Yon

Ok - so I definitely need some instruction here. I’ve been told that if you don’twrestle them up, you’re 100% going to be taken into the reef and busted off. So if you let them run with lighter drag, How do you get them back up? Do you just go back and forth until they’re too tired to fight anymore and come willingly?

Yeah - should probably have just let it run as I had the line capacity. Oh well…

I use a Yamashita squid spike. Used it twice on squid when I started chasing them in earnest and it made a mess. Easier to just karate chop them. Repurposed it as a very handy ikejime spike! Safer than a knife on a writhing fish.

I had arranged to meet a good mate for a sneaky pre-work spin this morning, but 7am rolled in and he had to rush off to work last minute. I was putting my pfd on when his call came through, so I figured I’d check the conditions out and maybe just have a quick fish by myself. The second I got to the headland, I could tell that it was going to be a good morning. The swell was about 3ft and the tide almost in. The sun was starting to light up the bay and I could see salmon jumping everywhere. My spot was still shaded and I figured that they’d make their way towards me as they tried to keep the last vestiges of shade / dark they could as they fed on the baitfish they’d herded. My third cast netted me a 3’ish kg salmon. Managed to wash him right up to my feet on a wave and was pretty happy with myself. This one was going to my swimming partner as his wife and kids love the old Kahawai. As I stood up on the rocks taking care of my catch out of harms way, I started to think about what my fishing mentor has always told me... Where you see a predator, something else sees prey. It’s true that the salmon wreak havoc on the bait schools, but I’ve also seen plenty of videos on YouTube where people use them as livebait for kings. What the hell, I figured - can’t hurt to try fishing beneath the school. Worst case factor I’ll lose a metal on the bottom. As I was reflecting on this, I noticed a loose loop deep in my spool and took a note to cast it out before it causes a knot. So I loaded up the rod and sent that metal as far as I could, paying attention to the line on the spool as the lure hit the water and sank. I didn’t want another loop, so I closed the bail arm and held the line in between my fingers as it started to tighten, and tighten and... shit! I was on!! I immediately reeled in my line and set the hook, gaining as much line as I could. A wave started to stand up where my line was and I was rewarded with the sight of a big Kingfish on the end of my line! Now you have to understand, I haven’t brought home a kingie in a year, my wife and kids are giving me a hard time about it, so I was stoked. The only problem is that I was fishing 20lb braid and 30lb leader in a pretty rocky area. So anyway, I’m eye to eye with a big king and it’s on the surface about 20, maybe 30 meters away from me. I reckon I’ve got a decent shot at landing this thing. Only then the fish seems to realise it’s hooked. It turns and goes down, down, down... 🥴 I’m tightening my drag and pulling hard, it’s as if the fish doesn’t even feel it. Just keeps going like the hoodlum it is while I hold my rod like a helpless child. My drag is running furiously and suddenly I feel the dreaded snap and no weight on my line. My heart pounding and hands shaking, I brought what was left of my line back in and re-rigged. I’ve had so much practice trying the fg knot This week that I can now do it with my eyes closed! After that I landed and sent back a few more salmon, but I was just trying to catch that king. I hope that somewhere out there near Bronte, there’s a big kingfish ready for another fight. Me? I need to listen to my more experienced friends more often! Still - what a spectacular day. Got to work by 08:45, managed to get a fish in and was in a good mood the rest of the day!

