Nick will be joining us throughout the weekend, no doubt with a few of his colloquialisms and will also host an exclusive lunch on Sunday 26 May 2019 with tickets on sale now.” “Also this year we are very privileged and thankful to have the support of both the Queensland Government and the Rockhampton Regional Council for the 2019 event.” Barry O’Rouke representing the Minister for Tourism Industry Development the Hon. Kate Jones MP said the Queensland Government via Tourism and Events Queensland is delighted to support the 2019 Fitzroy River Barra Bash. “Three years ago, the State Government ended net fishing in the Fitzroy River with the aim of increasing recreational fishing opportunities and thereby supporting tourism and economic growth,” she said. “This event aligns with our strategy to build visitation and economic growth via tourism for Central Queensland.” Rockhampton Regional Council Mayor Margaret Strelow also expressed her support for the event. “Council is thrilled to support the 2019 Fitzroy River Barra Bash and its aim of increasing tourism to the Rockhampton Region,” she said. “Our Advance Rockhampton team has worked hard to build awareness of our Recreational Fishing Voluntary Code of Practice so we are

delighted to see events like this further promote how great it is to fish in the Fitzroy.” The Family Fun Day will include a free Family Fishing Competition on the Fitzroy River on Sunday 26 May 2019, with prizes including Biggest Barramundi and Mystery Length Barramundi. Following the Family Fishing Competition there will be a festival on Ryan Park at Frenchville Sports Club with free entry from 2pm to 8pm. The Festival will include food, drinks, inflatables, casting competitions, virtual fishing, live entertainment, with presentations of the winners of the Family Fishing Competition from 6pm. To top it off you don’t even have to fish to be a winner! Everyone attending the Family Fun Day has the chance to win a new boat, a Polycraft 410 Challenger valued at over $24,000, by purchasing a raffle ticket, which are now available from the Frenchville Sports Cub Reception. For all the details and to book you and your families spot go to www.fitzroyriverbarrabash. com.au. – Fitzroy River Barra Bash.

SPECIAL GUEST: ‘THE HONEY BADGER’

23 - 26 MAY

The Fitzroy River Barra Bash is coming back to

AUSTRALIA’S RICHEST BARRAMUNDI TOURNAMENT

Rockhampton QLD, bigger and better then ever in 2019! Kicking off on Thursday May 23rd 2019, there is an “event” for everyone including the all-new Family Fishing Comp and

WIN A BOAT

Fun Day. Join us and IronJack Ambassador Nick “The Honey Badger” Cummins, for 3 epic days of activity and prizes... Did we mention you can WIN A BOAT!

FAMILY FUN DAY TO REGISTER & FOR MORE INFO VISIT FITZROYRIVERBARRABASH.COM.AU

APRIL 2019

Nelson goes back-to-back at Clarence River Mike Nelson completely dominated in the first round of the 2019 Sufix BASS Pro on the Clarence River with his second win in less than six months on this arena. This shows what a true river rat he is, winning the last two rounds at both ends of the mighty Clarence River.

Nelson knew the waterway like the back of his hand and that was part of his winning formula for going up against some of the best bass anglers from around the country. Nelson expected this stretch would cop a fair amount of pressure after his win up the Coldstream, this meant he needed a new game plan

when he came back. This time he fished upriver chasing the fresher water and concentrating on some schools of fish around Rogans Bridge that he found during the pre-fish. These fish were tricky and would only bite at certain times. They were sitting quite deep and hard to target, so he just sat on

Mike Nelson won the boater category with a whopping 7.72kg combined weight.

them knowing that every now and then some fish would push into shallower water to feed. Once the fish started pushing up around 10am he would pitch either a jig or ZMan Trick Swim to them and target them in a depth anywhere between 8-20ft. Running this pattern both days paid off nicely and

saw him catch 10 legal fish on the Saturday with a total bag weight of 4.11kg, and 8 fish on Sunday with that

weight going considerably lighter at 3.61kg. It was still enough for Nelson to take the win.

BOATER’S WINNING GEAR Rods Reels

ate Black Spin and an omen F green 6’8” Baitcast 2500 Daiwa Luvias and a 13 Inception Baitcast 8.1

Competitors were keen to check out the other catches as they headed back in.

BOATER RESULTS

Scan the QR code to see Boater winner, Mike Nelson interview.

Place Name 1 Mike Nelson 2 Rick Gough 3 Matthew Langford 4 Scott Sutherland 5 Taigan Heath 6 Simon Wilson 7 Graham Ford 8 Luke Draper 9 Kristoffer Hickson 10 Heath Blaikie

Visit www.abt.org.au for entry forms. For general enquiries phone ABT on (07) 3387 0888 64

APRIL 2019

Total Fish Total Weight (kg) Prize 8/8 7.72 $3,500 8/8 7.08 $1,300 8/8 6.88 $1,200 8/8 6.38 $1,100 8/8 5.48 $1,000 8/8 5.45 $900 8/8 5.41 $800 8/8 5.33 $700 6/8 5.21 $600 7/8 5.06

Scan the QR code to see Clarence day one highlights.

Bass Pro Series presented by

Andrew’s first ABT win Andrew Lollback is very new to tournament fishing and has taken to it like a duck to water, proving this with a win for his second ABT tournament. Lollback fished day one with Graham ‘Fordy’ Ford. Lollback said he did as Fordy told him to and fished the surface with a River2Sea bubble pop, while Graham fished deep with a jig. They had everything covered and were working as a team

and covering the bank from top to bottom. Lollback was fishing surface most of the day in the Coldstream. He would cast his lure deep under cover and as close to the bank as he could, working his popper slowly. The fish would eat the lure within the fist 10-15m of his retrieve. If he didn’t get a hit or boil in that time he would burn the lure in and make a new cast. For his effort, Lollback managed eight legals,

BOATER’S SECOND PLACE GEAR Rod

Pagotto Custom 7ft spin

Reel

Daiwa Freams 2000

Line

15lb Daiwa J-Braid and 12lb siglon leader

keeping the biggest four resulted in a day one bag of 2.87kg. Day two saw him heading upriver with Matty Langford to the Orara River. After only catching a few undersized fish they headed out and fished around the mouth of the Orara. Catching a legal on the second cast told them they made the right choice. This spot saw them filling a bag and upgrading a few times. Lollback again mainly fished surface and Langford fished jigs, which proved once again that boater and non-boater team was a winning formula. Andrew Lollback brought in four fish for a combined weight of 3.87kg. This sealed him the win.

Andrew Lollback took out first for the non-boaters, making this his first win at an ABT tournament.

Scan the QR code to see Non-Boater winner, Andrew Lollback interview.

Rick reins in Second

Rick started his day fishing up the Coldstream about 2km short of the Tucabia Bridge. He spent around two hours there for no fish. After that he knew he needed to change his plan as time was running out, so he headed further up the Coldstream to an area he calls the ‘Forks’. When

he got up there he started pitching jigs tight to the bank, which produced a fish pretty quickly. He spent the rest of the day there filling his bag, even managing to upgrade once. Day two Rick started his day up near the Forks once again. Nearly two hours went by for nothing, but

around 9:30am the switch flicked and triggered the fish to bite. Running the same pattern as the day before he started to pick a fish off here and there filling his bag of four. After he filled his limit his non-boater caught a decent upgrade on a Whopper Plopper.

