Terry gets into the Bass - Oct- Nov 2011

Still not much fishing for me except for one trip with Stewart chasing Kings. That report will go up later this week. However, Teryy has been getting into some quality bass (as he usually does) and he's sent through this report:

"Its been awhile since I have done a fresh water report. In the lead up to the bass season ( back on the 1st September ) I’ve been stocking up on fishing gear & some bass lures: hardbodies , softplastics , vibes, spinnerbaits the list goes on, there is so much on the market these days. These style lures catch bass in all conditions whether its rivers or dams.

Its always good to have various types of lures to cover all your basics & colours as well . Bass fishing can be very difficult some days, so trying out a variety of lures & colours is a must, just to see what works on the day.

Rods & reels, these days there are plenty to choose from, but only recently I purchased 2 rods - Pflueger Trions, 6ft 1-3kg . These rods are ideal for casting under overgrown trees & getting into some very skinny water. The reels I have are Shimano Stradic 1000's and they are just perfect for the outfit. I have 4lb & 6lb on these, which is perfect for targeting bass.

Now lets go for bass!

In the last month or so I have been getting out in my kayak in various locations & even in new waters. Sometimes we have to work very hard to get to some unique water ways ,whether we have to drag the yaks over rapids or rocks & let me tell ya it ain’t easy, tho' if your getting fish it really makes it worth while .

This year with the amount of rain we have been getting, most rivers are getting a great flow of water through them ,which is great for the bass to migrate back upstream from the salt. There have been some descent bass getting caught in the area that I fish & I was keen to get amongst them .

So after a very long paddle & arriving to perfect bass ground, I wasn’t wasting anytime, I cast a spinnerbait under an overgrown tree, right into the depths to the bank watching carefully for any sudden hits on the line, as the spinnerbait helicopters down into the depth. With a very slow retrieve & a few bumps through the sunken timber I was excepting a solid hit ,but it wasn’t to be .

One more cast & this should really fire up the bass , as they are very territorial, sure enough the line came up tight & I was on. The thing I like about spinnerbaits is that they can be worked very slow to really fire up the bass when they aren’t in the mood.

I kept on plugging away into the deep shadows & came up tight again . Geez they fight hard don’t they? Whether its a biggen or just a tiddler, they have an enormous amount of power. No matter what size bass you catch they are just beautiful to admire.

The bass in the last few trips have been quality & I can’t complain. When they are in the high 40’s 0r mid 50’s they are trophy fish that you’ll never forget for a long time, not for me anyway.

Just really looking forward for the weather to warm up & the insects are flying about . This is a great way of visual fishing, using top water lures. It can be retrieved in all sorts of ways imitating a wounded insect & bass can’t resist. Just be alert for an eruption.

So if there is a fresh water river near you, it might be worth taking the kayak & doing some exploring, you’ll be surprised whats out there !

cheers, Tezza"

Thanks for the report Terry, we'll have to get together and get into a few bass soon. Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,

Cid

Oyster Bay - 17/9/11

After taking a winter sabatical from the fishing reports, spring is now here and it's time to get into the fishing and writing. To tell you the truth, there wasn't much to report during those cold months except for a few jewfish sessions where Stewart and I got busted up more than we should have. Stewie did manage to land a few crackers though and here is one of them that went mid 90's. Plus he and Andrew always manage to get into a few fish wherever they go but muggins here has too little time with soccer for myself and Lachlan, but now that that is all over, let's get into a few fish.

So with a fairly miserable winter done and dusted, the weather finally warmed up enough for me to take Lachlan out on the front of my Outback to hopefully snare a few spring flathead. He was really chomping at the bit to get out on the water and the saturday morning was just about as pristine as you could get - no breeze whats-so-ever and a cloudless blue sky. We started off by trolling a Jackall Chubby and a River2Sea Baby vib. A few small bream and flathead kept the interest up until we finally landed one of 42 cms that was coming home for dinner with us.

With one in the well, we decided to move onto the pontoons and jetties to see if the bream were home. Well, one was and he went 29 cms to the tip, so that was one more for the frying pan. We moved around a fair bit but couldn't get anymore legals so we headed back towards the ramp.

About 300 meters from home, the rod with the Baby Vib buckles and Lachlan is once again all smiles. This fish was decidedly better than the first one and the drag zinged as the fish went on several short but strong runs.Finally it came up and oh yeah, she's a cracker! I could see she was hooked right in the corner of the mouth so I knew with patience we land her. Lachlan listened to my frantic "rod over there, don't wind, that's it, wind now, keep the tip up" instructions and to his credit he followed them all to a tee. We slid her (well, half of her) into the net and it was yeehahs all round.

I explained to Lachlan that this girl was one of the big mummys and that it would be best if we let her go after a quick photo. We put the lip grips on and he lifted her for a few seconds while I took one quick snap and then we set her off until the next time we catch her. We never put her on the brag mat but I guessed she would have gone 65-70cms. He couldn't stop grinning like a Cheshire cat (without teeth) and I couldn't have been prouder or happier.

Of course, now Lachlan didn't want to go home. I said times up but we still have a couple of hundred meters for you to hook another one. Back out go the lures and we've only moved 20 meters or so when the rod Lachlan is holding (Jackall Chubby) kicks in his hand. He starts winding and it comes in easily. 'Oh, this is just a baby' he says but as it nears the yak, a genuine croc of about 80cms looms out of the depths. Lachlans eyes nearly pop out and I thought 'Oh, this'll be fun..' when the big girl decided to kick into gear and she shoots off under and behind the yak. I'm too slow to turn and the line scoots under the rudder and 'ping', she's gone. We were devastated but that's fishing and Lachlan took it all in his stride.

