Pitt Water

[coollamon]

Hey Guys and Gals

Several Raiders whent out today to try out Darrens boats from trailerboat Hire

and all I can say is AWESOME!!!

The Way they are set up is impressive with live bait tanks,Downrigger,Sounder and Burley buckets all set up to be convienient to reach and use

Darren is a true gentleman and walked us all through the basics of using the boats and before we knew it we were off

first stop was among some moored up yaughts throwing out everything bait wise E.G sp's,Squid ,Pilchard ,and prawns as well as burleying up big time

1 small pinkie for me (anyfish is good)

then we moved on we tried several places and got another couple of small pinkies (snapper) but it was looking pretty grim at this stage

Mallacoota was keen for one more try so we headed over to spot X

things took a turn for the better here

MallacootaPete got spanked but somethinig Huge we all saw a large silver flash as it tried to blow him away

then unfortunatley the hook pulled and the last we saw was a big flash of silver shooting away

Bad luck Pete I realy felt for you buddy

Then Darren noticed what we thought to be Salmon busting up the surface and metal lures were the call of the afternoon

the school kept getting closer and closer and eventually Min (cant remember his user name) hooked up to one and the hook pulled just before the boat NOOOOOOO!!!!

we started to motor round looking for the school when Brett(no1 Son) and I saw them just in front of us in about 3 feet of water I cast out and BANG ZZZZZZZ I am on wooohooo pulled in a nice Bonito 50cm and weighing in at 2kg Yeh baby My first Bonito so a pb for me there

then we chased the school for another hour or so casting the metal slugs at tem whenever they surfaced

then I caught another one Yeeehhhaww this rocks then Brett is on to one as well

all up three Bonito by myself and 1 by Brett would have stayed out longer chasing these fish but time was up

and we left feeling Very Very Happy

I must Thank Flightmanager for being an awesome capitain today who selflesly stayed as the helmsman as Brett and I cast our arms off

And a huge thanks to Darren from trailerboat Hire for giving us the chance to use his fantastic product today

if anyone out there has a boat licence and needs a boat for the kingie social he is th man to see

Cheers everyone

Coollamon

more pics

[Penguin]

Well done on the Bonnies guys,

and bad luck on getting smoked by something huge

penguin

[mrsswordfisherman]

You bewdy guys, well done

Cheers mrsswordfisherman

[caine]

for me there is nothing like throwing lures a a big school of angry bonnies

they go hard i love that stuff

[Flightmanager]

As captain of Team No1flightamon , let me first thank Darren from Trailerboathire for not only providing 2 excellent boats for us to fish in , but also a comprehensive guide to the safe operation of these boats.

Our day started at Bayview ramp , where we all met up , Darren , MallacootaPete , Min , Coolamon , Brett and myself . First order of business was to become familiar with all of the features of the boats , and a general discussion on boat use and safety.

We divided into 2 crews , Darren , Min and Pete in one boat , John , Brett and myself in the other . We set off through the moored boats , and selected a likely looking spot . As John mentioned , we hit that water with everything at hand , all manner of bait and lures , but the fish just werent playing th egame. Min did get one good hookup , but was lost just before it got to the boat .

We then tried a few other spots , ending up just around the corner from Flint and Steel , but the results were no better there. Moved on to another location , for "one last cast" , Darren suggested at 2:20 that we give it another half an hour , and then call it a day .

Moved back into Pittwater , and decide on a slow drift , I had been getting a few nibbles , then I got a strike , you guessed it , a small snapper !

Darren suggested one spot that we might try before we went back to the ramp , and after a short time , there was a lot of surface commotion and bird activity . We all called it for a school of salmon , and my crew changed rigs to metal lures , and began to cast like crazy into the school . John struck first , and after a good fight which saw him lose a bit of line as he brought the fish in , he landed a beaut Bonito , of 50CM length.

After that , it was just a matter of keeping watch for where the school surfaced next , and casting the lures right into the middle of them. They were certainly hungry , as first John , and then Brett , hooked up to good sized fish. It was now 5:20 , and we were still chasing this school around the bay . So much for half an hour!!

The action slowed after Johns last fish , so we pulled the pin and returned to the ramp , to commiserate with Team Really Trying Hard , and to clean our catch !!

Trailered the boats , and said our farewells , and began the drive home. What had started out as a very slow day , escalated into a fishing frenzy , with us right in the thick of it !!!

Ross

[mrmoshe]

Yes, it really turned out to be an exciting day on the water after a slow start.

