Nov 15 2008

We have just finished a wonderful 6 days with first timers to the Reef, Steve and Jo from Western Australia.

The fishing on the marlin front has been slow, but we have had a couple of good days, the first one being Wednesday where we saw 4 fish on the camera, including one about 500 that swam between the scad and the camera , and had one about 150 fall off at the back of the boat, only to try to eat it again. All of this was at No:5 Ribbon.

Thursday we started off with a few scad and swim baits, a couple of tunas and 2 nice dolphin fish. While we were wnding in the dolphin, a marlin about 150 lbs came in on it, and made a couple of passes, but would not look at the pitch scad that went straight over the back when the fish showed up.

I then put out a double hook rig scad on the pitch rod and skipped it off the rigger for a mackeral or wahoo or dogtooth bite. The fish didn’t disappoint, a giant spanish mackeral ate the scad and Jo was in the chair on the 50 getting pulled out of the chair and line peeling from the reel.

Up to the side of the boat came this giant Spanish, well over 80 lbs, on the scales she pulled down 93 lbs, by far the biggest I have seen in a long long time (way before Green Zones) and Jo’s biggest fish other than a marlin.

Later in the afternoon we tagged a 200 lber for Steve out a little wide off # 5.

Lots of good swimming and a few nice trout sessions on the spear as well this week.

Reports of the fish in numbers down wide off Cairns and further south from the longliners has us all excited about a week at Myrmidon later in the season.

This trip will be 5-10 days from Cairns and finishing in either Townsville or Mackay or even Hamilton Island.
Plan to leave Cairns on Dec 8 – Let me know if you are interested in doing this trip.

Tim