Georges Bay Boom

Mike Stevens spends his summer holidays at St Helens. He has noticed a great improvement in the fishing over the last summer - especially for salmon, tailor and bream. Mike gives a few tips on how you can find some of the big Australian salmon and tailor he has been catching.
Unexpected catches can be some of the most satisfying of all. Planned trips and planned catches are the "norm" and whilst they can be fantastic the surprise catches are somehow special.
Early January is beach time for our family, and this usually means St Helens. The trout are forgotten for a while and we turn to bait, lure and fly. It is really an eclectic mixture of fishing - mostly in Georges Bay.

Pontoon Fishing in the Tamar

As most of you would probably know, I love fishing the Tamar.  Unfortunately, lately, due to work and family commitments, I don't have quite as much time to fish but, after work,  when time allows, one thing I really do enjoy is fishing the new Tamar pontoons.  The pontoons are placed at intervals right along the estuary.  In this article, I am going to run through the Tamar pontoons and give you some general information on the species you may catch, techniques, bait, peak times, tides and modern rigs all of which may make the difference between no fish and a fine brace.

TAMAR SILVER TREVALLY


As I mentioned in my last article about snotty trevally in the Tamar Estuary, the river has lots of surprises - and this season, we have seen an awesome run of tailor and blue warehoe, or snotty trevally.  However, these runs are not usually consistent and may not reoccur every season.

A Great Tamar Season


I must admit I love fishing - and I love the Tamar River - but this past season has especially amazed me!  It has been a season with a difference!  Warmer water temperatures, up to 22 degrees in some areas, is one major difference and the other factor has been the appearance in large numbers of two exciting fish species which are not commonly caught in the Tamar. 

CHASING TAMAR GOLD


When I was a youngster I remember my grandfather, Mr Benjamin Sherriff, telling me a story of giant green-backed fish which he saw at a certain pylon in the Tamar River. Sadly, grandad passed away in 1985, when I was 11 years old.  However, I always wondered, in the years following, what these giant fish could be? I will never know for sure... but I have a reasonable idea they were yellowtail kingfish.

St Helens Grand Slam results

Everyone was a winner at the www.tasfish.com St Helens Grand Slam held on 24 January at Georges Bay on Tasmania's east coast.

The rollup for a low profile and inaugural event was spectacular with 29 teams and about 70 anglers competing for no prizes. The only thing on offer was three trophies for the top three and an equally spectacular trophy for a "Room for improvement" award.

The big winner on the day was Canteen with a cheque going to them for $1600. Canteen supports young people living with cancer.

The other winners were Michael Haley's team from St Helens in first place, Jamie Henderson from St Helens second and Les Simms team from Devonport third.

Victorians visit Tassie

Hi Mike,

Its Jaymie and Jake from Melbourne that came down to St Helens for 7 days. You took a quick snap of me with the bream with Michael Haley.

Thought we might just say thanks from my brother Jake, Dad and I.

Might also give you a quick insight to how good we thought the fishing was down there in Georges bay.

St Helens bream

by Mike Stevens

After just a couple of years as a (mainly) recreational fishery Georges Bay at St Helens is looking better than ever. I spent a week there over the March long weekend (2000) and the bay was a hive of activity. The jetty and foreshore in the centre of town played host to the increasingly popular St Helens Game Fishing Classic.

Fly Fishing in the Tamar Estuary

by Steve Suitor

Fly fishing in the Tamar Estuary presents a wide variety of species for the angler prepared to explore and experiment.

Each of these different species requires a different technique, a different location and, importantly, a different state of the tide for best results.

Saltwater Sport fishing - St Helens

The township of St Helens is nestled at the back of Georges Bay, a sheltered track of water situated a quarter of the way down the East Coast of Tasmania. The area is now regularly visited by leading Australian fishing journalists such as Rick Huckstepp, who regard St Helens as the sport fishing mecca of Tasmania and a true world-class sport fishing destination.

Tamar River turns it on

bey Michael Bok

The Tamar River has always been a bit of a bogey area for me whereas I generally get a feed I haven't had too many days that I would class as great. The last being several years ago when a mate and I caught five kingfish. All this changed recently when a non fishing friend, Ian Brickhill, and I decided that a days relaxation was in order.

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