Sunny boy

1 hour ago, AUS-BNE-FISHO said:

Hi all

I finally finished school last Friday, so I have been fishing a couple of times for the comp. The main species I have been targeting have been jew, threadfin, and sharks, although nothing has been too successful yet... 

Session #173

Last Wednesday arvo was the first session, and the aim was to collect some bait for shark fishing the next Friday. We arrived at the chosen spot armed with some deadbait and a cast net, and before I had even began netting my mate was winding in a fish. It looked like an eel, and we were all pleased when a nice and fat 'shortfin' eel came up. It was dispatched and put into a bag ready to be frozen for some sharks. After that, I started netting. It wasn't long before I had a few bonies, some sizeable and others small, all in the bucket ready to be used for bait. These didn't last too long on the lines, and the first catfish for the day was pulled in. Annoyingly for us, the sharks didn' seem to be interested in the bonies, but in saying that it wasn't too hot so they might have just not been feeding. We kept fishing for another couple of hours, but with school the next day we decided to call it quits when we hadn't seen any more fish at dark.

Stats of Trip:

#Session #174

On Friday arvo, @TheCharliefisho, myself, and a couple of our other mates decided to go to a local spot and fish for a shark. It is worth noting we had been creeking fishing a few days before, but only caught some catfish. Conditons were alright for a shark, so after lines were put out I was pretty confident we would have a hookup. It didn't take long, and after 20 minutes Charlie was on a shark. It was putting up an alright fight with some headshakes and runs into the mangroves, and eventually we got it near the net. Annoyingly, it bit through the leader, and won it's freedom. It wasn't massive - maybe 80cm - but still a solid shark. We continued fishing with a bit more hope but apart from several small catfish, one of which was livebaited, there were no more fish caught that arvo. All catfish caught were below 20cm, and there wasn't much bait around either. 

Stats of Trip:

Session #175

The next day, I went kayaking at a spot I had not fished in a long time. We arrived a little past 8, and made our way down to the launching area. My dad was with me in our kayak, and one of my fishing mates, Michael, had his kayak as well. I had one rod rigged with a soft vibe and another with a 4 inch Holt Productions swimprawn - the target species being anything that would take one of our lures. The sounder was working well, and the river was pretty deep with the average depth around 10-15 metres. To start off, we fished the opposite bank which was quite sandy with our lures, and we were surprised at the amount of bait jumping even though the sun was well and truly up. Michael was already there, and had seen some fish earlier in the day on the slack tide. After casting for about 30 minutes and not having any action except seeing a couple of free swiming bream, we decided to try fishing off the kayak. We paddled upstream to an eddy, and I jigged a vibe up and down for a little while seeing if I could manage any fish. This didn't work that well, and we decided to have a cast in an area with some snags closer by. Seeing as though this wasn't an eddy, the tide was roaring and it was very hard to stay in position. We eventually decided to pull up on another beach in the shade, where we all casted lures for about 30 minutes. My dad and I had to leave a bit early though, and even though the session ended with me losing a soft vibe I still had fun!

Stats of Trip:

Session #176

The next morning, Charlie and I went out fishing with livies at a spot on the river. We got driven there and were fishing by 6, and after looking around I got to catching bait. The tide was still running out, so I ended up casting the net off the front of the jetty for a school of herring - enough for the session atleast. We got the lines out and started fishing. Initially, it was a bit quiet apart from a bream (about 30cm) which we forget to take photos/couldn't be bothered to take photos for the comp. After that was released, another fella came down - shortly after this, I noticed (presumably a jewie) playing with the bait, which did so for about 10 minutes before we wound in to check the line. There was actually a fish on the end not moving, which may have been a ray or jew. Charlie started fightinjg it, but annoyingly due to the other guy's line being put quite closely to ours it tangled up and by the time we had sorted it the fish got into some pylons and spat the hook. It was taking some solid runs though, so at least it was a bit of excitement for the morning. We had a shark rod out as well but this hadn't gotten anything so I switched it back to a livie.  

The tide was beginning to change now, and we were hopeful another rod would go off. Unfortunately, it went a bit quiet, and there weren't really any bites happening at all. A while before this, a bike buggy had floated by. Some police came down looking for it, and someone in a little tinny towed it back to the jetty. It was mostly empty, but there were normal and water police who came to look at it. Charlie and I even got to go in the water police boat, which was a cool experience. Apparently someone thought there might have been a body in it but it actually looked more like a homeless persons belongings. After they left, the fish didn't start to bite, but Michael from the last session and another fisho, Andrew, also came down. They caught some herring too but even though we had plenty of lines out nothing seemed to be biting. It was a nice day, but the fish weren't around so Charlie and I headed off at about midday as we had some things to do in the arvo. 

