Yowie

Fished the deep out from Lilli Pilli. Pulled out 4 reddies (32,33,40,47cm), 2 tailor over 40cm and a 43cm blue spotted flathead (normally catch them outside, however, have caught the odd one in the port) Released the 2 smaller reddies. Used squid and salted tailor. The largest reddie was nearly 1.5 kg. No yellowtail about, but something grabbed the size 10 hook and tiny bait and put up a good fight until right near the boat when the line broke. A silver flash under the boat looked like a small jew. Returned to Gunnamatta Bay to put the boat away, and thought I would try for a squid. Picked up a medium size calamari then nothing. Pulled up the jig to go home and a small school of similar sized squid chased in the jig and sat beside the boat. Schools of these don't hang around long, so I threw the jig back and pulled out 4 more in about 1 minute, until the water turned black and the rest swam off. Inside of the boat was black, and I copped a black hit to the stomach area. Reminds me of an Italian fishing mate many years ago, who had never caught a squid. A big one followed his bait in and stayed under the boat, so I gave him a jig line and told him the jerk the line. The squid grabbed the jig straight away, and before I could say "Don't pull it into the boat just yet", my mate looked over the side of the boat to see what was happening, and copped a direct hit in the face and into his mouth. His face and clothes were jet black. Yowie.

Good work, certainly beats my one and only cobia many years ago, weighed about one pound and was released. Dropped a bigger one around 5 to 6 pound a few years ago, and I saw 2 others caught on the troll around Lilli Pilli about the same size. The deep water up from Lilli Pilli and in South West Arm, can produce just about anything. Yowie

Good work, certainly beats my one and only cobia many years ago, weighed about one pound and was released. Dropped a bigger one around 5 to 6 pound a few years ago, and I saw 2 others caught on the troll around Lilli Pilli about the same size. The deep water up from Lilli Pilli and in South West Arm, can produce just about anything. Yowie

When my grandfather was alive, he told me the jackets were so thick he could hold a piece of fish on the surface and pull them out by hand. It appears the bloody things have not changed their breeding habits since the 1920's. I asked a friend at the Fisheries Dept. was any research being done on the habits/breeding aspects of the chinamen jackets, but she was not aware of anything. A few years ago while fishing off Cronulla, I pulled out 2 jackets about 45cm long. Inside their guts were parts of a small blue spotted ray. It appears the jackets had attacked the ray and eaten it alive as it was so fresh. The tail was chewed but still in one piece, plus other pieces of the wing flaps and a complete eye. I put the pieces together and it was more than half the ray's body. Other times I have killed a jacket and thrown it into the water when the school swims under the boat, and dozens swim in for a feed. If you fell over into the school, they would probably attack like piranhas. Some times, all the jackets have empty stomachs, so they must be swimming about searching for anything they can eat.

I've fished the hacking for over 50 years, and there are still fish to be caught. One thing I remember as a kid was watching a tuna 4 to 5 feet long jumping not far out from the Yowie Bay wharf, hoping that I would catch it. In reality, I would have been water skiing down the bay had it taken my line.

When I landed the tailor, he spat out 2 large pieces of a decent sized garfish, don't know how he managed to keep them in his stomach, and then swallow a decent sized piece of yellowtail fillet. Shortly after that, I pulled out a reddie with a very fresh piece of garfish bill sticking out of his mouth, so he may have been feeding on the scraps under the tailor. Might be a few garfish floating about as well.

Fished the deep off Lilli Pilli this morning. Pulled out a just legal kingie, 3 reddies just over the size with one at 41 cm, and a lot of throwbacks just under the size, 3 bream to 34cm, a just legal jew that went back in, and a 40cm tailor. Baits were yellowtail and squid strips fished on the bottom. The kingie was gut hooked, did not go for any big runs and felt like a big reddie at first. Fished the flats along the main channel with a soft plastic, can't remember the name but it looked like a 3 inch mullet, and pulled out 2 flatties about 40 and 48cm. Both were released. Had a couple of other hits that didn't connect, felt like bream. I store my boat at my mother's place in Gunnamatta Bay. After I cleaned the fish, I threw the bones in to the shallow water and 2 dozen or so bream raced in for a feed. Some looked about 35cm long, so there are plenty of bream about at the moment. Yowie.

