Yowie

Good work on the win.

Thank you all. There are a few fish in the murky water, just a matter of finding them. A few kingies there as well.

Out early this morning to Deer Park, water still very coloured. A tailor on the first cast, then little reddies and trumpeters. Moved after a while to the mouth of Yowie Bay. The jewie on a squid strip, the jackets on small squid pieces, the others on strips of salted mack tuna. The jackets are not very big, but just big enough, a feed for mum. Much happier fishing than 2 days ago, when there was not much to take home. A few pillies jumping about, some bigger splashes here and there, and a few mack tuna launching themselves about a meter above the surface as they were powering up under the whitebait schools. The tuna were getting amongst the bait fish, but not staying in the one place for much time, so that by the time I fired out a lure, they had moved elsewhere.

At least there was something to take home.

Headed out early this morning, to the deeper water out from Lilli Pilli. Water was brown and very murky, visibility only a few feet down. As you can see from the photo, not much to take home. The fish took fish strips, the mack tuna took a pillie just under the boat. As with the tuna, they sometimes swim around and around, and this one swam around the anchor rope and just kept going. I pulled up the rope a little bit, and the tuna was still swimming flat chat around the rope, 10 times or more before I could grab the line and haul him in. I had just hauled him on board, then the yakka line took off ( 6 pound handline and a little hook ) and eventually pulled up a kingie about 50 cm. Only 2 yakkas caught, the small one out as a livie and the other cut up into strips. The livie swam about for a little while, I could see the rod tip bouncing indicating he was swimming o.k., then the line went slack. Wound in to find the yakka gone, along with 2 x 6/0 hooks, 40cm of heavier mono and the swivel. Something with big teeth, as the line was frayed a bit. Did not take any line off the reel. Plenty of little reddies and trumpeters taking the baits. Packed up and headed for home. As I was passing near Lilli Pilli bathes, a lady was swimming freestyle outside the baths, wearing a wet suit, snorkel, flippers and mask. I would not swim outside the bathes on most days, and especially not in murky water.

Blue swimmer crab on a metal Wonder Wobbler lure. Spinning in water 20 to 30 feet deep, lure about 2 feet under the surface. The crab had one nipper around the lure body and would not let go. Lifted him into the boat and he would not let go of the lure for some time.

Washing machine weather (like sitting in your boat inside a washing machine) Not too comfortable at all. Should have stayed inside the harbour.

Jackets will find the bait, no matter how small. The size I mentioned is what I use.

Cooked prawns are a little bit tougher than raw prawns, and squid is tougher again. You only need a small piece of bait, no more than 1 cm long, size 10 longshank hook, or size 8 for those around 30cm or bigger (as you were catching). I use a strip of squid, cut the strips about half a cm wide and a piece about 1 cm long. Hook in towards one end of the bait, bring the point out and into the other end with the point just out of the bait. Maintaining a tight line to the hook reduces bite offs, but when jackets are in a school, first one in will grab the bait and try to swallow it straight away to beat the others. When the jackets are biting and hard to hook, pulling the bait away a short distance, a few cms, may induce the jacket to swim after the bait, grab it and be easier to hook.

Saw a dead one in Lake Illawarra when I was a kid. Measuring it against me it was about 4 feet long and about 5 inches wide, and had some of the most dangerous teeth ever seen on a fish. Quite a few in Port Hacking at times, though smaller sizes.

Never fished there.

I don't have a boat trailer, I keep my tinny in my mother's boatshed on Gunnamatta Bay, so I fish inside the Hacking, or occasionally head out to Bate Bay to drift for flatties, or whatever else is about. Have fished Botany Bay just once and that was many years ago. There are a lot of undersize reddies for each legal one. I use pillies, squid strips or fish strips for the reddies.

Some people rate them as similar to flatties in taste. I don't think that but they are fairly edible. I will release them if there are plenty of fish in the bag, but usually catch them when not much else is biting, so I keep them. The only way to know is to try one.

Cut the fillets off, remove the bones, and crumb and pan fry. Not the world's top eating fish, but still fairly tasty. Can be a bit dry so do not overcook. Definitely better eating than mowie.

Yes Neil, certainly happy with a feed.

Headed out early this morning, had enough of waiting for the wind to ease. Anchored near Lilli Pilli, but the wind was still blowing, though less than the last 2 days. Still not the best fishing conditions. Pulled out the tailor on a pillie on the first cast then, nothing. An occasional little reddie, then the gurnard after some time. Gurnard usually mean not much else about (as most other fish will be first to the bait, gurnard are usually the last, as they spend a lot of time walking on the bottom on their "legs" to find food) Moved to South West Arm to get out of the wind, put out some burley and the yakka line, no yakkas but pulled the 2 trevs, and dropped a bigger one at the boat. A few pickers about, and pulled up the reddie on the last cast with a fish strip. Headed for home, had a throw in from my mother's place in Gunnamatta Bay for the bream. The water was a bit murky, expected to pull a few fish after the rain, but not to be. Enough for a good feed of crumbed fillets. Did not see another boat out there.

Agree with that. Pulled a few out of Port Hacking.

Finin, Under that nice reddie is a funny looking fish. I have a picture of it on the side of my boat, it has a red circle around it with a red line right through the middle of the circle. It means a Mowie Free Boat.

I have caught blackfish to 2 pound on 6 pound line, both rod and reel, and handlines. and they do pull rather hard. I have caught frigates and bonnies on light line and they take off like a rocket at times, maybe go a bit quiet then off again. A lot more speed than most other fish, a different type of fight. I remember a 3.5 pound frigate on 6 pound line, many years ago in Yowie Bay while I was in a small row boat, and the frigate was pulling the boat along for a little while, so much speed for a small tuna species.

The pelagics are good fun on light tackle, speedy critters that keep going right to the end.

Have tried them before in a shoe box size smoker and they tasted rather good. Hot smoked as they were eaten straight away, not left to cool off and later eaten as cold smoked.

Pillies still splashing about in patches. Was having plenty of fun with a lure instead.

There is a picture of a mowie with a red circle around it and red line across it, on the side of the boat. Mowie free boat.

Looks a good fish.

Thanks Scratchie. They do make very good bait. I salt the fillets for a day, then freeze them, fillets into individual bags. Still good after 12 months in the freezer (at times I hear, "The freezer stinks. Do you need so much bloody bait?) Well, yes I do, it's cheaper than buying it.