Mate - I’m sorry, I seem to caused some confusion, so allow me to explain. I brought home 4 big salmon this weekend. One was eaten as sashimi immediately. The remaining three were put aside for an outdoor, COVID safe, fish and chips dinner with our neighbours. One of my neighbours is a chef and along with my wife mentioned that the sashimi was nice and fresh, but lacked the flavour of the kingfish I usually hand around. I mentioned this to my mum, who suggested that I read the book by Josh Niland she had bought me, as it discusses how to best store fish to improve its flavour. Niland recommends what he calls “dry aging”, which involves never touching a fish with water after it leaves the water (hence the “dry” bit). Don’t rinse them down after scaling and gutting and don’t rinse the insides off. Just wipe them down with paper towels or something similar and then “age” in the refrigerator. I figured I’d give it a try as I needed to store the fish for a couple of days anyway. On Sunday I filleted the “dry aged” fish and fried up two of them. The aging in the refrigerator had made no difference whatsoever. The fish had kept well and the red meat had not oxidised as a fillet would have though. So that’s good. As sashimi, it made no difference to the flavour or texture. But alas - we were left with one whole fish... what to do with it... I come from European stock and gravadlax is something we eat often just usually with Atlantic salmon, so I thought I’d give that a try. One fillet went to the curing mix and the remainder was pan fried and flavoured with a home made teriyaki (came out a bit dry). The gravadlax was left to cure for 48 hours because I like the strong dill flavours that this brings out in Atlantic salmon. However as @PaddyT mentioned, it was too long a cure for what was a smaller fillet than the salmon we usually buy. Still tastes good but a bit too much flavour. So that’s the story. We love seafood, but being close to the beach, a mad keen fisho and sometime environmentalist I prefer to catch what’s in season and not support the commercial fishing industry. Just my preference, not trying to get into a political debate. This usually results in feast or famine type moments with me either bagging out on luderick, salmon, squid etc or coming home empty handed. As a result of this my family tire of whatever it is I’ve caught quite quickly, so I like to experiment with different ways to 1) store the fish for longer and 2) present it to my very judgemental and fickle audience (my extended family, wife and kids). To be perfectly honest I love cooking too, so nothing gives me greater pleasure than plating something I caught and cooked myself, especially when the feedback is good. It’s just a little boost to my ego I guess. I feel like a true provider at a time that this is becoming quite hard to do. At the same time I’m educating my kids about where their food comes from and to respect the fact that something has to die for them to eat sashimi etc... This past week you’ve been a party to that adventure 😂

Yeah it was a tad too long, or maybe the cure had too much sugar. Regardless it can’t out a bit too sweet, overpowering the fish flavour. Still edible but could be better. Will definitely check out the thread about curing. Thanks!!!

PM me next time before you do that and I’ll show you where you can safely hit that school

Well... the conclusion on the aging is that it made absolutely no difference. The fish kept better whole, instead of as fillets, but that’s nothing new. I’ve got the last fillet curing in a mix of sugar, salt, vodka and dill now. 48 hrs in that and then thinly sliced and served on toast.

That’s a monster! Well done.

Thanks mate, that’s fantastic. Simple is usually the best in my opinion.

It’s just natural. His premise is that fish is just another protein (albeit a more delicate one) and benefits from aging. Agree that covering it isn’t great, but I’ve got a fan forced fridge. If I didn’t cover the fish it would turn into jerky - or at least that’s what happened last time I did this. I’ll let you know how it turns out

Yes I completely agree. I should have mentioned that It’s dry aging in the fridge, as per Josh Nilands method. Its not air drying and hanging in the open air like you’d hang biltong (which I love!). Usually I just knock the fillets off, prep everything and then wrap it tightly in paper towels and then plastic on top of the paper towels until it firms up a little bit so that we can eat it as sashimi. This time I’ve left the fish whole and lightly covered, sitting on top of a drip tray so that they firm up but don’t get mushy in their own juices but also don’t dehydrate. Should achieve a better result.

Makes sense I guess. I think they used to can them. Dry aging going great so far, although only 24 hrs. No smell and the fish look good! The only issue I have is that the flesh can sometimes be a bit soft when fresh, but the red meat gets a bit smelly when she’s off the fillet. Hoping that aging them whole solves that. No water whatsoever has touched these since they came out of the ocean.

@thaichilli Surprisingly there wasn’t, but he does provide a lot of alternative fish for his recipes. I find that there are very few chefs who use Australian salmon, even though it’s such a good and easy to catch fish. I also have the Australian Fish and Seafood cookbook by Susman and that doesn’t mention them either. Very strange.

Regardless of the reason - I find it unacceptable and dangerous. I was patrolling off Bronte a couple of years ago and sucked a long length of mono into the rescue craft intake, which disabled the engine. If nothing else, people’s sense of self preservation should keep them from leaving crap in the water and all over the rocks. If the rescue craft is disabled and you go in, we can’t come get you.