Stats of Trip:

Session #177

The next morning, we were back at it but at a new spot. We had another one of our mates with us, and we arrived at the location at about 8AM. I got to casting straight away and it was pretty quiet, but seeing as though it was a lowish tide and Charlie saw some herring off the front of the jetty, I gave it a cast. I got enough bait for the session (and some leftover), so that was a good call. We deployed the lines, and in about 20 minutes a rod was going off. Charlie started to fight it and after a few headshakes and a little run he had his first river squire on the jetty, at 37CM. I have a feeling I won't be seeing any more of these until next Winter but still a cool catch - 

Squire

After that, we were hopeful some other species would start biting. It seemingly went a bit quiet though, so we were happy when a ball floated by which we took out of the river and started kicking to eachother - it ended up back in the river in about 15 minutes. We continued to fish and the temperature continued to rise, as did the tide. Despite the presence of a trawler earlier in the morning, there were no prawns to be seen. Another fisherman came along who set up fishing for bream, but he only got one small one for the time he was there. The bites were really quiet, and we were hardly even losing herring after each cast. It seemed there weren't even any pickers interested in taking a bait. At about midday, our other mate decided to go home so it was just us. We kept fishing until about two, when we decided to call it quits as the tide had changed and we hadn't seen a nibble. We got the ferry then the train back and were home a bit before four. 

So overall, none of these sessions were particularly successful but we did atleast manage a squire. I didn't go fishing today due to a family issue (sister broke her wrist) but tomorrow I will be back at it chasing a thready or jew. Later this week I might go bream and cod fishing and see if I can manage something alright as well. Here are the statsistis of the trip if anyone is interested:

Thanks for reading,

Cheers Hamish

Thanks for sharing your experiences Hamish! Good stuff!

Do you pick the best fishing day based on air pressure? 

I tend to justify poor fishing because of low barometer pressure like today.

6 hours ago, rayke1938 said:

A bit late after the fact but consider RACQ ultimate Take it out in your name but on the wifes car. Wife will only be covered when she is driving her car but you are covered on any car that you drive,. Have a good look at their terms and conditions you get very good cover and they would have either trucked your car back to local jeep agent at home and paid fares for you and wife back home. or paid accommodation costs while you wait for car to be repaired You were lucky it happened in town and not on the highway and have to pay expensive towing fees just to get jeep back to a garage.

These sound great tips! But a quick check on racq ultimate only covers up to 200km tow distance. 

Fishing is a better addiction than most

1 hour ago, ellicat said:

You're keen and got the rewards. I would have been cold and miserable.

Yes, considering the wind I felt lucky to catch anything. But it could prove that fish is still there when wind blows   I can only go a few times a week so I am not picky

10 hours ago, Junky said:

Put the fillet in a chux overnight in the fridge. Do not freeze. 

Then serve. 

 

Firms the flesh. 

Thanks mate, Would chux cloth make the fish a bit too dry if put in fridge? I usually put them in freezer bag instead which prevents loss of moisture. 

1 hour ago, Old Scaley said:

Never tried either of those for sashimi. Give it a go, it won’t kill you if you look after the fish. I have done bream in a cerviche dish which was pretty good. 

Thanks mate, Yes I will try this on  bream next time!

1 hour ago, Angry51 said:

Nothing wrong with eating fish and chips.

If you get sick of that have crumbed fish and chips.

Good idea but wife would not approve probably  

Hello fellow anglers, 

Recently i have caught quite a few flathead and bream from Shorncliffe jetty and enjoyed the trip and the fish as well.

However i have run out of recipes for cooking them and wonder if I can make sashimi from these fish? How good do they taste? 

Cheers 

13 hours ago, Allnighter said:

Hey sunny,

The initial hookup and first run is pretty damn impressive on light gear, and we fish in shallow water which seems to make them hit like freight trains. I reckon the shallower you go the harder they run. In summer we go real shallow in 3-4metres and perhaps because the water temp is higher they seem to fight and run harder and for longer. In the bay shallows i compare them to big old 45cm+bream, quite cunning and wary, they dont get bigger by accident, so stealth mode and a whole lot of other tricks are important.

I know plenty of others catch their fair share of bay snapper too, i dont claim to know everything and i hope i dont come across as a big noter - thats not my intention, yes i just genuinely get excited and have an addiction to catching bay snapper and have tried sharing some of my experiences and tips with others on here and a fishing mag without giving too much away,  (although i probably already have) , it takes a lot of donut trips to learn how and when to fish different spots, but either way i'm always learning new stuff and the adventure is always worthwhile!

Yes you're right the smaller snapper are definately better eating.

