Tag Archives: Learn More | Tips & Tackle

Catching reef fish with shallow diving barra lures
This year during the barramundi closure we decided to do an experiment – catching reef fish on barra lures. It was after the moon when the deeper reef fish often go quiet, so we decided to give the shallow flats a go. The weather was an absolute glass so sight fishing was the order of…

Golden Snapper as a Barra alternative.
Golden Snapper (Fingermark bream) can be caught year round across northern Australia. Hence they provide a top fishing target during the Queensland barramundi closure. They are a top grade food fish and the larger specimens fight hard! Chasing Fingermark at Hinchinbrook Hinchinbrook is an amazingly scenic fishing destination. Some have described it as Jurassic Park…

Slow pitch jigging for GTs in the Fin Fish Closure
Slow pitch jigging for GTs is a super fun way to pass the time during the fin fish closure. So I grabbed my good mate Benny and headed out last month for a ton of fun. Conditions were GLASS and it didn’t take us long to get onto a good fish! Check out our newest…

Finding new ground
Finding new ground is the best way to guarantee a good days fishing. Much to the annoyance of my wife and kids, I’m always doing detours and circles. Stopping to look at any anomaly that appears on my sounder. It can make a trip from A to B rather long haha. But if you know…

Fishing for Pearl Perch
Pearl Perch are one of the species that I have little experience in but have always wanted to go fishing for. A deep bodied and strikingly silver fish with a pearl like shading on the scales, the large eyes and mouth are definitely appealing. I mean they just look “Yum” and apparently they are. I…

Custom Boat Pros and Cons
Late last year we ordered a custom built boat from BMENQ in Cairns. We sold the good old barra boat when I retired from charters because we needed something a little more chop friendly. In between we bought and sold a 5.6 m Bonito as a stop gap. Mostly so we could do some filming…

What sounder should I buy?
Over all our social media channels, email and messages, we probably get asked, “What sounder should I buy?” about 10-15 times a day. MYTH BUSTER… Funnily enough, that question in itself is not that helpful when looking for a new sounder/fish finder. Ask instead, “What transducer will suit me best?” I am amazed at the…

Storms at sea in small boats – real life stories
Last week on our return to Cairns from holidays, we were caught unawares by an electrical storm at sea. One minute it was just wind and rain, and we felt pretty safe in our Black Watch 40, Mood Swings. Nek Minit – lightning flashed all around. To make it worse, the clear zipper ripped and we…

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…