Naturally, he wants to go out again next weekend, so lets home for some more warm weather. And maybe two front teeth so he has a complete smile... : ) Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,
Cid

Squidgies Sydney Harbour Round - 15/5/11

What the? A clear, crisp morning with only slight winds and a measly 20 yaks turn up for the event. Come on Sydney, there should be at least 30 at a minimum. The boaters of course turned up in droves (92 boats, I think) to fish what has become one of the biggest and easiest going tournaments around. Really, if you want to give tournament fishing a whirl, this is the one to test your skills in. No membership needed, just pay your 50 bucks and get into it. Even if you don't catch fish, you'll meet heaps of like minded anglers and will learn more than you'll ever do scouring the forums and reading books.

I set off to where I got my bag nice and early back in November for the ABT Daiwa/Hobie tournament but try as I may, I couldn't even get a hit. I was flicking about the new blades from Mick Munns, as well as the Squidgy 100mm bloodworm Wriggler. Not even a flattie. After an hour, I changed to a TT Switchblade to see if that would make any difference. Nup, nuthin'. Now I'll try a shallow diving Chubby, and then an Atomic Semi-hardz. Crapola...let's try the good ol' Gulp camo Sandworm. Still zilcho.

Right, time for a move so I shoot off to Exile Bay. As I cruise past the moored boats, I decide to give them a quick work over with a SP. Back to the Wriggler and yes, I'm on. Yahoo! 28 to the tip and that's one in the well. A few more boats later I get a better one that is 34 to the tip and he's a much fatter fish. With all the boats exhausted, I try the flats but again I can't raise a scale.

Now I head around into France Bay and bump into Andrew Death. I'm shocked to hear he's fishless but it's still early days and I know he's a top angler, so I can't count him out yet. He's working the shallows so I leave them to him and try the boats again. Strike me lucky, I get another one. A full bag and it's only 9:17 am. Not bad seeing as I didn't get my first fish until 8:25! I've caught up to Andrew again and he now has one in the well. He swears at me when I tell him I just landed one too. Nice, eh? : )

Time to keep moving so I decide to head down towards Gladesville. For me the bite has stopped and all I manage is a couple of leatherjackets and a nice flattie of 50 cms. Try as I may, I can't get a hit on a HB today. I tried different blades and minnows but all my fish were coming on the Wriggler. Pretty unusual as normally the blades are a sure fire thing as far as I'm concerned.

Heading back I pick up a couple of more fish, with one being a slight upgrade. So now I have a 34 cm fish and two about 30 cms. Ok but I really need a kicker fish to push me up in weight. With only 10 minutes to go I hooked a screamer that had me hooting but it was only a thumper whiting (boo hiss) that normally would have been welcomed with opened arms. In a bream comp though, all they get is cursed at! At least I had my full quota though.

Back on the beach the reports were that there weren't many 3 bags but without that big fish I didn't hold out too much hope. And sure enough, Bill Woods, Luke Kay and Stewart Dunn all had fish that were up near a kilo. Stewies was a beauty and he eventually took out Big Bream amongst the kayakers with it going 0.94 kgs. He also managed third (1.81 kgs) with second going to the on-fire Luke Kay (1.85 kgs), but the top podium spot went to Bill for his first win with a 1.885 kgs bag. Bill also managed his first ever jewfish from a kayak so it's was a doubly great day for him. Well done, Bill.

I came in in fourth with 1.505 kgs and Andrew took fifth spot with 1.185 kgs. I was talking to the

top three guys and funnily enough, all their fish were caught on HB, especially blades, so it just goes to show that sometimes certain fish in certain locations will hit one thing while in other locations they won't.

All up I travelled 13.4 kms which is pretty average for me and we're really lucky to have such a beautiful harbour to get to play on. I've marked on the map the locations where I landed my six legal bream. The next round is down at the Shoalhaven but aaarrrggghhh, I won't be able to do that one due to work commitments. Bugger. Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,
Cid

Squidgy Southern Series - Sydney round pre-amble

So tomorrow morning we hit the Parramatta River and hopefully about 90 boats and 30 kayaks will be chasing the mighty bluenoses that can inhabit the Sydney system. From a few reports I've had, the fishing hasn't been fantastic but bags have been managed and one good thing I've heard is that there have been quite a few jewfish about. Hopefully I can get one and bring it home for dinner.

I have a new weapon in my arsenal of lures and it's made by Mick Munns from Lure Logic Tournament Tackle. Mick has turned his very clever hands to producing blade lures and as always, he's gone ahead in leaps and bounds and come up with a variation that I think will be a sure fire winner. Pictured here are a few of his protoypes (that's why the finish isn't as smooth as normal) and check out those silicon legs.

I'll be flicking these about tomorrow and hopefully the bream will climb all over them. Plus the flathead and whiting and jewfish and blackfish and kingies and...

Check back early next week for an update on how they (and I) went. Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,

Cid

Oatley & The Georges River - 26/04/2011

A couple of weeks ago a got an SMS from my old mate Jay who sent me a photo of the canoe he bought, I've been telling him for ages that he needs some water wheels and he decided to buy a canoe over a kayak for storage and carrying purposes. (I can't wait for summer and some bass camp outs now that someone can carry a tent, decent esky and a gasmate.)

We'd planned late last week via email to catch up rain, hail or shine on Tuesday after Easter Monday for a session around Oatley and Como for bream, flat models and a jewie if they were around.

We met at our first spot at Oatley around 8.45am, neither of us are keen on early starts and we catch good fish during the day anyway. The spot wasn't to be, we hadn't been there before and as it was getting on towards low tide the water was well out from the bank and the mud was like quicksand so we headed further around and launched from the ramp at Oatley Bay.

