Issuu

• SEASONAL TRANSITIONS • TOP MAY TARGETS •

Features

Hunting for redfin • A boat called Compromise • National Rec Fishing Survey Part II •

QLD

NSW

VIC

TAS

Tested

Testing Booth: Okuma Ceymar HD • Boat test: Edencraft 233 Formula •

Species Spotlight

Angus James brings us hunting for redfin

NEW FIND THE

LOGO COMPETITION

May, 2023 ISSN 2652-5798

9 772652

NSW wp.fishingmonthly.com.au

579005

Registered by Australian Post Publication No:100002088

VIC

$6.95

(GST inc.)

issuu.com/fishingmonthly

fishingmonthly

Fishing Monthly Magazines

FishingMonthly

CONTENTS

OUR COVER May 2023, Vol. 4 No.1 QLD NSW

VIC

TAS

QUEENSLAND Tweed River Gold Coast Jumpinpin Brisbane Northern Bay Noosa Bundaberg Mackay Townsville Hinchinbrook Cairns Port Douglas Cooktown Cape York Freshwater

16 18 22 24 26 28 32 34 36 37 38 38 39 40 46

NEW SOUTH WALES Sydney North Sydney South Sydney Rock Ballina Coffs Coast South West Rocks Hastings Forster Port Stephens Central Coast Swansea Illawarra Batemans Bay Bermagui Tathra Albany/Wodonga Batlow Hunter Valley New England Rivers Canberra

52 53 53 56 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 68 69 71 70 72 72 73

VICTORIA Warrnambool Portland Cobden Apollo Bay Geelong Port Phillip West Port Phillip East Phillip Island Lakes Entrance Gippsland Lakes Port Albert Marlo Robinvale Yarrawonga Wangaratta Shepparton Bendigo Ballarat Crater Lakes Eildon Gippsland Freshwater 6 MAY 2023

From the Editor’s Desk...

74 74 75 75 76 78 79 80 82 82 83 84 86 88 88 89 87 90 91 92 93

This beautiful spangled emperor was caught off Point Lookout by Troy Dixon fishing a live slimy mackerel rigged on ganged Mustad 5/0 7766 hooks fished off a Live Fibre RLF19 rod with 30lb mono. An Emily Dixon image. Come and visit Fishing Monthly Group’s official Facebook page for all your monthly fishing information. Download QR Reader to access.

TASMANIA Offshore Hobart

94 95

WESTERN AUSTRALIA Esperance Bunbury Augusta Metro Mandurah Kalbarri Lancelin Exmouth Karratha Freshwater

96 96 97 98 99 101 100 102 102 104

REGULAR FEATURES Hunting for redfin

Starlo’s: A boat called Compromise

National Rec Fishing Survey Part II

Sheik of the Creek

What’s New Fishing

Testing Booth: Okuma Ceymar HD

Fun page

Tournaments

106

Tournament Calendar

107

Trades and Services/Tide page

114

Boat test: Edencraft 233 Formula

116

COMPS AND OFFERS Find the logo

100

To the month, it’s nearly 10 years since the beginning of the ‘fraud incident’ that we’ve been going through that was only resolved in January. Thank you to all of the readers who reached out offered congratulations or encouragement – it was humbling, regardless of whether it was in a letter, on the email, a phone call or on social media. Apart from financial fastidiousness, it taught us just how strong and supportive our readership is. In an age where a majority of people reach for spoon-feeding and instant gratification of social media, there’s still thousands of you who appreciate the curated, no BS stories that are aimed at helping the bottom 90% of anglers to catch more than their standard 10% of the fish. CLASSIC TIMES Last month, we led a group of 20 Aussies to experience what may well be the most prestigious fishing event in the world – the 2023 Bassmaster Classic in Knoxville, Tennessee. I assume you all know that our Australian BASS Pro angler, Toowoomba’s Carl Jocumsen, qualified to fish this event

18 34

that holds weigh-ins in a stadium and offers a million dollar prize purse to the 54-angler strong field. Unanimously, the Aussies partied hard, cheered loudly and made a mark on the event. Our boy had a solid, mid-field finish, but our adopted Aussie, Canadian Jeff Gustafson, who came to Australia last year and fished the BARRA Tour in north Queensland, took home the $300,000USD first place cheque. It was a surreal experience to be celebrating with a Classic champion just hours after he won the title, but one of his first statements at the ‘after party’ was that he was coming back Down Under to finally win a BARRA event. If he does, I’m sure that it’ll take pride of place next to the Classic trophy.

FISHING MONTHLY MAGAZINE Published by:

Qld Fishing Monthly Pty Ltd ABN 72-010-542-195

SINCE 1987

Business Office: Unit 1, 11 Knobel Court, Shailer Park, Qld, 4128

FREECALL: 1800 228 244 Managing Editor: Steve Morgan s.morgan@fishingmonthly.com.au

Editorial Manager: Jacqui Thomas Editorial: Nicole Penfold Field Editors: Jason Ehrlich Publishers: Steve Morgan, Matthew Drinkall Advertising: Copy and materials should be sent direct to: ads@fishingmonthly.com.au

59 82

Advertising Enquiries: Peter Jung: pjung@fishingmonthly.com.au Phone: 0410 662 927 Nicole Kelly: nkelly@fishingmonthly.com.au Phone: 0407 369 333 FREECALL: 1800 228 244 Printing: APN – News Corp Australia Production: Matthew Drinkall Website: www.wp.fishingmonthly.com.au Distribution: Are Direct Subscriptions: Kym Rowbotham Accounts: Marie Dykstra

SUBSCRIPTION HOTLINE FREECALL 1800 228 244 $65 for twelve issues (GST inc.)

All material is © copyright, and cannot be reproduced in part or in full, by any means, without written permission of the Managing Editor. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher.

GET ONBOARD

FULL RANGE OF MODELS AVAILABLE...

500 CUDDY

550 CUDDY

550 RUNABOUT

600 CUDDY

650 CUDDY

650 HARD TOP

650 HTG

650 WALKAROUND

750 HARD TOP

QUEENSLAND: Brisbane Boating & Leisure 1743 Ipswich Road, Rocklea QLD Phone: 07 3875 1600

VICTORIA: Melbourne Marine Centre SOUTH AUSTRALIA: Christies Beach Marine 393 South Gippsland Hwy, Dandenong South VIC 19 Sherriffs Road, Lonsdale SA Phone: 03 9703 2003 Phone: 08 8387 6411

email:

sales@brisbaneboatingleisure.com.au

email:

info@melbournemarine.com.au

email:

sales@christiesbeachmarine.com.au

Web:

brisbaneboatingleisure.com.au

Web:

melbournemarine.com.au

Web:

christiesbeachmarine.com.au

NEW SOUTH WALES: GRE Marine 24 Stoddart Road, Prospect NSW Phone: 02 9898 1010

WESTERN AUSTRALIA: Bluewater Marine 18 Hawkins Street, Bunbury WA Phone: 08 9791 1499

SOUTH AUSTRALIA: Port Lincoln Boat Supplies 7-9 Porter Street, Port Lincoln SA Phone: 08 8682 3122

email: Web:

sales@gremarine.com.au gregarine.com.au

bluwater@bigpond.net.au bluewatermarine.com.au

info@boatsupplies.net.au boat supplies.net.au

Northbank Fibreglass Boats

@northbankboats

Hunting for redfin VICTORIA

Angus James

The beautiful redfin, also known as English perch, are an absolutely stunning looking fish. Redfin are marked with up to six dark bands along their dark to pale green body. As the

in at 10kg. In Australia finding perch over the 40cm mark is considered a great fish and landing one at 50cm is a trophy catch. Due to their superb angling and eating qualities English perch where introduced into Australia around the 1860s. Reddies thrive in the Australian conditions and inhabit many of

predatory nature and almost flawless spawning cycles. This begins to take place when water temperatures reach around 12ºC. These perch produce thousands of eggs on freshwater plants, with larvae hatching in two weeks to form extremely large schools. Redfin are a super aggressive carnivorous species, and for this reason they are great fun to target on a wide range of lures and will take everything from spinners, soft plastics and hardbodied lures. Basically, anything they can fit in their mouth! This makes them perfect for kids getting into lure fishing and, like myself growing up in the southern part of the country, often the very first freshwater species ever caught on a lure. These fish can ignite that first spark that develops into a

Kayak fishing allows you to sneak into hard to reach habitats.

Golden hour – the last hour before darkness is the perfect time to catch redfin. name suggests redfin have beautiful vibrant red fins and tail. Like most perch species they have a deep body and can grow to impressive sizes. They have even been known to grow up to a whopping 60cm in length and weighing

the cooler parts of our country including Tasmania, Victoria, NSW, South Australia and even southern parts of Western Australia. These fish can live for over 20 years and often put pressure on native species because of their aggressive

The author hooked into a big perch while working the shallows.

