Beautiful one day....

35 knots the next!! After an absolutely magic day on the water yesterday, the weather turned nasty this morning. When I heard from the skipper at lunchtime they were headed back to port in an attempt to dodge a nasty weather system.

Sounds like they have all had a great time in this quick overnighter. Linden Bank was like a carpark yesterday but very few fish between boats. The guys aboard managed to get a couple of mahi mahi and had fun.

This morning they finshed up with a mackeral each and were very happy customers. Unfortunately there are no guarantees in fishing and the pointy nosed ones weren't biting, but this trip was a perfect example of the fun that can be had!!

This was our last official charter for the season and we thank the guys for coming aboard. Ian and Rene have a few days left up North, with Caitlin heading up to join them for a few days, before heading home!

Wining and Dining!!

After a quick turnaround The Phantom has headed out again - this time with Sean and some clients from Angove's wines. Angove's are a family run business who produce some exceptional wines. They also sell Stone's Green Ginger Wine and Stone's Ginger Beer - as you can see from the pic of them heading out!


Angove's generosity is appreciated and I can personally speak great words about their McLarenvale Shiraz!

With the quick turnaround I haven't had a chance to catch up with the guys about how their last day went - I'll fill you in when I know! It looks like another couple of days of great weather and with the Ginger Beer going down well - no sea sickness!! We all know ginger is a calmative! Good luck guys - can't wait to hear the reports!!

The perfect getaway...

With a few days off between charters Daniel decided to get a couple of his mates up to chill on the reef for a few days. A fishing charter really is the perfect guy's getaway - after all - they are stuck on a boat in the middle of the ocean - they couldn't possibly get into any trouble! Archie and Grant joined Daniel, Ian and Rene on the reef for a few days away, leaving their very understanding better halves at home - hi to Mel and Camille!

For once they have been blessed with good weather and of course have had a ball! A couple of marlin seen but as yet no conversions, however the time spent catching other pelagics and reef fish has made it worthwhile. Snorkling on the Great Barrier Reef - catching mahi mahi and the rest, relaxing with a few beers - why aren't I up there!?!

Here are a few pics of the great last couple of days..

Better late than never...

Apologies for the delay in getting this report up - Rene and I have been gallivanting on MV Oriana travelling from Auckland to Brisbane - if the boys thought it got rough on the reef - we had 6m seas and force 9 (49 knot) winds for most of our crossing of the Tasman - this called for many empty deckchairs and this shot of waves breaking in a pool on the 12th level!!


A different kind of boating but we had a ball... the last charter in Cairns was good training for Rene in dealing with the conditions and the 2 of us fared better than most!!

A shot of the ship from the air while at port in Tauranga NZ


This boat makes Phantom look like a tender!!


Anyway - while the girls were away the boys went fishing - and on to the REAL report (care of the skipper)!!

The Phantom's charter was a 6 dayer with Johnno, Mikie, Arnie and Ron. Day 1 was spent running up the reef and collecting Spanish and shark mackerel from Evening and Morning reefs.

We stayed behind Ribbon 4 for the night and the boys got into the bottom fish, all species again and releasing them.

Next morning we collected bait (more scalies and tuna), threw some poppers in and had a jig and then moved out to chase the prime targets, Big Girls.

We have an announcement, Dogtooth Johnston, formally known as Johnno, caught his fist Dogtooth Tuna, changed his name, and claimed ownership of the reef, all in all a pretty momentous occasion.

Things only got better from there, putting Dogtooth's son Mike into the chair to capture and release his first GBR heavy tackle black at 350 lb.

We spent the next night in the mid reefs and set out for more marlin the next day but, even though we raised them and had them light up they wouldn’t eat.

The decision was made that night to move down the reef back to Linden Pressure Ridge so next morning out came the heavy tackle lures, out went another 2 130 outfits to make a set of 4 and off we set. What a fantastic change of plan, snaring a great 450 lb fish for Arnie, we are working on uploading the video.

We spent the rest of the time raising fish at Opal and Linden without any more captures.

Day 6 after spending a night behind Opal the boys voted to run into Cairns to watch the Melbourne cup and have lunch before their flight home.

Summary, great weather, couple of good fish, great company, top trip.

Charter wrap up..

