Anglers wishing to try their luck on queenfish and trevally have been using Learmonth jetty to assist in the capture of a prized fish. Meter plus fish have been landed and cotton Cordell pencil poppers have been a popular choice. Remnants of squid ink cover the jetty proving good numbers of squid continue to flood the gulf.

For those lucky enough to get out on a boat it’s hard not to catch a fish. Both the gulf and Westside are fishing well with many prized fish being landed. Spanish mackerel in the gulf have been a popular target with many anglers reporting fish well over 20kg. Fishing local shoals with large baits has worked well but be warned, the sharks have been fierce so don’t take too long to get them to the boat!!  If the sharks become too much to handle try your luck on some fresh squid. Quality Japanese jigs seem to have the upper hand but the never fail cheap $2.50 jigs will always catch a squid or two. Drift the weed beds south of the marina or along the lead lights off Tantabiddi for the best results.

Heading into the deep blue anglers targeting billfish have seen a drop in water temperature but haven’t seen numbers of fish increase.  Some boats have reported 6-7 raised fish a day out in 300m+ and others just one or two. Bait schools have been thick in close and an increase of billfish captures is on the cards. If the fishing continues to be slow out wide drop down a big bait to land yourself some dinner. Reports of good bottom fish are coming through but even more reports of lost fish due to sharks has become a growing concern.

Alan Palmer Sailfish

Gamex 2013: 9-16 March.

Gamex 2014: 15-22 March.

Gamex 2015: 14-21 March.

On the west side of the peninsula there has been clear, blue water pushing right up against the reef. Within this area there has been some great game and sport fishing available to those not wanting to head too far offshore. Schools of Spanish mackerel, wahoo and dolphin fish have been regularly encountered along with a mixture of small black marlin and sailfish. Trolling small skirted lures or hard bodied diving minnows has been the most productive method for locating these species.

Despite the large numbers of fish being hooked very few are actually making it into the boat and even fewer are getting released. Many have commented that this is due to the quick reaction of the ever present reef sharks to rapidly destroy any hooked mackerel or wahoo. When conditions are like this it seems futile to continue fishing as it merely worsens the situation and it often makes sense to change tactics and move to a different area. Those trolling further offshore have generally reported fairly slow days but still encountering the odd larger black or blue marlin.

The bottom fishing has been reasonably productive with novice and experienced anglers alike reporting good hauls of species such as pearl perch, red emperor, coral trout, gold band snapper and spangled emperor. It seems the most popular ground has been the area north of Tantabiddi in depths ranging from 50-100m.

The gulf has been alive as well with schools of mack and longtail tuna crashing bait on the surface with golden and bludger trevally often lurking beneath. Trolling hard bodied lures such as the Halco Laser Pro is one proven method to get connected to these species. However casting small metal lures into the path of oncoming tuna can usually be more productive. The shoals in this area have been yielding some decent sized bluebone with coral prawns being the favourite bait.

Pictured this week is Eli Tunstal with a lemon shark he caught from Exmouth town beach after dark.

Eli Tunstal lemon shark

The small black marlin and sailfish have been turning up in good numbers off Helby Bank out to around 100m.  This area has been very productive over the last few years and small Richter Grassy’s or Apex jet heads have been a popular choice by anglers.  The odd bigger black and blue marlin has been hooked off the Ledge that is located in the 60-100m depths off the Muiron Islands.  Other large billfish and dolphin fish have been caught in the deeper fishing grounds around the various structures that have multiplied in recent years west of the Islands. 

The Exmouth Gulf has been glassing off in the late afternoons and making it perfect for a fish after work for locals.  Those anglers who have boats have been getting out and targeting the tuna schools using light-medium weight spin outfits with metal twisty’s.  This can be challenging and often the fish can be seen in a feeding frenzy, but when you arrive they turn off like a switch.  Patience, stealth and accuracy is important when they do this and it can be rewarding with some reports of fish up to 12kg.

Anglers fishing the shoreline this week have had high tides during the middle of the day which can be good for queenfish and trevally around the west side.  From May 1st the high tide will be in the early morning which is great for whiting in the gulf.

Trent Rooney was pictured a couple of weeks ago with a great diamond trevally. This week we have him with a massive giant trevally! Trent has also caught a black marlin recently and is entered in this month’s fishing comp, along with many others. Good luck to you all!

Trent Rooney GT

For those of you who prefer the shallow calmer waters, there have been good reports of spanglies inside the Ningaloo reef on high tide.  Anglers using the local prawns and berley have had good bites and using a baitrunner style reel allows the fish to pick up the bait, run with it, swallow the bait and then you can strike: hopefully staying connected!  This type of reel rigged with 20lb monofilament line or braid and a length of leader that is about double the length of your rod is a good base for fishing the shallows.  A running light weight sinker, or no sinker if your bait is heavy enough, to slowly drift down, usually works well.  A chemically sharpened 5/0 hook is ample and remember to have a net or gaff handy if you are to keep the fish for dinner. Not to mention a good ice slurry to keep the fish flesh in good condition.  The wings on these species make great meal too, so make sure you don’t waste the good fresh fish.

