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Botany Bay Sunday 30 April


mark_s

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I haven’t been out much this summer, been distracted by a whole load of things so I hadn’t full-filled my aim of nabbing my first Sydney king over summer. I decided to have one last shot at it yesterday. I fished gentlemens hours yesterday so I didn’t get to the bait grounds until 8ish. I found no yakkas and the few pike around couldn’t be enticed onto my hook.

I moved to another area closer to the heads to try and again for yakkas. I managed to get a couple but whilst there a massive school of fish passed by. The water was black with them and they get jumping clear of the water. I think they were mullet on their spawning run. I couldn’t tempt them with a bait but I noticed a guy on shore trying to jag them – he managed to gut jag three big specimens. Is jagging allowed?

Anyway, whilst there I noticed a school of garies go past so I decided to put a yakka down and see what happened. The answer is nothing and as Moly point was so busy I decided to head a little further around near one of the headlands.

Anchored up on a nice drop off and put the livie out on the king rod and drifted baits on my bream rod. I had anchored in bad spot and I was copping a bit of a battering from the swell so I decided to go. Of course the anchor was stuck then and it took me about 0.5 an hour to get it free.

At this stage I had been fishing for about 3 hours and had a couple of yakkas to show for it.

I headed back into the bay and saw that Moly point was much quieter now. I anchored up and put a livie out again. I also put out a peeled prawn on my bream rod and floated it down the burly trail. Whilst sitting there I noticed that there was the occasional fish jumping right up again the container wall (Mullet again I think) and I was contemplating how to try and catch one when my bream rod (which was in free spool right then) went for a short run.

It was pretty unexciting and I was thinking trevally, so I grabbed the line with my hand to see if the fish still had hold of the bait. After feeling the weight at the other end I sprung into action. So did the fish.

My bream rod has 6kgs line and a crappy little reel. It was bent almost in half and it was impossible to turn the reel even though the drag was set pretty low). The fish made a run for the wall but I managed to steer him back, so then he went towards bare island and then back again.

I have no idea how long the fight went on for but the fish had many runs before I got him to the surface. The rod and reel kept feeling like they were about to give but they hung in there.

At first sighting I called it for a sting ray, which was a stupid call as it looked nothing like a ray but the fish took off again quickly when he saw the boat. At the second sighting I knew it was a king and for the first time I got really excited.

He made one last run for the wall before I got him to the surface and this time I was able to net him. 64cms of King fish in the boat, my first Sydney King.

I was extremely pumped and was sitting there basking in my own glory when the Waterways came over for a safety gear check.

I am still smiling now – pics to be posted tonight.

Me 1 Kings 0

Edited by mark_s
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I haven’t been out much this summer, been distracted by a whole load of things so I hadn’t full-filled my aim of nabbing my first Sydney king over summer. I decided to have one last shot at it yesterday. I fished gentlemens hours yesterday so I didn’t get to the bait grounds until 8ish. I found no yakkas and the few pike around couldn’t be enticed onto my hook.

I moved to another area closer to the heads to try and again for yakkas. I managed to get a couple but whilst there a massive school of fish passed by. The water was black with them and they get jumping clear of the water. I think they were mullet on their spawning run. I couldn’t tempt them with a bait but I noticed a guy on shore trying to jag them – he managed to gut jag three big specimens. Is jagging allowed?

Anyway, whilst there I noticed a school of garies go past so I decided to put a yakka down and see what happened. The answer is nothing and as Moly point was so busy I decided to head a little further around near one of the headlands.

Anchored up on a nice drop off and put the livie out on the king rod and drifted baits on my bream rod. I had anchored in bad spot and I was copping a bit of a battering from the swell so I decided to go. Of course the anchor was stuck then and it took me about 0.5 an hour to get it free.

At this stage I had been fishing for about 3 hours and had a couple of yakkas to show for it.

I headed back into the bay and saw that Moly point was much quieter now. I anchored up and put a livie out again. I also put out a peeled prawn on my bream and floated it down the burly trail. Whilst sitting there I noticed that there was the occasional fish jumping right up again the container wall (Mullet again I think) and I was contemplating how to try and catch one when my bream rod (which was in free spool right then) went for a short run.

It was pretty unexciting and I was thinking trevally, so I grabbed the line with my hand to see if the fish still had hold of the bait. After feeling the weight at the other end I sprung into action. So did the fish.

My bream rod has 6kgs line and a crappy little reel. It was bent almost in half and it was impossible to turn the reel even though the drag was set pretty low). The fish made a run for the wall but I managed to steer him back, so then he went towards bare island and then back again.

I have no idea how long the fight went on for but the fish had many runs before I got him to the surface. The rod and reel kept feeling like they were about to give but they hung in there.

At first sighting I called it for a sting ray, which was a stupid call as it looked nothing like a ray but the fish took off again quickly when he saw the boat. At the second sighting I knew it was a king and for the first time I got really excited.

He made one last run for the wall before I got him to the surface and this time I was able to net him. 64cms of King fish in the boat, my first Sydney King.

I was extremely pumped and was sitting there basking in my own glory when the Waterways came over for a safety gear check.

I am still smiling now – pics to be posted tonight.

Me 1 Kings 0

Good stuff, the Kings go pretty hard, always good to crack your first.

With regard to jagging, it is illegal..below from DPI website.

Line fishing

No more than 4 rods or lines to be used or set by any one person at any one time.

No more than 3 hooks or 3 gangs of hooks attached per line.(A gang of hooks should have no more than 5 hooks.)

One line may have 6 single hooks with lure attached to be used by the method of hand jigging only.

No more than 3 treble hooks attached to a lure.

Jagging is illegal (hooking, or attempting to hook, fish other than through the mouth).

Drift lines are banned.

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Well done, mark_s! On a bream rod as well!!! Yes, as Dan pointed out, jagging is illegal. Yes, the mullet are running up the coast. I was on North Entrance Beach (Cental Coast) not too long ago and a beachfisherman said that he had "spun-up" the five or six big mullet he was bleeding with accomplices. Anither guy around there said that he had jagged them.

Flattieman.

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Well done Mark. It's a great feeling to hook your first king, isn't it? Heard so much about it from the guys in this forum that I'm dying to get out and catch a king...

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Chris

I thought they might have been salmon at first and while I didn't get a good look they were jumping like mullet and they looked like mullet from a distance. Happy to be corrected if anyone has a positive ID?

Here is the pic

post-57-1146479944_thumb.jpg

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WELL DONE MATE,

top effort,

i still CLEARLY remember my 1st kingy ohhh she was GREAT she went SOOO HARD :1prop:

gotta say best 10mins ive had in a long time,

ahhh yea im sure they would of been sambos,

plce is alive with them ATM,

never the less well done

cheers steve

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