Flanman

Sunday morning broke to find a very excited Flanman (leave pass stamped and in hand) and a very hungover Big Mac(cut to the gills from too many bottles of red the night before). Given that the Flanman had his passed stamped there was nooooooo way he was going to forgo a fishing trip on our beloved Paris (Bertie 25) The Big Marn was force fed coffee as soon as he got on board and we steamed over the bombora off Dobroyd Point to bottom bash and see what was biting. 90 minutes of berley and pickers saw only two parrot fish in the tank and it was decided to up anchor and investigate the activity under all the birds that were working in the middle of the harbour. The birds were certainly busy but we could not work out exactly what they were getting excited about. The consensus was tailor, who were both fast moving and not really interested in anything that was thrown their way. We then decided to anchor of Middle Head out of the breeze and see if we could raise any fish there. There were several other boats with the same idea as it was protected adn between all of us we took it in turns to catch the same undersized cockney. We decided it was time to go around 10.45am and this is when the fun began. As we started winching up the anchor it proceeded to become stuck, and I mean really stuck. It was about 8m deep and as we have 20m of chain we were between a rock and a hard place. It did not matter which way we pulled or turned, it wasn't coming out. We then sat and weighed up our options 1. Let out the chain and cut the rope, hoping that if we tied a bouy to it it would still be there to salvage with a diver. Given that we are talking about a $400 anchor and $300 worth of chain (we know this as we lost our last anchor at North Head last year)it was an option that was with little appeal. 2. Swim down and attach a rope to the front of the anchor and see if we could pull it out that way. This is where the 'Big Marn', hangover and all, got down to his 'Reg Grundy's' and jumped in. He figured it was only a bit deeper than the deep end of the pool (who was I to tell him otherwise?) Attached to one end of the rope, the plan was to swim down and loop it through so we could pull it out. A couple of deep breaths and down he goes for what seemed only a few seconds. My initial though was that he could not get down deep enough, but as he surfaced, he was yelling at me to pull it up as it was now free. As it turned out, it had become lodged under a ledge, where the sand finishes and the rocks start and all he did was grab it and pull it out. He reliably informed me that anchors, even when they are under water, are still really heavy. After a quick towel off and a medicinal beverage, of the hairy dog variety, we were under way. So there you have it, all you other boats that were looking on, on Sunday morning, wondering what the clowns in the Bertie were up to, your questions have been answered! Happy Birthday BIG MARN RESPECT!

Big Mac and Flanman managed to convince our peoples that it would be a good idea to take the kids for a run on Middle Harbour in our beloved Paris (Bertie 25) "You stay at home darlings and we will get these stir crazy kids out of your hair" So it began. The weather was looking average at best as the boys motored out from Roseville Marina and given that the start of the Sydney to Hobart was only 2 hours away, there was very little maritime traffic to be seen. We poked into Sugarloaf Bay to check out our new mooring and then decided to make for the Spit, whereupon the Big Mun spotted a group of gulls and terns working some whitebait. Needless to say we were on top of them at express pace and started throwing some 3" Green Smelt at them. The Flanman in the space of about 90seconds let loose his oft repeated cry: "I'm ON! Given he was fishing with a 6lb rig, the ensuing battle took the best part of 8 minutes before the Big Mun reached for the net. "Hey Flan, where's the net? "Probably sitting with the rest of the stuff at home in the garage from our last road trip" Next thing we knew Big Mac was practising the ancient art of 'Tickling Salmon' His first grab at the tail was to no avail, however, the fish had had enough and the Man o' Flan swam him back to the Big Mun's waiting hands for a perfect slips catch into the boat. As the water was still boiling around the boat, there was no time to lose in getting another plastic into the water. In no time another salmon had taken a hook. Indeed another ten minutes passed as this second fish met the same fate as his brother. This time, however, Big Macs hands were as safe as Ricky Ponting's! Both fish were bled and their stomachs examined. Both fish were stuffed with whitebait abot 30mm in length. The kids and dogs by this stage were going nuts and as the rain started to team down again the decision was made to adjourn to the half finished Monopoly game at home. All in all, the boys have learned that it pays to have a line ready to go into the water at all times 'Just in case' Merry Christmas and a Happy and Fishy New Year.

Here is a pic of the big fella. doesnt really do it justice suffice to say that it lying across the sink.