We paddled slowly out from the ramp, it's been a long time since I'd been to Oatley, actually the last time I fished it was from Cameron Jone's boat about 4 years ago and I remembered back then we were peppering the boats with plastics. I rigged a 100mm squidgy wriggler and cats around a few boats before the line went tight and I was on to my first bream a nice silvery little guy that was about 24cm to the fork. I released him and headed off to the next boat where I landed another fish about 23cm. not a bad start I thought but not the size I'm after.

We paddled further out towards the main river working the boats and pontoons as we went, Jay hooked to a nice bream about 27cm and things started to look up. we headed out into the main River and it started pouring non stop, I remembered talking to Carl about jewfish last week and he mentioned an awesome day he had on the jewies when it was raining, so I got out a big squidgy fish in the black/gold colour and rigged it on a lumo jighead. I cast and trolled it for ages until I was soaked through and decided to hide under a jetty until the rain eased a little.

I waited about 15 or 20mins and then headed back out into the rain which had eased a bit and started casting the wriggler again, I saw this row of 4 poles with some heavy wire mesh and sent the wriggler on it's way, I lift the rod and nothing, then I let the plastic settle again and one the second lift the line went tight and the rod buckled over, I knew straight away it was a better bream and I had to fight hard as it tried to bury itself into the wire mesh below the water line.

I battled for a good 3 or 4 mins trying to keep the fish away from structure and finally brought it to the net. It was a nice bream which was about 29cm to the fork and fairly chunky, I was much happier with this fish and the shivers I had from the wet clothes seemed to disappear as Jay took a photo of me with the fish.

That was about it for the day, except for a nice Pike that Jay hooked on the way back to the ramp, we bought thought it was a thumping whiting for a while, but it wasn't to be.

In all a great morning even though it rained fairly heavily, was happy to catch up with a good mate and get out on the water.

Cheers,

Fordy.

Daiwa/Hobie ABT Forster & Squidgy Port Hacking

Well, there's my leave of absence out of the way. A couple of busy weeks after moving into the new house but I'm back on-line and thought I'd better catch up with two of the recent tournaments I competed in. The first was the Daiwa/Hobie ABT Forster round on the 12th-13th March. Nothing of note to report here. All I managed was one legal fish the whole weekend. I was roasted a few times in the racks (which is pretty standard for up there) but apart from that it was a lot of casting for not much result. Although coming back into the weigh-in on the last day I raced past Meechy and you would've thought I'd cracked a good bag from my actions. In reality, I was just glad it was over. The photo is courtesy of the ABT website. http://bream.com.au/ The top 3 guys found the fish though and 3rd place was taken out by Stewart Dunn with a 6/6 for 2.57kg. 2nd place went to Jason Meech with a 6/6 for 2.61kg and top place went to Luke Kay with a 6/6 for 2.73kg. Luke found his fish in the Breckenridge Channel and found they took a liking to his Gulp 2" Shrimps in banana prawn colour. Well done guys on what was a pretty tough weekend as bag sizes and fish numbers were down on usual results. The next tournament I entered was the Squidgy Port Hacking Round on the 30th March. The weather wasn't great (the predictions were worse though) and this kept the kayak numbers down. Only 15 of us this time and I struggled to find fish. Pontoons and jetties just weren't working for me so I ventured into deeper water and finally pulled one up from 10 meters on a Gulp Camo sandworm. I then landed a couple of legal snapper that had me thinking I had found a chool of bream but alas, it wasn't to be. They were coming home for dinner though and then I even landed a squid, so he came home as well. I continued moving about and made it down to the weedbeds near Maianbar. The wind really kicked in then, as did the rain but I perservered and was rewarded with my best fish for the day, a 32 fork specimen that smashed my Atomic semi-hard (muddy prawn) as soon as it hit the water. I managed a few more that were just undersize and then I landed a first for me EVER! A Garfish!!! Being a first, he was granted his freedom. Time was up for me though so I it was in with the lure and into the long trek back. Reports from most was that it was a tough day, in fact only six of us yakkers managed fish. I scraped into 5th place and picked up a rod and reel combo and the podium was a who's who of the bream circuit at the moment. 3rd once again went to Stewart Dunn and 2nd went to on-fire Andrew Death (I think thats two firsts, a 2nd and a 3rd in his last 4 comps) but the winner (again) was Luke Kay who found all his bream in deep water and caught them on blades. This sunday sees the Squidgy St Georges Basin round being run (for details visit their website: http://www.ssbs.basinlureandfly.org.au/ ) and I hope we get a few more yaks at this event. Hopefully I can have a good round down there and get my bag nice and early. Happy yakkin', everyone! cheers, Cid

Towra Point...Again!

More practice before the big tourny at Forster so Andrew, Stewart and myself set off into the bay and across to Towra. Great conditions again and there are very few boats around at 6:15 in the morning. Magic times and once again we are greeted to another spectacular sunrise. That little spec you can see is Andrew.

We started off working the deeper water but after a fruitless (and fishless) 20 minutes, I moved into the mangroves to try the surface shenanigans again. This time I gave the whole arsenal a go. Nuthin'... Not even a hit! What the...? Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

Time for another change and I rig up with one of the Atomic semihardz that worked for me the other week. We kept dropping out into deeper water and eventually moved into the 3 meter zone. Finally, I get a solid hit and land my only fish for the day, a 32cm bream that sped off after a quick photo on the lie-detector.

I had to leave Stewart and Andrew and typically, they started to get a few fish after I'd gone. Andrew took the day out with a trevally, which according to him was the target fish. Stewart came a close 2nd with a king landed on silly string. What a fool! he should've known that a trevally beats a king any day.

