Yesterday wasn't the very best of days to go fishing but we were committed. As so often happens when the ocean is less friendly the bite, especially for Yellowfin can be good. Ours was a story of good and bad luck. Because of the conditions and with a group of newbies on board it wasn't long before half of them were sea sick but to their credit they persevered. Their cure came when the first Marlin, a good sized Stripy pounced on the short corner then the rigger and finally the shotgun managing to miss all the hooks. On inspection all the leaders were scuffed a long way up from the lures, must have been a myopic Marlin. Listening to the radio scheds from the 'Port Hacking 100' tournament it was evident there were quite a few Yellowfin around, varying from so called 'Jelly beans' up to 40 kilo's jobs. We ended up catching a couple of Yellowfin and losing another when the tag line tangled up with the main line. Later on another Marlin hit the shotgun but again missed the hooks. The results from the week-end tournament indicated the number and range of fish still out there. 'Carnage' weighed a Tiger Shark of 470.5 kilos. There were also Mako's and at least one Whaler and a Hammerhead weighed. 'Game Changer' caught a Blue Marlin of 138 kilo's for junior Makaira Wright. There were several Yellowfin and Striped Marlin tagged. The biggest surprise to me was of a Wahoo being taken. It is turning into a very late season with the warm currents still within range and with the range of warm water species still out there long may it continue. Tight lines, Ivan

While there are Blue and Striped Marlin as well as Yellowfin around it is hard fishing. The weather has been perfect over the last few days consequently a lot of people are getting out wide, very wide. Out there the warmer water is running and fortunately coming in closer. The Striped Marlin are hanging around the shelf where there is a lot of bait while the Blues are out wider however there is a lot of water separating them. The Yellowfin on the other hand tend to be in closer in the cooler water and if you can find it the break with the greenish water. Where the Yellowfin are there are also heaps of Dolphins (the mammalian kind) they are pushing the bait up bringing them within range. Mind you, you have to be fast to get to the action before they sound again. Some are being taken on blind strikes but it pays to look for the surface action. The 'fin are coming in all sizes from Jellybean size up to seventy kilo jobs, well worth the effort. I went out yesterday with Glen, Karen, Howie and their daughter Makaira, the Tantrum crew. After a lot of looking we eventually found where the Yellowfin were feeding and where there were several boat that had taken fish. We got one shot after I saw a few fish jumping amongst some Sauries. The hookup was on a 15kg. outfit which Makaira took up. Unfortunately after a screaming run the fish dropped off. A lot later while trolling home crossing the shelf we picked up a Striped Marlin, Makaira took the rod again and made short work of the fish. Tight lines, Ivan

Fishing is a fickle game at the best of times. But at present the fishing and the currents seem more fickle than normal. I went out on several days last week and conditions changed each day. The end result was a couple of good days and a couple of bad ones. After the first day, last Tuesday, when the water was relatively cool the current from the South not to mention quite rough, everything changed. To my great surprise when we went out on Wednesday the temperature was up and the colour what we like to see unfortunately the fish hadn't arrived yet. On Thursday I had Robert and his friend from California. There were reports of some Yellowfin out wide and the occasional Blue Marlin. We were on the thousand fathom line East of Browns heading into what looked like a storm front with a couple of water spouts spooking about when we took the strike. I was sure it was a Blue , a huge hole inn the water and a screaming run. But after a short time it became apparent we were into a good sized Yellowfin which later weighed in at 65kg. During the fight the weather front hit us and the rain was so heavy I could only just see the front of the boat. Robert was stoked, very wet and basically stuffed. Saturday was the day, perfect conditions weatherwise but the water temperature had dropped a half a degree from Thursday. I put the lures in just short of the shelf and started heading out. I wasn't long before I marked a couple of fish on a bait school . As I looked back to check the lures the rigger went off and a good sized Striped Marlin took to the air. After a short but spectacular fight we had the fish along side and Howie, my deckie, released the fish after it gave him a good workout on the leader. So the lures went back out and within minutes we had another Stripy hooked up and jumping in our wake. While the guys were clearing the other lines another Stripy came in and had a shot but it was only a half hearted effort. That was it for the day. There was quite a bit of action further South with Blue Marlin and Yellowfin but we had no other takers. In general it is looking good off Sydney this week-end both weatherwise and for the Sydney Game Fishing Club's 'Peter Goadby Memorial Tournament with $**hidden content** up for grabs. Tight lines, Ivan