Flanman and the tribe packed up the tinnie and headed Hawks Nest last week for the school holidays. This place is as it was 20 years ago, that is, a lovely, sleepy seaside hamlet that is oh so fishy. Flanmans' wingman, the BIG MUN (aka Big Mac) was laid up in hospital with a nasty infection that I won't relate to you here lest to say that he cannot sit down (OUCH!!) so Flanman had to go the fishing alone which was no big deal as we were staying across the road from the river. The Myall river runs through Hawks Nest and feeds into Port Stephens. When the current is running it is almost impossible to get a bait near the bottom so fishing at slack water was the only option. Lucky for Flanman the bottom of the tide was right on dusk and it was double fishy! The first afternoon saw the poor bloke standing like a shag on a rock with no mates looking quite forlorn until he felt the tap tap on the SP. Something big had taken the lure and swam off into the middle of the river never to be seen. It was a bit hard getting the brakes on this guy with only 6lb braid and 4lb leader. Anyhooow, after a quick re-rig, Flaman got busy. Two flatties later (around the 30-35cm mark) he was off home to climb into a beer or ten, having being summonsed by she who must be obeyed. The next afternoon was just as fishy and Flanman set out to chase "the one that got away" Bouncing a 3" blue jerk shad across the bottom he felt the tap tap. He's Baaaaaaaaack. Mr Flattie had been lipped and for ten minutes or so gave a good account of himself as a fighter but it was to no avail as he was swum into the rocks and was flicked ashore (the net was in the other boat that the Big Mun was supposed to be bringing up). For the record he was 73cms long and weighed a tonne (felt like it any way after Flanman carried him home on the end of a stick) One interesting thing was the length of mono it had sticking out its' arse. Upon being cleaned I discovered that the mono was attached to a hook that was still rusting in its' gut. If you ever need a case to support using chemically sharpened hooks then this was it, as the fish seemed quite OK and it would have only been a matter of time before the hook corroded away and the line would have simply passed through the fish. I ma looking forward to the next trip to Hawks Nest and can recommend it to all raider as a great place to take the family to get away.

We have a CX-37 Why do you ask Two Dogs?

G'day Raiders, Flanman and the Big Mac managed a leave pass on Saturday night to go and sit under the Spit Bridge and drink beer.......Oh I mean sit under the Spit Bridge and chase squid. The beer was good the squid were not. As we floated around the pylons we thought we would try out the Big Muns' latest toy. That is, a battery operated LED light on the end of a pole that turns on when immersed in the water. Wow it was bright. Anyhoooooow, we could hear fish jumping around in the area so Flanman switched to SP to see what they were. 3 very stinky pike later, we realised that they were pike. It was then that we noticed this fin breaking the surface of the water about 10 feet from the boat. It was this little guy doing his best Jaws impersonation. The Big Mun grabs his light on a stick thingy and pops it in the water only to have Bruce here swim straight towards it. Big Mac then, calm as you like, reached into the water and picks him up for a photo. If he wants to get to the 12kg size that I have read in other reports, he is going to need to learn not to swim towards big blokes with lights on sticks! For the record Bruce went about 20cms and 100grams.

I also reckon they are good to eat if handled and prepared correctly. Cut them into chunks and add them to a green curry or tagine at the last moment before serving. The fish pieces poach and do not go tough at all. Never underestimate the power of 6 beers to help with the flavour, especially if you have been out catching them all day and you are Hank Marvin (Starvin')

Greetings Roberta Oh Queen of the Dark Art, Nice to see that a little bit of trying weather does not put you off chasing fish. To all other raiders if you are ever in Forster, you can do no better than hook up with Roberta for a fishing session. She is as generous with her time, information, bait. locations, etc. as they come. I will see you next time I am in Forster. Flanman

Same story in Middle Harbour. There has been a school located at our Spot X for the last week. It would measure 50m x 50m at times and yet there are very few predators around smashing them up.

We saw them on Sunday afternoon about 5.00pm fishing in the moorings on Western Side of MH near the southern entrance to Sugarloaf Bay. I noticed them purely due to the name on the boat. It was flogging rain at the time and they were without cover so they were either really keen or loading up.

Big Mac and the Flanman got clearance from our respective people to have a quick run in the tinnie to the mother ship as we had left some stuff int he esky on board after the weekend. We saw this as an ideal opportunity to flick some more plastics around and and see if we could add to our weekend haul. We launched at Roseville at 4.30pm with three boys and two dogs in the 12 foot tinnie. 'How do you fish with that many on board?' I can hear you saying. The answer is with a lot of patience. Forget about sneaking up on the fish in those quiet sandbanks. The water resembled a thick brown soup and we were not hopeful of catching much. The Big Mac declared that the Psycho Chicken was the plastic to use given the bright colours. As we motored down the river towards Seaforth we could see alot of seagulls just sitting on the water waiting. As we got closer, we could see sporadic boil ups. We knew the Frigates were around. Big Mac climbed into one on his second cast and, given that he fishes with 6lb Fireline and 4lb leader, it was an interesting tustle. It became more interesting when he realised that the net was on the mothership and that we had not got there yet. Needless to say the fish was lost at the boat trying to lift it in. It was about 40cms long. The mackeral are certainly not shy around the boat and we had groups of 4-5 fish following plastics all the way to the boat. After we got the stuff off the mothership we went into Sugarloaf Bay and on one particular sandbank there were baitfish everywhere. It was here that we had had success on Saturday night with the Flanman boating a 60cm flattie on his 6lb rig. Today was just as lively with the Big Mac loading up on a 35cm silver bream first cast and the Flanman getting into a mackeral. All this in 1.5m of water. Needless to say the kids and dogs were going nuts at this stage all wanting to have a go on a rod. The best part of the day was the happy response that we received from our people when we got home 2 hours later than we had told them. Nothing beats fresh fish on the table to smooth things over.

