Christmas Marlin…It ‘s that time of year, the water warming, the bait gathering. It is Christmas Marlin time.
Another interesting day at sea yesterday, interesting in that it all seems to have changed again. The bait was not as prolific and the water a little cooler with hardly any current.
Christmas Marlin…
We started trolling in eighty fathoms where the was some patchy bait and worked our way out zigzagging across the shelf between eighty and one hundred and thirty fathoms working northwards.
Christmas Marlin…
After a couple of hours of futile zigging and zagging I turned East and started to pick up bait balls but they were quite deep.
So, we did eventually get a strike on the ‘Lumo’ but nobody saw it. The sun was behind us and there was a decent chop due to the twenty knot North Easter blowing. The fish didn’t jump consequently there was a lot of guessing as to the species as you’ll hear in the video.
All in all it was a good day made so by a beautiful Striped Marlin being a first for the angler and his more then ebullient mates.
So far this has been a great start to the Marlin season especially since the currents have not really set up yet.
Tight lines,
Ivan
All lure used unless otherwise specified are Pakula Lures .
.Yesterday was a most remarkable day, for fishing anyway. After last week-end’s effort where we raised two Marlin with no hook ups, yesterday was a complete turnaround. Reports during the week had indicated that the Marlin and most importantly the bait were still in the area so hopes were high for today’s adventure and hopefully another remarkable day.
In Search…
We headed out intending to catch some bait to use either alive or as skippies so as to get a more secure hookup. It didn’t take long to catch the bait and that achieved, we headed for the shelf. It was a pleasant trip with some fair weather for a change. As we neared the shelf the bait and searching birds started to build up. The plan was to start with lures and to change over to baits as the day progressed.
Robbie’s Marlin
So, out went the lures and it wasn’t long before I marked a fish, which actually surprised me, because it was nowhere near any bait. It was only a few seconds later that the Brad ‘J’ on the shotgun took off and after a good fight a beautiful Striped Marlin was brought to boat and released.
Robbie’s Marlin
Continuing on and searching for bait I noticed heaps of Mutton birds on and beyond the shelf and went to look. Most of the birds were on their migration South from Siberia but amongst them many were working on what looked like Striped Tuna. I worked these schools for a while hoping there might be a Yellowfin or two amongst them. The end result was we didn’t find any so went back inshore and to chase the Marlin.
Skip Baits…
By the time I got back inside the shelf the bait had thinned out. Then just as I was considering changing over to skip baits the Brad ’J’ took off again with another nice Striped Marlin tearing the ocean apart. This was a tougher fish than the previous one but it was handled well and eventually brought to the boat and released.
By now the bait had thinned out considerably so it was time to put out the skip baits. Having deployed the baits it was time to keep the eyes peeled and be ready. Suddenly the bait on the Port rigger popped out. Since it didn’t appear to have been a hit Rob wound it back and put it back up when the Marlin showed itself. It popped the rigger again but again no hook up. Then while Rob was winding the bait back the Marlin appeared again and this time Rob teased it and it aggressively took the bait. After free spooling for a short time, the drag was engaged and we had a solid hook up. This one was also eventually brought to boat and released.
So, now we had three Marlin for three of the four guys on board. The last guy was more interested in catching a Yellowfin. As luck would have it a friend, fishing out wide, had just landed a fifty kilo Yellowfin. Consequently, I suggested we might go out and see what we could find. The guys all agreed so out we went.
In the deep water there were heaps of birds migrating but we found several schools of Striped Tuna which I worked to no avail. Continuing on I was just about to head for home when there was a bust-up a couple of hundred metres ahead of us. Expectations were high but after working the area with no other sightings it was time to go home.
It had been a remarkable day’s fishing for us with three Marlin under the belt. Generally speaking I would say to get three Marlin in a day off Sydney is remarkable. However, to have, as I would guess, over twenty caught in a day off Sydney in October is exceptional.
Tight lies,
Ivan
All lure used unless otherwise specified are Pakula Lures .
Today was an interesting day at sea for Kin and his friends. It actually epitomised Game Fishing…ninety nine percent boredom and one percent mayhem, a lot of the time anyway as Kin found out.
I took out Kin and some friends from Hong Kong today. These guys had never caught anything bigger than the equivalent of a Black Bream and were keen to catch a big fish.
By any measure it was a very slow day out there today but after hearing of Yellowfin and Marlin caught yesterday the motivation was there to persevere.
