When you purchase a baitcaster reel, there’s a bit of assumed knowledge involved. It’s assumed that you’ve mastered the spin reel, and have specific techniques that require a baitcaster in mind.
Finding a spin reel to suit your angling needs can seem like a daunting task for the simple fact that there are so many out there. Where once our reel market was dominated by big Japanese brands Shimano and Daiwa – which still produce excellent reels – we now have even more to choose from.
Slide baiting is one of those techniques that has only recently come to the fore in Australia, but has been employed elsewhere in the world for many years. As usual, we’re late to the party, but at least we’re not missing out on the fun.
Kingfish are brutes.In cooler waters where there are no GTs or doogtooth tuna, these fish do well to fill the gap of saltwater brutes. Kingfish have a fearsome reputation, as they are capable of testing heavily fortified tackle with their habit of seeking out nasty structures to win their freedom.Â
It doesn’t matter who you are or where you are, nothing says a gourmet seafood meal quite like fresh mud crabs. Often sold at high-end restaurants and worked into complex concoctions, it’s easy to forget that you can sample your own with a few inexpensive bits of kit!Â
Each spring, diehards from central Queensland to Gippsland in Victoria rub their hands together at the thought of ‘going bush’ and tangling with one of Australia’s greatest fishing icons. This icon, of course, is the Australian bass, and there’s no better way to target them in the beautiful freshwater creeks and rivers that are their native homes.
Since their sudden rise in popularity in Australia over 20 years, soft plastics have been a staple for bream. Bream fans from tournament buffs to casual anglers trying their hand at luring regularly turn to these versatile little devices, particularly when other methods fail.Â
On the east coast of Australia, there is bait that seems to outshine many others in terms of availability and attractiveness to fish, and that is the saltwater yabby, or nipper. In the estuaries, they are a premier bait, however they can also be successful in the freshwater.
To many, the surf zone may seem like the domain of bait anglers, but this is simply not true. Those who prefer to throw lures to catch their fish can be equally at home in the surf. In fact, fishing with lures can be a good way of being more selective with your target species.
Squid fishing with jigs, or egi, is a popular pastime, particularly in our southern states. Places like Port Phillip Bay, Western Port, Adelaide, Albany and Perth can see dozens of squidders at a time congregating on public piers and rock walls all trying for a fresh feed of calamari.
The fishing world has always produced fads and fashions, especially as the tackle industry grows and promotes exciting techniques from overseas. Micro and slow pitch jigging are techniques that started as fads around 10 years, however the initial hype has seemingly not slowed down.Â