Rockyjack

Yep I used the same process when I live down Albury way except I use a 7# fly rod with dry line weight forward, 6ft 10lb leader to a size 8 bait hold hook with 3 to 4 corn cornel Works a treat have caught some monsters not sure how much the weighed but I have got at least 1/2 a dozen over a meter plus

They were suppose to be gettin a few big (70+cm) flatties down there 2 weeks ago when i was down that way but haven't heard anythink since

Saturday arvo we headed out in port Stephens hoping to head out and get amongst some snapper but when we got to the ramp the bay had waves around about 4 foot high so the idea of snapper was out, change of plans and find a spot out of the wind finally found that and the mate missus started to get sea sick , so after 10 mins fishing it was time to move so trolled a few lures around and picked up 2 small tailor. Day two started a little better with the girls deciding to go shopping so the mate and I shot down the Swansea channel to find that there was only about a meter of swell so out we went found a nice little spot in the lee of the island there anchored up and set a bait whilst flicking a 4 inch softie around within minutes there was a small tap on the softie a strike and yep on onto the smallest red mowie I ever seen it was a huge 2 inches long. then about 10 minutes later I picked a sergeant baker around about 200mm and Chris was battling something of some size only to find out that it was another sergeant baker only in was 480mm long then five minutes later he's spewing over the side, now if it was my boat I would have made the B@#$%ed suffer as the idiot knows he gets sea sick in my boat but he thought he'd be ok in a boat that’s 1m longer So what can I say, back into the river where he came good - drifted around over the flats flicking softie until the small tailor started taking the tails off and it was time to pack up and make the long haul back to port mac. Two lessons learnt over the weekend 1. Force feed the mates that get seasick travel carm weather they think they need or not. 2.don't fish with people who get seasick and don't take their pills

Thanks fellers, i had no idea that afc was this weekend may put a small downer on the lake hopefully the weathers good and we can get outside. thanks Dave

I’m heading down to cave beach tomorrow arvo to check out a mates new digs and boat and we are going to hit the lake and I was wondering if anyone knew where fisheries put there artificial reef in the lake there a couple years back, of if they had any other spots that may produce a fish or two as I haven’t fished the lake down there? If the weathers is good we may head out side but that will depend on the day. any help would be appreciated Dave

I wasn't aware that the comp was fork length, but now it doesn't sound so bad. I have been fishing the river here pretty solidly for the past month and all I have caught are as you said just over or just under size bream and the occasional whitting, and it's really starting to drive me mad but at least there are enough 40+ cm flatties about to keep us busy. Cheers Dave

Did anyone fish the sundowner bream comp in port macquarie on the weekend? I heard that there was quite a few people try to weigh in undersize bream and was wondering if there was any truth to it, and also if it is true why wasn't fisheries there issueing on the spot fines?

yeh, We fished limeburners, had a later start than usaual at around 0830 and fished until 1230 for a few flatties of which only one was legal, half a dozen little bream (rangeing from about 100mm to 240mm) and a 300mm flounder. could only get one hit on the lures with a fat 300mm flattie hitting a 3" smelt gulp alive, he rest too nippers or whitebait. had a chat to a few blokes at the ramp and apprantly we wern't the only one to catch crap. Then on sunday went out for a snokel on shellies beach and there seams to be a heap of 300 to 350mm whiting and 300+mm bream still to make there way into the river. i can only hope the river starts to pick up

hope the bream fishing picks up a bit in the river here then as the last two weekends, i have only managed a few undersize bream so i hope you do a bit better than me or your not going to do real well

i have found that most of the fish i have got at night are flatties and bream and you have to be careful big eels love to i have got 3 all over a meter in the last 4 weeks, they make you think you've got a nice big flattie or a small jew belive me it's a big disappointment when you get to the bank.

must say i am with the rest of the boy's the tub leaks like no other, and i don't think they catch too many more the the normal packet gulp. for example on wednesday we caught 30+ flatties in a 6 hour session we were only using gulp alive and packet gulp and at the end of the day i the gulp alive had one more fish but i think that was because i used that patten most of the day as it was catching fish although i did chop and change colour's and type's of softies while searching between bites

only if it has had a lighting or charger built in or added.

a far bit of my soft plastic fishing lately has been at night due to the fact that it about the only time i get to have a fish lately. I seem to be doing better at night than during the day averaging 2 to 3 40+cm flatties but on my last outing only got a couple small (just legal bream) and an eel about 3 and half foot long and about as round an my arm, (must say that it put up a bloody good fight on 6lb line. I Find the best coloured soft plastic's are dark colours that are bulky (so they give off a good silhouette) the best so far are the Gulp pumpkin seed 2" and 3" swimming mullet and than the flick baits in the same colour. Cheers Dave

mate, i am told that if you place nippers in a damp cloth in a hemp bag that you can keep them for a week, although i must say that then nippers i have pumped only seem to last for the arvo, but when i use to throw them in my salt water tank and they'd last a day or two if the bream didn't eat them first. hope you have more luck than i did Dave

I was pretty dissapointed with the range that they had here in Port Mac but ended up buying a pack of 3in black and clear minows. There action was pretty good but they preformed the same as the ordnary gulps. after 2 days fishing gulps, gulps alive and squidgy's although i was supprised to see that the squidgys acutaly out fished both of the gulps. The only thing that could improve the gulps alive would be if the tub did't leek. i am also keen to see what will happen in you drop you gulps or squidgys into the tub as well?

mate have no idea about your motor but how'd you go up limeburners? We had a good arvo sesson down on lake cathie.

