NAFA Magazine - Contents
National Australian Fishing Annual #13
| 24 | DIRTY DOZEN | Steve Starling has fished all around Australia for a lot of different species. Here he nominates his 12 toughest Australian sportfish, in a list that is sure to provoke some lively debate. |
| 48 | CANIA DAM | David Green profiles one of his favourite impoundments, Queensland’s Cania Dam. All you need to know to catch fish at this great family location. |
| 80 | BUSMAN’S HOLIDAY | When legendary guide Dave Donald gets a bit of spare time, he likes to relax by going fishing. Ken Stien went along for the ride. |
| 102 | BEST OF THE WEST | Exmouth is the one of the most productive locations for fishos on the west coast, and home to Jeni Lerch. Here she runs through a few of the myriad options available in this angler’s paradise. |
| 179 | THE BOND | Fiction with Jackson Baraz. |
| 190 | GULF MAGIC | The remote and scenic Gulf of Carpentaria was the location for our annual NAFA Good Gear Model pictorial. |
| 347 | TRY THE TAG | Tagging fish is important for gathering information on our fish stocks. Brett Geddes explains what recreational anglers can do to get involved. |
| 351 | NEVER LET CLOWNS LOOK AFTER ELEPHANTS | Fiction with Denver Marchant. |
| 354 | FUSING WITH THE TEMPORAL | Fiction with Peter Hill. |
| 380 | BONES ON BAIT | The Florida Keys is an area world-renowned for flats bone fishing. Kim Bain sings the praises of this elusive fish, and looks at techniques for catching them on bait. |
| 383 | HARD BODIES | There’s currently a lot of fuss made about soft plastics, but hard-bodied lures are still a great option. Brett Geddes has a number of sneaky tricks up his sleeve when it comes to luring out his local bream and estuary perch. |
| 386 | EVOLUTION OF AN ANGLER | Steve Cooper talks about the intangible aspects of fishing that keep us coming back. |
| 388 | MORE THAN JUST A PRETTY FACE | Fishing is no longer the male-dominated sport that it once was. Leeann Payne examines the growing popularity of fishing among women. |
| 391 | THE PERFECT FISHING PARTNER | John Szymanski offers some tips to blokes looking to get their ‘other half’ interested in wetting a line. |
| 393 | GET FRESH | Dick Pasfield lifts the lid on some of the fabulous freshwater fishing available around Kununurra. |
| 397 | THE BARRA ALTERNATIVE | Ken Stien explains the attraction of the sometimes-overlooked sooty grunter. |
| 401 | SABAH | John Mondora takes a jaunt to the South China Sea. |
| 404 | AMAZON PEACOCKS | When the opportunity arose to take an Amazon fishing trip, Lynn Bain jumped at the chance. |
| 407 | COOKING WITH LYNN BAIN | A couple of delicious fish dishes from Lynn, inspired by her Amazon adventure. |
| 410 | CALAMARI & CHIPS | John Dalla-Rosa shares his squidding secrets, and explains how to whip up a tasty meal with your catch. |
| 414 | ROLLIN’ THE SHOALS | Carolyn Forrest takes a trip to Rowley Shoals, and finds some amazing fishing. |
| 418 | TIGER COUNTRY | Kim Bain visits Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe, and ticks one off her list of dream fish — the fearsome tigerfish. |
| 422 | ZIMBABWE’S LARGEMOUTH LUNKERS | While in Zimbabwe, Kim Bain also had a crack at the local largemouth bass. |
| 424 | THE DEVILS KITCHEN | Kim Courtenay travelled all the way from Broome to Tassie with a couple of sea kayaks on the roof. Here he fills us in on his Tasmanian experience. |
| 468 | GOOD GEAR | All the latest fishing gear and accessories. |
| 479 | BARRA BUSHMAN | Fiction with Phill Heitmann. |
| 32 | NAFA ON MULLOWAY | Articles |
| 33 | MULLOWAY METHODS | Bait vs lures — accomplished mulloway angler Phil Bennett explains the advantages of a flexible approach. |
