Pom seeks advice

[marky_g]

Hi everyone
First posting for me so forgive the fact this is probably appearing on the wrong topic page but I need some advice. #
I'm a mad keen UK freshwater angler, mostly fishing matches, which of course are carp dominated at the moment. #I'm hoping to get to Perth sometime in 2006 on a permanent residency visa. #Accordingly I realise my UK match fishing days are probably over. #I have two questions though............will any of my gear be of use in WA? (or anywhere else for that matter?) #When I say gear, I mean poles, waggler rods, seat boxes etc

I've read loads about carp having be killed etc etc which doesn't really cause me any problems but are there some exceptions? #As a UK matchangler I can't help that you Aussies are possibly missing out on some great sport by NOT fishing for and stocking carp!

Assuming I now get a deluge of answers saying 'Chuck all your match gear away'............what sort of fishing can I expect in the general Perth area? #I'm a bit of a girlie when it comes to bobbing up and down on a boat at sea but are there any alternatives to that in WA?

[BrianC]

Hi

I lived in Perth for years. My wife is from there.
Firstly, Carp are in plague proportions in many of our rivers and water catchments and out compete the native fish. By law, you have to kill all carp caught.
Secondly, WA rivers and dams have some OK trout but if you are going to live in Perth, I would suggest that you go beach and deep sea fishing. There are some serious monster ambers, Dhuies, Schnapper and kingies off Rottnest island. You have to travel some to get to some decent rivers and freshwater impoundments and the fishing can be patchy at best.
WA also has great fishing up North and down south. However, it can be bloody hot and it is goddamn windy 9 mths of the year.
If you don't get into OZ, try NZ. Unbelievable freshwater Trout action and great off shore fishing.

Good luck

Brian

[szopen]

I might be not the right person to answer as I do not live there and have no clue about WA fishing situation.

But.

From what I have seen during my trips to Australia and from what I read about on this site.

I think you will be able to use your gear. There are fish there that can be caught using matchfishing gear. Carp, gar, mullet, tilapia (perfect for that) and probably many others.
The simple thing is that with abundance of other let's say "better" fish not too many people target them and they would fall into bait or vermin categories.

Any gear that is used for carp fishing with proteine balls or simmilar way can be easily adapted to styles of fishing more popular there.

Another thing to remember is that it will probably be very difficult to get supply of such gear, baits, floats and rest as I would't think it is stocked by the tackle shops there.

But most important thing is that once you will move there and be able to go fishing for local species in water under much less fishing pressure than UK it will be difficult to go back to matchfishing and you will probably chuck all this stuff away anyway.

[marky_g]

Thanks guys
I guess I'll have to get rid of some of the 'lighter' gear I've got and if/when I start my angling career in WA try and meet up with a few locals to point me in the right direction. #Seems a real shame as my last tackle insurance estimate was around £20,000 or 45,000 or your aussie dollars. #Not that I'll get anything like that when I come to sell!

Does anyone know of an australian angler called Dave Wesson? #He was quite well known a few years ago in the UK match scene and was an editor of one of the bigger monthly magazines. #Just wondered when he returned to his homeland (about 4 years ago) if he still was into fishing.

Thanks again for the advice

[roz]

Hi Marky g,

You won't find too many carp fans in Australia, actually I'm betting that when you arrive you will be the only one.

I don't mean to sound too harsh.

Carp were introduced here for a special purpose, along similar lines to the introduction of cane toads, the latter for the control of cane beatles, and carp were suppose to keep some particular water ways/irrigation channels clear.

None have any natural enemies here, and have bred into plague proportions and spread many thousands of miles.

Carp now inhabit some large river systems in NSW and Queensland and are directly threatening the existance of our native fish species.

As for catching them..... I don't know if they exist in WA, but if you get the chance to fish the eastern states... the Namoi is just one example, you will catch thousands, many will be 6kg+ I think Brian C has mentioned also.

Hope this doesn't sound to grim or a bit like a lecture. I am certain you would be able to adapt your fishing methods on species here and maybe teach us a thing or two on light tackle fishing.

I know you will love Perth (it was my home town at one stage), the fishing options are endless in WA and the people are great!

Try getting yourself down to City Beach early in the morning for a nice whiting or a tailor, then take them home for breakfast! yummo!

All the Best for the New Year.

Cheers Roz

[bidkev]

Hi Marky.

I'm originally from Blackpool (10 yrs here now) and I took a few lessons from Ian Heaps way back on Stanley Park lake, Hinds dam and a few lancashire canals. Is he still doing the rounds?

Swing tipping was my favoured fishing method for carp and bream and Ian taught me to "lay on" but I never truly got the hang of it ;D

I'm sure your light gear will serve you well when fishing for whiting, dart, bream etc from the beaches or estuaries.

