Chasing swordfish
Fishing for swordfish is not for the faint hearted. Typically, you’re fishing in exposed offshore waters, a long steam is required to get out to appropriate grounds, you fish one rod at a time, and it usually involves a lot of waiting around.
If you are lucky enough to hook a swordfish, they also have a common habit of breaking your heart by either throwing the hooks in the early stages of the fight, or at the end of a gruelling battle that could last for hours.
The phrase “hours of boredom, minutes of mayhem” couldn’t ring truer when describing swordfish, but also makes it so much more rewarding when you finally manage to land one of these gladiators of the ocean.
-- Written by Black Magic Pro Team member, Jonah Yick, for Hooked Up magazine (March 2024).
RIGGING UP
If you aren’t put off by this, then it’s time to get rigged up for battle. Good preparation plays a huge part in targeting swordfish successfully (as well as a bit of luck). One big advantage when chasing swordfish is you only really need one outfit. However, it does help to have a second as a back-up if you get busted off, or something toothy bites the braid.
Although some anglers will run two rods at a time while chasing swordfish, this also increases the risk of tangles. Ideally you need an overhead reel in the 50 to 80 size class, and it helps if the reel has two speeds. The reel should consist primarily of braid (generally 80 to 130lb will suffice), with a short topshot (100m or less) of monofilament of similar breaking strain.
The rod can be either a straight or bent butt, but generally a bent butt is preferred given it fits in the gunwale rod holders easily and the rod tip sits horizontally, making bite detection easier. There are now many rods on the market which are specialised for swordfish (both fully rollered and standard guides).
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From the monofilament topshot you should connect to awind-on leader of 300 to 400lb breaking strain. The set-up of the bait leader is where there can be a lot of variation, depending on who you ask.
I use 400lb Black Magic Tackle Tough Trace for the leader, which holds up against the abrasive and sharp edge of the swordfish’s bill. You can either use single, double or a combination of J and circle hooks, which are either stitched or bridled into a bait of choice.
Swordfish are not fussy and will take a range of baits, from squid to various whole fish or strips of fish belly.
What is important is to take the time to stitch the bait up securely for three reasons.
One, swordfish are messy eaters and will commonly slash at their prey first. Your bait needs to be robust enough to take a few hits initially, and still hold together in one piece to be consumed by the swordfish eventually.
Number two, you may be dropping the bait anywhere from 350 to 600m deep, so the bait needs to be attached securely to the hook to last the long drop through the water column.
Lastly, there are plenty of other smaller fish down deep with sharp teeth that will take a liking to your bait. You need your bait to withstand these pickers as best as possible. The other thing that not only helps protect your bait but can also act as an attractant is putting a plastic lumo skirt over the top of it. The skirts to use are generally in the 12 to 15in range.
Additional lights will also help to attract swordfish to your baits, given they have big eyes and exceptional eyesight. Although I prefer circle hooks, I know other ‘swordfishers’ who have had success with running J hooks.
Rig most of your baits at home, so you aren’t wasting time on the water when you could have a bait soaking. I usually rig five baits at home beforehand then freeze them in separate bags so they are ready to go for the next swordfish trip.
The sacrificial sinker set-up is probably one of the most unique and important parts of the swordfish rig. The aim of the sinker is to get the bait down to the bottom in a fast and controlled manner, but then allow the bait to break away from the sinker, which results in the bait naturally wafting up the water column.
Swordfish are a pelagic predator and will feed in all depths of the water column, but during the day they are generally inhabiting the first 100m off the bottom. Bricks, rocks and steel/iron bars all work well as weights, and the breakaway mechanism can either consist of light monofilament line or even a wire hook. Experiment with various lengths and breaking strains of line, as these can change depending on the sea conditions on the day.
Finally, double and triple-check all your connections, leaders and topshots. If there is a scuff, imperfection or sign of wear, get rid of it and re-tie it. Swordfish demand respect, and if there is a weakness in your gear, they will find it.
WHERE AND WHEN
The two states with strongly established swordfish recreational fisheries are Tasmania and Victoria.
In Tasmania, we are fortunate that the majority of runs out to the swordfish grounds (continental shelf edge) are relatively short. In some areas of the state, the shelf edge can be as close as 20km, while unfortunately for the Victorian game fishers, they are running anywhere from 80 to 140km.
Peak swordfish season generally correlates with the latter half of the East Australian Current, as it is either slowing or receding backup the east coast. This is usually from April through to June, depending on whether you are fishing in southern or northern Tasmania, or Victoria. Although swordfish have been caught outside these times, this period gives you the best chance of hooking up a gladiator.
