dani!o

hey all!! thanks kenmare and everyone for the replies... im still having trouble deciding what to do about the whole rod wont fit in the car situation, but anyway, going ahead with what ive planned now, ive got some more info on the telescopic rod does anyone know anything or have used a daiwa telescopic carbon samurai carp sacj300t, 3.6m 6 section 6-10kg i cant find any info on it on the web... hmmm... dunno why that is... also, the 2nd guide comes loose... so it is actually just 1 section between the 3rd guide and 1st, and when retracted the 2nd guide comes loose... does anyone know whether this is normal?? the rod is hugely stiff for a 6-10kg... to compare, my current shimano matchline will bend almost 90 degrees... whereas this one will bend, at most, maybe 15degrees... anyone have any thoughts on that??? anyway thanks ppls!!

hmmm so went to maroubra last night, on the 25th... high tide at around 7, got there abotu 6... fished till 12.... worked through about half the beach, to the left and right of the rip... no wind, beautiful moonlight!!! (its chinese mid autumn festival btw, which is when the moon is most beautiful... also supposed to be a time to see family...) used 3 hook rig, red beads on top of the hooks, with the shiny bristle things snelled to the hooks, 25lb trace, 25lb main, tried pillies, worms, pipis, prawn... some of that stimulate burley pellets.... and can you guess how many fish i caught???????????????????????????????????????? actually, i caught 1 fish............... it was a flathead, and it was 7 poun........ CM!!!!!!!!!! thats right, a 7cm flathead... smaller than the size of my pilchard.............................. other than that, i caught NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! my brother, on the other hand, caught a whiting on pillies, a crab, and a yakka... it didnt really surprise me because its his birthday today and i predicted his creator would be kinder to him on such a day............... so booooooooooooooooooooo, another 6 hours of nothing.... and this was after i was told a big school of either tailor or salmon moved through maroubra at about lunchtime............ sigh............. anyway, so there, same story, different day... some other fishos were there too, dont think they caught anything either... take care all

Hi everyone Wow first of all thanks to everyone very much for all the replies!!! first up, a the bait gathering idea sounds great!!! damn i have another few months of uni before i am finally freeeeeee, after that i might take the drive and drop by... flathead fanatic - ya i go pretty hardcore regardless of the conditions... i have fished coogee drenched twice - once by the waves and once by the pouring rain, and still fished in the wind for 6 hours... me and my brother that is... but i wanted to ask though, what do you mean beach corners?? like at the end of the beach where it meets the rocks?? i probably should give it a go but i absolutely hate losing rigs and because its usually night i dont want to fall on my bum on some barnicles... but, if tahts where the fish are, then by any means i will GET THERE and FISH THERE and CATCH FISH haha... mondo - thanks for the advice mate ya its unfortunate you dont have time to come with me and my brother but thats ok life is picking up pace once again because its almost exam time for me so i might see you after that!! i have been chatting up people on the beach but no ones been telling me anything special... although, i did notice my casting distance isnt quite as far as other fishos... all the new reason for a new rod!!! haha... thanks for your compliments i am quite committed maybe slow down for the next little while though will be busy with exams and job interviews and all kinds of stupid things, but soooon i will be free.... my exam is on 14th nov so after that, i will truly be free to fish!!! bigfoot - thanks for your words dude ya burley is one of those things.... stuff like tuna oil and pillie bits are a bit expensive to chuck into the sea like that... god student life sucks sooooo bad i cant wait to get out... i have been doign my best to hook up with some seafood buffets where people chuck away the prawn shells and crab shells etc i wanted to ask if i can have some of their rubbish so i can use it as burley but haha even that they dont want to give to me... i think they are basically saying eat here more and maybe we can give you something.... roberta - ya the braid sounds quite good eh i will have to check it out next time im at the tackle shop... one of my problems at the moment is casting because my rod, while 3.6m, is quite soft and it tends to flex too much on casting... i dont think there are any beach worms at the eastern sydney beaches, but i certainly would like to catch some... its often said the best bait is fresh... other thing i was thinking was to buy gulp worms... i think they would stay on the hook a bit better and you never know, i might actually catch somethign!!! jewgaffer - hi mate!!! thanks to you too for your words... come to think of it i havnt headed back to yarra for quite a while now, might try again there soooon... btw mate, i saw one of your early early posts on that spot in roselle, near that hospital and the sydney con of the arts... what do you think?? should i give that a go?? anyway thanks again all, and if you have the time, please check out my new post about my fishign trip to maroubra yesterday... can you guess how many fish i caught??????????????????????????? take care all (im not saying good luck this time i think i desperately need the luck!!!)

