Angela Woods
All this talk about soft plastics. "I would like to try them, but they all say I need a 2-5 kg fast tapered rod, special and expensive 2500 size reels, braided line, fluorocarbon leader material and jig heads in 10 different weights. It sounds all to hard and expensive, and what happens if I don't like it".
Well, you don't need all that stuff just to try it. It can cost under ten bucks for a packet or two of pre-rigged plastics. If you are keen check out how you can give it a try. And hey! A packet of plastics costs about the same as bait and most don't smell at all. You've gotta love that.
Leroy Tirant
In Tasmania surface fishing for trout has been a long standing tradition. "Top spinning" with wood and wattle grubs is still a favored past time for many, but in recent times anglers have been starting to become aware of hard bodied lures and soft plastics that can be used for the same purpose at less expense. Nearly all fresh and inshore salt water species available around Tasmania's coastline will take a surface lure fished with a variety of retrieves. Anglers have to remember that fish spend a fair amount of their time in the upper reaches of the water column either because of water temperature, or because that's where they are feeding. When they are high in the water column or near the surface, fish spend a fair amount of time looking up and are always opportunistic when looking for a feed. I guess the most appealing prospect when fishing with surface lures is that its visual fishing. Quite often you will see the fish before it strikes, which can lead to stressful precious seconds before it grabs the lure and of course the amazing strikes that leave a hole in the water where your lure once was. It can at times be a more productive method, often out fishing other techniques.
Leroy Tirant
Owning and working in a tackle store I get the privilege of talking to fisherman all day long about all types of fishing. And regardless of how long they've been fishing for I am usually able to come up with something new for them to try; even more so when it comes to bait fishing. Like any form of fishing using the right bait, collecting and storing it properly can make the difference between catching fish and going home empty handed. I find a lot of anglers for one reason or another get stuck into a routine of using just one type of bait, and whilst this may be fine if you catch fish with it every time, what if you don't?
Trolling guru, Bill Presslor takes a close look one of his favourite trolling methods - leadline
Most freshwater trollers have at one time or another had at least some experience with lead core lines. Whether you love it or hate it, lead core catches fish!
Basically, lead core line, a lead wire covered by woven nylon, has been around for over fifty years and was developed as a means of trolling lures deeper than they could be trolled by traditional means. Used in conjunction with downriggers, planer boards and surface or flat lines, lead core lines can add versatility to any trolling spread. They are often the most productive option when you need to get your lures that little bit deeper. In lakes such as Arthurs Lake, Great Lake and Dee Lagoon lead core lines are bound to improve your catch rate.
Read more: Leadline trolling - An effective and essential technique for Tasmania
Leroy Tirant
How often have you been trolling around and have seen fish on your sounder showing up in depths of 20-40 ft or more? Even in today's modern world where an angler can buy a 5cm lure that will dive to 20ft or so it can still be frustrating trying to get your lures to the right depth to target these deep fish. But there is a fantastic exciting and easy way to target deepwater fish!
Starlo and Bushy
One of the great things about soft plastics is that you can fish them reasonably effectively using almost any sort of tackle. In fact, you can work a soft plastic on any gear you'd use to fish natural baits with, including a humble handline. Of course, you won't be able to cast very far with a handline, and it will present various other limitations, but in offshore bottom fishing, for example, it would still offer an acceptable method for bouncing a plastic or two up and down in front of a fish. Plastics can also be worked reasonably well off deck winches or short, stiff boat rods and non-casting centrepin reels (again, mostly only in up-and-down scenarios, where casting isn't necessary or important).
Tim Anderson.
As the doom of gloom of winter makes it presence known thoughts turn to next season. To make "next year" a more pleasant experience, boaties should use the quiet period to conduct regular boat and trailer maintenance. Of course this should be a constant thing with boats, but winter is a time to take a closer look and fix thos little things that you might have put off.
The following is by no means a comprehensive list however it is suggested that these checks are conducted. Most of the following will only require a quick check while others can be time consuming and costly if left unattended. I have focused mainly on the trailer for this article which is often the part of your equipment which will can cause serious grief.
Andrew Richardson.
Last year I decided it was time to get rid of some junk. You know, the stuff that hangs around in the shed for years, kept on the premise that it might be useful some day. The type of stuff that only ever becomes required three days after you've thrown it out
Being somewhat of a hoarder I find these occasions (yes there have been many!) necessary but not enjoyable, and I tend to spend my time procrastinating by looking through my wares rather than getting to the point and deciding upon an items usefulness, as opposed to its uselessness.
On one of these particular occasions I came upon an old pale blue tackle box being housed in a box not yet unpacked from our most recent move - four and a half years ago-
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by Sarah Graham
Many anglers are preparing for the opening of the new angling season on Saturday 7 August and it's shaping up to be another good one with the fishery in excellent health as a result of last year’s drought breaking rains. There are many great fishing locations around the State from which to choose for the opening weekend and early season fishing but here are a few suggestions.