Berrero

I've had a look on google maps and haven't been able to find where you're talking about any chance you could show me a pic of google maps where it is? appreciate your help

Hey Raiders, Looking to hire a tinny tomorrow from Como and just wondering if anyone knows how the georges / woronora river has been lately. Last tinny hire about 2 months ago gave us a donut, even the guy that owns the shop was telling us it was dead & how hard it would be to catch fish... Any locals able to fill me in a little? Also any suggested spots to try out would be appreciated, usually just hang around como bridge and the flats where georges & woronora river meet. tight lines!

Hey Raiders, I saw the thread earlier in the week where someone was flying into Sydney for work and asked for a few land based spots. Someone mentioned Narrabeen Lagoon and that it's a cracker flathead spot. Decided to head there on Saturday morning, arriving at 5am with a friend to fish either side of the high tide. Does anyone have some suggestions on where we should head for? I've never fished there let alone been in the area, not looking for any top secret spots or anything but would appreciate some advice on general areas or what to look for. Was planning on just rocking up and looking for somewhere that looks fishy but thought I'd ask here first 🙂 Thanks for your help & tight lines Chris

Title pretty much sums it up. I have limited time during the week to go fish after work, and the days that have good tides have been blowing a gale more often than not. Has been incredibly windy around sydney lately. Does anyone have any tips or areas they could recommend to try and get around silly wind?

Not too sure, the larger ones that I used were quite fleshy. About half of the oyster was way too soft (forgive my terminology, around the lips of the oyster) and found the middle part of the oyster and the foot to be quite thick and meaty. Just cut them into strips, threaded them on a hook and cast out. Was only casting maybe 5 meters out so was only soft casts and didn't have any dramas. I'm heading back today to try again on the rising tide, will report back any changes or if I hit gold again

Thanks mate! Looking forward to posting a fair few more reports now that the fish are coming back on No idea what I was doing, threw around a few different kinds of lures and got him on a squidgies slick rig. Thanks, plenty more <50cm but don't usually take photos of those ones I know EXACTLY what you mean, he seems to just pull those elbow slappers out of nowhere. I've tried a few times but sadly I've given up and accepted the fact that it's too hard land based in Sydney. Will try to get out on a boat a few times once the topwater season fires up again

Howdy Raiders! As I'm sure some of you are aware this winter just gone was terribly rough in Sydney for catching fish. Nonetheless I made regular time during the week to get out and fish, worked on my technique, scouted new locations, worked on improving my knots, etc. The fish were definitely few and far between and never really had any cracker days out to make into a fishing report. Understand this format is a bit out of the ordinary for a fishing report, admins feel free to move if necessary. I've taken a real shine to the youtuber sand flats fishing australia and his techniques on chasing flatheads with lures. I've learned a lot of info from his videos over the last 3-6 months and I'm now happy to say that flathead are my favourite chase species. All caught on either stradic ci4+ 1000 with 6lb braid / 6lb fc leader or stradic ci4+ 2500 8lb braid / 10-12 fc leader, both used on my 2-4kg 7ft savage gear rod. All flathead pictured were 50cm+ with the largest bang on 60cm (current p.b) Bonus carp picture that I caught while on holidays in the hunter valley. Never really fished fresh water before, had no idea what I was doing, just throwing around random lures and managed to hook up on this guy. Very fun on 6lb gear and some say he even looks a bit like me....... Tight lines (I have size 13 feet 😛)

Thanks for your quick response. I did some googling yesterday and I struggled to find much about using them as bait in aus. I had a look at the map and the area I fish isnt in the protected zones. I noticed the bag limit of oysters is 50, but just curious how this would apply to breaking open and using as bait on site. Could I get in trouble from fisheries if they find me using them? In the same sense as you need to keep fish whole to be able to prove size. Having a small mound of smashed oysters would be hard to count and keep track. Not that I'd use anywhere near 50 in a session!!! And as far as safety goes I'm aware of the infectious nature of oyster cuts, had my fair share back in the day! Was more so concerned about any specific pollutants in this specific river or collection of heavy metals etc. I understand that these guys cop the brunt of most heavy metals and pollutants being filter feeders. Thanks again mate

Hey Raiders, Just thought I'd pick your brains and ask for some advice. Recently found out that oyster flesh is a pretty cracker bream bait. Just wanted to double check- a) are we allowed to just smash up oysters wherever and use them as bait? b) is there any safety concerns for myself as the area where I would be collecting them (cooks river Sydney) is quite polluted and has been for a few decades. Should I be concerned about handling these, cutting them up, getting them in wounds etc? I know it sounds a bit silly but just wanted to make sure before I proceed. Some of the ones I've cracked open in the cooks (especially the larger ones) have been a tinge of green.... 🤢🤢 Anyway went for a fish yesterday to gave it a try while I was throwing around plastics and to my surprise landed this 38cm stonker. Also landed a nice healthy trevally on plastics while I was there. Thanks for your advice, tight lines. Chris

