Fisherlady

Would absolutely love to meet you Derek. 🙂 I'm grateful that you reached out. You are correct that if I were to develop some skills worth sharing, that I will be very happy to do so. Moreover, I would want to make sure I did so. Had a little chuckle when reading that you don't eat fish. 😁 Seems a bit ironic, but I am learning that this is not uncommon amongst Anglers. Most of my life I have been the opposite. A person that does not catch fish, but who eats them. The School holidays are 11 - 25 April. We are planning on taking the kids camping during the first week, but have a relatively child-free week in the second week. We also have some time on alternate weekends as a rule. Given that in January we had a horde of children who all wanted to fish at the same time, we already own a bunch of regular fishing rods around the 6-7 ft mark, and two beach rods already. Some are starter packs to get the kids out there with a line in the water, but from what I understand, overall our gear is of reasonable quality. Not top of the line, not bottom either. The only gear we are likely to add in the next little while is a pack of 1/0 hooks and a few lures for our weekend away. I will totally blame you if you entice me into coveting more fishing gear. I have my eyes on a bigger prize though.. I want a tinny to whiz around the lake in so I can be on the water, not in it. Winter is coming and my circulation is not getting any better with age. 😁 Both of our beach rods are 12ft long and from the Ugly Stik Gold range. There is a difference at the tip, one is heavier duty than the other. I know one is medium, but can't remember if the other one is "light" or "heavy". I'm leaning toward Heavy, but I really can't say for sure. Keith's reel is one he has had for a long time and still in good condition. He is very particular about caring for the gear which I think is great. I have the empty box for my reel at hand. It is a Penn Spinfisher VI SSVI7500LC. I will look forward to fronting up for roll call with my gear in tow and ready for inspection prior to class. 😂 Mr Fisherlady has fishing experience under his belt, and may be less malleable, but we can work on that. Even an old dog can learn a new trick or two. 😉

Thank you Derek. 🙂 Keith and I live in separate locations (all is well, but it's complicated due to our children's requirements). Keith is at Ryde. Since discovering in January that I love fishing, we have been fishing at Narrabeen, either wading in the Lake out front of the Caravan Park, near the mouth, off Narrabeen beach, or at the Marine Park. We've only been able to go about half a dozen or so times since then, but we make the most of it when we can. We would be more than willing to venture to other places to meet up with others. Would I be off-track if I were to guess you run some kind of fishing skill type business venture? The second week of the school holidays could be a winner if something can be worked out for then. We have to work in fishing around the kids, so we are not able to be as flexible as we would like. That said, a long day won't be a problem as some of our tribe will not be with us then. FL

Wow, that looks amazing! Never seen it before.

@big Neil You are a champion. @Chhayzor Lucky you! @Pickles We are neighbours. 🙂 So I just realised that in following a prior thread, I did not see the start of this one. Loved the report and photos Neil. The main takeaway: If meeting a raider, be absolutely sure to not sport team colours... unless due diligence is done prior, and team colours align. 😂

Hi Derek Thank you for taking the time to post. Share your philosophy that you might as well do things the best you can. Absolute fishing beginner here, and I will be looking to have my first try at lure fishing soon. I will be sure to look see if you have any instructional threads for your techniques to study before I have a crack at setting up my rod. Currently don't have the foggiest idea. 😄 Cheers FL

