inhlanzi Posted November 23, 2007 Share Posted November 23, 2007 G'day Raiders Managed to spend the whole day out on the river yesterday. I was after big Jewies. A mate got me +_ 10 kg of good quality fish baits. Loaded up my eskie at the boat ramp and off to a run in spot before dawn and set out four rods. I knew I had enough good bait for two good sessions. Usually at this particular spot a cut bait does not last long and invariably you just get a head back after being mauled by peckers. Most times when I retrieved the baits they were untouched! There were 3 other boats lined up with me but sad to say nobody turned a reel all session. The tides are really big at the moment so a good anchor and sea anchors are a must. I then moved to a run out spot and had another three hour session. There were two other boats at the spot with me. One of the blokes got two shovel nose sharks and a small Port Jackson all taken on squid. I got a small stingray. The other boat got a good strong hit and made the reel scream a bit but it turned out to be a big stingray. Several schools of really small tailor were on the chew. They were really getting stuck into some small white bait. Several gulls and a Pelican followed them as the tide took the schools down the river. It looked very fishy! Had heaps of bait left headed to a low tide spot. Got a nice hit there and it turned out to be a decent size shovel nose. All quiet after that so headed back to the run in spot. I got there three and a half hours before the top of the tide. Set 3 lines and lay back on the front of the boat. As I was having a bit of a day dream I see the outside rod slowly buckle and then the reel starts to scream. Leap up and grab the rod. I lost about 50m of line before I could put the brakes on. Ay this point the heart is pumping in anticipation but I realise it is not a jewie as the fish rapidly heads towards the surface. A large dark brown shape appears and reveals itself as very large stingray (tail has been cut off). With some nifty work with the gaff and the pliers carefully get the hook out and set the big fella free. The tide continued and all I got back were untouched baits. One of the boats near us got a really good hit at the top of the tide on a squid skirt the reel screamed for about five seconds but sadly the leader parted near the hook. All in all another different but amazing day out on the river. As summer fast approaches here is a tip for beginner boaters - If you see people fishing at anchor give them a bit of space when you go past. If you want to approach them SLOW DOWN go around to where their anchors are, approach from the bow ( that is the front of their boat ). If you want to really piss off a jew fisherman drive up to him over his baits and into his lines. Consider this - Most jewfishermen I know spend a lot of time and money to get their boat, gear and bait just right for the trip an the tidal sessions. They travel a long way and make big concessions both with work and family to fish at just at the right time. So when you drive up to a group of boats fishing at anchor be aware of where their lines and baits may be. Please try not top drop your anchor on or near their baits. Remember a big Jewie will run for quite a distance before it can be turned and stopped. The Hawkesbury is a fantastic resource and a little bit of common sense and common courtesy would go a long way to help all enjoy the river. In conclusion after yesterday and numerous trips this year I have to worry about the state of the Hawkesbury when in four different spots quality bait comes back mostly without being touched. Is it just me or are there other Hawkesbury fishos who have had the same experience? cheers inhlanzi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novice Posted November 23, 2007 Share Posted November 23, 2007 G'Day, i was on the river yesterday too, trying various spots that usually produce decent sized fish, but yesterday......it was not to be. Tried near Lion island for bream, juno point for pretty much anything, the flats before juno for flathead, then the channel between the bridges. The only spot that came up trumps was the channel, bagging us 6 flatheads (all about 37 cms), and about 4 soapies (which were released). We didn't try to target any one species, not that good ....yet, and the bait we had was just frozen stuff from a servo. But everything was taken on prawn. Do you catch fresh bait ??? where do you target them from and what do you use ??? It was a slow day, but still.....a good day. Taps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiger_shark Posted November 23, 2007 Share Posted November 23, 2007 Lol.... thats all we have ever caught in the hawkesbury when fishing with bigger baits... sure we have caught some flatties, tailor and bream with smaller baits......but shovel noses, rays, and eels far out number jewies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VA911 Posted November 23, 2007 Share Posted November 23, 2007 G'day Raiders Managed to spend the whole day out on the river yesterday. I was after big Jewies. A mate got me +_ 10 kg of good quality fish baits. Loaded up my eskie at the boat ramp and off to a run in spot before dawn and set out four rods. I knew I had enough good bait for two good