When fishing over the continental shelf it can be overwhelming initially.
In order to gain insight into where to start fishing, it is important to acquire a bathymetric chart app, either on your phone or your GPS plotter. With this alone you can start to have a few trial drops, even without reading the bottom.
However, having a sounder that is suitable for these depths is a big advantage, as it allows you to mark bait and fish.
Generally, a 1kW transducer is recommended when fishing over the continental shelf, though I run a 600w transducer, which is still more than sufficient atreading the bottom and finding bait accumulations.
Before you head out fishing, it is worth spending some time on dry land to work out exactly where you plan to drop. Do this by inspecting your bathymetric chart app and start looking for areas of interest on the continental shelf. Swordfish are generally in areas where there is an accumulation of their prey, which can either be squid or demersal bottom fish such as blue grenadier, frostfish and gemfish.
Look for the area of ground closest to the boat ramp you plan to launch from, then start to inspect the contour lines. Look for kinks and sharp bends in the lines on the shelf slope, as well as canyons (multiple circles), which could indicate bait holding structure which in turn could attract swordfish. Areas where the contour lines squeeze tightly indicates a ledge of some sort, which could also be an area where bait or bottom fish may hold on.
Any depths from 350 to 600m are worth investigating, so mark any suitable structure in this depth range. When you are starting out, it doesn’t hurt to bring an electric reel to prospect on the new areas you are fishing. As long as you are catching bottom fish in the area, you are in the game.
SWORDFISH STRATEGY
Once you head out to the shelf and find some likely looking bottom, have a look at your depth sounder. Bait or demersal fish will appear either as a ‘furry’ layer over the bottom, or you may see a thick band in midwater or just above the bottom, which can be anywhere from 50 to 300m thick.
This layer is known as the deep scattering layer or the scatter layer and is an accumulation of various organisms, which can include lanternfish, squid, hydrozoans and pelagic tunicates. All these organisms are sought-after prey for deep sea bottom fish, which in turn means it’s a likely spot to find a swordfish. However, this does not mean you are guaranteed to hook up, as the swordfish may not be present, or are simply not willing to take a bait. At times it is worth having a prospective drop even if there are no signs of life on the sounder, but the contours on the chart look promising.
Once you have found a likely spot and the bait has been dropped, wait until it hits the bottom then break the bait away from the sinker. The waiting game now starts.
Never take your eyes off the rod tip. The bite of a swordfish can be even more subtle than a bottom fish, so you need to be ready to react and set the hook.
Some anglers like to tease the swordfish into taking the bait by winding the bait up the minute they see a bite; others like to feed the bait back in free spool to allow it to swallow it, while some will simply wait until the rod loads up and the fish hooks itself under medium drag pressure.
There is no right or wrong way of doing it, and you need to experiment to work out what works best for the situation. A swordfish bite isn’t necessarily a ‘bite’ per se, but can be any abnormal movement in the rod tip or line such as slack in the line when it should pull tight as the boat comes up the swell, or a bend in the rod when the boat drops down a wave, indicating additional weight or pressure. Any of these signs should not beignored, and you should react by winding up tight to it, to work out what is going on.
If the current or wind is strong, it will be even harder to see bites, and it becomes important to continuously back up on the bait to stay in contact. By doing this it is possible to fish for swords even in average conditions, in wind speeds up to 15 knots. However, it will not be overly comfortable. I generally time each drift for approximately 45 minutes to an hour. After this I will wind up and either re-do the drift in the same area or move to a new spot.
This is essentially the fundamental process of targeting swordfish, watching a single rod tip in open waters, winding it up after a short time, and redoing it all over again.
When (or if) you are lucky enough to get a bite from a swordfish, stay calm and don’t panic.
Once the hook has been set, nine times out of ten the swordfish will begin racing up to the surface.
As a result, you will notice slack in the line and it is important to wind as hard as you can to keep the tension on the line and avoid the hook falling out.
Upon reaching the surface, they either stay just under the surface of the water or will begin jumping or breaching. They will then usually power back down to settle at 50 to 100m. From here on it is a battle of sheer will power and strength, as to who will be first to give in, the angler or the fish.
Although it can take many hours (or potentially seasons) to hook and land one of these amazing fish, I can assure you it will be 100% worth it. This is one species that lives up to all the hype.
Written by Black Magic Pro Team member, Jonah Yick, for Australia’s Hooked Up magazine.
This article was first published in the March 2024 issue of Hooked Up, and the original article can be viewed here.
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