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AlbertW

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Posts posted by AlbertW

    Froggin'

    in Freshwater Fishing Reports

    Posted

    42 minutes ago, Hill373737 said:

    Mate, I reckon try the 4" one I gave you, it might be a bit big at Manly Dam so maybe save it for a trip to Wyong River to target the bass above the weir at the old dairy.

    Yep, gonna use the 3 inch for manly as it only has tiny bass and 4 inch for the Nepean or Wyong river

    • Like 3

    Murray Cod trip

    in Freshwater Fishing Reports

    Posted

    Hey All,

    Sorry it’s taken a while to get this report up but I’ve been pretty busy ever since I got back. Anyways one day I randomly decided to go and target Murray cod and for some reason Tamworth was on my mind. No special reason but I think I heard that it held cod for a long time ago. Did some more research and learnt about all of the New England area. As many of you know @big Neil is a gun cod fisho so he was the first person I reached out to. After a couple of messages he was able to connect me with @Hill373737. Hilly (Steve), being the top bloke he is, offered to take me out and try to get on my first cod. I then headed up with the parents to Tamworth and occupied them with some touristy things to do, e.g lookouts, museums etc.  

    Day 1

    I got up at the ripe time of 4 am and by 4:45 Hilly was already outside of my hotel ready to go with kayaks in tow. By around first light we were already on the peel river. Straight away we got over our first rock bar (the first of many). Then after riding the current for 30 seconds we hit the second rock bar. This now opened up to much bigger river, probably 30-40m in width. We started off with topwater, fishing the cod walloped with not much action. Hilly had a cod swirl on his but that was the end of that. After a while we heard a big boof on the water and by the time I got there there were only white feathers on the surface, Hilly and I both suspected that it was a small cockatoo that had been boofed by a cod. Despite that sign nothing else came of topwater and we switched to diving stump jumpers. The biggest learning curve was that of positing myself along the bank and making accurate casts with the baitcaster as I had very little experience with it. After half an hour the accuracy started breaking in and I could cast into snags and only get snagged on the trees a couple of times. Soon Hilly managed to wrestle a yellow belly from underneath a stack of submerged branches and I took some pics for him. A while later I managed to pick up my own yella, casting along a wall of roots and soil. We fished most of the snags along the way with no more hookups so we stopped at the next rockbar and had a lunch break. We then proceeded to spend half an hour going down a tiny stream, getting caught every now and then on rocks and having to get out and push the yak into deeper water. We finally reached the second part of the river and it was a bit shallower than the first bit but had more cod holding structure. We fished on for another couple of hours, tackling snags and getting snagged in the process. I was casting at a tree until Hilly yelled out “I’m on to a cod!” or something along the lines of that. Hilly had been peppering a bunch of submerged twigs and had successfully annoyed a cod into taking the lure and it was a decent one! We quickly paddled to a shallow area where we could stand up and land the fish and just as I was about to snap the lip grip on the cod it ducked under and the treble came loose. We estimated it was about 70cm which is a pretty decent cod but nothing compared to Hilly’s 124cm cod from last season. Nothing else for the rest of the day but it was already enough for me to see such a big cod. We then paddled all the way back up river, crossing rock bars and even dragging the yaks along the shore for the final stretch. The entire journey was hard on my bum and I had foolishly declined borrowing a foam pad for the seat but for Hilly who’s basically an ex champion kayak racer the 6km round trip was considered easygoing and relaxed. Then it was back to the hotel for dinner and an early nights sleep.

     

