Salt Fishing Downunder

Catching Mako Sharks is a risky venture at any time, but in Bass Strait those crazy Tasmanians catch some ridiculously big sharks out of trailer boats. Peter Morse joins Mason and some local shark fishermen and uses fly rods and big game fishing tackle on a couple of Bass Strait monsters. Turns out those Tasmanians really know what they’re doing and he experiences some great fishing."  

Threadfin salmon are amongst the most exciting, spectacular and unpredictable sportfishing targets encountered in tropical and sub-tropical inshore waters. It's hardly surprising that they're so keenly sought-after by serious fly and lure anglers. Join Bargy and Dan Power down towards the southern end of the threadfin's geographic range in south-eastern Queensland as the boys work the tide and bounce their soft vibe lures for these often elusive, tricky and surprisingly gently-biting fish.  

Starlo and Jo join SA Angler publisher Shane Mensforth on the fertile waters off South Australia's Yorke Peninsula to do one of their favourite things, hunt for big bad pink snapper on soft plastic lures and relatively light spinning tackle. You won't believe the action they experience, nor the size of some of the reds they tangle with! But best of all, you'll learn plenty about how to tap into this style of fishing yourself.  

Steve and Mark team up to put a couple of brand new lures through their paces on longtail tuna, mackerel tuna, queenfish and diamond trevally out on Bargy's back yard in Queensland's Hervey Bay. Not only is the action fast and furious, but you'll also learn plenty about chasing pelagics on plastics.  

The beautiful island nation of New Caledonia lies just a few hours flying time east of the tropical Australian coastline. It offers mind-boggling sport fishing opportunities for those anglers addicted to pursuing giant trevally or GTs on poppers and other surface lures. But these fish are also available for the shore based angler, like on the rocky beaches of Western Australia. It is just a bit trickier to land them.  

Steve joins Chris Cleaver for a morning's soft plastic fishing on some of Sydney's busiest and most heavily-pressured urban estuaries. The mind-blowing action they encounter — on jewfish, kingfish, trevally, bream and flathead — is sure to amaze and astound most viewers, and stands as a testament to what's possible with good management of our aquatic resources.  

Michael is chasing hefty striped marlin off Newcastle in New South Wales on spinning tackle! This spectacular video features some brilliant underwater strike footage and lots of how- to info for keen blue-water anglers. Hervey Bay, in South East Queensland, is one of those rare "mixing pot" regions where fish species from the tropical north and the temperate south regularly overlap. This makes for some especially exciting angling action, and it doesn't get much better than chasing high speed pelagics such as tuna and billfish in shallow, clear water, where so much of the encounter is highly visual. We suggest you avoid watching this one if you have high blood pressure!  

Shannon goes deep into the tropical rainforests of North Queensland in pursuit of one of our most enigmatic and challenging freshwater natives, the charismatic jungle perch. This is wilderness sweetwater fishing at its very finest. Few places on earth better demonstrate the direct connection between the health of the land, its rivers and the sea than tropical North Queensland. Ed then heads offshore from the rainforest coast onto rich waters armed with light jigging gear, in search of arm-stretching action - and finds it!  

Targeting line-scorching Spanish mackerel on jigged metal lures is one of the most exciting games available in our tropical and sub-tropical waters. Dan is a master of this deadly technique, and willingly shares his wealth of knowledge including such sneaky tips as dispensing with wire altogether when the macks are being a bit fickle. Steve Starling then joins the crew of a charter boat off Eco Beach, south of Broome on the other side of the country, to chase a few Spaniards and shark mackerel on trolled hard-body lures. As well as plenty of great action, there are some invaluable tips on offshore lure trolling.