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By Steve Hunt
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South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula offers an abundance of fishing prospects and fish species. STEVE HUNT and his mates go offshore to plumb the depths and experience some frantic offshore action.
I looked around from my position on the stern and counted no less than seven rods bucking up and down under the strain of good fish. It was a perfect day out wide from Pondalowie Bay – panic-filled baitfish schools erupted from the glassy surface under constant threat from hungry predators below. We were torn between pulling the pick and casting lures toward the frenzied scene in the hope of hooking the unseen attackers, or staying at anchor and continuing on
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with the hot bite from 35m below us, just above the reefy bottom.
The latter won out and amidst a chorus of screaming drags a variety of quality fish came aboard with snapper and nannygai being the most prevalent, while my fish was a monster 54cm King George whiting. Greg’s adversary materialised from the cobalt blue depths – a magnificent blue morwong that was lit up in the autumn sunshine in shades of iridescent blue, silver and yellow. Our squid baits were getting hammered as soon as they touched the bottom, as one red fish after another came over the side.
Our skipper, Mark Wynbergen, called the bag limit of 30 nannygai within a short
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time of the voracious school moving in and confidently said: “Let’s go have some fun.” We’d only been anchored on the deep offshore reef for 90 minutes before the call came, but we’d had a ball in that time. As well as the 30 nannies, we tangled with a wealth of other prime table fish. Two dozen “pinkie” snapper, blue morwong, silver trevally, harlequin fish, thumper whiting and three large crayfish all ensured we were one very happy crew.
But Mark wasn’t finished just yet. He opened up the twin Yamaha 150s and blasted off toward the ominous profile of Wedge Island that rises 204m from the ocean below, then gently slopes away to the north creating the spectacular wedge shape. The protected northern side of Wedge boasts an idyllic sandy beach that holds good populations of Australian Salmon all year round. As we rounded the first headland scores of baitfish schools could be seen rippling across the mirrored surface as a large pod of pilot whales dined leisurely on the hapless school. In the distance came the unmistakable image of a huge school of black backed salmon as it bunched up tightly in the crystal clear water over the gorgeous aquamarine sandflats.
We gathered on the bow with lures at the ready as Mark edged Freedom II slowly closer toward the ever-changing black mass. Once within range it was free for all, as rods, lines and lures flew in all directions. There were multiple hookups, cartwheeling salmon, screaming drags and bent rods all around the boat as the hungry school hit our lures and unweighted pillies with reckless abandon. They were all big fish too, all up around the four kilo mark, ensuring that a tough battle ensued as the salmon leapt from the water with gill flaring headshakes.
This type of fishing was rocking the world of 14-year-old Shane Price who was on his first really serious fishing trip, and he sported a huge grin from ear to ear for the duration.
The mayhem continued unabated for over an hour, with most fish being released to fight another day, some intentionally, and some not, gaining their freedom with a well executed hook-throwing leap. We moved further north for one last drop in an area sometimes referred to as “shark alley”, which is a large body of water in between Wedge and North Islands where numerous shark sightings have occurred over the years.
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A few more monster King George whiting up to 52cm capped off the charter beautifully. Then Gary had a scorching run at the end of the day but failed to stay connected. We suspected either a large school shark or the hoodlum menace of these deep reefs, the enigmatic Samson fish.
This had been a typically productive day sampling Mark’s “Reef Encounters Fish & Dive Charters” that operates out of Pondalowie Bay on the southwestern tip of Yorke Peninsula. These offshore waters teem with a myriad of marine life possible due in no small part to boat ramps for the trailerboat fisho being few and far between on this rugged stretch of coastline. The area is littered with offshore islands, reefs, shoals and rocks, many of which bear the names of the ships that were lost to them in the days prior to lighthouses, radar and satellite navigation. Add to this the very deep water (up to 80m) not far offshore and you can see why the marine life in this area is in such abundance.
To fish these exposed waters you need a big seaworthy boat and Freedom II certainly is that.. She’s a beamy 27-foot Cairns Custom Craft hydrofoil assisted cat that makes for an extremely stable fishing platform when at rest. She can accommodate up to eight anglers thanks to a full walkaround centre flybridge cabin. With twin 150 Yamahas
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she launches herself out of the water, and when those hydrofoils take over she rips along at a top speed of 38 knots.This is appreciated on a long-range trip to Wedge and beyond, as you get to your destination a lot quicker, ultimately leaving paying customers with far more fishing time.