@big Neil Seems like a trip to the tackle shop to look at sizes of sinkers is in order. I was watching some You Tube video's on Friday night (replete with glass of Chardy in hand), that were talking of where the fish would, and would not be likely to be found, and where to cast your line. Eg in front of a rock so it moves around the rock to where the fish are using the rock for a reprieve from the current, and also the calmer waters on the edges. It also said to look for places where they have cover nearby to dart off to for protection, and to walk upstream. I haven't fished with Soft or Hard plastics. I have used frozen prawns, self collected yabbies, purchased beach worms and ?pilchards, a fish hubby caught and said it was good bait fish that was cut into many pieces to put chunks of fish around a couple of cms or so on the hook - I think Tailor) So far I have done best with the beach worm catching Whiting. Yum. It may be a bit adventurous to try using lures, but I'm an adventurous kinda lass with not much to lose. I'll be enjoying the great outdoors with the sweetest man I have ever known so although it would be thrilling, catching a fish or two won't make or break the trip. Mostly I'd really love to see hubby catch a fish. That is possibly a bit more realistic than thinking I might do so. For as long as we don't try it, we will remain sad individuals who have never had a go at lure fishing. I always encourage the kids to step outside their comfort zone and give things like this a crack; telling them it doesn't matter if they succeed or fail, so long as they give it their best shot. I explain that many things like this, we can persevere until we have a win. It would be remiss of me, and not a good example to shy away from taking my own advice. Practice what you preach Jenn. Oftentimes it is the preceding struggle and the failures that go with the territory that makes success all the sweeter if/when you finally achieve your objective. I would like to try both bait fishing and lure fishing on this trip. I'm open minded, but not necessarily expecting to be successful at either. That said, I'll be jolly satisfied that we gave both a shot. I have other plans that will be revealed in the debrief, but hopefully we will get a couple of fishing sessions in. I haven't looked yet, but I figure that you do not use a sinker at all when using a soft plastic in this situation. (You have my blessing to ahead and laugh...) I'll likely look back on this one day and laugh myself silly at what a Fisherlady numpty I currently am. 🤣 @Little_Flatty Bahahahaha You are welcome. Laughter is good medicine. Sometimes I think we are all living some huge real life comedy. I'm sure I'm far from alone on that one. When Master 15 was a toddler, it occurred to me the absurdity that I was doing my best to mumble "Get your foot out of my mouth". A lightbulb moment for sure, and I knew then with somewhat of a sinking feeling that there was no choice but to buckle up and hang on for the ride. Add in the extra child I had subsequent to that time, (now Master 13) and Mr Fisherman's three children, and well, the ride has had plenty of twists and turns, thrills and spills. My knuckles have long since turned white. Would I change it? Depends on what moment you ask me. Mostly not. I'm sure many can relate. Raising children is not for the faint of heart. Love them dearly, but by gosh those grey hairs are fast adding up. Now, as for Mr Fisherlady... His story of fishing in all his glory will remain documented in these pages for posterity's sake. This thoroughly good man with a heart of gold deserves a place in history, even if it is just for getting his gear off. 😂 Besides, I didn't share the multitude of pictures I covertly took, and have done my due diligence in keeping them hidden from the family album. No need to shock Great Aunt Beryl... FL

@big Neil Ok. So I've got the no swivel bit figured. Done. Except now my poor overtaxed brain is bugging out saying "your hook will just sit on the bottom and you won't catch any fish". Are we meant to cast out, then slowly reel in? Reel in a bit quicker than slowly? Scratching my head at how ridiculous that sounds. Also, the the nerdy stickler for detail in me is repeating "What size is small?" Is it the size of a pea, an almond, a grape... What if the size sinker I think is small is not the same size as what Neil thinks is small. I will end up using a sinker too heavy or too light... Maybe there is a sinker conspiracy and it is a closely guarded secret that only those whose feet have begun to grow scales are allowed to know. 🤣 @Little_Flatty Five kids is nuts. Truly. I kid you not. I suspect my warped sense of humour is next in line after my coping strategy of Friday Chardonnay... We are a blended family. Three kids from hubby's first marriage, and two from mine. Spice that up a little with the addition of ADHD x 3 kids & one adult, (that would be me) 🙄 and a co-morbidity of Autism in one of the kids, and sometimes it's only the promise of that beloved Friday night bottle of Chardy that keeps things ticking along. Is it Friday yet? Otherwise I may just run screaming up the street like a possessed lunatic. But there is Chardy on Friday night... So I stay... I'm not sure it makes much difference after two kids. Two kids in a room creates plenty of action, drama and noise. You know it, and I know it. The cat lady down the street knows it. (Apologies cat lovers) Any extras just seem to blur into the cacophony. Sometimes I think it is easier when there is more. Occasionally they manage to entertain themselves. Once every pancake day, one plays arbitrator/mediator for the others, and blow me down, every once in a while one of them actually sticks up for the parents and reasons on our behalf. True story. Almost think I should offer up a sip of my lovely Chardy when that happens. But I quickly come to my senses and realise I'ma keeping that all to myself. I'm not sure how much fishing the kids will do. Our youngest two (Mr Fisherlady's two absolutely gorgeous girls, 7 & 9) have a go for a short while occasionally. My youngest fair haired lad has a go here and there. Collectively they are most likely to run amok, swim, kayak and try to light fires to turn perfectly delicious marshmallows into sticky sap oozing charcoal. I suspect my two contributions to the family equation would burn the whole forest down if it were not for the innate knowledge that their beloved PlayStations would disappear forever. Mr ADHD/Autism (my eldest) will stay with his Grandparents. At 15 he is the eldest, and there is no way he is coming camping with the family. He's far too cool for that nonsense. Heaven forbid one should face the ultimate embarrassment of being recognised in public with the family. Even far from home, this is an unfathomable risk one dare not take. Gumtree is my friend in the cost reduction stakes. I can see that camping (or moreover glamping), boating and fishing can quickly become quite expensive. We will need to content ourselves with budget camping, our second hand kayaks and mostly land based activities for the time being. A tinny is a desire for down the track if one comes up for the right price. (ie as cheap as possible) 🙃 Gosh I'd love to have "Mr Fisherlady" join and contribute, but this may be a challenge. Mr Fisherlady works with computers and tends to avoid them in his downtime. He is stereotypically a fairly reserved kinda guy though he did surprise the heck outta me a few weeks ago when he strolled up to me butt naked on the beach while fishing. Granted it was around 3am on a dark night with not a soul in sight, but still, an impressively bold move that I would never have expected. I was impressed. 🤠 Still, despite this out of character behaviour, I may just have to go ahead and share his comments covertly. 😎 FL

