Geoff

Plan on launching at Grays Point around 7.00am on Saturday & doing much the same thing . A few circuits of Jibbon then head South. Geoff

Dorf I would definatly go with the 13" wheels , fitted with cross plys or light truck tyres. The side walls are thicker & will be more stable than radials. Tyre pressure is also important. Check with the tyre retailer , 36 - 40 lbs is average , some may suggest even higher. The main item for attention is ,as others have mentioned , the weight on the tow ball. The rule is 10% of the boat / trailer gross weight. The first step is to know the weight of the rig, inc fuel etc. This may require a visit to a public weigh bridge. With the boat on leval ground nic the bathroom scales perhaps with out the wife seeing & place under the jocky wheel. The reading on the scale should be around 10% of the gross. You can go as low as 7% but having tried that my self found the boat wanted to start wandering around 90k's so went up to 8 - 9 % Swordfisherman mentioned the tow vehicle. This is also an important aspect & may be part of the problem Geoff

Sammy Perhaps your experience has been a blessing in disguise. Spending well above the buget can become depressing , not necessarly from the repayments aspect but each day seeing the boat & feeling obligated to hook it on & go for a run. The guys have made a lot of good comments including the additional cost to day to day boating. As previously mentioned , if the oportunity arrises to spend a bit of time as a "deckie" it will be invaluable experience. There is a lot around for < $10k so keep looking Geoff

Your correct. On the northern headland there is a small cliff directly under the bridge. From memory it is rather deep off the retaining wall but 13mt ???. Further out it is very deep on the western side around the third pylon . This is only accessable by boat Looking at the photo again , the spot from which it was taken is today , the car park on the northern headland. A very popular fishing spot Geoff

Clutch Tks for the feedback Geoff

Clutch. This may be a silly question , but why are they there? What is the attraction that brings fish that large into a small / shallow area Geoff

Jay This may not answer your question but is an interesting photo. The copy suggests the punt is traveling from south to north. Knowing the area fairly well I think they have it backwards as the north side (Blakehurst) has a bay on each side of the point. There are no bays shown in this photo. http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/tyrrell/show.php?id=238 Geoff

Boat goes in for 100 hr service on Saturday . Then off to David's (Mottyman) place , plan on chasing the Bass on the Nepean for a few hours. Pick the boat up around lunch time & head for home Sunday , SCG for the second & perhaps the last final of the one dayers Geoff

LOCATION Tathra. South Coast For those heading south here is one of the better ramps with easy access to the ocean Location is on the Eastern side of the main road when entering Tathra Actual name , Kianinny Boat Ramp It is a natural cove with excellant protection from the ocean CONDITION Good quality , comfortable 2 lane ramp with a jetty that can handle several boats at one time. Also , very good fish cleaning tables available Tide level not a problem (Photo may suggest it is very shallow) One aspect to watch , if there is a large swell outside watch out for wave serge. It is hardley noticable until trying to retreive the boat FACILITIES Good parking & Toilets available ............................................................................................ Bega River At the other end of town is the Bega River. Small single lane ramp but OK for most boats up to 5.0mt Parking is limited but you can generally find a spot Toilets are available. The river empties into the bay but the opening is very shallow & should not be considered as an access point to the ocean Geoff

LOCATION Kurnell Western end of Prince Charles Parade CONDITION Poor , one lane , only suitable for small to medium boats. Large gaps between the blocks , most with oysters A challenge , especially at low tide for both boaters and vehicles Advantages , closest ramp to the heads for those on the southern side of B.B. FACILITIES Good parking & Toilet facilities

Photo's added to previous post Geoff

The transducers I am looking at are a dedicated thru hull transducer, you drill a hole thru the hull and the bronze transducer fits thru the hole from the outside and has about a two inch flange type nut that screws down and is used with the approriate sealant, dont imagine it would fall out. Would agree. should be very secure really interested if you get a better signal at speed with the transducer located on the centre line of the boat about two to three feet ahead of the stern,where it would stay in "clean water" longer and at higher speeds Sounds logicial. My sounder , which is nothing flash , looses it's signal over about 15 knots. Always assumed the boat was moving too fast for the signal to hit the bottom & return . Perhaps it depends on the quality of the sounder & it's strength. my current transducer is located on the transom mor than 3/4 of the way out and gets interference pretty quickly as I speed up, the boat is a tri or cathedral hull so it has to be out there or really close to the motor Mine is on a cat & mounted out wide Geoff

Pogo Check the options recommended by the manufacture , there are some where cutting holes in the floor is not necessery. The transducer is mounted directly onto the inside of the hull. The thought of cutting a hole in the floor then the transducer coming loose or popping out If mounted onto the transom , provided the holes / screws are sealed correctly then there should be zero issues with water entering . Geoff

