Long Reef & Clifton Gardens 5/5

[PPSGT]

Hi Raiders!

Fished with another raider Stipo with the plan to be some mixed bag fishing around long reef.

As we werent targeting kingies specifically the choice was made to sleep in and try for squid the most

guaranteed spot in the harbour - the fish markets.

As we were launching from Waverton we left at 6.30 just in time to grab some fresh squid as they were pulling them from the boxes and headed out to long reef.

After findy some good activity on the sounder I dropped the first squid head down on my 6kg outfit

and pulled it up a metre or two from the bottom. Almost as soon as I'd down this it gets slammed

and the drag starts to pull. I set the hook but just as I crank the handle a fatal crunch sound is heard

and after its short life battling with several kings the $50 shimano 4000 has expired.

By this stage the fish has wrapped itself around a rock but has yet to bust its self free so we motor back

but the fish breaks the line and is gone. I set about replacing the reel with my braided up daiwa millionaire

and keep fishing.

After this we pull up every variety of wrasse in my fish ID book - these are the same "rubbish" fish that cost

over $40 when steamed with soy and ginger at Chinese restraurants - we must have caught $1000 worth.

So we headed out to deeper and less wrasse filled waters only to find some rather large, and later that evening after being fried in garlic and butter tasty Leather Jackets. We soon lost interest in dropping our rigs 200 feet down, only to have to pull them up to re-rig as soon as they hit the bottom as they bit through

trace or braid.

We headed into North Head to try for some squid and Stipo managed one first cast, followed by a tentacle

and a cloud of ink.

As it was getting later in the day we dressed him up into 2x6/0 hooks on 80lbs trace and he was sent back down on his first mission - through a school of bait off south head. He didnt seem to like this too much

as was flashing brown and white as he went down. We dropped him over several spots but no takers,

he was rather large for a live bait so probably scared off the schools of bait as we trolled him through,

but rigged to my Wilson Falie special ( specifically designed to rip 20kg samsons off wrecks ) 50lbs braid

and a Shimano lever drag to odds should be in our favour.

We pulled up dropped the squid back in the tank and transported him to his next mission the can at

Clifton Gardens. With no other boats there and plenty on the sounder Stipo was on strike ( as I'd pulled the only King last time, and you cant keep outdoing the captain if you want another invite out ) He dropped

the squid down put the reel on strike and in the holder. Just as the thought entered my head to tell him he should hold the rod as the squid wont last long, Stipo had just turned to head to the front to grab his drink the reel screams off with the rod doubled over ( never seen it do that before ) by the time

he's turned around the line gone limp and its all over.

In seconds this fish has pulled 10 metres of line under heavy drag - on pulling the line in thinking its just stolen the squid its actually popped the 80lbs trace midway between the swivel and the first hook...

Must of been some fish!

Which I reminded Stipo of for the next hour

All in all a perfect day on the water and a great one that got away story......

Hope other raiders enjoyed the water Sat - its was the nicest weekend weather in a long time.

Jason

Edited May 6, 2007 by PPSGT

[livo]

Ahh, so you found my missing Leather jackets.

[SUBLiME]

lol too bad on ur catch ..

I myself managed a few mullet this weekend considering i was landbased and there was nothing else around...

beach fishing next week off Newport Beach Locals say the salmon are on the run arnd there lately so Im gna give it a go

shant

[sparkles]

Might have been a NOAH at clifton.

Thats fishing