| 38 | MULLOWAY SCIENCE | Dr Martin Auldist has a look at the habits and life cycle of this prized southern sportfish. |
| 42 | BRUTES FROM THE BIGHT | South Australia’s wild west is renowned as a destination to tangle with enormous mulloway in the surf. Steve Hunt looks at some of the techniques needed to hook and land these monsters. |
| 56 | NAFA ON COD | Articles |
| 58 | COD ON BAIT | Trolling and casting lures for Murray cod is growing in poularity, but there are still plenty of fish caught on bait. Steve Cooper runs us through the best baits and methods. |
| 62 | COD FACTS AND LEGENDS | Steve Cooper has done his fair share of cod fishing, and he shares some of the best outback stories, as well as a few facts, about this inland icon. |
| 64 | CASTING FOR COD | Andrew McGovern looks at targeting cod in shallow water, and turns a few commonly held misconceptions on their head. |
| 70 | SPINNERBAIT COD | Spinnerbait maestro Dave Hodge gives NAFA readers a masterclass in spinnerbait selection and technique. |
| 74 | TROLLING UP A LEGEND | Few anglers have hooked more big cod than Rod Mackenzie. In this article, he discusses trolling for the big ones. |
| 84 | NAFA ON SOFT PLASTICS | Articles |
| 86 | A-Z OF SOFT PLASTICS | Natalie Grima runs through the alphabet on softies. |
| 90 | SOUTHERN PLASTICS | Shane Murton has some exciting southern shallow water applications where soft plastics really shine. |
| 94 | REDS AND THE RUBBER REVOLUTION | Snapper on rubber tails is a real growth area. Lee Rayner gives NAFA readers some useful tips for chasing reds. |
| 98 | GETTING GRUBBY | The traditional soft plastic shad is not the only way to tempt a snapper or squire. Kim Bain has found they love a worm or grub as well. |
| 112 | NAFA ON JIGGING | Articles |
| 114 | ON TOP | Overhead reels for jigging. |
| 116 | IN A SPIN | Spinning reels for jigging. |
| 118 | JIGGING RODS | Kim Bain runs through the process of choosing a suitable rod for jigging. |
| 122 | FROM IRONS TO BLADES | Kim Bain takes a trip back in time, and looks at the historical development of jigging in Australia, with a bit of help from Dave Donald and Alex Julius. |
| 128 | RIGGING FOR JIGGING | Part of the recent development in jigging techniques is in rigging the lures — Kim Bain examines the tackle involved. |
| 130 | VANUATU JIGGY-JIG | Glen Booth reports on the Shimano Tackle Expo, held in Vanuatu with an emphasis on all the latest jigging gear. |
| 136 | LONG JERK RETRIEVES AND CENTRE BALANCE LURES | Long jigs come in many styles, of which the centre-balance long jigs are arguably the most refined in design. Kim Bain details some common techniques for working this style of lure. |
| 140 | SPIRAL JIGGING | The finer points of technique explained — Kim goes fishing with Japanese TV presenter Mr Kubo. |
| 144 | DEEP RELEASE | Once you’ve pulled them up, it’s important to be able to get them back down there again. Release weights and their operation explained. |
| 146 | SONAR LURING | Reading your sounder is very important when deep jigging. With the help of screenshots, Kim Bain explains some common scenarios. |
| 148 | BOAT HANDLING | Getting the drift right is the key to successful jigging presentations. |
| 149 | HEAVY METAL | When you’re jigging, you’ve got to have the right gear — a pictorial look at some of the customised accessories that go with the modern jigging scene. |
| 152 | ISLAND KINGS | Lee Rayner loves catching kingies around Montague Island, and he is happy to report that they’re back in good numbers. |
| 156 | JIGGING FREO | Western Australia has some of the best deep jigging the country has to offer. Kim Bain gets her arms stretched by some big fish. |