But this weekend sees us attending one of the most anticipated rounds on the ABT kayak tournament circuit, it's the Daiwa/Hobie Forster round and as per usual, it'll be an absolute cracker. There are flats, weedbeds, racks, racks and more racks and more anglers are smashed up in this locale than probably anywhere else in Australia. At this stage, there are approximately 35 confirmed anglers and it'll definitely increase and hopefully we can crack the 50 mark.

As an added bonus this year, Steve Fields, General Manager of Hobie Australia, announced this very generous incentive for all of us to get involved:

"To show support for the Forster Fishing Carnival and the Daiwa-Hobie BREAM Kayak Series-R8 - Forster- 12-13th March, Hobie will provide a new 2011 Hobie Outback as a random prize. Only those who enter and fish both days of the Daiwa-Hobie BREAM Kayak Series-R8 - Forster- 12-13th March will be eligible. The top three place getters are removed from the pool for this prize. So everyone is in with a chance in one of Australia’s best fisheries! Let’s see if we can break the record for the largest field in this year’s rounds. I think Bemm was 57…..

So, even if you don't catch a fish all weekend, you still have a chance to walk away with one of the best fishing kayaks on the market, and I should know, cause I have one! For further details, please visit http://www.hobiefishing.com.au/ or http://bream.com.au/abt/2010/Forster10.pdf for a downloadable PDF with all the details.

I'm setting off tomorrow but I know a few guys that are already on their way up there and will have a pre-fish tomorrow, so I'll be picking there brains on friday night. And rest assured, whatever they tell me, I'll do the opposite! ; ) Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,
Cid

Towra Point & Georges River - 27/2/11

Another quick trip out to Towra at dawn, hoping for those schools of Bonito and Kings to be busting up all over the place, but alas, it wasn't to be. After futiley searching for 30 minutes, I decided to head in towards the mangroves and try a bit of surface action for bream.

As I sat there rigging up with an Ecogear PX45F, I had the bejesus scared out of me by a mini water spout that decided to start up only 20 meters from where I was. It was a quite surreal experience as I'd never seen one in the 'flesh' before and the first few seconds really had me questioning what was going on. With a high pitched 'Whoosh', it shot off across the water away from me, pushing a bow wave in front of it and spraying water about 20 feet in the air. It continued on for a hundred meters or so before disappearing. As the day wore on, I witnessed another two zipping across the water in the distance and only wish I had my camera out to get a video of them. Amazing stuff.

Unfortunately, the fishing wasn't as amazing but I did manage a few bream from next to the mangroves as the tide dropped. No record breakers but still great fun on the light gear. I stuck with the PX but next time I'll mix it up a bit and try some Sammys and Sugapens and see how they go.

Then on sunday morning I took Lachlan down to Oyster Bay. Last trip I started to teach him how to cast and we continued his lessons today. We'd move along the shoreline and he'd cast towards it and I'd have him slowly retrieve the lure. He's getting pretty good at it now and he managed to land his first 'cast and retrieve' fish, a decent flattie of 42 cms that took a liking to his SX40. A little later he landed a 27cm bream while muggins here didn't even turn a reel. Looks like he's beating his dad already. And I'm as proud as punch. : ) Happy yakkin, everyone!

cheers,

Cid

Where are they??? - Kurnell - 13/2/11

It'd been a few weeks since I'd been out chasing those Kings in Botany Bay with poppers so I figured it was about time to get stuck into them again. Saturdays wind forecast was looking decidedly shabby so I put it off until the sunday. Wind-wise, this turned out well as I was greeted with only about 8-10 knots from the south which was perfectly acceptable to me.

No boats at the HWO was a good site for the eyes but once again I didn't even get a hit! If someone two years ago had said 'Where is a guaranteed spot to get some fish?' I'd have said the HWO. Getting there just as it was light enough to see would see you landing a few tailor which was then followed by a kingie or two, or at least a hookup! Ah well, that's life I suppose. RIP HWO...

Maybe they're at the Drums, so I continue out, scanning the surface for any bust-ups that would give away the presence of Tailor, Kings or Bonito. On the way I stopped at one of the Channel poles and flicked a blade about. Nuthin'.

Boat traffic was still fairly low and the Drums were all by their lonesome, too. Poppers first and then I tried some good ol' Mojo SP stickbaits that were allowed to sink to the bottom before being jigged back. Again they remained unmolested.

Next stop on the journey was the west towrads the 'Sticks'. These twin marker pylons are a well known spot in the Bay. Bream, Flathead and Snapper are all a good prospect here and I did manage one of each on a blade, but only the flathead (40cms) was legal. Plus I did hook what felt like a very good fish (probably another flattie) but he was only connected to me for a few seconds so I must've just lipped him. Bugga!

The whole time I'd been out I'd been watching for diving birds or bust-ups but I didn't see any action anywhere. Other boats were cruising about and one lot of guys I spoke to hadn't seen any kings either. I also tried trolling a Rapala deep diver (CD10 I think), again for nix.

From there it was back into another marker pole for another zippo effort before heading in towards the groins along Silver Beach. The blade came up trumps again and this time it was a flounder. I tell you, these blades will catch anything. He wasn't quite big enough to take home though so back he went until next time.

Back on the beach I measured the flattie, took a quick photo and slid him back into the ocean. He quickly settled into the sand and within a few seconds he'd changed from the mottled brown to the light tawny-sand colour you can see in the bottom photo. I wish I'd captured it on film, the change was so quick. next time I'll try to capture it. No wonder they're such a great ambush predator when they can hide as quickly and easily as that.

