Introductions :: Who Are You?

[Troy Hausler]

G'day all, My name's Troy as it probably says to the left of screen<<<

Firstly awesome site! lots of knowledge and experience here so thank you to the creators and members for making the page what it is well done!

I've mainly been into beach/rock fishing since I was young. Moved to WA from VIC about two years ago and am FINALLY getting the opportunity to head up North for a few days.

I'm going up to Exmouth/Coral bay for 4 days mid Nov and I think it would be pretty rude to not have a go at a few GTs while I'm up there.

I have a Diawa Saltist 4500 (please don't cringe) and have ordered carbon drag washers and some new bearings to replace the plastic bushes in the line roller, I'm planning to spool it with some 55-60 pound Suffix Braid. The reel is somewhat sacrificial as I don't really have the money to buy a stella/saltiga or anything of the kind right now.

Three Questions

Can anyone suggest mods for the reel to screw a bit more drag out of it? maybe an extra washer or will 10kg be sufficient for what I can expect to hook land based in Exmouth or am I dreaming all together?

I've been looking at a couple of cheapish two peice "popping" rods online, Diawa saltist 2013 model or a demon blood.... are they any good?

Can anyone suggest charters in that area? I've tried Eddy he's booked out 

Cheers for any feedback in advance guys.

[Jason Haack]

Hi Troy,

May be able to give a small amount of help with the rod, firstly keep an eye out for secondhand gear on this forum. The Daiwa range is a good starting place for entry level gear.
Another cheap range of rod to consider is the Venom popping range from Wilson, PE8 or PE10. You can get these from a certain online tackle store for a reasonable price.
In Perth you can always hit up the Mexican (Tyrone) at tackle HQ, he may be able to offer something and will know if any other charters offer GT fishing in Exmouth.

Cheers,

Jason.

[Tom Doyle]

Hi All,

Being on the forum for a while thought I'd better introduce myself.
I'm A recovering Bream fisherman from Melbourne been in Karratha for 18mths now.
So far I have been  taking my boat out harassing the local Pilbara GT's with a few trips to Exmouth and Cape Leveque.
Since moving to WA  the topwater pursuit has taken up most of my thoughts it's dangerous.
Most of the fish I have caught sofar have been in the twenties but hav also taken mates out for the first time and they have been fortunate enough to catch and release fish in the thirties who soon after have gone and brought their own outfits which is awesome to share the experience with them.

It's an addiction that has me looking to travel Overseas into the Kimberly's next year.

Regards

Tom Doyle

[Jason Haack]

Good to see another Pilbara local on the forum and using the locally made poppers.
I'm sure I'll bump into you at some point out there chasing the local G's.

Cheers

Jason.

[Thomas Maxted]

Hi guys
I am Thomas Maxted I am fairly new and only got into topwater fishing for larger fish a year and a half ago although as you might notice i have picked up a fair amount of knowledge but I also like all types of Bluewater, Freshwater and estuary fishing I am always open to share my opinion on everything fishing! One of my favourite catches is a stingray that was estimated at 80kg although it wasn't caught on surface lures or jigs it was still good fun.
Thomas

[Jason Haack]

Soon Amr soon, have been getting a few of late so will post again after another trip or two hopefully in a few weeks.

[Lucas Nixon]

Hi,

I'm Lucas.

Thanks for allowing me to be a part of your informative forum.

Ive been fishing since I was able to walk and target anything that will put a good bend in my rod and give a good fight.

First GT trip was off the Mamanuca Islands of Fiji 6 years ago and since then I have done numerous coral sea trips, a trip to Vanuatu and will be back to Vanuatu again this year. Love catching the Giant Trevally and  more importantly releasing them. I think it's the locations as much as it's the fishing but I doubt I will ever get sick of seeing that first surface strike of the trip and hearing the drag scream.

I'm currently in the Hunter Valley so I keep myself sane by hitting the local bass, the murray cod further up the New England and also fishing the NSW Mid North Coast for whatever is biting at the time (currently kings and marlin off Port Stephens). Yet to land a big surface king but the smaller ones are keeping my surface fishing addiction sorted for the time being.

Hope to learn plenty from those members of the forum and hope to be able to provide some of my own information and findings if anyone's ever interested.

Thanks for sharing and keep up the good work.

[Matt Bews]

Hi all, Matt Bews - live in Brisbane and primarily fish SEQ and the tweed.  Following a recent trip to exmouth I've been bitten again by the surface fishing bug as this is not a style I've spent much time pursuing in the past.  Will no doubt as a few daft questions for a while...

Keen to hookup with any local likeminded popping / stickbait addicts so I can share the obsession and I need to put some hours in before going on a trip with Luke next season.

