P42 - FISH & BOAT, February 2019 Fishing The Night Flash By Adam Royle So muuchh soo tthhatt ttrriipss tto tthee lloocaall A jetty to chase tarpon became a fix- Kirra with an average Lucinda “Night Flash” landed on 2kg string. nother barra season has of- ficially kicked off and once ture on the club calendar. For many again it’s barra madness on of us, tarpon have become a light the water! I’m willing to even wager tackle staple within the club and for that the pages of this fine publica- our families. tion will be chock full of articles Got your attention yet? The good about barramundi, so ingrained is news is that tarpon can be found just this sportfish in our culture, and it’s about anywhere, and you don’t need no different here in my home town. a boat to target them. Hinchinbrook will no-doubt see Most jetties, pontoons and marinas more than its share of bait bobbers, that have lighting will attract tarpon. lure lobbers or fluff chuckers trying That said, my experience with these to land one of these iconic sport- pocket dynamos has been somewhat fish for themselves. But I wonder contained to the Hinchinbrook re- how many have stopped to consider gion, so much of what I’ll cover re- the other chrome-plated acrobatic lates to those experiences, but I have sportfish? If you’ve ever spent a late no doubt much of it will be useful in evening on the local jetty, or up one other regions. of the many creeks, and had your si- Bite Times lence broken by an eruption of silver Tide changes around dusk and flashes, then it’s likely you’ve at least dawn are prime bite periods for tar- had the opportunity. If by now you pon and, depending on where you haven’t guessed, I’m talking about are, the size of the tide can dictate one of our most underrated sport- where you’ll find actively feeding fish; the humble tarpon. fish. N eap tides for example mean Tarpon, or more correctly ox-eye less food riding those currents, so herring, are an ancient species of tarpon tend to spread out and for- nocturnal feeders found in bothage more. fresh and saltwater. Apart from their Inversely, the larger tides often sportfishing reputation, tarpon are see fish look for deeper structure to an extremely fascinating fish. hold up before launching a barrage Not only can they live in both fresh of surface assaults on unsuspect- For example, the Lucinda service become a game of cat and mouse Small vibes and most small, shal- and salt, but they can survive in wa- ing prey during slack periods in the jetty hosts a good population of tar- as they probe your offering to see if low diving lures will account for ter so low in oxygen that it would kill tide. Moderate tidal flow will often pon, and they often feed during both there are any strings attached before their fair share of tarpon, particularly most other fish by gulping oxygen result in a combination of feeding sides of the tidal change. deciding to commit. when there is a hot bite. from the air. patterns, where peak feeding periods They do however tend to become Using lighter fluorocarbon leader For all other occasions however, While found throughout Queens-may still be during tidal change butmore active on the first and last ofgoes a long way to lowering theyou just can’t go past soft plastics. land, the farther north you travel the may continue for longer and over a the of the run-out. That’s because tarpon’s defences. A word of warn- I’ve tried several soft plastics over more prevalent they become. Unlike wider area. upstream of the jetty is a large ex- ing however, they have very abrasive the years but my go-to is the Gulp their gigantic metre plus American So now you may be asking; dopanse of shallow weed and rubblemouths and bust-offs on light leaderbaby shrimp; which has also become cousins, Australia tarpon only aver- tarpon feed better at the top or bot- covered flats. is a constant threat. a favourite amongst several other age about 30-40cm but can grow to tom of the tide, or do they prefer an These flats harbor all sorts of For fish up to 30cm I’m happy to club mates. twice that size. What they lack in outgoing or an incoming tide? And goodies such as baitfish, prawns and run with 5-6kg (10-14lb) fluorocar- At first glance the baby shrimp size however, they more than make my answer to those questions is usu- other small crustaceans. During the bon leader, but for the bigger fish I looks like a lifeless lump of plastic, up for in spirit with violent, high ally… YES! outgoing tide these food sources are beef it up to 8-10kg (20lb). and in reality it is. But when pre- speed takes that soon turn to erratic swept off the shallow flats, past the A 3-5kg spin outfit with 3-4kgsented and worked a certain way I’m acrobatics. The good news is that tar- jetty and into the jaws of waiting mono or braid mainline is a goodyet to find anything that will out- If you’ve never targeted tarpon pon can be found just about tarpon. combination. While I initially leaned fish it during a tarpon session. before you’re probably thinking to anywhere, and you don’t On the flip side, during the in- towards mono, I’ve since moved to As for colour, my preference is for yourself… what the hell is this bloke coming tide, it’s the jetty’s resident braid with a rod length of wind on light, natural patterns such as gar- on about? Well, I too was once a need a boat to target them. baitfish that often become the sta- fluorocarbon leader. lic or green prawn. That said, the sceptic of the merits of targeting ple food source. These baitfish don’t Tarpon have hard, bony mouthsslightly darker banana prawn pattern these fish. That was until I joined Sorry, I know that sounds about as often move too far from structure, and I found that by combining braid has also taken its share of victims. the local Hinchinbrook Sportfishing clear as mud but there are a couple of so neither do the tarpon. Knowingwith a lighter drag pressure, andAlthough not always the case, tar- club. Being a Queensland Sportfish- other important factors to consider. these valuable bits of information light gauge hook or jig head, I’ve pon generally feed closer to the sur- ers club, its members had over the While it’s true that tarpon often has provided me with the ability to been able to achieve better hook set face, so I rarely find anything heavier years acquired a taste for targeting a feed at all different stages of the tide, fish both tide changes. and in turn have improved my con- than a half ounce jig head is needed. wide variety of fish on light tackle, they tend to prefer periods of slacker Gear versation rate. Depending on tidal flow, and where and at the top of their list was the water. Another piece of the puzzle I have one simple rule when it Having said that, don’t be disheart- I think the fish will be feeding, I’ll tarpon. is knowing which tidal direction comes to tarpon, the lighter the bet- ened if some nights you drop more rig anything from a 1/8 through to Needless to say, after just a couple will bring them the most food, or in ter. These fish have amazing eye- fish than you land. If you think barra a ½ ounce jig head. As I mentioned of tarpon sessions on the light gear I some areas, which direction brings sight and they use it to great effect are buggers for throwing hooks, tar- earlier, I prefer finer gauge hooks was hooked. which type of food source? when hunting. Quite often sessions pon will take you to a whole newand the baby shrimp will fit nicely level! on a 1/0 jig head. Bait & Lures Technique Tarpon are great for the whole family, particularlyWhen it comes to bait, tarpon justSome evenings it doesn’t seem to with the kids, as they pull hard and the fight is can’t swim past a small live prawn or matter what you do, anything that full of spectacular acrobatics. saltwater yabby without scooping it hits the water will immediately be up. They’ll also occasionally fall to nailed. Other times it can be im- a dead bait such as a small prawn mensely frustrating to get a tarpon or green back herring, but at risk to accept your offering. In truth, if of sounding like a lure purist, if you you spend enough time chasing want to get the full tarpon experi- these fish, you’ll find they transition ence, you can’t go past a lure. Continued next page Preparation for a tarpon session is about being in the right place at the right time and most importantly… preparing for some fun!