Hairtail Fishing by Ron Osman - Estuary Fishing Tours
Hairtail fishing can be very exciting when there are lots around, and cold and boring when they are not. They are mostly caught in winter when the water temperature cools. You can catch them in summer but they are just a lucky catch.
No one knows much about them, like where they go in summer, their breeding cycle or why they are only found in certain parts of the world. They use to be in Sydney Harbour in great numbers but the professional fisherman cleaned them out years ago and they are only now caught there every now and then. Cowan Creek seems to hold them better than anywhere else but I have caught them at Box Head and at the mouth of Brisbane Waters as well. If I target Hairtail specifically I usually fish Jerusalem Bay or Waratah Bay in Cowan Creek. I have also caught them in Coal Candle Creek, Smiths Creek, Looking Glass Bay and Cottage Point.
I think burley is a must but some people don’t use it and still catch them. If you can get the small bait fish to come around they won’t be far behind them. You can use a single hook rig with a wire trace but I prefer to use gang hooks with a small treble hook hanging off the bottom and a red glow stick just above the bait. If the fish are shy you will catch them on the treble but if they are feeding freely you will get them on any hook. Best bait would have to be Pilchards but you can use fresh strips of Tuna or Mackerel and even live bait like Yellowtail and Slimey Mackerel but a lot of the time if you have live bait on a single hook the bait will get bitten in half. Set your lines out at different depths and when you get one put all the lines out at the depth of the line that you hooked up on.
Their bite is like a squid bite - just a long soft pull. You just let them have about 1 meter of line so they get a good grip on the bait and then strike. If there is no hook up let the bait drop back down and they will come back most of the time.
They fight well on light gear and if you get a 7 footer you will definitely know about it and when you get them to the side of the boat you can’t gaff them and they are too hard to net so you just grab the trace and pull them in the boat in one go. Some people put a big ring that they can get their finger through at the top of the trace to lift them in. Make sure to watch out for their teeth as they will give you a nasty wound if they get a hold of you.
Their eating quality is good. You get two long fillets but most people cut them into chunks and eat them that way. The best bit is no scales. You just rub their silver off with a rag or kitchen scourers.
Don’t forget to pack the essentials; warm cloths, gang hooks, trebles, single hooks (about 2/0), Pilchards, live bait, burley, wire traces, glow sticks and more warm cloths.