    Day 2

    Woke up even earlier on day 2, crawling up at around 3 o’ clock in the morning as Hilly had gotten the boat out and we were heading out to a dam. Again, we were on the water just as it was first light. We started off with topwater again, me using the same cod walloper and a seedless frog and Hilly an assortment of surface and subsurface lures such as walkers and shallow divers. No luck on topwater so we packed up and sped off to another spot. We put the trolling motor in and slowly worked the submerged trees that littered the bay we were in. Both of us started throwing divers and spinnerbaits and working them past the snags. Hilly had switched to a lighter baitcaster with a smaller spinnerbait rigged with a black grub. When suddenly liked the cod he managed to hook up to a fish as he was working the base of the tree. The fish took off like a rocket which gave it away that it was a carp. After getting it in the boat and snapping a few pics, I was given the honours of bonking it on the head and leaving it on the shore to feed the foxes. There was nothing notable about the rest of the day, except some bites and taps that never seemed to connect. And with the wind rolling in fast we decided to call it quits, after trying around 5-6 spots. Back at the boat ramp we met Bob (haha don’t know you lived in Tamworth Pickles) who also said that the going was tough and he only bagged out on yellow belly in an hour or two, which as Hilly explained that Bob had grew up and fished Tamworth all his life and would use freshwater prawns as bait or tree jig with grubs. We had a nice chat at the boat ramp spinning a few yarns, especially Bob who recounted once how he forgot his reel and used a coke bottle he found to handline in a metery cod. As Hilly explained on day 1 the dam held bigger fish but it was also very easy to donut and I decided to go double or nothing  (my bum was also  still sore from day 1 which was a contributing factor) I was then back at Hilly’s place admiring his shed waiting for dad to pick me up. I forgot to mention earlier but Hilly has a cracking shed, with a caravan, his kayaks and trailer and his boat all fitted in only half of it. The other half held tools, fishing gear, a remote controlled race track and a bunch of other cool stuff. On his walls there was notably a laser engraving of the 124cm cod he caught on some timber and tons of pics of him or his mates holding big fish. Then dad pulled into the driveway and then we had to part ways. The next morning we quickly checked out of the hotel and I gave the river another shot for an hour but with the recent rainless weather the river in town was still too shallow to fish properly. I then had to properly part with Tamworth and we were back onto the highway. We stopped at Newcastle and while my parents got lunch I had a quick flick with a vibe on the bc and managed to tick off my first squid which was about time as I had only caught cuttlefish on squid jigs before. Got back to Sydney and picked up my dog from my mates house and went home for a well deserved nap. The end.

    Afterword

    Again, huge thanks to you@Hill373737the trip definitely would not have happened if it wasn’t for you and I really appreciate you taking the time and taking me out on your kayak and boat to hopefully get me onto a cod. Even though my cod may not have been caught the trip is still a success in my books with meeting lovely people like yourself and seeing the amazing scenery of the countryside.

    Cheers,

    albert

     

     

    GOPR4192.jpeg

    • Like 13

    New Light or UL Rod Recommendations?

    in Tackle Talk

    Posted

    1 hour ago, linewetter said:

    I see it on sale! I wish it was available locally so I could hold it in person and stuff. How strict do you think that lure weighting is? I see it’s 1-5g but wondering how much higher you could go without danger. 

    Honestly mate, I think its pretty solid, I just finished spooling the reel that i paired the rod with yesterday and I was casting a 13g zman really easily, the rod was bending a little bit on the weight of the frog so the heaviest I'd use would be around 7-10g

    Bobbin Head Flats

    in Saltwater Fishing Chat

    Posted

    11 hours ago, Jo5hC said:

    Hey guys, recently had an unsuccessful trip to bobbin head where I explored the flats behind the marina for the first time. There were definitely fish there, as I could see many bream, garfish, herring, mullet, and even a few good sized whiting cruising around me; maybe attracted from the mud that I was stirring up? I was chucking around an 80mm slippery dog for whiting but over the two hours I was there I only got followed by some strangely aggressive mullet.

     

    I suspect my leader could’ve been too heavy as I was running 10lb from my previous sessions, but I have hooked up on whiting and even bream before on 10lb so I was not sure. Also saw a ton of what I think were nipper holes, and I didn’t see any signs so I assume I can pump nippers there? If anyone has fished the same area any tips would be appreciated. Last thing is that I accessed the flats from the visitor area which is only open from 10am to 4pm, but are there any other ways to access those flats or is it only available during the times from the visitor centre being open?

     

    As faker mentioned vibes will also work very well for whiting if they're not keen on topwater especially the ecogear zx's

    • Like 2

    Bobbin Head Flats

    in Saltwater Fishing Chat

    Posted

    1 hour ago, Jo5hC said:

    Hey guys, recently had an unsuccessful trip to bobbin head where I explored the flats behind the marina for the first time. There were definitely fish there, as I could see many bream, garfish, herring, mullet, and even a few good sized whiting cruising around me; maybe attracted from the mud that I was stirring up? I was chucking around an 80mm slippery dog for whiting but over the two hours I was there I only got followed by some strangely aggressive mullet.