After several hours of trolling we hooked a Striped Tuna which created a lot of excitement and photo taking. After which we continued on just hoping something else would happen.
Later…
Later on after several more boring hours and with time running out I turned for home. I’d virtually given up on Marlin but as we approached the ’12 Mile’ Ron let us know in no uncertain terms that there was a Marlin following the short corner, a ‘Pakula Evil’. It hit the lure but no hook up then turned away, I thought that that was it but then it or another Marlin came in and took the lure solidly, hooked up and was off running. At the same time the starboard rigger got hit but didn’t hook up.
Then amid the mayhem the port rigger was hit and took off at a rate of knots. It was absolute mayhem on deck as you’ll see in the video. Meanwhile Ron was working to clear the shotgun. Frantically trying to keep the Brad ‘J’ from being eaten by yet another Marlin. With these guys of limited experience and limited English the last thing we needed was a triple hook up, a double was going to be problematic enough.
Fortunately the fish on the ‘Lumo’ dropped off after a few minutes so we could concentrate on just the one fish which after some tag teaming, and lots of motivation, some of which I’ve had to mute from the video, was brought to the boat and released.
Thankfully the perseverance paid off and Kin and his friends ended up experiencing the excitement of Game fishing as well as the tedium.
Marlin and Mahi Mahi were the result of a fun day’s fishing for Linwei. Marlin and Mahi Mahi were what he was wanting to catch.
By any standards yesterday was a glorious day to be at sea, especially as look out of my window this morning. The sea was calm and warm, actually it was hot, the temperature was over 25 degrees at the 12 Mile getting up to 26.7 degrees at Browns, and the current was raging.
We left the club with Linwea and his group with high expectations and reports of Blue and Striped Marlin as well as Yellowfin and Mahi Mahi of varying sizes being taken over the last couple of days.
Linwea Mahi Mahi
We put the lures in at the 12 Mile, there is always the expectation of a Striped Marlin between there and the shelf, but not today. A couple of boats found Yellowfin around fifteen kilo’s in the Browns area and were working patches of birds. We arrived in the area and worked it for a while, marking fish down twenty to thirty fathoms which we couldn’t induce to come up. I thought about jigging but with the current raging didn’t think it was a feasible option. Meanwhile the boat ‘Shoki’ had moved wider and caught a Blue Marlin and a big Mahi Mahi, later on they also took a good sized Yellowfin. That made up my mind and we headed off.
Linwea Mahi Mahi
At around eight hundred fathoms the water temperature started dropping and the current slowed considerably. It was looking really good but also as we headed out each one of Linwea’s group succumbed to sea sickness and at nine hundred fathoms they wanted to go back.
Linwea Mahi Mahi
Turnaround…
So, we turned back, I was disappointed, but seasickness is a horrible thing which cannot be appreciated unless you’ve been there.
And then it happened, a splash behind the Pakula Lumo and the fish took off. It was a big Mahi Mahi. The seasickness was forgotten, Linwea took the rod and with a bit of instruction brought the fish to the boat where Ron gaffed it. As you’ll see in the video it did what Mahi Mahi do and went crazy. Also, it appears that tag team angling is very popular amongst the Chinese, the tourists anyway.
Continuing on…
We continued trolling in and just on the shelf a Striped Marlin came up on Pakula’s Brad ‘J’, took off some line and just let go. Shortly after we go attacked as a big Blue Marlin came into the spread and had a go at all the lures finally deciding on Pakula’s Brad ‘J’, taking off like an express train, as they do, trying to overtake the boat.
After a bit of chasing and backing up the fish went deep, and stayed there, I couldn’t get it to come back up. We were at a stalemate. I figured the fish had died and tried planning it up but that didn’t work either.
By this time Linwea and his crew had each had a shot at fighting the Marlin and were stuffed. Ron stepped in, but after nearly an hour he was done too. I must say this was not the sort of fish you expect to run into inside the shelf. Then, almost as a relief the line gave way, and it was to home we pointed.
I am glad to say that this remarkable Marlin run continues. This looking to be an early season hopefully the Marlin run will continue into the new year.
We took Izzy and her Uncle Larry out yesterday to chase these Marlin knowing we had every chance of success. Not to say that luck doesn’t play a part.
Izzy’s first Marlin…
Marlin Fishing…
So, on a glorious summer day we headed out. After fishing in some horrible weather over the last week this day was a dream. I ran out to seventy fathoms and put the lures in. The water was twenty-three degrees and a beautiful blue the scene was set, all we needed were the actors.
