queensland The new girl and first bay trip

[rosstralia46]

This is the new girl it's a Bermuda Trojan heavy duty 4.5 centre console with heavy plate hull front and rear casting decks 54lb watersnake with foot pedal and lowrance hds5 gen 2 GPS and sonar combo has 40l fuel tank very clean tidy boat not a mark on the hull motor is in very good nick and has just had all new seals and water pump and the boat hooks along as well. Look forward to going offshore in more of the socials and will be great for airlie in xmas

Took the new girl out for her second but proper run out into the bay today with my mate jay to go target some mackeral. Got to our spot a bit later than I wanted but all goods so we anchored up in a good spot and threw out some pillies and started spinning slugs. Got a few hits but nothing stuck so threw on a halco twisty and jay got a small Mack on his slug followed by a second then I hooked up solid and a few screaming runs I pulled up my first Mack and a legal at that. The couple next to us got 2 legals on pillies but ours seam to only attract pickers. I then jagged another legal one on a too stinger hook we kept persisting throughout the morning I ended up with about 9 and jay about 6 only the 2 legals but all good fun especially with a few double hookups and no one around us getting stuck into em came home about 11 through a glassed out bay. Can't wait to get out there again looking forward to this summer

[pancakes_and_haggis]

Nice new rig mate looks a top boat.

I've found the size to be bait t and miss on the mackerel one session I had a heap so smaller ones and then another session we landed one at 80cm so I guess is just luck, hopefully as they get thicker they will get bigger too

Callum

[Angus]

I have never seen the crab on the right before.

[wheel fish]

Hey Angus

they are a coral crab - as good as sandies to eat

Coral Swimmer Crab

Charybdis feriatus

Other name

Crucifix Swimmer Crab

Features

Adults have cross-shaped mark in middle of back; 6 teeth on edge of carapace behind eye. To 160 mm across.

Notes

In Moreton Bay, commonly trawled from September to February on sandy-mud bottoms, to 20 m depth; also around live coral. Australia except for southern coast; Indo-West Pacific from East Africa to Japan.

[rosstralia46]

Yer callin hopefully they get better quality as the season gets into full swing and angus as wheel fish said coral crab often by catch with sandies great eating better than sandies in my opinion