Found a couple of old books, 'Australian Sea Fishes, North of 30 degrees South' and 'Australian Sea Fishes, South of 30 degrees South.' (refers to 30 degrees longitude) Written by Neville Coleman, a professional underwater photographer. His photo of the amberjack is the same as yours, showing a faint yellow stripe lengthways along the centre body, and a dark line across the eye to behind the head. His samson photo looks closer to a kingfish, with a much lighter stripe along the body, and a rounder head.

Picked up 3 smaller versions over summer in the Port. Thought they might have been small samsons, however, looking at the Fisheries website pictures, now appear to be amberjacks. I think that is the first time I've been wwwwwrong. Yowie.

Caught a couple of yakkas, so cut them into strips. Also used squid strips. Fishing on the bottom. Took the kingie from the bottom, as sometimes happens.

No pics. Fishing from a boat out of casting range from the baths.

Fished the deep out from Lilli Pilli during the morning. Pulled out a 43cm tailor on the first cast, then the reddies attacked most baits. Managed to catch 2 about 38cm, a 50cm jewie, and a 66cm kingie. The kingie was landed on a 10 pound handline and spent all of its time fighting under the boat, so that I could feel the line scraping along the bottom of the boat. During this, another line took off so I grabbed that and it felt like another kingie, but the hooks pulled after a short time. Moved to Gunnamatta Bay and pulled out 4 good sized squid on a green jig. Yowie.

Caught a cobia some years ago, guessed it weighed about a pound, smallest one I've ever seen. Dropped a bigger one a few years back, and I've seen 2 others caught around 5 to 6 pound. Over summer, I pulled out 3 sampson fish, small ones around the 40cm mark, and a couple of years back, I caught a spotted mackerel on a wonder wobbler lure. Late last year, I watched a groper around the 6 pound mark swimming amongst the blackfish, so any thing is possible.

Sometimes I wish I had an R.P.G. on board. I use 2 long shank hooks ganged together to hold the bait straight, usually no sinker, just let the bait sink to the bottom. If you are not use to using ganged hooks, be careful, as sometimes one hook is in the fish's mouth, and the other hook is swinging free. Easy to snag your finger.

Fishing before sun up.

Fished near the mouth of Yowie Bay for 2 jewies, 50 and 68cm, on squid, before the small reddies attacked any sort of bait and ruined the fishing. Plenty of frigates swimming about, but not interested in lures. The annoying part was fishing in the middle of nowhere, with half a kilometre of water around me, and some galoot motors past at high speed about 20 metres away. Like most occasions, I wave my hands trying to get him to keep him further away, and you receive the finger and bad language, as if I'm in his way. Yowie.

Early on there were fish jumping near the shallows, but they appeared to be pike or snook splashes, not tailor. Later the frigates turned up.

An old Quintrex tinnie. The run up tide pushed more weed in.

Fished early for 2 legal reddies, and a few just under size. In the deep water off Lilli Pilli. One reddie was 43cm, biting on pilchards and salted bonito strips. Pumped some nippers in shallow water, and watched a frigate mackerel zooming around in not much more than ankle deep water scaring the small whiting. Drifted the sand flats and pulled out a couple of bream to 30cm and a couple of whiting to 34 cm. A lot of throw back whiting. Over the flats I saw schools of sand mullet feeding at the surface, so a few bread crusts started them feeding. Pulled out a few to 35cm, and the bream moved in to attack the floating bread. Only managed undersize ones, but the bigger ones were there. Also caught a 35cm trevally feeding under the mullet, and a just undersize flattie flew up from the bottom and grabbed my bait as it was floating on the surface. The hacking.