woah mate now thast somethign!! can i ask were you fishing off the boat or on the beach?? i cant imagine a big school of salmon right off the beach at yarra as i think its quite shallow...

hey there!! haha ive been thinking of buying a landcruiser for that exact purpose!! i know the conditions can be rough on the beach with the wind and the salt water spray in your eye and the sand... now, these are the beaches i know you can get to by car, but im not sure if you are validly allowed at all times ya yarra bay - down the boat ramp and onto the beach maroubra - down the sand path watsons bay - cant really drive on to the beach, but you can drive onto the jetty tamarama - down the cliff and onto the beach no no just kidding its like a 80m drop but ya, thats all i know... enjoy!

so, after work, went to see local fishing shop to get some gear and info, and was recommended to go tamarama again last night.... rig used was slightly different, it was a 2 hook paternoster, with the 1 triple gang on top with a 3/0 below, rig was about 1.3m long, and i had some glow tubing on the line tied to the hooks.... trace was 20lb, main line was 20 too... targeting salmon and tailor...particularly tailor... got to tamarama at about 1 30, with the high tide at 3 30, and fished till 7..... got NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! omg so pissed off me and my brother were there the WHOLE NIGHT and that was after i had a full day of work damnit if only the sea could hear what i was saying..........we didnt even get a bite the whole night, the bait came back clean as.... and yes, we burleyed with that stimulate pellet stuff, of which we chucked in every 20 - 30 minutes for the first 3 hours and then we jsut gave up... also used some old fish bits soaked in tuna oil.... bait used were - pillies, pipis, squid, and we put a load of that stimulate paste on it the first few hundred times and then we gave up some more.... can someone please tell me what me and my brother are doing wrong??? omg so frustrating... at first, i thought ok a couple of hours before and after high tide should be good... then i thought maybe the fish will come at dusk... and then i thought lets just go to the bloody fish market i just want to hold a fish in my hands and make myself feel better.... booooooooooooooooo what a crap night it was fairly cold too had to eat my dinner (yes i eat dinner at around 2am) in the cold too.... on the other hand though, when we first got there, i didnt realise anyone would be on the beach that late so we walked down ad to my surprise there was a guy and a girl there on the beach, who looked like they were about to leave just as we got there... probably saw our lights as we came down... i wanted to ask them... what are you guys doing on a beach at this hour eh????????????????????????????? something fishyyyyyyyyyyyy............................. anyway, tight lines all, or at least tighter than me i hope....

hey everyone thanks heaps for the replies!! since posting, i have thought about everyones advice, and reckon that i will use this telescopic mainly for table fish... so that ranges from the whiting, bream, flathead, with the heaviest being the tailor and salmon... i will probably do a majority of beach and wharf fishing, with the occassional rock fishing but then again if the tele cant handle rock fishing i still do have my old rod so can just use that... also, ya i guess a 3 ounce sinker should be enough for the beach... so for the time being i will just use the tele for this kinda fishing... went to the local tackle shop, got a bit of a look at a few things - i was recommended the daiwa carbon telescopic which stands at 2.7m or 3, i think, and its fairly stiff... im just afraid ill miss them bites if is too stiff, or that the rod will break if the top sections dont bend much.... also recommended a rovex silun reel (which is jarvis walker btw), its the medium sized one so prolly the 5000 or 6000, has 5 corrosion resistant ball bearings... anyone have any thoughts on either the rod or the reel? i cant seem to find much info on the net.. btw troutboy, mr2 sw20's are not expensive cars, im looking at one now for 8500... so ya... and its taken me 5 years to save that money from part time work while studying... so yeah... reason im spending more on the car than on fishing stuff is because fishign stuff is purely recreational... cant use it for too much else... guess you could use the long rod to reach over and tap the neighbors window and tell him to TURN THE MUSIC DOWN haha but car i use for everything, not only fishing but also shopping, picking up chics, going to see friends, picking up more chics, etc.... hmmm i really do like the daiwa carbon rod and rovex silun reel i have been recommended with, but thats 100 per peice which is a little out of the price range i can afford... but ya, anyone have any thoughts please let me know thanks!