Lollback (right) and Langford (left) proved that boater and nonboater working together gets results. Both anglers placed in the top ten in their respective categories.

Garmin Big BASS Scan the QR code to see Clarence day two highlights.

Rick Gough showed that persistence pays off, and his commitment to the area known as the ‘Forks’ had him bagging out for second place.

NON-BOATER RESULTS

Scott Sutherland managed the Garmin Big Bass. Local angler Scott Sutherland took out the Garmin Big Bass with a long 1.63kg bass caught on a lure that he made himself. He and the local Clarence guys know this lure as the

‘Thong Popper’. That’s right, this thing is carved from old worn out thongs. Not sure if it’s the action of the lure or its infused foot scent that makes this lure so appealing to bass.

Place Name Total Fish Total Weight (kg) Prize 1 Andrew Lollback 8/8 6.74 2 Craig Makings 8/8 6.40 3 Paul Mazaroli 8/8 6.25 4 Rodney Thorpe 8/8 5.99 5 Cody Banks 8/8 5.55 6 Matthew Cameron 7/8 5.46 7 Timothy Chevalley 8/8 5.43 8 Barry Reynolds 7/8 5.13 9 Mick Eastment 8/8 4.88 10 Trent Blake 7/8 4.85

Bassman Spinnerbaits Prize Pack Fishtec Prize Pack Tackle Tactics Prize Pack Sufix Prize Pack Daiwa Prize Pack Sunline Prize Pack Keitech Prize Pack Lucky Craft Prize Pack Ecogear Prize Pack Shimano Prize Pack APRIL 2019

Nord nails the first Costa Bream Qualifier Peter Nord is a local Gippsland angler and has proven his knowledge of his home waterways by taking out the win in the first qualifier of the 2019 Costa Bream Series, also being the first angler to win on our new format for little systems, with one day on Bemm River and the second day at Marlo. This was Nordy’s maiden ABT win. Going into day one on the Bemm River Pete had a game plan in mind. He fished in anywhere from 5-10ft of water. The cool thing was that all his fish were caught on his own brand of lure. The go to lure was a Hurricane vibe 37mm in camo crab. He was hopping his blade along the bottom on a very small lift, no more than 20mm off the bottom. If the lure was hopped any higher the fish would not have had a bar of his lure. He also noted he had seen guys from NSW and QLD fishing a blade and hopping them way too high. The trick with blacks is the smaller the hop the better. He also caught some fish on his

Slam 47mm as well, but the majority came on the blade. His day one weight was 4.32kg. He used a Duffrod custom made for blading, 7ft in length and very stiff in action. He used 3lb line Fireline

Crystal with 4lb leader. Day two at Marlo he had two options, he could fish the Brodribb River or Lake Corringle. He had to make a choice. He didn’t think the Brodribb would produce enough weight, so

Peter Nord took out first place at the first qualifier for the Costa Bream Series.

Peter Nord managed to secure his win by over 500g with fish like this in his bag.

Lake Corringle it was. He fished a Hurricane Twitch 50 in UV prawn colour. It took him a while to figure out what was going on. The water in there was very dirty. So he would work the lure very slowly

banging the bottom and letting it sit. Because the water was very dirty he didn’t want to move the lure very fast, so he would just leave it sitting there giving the fish time to see it and eat it. He

would find his fish on his Humminbird side scan grazing around. Nord’s day two weight was down a little bit from the day before at 4.23kg but enough for the win with a total weight of 8.55kg.

BOATER RESULTS

Scan the QR code to see Boater winner, Peter Nord interview.

Place Name 1 Peter Nord 2 Brad Hodges 3 Tristan Taylor 4 Corey McLaren 5 Declan Betts 6 Charlie Saykao 7 Peter Stephens 8 Cameron Whittam 9 Darren Weda 10 Daryl Baird

Visit www.abt.org.au for entry forms. For general enquiries phone ABT on (07) 3387 0888 66

APRIL 2019

Total Fish Total Weight (kg) Prize 10/10 8.55 $3500 + $500 Mercury Bonus 10/10 8.00 $2000 + $300 Mercury Bonus 10/10 7.38 $1250 10/10 7.01 $800 10/10 6.92 $700 + $200 Mercury Bonus 9/10 6.85 $500 9/10 6.81 $500 10/10 6.65 10/10 6.42 10/10 6.23

Scan the QR code to see Bemm day one highlights.

Bream Series presented by

Brad Hodges takes second... again! Brad fished day one at Bemm River in the middle of the lake sitting in 8-10ft of water doing long wind assisted drifts. He used a 1/16-1/12oz jighead rigged with a 3” Berkley Nemesis in camo to get his bag. Once he got his bag he changed to a

Berkley Jigging Shrimp and Berkley Turtleback Worm. He caught 25 legal fish for the day and upgraded about five times. He finished with a day one weight of 4.19kg. For the second day at Marlo he fished shallow flats in Frenchs Narrow using

BREAM SERIES

SECOND PLACE GEAR Rods: Abu Garcia KRX Salty Stage 7’2” and 6’8” Reel: Abu Garcia Roxani 2000 Line: Berkley Ultra 8lb Leader: 6lb Vanish

Scan the QR code to see Bemm day two highlights.

Nord didn’t get quite as good a bag on day two, but it was still enough to push him into first place.

Boater competitor Brad Hodges claimed second place, with decent fish like this making up his bag.

a Berkley Puppy Dog in the gauge colour. He used a subtle twitch before pausing for 1-2 seconds. It was slow fishing and he didn’t fill his bag until 12pm with a couple of upgrades after that. His day two weight was 3.81kg, leaving him with a total of 8kg.

Bowen Joiner takes J-Braid Big Bream Bemm River and Marlo are known for big bream and the 1.42kg black bream

caught by Joiner was a cracking fish. As this was his first ABT event as a

boater you can imagine he was stoked with his capture. Fish was caught on a camo

Gulp Nemesis rigged on a 1/20th jighead in a shallow drain near Lake Corringle.

NON-BOATER RESULTS

Bowen Joiner claimed the Big Bream prize this tournament with a cracking 1.42kg black bream.

Place Name 1 Neil Kelly 2 Travis Ryan 3 Colin Wilson 4 Doug Badrock 5 Daniel McNeice 6 Sam Ogden 7 Greg Cooper 8 Bernard Kong 9 Shannon Hush 10 Kim McIntyre

Total Fish Total Weight (kg) Prize 9/10 7.16 Daiwa Prize Pack + $200 Hobie Bonus 9/10 6.78 Fishtec Solutions Prize Pack + $100 Hobie Bonus 10/10 6.51 Cranka Prize Pack + $75 Hobie Bonus 9/10 5.72 Tackle Tactics Prize Pack 8/10 5.39 Sufix Prize Pack 6/10 4.98 Ecogear Prize Pack 6/10 4.95 Shimano Prize Pack 8/10 4.90 Lucky Craft Prize Pack 7/10 4.89 Keitech Prize Pack 8/10 4.71 Sunline Prize Pack

Kelly bags at Bemm and Marlo Neil is a very soft-spoken man and hard to get a word from, but he can make his rod and reel talk when chasing bream. It’s not his first win, as he won the 2017

Scan the QR code to see Non-boater winner, Neil Kelly interview.

