AlbertW

Aww thanks Derek, I wouldn’t be here without your mentoring and help

Thank you all for the encouraging comments!

Welcome back home mate hope you get onto some big fish

Go read my fishing report for today

Hey Raiders, im currently in the car on the way back to the hotel, this report is going to need a bit of context as this is a very memorable moment for me. ( So I’ve been fishing since Tuesday and then donuted two sessions by myself and then surprisingly a charter which focused on softbaits, soft plastics, I fish underneath a bridge usually and there is a strong current and lots of shaggy areas, perfect for trout. My mates caught two trout on a tassie devil and I lost a bunch of lures) Back to the report, I fished in the morning around at 10 till 11-12ish and then left for lunch. Came back with two new 20g tassies and had a few casts. Some snags that I freed but then it got tangled in a tree right next to me and I snapped the line and the lure fell in the water. I tried to get it a couple times but failed. I then switched to the other tassie which was the pink panther colour and sadly after a few casts I lost it as well. I had a long and “mature” thought and decided to **** it and jumped in to the water which was knee deep I was wearing my long pants which got partially wet and my shoes were absolutely filled to the brim with ice cold water I slipt and after grazing my arm on the rocks I regained my balance for a successful retrieval. First cast nothing happens. Second cast and something nails my tassie as it hits the water it drags me towards the snags but I pulled him to the left- underneath the bridge and then into the shallow area it fought pretty well and after letting it run a bit I successfully lifted him out of the water for a quick photo. I have sort of a rule which is releasing the first fish of every species that I catch whether if it is legal or not. This brown trout was so beautiful and I decided to not break my rule and released him back in the water after a “thanks for playing little guy”. I’m sitting here in the car with my wet clothes and I think my parents are a bit pissed that I let it go. Anyways I’m pretty proud of this moment as I only started lure fishing a while back and I did this solo, just by myself with my own instincts. I’m very happy that my first trout was a big one Brown Trout was 45ish cm ( Measured with shoe) Signing Off, Albert IMG_2456.MOV

The fish are biting volitan, I just lost a good sized trout which jumped out of the water

FARRR OUT. I just lost a 40ish cm trout

Ariel view of the place, I’m here right now and I’ve seen fish around 50cm in the water

Yeah he pulled out two 45cm rainbows in front of me in probably about 5-10 minutes of arriving there with me, I was fishing spinners and soft plastics which didn’t even get touched.

Hey All, the place I fish is very snagged and I have lost a lot of lures so should I use the lighter ones? Here is an image of the place I fish there are a lot of snags and the water varies from shallow to id say 3-4 meters, the main trout have been caught in the red circle area and that’s also where you can see the trout from the bridge above the water. cheers, Albert

Hey Raiders, Anyone have any tips on how to rig and retrieve tassie devils for trout? I have two 13.5g ones and a 7g one. I’ve been donuting so many sessions and my mates been catching big ones consistently on these so i bought a few just then to give them a try. *Will try them tomorrow* Cheers, Albert

Hey Raiders, I arrived in New Zealand Christchurch this morning and after a quick snooze I went down to buy some soft plastic sand some gulp trout nuggets to prepare for tomorrow where I’m going down to the canals on my way to Queenstown. However my friends dad wanted to fish the saltwater beach and got us to go down for a donut session and now my reel has saltwater on the line. Should I clean the line for tomorrow or is it fine? cheers. Albert

Ahh alright, do metals work there? I want to try to hook a salmon

Cheers Macca, I've been watching shroom for some time now and I've seen him go to five dock bay in his videos but I wasn't able to find the name of five dock bay but now I have thanks to you. Thanks, Albert

Hey raiders, I'm looking for any spots that are in the sydney area, (I can probably do up to an hours drive) that are good for bream or trevs on soft plastics, since it's the holidays I'll be able to fish a little more frequently and I want to develop my lure fishing as I'm getting pretty comfortable with flatties and the general basis of how to work lures. Any info like what lures to use or the general location is appreciated as I've never caught bream on lures before. Thanks, Albert

Yeah i've been watching him for a couple years now that's how I developed an interest to try and make lures, he sells soft plastic moulds online but they're a bit pricey and the lures are more "american" based because the lures are meant for bass, thanks anyway

Ahh cheers, thanks hornet

Thats a cracker first fish jay, yeah Derek is a top bloke he’s taught me the basics of soft plastics and I’ve been catching a few fish every session now.

Thank you all for the positive comments.

Hey Raiders, Does anyone have any experience in making soft plastics with moulds? I know there are the two types of injection and pour moulds but haven't really found any suitable designs on the websites I've been on. I'm just looking for any website recommendations or tips on how to start making soft plastics as I'm tired of having to throw out soft plastics that are no longer usable because a flatty took a bit out of the tail. I'm looking to make the most basic lures like paddletails and grubs. Cheers, Albert

Thanks everyone, I wanted to leave the Trevally for another fisho to fight as it gave me a pretty thumping good one, I released both of the fish because I wasn’t that bothered to take them either

Good Evening Raiders, Went down to Mosman again and fished of the little bay at 2pm today. Decided to throw out a bloodworm coloured paddle tail first. First cast and I hook a stick which I thought was a snag after untying the stick On the second, I decided to cast next to two big wooden poles, two twitches and then a bite. After a 3rd twitch my line was suddenly pulled out and I managed to hook up on a legal silver Trevally. After that I fished around the bay and then onto the ferry wharf. I then switched to a vibalicious which usually got me a flathead or two but no luck. It was getting late and at 4Pm I switched back to the same paddletail and managed to land a just legal flathead! The blackfish are also coming out now as I saw a 35-40cm ish one roaming about on the weedbeds. Silver Trevally- 45cm Dusky Flathead- 37cm

Do you think I can switch between bait and lures on a single rod? I'm going to buy a single rod combo and gear in new zealand as it's a hassle to clean it before I go to different rivers and I don't want to clean and risk damaging the gear i have right now.

Ah alright Volitan, I'll try to ask around at a tackle store at new zealand and I have seen one or two videos on egg drifting so I'll know what to ask about, thanks.

Hey Raiders, I've decided to fish the NZ South island hydro canals and have been doing some research on driftfishing lures and bait and I've just been wondering if any of you raiders have had success with bait or lures and what methods you have used at the hydro canals. I know that you have to work soft plastics slowly as the big trout are used to drifting food and I have a basic understanding of how it works as you follow the lure down the flow of the canal. Anyways all info is appreciated. Cheers, Albert