haha jewgaffer but on a side note, and being totally honest, TIDE IS THE BEST DETERGENT EVERRRRRRRRRR..... why??? because next year, i will be working for the company that makes tide... so yeah, even though ive never used it before, they're the ones paying me... so if you ask me, tide just works better haha take care

ahh i see thank dude (btw youre up as late as i am cruising the forum eh!!)

hey there kenmare thanks heaps for the advice... wanted to ask though, i certainly fish more than occassionally, and if i buy a telescopic i would certainly want it to last a few centuries or so (more like a few years)... also, because i like beach fishing, perhaps 3oz is a bti too light with the sinkers that are needed to hold the bottom?? if you have any specific recommendations id like to hear them eh... with the reel i dont mind spending a bit extra because the crap ones are just ridiculous the line gets caught under the bail arm, in between the groove and the rubber washer.. its like wtf.... oh but with the reel though i probably wont be spinning metal lures... i usually jsut chuck in a sinker at the beach or a float at the rocks... anyway, please keep recommending!! thanks again! hey roberta!! great idea on shortening the rod, itll make it multipurpose eh!! do you have the model name on your telescopic and reel?? although maybe 10 foot is a little short, i was thinking more 11 or 12.... i want to be able to cast far enough from the beach to CATCH MAHIMAHI.... haha on another note though, i was once at the merc and drifted my float out so far some guy in a boat almost ran over my float... i was thinking if that gets caught in the propeller we're all goign to have a fun day... also wanted to ask, how much should i spend if i want to rod that will be able to lift those big 2-3kg salmon off the rocks??? otherwise ill be dropping stuff all day at the rocks and i dont want that to happen!!! thanks roberta!!

for real?? can you give me a pic?? i want to get one!!

haha hey hottyscotty ya i thought about targa but i think i would get pulled over by the cops eh... and i certainly dont want to spoil my fishing with some 5-0 SS vs SW20 chase... also, i go fishing with my brother all the time so having it in the passenger seat isnt really an option because he has a couple of rods etc too... anyway thanks for that suggestion dude!!!

hey dude!!! haha yeah, ummmm this is going to sound stupid but having fished i dunno like 5 years in new zealand plus a couple of months here, we HAVNT CAUGHT ANY BREAMMMMMMMMMMM can you believe that?? its like JUST CMONNNNNN ALREADY... so when i heard there were some bream at tamarama, i sprinted there... im always eager to try new places though, who knows might get some beginners luck!! hmmm you know stupid thing is me and my brother didnt really know what we were doing when we bought our rods and reels... the reason i absolutely hate holding it is added together the bunch is almost 2kg... stupid reel is like solid lead... so yeah... but, because i am still living in a cardboard box i cant afford to buy new stuff... go tax return though!!! ummm, last night wasnt middle of the night, we went from maybe 8 till 1130... too many things going on i had uni in the morning, work all arvo, and finally get home to have a rest and then fish... come home to eat fish and study till 330, sleep 4 hours and back at uni by 9 haha but ya during weekdays i usually dont go too late... hopefully i can free up the time and catch you on the beach sometime soon mondo!! (times like this im thinking HAVE ANOTHER APEC) hey Roberta thanks for that!! ya i think i will buy that telescopic rod ive looked at a few its like im in love again haha should do better than my heavy dumbell i have now... can i ask though whats the deal with braid?? i havnt turned much attention to it because no tackle shop has recommended it to me... also, if you keep the rod horizontal, can you still feel the bites?? ya i know the cleanup is very annoying... and its only worth it if i get a good fish!!! although i again dont seem to have the tides quite right i should probably stop doing that because sriously other than those rock cod things nothing bites eh... anyway, ill update once i get out there again!!