Izzy’s first Marlin…
There was little chat on the radio but what there was, was talk of the boats raising Stripies which were only half-heartedly hitting the lures. We trolled for a time without any success so I decided to skip some baits. It wasn’t hard to find a bait ball high in the water column and one drop of the jig gave us six reasonable Slimies.
Izzy’s first Marlin…
We put the skippies out on the riggers and I decided to leave the ‘Brad’J’’ out there as a teaser. A big mistake. I should have taken the hooks out of it first. Over an hour of running the skippies two Striped Marlin came in and hit the ‘Brad’J’’ of all things. But because we were trolling at a slow speed we didn’t get a hook-ups. Only one Stripy came in to hit a skippy but it hit the leader instead and spooked.
By now it was mid-afternoon and the bait had gone down so the skippies were pulled in and the lures re-launched.
Hook-up…
After what seemed like an interminable amount of time the short rigger took off at a huge rate of knots and a Marlin bust out screaming off at a rate of knots. It seemed to take forever to get the other lures in and the reel was being stripped very quickly. So much so that with a rigger still out I started backing up trying to slow down the rate of line loss. Izzy had taken the rod and was feverishly trying to gain line. In the meantime, the Marlin was greyhounding at what looked like a mile away.
It took some time, but we finally got the Marlin under control. It was still hard work for Izzy as the fish was dogging it down deep refused to come up. I surmised that this was either a foul hooked Stripy or a Blue, but a Blue in seventy fathoms seemed unlikely, so I thought.
It did take some time but Izzy worked the Marlin up and unbelievably, to me anyway, it was a Blue Marlin looking to be one hundred and thirty to one hundred and forty kilo’s. We eventually did release the Blue much to very weary Issy’s relief; she had done a great job.
We had just put the lures in again when to our surprise after not having gone more than a couple of hundred metres we hooked up again, this time to a Striped Marlin with Larry taking the rod. Then and not so surprisingly the Marlin jumped off.
A Mahi Mahi in winter is more than a surprise it’s a sign of an early summer since that is when we catch our Mahi Mahi.
Spring…
After checking the weather on several different weather sites, three of which were pretty well corresponding, however one, incidentally the BOM, showed the worst case scenario, I decided to see what the conditions were like in the morning before making a final decision. As it happened surprisingly, conditions looked perfect in the morning, there was no wind at all.
Winter Mahi Mahi
At present there is a warmish current with twenty degree water pushing down the coast between ‘Twelve Mile’ and ‘Browns’ covering the shelf were bait generally accumulates. Ideal for an early season Marlin . There had also been word of Yellowfin tuna on the edge of this current but further North.
So, we headed out in great almost Summery conditions. We put the spread out near the ‘Twelve Mile’ and headed towards ‘Browns’. On the way inside the shelf there was huge amounts of bait but not very densely packed. I did mark a couple of fish and worked the area for a while to no avail so continued on to ‘Browns’ looking for the cooler edge of the current where I hoped we might find the Yellowfin.
However by then the North Westerly was beginning to puff so I decided to move back to the warmer water then head North to get a better run home . Then, in about two hundred and fifty fathoms a Marlin came up and hit the short corner (Black Betty). It missed the lure and surprisingly didn’t come back to hit any of the other lures which Striped Marlin usually do. I worked the area for a while but nothing happened so continued back on course.
Surprise…
Back in the warmer water I found some birds working. To my surprise they were on Mahi Mahi, not something you usually find at this time of year. After a couple of passes with hits from smallish fish we got a solid strike on the shotgun. Old ‘Brad’ was into a more decent fish. This turned out to be a good six kilo’s of good eating Mahi Mahi.
By that stage the wind had come away blowing around fifteen knots. Not something that would worry me, but I got word from Scotty Torrington ‘Freedom’ of twenty-five to thirty knots of Westerly heading out way. In light of the fact that a couple of guys on board were quite seasick they decided enough was enough, so the course was set for home.
It had been an interesting day and with that warmer water moving down and the build up of bait on the shelf area we could be in for an interesting Spring. More reports of Marlin sighting and Yellowfin are coming in as well as Kings on the offshore reefs, it could make for an interesting times.
Autumn Fishing has always been the best time of year for Game Fishing out of Sydney. Generally speaking, Autumn Fishing is when we encounter the larger fish of the species rather than numbers. Although having said that this Autumn has been exceptional, so far.
