Top class fishing along north coast

LOCAL anglers have been basking in the sun recently, enjoying their favourite pastime.

The weather and surf conditions this week have been awesome, which has resulted in phenomenal catches from deep sea to rock and surf.

The offshore scene has been active with the arrival of couta and the everpresent tuna.

Once again the northern territories have been producing the bulk of the summer pelagics, as expected.

Dorado and tuna have been the main fish on the menu, with couta being a delicacy.

Live bait has been the secret recipe this week for these beautiful specimens.

But if using lipped lures, make sure they are purple or pink as these colours seem to be the favourite among the fish.

The rock and surf guys need to get some strength and muscle bulking sessions in at their nearest gym, as the fish along the north coast are huge and strong.

The Diamond Rays and Sand Sharks that have been coming out have been tipping the scales.

For this reason make sure that you have a heavier rod, thick line and bigger hooks to land these monsters.

Full metal traces with a 9/0 Mustad tuna circle hook will get the job done. There have been smaller Brown Skates in the area for the youngsters to catch. When targeting these species, use a lighter rod (around 5oz) and a mackerel cutlet bait or a red eye sardine head with cutlets wrapped around it.

Browns do get big (over 20kg), but are awesome to fight on light tackle and are very manageable for even the smallest future angler.