The author’s favourite big redfin combination. ZMan Baby GOAT rigged on a TT jighead attached to a Jig Spinner. 8 MAY 2023

A fat winter redfin.

passion for fishing, and fond memories of time spent in the great outdoors. Redfin are also up there with some of the best tasting fish you can eat. It’s not hard to see why many anglers down this way are extremely happy to have this impressive looking species in our waters, especially our artificial impoundments. I feel extremely privileged to be living in Victoria because it gives me the opportunity to explore and fish many of the great waterways in close proximity, and a lot of the water down this way is the best big redfin water in the country, holding some incredible XL redfin. I absolutely love targeting them. It requires a lot of time on the water and a certain skill to find the big ones, but it’s worth it. Places like Lake Fyans, Lake Wendouree, and Lake Wallace, just to name a few, are some examples of the locations to hunt those bigger models that lurk beneath. Catching redfin can be an easy exercise on artificial

presentations, especially during the warmer months when they become a lot more active. At that time of year, it’s not uncommon to get cricket score catches of fish around the 25-30cm mark, but finding the big ones

consistently can be the real challenge. However, when it all comes together and that big perch hits the net, it’s pure excitement and adrenalin. Very addictive! Big redfin are a truly majestic creature, and can

be encountered in most waterways in the south of the county, from lakes and reservoirs to streams, rivers and farm dams. Land-based, kayak or boat can get you hooked up to a PB redfin. This is why they are such a great

Land-based sessions can be very rewarding.

species to target. Some of the best perch sessions I’ve had have been on foot, hiking into secluded areas that are hard to get to, and reaping the rewards. Google Maps is a great way to find new areas, and often a recon mission results in some beautiful big red dogs. TACKLE Perch fishing with lures is all about finesse. Often using light spin gear, I prefer my rods to be in the 1-3kg range. This allows me to cast a wide range of lures, including very subtle presentations into likely-looking areas. Having a nice light spin reel with a smooth drag around the 10002500 size is the way to go. I load up with a super smooth braid, often an 8 carrier, to give me a nice long cast when needed. Having a fluorocarbon leader is a must. A big redfin sure can pull hard, and having that abrasion resistance will save you from losing that trophy fish. Often a rod length of 8lb fluoro leader (e.g. Platypus Stealth FC) attached with a beautiful little FG knot will give me the full confidence I need to tangle with these beasts. Having this style of set-up gives me the ability to flick my lures long and accurate into the sweet spots. The braid also gives me direct contact to my

Making memories with the family. presentations so I can feel everything and detect any strikes. Often when a big redfin takes your lure it will

be the smallest flick of the line. Then, when you go to move your lure again the fish will take off and you will

Queensland’s Used Boat Specialists

Always Buying, Consigning & Selling Queensland’s Best Used Boats Since 1964 Oceancat 2600

Arvor 905 Sportsfish $

279,000

276,995

EXCEPTIONAL PACKAGE

RARE OPPORTUNITY Delivered new 2017, fully optioned, repowered late 2021 with dual 225Hp Mercury outboards, 2nd cockpit helm station, 580l fuel tank, Bow thruster, Sleeps 6, Galley, Simrad electronics and radio, Shore power, Covers, Hot&Cold water, Enclosed head – stunning condition and exceptional buying!

Bespoke boat building at its ultimate best, incredible value and an incredible trailerable platform. Will suit families and the angler. Launched early 2019 and powered by Yamaha 200Hp - 135 hrs, Tri axle alloy trailer, Walk in head, double bed, full galley etc. This is the “Lion” of the cats on the market!

Horizon 540 Northener SC

Sea Jay 490 Vision CC

GREAT SPORTS FISHER!

57,995

Yamaha 130Hp 4S – 87 hours, Minn Kota Terrova 24v bow mount, Tinka TA600T alloy trailer, Garmin touch screen GPS/Sounder, VHF, Savwinch electric anchor winch, Offshore safety gear inc EPIRB, LB tank, Large esky, Deck wash. Sensational sports fishing platform with quality fit out!

NEAR NEW CONDITION

54,995

Purchased new in August 2020 and loaded to the gunnels with a quality fit out – Yamaha 90Hp 4S, Motorguide Xi5 bow mount electric, Dunbier C-Chanel trailer, Garmin 105SV sounder/GPS, VHF, LB tank, 135L esky, Full boat cover, Safety gear, OS console & baitboard – Very capable package!

Whether you’re buying or selling, call us today on 07 3890 2322 or visit the sales yard at 1029 Manly Road, Tingalpa Brisbane. View the entire range at www.johncrawfordmarine.com.au MAY 2023 9

OLD

Don’t pack away the barra gear! TOWNSVILLE

Dave Hodge

As I write this, there’s no confirmation that the rains from the wet season have finished. It’s been drawn out over a longer period this year, and just when you think things are looking like stabilising

in the sizes we’d been hoping for. Barra are probably the most sought-after river species up here, and conditions have been pretty good for live baiting techniques, but not so much for lure fishing. Tight in amongst cover. the barra have been a bit smaller, and the fish that we have

been one of the more consistent places to find a fish, and obviously prawn imitations work well when they’re as thick as they have been. Skipped way up into the back blocks of a drain on a weedless hook and then worked out over the overhanging branches has resulted in some spectacular, though

often we’ve found it hard to get a bite in a fishy-looking spot, only to have our luck turn around when we tried changing lures. I think the surface bite should be a bit better as the water levels stabilise and we get some clarity back in the systems. Night time temperatures and water temperatures are dropping, so we should have that doldrums period coming up soon, when the initial cooler nights make the sleeping weather better than the fishing. Once things do stabilise, however, and a bit of consistency in the temps becomes the norm, the bite will pick up. Bear in mind that you will have to downsize your lures, and find fish in the deeper holes. If you do this, you should be able to bend a rod regularly. When it comes to finding and catching fish, water temperature is the biggest thing you

That bright green head weight under the orange Paddle Prawn is a killer combination when contrast is the key to getting bites on tough days.

This beautifully conditioned barra wouldn’t touch a thing we threw until it was the right colour. On this day, pink was the best by far. and allowing the tributaries to get back to normal heights, another low comes through and gets them up to the high levels again. Combine the runoff with big tides and you’ve got a situation that can be very frustrating and confusing, as the fish often don’t do their normal stuff. Anyway, we have managed to find ‘some’ fish, but not

found in the deeper schools have been reluctant to play our game. Another issue has been the commercial competition for schooling fish. With the advent of side scan technology, it’s easier for all sectors to find the schools now, and the fish are often taken out before you get that chance to have a go. Small drains have

awkward fights. The drain fish have been up to around the 80cm mark, so they can be a handful on the lighter gear. Don’t be afraid to throw hardbodies, too. My son Tannhym has produced the goods several times when he’s gone to the 3m 90mm Halco Scorpion or Tilsan Barra 80mm and waddled them out of the drains. It’s amazing how

The last of the runout tides are prime for chasing jacks. If there is any clarity, the lumo colours can work well. If it’s a bit dirty, it can be worth trying brighter colours, just in case.

A classic shallow, dirty water combination. 36 MAY 2023

should pay attention to. At such times your sounder becomes more important as a thermometer than it is a fish finder. It can be tempting to stick with the same lures and techniques that always seem to work well for you, but the truth is they’re not always the best choice during the cooler months. This is when we change our tackle, lures, leaders and approach to target cool weather barra. Many an angler gives up entirely and packs the barra gear away,

but you can have some good sessions if you stick with it. On the downsized gear we use for much of our winter pursuits, even a 70cm barra can be a handful, and it’s always fun. Here are a few of the soft options that are proven fish catchers for when things slow a little in autumn and winter. Searching for fish in those upper reaches on the bigger tides and out towards the river mouths on the more neapish tides can quickly narrow the search. If you do find fish

in the deeper stretches, depending on the species, try small 3-4” paddle tails and prawn imitations (e.g. Madeye Paddle Prawns, 3” Atomic Prongs, 3.25” Plazo paddle tails). When rigged on appropriate sized and weighted heads, these plastics should get you bending again. Winter barra outfits more closely resemble jungle perch or bream type tackle for us. What looks like a toy is our most effective tool in winter, as it will throw the smallest of lures that we use in these cooler months. An added advantage of a lighter outfit is that it stops us from straightening the hooks on these lighter rigs, and forces us to let the fish run and tire. We employ the ‘gently gently’ approach for a few months. We aren’t as focussed on big barra as many anglers around here, but during the cooler months we actually catch at least as many medium sized fish, with the odd metre fish thrown in as when it’s considered prime time. Bycatch is always going to vary up here, with grunter and fingermark (golden snapper) getting involved when you least expect it. The likes of pikey bream, archerfish, tarpon, GTs and queenfish can also show up from time to time. All in all, I really do enjoy this time of year. The days on the water are much more comfortable, and the sun’s heat is more bearable. It’s why the Grey Nomads migrate annually up this end of the country, and who can blame them? Good luck and stay safe.

OLD

Cool weather transitions HINCHINBROOK

Ian Moody info@ianmoodyfishing.com

This year’s wet season comes to a close this month, and what an odd one it has been! We seemed to have gotten a fair bit of rain but over an extended period of time rather than those massive

years. However, some holes that are further offshore still seem to flow and hold up good sized nannygai, red emperor, coral trout, and others. Finding these little honey holes in the middle of nowhere can be very rewarding. Barra have been a bit off the tucker in the last few weeks while adjusting to cooler water temps.

Slow rolling imitation prawns into fish holding up in backwaters have been working well, along with set baits of live mullet. During stable weather there has been some great sessions of up to 20 school sized barra being caught in just a few hours of the tide. There has been stacks of grunter caught on the ledge drop off up near the

Brock with a decent 74cm barra.