| 159 | VERTICAL FISHING | Dave Donald has been fishing the tropics for years, and loves nothing more than jigging up monsters from the deep. Here he shares some of the best ways to maximise your chances in northern waters. |
| 163 | SAMBOS | Kim Bain heads out with Al Bevan to target some of the masses of spawning samsonfish off the west coast. |
| 176 | NAFA ON BILLFISH | Articles |
| 176 | CAIRNS BLACK MARLIN | John Mondora on the last Cairns black marlin season. |
| 184 | SMALL BOAT SWITCH BAITING | Alastair McGlashan has got targeting marlin from a small boat down to a fine art. This is a must-read if you want to chase billfish without spending the big bucks on a game boat. |
| 206 | NAFA ON 4WD & CAMPING | Articles |
| 208 | LANDCRUISER DREAMING | When Dick Eussen got handed the keys to AJ’s new Sahara, he didn’t have to be asked twice! |
| 218 | TOYOTA DOWN UNDER | Toyota has a lot of history in Australia, and Dick Eussen takes a look back at the old days. |
| 222 | 4WD FAMILY | Wayne Kampe’s invaluable advice about preparing for safe and fun family offroading. |
| 229 | A-Z OF 4WD | Bits and pieces, as Dick Eussen runs through the 4WD alphabet. |
| 234 | HAVE BOAT — WILL BUSH BASH | Ken Stien has plenty of experience in travelling off the beaten track. He discusses the pros and cons of different ways to take a boat with you to remote areas. |
| 240 | FRASEOLOGY | Pictorial by Alex Julius from the 2006 Toyota Fraser Island Fishing Expo. |
| 252 | NAFA ON JACKS | Articles |
| 252 | GOLD COAST JACKS | Jack luring master David Green shares the wealth, with his handy guide to the Gold Coast jack fishery. |
| 256 | DEEP JACKS | By thinking laterally, Nigel Webster discovers some excellent fishing in a heavily pressured fishery. |
| 260 | NAFA ON THE NT | Articles |
| 264 | THE DRY | Dry season options in the Top End. |
| 266 | THE BUILD UP | This is a hot and oppressive time of the year, but the compensation comes in the form of some dynamite fishing! |
| 268 | THE WET | When the rain starts to pour down in the Territory, there’s still plenty of spots to wet a line. |
| 270 | THE RUN-OFF | The legendary run-off time can produce ‘fish-a-cast’ action for those in the right place at the right time. |
| 272 | STARTING FROM DARWIN | Not only is Darwin a vibrant, cosmopolitan city, it offers a myriad of top fishing options very close to town. |
| 274 | BACKYARD BARRA | Darwin Harbour regular Roger Sinclair has found some excellent barra fishing in his own backyard. |
| 280 | MACK ATTACK | The annual Spanish mackerel run is eagerly anticipated by NT anglers, who target these prized sportfish with a variety of techniques. |
| 282 | DELICIOUS DUNDEE | Dundee Beach, near Darwin, offers everything from land-based fishing for barra and pelagics, to bottom bouncing for jewies and golden snapper. |
| 284 | TERRITORY TACKLE | Chris Errity gives us the skinny on the sort of tackle needed for NT fishing. If you’re planning a big trip you must read this. |
| 288 | BATHURST & MELVILLE | These islands close to the Territory coast are famous for their pelagic and reef fishing. |
| 290 | MAKE MINE MARY | The Mary River system reliably produces some of the best barra catches every year. |
| 292 | KRACKING KAKADU | The famous Kakadu National Park offers sensational billabong fishing, as well as some of the Top End’s best barra rivers. |
| 296 | DALY RUN-OFF SECRETS | Barra bandit Chris Errity shares his wealth of knowledge about fishing the iconic Daly river during the run-off. |
| 300 | CLASSIC SILVER | The 2006 Barra Classic was the 25th anniversary of this famous fishing tournament. Chris Errity went along to check it out. |
| 310 | GO GURIG | The remote waters around the Cobourg peninsula are home to breathtaking scenery and exciting fishing. |