hey there dude i wasnt part of the gang that fished that spot, but i love squidding too... ill tell you what i know, see how you go with this ya first up, i think most important thing is location... within sydney harbour, anywhere with a nice weed bed will do it, although differentiate a weed bed from say, a small reef... small reef example - at yarra, near the rock jetty, theres a big rock sitting under the water... yes it does have weeds over it, but ive tried a few times and nothing... on the other hand, do try my favourite location.................. watsons bay!!! or camp cove for that matter... watsons bay has a nice green patch to the LEFT of the jetty, if you stand on the jetty but facing the city... the squid there are heaps good eh... i hooked up a small snapper a week ago, and i chucked it over the side of the jetty... before i knew it, this near transparent squid which i reckon is 25 to the mantle came out of nowhere and grabbed the little fishy!!! what a sight!!! camp cove... ive only ever fished there once, without any success, but i reckon the conditions are good for squid... these days theres that luminescent bacteria in the water, which means theres probably not much there but its worth a try anyway... and the other thing is, just watching the glow bacteria in the water is mesmerizing, beautiful.... second, its jigs - ive never tried yo zuri but too many ppl say its good for it to be not good... they are expensive, but think of it this way, unlike hooks you generally wont lose it... if it snags on weeds, just pull it a bit... i like my green fabric glow one... caught my biggest one of it (although, its a $1 one form+_+_))... but, i also have a pink stripe fabric one but i havnt tried this out yet... the other one that i like is solid white glow in the dark plastic, which is great it glows like mad as if squid wont want to grab it... if you really cant afford the yo zuris (i cant, i need the money to catch bus) you can try yo zuri imitations... theyre nice too lastly, is conditions - as we all know squid are attracted to light, and come out at night more so than during the day... but also, i think very importantly, squid like calm water... this helps also with the casting... if the wind is too strong the lure will go everywhere, and you dont want to tangle with that big dude fishing close to you with the real expensive line and the real expensive hooks.... but you see this is why i like watsons... the whole jetty is lit up so it attracts squid, and there are very little wind so the water is nice and calm... so there you go dude hope that helps... if you wnat to come over to watsons, give me a pm ya

had a bit of a fish at tamarama for the first time yesterday... was just after low tide, so tide was coming in, casting out with half pilchards, pipis, sandworms... had 20 pound line on the big rod with the pillies, and 8lb miain 12 lb lead on the smaller rod with the worms and pipis... didnt get more, i thought i had something on only to lose it on the way in... it felt pretty heavy, but when i looked at my bait it was still there (thanks to baitmate) so maybe some fish just had it in its mouth... my brother did score a tailor though... and thats without gang hooks too, the tailor was about 37cm, swallowed the hook and my brother just managed to get it a meter out of the waves before it chewed through the 20 pound yo zuri leader... lucky that one that tailor tasted so gooooooooood rest of the night i scored like 3 little rock cod things, didnt even know what they are... boooo was sooo hoping for big salmon.... can i ask thought, how do you guys go about fishing on the beach?? i usually stick my rods there and attach bells and wait for it to ring but im developing super paranoia, always thinking theres a fish as soon as i hear anything... would it be better to hold the rod?? usually doing other stuff like tying hooks or mixing burley or drinking coke and cant really free hands up... anyway, want to jig for squid tonight!!!! dont want to study dont want to work just want to fish all dayyyyyyyyyyy

it seems to accommodate both of my lifelong interests, cars and fishing, i now need to make some compromises! I'm getting a MR2, which is a sports car with no back seats and the engine is behind the driver... that means the boot is tiny... so i'm getting a telescopic!!! But, i have no knowledge of these things so i was wondering could you guys please recommend me?? budget?? under 100 for the rod please... i will use it mainly for beach (coogee, maroubra) and estuary (yarra, kurnell), and occasionally for rock (merc) fishing... so what would that be? 8kg? im not too sure, but ya please let me know what telescopics you would recommend... preferably somethign long too so i can cast to them gutters... also for reel - another 100 bucks or so - for the same type of fishing as above, could you guys also recommend a good reel for me? anywya thanks heaps!! im looking forward to the new rod haha

hey everyone!! thanks for the replies, appreciate it... i havnt quite been lucky enough to score one of those giant emperor crabs yet, but will keep wishing!! although, i dont know if im lucky enough to hit a crab whos too dumb to let go of the bait though... haha thas what fishign should be like eh hey there roberta ya these kahawai are quite sizable eh, in new zealand you only get ones like this off a boat... seriously fat fish!! but i dunno how to smoke them though, probably cant afford a smoker anyway so ill just fry it up probably... i know all you guys say they are not the best table fish, but let me tell you, from a students perspective its about as good as it gets!!! although the thign is though, because i fish basically only during the night (uni+work+study+cooking+cleaning during the day) i cant really see where i cast each time, and its quite hard to get it back into the strike zone... i know salmon are schooling fish, but just unlucky i didnt get any more... ummm what do you guys reckon about nice tailor off the beach?? they are quite good to eat ya, and fun to catch too... same rig as for salmon? or is 20lb too heavy?? havnt been able to go again yet but been itching and itching and itching!!