Big Blue
Over the last couple of weeks both Blue and Striped Marlin as well as Mahi Mahi have shown up in numbers off Sydney. The Mahi Mahi as is usual are found around the various F.A.D’s with live bait producing the bigger fish, being the first boat at the spot helps as they can become spooky when there is too much boat traffic.
As for the Marlin, they could be anywhere. Usually however, if you find the bait you’ll find the Marlin, but not always. Sometimes you’ll find the bait before the Marlin, as a friend of mine, Steve Baker (Fly By Night) did. He found heaps of bait well North of the ‘Bait Station’, worked it for several hours for no result. The next day Rob Molnar in his boat ‘On Call’ had a blinder of a day raising fourteen Marlin in that same area.
December Mahi Mahi
On the day Steve found the bait North of the ‘Bait Station’ I was out with Jamie McKay on ‘Ground Swell’ fishing an area a couple of miles South of them where there was scattered bait. We had a great day too. We’d already bagged out on Mahi Mahi and ended up raising eight Marlin of which we tagged three, all Blues ranging from 130 kg. to 180 kg. We should have had two more but for a broken hook and another mishap which I will not go into, if you want more info just ask Jamie.
From what I heard on the radio almost everyone fishing for Marlin over the last week or so have caught or raised Marlin with many being pack attacked by Stripies. Around the shelf area where the bait tends to stack up is where most of the action for them has been.
Browns…
But out around Browns both North and South out to four hundred fathoms there have been Stripies and Blues with the occasional sighting of Yellowfin tuna. Frustratingly Stripies are habitually finicky when it comes to lures and tough to hook so ‘Bait and Switch’, live baiting as well as skipping baits is the most effective method to hook them though teasing them on lures works too.
What to me is most interesting is the water temperature. We were reading 28.5 degrees which I confirmed with other boats. In the past we’d consider 27 degrees too hot and look for cooler water. Yet here we are with a great bite and much hotter water. I suppose one answer is that our on-board gauges have a limited range over which they are accurate. Another potential answer is these above high temperatures are only a surface layer of maybe only a metre or two in depth leaving the bait below in a more comfortable zone.
Well whatever is happening the fishing is great and if it keeps up the S.G.F.C’s annual Peter Goadby Memorial Tournament on the 13th. and 14th. April will be awesome. It is at this tournament where we have regularly weighed Blue Marlin over two hundred kilo’s with several over three hundred kilo’s also Yellowfin tuna over seventy kilo. For those that chase sharks big Tigers are a regular at the weigh station.
I took Joe and his wife, from Florida, out last Friday on what turned out to be beautiful day at sea. The sea calm and the rain cleared as we headed out. So off we went out looking for Joe’s Marlin.
Joe’s Marlin
Joe had experience having caught Sailfish and Mahi Mahi in his home waters in the Carribean. However he hadn’t caught a Marlin and that was his ambition, no pun intended.
So we headed out and after hearing of Mahi Mahi around the FAD’s did a couple of circuits around the Sydney FAD with no result so headed out over the twelve mile to the shelf.
Joe’s Marlin
Just past the twelve the current picked up and the temperature started to climb and the water turning that beautiful blue and 22.5 C.
I started to mark bait around the shelf and out to around 140 fathoms but it was very patch and obviously not being harassed. On approaching Browns I saw another boat and it looked like they were fighting a fish which was confirmed when I saw a Marlin jumping. Turns out it was a boat called ‘HotRod’. Later on they told me that they had a 2.5 metre Blue Marlin on board which had sadly died during the fight.
Joe’s Marlin
Action
Spirits were now high and expectation great. Further out as I was watching the Mutton birds migrating South I could see that some patches were circling and indeed working an area. I concentrated on them for a while and though it was obvious they were on something I couldn’t make out what it was and nothing was marking on the sounder. Subsequently as I move further North I saw several more patches of birds working the same way. I have in the past seen similar behaviour when the Mutton birds were chase Flying fish in that hey scare the fish into taking flight then pounce on them.
Then Ron screamed out Marlin! and there behind the short corner was a Striped Marlin coming up behind ‘Evil’ mouth open and ready to eat. Ron dropped the lure back but no hook up. The Marlin came back onto the lure, Ron teased it a little then dropped it back and this time hooked up and the fish took off.
