queensland Your Favourite Fishing Story

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hi all

Since I am going on another scout camp this weekend, I was just wondering what your favourite fish story is. Maybe of your best catch (that you consider) or funniest fishing trip, etc. 

Mine is where I was fishing at Colmslie Beach Reserve targeting jewfish and threadfin. We were walking up the beach to do some more cast netting (only had one or two mullet left in the tank) but we didn't get any more. Though, when we walked back I realised we were missing a rod, and had a quick look. To my shock, it was in the water going out. I ran to it as fast as I could (not very fast ) and picked it up. The drag was locked (my bad) and I proceeded to drag in a nice GT, my first Brisbane River specimen - 

Sorry its not the best photo, either.

The setup is still working well too, it has caught shovel nose rays and little bullies as well. 

Hope for some interesting stories,

Cheers Hamish  

[tugger]

Plenty of favourite catches over the years but for me the best was watching my 10 year old son catch his 1st billfish.  The day started off with the intention of targeting mackerel so my son Brock a friend Brad and I jigged up some live yakkas and anchored on the gravel patch off Burleigh heads.

Brad fought the 1st fish which was a big Mack tuna then another bait got hit and Brock grabbed the rod. He sunk the hook and the fish jumped clear of the water I shouted MARLIN. It was a fair distance out and I thought it was a black marlin I was wrong. 

We dropped the anchor rope with a bouy and started the engine to chase it down. Brad was spotter man and I drove the boat , Brock worked hard and the fight wore on. The fish was fast and peeled line incredibly fast and jumping clear of the water many times

It was February and hot so we poured water over Brocks head and gave him sips of water. This fight was taking a toll on the young boy and he wanted to pass the rod on but I challenged him to keep going. If we had touched the rod he could not say he caught it by himself so he kept at it.

After 1 hour and 15 minutes we finally boated a sailfish that went 9 foot long and approximately 80kg. It was fantastic to watch my son fight and catch this awesome fish Brock and I will never forget that day.

 

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hi tugger

That is awesome!  It must've been great fun watching and helping out. He must've loved seeing the Marlin boated - that is a monster. 

Cheers Hamish

[tugger]

23 minutes ago, AUS-BNE-FISHO said:

Hi tugger

That is awesome!  It must've been great fun watching and helping out. He must've loved seeing the Marlin boated - that is a monster. 

Cheers Hamish

We thought it was a marlin as it didn't fold out its sail till boatside it was a cracker of a sailfish since then he has caught plenty of marlin but he is a lot bigger and older now.

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

50 minutes ago, tugger said:

We thought it was a marlin as it didn't fold out its sail till boatside it was a cracker of a sailfish since then he has caught plenty of marlin but he is a lot bigger and older now.

Hey tugger

OK, it must've been a surprise. Do sails normally fight like that?

Cheers Hamish  

[tugger]

1 hour ago, AUS-BNE-FISHO said:

Hey tugger

OK, it must've been a surprise. Do sails normally fight like that?

Cheers Hamish  

Yes sailfish are 1 of the fastest fish often leaping just like other billfish species , we had it jumping on one side of the Boat then seconds later jumping on the other side. Hope to chase a some myself again in a few weeks down the gold coast there is plenty of black marlin down there this season.

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hi tugger

Yes, I have read/watched (TV) that they are very fast, like most billfish.

Good luck on the marlin and other billfish, do you keep or release them (often)?

Cheers Hamish

[kmcrosby78]

My favourite fishing story to date was catching an approx. 25-30kg shovel nose caught on a sand island at Turkey Beach when I was about 16. Caught on a handline it took off like a bus, I put the handreel on my arm but when it took off at speed, the line skipped off the reel and tangled on my arm, cutting straight through my long-sleeved fishing shirt and leaving me a cool scar on my right forearm (which I'm slightly sad has worn off with age as I was fond of it as a keepsake ...... ). It was released to fight another day.

On the same holiday (around Xmas) we'd caught two approx. 10kg shovels and kept them to use in curries and also for crab bait. It was Xmas eve and right on sunset we were on the driveway of the rental house we were staying in, cutting them into chunks with a hand saw. With blood all over us, another brother arrived with his new girlfriend (and now wife) - to this day I don't know why she didn't turn around and leave instead of marrying into our family ............

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hi kmcrosby78

That is a massive shovel, mine PB is only about 70cm (it busted off at the boat so I'm not sure if you could call it 'landed' ). They do go great don't they, it's a pity your scar has worn off.