Greetings all fishos After some recommendations, i decided to fish maroubra beach last night, at the south end got there about 12, which is 2 hours after high tide... used 25lb main line and trace with a single size 3 hook and threw in some half pilchards which were mummified with bait mate to stop if falling off... first cast, and WOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I ACTUALLY CAUGHT A PROPER FISH!!! (proper fish doesnt include port jackson, which i have caught a million of) it was a 54cm kahawai, and it was kick ass!!! cant believe it, i didnt come home in sheer frustration crying tuna oil... my brother caught a whiting too, which was caught on half pilchards, strangely enough.... what i did notice though, was that we caught both fish almost as soon as we got there, and some other people (i assue fishos - otherwise who goes to a beach at midnight?) left soon after we got there... we were 2 hours behind high tide... what does this imply for beach fishing??? other than the 2 fish that we caught, there was nothign else that night... we were there from 12 - 6 and watched the sun rise.... i cant really tell how many bites there were, because the waves were quite strong and the rod moves around a bit... stupidly enough, i managed to flick my rod bell into the sea... fantastic... so i couldnt keep track of my rods at all times... although, my hooks did come up clean almost every time... please note this was at the south end... a fellow fisho went to the north end and got nothign, except a couple of crabs - although i did want to ask - how do you catch crabs on a lien with hooks??? i cant seem to figure it out like what does the crab tangle itself?? i want to go again tonight but just too much work...but sooooon, SOOOON!!!! take care fishos, and hooray, finally, i can say that i am one of you - i, too, am a fisho because i have actually caught somethign!!! take care all!!

hello there mondo and jewgaffer!!! hope this post finds both of you well... i should have explained myself, because being a newb i have asked and asked, and i understand 25lb (sorry got it wrong i forgot i respooled with 25lb shogun) is too heavy although i have caught some tailor with it... anyway, i cant really respool the big rod that often so i use a 12 pound trace which is kept a bit longer, which i hoped would help out a bit... well, it didnt seem to work too well... should i try some floats next time at yarra?? how long for trace/how deep is the water off the rock jetty?? on the other hand though, me and my brother both have little rods spooled with 8lb line, which we always take along with us... strangely enough, even at yarra it is these small rods which have been most unproductive... the trace i use is either 8lb or 12lb, but certainly nothign heavier... usually i would use worms prawns or squid... but still didnt get much at yarra... i personally have caught nothign on my small rod, although my brother has landed a pike (boooooo thought it was a whiting) and a yakka.... and the last time we went, on his 8lb 2-4kg rod, with a bit of squid on the hook, my brother got a............. you guessed it, PORT JACKSON... when reeling in we thought we'd caught our first lochness monster but noooooooo.... so yeah, in terms of yarra i dont know what im doign wrong, especially because we have 4 lines in the water, all with different things on them, in hope of that one yarra bay mahi mahi (ya ya im joking)... any more tips??? and ya jewgaffer, i have gone to yarra in the daylight although without the apples (apples and carrots etc = bad, steak = good) to check the place out... although i dont know what im looking for though... i noticed there was that little reef in the water close to the jetty, but thats about it... i think when i get some time i will go for a swim there, check out what its like below... how about i swim out with the baited hooks in my hand, swim out and drop it as far as i can swim, then get back and wait for something to bite?? anyway, thats all for now... until i figure out what im doing wrong, i shall continue learning!!!! no update to the fishing reports though, havnt been back to the bay for a while... been too busy with exams and job interviews... and even during the exams, all i can think of is 'i wonder what it looks like when a leather jacket bites my hook'... hmmm... thanks again jewgaffer and mondo!!! take care!!

