Adventure Bay Charters is owned and operated by Matt Waller, a third generation tuna fisherman. Matt doesn’t fish for tuna any more, but now takes tourists out on day trips to visit his tuna farm. Since starting the operation in 2007 these trips have proved to be very popular and after spending an hour in the water with the tuna we could see why.
After meeting Matt at the Port Lincoln Marina it was a short trip out to the tuna farm. On the way Matt informed us about the history of Port Lincoln as a fishing town and the ups and downs of the tuna fishing industry. Since the 1990s the tuna are captured at sea and then kept in holding pens closer to shore for months as they are fattened up for the market, increasing their value by thousands of dollars.
The tuna pen we were visiting was setup by Matt as a tourist attraction, and as such the tuna cannot be sold. Tying up to the pen we could see elaborate security measures in place around the farm. High netted walls surround the pen to stop seals from stealing the fish and security cameras are in place to stop humans also stealing these valuable fish. Matt informed us that these high security measures were put in place after someone stole a load of fish, and it wasn’t a seal!
At present Matt has around forty yellowfin tuna in the pen, and is adding another forty soon. These fish are around five years old and about a metre long. The tuna are fed daily and eat around 10% of their body weight during a feeding session.
For those that don’t want to get wet there is an underwater viewing station or you can watch the action from above on the viewing platform. But we wanted to get close, so slipped into our wetsuits and jumped into the water.
As soon as we entered the water we had tuna zipping around us, it felt like you were standing on the traffic island of a busy highway with the tuna streaking past at high speed. Matt chucked a few pilchards into the water and the action got even faster with the tuna zooming past like silver bullets to grab the food. This was spectacular to watch and we were having a ball trying to photograph and video these high powered fish missiles!
All around the netting a gallery of terns, gulls and shags had gathered for feed time, hoping to get a stray pilchard. However, there was little chance of that happening with the tuna grabbing each bait as soon as it hit the water. It looked like the birds were also watching the tuna zoom around and wondering how they could make a meal out of one.
We were a little worried at times that the tuna might crash into us in all the chaos, but these fish had complete control of their sleek bodies and effortlessly speed past us as they grabbed a pilchard, without slowing down for a second. Diving down and looking up at the mass of tuna above was an amazing sight, even though the visibility was only around 6m, still good enough to enjoy this impressive action.
Hand feeding the tuna was exciting, but you had to watch your fingers as the tuna have small but sharp teeth. Holding a pilchard with your fingertips you would only have to stretch out your hand for a second before BAM! One of the tuna had appeared from nowhere to grab the bait. However, the most fun was just sinking down a metre or two and having the tuna zoom passed your head at high speed.
After an hour feeding time was over, with the tuna having their fill they had started to go deeper in the pen. We got out of the water with huge grins on our faces, enjoying one the most unique experiences we have ever had.
Adventure