I can't belive it was able to get out twice in two days but i think i'm in the dog house as the missus wasn't happy when i got home this arvo. well i started off at lighthouse beach were we found a gutter but the swell and wave wash was huge so after about 40mins we threw it in and headed down to lake cathie for a bit of plastic fishing well the fish flattie to fall was a nice 48cm on the third cast then about 20mins later came number 2 come in at just over 40cm at this stage i started to rub it into my two mates that knocked back coming for a fish after requesting an invite yesterday. in total i got three nice flatties all +40cm. and the mate that i went with landed one that went 38cm. all in all it was a nice day out Dave

hit the maria river this arvo just on the low tide flickin softie's around, i started of flicking a hot pick as the water was a dirty brown colour. i think i used every colour in the tackle bag for zip but at least the other two blokes caught a couple of 40+ cm flatties so the day wasn't too bad. the only thing that ticked me off was once i opened my packet of Gulp Alive and through it back in the tacklebag the tub leaks around the screw on lid, Does anyone else have this problem? I may need to put them is some other type of jar? Cheer Dave

Hey Cam I use to do a lot of spearfishing and beach fishing down there until June this year when the marine park too over all the spots that I use to fish, and so I haven't been back since. There is no charters only a small shop with the very bare basic's and I do stress on the very very bare basic they mostly deal in bread and ice creams, there is also 2 caravan parks and a few holiday houses. Take everything you need for the weekend as the shop doesn't have much. I'm not sure wether the beach out the front of the seals rocks holiday park is part of the marine zone but of the rocks there it a good spot of brig bream and whiting but they are usually quite touchy, the beach itself does have a few good gutters but they were few and far between last time I was down there but we still pulled a few good salmon and tailor on the fresh beach worms that we caught on the beach (there's was no shortage of the worms there) Anyway Hope you can find a spot to fish with the new marine park Dave

You should have no trouble heading outside in a 5.4 meter if you are sensible as the bar crossing has brought quite a few boaters undone, I have taken my 4.35 hornet trophy out a couple of times but not far as I don’t fancy how quick the weather can change and being in an open tinnie, so pick your days and you should be right. Just stick to the northern side of the wall and head to the north a bit as you come out of the break wall, as there is a big reef infront of the entrance. I own a GPS book but it only has 10 points if you would like I could scan the points and flick to you if you'd like to save yourself a few bucks. Regards to the break wall fishing its better to head to the northern wall as it’s less crowded and you don't have everybody stopping, watching and annoying you every 5sec but the ferry ride across will cost you $2.60 each way. The ocean star is suppose to be pretty good but since they became the only charter operator in port the prices went from $80 to $120 for a 6hr reef session and are very selective when they'll head out. I have been up here 12 months now and been booked in 4 times with them and they cancelled all four time on the morning of the trip yet an hour later drinking a coffee you’ll see smaller boats heading out for a days fishing. You shouldn't count out the hasting river either Don't forget you have both South West Rocks and Camden haven both only 45min away from port SWR will probably be on the start of firing in October If you want to know anything else just flick us an pm Cheers Dave

Went down to shellies beach for a 2 hour session so walked along the beach until i found a small gutter flowing straight out for the beach and put out a ganged garie. l within 5 mins had the first fish on the beach a nice 68cm fork to nose length sambo so let him bleed on the beach and whip out the second garie and bang on again 5 mins on and have the second sambo (65cm) on the beach and bleeding (the go nice on the BBQ with some garlic butter lemon and orange wrapped in foil). so back down to the water with the third garie, This one took a little bit longer so about 15 mins later i had the third salmon on the beach (68cm). sent the fourth garie out and about 3 ins later bang got number 4 well that what i thought lost right on the beach. (S&@t Happens) out goes No.5 garie and all is quit for about 1/2 and hour and it time to head for home so i start to lean back on the rod to start to wind in and Bang line starts to peel off about 15mins later i have a huge salmon went 78cm to the fork, worst of all i left the camera at home so i whipped out the phone but they don't take viewable pict's in the dark but it was good to see the big feller swim off. I have a picture of the three i kept but there still in the phone so i hope to add a pict soon. Dave

Dave I have a 45lb bow mount minn kota (freshwater model from my trout/cod fishing days) on my 435 hornet trophy and it will be 10 years old in march and i have never had a problem with it, but i have never used it in the salt. Alhough it had an extensive work out for about 6 of those years. Now that i am living on the coast i have had a few questions on how the freshwater models work in the saltwater so i flick minn kota a email and i had a reply within a couple of days and now i am looking at a new bow mount (most likely a minn kota just as the old one has been so good). I hate fishing without the electric mostly when drifting it was very handy to pull the boat back onto line or fishing around the oyster leases. Wouldn't go past a bow mount if you have the extra money as you use less power, steering is more direct as it pulls the nose instead of pushing the hole boat around, you can steer the boat from any possie in the boat and you have hands free to fish/cast or drink. dave

Got down and had a look but the wash was a bit big as the bloke i was with hasn't fished the rocks before and i wasn't feeling comfortabile keeping an eye on him and the wash so we hit the river at around 4pm with a few soft plastic's for 2x30cm estuary cod and a bream about 12cm long

i also fish the northern breakwall when i am not in the boat drifting along it, i can't stand fishin the southern side with everbody that walks past stopping to see if you catchin anythink. it drive me mad after about 30 mins. was going to give it a bash this arvo but my mate want to hit the rocks so small change of plans but hopefully still provride a few nice fish?

I was chatting to a couple of blokes to who caught a 5lb snapper of the northern breakwall on monday night chasing jewies, the photo was impressive. I've caught a few sprat squire in the river only to about 200mm but it's a first hearing or even seeing pict's of bigger squire in the river, but this guy seem to think that the snapper come in close after the rough weather!!!