RockHoppin

Mate i was there over the easter long weekend as well but didnt really get a chance to fish as much as i wouldve liked. Anyways, i was at the top of tomaree lookout and took a few pics. From what i know, none of the ledges looking south are known sanctuary zones...water looks very very fishy though! Wish i had taken my spin stick!

Hi Can anyone recommend a top reef fishing charter operator in Port Stephens? heading up there over easter and would love to get amongst the reef species up there. Any advice will be greatly appreciated. Cheers

hey guys, just wondering if the spit is still a reliable source for yakkas from the wharf?

nice work greg - the swell kept me well away from the rocks over the past week..ive been having some crazy thoughts about buying a boat after all this rough weather! couldnt fish the rocks not even once!

awesome catch there Dave. I fished OMH a few weeks back using cunji and got bricked by a few solid drummer no doubt. Which ledge/gutter were you fishing? I was on the main ledge facing east. I see many fishos try that spot for nothing, but it does tend to fire up when the NE are on the up.

Im with you mate..i cant see myself hanging up my fishing rods if they succeed in pulling this rubbish over us...there is no bloody way I'll stop fishing and i dont know how the hell they think they will police this. This will piss even the most calm of us off and it will no doubt get ugly. I havnt seen one inspector in 14 years of rock fishing...they wont have the resources to successfully implement this but i'll be very surprised if it gets through.. Cant believe the stupidity of the #$*&$# greens!

Nice fish mate, well done. I just cant believe people get the time to fish 3-4 times a week!!! Wish I was that lucky...

Nice work mate, good to see they're moving in close. Im looking at chasing some kings on sunday morning..water temp just keeps gettin better and better..

Still amazes me to think these morons can point the finger at the recreational fisho and blame them for a decline in our fish stocks. Some of the best platforms I know have been closed as 'marine parks' - stupid thing is you'd be crazy to dive these spots and I dont think many blokes would be willing to walk the 45+ mins to get there!?!?!? So whos really benefiting from this bullsh*t???! If anyone wants to protect our fisheries its us recreational fisherman... this is clearly obvious by the fact that thousands of fishing licenses have been purchased since this policy was introduced. So what do they do? They close down a few popular rock ledges as 'marine parks' and pretend to be acting in our interest??? what a joke.....

Try the Compleat Angler tackle store above Dymocks in the city (they're on level 3). I bought mine from there and they've always got em in stock...

Thanks mate red crabs can either be baited in segments or ideally put on whole. They are usually around 8-10cm including the legs. they're found at low tide near the waters edge - thus making it a little risky gathering them in any kind of swell. The black crabs that live a little further up from the water are still good for bait but i find the red crabs get hit harder when baited whole. Black crabs are better in segments i reckon...they make a nice stinky fresh bait that sit well on the hook. Dont be surprised if you catch a few stud bream using this technique as well as drummer - which are both a big no show on the 20kg line...Anyways, try a full crab for starters and move if 1 spot doesnt fire in the 1st 15 minutes. p,s 10 crabs per session is the limit...nothing worse than going back to find a ledge has been thrashed of all life..

mate going by what you just said it seems you're doing everything right. Red rock crabs are definitely the #1 bait and you're getting them so no problems there. Urchins are the #1 burley and u got that covered too. Maybe the area ur fishing is overfished?? Id ditch the snapper lead and go with a light running sinker - depending on swell. We generally only fish calm flat seas for groper which makes this style of fishing easier - the fish are usually right at ur feet. Again, Id go 24kg tortue...80lb is crazy IMO...still thats just personal preference but i cant see how u can cast 80lb very far if thats what ur trying to do? Another thing, fireline aint the best in the heavier line classes so ill ditch that in favour of tortue. As for the bait, i thread it through the 2nd leg from the back and push it towards the claws. hook point is supposed to come out through the gut section and be a little exposed (3 ormm or so) and I use a 4/0 big gun rather than a 5/0. If ur getting the smaller browns then the bigger blue will be there too...if not, keep moving around..if there are any big blues around they will take your bait first...no doubt about that! Look for ledges covered in barnacles, etc that drop straight into deepish looking water....its only a matter of time mate. Cheers

..wont fall for that one again..

Hi, Just curious, whats with the new format when viewing responses to a thread? Cheers

Thanks mate. The big blue will come, dont you worry bout that! Its just a matter of time. Much like kingy fishing you tend to get destroyed and demoralised about 20 times first before you actually land one! Where you catch the small ones, there will be big ones..and you will definitely know when a big blue has taken your crab! My rig is pretty simple - 4/0 big gun with a light running sinker straight to the hook. Just make sure the hook is well presented and away you go. I personally dont like fishing with the heavier lines.. we started off using 80lb schnieder mono - never again! 20 or 24kg is still plenty strong and you will land em with a good fight...80lb+ just takes away all the fun and is just much harder to fish with in my opinion.