Oh shucks guys. I'm deeply touched and downright blown away by the lovely welcome and generosity of spirit y'all have displayed. (I'm almost entitled to use "y'all". I spent a fantastic couple of years in South Carolina with the good southern folk around 2011-2012. Neil: Thank you for your well wishes and advice. 🙂 Any time spent getting away with my sweet man will be great, so regardless of the outcome of fishing, I will be a happy camper. Literally. Unless it rains. Then I will be akin to that pitiful soaking wet puppy that shows up on your doorstep in the midst of a downpour. I read the article you provided the link for and gleaned some good information from that, including tips on locations to fish from, and regulations etc. Also started reading a couple of raider posts last night, and hopefully will have some more time in the coming days here and there to look some more. We will be fishing from the shoreline for this trip, or trudging in a creek/river. Forgive my absolute and utter lack of knowledge of fishing in general... I have a couple of questions about the advice you kindly gave... With the 1/0 hook, I'm guessing a regular hook not a long shank? We use a long shank in the surf. Second, what size sinker would be good? Third (now this question will really show how little I know...) "running ball sinker to the hook" does this mean that we do not use a swivel? Normally we have a swivel about 1 metre from the hook, and the sinker is above that so it doesn't get to the hook. Frank: Wow Frank, right back at you. That would have to be the most amazing, mind-blowing welcome I've ever had to a forum. I think I need to hug you. Very kind of you to make such a generous offer. Having looked into it a bit, I am confident that our all-purpose rods and the line on them is suitable. They are both between 6-7ft and have light line on them. We just need some lures which I am guessing should not cost too much. (Likely best if you read "I don't have a clue what I am talking about...") 😅 Thank you for the advice about the footwear. I wasn't sure if gumboots would be safe. I know rocks can be very slippery. I do have a pair of diving boots that I picked up from a council cleanup (where many of my treasures come from). 🤫 They fit perfectly, and I was thinking they may be good. Hubby doesn't have anything like that, so I might look at picking up some gumboots for him from Bunnings if they are good for walking on the rocks. I was thinking I will need to let hubby in on my sneaky little plans, so a little catch up may be possible if we all have some mutually suitable time that could work. I will send you a message. Little Flatty: No doubt hubby would enjoy a chat with Frank. I'm sure I would too. 🙂 We have 5 kids aged between 7 and 15, so we tend to economise spending on ourselves where we can, so we can do more with the kids. As such, though it is a great idea, a guide won't be happening for now. I'll be sure to take some pictures for the debrief report. Mrs Swordfisherman: Thank you! I'm excited to be here. So nice to see such a friendly bunch of people with a common passion. I noticed your name in the group, and was happy to see that there is a woman in the mix of admin/mods. Someone's gotta keep the fellas in line... 😜 I have decided that if Keith (hubby) joins, he will have to be Mr Fisherlady. Tis only right given the site has a Mrs Swordfisherman that it has a Mr Someone or other... Now, how to break this to Keith... Rebel: Thank you for the welcome. 🙂 So, I've been a busy little beaver scurrying around gathering supplies for our trip. I was lucky enough to be gifted two cast iron skillets. I have been busy cleaning them up, as they had a good bit of surface rust. They are coming up well. A store which I have just discovered is moderated out of being named... did pretty well out of me today. Think camping/outdoors store starting with A... We are planning to take the kids camping during the Easter holidays, (this is helping immensely in covering up my plans for the weekend prior...) so I picked up a double swag for $179 that is usually $499, and a double sleeping bag for us per hubby's request. He tells me it is so we can snuggle and he can keep each me warm. 🤔 🙉🙊🙈 So, changing the topic, we can use the swag for our little Oberon getaway, and then our eldest two can sleep in it over the Easter break. They are at the age where they are a bit too cool to camp in the same tent with Ma and Pa. 🙄 In other breaking news, we have just purchased a large second hand tent, and it would be very helpful if the monsoon would stop so we can set it up and check it out before arriving at a campsite with it and finding we are missing something. Pretty confident the fellow we purchased it from is upstanding, but I'd rather be 100% sure all is ok and we know how to set it up. Well I best stop rambling and go read some more of your great posts already. Calm seas and big fish to y'all. FL/Jenn x