Neil Kelly is no stranger to the tournament fishing circuit, and he showed everyone there that he still has it.

Bream Grand Final, and has now taken out the first bream qualifier. Kelly fished each day at the different venues the same way. He fished a ZMan curl-tail grub in bloodworm on a 1/8 and a 1/20, depending on wind and depth. He fished this lure on a Samaki rod he won in the 2017 Grand Final and a Shimano Static CI4. The technique he used was that he would cast in after his boater and catch them. On his first day he ended with a reasonable bag with five fish tipping the scales at 3kg neat. He secured his victory on day two with a bag of four black bream weighing 4.16kg. This left him with a total weight of 7.16kg.

Joiner managed to land the Big Bream prize during his first ABT tournament as a boater. He caught this beauty on a camo Gulp Nemesis in a shallow drain near Lake Corringle. APRIL 2019

Hodges breaks his bridesmaid streak to take first Brad Hodges proved he is a gun at Gippsland Lake during Round 2 of the Costa Bream Series, the Mercury Gippsland Lakes qualifier. Hodges fished day one up the north arm targeting snags on the edge using a Berkley Puppy Dog in the 12 gauge colour. Casting as deep into the snags as he could, he would twitch them into the strike zone and pause them for as long as possible – anywhere from 3-6 seconds – leaving the lure in the fish’s faces to trigger a bite. He only caught five fish on day one, finishing with a weight of 4.10kg; but he found a bank loaded with fish towards the end of the day, which would be his day 2 plan. Day two Brad had to wait for the tide to get up so he just junk fished

WINNER’S GEAR Rods: Abu Garcia Krx Salty Stage 7’2” Reel: Abu Garcia Roxani 2000 Line: Berkley Ultra 8lb Leader: 6lb Vanish

Brad Hodges had a winning bag on day two, and the biggest bag of the tournament.

With fish like this in his bag, it is no wonder Brad Hodges took out first place.

Visit www.abt.org.au for entry forms. For general enquiries phone ABT on (07) 3387 0888 68

APRIL 2019

Cunningham’s arm until about 10am for no fish. By then, the time was right to head to a bank that was loaded with fish he found late day one. He filled his bag on the first drift with the first fish weighing around 1.20kg. After the first drift he left the bank to rest before returning two more times. Each time he came back he got two upgrades fishing a 1/24oz jighead rigged with a curl-tail grub. He cast into 4-6ft of water and hopped his grub around the darker weedy patches. The fish would usually eat within the initial sink or first hop and if they didn’t he would burn the lure in and repeat the process to the next weedy patch. His day two bag weighed in at 5.64kg and is now his PB individual bag. This gave him a total weight of 9.74kg

Scan the QR code to see Boater winner, Brad Hodges interview.

Scan the QR code to see Gippsland day one highlights.

for 10 bream. Hodges told us that in 2016 he was also left in 8th place and came

back with the win using the same technique with another 5kg+ bag.

Hodges managed to win by over 1kg, and also shared the boater Big Bream prize.

Gary Carruthers takes second place Gary seemed to do a bit of running around for his second place at Gippy, fishing locations such as the mouth of the Mitchell River, the mouth of the Nicholson River, Jones Bay and ‘The Cut’. He fished the flats of these areas using a Hurricane Twitch 40. He didn’t catch a fish until the wind blew in around 11:30am, but once it did he had his five fish by 12:10pm and started upgrading from there. His technique for the Twitch 40 was a long wind assisted cast and

SECOND PLACE GEAR

Bream Series presented by

BREAM SERIES

Rod: Smith 6’6” Reel: Daiwa Luvias 2000 Line: Sunline 8lb Leader: FC Rock 3lb to shake the rod tip with some twitches and pauses and slow rolling mixed in between. Day two he had his bag a lot earlier as it was much windier. He had his bag by 10:00am, mirroring his day one technique. Gary’s total weight was more than a kilo off Brad, but enough to hold down second place.

Gary Carruthers had to do a lot of running around to earn his bag, but it paid off when he claimed second place. Scan the QR code to see Gippsland day two highlights.

Rodney takes his second qualifier While this is not Rodney ‘Rocket’ O’Sullivan’s first win at ABT, he says he will remember it for a long time due to his new PB bag

Scan the QR code to see Nonboater winner, Rod O’Sullivan interview. being weighed in on day two at Gippsland Lakes. His massive day two bag weighed in at 5.35kg and he also shared the Daiwa J-Braid Big Bream prize as well, which weighed in at 1.36kg.

Rod O’Sullivan didn’t manage to bag out, but with some crackers in there he won the non-boater category. Rocket couldn’t fill a bag on day one, he only made it to the scale with

This fish tied for the J-Braid Big Bream with Brad Hodges.

two fish for 1.16kg. But, what he did on day two was pretty impressive. Not only catching them at the back of the boat as a non-boater, he caught his PB bag fishing behind a true bream champion, Mark Crompton. Rodney had nothing for most of the day, well nothing until the trip back and last stop of the day. He decided to use a lure he had not used in a long time, an Ecogear SX43 in the 307 colour and the first fish he caught was a 1.36kg donkey hooked in the tail. They made one more quick stop to the snags at the mouth of the Tambo River where he filled the rest of his bag. This gave him the win with a total weight of 6.51kg. Still using the first lure rod, he brought a Shimano Rack Raider, a Shimano CI4 reel and 4lb straight through Yamatayo line.

BOATER WINNERS Place Name

Total Fish Total Weight (kg)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

10/10 10/10 9/10 9/10 10/10 10/10 7/10 10/10 10/10 7/10

Brad Hodges Gary Carruthers Tristan Taylor Steve Morgan Peter Stephens Alex Franchuk Declan Betts Christian Wardini Cameron Whittam Mark Crompton

9.74 8.33 8.32 8.19 7.98 6.73 6.37 6.18 6.15 5.15

Prize $3500 + $500 Mercury Bonus $1500 + $300 Mercury Bonus $1000 $800 + $200 Mercury Bonus $700 $600 $500 $500

NON-BOATER RESULTS

O’Sullivan was pretty happy with this day two bag weight.

Place Name

Total Fish Total Weight (kg)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

7/10 9/10 7/10 5/10 5/10 5/10 5/10 3/10 5/10 4/10

Rodney O’Sullivan Ahmad Mahfoud Stuart Walker Neil Kelly Darren Murphy Greg Cooper Shannon Hush Travis Ryan Glen Sturrock Shaun Egan

6.51 6.05 5.11 4.93 3.93 3.52 3.31 2.91 2.76 2.31

Prize Daiwa Prize Pack Fishtec Solutions Prize Pack + $200 Hobie Bonus Cranka Prize Pack + $100 Hobie Bonus Tackle Tactics Prize Pack + $75 Hobie Bonus Sufix Prize Pack Ecogear Prize Pack Shimano Prize Pack Lucky Craft Prize Pack Keitech Prize Pack Sunline Prize Pack APRIL 2019

Trades, Services, Charter COFFS COAST

HOLIDAY RENTAL MACLEAY VALLEY COAST

CRESCENT HEAD HOLIDAY RENTALS

SYDNEY

Freshest Fishing Tours 0421 405 221 Coffs Coast Sport Fishing 0434 517 683 Trial Bay Fishing Charters, 0427 256 556

Penrith Marine (02) 4731 6250 Cohoe Marine Products (Sydney) (02) 9519 3575 Blakes Marine (02) 4577 6699 Watersports Marine (02) 9676 1400 Marina Bayside (02) 9524 0044 Shannons Outboards (02) 9482 2638 Hi Tech Marine (02) 4256 6135 TR Marine World (02) 4577 3522

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CANBERRA/ACT For all your accommodation needs, house, units & townhouses for every budget. Contact the friendly team at Crescent Head Real Estate for your free holiday brochure.

