wazatherfisherman

The Hairtail got me when the gaff man swung it my way- I was trapped in the corner of the boat, got me on the arm- one of the ganged hooks 'stood up' saving me from severe injury, but bled like mad until the slime applied. Eel got me when I put my hand in "the drink pool" we used to put cans of drink in- some idiot put the eel in there with line wrapped around it, took my full weight on my rock plate to get it off my finger

The mate doing the Luderick technique put about half his index finger in the Tarwhine

After seeing the picture of a Long Tom caught by MattGb1989 and reading PaddyT's comment of "stick your finger in it's mouth- if you end up screaming in pain- it's a Long Tom- if you don't it's a gar!!" It reminded me of being bitten by one (a lot smaller than MattGb's) that I caught up at Fingal on the Tweed River. I had been spinning for Flathead and got the small 'Tom' in and onto the sand to take the lure out, when as I reached down for the lure, the bugger grabbed me by both the index and middle fingers- OUCH!!#@!%#!GRRR#! punctured both fingers, both sides, multiple spots- couldn't believe how much it hurt. Plenty of blood. Yep, I screamed. Worst part was having to listen to all the one-liners from the 3 mates I was there with!- "amazing how a little fish like that can make a big bloke scream so high pitched" and "who screamed-was that you or the fish?" etc etc. Having been bitten by plenty of fish over the years, I thought of a "list" of one's that had got me in a painful way-a couple of Bream, several Tailor, a Tarwhine ,a Green Eel, a Flatty, a Hairtail and of course that 'Tom. The 3 most painful bites I've seen were 1 a Pike Eel got one of the boys on a houseboat Hairtail trip- that's when we learned they have the extra row of teeth down the middle of their mouths, it bit down on him multiple times before we could get it off him. 2 Had just that day shown a mate how to use your index finger to get the hook out of a Luderick and he caught a really big Tarwhine on cunje later- tried same technique-ouch! 3 My Mother stuck her finger straight into the mouth of a Blue Swimmer buried on the mudbank at Windang, mistaking it for an oyster, came running back to the boat to get the landing net with a badly bleeding finger. Wondered what other Raiders had been bitten by? NOTE bitten not stung! Cheers Waza

Not meaning to hijack Rick's post just wanted to say good on you Scotty, hope you and yours are also safe. Thanks for your service and every success when you do get to go fishing. Everyone fighting these fires are hero's to us all

Hi Volitan, I can remember at least 3 club comps that heaps of Kings got caught at the Peak at night. Not on livey's either, the nights were organised "Snapper trips" with a fair few boats. Only a couple of Snapper weighed-in but boxes of Kingfish and a fair few big Blurter's(Silver Trevally). Admittedly there were still masses of Kings there then (around 1977) These trips were always organised for the week of first quarter to full moon. Gar's Pillies, Prawns and Stripey's the bait The guys on the NZ fishing shows get them at night at White Island on Flying Fish- both live and dead. Caught a few rat sized at Sow and Pigs on prawns while fishing for Blurters in the dark and got smashed by them a few times fishing Neilson Park dolphins after dark

Hi Blackfish, fishing around Sydney over the years, I've caught or seen plenty of "northern species" caught by comrades. Without a doubt, the location that has produced the most (that I've seen) is Queenscliff (Manly) lagoon. Plenty of theories around as to why the 'goon attracts the variety, such as warmer water (due to shallowness, small tidal flow and virtually no shaded areas) a variety of different environments (in close proximity to each other) and a good variety of natural foods, just to name a few. The theory is tiny fry or fertile eggs travelling the east Australian current to Sydney and ending up in coastal lagoons and estuaries. Once in the lagoon, the only way back out is via the same small viaduct adjacent to Queenscliff ocean rock baths that they came in on, the catch being that the entrance has narrow bars, so only smallish fish can move through. "Northern" species have included several Mangrove Jacks, GT's, Big Eye, Long Tom's (ok not northern only, however some large Toms over a metre) to name some. There are also "Rock Prawns"- the thick bodied variety with arms (resembling Scampi), large worms and a prawn population, along with plenty of small fry to feed the location's fish. Spangled Emperor are also occasionally distributed throughout the harbour as I've personally caught about 15 and seen about double that many caught. Fishraider Derek caught one on a lure in Mosman Bay not that long ago and another Raider (sorry I can't remember your name!) caught a good sized one on a bait. During the AFCA Rock titles one of the juniors from our club got a 3.5 kg Spangled at the Mattens at Dover Heights. These influxes of different species are probably seasonally variable, due to the current and water temp, my own thoughts are that there are probably plenty of tiny fish coming down each year and depending on where they end up, the conditions determine their survival rate.

Marlin have been caught between the heads a few times

G'day mate - why not just make 1 handle on a bar/dowel/piece of old blank with 2 droppers off it that are adjustable in length to cater for say 1-4 of the tubes? Or just an occy strap or 2 to attach to the bar and around the tubes. Reverse Garbage (142 Addison Rd Marrickville) and The Bower (same complex) usually have a good variety of useful things for making stuff cheaply (they normally charge less than 10 bucks for a bag of whatever you can find there.) They also have really large neoprene type mats of varying thickness/hardness for same price useful for cushioning/padding Never know what will turn up there- they get items from many government depts, councils etc- always interesting stuff there every week

Nice work kingie chaser!