That is very funny also, she must've been surprised to see that. The next one I catch I will have to keep and try to cook up  

Cheers Hamish

[tugger]

13 hours ago, AUS-BNE-FISHO said:

Hi tugger

Yes, I have read/watched (TV) that they are very fast, like most billfish.

Good luck on the marlin and other billfish, do you keep or release them (often)?

Cheers Hamish

The odd small black marlin we keep if it can fit in the esky the big fellas we release last year I got my PB at 150kg

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hi tugger

Alright, sounds good. 

That is a big marlin too, it must've been great  

Cheers Hamish

[benno573]

Couple of quick ones from me...

was fishing in 80m+ out off Fraser in the middle of the night.  my mate got nailed by something big, line touched side of boat, fish and ~80m of braid gone.  many swear words said.  I then hook up and start having a significant argument with a big beastie.  after about 1/4hr I had a high-finned AJ at the boat at about 12kg.... and some braid wrapped up around the 2nd dropper on paternoster.  grabbed braid, realized it was from my rod my mate was using, started to pull it up - and with only a couple of cuts in my hands from the braid shortly landed a second high-finned AJ about the same size.  my mate is still sore about it too.

another story came from moreton island.  it was blowing 30+ from the NNW, just about the worst possible wind for the island.  had consumed just enough liquid courage to go for a walk up to the north point rocks with a rod just to see if it was worth having a flick.  there was a corner that was a little less unsafe so i launched a 70g slug and let it sink down.  2 cranks of the handle and away we go.  a seriously nuts fight in the conditions and with a lot more ar$e than class, I managed to land a 85cm mulloway, after which I promptly gave up and headed back to camp for a lot more liquid courage and far too much crumbed fresh mulloway.

proabably my favourite memory though was when I was fishing off my kayak near wellington point right on first light.  there was some big boofs and a few showers of bait around but I was after snapper / sweetlip so didn't have the right gear to throw a slug around for whatever they were.  so on my 15lb 4-6kg rig, i hooked the 7:14 express from central station on a 1/4 oz jighead and a 4" gulp.  this thing headed for the open bay, I was peddling flat stick after it to try and not get spooled.  2 old mates in their tinny asked if i was ok - i just said if i'm not back in a hour or two to come looking for me.  so i chased this thing around on a thankfully glassy bay for ages, eventually ending up about 500m from harry atkinsons reef with a big slab of a longtail tuna on my lap.  I bled the fish out and lashed it to the side of the kayak to keep it cool - it was a little big for my esky - and started heading back to where i thought wellington point was.  At this point, the two old mates in their tinny appeared on the horizon like a pair of angels, took the fish and put it in their esky to chill it, threw me some water (i had run out) and then a tow rope and towed me all the way back - arriving back at wellington pt at 1030am.  fish went just over 16kg, i gave the guys the two snapper i had caught earlier as a thanks and then headed home.

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hi benno573

That is awesome, especially the last one.  

The amberjack must've been very fun, especially considering that you pulled up your mates  The only thing I have over my fishing mate is that I beat him in all of our beach trips, me tallying up with more fish than him.  I have heard NNW is bad for fishing, but it must've been great getting that nice jewie too. It would've tasted great as well. 

That story from Wello Point is great too, I have always wanted to explore it with my dad on our kayak. You're very lucky those guys found you also, it may have been a bit of trouble otherwise. I would've loved getting towed back in in a kayak.  16Kg is massive as well, it would've been great finally seeing it.

Cheers Hamish

[jekyll]

Speaking of shovelnose ....

I've just gotten back into fishing, bought myself a small boat for Moreton Bay and surprise, surprise, my youngest son suddenly wants to go fishing with Dad.  Now Alec is a budding Marine Biologist, and if there is one (or two) things in the world he loves, its sharks and rays.  So he's been pestering me to take him shark fishing.  So I put together a 25kg rig and we head off for a couple of sessions on Moreton Bay and Logan river.  Only mixed success, a couple of whalers around the 1 metre mark.

So last week I take him to secret spot chasing snapper and sweetlip - light rods and 10lb line.  And of course he catches this!

 

 

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hi jekyll

That is a nice shovel that your son got, good to see you getting back into fishing.  

What a first post as well, were you berleying for snaps and sweetlips?

Cheers Hamish  

[jekyll]

Yeah, a lot of small pinkes and sweetlip though.  Nothing worth keeping.

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hey jekyll

Alright, that's a pity. At least it was a good day out with the shovel.

Cheers Hamish