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A rollicking 21kg Samson fish was enough to claim top prize – and a staggering $24,000 worth of prizes – at last weekend’s Esperance Archipelago Offshore Angling Classic.
Despite the gnarly south coast conditions that met the 250 participating entrants and 70 boats, some great fishing was still to be had, showcasing what this spectacular part of the state has to offer.
A solid local crowd gathered to watch the famous shotgun start out of the harbour. Check out the action in the video below!
The barrage of boats set out on Sunday at 6:30am and returned to the clubrooms at 4pm, where 156 fish were weighed in and recorded, including a 2.85kg nannygai, 12.75kg gummy shark, 5.12kg queen snapper and many other abundant southern species.
This one-day competition draws fishers from across the State to Esperance every year, and Recfishwest’s Research & Development Lead, Sam Bock – who grew up in the town – said this competition has long been widely regarded as one of WA’s best.
“Once again, we saw many great species caught and this massive turn-out despite the conditions underpins the importance of fishing to the South Coast community.
“Given the community concerns over the past few years regarding the Government’s South Coast Marine Park plans, it was great to see them getting out and thoroughly enjoying a lot of cherished fishing spots they fought hard to protect from lockouts,” said Sam.
Not only did the 21.05kg Samsonfish caught by Campbell Warner load up the scales – it also loaded up the lucky lad’s bank balance, with the fisher taking home an eye-watering $24,000 worth of prizes for the heaviest fish landed during the comp, which included a $2,000 Garmin sounder package!
All anglers who weighed fish in were also in the running for a random draw prize for 14 different species, with rod and reel combos or sunglasses up for grabs by weighing in captures of pink snapper, sweep, King George whiting, harlequin, breaksea cod and many others.
Fishing tournaments like the Classic play a major role in the recreational fishing community calendar for thousands of West Aussies, providing great social and economic benefits to regional towns.
For many fishers, local competitions like this are annual must-attend events and they show how fishing clubs and comps are the fabric of coastal communities.
Thanks to the Esperance Deep Sea Angling Club and their president Corrina Worth for hosting another great competition – check out the results from the comp below!
If you want an example of how important fishing is to the south coast – look no further than Esperance and last weekend’s (March 10-12) sensational Esperance Deep Sea Angling Club’s (EDSAC) Esperance Archipelago Offshore Angling Classic.
With Samson fish tipping the scales at more than 22kg along with spectacular harlequin fish, snapper and breaksea cod — it’s no wonder more than 600 people came down to the weigh-in at Esperance’s biggest fishing comp and enjoyed a fantastic weekend of fishing and socialising!
There were 275 competing anglers on 83 boats taking part in the competition – making it one of the biggest boat fishing tournaments if not the biggest in WA.
The 30th edition of this great fishing competition proved not just to be one of the biggest community events of the year in Esperance, but also drew anglers from throughout the Great Southern and Goldfields regions.
It’s also something of a local spectacle as with competitors’ friends and family members turning out to watch the traditional competition boat ‘fleet’ running out of Esperance Bay.
And they’re off! Every year hundreds of spectators watch the competing boats cruise out of Esperance Bay to compete in the Esperance Archipelago Offshore Angling Classic.
The mixed bag of fish species off the south coast combined with impressive prizes for the biggest catches meant there was plenty of excitement on who would take out each prize category.
Tyson Tate’s 22.40kg Samson fish not only landed him more than $20,000 in total for the heaviest fish caught and largest Samson fish overall — but his name was also pulled out of a hat containing hundreds of other raffle contestants to win a Garmin sounder package worth more than $5,000!
See the full set of results from the Classic below.
The Esperance Classic came on the back of another firm fixture in the south coast fishing calendar — Southerners Sport Club Fishing Classic held in Hopetoun, which was celebrating its 29th edition earlier this month, with dozens of contestants landing various species to take home spectacular prizes.
The two tournaments once again highlighted how highly prized the fishing on offer on the south coast is by the people who live there and those who travel there to sample what’s on offer, with EDSAC President Corrina Worth perfectly summarising why these fishing experiences need to be safeguarded.
“We are just very privileged to be able to access some beautiful places and catch some great fish along the south coast with minimal effort. Looking after that opportunity and protecting it for future generations is very important,” said Corrina.
Recfishwest Operations Lead Matt Gillett, who was in Esperance for the comp and to talk to fishers about the Government’s proposed south coast marine park, said it was the biggest crowd he’s ever seen attending the event.
“You can’t fail to see what fishing means to this community and people in this part of the world when you attend an event like this – it’s fantastic to see how the comp brings the community together and generates such a positive and enthusiastic atmosphere.
“And that’s for anglers across the board of all ages and capabilities – that’s the power of fishing and it’s why fishing events and experiences like these must be able to continue – they’re central to the fabric of community life and regional West Aussies’ well-being.
“This is backed up by the recently published results of the National Recfishing Survey that shows fishing is highly important for improved wellbeing along with injections into our regional economies.
“These massive benefits from fishing must be dialed into marine park planning processes currently underway along the south coast because one of the purposes of parks is to maximise the benefits to the WA community from these special environments.
“Well done to all fishers who took part and made this year’s event another ripper edition of the Offshore Angling Classic and, of course, congratulations to EDSAC President Corrina Worth and her team for their hard work in hosting another cherished calendar fixture for the Esperance community.”
The south coast offers spectacular fish species that are accessible by land and boat, including this yellowtail kingfish caught by Chris Dixon near Albany (pictured left) and this nannygai landed by Jesse Smithson off Esperance.
With fishers now preparing for the 2023 GAMEX at Exmouth which kicks off from 17-25 March, the Pilbara region in WA’s north is also set to be injected with plenty of excitement and economic contributions from visitors. Stay tuned for our full GAMEX recap!
30th Esperance Archipelago Offshore Angling Classic – the full set of results
BREAKSEA 1st Boat 79 Shane Temple 2.822kg – 2nd Boat 99 Ryan Nelson 2.591kg