Most fishing is done by bottom bouncing a heavy-duty paternoster style rig, changing only the size of the hook to suit the species being targeted. We found that one smaller hook on the bottom dropper loop such as a Gamakatsu O’Shaughnessy size 3/0 assists in hooking any large whiting that have a go at the bait while still being strong enough to handle any other species encountered. The top dropper carries a Gamakatsu Octopus in the 5/0 to 8/0 range to handle the bigger targets. The size of the sinker varies due to the different depths of water or the amount of tidal race running. We experimented with artificials jigged up and down above the reefy bottom with some success.
Soft plastic squid in various sizes seem to be popular with the waiting throng below although they don’t last long when bites like barracouta and snook around. Small feathered jigs also work well on silver trevally and pinkie snapper and 200 gram Raiders are dynamite when the samsons and kings are moving around with sinister intent.
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The standard bait out here is frozen small squid, as they are a tough, durable bait that all the available species find more that tempting. Whole pilchards are another prime bait but can be easily removed from the hooks in the deep water, especially if annoying bait pickers like rock cod are a problem.
On our two-day charter we hooked more than 20 different species of fish. Here’s a rundown on the more desirable species that can be encountered. Snapper are probably the most sought after species and range in size from the pinkies that are just above the 38cm size limit up to some 10-kilo thumpers. The individual fish size is usually uniform with the rest of the school, so it can be a bit of a lucky dip with the size of the fish encountered on the day. Along with snapper, nannygai are the other mainstay of these deep reefs and are generally of a good size ranging up to 3.5 kilos. A smaller cousin of the nannygai, the swallowtail, is also caught in good numbers and they are simply delicious when it comes to the table.
The queen of the deep reefs, the beautiful blue morwong are a prized catch, and although they aren’t around in huge numbers, enough are hooked to keep you on your toes. They are much sought after, not only for their fighting abilities but for their eating qualities as well. Next comes the King George Whiting, which grow to amazing sizes down this way. Fish close to 60cm long and weighing more than a kilo are considered fairly common in the deep water. Big breeding populations move in during the winter months but enough are available year round to get dedicated whiting anglers’ pulses racing at the very thought of
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tangling with these spotted kidney slappers.
The hoodlums of the deep reefs, Samson and kingfish are liable to turn up anywhere, anytime and it’s just a matter of being out there and putting in the hours if you wish to tangle with these heavyweights. But the wait will be worth it as some of the samsons approach 35 kilos and are at the pinnacle of potential adversaries available from these waters. The kingfish encountered are not as big as their cousins with most fish under 15 kilos but they still pull like a runaway freight train. The kingies can also be taken by trolling whole garfish or big minnow lures like Rapala CD18s or To Zuri Hydro Magnums along the massive southern cliff face of Wedge Island.
Silver trevally are sometimes found in plague proportions with most being around a couple of kilos, but the occasional horse of five kilos may rudely interrupt your serenity. Harlequin fish that look very much like a southern version of the coral trout are also fairly common on these reefs. Huge blue groper are also hooked but are totally protected in Investigator Strait and SA’s gulf waters and must be returned immediately.
Bluefin tuna are rumoured to put in the occasional appearance around Wedge Island. Add to this the salmon, sweep, snook, pike, barracouta, flathead, some huge leatherjackets and succulent southern rock lobsters caught in cray pots and you can see there is a plethora of species to contend with in the region.
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There’s also sharks, with the school and gummy varieties being fairly common on the deep-water grounds, and they are both tops on the table. Big bronze whaler sharks are usually not far away from the schools of snapper and nannygai and are usually the culprits when a trophy sized big red get mercilessly hammered half way up. Hammerhead sharks arrive in large numbers during the summer months and are always terrific fun on light tackle.
The options around this breathtaking coastline care endless be it fishing the southern grounds of Investigator Strait on the way to Kangaroo Island, or around the
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towering cliffs of Althorpe and the reef strewn bottom around Haystack and Seal islands. Fishing around Wedge Island held a special appeal for me though as I had visited there on a land-based charter some 22 years ago, as a raw 16-year-old who was still learning the art of fishing. I fondly remembered that the rock fishing was absolutely mind-blowing for such a young, impressionable, wide-eyed kid.
Wedge Island is as good as it gets. So if you would like to give it a go, give Mark a call on 0407 609 998 and experience a Reef Encounters charter for yourself, I know you won’t be disappointed.
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