Last Of The Pittwater Beach Haulers

Mark Arblaster is a third generation commercial fisherman of Pittwater NSW Australia. Over a hundred and twenty five years ago his grandfather and uncle were the first to commercially fish Pittwater, whilst his father was a fisherman for sixty years trapping crayfish and netting squid to support a family of seven.
Mark is the last fisherman of his generation, primarily catching fish using a technique called beach hauling. This style of fishing was one of the first methods used along the Australian beaches by the early European settlers and still continues today. An optimistic and positive mindset is vital to being a successful fisherman as there are no guarantees but there is the bonus of not knowing what each haul will bring to the beach shores. As Mark says “this after all is fishing not catching”.