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PORT & REEF SFISHING GAME ERS

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Castaway Estuary Charters 0427 239 650

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Alpine Tourist Park (02) 6454 2438 www.alpinetouristpark.com.au Milani Trout Cottages (02) 6775 5735 www.milanitroutcottages.com Wyangala Waters State Park (02) 6345 0877

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Dave Gaden’s Yamba • Deep Sea

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ILLAWARRA COAST EDEN COAST

OPEN 7 DAYS

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Boat Wrap Specialist www.xfactorsigns.com

This section in NSW Fishing Monthly consolidates the trades and services in your area that are relevant to your fishing and boating. Whether you’re a local looking for more options or a travelling angler fishing around the state, this guide will direct you to reputable businesses in the area you’re searching. 86

APRIL 2019

“

Boats & Guided Fishing Tours Directory

ba Prawn Blade BAITs”& TACKLE “Yam CLARENCE

YAMBA BAIT & TACKLE “Yamba’s Leading Tackle Shop” “IN THE MAIN STREET” Shop 3, 8 Yamba St, Yamba

02 6646 1514

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• • • •

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0425 230 964 – info@fishin.com.au

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MOTackle (02) 6652 4611 or www.motackle.com.au

www.fishin.com.au 0425 230 964

Rocks Marine Bait & Tackle South West Rocks (02) 6566 6726

Blue Bottle Fishing 0409 333 380 or www.bluebottlefishing.com MOTackle (02) 6652 4611 or www.motackle.com.au

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SAMPLE AD - BUSINESS NAME This is where your copy will appear. You will have approximately 30 words within a 5x2 ad size.

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Advertisers wanting to be involved in this directory can call (07) 3387 0800 or email ads@fishingmonthly.com.au APRIL 2019

NSW Tides

2019 2019 Local Time

SYDNEY (FORT DENISON) – NEW SOUTH WALES SYDNEY (FORT DENISON) – LONG NEW SOUTH WALES LAT 33° 51’ S 151° 14’ E

Time

1 1 0541 1208 TU

TU 1759 2358

LAT 33° 51’ S LONG 151° 14’ E Times and Heights of High and Low Waters Times and Heights of High and Low Waters MARCH FEBRUARY JANUARY MARCH FEBRUARY JANUARY Time m Time m Time Time m Time m Time m m 0541 1.57 1208 0.58 1759 1.33 2358 0.50 0633 1.63 1310 0.52 1857 1.30

Time m 0441 1.47 1.57 1.47 0.67 0.58 0441 1100 0.67 1.28 1.33 1100 WE 1652 1.28 0.53 FR WE 1652 2300 0.50 2300 0.53 0536 1.57 1.63 1.57 0.58 0.52 0536 1208 0.58 1.30 1.30 1208 TH 1800 1.30 0.50 TH 1800 2355 SA 2355 0.50 0630 1.69 0.51 1.69 0.45 1.69 0630 1309 0.45 1.34 0.47 1309 FR 1902 FR 1902 1.34 SU 1.30

16 16

Time

1 1 0020 0700 FR 1346 1935

17 17

2 2

0044 0.51 18 3 3 0720 1.69 18 1400

3 3

2 2

0633 1310 WE WE 1857

0044 0720 TH TH 1400 1947

4 4

0127 0803 FR FR 1445 2032

5 5 0207 0844 SA

SA 1523 2114

6 6 0245 0920 SU

SU 1600 2152

7 7 0323 0957 MO

MO 1635 2230

8 8 0400 1031 TU

TU 1710 2306

9 9

0437 1107 WE WE 1745 2344

10 10 0516 1143 TH TH 1821

0.47 1947 1.30 0127 0.52 0803 1.73 1445 0.42 2032 1.31 0207 0.52 0844 1.76 1523 0.39 2114 1.32 0245 0.52 0920 1.77 1600 0.37 2152 1.32 0323 0.53 0957 1.77 1635 0.37 2230 1.32 0400 0.54 1031 1.75 1710 0.38 2306 1.32 0437 0.56 1107 1.72 1745 0.41 2344 1.31 0516 0.59 1143 1.67 1821 0.44 0024

0048 0.46 0.52 0.46 1.82 1.73 0048 0722 1.82 0.33 0.42 0722 SA 1403 0.33 1.39 SA 1403 1959 MO 1.31 1959 1.39 0141 0.40 0.52 0.40 1.93 1.76 0141 0814 1.93 0.22 0.39 0814 SU 1455 0.22 1.45 SU 1455 2052 TU 1.32 2052 1.45 0.52 0233 0.36 0.36 2.02 1.77 0233 0905 2.02 0.14 0.37 0905 MO 1545 0.14 1.49 MO 1545 2145 WE 1.32 2145 1.49 0.53 0326 0.32 0.32 2.07 1.77 0326 0956 2.07 0.10 0.37 0956 TU 1635 0.10 1.52 TU 1635 2236 TH 1.32 2236 1.52 0.54 0419 0.32 0.32 2.05 1.75 0419 1047 2.05 0.12 0.38 1047 WE 1724 0.12 1.53 WE 1724 2328 FR 1.32 2328 1.53 0.56 0514 0.34 0.34 1.98 1.72 0514 1138 1.98 0.17 0.41 1138 TH 1813 TH 1813 0.17 SA 1.31

19 19

12 12

0151 0824 SU 1503 2056

4 4 0230 0901 MO

20 20

1537 2131

5 5 0306 0936 TU

21 21

1610 2205

6 6 0343 1010 WE

22 22

1642 2239

7 7 0419 1044 TH

23 23

1713 2314

8 8 0457 1118 FR

24 24

1745 2349

9 9 0536 1153 SA 1818

0.59

0020 1.53

0029

FR 1229 1901 1.31 0.62 0114 1.60 0708 SA SA 1321 0.47 1950 1.31 0.66 0210 1.53 0812 SU SU 1416 0.50 2041 1.32 0.70 0308 1.44 0921 MO MO 1518 0.53 2134 1.34 0.73 0410 1.37 1037 TU TU 1628 0.54 2230 1.39 0.72 0511 1.31 1152 WE WE 1740 0.55 2327

1.85 1901 0.26 0114 1.52 0708 0.47 1321 1.68 1950 0.36 0210 1.51 0812 0.54 1416 1.51 2041 0.45 0308 1.50 0921 0.61 1518 1.36 2134 0.53 0410 1.51 1037 0.63 1628 1.25 2230 0.59 0511 1.54 1152 0.61 1740 1.21 2327 0.61 0608 1.58 1256 0.57 1843 1.21

