Spanker

RESPECT!!!!!!!!!!!!! Great report Richard, real man versus fish stuff! The only time I swear is when I am fishing, the hunt is all that matters haha Spanker

Hi Adam, Mate that's a lot of fish fingers! Well done. What are Blue Eye like for eating? Shame about the YFT but that fishing eh? I spent a week up at North Haven last month, we targeted different species at different times of the day and found that much more enjoyable than just flogging ourselves after one species, sounds like you have that down pat too. Spanker

Wow!!!! Can you please tell me where you position the hook on the yakka and how deep you put him in the water? Awesome fish!!! Spanker

Salmon also make great Thai fishcakes!!! I am increasingly convinved that it is good to regularly keep and eat a part of your catch, gives you a better appreciation of the fish and what a valuable resource they, how blessed we are to have a system that still has heathly fish and that we need to protect it. Spanker

Wow What do they do with massive marlin and sharks that are brought in to weigh? Spanker

Great work mate, well done!!! Where do you position the hook on YT? Spanker

Walk takes about 10 minutes, piece if cake going down in the cool of the morning. Now climber back up in the heat on the other hand............... PM me for instructions if you like, you will need them. Fishes best after a storm or some swell but there is a fine line between it being washy enough to bring in the fish (got two blue nose bream 40+ cm about 18 months ago) and swamped. I have been there when it was calm and it was dead. I have seen people burley up yellowtail and float them out on balloons with heavy gear. There is a drop off about 30m out I think into deeper water, I guess anything could be cruising past there. Spanker

Maybe you had to be there? Hehe My legs are sore from going back up that hill! Hard trying to balance a long enough rod for the conditions with light enough line so you can feel the bites in the swell. Was a great session, we'll go again one day Spanker

Sorry for the language but SHIT A BRICK!!!! Well done son, there are grown men quietly crying in envy all over Sydney. Spanker

Hi Lads, Hehe if that Flathead were 1m long then that 11 year old girl would be about 6ft tall. 75cm if my estimate. When I was in primary schook a mate lived in one of those houses at the Pittwater road bridge over Narrabeen lakes. A few times I went for walks along the common back yard lawns to look at the nails in some of the old fences. It seems people used to use 3 nails in a triangle to nail flathead heads to fences. Anway some of the trianlges, some still with white wispy bits of cartilage attached, were enormous, far bigger than anything I have seen except the few crocs we have seen on the site of 1m+ old girls. Spanker

So do you need some more friends? Nice work mate, very jealous!

Excellent report mate, nothing better than connecting with the kids while doing something you both enjoy.

I am going to be brutaly honest and admit that squid scare the hell outa me!!!! How do you handle the suckers? Do they bite? Don't be a girly man! Spanker

Thanks Clutch. I would like to give smoking a go at some stage, I am told you can use hickory chips on a webber. Probably keen to see a guru have a shot first rather than destroy my rare catches hehe. I catch a lot of tailor, do they smoke up well too?

I got a couple off the rocks on north head on Saturday. They were strays though, not a big school. Spanker

Hi Raiders, Despite some misgivings, we braved the predicted heavy swell and wind and packed the car, on the raod by 0600. I took a mate who is new to fishing a Belgian fella, boyfriend of a friend new to Syndey, to show 'em one of the most beautiful spots in Sydney. We had agreed to check out the swell from the top of the cliff - if it was washed out we'd head out for a big breakie at a cafe, we couldn'y lose really Anyway we parked outside the poo station and tramped through the bush down (dang path is really overgrown at the moment) to the cliffs and, a few minutes into first light, were greated with a spectactular view of the ocean and northern beaches for miles. Wow, it is already worth it. Best of all I could see our ledge and she was clear! We scampered down, quickly rigged up and got baits in the water. We through in squid, pilchards, prawns and garfish. The other two fished the bottom, catching rock cod regularly including a couple around the kilo mark. There was plenty of nice wash but due to the strong wind it was hard to get baits out there. I ended up throwing lightly waited gar cubes out and slowly retrieving through the wash to keep the line off the bottom. Not much action for 45 minutes and then I was on Strong run, a few jumps and a healthy aussie salmon was free. Dang! At least there was something out there. I made sure the point and barb of my hook were will clear of the next bait and 5 minutes later I was on again. Damn they are a good fight on light gear. I had to time the waves to get him up on to our ledge, 3 or 4 minutes later, a 2 kg Salmon was flapping at my feet. We bled him and got him tucked away. After that we had one more decent run, snapped off, more rock cod and a sergant baker, ugly blighters. The tide turned and things started looking a bit dodgy so we cleared off, delighted with the morning out in the wind and waves. I know assie salmon are meant to be poor eating but I wanted to try one, I am going to steam it tonight and serve with a little soy and chilli. Was great to get out after all the rain!!!! Spanker

I ended up hedging my bets, we went down to have a look, banking on the low tide to keep the ledge from getting washed out and it paid off, will post a report. Thanks for the comments! Spanker

Really? My last two fishing trips were washed out, I am desperate to get out there aaaaaaaaaaah

Hi lads, I am planning to hit a ledge off North Head early tomorrow, facing almost due east. I think there is a dead low tide tomorrow at 0730, which can't be helped, but I am not sure if it will be washed out from this wind anyway. Can anyone throw an opinion about the swell heading into the heads? Cheers Spanker

I was fishing CG in October last year. I usually buy my licenses in December when we head up to Port Mac. for Chrissie holidays. We saw the fisheries boat come in and I was talking with my mate about how good it is to see them here, as you often see ethnic groups keeping undersized fish and, being a chatty friendly type, I have asked several of these family groups how much their licenses cost? Blanks stares. Anyway I was extremely embarressed to find out when presenting my license it had expired 2 weeks previously. The femial officer was friendly and curtius and asked me to state my case, which she wrote down and promised a written response. I received a warning and studiously check the dates now. I think most of them are looking for the right attitudes and behaviours, not screwing people and revenue raising like City Rangers. One thing I talked about with the officer was the size and bag limits on some species tradtionally considered bait fish by Australians. Now that there are many cultural groups extracting bucket loads of yellowtail and the like from our waters to eat, perhaps this needs to be addressed, as they are not breaking the laws but if increasing numbers of new Australians now eat these 'bait fish', we may end up denuding easily accessible fishing spots of marine life.

Cheap metals can certainly do the job, if you know the fish are there, I think the key can be perseverance. As the other guys have said, have a variety of clours and sizes, you will quickly work out what your favourites are the set conditions and species. There is a ledge off Tomaree Head at Port Stephens I have fished for many hours with lures. Using different speeds, pauses, letting the lure sink down to the bottom and bringing it up, sometimes things work, sometimes they don't. One solid rule, already said in this thread, is that fish like Tailor are excitable and predators - they like it fast and furious. So fish the rocks or near the rocks where there is some wash, fish near bait fish and all that kind of stuff.

What a craftsman, using tools with great skill to overcome the elements, defeat your prey AND take some great snaps. Truely impressive, great report mate!!!! Spanker

What's the story behind the GT munching? Love a good story.

Better than snapper? That's a big call, baked fresh snapper would be my all time favourite!

I am surpised there is not more research data available about this. If I knew a stainless hook would hang around for months and a mild steel hook would rust out in weeks, I would likely use mild steel hooks when bait fishing. Years ago I was at one of the Aquariums (Syndey or Manly, forget which) and noticed one of the sharks had the rusted shank of a hook sticking out from the side of his mouth.