As Restyle says- we used to just concentrate on getting the Yakka's into a frenzy, their excitement naturally did the same for the Kings. Bread with some mashed pillies and/or a bit of Tuna oil in a PVC tube or a whole Bonnie or 'meaty' frame just on a rope over the edge. You can make a simple burley dispenser out of 100mm PVC pipe. Glue a cap on 1 of the ends and drill a few holes in the tube to let burley out. Go to the trouble of making a decent one with either a screw cap or 'lockable cap' on the other end and they last for ages. Can be used off the beach also. If you want it to stay on the surface, use a wheelbarrow (or similar) tyre tube around the outside

Hi Mitch yes cross the creek and it's about a half hour walk, you can't see much at all from the track but there was a small sign saying Mermaids Inlet. No climbing at all bar a couple of boulders just up from the ledge. The trail is really well worn and easy to follow. You definitely need a gaff there also. The right hand side is best for squid, Yakka's on the corner.We also got our reddies there, throwing well out. If you go around to the left where it's a bit lower there are Luderick, Pigs etc.

Hi Mitch it's worth having a look at Mermaids as well. Years ago we hired a cabin at the caravan park for 10 days with the intention of fishing the Tubes, but the gunnery range was open all bar 1 day, so no access. We ended up fishing Mermaids instead and got a few Kings and Bonnie's all on live bait, which we caught there early morning. Also caught a few squid and converted some of them to some small reds before sun-up a couple of mornings. Met a couple of characters there, both of whom had caught Marlin at the Tubes but had given up going there due to the crowds. Last time I went to the Tubes it stank and was covered in rubbish and left fishing tackle. Found a big variety of left tackle while picking up all the rubbish. Other guys that we knew caught Luderick and Black Drummer at Mermaids while we were there. It's a fair walk from Abraham's car park, but not too much uphill. You need to take a Yakka pool if you go and a decent long gaff. Plenty of room for a few groups. N/E winds got the sea up and ended our rock fishing after a few days, but when the wind dropped we caught plenty of Bream Whiting etc from the beach just north of Hammerhead where the "worm sanctuary" is (there are countless beach worms there, but as far as I know you are no longer allowed to take them north of "Hammerhead" platform on the beach) We also witnessed Tailor chase Garfish right into the shore (onto the beach actually and we grabbed a few)- no rods, we were wandering along the beach with a couple of beers. Good for a "back-up" plan if the swell comes up This was quite a few years ago, they had only just finished the new bridge at Currarong over the creek. Hope you find this useful, we used to go there in Feb. Cheers Waza

No worries, the Wilson fibreglass did have 1 drawback- the blank is a really large diameter, same with the winch. It was too 'fat' to be able to attach the reel clamp, but does have double locking nuts and quality hood.

Hi kingbonito the "Venom" series of rods are designed for o/head reels and are about 8 ft long. Wilson used to make a LBG special (fibreglass) about 8+half ft long 15-25 kg purpose built- they are an excellent, tough rod if you can find one. Match with a Shimano TLD 30, maybe not as fancy as more expensive reels but they work well and are built well, have 3 sizes (15,25 and 2 speed 30) all over 15 yrs old and never replaced a part

Good to hear a story like this with a "happy" ending. Your son is obviously well attuned to the dangers and did a great job, even to the point of arguing with these guys. Sadly, ignorance is often the biggest killer, even for the experienced. Well done to your son

6122 usually means 6 wraps of glass 122 inches or 10 ft 2 in - how long is it? The 55 might be SS which indicates rod type 'SS' = 'Surf Spin' denoting the rod's action

PM sent

Dave Carter, Billy Brown, Jim Clarke and I put the big ladder in at the lighthouse- the spot was developed by Dave and Billy. We mostly fished the Mattens, but fished the other spots as well (usually with "non-climbing" club members)- my old club was the AFA of NSW and we fished against Easts and S/Syd, Caringbah, St George etc. in the old Syd Metro Division of the AFCA Fished the Mattens continually from 1976 to 1998. Last "work" I did there was replace the peg on the small climb (with Tim Walker)- great days and awesome catches of fish back then. My brother Mick was a regular at Julie-anne (he only did the Mattens once and up via helicopter!) and used to just spin for Bonnies and Kings. I used to like fishing at Donkey's, but had a few hairy moments there and the Trap. Great to hear from others of the "era" Fished with Steve Davies and Tony Clibborn a couple of times at the Mattens also Regards Waza