1.52 1854 0.48 0111 1.42 0707 0.63 1313 1.43 1932 0.53 0159 1.43 0802 0.66 1402 1.34 2018 0.57 0253 1.45 0909 0.67 1505 1.27 2115 0.60 0355 1.49 1028 0.64 1621 1.23 2220 0.60 0500 1.57 1144 0.56 1741 1.25 2328 0.57

Time m 0603 1.69 0.61 1.69 0.43 1.62 0603 1250 0.43 1.32 0.51 1250 SA 1848 FR SA 1848 1.32 1.24

16 16

27 27

13 13

28 28

14 14

29 29

15 15

30 30 31 31 0608 1256 TH TH 1843

SU 1230 0.26 1854 1.52 0.47 0111 1.68 0707 MO MO 1313 0.36 1932 1.51 0.54 0159 1.51 0802 TU TU 1402 0.45 2018 1.50 0.61 0253 1.36 0909 WE WE 1505 0.53 2115 1.51 0.63 0355 1.25 1028 TH TH 1621 0.59 2220 1.54 0.61 0500 1.21 1144 FR FR 1741 0.61 2328 1.58 0.57 1.21

11 11 12 12

13 13 14 14

15 15

Time

1 1 0537 1230 FR

0030 0.50 0.59 0.50 1.81 1.66 0030 0702 1.81 0.31 0.46 0702 SU 1346 0.31 1.41 SU 1346 1945 SA 1.28 1945 1.41 0128 0.41 0.56 0.41 1.93 1.70 0128 0757 1.93 0.20 0.41 0757 MO 1438 0.20 1.50 MO 1438 2038 SU 1.32 2038 1.50 0222 0.33 0.53 0.33 2.01 1.73 0222 0849 2.01 0.13 0.39 0849 TU 1527 0.13 1.57 TU 1527 2128 MO 1.35 2128 1.57 0.51 0315 0.28 0.28 2.04 1.74 0315 0941 2.04 0.10 0.37 0941 WE 1614 0.10 1.62 TU WE 1614 2216 1.38 2216 1.62 0.50 0408 0.26 0.26 2.01 1.74 0408 1030 2.01 0.13 0.37 1030 TH 1659 0.13 1.65 WE TH 1659 2305 1.39 2305 1.65 0.50 0501 0.28 0.28 1.91 1.71 0501 1120 1.91 0.20 0.38 1120 FR 1744 0.20 1.65 FR 1744 2354 TH 1.40 2354 1.65 0.51 0556 0.33 0.33 1.76 1.67 0556 1210 1.76 0.31 0.41 1210 SA 1828 SA 1828 0.31 FR 1.41

1827 2358

m 0537 1.51 1230 0.60 1827 1.19 2358 0.69 0633 1.55 1320 0.54 1916 1.26

m Time m 0432 1.60 1.51 1.60 0.52 0.60 0432 1124 0.52 1.27 1.19 1124 SA 1730 1.27 0.63 MO SA 1730 2310 0.69 2310 0.63 0542 1.70 1.55 1.70 0.41 0.54 0542 1230 0.41 1.37 1.26 1230 SU 1836 SU 1836 1.37 TU

16 16

18 18

0017 0051 0.65 0.54 0.65 1.60 0017 18 3 0644 0720 3 1400 1.81 1.60 18 0.49 0644 MO 1325

19 19 20 20

21 21 22 22

23 23

4 4 0135 0800 MO

26 26

27 27 28 28

1.57 0.56 1.25 0.57

1435 2033

5 5 0215 0837 TU 1507 2106

6 6 0250 0912 WE 1538 2138

7 7 0326 0945 TH 1608 2210

8 8 0401 1019 FR

0.54 0043 1.63 1.63 0.42 1.60 0043 0652 0.42 1.58 0.44 0652 SU 1300 1.58 0.43 SU 1300 1912 SA 1912 0.43 1.41 0134 1.59 1.59 0.51 0.58 0134 0753 0.51 1.41 1.52 0753 MO 1353 1.41 0.54 MO 1353 1958 SU 0.48 1958 0.54 1.42 0229 1.55 1.55 0.59 0.63 0229 0900 0.59 1.27 1.43 0900 TU 1452 1.27 0.64 MO TU 1452 2048 0.53 2048 0.64 1.43 0329 1.51 1.51 0.64 0.66 0329 1013 0.64 1.18 1.34 1013 WE 1603 1.18 0.70 TU WE 1603 2149 0.57 2149 0.70 0434 1.50 1.45 1.50 0.64 0.67 0434 1127 0.64 1.16 1.27 1127 TH 1720 1.16 0.72 WE TH 1720 2256 0.60 2256 0.72 1.49 0.64 1.23 TH 0.60

24 24

0051 0720 SU 1400 1958

1638 2243

9 9 0439 1054 SA 1708 2317

10 10 0518 1130 SU 1740 2354

11 11 0601 1208 MO 1814

0.49 1958 1.32 0135 0.59 0800 1.64 1435 0.44 2033 1.38 0215 0.54 0837 1.68 1507 0.41 2106 1.43 0250 0.50 0912 1.70 1538 0.39 2138 1.47 0326 0.47 0945 1.70 1608 0.38 2210 1.50 0401 0.46 1019 1.67 1638 0.39 2243 1.53 0439 0.47 1054 1.63 1708 0.41 2317 1.55 0518 0.49 1130 1.57 1740 0.45 2354 1.56 0601 0.52 1208 1.49 1814 0.50 0034

17 17

MO 1325 1.32 1930 0.59 1.64 0116 0.44 0739 TU TU 1415 1.38 2020 0.54 1.68 0212 0.41 0831 WE WE 1501 1.43 2108 0.50 1.70 0304 0.39 0922 TH TH 1545 1.47 2154 0.47 1.70 0357 0.38 1012 FR FR 1629 1.50 2240 0.46 1.67 0448 0.39 1100 SA SA 1710 1.53 2326 0.47 1.63 0542 0.41 1149 SU SU 1751 1.55

19 19 20 20 21 21

22 22

23 23 24 24 0.49

25 1.57 0011 25 0.45 0635 MO MO 1239 1.56 1831 0.52 1.49 0058 0.50 0732 TU TU 1330 1914 1.56 0.56 0147 1.40 0834 WE WE 1428 0.56 2003 1.55 0.60 0244 1.31 0941 TH TH 1536 0.62 2105 1.54 0.62 0348 1.24 1048 FR FR 1652 0.67 2219 1.55 0.60 0456 1.22 1149 SA SA 1758 0.68 2329

26 26

1.56 12 0648 27 12 0034 0648 0.56 27 TU 1251 1251 1852 1.40 1852 0.56 0120 0120 0744 1.55 0744 0.60 WE 1343 1343 1939 1.31 1939 0.62 0215 0215 0850 1.54 0850 0.62 TH 1447 1447 2038 1.24 2038 0.67 0319 0319 1008 1.55 1008 1609 FR 0.60 1.22 FR 1609 2154 2154 0.68

