Pickles

Headed out early today as prediction was for strong winds by 11am - so glad we did as boat ramp at Roseville had boats lined up and waiting to launch at 5 am. we loaded up with Yakkas and head wide, having baits in the water by 6.30am. The Kingies turned up and the fun started. We lost a solid Kingie at the boat first up due over exuberance and inexperience, but with some coaching (and deep breathing exercises) we had 27 in the boat before we realised there were not going to be any over the 60-63cm we were getting so we headed off to an unnamed reef I stumbled across a few years ago, that had produced some nice snapper in the past. It was a good move as we hit paydirt on Terraglin and boated 8 (all over 50cm and biggest going 68) before 10am. We decided to call it quits and head back before the wind hit and get the boat on the trailer and washed down before the holiday hoards headed in. 80 Kingies this week 😃🙏 Over all a great day.

Brilliant work @nal, nothing like a hard fighting kingie to wake you up & remind you you’re alive. Well done

Good questions @Gengar - @DerekD is the man to give you input and maybe @James Clain

Well done @Crabstar- always good to keep moving till you find the fish and a nice bag of Flatties to prove the point. Maybe all the burley you provided helped bring them around (no worse feeling than being seasick).

It’s always good to get out @Jo5hC. Squidding can be very frustrating - some days you can get 10-20 in an hour. Other days it takes hours to get one, or even none at all. Letherjacket can be the same and will nip the bait (and the hooks off the line) so gently, you can hardly feel them Small hooks (4-8) and light lines (under 12lb) is the go in estuaries.

Understand completely @Hill373737. I have been fishing for Bass In Deerubbin (Hawkesbury) for 50 years (caught many 00’s )and ate my first one (just to give it a try) for the first time a few years ago and haven’t had one since.

Niiice kingie @jenno64, well done

👍

Great report @Max Power, I hope you can find another lure like the one you lost.

Half run up tide means the tide is rising from 1/2 full to full tide (top of the tide). Theory being as the tide rises it is covering more of the sand / ground and exposing for food source - worms, shell fish, small fish move up to feed and Flatties follow them.

Many thanks for sharing @foolforjesus.

If only 2, it’s good to get the casting practice. Have you tried the 1/2 run up tide ?

Yep - covered a lot of ground, still waiting for the Dollie’s to return.

At it again Neil - great to hear. That’s a beaut Yellowbelly mate - well done. (Kingies are back on here, but only rats, but whenever you want to visit again, you know you’re always welcome).

A great report Dave and some lovely looking fish. I still haven’t had a shot at catching Cod, but more reports like yours and Neil’s that I read, the keener I’m getting. Sounds like Georgia had a touch of heat stroke - hope she’s OK now.

Some lovely Cod @Hill373737, it’s great you’ve found the time to get back into hitting the water - @big Neil is a very encouraging fellow who loves his fishing. Seems like the spinnerbaits have been doing the damage. I tried cod for the first time this year and don’t think I’ve tried a nicer tasting fish - better than barramundi or jewfish. It’s a pity they are so far from my waterways in the Hawkesbury.

Hey @fatcat531, I’m always happy to take folks out - there are no fishing “secrets”, like most things it’s about being able to read the signs and conditions, then making the best choices. if you’d like to get out, that’s not a problem HOWEVER if it’s my boat, you’d need to drive and be able to pull the boat ( vehicle with a tow ball). I’m narcoleptic and not safe for me to drive. I do have a licence, (but my passengers don’t like it if I fall asleep driving) due to several life threatening “adventures” (been hospitalised 5 times in past 10 years - head on with a car on my motor bike and amputation to part of my foot, hit by lightening, pump explosion that “cooked” 40% of me, Peritonitis, tripped whilst trialing my Lab and broke sternum and 3 ribs). I live in Derrubbin (Hawkesbury area), not sure where you are as your profile doesn’t say, so an early start might mean a bit of travelling ? if you’d like to go, Kingies are on now. I’d never “charge” anyone to go fishing -( Jesus 4 closest mates were fishermen and he didn’t charge them anything to put them in the know). I am mates with many charter operators and would never compete with them as they are running a business and have overheads which I don’t (retired now and not running a business) - but if you’re happy to pull the boat with you’re car, get the bait, cover fuel and a coffee on the way home, I’m keen. Best time to go is mid week as summer weekends can be nuts on the water. Send me a pm if you’re interested.

Brilliant initiative Jason - giving a fishing report to keep all Raiders upto date is a champion idea 👏👏👏

Very kind words Jason, but we lost quite a few to sharks 🫤.

There were 4 over a meter, but sharks not Kingies 😞

I have quite a few Kingie set ups as I take quite a few folks out who “just want to catch a kingie”. The line is 65lb braid to 80lb or 130lb leader (FG knot braid to fluro leader) on a Stella 850, and Stella 5000, 2x Saragossa 1200s and 2x Daiwa BG 8000s, also. Pen slammer IV 850. I have 8 Kingie rods (a bit sad, but I have 117rods & reels) 2x CJ64 Daiwa Demon Bloods, 2 x Shimano Terez, 2 Ugly Sticks, also have a few other “Crystal tips” (can’t remember the make). I use Mustad hoodlum 7/0 or BKK circle in line hooks in 7/0 or 9/0. Only use quality barrel swivels and 3 way Shogun swivels. @DerekD is putting together a “how to” on Kingfish - not sure when he is going to publish it though. Hope this helps.

Christian Buddies Steve and Phil wanted to back up a disappointing trip last Monday with some solid Kingies this Monday. I suggested a trip to 12 Mile reef off shore as the conditions looked far more encouraging than the previous Monday - what a difference a week makes. We loaded up on “kingie candies” (lollie sized Yakkas) at Balmoral, then headed straight to 12 mile. No other boats there 😌😌, but within 5 minutes there we 4 others drifting, (unsuccessfully also), so after 40 minutes we headed for Longie, via the Sydney FAD, where Phil boated a 60cm rat. There were some solid dolphin fish following the baits, but none willing to taste the wares. Very different to an earlier trip this year with @Zoran and @wrxhoon1 when we boated a great bag of solid mahi mahi. But after 20 disappointing minutes at the FAD, with only one Kingie and one (large) slimey makerel, we made the call to head for Longie (after boating 16 rat kings at Long reef on Saturday with @Hads and @HadsJr). There were only 2 other boats drifting the north end of the reef, but we headed for the middle grounds and hit pay dirt. Our first drop resulted in a Kingie each, then double and occasional triple hook ups for the next hour and a half. In total we boated 55 Kingies, with only one legal (which got sharked by a dusky whaler - see photo). There were lots of sharks tormenting our baits and the kingies we hooked, both Bull sharks and Whaler's Overall we had a great day and although we had no legal Kingies to keep, it was such a blessing to have been subject to a “rat attack” and left them biting when we ran out of bait. I reckon if we’d have head straight to Longie, we would have boated over a 100, but we’ll never know.

Thanks for your comprehensive comments on the comp @Bennyg78. That 35cm bream is a beauty - bet it gave you a good fight. All the best for your involvement in the next series.

Well done Albert, it’s great when you spend time targeting a species and bag a good one. The whiting is a beauty, well done and seeking advice from an experienced mentor in @DerekDand putting the advice into practice that produces results, pays dividends, as you have found out.

Great vid and comments @BrassRoots, that’s a nice sized green eye, thanks for sharing - is Gordon’s Bay also called Thompsons Bay at Clovelly.