i do a fair bit of night fishing sometimes by myself one thing i always do is put about 20 to 30 ft of rope out the back especially with the big tides up here it gives you a chance at getting back to the boat ( i have fallen in before ) just an idea i thought of anyting helps .

I have not been night fishing in my vessel as of yet.  But from the research I have done, preparation and planning is the key to a successful night.

As Carry said above, safety equipment is needed.  I also hear a lot of people suggest you tackle the run you plan on doing at night, during the day - as to familiarise yourself with any obstacles you may come across. 

I'd imagine you'd want to be a fairly experienced and capable skipper to go out that far ...cockburn sounds about my limit for the time being...craypots, whales and 100 other things to consider ...don't think the tides would make much diff out deep and they're either biting or their not anywhere day or night ...IMO if your that keen grab a buddy boat to go as well for peace of mind...Good Luck 

"Dont jump onto the roof, you fall that way. Use a ladder and climb the steps."

What I am trying to say is go out and test it first. 50ks is a hell off a long way to go if you arent sure, or have never done it at night. I would do some shallower runs. Also go out in daylight initially, so you have a line to use on return at night.

I fish almost every weekend off Dampier at night, or come back at night. I dont like the ramp rage and waiting. But I started close in, got the lay off the line down pat, and certainly dont rush back at night. Down there you have craypots, here we have cyclone and other moorings. Once you have it sussed I would venture out, but if something happens 50ks out at night that you havent foreseen due to inexperience, its trouble.

Light ++ needed, I have light, but carry 2 spare Lanterns, 2 spotties and torches. If the sea is up wear a life jacket or stormy (in my case) but fortunately the seas here are not usually an issue.

Dont go alone? If something happens at least you have help.

Otherwise enjoy as it is very peaceful at night, and some good fish to be caught.

Im in Wickham as in previous posts heaps of lights iput reflective sticker strips down each side of my boat and at the stern  i radio in each time i go and log off each night or morning or i ring when i get in my last boat was a 4.8 m tinnie and i had no dramas going 15 to 20 mile out at night i know the waters and am confident with what i do if anything is amiss i just head for home if the wind starts to pick up same thing head for home have all the safety gear onboard and know the weather patterns i now have a 5.3 centre console and i wont be shyabout going to the montes or barrow island and as crasny says its peaceful at night no heat i seem to get better quality fish at night also i dont venture to far from the channel markers so if things go really pearshaped activate your epirb and wait on one of the markers  some might think im mad but if you do things sensibly and know what you are doing shouldnt be a problem

Cheers for the posts guys. ive got a 5.4 bow rider so not a big boat. the 50km mark is the water i always fish in... and usually we head out at 4 in the morning. i am used to heading out in the dark, just not fishing in the dark... i will be taking 2 mates, i will learn to log on and off (never done that before) and leave the spots we will be at with the missus. we will be taking as much light as possible and also all wear headlamps.

im also keeping an eye on the weather, if it changes we will change plans.

it should be good - some people think its stupid but as Carry says if you are sensible and anticipate things everything should be fine. what isnt fine we will learn from. the only way to learn something is by doing it!

The two things that do worry me are the big tides and whales ive had whales pass by the dinghy so your looking into there eye have some one ready to cut the anchor rope if the boat starts getting towed also had them come up and blow there air close by at night dont know how far away they are but they are close heard the whales sing at night seems to reverberate through the ali hull but the biggest worry for me is the tides if you go in the drink fully clothed you could struggle to get back to the boat hence why i put 30ft of rope out the back it gives you some chance to get hold of it and pull yourself back.

always my biggest worry even in the day with that season approaching it would be a nightmare at night

what usually happens if you hit them to an outboard prop? does it do the bearing?

I hit a turtle once in a hire boat and it broke the bearing so I had to get a tow back to dampier

 I've hit a pot once and it just slit the rope... Maybe I was lucky not much you can do about it but if it stuffs a bearing that is going to suck... It's a risk that we take

Yeah up north for me just explaining what i do and how far i go !!

i was on a boat that hit a cray pot once in the dark and it just about ripped the transom off his boat .completely fucked the transmission.we had to get a tow how after drifting for hours

 50km out in a bow rider off shore, I think you are asking for trouble and leaving very little margin for error. How much fuel do you have? Will it be enough if the weather turns bad? Bilge pump a baby 50gph? Dual batteries? Help will be a long way away if you need it! No fish is worth dying for and risking it all to learn from your mistakes sounds crazy. Think of this scenario, battery is flat, motor doesn't start, can't anchor it's too deep so you drift, mobile no reception, your misses is asleep until 9am and doesn't know you are in trouble, so you drift a long way from where you started then the weather shifts SW from the SE forecast that was the plan 12 hrs ago- then what? 

The bowrider is not an american make - its australian - not sure if you have heard of Allison BR540. same hull as every other allison boat of its size just a different top then the rest. not sure of the bilge - probably is a baby but whats going to be the difference between night and day if we head out at 4am usually? No dual batteries - i always make sure battery is fully charged before heading out. I am steering on the side of caution and assessing the different situations but at the same time im not going to write the idea off because of a few factors. If i do it during the day, why not do it at night if the weather is looking good. il make the missus set her alarm for early.

is that you?

 I do a bit of night fishin in the 40's for dhuies. Furthers run at night has been about 28nm. You will need plenty of deck light, I find it best heading out late arvo (4pm) as it helps with your bearings which is essential especially I you have a gps failure. Running out late arvo also lets you see the sea conditions beause at night when it gets a bot sloppy you cant see the chop. Friday night even though the wind should be light there will be plebty of slop from the blow so dont expect to be doing 20 knots, more like 12-15 in the dark. Ensure your nav lights and compass are working. Headlamps is a great idea. I find you get less bites at night because you don't have the pockets but the demersals are more plentiful. I swear by an almanac. Make sure you log on. 

As it is very helpful!!anyways hope that helps :)

 Hope it goes well 

Thanks for the advise all! We are going it and see how we go. It may be a failure. If so we don't do it again. Wish us luck

Again as some others have said, I make sure I leave in daylight and have a set plan where I'm going and stick to it. I use a compass bearing and leave my GPS track on so when returning I can follow a safe Track line back knowing I'm not going to hit anything. Even then I'm cautious enough to have 2 Light Force Spotties fitted to my boat to light the way home and halve my speed as well when returning.

Whales when they are migrating probably freak me out more at night, they're my biggest concern along with dickheads who fish with no boat lights because they want to hide their spots!

Have experienced all!