TACKLING UP FOR INSHORE WHALERS

Jamie Crawford is looking forward to trading blows with some of our big bronzies this summer. What follows is essential reading if you’d like to have a try yourself.

A lot of fisho’s go through the ‘shark fishing phase’ fairly early on in their fishing journey. They enter this chapter with the desire to target something big, and something that will pull line – with bronze whalers the popular choice, given our slim pickings for big targets here in SA. Each year a youthful band of fresh shark fisho’s enters the scene, which is cool to see.

I was pretty keen on my land-based shark fishing when I was in my late teens and early twenties, and we used to spend a fair bit of time chasing whalers around the Eyre Peninsula. We spent plenty of weekends chasing bronzies around Streaky Bay, Coffin Bay, Port Lincoln and the stretch of coast from Tumby up to Arno Bay. As often happens though, the shark quest slowed as other targets came to the fore, and it was a gradual progression away from shark fishing and into other fishing challenges. I went a number of years without pursuing any shark fishing, but with two teenage sons now in the mix who are keen young fishers, the steel trace and crimping pliers have resurfaced over the past couple of seasons.

To be quite honest, I’ve really enjoyed getting back into chasing bronze whalers during our warmer months. Kicking back in the boat or on a rock ledge is a fun way to spend an afternoon, and seeing a balloon slowly track through the water before disappearing to the sound of a ratchet is very cool. Bronzies are great fun and put up a good account for themselves on the right tackle, too.

It’s not just the big models we’ve been targeting; in some areas we see quite a few smaller whalers too. On some of the grounds we’ve been seeing quite a few bronzies in the 4-5 foot size (15-30kg), along with the occasional bigger shark. This makes for entertaining fishing, as you’re never sure what sized shark is going to take the next bait.

Big threadlines will do the job

Waiting for that land-based bite

Most of our inshore bronze whaler fishing takes place from November through until around April, which is when our inshore waters are at their warmest. Last year we had a lot of cool water upwellings pushing along our coast, which created a lot of cold green water extending out to sea. But within our bays were pockets of warmer water not influenced by the cooler nutrient-rich water, and by concentrating around this warmer water we found some nice bronzies. This water was sitting around 18 degrees, while in contrast the green water outside of the bay was only hovering around 14 degrees.

While most of my shark fishing was done from land-based platforms when I was younger, I have to admit that most of my inshore sharking these days takes place from the boat.

FROM THE BOAT

When chasing inshore bronzies from the boat, always try to pinpoint a source of attraction to focus your efforts. This might be adjacent to an inshore reef, near a food source such as a school of salmon or nearby fish farms, a bottleneck of water funneling movement in and out of an area, or even just a deeper pocket of water or channel within a shallow bay. We’ve caught bronzies around each of the scenarios above, but like all fishing situations, the more time you spend on the water, the more you will learn about the pattern and movements of sharks in your local waters.

But even over productive grounds you will still see seasonal variations, depending on water temperatures and food availability. We’ve had some areas that fished well one season, but were quiet the next. This is largely dictated by water temperatures, and being able to pinpoint an area of increased temp relative to the surrounding temperature will help to concentrate the activity.

There isn’t a magic depth range when it comes to bronzies, as they will roam through our shallow water and extend right out to our deeper reefs and shoals. Having said that, I really enjoy chasing them in shallower water, as the fishing is more visual, and the fights are less dogged. Most of the areas we focus from the boat are under 12m of depth and are quite close to shore.

When targeting bronzies from the boat you can approach the fishing by either drifting or from an anchored boat. We have done plenty of drift fishing in the past – especially in Gulf waters where there is less specific structure, and this enables us to slowly cover ground while drifting down the coast. This does work, but my preference is to anchor and lay a berley trail.

Remember that bronzies don’t lie dormant, they’re constantly on the move and cover a fair amount of ground, so if you lay a good berley trail and invest the time, you’ve got a good chance of drawing a shark into your area. As with all berleying though, common sense will prevail as to where and how you lay a berley trail for inshore sharks.

When laying a berley trail for bronzies from the boat, I like to hang a fish head or frame from the back of the boat, such as a tuna frame or salmon. In addition, I add some tuna oil to the water, which is usually done via a rag that has been soaked in tuna oil. This oil will give a good slick of flavour that will cover a fair distance. Note it is illegal to berley using blood, bone, meat, offal or skin deriving from land animals.

Once the berley trail is established, we will float a couple of baits back into the berley trail under a balloon. I normally set the bait at least six feet under the surface. You can set a bait right on the bottom, but expect some eagle ray action.

Some good baits for bronze whalers include fish fillets or portions of fish with high oil content such as tuna, slimy mackerel, salmon, trevally and snook. One of the best baits for bronze whalers though is yellowtail kingfish. If we retain a kingfish for the table I always keep the wings to cut up as shark baits. Once the bait is on the hook, I use a rubber band or cotton thread to secure it, ensuring that plenty of hook point is exposed.

As most of the sharks we target are small to mid-size, the bait and hook size I use is selected for these sized sharks. My favourite hook is a 9/0 sports J hook in the 7691 offset pattern. These are manufactured by Mustad and also Three Yachts. If there are bigger bronzies prevalent, I will use a 14/0 Forged offset Sports Circle, also manufactured by Mustad and Three Yachts. The wire I use for the 14/0 is 1.6mm nylon coated S/S 7x7 wire, which offers a breaking strain of around 200kg, and I use 1.2mm nylon coated wire at 120kg breaking strain for smaller bronzies. I use an 8090cm length of wire, crimped to the hook using copper crimps, with a 9mm HD swivel crimped to the upper end of the wire.