Barra will start to go off their feeding pattern when the weather cools. flooding events we used to get in years gone by. I took some researchers out to a few wonky hole marks I have inside Orpheus Island with some very expensive testing equipment to sniff out whether or not there was any freshwater flows coming out of them. Low and behold results showed that there was little if not next to no flow at all. This indicates that poor wet seasons gone by have stopped them flowing and filled them in. It makes sense that little bait schools and tuna feeding activity are dying off over the last few

Haven in the Hinchinbrook Channel and most are up there size wise. The occasional threadfin salmon has been showing up on headlands into Missionary Bay, which is always a great surprise when chasing barra. Sharks have still been an ever-present problem at the Lucinda sugar jetty, and it seems like it’s getting worse year by year. If you manage to hook a decent fish, there is a 90% chance of it not making it to the boat whole. Shark numbers are getting

worse every year and it’s an issue that will one day get to a level that it may be pretty much impossible to fix. It is beyond me that Queensland fisheries haven’t seen this as a problem that needs addressing. Fingermark are also making an appearance back into their usual areas after the freshwater from coastal rivers earlier in the year pushed them further out to sea. Some mainland creeks near Cardwell have produced some nice ones

Boa Featured

During stable weather patterns there have been some excellent sessions on school barra.

up around the 55cm mark caught on live baits. As waters start to cool further over the month of May, the seasonal run of Spanish mackerel should start to head further inshore. Areas around the end of the Lucinda sugar jetty, near Pelorus and Eva Island are hotspots for them. If you are also able to, there have been some good prawns along the beaches of late. During my last trips while cast netting for mullet along the foreshores near Meunga Creek, I had a good number of nice sized school prawns in every cast. Although if casting anywhere along Cardwell’s foreshore be on the lookout for a resident 3.5m crocodile that has been seen cruising the coastline there very regularly. He has taken four dogs off the beach that I know of. • We still have spots available in July, August and September this year for charters so get in quick for the end of season build up to secure your spot now. You can email us at info@ ianmoodysportfishing. com or phone us on bassco boats 0402 339 459.

Built tough for serious anglers • Side console • 5 metres • Large front casting deck • Removable 2nd console • Huge storage lockers • Livewell • Space space space • Fully Customisable

• Casting Deck front and rear • Built-in Livewell • Twin console

H H H NOW AVAILABLE H H H Complete boat on trailer packages (excluding outboard)

Check out our website for details bassco boats

LOGO DESIGN

bassco boats

ALSO AVAILABLE:

For full pricing & specifications – Contact Michael Boag

0417 545 593 www.basscoboats.com.au or visit:

• Centre console • Small front casting deck

• Centre console • Large front casting deck • Large centre rod locker

MAY 2023 37

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

FISHCRAFT JERK MAN 85

The Fishcraft Jerk Man 85 has a super responsive fish-attracting action, with a running depth of 1m. It’s the perfect lure for fishing shallow sand flats, weed beds, rocky shores, oyster leases and submerged timber. You can twitch or slow roll the Jerk Man 85 and expect some explosive strikes from a heap of cool salt and freshwater species such as mangrove jack, saratoga, barramundi, tailor, dusky flathead and sooty grunter, to name a few. The Jerk Man 85 is 10g in weight and 85mm long, making it an awesome light tackle floating jerkbait. It comes in a range of custom Fishcraft paint finishes that cover all conceivable conditions in both salt and freshwater. Those classic colours include pink sherbet, silver shad, spotted prawn, white widow, pearl shrimp, spotted herring, black & gold, and chartreuse UV tiger. The Fishcraft Jerk Man 85 also features a hi-impact ABS construction, fish attracting rattle, size 6 chemically-sharpened hooks and stainless steel split rings. Each lure is tuned to swim straight out of the box. www.fishcraft.com.au

SALTIGA ROUGH RIDE

The new Saltiga Rough Ride delivers Australian anglers a floating stickbait that is true to the Saltiga name and built to handle Aussie angling species and demands. Specifically tuned by the Daiwa Australia team, the new Rough Ride features ultra-strong through-wire construction, a hybrid BKK hook set, and a range of colours resembling tried and tested Australian baitfish patterns. Saltiga Rough Ride construction is unique. At first glance you’ll notice its dimpled pattern, similar to a golf ball. This pattern stabilizes the lure both in the cast through the air, and when retrieving through the water. On the inside, Saltiga Rough Ride has been beefed up, featuring a thicker stainless steel through-wire construction and a hybrid BKK hook setup, a system favoured by many topwater experts. Saltiga Rough Ride features BKK Raptor X treble hooks on the belly hanger, and a BKK Diablo inline single hook on the tail. Featuring Daiwa’s ADEL foil to resemble the pearlescent underside of baitfish, the colour patterns of Saltiga Rough Ride are some of the best saltwater colours ever designed by Daiwa Australia, and give options for all conditions and locations. The Saltiga Rough Ride is available in two sizes (140F and 160F) and seven colours. www.daiwafishing.com.au

TT SPLIT RING PLIERS

The range of TT Fishing Tools have arrived, including 6” and 7” Split Ring Pliers. Designed to make adding or changing split rings and trebles quick and easy, with their ring splitter tip, these quality pliers feature a stainless-steel construction with durable PTFE coating and spring-loaded design for easy one-handed operation. Other features include serrated grips, two crimping slots, braid and monofilament line cutter, non-slip moulded grips and high visibility yellow colour. More than just a split ring plier, these are effectively a toolbox for rigging and fishing. The TT Fishing Tools range also includes 7” Straight Nose Pliers, 4” and 5.5” Braid Scissors, 8” and 10” Crimping Pliers, 5” Bait Knife and 7” Fillet Knife. You can view the full range on the TT Fishing website. Price: SRP $39.90 (6” plier), $49.90 (7” plier) www.ttfishing.com

50 MAY 2023

MERCURY AVATOR ELECTRIC MOTOR

The Mercury Avator 7.5e electric outboard generates 750W of power at the prop shaft, and produces similar speed and acceleration as a Mercury 3.5hp FourStroke outboard. The Avator is offered with tiller or remote steering, and delivers clean, quiet power. It has swappable batteries, a quick-connect mounting system and intuitive controls for easy operation. The full-colour display tracks battery level and range. The 1kilowatt hour (kWh) lithium-ion battery is a safe, reliable 48V power source that’s been drop-tested and IP67 rated for water resistance. Smart chargers monitor the voltage and current to deliver a safe, effective charge and can shut down to protect the battery if there is an issue. A digital display continuously tracks your current power status and estimated runtime. This quiet motor generates high torque with little effort, maximising battery life while contributing to faster acceleration and efficient performance. The Avator is compatible with the Mercury Marine app. You can access the app for free to enjoy basic functionality, or you can add a Mercury SmartCraft Connect module to the outboard to unlock advanced features of the app. This includes a GPS map, battery level, outboard hours, speed and system notifications. www.mercurymarine.com

RAPALA SCOOP-R NETS

The Rapala Scoop-R net is an extremely versatile fish friendly silicone net. These nets feature a custom red and black alloy anodised handle and frame, and are etched with the famous Rapala logo. The Scoop-R nets all feature a quality silicone mesh designed to suit a wide range of both fresh and saltwater species. The large and medium models both feature a sliding collapsible handle for easy storage. The Scoop-R Small net features an elastic retractable lanyard with a clip to help attach it to your bag, kayak or wading belt. If you are in the market for a new landing net, check them out at your local Rapala stockist, or head to the Rapala Australia website to see other nets in their range. www.rapala.com.au

DUO FANGBAIT 80DR

The Duo Fangbait series introduces an 80mm compact model designed for large predatory fish found in Papua New Guinea, Australia, and Brazil. Equipped with sturdy through body wire, eyelets built for big, heavy-wire hooks, and weight-shifting system of the Fangbait series, the Fangbait 80DR is set to make a massive impact on barra. The Fangbait 80DR is perfect for targeting barramundi, where a change to a thick-wire hook and ample floatation in the lure are necessary to create an enticing suspend – a technique and tactic that has gone ahead in leaps and bounds over the last couple of years. The Duo Fangbait series is designed to be a tougher series of lures – a series that allows anglers to fish heavy for big fish. This is exactly what barra anglers need as nothing stresses tackle like massive impoundment barra. Available in nine colours, these 80mm long lures weigh an easy casting 11.5g and dive between 1.5-2.5m, suspending beautifully in front of the fish’s face. Price: SRP $25.99 www.wilsonfishing.com

5 6

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

SCAN THE QR CODE!

TESTING BOOTH

PRODUCT GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY

Good value in the Okuma Ceymar HD spin reels Earlier in the year I tested a number of the new products available in 2023 from the Tackle Tactics stable of brands (check that out in the January issue). A late arrival in amongst the products was the new Okuma Ceymar HD spin reels. As they arrived later than the other products I decided to do a standalone test on them. This gave me a bit more time to put the two reels I was supplied (a 1000HA and a 3000HA) through their paces. Four months down the track, I am now ready to let you know what I think. FEATURE PACKED Other than physical performance, one of the things that stands out for me in these reels is that they are retailing from $129rrp, but have many features you would expect to pay more money for. Available in 5 sizes, all reels have 7+1 corrosion resistant stainless steel bearings, and feature Okuma’s oversized High Density (HD) gearing. They are light in weight (reels range in weight from 196276g) and offer plenty of drag pressure for reels of their size: 5kg for the 1000 sized reel, 6kg for the 2500 and 3000 reels, and 9kg for the 4000XA and 5000XA models. More than enough to suit most people’s needs. Tackle Tactics also offers a 10-year warranty on their range of reels covering defects in material and/or workmanship for the 10-year period. Great peace of mind to know that your reel has been built to last if you maintain it correctly. WHAT I MATCHED THEM WITH My best option was to match the two reels on the TT Black Mamba spin rods tested in the previous testing booth. The 1-3kg (7’) rod with the 1000 sized reel, and the 3000 sized reel on the 2-4kg 7’ rod. I also used the Platypus Pulse X8

piece (not folding) like the ITX reels. There is also a difference in retrieve ratios. The ITX reels I tested had a 5.0:1 ratio while the Ceymar HD reels are 6.0:1. Both of these features are generally personal preference for many anglers and don’t have a huge effect on what you spend your money on. If I was going to be super picky, I felt that the ITX reels did lay the line on the spool better. It was more noticeable on the 1000 size reel than the larger reel.