Big Mac and the Flanman have been left to their own devices this week given that their respective people avec kinter have gone on holidays up the coast. No point hanging out at home when there is a perfectly good boat to be lived on. Anyhoooooow, part of the deal is that the young bloke has to spend a night on the boat before he gets to go away with Mum. This turns out to be a stroke of genius, as last Monday afer botttom bashing off the heads for bits and pieces we come across a salmon boil up. Now with our Bertie 25 it is a bit problematic trying to fish and drive at the same time, so who better to drive the ship than the young bloke (just dont yell at him if he turns the wrong way). The salmoin were thick in the water and swimming around with their mouths n the air just waiting for a small slice to be dropped in their gob. Contrary to many reports, salmon make excellent eating when bled straight away and chucked on ice. We turned three of ours into Penang Curry on Monday night. The oily flesh is perfect for this style of cooking as it does not dry out or go tough. The stronger flavour of the fish is also overcome by the curry that it has been cooked in. Wednesday saw us trying our hand at 12 mile reef. Nothing doing there for the good ship except for the big L'Jacket (a french type of fish I believe) which the big mun managed to jag in the arse whilst jigging for kings. We got back into the harbour about 8.30pm with very little to show for our efforts and fuel spend. We had to go back to the boat first thing on Thursday morning to tidy up (you know how it is. We were too tired and emotional the night before) After a breakfast of trevally fillets (by-catch from fishing for livvies) and aforementioned L'Jacket we thought we may as well flick some plastic about. I had my new Sedona loaded with 6lb fireline and 4lb leader with a small squidgy. It seemed like a good idea at the time untill a wandering King (Rattus Famishus)came by. After he peeled 50m off the reel I thought it prudent to apply a little more drag lest he knit me through every moored boat in the bay. Needless to say, that was the last I heard from him. Best we get off to work, but perhaps an evening sojourn with a steak on the barbie. Besides the dog needs some excercise. We anchored in the evening in the moorings off Seaforth and chummed up with all the left over salmon frames and some chicken carcasses. I proceeded to arm my small baitcaster with a stinky servo prawn to see if I could get anything interested. As some of the better scribes onthis site describe it.......'I felt a tap tap tap' I set the hook and then watched atleast 3/4 of the line on my reel peel off. I was getting close to the backing which was not pretty as it is just some old mono I had lying aroud. Anyway, to cut a long story short, I chased him around the boat for the next 25 minutes and finaly got it near the net so that the big mun could work his magic. It went about 85cm and it was a battle to get it into the kill box before the dog got his fangs into it. Not much after that except for the masses of herring like bait fish that fed on our trail. We caught a few for livvies but they turned up their tail as soon as you put a hook into them. Given that we had more action with in 500m of where we more the boat than 20miles off the coast, you have to wonder whe we bothered. Still it wont stop us going out again next week.

The chicken was on its last legs and we thought that the ringing of it's neck at home would have done the job. I just wish we had been able to rustle up a mako with it!!

G'Day Raiders, Just want to share a funny story about my mate 'Big Mac'. He has managed to lose 2 spools of super pristine braid with out even getting a bite. A couple of weeks ago (Boxing Day) we were bashing around 'The Leads' for a few hours for a big fat doughnut. Upon our return The big man neglected to take his rod, loaded with chrisrmas gift braid, from the rocket launchers on the boat. If you know Roseville ramp you will know that you won't get far without hooking a tree on the way out. Needless to say that when we got home there was a rod and reel sans braid. Upon a trip back to see if it could be recovered it was strung from tree to tree like a left over Christmas streamer. You can imagine the mood that Big Mac was in. Last Sunday we spent the morning drifting from the Leads down to a spot off Tamarama. We managed 4 good flatties and some L'Jacket. The trip home at about 12.30pm was one of the rougher I had been on given the swell/chop and belting Nor' Easter. It did not help that we told our that we would be home at aboput 11.00am. We had the pedal to the floor. No need to worry about chucking up as I had already done that earlier in the morning when we decided that it would be a good idea to sacrifice a live chicken to the piscatorial gods. As I said it seemed like a good idea when we thought of it. If anyone saw a chook head or chook missing the aforementioned head on Sunday morning, it is now probably making more sense. In our haste to get back to the ramp or given the rough ride that ensued, the lever drag on Mac's overhead rattled back to free spool. You can guess the rest. well atleast we were able to salvage 5m or so of mono that was the backing. Can wait to get spooled this weekend!!