Big Fish

Australia's most popular fishing youtuber, Andy Thomsen, has our first cast on this episode of The Big Fish. He is just back from an Adventure in America catching up with like minded fish filming fanatics. We follow Andy's angling escapades from the fish rich everglades of Florida to the Pacific Ocean in California and everywhere in between.

This episode of The Big Fish we join Jo Starling at the start of her one woman, fly gear only, gap year, fishing challenge, or FLOGGY, as we are calling it, and things have started out well in Tasmania for Jo.

Now that is a BIG fish! What can one big fish mean to the economy of a country town? At Khancoban the entire fishing community is all abuzz about Cale Browne's capture of a 24 lb brown trout. First cast this morning is with Cale and we get a blow by blow of the epic fight on a, twiggy, 5 weight rod and 6 lb leader, an amazing battle for over an hour!

On The Big Fish our first cast this episode comes from Fishing Historian Anna Clark who tracks the rise of recreational angling in Australia as documented in her new book ‘The Catch’.

Col ‘the Weighmaster’ Treneman and Bushy talk about Cicadas and have the Mid North Coast and South Coast reports, Stinker is adrift on the high seas and Craig McGill takes us out for a Jewfish on Middle Harbour.

On this episode of The Big Fish we continue our discussion with Fly Fisherwoman April Vokey looking at April’s fly fishing adventures here in Australia.

Fishvember wraps up at Holy Cross Primary School Kincumber today and we catch up with the Assistant Principal Chris Franklin on this fabulous community initiative that has encouraged families to get out on the water.

Speaking of family fishing, Stinker is back from a fishing trip to Broughton Island with his grand kids and tells us the tall, but true, tale of the man who tried to walk from Broughton Island to Port Stephens, on the bottom of the ocean!

Matt Barwick the Coordinator of the National Carp Eradication Program explains where the project is at, in relation to the release of the herpes virus biological control into the Australian environment, and says lot of water must flow under the bridge before a yes or no decision.

Roden Woodhams takes us offshore chasing giant Blue Marlin and talks about the controversial subject of rod snatching! All on this episode of The Big Fish.

For Christopher Patrick his fly rod is a passport to the world. Whether it is an educated chalk stream brown trout sipping may fly, like the Queen sipping tea at a garden party, or a 100lb Cancun Tarpon doing the Mexican hat dance across the flats on the end of 100m of fly line, Christopher loves it all, and has our first cast this morning.

Our first cast this morning is a Spey cast, with April Vokey, who puts Scott in his place when he suggests that the technique is only useful when swinging flies down and across on large Steelhead and Atlantic Salmon Rivers. April Vokey is a dedicated fly angler, guide, broadcaster, (with a worldwide following through her podcast ‘Anchored’) and a passionate conservationist. April talks of her obsession with British Columbia’s wild Steelhead and next week we head for Northern Australia and talk about April’s saltwater fly fishing adventures.

Bushy and his mate Terry boated a 140cm Jewie and we hear the hilarious story of Bushy trying to knock it off with the gaff.

It’s Stinker’s backyard this morning with a look at Fingal Bay and rough and ready boat maintenance tips, Stinker style.

State Member for Terrigal Adam Crouch shares the co-ordinates of an offshore fishing hot spot with the location of the newest FAD off the NSW Coast.

Roden Woodhams talks about his surprise 10 kilo King Fish capture. It’s amazing how these giant hard fighting fish will often terrorise bream and flathead fishers right up inside the estuaries.

Our first cast is with Steve Johnson on the South Coast who is very keen on promoting “Fishing for the Future”, Steve is organising an event for young Aboriginal fisherwomen.  Steve also gives us some handy St Georges Basin Flathead tips. The longest river in Tasmania and one of Australia’s best trout streams is now far more accessible, Mike Stephens from Launceston joins us for a wade up the South Esk, Stinker talks about one of the greatest books you have never heard of, Arthur Murdoch’s ‘Sheer Grit’, James McKinnon covers the New England North West and Peter LaBlang has Pittwater, Broken Bay and the Hawkesbury covered on this episode of the Big Fish.

First cast on The Big Fish this morning comes from Scott Bevan whose kayaking adventures on Sydney Harbour have spawned a great book called The Harbour. And, to book end The Big Fish this morning, our last cast comes from Sydney Harbour fishing guide Craig McGill out on the water targeting big Kingfish with live Cuttlefish, we will share the secrets of using this deadly big Kingy bait.

The crabs are tap dancing across the bottom of our local estuaries and really coming on in big numbers, what do you know about these fascinating crustaceans? The biology of the Blue Swimmer Crab this morning with Senior Researcher from South Australian Fisheries Crystal Beckman.

Stinker has a shocking tail from the deep to share with us and a lot more on The Big Fish.

First cast on The Big fish this morning, Dr Anna Clark author of The Catch, a History of Fishing in Australia, takes us fishing with Cook and Phillip. Previously with Anna on The Big Fish, we found out about the brilliant Aboriginal fisher women of Sydney. This time the fascinating history of the fish caught from the Endeavour in Botany Bay, we will find out what was in Captain Phillip’s tackle box on the first fleet and other fishy stories about the colonists.

Peter ‘Monsoon’ Morse joins us from Kinchant Dam in Queensland on the quest for the giant Barramundi that swim there. Stinker has his theory of why Port Stephens Flathead fishing has never been better and Jo Starling joins us from Cairns after an angling adventure on the Coburg Peninsular. Jo also breaks the news that she is heading in to a ‘Fly Only Gear Gap Year’ or FLOGGY! Why would you subject yourself to such torture? We will find out in this episode of The Big Fish.