James Clain

You have to bleed the mac tuna then ice.

Spotted Bigeye 10 Flathead 9 whiting 9 bully mullet (caught in salt only) 8 mac tuna 8 kingfish 8 leather jacket 7 aussie salmon 5 trevally 5 bream -3 snapper -5 bully mullet (fresh water) -10 (absolutely vile)

Priacanthus macracanthus

I personally do not like bream or snapper for some reason although many people often say how good they are. Flathead, kingfish, mac tuna and bonito, tailor are good. I also don't mind Aussie salmon when most people say how bad they are. However, those spotted bigeye we get @Pickles have to be the best.

Thanks Donna. I have actually been looking for a carpentry apprenticeship.

Starting to track them down!

Thanks for all the great responses. I have never thought of that @frankS but I will always use the lanyard now for that reason.

As I said I would come back strong after yr12 Ib exams. Here is the result 1 day later. Caught on fresh yakka fillet, an 86 centimetre croc!

I heard a silly story that for one summer a long time ago there was actually a croc in the Hawkesbury. Escaped from the park where the famous panther is supposed to have come from.

Only big ones in Sydney (2m plus). So you need big gear, heavy wire trace leader and lots of line capacity.

Cheers for the mentions guys. Throwing metals is great, especially since summer is coming. Bonito are going to be around in greater numbers and are fin to catch. Usually try and sink right to the bottom and then wind hard or cast and wind hard straight away and have it skimming along the surface like a fast stick bait. Bonito like speed. You will also get tailor and salmon doing this. With the bigger setups you can try poppers (can be good) and flicking out live baits. Live prawns also go hard this time of year. I caught a large trev on them and also been smoked many other times. Primarily try and throw 6inch slugos and slapstics on your 20lb setup or even your 12lb. They catch lots of kings. You will get busted off quite a but probably, especially if your like me and suck at hooking them in easy to land spots. Flicking smaller soft plastics / grubs around on the lighter setup also puts you in the running for pretty much any species in the harbour. Good luck!

Awesome stuff. Weather reports have been quite off and odd the last few days. Some creaking fish, such a long way up the river as well!

Definitely many spots inshore: Pittwater, Brisbane waters, Middle harbour, North harbour and down in and around the main harbour like lavender bay, Cremorne, Clifton. That have the potential to be just as good as long reef. Give them a try!

Thanks for the directions and advice. This looks like a great prospect!

Hey Raiders. I'll keep this short, In early to mid December I will be staying at 1 mile beach near port Stephens. What are the good prospects in the area? General spots I can have a crack at land based. I'm not too worried about species this time around. Some flatty spots? Anything bigger off the beach at this time? I am happy to go for a bit of a drive if it means a good spot. Thanks!

As @dirvin21 said. That is probably the best way but is difficult if you don't have a decent understanding of what line can handle what and how much faith you have in your knots. Some fish just need to be stopped so you can go really tight. However, some fish are a little faster and like to run a bit. In this instance provided your knots are good I have set the drag to around 50 to 75% of breaking strain with a slow constant pull with the rod bent. Set strike drag at 50% and then keep in mind how far you can go. This all depends on how good your knots are, you can potentially go even higher. Make sure to use FG knots for leader and a uni knot to secure your lure or hook.

Found that one the hard way a couple years ago. I bought a bunch of plastics to use and whacked then all in a small container. When I went to go fishing I had 1 soft plastic.

Great story Waza

At Penrith I believe the rate of hybrid species is extremely high. Everyone including myself often catch some really strange looking bass.

Alrighty fellow raiders, I have been away from fishing for a while as a result of end of year 12 work and covid restrictions. At the start of the Sydney restrictions I was able to fish for bass and during that time period I came accross this idea of Bass verses EP! Why are these things different species!!!????????? Haha I know some of you will agree and some are going to disagree but here is why I am confused and pretty sold on the idea that the idea that they are truely different species is ridiculous. Bass are more commonly found further upstream yet breed in the brackish during early winter. Ep are found throughout the year in those brackish waters however have also been caught very far upstream. (coincidence?) Bass and Ep are known to breed amongst each other and produce hybrid species. Normally the offspring of two different species are infertile however with these things they aren't and remain totally fertile. (coincidence?) here is proof they aren't infertile https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/content/research/areas/aquatic-ecosystems/outputs/2011/2143#:~:text=Australian bass and estuary perch,that support important recreational fisheries.&text=Back-crossing (breeding of hybrids,that hybrids are not sterile. So the question arises. Are the features that are said to classify the difference between EP and Bass actually reliable? Not really - you only have to look up "is this a Bass or EP" to find people arguing over whether a fish is a Bass or EP. So please let me know your thoughts. don't get mad at me because im happy to be convinced scientific or otherwise that these things can be reliably determined to be different and how that can be done. These are only my recent thoughts about why they are more similar than two different species should be. Remember a poodle and a great dane are the same species. Thanks.

Awesome report Dave. Great to see all those northern species. Get ready for a barra in the nambucca river its definitly coming or even a tarpon!

What a report. Massive bream, GT and Bass.

Quality Jack on the light gear Dave, haven't been on here for a while so nice to see this Jack.

What a nice GT. Great session. I haven't been for a fish in ages due to year 12. I am looking forward to another session on the Nambucca in late June or early July if you are around.

Nice bluefin!