Hi SaltyGreek over the years, after catching a few Jew, as soon as one was lost while fighting it, that was the end of the session as no more action from them. Well not in close proximity to where we were at the time anyway. I'm talking about calm water spots. In naturally dark spots where they are hunting, my own opinion is an "unnatural" light shining on the water will chase them off. Argument against this would straight away come from those who fish for them around lit structures such as bridges, where they hunt the 'fringes' of illuminated water, but these places are lit immediately on approach of darkness and the fish seem to become 'accustomed' to the surroundings. Old hands at beach fishing will tell you that if anyone turned on the old 'hurricane' lamps on the beach, the 'dedicated' Jew fishers would pack up in disgust and move to another location, again the argument would be that plenty of beaches have lighting from urbanization, but again in my belief, the same principle as the 'lit bridges' would apply. Years ago, when I was a junior member of the Amateur Fisherman's Association, one of the members was Doug Costain, who at the time was editor of the old "Fishing News" weekly fishing paper (he also worked at one of the city's biggest tackle shops "Fisherman's World" in Hay St) Doug specialised in catching large Jew from the beach and was really successful with both numbers and size of fish he weighed in. As a result, he did quite a lot of 'guest speaker' talks at our club and other fishing clubs around Sydney. As a mostly 'land based' fisher in those years, the attraction of both Jew and Kingfish (as the largest available species to us) had my mates and I listening intently to Doug's talks, the do's and don'ts. He also noted that 'added light' was to be avoided wherever possible, not saying it would end the session like the lost fish seems to, but generally not working in the fisherman's favour. Another example is found with Trag, the "accepted" method for good catches was to tether the first one landed and lower it back down, then fish baits close to it (in the same manner as Kingfish by day)- this way, if a fish was lost, the school didn't "spook" as easily, which they often did otherwise and be gone. Another old method used by commercial fishers was to lower a light down to within a few metres of the sea floor and fish the baits close to/in the lit area. From the guys that did this method, you had to be anchored up and have your light on before dark so as to not spook the fish. As for the smell, another theory (when on the beach) was that at high tide, the fish would secrete an "odour" while sitting on the sandbanks where beach worms lived, almost like a natural burley for the worms. When worms appeared, the fish would then 'vacuum' the sand, taking in sand, worms and all. Anyone who's caught them from shallow turbulent water will attest to the species ability to be able to hunt/breathe in sand-filled rough water. I've also heard the info re them being detected by their odour, but can't say I've ever noticed even when catching them. There is tons of great and varied info on Fishraider about Jew (Mulloway) One other thing to 'note' about them is that most of their "favourite" foods are also quite smelly. Pike, Mullet, Yellowtail, Tailor, Luderick and Rock Cale all have pretty strong smells, as do squid (albeit "nicer" to our noses!) just food for thought

As Noelm said if you're having difficulty a net or gaff- otherwise make sure the fish is played out and under control on the surface, then you can steer it towards a spot where the swell is 'lifting' over the rocks- there is usually somewhere along the rocks that the water is rising up and washing over in a more 'gentle' manner, not somewhere it is just splashing up but flowing over. Then try to minimize the distance between the rod tip and fish, keeping your rod reasonably low, say below horizontal if you can at the time you attempt, that way when an appropriate sized swell arrives, you have both the rise of the water in conjunction with the rising of your rod to an almost upright position to 'float'/drag the fish up and onto the rocks. Don't rush it- if there isn't a decent enough swell for a few minutes just wait, as even on flat sea days the natural inwards water-to-land movement will provide an opportunity. Some locations require you to do 2 stages ie first stage onto or over a lower ledge, then same again to the actual safe-landing point. BE AWARE OF THE SWELL when washing larger fish up as it's easy to get distracted once your fish is along the edge or on lower level rocks. Best practice is to have a good look around you before you start fishing and identify a spot you'll be confident with to work your fish towards should you get a big one- just look for either a gentle slope or a spot closer to water level that the water 'lifts' over. Often, when close to the edge, the fish get another "energy spurt" but if played out until on the surface the first time, it usually only takes a minute or so to regain control. When you're attempting to wash in, only do it when the swell is starting to flow over- if the fish falls away or moves out a little, just wait again and don't attempt when the water is either flowing back or is about to drop, again, just wait, as when fish are genuinely "played-out" you'll have plenty of time to wait for a wave/swell for the final bit

Mate use either Vaseline or Mucillin floating line dressing to keep your line on the surface. Your reel is fine also. You don't need to wind in too fast either. Floating your line will make striking a down heaps easier and when you hook up to a fish, you won't be racing it in either, slow and steady wins the race

Hi Yowie- no fish in the deep hole but I saw a bloke catch a big sea snake there that he took around the caravan park showing everyone. It was about 4 ft long and I still haven't seen a bigger one

Oaklands I think was the caravan park (I was only a kid) our boat was called "Topper" had a small top hat and cane painted on the bow. It used to be chained to the Casuarina tree next to the water. Motor was just sitting on a trolley inside the annex, which was only ever clipped up, never locked, never had anything stolen from the annex That island was called "Treasure Island" by us- squirt worms the treasure! Just on shore opposite the island was "The deep hole"- we were banned from going anywhere near it as kids

Use safety pins with heads cut off to make easy float runners- kebab sticks are ok for bottom stems, just paint them to waterproof and seal. Sugar Pine or Balsa for thicker tops. Sheet lead or lead/tin solder wire to weight stems if making that design- a bit of glue then heat shrink over the top. Undercoat with white then colour/s

Hi Jamo those floats are ok for the river, like you said, just weight them down. The small fish might have been a silver biddy or a herring