B.H. I have a deck wash as part of the live bait setup , had it fitted when I purchased the boat , can't recall the actual cost but if I were to do it my self now would see change out of $50.00. The pump for the LBT is a Rule 360. I find this is more than adequate provided your not looking for pressure similiar to the garden hose at home The set up , main hose runs from the pump to inside the boat , a tee piece is fitted which provides the off take for the DW. Continuning on the main line a tap has been fitted which directs water to the DW or LBT. The hose then continues the the LBT inlet. The off take mentiond above has a hose fitted , length is up to you , then near the end a small inline tap to control or stop the flow should it be needed. A further 6" or so along is the fitting for the hand gun. The DW also doubles for a supply of water to the bait board for wash down or when cleaning fish . I have photo's if interested but they are at home so unable to add until this evening Let me know if there are any further questions Note. The water flow is regulated by the small tap just to the right of the blue fitting. In this photo it is set at approx 30% Geoff

David Pleased to see you had a sucussful morning. Trust you realise this now sets the benchmark for next Saturday Also, can you get a leave pass for a few hours on the 11th. Plan on putting the boat in for service & whilst waiting thought we would head towards your place then onto the river to throw a few luers at the bass Geoff

Nothing special , perhaps some maintance on the boat & a few odd jobs around the house. I think it is going to be rather hot . Had a few of those recently & was I glad to get off the water as it can make a trip out rather unplesant. Looking for more moderate weather next weekend Geoff

There are two in Dover Pk (fronts onto Kogarah Bay) at Blakehurst but generally only suitable for smaller boats. Also , access to & from the highway can be a challenge Geoff

Sea Jay Correct, perhaps a half & half , ie go back about half the normal distance , hook on , line up , wind up tight , then reverse & wind the rest of the way. This may sound too involved , perhaps it is but , on a slippery ramp at low tide could minimise the chances of slipping over. Just a thought Geoff

Brian Tks. Any thing that looks like a Mauri Rass is thrown back Both are back swimming around Geoff

It was interesting to read Sea Jay's report & their experience on the Bay yesterday. We to had a good day with some new experiences. Left Cooks rver at 7.15am & headed to the Cans to meet up with friend Peter brother Micheal. Pete has just taken delivery of a new 4.6mt Stacer & was keen to give the boat a run on the Bay The plan was to troll the southern headland for Kings. There were heaps of boats , all bottom bashing for reasons we later discovered were more productive. Four passes along the cliffs produced zip so back to Watts reef to regroup. Arrived to find another friend Graham checking out the sceen. We decided to try a few drifts & with the Southerly pushing us North started on the reef & drifted into the bay. The next few hours , fishing Watts & the headland produced the widest aray of fish we have caught in a day. Began with a small jacket followed by a whiting & 2 small flathead. All returned. A little further out 3 Flounder which included 1 keeper then an assortement of rock fish & a few throw back Reddies. It became a situation of what was going to come over the side next. Came back into Watt's & with the N/E kicking in began a drift towards the oil whalf. Brother in law Henry hooked into a nice Trevor . I felt a drag on the line , something heavy & thought , monster Flathead. Not to be. an Octopus. Well why not , we had caught everything else. Released it with 1 tentical missing ( only way to cut him free) dropped the line over with a 6" length of wriggling tentical & thought prime bait fot something bigger. No sooner had it hit the bottom & away it went. This time I thought , the big one. Wrong , another Ocky. Two more followed so decided 4 was enough & with the sun becoming unplesant headed back to Cook's We caught two other fish not mentioned above & request your assistance in identification Heading back out again on Friday with David ( Mottyman) & his 8 YO son. Hope the Kings are more cooperative Geoff

Please disregard , I hit the button prior to completion then stuffed up the editing , sorry guys Geoff

Tried some thing different on our last outing & thought others may be interested Normally I drive on but one ramp I use on occasions drive on is not allowed so back to the conventual method , reversing the trailer into the water & some poor sole , normally me, has the task of wading out , hooking on the winch cable & maneuvering the boat into position. At high tide on a warm summers day this is not to uncomfortable but at the opposite end , cold day & a slippery ramp at low tide it is not a fun job , so , ,in steed of taking the trailer to the boat (so to speak) we bought the boat to the trailer. Reversed the trailer so the back was just past the waters edge Bought the boat to the end of the trailer , water about ankle deep Hooked on the cable & winched until the boat was hard up against the back of the trailer Slowly reversed the car & with a friend on the winch winding in as the boat went backwards & the trailer submerged By the time the trailer was in it's normal "retrieval" position the boat was nearly up to the final docking position Completed winching in the last half metre or so , on with the safety chain & away we went. Depending on your trailer / boat set this may not work for all but perhaps worth a try Geoff

Giving the King's a rest & heading down to the Fish Markets at a sparrow's tomorrow to pick up a supply of prawns & oysters then to Wollongong for our family Christmas get together Looking forward to a great day Sunday , recovering Geoff

If the weather is reasonable , fishing Botany Bay with Mottyman on Saturday. Sunday , A few odd jobs around the house Geoff

Bob As I mentioned in my origional post , "A bigger threat is not the pro's but the ever increasing number of Marine Parks." Do you know of a web site that provides further information , eg timing & what areas are still available to rec fishing within the park Tks Geoff