15-04-2011, 10:07 AM
Hi there all.
Ok, I've just joined the forum so I thought an introduction might be in order.
Name's Bill Allen & I live in Werribee which is a bayside suburb within Melbourne Australia.
I have been fishing all my life but have until recently only seen squid as an occasional source of bait & food.
I fish for snapper a lot (amongst other species) & Calamari is a prime bait source for these wonderful fish.
However, the snapper certainly dont get all the calamari as I'm also keen on a nicew feed every now & then.
The main species of squid we get here are Southern Calamari, Arrow Squid, & 'Bottley Squid'.
The Arrow squid are usually caught offshore (outside of Port Phillip Bay) and usually grow to about 1-2kg.
They are a very agressive species & are really prone to attacking baits/jigs.
The 'Bottley Squid' are much smaller & only grow to a couple of hundred grams at most.
They're usually caught by either netting or with Sabiki jigs, & make great live bait.
By far the Calamari are the most sought after though. Most are around 1/2 to 1 kg but it's not unusual to catch em around 2-4kg with a 'big un' up to 5kg occasionally heard of being caught.
I also fish down the coast at a town called 'Portland' which is the captial of Southern Bluefiin Tuna recreational fishing.
This time of the year the SBT start heading in from the southern ocean & it's great sport fishing with fish regularly taken over the 100kg mark.
Portland during summer is also a mecca for Yellowtail Kingfish anglers with live squid being the #1 bait of choice.
There is a fair sized professional squid fishing industry based in Portland so the area is quite rich with squid.
I recentlty attended an 'Egi night' at my local tackle store ('Hooked on Bait & Tackle' in Hoppers Crossing).
This was an absolute revelation to me.
We were fortunate to have a couple of the 'Gan Craft' guys from Japan on hand to pass on their considerable knowledge ^& expertise with regard to 'Egying'.
Once we overcame the language barrier it was a great night.
I'm not starting to explore the marlet with the intentiojn of getting ,myself an 'Egi' rod in the not too distant future.
I also have a motor bike I will be selling later in the year (around October) & once sold I'll be using the funds to purchase a Hobie Pro Angler Kayak.
I think there's going to be a whole new worl open up for me once I start 'Egying' from thre Kayak.
The bike sale/hobie purchase should (hopefully) take place late spring & just prior to our summer (months of Dec, Jan, Feb) which also coincides with the start of our main fish runs with species such as snapper, whiting, etc.
So, I'm here to learn as much as I can for the next few months prior to getting well & truly stuck I into some serious squid fishing from both my boat & my yet-to-be-purchaaed Hobie. Cant wait.
Thanks all.
Catch ya soon.
Bill A.
Ok, I've just joined the forum so I thought an introduction might be in order.
Name's Bill Allen & I live in Werribee which is a bayside suburb within Melbourne Australia.
I have been fishing all my life but have until recently only seen squid as an occasional source of bait & food.
I fish for snapper a lot (amongst other species) & Calamari is a prime bait source for these wonderful fish.
However, the snapper certainly dont get all the calamari as I'm also keen on a nicew feed every now & then.
The main species of squid we get here are Southern Calamari, Arrow Squid, & 'Bottley Squid'.
The Arrow squid are usually caught offshore (outside of Port Phillip Bay) and usually grow to about 1-2kg.
They are a very agressive species & are really prone to attacking baits/jigs.
The 'Bottley Squid' are much smaller & only grow to a couple of hundred grams at most.
They're usually caught by either netting or with Sabiki jigs, & make great live bait.
By far the Calamari are the most sought after though. Most are around 1/2 to 1 kg but it's not unusual to catch em around 2-4kg with a 'big un' up to 5kg occasionally heard of being caught.
I also fish down the coast at a town called 'Portland' which is the captial of Southern Bluefiin Tuna recreational fishing.
This time of the year the SBT start heading in from the southern ocean & it's great sport fishing with fish regularly taken over the 100kg mark.
Portland during summer is also a mecca for Yellowtail Kingfish anglers with live squid being the #1 bait of choice.
There is a fair sized professional squid fishing industry based in Portland so the area is quite rich with squid.
I recentlty attended an 'Egi night' at my local tackle store ('Hooked on Bait & Tackle' in Hoppers Crossing).
This was an absolute revelation to me.
We were fortunate to have a couple of the 'Gan Craft' guys from Japan on hand to pass on their considerable knowledge ^& expertise with regard to 'Egying'.
Once we overcame the language barrier it was a great night.
I'm not starting to explore the marlet with the intentiojn of getting ,myself an 'Egi' rod in the not too distant future.
I also have a motor bike I will be selling later in the year (around October) & once sold I'll be using the funds to purchase a Hobie Pro Angler Kayak.
I think there's going to be a whole new worl open up for me once I start 'Egying' from thre Kayak.
The bike sale/hobie purchase should (hopefully) take place late spring & just prior to our summer (months of Dec, Jan, Feb) which also coincides with the start of our main fish runs with species such as snapper, whiting, etc.
So, I'm here to learn as much as I can for the next few months prior to getting well & truly stuck I into some serious squid fishing from both my boat & my yet-to-be-purchaaed Hobie. Cant wait.
Thanks all.
Catch ya soon.
Bill A.