One day to fish Cairns - 6 September 2012

[redsetta]

G'day all,
I've got a conference in Cairns this September and am looking for any advice re: teeing up one full day's fishing on Thursday 6 September.
Ideally, I'd like to chase light-medium game fish (eg sailfish, tuna, spanish mackerel, mahi mahi, wahoo, cobia etc).
Any pointers on good, affordable charters, contacts and/or spots to head for etc would be much appreciated...
Cheers, Justin

[wallacewt]

you talkin cairns,au, justin

[redsetta]

Yep.

[wallacewt]

great time to go
before the wet and heat.
the type of fishing your looking at is more sporting so
id contact cairns ansa rep or ansa australia (google) and team
up with the locals.
ive never fished cairns.some one on here maybe an ANSA member.

[redsetta]

Thanks Wallace, that's exactly the kind of info I'm looking for.
Cheers mate.

[wallacewt]

IF YOU HAVE ANY TROUBLE LET ME KNOW,i can do it for you 

[redsetta]

G'day all,
Just got back from a conference in Cairns, Australia, which allowed me a bit of time to chase fish.
I took a few photos of the city and surrounds, which might be of some interest.
Here's where I stayed - the local Novotel, about a block from the waterfront.



The view from the room.
I was surprised how mountainous the hinterland was - some peaks well over 1000m.



Being the tropics, the flora is spectacular - even in the city.
These trees throw down aerial roots, which then thicken into secondary 'trunks'.







There are thousands of fruitbats roosting in trees around the city - this is across the road from the hotel.





Here's the 'lagoon', in the centre of town.
It's not advised to swim in the estuaries/sea around here due to the rays, stone fish, bull sharks (among others), jellyfish, crocodiles etc - everything's out to get ya here



Here's a panning shot, looking back at the city from the marina.



The architecture in Cairns is spectacular - a few examples...











As Alan mentioned a few weeks back, the local game fishing club is part of the 'Cock and Bull' pub - a cracker spot, with great food, cold beer and friendly staff.









There's something awry in this pic (taxidermist humour I reckon ), see if you can spot it...



This is an absolute monster - a 1442lb Black Marlin (Makaira indica).

















A breakfast of champions...



Les at Fishing Cairns (http://www.fishingcairns.com.au/) lined me up with Darryl on 'Don't Know', and we headed up the Russell-Mulgrave twin-river system to chase queenfish, GTs, jacks etc...
We were joined by a retired couple, Mick and Wendy, who were driving around Australia, starting from their home in Tasmania.



There's a 3m crocodile that lives around the boat ramp, so it's advisable to keep your wits about you when launching.











It's proper steaming jungle around here.









Here's where the river system meets the ocean - the north and south heads.







We got hit by something big on the first cast, but it snapped the leader instantly.
Things looked promising, but it got real quiet for the rest of the day, aside from an eel...



...and a nice little mangrove jack for Mick - a great-eating fish by all accounts.



As the day drew to a close, we had one last crack with some live baits.
Out of the blue, the little Penn Slammer 460 started screaming and the 8kg mono suddenly seemed very light.
Wendy was the angler and took just over 30mins to get the 25kg+ (~55lbs) GT under control and aboard for photos.
He was returned to the river in fine form.









The next opportunity was out on the reefs, leaving from Port Douglas.
I hadn't wanted to do the 'party boat' thing, but the skipper I'd booked (on a boat much like 'Don't Know') got a stingray spine to the thigh trying to give some tourists a photo op.
The only other boat I was able to book was the 'Norseman', a 300-ton behemoth with about 30 anglers aboard.
Heading out to the Barrier Reef in the Coral Sea...









It was simple bottom fishing (heavy trace, single hook, running sinker, strike on bite etc), but the array of species was impressive.
One Spanish mackeral was taken on a live bait, while other species included golden and gold-spot trevally, cobia, amber jack, remora, coral trout, red emperor and even an octopus.



It wasn't my day, however, and all I managed was this bream, which I gave to a couple who'd caught nothing all day...



So, all in all a good trip, but disappointing to get no real fish after carting my gear all the way to Cairns and putting myself 'amongst it' in one of the world's great fishing destinations.
'Fishing not catching' as they say...  
Righto, hope that was of some interest.
All the best, Justin

[broadway]

Justin,
      I have to say that you guys are so lucky to have that paradise to fish in.  I thoroughly enjoyed your report, and although you didn't catch much there was much beauty to be seen.
      Those bats would have freaked me out being right across the street from the hotel... can you say ROOM SERVICE! Also, the snapper/sawfish is another species we don't have around here
     Glad to see you got out there fishing and site seeing in some of the most beautiful country.  Thanks for sharing your trip!
All the best,
Dom

[overtime]

Hi Justin,

What a shame I have only just joined this forum, I live in Townsville 4hrs south of Cairns and I would have taken ya out on my boat
or arranged something for ya, if your ever coming back this way send me PM
Cheers Shaun.

[redsetta]

Cheers Dom - glad you enjoyed the photos.

No worries Shaun, I'll be back for a GT and Spanish mack soon enough

[Irish Jigger]

Great report and pictures Justin,thanks for sharing.  You did well fishing somewhere new and catching different species,a nice end to your business trip.
Pick up any reels on your travels?
The bats reminded me of fishing for conger eels at the cave mouths in Cork. The locals used live bats (hand size approx) for bait as the caves were full of these creatures.

[Alto Mare]

Hello Justin, great report!
It's not  about quantity, most is about the experience of just being there. You didn't do too bad after all and it doesn't surprise me that you gave away your catch to that couple . Those trees with the secondary trunks are a cracker...as you would say , they could make a nice shelter without much effort,  but you need to watch out for those bats though, or their digested seeds from the fruit .
Thanks for taking us along, I always enjoy your report.
Cheers, Sal

[Nessie Hunter]

Great narrative and pics.  Thanks for the vicarious trip..  :-)

[Dominick]

      Those bats would have freaked me out being right across the street from the hotel... can you say ROOM SERVICE! Dom

How about that?  This from a guy that walks the streets of NY at night.  Hey Dom you've seen too many Dracula movies.     Justin, you know how to live.  Keep at it.  Good report. Got any recipes for bat tail soup?     Dominick

[redsetta]

The bats reminded me of fishing for conger eels at the cave mouths in Cork...

Sounds like an adventure Tom.
I used to work for the local newspaper The Cork Examiner, but never heard about bat-filled caves!
Will have to check it out next time I'm there
Cheers, Justin