Delving the Depths by John Joubert

For anglers with suitable boats, Bass Strait offers a diverse range of top fighting and great eating fish. As a charter boat skipper it's imperative that I have a range of fishing options at hand because, as we all know, fish can be fickle creatures.

It's at these times that bottom fishing or 'bottom bouncing' as it's commonly referred to, in the deeper waters of Bass Strait is my preferred method. Whether it be drifting over gravel patches for snapper and gummy sharks, anchoring on the edge of a reef or even doing a flathead drift over sandy ground, the quality, variety and sheer numbers of fish that can be had amaze many anglers.

Each of these styles of fishing has its own techniques and idiosyncrasies that I will discuss in this article, starting with the deep water anchoring adjacent to reefs. I say 'adjacent to reefs' because this is where you will get the best quality species...