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Pilbara fishers have received a fantastic boost for offshore fishing options following the installation of five Fish Aggregation Devices (FADs) off the Port Hedland coast.
The new FADs were anchored in position this week in waters 20 to 40 nautical miles off Port Hedland. Recfishwest initiated the project, working closely with the local fishing community and in partnership with BHP and maritime-service provider TAMS.
Representing the State’s 700,000 recfishers, Recfishwest pioneered WA’s State-wide FADs program and drew on that expertise to drive the exciting new initiative – a first for Port Hedland.
With BHP’s support, Recfishwest procured high quality “Okabe” FADs to deploy off Port Hedland. The FADs have been built and rigged to withstand big tides and swell and therefore do not need to be taken out of the water during the cyclone season.
Attached to each FAD is a small buoy that provides satellite tracking as well as collecting water temperature data, which will be shared with fishers to enhance their fishing success.
An example of what the five cutting edge “Okabe” FADs off the Port Hedland coast look like and the kind of fish they will help attract! Get out there and wet a line next to the devices for the chance to reel in billfish, wahoo, tuna and Spanish mackerel!
Through several stakeholder meetings with Recfishwest, North-West Spearfishing Club, Port Hedland Game Fishing Club and local fishers, it was made clear FADs were high on the wish-list to open up new fishing opportunities. They also advised Recfishwest on optimum locations for the FADs.
North-West Spearfishing Club’s Robbie Peck, who was instrumental in driving the FADs vision for Port Hedland, said, “It’s a great outcome which has created exciting new fishing opportunities for fast-growing, highly sustainable pelagic fish and distributing local fishing efforts across a wider area.
“The outdoor and fishing lifestyle is huge in Hedland – you’re not going to spend any time in the Pilbara without doing one or another. So we’re delighted that Recfishwest and BHP is supporting fishing in the region through initiatives like this that go a long way in adding to the attraction of living here and coming to visit.”
Cindy Dunham, BHP General Manager Port Operations said, “We’re proud to support the deployment of FADs in Port Hedland. We know how important fishing is to the Pilbara community and we hope the FADs will help bring plenty of great fishing days ahead.”
Recfishwest would also like to thank the TAMS group for their support in delivering this project.
Recfishwest’s FADs webpage has all the tips and info you need to know about fishing the FADs, along with their real-time coordinates and deployment status. Get out there and enjoy it!
Mackerel are just one of many pelagic species that will gather around the FADs, so get your lures in the water to find out what’s there! Photo credit: Marco Fraschetti @oceansdownunder.
Pilbara boat fishers off Dampier and Point Samson now have enhanced sportfishing options available to them, with four Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) deployed off the Pilbara towns for the first time in WA’s history.
The latest FADs deployments include one device approximately 40km (22 nautical miles) north, north-west off Point Samson in a depth of 37m, with the other three FADs deployed around 50km (27 nautical miles) north-west of Dampier in depths of 40-46m.
The devices have been deployed off Dampier to attract mainly black marlin, sailfish and wahoo, while the Point Samson FAD is expected to attract the same species for sportfishers with dolphinfish also a welcome possibility.
Vince Amico from Adventure Sports in Karratha said the deployment location of the three Dampier FADs – coordinated by Recfishwest and DPIRD – are bang on the money for attracting larger pelagic predators in the coming weeks.
“Given their depths and the water temperatures, I think they will fire up brilliantly for pelagics and both Recfishwest and DPIRD have done a great job on researching where to put them to the greatest benefit of the community,” said Vince.
“These FADs are on the way to most of the trolling or bottom bouncing spots for locals and are relatively close together, so they have the option of fishing all FADs within one session which will help them save on fuel.
“The best tip I can give to anglers heading out there is make sure you are courteous to others and don’t anchor up directly on the FADs. It’s a first in, best dressed scenario, so if you turn up to fish a FAD and it’s already quite busy, there are thankfully other FADs close by.”
It is another feather in the cap of the State-wide FADs program, which is being run by DPIRD in partnership with Recfishwest.
Marlin, sailfish and wahoo catches could be a common occurrence next to the four FADs recently deployed off Dampier and Point Samson in our State’s Pilbara region, with three devices in the drink off Dampier and one device positioned north of Point Samson. Photo credit: Marco Fraschetti.
“FADs being deployed off this northern stretch of the WA coast for the first time is a big win for the Dampier and Pilbara region fishing community and it’s going to be exciting to see how catches coming off these FADs compare to other parts of the State where the devices have been rolled out,” said Recfishwest Operations Lead Matt Gillett.
With the State Government committed to funding a full-time and State-wide FADs program for at least the next three years, Recfishwest is hoping to develop more new sustainable fishing opportunities like these that can provide great fishing opportunities and better value to the WA fishing community.