Hey Raiders, Just thought I'd touch base and let you all know that after some help from my local tackle shop, I settled on the Daiwa zero rods. Picked up the 4-10kg rod with a stradic 4000 reel. I liked the zero rods so much that I also grabbed a 3-5kg one to replace the rod for my stradic 2500. Great rods, have already taken them out a few times and performed very well!! Managed to hook my first ever jewfish while trying them out down the local river, busted off before I could land him though Was only about 40cm but would have been nice to land my first one ever. Bit of a pipe dream to land it solo on a rock wall anyway I guess.. Thanks everyone for your help and recommendations !

Great catch mate! Bit of a step up from the salmon you caught a little while back :) Have watched a fair few of your youtube videos since that day, and I'm pretty sure I've seen you down at Gymea baths before around 6 months ago - fishing on the corner with a livey out under a black balloon? You seem to have a fair bit of luck on the Parra river lately. Has been absolutely dead for me lately & also struggling to find some consistent areas. Would love some tips or even some company one day if you'd be up for it? I work in the Lewisham area so I have easy access to most parts of the river. Been throwing soft plastics around for a while now without really mastering the art. Would love some guidance from an expert :p

I used to frequent the Gymea Bay baths a while back (less than a year) and on weekends it would be full of asian families just smashing baby kingfish non stop. Running the sabiki rigs and throwing all sizes caught into a bucket.... Nothing over 20cm Similar level of outrage, similar level of helplessness when it came to doing anything. I've stopped fishing the area for that reason alone....

The saltist range looks like a pretty solid choice. You'd assume it would go nicely with a daiwa reel Only mentioned lure length as someone had mentioned the morningtide boys earlier and wanted to make sure people didn't assume I was throwing around 170mm stick baits or something huge 😛

Thanks for your suggestions. Not really chasing any monsters/LBG fishing, only going to be throwing sticks / poppers up to 95mm so nothing too huge. Just want something that will hold up if I get the chance to target something bigger. Last thing I want is to rock up undergeared and miss out on some larger fish. It's my dream to land a GT while I'm there but only aiming for a baby, nothing over 40cm lol 😂😂😂 Having a spool swap out is something I hadn't considered. Would you say the 4lb difference between lines is noticeable? I also own two ci4 reels (1000 & 2500) and they are also really good. Although I do love my BG reel if I can fit it in my budget I may grab another ci4 just for the seals in case she goes for a dunk.

Thanks for your very informative post. I'm looking to take it to Hamilton island later in the year and just fish there / surrounding islands. Looking to do pretty much everything with it, soft plastics, stick baits, poppers etc. Occasional bait fishing. I already own a decent 2-4kg setup but will need something a but heavier as an option. I made a post a week or two ago asking what weight of gear should look to get and was suggested the above. The 4-8kg may have just been a weight range rather than a rod model. I'd probably lean towards the 6-8kg at this stage. I actually own a bg 3000 and also agree they are a great reel! I was considering buying another one already but didnt know how they compared to others for the application. As for line etc I always use the top quality stuff. I feel like that's one of the areas where it's money well spent. As for the mono comment, you are right, I use the fc rock for my leaders. Jbraid for main line. Thanks again for your recommendations so far

Hey Raiders, Looking for a new rod and reel setup. My hopes are 7ft 2pc 4-8kg with a series 3000 or 4000 reel, looking to use around 20lb braid and mono leader. Was planning to just walk into my local tackle shop and asking what they recommend, had an off thought to ask here in case someone could make a solid recommendation. Budget is between $400-600. Thanks for your time

Correct, see below Ah, didn't think of trying the crawz. I'll give them a go also

Have known about these for a little while know and how lethal they've been for the american bass scene. Saw them on display at my local tackle shop and decided to grab a couple of packs and give them a go - thought they might go alright with some grubz on them. Looked like they kind of worked but maybe the curly tail stops them going fully upright. Bit too windy to have a decent fish yesterday so don't really have any concrete results personally yet. Has anyone used these before? Yay / Nay?