hey there injay!! haha im glad you asked for the first time i can be of help to someone on this forum!!! alright so here it is, the merc (at least i think thats how its spelt, although it might have somethign to do with my fetish for cars)... ill give you some all round info on the spot ya, so you know exactly what to expect if you do decide to go there now, the merc is beyond the golf course on top of bondi, so this is the first thing to watch out for - the golf course is fairly obvious as its got metal mesh near the kerb, and a big white tower in the middle of it. but, to avoid big confusion, look at the tower carefully, there are 2 along the road - the first one you see is the one in the middle of the golf course. its NOT a light house, and it just juts out of the ground. the second is a light house. stop and park when you see the first one, but i recommend you park behind the mesh fence... nothing quite like coming back from fishing and seeing your windscreen smashed with a golf ball smiling up at you from the seat... anyway, after you get out, walk towards the cliff - on your left should be the white tower, and beyond that the sewage plant... on your right, its a little harder to describe... if you look carefully along the cliff, you will come to a sign that says 'forbidden' or something like that. if youve reached there, youve gone too far - the entrance is between that forbidden sign and the white tower... if you peer over the side of the cliff, (and this is yoru most definitive indication) you should see 2 small islands in the water, with a bigger one close to shore and the smaller one about 10 or 15 m further out... on top of the big island (or rock) are 2 metal poles standing upright... from teh cliff though i think you may only be able to see the bigger one... anyway, if you can locate these 2 rock islands, that is exactly where the merc is now, like i said before, the entrance is between the big pole and the forbidden sign, and if you have located the 2 rock islands, the entrace is slightly to the right of that... it is fairly difficult to find, so ill describe it in detail - oh one more thing, next to the forbidden sign is a small hill/hump... i think its the tee off point for the 5th hole, although i cant remember exactly - the entrance to the merc is near there... anyway, when you get to the edge of the cliff, the first thing to look for is grass growing on quite a steep slope, with a zig zaggy path cut through it - walk down there. if you look carefully where youre walking, you will see rocks that have a tinge of rust color to them.... they have eroded uniquely, youll know what im talking about when you see it... keep goign down, it looks heaps scary but then you should come to stacked stones that resemble stairs - they have a bit of cement on them... now, you are almost at the edge of the cliff, maybe 1m from the edge, so dont keep going, turn left - look carefully, you will see a single metal pole jutting out over a ledge... thats where the ladder is... go towards it, being very careful... when you descend that ladder, remember ONE AT A TIME cos its old and rusty... after that, there you go you are at the merc... now ive told you how to find it, heres some personal opinions i have of the place CLEATS are absolutely necessary if you dont want to die, because it is slippery as hell there be bloody careful abotu the waves, because even though youre at least 10 feet above the water, at 3/4 high tide some freak waves can wash over the rocks... ok to be honest, seriously, i dont htink its a particularly fantastic fishing spot... the conditions there are extreme... the wind is usually quite strong, its slippery as hell, theres no cellphone reception (to dial 000 that is), and seriously, i havnt had the greatest success there, espcially given the conditions... what it is good for though, is there no one can call you, bother you, no nothing, you just sit there and relax... now about the fishign - if you do decide to go there, you will notice the waves just below you are huge swells, and im not sure if theres much to be picked up there... so you really have to cast a long way out... you can try using a weighted float, gang hooks, pilchards, 4.5 m float stop, drift it out at leas 100 m (beyond the last rock island, there is a drop off to about 25 meters deep... there should be some good fish there)... oh and dont forget baitmate... after spending 15 minutes drifting out that far, wouldnt you just hate it if that voice inside your head said 'yep, bait's fallen off now'... my brother picked up a huge salmon last time we were there, but that is all we got for the whole day... and to make it worse, after a 100m wind, the salmon dived beneath the rocks and snapped the line on some barnicles - which is the next point - the water is about 10 feet below you, its pretty damn hard to get something up if the fish was decent sized... you can try cliff gaff or super long (7m+) gaff there, but with the waves pounding the rocks, as if youd want to jsut sorta lean over a little... and also, with the swells being so huge, the fish goes up and down too so its quite easy to drop it... and of course, the fish doesnt stay still like i tell it to... it does random stuff like dive underneath the rocks and then snap, lots of loud evil words are shouted... oh but there is one thing though, if you want to, after you reach the merc, keep goign around the side and then keep goig some more - you will eventually come to a metal wire that's been attached to a ledge on the cliff - if you can just make that 7m climb, and keep going some more, you will come to a patch of water that i hear is very deep, and makes for some real good fishing... but, getting back from there and climbing down a metal wire rope with a 200kg+ black marlin slung over your shoulder is another story... so there, all i know about the place... in the 4 or 5 times i have been there, between me and all my buddies we have caught - 1 salmon, dropped but huge... 1 port jackson (oh what joy.)... 1 eel... 1 scorpion fish, about a billion rock cod, and i saw someone pull up a squid there but it wasnt big at all... oh and just in case you wanted to try bottom fishign there, expect to go through at least 2 or 3 packets of hooks.... so there you go - and my last peice of advice, whatever you do, BE CAREFUL BE CAREFUL WEAR CLEATS BE CAREFUL WEAR FLOTATION DEVICE BE CAREFUL CLEATS + FLOTATION DEVICE BE CAREFUL Ok, if its just info you wanted, stop reading because the following is an anecdote of my first trip to the merc, or thereabouts first time i went there, i asked my friend where is the ladder he goes its really easy to see, just go to the golf course, and you can see it... so i went there, and you know what? NO LADDER... me and my brother were thinking hell, we'd made the effort to be here at 4am, ladder or not, fishign must happen... plus, what, its like just gravity and rocks and water... as if that would hurt... so we got to the part that says 'forbidden', and yep, we climbed down... got down there, and just to make it all a bit better, NO FISH... hmmm... so we got bored, and decided to climb around... so we climbed along the cliff all the way to underneath where those houses are, and then to the corner of the cliff where if you peered over, you could see bondi beach... dangerous? hell yeah, but it was an amazing experience... i dont thnk that place has ever been touched by humans...anyway, that was that!! i have some photos but dont know how to attach.. boooo.... anyway haha so there dude, hope you have fun, and let us know how you go eh!!