It was a very stubborn fish and I actually thought it might be a Blue which stayed deep and made Joe really work for it. However, he did eventually get the fish up and we released a good ninety to a hundred kilo Striped Marlin.
It was getting late by then so I turned for home anticipating my next trip out into the blue.
At last something to write about – October Marlin. Though over the last couple of weeks a few Striped Marlin have shown up October Marlin start the run, the last couple of times I’ve been out have been a misery of bad weather with cold and green water. Though there was plenty of bait around there was little if any bird activity… the water just seemed dead.
Mark’s Marlin
Yesterday was a whole different kettle of fish, no pun intended. I headed out towards Browns put the gear in at the Twelve Mile, trolling out from there. The water wasn’t a great colour but at least it wasn’t that dirty green and the temperature was increasing with the current coming in from the East and the bait was building up.
Mark’s Marlin
I was several miles North of Browns when I saw a heap of birds working, they weren’t going South with their migrating mates. It took a fair while to catch up to them since out there the current was going North and with the Northerly wind it made for a less than comfortable ride. I did catch up eventually and found they were chasing a school of Striped Tuna one of which took old ‘Brad’.
Yellowfin Tuna…
I decided then to go downwind to Browns to ease the pain for one of the guys who was not feeling very well. As it so happened after only a few minutes we had a double strike on the riggers with ‘Lumo’ and ‘Illusion’ hooked up on Yellowfin. The fish were around twenty to twenty-five kilo’s. We got one in but sadly lost the other at the boat when it took a last desperate run.
On the radio I heard there were a couple of boats around the ‘Bait Station’ and that they were working over large schools of bait. I stayed out in the deep water hoping to find the Yellowfin again. As I went North the temperature increased and the current swung more to the East. I didn’t find the ‘fin again but around mid-day a solid strike on ‘Lumo’ resulted in a good-sized Striped Marlin charging in at the boat. We actually thought it was coming aboard when it slammed into the starboard corner forcing Mark to duck for cover. It was a very active fish and Ace who had been very sick all day had to hand the rod over to Mark who brought it to boat.
I kept trolling North to give us a better run home and on the way marked incredible amounts of bait, the sounder virtually blacking out. Then again from eighty five to sixty fathom found birds and dolphins rounding the bait up.
With all the bait out there and with that warm Southerly current pushing down it can’t possibly be too long before the scene comes alive. Optimistic! maybe, too optimistic! probably but you never never know.
I also had confirmation from Rob the owner of ‘On Call’ that they had caught a good-sized Mahi Mahi and saw a couple of Striped Marlin wide of the shelf on Sunday too. This reminds me that over the years large Mahi Mahi have become a common capture during November. To me indicating the warm edge is not far away.
I went out yesterday with Daniel’s Group, American soldiers here for the exercises, again not really confident, especially after looking at the SST charts. They were not showing any real feature. No temperature breaks, in fact hardly any temperature variation between shore and a thousand fathoms. The only reasonable feature being the zero line was reachable.
Daniel’s Yellowfin
Anyway, I went out despite the SST’s hoping that because of their low resolution I’d be able to find something to work with.
We put the lures in at the Twelve Mile, always the chance of an early season Marlin there, and worked our way out. As I neared the shelf I got a call from ‘Finfinder’ telling me they had landed a Yellowfin of around fifteen kilo’s wide of Browns. Well, that was incentive enough and I headed off that way.
Whales and Dolphins
There were plenty of Whales, Dolphins and Pilot Whales to see but bait and birds were scarce. Still we continued on getting out to the thousand fathom line sadly with no result, so headed back in.
On the way in I saw a ‘bust up’ but by the time I got there it was all over. I worked the area for a while however they never came up again so continued on my merry way. ‘Finfinder’ had also found nothing out wider so was also on their way back in. Just as I noticed them on the horizon I saw another ‘bust up’ and this one was close by, as I skirted the area we hooked up. I called ‘Finfinder’ in and within minutes they also hooked up. Both fish eventually landed and both roughly the same size, 25 to 30 kilo’s.
Interestingly the Yellowfin we caught had been eating Sauries which were hardly digested. Yet in all the time we trolled the area we never saw a single sign of Sauries.
We both worked the area for quite a while with no result.
So, there are still some Yellowfin around and should make it interesting for this week-end’s Sydney Game Fishing Club’s Monster Mako Tournament since there is a major prize for both the biggest and most tagged Yellowfin.
