THIS year will be remembered as one of the best seasons in a long time for land-based game fishos, with almost 100 marlin caught off the rocks at Jervis Bay.
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For years, the area known as The Tubes on the northern side of Beecroft Peninsula has been regarded as one of the best, if not the best, land-based locations to catch marlin in the world.
Johnny Nolan from McCallum’s Tackleworld in Nowra and the South Coast Register’s expert fishing columnist said the season was huge.
“Considering the season really only runs from January to February but may stretch into March if you are lucky, to catch around 100 marlin makes it an amazing season,” he said.
“The catches are usually all black marlin. The biggest we have heard this season was around the 160kg mark.
“It is the number-one spot in the world for this type of fishing. People come here from around the world to catch big fish off the rocks.
“We have a couple of guys who come over from Japan each year and drop in and see us at the shop before heading out.
“It’s what we call the Outer Tubes, the location of an old torpedo launch site used to protect Jervis Bay during World War II,” he said.
“I think it is so successful because it’s close to the entry of the bay, the currents seem to come straight through there into the bay.
“It’s also one of the few locations fishos can actually access to catch marlin. There are probably other cliff areas where the marlin frequent but you can’t get to them to actually fish.”
At the height of the season he said the little rock ledge, which at 40m long and about four metres wide, can have up to 30 fishos on it, trying their luck to land the big one.
“They fish all day or as long as the fish are biting,” he said.
“In boats you have harnesses and chairs to lock into, and you can use the boat to help get the fish up, but off the rocks it’s all you,” he said.