So the fishing wasn't great but at least I managed to get out for a while, which is better than staying at home doing nothing. Remember, you're a long time dead, so make the most of it while you can. Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,
Cid

Jakl'n Bass - Somewhere West of Sydney - Jan 2011

As promised, here is another report from Terry. He said sorry about the CAPS LOCK, he isn't yelling at us, honestly. : )

WELL FINALLY IT FEELS LIKE SUMMER, VERY BALMY MORNINGS & AFTERNOONS & THAT JUST MEANS BASS.

SO I’VE BEEN GETTING INTO A FEW GREAT BASS SESSIONS , AS YOU MAY HAVE READ IN THE LAST REPORT, BUT AS I’VE NOT BEEN OUT ON THE WATER THAT MUCH, I HAD IN MIND TO TRY A NEW LOCATION. ITS AMAZING HOW MUCH WATERWAY WE HAVE AROUND OUR METROPOLTIAN AREA. I"D DONE A BIT OF RESEARCH AND I WASN’T GOING TO LET THIS SPOT "X" SLIP AWAY.

WELL, BEING A HOT DAY (TEMPERATURE 34 DEGREES) & VERY LITTLE BREEZE I WAS DETERMINED TO GIVE IT A GO . SO HERE I AM ON THE WATER PADDLING AWAY. THIS PLACE LOOKED SO BEAUTIFUL, SUPER CLEAR WATER, ROCK WALLS, THE REEDS IN THE WATER & THE SUNKEN TIMBER UNDER THE WATER LINE . IT JUST HAD 'BASS' WRITTEN ALL OVER IT ( WELL I HOPE SO ).

SO HERE I WAS , CASTING INTO THE SHADOWS, AS THE SUN WAS HIGH IN THE SKY PUNCHING OUT THE HEAT. I HAD BEEN CASTING SURFACE LURES FROM LURE LOGIC (GEES THEY HAVE A MAGNIFICENT ACTION) & WORKING THE LURE VERY SLOWLY, BUT UNFORTUNATELY THERE WAS VERY LITTLE INTEREST.

'MMMMMM,' I THOUGHT. 'OK, NO BASS, PRETTY STRANGE, NOT EVEN A LITTLE ONE CAME TO INVESTIGATE.' AS I PADDLED ON FURTHER ADMIRING THE NATURE & THE BEAUTIFUL CLEAR WATER & BELL BIRDS IN THE BACK GROUND, I WAS THINKING OF THE NEXT TYPE OF LURE I SHOULD USE AS I'VE NEVER SEEN THE WATER SO CRYSTAL CLEAR OR ARE THERE EVEN BASS HERE FOR STARTERS? LOL.

WITH THE WATER BEING VERY DEEP IN SOME PARTS (7 MTRS & MORE) I THOUGHT OF TRYING A JACKALL AS THESE LURES VIBRATE LIKE MAD & GET DOWN DEEP WITH VERY LITTLE EFFORT, AS I WAS IN NEED TO CATCH MY 1ST BASS FOR THE DAY .
AS I CAST THE LURE INTO THE DEPTHS, I WATCHED THE LINE FOR ANY HITS. A SUDDEN WHACK LIKE A FREIGHT TRAIN SAW THE LINE COMING OFF THE SPOOL VERY QUICKLY.

OH NO!!! FLICK THE BAIL UP OVER ,SO YOU CAN SET THE HOOKS TEZ! LOL WHEN I DID, WOW. THE FISH PULLED HARD & FELT VERY SOLID. THERE WAS NO WAY UP TO THE SURFACE IN A HURRY. WELL, IT FINALLY SURFACED AFTER A HECTIC BATTLE & LANDED IT. THIS FISH WAS IN PRISTINE CONDITION & THICK IN THE BODY AND WENT A VERY RESPECTABLE 360MM.

MY ADRENALIN WAS VERY HIGH, AS THIS SPOT LOOKED UNREAL. I KEPT PLUGGING AWAY, AS THIS SPOT HAD PLENTY TO OFFER, IT WAS MIND BOGGLING OVER WHICH SNAG OR CREVICE MAY HOLD BASS. LOL

AGAIN PERSISTANCE PAYS OFF. AS I WORKED THE LURE WITH A SUDDEN WHACK & I'M FIGHTING AN AGGRESSIVE FISH. IT WASN’T A DESCENT FISH, BUT HEY, WHO CARES? A BASS IS A BASS! LOL, IT WAS 220MM

WHILE BEING ON THE WATER FOR A FEW HOURS & GETTING INTO SOME BEAUTIFUL BASS OF ALL SIZES, I WAS KEEN TO GO ON FURTHER & CHECK THIS PLACE OUT. TALK ABOUT NATURAL ENVIROMENT & THE NATURE, IT WAS ENDLESS, EVEN THE PADDLING WAS ENDLESS .

AS I WAS A LONG WAY FROM THE CAR & TIME WAS RUNNING AWAY FROM ME I COULDN’T RESIST TO HAVE ANOTHER CAST WITH THE JACKALL INTO SOME AWESOME SNAGS. THE AMOUNT OF BASS THAT I SAW LURKING AROUND THE AREA , IT WAS UNREAL TO WATCH, AS THEY WERE FIGHTING OVER THE LURE AS IT WAS SINKING INTO THE DEPTHS. TAKE IT TAKE IT I THOUGHT. WOW!!!!! WHAT AN AMAZING SIGHT TO SEE THE BASS TAKE THE LURE & SWIM OFF WITH IT. IT WAS JUST CRAZY!

ALL THAT IN A BLINK OF AN EYE , THERE WAS NO TIME FOR PLAYING GAMES , THIS FISH WANTED FREEDOM ,BUT WITH A LOCKED UP DRAG & QUICK ROD WORK I WON THE BATTLE .

