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Subscriber Don McLaughlin has weighed in with a report on fishing in an area that is completely new to us, namely, Exmouth in western Australia. McLaughlin fished there for a week this past April, targeting longtail tuna, false albacore, and giant and golden trevally. He could have fished
for a unique local species of bonefish, he says, but chose not to. “I have been fortunate to have fly fished for bonefish throughout the world,” he writes. “Consequently, I was quite happy to
focus on the more exotic local species available to fly fishing.”
He says there are two fly fishing companies in Exmouth, the one he fished with, Exmouth Fly Fishing (www.exmouthflyfishing.com.au), and True Blue Bonefish (www.truebluebonefish.com.au). He says the latter company focuses largely on bonefish, while the former doesn’t unless clients specifically ask to go bonefishing. He says the practice appears to arise from a gentleman’s agreement to divide the available business in an equitable manner.
McLaughlin says he made daily catches of long-tail tuna and false albacore with a 10-wt. fly rod fishing off the front deck of a 22-foot Bay Boat with a leaning post. The best flies were deceivers in purple and white, green and white, and chartreuse and white. “We mostly followed birds that were pursuing large bait balls of sardines that the tuna had pushed to the surface,” he writes. “It was a very exciting way to fish as the tuna were only on the surface for a few seconds and then
would sound with the bait.”
As for the weather, he says temperatures ranged upward of 40 degrees Centigrade (104 degrees Fahrenheit), and the wind tended to pick up in the afternoon. He says mornings and late afternoon were the best fishing times. An experienced international fisherman, McLaughlin gives this area and the experience he had there very high marks. “I sell business jets on a worldwide
basis,” he writes, “so I have been privileged to have made many fly fishing trips throughout the world. This trip to Exmouth has to rank as the top location I have traveled to. The Ningaloo Reef, where we fished, is one of the most beautiful locations on the planet.”
McLaughlin gives the cost of his week-long trip as $5,000, including lodging and food. He notes he got to Exmouth by flying Quantas from Singapore to Perth, Australia, and then on to Exmouth. He says fellow subscribers need to be prepared for Quantas to require them to check all fishing rods (including four-piece fly rods in a carrying tube) and then pay an extra fee for that