13 13

28 28

14 14

29 29

15 15

30 30 31 31 0556 1240 SU SU 1847

1321 1928

2 2

0633 1320 SA 1916

Time

1 1 0026 0645 MO

17 17

1.53 0.39 0029 1.41 25 0610 10 0619 25 1.67 0020 25 10 0619 0.39 1.85 0.58 25 0.44 0610 FR 1229 SU 1230

1.31 11 0559 26 11 0024 0559 0.62 26 FR 1220 1.60 FR 1220 1900 1900 0.47 0107 0107 0645 1.31 0645 0.66 SA 1300 1.53 SA 1300 1940 1940 0.50 0156 0156 0736 1.32 0736 0.70 SU 1345 1.44 SU 1345 2024 2024 0.53 0247 0247 0836 1.34 0836 0.73 MO 1439 1.37 MO 1439 2113 2113 0.54 0344 0344 0945 1.39 0945 1542 TU 0.72 1.31 TU 1542 2205 2205 0.55

0108 0745 SA 1428 2018

m 0020 0.61 0700 1.62 1346 0.51 1935 1.24 0108 0.59 0745 1.66 1428 0.46 2018 1.28 0151 0.56 0824 1.70 1503 0.41 2056 1.32 0230 0.53 0901 1.73 1537 0.39 2131 1.35 0306 0.51 0936 1.74 1610 0.37 2205 1.38 0343 0.50 1010 1.74 1642 0.37 2239 1.39 0419 0.50 1044 1.71 1713 0.38 2314 1.40 0457 0.51 1118 1.67 1745 0.41 2349 1.41 0536 0.54 1153 1.60 1818 0.44

0113 0728 TU 1357 2003

0.54 1.81 0153 0.30 0806 WE 0.30 1.48 WE 1430 1930 1.48 2036 0116 0.43 0.43 1.90 0230 0739 1.90 0.22 0842 1415 TH 0.22 1.59 TH 1500 2020 2107 1.59 0212 0.34 0.34 1.95 0307 0831 1.95 0.17 0916 1501 FR 0.17 1.68 FR 1530 2108 2140 1.68 0304 0.27 0.27 1.95 0344 0922 1.95 0.17 0952 1545 SA 0.17 1.75 SA 1600 2154 1.75 2213 0357 0.25 0.25 1.88 0323 1012 1.88 0.22 0930 1629 SU 0.22 1.78 SU 1531 2240 1.78 2148 0448 0.27 0.27 1.77 0404 1100 1.77 0.30 1009 1710 MO 0.30 1.78 MO 1605 2326 1.78 2226 0542 0.33 0.33 1.63 0448 1149 1.63 0.41 1052 1751 TU 0.41 TU 1642 2307 0011 1.74 1.74 0.42 0538 0635 0.42 1.47 1141 1239 WE 1.47 0.53 WE 1724 1831 2355 0.53 0058 1.68 1.68 0.51 0635 0732 0.51 1.33 1237 1330 TH 1.33 0.64 TH 1815 1914 0.64 0147 1.60 1.60 0.59 0050 0834 0.59 1.23 0742 1428 FR 1.23 0.74 FR 1345 2003 0.74 1920 0244 1.53 1.53 0.64 0158 0941 0.64 1.17 0856 1536 SA 1.17 0.80 SA 1503 2105 0.80 2039 0348 1.49 1.49 0.65 0312 1048 0.65 1.18 1005 1652 SU 1.18 0.81 SU 1618 2219 0.81 2158 0456 1.48 1.48 0.63 0422 1149 0.63 1.23 1105 1758 MO 1.23 0.78 MO 1719 2329 0.78 2305 0556 1.51 1.51 0.58 1240 0.58 1.30 1847 1.30

3 3 4 4

5 5 6 6

7 7 8 8

9 9

10 10

11 11

Local Time APRIL APRIL Time Time m

m 0026 0.72 0645 1.55 1321 0.53 1928 1.38 0113 0.65 0728 1.59 1357 0.48 2003 1.45 0153 0.58 0806 1.63 1430 0.45 2036 1.52 0230 0.53 0842 1.64 1500 0.43 2107 1.58 0307 0.48 0916 1.64 1530 0.42 2140 1.64 0344 0.46 0952 1.62 1600 0.43 2213 1.68 0323 0.45 0930 1.58 1531 0.46 2148 1.71 0404 0.45 1009 1.52 1605 0.50 2226 1.72 0448 0.48 1052 1.45 1642 0.56 2307 1.71 0538 0.51 1141 1.37 1724 0.62 2355 1.68 0635 0.54 1237 1.30 1815 0.69 0050

m Time m 0524 1.78 0.72 1.78 0.33 1.55 0524 1159 0.33 1.58 0.53 1159 TU 1812 TU 1812 1.58 1.38

16 16

0.65 0005 0.47 0.47 1.83 1.59 0005 0619 1.83 0.28 0.48 0619 WE 1246 0.28 1.70 WE 1246 1900 1.45 1900 1.70 0.58 0100 0.38 0.38 1.84 1.63 0100 0712 1.84 0.27 0.45 0712 TH 1331 0.27 1.79 TH 1331 1945 1.52 1945 1.79 0.53 0154 0.32 0.32 1.80 1.64 0154 0802 1.80 0.29 0.43 0802 FR 1414 0.29 1.86 FR 1414 2030 1.58 2030 1.86 0245 0.30 0.48 0.30 1.72 1.64 0245 0851 1.72 0.35 0.42 0851 SA 1455 0.35 1.88 SA 1455 2114 1.64 2114 1.88 0.46 0335 0.32 0.32 1.62 1.62 0335 0940 1.62 0.44 0.43 0940 SU 1534 0.44 1.87 SU 1534 2157 1.68 2157 1.87 0426 0.37 0.45 0.37 1.50 1.58 0426 1029 1.50 0.53 0.46 1029 MO 1614 0.53 1.82 MO 1614 2240 1.71 2240 1.82 0.45 0516 0.44 0.44 1.39 1.52 0516 1116 1.39 0.63 0.50 1116 TU 1653 0.63 1.75 TU 1653 2323 1.72 2323 1.75 0609 0.52 0.48 0.52 1.30 1.45 0609 1206 1.30 0.72 0.56 1206 WE 1734 WE 1734 0.72 1.71

17 17

18 18 19 19 20 20

21 21

22 22

23 23 24 24 0.51

TH 1300 1.68 1822 0.54 1.30 0058 0.69 0802 FR FR 1401 1921 1.65 0.56 0157 1.26 0901 SA SA 1510 0.73 2033 1.63 0.54 0303 1.27 0958 SU SU 1613 0.73 2146 1.66 0.48 0406 1.35 1048 MO MO 1705 0.68 2249 1.72 0.41 0500 1.46 1131 TU TU 1747 0.58 2342

26 26

1.65 27 12 12 0742 0.56 27 1345

13 13 14 14 15 15

1.26 1920 0.73 0158 1.63 0856 0.54 1503 1.27 2039 0.73 0312 1.66 1005 0.48 1618 1.35 2158 0.68 0422 1.72 1105 0.41 1719 1.46 2305 0.58

0008 1.66 0.59 1.24 1.24 0.80 1822 0.80 0058 1.58 1.58 0.64 0802 0.64 1.21 1401 1.21 0.85 1921 0.85 0157 1.51 1.51 0.66 0901 0.66 1.23 1510 1.23 0.87 2033 0.87 0303 1.48 1.48 0.64 0958 0.64 1.28 1613 1.28 0.84 2146 0.84 0406 1.49 1.49 0.61 1048 0.61 1.35 1705 1.35 0.78 2249 0.78 0500 1.51 1.51 0.57 1131 0.57 1.44 1747 1.44 0.71 2342 0.71

