wazatherfisherman

Hi Pickles and thanks! The second time I went to the Ovens there was still a vacant block on Rayner Rd and you went down that way to the high track that goes above South Whale platform. There was a group of four young blokes that had come from somewhere south of the vacant block and one of them had a plaster cast on his leg that went above his knee! I explained that the last bit into the Ovens was about 20 ft down a rope, but he said he was a local and he'd be fine climbing down- I told him he was mad to even attempt it, but he got down. Madness! If by any chance he'd gone in he would have sunk like a stone. All that for nothing more than a heap of those giant Long Toms that swallow your hard earned live Yakka's. Crazy stuff

Hi Jim hope you're well, great to see Vic coming out of lockdown. Nice clear picture, nothing beat a dawn session on the rocks.

Forgot to add yes "Fish Striker" MT6110

As said above 6 wrap 110 inches long T= 2 piece M= medium winch mount for spin reels rated 12-15 lb. Taper is extra fast

Hi Dazamcstaga I have had the same rod in two piece and still have a one piece I built for an Alvey (with low mount) I built mine with a 10 inch wooden butt and use both a 5 inch (50A5E Alvey) or a 6 inch (600A5 Alvey) as they are a good all purpose rod and you can use 3-7 kg line on them, making them pretty versatile. Yours would be ideally suited to a 4-5000 size spinning reel as the production rods were built for spinning reels and they were great for throwing 1 to 2 oz (30-60 gm) lures with 5-6 kg line. Really fast taper blank and great for casting. If you need any more info just ask Regards Waza

Hi again Phil- the Mattens still gets fished, not sure about the lighthouse. Jim Clarke fished the big Gap a fair few times, the spot that you put the rope ladder down through the hole in the ledge up the top. Fished a lot of different spots with Jim, mostly involved a fair climb in to wherever it was. There is an alternative climb at the Mattens but one slip anywhere on it and it's all over, all the regulars knew about it but I went up it one afternoon with the guys and we decided it was an "up" route only. The call of "WATER" was quickly learned and sent everyone running no matter necessary or not. We all called it, no worry if it wasn't a big one- better safe than sorry and as we fished the lowest ledges on flat nights in the dark for Bream whenever we could, it was often called. The night time Bream are a different class of fish completely, in my opinion they are more of a nocturnal feeder when they get over the 1.5 kg mark. A mate down here sold his kayak after a Bull shark incident at the mouth of Hen and Chicken Bay up Parramatta River so I can understand your shark concerns! Anyway, nice chatting and happy fishing. Waza

Hi Phil welcome to the site, glad you enjoyed the stories, formed a great part of my younger life. I only fished the lighthouse twice and helped the spot's creators- Billy Brown and Dave Carter- along with Jim Clarke put in two huge ladders that replaced a chain ladder they'd put in initially (it was the hairiest, scariest thing I ever climbed). All of the climbing gear was left in a pillbox that went right into the cliff about 1/4 of the way down, but it wasn't safety climbing gear, just a few short ropes and a small ladder. I wasn't scared of heights/climbing but that swinging chain ladder we replaced was bloody terrifying! I know about the "car-pulley" incident, there were plenty of calls for disqualification as cars were not permitted onto parkland for that purpose and apparently it broke a known rule, but it was (in my opinion) just jealousy from other competitors who were unable/unwilling to do the cliffs. Sounds like we did similar activities when young as I fished the harbour for Blackies, Dory etc, but "home base" was Taronga Zoo wharf and White Rock along the east side of Bradleys Head. Turned "professional" after making the Mattens home base when I was about 17, it was a great fun life full of adventure and countless fish. Sadly I have chronic cellulitis now and am classified as disabled, so rarely get fishing any more and Raider is my fishing outlet nowadays- great community here with stacks of really great people. Happy to answer any questions related to fishing or the "old days" when life was just a constant fishing adventure! Hope to hear more from you and happy fishing. Regards Waza

Hi Pete Bushman Heavy Duty 40% or 80% DEET even Rid Tropical strength hasn't stopped the sandflies. As said above Aeroguard useless in my opinion also

Well done Jamo! Good to see you catching some different species. Great photo's too

Interesting. Have to wait and see now

That's always been my experience with divers and Luderick also, if they turn up, the fish are gone or at least no longer on the bite

You just flour them and quickly pan fry- they cook in about a minute. Both male and female roe are strong flavoured and an acquired taste I reckon as really "rich" flavour. Just wondered if they had spawned yet

Excellent fish Yon- did the Luderick have any roe?

Welcome little fisho and good work with the Salmon

In all my years of collecting have never seen anything remotely like it- cool looking and unusual. Thanks for posting, like you, never imagined an electric in this form

Nice bag Yowie! Some top eaters

Just as a bit of trivia- there are probably more 6+half inch Alvey's used on the beach (and rocks!) than any other brand of reel

Hi RU4REEL as the boys said above 70's made and will last a lifetime. Great to see you went with the non-drag A5 model- there's nothing like fighting a fish on the plain series with "direct" contact. You learn much from using drag-less reels and positive contact is invaluable when landing large fish. Don't forget if you get any sand in it while fishing, just give it a dunk in the surf and a shake to get the sand out- good to go again straight away! Put any other reel in the water and it's on it's "death-bed"!

