South Oz Snapper

With all the internet specials on flights recently, it’s no wonder more West Aussies are venturing over the border for a holiday. Jeni Lerch from Broome headed south for a short break in search of some reel action and landed some big beauties off South Oz.

South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula is one of Australia’s premier fishing destinations and each holiday period thousands of keen anglers head for the hundreds of sandy bays, rocky outcrops and beautiful waters to catch a variety of table fish ranging from small gar up to large snapper and mulloway.

“Yorkes” as the locals call it, is only a short drive of approximately two hours from the bustling country city of Adelaide. The roads are good and mostly bitumen, with a few dirt tracks leading to productive fishing coastline and some great surf breaks for those keen to ride the waves.

My destination for this trip was a small community called The Pines 9km from Corny Point, where the north facing beach with it’s shallow water line becomes littered with tractors and boat trailers from all the holiday cottages and houses each day. The waters off there in the Spencer Gulf, is well known for its large King George whiting, which have superb eating qualities and are firm fighters on light gear. I’d never wet a line in South Oz and had never caught a big red snapper, so I was looking forward to some fiery action.

The fishing grounds for both the snapper and whiting aren’t far from the boat ramp and I was heading out with Dave Cole and Brenton Peek, (better known as “Herb”), a couple of friends from the area who had successfully landed several snapper in the twenty pound range the previous week. Herb’s boat is a Sportscraft "fish hunter" with the appropriate call sign of “Snapper Runner.” The temperature was cool for summer, but the fishing was hot and we were keen to get out for more snapper.

I’ve always believed that the best time for the good snapper bite is well before dawn. I remember many mornings on the south coast of NSW from my teenage years, scrambling down cliffs and across passages in the dark to chase the early bite of the snapper and drummer off the rocks. It was only a short time after the sun was above the horizon that the fish stopped biting, so I presumed we had an early start ahead for the SA snapper. However, the sleepy little village with it’s laid back manner saw us, along with several others warming the tractor engine around 7am. The tide was low and we had to launch the boat where the water deepens some 500m from the shoreline.

The conditions had been quite rough in the bay over the previous weeks, however the day began with glassy, crystal clear water as we powered out to the “North-west lump.” We hadn’t sighted a vessel the whole trip out, but sure enough, when we arrived at the GPS mark, there was someone right in our spot. The reality is that “the spot” is a reef structure that covers an area probably big enough to hold twenty boats. The water looked promising though and we were sure there would be enough fish for both boats.

When I left my home-town of Broome I had to pack a bag for six months. With all the traveling that I do, it’s hard to take rods and tackle for every occasion. I then have the dilemma of not having all my preferred gear. My 10-weight Strudwick fly-rod is my closest companion, as I find it is the most versatile for my traveling. However, conditions do not always suit fly-fishing. On this particular day I was advised not to bring the fly-rod as it was unsuitable in a small boat and the prevailing winds were expected to make it difficult for the cast.

Shimano charter special reels spooled with 25lb braid were what Dave had prepared for us. I’d fished with Dave up in the Kimberley and had confidence in his gear and expertise. Braid has no stretch and makes it easier to feel the bites in the deep water. This combined with a fast taper 6"6 overhead rod made for a comfortable challenge against the expected snapper and rock structure. I always have the habit of tying a double and then attaching the swivel for a reef rig. The simple paternoster rig with 50lb mono made up of two suicide 4/0 hooks and a suitable lead to reach the sea floor quickly (5 ounce) was then attached to the swivel. We tied several of these paternoster rigs the previous night to save wasted rigging time during the fishing hours of the day. Fresh tommy ruffs cut in half are the optimal bait, bought from the local commercial fisherman and mashed pilchard for burley. We also had some fresh squid caught by Herb the previous day and kept some cockles for the whiting once the wind picked up and we had to move closer to shore.

No sooner had my lead touched the reef, than the bites began. Small snapper at first, then a few big runs. The excitement between anglers as to who is bringing up the better fish never ends. I felt a bit like a kid reaching in to a lucky dip with a friend. I landed a couple of small snapper, then Dave landed one medium sized snapper; just perfect for the pan that night. Herb stood quietly in the corner slipping a few in to the esky and releasing many more. This continued for a good half hour till I hooked up to the “big one”. The fight lasted a good whole three minutes (sarcasm, sarcasm) before the blighter cut me off without even a glimpse of its size. Then it was Herb’s turn. The big snapper were here, hooray! We retrieved all the other lines out of the water in case of a tangle and I stood poised with the camera as Dave prepared the landing net. Time was passing us by and I remarked on the invariable good weather conditions around us. It appeared that the calm seas and wind were here to stay for the day and this was the first of its type in months. The guys commented that I must have brought the good weather with me. Hooray!

Herb landed his beauty and after a few quick snaps we all dropped the baits again. The “big one” for me with that ugly bump on its head was not to happen, however I shouldn’t complain with many in the 5kilo range. In all we landed five decent size snapper, kept two for a feed along with a few surprise flat head around 2’ long. The ocean glassed off so well, that slimey mackeral and snook began chasing our baits as we retrieved our lines after the big snapper went off the bite. Now’s the time when I kicked myself for not bringing along the flyrod. However, we brought out the light outfits and a few lures for a bit of fun with the snook. The dinner had been caught, the photos had been taken, the pressure was off and the fun set in. The day continued to be calm and we headed in closer for the whiting.

We had 6ft fast taper rods for the whiting with the ever-faithful Shimano Calcutta 250’s spooled up with 6kilo mono. The rig we used was similar to the snapper reef rigs, but obviously lighter. We fished in depths of 12-15 meters. A long shank hook #4 from the Gamakatsu oceana series and 2ounce lead work best. The lower hook and trace should be longer than the remaining line to the lead so that it rests on the ocean floor where the whiting feed. The higher hook is to tempt the traveling whiting that pass by in schools. Our bait was fresh cockles and octopus. The main ingredient in this fishing expedition is what’s termed the “slop line”. This is a couple of octopus covering two 8/0 hooks attached to a piece of cord and hand line tied off to a bollard on the boat. This burley bait is used to attract the whiting in the surrounding areas. Look out though, there have been reports of bigger fish including white-pointers taking this line!

King George whiting in SA have a minimum length of 30cm and once you get a school around, look out. It’s just one after the next. Occasionally the leather jacket take your bait and small snapper tend to take a fancy to cockle as well. It’s all fishing though and better than being high and dry on the land.

That afternoon we caught enough whiting within an hour for the evening meal and headed home in good time to fillet the fish and sit down for a relaxing ale before dinner. Herb couldn’t believe our luck. Everyone in the village was remarking on the fantastic weather.

I then returned to the Pines two more times over the next fortnight and on both occasions the weather was absolutely perfect. I could almost guarantee though, if you took a film crew, it would blow up. Always the way. When you don’t have the cameras, the fish and conditions are perfect. Hopefully, me saying this will not jinx us, as we do plan to visit here with a camera crew soon. Once again we caught a terrific range of fish in size and species on both visits.

We prepared the car for the last trip back home, with a stop planned in the Barossa for a night. Now this is one place you shouldn’t miss. Everything is so close and handy in the Adelaide district, all within around a two-hour drive. It’s well worth the visit, especially now when the airfares are far more reasonable.

All the satisfied anglers sat around the bar-b-q on the last night of my visit, as Herb’s wife Wendy cooked up a storm and the fishing tales were told well in to the wee hours of the morning. Now that’s what I call a good holiday break!