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If you live near the coast or planning to visit one, choosing a memorable deep-sea fishing charter trip can be the most pleasurable excursion experience you can explore. Catching the biggest one may be the highlight of these trips, but each moment of this sport is fun-filled. An enjoyable deep sea fishing trip requires some planning at your end too. Here we will discuss some tips for those who are preparing for a charter fishing trip.

Aiming at your catch

There are plenty of varieties of fishes to catch. Ranging from Kingfish to Snapper, you can choose charters according to your tastes. Each of the catch requires various game plans. You need to know it beforehand itself on what the charter aim at. The three major deep sea fishing techniques are;

  • Trolling
  • Bottom fishing
  • Offshore fishing

Trolling is an exciting mode of fishing in which the bait will be laid from a moving boat, which stay just near to the top water level. The boat will be motored in a straight line at a very slow speed. The fishes swim close to the surface will catch and may give a great fight too. Some of the targets of trolling are;

  • Kingfish
  • Mackerel
  • Sailfish
  • Cobia
  • Wahoo

In bottom fishing, you simply drop the line to reach to the seabed. The fish varieties swim close to the bottom of the sea are aimed with bottom fishing. To ensure an excellent catch, many of the fishing charters have dropped artificial reefs at various places for inhabitation of fishes. Some of the fishes aimed with bottom fishing are;

  • Black, White, and Red Snapper
  • Scampi
  • Triggerfish
  • Grouper
  • Amberjack

If you want more adventure, offshore fishing is ideal. Being the most glamorous type of fishing, large fishes are usually caught using this style. The catch requires a great fight to land them successfully on the boat. These fishes are popularly used for trophy mounting than for meals. Some of the sport fishing varieties include;

  • Blue & White Marlin
  • Dolphins
  • Wahoo
  • Black Fin Tuna etc.

Fishing gear and tackle

Charter boats usually offer rods, reels bait, and tackle on board, and those who want to use your own can take them along. Ensure that your charter boats supply things or whether need you to bring something before you get on.

Some other things you may need to keep handy include;

  • Coolers for food and drinks and to keep your catch if needed
  • Aspirin or any other sort of pain reliever
  • Sunscreen
  • Hats for each
  • Rubber sole shoes to use on slipper decks
  • Your ID

While taking part in a charter trip, you will be away from the shore for long hours. For this, you need to ensure availability of food and refreshments on board. Another thing you need to take precaution for is seasickness. Visit a doctor or pharmacist for seasickness remedy. If you have any chronic medical conditions like epilepsy, diabetes, or congestive heart disease, someone onboard should be made aware of it to handle any cases of emergencies.

For those who are new to it, the single most vital aspect of enjoying a successful fishing trip is to choose the right charter. More than anything, the boat and the captain are going to decide the success of the entire ordeal while you are on to water for the real sport.

Q: Why identifying a good charter becomes crucial in your fishing trips?

A: A good charter boat with excellent features and captain act as a base to encompass all the other related matters of your worry during a trip. Once you set the base right, everything run smooth.

Even if you are a first-timer, unfamiliar with the deep waters you are going to fish in, the captain will teach you all essentials about fish behaviors and ideal techniques to use for a reassuring catch. He can also give you insightful information about each species they are aiming at. A good captain can be your single-point contact for anything and everything related to the charter trips while on board.

Relevant traits to check

Everyone looks out for 5-star fishing charters; however, there are endless options to choose which makes a common man confused about how to go about it. Let us examine a few traits of an ideal charter to go with.

  • Price

Everyone is concerned about the cost as saving a couple of hundreds on your fishing charter is really welcoming. However, choosing the cheapest option may not always act in your favor. Even the second cheapest may not be the best, but you need to spend some time and effort to check for the price-worthiness of each.

The cost of a fishing trip depends on various factors including facilities / food on-board, deep sea fishing gear, fuel cost, charge of captain and crew etc. However, with a high degree of competition among the service providers, users now have many options to get discounted rates during lean seasons. The cost of fishing trips varies on the basis of the type of the boat used, capacity, duration, and on-board features offered.