The newly deployed FADs could fire up quickly for attracting larger sportfish, making them a potential hotspot for competitors in King Bay Game Fishing Club’s Dampier Classic between 18-21 August. Right photo credit: Marco Fraschetti.
I have never really caught the marlin bug, but I do have an undoubted soft spot for sailfish as the billfish of the people, writes Western Angler’s Scott Coghlan in this week’s Scott’s Species.
Fish: Sailfish, Istiophorus platypterus
Eating: Three stars
ID: Long bill and large fan-like dorsal fin that looks like a sail. Blue colouration on body gives way to white underneath, with vertical blue stripes.
How good is this photo that Jim Bastow snapped of Josh Cheong hooked up to a sailfish off Exmouth!?
Considered to be possibly the fastest fish in the ocean, sailfish were believed to be capable of speeds to more than 100km/h.
However, recent studies found they were more likely to hit top speeds of around 60km/h.
Easily identified by their huge dorsal fin, they are just that little bit more accessible to the average angler than marlin as they quite often show up in shallow inshore waters, even though they do swim down to depths of around 350m.
Removing sailfish from the water for photos can cause damage to their organs and skeletal structure, use a ‘selfie stick’ for great photos, while keeping the fish in the water and minimizing the stress on the fish.
I have a fond recollection of catching my first sailie off Ningaloo while at anchor.
I had put a floating bait out and called it for a shark when line started peeling off the reel, only to watch a sailfish launch out behind the boat.
It almost spooled me but we were able to get it to the boat and I was able to tick off another angling first.
From memory we were only fishing in around 45m of water, but it is not uncommon for sails to venture in close to shore.
I have even caught one from the rocks near Steep Point while spinning for Spanish mackerel.
Sailfish have such a prominent dorsal fin. 📸 Peak Sportfishing
I had cast out a 100g metal and it was hit on the drop. When I saw the fish jump well out from the rocks I thought it was a Spaniard with a shark on its tail.
It was only when it kept jumping in that greyhounding fashion across the surface typical of sails that I realised what it was.
It took me to my last few metres of line but I was able to eventually bring it to the rocks, where I snapped the line to allow it to swim off.
I couldn’t bring myself to drop down the flying gaff, even though they are certainly edible.
I have caught a few sails, but never really targeted them and they’ve usually been an incidental capture.
We’ve often encountered them after seeing them greyhounding at the Mackerel Islands, usually in 15m or so of water.
I’ve also had them pop up next to the boat and we got a big one when that happened off Tantabiddi just as we were about to head in.
A bluewater roamer by nature, sailfish mainly feed on small baitfish and squid, and are often caught while trolling for marlin as they will take the same skirts being towed in the blue water.
However, sailfish will often show up in packs and that can make for some very exciting action as multiple fish are hooked.
The Broome Billfish Classic highlights the world-class sailfish fishery off the West Kimberley town, with Emi Campbell landing this sail at the 2021 comp.
Many sails are caught the same way as my first, on unweighted baits and I’ve hooked a few trolling surface lures such as stickbaits or poppers, which seem to excite them.
They are also often hooked on trolled bibbed minnows meant for other species like mackerel.
While sails are usually caught from Shark Bay north, there are definite hot spots for them.
Good numbers of sails are caught off Tantabiddi and Exmouth also has unique run of fish in the Gulf late each year.
The sails follow bait into the Gulf and offer great sportfishing action, as anglers look for working birds that indicate sails are onto some bait.
It can be mayhem when the fish are found!
Karratha also boats an excellent sailfish fishery out around where the ships anchor, while Broome is famous for its annual run of sails, where they turn up in huge numbers although they aren’t generally big fish.
This fishery is celebrated by the Broome Fishing Club’s annual Broome Billfish Classic.
Jade Relph with a sailfish during Broome Fishing Club’s 2020 Billfish Classic.
As mentioned earlier, we often see sails around the Mackerel Islands.
The most memorable sailfish capture I can remember at the Mackies was by former Australian cricketing legend, Merv Hughes, who cast a Halco Roosta popper into a school of working tuna and somehow hooked a sail!
He was very happy with himself then, and still is now.
Because they are very mobile, finding them can be tricky but working current lines in the blue water would be a good start, and they’ll often be found around bait.
Watch for them free jumping, or sometimes you will see them cruising with just their large ‘sail’ showing above the surface.
Casting at cruising sailfish is a very exciting angling experience, especially when they zero in on your offering.
Indeed, there is much to love about sails from my perspective.
They often show up when least expected, are a lot more manageable on traditional tackle than their bigger billfish cousins, are capable of thrilling aerobatics and boast an almost unmatched burst of speed, making them an ideal sportfishing opponent with a side helping of the spectacular.
It’s important not to take sailfish out of the water to take a photo. 📸 Peak Sportfishing
