benno573

I assume you mean a tow point? I use the solid handle beside the seat as an anchor point - solid AF attachment and allows for a quick release if needed.

I quite often do an overnighter on my kayak (hobie outback, 180kg capacity). I have no trouble getting a minimal camping kit in the hull with fishing gear and esky. Still come in well under the max weight even with all my pie, kfc and bourbon weight added in. hiking camping gear is great for this, compact and lightweight and there’s actually a surprising amount of space inside the hull. I have towed a second kayak from time to time - sometimes with crab pots on it and sometimes with my partner when she gets bored with paddling. The drag isn’t a huge issue when it’s light but if you load it up it really slows you down - especially into the current.

There’s a few different ways through there but none are good on an outgoing tide with a bit of swell. I usually preferred sticking close to the island as there was usually a small channel on the inside of the sandbanks that wasn’t as exposed to all the swell but it changed pretty much every trip. One trip out there with @Drop Bear we had 6ft curlers only about 2m apart which made for a very slow and careful trip out.

Definitely fishing in the wrong spot... and for three whole days???

Unusual capture for Mud Isl. As others have said that is a sand bass. @ellicat - not uncommon to get big diver whiting around Mud Isl. @Techman - if you get a decent diver whiting on a future trip they make awesome live baits for bigger snapper, grassies, cod, flathead and mulloway. And if nothing takes the livie you can still eat the bait!

I pay for one in NSW anyway, even Vic when traveling so why not QLD? Use the funds for FADS, artificial reefs, better and addition patrols and better public facilities. In NSW a lot of the funds went to buying out estuary and inshore commercial licenses which has had a big positive affect on stocks, I’d support similar moves in Qld.

you won't catch carp if the water is salt. as far as i know there is no noxious fish that cannot be released that lives in the salty stuff. surely the app has a bit of info about where you might catch a particular species? also - the photo above bears next to no resemblance to a carp so not sure what photos they have on the app that lead you to this conclusion. best practice generally and particularly in the salt if you are not sure - handle very carefully (lots of things have toxic spines or other sharp things), take a good photo and do some research so you know for next time. Certainly don't eat anything you aren't sure what it is as there are numerous toxic fish out there - and if you aren't going to eat it, why take it from the system? do some research prior to going out as to what common species you may encounter in the area you are going to fish and how to identify them correctly. The fish you have is definitely a wrasse, I am not completely familiar with all the species in Vic but I think @ellicat is on the money with a blue throat - they are very common in that area. mostly detested by whiting fisherman as bait thieves but also used by gummy shark fishermen as cut bait.

Wrong colour for the conditions mate... no bites... Welcome to the forum @Licespray - I am a very average fly fisherman, an average lure and bait fisherman but a great bourbon drinker. My attempts at fly fishing trout in NZ were found to be somewhat hilarious by the locals over there (apparently you need waders and nets and small tools that cost a fortune and nets and camo clothing and all this stuff - not just boardies and thongs?) but they stopped laughing when i finally managed to avoid catching yet another tree and fluked an 8lb-er in front of their noses. My legs and toes even thawed out eventually...

i tried hard but everything i hooked up to was in the XOS category and was no match for 50lb gear. to be fair, i wasn't targetting sharks but i lost several really nice fish o them on an offshore trip over the weekend. one whaler that followed up an undersized red and took it just under the boat would have been pushing 3m long... fanc a swim anyone? congrats to the winners.

oily fish or frames. mac tuna, mackerel, tailor and mullet all work well. mullet frames can be purchased for cheap at certain fishos and they work a treat. i tend to keep any bycatch from the day (grinners or other trash fish) and replace as i check them. the eastern side of mud island in 6-10m of water is usually a good producer.