The Ceymar HD reels tested by the author were spooled with Australian-made 6lb Platypus Pulse X8 and 8lb Platypus Bionic Braid X9 braided fishing lines. and Platypus Bionic Braid X9 6lb and 8lb lines on the reels, giving me the option to compare the Ceymar HD reels with the Okuma ITX reels from the previous testing booth. PUTTING THEM TO THE TEST First and foremost, although a little lighter in weight, the Ceymar HD reels matched up nicely with the TT Black Mamba rods. The lighter outfit (1000 reel and 1-3kg rod) is a great option for any budding bream lure anglers out there, as well as trout and redfin anglers in

Another beautiful Gold Coast bream that fell victim to a unweighted worm bait.

the freshwater. It casts lightweight lures and unweighted baits with ease, while the slightly heavier outfit is also capable of fishing the same options. It will also deal with heavier lure weights and handle larger species in a shorter amount of time (flathead, snapper, bass and golden perch). As far as comparing them to the very popular Okuma ITX spin reels, the first thing I need to mention is that the ITX reels are about $70 more expense, so you would expect there to be differences. Having said that, there was a number of things that impressed me in how similar they were. The drag on the Ceymar HD reels are smooth and offer a good range of adjustment. There is no recognisable difference in castability and minimal difference in line capacity of the reels. In my opinion, three things that most anglers will look for, before anything else. The differences I noticed between the reels was that the Ceymar HD had different handle options between the two reel sizes and that the Ceymar handles were one

While testing the reels the author had a fun session sight casting unweighted worm baits for some Gold Coast bream. The castability of the reels is excellent. CONCLUSION Overall, I was very impressed with the Okuma Ceymar HD reels, if I didn’t know the price point, I would have picked it for a much more expensive reel. From a general fishing perspective, they compare very well with the Okuma ITX carbon reels and, like them, they will become a favourite option amongst anglers out there, particularly at this price point For more information on the Okuma Ceymar HD reels and the other options available you can go to www.tackletactics. com.au and click on the Okuma link or just go and check them out at your local tackle store, they are well worth a look.

Australian bass are a great fighting fish and will test out the drag of any reel. The Ceymar HD reels have lovely smooth drags and plenty of drag pressure if required. MAY 2023 51

NSW

Looking back on great pelagic run COFFS COAST

Rob Taylor

The first cool winds of autumn have well and truly arrived on our part of the coast, but although

are still actively hitting baits and lures, and I’d be targeting these now before the water starts to cool too much and they’re gone for another season. We’ve had an incredible wahoo run this year, which

bream and blackfish catches improve in the coming weeks, particularly toward the end of the month as the weather continues to cool. Jack numbers will start to thin out by the end of the month but they are still very

Gavin Hackett with a nice wahoo.

Randall Gibb with a brace of solid Spannos. Now is the prime time to be chasing these speedsters. garfish imitations or drift out a live bait to hook one of these missiles. There have been good

Daran Ryan with a solid longtail tuna off the rocks.

AVOID THE DELAY

ILAB

FINAN AI

numbers of garfish off the harbour walls, and they will remain in these areas while the water remains warm. Fishing with pencil floats and small hooks is a fantastic way to secure a delicious feed of these little fish, and other good thing about them is that kids love chasing them. Some big tailor and mulloway will be on offer from the rocks and we’ll start to see the first drummer show up in the washes. The beaches will be offering similar options, with bream, tailor, whiting, mulloway and the odd dart filling the gutters. The larger mulloway will be patrolling the usual beaches to the north of Coffs, so don’t discount a night session for these larger fish. OFFSHORE Mackerel, both Spanish and spotted, will be

and order your NEW Formosa SRT and Suzuki Outboards package TODAY!

“It’s all about Customer Service”

was right up there with the marlin run back in January. Some boats reported hot bites of up to 13 fish in a session! They main run of wahoo may be drawing to a close, but the odd straggler will still be about at the start of this month so get some hardbodied lures in the water and troll them at no less than 8 knots. The land-based game scene has been firing on the right days, with plenty of bonito, mac tuna and longtail tuna hitting the rocks. Some proper greenback tailor have been stealing live baits intended for tuna, so make sure you have a few baits if you are swimming them anywhere near the washes! CREEKS AND RIVERS We should start to see

it may mean an extra layer of clothing for those early starts, it’s a great time to be on the water. Water temperatures have remained high so we should see a good tail end of our pelagic run, and indeed there have been some fantastic catches of mackerel and tuna of late. The creeks and rivers have also been fishing well, as is common for this part of the year. Bass are on the move and starting to head downriver to spawn. Kayaks have been a great way to cover water in search of where the fish are. There are also flathead, jacks and GTs in the salt for both lure and bait fishos. Some big jacks, 60cm+,

much a fish worth chasing at the start of May. The warm water temperatures we’ve experienced this year should see a protracted flathead run, and there will also be plenty of whiting and flathead up on the flats. Some really big flathead are caught each year in May, so don’t discount the big girls up on the flats and around the edges of weed beds. The other exciting fish to chase around the rock wall entrances will be luderick, as they start to increase in numbers ahead of winter. Grab a float, small hooks and green weed and you can really have a ball catching these fish. ROCKS AND BEACHES The land-based game season is in full swing, with longtail tuna being the primary target. Plenty of tuna have been taken off Muttonbird Island and the Quarry, and we should start to see some larger models hit the rocks throughout May. Trying spinning with

LABLE

Home of Suzuki Marine On The Coffs Coast! 2 Marina Crescent, Urunga

Sales I Spares I Repairs I Repowers Servicing all makes and models Follow us: 58 MAY 2023

Phone: 02 6655 7700 www.northcoastboatingcentre.com

NSW

Plenty of productive days in store SOUTH WEST ROCKS

Vic Levett

There’s been a real buzz amongst the guys and girls that have been fortunate enough to get out and about enjoying our favourite pastime: fishing. The weather gods have been more than kind, and the east coast currents have been delivering loads of warm water with plenty of fish. How good is autumn! OFFSHORE Spanish mackerel, spotted

Jayden have been getting into the wahoo, scoring a solid ‘hoo more often than not. Stickbaiting has also been effective, with a quite a few yellowfin tuna in the mix. The current has been racing past the rock, causing upwellings loaded with bait that have these speedsters in a feeding melee. The phenomenal run of marlin has tapered, but there have still been plenty of encounters. Both black and striped marlin have been caught in the bay in recent weeks, along with a ridiculous number of sharks, which don’t

An unusual stargazer caught and released from the Macleay River. Mahimahi (dolphinfish) numbers are still good, however, as per usual, smaller fish tend to dominate catches later in the season. Small kingfish are also prolific around the DPI FADs. As mentioned before, the current has dictated the bottom fishing, but we did manage a session when the EAC dropped and we scored

Zane Levett with wahoo taken from Fish Rock.

Jess and Owen Truong with a solid South West Rocks Spanish taken onboard Oceanhunter Sportfishing Charters. mackerel, wahoo and even school mackerel have really stepped up a notch lately, with all species readily taking trolled live baits, dead baits and artificial lures. Trolling in and around any of reefs have been producing the goods, with Fish Rock being the stand out location. Local gun angler Graham Allen and his son

mind a free feed if allowed. Bonito, mac tuna, frigates, slimies and yellowtail schools have been turning the water to foam all around Trial Bay, with no shortage of large predators keeping them company. Cobia have been prevalent around the bay, however most of them have been small. I did hear of one large cobe of

over 30kg taken by one of the charter boats. It fell to a dead bonito fished on the bottom. Many boats targeting mackerel have also been faring well on snapper, which have been taking mackerel baits in the berley trail. May should see snapper numbers improve, especially if the water temperature drops.

prime targets this month, and now is also the time some of the bigger Spanish for the season will fall to big trolled baits. Slimy mackerel have been hard to find, but if you put

the time in to fill the live bait well, you’re almost guaranteed a mackerel. It will also be worth pulling hardbodied lures around the Solitary Islands for both mackerel and the odd wahoo. There may still

be some small yellowfin about as well. A special mention this month to local angler Troy Boulton who recently scored a marlin grand slam off Coffs Harbour. Fantastic effort Troy!

Zane Levett with a great stickbait-caught Spanish. plenty of small snapper and pearl perch on fresh tuna strips. The odd large offshore mulloway should show up this month, with live yellowtail fished close to bottom being the number one method of targeting them.

flathead and small mulloway falling to live nippers and herring, which can be jigged up along the river rock walls. Bonito can been be seen in the river busting up on bait balls brought in on the top of tides. Hairtail should be

around Jerseyville, whiting have been plentiful, along with the odd school mulloway on the many mud flats. When fishing the river, try to fish the smaller tides. BEACHES AND ROCKS Whiting and dart are the mainstay for our beaches at this time of year, and the pipis and beach worms should not be hard to find along Smokey Cape Beach, which runs all the way to Hat Head. Find yourself a nice gutter and a high tide and the fish won’t be able to resist. The Headlands will should be alive with bream and drummer in the weeks ahead. Bread berley and fresh, wild Australian green prawns fished in the trail has to be one of the best ways to spend an autumn arvo. Even though winter is

Mark Papadopoulos with a beautiful mahimahi caught on board Oceanhunter Sportfishing Charters.

There should be some larger longtail tuna patrolling our waters throughout May.

