mpreston55

Welcome to the site Gus. Good looking drummer there. You just have to love the South Coast for fishing. Although at the moment we are getting blown away. Look forward to many more reports. Howard

Great catch. They sure do look in good condition. Have a great feed . Howard

G'day Pafisho, Great catch . And I agree with everyone else - they are a great fish to both catch and consume. Have you tried smoking them? They are absolutely brilliant. I notice that Roberta often does them this way as well. Good on ya for finding them. I found a little weed early in the week and tried a few places in Lake Illawarra but only found very small fish (15 to 20cm). Guess I'll just have to keep trying. Regards and keep up the good work; Howard

Hi Ted, marvelous how a new motor often changes your luck. You get there quicker and have more time to fish without any worries. Great catch - keep it up. Howard

Congratulations Braidbuster always good to see someone try something different. I finally found some weed in the Illawarra and am going to give a few of the local creeks a go tomorrow. If I can see any blackfish swimming around I'll give your method a try. Always good to see someone experimenting. Who knows maybe blackfishing will become popular again like bream on soft plastics is now. More reports please when you have another go. Howard

Hi Soft-On, Great effort for down here at the moment. Often thought about using a heavy fly on threadline gear but never did. Have used a fly under a bubble float for trout and that works OK. Obviously it works well. Good to see someone trying something different and getting results. Was that another one in the secret spot? If so, good to see you are still going there. All the best Howard.

You got it right there Chris when you said those who are lucky enough to find a supply of green weed. There are plenty of fish around at the moment but getting the weed is almost impossible down this way (Illawarra). Good luck to you - a great session on the water . Howard

Hi Soft-on, Great report and photos . Even better results. I hope the NSW DPI hasn't spoiled your fun in this little area. Not sure exactly where you were fishing but DPI closed a lot Port Harbour down in 2004. I know that I can no longer fish in a great little estuary near the grain terminal that was an excellent spot for bream at night time . All the best and hope you can have many more trips to your special spot. Howard

Hi Scout, Some good suggestions above. Another thing that I do is to flatten them with a hammer and then you can cut them to the size you want and crimp them on the line this way. Good if you need just an extra little bit of weight to add to the line. Cheers howard

Hi Angler 07, Yeah, fished in a few places along the weed beds West of Windang Bridge. Don't go as far as the drop-off into the Lake. Good luck. Regards Howard

Before this rain set in we had found a few patches of weed and had a couple of very good days on the water catching blackfish . However as noted by others on this site green weed has been at a premium. So, when we did find some more the pulse started to race a little at the prospect of getting in amongst some good fish. When the sun came out this morning it looked as though this could be the day to get amongst them. Looked up the tides and found a good run-out for Lake Illawarra in the afternoon. Got to the lake and released a little burley - first cast a nice little blackfish of 28cm. Let him go and cast out again. Lost a few baits and about 5 minutes later I'm on again - another nice little fish of 28cm. Put him back also. Lost a good fish next up that would have been well over 33cm. Caught two more under 27cm (so of course they swam free). Then it started to rain. It kept on raining and getting heavier. Then just as if someone had flicked a switch the fish just gave up biting . Threw in more burley but could not get them interested. The rain got heavier and I persevered for another 45 minutes without a bite and finally gave up. Wet but pretty happy . Has anyone else had this same thing happen to them when fishing for blackfish and the rain sets in? Cheers Howard

The ocean sure is full of wonderful things . Looks like he has some marks on the bottom of his shell. Could they be toothmarks from a shark? Maybe that's why he was doing it tough. Must have been a great experience . Howard

G'dat Frosty, Welcome . It might be a little easier for you to head South. Lots of good places in Botany Bay and Port Hacking - all land based. Good flathead and whiting fishing in both places at this time of the year. Good luck . Howard

Hi again PJ, Not many carp around Wollongong itself except in Koomadigee Lagoon near Port Kembla. However above Tallowa Dam (near Kangaroo Valley) there are supposed to be plenty. My son has canoed down some of the streams that lead into the dam and reported seeing dozens of huge carp. My main target down here are flathead on soft plastics or blackfish (if you can find the weed to catch them on ). Keep up the good work. Howard

G'day PJ. In my honest opinion you are what fishing is all about . It's apparent that you are enthusiastic about what you do and you get a great thrill out of catching fish. Obviously you have a great respect for your quarry - something that real fishermen do. Keep up the good work and enjoy your fishing . Well done Howard

Congratulations Roberta . Marvelous how it all falls into place when you are confident in your gear and surroundings. You really do well from the kayak . Keep up the good work. Regards Howard