ANOTHER WELL CONDITIONED FISH WAS LANDED & IT LOOKED LIKE A BEAUTY. IT WENT 370MM WOW !!! I WAS STOKED. I RELEASED THE FISH BACK IN THE WATER TO LET IT FIGHT ANOTHER DAY. THIS TRIP WAS WELL WORTH IT, EXPLORING NEW WATERS. DEFINATELY, I’LL GET BACK TO THIS MAGNIFICENT PLACE.

Once again, thanks for the report Tezza. That some really spectacular country to go Bassin' in. Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,

Cid

Squidgie Southern Bream 2011 - Georges River - 30/1/11

Last years series was a hugely successful one and this year promised to be bigger and better. Conditions were going to be ideal (maybe a little too hot though) and a big field was expected. But I think even the organisers were a bit surprised with the turnout. 84 boats and 26 kayaks graced the starting beach and what a spectacle it was. It's great to see the kayak numbers up on last year and I'm sure these events will just get bigger and bigger.

At 7am the boats were off and by 7:07am, we, the real fisherman : ) were allowed to go. I'd been in mixed minds as to where to target this year. Towra Point was one of the options but I figured there'd be a mass of boats hitting it and I'd take at least 40 minutes to get out there anyway, so I put that idea to bed. Next thought was the racks in Woolooware Bay but as most of the yaks headed that way, I decided to go with the first part of my plan of last year and hit some boats and jetties early but would then continue on upstream, hopefully finding some relatively untouched waters.

I dropped a good fish only 5 minutes into the comp but at least that was pretty promising. I continued working along, flicking under jetties and pontoons with a variety of SP's, waiting for that telltale grab of the plastic but it turned out to be a long waiting game. In fact, it was as if someone had netted all the fish in the area because I couldn't even get a bite! Well, one small chopper tailor doesn't count, so I continued with my plan and headed upstream.

By 10am the water traffic was in full swing with jetskis and water skiers and all other types of boats zooming all over the place. Not great conditions for breaming and they would only make the fishing that much harder. Some flats I'd intended to hit had TWO wakeboarders zigzagging across it so that was skipped as I made my way up to Kangaroo Point.

I glanced at my watch and it was 10:42am and I hadn't even seen a bream. At times like this you start to ask questions: Should I have gone to Towra or the Racks? Maybe deep water is the go? Where are the fuggen fish??? Etc, etc.

For the umpteenth time I skipped the Squidgie bloodworm wriggler into the shadey area at the back of a pontoon. I watched the line as it sank and what the? A tic! I slowly lifted the rod and felt some weight so I struck and yes, I'm on! In she comes and yes it's a bream but it's only 25cms to the tip (it needs to be 26cms) but at least it a start.

I move onto the next pontoon and repeat the cast. Again I feel weight and this time it feels a bit better and woohoo, this one is just over 26cms, so I'm on the board. And then it was as if someone flicked a switch and suddenly, they came on the chew. Over a four hundred meter section , I hooked or landed a fish off every second jetty and pontoon. Some small or just under and a couple of legals and twice I was roasted by good fish that pinged me off on jetty pylons but them's the breaks.

By 11:30 am, I had three in the well but one was just over 26 cms, so I really wanted to upgrade him. I eventually made it around to my ol' fishing mainstay of Oyster Bay and on the third pontoon I pulled a 28 cm specimen so I knew I had three that would pass muster but unfortunately, there were no kicker fish in the bag.

The tide was dropping so I followed suit and dropped back into a deeper channel and started working it with a blade. This proved successful and I landed another four that were all 26 or 27 to the tip, so all legal but unfortunately, no upgrades. Try as I might, I just couldn't hook that kicker fish.

By 12:15 pm the bites had stopped and I didn't raise another scale. Bugger all bycatch today too, only one legal flattie and two undersize ones and one pike. I've included a map of the path I took (just under 14 kms) and the red dots are where I landed my keepers. So were all the fish just in that area? I don't think so. I reckon they just decided to start eating at that particular time and then for some reason, they shut up shop again.

As I made my way back, I figured I'd only have 1.3kgs maximum, which I was sure wouldn't be enough. Maybe a top ten if I'm lucky but that's about it. Punching home into the now very-fresh wind was not fun and I only made it back with about 30 seconds to spare. Too close for comfort really as there is a 50 gram penalty for every minute that you're late getting back to the weigh-in.

Talking to the others, it seems it'd been a tough day for everyone. An interesting fact was that most didn't get their fish until after 10:00-10:30am which correspondes closely to when my fish were caught, too. The family were there to watch the weigh in and surpirsingly, I managed 6th place with 1.265 kgs.

And who won it? Andrew Death, of course! He's hot to trot at the moment and has won his last three comps in Sydney and he well and truly smashed us in this one, too. Andrew bit the bullet and ventured out to Towra with all the boats and brought home a 2.21kg bag, eclipsing his nearest rival by 320 grams. His bag also included a bream that nearly went a kilo, so it was an impressive show of talent on a tough day.

Second place went to Robert Chambers (1.89 kgs) and third went to that podium regular, Stewart Dunn (1.585 kgs) who just nudged Dave Hedge into fourth with 1.535 kgs. Or as Stewart says, 'Smashed him!' Well done guys.

Of course, the tournament was another huge success with drinks and a sausage sizzle rounding out the day and 'Basin Lure and Fly' can take another bow for running a truly professional tournament that is accessible to all. For further details on the series, please visit their website at: http://www.ssbs.basinlureandfly.org.au/

Plus Terry has been out Bassin' again, so I'll get another report and photos off him and put that up soon. Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,
Cid

Bassin' the Nepean - Dec 2010 or Jan 2011..not sure of exact date

As stated last week, Terry has been getting into a few bass and he sent through this report that covers a trip he had a few weeks ago...

