14 Gimme 5
We were after an unbiased, expert and experienced-based list of 5 must-do, drive-there fishing trips to undertake in Queensland. Not surprisingly, we asked our long-time contributing writer and Boating Editor, Warren Steptoe, to shed some light.

24 The Dying Game
Is East Coast Rock Fishing In Decline? Starlo poses an interesting question; is rock-hopping a dying art along our south eastern seaboard? His answers might surprise you…

30 HARD versus SOFT -The Flathead Deliberation
Yes, the softy revolution sure did make a big impact on flathead fishing right around the country, and there’s no question that softies are incredibly effective. But how do other lure types like diving crankbaits, metal blades or even surface lures compare? Jamie Robley dishes some great advice on deciding whether to use soft plastics or hard-bodied lures when you’re targeting big flathead.

34 A-Z of Murray Cod
Steve Cooper presents his personal spin on Murray cod fishing according to the alphabet.

39 IFISH with Tackleworld Pictorial
We asked effervescent IFISH WITH TACKLE WORLD presenter, Paul Worstling, to give us a pictorial run-down of his last year of great fishing-television filming. Best job in the world? You be the judge!

44 Angling Adelaide
While Adelaide may not be located on tropical shores, it’s no different to any other fishing location in that you get out what you put in, and the rewards are still there for the taking. Shane Murton, An SA fisho based south of the city in the ‘burbs, tells why life isn’t all doom and gloom, and the rods aren’t sparingly-used wall ornaments.

52 Metre Mayhem On The Daly
No stranger to this great river, Leeann Payne tells how fast-trolling big lures down the centre of the Daly, and dodging the floating debris, proved a technique for catching whopper barra.

60 Darwin Bluewater Jigging Update
Although Darwin justifiably deserves the tag of Australia’s Barra Capital, some exciting bluewater jigging action is also on offer. Local jigging guru, Peter Zeroni, explains what it’s all about.

70 In Like Fin

77 Darwin 9 Hotspots

82 Better Bottom Fishing
Catching a feed for the table is the principal reason why many people go fishing, and drifting the offshore reefs for snapper, morwong, pearl perch and tuskfish, as well as flathead over the sand, is the traditional approach. It can be tough going sometimes in this day and age of increased fishing pressure, but there are a couple of techniques and strategies that make it more pleasurable and successful.  Glen Booth shares some tips to get these beauties on your dinner plate.

88 Spinning Secrets
Throwing and retrieving lures with a threadline reel – aka spinning – can lead to tangles and line under-wraps, whilst getting the retrieve rate for pelagics correct can lead to more rods bent. Andrew McGovern offers some great tips for improving your spin-cast fishing.

94 NAFA Good Gear Model
Townsville stunner Jana Peterson grew up fishing the reef with her dad, now a former Miss Indy and Miss Universe Australia finalist, we’re sure you’ll enjoy this colourful pictorial feature, shot at Silver Shoals, as much as she did.

109 NAFA on Boats
111 Honda Sea Jay boat test

114 Club BRP

118 Yellowfin Boat Test
Brett Delaney previews the all-new Yellowfin 6700 CC, a robust plate aluminium centre console that comes jam packed with standard features that has it biting at the bit for some hot offshore fishing action.
121 Lowrance Structure Scan

124 Yamaha

129 NAFA on Gamefishing

130 Australia’s Favorite Spreads
No, we’re not talking about Vegemite, peanut butter or jam, but rather bluewater trolling spreads. Glen Booth looks at four alternatives to catch every lure eating possibility from skipjack tuna right up to giant blue marlin.

134 Portland Bluefin Tuna
If the mind-blowing 2009 season is anything to go by, the rich, blue Southern Ocean waters off Portland Victoria have staked their claim as a world-class southern bluefin tuna fishery.  Following Jarrod Day’s lead could save you plenty of fuel and give you the best chance of hooking a monster of your own.

140 I Wanna Catch A…
The last in the series, Glen Booth provides the low-down on the basic approaches to catching two great gamefish.

140 Shark Mackerel
150 Barracuda

141 The Big Tease
Trolling teasers is becoming increasingly popular and there are a number of modern-day refinements that make the process even more efficient and exciting. Glen Booth tells how.

146 A Gem, Some Rocks & Bugatti
As Warren Steptoe explains, Nomad Sportfishing’s continuing exploration of the Coral Sea keeps turning up some of the best fishing on earth simply because it is exploring one of our planet’s last great oceanic wildernesses.

