After checking the weather on several different weather sites, three of which were pretty well corresponding, however one, incidentally the BOM, showed the worst case scenario, I decided to see what the conditions were like in the morning before making a final decision. As it happened surprisingly, conditions looked perfect in the morning, there was no wind at all. At present there is a warmish current with twenty degree water pushing down the coast between ‘Twelve Mile’ and ‘Browns’ covering the shelf were bait generally accumulates. Ideal for an early season Marlin . There had also been word of Yellowfin tuna on the edge of this current but further North. So, we headed out in great almost Summery conditions. We put the spread out near the ‘Twelve Mile’ and headed towards ‘Browns’. On the way inside the shelf there was huge amounts of bait but not very densely packed. I did mark a couple of fish and worked the area for a while to no avail so continued on to ‘Browns’ looking for the cooler edge of the current where I hoped we might find the Yellowfin. However by then the North Westerly was beginning to puff so I decided to move back to the warmer water and then head North to get a better run home . Then, in about two hundred and fifty fathoms a Marlin came up and hit the short corner (Black Betty), missing the lure and surprisingly didn’t come back to hit any of the other lures which Striped Marlin usually do. I worked the area for a while but nothing happened so continued back on course. Back in the warmer water I found some birds working and to my surprise they were on Mahi Mahi, not something you usually find at this time of year. After a couple of passes with hits from smallish fish we got a solid strike on the shotgun and old ‘Brad’ was into a more decent fish. This turned out to be a good six kilo’s of good eating Mahi Mahi. By that stage the wind had come away blowing around fifteen knots, not something that would worry me, but I got word from Scotty Torrington ‘Freedom’ of twenty-five to thirty knots of Westerly heading out way. In light of the fact that a couple of guys on board were quite seasick they decided enough was enough, so the course was set for home. It had been an interesting day and with that warmer water moving down and the build up of bait on the shelf area we could be in for an interesting Spring. More reports of Marlin sighting and Yellowfin are coming in as well as Kings on the offshore reefs, it could make for an interesting times. Tight Lines, Ivan

There are two types of day out at sea, the good days and the not so good days. Well, Friday was one of those not so good days. Though the weather was perfect and the sea as flat as a pancake and the clients, Richard, his son and father more than keen the fishing was less than perfect. The guys were keen to catch a Marlin or a Yellowfin. Though getting late in the season for a Marlin still a possibility and with the Yellowfin due to turn up at any stage there was a degree of expectation. The water has cooled down considerably in the last week or so, the best I found was 22.7C in eight hundred fathoms. There were some interesting current lines but hardly any bait or bird activity and the current was going South at a rate of knots. Nonetheless we continued out. I decided to put out a light line to see what else might be around, and we ended up catching the occasional Skipjack and Mackerel tuna as well as a just legal Mahi Mahi in the middle of nowhere, keeping the clients busy and motivated. Then, out of the blue the ‘Shotgun’ took a hit and a beautiful Mahi Mahi burst out. It was a nice fish around the fifteen kilo mark, sadly the video doesn't do it any justice. Richard took the rod and gave it all he could. Sadly, when we had the fish close by, excitement at the sight of the fish all lit up got the better of him and didn’t maintain the pressure consequently the fish threw the hooks; disappointment all round. But that’s fishing. We neither saw nor heard of any other action and it was time to head back. A friend of mine had been out the previous day and seen Pilot Whales and lots of Sauries in a thousand fathoms but we didn’t see anything like it. I suppose that that action has moved further South with the current. Hopefully it is not the end of the Marlin season yet and those enigmatic Yellowfin will turn up soon. Tight lines, Ivan

Last weekend, coinciding with The Port Hacking 100 Tournament was an interesting if not frustrating couple of days to go fishing. Though it did have its highlights the fishing was disappointing when compared to the last few weeks with Striped Marlin. The Saturday was very quiet, a few Striped Marlin tagged and as many lost, Stripies being what they are. Undoubtably the most outstanding catch of the tournament was by a junior, Hunter Davies, fishing on ‘Tantrum’, who spent seven hours on a Blue Marlin which later weighed one hundred and seventy four point five kilo’s. Sunday was just as quiet but there were more encounters with big Blue Marlin, fish in the three hundred kilo range. Hopefully a sign of things to come. Sadly, there were no reports of Yellowfin tuna. The unluckiest boat of the tournament would have had to be Rob Molnar, ‘On Call’. They fished solidly for two days for virtually nothing but then just after the end of fishing hooked and tagged three Striped Marlin. I went out on Saturday taking Thomas Criniti and his family out to celebrate his father’s sixtieth birthday. The weather was pretty average to start with but soon calmed down. It was decided that Micky, Thomas’ sister would be first up. Sadly, listening to the tournament scheds with seventy two boats almost all calling zero’s didn’t inspire confidence. Then, just after the high tide the sounder beeped marking a couple of fish twenty fathoms down. I turned back on them and only a few minutes later there was a fish coming up behind Brad and yet another on Black Betty at the short corner. Black Betty hooked up and young Micky took the rod, the excitement on board was unbelievable. She did a great job on a very stubborn Striped Marlin which was eventually brought to boat and released. We saw nothing else for the rest of the day but in general it had been a good fun day and happy to have been among the few who caught fish. If the water stays as warm and the currents play the game hopefully the Blues will show up and maybe even the Yellowfin will show up too. Tight lines, Ivan