With all the rain we had in the last few weeks, I was begging hard for it to blow out to sea.
As each day this week I was watching the weather very closely & hoping to get a line wet.
Sure enough today was the day, I couldn’t resist, the humidity, the stillness & those cicada’s (don’t ya love em) buzzing in my backyard, gave me an indication to have a crack at dirty bassin.
Although the barometric pressure wasn’t favourable (not that I look at it) I set off to my local river .

It was a late start at midday, water was coffee, overcast, not a ripple in the water (mirror finish)& insects everywhere (looking good just how we like it). As I paddled along & looking at the sounder WOW the water temp was 26degrees.

Well out came the surface lure , just love my surface action so visuial. I pulled up to a great looking snag, timber everywhere, sure there's gotta be a bass here .

As the lure landed tight against the snag & the ripple disappeared BLOOP BLOOP 10 secs later BLOOP BLOOP nuthin , not even a tap, mmmmm.

I fished with surface lures for half n hr for no result even in places you think to yourself, how did i get that lure in there with all that overgrown branches where bass love to hide.

I looked in my tackle box deciding on what lure to tie on next , the stumper jumper was it , have had some great success over the years with this lure & it wasn’t before the line wet tight , drag peel’n off , WHHHOOOO , this felt like a descent fish , as he was racing back for cover, still no colur, as it was trying to snag me up.

After a great tussle & the fish landed & measured 380, my blood was pumping, a quick photo & the fish was swimming away.

By this time it was 1pm & I didn’t have much fishing time left.
As I flicked into the shadows & retrieved into the depths , was on again how good is this ( thats how fishing should be ) another well condition fish was landed it measured 350. The next half hr was just awesome fishing , it surprised me with all the rain & run off we’ve had, it was worth giving it ago in dirty water . I ended up with 9 bass ranging from 270 – 380 mm. Its only going to get better from here. Happy bassin'.

Great report, Terry. Thanks for sharing with us.

And this weekend (sunday, 23rd January) sees the next round (no. 5) of the Daiwa ABT/Hobie Kayak Bream tournament kick off in Victoria at the legendary location of the Bemm River! Last year the bags were massive (24 anglers from a field of 38 had a weigh-in bag of over 2kg's for three fish!!!) and there is sure to be a strong turnout for this one.

More info is available here: http://bream.com.au/abt/2010/Bemm10.pdf and if you can only do one tourny, this would have to be high on the list. Hopefully the yakkin' fraternity haven't been hit too hard by the floods and they can still make it to this premium event. Good luck to all attending, I know I wish I could've made it... Happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,
Cid

Popping for Botany Bay Kings - 7 & 9/1/11

It's been a while since I'd been to the HWO off Kurnell and honestly, I haven't caught a fish from there the last 5 or so times I'd been. I think the dredging for the pipes across the bay really stuffed it up as it was almost a sure-fire spot for getting a few tailor and maybe a king or two right on sun-up. But I hadn't even had a hit there lately but I'm not ready to give up on it yet, so out I go again in the dawn gloom, hoping to have my arms stretched.

There was one boat casting large poppers at it when I arrived and I decided to flick out the 6" Mojo stickbaits for something different. I gave it a good going over for 15 minutes and once again, not even a touch. The same result went for the boat who eventually packed it in and shot off to the other side of the bay. I gave it another couple of casts and decided to head out to the Sticks to see if I could get a bream or two. I'm sure that the HWO still fires at times but it's definitely quieter than it used to be.

On the way out to the Sticks, I saw a few boils ahead of me, 'Maybe Bonito?' I thought and flicked out a small metal slice and cranked it back at high-speed. After a few casts without a touch I switched to the Mojo. Nuthin'! They were still boiling up, nothing wild though and I reached for a new Ecogear popper I have, an orange and black TP88F. First cast and it's snaffled off the surface. And then the drag starts screaming! Oh yeah, this isn't a bonito.

Strong determined runs and then down deep it goes, slugging it out. Now this is more like it. I soon get colour and it's my first Kingie for a long time. Into the net and onboard but it's just short of legal at 62cms so it's back into the drink for this guy. The boils had stopped by now so I continued to the Sticks and started with a blade.

I'd been blading for about 10 minutes and had landed one small pinkie and a 33cm bream when 20 meters away there's a bit of a bust up on the surface. A quick switcheroo of rods and out goes the TP88F again. It's hit 3 times before the hooks stick and I'm dragged away by what feels like a good fish. By now a few boats have seen me hooked up and are slowly creeping closer.

I get colour again and it looks like a twin of the first King and at 63cms, it almost is. Aaaarrrgh, so close to legal, but back this one goes, too. I scan the water, searching for more bust ups but the boils have disappeared for now so I go back to the blades.

But it's not long before they're back on the surface and to test them out, I switch to the Mojo again. Still nothing. So I downsize to smaller squidgy flickbaits but again they are ignored. I even cast the blade out and landed it right in the middle of the school but to no avail. So back to the popper and it's instant action again. I pulled the hooks on two fish before I finally get a solid hook up and this guys goes deep straight away and gives me a good tow.

When I eventually drag him aboard I'm only 20 meters from one of the boats and the guy yells out 'What are you getting those bloody Kings on?' I return with 'Are you using Soft Plastics?' 'Yes', he says. 'Well I'm not getting them on those,' I say with a smile. I flicked my lure towards them and said 'Try a popper like this.' I hope he managed to get into a few.

As fortune would have it, this one is a smidge over 65 cms, so hallelujah, there's dinner. My time on the water was now up so I left them biting. Man, I hate having to do that.

