Help me catch a cobia !
Submitted by The Saint on Wed, 2014-04-02 12:15
Any info that may assist me in bagging a cobia at Shark Bay would be greatly appreciated Rigs, baits,lures, methods, anything !
Will be boating, 6.7 metre ally centre cab, so can cover most areas.
We have done Steep Point and Turtle Bay numerous times, managed many good fish, red emperor, coral trout, huge estuary cod, blue bone, mulloway, etc., etc., ………………………………………………but not cobia !
Thanks in advance for your input,
The Saint
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
I got one last year in the
I got one last year in the second channel to the east of monkey mia. About 11 m deep. 117cm. Drifted an unweighted live bait (a "buttery") down on a 8/0 circle hook on 100lb leader and 50lb braid. Tld25 reel 5'6" shimano 24kg rod. Put it in the rod holder and waited....... good hard fighting fish!
Fish! HARD!
Swompa
Posts: 3976
Date Joined: 14/10/12
got a meter long jobby after
got a meter long jobby after trawling past a manta ray back in 2010. Was an awesome fight.
beau
Posts: 4117
Date Joined: 24/01/10
We took our 4.8m runabout to
We took our 4.8m runabout to the west side of Dirk from Denham one day last year and they were in plague proportions, taking jigs, plastics and stickbaits. They were all around the boat. This was all within 100m of the cliffs. Had a dead herring out the back while jigged and that was catching heaps aswell
The Saint
Posts: 481
Date Joined: 30/01/13
What lure ?
Thanks fellas.
Swompa, What lure were you using ?
Randell, I remember when you posted that, I think around May last year, I had returned from SB in April....cobialess.
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
That was the one. There
That was the one. There were a few being caught. I was stoked. It was a bucket list fish for sure. And good eating. But the subdurer didnt work too well when I tried donking him on the head... bounced straight off his thick skull... probably just annoyed the crap of him really.
Fish! HARD!
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
Heading up that way again on
Heading up that way again on Friday week. Cant wait.
Fish! HARD!
Boydy
Posts: 623
Date Joined: 26/09/12
Nothing specifically
Never really target them but have caught them bottom bashing in Coral Bay,jigging for demersals in Leeman and floating baits for mackies.
One thing definitely worth doing though is if you have any big sharks cruise in to have a look throw some sort of lure or bait at it. We have gotten quiet a few by doing this. They haven't been fussy, got them on SPs, metal jigs even a paternoster lobbed in front of them and wound flat out. What ever you have handy.
flexn
Posts: 232
Date Joined: 19/03/12
Caught one off five fathom
Caught one off five fathom bank using a unweigthed snelled drift bait
sunshine
Posts: 2641
Date Joined: 03/03/09
Always with Mantas
They have a symbiotic relationship so if you see mantas fish as close to them as possible -
trymyluck
Posts: 908
Date Joined: 06/05/12
They just turn up , Trolling
They just turn up , Trolling ,bait the lot. As above "Mantas" are a sure bet if you can find them.
TorquenFish
Posts: 321
Date Joined: 30/12/12
Floating unweighted baits is
Floating unweighted baits is the #1 way to catch Cobia IMO, but as others have said they can be caught using a variety of artificials (metals, buck tail jigs, poppers etc). Also the tip for casting at large sharks is a good one, Cobia often flank sharks... just be mindfull once hooked the sharks often try and eat the Cobia!
beau
Posts: 4117
Date Joined: 24/01/10
When we had them around the
When we had them around the boat they had rocked up not more than 10 seconds after a bunch of sharks were buzzing around the boat
walloped
Posts: 191
Date Joined: 08/04/12
Catch a 'happy moment'.
Catch a 'happy moment'. Carefully fillet it without spiking yourself. Send it down with a very light weight.
Bingo!
Cobia.
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
I was just about to google
I was just about to google "happy moment" but was concerned what results would come back and how I could explain the search engine history... so perhaps you could explain what a "happy moment" is.....
Fish! HARD!
beau
Posts: 4117
Date Joined: 24/01/10
not happy
Been catch happy momebts in the sound actually, musta made the voyage down with NW blowies.