After battling the seas and wind the boys returned from their 4 days away saying they'd all do it again - that's a good sign! No marlin but PLENTY of reef fish and other pelagics made the fishing worthwhile. It was a pity about the weather - but you can't pick it sometimes!! Here are a few pics of the catch..


Another use for the live bait tank..


Obviously this one was more important to a shark!


Nice one!


Nothing beats snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef!


Not bad for by-catch!




Some of the catch..


Red Emperor



Thanks for coming along guys and we look forward to having you back on board!

Congratulations Frank and Simone!!

A few pics of the big day... sorry it's late!!

Catch up...

Hi All, it's been a while between blogs but with good reason... Ian and Rene left the reef for a couple of weeks to attend Simone and Frank's wedding - congrats guys!! But they are now back on the reef and set off yesterday for a charter with the guys from Built.

Rough going, we had a few casualties, and I think everyone was happy when the decision was taken to seek shelter behing Opal Reef for the night. After getting steady the guys had a ball cleaning up on reef fish and I hear they have just enjoyed a breakfast of coral trout before heading out for some light tackle fishjing for the day. Unfortunately you can't control the weather but the team is doing their best to give the guys a great time!! Pics to follow - just thought we'd touch base!!

Reef fish photos...

A few photos below of some of the reef fish caught on the last charter.


Trevally


Spangled Emperor


Nice Coral Trout


Coral Trout


Cod


This one was never getting away!!


Maori Wrasse


Maori Wrasse


Even Daniel got in on the action


Daniel picked up this bat fish behind the reef on 6kg mono - good effort!

Winding down..

As we speak The Phantom is heading in from Escape Reef in perfect weather after a successful first charter. At least a fish a day was seen with most of the action happening Saturday afternoon. After fighting and releasing a 200kg Bronze Whaler, The Phantom hooked and tagged a healthy 450lb Black Marlin.

Rene tells me the charterers have had a ball, with giant Coral Trout being caught behind the reefs at night and lots of action on the fishing deck. No photos yet but I will get them up as soon as they come through.

Thanks to Johnno and the boys for joining us again on the reef - we are sure you'll tell everyone about the great times you have had. There is still time for you to book your fishing trip of a lifetime. Call Ian on 0418 190 639 or the Boat on 0408 153 765 so we can start planning your fishing adventure.

Charter 1, Day 1..

The Phantom departed Cairns in pouring rain at 6.30am yesterday morning on route for Linden Banks.

After some very ordinary bait fishing - 1 rainbow runner - baits were in the water at 11am. Around half an hour later a 200lb Black came up on the short swimmer, only to hook up on the skipping bait. After setting the hooks and fighting for 5 minutes the fish won this battle. News of the quick hook up travelled and The Phantom was soon joined by Dreamin On and a couple of other boats.

Later in the day they raised another big girl. This one close to 700lbs, and by all reports could have been bigger. This girl came up on a queenie that was swimming beautifully thanks to Daniel's handiwork on the deck. After hanging around and sniffing out both baits this girl wandered off - here's hoping she'll be back later in the week!

The Phantom pulled the pin at sunset and headed into Opal Reef for the night. After a steak dinner with a prawn entree and ice cream desert the boys were kept busy into the night catching long nosed emperor, standard emperor and mother in law fish.

After a long day with ordinary weather in the morning that settled down in the afternoon, an early night was had by all and they are back out there hunting the big girls as we speak!! Good luck guys.

Heading out..

Packed and ready for the first official charter of the season. The Phantom will head out to the reef this morning for a 5 day charter. We are hoping to see the same action we saw on the way into Cairns - with a 300lb Black within the first 2 hours of fishing.

Bait tanks are full, Daniel the deckie is on board and Rene has the galley sorted - now it's time for Ian to show his stuff as skipper and bring in the big girls. Have fun guys - wish we could all be there and we look forward to the daily skeds!!

Playing ferry...

While relaxing in Marlin Marina on Wednesday night Rene and Ian were approached by a family asking if they could charter the boat for a transfer to Fitzroy Island the next day. It appears that flight times and ferry times didn't match up and there was a large group who would otherwise have to wait till the next day to get to the island. The Phantom agreed to make the transfer for them and Ian and Rene got a look at Fitzroy Island for the first time - by all accounts it is a magical place.

The Phantom skipper and his first mate are off to visit family tonight for a viewing of the Collingwood-Geelong game - all I can say is go Cats!!