Those bonnies sure do bust up the water when they school like that.

We chased them all over Towlers Bay. They would appear in front of us, then sound and appear at another spot within 2 minutes.

We in our boat, Darren, Minn (Hiramasa)and myself kept motoring to where they next appeared and Flightmanager, Coollamon and Flightmanager's No.1 son Brett stayed in the one position in the other boat and let them come to them. That turned out to be the best ploy as they ended up with four very solid bonnies to our (ahem) not that many LOL.

Soon after arriving at Towlers, as we were thinking bream, I was soaking a cut pillie on a No.2 hook, weightless when all of a sudden my rod buckles over and I'm onto something solid.

It took a run straight for the bottom, but I managed to get it to the surface only to have the hooks pull.

It was definitely a largish kingy as I saw the silver flash when it was just about on the surface.

Ten minutes later, the bonnies arrived in droves and the fun really began.

My thanks also go to Darren from Trailerboathire for putting on two of his excellent boats for the day and for the great briefing before hitting the water. He knows his boats and I also highly recommend his boats for anyone who is thinking of getting on the water for next Sunday's Kingy Social.

You will be amazed just how good these boats really are. We saw a few of the regular hire boats on Pittwater from another hirer and they aren't a patch on Darren's boats.

Do yourself a favour and try out these craft..you won't be disappointed.

Cheers,

Pete.

[CR@ZY OS@M@]

nice bonnies there mate.

good feed there for the plate

[GregH]

Nice catch Raiders.

Sounds like a great day out.

[Flightmanager]

I forgot to add the slug that caught all of Coolamons fish was a red and silver 3" model from Wattos , cost about $3.

Ross

[kevvie]

sounds like a cracker of a day people. well done to Darren

[Flightmanager]

Here are the pics !!!!

Ross

Edited January 14, 2007 by Flightmanager

[predator]

Great report guys

Them Bonnis are great fun on light gear

what about the weather!! top notch.

I was out on B/B, and like you guys, first half of the day all we could manage was rat kings, then things got interesting the second half when we notice bird working on the far side of F/Steel, manage to spend the next two hours hooking on to sambo and tailors, Great stuff....

Cheers

Dave

[Guest claudia]

I forgot to add the slug that caught all of Coolamons fish was a red and silver 3" model from Wattos , cost about $3.

Ross

Great Report John, good work

See Ross

its all those lures I keep selling you!!!!!! Remember girl power, us women know everything when it comes to fishing. Remember, MEN FISH, WOMEN ACTUALLY CATCH

CHEERS

CLAUDIA

Edited January 15, 2007 by claudia

[johnno]

How many boats does Darren have in the fleet?

Well done on a great day

[Jewhunter]

Great stuff guys & well done Darren on helping out Raiders!

Congrats on your new Fishraider record Bonnie Coolamon.

Cheers,

Grant.

[Hiramasa]

Just like to to thank Darren greatly for his generosity on Sunday. As i am hoping to purchase my first boat in the near future I found his presentation and boat knowledge of great value. His boats are a fantastic setup and I think even I could hire something of that class and operate it without too many problems (I only need to get my license first !)

I had never been on the water in Pittwater before and enjoyed the scenery and company of Pete and Darren immensely - both are true gentlemen.

As for my fishing efforts, I had something of descent size straighten my TT jighead (1/0 hook) and dropped two bonnies at the boat. Fish were scarce for the first 4hrs but the afternoon certainly made up for it. Nothing being than sight casting to agressive surface feeding fish.

I look forward to catching up with everyone at the social.

Minh

[riggem]

great report guys lookes like yous had a ball.

great boats too, well done on the bonnies.

and hope yous land a big momma next trip.

[mrmoshe]

How many boats does Darren have in the fleet?

Well done on a great day

Hi Johnno,

Darren has three identical boats in his fleet. All Quinnie 420 Dory's with 30 horse Suzuki's.

All fitted with downriggers and fishfinders.

Cheers,

Pete.

[Flightmanager]

We certainly did have a ball , and we will be organising other days in the months to come. We will cover all aspects of handling small boats , and even trailer reversing if you are not too sure how to do it.

Ross

[netic]

Great report guys, nice size bonnies, they can be really good fun

[OneMoreFish]

Hi Guys... sounds like a great day out....

Please let me know next time you are thinking of a day out doing such things...

I would be keen to come along and I am happy to bring my boat...

Im sure these days will help us all share our skills and techniques.

(was great to meet many of you at the kingy social too)

Cheers

Rodger