CAPTAIN - ROSS HUNTER

Captain Ross Hunter has been a fisherman for 55years; not many have had more genuine experience or know the ocean better than Ross.

He started fishing at the age of 5 with his Grandfather in a rowboat at a tiny bay side place called Tascott. It was his Grandfather's influence that was to lead him into a "Lifetime of Fishing". Then his Dad, Ken took over, teaching him beach worm skills, fishing beaches, rivers and the estuaries. These mentors not only taught him fishing skills but also the importance of patience and conservation.

Ross now enjoys a fourth generation of fisherman in his family with Son Glenn. He works with his son Glenn on their famous charter boats Broadbill and Billfisher. Glenn is one of Australia's most respected game-boat skippers, something his Dad is most proud of.

Ross spent the majority of his early life fishing the rocks for bream and drummer, trout in the alpine streams, the top end for barra, as well as the beaches for salmon and the rivers for blackfish. These passions he still enjoys to day, on a nice day and when he's not on Mother Ocean you may find him watching a float on the Georges River trying to catch a blackfish or two.

However it was when he ventured on the "Bluewater" in '68 and caught his first marlin and yellowfin he realized that this was going to have a major influence on his future fishing career and life. At the age of 28 he founded the Marlin Broadbill boat company in Sydney, he designed and built the first rocket launchers, live-bait tanks and accessories for fisherman. These were the first ever seen by fisherman in that early era in this country

He then designed and built the Marlin Billfisher fitted with all these accessories it won "Fisherman's boat of the year in '78". Following in the Billfisher's success the now famous aluminium cat the "Marlin Broadbill"…evolved. This is the boat that he uses to day, a 38-foot version of the famous breed……………... Ross built it as a balls and all charter boat from the keel up.

He was part of the original committee that formulated the current tag and release program in the '70's Both Glenn and Ross are most conservation conscious, especially when it comes to the release of marlin (all marlin must be released on their boats).

On Broadbill the statistics are in excess of 2200 marlin tagged, over the years Ross started charter fishing career in '85 during that time he has achieved much, not just in tournament wins and their has been many, but more in attitude to Mother Ocean. He loves his ocean, not only the piscatorial inhabitants but the bird-life as well.

His favourite species are marlin Ross reckons Quote "Having caught pretty much every fish that swims, over a too lengthy career, there is nothing more, as a personal challenge from a skippers point of view than marlin, they are the best" he adds. "To learn all the skills to be a proficient marlin skipper is to have almost served your apprenticeship as a fisherman, bait preparation, teaser fishing, deep live baiting, what to do and why and then when success comes to experience the wild visual action of a rampaging marlin on the fly is what it is all about, nothing even comes close to that" ………………..they are the fisherman's fish.

In the winter the lads fish the yellowfin tuna and have just experienced the best season in a decade Ross reckons "They are great, if it is the toughest fish that swims you want to experience, then these will make every other fish you've tangled with look like pussies….nothing pulls harder than a yellowfin, they are the gut busters and greatest challenge for any fisherman ".

Ross writes the newspaper column "On The Hook" in the St George and Sutherland Leader. He is an original guest on 2KY's "Hi Tide" on Sat and Sunday mornings.

He has fished with ex USA Presidents, famous rock bands, Aussie sportsman of all sports as well as knock about fishos who want to catch that "fish of a lifetime"..They're all the same when land dissapears. ………….He laughs Ross has just written a book soon to be published "A LIFETIME of FISHING" it should be a great read.

Website: www.gamefishingcharters.com.au (www.gamefishingcharters.com.au)
Email:
Office:- (02) 9534 2378
Glenn Mobile: 0418 462 476
Ross Mobile: 0409 047 727