This summer Brian, Steve @ellicat @Old Scaleyand i are turning our attention to grass sweetlip and tuskies in the bay, can't wait! , and a lot tastier too

Thanks for sharing with us  your knowledge and secret, solute to you! 

I agree light gears give fish a level ground to fight and make fishing much more elegant sports too...

@Allnighter how is the fight with snapper of such size like? must be exciting i guess! 

The other thing i also wonder is how the fish taste compared with much smaller snapper of 40ish cm. I guess it is not as tender and juicy.

But no doubt these are solid great catch!

Thanks for sharing 

1 hour ago, turdle said:

After getting to the end of my last tube of Squidgies S Factor, and suffering a leak due to the tube cracking open and covering nearly everything in my tackle bag, I realised there has to be a better option. 

Wish list:

• Leak free container
• one handed operation and application (sick of holding the tube cap in my mouth while applying, occasionally dropping it in the water and having to chase it down)
• no need to smudge/smush scent with fingers
• cost effective
• small enough to fit in pocket

I ordered a 8oz (~240ml) container of Pro-Cure Shrimp Super Gel from Amazon (~$39), and a 40ml silicone travel bottle from eBay (~$15 for 4). 

Filled up one of the bottles with the Shrimp Gel and went down to Fingal this week. The gel scent is like tomato sauce in consistency, but very sticky. Applying it to the lure was super easy, quick, and can be done one handed. The nozzle extends when squeezing so you can easily and accurately apply along the back of the plastic lure, and retracts into the bottle when pressure is released, keeping the lid clean. This flavour of scent is red in colour and would still be visible for around 15-20 casts before needing another squirt. 

I didn't have any other scent to compare it to, but this stuff worked a treat! I'd cast a new plastic a dozen times, then add scent and then get hits/hook up within a couple of casts.

Fished off the Fingal head rocks, and tweed south wall and caught a handful of good size Dart, dozens of 30+cm Bream, a few trevally (big eye and baby GT's), a moses perch, couple of tailor, butter bream, and 2 eye balls (must have been a few unlucky tailor inspecting the lure too closely). All but 2 fish released. Majority of the fish were caught on 2.5inch BaitJunkie Minnow's in Whitebait/Pink Glow, the rest on a mix of 10-15g metal slugs, 65mm Squidgy's, and a small soft vibe. 

The fishing was so good that the plastics didn't even need to be worked to attract the fish. I'd add some scent, cast, wait 5-10 seconds then get a hit or hook up almost every cast. Even when half the plastic was chomped off, I'd cast the remnants and still hook fish somehow. At the end of the day I tried half a 2.5 baitjunkie (no tail), and landed 7 more fish before the plastic fell off the hook.

A successful trip, plenty of action, and no stinky fingers!

Thanks for sharing the great tips and i am sure you will catch more fish!

I am new to lure fishing so i wonder if the scent gel is a must have for flicking lures on the beach? 

I just got an alvey reel which is very limited in retrieving  line quickly. I would say it is much slower than an average  spin reel.  So I Just wondering how an alvey fisherman fight a big fish like threadfin salmon which take heaps of lines in a second. 

Is this the inherent weakness of design which all tackles maker know and do not make similar products ( they probably can make something similar if they want to since relevant  patents expired long ago. ) what is your thought?

Btw, the alvey reel i bought can not fit in my generic rods, so consider this post my vent

Very interesting article! I didn't know Octopus has such a dramatic end of life.I wonder if eels do the same after spawning too. Such a mystery!

Hi friends, 

I want to learn how to service fishing reel and hopefully open a new page in my career...

So I am trying find some no longer needed reels to open up and service. Last time i unscrewed the bail of my reel and a spring poped out... that bail is no longer the same. that is  end of my first trying.

Do you have some reels to give away? If so please let me know and i can put them in good use.

I am living on the north side of Brisbane.

Thanks!

Great fun!

Just wondering if you guys fish at night at dam as well? From my country night fishing at dam is very productive and i wonder how it is like here? Cheers 

Great catches! What size of hooks and line did you use?

On 27/04/2022 at 2:44 PM, AUS-BNE-FISHO said:

No worries Charlie, hopefully next time you will catch some better fish. I hope you enjoyed the bream. 

Hi Hamish, it's a good report with lot of details. Just a question about the bream you caught with deformed tail. I caught one with deformed tail too from the river. Do you know anything about what caused the deformed tail? Cheers

5 hours ago, Nog said:

Hey mate

 

Sorry for the tardy reply, been fly fishing for trout in the high plains of Vic

 

Basiclly anywhere you can cast a soft plastic you can cast a fly.  

