queensland 14 Hour Anti-social On The Gc

[Tybo]

Running on very little sleep(over the last week) and a tight window I hooked up the boat and headed down to GC on Friday night. With the word of a 330 bar cross that I didn't want to miss, I decided to head down Friday night, then the option of leaving Brisbane at 130am.

Getting to the Labrador ramp just before 9pm, it quickly dawned on me that the Broadwater was under a cloak of darkness, and I had never been to this place before. Not to mention I was solo. Anyway, lucky for Navionics!
I launched and quite easily made me way around to the NW end of Wavebreak, only to find something resembling Hong Kong harbour, with every boat of shape and size. I soon found @tuggers boat and saw a group of people around a fire. Everyone seemed a lot more jovial than me, and with little boat space, I saw @Luvit and anchored up next to him. My eyes were hanging out of me head, and my yawns probably wouldn't have impressed people, so I did the anti-social thing and rolled out my swag on the deck and called it a night. It was a first for me, and despite me seeming like a didn't sleep much, @Luvit reckons we came close and he couldn't wake me. Go figure!

My alarm woke me at 3am, just when I was really starting to enjoy my swag, and packed up, waiting for the call. At 330 on the dot, @tugger and a couple of other boats went past, and I quickly followed. Still pitch black, I had no idea where I was going, or even crossed a bar before in my boat.
For some unknown reason, I thought we'd sit outside the bar waiting for first light, then cross we we could see where we're going. Nope. I couldn't see a thing and we just went at it. I lost sight of Tugger and the other boats so followed Wayne out, and before I knew it, with the lights of Surfers Paradisein the distance, we were outside. No dramas.

I guess my first time over a bar is just like any other first time. In the dark, not knowing what you're doing, following the lead of someone else, and over before it began.

With lights in the distance, I couldn't see the other boats, so decided to just head down to Palm Beach with Wayne. About half way down, Wayne went wide, of which I figured he'd given up on the mackerel and was going out wide to chase dollies. Later I realised I was heading to Mermaid Beach reef, and was in very close, so was going the long way down.

I got down to Palm Beach reef sans Wayne  just on first light, and saw Tugger and just a few other boats. I soon anchored up inside and saw some good shows on the sounder, and started to get pumped. As the sun started to come up, more boats arrived, and looking south I noticed an armada of boats coming out from Currumbin. Having never fished it before, getting my sinker weight right cost me the first few rigs, but I soon went down to a very small ball sinker had my flatline working nicely. Burleyed up, and had a few resident reefs come right up to the back of the boat. The shows on the sounder kept coming, and all I was waiting for was the bite to turn on.

It wasn't long before that happened, but straight off the strike I knew it wasn't a mackerel.

Released.

Not too long after, I noticed two boats of spearos pull up on either side of me, with three and four guys in each boat. I thought, 'here we go, these guys are going to get onto whatever keeps showing on the sounder'. Anyway, I'm soon on again, not a mackerel but interesting for 12m of water and less than a mile off the beach.

Released. Over the next hour I never saw one of the 20 odd boats with a buckled rod, and no spearo came up with a fish. I managed a couple of scorpion cod, but nothing more. The spearo eventually gave up, and came over for a chat. They said they never saw a mackerel. Oh well, by this stage the wind was a little up, and around 8 am, I decided to move on. Swung by @tugger and @aussie123, and they confirmed the same, no mackerel today.

With a couple of marks I wanted to look at it, I decided to troll back to the seaway, luckily enough going with the wind and swell. I zig zagged back and forth between the 12 and 24 fathom line, going over marks I had. Saw plenty of other boats out doing the same thing, including several large game boats. I did several hours trolling for three strikes, of which only one held. Just north of the gravel patch, I was lucky enough to hook up one what seemed pretty lacklustre, that was until the small skipjack got boat side and then came alive. After a few decent runs though, I boated him and was saved a donut for the day. I tried for a quick photo, but a lively tuna, solo, in a rolling boat was never going to work. Iki jime and bled, it went straight in the ice.

