New South Wales Fishing Trips

I've got 3 fishing trips to NSW recorded between 2000 and 2004.

15th July 2000, Montague Island

I did a long road trip from Melbourne, Lakes Enterance, Canberra, Southern Highlands, Sydney then back down to Narooma, Lakes Enterance again and then back home to Melbourne. We didn't make to fish but found a fishing/seal watching trip which took us to Montague Island when we were in Narooma. This was my first and only charterboat trip in Australia. On the Island, we saw New Zeland Fur Seals. Fishing produced Eastern Red Scorpionfish [#37], Maori Wrasse [#38], Blue Morwong [#39], many Mado [#40] and my one and only ever Crimson Banded Wrasse [#41] (a male as well), These were all beautifully coloured fish and all new species.



Eastern Red Scorpionfish - Scorpaena cardinalis #37


Maori Wrasse - Ophthalmolepis lineolata #38


Blue Morwong - Nemadactylus douglasii #39


Mado - Atypichthys strigatus #40


Maori Wrasse - Ophthalmolepis lineolata


Blue Morwong - Nemadactylus douglasii

15th April 2003, Port Stephens

This was mainly a sightseeing trip but managed a few hours of Rock and Beach fishing. The only fish I've got recorded for this trip was my first Blue or Slimy Mackerel [#43]. My father also caught a female Crimson-baneded Wrasse.


Blue Mackerel - Scomber australasicus #43


Blue Mackerel - Scomber australasicus


Female Crimson-banded Wrasse - Notolabrus gymnogenis

1st-3rd February 2004, Tathra

This was a 2 night fishing trip fishing several locations around the Tathra area. Fishing the surf beaches, I caught my first Sand Mullet [#44] as well as the usually Australian Salmon. In the nearby estuary I caught a Silver Biddy [#45]and a Tarwhine [#46], both new species as well. The following day, more Mullet and Salmon and at night, I had a bumper catch of a few dozen yellowtail scad [#47], several nice tailor and a single mackerel.



Sand Mullet - Myxus elongatus #44



Common Silver Belly - Gerres subfasciatus #45


Tarwhine - Rhabdosargus sarba #46



Sand Mullet - Myxus elongatus


Yellowtail Horse Mackerel - Trachurus novaezelandiae #47


Tailor - Pomatomus saltatrix


Blue Mackerel - Scomber australasicus

The Warmies, Newport, Melbourne

Im not sure when I first started fishing here, but I think it must be sometime in the late 1990's. The Warmies is the hotwater outlet of the Newport Powerstation. On very hot and very cold days, the Powerstation is switched on and warm water flows out. This is the best time to fish here.


Southern Black Bream - Acanthopagrus butcheri


Snapper - Pagrus auratus


Tailor - Pomatomus saltatrix #32

The main target species here was the Southern Black Bream, but I had an occassional Tailor or Silver Trevally. The best way to get Black Bream is the fish a small live crab and wait for a take. For Tailor or Trevally I found the best bait was pipis. This also caught a whole host of other species as well including Zebrafish, Weedfish, Blue Weed Whiting, Yellow-eye Mullet, Tasmanian Blennies, Pinky Snapper and Small Bream. At night, it is plagued with Soldierfish so you need to be careful not to get spiked as it has very venomous spines. I've heard of smaller Mulloway caught from here but I have never seen one.


Zebra Fish - Girella zebra


Common Weedfish - Heteroclinus perspicillatus #33


Soldierfish - Gymnapistes marmoratus


Tasmanian Blenny - Parablennius tasmanianus #34


Two species of introduced goby can be found in the area as well. They've probably both been introduced from Japan through the ballast water in container ships. The Chameleon Goby, called the Japanese Goby in Australia can change into several colour forms. I've seen them completely black, brownish with spots and white with a lengthwise black stripe. The second species is called the Yellowfin Goby. In Japan its is called Ma-Haze [マハゼ（真鯊）] and is a delicacy, usually eaten battered and fried. This is actually not caught at the Warmies but a location quite nearby.


Chameleon / Japanese Goby - Tridentiger trigonocephalus #35


Chameleon / Japanese Goby - Tridentiger trigonocephalus


Yellowfin Goby / Ma-Haze [マハゼ（真鯊）] - Acanthogobius flavimanus #36