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Monday Blues: A spontaneous trip to the stones.


stingray

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Having been busy with UNI on Weekdays, Working Nights and Racing my Pigeons on the Weekends I’ve had bugger all time to go fishing. So late Sunday night I decided to looked at the weather forecast for a number of locations up and down the QLD and NSW coast within a 3hr drive of home to find a suitable ledge that should be producing a fish or two and along with the right Tide, Wind, Swell and Water temperature that suitable ledge just so happened to be not so far away in more familiar hunting ground.

At 6AM I headed North East to what was a quick drive to Cleveland where I caught the Goldcats Flyer to Dunwich and then took a bus ride up to point lookout. Point lookout is a venue where anything can happen when your fishing and anything can be caught from bream to them line burners that will do you over like a packed lunch and have you back for more. It's a place that is easily accessed by car, ferry and bus.

It was day before winter, the chill was in the air, the waves were pushed flat by the wind out of the west with clean oceanic water that would have you thinking you were at a lake in the highlands of NSW is what the weather was like as I got of the bus made my way down the track.

One thing good about point lookout is that unlike the NSW Coast the rocks here are free of slippery marine growth and it is a bit more of a safe platform to fish. The only thing missing is rod holders and bait On Tap but even that is not a problem here if you fish the outer whale rock.

Their is a old saying the harder a location is to get to the better it is and this is true when you want to fish whale rock, whale rock is part of the point lookout headland but the ledge it's self is the only one that you need to swim over a 3m gap of water with gear to fish of it.

At this stage of the journey you realize the intensity and extreme dedication required to fish for big fish of the rocks. The morning wind was chilly and to get over the 3m gap of water I striped down into my shorts and pack my pants and jumper that had been keeping me warm into water proof bags along with the rest of my gear as I get ready to jump into the drink.

So I watched the swell move up and down for about minute as I got closer to the edge then at the point the swell had lift to the low rock I was standing it was go time I was in. The swim over with all gear in both hands was a bit tricky and to add once I got to the other said finding a point to get myself on whale as the swell lift’s me up and down pushing me as I try and hold on.

Timing was key and I got bags on to whale then lifting myself up with only small cuts to my arms and legs.

Without wasting to much time I set up a spin rod and a bait rod, casting the bait out first I put the rod in the holder as I got into the spinning for the morning, I saw no sign of activity as I was spinning away when suddenly my bait rod had sprung into life and the line peeled of, quick on my feet I picked up the rod set the hook and felt something of size, it turn back into the rocks cutting me off.

After this had happen I knew the local hoodlums were around as this was not the first time it had happen to me. So re rigged my bait cast it as far as I could and within seconds of hitting the water I felt something then saw a splash. A small shark was on the other end and some quick rod work it was up onto the rocks photo taken and back into the sea.

PL_2010S.jpg

Having lost a hoodlum and landing a shark within the first 30mins I knew the day would turn out well and so it did when I pulled up solid when bait number 3 got hit with line vanishing of the reel like there was no tomorrow, but this was to be short lived as suddenly a shark it my fish out in the horizon.

By mid morning there was an abundance of mullet in big schools swimming around but could see nothing in the way of bait fish. So back to feeding a dead bait on the bottom and before long I was on once more hooked up but it was only a small Trevallie.

PL_2010T.jpg

After a quick photo it to was let go so that I could re cast my bait, casting in close to the rocks it was hoped that a big hoodlum would find the bait but this time round the bottom found my hook first and I got snagged up.

Being lazy I put the bait rod aside and thought with the sun up high I would start spinning once more when suddenly I saw a pod of 4 or 5 big tuna going after my slag , with my 40g knight only 15m or so from the rocks the smallest of the tuna smash through the surface getting air born before it took of into the horizon in one big power run peeling line of my reel, I realised that it had took some 300m of line and I was getting low with only about 50m left, I managed to turn the fish back to the rocks and get some line back but within a hundred metres it would arch back and forth for a bit before I got it within 20m from the rocks when I saw a local shark in pursuit of my tuna and just when I thought **** this is the end.

The fish decided to head for the horizon once more on an equally impressive second run. Out-bolting the shark as it nearly empty my reel to the hub and getting close to the hour mark by now I just in time managed to turn the fish back.

For a small fish this was differently a memorable fight and it was not over yet as it did some more arch’s in close as i got the gaff ready, all I could think about was the shark and how I need to land this fish.

And to my hard work in fighting and gaffing this fish the prize was on the rocks as 30 or so onlooker started clapping from the top of the headland, Wow what a way to end the day.

The fish came to 12.2kg and what good first fish for the season on the stones and what was my first longtail. I can’t wait for my next trip to the stones. PL_2010B.jpg

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Mate

I just stood up and clapped in the office!!!

If that report doesn't win Report of the month then I will eat my bathat!

I admire your commitment and the Gods took note and rewarded you with a ripper!

Question though, how did you get back over the 3 meter gap with all fishing gear and a bleeding Tuna???????? :ohmy: :ohmy:

Batman

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Batman

That is a very good Question.

I got back the same way I got over :P but I did it in 2 trips, first with my bags then the rods and the fish.

:ohmy: But let's be serious that was not the most smart thing to do given the sharks that were around in the day.

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Well lucky for me I had planed to catch something of size and had some 20kg pool salt bags with me so I just cut the head of and put it in the bag with the tail sticking out. They said nothing on the way home other then did looks like a nice catch.

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Thanks to everyone for your kind Comments :) It's good to see you liked my report. if only someone was there to film the action then that would have been tops.

If anyone is keen to fish of the stones I'm looking at going Monday if weather is right, but could be QLD or NSW anyway i have a 1 free spot in my car.

Marek

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Great report and catch what an effort, I used to do some Canyoning in my past years where we had to swim through caves and sometimes duckunders in canyons, we used to strip down and carried our gear in a bag the same. Try to use some nylon climbing rope is best long enough to carry the end with you then drag the bag after you get to the other side, much safer.

davey

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stingray wrote:

Then it's not all that bad if you have Awoonga not to far away.

the Fitzroy river flows through Rocky = barra,salmon,jack,mud crabs & more can be caught in the town reach and surrounds,good beach and rock fishing areas,and off the coast you have inshore reefs.Stanage Bay and Gladstone fishing spots are easy drives,oh yea..you also get to see crocs in the wild on a regular basis.

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