| 312 | KATHERINE TO THE ‘LOO | The river systems from Katherine to Borroloola are often passed by as travellers head for Darwin, but can turn on some great fishing for those who take the time to explore. |
| 316 | NHULUNBUY — A SPORTFISHING PARADISE | Chris Errity heads off to Nhulunbuy with a few friends, to sample the piscatorial delights of the region. |
| 323 | AFTER MONICA | Cyclone Monica was the most powerful tropical storm to ever hit the Top End. Steve Starling was booked to fly into the remote Arnhemland Barramundi Nature Lodge immediately after the storm passed by. Luckily the Lodge survived, but Starlo was amazed at the destruction wrought by this huge storm. He also got in some fishing of course! |
| 332 | NAFA ON WHITING | Articles |
| 333 | VICTORIA & KING GEORGE | Martin Auldist likes nothing more than catching a feed of these tasty fish. Here he provides a guide to tackle, location and technique for chasing Victorian whiting. |
| 337 | WHITING SCIENCE | The life cycle and breeding habits of the popular whiting, with Dr Martin Auldist. |
| 340 | SA ROYALTY | Shane Murton is lucky enough to live in SA, the heartland for big King George whiting. Here are his insights into fishing the whiting capital of Australia. |
| 343 | QUEENSLAND WHITING | Whiting aren’t just for southerners — Leeann Payne shares some sunshine state whiting secrets. |
| 358 | NAFA ON FLY | Articles |
| 359 | ESTUARY FLY ESSENTIALS | Estuary fly fan Micah Adams runs through the essential tackle you need to get amongst it. |
| 363 | FLYING SOUTH OF THE BORDER | Rod Booker explains how to tie and fish a couple of killer southern estuary fly patterns. |
| 366 | BARRA ON FLY | The impoundment barra phenomenon continues to grow, but it’s not all baitcasters and braid. Wayne Kampe has been successfully targeting these bathtub bruisers on fly. |
| 371 | SOUTH ISLAND SOJOURN | When it comes to stream fishing for trout, few places are as productive as New Zealand’s South Island. As Alistair McGlashan found out, it’s also incredibly beautiful. |
| 374 | CHRISTMAS ISLAND SPECIAL | Keith Collicoat travels to a bonefishing paradise, to stalk them on the flats with fly gear. |
| 427 | NAFA ON BOATS | Articles |
| 432 | UP THE CREEK WITH A PADDLE | Ashley Barber sings the praises of a canoe for getting into those hard-to-reach places. |
| 436 | ESTUARY ‘YAK FISHING | Brett Geddes goes through setting up a kayak for estuary fishing, and the opportunities it opens up to the stealthy angler. |
| 439 | OIL CHECK | Maintaining your outboard with Dan Power. |
| 440 | OUTBOARD CLEANING TIPS | Regular maintenance is the key to trouble-free boating, and part of that is making sure that your motor is properly cleaned. |
| 444 | TIN BATH TUBS | Ken Stien examines some of the smaller options available, and the pros and cons of a smaller boat. |
| 448 | ETEC 2006 | Alex Julius went to the ETEC media launch on the Gold Coast, and learnt a lot about the new generation 2-strokes. |
| 464 | BOAT TEST - XM550TC FROM GS MARINE | Chris Errity has a look at one of the versatile models available from GS Marine. |
Bait vs lures — accomplished mulloway angler Phil Bennett explains the advantages of a flexible approach.
Kim Bain heads out with Al Bevan to target some of the masses of spawning samsonfish off the west coast.
When Dick Eussen got handed the keys to AJ’s new Sahara, he didn’t have to be asked twice!
Jack luring master David Green shares the wealth, with his handy guide to the Gold Coast jack fishery.
The 2006 Barra Classic was the 25th anniversary of this famous fishing tournament. Chris Errity went along to check it out.
Alex Julius went to the ETEC media launch on the Gold Coast, and learnt a lot about the new generation 2-strokes.