sails

well done on the catch, and thanks for showing us the activity. looked like a great day fishing..

Hi Simda, great report, and especially as you were sharing the time and fun with family. thanks for sharing it with us all. Hopefully this will be the start of many more such catches. That should keep the wives happy!! cheers Sails

Hi raiders, I took my yak out this evening to see if there was anything around at Collaroy that was interested in a lure. I headed north at first and saw some action just off the beach, but could not get them interested. Not sure if they were salmon, tailor or bonito, but my lure landing in their midst put them down immediately. after a few lure changes it was approaching dusk; around 5.30pm, so I headed past the pool at the southern end of the beach to do a pass across to Long Reef. I was just into that section off the pool when one of the rods let me know it was running and after a short tussle I landed a 37cm snapper!! I was a happy boy, as I had been fishing from the pipe three times in the past week and only caught one Trevalley. I had a couple more passes in the same area, but the only thing interested was a pike, which I kept for future bait. We had the snapper for dinner plus a squid that roberta caught in Pittwater this morning with a top water lure!! cheers Sails

top report Peter ,a great read, and a very productive outing. well done on the kingies, cheers Sails

Stewy and Donna, once again, thanks for putting together a great event for those of us that were able to make it up to the Entrance. Life has contrived to keep me away from fishing for some time now so it was with some good hearted encouragement from my sister Roberta, that my wife Christine and I managed to get a weekend pass while our 14 Y.O daughter was at a Youth conference in Katoomba. We threw everything in the back of the car and headed up to The Entrance Saturday morning. Arrived midday and in time for lunch and began to meet a lot of new faces and names and lots of tales of catches and misses. Great to see Tide'n knots and Fishfingers (Pete and Rosetta) again and to meet Mike and Dan (Browney1 and Dan T), and to catch up with Stewey and Donna again after a long break. After lunch most headed out onto the lake but I joined Roberta, Browney and Dan T over at the beach for some worming practice and a spot of fishing. While the young ones were chasing the elusive worms I put some (that I had pulled from Collaroy the day before) on a hook and pulled a couple of nice 35cm whiting from the back of one of the sand bars. Pity they wern't legal for the comp, but whiting had to come from the Lake, not the beach. When I rejoined the others they had finally given up the addictive yet frustrating worming attempts and were already getting into the tailor, salmon and flathead with Browney1 pulling a 49cm tailor and a 65 cm salmon. I had some nice hits on ganged pillies, but I was a bit rusty on technique and dropped the first two fish I hooked. It wasnt until I beached the third hook up that I understood what I was dealing with as I landed a 47cm tailor. This one was wearing all three of the gangs so there was no way it was getting off!!. The fish went off the bite before 7pm so we headed for the get together at the pizza place and then back to Fishraider Central at no 5 for more tales of catches and misses. Taking a leaf out of Browney and 'Dan Ts' book, I set the alarm for 0430 Sunday morning and had the delight of being the first that I could see on the beach. The bite came on at 0530 but this time it was the chopper school, with most of the tailor around the 35cm mark. I had fun with a 48cm salmon and also managed a good sized Trevally before the bite slowed right down around 0700. While this next part isnt fishing it is something that most of us would have come across in our sport and it remainds a problem that seems to be one the increase. What really disappointed me when I got to the beach was the mess that I found left behind on the beach by whoever took over the gutter that we had been fishing the evening before. Plastic bags were everywhere, some containing unused yakkas, squid and prawns, along with the paper used to wrap them, fluro light sticks in the sand, drink bottles, a dead baby whaler shark that had its throat slit and left; just disgusting that people that share the same passion as we do could have such a totally different attitude to the territory they should be mindful of looking after. Later on as I returned to camp for the prize giving and wrap up I walked along the lake shore and found more evidence of the same attitude; truly disgusting and disapointing. The crew enjoyed a bite to eat before the prize giving and it was great that Grace and Val were along to assist with the hospitality side of the event. Legends!! We cleared the caravan park at 2PM and the weather held off until we had hit Berowra on the run home, so all in all a really enjoyable time had by us. Looking forward to the next local social get together Stewey, hope to see you there. tight lines Sails

Hi Eastwiood 1980, whiting is one of the nicest tasting fish you can catch I reacon. My daughter likes to have them as sashimi, and I usually grill them. it is funny how different people treat some fish. When I was in the west about 20 years ago I went fishing with some locals and they treated flathead as rubbish fish, to the point where they would kill them and then throw them back into the water. I also met folk that caught fresh water cat fish and said they were great to eat,!! like mud!! If you get a good sized whiting give it a go, you wont be disapointed. tight lines Sails

Hi Roberta, its amazing what a difference a couple of days make. I went to the beach this afternoon at 1800 for some worms, but a higher tide, bit of swell, steeper beach banks and very shy worms and I could only manage two in two hours !! No shortage of worms and all big, but they were all keeping their heads well down in the sand.I'll see how the fish go tomorrow. We decided that the crab was too much work for a small return, so in future, the bait thieving bandits will have to be released to steal another day; or used as bait!! cheers Cam

HI all, its been a long time since I've done any productive fishing, but I managed to get out Monday evening for some bait collecting and ended up with some very fat and juicy beach worms from my local sand strip. Yesterday morning I was up early and on the beach by 0600, and scored some very good whiting out of the gutters. . The largest went 37mm, and there were 4 of those out of the eleven that I kept. I returned 5 to grow a bit more. There was also a largish red spot crab that got tangled in the line so I decided to keep him also and I am pleased to say that though small in flesh, it tasted quite good. All in all a good mornings work and so nice to be out there before the crowds show up. tight lines Sails.

