Offshore fishing for sailfish
Sailfish are a stunning fish and one of the world’s most highly regarded sportsfish. They are super fast, can attain speeds of up to 70 km/hr and they grow big, to around 100 kg! They are spectacular due to the large dorsal fin or “sail” they use to herd bait. The “sail” is full…
Fishing Reel cleaning and maintenance
Today I’m going to cover an often overlooked aspect to your fishing, namely rod and reel cleaning and maintenance. As a charter boat skipper for 30 years, I used to go through a ton of gear and over time it costs a lot of money. So the best bet is to look after it. It’ll…
GARMIN ECHOMAP Ultra review
In this fish finder review, we take a look at the GARMIN echoMAP Ultra 105 and 125 sonar units. As followers of this blog will know, I’m a huge Garmin fan, although I have used Lowrance, Furuno and Humminbird in the past. It doesn’t really matter what brand you prefer. Far more important than the…
Top Darwin fishing charters
As you may know, we love heading to the NT and often take a fishing charter around Darwin. That is when we don’t make the long trip and take our own boat. Having your own boat to explore the NT is the ultimate. But it’s such a long way hence we sometimes prefer to jump…
Fishing for barra in Darwin
I have been asked many times in recent years if fishing for Barra in Darwin is the same as on the east coast. In my experience, I have found them to have pretty much exactly the same habits everywhere. The only difference is you get a smaller window to have a crack at them aggregating…
Salt spray on sunglasses is the bane of every small boat angler.
As a professional fishing guide for 30 years, I have had to remove salt spray from sunglasses maybe 30 times a day. Modern fishing shirts and polyester jumpers just seem to smear it. The cleaning cloths provided soon get wet and salty with the end result being more smears. Even towels don’t work unless you…
Choose the right sinker size
You’ll catch more fish if you choose the right sinker size. If you fish too heavy, fish will feel the weight and drop the bait before they’re hooked. Too light and you won’t be on the bottom. It’s critical to choose the right sinker size and get your bait on the bottom when fishing for…
Making timber lures that work
It’s one thing making timber lures, quite another to make ones that catch big fish. No-one knows this better than master lure craftsman Dave Killalea – now operating under the name Old Dog Lures. I have caught over 2000 massive metre plus barra in my time, many on a Dave Killalea lure. When making a…
Deep drop fishing
They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks but I learned something new deep drop fishing for Flame Tail snapper and other monsters of the deep off Brisbane. Deep drop fishing is fast becoming popular with offshore anglers. And not just Australia but around the world. It’s a little more outside the box…
Choosing the right propeller for your boat
Choosing the right propeller for your boat can be a bit hit and miss. Considerations include boat design, weight distribution, running characteristics (RPM) and how and where it will be used. When choosing the right propeller for your boat you’ll also want to consider the material used (aluminium or stainless), number of blades and pitch.…