1.66 25 0704 1.37 0008 25 0.59 0.62 0704 TH 1300

28 28 29 29

30 30

 Copyright Commonwealth of Australia 2018, Bureau of Meteorology  Copyright Commonwealth of Australia 2018, Bureau of Meteorology Datum of Predictions is Lowest Astronomical Tide Datum of Predictions is Lowest Astronomical Tide Times are in local standard time (UTC +10:00) or daylight savings time (UTC +11:00) when in effect Times are in local standard time (UTC +10:00) or daylight savings time (UTC +11:00) when in effect Moon Phase Symbols New Moon First Quarter Full Moon Last Quarter New Moon First Quarter Last Quarter Moon Phase Symbols Full Moon Tide predictions for Sydney (Fort Denison) have been formatted by the National Tidal Centre, Australian Bureau of Meteorology, Copyright reserved. All material is supplied in good faith and is believed to be correct. It is supplied on the condition that no warranty is given in relation thereto, that no responsibility or liability for errors or omissions is, or will be, accepted and that the recipient will hold MHL and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology Australia free from all such responsibility or liability and from all loss or damage incurred as a consequence of any error or omission. Predictions should not be used for navigational purposes. Use of these tide predictions will be deemed to include acceptance of the above conditions. 88

APRIL 2019

boats & kayaks

In the skipper’s seat 91 Pebbly Beach delights Inside story...

Bassco is a new Aussie boat company operating out of Wy Yung in Victoria. Owner Mike Boag is a skilled tradesman with many years of boat building experience and an acute attention to detail. He delivers three fantastic models in the Bassco range.

Made for...

All the boats that Mike builds are suited to fishing. There are two inshore/offshore style boats, the Tornado and the Storm, and one tournament style boat, the Hurricane. All are perfectly suited to Australian conditions and anglers.

This month...

Steve Morgan checks out the Tornado, powered by a 115hp Mercury Pro XS. Check it out on page 98!

Dayne Taylor visits this beautiful area and enjoys the offshore kayaking opportunities it offers!

92 Prep for winter yakkin’ Justin Willmer provides some tips for getting your kayak ready for winter.

94 New from Savage

Wayne Kampe checks out three great new hulls from Australia’s oldest aluminium boat brand!

96 Breezaway 460

NSWFM’s Bob Thornton takes a ride in the new Breezaway 460 from Stessco, powered by a Yamaha F90hp!

98 Bassco Tornado

Editor Steve Morgan goes for a ride in an exciting new inshore/offshore rig, powered by a Mercury 115hp Pro XS!

APRIL 2019

Stessco Breezaway 460 with Yamaha F90hp - SC

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put on a purpose-built trailer, and not just any old trailer from a yard somewhere. For extra peace of mind, the Yamaha F70hp comes with a 4-year warranty.

easily achievable if you were on your own or with people less experienced in boating. Pulling the loaded trailer back out of the water can be done with a standard

Main: The 460 is the middle child in the Breezaway range, with a 440 and 480 also available. Above: Adrian Beil from Stessco certainly made the 460 look easy to operate in a little bit of chop – probably because it was! LAUNCHING Launching couldn’t be any easier with the Breezaway, with the boat quietly sliding off the composite bunk/roller trailer with ease, with retrieval being just trouble free. Even in windy conditions, launching this boat by yourself would be

family sedan or small 4WD, with no specialised towing vehicle needed. ON THE WATER The Breezaway 460 has been designed with one goal in mind, and that is to make it easy to operate, and Stessco achieves this by making everything as open

takes a ski pole or bait board, which Stessco can provide. The working space behind the cockpit is as open as possible, with only one underdeck storage hatch, which would make an ideal kill tank. There is also storage under both gunwales to stow any small or long items out

of harm’s way. This working space is extremely versatile, and perfect for taking extra people, ski tubes, fishing tackle or camping gear. Up toward the cockpit, the new Stessco bolster-style seats are super comfortable, even with the deteriorating conditions in South East Queensland’s Pumicestone Passage, and swivel easily. There’s no rocking or wobbling, even when punching through a bit of chop, and the seats are well-padded for comfort on those longer boating trips. The windscreen provided protection from any splash that made it over the bow, and featured a design that allows quick and safe access to the anchor well. Under the front deck is enough room to put any larger items that need to be kept dry, such as camping gear. A lockable glove box is another handy feature not often seen in boats of this size. The dash layout is very simple and easy to navigate, with a flush mounted sounder diminishing the need to fit and re-fit a unit every time you launch the boat, and gadgets and switches all within flicking distance of the steering wheel. POWER The test boat was fitted with a Yamaha F70hp – the maximum horsepower for

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Length (mm) ................................................ 5054 Beam (mm) .................................................. 2100 Depth (mm)...................................................1150 Bottom sides (mm) ........................................... 3 Top sides (mm) .................................................. 3 Max. hp ............................................................ 70 Max. transom weight.....................................175 Transom height ..............................................20” Max no. people ................................................. 5 Base boat hull weight (kg) ........................... 390

and accessible as possible. The transom is an open design, meaning there’s ready access to the battery, fuel filter and splash well, which at the same time are well housed and safe from the weather. A small transom door is perfect for accessing the boat from the rear, which is also possible from the bank, as this range of runabouts draws so little water. Not only was this boat easy to pull into the shallow water transom first – we still had to stop it from drifting away! With versatility being the middle name of this boat, it also has a simple mount above the splash well that

Stessco has always produced fantastic boat/motor/trailer packages, and being an Australian boat builder, they cater very well to Australian conditions and lifestyles. While they have always built great hulls for specific purposes, some buyers just want something that will get them out on the water for a day of fishing, skiing, or just relaxing with friends and family! Perfect for this caper is the runabout style hull, of which Stessco produce many. Boaters will be pleased to know that Stessco offer not one but a range of packages for this category of buyer. This time we will be focussing on the Breezaway 460, with the tested model sporting a Yamaha F70hp at the transom. The Breezaway 460 is part of a family of versatile runabouts, which also includes the 440 and 480. Adrian Beil joined the Fishing Monthly team to take the middle child of this family for a spin. ON THE TRAILER The tested Breezaway came to the ramp on a Stessco trailer OEM built by Dunbier, which comes in either a galvanised or aluminium option. The Breezaway, being part of Stessco’s premium range, when housed on one of these trailers comes with a warranty of five years, as opposed to 24 months when not on a Stessco trailer. Additionally, being a single axle trailer, it makes the whole rig very manoeuvrable not only when towing, but also in the garage with only one person pushing or pulling. There’s no doubt that a boat will have a longer life when

SPECIFICATIONS

Bob Thornton

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this craft – and it delivered fantastic fuel economy and a top speed of 57km/h in the choppy conditions. Amazingly, there wasn’t a lot of difference between the most economic cruising speed at 43km/h (4500rpm), which delivered 3.1km/L, and the top speed of 57km/h (WOT), which delivered only slightly less, at 2.6km/L. FINAL THOUGHTS This boat, if fitted out correctly, could head offshore, however there are more suitable boats in the Stessco range for regular offshore work. Where the 460 really excels is in the bays, estuaries and lakes with general boating, skiing, camping and fishing in mind. This rig is absolutely perfect for someone who wants maximum usage out of a boat and doesn’t want to have to rob a bank to afford it. As tested, this rig would come home for around the low to mid $30,000s, with different outboards and optional additions affecting this price. If you’d like to check out this boat or any others in the Stessco range, you can jump online and check them out on Instagram and Facebook at ‘Stessco’, or visit their website at www. stessco.com.au.