ESTUARY The Macleay River has been firing in recent weeks, with plenty of bream,

encountered more often this month, and a live yellowtail is hard to beat. Further up the river

not far away, the ocean is still in summer mode and there are plenty of calm days and warm water coming our way. MAY 2023 59

VIC

Getting stuck into quality tuna PORTLAND

Nigel Fisher

What a couple of months we’ve had in Portland. The tuna have certainly turned it on here in our town, with plenty of fishos descending on Portland from far and wide. It certainly makes a huge difference to Portland, and brings in a good influx of families and money into a wide variety of businesses. It’s great to see the ramps full and a vast range of sizes so far this year. It started with our school tuna in around the ship anchorage and North Shore towards Julia Reef. Then, as the weather cooled off, we started to see more bait schools and animal life from Lawrences

Young Joe with a nice solid school tuna. as little as 10kg right up to 145kg. A lot of fish have been in that 60-90kg range, which has been making for some great fishing. However, by the time you read this issue, who knows

what might have happened? We’ll have to wait and see. We have seen a large variety of lures catching fish lately – everything from large hardbodies diving nice and deep, to the ever-popular skirted lures in various colours and sizes. Some of the stand-out colours in the hardbodies have been redbait, bleeding mullet, sardine and pink, just to name a few. When it comes to skirted lures, the more popular colours have been redbait, lumos, evil, plus your standard greens and blues. Still, never underestimate odd colours that might just get you a fish on those quieter days. Teaser bars have also been a big hit again this year, with many colours, sizes and brands doing the job. Remember, if all else fails, chum some pilchards and run a pilchard down, or use a good live bait. Portland will have a good range of charter operators running throughout the season. If you don’t have a boat and all the gear, but want

Charlie Mako and his mate Wayne with a nice 64kg tuna.

Luke, Oscar, Marty and David with a nice 76.7kg tuna. Rock to Bridgewater Bay, with big fish marked up on the sounders. Then, like a light switch, the bigger tuna turned it on. It pretty much happened all in one weekend, and the action

has been steady ever since. Most fishos have said that the range of sizes are incredible, and it’s been quite a few years since we have seen such a vast rage of fish sizes. So far the fish have ranged from

The boys from Born2Fish with a nice feed of school tuna.

to have a go, jump online or give us a call and we can pass on some contact numbers. And of course, if you are not into chasing tuna, there are other good options in Portland and surrounds. Whether you’re into boating, land-based fishing, estuary or fresh, there’s something here for you. Happy fishing! • If you’re visiting the area, call in and see the crew at Portland Compleat Angler for all your bait and fishing needs, or to find out where the fish are biting. You will find them at 61 Bentinck Street, next to the Gordon Hotel, or you can contact them on 03 5521 1844 for any information.

Favourable fishing results for keen lure casters WARRNAMBOOL

Mark Gercovich mgercovich@hotmail.com

Big bluefin fever kicked in pretty quickly here this season, with multiple fish from 70-120kg being taken in early March. Portland was the definite hotspot, but there were other fish taken closer to home. Dan Grixti and Dan Ierodiaconou set out from Port Fairy and managed to subdue a magnificent 120kg bluefin in around 70m of water. The fish took a lure that was being cleared from the spread after a school fish had been hooked on one of the other rods. Speaking of school 74 MAY 2023

Harry Chatfield with a nice Merri trout he caught whilst targeting eels.

fish, there have still been good schools of these in closer to shore. May is a month that can see schools of these smaller fish present fairly close to shore. These tuna are usually in the 8-14kg range, and they’re often less fussy than the similar sized fish in summer when encountered in this area. If the high seas and tuna aren’t your thing, trout fishing locally really starts to kick into gear with the cooler weather of May. One benefit of a cooler and unusually damp summer is that the local trout should have maintained condition/survived that warmer period, and be primed ready to fire this winter. Already some good fish have started moving,

including a nice 2kg fish I managed before work. The newly-released shallow running 75mm Daiwa Double Clutches should prove deadly on the local trout population this season. May is often a great month to target estuary perch in the freshwater as they begin feeding up and moving down to the estuary in the winter months. Keen lure casters have also been getting in on the EP action using surface lures that imitate a struggling insect. The estuary section of the Hopkins River has continued to fish well for bream on all manner of techniques. Lure anglers in particular have been doing well, with clear

VIC

It’s been great weather for chasing bluefin tuna APOLLO BAY

Craig Rippon

Tuna season is in full swing, with fish right along the coast. Recently we went out for a look, after hearing reports of a lot of bait in the water being smashed by bluefin tuna. We travelled southwest from Apollo Bay about 30km, where we saw dolphins, seals and birds feeding on a large bait ball in about 50m of water. We put the lures in and hooked up straight away. The fish went down but kept coming up. We went on to hook fish between 12-23kg on 5” skirts, and purple was the best colour on the day. We also got fish casting Nomad stickbaits. Since then there have been good catches of fish around the 60kg mark, with some bigger ones in the mix weighing over 100kg. This is the time of the year

The author with an Apollo Bay bluefin tuna caught casting a Nomad stickbait.

we typically start getting fish, and they should run for a few months. In the absence of any bird action, some anglers have been using berley to attract the fish, while others have been blind trolling around the reefs. The wind has been kind, which has allowed the boats to travel a good distance from home, and boat some really good fish. All the reefs have been producing pinkie snapper, with some larger species thrown in. A nice mako of about 120kg was weighed in recently, and a few blue shark as well. There’s so much bait in the water at the moment, and also couta and aero squid, which attracts the odd shark. Flathead of good size have also been around, and they have been going well for a while now. Flathead are a great table fish, and taste great in fish tacos. Give them a try! Whiting have been on, but many people give up

too easily. The high tide change has been the best. If you have no luck, keep moving until you find them. Stick it out until the tide runs hard, and use berley to bring the fish to you. Berley really is a must to get the whiting chewing. There have been very small snapper in amongst the whiting, which can be frustrating. You just have to put up with these pickers to get a good feed. The fish have been up to 43cm. The squid fishing has been good in the harbour, with darker colours working well. Just before dark has been the best time to target them. There have been a few schools of salmon around. They make great fresh bait for the gummies, and if bled when caught they are good in a fish curry. There are also some garfish being caught off the rocks. Small maggots have been the go on the outgoing tide with a northerly wind.

Remember to keep your cool if you hook a beast COBDEN

Rod Shepherd

The Hopkins River is the estuary of choice at present, with solid bream to 48cm being taken on fresh bait. Those in the know are targeting bream and estuary perch in excess of a kilo all over the mud water conditions due to the continuation of good tidal pushes through the open mouth. U n f o r t u n a t e l y, mulloway encounters have been few and far between. Most bream have been taken on lures fished hard to, or paralleling, bankside structure. Come late May as the waters start to cool, these fish will become more prevalent in the middle sections of the river as they begin to school up prior to spawning. The unfortunate news of carp in the system has continued, with sightings now appearing in the estuary section around Torram Stones. On the beaches at this time of year it is all about Australian salmon. Logans, Levis and East beach all produce, and you can catch them on the traditional long 12ft rod in the surf. Alternatively, if you want to target these exciting sportfish on lighter gear, Killarney Beach is the place for you.

flats that are accessible for most motorised craft. The flats opposite Lyndoch, below the ‘Toorak’ housing that sits above, are firing at times. So too is the vast shallows between Mahoneys Road ramp downstream on the northern side (underneath all those houses with great views), almost to the pumping station. This

stretch is now firing, with plenty of fish searching the muddied sandy bottom for worms and shellfish. Shallow diving, bibless or surface popper lures can be either cast or slow trolled here, and I have had great success doing this over the years. Both bream and perch have eaten my lures, along with the odd mulloway (there is

This solid bream took a small Lucky Craft lure stripped like you would a popper, across the flats opposite the bay below Mahoneys Road ramp.

Dan Grixti and Dan Ierodiaconou with a 120kg southern bluefin tuna caught off Port Fairy recently.

presently a school of sorts in the estuary). Don’t forget Rowans Flats further upstream, as this is also a great place to fish shallow. Gathering and using bait is also working. If you are keen on setting hoop nets in the shallows, try along the main jetty just upstream of the seafood shop on the Moyne at Port Fairy on a rising tide in the evening. Here you should net heaps of shrimp, plus the odd crab. Bream will take quality frozen packet prawn baits at times in the Hopkins. If

you catch a legal salmon or mullet, please fillet the fish with the skin on, and cut it into strips that may imitate a worm. This is a gun bait, even at the worst of times. Some solid mulloway have been caught lately. If you do hook a beast that strips many metres of line off your reel, don’t freak out and tighten the drag. This is how many fish are lost. If you are targeting all three species and are prepared to fish low light hours (the best times) including night time, I recommend using a quality

rod with a rating of 3-5kg. A 1000 to 1500 size reel and 8lb braided main line with a minimum 12lb fluorocarbon leader will make a huge difference. Spend the extra bucks and get a rod and reel combo (or two) set up for this scenario, which will follow you to destinations such as the Glenelg. It’s perfect there. During strong daylight hours your leader will have to reduce back to 8lb, especially if the fish are finicky. But who said fishing is simply catching? MAY 2023 75

West Coast

Fishing choices are endless METRO

Jacob Crispe

From an angling perspective things feel like they are back to normal. As anglers, with no bans now in place, we can head out to do one of our favourite things and enjoy targeting our favourite species. The fishing in May should not disappoint. SWAN RIVER Cooler temperatures and some rain have changed the fishing patterns in the Swan a little. As more freshwater

and will only change if we get significant rainfall. The species that has really taken to the cooler temperatures has been the bream. Although there are still some good flats fishing for them, they will now transition to the abundant structure on the river’s edge and targeting this structure with lures and bait will be you best option to fish for them. As mentioned, there is plenty of structure around, with the area between South Perth and Dalkeith being a good starting point. Until the rains arrive,

Young Jordan Zahradka with a lovely pink he caught while targeting snapper from the beach with his Dad. metal lures and stickbaits worked pretty quickly will be your best option. You can use small hardbody lures as well. They can be very effective if the faster retrieve is resulting in missed strikes, as you can fish them more slowly. The mulloway fishing just seems to be getting better and better. Like the bream, they will become more structure orientated,

Cameron with an outstanding mahimahi caught on a sneaky mission out to the FADs.

