Nomad Sportfishing - Bugatti

Nomad Sportfishing is truly one of those once in a life type adventures that you have to do again and again!

The Fishing
The fishing with Nomad is truly spectacular. The trip we took was to one of the closest reefs of the Coral Sea, Bugatti Reef. When I say closest it is still about 90 nautical miles out from Hamilton Island – so the best way is via seaplane. Here the main target is Giant Travelly (GT’s), although there is many other species are always caught. When popper fishing, each day consists of hurling large poppers or stick baits as far as you can towards eddies and coral edges anticipating that dark shadow as a GT charges out to attack your offering. The GT’s were everywhere and some of them massive. I caught one over the magic 50kg mark. We caught dozens between 15 – 30kgs and quite a few between the 30-50kg mark. Some of our crew got a bit tired of throwing poppers so opted to do a bit of trolling, they managed Mahi Mahi, Longtail (Northern Bluefin) Tuna, Coral Trout and various Mackerel, and had an absolute ball.

The Location
You would think that the location being the middle of the Coral Sea could be a bit boring however it is actually one of the prettiest locations you will find. Once low tide hits there are mazes of coral channels and it is truly spectacular. To get here most guests fly into Hamilton Island and then catch the seaplane from Hamilton Island to where ever in the Coral Sea the Mother ships is moored.

Fishing Gear
Nomad only stock the best, as only the toughest fishing gear will even survive out here. For throwing big poppers on suicide missions amongst coral bommies you need reels that can cope with extreme drag settings and the boys on Nomad use Shimano Stella reels matched with the Shimano T-Curve GT Specials – which are super strong. Where we saw some of the more expensive rods snap under the extreme preasure these GT specials just keep going and going. The nomad has their own brand of poppers and stickbaits on board to purchase and have been built for the local conditions. However many fisherman bring their own stickbaits and poppers – just make sure they are tough! All treble hooks are removed and singles used, all with crushed barbs.

The lodging
The lodging is on the mother ship, there are births that sleeps 4 with a couple of double rooms. Two shared bathrooms and a nice dining lounge area. The mother ship is great to come back to after a hard days fishing and have some ice cold beverages on the back of the boat as the rest of the fishos come back with tails of monster fish and of course the one that got away!

The Food
What can I say – top class. The day starts off with a full cooked breakfast, and of course fresh coffee, lunch is made and packed into the boats for the day, although you do have the option of coming back to the mother ship for a break in the middle of the day should you choose. Then each night the chief prepares a beautiful three course meal.

The Price Includes
Nomad pricing includes all the accommodation on the mother ship, fully guided fishing each day with between 2-3 anglers per boat, all tackle, all meals and a great time. They will help organise the pricing of your flights to and from the mother ship and Hamilton Island as this will vary depending on how far out the reef you are fishing is. Nomad supplies the first keg of beer and then alcoholic beverages are purchased on account. Lures are additional but can be bought on board.