152 Skipping Tuna Rig
Outside of the Cairns mega-marlin scene, bait rigging was gradually becoming a forgotten art in many ports, but with good numbers of striped and black marlin showing up off the New South Wales coast in recent years, bringing the dead back to life is growing in popularity. Glen Booth shows how it’s done.

154 Way out West – A guide to fishing Shark Bay
Shark Bay is a meeting point of three climatic zones and its 2.2 million hectares was inscribed on the World Heritage list in 1991 for its natural heritage values. It is just one of 20 places on Earth to satisfy all four of the natural criteria for World Heritage listing.  Fishing Shark Bay, however, is all about two things: the tide and the wind, Ira Leitis Fehlberg fills us in.

158 Showdown at Currumbine

165 Sydney Reborn
As Starlo tells it, fishing in Sydney’s Big Four estuaries (the Hawkesbury, Sydney Harbour, Botany Bay and Port Hacking) is better today than at any time in living memory, and it only looks set to improve! We’ve woken up…perhaps in the nick of time.

170 Flyfishing Grandslam
NAFA Fly-fishing Editor, Peter Morse, outlines the challenges of different fly-fishing grand slams around the country - It’s a goal that will push your skills.

180 Gulf Giants
According to John Mondora, if you want to catch numbers of barramundi, you go to the Northern Territory but, if you want to catch a real true-blue giant, then you fish the Gulf of Carpentaria. Before being castrated by NT locals he tells us how.

184 Gone the Fish
Lex Silvester tells firsthand, how not far away, the vast Indian Ocean waters surrounding Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand have literally been plundered to death.

189 Pelagics on Softies
When it comes to catching pelagics, soft plastics are proving to be deadly but, as Al McGlashan points out, sometimes you have to think outside the circle to achieve success.

194 The Biter’s Bit
Arthur Stavrow gives us his rundown of fishing for Yellowbelly at the Yanko Weir, the mainstay species of the Murray-Darling Basin.

196 Tassie Bream
There’s still plenty of hardly-fished bream water in Tasmania, which may explain why the local fish stocks attack lures with so much aggression.  Brett Geddes, recounts five exciting days of discovery and landing over 150 bream.

200 Port Hedland
The big mining town of Port Hedland in WA’s Pilbarra region is blessed with outstanding offshore, inshore and-shorebased fisheries. From rock walls to shipping lanes, Ira Leitis Fehlberg gives us another great guide to fishing this fantastic region. 

 

204 Percy’s Pool
Fiction by Kim Courtenay

207 NAFA on 4WD and Camping

208 Sahara

214 Beach Launching

219 Bush Fridges

224 Prado

228 Good Gear

Arafura Fishing Charters    81
ARB    218
Aurora Kakadu    59, 64
Aus Govt Maratime Safety    86
Australian Monofil    43
Basser Millyard    13,161, 199
BH Marine    110
Black Pete    133, 143
Black Widow    222- 223
Blue Fin Boats    120
Bridge Toyota (east end)    2-3, 212-213
BRP - Cavell    108
Calypso Fishing Adventures    151
Carlo's Charters    74
Crocosaurus Cove    74
Daly River Barra Charters    64
Darwin Airport Resort    76
Darwins Barra Base    69
Darwin Barra Fishing Tours    55
Darwin Port Corporation    67
Darwin Reef n Wrecks    67
Dean Marine    151
DPIFM - Fisheries    65
Dunphy Sports – Shimano    Inside cover-1, 91, 139
Engel    221
Equinox Fishing Charters    79
Escape Sportfishing Lodge    64
Fishing and Outdoor World    73
Fishooka    188
Fosters    7
Frogley's Offshore    86, 163
Fuglies Sunglasses / Rainforest    206
Heritage Resort     157
Honda    113
Hot Shot Fishing Charters    151
Humbugs    79
JD Boatshed    127
Johnno's Camper Trailers    226
JM Gillies    9, 179, 193
L Wilson    29, 169
MV Boomerang Sport Fishing    206
Navico    123
Next Level Group    217
Northern Blue Charters    128
OMD Coopers    11
O'Mustard & Son    49, 92-93,205
Rapala     33, 145, 203
Reidy's    57
Reel Screamin Barra    74
Rod & Rifle    59
Silver shoals                                 105
Sportsfishing Boats Aus    164
Spotters    103
St Johns Ambulance    217
Swim Swim Swim    106
Tackleworld    38
Telwater    107
Territory Television    75
Territory Marine    117
Total Knife Care    227
Troppo Fishing Adventures    151
Waeco    232, Outside Back Cover
Western Angler    126
Whyalla Fishing Charters    49
Wilderness Island Safari Hols    178
Yamaha    22-23