Yowie

Took my son fishing this morning, pumped some nippers at Mainbar and drifted from there to eventually Lilli Pilli at various spots. 2 flatties of 45 and 55cm, 6 whiting with the biggest just over 40cm though most were around 30cm, 3 bream to 30cm, a 32cm flounder and 2 more just over size but released, and a longtom. Yowie.

Tumra, The whiting were biting at Mainbar, the bream at Lilli Pilli. Could see whiting at Lilli Pilli, but only a couple of small ones were biting there. The whiting at Mainbar were biting in less than 1 foot of water, had to walk over the flats to catch them. Have seen rat kingies busting the surface to feed on whitebait, threw lures in to the boiling water and not had a hit at all. At other times, have had them swim in the burley trail taking small pieces of fish and bread, dropped a piece over on a small hook, and it's on. Can be very fussy at times! On Friday, 2 other boats were near me at the mouth of Burraneer Bay, when I saw the fish jumping as I was heading for home. Threw a wobbler lure into the dozens of jumping fish for 2 hits but no fish. One guy in another boat was using a white stick bait for 1 fish which he dropped, and the guy in the 2nd boat was using a metal slice to land 1 tailor. The water was alive with fish, but they were not interested in lures. We all threw in lures for 10 or 15 minutes for no success. Yowie.

Fished the deep off Lilli Pilli early on Friday for 2 tailor to 49cm and plenty of undersize reddies. The bigger tailor had a gang of rusty 5/0 hooks jammed right in his arse, but he was fat so it did not affect his ability to eat, and he fought hard on a light handline. Pumped some nippers and drifted Mainbar and Lilli Pilli flats for 8 bream to 32cm, six whiting to 31cm, and a 44cm trevally feeding amongst the bream. Plenty of surface action as well from Yowie Bay to Gunnamatta Bay. Threw in a few lures, but the fish were not responding too well. A school of tailor swam under the boat off Mainbar, easily 50 to 60 fish in a small area. Yowie.

Caught one off Lilli Pilli several years ago on a small wobbler lure on 8lb line, the first and only one, took off like a rocket, and they are one of the best fish I have eaten. Yowie.

Have caught a couple of different species of Cardinal fish in Port Hacking over the years, but do not know which species they actually were. Most were similar to your photo. Yowie.

Can give you a big thrill when you stand on one when pumping nippers or prawning at night.

Fished early this morning before the wind picked up. Drifted south of Jibbon Bombie for 10 flathead to 45cm, and 3 bonito a bit smaller. The bonito swam past occasionally in small schools, so it was a matter of throwing a metal lure at them hoping for a hook-up. Hooked a couple of small spiky flathead, so as I pulled them up, I felt an occasional heavy weight on the line, which would let go, and then grab on again. As the little flatties hit the surface, I saw a blue spot flathead swimming with them. I dropped the line down a short distance, and the blue spot grabbed one of the little flatties across the middle and gave it a good shake. I lifted the line into the boat, and the blue spot hung on until he was in the boat. He was never hooked, just too greedy to let go. Yowie.

The deeper water up from Lilli Pilli still had colour in it yesterday. Have caught bonito several times before in the deep water after heavy rain colours the water. Don't know the water temp. but is slightly warmer than the beach. Drifted the same area 2 weeks ago, early morning on the full moon. Not a bream to be seen that day, but picked up 6 whiting to 39cm in shallow water. Have heard that bream spawn on the full moon, some of the smaller bream from yesterday were full of roe.

Drifted the Lilli Pilli flats yesterday with nippers. Quite a few bream about, but most were under size. Kept 6, most not a lot over the legal size, the biggest was 34cm. Also 2 legal whiting to 32cm, however, threw back plenty just under size. A fast drift with the big run up tide. Pumped the nippers at Mainbar, and was attacked by hundreds of sand flies in the early morning. The warmer weather certainly brings them around. Yowie.

Jibbon Bombie is south of Jibbon Point at the mouth of Port Hacking. Waves usually break over the top. In rough weather, do not go anywhere near it, and not on the inside, which is the area between the bombie and the rocks. The flathead are south of the bombie, heading towards Little Marley. Yowie.

