Get ready: May is jumbo tuna time

OFFSHORE Kelly Hunt

Summer is now just a memory, but what a memory it is! We had one of the best summer seasons I can remember. School bluefin tuna turned up early; some people would argue they never left from the season before. Whatever the case, they were off our shores in great numbers and were quite hungry. The phenomenon that is Bass Straight tuna still continues to confound everyone, and has made the rest of the state a bit jealous. Last month, of course, the tuna turned up in good numbers, including some big fish caught down south. Let’s look at what else fired, and what we can expect this month.

SUMMER WRAP-UP

Catching tuna was made easy on the Northwest Coast, and it didn’t seem to matter where you were or what you used. At least, that’s what the social media platforms would have had you believe. The truth was, it was still a grind at times. The fish tended to come up and feed hard on some serious bait balls, and then completely disappear for hours. When they were on they were on, and we quickly turned to surface lures on spin gear for some great fun. The surface strike is very addictive and well worth gearing up for.

Yellowtail kingfish were as prominent around the state as I can ever remember, and anglers delighted in chasing them with new

Swordfish have been high on the list of fish to target, and there have been good catches that should continue right up to the winter solstice. Jonah Yick and Storm Eastley went out in April and caught a dead set monster, and here is that story...

“Jonah and myself formulated a plan to fish the half day weather window yesterday morning. The excitement of heading out for my first swordfish of the season made it hard for me to get to sleep. My alarm sounded at 2:50am after I’d had just two hours of sleep. I headed to Jonah’s house where we prepared the boat and made the tow to Tasmania’s game fishing capital: Eaglehawk Neck.

“After a glassy calm run to the shelf, we had our first bait in the water at 7am. Halfway through our fourth drop just before 10am we had an aggressive bite that came tight, and we were on. I strapped on, and set about gathering back 600m of line.

gear, new techniques and an open mind. We threw big plastics, surface poppers and everything in between at them, and they were happy to oblige. This year there were some bigger models coming through into Bass Strait. This is exciting, as it may mean that each year the fish will be large and powerful.

That was summer, but now we look towards autumn and the month of May to keep us amused and fill our tummies and freezers.

It’s certainly not all doom and gloom here in Tasmania though May. The water temperature is still yet to really take a harsh dip, so the fishing is still good. As Easter is a distant memory, the best news is that the holiday crowds have backed off considerably. This is sensational news for two reasons – firstly, if you are a mainland fisher, the deals and accommodation available are great value. Secondly, you can actually drive to the fishing grounds without the roads being choked up with HiAce minibuses and campervans. This is great news, as the weather patterns in May are predominantly driven by the westerly weather streams from the roaring forties. This means the east coast of Tasmania can be settled and well suited for a weekend away fishing.

“After regaining about half, the fish took two huge runs, dumping 200m of line from the spool each time. The fish darted about aggressively on top for the first half hour of the fight, before eventually jumping four times in quick succession.

“Confirming we were tight to a swordfish, we set about fighting what can only be described as the most driving from Jonah in testing conditions, we were able to put some good angles on the fish, apply maximum drag pressure with some spool thumbing for what seemed like forever.

“Eventually we had the fish boat side. It was very green but with the building weather we took our shot and drove the gaffs in green and dispatched the fish after a 2.5-hour fight. In the chaos we lost a sword light and snapped the rod. With the fish tail roped, our mate Wesley van den Herik jumped onboard and left his was 289.3kg. It would be an Australian record on 60kg line if claimed. How we managed to knock that fish over so quickly or how we got it into the boat, I do not know.

“There is no better feeling than catching the pinnacle of saltwater fishing and putting a 12-month supply of the best eating fish in the ocean into the freezer, as well as distributing some fresh fish to friends and family in time for Good Friday dinner. It was probably the biggest fish I will ever land, and I will treasure that day forever.” powerful and aggressive fish I have ever encountered. About midway through the fight, the northeast wind started to build to a point I would call uncomfortable, making conditions extremely difficult. Throughout the fight I kept applying more and more drag pressure to try to end the fight as soon as possible as the slop was continuing to build.

“With some expert boat jetski free floating to help us get the fish into the boat.

“Celebrations were not held yet as we made the run back in to escape the rough weather. After arriving back in Pirates Bay we exchanged hugs and high-fives as we started estimating the size of the fish. None of us were close. When Stuart Nichols came down to weigh our fish we were gobsmacked to see that the final weight

Gummy sharks have been really active off the North West coast in April, and this should continue through May. The 35-40m depth line off Wynyard, Ulverstone and Devonport has yielded some beauties. The snapper have thickened up lately and are still an option. Snapper are a species that you need