Yowie

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.

Fishing from first light, with the last bite just after sunrise. After that, only a few little reddies. No movement on the surface to indicate any fish anywhere, the tailor are feeding near the bottom. It's a matter of one fish, then nothing for a while, then another fish, wait again, etc.

Some years are worse than others. Grays Point has a lot at present, as does the western side of Gunnamatta Bay. Other places have very little of this slimy weed. Once it gets onto the bait, nothing will bite. Many years ago in Yowie Bay, the slime was actually suspended in mid water, and an unweighted bait would not sink through it. When the water temperature rises, the slimy weed will vanish.

I was in a boat along the western side.

Fished Gymea Bay early for 6 tailor, reasonable fish from 40 to 45cm, and a 36cm reddie. Released the reddie and 2 tailor, 4 tailor are enough for a feed. A couple of the tailor took the pillies as they were sinking, but the others were feeding off the bottom. No sign of any tailor or baitfish splashing the surface. Yowie.

Certainly cannot get any worse. The fish are moving about, there one day but not the next.

Had a fish this morning, usually prefer the week days to the weekends. Fished Gymea Bay early for a tailor and trevally. Pumped a few nippers and drifted Lilli Pilli for a bream and a whiting, then drifted mainbar for another whiting and a blackfish. Enough for a feed. Yowie

Trolled around the mouth of Port Hacking for tailor at first light, but no bites. Tried a couple of drifts in Bate Bay, where I picked up some flatties a couple of weeks ago. One flattie just under size and one lost hook (probably a jacket), so headed up the Port and a couple of drifts in the main channel. No bites, and with the clear water, nothing to be seen anyway. Pumped a few nippers and fished the flats at Lilli Pilli for 3 legal whiting, with a lot of throwbacks, and one legal flattie. Saw a report in the Telegraph, that mentioned tailor to 2kg in Gymea Bay. Can anyone verify that, or is it another "fishy" fishing report? Yowie.

Wait until you stand on one while pumping nippers or prawning!

Have never seen anything like it in any books, or in my 50 years of fishing. The closest thing would be one of the parrot fish (which are the wrasse family). You might have to take the photos to the Australian Museum. Yowie.

was going fishing on Monday, saw that the wind would be light during the morning and the swell would be low, so decided to try outside for a change. Was expecting the bloody jackets to be about out there, but only lost 2 lots of baits without feeling any bites. At one stage, the wind dropped right off. I was amongst a school of just undersize flatties, as everytime I hit the bottom, it was 1 or 2 at a time, so I decided it was time to head home. Of the bigger ones I kept, they were all females and some with fat roes, so it must be the start of the breeding season for the blue spotted flatties. What have you caught lately? Last week I picked up a flattie and 2 whiting drifting in the channel. I waded the bank in the channel at a dead low tide, and almost trod on a flattie 55 to 60cm long that was sitting in ankle deep water.

Normally fillet the tailor, and pan fry with a breadcrumb coating, sometimes straight onto the BBQ after a soaking in fresh lime juice. Fresh tailor fillets are one of my favourites, though some people only consider them as bait. The flathead out there are blue spot flatties, only managed a couple of the small spikies which are normally in large numbers and are too small to eat. Only lost a couple of baits to jackets, which are normally prevalent this time of year.

Trolled early this morning off Jibbon for 3 tailor on pilchards, then after sun-up, drifted for 7 flathead. Not big flatties, up to 44cm, probably threw back double that just under the size limit. Also managed a chunky red rock cod. The fillets are about a quarter of the fish's weight, due to the big bony head, however, they are very good eating. Just as I was packing up to go home, an albatross parked itself beside the boat, and I fed it the small fish fillets and cuttle fish that I had left for bait. The belly flap of a big cuttle that was floating in the water. Yowie.

It's a frogfish.

Will be like this for a while now, until the temperature starts to rise. A report in the Daily Telegraph fishing section stated there are big whiting, bream, trevally over the Lilli Pilli flats at night. When I looked during the day, I only saw a couple of small whiting and bait stealing toads. The salmon I found had rounded up a school of small anchovies, so your couple of fish may have found another school of bait.

Fished early this morning off Lilli Pilli. Managed 3 red gurnard and a fat 33cm flounder. Little reddies no where near legal size, and a few trevally less than 15 cm, taking the big baits. Catching gurnard usually means not much is about, as they are one of the last fish to find your bait on the bottom. I suppose that is what happens when they walk over the bottom on their leg-like appendages rather than swimming all the time. Saw some birds diving, so motored over to them and spun up a salmon 50 to 55cm, released, and dropped another when the hook pulled. Tried soft plastics for nothing, hooked floating weed just about every cast. Tried drifting with nippers for a couple of little whiting, mostly no bites and nothing to be seen swimming in the clear water over the flats. Yowie.

It is commonly called a Scalyfin. It is a very aggressive fish and will attack larger fish that invade it's territory. Have even attacked a few scuba diver's fingers.

Starting to slow down. No yellowtail where I was fishing. I had salted yellowtail and squid, but that only attracted small reddies. Some of the pilchards were chewed off without the line moving, so maybe very small reddies or jackets. Appears there are a few trevally about, as I caught one and dropped another one.

No picture, just measured up and into the pan last night. Did not try any lures, only managed a dozen nippers because of the height of the water. The other whiting were undersize.

You can gain access from a road that is to the west of the Swallow Rock boat ramp. You have to be careful of the oysters in the area, some of the shells are in the sand.

Fished Yowie Bay this morning, very cold motoring against the westerly wind. Pulled out a 48cm tailor, just on a Kilo. He had 4 gentle hits at the pilchard, swim off for a few seconds, come back for another gentle tap, swim away again. Thought it was a small tailor until the hookup on the fourth bite, then he took off like a rocket. Also managed a 35cm trevally on a pilchard. Moved up to Grays Point and pumped a few nippers. Had to pump in water over my knees as it was the last of the run up tide, the water is cold. Only one legal whiting, but it measured 44cm, so not complaining. Yowie.

Looks like a snook, not a pike. Yowie.