Information Re The Ovens (south Whale Beach)

[vinflattie]

Good day, fellow fishradiers.

A few mates of mine are planning a trip to the Ovens on Thursday morning. we have never been to that place before but have heard about how it delivers any time during the year and no one comes back without a bag load of fish, so we guess it is about time to give it a try.

We did some research on the internet about that area and was informed that the place could be quite dangerous, and to get to the gold spot we will have to get down to the bottom of the cliff and a strong rope is of neccessity.

Was wondering any raiders have been to the Ovens and any information about that fishing spot would be appreciated. (we r newbies btw) We would like to know where the path leading to the bottom of the cliff is and where is the best location to park our car. (Street name, suburb name, etc).

Any extra tips on how to produce the best fishing outcome would also be appreciated.

Thanks in advance. If our trip turns out successful, I will do my ever first fishing report asap.

Thanks again. Take care everyone and keep fishing.

[henryinnis]

I have heard that Kingfish are often found there..... Not sure though. If in doubt and you are new to rockfishing I would SERIOUSLY reccomend going with some experienced rock fisho's first, because the ovens as you have said can be extremely dangerous.

[netic]

Mate the Ovens is not a ledge for the inexperienced.....

Be very careful.....that is a very dangerous area even on days when the swell isnt that big.....the wash is hard to predict...i would recommend you talk to some of the guys from the tackle stores around that area to get some pointers

[TunOFun]

I havent fished the Ovens for years (no need to now that i have a boat)

The track down last time i was there was pretty ordinary so be very carefull.

Access can be gained from Rayner Rd Whale beach. Park at the end of the road and walk along the footpath till you get to the bushes, the track starts here.

Take numerous ropes, last time i needed one for the track and one for the cliff face.

Also not sure of the condition of the anchorage point for ropes on the cliff, some of the locals i think grind it off to stop people fishing there, and they have also tried to cement in the foot holes on the cliff face.

Always a good supply of yakkas, just bearly with bread.

Don't know about this spot being a no miss, it gets fished pretty hard, but if the salmon are around you should get a few.

Good luck

But as Netic said, this shelf can be very dangerous, advisable to sit at the top for a while and asses conditions.

[roosterman]

mate as said before,be very carefull with any fishing from the stones.. the water there is green (very deep) and must be given much respect as anywhere.... i havnt fished there for years (even though i could walk there from my joint) but you get everything from tuna to drummer there... put some livies out and anything can happen or fish the washes for the usual suspects... always use your own ropes and be careful of the sloping track down to the climb down..can get slippery if not carefull... there is 2 platforms and a nice gutter that holds livies if burlied up... if the fish are on it can get busy there from memory but as i said i havnt been down for toooooo long.... mmmm maybe i might have to duck down in the next few weekends for a go.... if climbing is not your go then its a bit of a walk but from the sothern end of whale beach you can trek along to the ledges........

hope this helps.... good luck and keep it safe......

tight lines.....steve.......

Edited August 7, 2007 by roosterman

[vinflattie]

many thanks for the advice, folks.

we are all new to that place, but one of us has been rock fishing for a few years, guess he can guide us to a safe spot. but ya, climbing isnt really my specialty, getting down there could be a problem.

we will see when we get there. if it is too dangerous, guess i should not risk my life somefish...haha

i was told that ppl used to take out marlins land based from that place. we are not exactly aiming for marlins since we dont have heavy duty gear for that, but would love to see it happening, hope there is pro fishos over there on thursday.

thanks again.

vinflattie

Edited August 7, 2007 by vinflattie

[Kiwi Dan]

I fished there a couple years ago with a mate and didnt know about taking your own ropes. Getting down was fine becasue there were a heap of people there but we ended up being the last people there and when the group before us left they took there rope. We ended up having to free climb up the face of the rocks and then use our fishing line to pull up our gear. It was a bit fricken scary.

We didnt have enough big floats when we fished there so always got caught up in the rocks and losing gear. We didnt get anything ourselves but the asian family that was there cleaned up and another group had a few good snapper from memory.

Good luck mate, and like the rest said be careful.

Cheers

Dan

ps - there are some great views from there!!

[yoswd51]

I go to Ovens myself almost once a week.. It produced quite good until june but little bit down these days.

I went there last monday....afternoon... spinned metal lure for 4hrs until sunset..... managed to catch two little fishes which I dont even know...red color but look very similar to flathead..anyone know what this is?

Getting down to Ovens from your car is not too hard as you think..but be very careful not to slip over as there are some very slipery spots on the way down. You wont need a rope to get down...just few minutes walk along the rocks....with caution...thats all

Ovens is a well known spot for catching kings, bonnies and salmons especially on summer..

Good luck guys...hope you guys will have a great day..

[vinflattie]

hi everyone,

we went down to the Ovens today, went down the track and got to the cliff.. the beatiful fishing spot was right in front of us, water was deep, open sea, flat safe platform. However, we could not gain access. The cliff was about 3 stories high, we did not find anywhere to tie the rope to and we couldnt find a safe path down. Maybe you are right, the locals have been grinding the anchorage point off to stop ppl from fishing there.. argh.

there was another way to get to that gold rock platform, which is to walk from the beach along the rock beds (about 1.5 km walk?) but we gave up on that and just fished somewhere close to the beach. did not get any decent fish today. Saw others pulling huge drummers out but there was no more action after 9am.

anyways.

just thought this info might help if anyone else interested in giving that spot a try.

Cheers.