Great post GF, really well written and described! This is sure to help many fishers when looking for a spot Cheers Waza

Xuanhong2 park in Morella Rd near Iluka Rd and there are tracks leading to the water, there are many different criss-crossing paths, but if you just head east you'll find the way- easier on the way back. Most of the headland has accessible spots to fish

It's well worth soaking some white bread in a bucket until it's saturated, then "squishing" it up so it's reasonably small and mashed, add a little oil (even a spoon of olive oil if you don't have any "fishy" oils)- a tin of sardines mixed through is simple to mix in and just drop about a spoonful off the jetty every couple of minutes while you are waiting- you might be surprised what is attracted to the mix, but usually Bream will be scooting around in this burley, particularly towards high tide

Hi Nomad Samson the best time is whenever you can give it a go! Low light and higher tides generally good times, but just get out there and good luck!

Congrats Pete well deserved

Hi Jamo the higher the tonnage is, the stiffer the graphite is and this enables vibrations to be transmitted readily through your rod. As the tonnage increases the rods get more sensitive, however that also can make them more brittle. The better quality brands use higher tonnage combined with quality resins to maintain structural integrity. The stiffness and the taper of the rod are what contributes to casting distance. Correct matching of lure/sinker weight to the rod's nominated weight range is also important in regards to distance, but the "build" or purpose of the rod needs to match (at least roughly) what you are doing with it. Finer line/braid also helps with distance. Stiffer rods without a "bendy" or flexible area won't cast as far as whippy/softer rods

Welcome Fishersofmen- you have asked a pretty general question, but rock fishing you can also find gutters and holes- really depends on what species you are trying to catch/what gear you have/what techniques you are going to try. This time of year, species such as Trevally, Drummer (Rock Blackfish) Bream and Tarwhine are likely to be in the area you've mentioned and are commonly encountered close in to the rocks. When looking for likely spots, consider what it is that fish need, such as a food source and some "cover" from possible predators. In terms of the food source, look for areas with marine growth such as weed, cabbage and cunjevoi growing on low levels as these are the natural foods that will be carried off the rocks, which the fish can feed off. These areas also provide likely habitat for shoreline crabs- another common food for many species. So look for areas that have water run-off, as they are the natural areas bringing food to the fish and are often identified by areas of white/turbulent water, as the water is disturbed when flowing back from land to sea. As for "cover", again the white turbulent areas provide a good environment for smaller species and in general, more fish activity is likely in areas adjacent to areas of "wash", so look for washy areas that fit the food source criteria. This time of year, with calmer seas (from westerly winds) and clearer water, my advice would be to look for areas with at least 3-4 meters of water depth and preferably a bit deeper (so you can't see the bottom) with a nice wash and adjacent food opportunity/s. There are two main methods to fish these areas, the first and most common is to have a pea-sized ball sinker running freely between a swivel and your hook- a good general sized hook is a 1/0 suicide ("Octopus" or "Big Red" Mustad brand are examples) make the distance between swivel and hook about 45 cm, this way you keep in contact with your bait for bite detection and control of your rig. If you just run the sinker directly to hook, you won't have as positive a contact, nor idea of exactly where your bait is or what's happening. With this rig, you can catch just about anything that you'll encounter when fishing around Sydney -only differential is hook size changes for specific targeting of fish eg: Luderick with cunje or bread bait you would go down to a size 2 hook, or up to a 5/0 or 6/0 for Groper fishing with a large whole crab bait. No larger sinker is needed, in fact using the pea size or one size either way is all you really need, if you use smaller, it's likely you'll get too much attention from pest species like Sweep and Mado's which are commonly encountered in the top 3 meters of the water column- the pea size gets you through them to better quality fish below. The other method is to use a float/cork and suspend your bait roughly 3-4 meters below it, which is good for covering a bit of area and also for fishing shallower rough terrain. For simplicity though, the first rig will catch you plenty of fish, whether fished in closer or washy areas and even casting right out with a larger bait, such as half a Pilchard or a fish fillet. If casting whole fish baits is more to your liking, look for deeper water adjacent washes, often found off headlands and large rock platforms. A Pilchard or Garfish mounted on a set of 3-4 ganged hooks without any lead is either cast and retrieved or cast and allowed to float around. This method is the go for Tailor and Salmon, which will also be around, generally in the "low-light" periods of dawn and dusk. Hope you find this information useful, don't forget to always wear your safety gear and NEVER turn your back on the sea, not even for a few seconds, if you need to check some aspect of your rig, move well back from the water- it only takes a minute to move back again. Happy fishing and good luck