A couple pics from catchs over new years.  Cheers and cracker site.

[Damien Rynja]

G'day Fellas,
I'm an all species angler and I love it all. But I do stay awake at night thinking of surface strikes and locked drags.
I'm a mechanical fitter in the construction, oil and gas and what ever else I have to do to keep the money coming in (I sometimes even lay tiles which I detest).
 I have caught good GT's on the GBR as part of a wind ravaged live aboard mothership trip (Lizard Island with Reef Connections and Reel Chase) and fished PNG for the mighty black bass with Baia Sportfishing last year and I try to visit Fraser Island a few times a year... but that's just an excuse to take the fourby for a bit of drive and see how many beers I can drink in a day (Fourby is a 2014 Dmax, the number of Beers is lots).
I still chase flatties, bream and jacks in the creeks, Tuna and mackerel in Moreton Bay and visit mates in Central QLD where I've been lucky to get some <10kg GT's and 1m Queenies offshore on surface and even sight casting to 120cm+ Queenfish and Permit (viable target) off the beach.

I also happen to be one of the lucky buggers visiting Kanton with Luke this year, a pretty good early 30th birthday present to myself, I reckon.

Love the site, guys; I've been reading the site for a few years and can't wait to contribute and learn.

Cheers,
Damien

[Michael Wessel]

Aloha Everyone
My name is Mike. I wanted to start by thanking everyone for contributing this wealth of knowledge to this forum and allowing me to be a part of it so I can see those sweet fish pics! I live on the Kailua side of Oahu, HI. I have been fishing all my life and moved to the islands to answer my hearts cry for year round fishing. I have yet to land my first GT or Ulua but I am not discouraged easily, the Mana is growing stronger in my ripple fisher and soon we will meet when the time is right. I live on the windward side so I pop from cliffs on the east side of the island before and after work when can. I don't get a lot of popping time on the boat as I would like but that's fine my friends mostly troll for their fish. I'm humble and greatful to be alive and well. Please let me know if anyone would like to throw lures anytime. One Love. Aloha

[Trevor Skinner]

Welcome guys,

Damien, we'll catch up for a beer or two next month I suspect.

Michael, there's some great info on here provided by some very, very good fisherman. There's also a quite a few Hawaiian members who've really got things wired both on a boat and from the bricks. Look through the topics and they'll become pretty obvious, very special fisherman doing their thing in a very special fishery.

Regards,


Trev     

[Trey Epic]

Hey guys,
Been lurking for a few months, just joined up.  Recently moved from Austin, TX USA to Osaka, Japan to work for a large fishing reel manufacturer that many of you may be familiar with.    I will be in Japan for at least 3 years and plan on taking as many fishing excursions as possible to new parts of the world while I am here.  First stop will be Bali in May, then Malaysia in October.  Hoping to make trips to Oman and multiple trips to Australia in the next few years.   I'm fairly new to the popping/jigging game, with most of my roots as a freshwater/inshore saltwater fishermen, but GTs have been on my list for a long time and I'd like to leave Japan as a much more well rounded offshore angler.

Anyway, looking forward to sharing reports along the way and gleaning some more information from this great resource.  Maybe even fish with a few of you some day. 

Cheers,
Trey

[Marek Oleskiewicz]

Hi everyone.
My name is Mark, I'm Polish, I live in Greece.
I love saltwater fishing and big fish. 

[Frank Henri]

HELLO TO ALL
I am a French fisherman, I have two experiences in exotic fishing, India, Lakshadweep islands .......
I became addicted to fishing GT ....... it's really very good ......
I am preparing my next trip to Madagascar side is ..... here ..... http: //www.gt-one-fishing.com/# photo album / c248p
I m interested in your experiences and approach to exotic fishing, which is very different from ours ..........
I also fell in love for the Carpenter brand .......
I own a coral viper, a monster hunter and an extrem KLL UPL 70/45 is in control and several different lures ...... ......
j want to thank Tak Otsuka for his symphatie and professionalism ........
  Thank you for your welcomes, and I beg you to excuse m d use a translator to communicate with you!
thank you
franck

[Marco Slotboom]

Hi there,

I'm Marco, aka Mac, from the Netherlands.
I started topwater fishing about a decade ago in Mexico, fishing for roosterfish, jack crevalle, cobia and so on.
Due to a fishing accident in 2009, I busted my hip, I had to give up for a while, and, okay, i also met my wife and made a baby 

Now Im starting up with fishing abroad, and the GT hunt attracks me very much.
Nothing is certain, but i hope to catch some at the end of this year in The Maldives.

Greetings Mac