sessions. Usually at this particular spot a cut bait does not last long and invariably you just get a head back after being mauled by peckers. Most times when I retrieved the baits they were untouched! There were 3 other boats lined up with me but sad to say nobody turned a reel all session. The tides are really big at the moment so a good anchor and sea anchors are a must. I then moved to a run out spot and had another three hour session. There were two other boats at the spot with me. One of the blokes got two shovel nose sharks and a small Port Jackson all taken on squid. I got a small stingray. The other boat got a good strong hit and made the reel scream a bit but it turned out to be a big stingray. Several schools of really small tailor were on the chew. They were really getting stuck into some small white bait. Several gulls and a Pelican followed them as the tide took the schools down the river. It looked very fishy! Had heaps of bait left headed to a low tide spot. Got a nice hit there and it turned out to be a decent size shovel nose. All quiet after that so headed back to the run in spot. I got there three and a half hours before the top of the tide. Set 3 lines and lay back on the front of the boat. As I was having a bit of a day dream I see the outside rod slowly buckle and then the reel starts to scream. Leap up and grab the rod. I lost about 50m of line before I could put the brakes on. Ay this point the heart is pumping in anticipation but I realise it is not a jewie as the fish rapidly heads towards the surface. A large dark brown shape appears and reveals itself as very large stingray (tail has been cut off). With some nifty work with the gaff and the pliers carefully get the hook out and set the big fella free. The tide continued and all I got back were untouched baits. One of the boats near us got a really good hit at the top of the tide on a squid skirt the reel screamed for about five seconds but sadly the leader parted near the hook. All in all another different but amazing day out on the river. As summer fast approaches here is a tip for beginner boaters - If you see people fishing at anchor give them a bit of space when you go past. If you want to approach them SLOW DOWN go around to where their anchors are, approach from the bow ( that is the front of their boat ). If you want to really piss off a jew fisherman drive up to him over his baits and into his lines. Consider this - Most jewfishermen I know spend a lot of time and money to get their boat, gear and bait just right for the trip an the tidal sessions. They travel a long way and make big concessions both with work and family to fish at just at the right time. So when you drive up to a group of boats fishing at anchor be aware of where their lines and baits may be. Please try not top drop your anchor on or near their baits. Remember a big Jewie will run for quite a distance before it can be turned and stopped. The Hawkesbury is a fantastic resource and a little bit of common sense and common courtesy would go a long way to help all enjoy the river. In conclusion after yesterday and numerous trips this year I have to worry about the state of the Hawkesbury when in four different spots quality bait comes back mostly without being touched. Is it just me or are there other Hawkesbury fishos who have had the same experience? cheers inhlanzi I think the river is a bit sick as well. Not much action in the past year or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inhlanzi Posted November 23, 2007 Author Share Posted November 23, 2007 (edited) G'day Taps Yes I usually spend a lot of time getting bait. I use a sibiki six hook rig, a sibiki three hook rig, and also a long shank 12 on its own and then various metal slices and lures. I try catch yakka, tailor, yt pike, slimeys, garies, mullet, biddies (herring) With the sabiki add a little cubes pilchard, squid or other fish flesh. Change sinker to suit the current. There are a couple of "bait stations" in the Hawkesbury but you can pull up in most of the regular spots and catch a few. A bit of fine burley as well as a mushed up loaf of old bread will always attract them as well. Good to hear you got something in the channel. I just had heavy gear on board yesterday there was little chance of the smaller fish being caught. Prawn is excellent for smaller fish in the Hawkesbury. I wanted to catch the fish that eat those smaller fish!!! I really enjoyed the cloudy conditions yesterday. cheer inhlanzi Lol.... thats all we have ever caught in the hawkesbury when fishing with bigger baits... sure we have caught some flatties, tailor and bream with smaller baits......but shovel noses, rays, and eels far out number jewies. Yea, I would love to know what the ratio of shovel noses, rays, and eels is to jewfish... two weeks ago I got 9 eels in a row!!! Edited November 23, 2007 by inhlanzi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zen801 Posted November 23, 2007 Share Posted November 23, 2007 Do they still commercially fish in the Hawksbury? Mate Sydney Harbour has improved so much since the pros were stopped fishing. Big difference in amount of bait schools and predators. The other day i saw a big turtle near Bantry Bay and often see penguins now all over the place and up as far as west of