Not happy
uncle
Posts: 9590
Date Joined: 10/02/07
try anything
but don't obsess, berly and they will come ,once had a huge bugger eat a leadhead at M.I. it had about 20 different types of food in its guts and still ate a jig, go berko close and in the boat
all aggressive fish love bigjohnsjigs
walloped
Posts: 191
Date Joined: 08/04/12
A 'happy moment' is a black
A 'happy moment' is a black spinefoot, a very nasty bottom fish that gives an appalling sting from its fins. As opposed to a 'happy ending' which can occur when getting massaged in Bali!
I hope this clarifies it a bit.
carnarvonite
Posts: 8689
Date Joined: 24/07/07
Happy moments
Gets its name from the euphoria you get for about 2=3 minutes before the excruciating pain from the venom sets in. If you get a cobbler sting and compare it to a happy moments one, its not even in the same city let alone the same street.
bitten
Posts: 803
Date Joined: 07/04/10
im not sure iver ever
im not sure iver ever experienced the fabled euphoria. i can attest that they hurt, though not as much as a stone fish.
working on the crab boats up there we would have them follow the boat along with 30 - 40 bronzies, we used to be alowed to catch them our best effort was 450kg of them in half an hour
carnarvonite
Posts: 8689
Date Joined: 24/07/07
Sharking up north
With each new decky when ever a big tiger came up on the line there would always be a few cobia swimming round it so we;d get the decky to use the 20 metres of 300lb hand line, an 8/0 tarpon and a chunk of shark to catch them.
They would fish like they were on a jetty, wait for the bite then give it a yank to set the hook, all hell would break loose and the poor decky's hands would get instant burns on them with the rest of us yelling at him to hurry up and stop mucking around and get back to work.
Once they had been burnt we would show them how it was done, flck the bait about 3 metres out and as soon as it disappeared in the cobes mouth grab as much line and haul it in before it woke up to what was going on, by then it would be flapping on the deck.
Best days catch of them was around 300kg
dkonig82
Posts: 2091
Date Joined: 06/07/10
Most of the ones I've caught
Most of the ones I've caught have been just jigging up north. Usually they come around the boat, and hit the jig on the way down.
Have also caught them on plastics. If they are around, they generally don't seem to be very fussy!
When asked by a non-fisherman 'how many fishing rods do you really need?' the correct answer is either:
n+1 (where n is the number of fishing rods you currently own); or
n-1 (where n is the number of fishing rods which would cause your significant other to dump you.
The Saint
Posts: 481
Date Joined: 30/01/13
Thanks for all the info
Thanks for all the info fellas,
Will give it a go with burley and unweighted baits as this is one method I have not tried.
Will let you all know how it goes when we return mid June.
Thanks again,
The Saint
triggy
Posts: 128
Date Joined: 14/09/11
Shark Bay Cobia
Just got back from SB and the missus caught a 1m+ Cobia on a drift rig (2 snelled circle hooks and no. 5 sinker) using a whole Californian squid.
He had a mate that followed him up that made the one we caught look small!
Good luck
The Saint
Posts: 481
Date Joined: 30/01/13
SUCCESS
Finally managed to nail my cobia ! Not only managed A cobia, but caught 3 one day and 2 the next fishing out from Steep Point in around 60-70 metres. How can a fish avoid you for a life time, and then come over the side one after another ? The Missus also managed to boat 3. A couple on bait, one on a pink 7 inch Z-Man and the others on white octo jigs. None were huge, biggest around 7kg. We kept some, released some. After cooking up some fillets we were wishing we kept them all, what a top eating fish ! Still, good to know they are still there to be caught again. That’s another one off the bucket list, now to get a big Blue Eye…………………….
The Saint
Boydy
Posts: 623
Date Joined: 26/09/12
Nice Work
Good to hear you can knock one off the list.
They are tasty for such a tough fighting fish as well.
randall df223
Posts: 6454
Date Joined: 08/08/11
Fish! HARD!
uncle
Posts: 9590
Date Joined: 10/02/07
yeah was waiting for an update
good doogs
all aggressive fish love bigjohnsjigs
Swompa
Posts: 3976
Date Joined: 14/10/12
Onya mate!
Onya mate!