#firstworldproblem cry me a river sef...

i don't think i have any 3" ones left but certainly have a bunch of 5" skin blue and even the old moebi colour! i think i need to do more fishing if i haven't managed to lose all of them yet!

hey mate, there's heaps of information around on this forum, the search feature is super handy to find threads relative to your location. i would suggest a couple of things: 1) head to a decent (not large chain) local tackle shop, spend a bit of coin and ask some questions. generally speaing, people are fairly wiling to help with general local advice, perhaps some generic gps marks as starting points too 2) find someone who is familiar with the area you are fishing and offer to take them out for the day and pick their brain 3) would also suggest identifying a target and going for that. sounds a little like you are after a bit of everything at the moment which can be great but also mean you aren't really focussing on what you need to do to target a particular species or even fish a certain location. by doing this you also open up options for still getting out when the weather might not allow an offshore trip - a good feed of whiting from the estuaries still makes for a great day on the water. 4) start a fishing diary. take notes of locations, tides, moon phase, weather conditions, bait used etc. eventually this will become second nature and won't need referring to as much but what it will help in the short term is not making the same mistakes over and over again. hope this is of some help, bit jealous you get out twice a week though... cheers, benno

#2 mustard bloodworm long shank. best whiting hook when using yabbies/nippers for bait.

Interesting one day Spanish and spotties, other day mostly schoolies and a couple of spots. sounds like an ideal Xmas break (other than the work bit), sounds like you’ve taught the young fella well too.

You’d still finish 2nd...

Getting excited early @ellicat... i don't usually do tips tips as I always forget to put them in. I’d probably still beat @kmcrosby78though...

welcome to the site. i grew up in gladstone fishing the calliope river and harbour. wish we had blue salmon down here in brisbane!

hi @Emmastevens, I previously owned your boats big brother - a freedom escape 5.3m, a lot of the photos you posted look very familiar to me, the hulls are incredibly similar. you will often get water come through that cable hole in the rear, 160L on a calmer day i the bay is way more than you would reasonably expect though. if it was a rougher day in the bay of offshore it splashed in through there regularly and may have accumulated to that much in a full day. as other users have suggested, I would inspect your bungs and even just replace them as a matter of course - they are not an expensive item at all and freedom uses a farily standard size which is easy to obtain. @Old Scaley suggestion of putting the bung in and deliberately adding water inside the hull works great to identify leaks. wait until the boat is completely dry, suggest you wind the jockey wheel up so the boat is slightly nose-up, when dead level the water tends to sit basically under the front seats owing to the hull shape. then you will need to get under the boat and look for any damp patches, weirdly, this is actually easier at night with a decent headlamp as the water is shiny on the hull. as far as the battery goes, you can certainly get battery boxes, however, it is unlikely you will find a waterproof one as batteries also need to breathe. we ended up making a bit of a shelf out of plywood with a recessed area for the battery, this helped it stay in place and also kept it up off the floor to allow water to drain through underneath. also - @Another Wazza - that hole you point out is a drainage hole from the deck into the bilge on the freedoms.

that is a yellowfin bream. Giveaways are the ventral and pelvic fins which show some yellow colouration, in a black bream they are dusky grey/brown in colour. fish colourations and shape vary greatly depending on water colour/quality, food source and a whole host of other enviromental factors so aren't the most reliable when ID'ing fish.

@GregOug put the wine glass down... butter bream actually make surprisingly good flesh baits. Never bothered to eat one as I am usually too annoyed at them for stealing a bait to think about it.

Had some bonito this arvo as sashimi and it is excellent. did some schoolie and bonito in a bath of Malaysian yellow curry and the whole family - little miss included - absolutely loved it. will do the remaining bonito as Thai fish cakes I think. thank you to the unspecified member for providing brian with the super secret spot, look forward to fishing it with you one day soon too.

Hmmmm... this is where I keep going wrong...

I’ll take my bonus in bourbon please.

Nice one gents. and yes hamish, there is meat in the head. The cheeks are well worth taking out on larger specimens as are the wings. I’ll show you how to get them out when we do our filleting lesson.