PERFORMANCE RPM .................. km/L ............................ km/h Idle ........................ 6.3 ....................................3 1000 ...................... 6.1 ....................................4 1500 ...................... 4.1 ....................................8 2000 ...................... 2.8 ....................................9 2500 ...................... 2.3 .................................. 11 3000 ...................... 2.6 .................................. 17 3500 ...................... 2.9 .................................. 27 4000 ...................... 2.9 .................................. 33 4500 ...................... 3.1 .................................. 43 5000 ...................... 2.9 .................................. 48 5500 ...................... 2.6 .................................. 55 WOT ...................... 2.6 .................................. 57

That square in the middle of the windscreen opens up to provide access to the anchor well.

An uncomplicated dash layout with a flush mounted sounder makes this rig very easy for a less experienced boater to operate.

The underfloor kill tank is a handy feature, and means there’s no need to drag a stinky esky on board if you’re after a feed of fish. The anchor well is sensibly-sized and shaped, and isn’t complicted by an anchor winch. Queenslanders are tough like that!

Top: The Stessco trailers OEM built by Dunbier improve the warranty deal, and almost definitely the longevity of the boat. Above: Launching the 460 was no hassle, with the rig sliding off without any back-breaking pushing or shoving.

Having an open transom means you can access the battery on the water should anything go wrong. Although open, it was well-housed and safe from spray.

Stessco’s OEM built trailers by Dunbier come in a aluminium or galvanised option.

Side pockets offered storage for small or long items, well out of harm’s way. The work area behind the cockpit is left deliberately empty and free.

Top: Extra seating via a lounge is a great idea, and gives younger passengers the chance to feel the open air and enjoy their boating experience with safety. Above: The open transom and work area would make any onwater activity very easy and safe for all passengers aboard.

While 70hp is the maxiumum horsepower the 460 can take, it felt just right for the boat, and offered excellent fuel economy, even at WOT! APRIL 2019

Bassco Tornado CC with 115hp Mercury Pro XS - SC

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Main: The Bassco Tornado is a locally designed and built centreconsole that is a rare combination – it holds a stack of tackle efficiently and you can seriously tackle oceanic species. Above: Wayne Mauger is equally at home on an estuary of Port Phillip Bay in his Tornado. You’ll notice that Wayne has accessorised his Tornado to the hilt. boats seemingly well built, but they will hold the gear of the biggest tackle junkie for a social or tournament angler. Bassco customer Wayne Mauger brought his Tornado along to the test day. He came out of an American built Triton bass boat into the Bassco and couldn’t be happier. “This boat does

SPECIFICATIONS Length........................................................5.0m Beam........................................................2.07m Transom.Deadrise ...................................... 20° Capacity ............................................ 4 persons Max.hp ..................................................... 115hp (special build 150hp available) Hull.Weight .............................................. 690kg 98

APRIL 2019

everything that my bass boat used to do, but I can still get out and fish offshore,” Wayne said. “I like to sit down when I drive a centre console – which is unusual – but to me, this handles like a 7m boat,” he continued. Unfortunately, the test day was glamour , with not a ripple on the water, so we couldn’t independently test the tide in nasty conditions, but we did see how much tackle this thing gobbles up. With eight rods under the deck and another six around the console, the Tornado boasts 14-rod storage along with 20 tackle trays that are actually accessible. Whether you are needing

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It’s hard not to get enthusiastic when talking to Michael Boag from Bassco boats. The Gippsland Lakes boat builder has a solid history in building big, dieselpowered fibreglass boats and only recently turned his hand to making smaller boats designed for fishing. Cleverly, though, when doing his R&D, Michael enlisted the help of anglers. “I know it’s a strange concept – actually talking to the guys who will use the boat,” he quipped sarcastically during the video interview (scan the QR code hereby for details), “but for me, layout and the ability for a boat to securely hold all of your gear and to keep it dry is a benchmark that I judge a fishing boat by.” After all, locally built craft have to compete with imported fishing boats that have had decades to evolve to a point where they are a pleasure to use. I’m happy to report that not only are the Bassco

s.morgan@fishingmonthly.com.au

a livewell or a kill box, there’s a great, plumbed box under the console seat that serves both purposes. Powered by a 115hp Pro XS Mercury, this sure is a fun boat to drive. The 2.1L 4-stroke powerplant delivered great economy at 4,000rpm cruising speed (2.4km/L at 46km/h) but stretched out to a mid-70km/h maximum at 6,200rpm. There’s also a cavernous fuel tank underfloor, boasting 140L capacity and a theoretical range of around 350km, and that’s plenty for a weekend away! With a package price of $50,999 for the boat/motor and trailer, it’s up to you after that to accessorise with electronics and electric motors of your choosing. Wayne certainly hasn’t skimped in any of these

Steve Morgan

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PERFORMANCE RPM...... Speed.(km/h) Idle .......................... 4 1000 ......................... 8 2000....................... 12 3000....................... 29 4000....................... 46 5000....................... 61 6000....................... 74 6200 ....................... 76 areas, with top of the line Humminbird and MinnKota gear finishing his rig exactly as he likes it. For more information, give Michael Boag a call on 0417 545 593 or visit their Facebook page (Bassco Boats). They don’t have a website yet, so don’t look for them there. But if you’re considering a local alternative to an imported fishing boat, you do need to throw a Bassco into the mix!

The Tornado jumps onto the plane easily with the 115 Pro XS Mercury. Wayne likes driving his centre console while sitting down.

Top: It’s impractical to flush mount a sounder into the console, yet the Humminbird fills the console top nicely. Above: Step up to the front deck for your lure casting. From the console forwards, it looks and fishes like a bass boat (but without any carpet).

There’s plenty of room to move up front – and the grab rail is a handy place to grab while you are doing so.

I dare any angler to be unimpressed by the cavernous central rod and tackle storage. This one holds 8 rods and 14 tackle trays, while being dry and secure.

Moderate transom deadrise offers a balance between wave cutting ability and shallow water draft.

Top: Plenty of anglers nowadays appreciate a carpet-free interior. You do your cleaning with a brush and hose rather than a wet-and-dry vacuum cleaner. Left: The transom is clean with access points contained behind access hatches Right: You can store more rods in the side pockets if 8 isn’t enough in the central locker. Too many rods isn’t enough.

Top: A single-axled trailer with mechanical override brakes is all that’s needed and this rig is towable behind most family cars. Left: Single-axled trailers allow for easier manoeuvrability in confined spaces – like a standard garage. Right: Mercury’s 2.1L 115 Pro XS 4-stroke is a class-leading power plant that adds excitement to any performance craft. It matches the red hull nicely, just quietly. It delivered maximum economy of 2.4km/L, giving a theoretical range of around 350km with the 140L fuel tank.

You know that the Tornado will turn heads at the ramp and on the water. The boat drives on and off the trailer with ease. APRIL 2019