I brought Ambition back from Port Stephens on Saturday fishing the whole way down. The weather was spectacular by any standard . We ran out to the 'Car Park' where we put the lures in. Unbelievably we hadn't had the lures in for ten minutes when we had a strike from a good sized Mahi Mahi which was quickly dispatched and put on ice. We worked our way down the coast going out past the thousand fathom line looking for Yellowfin. As we moved out wider the water just got hotter and hotter. Out wide of the Norah Head canyons we ran into masses of dead plankton so I decided to go in back to the shelf. The temperature decreased after we cleared the plankton lines and bird life started to appear along with masses of Dolphins. It was starting to look good. Anticipation was running high. Then it happened, a swirl behind the Lumo on the rigger. In typical Stripy fashion he or she followed the lure hitting and missing a couple of times before Ron teased it into striking. Unfortunately it started to do its imitation of a window wiper and threw the lure, must have been Bill wrapped. I did a lap around the area not really expecting the Marlin to have another go. Well, whether it was the same fish or not we'll never know but we had a no holds barred hit on the Shotgun and we were in. This fish only jumped once or twice so Ron had his work cut out for him. To cut a long story short Ron survived, and we tagged the Marlin which swam away appearing to look back with disdain. The only other bit of excitement we had was when a Marlin free jumped in front of us. Then instead of continuing on its way it turned and charged straight at us. It would have gone under the boat and seen our lures but there was no interest at all. Over the last few days there have been an increasing number of Blue and Striped Marlin off Sydney. There is still a lot of water between them but it is looking good for Sydney Game Fishing Club's Peter Goadby Memorial Tournament in a couple of weeks. Tight lines, Ivan

Game fishing at the very least is a very fickle game. So dependant on the weather, currents and lots of other things we can blame for not catching a fish. However if there is a shortage of fish there isn't much we can do except persevere. This season at Port Stephens has been exceptional, exceptional in the lack of fish. What is strange though is that the conditions at sea were similar to last year yet last year the fishing was fabulous. However it was not all in vain there were some reasonable days. My last couple of weeks up there were undoubtedly the best, the best of a bad lot. I am back in Sydney now and usually April and May produce some of the best fishing for Marlin, of the three species and the other summer pelagics as well. We don't usually get big numbers in autumn but we do get big fish. Blue Marlin over 200 kgs. and occasional ones over 300 kgs. have won the Sydney Game Fishing club's Peter Goadby Tournament nearly every year. Not to mention the yellowfin tuna around 70 kgs. encountered. What this autumn will produce is anyone's guess but we'll be out there hunting...

The fishing clinics we held over the last week surprisingly produced small Black Marlin. Not the fish you normally expect in 500 fathoms. The fishing at Port Stephens is really tough at present. Inshore the water is dirty green and cold. However, there is good bait in close so hopefully when the warm water moves in the Black Marlin and the others will follow. When you get out to 75 fathoms the water changes dramatically. The current increases from the North to nearly 4 knots and the colour changes to blue. There are Mutton birds hunting flying fish in this fast water. Occasionally you will see Mahi Mahi getting in on the action pushing the flying fish into the air so the Mutton birds can scoop them up as they land. It was while working these areas of activity that we raised three Black Marlin and a good sized Mahi Mahi during the Pakula Fishing clinics. On the first clinic we found a Black of around 65 kilo's which Samantha Guest, the only lady on board, fought well in quite rough conditions. It took a Brad'J' bullet on the shotgun, surprise , surprise. On the second clinic young Ethan Moses caught a good sized MahMahi which he handled like a pro. We then had a hit from a Black which took a good run only to fall off the hooks shortly afterward. A while later Sergio hooked up on what was one of the smallest Black Marlin I have seen. He brought it to the boat fairly quickly and it went crazy. It charged the boat and looked like coming aboard for a second. Unfortunately in a combination of rough sea and crazy Black, the tag pole tangled with the leader and broke it, so was lost at the boat. The video shows the scenario very well. In summary we raised three Black Marlin and a Dollie which I thought was pretty good in the conditions. Another local boat 'SECA' caught a 60 plus kilo Yellowfin and I did hear of a Wahoo capture. We did OK... Tight lines, Ivan