Of course, after a good session like that, I was keen to have another go so on the sunday I headed out into the overcast slightly drizzly morning which at least kept the boat traffic down. The fish were a bit shyer today and again I could only get them to take poppers. The TP88F (see right) worked again, as did an NW Pencil and also a River 2 Sea popper which promptly had the light gauge hooks completely straightened. Silly me forgot to back the drag off. D'oh!

So I ended up hooking 5 and landing 2 but the biggest was only 60 cms, so none of them came home with me this time. But gees they're bloody good fun! Let's hope there are a few more sessions with bigger specimens involved over the next few months.

On a different note, Tezza has been getting into a few bass lately and will send me a few photos with a report to go with them, so I'll get those up within the next day or two. Happy yakkin, everyone!

cheers,
Cid

Cooks River - 28/12/10

So from all reports the Bonito were going off their proverbials in Botany Bay, especially around the Port Botany area. A plan was quickly hatched late one night to go out and get a few as they are one of my favourite fish to eat (filleted, rolled in sesame seeds and dried chillies, seared in a pan for 30 seconds and served with soy and wasabi and pickled ginger...perfecto).

And thus Tezza and I stood at the ramp on Foreshore Rd at 5am, looking into a 20 knot southerly. A guy in a half cabin cruiser was also there at the ramp, looking at the chopped up water. 'Fugg that', we thought, and decided to skip the Bonnie chasing and head to calmer waters.

Next closest place was the Cooks, so we set off to get a few bream although the rods we had were a tad heavier than we'd normally use. At least the ramp was nice and quiet. Bouncing a TT switchblade along the side of the freeway wall saw me come up with one bream of 27cms fork length within five casts and I left the next stretch to Tezza and moved onto the boats out in the deeper water.

Hop, hop...hop, hop and boofo! Ooh, this doesn't feel like a bream. I could feel a decent weight on the end of the line and off down current we go. He took me on a bit of a run and we danced around the anchor ropes with there being one moment when I thought it would all end in tears. He was going the left hand side of an anchor rope when he suddenly veered off and went the right side. I quickly tried to turn but there was no way I was going to make it to follow him and suddenly I felt the line rubbing against the rope. There was nothing else I could do, so I flicked over the bail arm and free spooled him praying that he'd stay attached. As I rounded the anchor rope, I frantically wound in and yes, he's still there.

The runs weren't as strong now and I knew that with patience and a backed off drag, he'd be mine. Up he came and into the net (it just fitted) and our plan B turned out to be A-ok! Ha, who needs Bonnies when you can catch these brilliant fish? He was hooked right in the side of the jaw and the fluoro didn't even have a mark on it. Luckily it must've been the braid that rubbed against the rope. Sometimes ya gotta get lucky, I suppose. 78cms total length and only 4cms short of my best one from the yak.

Tezza was keen to get his own now and from the distance I hear 'I'm on!'. I can see his rod doubled over but he's right near an anchor rope too and when I catch up to him it's all over. On the hook up, this brute shot straight between the front of the boat and the anchor rope which didn't give Tezza any chance at all. Next time, buddy, next time.

To round out the day we picked up some great whiting and a few more bream, but nothing was going to top that jewfish. Well, maybe a bigger one I guess would've done it...

And sorry, but I don't have time to get the Kings on Poppers from Botany Bay report up today but it WILL be up tomorrow. Happy yakkin', everyone.

cheers,

Cid

Another Dubois starts her fishing adventure - 24th Dec 2010

Firstly, let me start with hoping you all had a very merry Christmas and a happy and safe New year. Fingers crossed you got out a few times and landed some fish and hopefully santa brought you what yopu really wanted.

A couple of years ago I took my son out on my old Hobie Sport and we had a ball landing bream in Oyster Bay. My daughter, Danielle, asked me 'When can I go fishing?' and I thought if you're old enough to ask, you're old enough to go. So we loaded up and set off for the same spot as I took Lachlan that first time.

The tide wasn't quite right (it was a bit too low) but she was really keen, so on with the type 1 PFD (much to Lachlans protestations: Hey, that's mine!) and up the front of the Outback she went and we started trolling an SX40 and a River2Sea baby vibe. She loved being out on the water and giggled with glee as we bounced over the wakes from the other boats zipping about.
We'd been trolling for about ten minutes when the River2Sea is smacked! 'Here, Danielle, hold the rod, no not like that, like this, that's it now wind like we practised, no, the other hand, wait lift the rod up, no, like that, yes, that's it, yes, that's...damn.' Between all the instructions and the excitement, the flattie chewed through the leader. Must've been a good 'un. So on with another SX40 (no more R2S's) and off we go again.

It's not long until another rod buckles and this time I sit her in my lap and hold the rod while she winds. This guy put up a feisty fight and Danielle squealed with excitement as we netted him. 40 cms he goes and he'll be perfect for dinner. We came in after this as the tide was almost bottoming out but she loved the whole experience and now it'll be trickier going out and deciding who stays at home.

To make it up to Lachlan, we snuck out a couple of days later and landed four between 38cms and 44cms and lost two that felt bigger. Naturally, when we got home, Danielle was there with hands on hips giving us the dirty look for not taking her. Hopefully, I'll have two fantastic fishing buddies for the rest of my life and I couldn't be luckier. I just hope they'll grace me with their company when they hit the teenage years.

A few days later I hit the Cooks River with Terry and landed a very nice surprise. I'll get that report up tomorrow as well as adding the session I had chasing kings in Botany Bay on poppers. Now that was exciting stuff. So until tomorrow then. happy yakkin', everyone!

cheers,
Cid