Brodie McDonnell with a true silver ghost of the night caught on his last cast in Cockburn Sound. Point Walter, South Perth, Como and Madora Bay. Small hardbody lures and blades will be your best option as the toadies are still about and will destroy any soft plastics and baits you may use. The tailor fishing will continue to be great option. The area between East Fremantle and South Perth has been the hotspot. Small

No squid are safe when Dom Magoo is on the water. This one was caught out of Freo.

snapper activity along them. Firm hardy baits and an eye on safety (wear a life jacket) can be rewarded with some excellent landbased snapper fishing. Other targets will be squid (less of them but larger in size), tailor (low light periods in particular) herring and skippy (berley the key to success). South Mole and the Fremantle Sailing Club rock walls always produce (all angler levels), while North Mole is popular for

so areas like Causeway, the E Sheds and Mosman Bay that have boat moorings and other artificial structure can hold plenty of fish. With the weather change we have had, the prawning (dabbing) has

The Zahradka boys with a 5-star feed of prawns caught dabbing from a jetty in the Swan River.

Egi Master Chin Moy has taken catching squid to a new level by consistently hitting big squid from the sand! hits the system more of the action will be focused on the lower reaches of the river, however at the time of writing the fishing action is still widespread 98 MAY 2023

the flats fishing for flathead will continue to be good. This will drop away once there is more freshwater in the system. Areas worth trying are

Dwayne Robinson with an epic shot of a mahimahi he caught on jig.

really been on the up and up. The prawns have been a good size and well worth the effort to go and catch. I expect that the good prawning will continue in May. ROCK WALLS AND BEACHES There will be plenty of activity on our rock walls as the cooler weather and storms will increase the

more advanced anglers. A little tip that has stuck with me since I was child in regards to berley, is to soak a rag in fish oil and place it in the water. My dad did this every time we went fishing. The oil slick it creates can really fire the fish up. Give it a try. There will a lot of activity on our beaches. Herring, tailor, sand

Changing targets set for the cold MANDURAH

Jesse Choy

As we begin to see the end of autumn, the winter weather begins to set in and our targetable species change along with it. We can expect to see fewer of the

These spots will produce well when it comes to your normal resident species such as herring, whiting, silver bream and trevally as well. When targeting these fish, a moderately weighted pilchard, prawn or some squid will work well and can often result in some

Silver trevally are great fun on light gear, just ask the Hill brothers who rate them as a target on many of their outings. warm water fish like tailor or numbers of yellowfin sticking around, although the odd fish will still get pulled up and generally be a bigger specimen that is happy hunting on its own. Fishing from the town or Dawesville rock walls is a great option at this time of the year, as the narrow entrances offer great flow of water with tidal movement and will quite often be some of your first spots to clear up of debris as a result.

unlikely by-catch. Anglers should expect that salmon schools will now be passing through these areas, although the quantities of fish coming through may range from evident schools to smaller numbers of singular fish that can be quite shy in their migration. In previous years, a moderately weighted pilchard, scalie or whole herring has worked well and in others it has been the lures that have picked up some of the more finicky

whiting and skippy will become more frequent and their activity gets the other predators, like mulloway and shark interested. In turn this means good fishing for

called “Salmon School Tracker”. If the salmon are around, this page will tell you where they are. INSHORE Our inshore water is a veritable smorgasbord at

fish, which are hesitant in committing to feeding. Pink snapper are another very viable option if you are chasing something different from the stones, with great sized specimen roaming close to shore looking for an easy meal. Quite often pink snapper will patrol such areas, as some of their favourite food sources will get dislodged from the rocks as a result of the heavy surge and can often become a disorientated meal. If you are looking to get some sand between your toes, the beach should produce quite well if you are able to find a section of clean water that is weed free and has some contour to it. Although some of your larger specimen can be harder to target due to the abundance of weed as a result of surge, there is definitely plenty of

bread-and-butter fish to go around. Using your smaller baits, herring, sand whiting and silver bream are plentiful around most beaches from the town and all the way through to your drive on stretches like White Hills or Preston. Chasing some of your bigger specimen like salmon, snapper or mulloway will be very much an option, although you will still need to put a lot of consideration into where you fish and placing your baits into a gutter where it can sit for an extended amount of time. Though at times you can get lucky with regards to hooking up almost immediately after putting your bait in the water, in most cases you will have your best chances where you can soak your bait and let the fish find their way to you. With the larger swells,

Rene is an avid bream angler who lives locally and absolutely loves the challenge of bream on lures.

West Coast

Ryder is a great example of persisting in order to achieve the desired result – he managed to go from one beach personal best to catching an even bigger one after this! it can only be assumed that foraging fish will be looking through overturned sand as it exposes new food sources and offers easy pickings for minimal effort. River fishing is a staple all year long, though it can be challenging for some during certain points of the year. Fishing in Autumn provides ample opportunity for anglers to get stuck into some great sized bream, with there also being a possibility of coming across some of

the elusive river mulloway that frequent the Murray and Serpentine. If you are fishing up the rivers, lightly weighted or unweighted prawns or worms are ideal and will not last long when casted relatively close to structure that provides fish with a sense of security. If fishing lures, you will find that the fish can appear shy, though aggravated and hungry fish will be readily willing to eat a variety of lures you will find in your box.

some quality squid and King George whiting. You may just need to change locations a bit as, in particular, the whiting will move around. Any broken water or

The mighty Z Man, aka Peter Zahradka, with a lovely metro beach pink!

Dom Magoo with an absolute cracker Swan River blue! beach anglers. The other option, although they can be fickle at times, will be Australian salmon. They should turn up? If you love chasing salmon there is a great Facebook page that is worth following

the moment. During the day our shallow reefs will hold plenty of skippy and herring, while these same areas will hold snapper at night. A good berley trail will improve your fishing. Broken ground in 10-12m of water will hold

inshore reef systems along the coastline will have tailor holding in and around it. Metal lures, stickbaits or gang rigged mullies will be your best options to catch them. The bluefin tuna fishing has been on fire

recently and this should continue. The 25-40m line seems to be where they are most prolific. Keep an eye out for birds as they are your best indicator as to where the tuna schools may be located. As you head a little wider (30-50m), reefy areas will hold dhufish (some really big ones are being caught), baldchin groper, breaksea cod, the occasional big King George whiting as well as snapper of all sizes. On top of that,

samson fish, yellowtail kingfish and salmon should all be on the chew. It really is a great time for our inshore anglers. OFFSHORE Our offshore fishing continues to be dominated by the mahimahi fishing around the FADs. Not only has the fishing for them been fantastic, the quality of the fish this year seems to have improved as well. A win-win for anglers fishing for them. Anglers targeting them are generally using live baits

or are casting stickbaits or minnow style lures around the FADs. Deep dropping will be a little more difficult (less weather windows to get out to do it), however this is always a viable option off our coastline and the resulting captures are some of the best eating fish in the sea. May is a fantastic month to get out and wet a line. I hope you all have a chance to do it and I will catch you next month. MAY 2023 99

BARRA OPEN presented by

BARRA AUSTRALIAN OPEN

Team Tracker win Venom BARRA Australian Team Tracker, which consists of Biloela’s Kris Lassig and Calliope’s Anthony Pelling weighed six barramundi over three days to win the Venom Rods BARRA Australian Open on Gladstone’s Lake Awoonga. Taking the $5,000 winner’s purse and the perpetual trophy, this was their third year fishing the Open, with their levels of

Kris had just popped out of the weed that clued the boys into the pattern that yielded all of their catches. Anthony and Kris used both baitcast and spin tackle to put barra in the boat and points on the board. Anthony showed his baitcast rig, which consisted of a Lews reel on a Dobyns Champion 744 rod. He spooled it with 30lb Sufix 832 braid and a Sunline

Fastach clips. Although successful at the Open, this year isn’t the year that they’ll have a crack at the full BARRA Series. “It’s definitely on the cards in the future, but it won’t happen this year,” Kris concluded. GLADSTONE FLY AND SPORTFISHING SECOND Local guides and content creators are on a bit of

Anthony Pelling with a fat, Awoonga barra ready for release. All fish are photographed and measures on the official ruler snd released at the point of capture. a hiding to nothing when it comes to tournament fishing. If they win, everyone expects it and if they lose they risk their guiding credibility. So, a second place for Corey Gooch and Dean Silvester (Team Gladstone Fly and Sportfishing) was probably right in the sweet spot.

Leon Mittlwhouser’s Big Barra was a real showstopper. Measuring 124cm and with an allocated weight of 30.27kg, it was a great time to land a PB fish. It ate a Molix shad at the mouth of Futter creek. success varying as wildly as the moods of the barra they chase. “Our first Open was the one that was split between Monduran and Awoonga. We came to see what it was about and caught a few fish,” Kris said. The second year was a fizzer, with no barra being converted into points after biting. It was a donut for Team Tracker. But it was third time lucky for the duo – their 6/15 bag for 60.22kg, nearly 14kg clear of the rest of the field. “It’s a surreal feeling, but a good one, I’m still shaking,” said Kris after the presentation. The pair started the event fishing barra sitting around sunken trees, but a move to the weedy margins of Futter Creek and a barramundi eating a soft plastic bait that

FC100, 60lb fluorocarbon leader. The lure was a Shads Lures Hollowshads 7” in ayu that he rigged on a Barambah 7/0, 3/8oz jighead and a Decoy YS81 #2 stinger hook. Kris preferred a spin rod to pop the bait out of the weed and trigger the bites. Scan the QR code to see the Champion Team Tracker

He used a Dobyns Champion XP705 paired with a Daiwa Caldia and spooled with the same Sufix line and FC100 leader. His Shads bait was a 6” Hollowshad in silver flash. He added an extra Mustad swivel between the stinger hook and the eyelet. Both anglers used the Mustad

Team Samaki’s Tommy Wood and Josh Lowry went from last place to third on the final session with a 4-barra rally. Daily Big Barra winners were rewarded with a Venom rod.