Hello raiders, A few months back I damaged my favourite double clutch. Had a 60cm flattie on and managed to get it into shore but it had death rolled around the line and wasn't able to get my lip grips in its mouth to bring it in, was wrapped shut from the line. Was in about a foot of water surrounded by oysters so thought I was being clever and lip gripped the lure bib to lift the lovely girl into shore. Got her in for a few pics and a clean release but I noticed that I had broken the bib off my lure. It's still attached by the metal rod part but it wobbles side to side - enough that it messes up how it swims in the water. Should I bother trying to glue it back on with some sort of epoxy or plastic glue? Would the scent of this once done send the fish fleeing? Or should I just bin it. Bit skeptical to use it as is just in case I hook a crocodile.. do NOT want to lose a big girl to the bib coming clean off. Thanks in advance and sorry for the random question. I know worst case these are $25 or so to replace but I've caught a lot of PB's on this bad boy and would like to keep it if possible for sentimental value CHEERS

100% Mick. Was planning to buy the jigheads in person for this exact reason. I work full-time and study part-time so my spare time is limited - that's the main reason for me buying things online where I can, rather than cost. Jigheads / rods are the exception and I always do these in person. I usually buy from smaller chain or independent tackle shops to support the 'smaller guy'.. Besides, I've found that big chain shops (like a famous 3 letter one) pricing are at a bit of a premium anyway, and their big sales bring them back into line with the other smaller tackle shops standard pricing. Thanks Derek, I wasn't aware there was heavier gauge models available. I haven't really looked at the jigheads in store in great depth - usually just pick up some suitable sized hooks to the plastics I'm buying at the same time in suitable weights. Those red ones look very interesting, will definitely grab a few to try out with my translucent plastics and I'll report back if I see any difference! 🤓

Thanks again for all of your advice. Spent a little bit of coin and loaded up on some more lures. (some of these I already had for flathead) Now onto the next question I guess, what weight range should I be looking at for a stickbait rod? Currently have two graphite 1-3kg rods but they're super whippy - not too good for stickbaits and poppers I'm assuming. I know there are slight variances between stickbait and popper rods but would anyone be able to recommend one? And along with this, what kind of weight range you'd recommend for 3-5" stickbaits land based on Hamilton. Thanks again everyone!!!!

Hey raiders, Just ordered a pretty bulky order of soft plastics online (20 or so packs, 2-5"), and I'm wanting to also load up on bulk jigheads to suit. What is everyone's preferred brand? I've bought the TT ones before but find the hooks to be quite thin & get bent if you take a big fish on or a slight snag that you can pull out, thinking I'm going to be spending between $200-300 and want to make sure I'm getting decent quality ones. Don't want to be hit by buyers remorse shortly after!! Thanks in advance, Chris

Flying directly to & leaving from Hamilton Island unfortunately Perfect, thanks for your advice! Any recommendations on some smaller stickbaits? Have a couple sugapens that was trying to land some topwater whiting with but other than that need to fill out my arsenal

Hello Fishos, I have a family holiday planned later in the year for my father's 65th, we're going to be there for 10 nights. I've been there a handful of times before for holidays but this time I'm determined to bring up some of my gear. I am already starting to load up on some basic gear here and there as they go on sale.. I know supplies on the island will be VERY limited.. As I've never fished these waters before was just after some advice on what to expect. I understand there has been a lot of development done on the island in recent years but I'm still eager to go rock hopping or even if I have to hire a boat to get around to some secluded areas. After being locked to land base fishing in Sydney for so long I'm really looking forward to the opportunity to fish the south end of the reef. I'm loading up on supplies such as spare line, hooks, split rings, and have a big selection of lures so far. Wanting to try and mainly fish lures and sp's. Are there any specific kinds you would recommend? Would my current reels (ci4 2500 / bg 3000 with 12lb/16lb respectively) be suitable? Should I bother bringing my ci4 1000 with 8lb or would that be too small/light? I know these are pretty broad questions but just due to the nature of not really having any fishing supplies on the island I want to make triple sure I go prepared. Last thing I want is to have a reel get birdnested on the first day and not have any spare line, or find out I'm severely undergeared and keep getting smoked, etc.. I usually fish soft plastics and have a nice selection of lures (mostly for flatties though), a few smaller rapalas and double clutches. Planning on taking up a big tackle box of assorted jigs, probably 10-20 packs of soft plastics, and 2 or maybe 3 big tackle boxes of lures. Already have a little over one filled with my larger flatty lures so also looking for some smaller lure recommendations for the conditions. Bit of a pipe dream but would love to land a small GT while I'm there, so any tips would also be appreciated Thanks in advance for your help! Chris

Fishing along the parra river on Friday and caught this guy. Anyone know the species? Haven't seen one before.