hi there jewgaffer!!! sorry for the late reply to everyone whos been reading this thread... i had to do an intellectual property exam on tuesday, which is basically how i died... but anyway, with talk about fishing and dreams about fishing i am slowly coming back to life (until the next exam that is) anyway, headed to yarra bay again on friday night, but couldnt get any occies so just decided to go with squid and pillies... with my thoughts constantly veering towards my impending intellectual property doom, i could only hope that a nice big mahimahi would come and visit me and let me be happy for a while.... i used 20 lb trace, couple of baitholders and squid, and so did my brother... we eventually moved on to pillies but for most of the night there was nothing... until.... BAM, the rod gets a good bend, and im thinking WOOHOO, I CAUGHT THE FLYING DUTCHMAN!!!!!!!!! but after pulling it up, i found it was none other than my arch nemesis - A PORT JACKSON SHARK... cant tell you how i was... for the rest of the night, nothing... after coming home in my sheer frustration, i continued to study for intellectual property but every second word i read looked like FLATHEAD or BREAM or DAVY JONES.... come to think of it, wouldnt davy jones octopus head make good bait?? hmmmm...... anyway, can anyone tell me why i am being stalked by port jacksons?? between me and my brother we have had 4 PJs over 2 fishing trips... and no bream or anything edible at all... anyway, i will probably go to parsley bay, watsons bay, or camp cove tonight... wil let everyone know how badly i screw up this time (ill probably end up foul hooking some driftwood) take care all!