RESULTS Place 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 110 MAY 2023

Their 4/15, 46.47kg was accumulated on the first and second day, finishing with a blank scorecard on day 3. Corey says that this is typical for Awoonga this year. “The fish seem to be always changing on this lake this year. You find

Team Tracker Gladstone Fly and Sportsfishing Samaki LJs Compleat Angler Gladstone Dobyns Rods Fish With Me Barra Bandits Barra Boys Blacklisted Samurai

Anglers Anthony Pelling/Kris Lassig Corey Gooch/Dean Silvester Tommy Wood/Josh Lowry Liam Jones/Leon Mittlehouser Mick Slade/Ben Wilcox Marc Edmonds/Matt Dow Moz Khan/Glen Smith Josh Towie/Thomas Ryan Adam Sharam/Frazer Ryan Rob March/Terry Allwood

Full results at abt.org.au

Fish 6/15 4/15 4/15 1/15 2/15 3/15 2/15 2/15 2/15 2/15

Weight (kg) 60.22kg 46.47kg 41.13kg 30.27kg 28.98kg 24.68kg 22.41kg 21.95kg 18.65kg 16.00kg

Payout $5,000 $2,500 $2,000 $1,500 + $500 big barra $1000

BARRA OPEN presented by

Open on Lake Awoonga them and a week later they’re gone. When we are chartering, you nearly need to start from scratch every time,” he said. The team had found a couple of solid patterns the week leading up to the event – one on topwater frogs and another on deeper, schooling fish. Both patterns seemed to slow right down during the event. “The frog bite may have died due to boat traffic, but

Dean likes throwing Slick Rigs and Zerek Live Mullets to the more open water fish while Dean prefers to cast a Molix 140 Shad into the weed edges and rip them out. SAMAKI’S COMEBACK TO THIRD Team Samaki, Tommy Wood and Josh Lowry, donutted the first two days of competition, but a final day 4-fish bag (4/15, 41.13kg) rocketed them up to 3rd

BARRA AUSTRALIAN OPEN

last day that we ended up fishing a weed edge where the barra were hemming bait against the edge,” said Lowry, “The fish were biting the soft plastics as we cast them along or out from [and winding back into] the weed edge.” The bait of choice was a 6” paddle-tailed plastic with a 5/8oz head that Josh fished on a Samaki C12 7021BMH rod and Shimano Curado 150DC reel loaded with X

Kris Lassig is from Biloela, but sure knows his way around a barramundi. His first fish cracked the pattern for the boys.

Winners of the Venom Rods BARRA Australian Open take home $5,000 cash and get the perpetual trophy for the following year. There’s smaller trophies that they get to keep as a memento as well. the deep fish should have held up,” Gooch mused. Gooch’s gear was exactly the same that he uses on his charters. In the baitcast department a Combat V2 ATC reel matched with a Venom 6kg rod while in the spin arena it’s an ATC4000 reel and a 15-30 Bladen-Tails rod.

of the teams that look like they may also compete in the rest of the Zerek BARRA Series throughout the year. MITTLEHOUSER’S MAMMOTH When news of Leon Mittlehouser’s 124cm (30.27kg) barra hit social media, it went viral. Thousands of people saw, liked and shared the beast that came from the

pole and there was a fair proportion of the fight where we thought that we were going to lose it, but this was a fish that was just meant to be. It swam away strong and it’s still in there for someone else to enjoy down the track,” Leon concluded. It gave him serious bragging rights over teammate, Liam Jones, from

place and the $2,000 cheque that accompanied it. The bag was anchored by a 106cm (15.27kg) barra that Wood landed in the dying minutes of the competition. “We’d spent two and a half sessions targeting hundreds of deeper fish that we could see on LiveScope and it was only late on the

EXTRA PORTRAIT PIC NEEDED PLEASE

Team Samaki’s Tommy Wood shows the fish which cracked their pattern on the last day of the tournament.

Dean Silvester and Corey Gooch (Team Gladstone Fly and Sportfishing) finished a solid second place. Braid PE3 line and a 66lb Slim & Strong FC leader. “Once we found what the fish were doing, the bites came much more easily. We’d only had seven follows and two bites before we did this,” Josh continued. The result gave the pair a great start in their BARRA Team of the Year campaign – they were the highest finishing

mouth of Futter Creek. “It’s definitely a PB and the lure’s been retired already to the wall,” Leon said. Despite the fact that this was the team’s only fish, its sheer size was enough to land them 4th place and a healthy cheque, as well as a Venom rod. “The fish went around the electric, the LiveScope

LJ’s Compleat Angler, who was still to land a metre-class fish from the lake. If you drop into the shop, remind him of it! Full results can be found on www.abt.org.au and a massive thanks to L Wilson and Co and their Venom Rods brand for making the Open one of Australia’s most lucrative BARRA events. MAY 2023 111

BREAM SERIES presented by

The Captain Risky Coota comeback Returning to the scene of the 2022 BREAM Grand Final, ABT concluded its Victorian road trip at Mallacoota for the SUNLINE sponsored third round of the 2023 Daiwa Bream series. Kris Hickson had a point to prove after a disappointing result at Gippsland Lakes. Even with numerous missed chances on big fish, he was still able to mount a monster comeback on day two, dropping 5.391kg on the scales to weigh the only 10kg total for the event. Local player Mitchell Blomquist kept Victorians on the podium in second

DUO Designed by Ultimate Organizer

ranks of non-boater champions that have won the first ABT event they have competed in. He put his bent minnow to work from the back deck and logged a stack of yellowfin bream in the ABT tournament series app over the whole event. WELCOME BACK CAPTAIN He may have taken a small hiatus from bream fishing in 2022 but you cannot, and more Scan the QR code to watch the Boater Winners Interview

Fear the beard! Kris Hickson is back and he wasted no time getting back on the leader board. Caldia 2000 and the new Saltiga 8 braid in PE 6, which helped massively with casting distance.

Day two he broke the tip off the Infeet Z rod early on through a mishap so he switched to an Infeet EX

In fine form, boater Mitchell Blomquist of Victoria hit the flats, weighing two solid bags of black bream to finish in second place. place, putting in a clinic on the flats at Goodwin sands and weighing one of only two 5kg bags for the whole event on day one at 5.054kg. Marlon Thompson joined the ever-growing

importantly should not, ever count Kris ‘Captain Risky’ Hickson out. If you ask him, he’ll be the first to tell you he wasn’t confident he’d done enough on day two to take the win, which might seem odd considering

BOATER RESULTS Place 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 112 MAY 2023

he weighed the biggest bag of the event. Risky summarised his day two as, “Frustrating to say the least” adding that he pulled hooks and busted off a “ridiculous amount of really big fish”. When asked how confident he was in winning when coming back to weigh in, he replied with a simple “not at all, I thought I’d blown it”. Kris spent the event running to spots he could tell people had overlooked. “Every usual spot I fished had a boat on it, so I just started fishing banks that people had overlooked and tried to figure them out as I went along.” Throwing mainly super lightweight plastics, and needing to be as accurate as possible, he used predominately two rods for the whole event. “The first day I started with an Infeet EX 6101ULRS but after a few bust offs and missed hook-ups I switched to the Infeet Z 681LRS, great accuracy and a bit more grunt to set hooks and steer the fish,” he explained. He paired it with a

Angler Kris Hickson Mitchell Blomquist Peter Breukel Brad Hodges Paul Langley Ahmad Mafoud Sam Peck Grant Oliver Darren Weda Steven Pryke Tom Slater Blake O’Grady

Fish 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10

His likeness to a wizard is not just in appearance but fishing ability as well. Captain Risky smacked the biggest bag of the event on day two for a come-from-behind victory. Full results at abt.org.au

Weight(kg) 10.152 9.635 9.175 8.903 8.889 8.770 8.598 8.537 8.505 8.299 8.195 8.120

Payout $4200 + $250 1st Merc bonus $2000 + $125 2nd Merc bonus $1000 + $75 3rd Merc bonus $900 $800 + $500 X braid big bream $700 $700 $600 $600 $500 $500 $500

722LFS, sacrificing a bit of accuracy on the calm slick conditions but gaining casting distance through the extra length. It was paired with a TD Black 2000 and 6lb J Braid Grand. For leader, Kris ran 6lb J thread X-link all weekend. “Some of the bust offs would have broken anything but some of the times I had fish running through sticks and weed and the leader came out unscathed, which was pretty impressive.” Here is a trap for young players from Risky himself,

BREAM SERIES presented by “Don’t leave the last of the spool of leader in the sun or a hot car or it will weaken it massively! I knew this but still did it and it cost me. Well, kind of…” This little mishap lost Kris a few fish around the 40cm fork length early on day two that could have seen a bag over 6kg, but fortunately it didn’t end up costing him in the end! Kris created his own hidden weight jigheads out of the Daiwa Bait Junkie jigheads by cutting the weight off the head, leaving just the bait keeper. He used this lighter option to lob creature baits like, the Little Trooper, to snag dwelling fish. Meanwhile he chose a slightly heavier internal weight for the Risky Critter – a bait he had a big hand in designing, hence the name – to lob at ‘mudding’ fish as it was a bit windy, and he could cast closer to the fish. He described the bite as, “non-existent, you couldn’t feel any bite through the line they were just picking