The Exmouth Game fishing Club held their crab fest and what a great success it was with many families and local anglers enjoying a weekend of fun and festivity at the clubhouse.  Crabs that were caught were cooked up and enjoyed by anglers, while a few crab races added to the fun.  Many thanks go to the EGFC social committee and volunteers who organised the event and we look forward to the next comp.
Pictured this week is local resident Rhonda Spicer with a smashing tusky caught last Saturday on 15kg line near the Muiron Islands.  It was 6.5kg, but we think the scales are lying as it looks much bigger!   Rhonda was fishing with husband Darryl and they have entered the pic in this month’s fishing competition.

Rhonda Spicer tuskfish

Ben Leggett mackerel

In the gulf the bait schools of mulies have continued to dominate the sports fishing scene in Exmouth, with many large schools between Exmouth Reef and Coopers Shoals, which is a broad area.  Amongst the bait schools there have been plenty of predatory fish species including cobia, trevally, mackerel, sharks and even billfish.  In fact, Josh Bruynzeel had charter crew on board casting metal Instinct lures around the schools and hooked five small black marlin! They manage to land one that was estimated to be only a few kilos: the fishing in this area never ceases to amaze us!  Josh has been removing the trebles from the lures and replacing them with single hooks to improve hook up ratio. This method is also great for releasing any fish as the hook easily comes out after landing, not to mention that it is better for the fish as well.

It’s taken a while, but the squid have finally decided to show up around the west side near Tantabiddi.  Perhaps they have been there a while as the boat ramp was out of action for some months? The boating anglers are pleased to note that the weed beds both north and south of the launching facility have had squid on them in the last few weeks.

The beaches north of Learmonth in the gulf have been producing whiting lately and taking just a few of these for a fresh feed is very rewarding and tasty! These fish, like so many others, are best eaten fresh, rather than taking lots for freezing.  If you have a good pair of polarised sunglasses, you should be able to see the schools on the sand flats along these beaches during the middle of the day, or the dawn raid on a high tide works well too.

Trent Rooney with a Diamond Trevally

Small queenfish and trevally have been chasing bait schools of hardy heads on the mid-to-high tide in the gulf, especially off town beach. Small shallow-diving minnows work well for this and small poppers or soft plastics.  This type of fishing is great fun from the shore, and especially good for kids during school holidays as it is safe walking the beaches and very visual to keep the kids excited.  Not to mention energetic as you walk the beaches.  Make sure the kids are well covered and remember to ‘slip, slop, slap’ as the sun is harsh. 

A sailfish with a tag already in it was caught this week off Helby Bank and we are awaiting the report on where it came from.  Black marlin have continued to show up, along with bigger than usual sailfish.  Pakula lures have been the favourite.  Coral spawning and weed can make trolling challenging in April.  However, it can be good for species such as dolphin fish, who tend to congregate underneath clumps of weed and spawn.  Trolling hookless pushers for billfish to lessen the chances of weed getting stuck on your lure can increase your chances of catching a sailfish or marlin: you just need to be prepared with a bait ready to drop back when a fish strikes, but you have to have all eyes on the spread!

The blue swimmer crabs are in early this year. Why not partake in the EGFC Crab Fest these school holidays? Fun for all the family. Further details in store or at the EGFC clubhouse.

The Tantabiddi boat ramp has been a significant improvement to the boating community and will be especially welcomed by visitors during the busy time of Easter, school holidays and whale shark season.  Several boats that fished the recent Gamex and AIBT competitions had whale sharks approach their vessels and there seems to be plenty out there already.

The recent soft-plastic Shimano Squidgy night held at EGFC with Steve Staring was a great success and helped teach many people a few pointers about using these lures for fishing. They are a great alternative to bait fishing, especially for people camping.   They are also very effective and life-like with a massive range now available for many different species in varying depths. If you’re not sure, then please ask one of the staff for advice?

Cathy trout

The reef fishing has been challenging lately with what seems to be many more sharks in the region.  Our advice to anglers is to move on from an area if the sharks are prevalent when trying to catch reef fish.  However, we have had many reports lately of sharks, particularly off the west side. In the gulf we have not had as many reports. In fact we’ve had lots of trout reported in the gulf, one that was 7kg!  At this time of year we also get pink snapper and there have been a few of these caught both in the gulf and off the west side.

During the two weeks of the events with the game fishing club there were no billfish brought in to the weigh station.  After the competition one angler did bring in a black marlin weighing around 140kg that was caught on 15kg line.  The fish was filleted up and many mouths were fed!  Some very small blue marlin have been encountered these last few weeks, which is rare, and some unusually large sailfish.  At this stage 7 of the 10 satellite tags have been deployed for the IGFA Great Marlin Race. We look forward to giving you the results of where these marlin travel to when the satellite tags pop-up in 120 days’ time.