     

    I suspect my leader could’ve been too heavy as I was running 10lb from my previous sessions, but I have hooked up on whiting and even bream before on 10lb so I was not sure. Also saw a ton of what I think were nipper holes, and I didn’t see any signs so I assume I can pump nippers there? If anyone has fished the same area any tips would be appreciated. Last thing is that I accessed the flats from the visitor area which is only open from 10am to 4pm, but are there any other ways to access those flats or is it only available during the times from the visitor centre being open?

     

    Leader is definitely not too heavy, i've caught them on 12lb mono as it floats. With whiting you don't want to stop anyways so keep the lure walking and they won't even have a chance to see your leader haha. Don't know about the nippers but give it a try anyway, not much harm in bringing a nipper pump along haha, try to find a tide where you can fish a rising dead low tide, that way you can try for nippers and explore the terrain.

    Good Luck!

    Albert

    • Like 2

    New Light or UL Rod Recommendations?

    in Tackle Talk

    Posted

    On 1/14/2024 at 9:53 AM, linewetter said:

    Hey guys.  I've currently got a 3-5kg combo that I got from <retailer removed>.  I'm mainly using it for soft plastics and targeting the common fish like bream, flathead, whiting, pinkies, etc.  I'm learning that my 3-5kg is kind of overkill for fish like these so I want to purchase a lighter rod so I can have a bit more fun with the fish and also cast lighter lures (like 1/16 jigheads & ~2g topwaters) farther.

     

    Do you guys have any recommendations for something in the $200-250 range?  Will the 1-3kg rod make a big difference in the fun factor?  I'm still new to fishing and really love it but don't have much time to fish so want to make the limited time I have the most enjoyable it can be at a reasonable cost. 

     

    I have been researching a bit on my own and so many choices - have looked over the Daiwa TD Infeet, Daiwa TD Black, Shimano Anarchy, Atomic Arrowz.  All diff price points but looking for something that is good value - something where spending that extra small bit is worth it for what you get in return.

     

    I'm planning to move over my Shimano Sienna 2500HG FG from the combo over to the 1-3kg rod but reel recommendations are welcome too if it would improve my experience dramatically.  Have looked into the Shimano Nasci & Shimano Stradic but not sure if I'm ready to spend the additional if the Sienna would do the job fine for my purposes right now.

    Forgot to mention that the rod is currently at $139 so if you just search it up you should find it

    New Light or UL Rod Recommendations?

    in Tackle Talk

    Posted

    On 1/14/2024 at 9:53 AM, linewetter said:

    Hey guys.  I've currently got a 3-5kg combo that I got from <retailer removed>.  I'm mainly using it for soft plastics and targeting the common fish like bream, flathead, whiting, pinkies, etc.  I'm learning that my 3-5kg is kind of overkill for fish like these so I want to purchase a lighter rod so I can have a bit more fun with the fish and also cast lighter lures (like 1/16 jigheads & ~2g topwaters) farther.

     

    Do you guys have any recommendations for something in the $200-250 range?  Will the 1-3kg rod make a big difference in the fun factor?  I'm still new to fishing and really love it but don't have much time to fish so want to make the limited time I have the most enjoyable it can be at a reasonable cost. 

     

    I have been researching a bit on my own and so many choices - have looked over the Daiwa TD Infeet, Daiwa TD Black, Shimano Anarchy, Atomic Arrowz.  All diff price points but looking for something that is good value - something where spending that extra small bit is worth it for what you get in return.

     

    I'm planning to move over my Shimano Sienna 2500HG FG from the combo over to the 1-3kg rod but reel recommendations are welcome too if it would improve my experience dramatically.  Have looked into the Shimano Nasci & Shimano Stradic but not sure if I'm ready to spend the additional if the Sienna would do the job fine for my purposes right now.

    Ahh crud, I haven’t been on fishraider in a while but a little while ago there was a really nice discount for the shimano anarchy rods and I picked up the really nice UL rod rated for 1-3kg. Have a look online maybe you might find one

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