  • Safety first

As in case of any adventure trips, in fishing charters also you are putting your and your dear ones safety in the hands of a total stranger. No matter how comfortable you feel on board, adversities may happen anytime while out at sea due to dramatic weather changes, collision, or roaring sea etc. So, safety should be your primary priority while choosing a charter. Here’s your safety checklist;

  • Inquire about the insurance coverage of the charter provider.
  • Check if they provide everyone on board with proper life jackets and personal flotation devices (PFDs).
  • Ensure the captain and the crew are trained in First Aid and CPR.
  • Check if the boat is twin engine that the second one propels even if one fails.
  • Ensure that the captain is licensed and the boat has a fitness certificate.
  • Even if everything is perfect, keep a check on the weather forecast for the day before departure.

Apart from these basics, you also need to check the capacity of the boat, fishing style they adopt, sea sickness measures, quality of the fishing gear, food served on board etc. to ensure the quality of service.

Fishing charters are no doubt a wonderful pastime activity for all kind of sea sporting enthusiasts. Those who are passionate about angling will have a memorable time going out to deep sea on a charter boat. Even a complete novice can get on to a charter boat and attempt fishing like a pro with the help of expert guides on board. Those who don’t want to fish at all still can have fun by exploring the mysterious and stunning sea life from the deck.

Snapper fishing

Australian fishing charters offer variety of options to match to the taste of all types of fishing enthusiasts. Choosing the right species can be a seasonal thing, but when comes to snapper fishing, all are excited about it.

What is Snapper?

Snapper is one of the most popular sport fish of Australia, which is widely distributed at the deep-sea provinces of this region. Snapper is also popular among the Australians as a delicious table fish. You can find different Snapper varieties based on their sizes and habits as to where they are found.

The West Coast snappers grow much quicker and have the potential to grow to enormously larger sizes. The East Coast snappers are smaller in size, but will be in numerous amounts at each place. Average size of a grown snapper can be around 1 to 2 kg, but some rare catches are noted to be of even 15 kg in weight. The bigger ones can put up an extensive fight for the anglers.

Rigs and knots to catch Snapper

Snappers are avid feeders, which can be taken on variety of terminal rigs. They are also found to bite on the trolled lures meant for Kingfish and Kahawai. The ideal rigs meant for Snapper are dropper rigs and stray lines. For the smaller varieties, flasher rigs may also work well over the sandy areas. Soft plastic baits are proven to be highly effective for Snapper.

  • Using strayline rigs

Strayline rigs are used to fish at shallow waters. At such places, little or no weight is needed for the bait to sink in water. On using weight, it should be free running on the trace over the hook. Srayline baits cast away from the boat and allowed slow sinking to the bottom.

  • Dropper & flasher rigs

These rigs usually consist of one or multiple hooks branching from the main line with a sinker attached to the bottom. Weight needed to be adjusted to suit to the depth of water and speed of the drift. All baits needed to be kept near to the bottom where Snappers feed. Flasher rigs also work on the same principle, but may add flashy materials to entice the fish. These can be used with or without bait.

Some other successful snapper rigs include saltwater flies and metal jigs. The jigs can be used with conventional tackle and usually bounced up and down just above the bottom.

Snapper baits

Snappers can be fed with almost anything used for fishing. The best choices include fresh kahawai, fresh mackerel, squid, pilchards, shellfish mullet, skipjack tuna, or crabs. To catch big Snappers, you can try live mackerel, live squid, or kahawai.

Charter fishing is a lot of fun and excitement for those who haven’t ever experienced it. Those who had been to it once may surely come back for more exciting experiences. If you want to spend a quality holiday time with friends and family, now you can easily choose any of the best deep sea fishing charter to club fun, travel, and excitement together. Here, we will discuss a few important things to remember while planning for a fishing charter.