the Spit Bridge. Middle Harbour is even getting huge snapper to several kilos. Unheard of a couple of years ago. Whilst commercial fishing was going on you wouldnt have seen the amount of yakkas, squid, mullet etc that is now in huge numbers and regularly getting eaten by bigger numbers of predators. I have even seen cobia west of the bridge and last year caught a small one in the Harbour. I guess the old Hawksbury system is under intense pressure from development and commercial fishing. I hope we get the balance right and keep her healthy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiger_shark Posted November 23, 2007 Share Posted November 23, 2007 There are trawlers everywhere in broken bay... i was talking to someone at the ramp last week who was fishing up near bar point...he said that a trawler was going around their boat in circles...its ridiculous what they are doin there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inhlanzi Posted November 23, 2007 Author Share Posted November 23, 2007 Hey Zenman "Do they still commercially fish in the Hawksbury?" They are out there every day 24hrs a day!!! Trawlers (and there are a few new ones too) and netters (nets are 600m long and they lay them across the fish highways ) and cage trappers... But let me say this if the commercial guys are fishing within the law then I fully support them because it it a very hard way to make a living so it is the lawmakers who need to have a good look at things... I went to the Harbour last Saturday with some mates and we watched ( CMG - cant say his name ) a well known sydney guide catch squid on demand and then proceed to catch a nice jew +_ 1m and a 80 something king and real close to the Opera house tooand all this in just a few hrs. I just find the Harbour so so busy with all the yachties and ferries and much prefer the tranquility of the Hbury. The birds in the Hberry have become beggars following the trawlers and living off the leftover bait at the boat ramps. I talk to a lot of Jewfishos and this year has not been good at all. By this time last year I had at least ten fish between 5 and 10 kg. This year I have fished more and harder and have not got one!!! Most of the guys that I fish with had fish over 20 and some over 30 kgs and this year all I know of is two schoolies of around 5kgs!! Also I was getting a lot of large flatties (over 80cm) and only one this year. At the HBury Classic there were a few ( someone got an 18kg cleaned and gilled ) but when you consider there were a thousand anglers out there to win some good prizes the catch was pretty poor. What I fear most for the Hawkesbury is imbalance that could happen when a species becomes dominant. Like at night you can't fish Juno with cut bait because the lice destroy your baits and the fish won't come near them. There were also millions of jellyfish this year up the Cowan and in some places they are sill everywhere. Also the Hailtail this year were very small and only ran for a few weeks. Your livie is more likely to be taken by a squid than a fish. There is minimal bird action these days and you will be hard pressed to find a baitballs on a regular basis. I fish a lot with different blokes - some experts and others beginners and everything in between and with all their tricks, methods and beginners luck I can't say I have much to report from the Hawkesbury this year. Just my observations from this years fishing but from my point of view things are not good. cheers inhlanzi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zen801 Posted November 23, 2007 Share Posted November 23, 2007 I hear you on that mate! Hopefully the system is just late in firing up this year. I agree with you on the traffic on the Harbour on weekends being a turn off. If you can get the time, give it a go on a week day as the difference is unbelievable. Most of the time you have many of the good spots to yourself and in some parts of Middle Harbour it is as serene as it gets. Last year at my spots i couldnt get a big flattie to save my life and it was one of my worst years. This season seems to be a lot better with numerous big breeders out there. As far as i am concerned they all go back in for another day, same as lots of jewies. I hate to say it but kingfish are only returned if there too small. I love em! In fact just thinking about them makes me smell them. Cheers and all the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Posted November 23, 2007 Share Posted November 23, 2007 G'day Inhlanzi, shame about the river not fishing so well this season. Truth is we are overdue for a bad season because the last three or four have been unbelievable. Big jew were too easy to come by and we were all getting way too cocky Last season we got 8 good fish (smallest 12kg) from nine trips. The year before was even better. Everyone was nailing them with monotonous regularity. It was just too easy and we got spoilt badly. This year we are one from one and might decide to quit whilst ahead. With any luck things will improve but it should've been firing on all cylinders by now. Oh well, there's always next season. Luckily there are other species well worth targetting Regards Red Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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