Abrolhos Islands fishing fun- Week 6 2016

Well the Abrolhos Islands season so far sure has been an adventure. We’ve spent time snorkelling, diving for crayfish, showcasing the islands themselves and their history. We’ve also been trolling, deep sea fishing, reef fishing and shallow water fishing, it has been non-stop adventure. Every year we are reminded just how awesome and unique this section of the WA coastline really is. Even after 16 seasons up here, Chad is still loving sharing these islands with our customers new or returning.

This week we had a 3 day individual charter with a great bunch of people on board. The night before this charter began the entertainment had already begun with a few of the lads enjoying a beverage or ten. Despite their hangovers we set off on Saturday bound for the Abrolhos Islands. Some of the lads were feeling a little worse for wear and provided us with plenty of burley. We think they were just trying to help us attract more fish 😉

On day 1 I named Kevin “Shark Boy”, after he caught two sharks! Meanwhile Scott, Jacob and Jake each caught Dhu Fish using plastics and jigs. There were certainly nice fish caught for the day however some pesky sharks became a little bit of problem. Despite the sharks however the crew managed to get some nice Dhu Fish, Pink Snapper, Baldchin Grouper and even some Spangled Emperor. Unfortunately, the crew were out of luck when the clouds rolled in and Chad and Jake were unable to dive for Crayfish for dinner. Lucky for us though there were plenty of delicious fresh fish on board to enjoy for dinner. We then had a chance to stretch our legs while moored at Middle Island for the night.

On day 2 we woke up to a bit of a breeze but it quickly died down leaving us with a beautiful day on the water. We started the morning off with some shallow water fishing, catching some great Baldchin Grouper. Scott managed to catch himself an eel, after it wrapped itself around his line. Unfortunately for him it wasn’t really what we were after. Alan managed to catch a double header of a nice Baldchin Grouper and Charlie (one of the other customers) on one hook 😛

We then went for a troll, with both Richard and Scott picking up a Coral Trout each. This was the first time either had caught a Coral Trout while one the troll, it was a highlight for our Blue Lightning crew, we love it when our customer’s get to enjoy something new.

Skipper Chad and decky Jake went for a little dive catching us some nice crayfish which we were able to enjoy for both lunch and dinner (I swear somedays on charter are really hard work 😉 ) The whole crew got to enjoy the lovely weather with a snorkel and a swim. The sun was shining and it was actually quite warm (that’s saying something coming from me).

Scott then caught a Pink Snapper on a jig while Jake caught a Pink Snapper on a pink soft plastic. The stand our fish of the day was Jacob on his light rod catching a nice sized Cobia on a white soft plastic. Everytime Jacob got the Cobia close to the boat it decided to go for a run. It really must not have liked the look of us. After quite a few attempts though Jacob was able to finally land his Cobia.

We ended the day with some great catches including some Blachin Grouper, Pink Snapper, Dhu Fish and Cobia. Before we spent the night moored at Morley Island. On the final day of the charter we woke up to the wind blowing to the East at 18 knots. The first fish of the day was a Red Emperor caught by Lesley. Alan then caught a Coral Trout on soft plastic, this was Alan’s first fish EVER on a soft plastic so it was another highlight for the Blue Lightning crew. There were also plenty of Pink Snapper and Baldchin Grouper caught for the day.

We also took the opportunity to take a quick swim at the Anemone lump and check out the amazing fish that live there. Unfortunately, the charter then came to an end, so we headed back in to Geraldton Harbour. Before we docked however the boys were already talking about their next Blue Lightning Charter, we cannot wait to welcome you all back on board very soon. We were so glad to hear that this great bunch of people enjoyed their charter with us!

Until next time, happy fishing.

Leah