Trip To Browns June 12-15th

[fishingrod]

Is anyone thinking of heading out mid week after the Queens Birthday Long w/e. Ive got that week off work.

Im THINKING of doing my ever first trip out there ever and in my own boat. I think ive got the courage Im in a 5.7m (fraction shorter without the pod). Maybe id feel moe confidient on the weekend. Most indications are that even mid week there are a few people around out there if anything happened. Ive had my rig for about 9 months and it all seems to be running smooth. Ive got a aux motor but it would be a marathon effort to get back at 4knots, but possible if desperate!

Ive looked at the charters and read all the hints and tips. But its more fun on your own boat. I dont have the gear to bottom fish, so would just think about having my first shot at cubing. It seems if the fish are on, that even though im not super experienced that i could get some reasonable hits.

All weather permitting.

I dont have anyone to go with. So might be looking for someone (prefer with genuine offshore sealegs) who is happy to go out with a confident and experienced, but chicken skipper.

Just seeing if i can open up some discussion. Help me make a decision to go or not. It will bug me all season if i dont go. I think first trip is always the hardest. Ive bought a couple of sub 7m boats down the NSW coast, but never been so far offshore.

Rod

[Flightmanager]

G'day Rod ,

I am hoping to get out there myself on the 9th , never been more than 3-4 NM offshore before , but I will be going in someone elses much larger boat. It will be his first time out that far as well .

At this stage , the weather and ocean conditions are the only things that will stop us , I would suggest that you make your final call when you know what the conditions are likely to be .

Personally , and bearing in mind that I have never done this myself before , I would want at least a semi experienced decky to come with me , just in case. Also , if you could buddy up with another boat , you could probably save a lot of time /fuel getting to the right spot.

Something that has been of concern to me is the fuel issue , its a long way out there and back , will you be able to carry enough fuel on board for the trip , with a healthy reserve in case you run into 10/10ths crapola conditions on the return journey? ( Aviation term for worst possible weather , wrong wind , bad swell , strong current etc !)

Im looking forward to the replies to this thread , we want our first trip to be as safe and enjoyable as possible , I cant think of a better place to find out !

Ross

Edited May 31, 2007 by Flightmanager

[bolan]

I'm hopefully hitting the water with Flightmanager and I must admit, we have had a lot of chatter going back and fourth as to how to complete this journey safely.ie, How much fuel to do the trip 1.5 times, Water, Radio, Cigarettes, Food, Cigarettes , Correct Fishing Gear, Appropriate CD's to bring along, Cigarettes etc etc....

As the time gets near, we will be posting quite a few "what ifs" because its our first trip too.Can't wait!

If you keep following the posts, I think that we will end up with a small convoy heading out there with us, you are most welcome to join.

To be serious (Only for a second)

Ross is absolutely correct........... the decision as to wheather we go out on the day will be made with all research as to weather and swell conditions being addressed. If it don't look 100% good, we don't go!

A Skipper on a boat that considers himself a chicken, can always catch a fish........... dead Skippers can't.

[fishingrod]

Im in the same position. 5-7 miles in 60-80m depth from Broken Bay is my normal comfortable stomping ground.

Im equiped ok safety wise. I can carry around 190L of fuel on a 115hp carby 2 stroke. If the run out takes 1.5 - 2 hours (@14-20knots) in smooth to avg conditions I cant see that being any more than 60 litres. Leaving a considerable amount to move around and still come home. A extra couple of litres of oil is on my list.

Ill keep watching what the others are doing. The 9th might be a possibillity for me. Would be better to plan to go in a group, rather than me just hope to find someone out there.

Whats the ramp just on the western side of the General Holmes Drive or Penrhyn Road like at low tide. I had a look on the ramp section here and i think they are rated as excellent, but maybe have silted up since the report? My 2wd only does a average job at retreiving my rig.

Rod

EDIT : wow just saw my 100th post

2ND EDIT : Western side of GH Drive

Edited June 1, 2007 by fishingrod

[Guest Big-Banana]

Penryn Rd is brilliant.

[Sammy0884]

Hi Guys, i'd like to throw my .02c in for this discussion.

CFD and i have made the trip a number of times now, we go out in my Bluefin plate 5.25m (5.5 overall) runabout with a 90hp mercury optimax. This is the absolute lower limit of the boat size that you would consider going to browns in. I am yet to see another boat out there that is smaller that 5.5m.

We carry 150L of fuel, the most we have used is 60L in a day, but you still need the spare, allow for 1/3 out, 1/3 back and 1/3 in reserve. Some key points to note, take the minimum you need for the day, dont take 3 eskys and 5 tackle boxes. Tie everything down, when its rough you get thrown around and the last thing you need is a jerry car flying around the cabin. Put all lures, knives and hooks away unless they are in the water or being used, its a long way from medical help.

The trip is 22nm from the botany heads, which is an hour in calm seas travelling at 22kn, 90 minutes traveling at an offshore cruise of 14kn, and 3.5hours trolling at 7 knots.

Expect to get pounded, and wet.

[netic]

Also guys with the fuel always allow for the drift also.....one day we were fighting YFT for about 2 hours....after the 3rd fish was bought up we had a break and then noticed that we had drifted over 15kms south...took us about 45 minutes to get back to our original position...(more fule wasted) then after another 4 hours cubing we had drifted again another 15 kms south....... So take it to account that the current out there is gonna be somewhere between 2-4 knots and that means you can drift up to 5-6 kms per hour

[fishingrod]

FISHINGROD : Is anyone thinking of heading out mid week after the Queens Birthday Long w/e. Ive got that week off work.

Im THINKING of doing my ever first trip out there ever and in my own boat

The 9th (June) might be a possibillity for me.

Ive gone off the idea for now. The weather looks crappy this weekend + i think i might wait a little longer until the season fires up a bit more .... the reports are a bit thin at the moment. But they have all been mostly good fish

I bought my boat (2nd hand) around August last year and it seemed to be the peak of the season. I didnt want to venture out till i had faith in my rig, which i do now...... maybe i'll give it another month and see what the reports look like.

Thanks for all the pointers. I certainly didnt think about the 2-4 hour drift factor and the extra distance to get home.

cheers

Rod

[Mike Armour]

It's a big jump to go from a few miles off shore to going to Browns. You should have a VHF radio to get regular weather updates from the coast guard/Patrol. A few years back we were at Browns fishing for yellowfin in our 6.5 metre boat when the weather went from a 10-15 knot wind to a 40 knot westerly. We didn't have our VHF turned on and the coast guard was trying to contact us to warn us of the weather change. It took 4 hours to get back in 3 metre waves breaking over the front of the boat every 10 seconds.

Alot of boats got caught out that day and a few went down. I just hope with the popularity of bluewater fishing increases that people don't become complacent.

I think you should go out a few times with someone competent and ask lots of questions or book a ride with Ross or Glen. If your not confident then I don't think its fair to put the lives of your crew in danger for a fish.

My 2 cents worth.

Mike