I’m dying to hook a king with it - not sure my 20lb braid and 30lb leader would stand up to it, but I’m up for the challenge!

This morning, after doing the super-early-morning school drop off, was the third day straight that I’ve hit this huge salmon school hanging around the Waverley beaches. It seems to come and go based on the same schedule as the old NSW Bus I used to take to school oh so many years ago. My kids have eaten several kilos of fresh fish and I am no longer ridiculed for fishing but not catching anything. Life is good and we are having fish n chips as a Sunday treat. My mum bought me Josh Nilands fish book, so I’m dry aging the salmon to see if that makes any difference. So all good on that front... I’ll have to remember this feast the next time there’s a slow period. It’s an incredible shame and makes me very sad to see what a mess some people leave on the rocks (see the attached photo of the crap I cleaned up - at least 100m of braid and another 100 of heavy mono just thrown onto the rocks, plus a bunch of other stuff). I know who does it and I tell them to clean up after themselves, but it seems to be a cultural or language thing as they either don’t understand or don’t care. Grubs... My mate got washed off the rocks a while back and was telling me that he got tangled in braid swimming back in - which could have ended in disaster. Just scares me to think about all that crap wrapping around me when I go after a snagged lure. Anyway, I think I’m done for the week. Got a great feed and will cure or smoke what doesn’t get fried up. Have a great weekend fishos - clean up your discarded waste and be safe out on the rocks!

@Mullatt how do you prepare and smoke yours? I’ve been hot smoking as the cold smoker dries them a bit, but would love to hear what you do, to see if I can improve mine!

Ah - because I usually put on two split rings. I find that the added freedom of movement keeps the fish better hooked than if I only have the one ring. Especially with fish that jump to throw the lure. In this case, I was in a rush to get out and instead of putting on two of my own split rings, I just attached one to the ring that came with the lure. At $2 for the rigged lure, I guess you can’t expect much in the way of quality on the split ring. Lesson learnt...

Still chasing the local salmon school as they swim around the Waverley beaches. Had an early spin session today and noticed that even though I was hitting the school from all sides, in the middle, shallow and deep I wasn’t getting any hookups. After a 10 minute test, I casted out my lure and the tip of my rod flew into the water with it. I hadn’t been paying attention and it had come loose. I felt like a swim anyway so I went in after it and surprisingly after it was back on, I was able to retrieve my lure. I was just trying to get my lure back when something grabbed it and RAN! After my adventure yesterday, I was ready this time and had my drag on a bit turf here than usually (but still pretty loose). After about 5 minutes battling what I was positive was a big salmon, it was almost at my feet on the edge of the rock platform I was on. It was a massive, healthy, fat salmon! Ive been having trouble landing the big ones, so I’ve been trying to let the waves do the work for me. Unfortunately I mis-timed it and the wave sucked him back as I pulled up, which basically pulled the hook out. I put the lite straight back out and hooked up a more normal 2kg-3kg salmon. Landed without issue and as I got him up I noticed that my split ring was completely unravelled! See the photo below - needs to be seen to be believed. Had to run off to work after that, but the kids ate the fish as sashimi as a prelude to dinner! Hard to believe how much power these beasts have! A part of me is actually happy when they win the battle. Makes me feel like it’s a more even match. When I win they get eaten - I guess that’s the way of the world.

Thanks for all the positive comments and encouragement folks! Makes me want to write more reports! @GordoRetired they are a sustainable, healthy and fantastic eating fish. Several ways to prepare and cook them. Couple of ways I do them; Note - the second they come out of the water, I brain spike them, then put the knife through the fleshy part behind the gills and *gently* put them into a rock pool to bleed out. Don’t throw them around as they can bruise. Cut around the top of the head and around the pectoral fins. Head comes off and guts pull out. The collars are very easy to cut off this way. 1) Collars go on the BBQ with some olive oil. Dash of salt and lemon and we pick the meat off 2) Knock the fillets off and cut out the red meat. The loins make incredible sashimi. Leave some red meat on for more flavour. 3) Hot smoke the fish whole - amaaazing 4) Bake the fillets with any sauce you’d do an Atlantic salmon or monkfish in. Holds the flavour very well 5) Poach with skin on and when cooked, peel the skin off. This is a more fishy tasting fish though. The poaching water will become a bit gelatinous after doing a few filets and tastes great as soup PM me for lots of other ideas. Mostly my kids eat it raw before I have a chance to cook it.