I fish for Bass in North pine and Kerwongbah form the edges or form a yak

 

Haven't bothered with fishing from the surf much, waves are a pain for fly line

Sand flats around Bridie Passage are great for whiting and flathead.

 

Go to a few fly fishing club meetings to get more info and hook-up with the experts

 

http://bffc.org.au/wordpress/

 

 

 

 

Thank you Nog for your insight and will probably bump into you at North pine if I do pick up a fly fishing kit soon

22 hours ago, Daryl McPhee said:

Bond University academic Dr Daryl McPhee will lead a national project on regulation and policy associated with the planning and deployment of offshore artificial reefs and fish aggregating devices around Australia.

Dr McPhee said the project is a collaborative project which includes the University of Tasmania, national industry bodies for the commercial and recreational fishing sectors, the engineering company Stantec (formerly Cardno), the Australian Fisheries Management Authority and the Queensland Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

The project is supported by funding from the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation and the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment on behalf of the Australian Government.

Dr McPhee said that well designed and sited artificial reefs and fish aggregating devices (FADs) are clearly acknowledged as being able to benefit the marine environment and marine fisheries. They are widely deployed in developed and developing countries.

“Artificial reefs and fish aggregating devices can contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals as they can address economic, social and environmental issues in concert,” Dr McPhee said.

“In many countries regulatory frameworks are lacking or ineffective in the planning and management of artificial reefs, but fortunately in Australia we do have a mature regulatory framework that can adapt to change.

“As manufacturing technologies advance, new information on the biology and ecology of marine resources become available, and community aspirations change; there is need to better understand what regulatory and policy settings can best deliver optimal outcomes in our changing world.”

Dr McPhee said it was critical that planning and implementation of artificial reefs considered all ocean users.

“The ocean is inherently multiple-use and we need to ensure that the deployment of artificial reefs and FADs provide the optimal benefits without unforeseen impacts on other stakeholders and the environment. This is achievable.”

Dr McPhee said he is extremely grateful for the leadership and support of the Commonwealth Fisheries Association and the Australia Recreational Fishing Foundation in identifying the critical need for the project.

Thanks Daryl, just wondering where these FAD are deployed, are they in no fishing area? Just curious how effective they are without reading any published articles.

5 hours ago, AUS-BNE-FISHO said:

Hi Sunny

Most of the fly fishing I heard about is done on sandflats, rivers, streams, creeks, dams, and around shallow reefs. I have never heard of it being done on the beach; if you were to learn I think a dam/calm water location would be easiest.

It seems like a fun thing to do, in dams carp and tilapia seem a popular target species.

Cheers Hamish

Thanks Hamish i agree with what you said. I was thinking about doing it at Nudgee beach at low tide when water is pretty shallow. 

Hello friends, 

After reading a book and watching the movie,  i am tempted to try fly fishing.  I wonder if there are any fly fisho here that can answer  a few questions for me:

Can i do it on the beach on a calm day? 

Can i do it at dam?

A few tips for beginners?

Thanks for your help!

1 hour ago, Gad said:

Howdy ubnt... I've bought Okuma reels in sizes 20-80 (2000-8000) since the mid 2000's. I have 2 of their 60 size bait feeders/runners, that I bought around 2010, that are still running great...  a rinse and clean after use, along regular 6-12 month home services the Okuma range is a bang for buck reel....
The only bad reports I've heard of any Okuma reel has been from those who have never bought/used one and/or by the Richard who abuses every thing he buys and can not reason that everything has it's pre- crap itself limit 

 

 

1 hour ago, Gad said:

Howdy ubnt... I've bought Okuma reels in sizes 20-80 (2000-8000) since the mid 2000's. I have 2 of their 60 size bait feeders/runners, that I bought around 2010, that are still running great...  a rinse and clean after use, along regular 6-12 month home services the Okuma range is a bang for buck reel....
The only bad reports I've heard of any Okuma reel has been from those who have never bought/used one and/or by the Richard who abuses every thing he buys and can not reason that everything has it's pre- crap itself limit 

 

 

Hi Gad, thanks for sharing your experience with the brand. I wonder how hard it is to do 6-12 months service? I tried open my daiwa reel one day and found they use special screws and not easy to open. do i need any special screw driver for okuma?

1 hour ago, ellicat said:

Looks pretty good for the price. I'd give it a whirl.

Line capacity is relatively small compared to others.

Here's the specs page from Okuma -

https://www.okumafishing.com/en/product/Avenger-ABF-Spinning-Reel.html

 

Thanks Kat for the find and indeed the line capacity is not impressive.  However  the weight and max drag look pretty solid.  I thought  it is a Japanese brand until the website says it come from taiwan which should produce quality reel. Will get mine in 3 days and cant wait to test it.