Welcome to the site . Good to see another fisherman who likes his blackfish. Well done on catching the blackfish . Seems as though you can find weed close to where you fish. Still can't find any down here in the "Gong . Keep up the good work. Howard

Terrific report PJ . Great fishing also . I have been thinking about getting into some carp fishing for a while now. Blackfish and flatties are a lot of fun to catch but don't grow to the size ( some flathead do but very rarely catch them) or power of those monster carp. You've inspired me to have a go. Thanks Howard

Hi again Roberta. Your description of the weed pond that you use sounds just like we have down here in Lake Illawarra at the moment . Opening of Lake Illawarra has been great for the water quality but it has been terrible for good weed growth. I might have to go to the sea rocks and see if I can get some cabbage and give it a go. Getting weed is indeed a major problem at the moment. All the best. Howard

G'day Roberta, Unfortunately not all days are good but at least it was a day out and by the sounds of it you learned from the experience. I went to Sussex Inlet this morning even though the tides were all wrong. Got there just on Low tide. First cast the float gently went down and I thought it was some weed but as I lifted the rod I could feel the tug of a fish. He fought well but I managed to get him into the net and measured him at just over 27cm, Let him go. Over the next 2 hours it would go quiet and then come back on again and I managed to land 9 fish around the 25cm mark. It looked like I had found the kindergarten class. Of course they all went back also. Could see a few big ones around the weed patches but could not get them to bite. Finally ran out of weed and headed back home. I tried something else today. I flattened the barb on the hook which made it a lot easier to release the little ones. Didn't lose a single fish that I actually hooked so I will continue doing that. Good luck when you go up to Port Maquarie hope you get onto some big ones. I'm off in my everlasting search for decent green weed. Howard

G'day Roberta, Great catch from your kayak. It must be a whole lot of fun fishing this way. I had a canoe that I used to fish from a couple of years back but it had an argument with some rapids in the Shoalhaven River and came off second best. Have been thinking about getting another one. It's great to be able to see the blackfish while you are fishing for them. Had the same experience down at Sussex Inlet last week. All the best Howard

Finally got my fishing trip to Sussex Inlet with the father in Law. Had three great days of fishing for blackfish. Fished the inlet up towards the entrance to St George's Basin where there are extensive ribbon weed beds on both sides of the inlet. Found enough weed to keep us going for 3 days in Lake Illawarra (not great quality but it worked). Some other fishermen who couldn,t find any weed were using squirt worms with great success. There were a lot of undersize blackies caught between 24 and 27cm which, of course, all went back. One was injured while landing and floated away when released and a huge sea eagle swooped on him only about 30 metres from the boat (felt bad about the fish but it was a great sight). Kept about 25 fish over 30cm (our size limit) for our own meals and to give to my cousins for the use of their house. Sorry I haven't got a digital camera as yet but am planning to buy one soon. Hopefully before my next visit to the Inlet so that I can put up some photos. Other people were catching quite a few flathead and whiting in the Basin. Thanks to Roberta on the tips found on this site especially the one about keeping the weed to about the thickness of a matchstick. On past trips I had been putting on a whole pile of weed which tended to bunch up. This new trick worked much better - thanks. Regards and good fishing Howard.

Hi Roberta, At least its good to get a chance to get out on the water and have a try for some blackfish. I have just retired and hope to be able to go out more often with my Father in Law who taught me how to fish for these crafty little devils. He is 82 years old and still loves it. He reckons that fishing for so many years has kept him alive and well . Hope it does the same for both of us. I see you are headed North later this week. Good luck I hope you get onto a few. I'm off to Sussex Inlet on Thursday with the tinny to give the Blackfish a bit of a work out (hopefully).

Hi, Thanks Mallacoota Pete and Roberta for your warm welcome. I have been reading your great comments for some time now. Lewis thanks for your tip I will check it out tomorrow and maybe the father in Law and I will get another shot at the blackfish. May I congratulate all of the contributers to this site - I have learned a lot from your input. Howard

I finally found a little patch of green weed (and I mean little). Got just enough for bait to last a couple of hours. Not even enough for burley. Haven't been for ages so I decided the Father in Law and I would have to have a go at the Luderick in a nearby place. So we decided to head for Port Kembla Harbour. Didn't even get the boat out - just went off the rocks. Between us we caught 4 luderick between 31cm and 37cm. Fished for 1 and a half hours and went home happy for a feed of fresh blackfish fillets tonight. Now all I need is some more weed. Howard