haha hey dude ya damn right sailfish it is!! so yes, i did go again tonight but to yarra bay because its a little more sheltered... got there at just after high tide, fished for 6 hours straight... used a 20 pound trace, pillies and small squid... chucked the big rod in there, waited about half an hour and hooked up!!!! i pulled and pulled, the fish didnt fight back at all just felt like a lead weight but a big lead weight at that... it was getting dark, but i just managed to see it when i pulled it in and then BAM line snapped... i couldnt see very well but i think it was a big flathead... so heartbroken blood pressure ruptured 2 veins, but it didnt hurt too bad so kept fishing... chucked in with a bit more pillie and took a while but hooked up again!!! here we go i thought here comes my 40 pound bream, or 80cm kahwai.... but no.... it was a port jackson shark... and just to top it all off, it ran off with all my hooks and sinker and i was once again so very heartbroken.... in my angst i ruptured 3 arteries but that didnt hurt too bad either so kept fishing... as soon as i chucked in got one!!! finally!!!! here comes my sailfish!!!! but no... it was a friggin yakka.... my brother quickly shouted livebait!!! so yeah, quickly stuck a couple of hooks through it and chucked it out.... when i reeled it in next, the yakka was destroyed... looked like it had gone through a mincer... my guess is crabs... aiiiii..... by that time i just just getting too frustrated... i chucked in one last time while my brother jigged around for squid... and bam i am on again... i was thinkign hoorah!!! i am the new whalerider!!! but no.... another port jackson... this one was massive, about 1.4m i think... it spat out my hook after i got it near the rock jetty.... and that was it... just another fishless fishing trip... i want to ask though, for anyone whos bothered to read through all that... how do i stop port jacksons from giving me vein ruptures and stuff?? is there like an anti port jackson pheromone??? and why am i not catching much????????????????????? i feel so very disheartened... please help me catch something..... i am so sick of eating bark and grass (student life = crap) and i just want to eat some fish!!! please!!! anyway good luck all haha hey dude ya damn right sailfish it is!! so yes, i did go again tonight but to yarra bay because its a little more sheltered... got there at just after high tide, fished for 6 hours straight... used a 20 pound trace, pillies and small squid... chucked the big rod in there, waited about half an hour and hooked up!!!! i pulled and pulled, the fish didnt fight back at all just felt like a lead weight but a big lead weight at that... it was getting dark, but i just managed to see it when i pulled it in and then BAM line snapped... i couldnt see very well but i think it was a big flathead... so heartbroken blood pressure ruptured 2 veins, but it didnt hurt too bad so kept fishing... chucked in with a bit more pillie and took a while but hooked up again!!! here we go i thought here comes my 40 pound bream, or 80cm kahwai.... but no.... it was a port jackson shark... and just to top it all off, it ran off with all my hooks and sinker and i was once again so very heartbroken.... in my angst i ruptured 3 arteries but that didnt hurt too bad either so kept fishing... as soon as i chucked in got one!!! finally!!!! here comes my sailfish!!!! but no... it was a friggin yakka.... my brother quickly shouted livebait!!! so yeah, quickly stuck a couple of hooks through it and chucked it out.... when i reeled it in next, the yakka was destroyed... looked like it had gone through a mincer... my guess is crabs... aiiiii..... by that time i just just getting too frustrated... i chucked in one last time while my brother jigged around for squid... and bam i am on again... i was thinkign hoorah!!! i am the new whalerider!!! but no.... another port jackson... this one was massive, about 1.4m i think... it spat out my hook after i got it near the rock jetty.... and that was it... just another fishless fishing trip... i want to ask though, for anyone whos bothered to read through all that... how do i stop port jacksons from giving me vein ruptures and stuff?? is there like an anti port jackson pheromone??? and why am i not catching much????????????????????? i feel so very disheartened... please help me catch something..... i am so sick of eating bark and grass (student life = crap) and i just want to eat some fish!!! please!!! anyway good luck all

..................... damn i suck at this fishign thing eh... dont even know what i got.... it was indeed a pike, thats why it didnt taste too good... oh well... at least got first whiting at coogee last night, will have to make half a fish finger out of that.... went again tonight... conditions similar to yesterday - strong southerly, outgoing tide... but today, NOTHING... not a single bite all night... was dancing around near the rock pool tryng to find a spot to cast further out to catch some sailfish etc but ended up getting owned by massive waves and got drenched all over.... and then i fished for 4 hours after that... surprisingly, after 4 hours in the wind my clothes had still not dried... hmmm... anyway, damn i really cant seem to get it right eh..... anyway good luck everyone!!

headed off the coogee beach last night, as soon as i stepped out the car it started raining... got down to the beach, and saw some fishos but they were leaving because they didnt want to brave the elements... thats ok, me and my brother are from kiwiland so we arent really bothered by the cold... fished on the in coming tide, nothing for the first hour or so and it got dark kept raining too, then bam i hit 2 wobbegongs almost sequentially with a running sinker on a baitholder using pillies... btw, what do you guys do with wobbegong?? can i live bait it?? or can i train it to round up all the other fish on the beach so i can fish them all?? i was soooo hoping it was a massive flathead but na..... anyway, jumped off the swimming pool area and starting casting along the beach, i didnt get nothing the wind was so strong i started flying like a kite... my brother, on the other hand, got a 40cm whiting!! woohoooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! can i ask though, what type of whiting is the one with teeth, and what is the type that has no teeth?? is there any difference??? ive caught some of the whiting with teeth before, at yarra, didnt really like it although most everyone says whiting is good eating... i want flathead... anyway, so there ya go, fish still do exist its just that im not that good at catching anything decent... im goign again too, will just stuff my uni assignment due tomorrow... seriously, i will trade both my degrees in for ONE 1M+ FLATHEAD take care all!!