After that I was hoping for something more, but it never came. I went out to a mark on the 24s, hoping to maybe have a bottom bash, but once out there, the idea left me. I crossed back over the seaway, and went around to the camp and see how everyone else went. The camp looked a great spot now in the light, I could see why Lance and all the others had called it a  day and come back there just to hang out. The talk around the camp was much the same. I spoke with a few, and wanted to get around and introduce myself to the faces I didn't know, but the exhaustion hit me, and realised I still had to pull the boat out and drive back to Brisbane. So I was a little anti-social again, said my goodbyes, and headed back to the Labrador ramp. I pulled the boat out, and drove back to Brisbane as caffeinated as could, nearly needing matchsticks for my eye by the time I was driving through Brisbane city. I got home, filleted the tuna, flushed the motor, washed the reels, then left the rest for another day. All up, I was pushing it the whole time, but glad I did. And thanks to all that organised it!

 

 

[ellicat]

Bad luck, Tybo. Sounds like it wasn't your day. At least you got a few fish. Next time...

[aussie123]

It was good to finally meet you Tybo, just a shame the fishing was disastrous this weekend.

That blue fish is a Blue Moari Cod and it would have to be one of the rarest fish you could ever catch down this way so well done on that one.

The other is a standard Brown Moari Cod.

Hopefully once the seas settle after this big ground swell the Mackeral will turn up again.

[Tybo]

12 hours ago, ellicat said:

Bad luck, Tybo. Sounds like it wasn't your day. At least you got a few fish. Next time...

That's alright, I've travelled a lot further and burnt a lot more fuel, for a lot less. Considering about 30 other boats in the same area had a similar outcome, I don't feel bad.

11 hours ago, aussie123 said:

It was good to finally meet you Tybo, just a shame the fishing was disastrous this weekend.

That blue fish is a Blue Moari Cod and it would have to be one of the rarest fish you could ever catch down this way so well done on that one.

The other is a standard Brown Moari Cod.

Hopefully once the seas settle after this big ground swell the Mackeral will turn up again.

Thanks Lance, and thanks again for the excuse to get down there.

Yeah, I've caught plenty of brown maoris over the years, but never that close inshore though. The blue I've never caught and only seen in pictures, generally a hell of a lot bigger and in much deeper water. I guess it goes to show, that depsite the fishing pressure that Palm beach must cop, it still must be a healthy reef.

I thought there must be of been some reason that the mackerel just weren't there, but hey! that's fishing. Plenty more months left, so I'll chase them again soon if I get the chance. The ironic thing was a friend told me the spotties were west of Tangalooma on Saturday, in between there and the M2. I'll probably go chase them there this coming weekend, and they'll show up at Palm Beach.

[Luvit]

It was good to see you again Ty and your boat looks the perfect size to handle by yourself and get amongst the fish.

A fish with a relatively small tail, Stripped tuna pull hard and if they grew to 20kg they would be one sort after sportfish. 

[Tybo]

2 hours ago, Luvit said:

A fish with a relatively small tail, Stripped tuna pull hard and if they grew to 20kg they would be one sort after sportfish. 

They sure do Wayne, typical tuna, they don't give up, even when they're in the boat. Pretty tasty too, grilled medium-rare on the BBQ, that little tuna more than satisfied the 5 people that ate it.

Wahoo are the same, tiny tail in comparison to spaniards and other pelagics, but doesn't stop them being blisteringly fast. 

[Luvit]

I’ve never eaten one, always used them for bait.  

 

Still trying for my first Wahoo. 

[The Mad Hughesy]

On ‎21‎/‎01‎/‎2018 at 8:15 PM, Tybo said:

 I pulled the boat out, and drove back to Brisbane as caffeinated as could, nearly needing matchsticks for my eye by the time I was driving through Brisbane city. 

haha I know the feeling. once left the GC at about 2am after a fishing session. A 4 pack of Krispy Kremes and a redbull pulled me through

[Drop Bear]

On 1/21/2018 at 8:15 PM, Tybo said:

I guess my first time over a bar is just like any other first time. In the dark, not knowing what you're doing, following the lead of someone else, and over before it began.

hahahahaha gold. 

 

7 hours ago, Tybo said:

Pretty tasty too, grilled medium-rare on the BBQ,

yum

Great report tybo. nice to see that blue cod. Funny game cricket.