Greetings Raiders, Rather vague memories of a few spectacularly uninteresting failed fishing attempts as a young child exist somewhere in the deep recesses of my memories. Fast forward 40+ odd years later, and recently I discovered that fishing is actually awesome! Could have something to do with a rather dramatic change in mindset, but who can say. Years of work and family commitments has made hubby (who did a bit of fishing in his younger years) really keen. He's keen to fish too... 😉 In the last couple of months we have been fishing as often as we can, and loving every minute of it. Well, not so much the leftover bait accidentally left in a bucket in the garage, or that big wave that snuck up and drenched me the other night when I was already cold... (I know, I'm a wuss) Given my general propensity to over-engineer the life out of any situation, recreational or otherwise, I stumbled across Fishraider. I'm just gonna come right out and say it... I ahhh, yeah, um, I've been lurking. 😳 I've been stalking and admiring your awesome catches, and thank you all so much, I've gleaned some great tips. I sharpened my hook! Seems a bit like the fishing version of "pulling your socks up..." I'm surprised to have actually caught a number of fish to date. Happy joy! Numerous undersize fish that were released, albeit a couple that were a tad the worse for wear given the amount of time it took me to remove the hook, but I'm improving. Hubby has come to the rescue as required when they have swallowed the hook almost to their butt. Seems whiting have a love affair with worms even greater than my love affair with Chardonnay. The biggest whiting I have caught so far was a 35cm one, and not to be outdone, hubby caught a 38cm one the next time we went out. Talk about stealing my thunder. 😆 I caught a 28cm bream off the beach the other day. Clearly no record breaking sizes or bragging rights for this absolute amateur, but at this point I am especially chuffed to catch anything I can responsibly put on my plate. Heck, I'm even excited for catch and release. Mostly we have been fishing in a saltwater lagoon and on the beaches north of Sydney (Northern Beaches). Also fished at Biggera Waters in January while on holidays there. Got some whiting, sand flatheads and bream there, and two decent sized crabs in the pot we put out. One of them was a really, really cranky bugger. Hubby said it was the crankiest one he had ever encountered, and he's seen a fair few. Provided free entertainment for the kids watching hubby and I try to get it out of the crab pot. Shout out to the locals for making us feel so welcome. We had a blast and look forward to visiting again sometime down the track. Hubby turned 50 in September at the height of the Covid 😷 avoid thy neighbour, work colleague, friend, stranger, relative or any other random person mandate our esteemed government imposed. As such, the kids and I cooked up a mean bangers and mash dinner, and hubby got to 'enjoy' watching Hannah Montana or something with Miss 7. Ok, we may have done slightly better than that, but I have to admit, it was a tad underwhelming. So, here we are, allowed out to mingle and play, and I am looking to set things straight, and give hubby a belated birthday celebration that's worthy of the Big Five-0. I may just have outdone myself. I have gone and booked a surprise weekend away at Oberon, where we will enjoy the spoils of the region, and throw a few bucks at the local economy. Seems I've got the luxury accommodation (tent camping at a local campground lol) and a couple of eating out meals booked, and a few things are happening about town that sound good. Now all I have to do is manage to contain myself, and not tell hubby all about it. It's hard to be me... Of course it goes without saying that the highlight will be the opportunity to throw a line in the water somewhere. Neither of us have ever been fishing for trout or perch etc. I still have a week or so up my sleeve to do my homework. So far I've read about a couple of spots that may be alright. I plan on looking through fishraider, and also trolling the net for some info on what gear we will need, how to set it up, (what lures etc to purchase), and a crash course in this type of fishing. Any tips on websites etc to look at would be appreciated, and also if anyone is able to impart some advice on the best type of footwear and clothing for traversing a stream safely and comfortably that would be great. Without giving away secrets, any pearls of wisdom you are happy to share would be appreciated. We know not to trespass, and we respect the environment, the locals and others. I will be checking regulations etc. I would be ecstatic if hubby were able to enjoy self-caught fresh fish by the campfire on his surprise birthday getaway, but I'm not necessarily expecting that will happen, and we will have a good time regardless. Besides, if we don't catch any the first trip, it will be a great excuse to come back and try our luck again... If there are any raiders local to the Oberon area (novice or otherwise) that are feeling sociable, we'd be up for a meetup at a coffee shop, bar, campfire, lake or stream for a hello, or some fishing company. 😃 May the weather be fair and the fish be biting. FL