Keep in touch with this site and fire away as many questions as you can in order to familiarise yourself with Aussie fishing. Aussies are a sporting bunch and by and large their (fishing) ;D tackle is a lot more lighter and sportsmanlike than UK tackle so your gear may be well suited.

Mate, it's not too late to start thinking about a different location. Queensland fishing will serve your tackle well, both saltwater and freshwater and it's the place to be regarding jobs, growth, climate and a cracking bunch of fair-minded folk.

Good luck and pm me if you need more detailed info

[juicyfruit]

I'm assuming that you are also asking your question to ascertain whether it is worth your while to pay for your fishing gear to be shipped over.

If so, the only thing I can offer in the way of advice is this......a story first... (ha-ha!)

Thumps (partner) is a Trout and Blue Fin fisherman and decided to move from the (friggin too bloody cold) Tasmania to North Queensland (where women wear less).

After much research it was cheaper to buy all new equipment then it was to move it inter-state. Only thing that did come up was his fly rod as it had great sentimental value.

As for shipping it over from another country, I wouldn't know the cost, something that has to be research by you.....

So really.....I've written lots and answered nothing.....DAMN I'm good.....lol....pass me another drink!!!

Juicy

[fishingmal]

Hi Mark,

Im an ex very keen match angler from the Yorkshire, I moved to Brisbane just over a year ago.

The Brisbane match fishing is none existent, there is only a couple of us in Brisbane.

However in other states there is match fishing. I recently came back from the mildura masters (near Melbourne/Adelaide and met with a lot of match anglers (very good ones too.))

you can pick up the report
http://www.maggotdrowning.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=31020

you can also log onto the Australian federation of Coarse Angling.
http://www.fishing.org.au/home/

I think there is regular matches in Perth, however not sure on the number of pegs they fill.

You can also check out thier own website here..
http://www.users.bigpond.com/bedden/

Good luck with your move, and keep in touch..
Mal.

[mattooty]

What is matchfishing? pardon my ignorance, but hey, if i never ask, ill never know.
Matt

[ssab1]

stock carp,give us a go,the bloody things have reecked havoc over here costing us much of our native fisheries and heaps of dollars.better fish to catch here other than the introduced ones ,if caught destroy and dont consider moving them dead or alive. >:( >:( :-?

[frankj]

Hi Mark and welcome

I'm an ex Pom too. Came out here in 1981 and brought some tackle with me. A Billy Lane ledger rod (remember him) which I still use for whiting. All my floats etc. a few reels, mitchells, abu 506 etc.
I also brought my fly fishing outfit which I took out for the first time a few weeks ago. The first time in 25 years. However much to my dissapointment I found that the eyes in the hooks of the dry flies that I still had, had shrunk so much in 25 years that I couldn't get the leader through them. I could hardly see them. I never used to have trouble, but now they were so small I had to ask a young bloke to thread the line through the hooks for me. Time to go home I thought.

Basically Mark I don't use much of it it just takes up space. Mostly not suited to the salt water either so the reels will probably suffer from corrosion.
I used to have the same feelings about carp, but it wears off after a while.
If you think that is hard to take wait till the ashes start next year.

Kev - Ian Heaps brings back a few memories I remember him from way back.

Good luck Mark, from what I know of WA there is some great offshore fishing to be had, enjoy it.

Cheers
Frank

[szopen]

Mattooty,

Matchfishing in simple terms would be fishing in competitions, where you draw a peg (place) and than you fish for a fixed amount of time, at the end wish are weighted/counted/measured (depending on the comp) and the winners are anounced.
Methods used would range from a simple loooong pole type rod (no reel, line tied to the end and than the rig with small float, weight and baited hook) to quite sophisticated rigs and setups. All is also known as coarse angling.

ssab1,

He wrote that he has no problem with killing the carp as required.
Have a look at the firs link in fishingmal post and see how much carp has been removed from water during their last comp.

[marky_g]

ssab1
Sorry if I didn't make myself clear.............I've always believed 'when in Rome etc' and will practise it when/if I get to Oz.
Don't you have any recipes for carp though? #I had some a few years ago in France and, allowing for the fact it was cooked by a frenchman, it tasted pretty good. #Seems a waste not to try it! #What's the #reasoning behind not moving the dead ones? #(Sorry if that's a silly question!)

frankj
Can I take it there's no need for 0.055 and size 26 hooks then? #Now, why go and mention the ashes when I was getting so much help from the natives!

Mattooty
In addition to the post by szopen; when you're catching your fish they go into a keepnet (basically a fish retaining net) and then after your catch is weighed the fish go back in the water to be caught another day. #We are quite big on educating anglers to respect their catch so a lot of commercial fisheries insist of limits per keepnet. #My best UK match weight is 200lb of smallish carp that went into four keepnets during the five hour match. #
Our tackle is usually quite light in comparison to normal fishing. #The heavist line I'll use is 5lb and the lightest will break at 7 ounces! #The smallest hooks I have, which were handmade in Italy are a size 34 and actually measure 3mm long!!
I guess I'll be ebaying a lot of the 'lighter' stuff but will be bringing a couple of older poles (no not natives of Poland!) to give it a go on the rivers inland.