Hi Brickman, great read and well done on the marlin . How was the fog out wide? it sure made things interesting in close around Queenscliff this morning where I was. How good was the fish on the table? I'm still waiting for my first one to come in! cheers Sails

Hi Steve, that was a great post, with almost everything this site is about; Family and fishing. : Lets hope the boys go on to be the no 1 and 2 fishing buddies for the old man. Happy fathers day!! cheers Sails

Hi Roberta, well done on the bass, it looked like it would have given you a good workout, and so thoughtfully released too !! Good to see that you are geting some time on the water again while looking after Keiths' needs. tight lines Sails

HI Roberta, what a good read!! Well done on the catching and on the writing it reads really well. Your tales always make Forster such an attractive place for the fisherman/woman. I look forward to catching up when you are in Sydney, tight lines Sails

Hi Pete, well done on perservering and getting the rewards. Cam

HI Pete, that sounds like one of those nights to remember. Well done mate and keep up the good work. It got me thinking of the river again.!! Cam

Hi Roberta, well done on the blackies; Its always a shame when an old fisherman goes. I tried Mona Vale pool on Monday afternoon, and after talking with another fisherman I gave the floating lead flashing a go and came home with one good sized fish. First for the season!! Stay young chers Sails

Hi roberta, sounds like you and Keith have had a great time on the road. Lots of fishing and yakking, new and old friends and catching up with all the family; couldnt get any better. Those red claw look like they would be a good meal if you got enough of them. It is a nice way to pass the time isnt it!! Glad you are both safe and well at home after all the k's. Hope to catch up soon Cam

Hi slinky, thanks for reminding us about what is out there when you get away from civilisation. That looked like a fantastic trip, well done. cheers Sails

Hi Pete, well done on hitting the water so early on a bad weather day; it seems to have paid off for both of you. Sounds like a good bag was achieved. Certainly shows the value of burley! Any pics of the catch with a bit of background?? cheers Sails

Hi Calamari Kid, well done on being persistent, especially with the early morning start in the bad weather. 2 jewies for the session is good by anyones standards. Also thanks for the info about your rig; I have never thought of using those sliding swivels, will have to give it a go. Looking forward to more tales of big fish from our local beaches. Cheers Sails

Hi Byron, sorry to hear of your troubles, it sounds like you have been through quite a bit lately. I hope you are healing up and getting your mobility back, at least so you can sit in a boat and dangle a line over the edge. Good luck and take care. regards Cam

Hi RayR, well done on a nice bag of fish and some good pics. Why do you suppose they call them horsies? cheers Sails

Hi Raiders, just a quick update. I visited my favourite local spot on the northern beaches late yesterday afternoon with my small flick stick and some silver wobblers. As I arrived the tailer were jumping , as if they were pleased to see me!! I quickly sent out my lure and got three fish on three casts . After that I lost a heap as the hooks pulled, and finally gave it away around 6.50pm. I didnt have the camera with me, but the larger one was about 40cm. Went back there again this afternoon, and had to wait for the fish to come on, but eventually they did. First hit was a trevally that I lost as i was lifting it out of the water. The next five fish which were tailer were all lost , either as I attempted to lift them, or they managed to shake the lure . I finally figured out that I had the drag too tight , and as soon as I loosened it I began to land fish. I bagged 5 good fish and still lost a lot, before I gave it away as the water turned muddy brown from the run off from the squall that came through. You can see in the second pic the small fish they were feeding on, and my lure which was the right size for the time. Yesterday they were feeding on small gar, and I was using the same small lure. Interesting , if you look close, you can see that both small fish have been bitten just behind the dorsal fins. Most of the others I retrieved from the gut of the tailer had the same injury, with a couple of the smaller ones swallowed whole with no damage. Had tailer for dinner this evening, beautiful!! Hope to try again tomorrow. tight lines. Sails

Hey Justin. once again a great report and it is always good to see family members enjoying our thier fishing together. Some nice fish there, stonker bream as the saying goes, and interesting to see the small "chinaman" going to a good cause. See you on the water. Sails

Hi Justin, well done on getting out there early, and thanks for the report; good to know that the fish are there and willing to bite. looking forward to catching up for some more sessions in the lake Sails

Hi Pete, you certainly put in the time for the results, and many thanks for putting us onto the fish. I hope the freezer was OK!! I needed a big rest on Sunday, didnt even go for my surf! cheers Cam