The Phantom is headed back out tomorrow to bring the Fitroy Islanders back to Cairns and will spend the next few days preparing for the first charter of the season on Thursday.

Tied up in Cairns and a look back at the past week...

Sorry for the lack of updates, the communication problems have been fixed and The Phantom has a new number - 0408 153 765. This means more regular updates - and just as well because Ian reckons they are in for a bumper season up North. He has reported bait in record proportions and The Phantom even managed to score themselves an angry 300 lb Black Marlin at Jenny Louise after a very busy couple of days bait fishing on the trip from Townsville to Cairns. Rene caught herself a juvenile shark which sat like this on the transom for a while - until a gentle prod sent it back swimming! No pics of the marlin unfortunately - it was a bit hectic with only Rene and Daniel on the deck!!


It does seem like you can never shake off the Redcliffe crowd - The Phantom is tied up next to Happy Hour in Cairns - although a slightly different version to Col and Barb's from down here!!


Now for the long promised Townsville update! After a debrief from the ladies I think I have pieced together what happened up there - The Townsville Report - in their words and mine!!

Rene, Barb, Maddie and Adele formed the 2010 team for the Townsville tournament. By now we know that the fish are certainly scarce up there and congratulations to Sea Baby IV and the boys for finding 3 sails and 1 black to take out the tournament - well done. The good news was the weather was a lot kinder and there were no casualties aboard Phantom - well none that weren't self inflicted! As usual big evenings met big days and good times - but it was refreshing to see some of the team enjoying water during the days - well done Adele!


No luck with the billies for the Reelaxed Phantom Ladies however Adele managed to catch the winning other species fish - a 13.5kg Spanish Mackeral - so at least someone got up on the stage - congrats to Adele..



All in all the ladies had a great time - I even think Daniel and Ian managed to enjoy themselves - a couple of BIG nights and a couple of quiet ones made the perfect balance for a great time in Townsville - Daniel even smiled as he made known his feelings on decking for a bunch of ladies.. (if you look closely you can see that Daniel has written on the back of his shirt "I love my ladies team")


The girls (and guys) would like to thank TGFC for there hospitality and congratulate them on a well run tournament.

As I mentioned earlier - The Phantom is now in Cairns and ready to get you sorted for your dream fishing trip - with fish there in numbers this is the season to land the fish of a lifetime. Contact 07 3283 4888, 0418 190 639 (Ian) or 0408 153 765 (Boat) to book your trip.

A few Townsville "Happy snaps"


Adele playing on the deck!


The ladies and Stav


I think they were trying to sabotage Sea Baby IV by corrupting their crew!!


The Reelaxed Phantom Ladies!!


Ian's Father's Day surprise!

Townsville Comp...

At the end of Day 3 Sea Baby IV is leading the comp with 2 sails and 1 black marlin. The Phantom ladies are leaving their run till late with today being the last day of fishing!

Adele snared herself a 14kg Spaniard yesterday which will go in the running for heaviest other species fish of the tournament and Rene spent 28 minutes hooked up at the end of the day only to have another toothy critter chew through the leader - that's why they call it fishing!!

I have asked the girls for a full report on the week when they get back to Townsville - and I can guarantee it will be a colourful one!

Fingers crossed for a triple hookup today - Good Luck ladies!!!

A quick update..

Phones are not working as they should so I have had very limited contact with the team - technology!!! From what I can gather - after 2 days fishing no fish had been recorded for Phantom. The lead boat is on 2 sailfish and the fish are few and far between. I am hoping they have a big couple of days and come through like champions!!
The Phantom is due back in Townsville tomorrow night - so a much more comprehensive tournament report will follow.

Townsville... ready, set, go!!

The crew are arriving for the Townsville comp. Known in the fishing circle as the kick off for the heavy tackle season, most of the boats in the fleet stop in to fish this comp on their way North. The Phantom has a ladies team on board this year, Rene will be fishing, with Barb, Adele and Maddie. Daniel has landed in Townsville today and will be the deckie with Ian steering the ship. I'm not sure who I feel most sorry for - Ian, Daniel, Maddie (who is having her first trip with the ladies) or the boat berthed next door!!
As I am left at HQ I will be keeping you up to date with how they are going. Good luck to the girls!!!