Pro guide Tim O’Reilly takes us on a search for pelagic fish in the far north [words and images: Tim O’Reilly].
Australia’s tropical coastline is blessed with myriad opportunities to tackle large, blue-water, pelagic fish. Even trailerboat fisherman can use calm-weather windows to head well off-shore into the blue yonder, while charter operations utilising a mothership and fishing-tender set up can really explore this incredibly diverse fishery.
I enjoy the Spring months for pelagic fishing in the far north with pockets of amazingly clear conditions. Temperatures begin to favour fish and fishers alike, with the average ambient being between 20° and 32°.
Early Spring can bring about some incredible sight-casting opportunities for larger pelagic fish out wide. When clear skies combine with light sea breezes and minimal swell, the chance to see packs of feeding or cruising fish increases markedly. The ability to see birds feeding off in the distance can be a huge advantage when chasing speedy fish which ride the tidal currents. Having a zippy boat to get on the spot while the action is happening is sure to make a big difference.
There are a number of ways to target blue-water speedsters across the Top End:
• Trolling – a spread of lures out the back of the boat at various lengths being towed at various speeds
• Spinning – casting lures, plastics and metals and retrieving at high speeds, and
• Jigging – metals and vibes being retrieved off the bottom, effectively covering the water column.
Fly fishermen use a mixture of floating and sinking lines with fast retrieves to target surface feeders and pelagic fish hanging midwater.
EARLY BIRD
Starting the day early offers a big advantage throughout the Spring months. A mid-morning or mid-afternoon breeze will be a common thing, so plan out your day’s fishing activity to allow a run home in reasonable conditions, preferably with the wind following or side on to your direction of travel. If I could be fishing at any time of the day and you only gave me one hour to fish, it would be for the hour following sunrise. Everything is either actively feeding from the night shift or waking up to look for breakfast.
Life begins rising up off the bottom to commence the day and get busy doing whatever it is their day entails. Suddenly, schooling fish which had been resting up during the night are sparked into action by the big fiery ball in the sky. During late Spring and early Summer it feels like the period from sunrise through to mid-morning will present the most consistent fishing period of the day. Resting throughout the lunch period before heading out reinvigorated for the afternoon can pay dividends.
COMING IN HOT
In the terrestrial world we think of Spring as a time for blooming, blossoms, procreation and the sparking of new life. aggregations of fish tend to flourish, especially pelagic fish, which are those which must keep swimming, living life ‘on the fin’ as it were. The tropical coastline of Australia can be hugely productive for pelagic fish as food chains head into overdrive.
A good wet season will often see prolific baitfish holding in bays and out along beaches. The speedsters follow the bait in and will often feed in frenzied bait-ball mode before cruising off to maraud other small fish. Tuna, queenfish, mackerel and trevally are four of the best-known fish for this type of behaviour. If approached correctly, schools of hungry fish can light it up all round the boat.
JUST GET IT IN THE WATER
As a guide, the most pleasure and pain arises from fish erupting around the boat. We barely ever catch as many as we think we should have, and often the pressure of the whole situation just blows it all up. Sometimes the hardest thing in the world feels like unhooking a lure and dropping it over the side, which is almost all that’s needed in many of these scenarios.
I have lost count of the times a school of queenfish or trevally has just shadowed the boat after the first fish is hooked, providing seemingly endless opportunities for double and triple hook ups.
Fish located midwater on the sounder can at times rise up under the shadow of a drifting boat, causing mayhem on board. Ripping almost any kind of lure past the pack produces a reaction bite and the battle recommences.