Charter fishing checklist

  1. At some provinces, you may need a fishing license to go out for deep sea or fresh water fishing. However, this is mandatory only for a few types of fishing activities in Australia. If needed, fishing charter service providers can easily arrange for temporary licenses for you if you are aiming at special fishing trips.
  1. While getting on to the fishing boats, you are advised to wear a soft-soled shoe, which will be most comfortable. Avoid heavy boots and the ones, which are intended for work. Decks may be slippery so that rubber soles may help prevent any skidding or accidents.
  1. You must bring your seasickness pills too while going to sea. Visit a chemist and keep some anti-vomiting pills handy. Ginger beer or some lemonade also may be helpful, which you can keep handy while preparing for the trip. Also make sure that you are physically fit before getting on to the charter fishing to enjoy the trip at best.
  1. You are exposed to naked sun while on the deck for fishing. Don’t forget to take you sunglasses for protection. You can also wear clothing to make you feel comfortable while exposed to consistent sunrays.
  1. Coolers can be taken to keep the fishes you are going to catch. Some charter boats will be having coolers allocated to each fisher, which you need to check beforehand. An additional cooler can also be taken if you want to keep your food items and drinks.
  1. You can also keep a check on the weather forecast for the day of your trip. You may surely want to go out on a calm sunny day; however, you need to keep the rain gear also handy as the weather at sea may change suddenly.
  1. Don’t forget to take your camera along with you. You can surely get some amazing snaps in the backdrop of ocean. Your first big catch in hand may be a golden moment, which you may not want to miss out.

Other things to note

You should know your captain before getting on to the boat. The success of a trip is decided by the experience of this person and his knowledge in managing a charter. Ensure that the captain is licensed and have significant number of years experience in this field. Check for the fitness of the boat too and you can demand a fitness certificate to be shown.

Also check for the maximum capacity of the boat and other safety features available on board. Need to have a look on the first aid facilities and emergency situation handling modalities. Check out who the charter guides are and have a word with them to understand their knowledge and experience in handling charters and emergency situations.

“You can spend the next 10 years to learn how to catch fish as a pro or simply jump on to a fishing charter and start catching fish like a pro right now” calls up Tony Rennet, an expert captain in Adelaide fishing charters.

Far more than a big catch, a good fishing charter can be a memorable experience for you with family and folks. Unlike traditional holiday trips, fishing charters offer travel, fun, excitement, sporting, work satisfaction all under one roof. You are into a real treat once you choose a good boat for charter fishing. However, not being vigilant on choosing the right charter, your day may end up miserable.

If you want to;

  • Feel a real bend on the rod instantly when you are on to it?
  • Pay relevantly for fishing success?
  • Make it the best end-to-end holiday experience and fun?

Then ensure that you choose the right charter boat for your trip. Here we will see how.

5 golden tips

  1. Remember cheapest is not the best

There are many professional charters, which operate guided fishing trips. You can also find few of them unrealistically cheap but may not be licensed or bonded. Remember these are not the best options to choose. If you find any charter surprisingly low in cost, ask for the license and check the terms and conditions. While booking boats, ensure that you get the best value for money and not that you just have to just pay cheaply and end up in chaos.

  1. Fish online before you go on live

There are various websites and forums where you can get the details of fishing charters Adelaide service providers along with their benefits and drawbacks. You also have options to raise queries if any and get satisfying answers. However, don’t go after manipulated reviews and feedback, which are posted by the promoters themselves.

  1. Captain first, boat next

You can choose a smaller and slower boat, but still enjoy the best with a great captain guiding you. However, if the captain is a lay, then you won’t enjoy the least even on spending huge on a luxury charter. Check for the years of experience and also try to speak to the captain directly before going ahead with booking a charter.

  1. Get references

If you are on a holiday trip, you can get some worthy references from the resorts you stay or from the local people you meet at the bay. These off-line references are more valuable than promoter references to help you choose a much authentic service based on real-time information.

  1. Know the techniques before you book

There are various modes of fishing practiced by different boats. Some of them go trolling, some others use light tackle, and a few do both of these. If you have a flair of fishing, choose the best one matches to your tastes. However, most of those get on to charter fishing with a will to learn something new, who can go by whatever comes in their way. You can also check out whether it is catch and keep or catch and release.

Once if you choose the right boat and captain, no doubt you can enjoy a memorable fishing trip to ensure utmost fun and best returns.