Thanks! Creative writing classes in primary came in handy at last! It’s a Penn Prevail II 10’6 with a spinfisher ss vi 4500. It’s a great outfit. Strong and we’ll balanced. Thanks mate! Such a great and versatile fish.

My regular fishing partner is recovering from surgery, so I was planning on a quiet week. But... my wife mentioned that she wanted fish for dinner and was contemplating <GASP> buying some because I haven’t been catching any! I mean, say what you want about my looks, my intelligence or whatever, but after my last attempt at catching dinner turned into an absolute disaster, this was an absolute strike below the belt! A mans name cannot be muddied in this manner! So, duly emasculated, I decided to check out the rocks near my house on my early morning walk today. About 20m off the rock I like to cast from I see what appeared to me to be about 1,000 salmon. They’re jumping out of the water and generally terrorising any bait fish that are stupid enough to get close. The tide was coming in and some solid waves were running, so I checked the swell period, watched the spot for about 15 minutes and decided it was safe. Cleats and life jacket on, handful of Kmart $2 metals that I hadn’t even bothered to take the trebles off and I’m into them. First cast nets me a solid hookup! it’s running, using the waves to its advantage, but I’m using the drag to tire it out. No rush, I’ve got an hour before I need to get moving to work. I get it to the edge of the reef in front of me, a wave is coming to wash it in and... the treble snags. But wait! The fish is still there! It’s thrashing, the hook is set very well, then another wave comes in and my braid tears. I see the fish swimming off. No worries though, because I can tie an fg in about 20 seconds. New leader, new rig and I’m casting again. Immediate hookup, but it jumps and throws the hook! Keep reeling as I watch a massive bow wave come up behind my lure. SPLASH! He’s taken it and he’s running. Oh shit - he’s really running! Tighten the drag and it’s still running! Head shakes, gain a few meters of line and then the reel goes nuts. One long run, pay out about 100m of line and I’m wondering what the hell I’ve hooked up! Finally he tires and I start gaining on him. It’s a kingfish, I’m sure of it! Slowly slowly I bring him in, fighting the waves that are trying to cheat me of my hard earned prize. Must be a king! Finally he’s at the reef edge, I don’t see the fish but I see my line. Keep the tension On so he doesn’t throw the hook! A wave washes Him up and I use the opportunity to pull him over the reef. He’s now in about 10cm of water and thrashing, I’m already sending invites to the family for a kingfish sashimi dinner when I finally see him and I’m damned if it’s not the biggest salmon I’ve ever seen. Easily 6kg. I didn’t know they get that big! I relax the rod to grab the leader, he throws the lure, it hits me in the sunglasses (thank god I was wearing Polycarbonate glasses) and he swims out as a wave washes in. What a fight - I know my arms are still there but I just can’t feel them. It’s still on though - there are fish everywhere. I cast again, hook up again and snag again. Lose the lure, re tie my rig with my last metal on a single this time and proceed to reel in 4 smashing Salmon. People are cheering me from the cliff as my alarm sounds. It’s time to go to work. I’m so focussed on the waves that I don’t notice where my lure is. As if in a heavenly sign that it’s time to go, I snag and lose the lure. Time to go... The fishing gods were kind to me today, maybe to make up for how poorly I faired last time. In total I hooked up about 20 times, landed 4 big fish and redeemed my manliness in my wife’s eyes. We ate well tonight and I’ve got enough fish for a couple more feeds. Life’s good. I think I needed that reminder with everything going on in the world. Life is good...

Thanks! Will give the berley a try. Will have to be at night so I don’t bring anything else close to the swimmers!

I’ve been trying, but where I live (Bondi) they don’t often come within range of the sand. I could be mistaken about that, but casting into the gutters at high tide, day and night, hasn’t netted me anything yet. Any advice on that front would be very much appreciated!