Blomquist fishes Mallacoota regularly and his consistent efforts there paid off for him as he secured second place in the boaters. He built on his successful campaign at Gippsland Lakes that saw him finish in 4th place. A flats fisherman through and through, Mitchell focused on fishing the northwestern side of the popular Goodwin Sands area quite methodically and although he did find a hand full of fish on edges, this is where he focused Scan the QR code to watch the NonBoater Winners Interview

his efforts. His Bassco Tornado is fitted out with a 10-foot Minn Kota Raptor, which he described as ‘game changing’ to his fishing. It was the key to holding still in the shallow water

BIG BREAM PRIZE

Paul Langley from NSW won the $500 Big Bream bonus thanks to X Braid for his 40.5cm, 1.488kg lump of a black bream caught on a creature bait fished along a rock wall upriver. it up and swimming off. You just had to swing hard if you even thought that one had picked it up.” The 2014 Hawkesbury Grand final champion, Hickson will be relishing in his qualification to another NSW Grand Final at Port Stephens, a yellowfin fisher’s heaven! BLOMQUIST STAYS CONSISTENT Victoria’s Mitchell

and thoroughly working a small area at a time. Mitch would anchor in the weed (to hide the boat better) in 1m of water and cast up onto the sand in around half a metre of water, where he could see the fish cruising through with just his eyes and a quality pair of polarised sunglasses. “The water was super clear and there wasn’t much wind, so with my sunnies I could see the fish come through and I actually sight cast to a lot of fish,” he explained. From experience he knew the fish would bite as the wind picked up from the east, which is his preferred direction on the flats, he just had to bide his time knowing that the fish would push up with the wind. “There was fish on every edge in the whole system, you just had to sit and wait for them to come to you,” was his advice. With the fish sitting on the sand, it took the weed out if play and so he was free to use a crankbait without getting hung up every cast. He chose a shallow Hurricane Twitch 50 in pink eye suji colour and a Daiwa Infeet Kodachi in rose suji colour, slowly dredging them along the sand with long pauses. Rods and reels were a Daiwa Infeet Z paired with a Daiwa TD Sol spin reel and a Samurai infinite 2-6lb paired with a Daiwa Freams 2500, combos that have earned their reputation as quality bream hardware. Both outfits were spooled with Majorcraft Dangan braid in 8lb and the sponsor karma was in play again, this time for Mitchell as he ran 4lb Sunline V-hard Fluorocarbon leader on both outfits. A combination of good decisions and excellent timing were major reasons for Mitchell’s success, both attributes that will no doubt see him continue to stay close to the podium, especially around his home waterways. DEBUT VICTORY FOR THOMPSON Our 3rd non-boater champion for the year and our 2nd first time winner, Marlon Thompson just so

One shot, one kill – Marlon Thompson used a topwater technique to secure the champion non-boater title in his first ever ABT event. happened to do it in his first ever ABT event. From the St. Georges Basin area of NSW, Thompson has experience targeting both yellowfin and black bream species and has recreationally fished at Mallacoota before, so he came to the event with a good idea of Scan the QR code to watch the Field Highlights

what to expect. Displaying a depth of knowledge of moon phase and bait, he explained that, “We had a new moon for the event, and I knew the prawns would be running and bream become so honed in on prawns.” Making a long cast, he would work it back 5-10m and then pause for as long as 15 seconds and this is usually when the fish would rise to it. If they didn’t, he would continue

NON- BOATER RESULTS Place 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Angler Marlon Thompson Brad Young Joel Corrie Simon Morley Scott Scicluna Michael Sammut Lance Marsh Colin Wilson Van Ho Nguyen Allan Lavell

Fish 6/6 6/6 6/6 6/6 6/6 6/6 6/6 6/6 6/6 6/6

working it until he could see one come after it and he would pause it and then coerce them into eating. A simple yet effective set up, Marlon used a Daiwa TD Hyper 702 1-3kg in a medium fast action matched with a Shimano Stradic Ci4 2500, 6lb Daiwa J-braid and, the most important link in the chain, a length of 6lb Monofilament leader. Unlike fluorocarbon, which sinks, mono has neutral buoyancy meaning it won’t drag the lure down and enhances the action making it the preferred choice for avid topwater anglers. Thompson had no dramas landing fish clocking up 10 on day one and 15 on day two with the yellowfin far outnumbering and outweighing the blacks. “I wasn’t doing anything overly special, I just had confidence in what I was throwing and stuck to it,” he said in summary of the weekend, adding that he is looking forward to the Grand Final at port Stephens.

DUO Designed by Ultimate Organizer

Full results at abt.org.au

Weight(kg) 5.287 4.992 4.968 4.773 4.701 4.689 4.471 4.435 4.383 4.366

Payout Daiwa prize pack + Freams Reel Daiwa prize pack Maui Jim prize pack Daiwa prize pack Cranka lures prize pack Prolure prize pack Samaki prize pack Atomic prize pack EJ Todd prize pack Toadfish prize pack MAY 2023 113

Edencraft 233 Formula with Twin 300HP Mercurys CONTENT -

C AN T HE QR

-S

RE ONLINE MO

DE FOR E X T FMG

Steve Morgan s.morgan@fishingmonthly.com.au

You may have seen the test we did recently on a 6m Edencraft that we completed on the final day of their epic east-coast road trip last year. Well, there was a second boat on that trip. It’s the kind of boat that you’d expect a company owner to have swinging behind his tow vehicle. Totalling around half a million dollars worth of rig, the GMC and Edencraft 233 Formula, powered by twin 300hp Verados, definitely raised an eyebrow or three around Cairns as we met the crew for a water test and a little filming. And this was definitely one for the keyboard warriors who complain about not testing boats in rough conditions – a pretty nasty northerly blew the whole day, and we got a feel of just why Edencraft boats have a

Main: Here she is! $317,000 worth of trailer boat. We present the Edencraft Formula 233 with twin Mercury 300hp Verados. Above: Edencraft are built in Australia out of their Geelong factory. This 233 achieved the 1km/L of fuel burned, which is the goal of many of these big rigs. reputation of the smoothest Even so, 4000km each ride possible in rough water. composite, which means Edencraft owner Grant there’s no wood in the build way towing and around 80 test rides later, I’m sure the Maher explained why they at all,” Grant said. The standard fuel tank fuel bill would have been ride so nicely. “These are a heavy hull underfloor is 420L, but pretty scary! This boat is not and we keep as much weight there’s an option for 600L of a lightweight – it comes in at about 3,700kg on the trailer as low as possible. The hull fuel if you want it. Maximum horsepower unloaded – probably around is 40mm thick and it’s fully for this rig is 600 and this 4 tonnes ready-to-fish, so is provided by a pair of V8, your standard twin-cab ute 300hp 4.6L Mercury Verados, isn’t going to cut it. which give outstanding economy for a rig of this size, burning just 1L per kilometre travelled. “The DTS (Digital Throttle and Shift) on these motors has been a fantastic experience and the economy has been amazing,” he said, “Earlier we did 300km in Hervey Bay and used 281L.”

“The GMC has a towing capacity of 4.5t and it does it easily,” Grant continued. The Formula is cradled on an Easy Tow trailer, also built in Victoria, and has a Boat Catch fitted, which means that you’ll be able to launch and retrieve it yourself. On the water, there wasn’t much to criticise about this rig. It was one of the smoothest riding boats of this size range I’d been in. And the power. Crikey. Drop the hammers and this thing moves, even if efficiency goes out the window at that point. And that dash…A 16” and 12” flush-mounted and still dedicated room for the Next Gen DTS binnacle box. Well done. You can see a video of the

boat in action by scanning the QR code hereby with your mobile phone camera. And as for pricing? This rig with every option as tested weighs in at $317,000, however, packages with twin V6 225s start from $211,000 and with a single 300hp V*, packages start from $186,000. Edencraft now has two dealerships, Mandurah Outboards in WA (mandurahoutboards. com.au) and Australian Marine Centre in Brisbane (amcboats.com.au) and they’re having a display at the Sanctuary Cove Boat Show on the 25-28 May. Make sure you drop in and check them out for yourself. Otherwise, their main site is edencraft.com.au.

PERFORMANCE RPM ............ Speed (km/h) ... Economy (km/L) 600 ............................................ 6 ................................ 1.20 1000 ........................................ 10 ................................ 1.00 2000 ........................................24 ................................0.80 3000 ........................................ 47 ................................ 1.80 3500 ........................................ 57 ................................0.90 4000 ........................................66 ................................ 0.75 5000 ........................................83 ................................0.50

SPECIFICATIONS Length .................................7.1m Beam ................................. 2.4m Max HP................................600 The 233 is a deep-vee hull, featuring 24ºC of transom deadrise and plenty of weight to give the rig some authority when the seas aren’t flat. 116 MAY 2023

Transom deadrise.........24° Fuel ..........................350-600L

The Edencraft crew were around 4,000km from home when we caught up with them for this test.

Top: The dive door is standard in all Edencraft 233s. Above: Above the bilge grill is a window to see how your livies are faring.

Top: There’s plenty of real estate in front of the windscreen, but it isn’t really available fishing space. Above: The transom workstation is simple and effective. It’s also removable.

Top: There’s some effective vertical rod storage adjacent to the side pockets. Above: 600hp is the maximum rated for this hull and the twin 300hp Verados are surprisingly economical at cruising speeds.

We haven’t seen too many dashboards with a 16” and 12” sounders flush mounted.

The spigot mounted rod station is usually a feature of larger game fishing boats.

Left: Now that’s a helm! Top Right: You get the rest of your rods out of the way up here. The superstructure tube work is mint. Bottom Right: The cabin is big enough for two people to sleep – or alternatively, all of our junk.

Left: The binnacle DTS control box is fitted in a place where it’s ergonomic and functional. Top Right: The dive door even has its own side pocket. No space is wasted. Bottom Right: Battery access is through this hatch on the starboard side. MAY 2023 117