Once again.....................quite an over whelming response.........Cheers

[szopen]

0.055 and size 26 hooks ::)
This bring a few memories.

Might be usefull for catching bait.

[Panda]

You will have plenty of opportunity to apply your carp fishing skills and techniques on other better table fish. Eg: bream and whiting in the salt water. I often float fish for bream and sometimes clean up around the snags when anglers using more traditional methods with large sinker go home empty handed. Its only a few years back when anyone using a fly rod on salt water would have been laughed at.

If thats the style of fishing you are comfortable with, you will still catch fish in Aus but you may have to adapt your technique a bit to sute other species.

Carp can be caught in large numbers in certain areas of our inland river systems. As you must have figured out by now they are a major pest and regarded as vermin. We usually use a 6/0 hook and a slab of beef or mutton. On occasions they have been known to take small dogs and children. :-)

[ssab1]

panda. 6/0 and slab beef or mutton not wrong ive seen them out west 3 foot long.and im not joking.

[NEWBY]

Marky,
If ya going to WA go to a site called www.fishingwa.com
It is owned by a couple of mates of mine Steve and Harry. They also host a TV show by the same name. You might also like to get a copy of their magazine before you come over. It is a good one.

NEWBY

[skilly]

Hi mate,
I was posted on a military exercise September 1991 and all we did mainly was fish, like most of everyone said any gear used over there will work. I've never experienced fishing like WA, except in New Guinea so I reckon you'll catch heaps, good luck matey and happy fishin,


Regards Skilly.

[thumps]

marky

there is actually a huge...(but underground) carp following in Australia

most of the european immmigrants still practise alot of the skills that you have ..and use equipment similar but not the same as you would like to use, and have in your possesion.

i guess the problem is ...that carp are a noxious species here in Aus and have to be destroyed after capture...( alot arent...and are taken for the table)

no one will brag....or tell you they caught carp...when there are far more attractive fish to be caught

i remember certain anglers trying like hell to get hold of good quality match fishing gear here in Aus but failing to do so...or complaining of the price

alot of the techniques you use have great application both for Salt and Freshwater fishing.

i remember when i lived in NSW seeing fishers go at it every day in the local dams...and catching some monster Carp up around the 15 odd kilo mark.

seems that there are Carp in WA...there are also Trout so your gear and techniques have a place.

just remember to adjust slightly in the salt water dept.

cheers

[ssab1]

skilly i take it with all that spare time you werent a grunt on that exercise,ex armour myself.no time for fishing then. ;) ;) ;) cheers

[skilly]

No Mate ex-RAAF comms, didn't give a shit who shot who just wanted to go fishin. Even tried a bit of bread on a hook and hooked up a decent size parrot fish.
All the luck matey ;D


Skilly

[banshee]

"What's the reasoning in not moving the dead ones?"

I'm not sure,but I've also heard that dead carp should be buried above the banks of the dam or river in case crows or other vermin transport the carcas/eggs to another waterway,unless carp bear their young alive I think it would be very unlikely that the fish would reproduce through this scenario.I remember reading a number of years back that some blokes stoped into the rangers office at New England Tablelands dam for some advice on the cod,the ranger followed them out to the ute after talking to them for a while and noticed a large container sloping water every where,when he asked what was in there they laughed and said the best cod bait you can have,they had bought about thirty small carp with them from Tamworth into a carp free dam and couldn't work out why they were sudenly on the most wanted list.

[thumps]

well they somehow flew over Bass Strait and ended up in the best Trophy Trout water in Tassie a fair while ago.

some clever clog decided they were good bait for 10 kilo odd brown trout and went to the trouble of getting them released into the Lake.



there are some real d*#$kheads about

[johnnytheone]

Marky,
Welcome aboard. Mercifully we don't seem to have an issue with carp in WA , ie we dont get 'em. Our record in Oz with introduced species is not good, whether furred, finned or feathered; carp are just another feral creature that cause big problems.
There are trout in some areas of the southwest, but I don't think they're all that prolific, but I don't really chase them. Redfin perch are a pest in some waterways, but more 'cause of their predation of native species than habitat destruction. At least they're ok to eat. They must not be returned to the water. You also need a licence to fish freshwater.
We've got a huge coastline here, so as long as you're on or near the coast somewhere in WA, you've got fishing opportunities, be it boat, beach or estuary. There are enough tackle stores throughout the state to get general and regional advice for pretty much all types of fishing - so have a yarn to the guys in the shops.
There are also plenty of fishing clubs.
Naturally you will be given heaps of (friendly) bullshit as a Pom.
Have fun. Cheers, John