Fished for an hour and a half, south of Jibbon Bombie on Sunday, and caught 15 flatties to 45cm and a nice flounder. There were a few about. Not much wind and a slow drift early in the morning. Took my son out (not a young son any more), I caught 5 flatties, and he caught the rest! Yowie.

The pike looks more like a snook, more common in southern waters than Sydney. Yowie.

An old Quintrex. Pumped the nippers near Fishermans Bay until 6.30, then headed to Lilli Pilli.

Fished between 6.30 and 8.30am, so the sun was well and truly shining. There are some patches of squirt worms on the flats, so the bream are feeding on them. A few weeks ago, I saw a couple of the bream feeding. They remained in the one spot and appeared to be blowing water out of their mouths to wash the sand away, and then feeding on the exposed worms tubes. The worms are in their tubes, so they must suck the worms out of their tubes once they have pulled them from the sand, then spit out the empty tubes. Interesting to watch!

Pumped some nippers early, and drifted the Lilli Pilli flats for 2 hours for 8 bream to 35cm and 3 whiting to 32cm. Threw back about the same number of just on or just under legals. Some of the bream were feeding in 30cm of water. Yowie.

If the garfish are big enough, you can fillet them with a long fillet knife. With each fillet, carefully cut out the rib bones. That is why I use a long knife, because it will remove the bones and leave the flesh behind. You will need a few practice runs to perfect the de-boning. Once perfected, you will have a small but bone free fillet. Pan fry in a little olive oil and you have one of the best eating fish there is. My grandfather use to roll them with a milk bottle to break up the back bone, fry them until crispy and crunch them up (minus head and bones of course) Yowie.

It's a wirrah. If you burnt the steak on the BBQ, it would still taste better than the fish! Yowie.

Cannot find it in my fish books. Has a body shape similar to an emperor, but is probably something else. Yowie.

Fished near Yowie Bay earlier in the week for a few undersize reddies and 1 yellowtail. Waste of bloody time, and the wind was swirling about, so I headed home early.

Tried trolling early outside Port Hacking this morning, for nothing. At sunrise, I drifted the bottom south of the Bommie for some blue spotted flatties. A bit quiet at first then I drifted over a patch. Kept 10 to 47cm, and 36cm flounder. I had enough fish by 7.30am, so headed home. The flatties are into their spring breeding right now, so don't keep large numbers of them. Yowie.

The salmon never jumped once, that's why I didn't know what it was. Just a fast powerful run that did not stop.

No photos, because no camera.

Decided to try out from the Lilli Pilli bathes, as have not fished there for a while. Managed a 35 cm reddie and red gurnard in the deep. Some yellowtail about but nothing chasing them. Plenty of little reddies pinching the baits. Pumped a few nippers and drifted the channel, nothing there so tried the flats for a 44cm flattie and 2 bream. Threw back a few just under size bream. Not a whiting to be seen, a couple of weeks ago there were quite a few scooting about. Drifting in a few feet of water over the Lilli Pilli flats, something grabbed one of the nippers and took off in a fast run against the current. Did not appear it was going to stop, so I started the motor with one hand (pull start) while the spool was almost empty. Followed the fish into shallow water, where I had to lift the motor, and it just kept swimming into the main channel a long way from the boat. Had to stop the motor, pick up an oar with one hand and push the boat over a few inches of water over the sand, while the fish just kept swimming into the deeper channel. Had no idea what it was at that time. The fish swam back to the sand bank and back into shallow water and circled the boat a few times before I could net it. It was a 64cm salmon. Weighed just over 2.8 kilos, or a bit over 6 pound. Was using 6 pound line and a whiting hook. If I had not followed the fish, I would have been spooled, because the little reel holds 200 yards of line, and I would have traveled twice that distance. Took about 20 minutes to land. Yowie.

Barracouta, not barracuda. Not a good eating fish, taste a bit better when hot smoked, plenty of bones. Yowie.

It was not me, I was back home by 8am as I had enough fish.