This swivel is then crimped to a heavy monofilament shock leader of around 250lb and approximately 4m in length. This shock leader offers abrasion resistance against the rough skin of a shark, and it also allows you to leader a shark to control it once boatside. Whether you use mono or braid for mainline is personal preference.

I have some 15kg and 24kg overhead outfits set up for our inshore bronzie fishing, but a PE5 spin outfit with braid will also do the job. If you are focused on targeting bigger bronzies, it would pay to go up to a 37kg overhead outfit, or PE8 if using a braid set-up. If your bait is set under a balloon, it should last quite a while before needing to be checked and renewed. If you are fishing around a shallow reef, your bait may not last quite as long with smaller reef fish picking at it.

Always rig shark baits with plenty of hook point exposed

If you manage to hook a bronze whaler and get the shark boat side, you will need to decide whether you are going to release the shark or to retain it for the table. In my opinion, the smaller bronzies of around four foot make good table fare, and we’ll keep the occasional shark around this size, but anything else we’ll generally tag and release.

When releasing a shark it’s always better to keep them in the water and to release them boatside without wrestling them on board. For bigger bronzies we’ll throw a rope around the tail to secure the shark and then, using pliers or bolt cutters, we’ll remove the hook. Ideally, if there is a shallow beach nearby, we’ll drive the boat into the shallows to release the shark.

For smaller sharks I’m happy to lift them aboard to remove the hook – usually with the aid of a big landing net. If you are bringing a shark on board, don’t leave it sitting on the deck of the boat, as its body isn’t designed to take its weight out of water. Instead, cradle the shark by holding the tail and also supporting the belly – don’t hold them vertically by the tail wrist if you are going to release them.

If you are spending a bit of time chasing bronzies in our state’s waters, you might get the occasional visitor. Earlier this year we were having an inshore sharking session near Coffin Bay and had a white pointer visit the boat. If this does happen, remove your baits and berley from the water and relocate. And like we did, report the shark on one of the shark watch Facebook pages to alert others who might also be sharing the water.

FROM THE LAND

Like most young and enthusiastic fisho’s, my earlier shark sessions were predominantly land- based missions chasing bronzies from rock platforms, beaches and also jetties. While shark fishing from our state’s jetties is discouraged these days, there are still some good rock platforms and beaches from which to target bronzies of various size.

The most popular land-based locations are sloping rock platforms which front deeper water. These areas can be a highway for the movement of bronze whalers at certain times of the year, and with the wind at your back it’s easy to balloon a bait a hundred metres or more from the land. The better platforms are the ones that don’t front incoming swell – for safety reasons as well as fishability.

There are some good land-based rock platforms on southern Fleurieu Peninsula from Myponga Beach southward to Cape Jervis, and similarly on Yorke Peninsula from Wallaroo southwards to Port Victoria, and again from Stenhouse Bay through to Troubridge Point when the weather is favorable.

However, the land-based sharking mecca in our state has to be the Eyre Peninsula, with rock platforms around Port Neill, Lipson Cove and Tumby Bay within southern Spencer Gulf, Port Lincoln and Coffin Bay National Parks, Frenchmans Bluff, Venus Bay and Streaky Bay, to name just a few.

The principles of fishing from the rocks are similar to those of boat fishing, but with added challenges and complexities of doing it from the land. Try to pick a rock platform where baits can be dropped into deeper water to be floated out, and always identify a safe landing zone in advance in case you bring a shark to the rocks. When sending baits out under balloons you’ll want the wind at your back and, ideally, an outgoing tide for most locations.

Setting up a basic berley trail is essential, similar to the trail deployed from the boat. You will need to take additional ropes to make sure your berley reaches the water level. Shark fishing from the rocks is always easier – and safer – with two people. When deploying a bait we’ll usually have one person holding the rod while the other strips line from the reel and pitches the bait into the water.

If the wind is light, you can use two balloons to help drag your baits away from the rocky shoreline.

You’ll also need a rod holder of sorts to prop the rod tip high to make sure the mainline doesn’t settle into the rocks below. We’ll usually set two outfits with the two balloons staggered at different distances from shore, with the baits sitting around 6ft under the balloons again. Similar baits as detailed above can be used land based, with oily fillets preferred.

It’s a different approach from the beach though, as there are usually some waves of sorts pushing towards shore, which makes it hard to send a bait out under a balloon. In this situation setting a bait on the bottom is preferred, with kayaks often used to paddle baits out from the beach.

Occasionally you will spot bronze whalers shadowing schools of salmon along a surf beach. Sometimes these sharks come within casting range, but casting tackle is quite often too light for the bigger bronzies, and in this situation sending a live salmon rigged with a circle hook in its back can be an effective way of delivering a bait back into deeper water.

The rigs used when fishing land-based are similar to those used from the boat, but I extend the length of the heavy shock leader to increase the abrasion factor, as well as having a longer trace with which to leader a shark into shore. When fishing from the land it also pays to use sightly longer rods. If you are a keen land-based shark fisher, having a dedicated land based outfit such as an 8ft LBG rod rated at 24 or 37kg is ideal, and offers more control when fighting a shark, as well as assisting when deploying baits.

We are entering into prime inshore shark fishing months right now, so why not make the most of these seasonal visitors and get stuck into some shark fishing? Our inshore whalers are great fun, whether big or small.