Botany Bay Friday 02/05/08 & Taren Point Bridge At Night

[jewgaffer]

Hi Everyone.

I had the pleasure of receving a PM invite from the keen and accomplished deep sea fishermen, Brett (TunOfun) and his capable advisor and Dad Kevin, to have a jewfish session yesterday in their roomy high sided 19' Quintrex Spirit half cabin deep sea boat. We planned to be at Captain Cook Bridge from twilight onwards for the top of the tide after fishing in Botany Bay at a spot which was left up to me to select for the run in tide from 2pm till sundown.

I drove down from my home in the Campbelltown area and arrived at Brett's home as arranged in the early afternoon.

We packed the six rigged up Tiger Rods I supplied and loaded my gear and the back up bait into Brett and Kev's deep sea boat which was already set up and on the Nisson 4WD awaiting my arrival. In no time we were on our way to the excellent St George Motor Boat Club boat ramp facility where Brett and his Dad are members.

Brett an his Dad Kevin were keen to get onto some jewfish after concentrating on deep sea fishing where they have caught some good fish in their time including a Marlin caught by Brett, I believe.

This particular model Quintrex is a very good fishing boat and has a top set up and every conceivable extra and impressive rod positions for a well placed and workable rod spread. Everything is perfectly placed and a lot of thought has gone into on board comfort and ease of operation, with the emphasis on deep sea game fishing, and this excellent deep sea and overnight rig has outriggers, tip top tracking, and professional fish finding ability.

The entry thru the pod section can also be used for landing gaffed fish into the back section of the boat. Brett and his Dad Kevin are experts in launch and positive drive on retrieve and are both very versatile around a boat in general and not afraid to do what's necessary to assist one another and are very obliging. They certainly know to fish in good harmony with on water comfort and clutter free fishing.

A totally professional operation and it's a nice experience to go out with you both for a fishing session, thanks boys. Kevin manned the barbecue and served up a nice hot sausage sizzle to warm us up during the cool night on the water

In planning the day, I suggested we fish just inside the green marker off Molineaux Point and spread the six rods with live bait and big fish fillets on two hook rigs and use the large freshly caught local arrow squid and two or three small octopus stringed together on the two hook rigs on the Tiger rods and stagger the rods around the drop off towards the main shipping channel from the early afternoon run in tide until just before nightfall.

We had until till 10 pm or so to have a go at the Captain Cook Bridge jewfish which have been quite reliable of late. In the Botany Bay part of the session from 2pm on, I thought the Molineaux side would fish better than the main channel with big baits in the run in. The wind was blowing towards the inside corner of the runway side of Molineaux directly into the bait grounds.

Of course wherever you fish, a good point for members to remember is the fact that the off land drop off sections to the deeper water on a waterway have already been established for you by the placement of green markers at carefully selected locations .

When we reached the bait grounds near Molineaux as chosen on the day, the action was fast and furious on most other species but we had to move right in close towards the turned in alcove with the wind directly behind us to find the few yellowtail that were there.

Finally, after a good half hour and regularly use of surface berley, we managed around a dozen or so small yellowtail which was a good start for us, as there was to be an abundance of tailor as predicted around the CC Bridge pylons coming into the pylon eddies with the sweep of the run in tide by the time we settled into our night time fishing.

The final catch at Molineaux amounted to good size leather jackets, the reef variety, and also take home flathead and nice wrasse. We caught and released dozens of small fish near the bait grounds including red morwong, sweep and a lot of heathy looking out of area freaks that you'd need to go to a Museum to identify. Some of the small variety caught two or three at a time on the bait jigs, where we ran into a school looked like young Mangrove Jack. There was also a large number of shiny silver coloured mangrove fry skipping on the surface and there were a couple of diving birds diving down after the fry. The whole area on the downwind side of the bay was quite calm and it was certainly very fishy looking. Although we were resigned and restricted to doing the afternoon session in jewfish territory, the bream and flathead boys would have found plenty of good action in the shallower sections.

Around 5pm we noted that there were a good number of small local open boats who know what they are doing fishing for good fish in general and not necessarily jew, which would come right in there when the wind is blowing towards the shore near Molineaux, don't worry about that. Those boats were all rough and ready small set ups and were anchoring and appeared to be communicating together in the area downwind near the floating green marker buoy on the near side of Molineaux, destined to settle in for the night it seemed. So I pass this information on to other Botany Bay general fishermen and similiar conditions should be kept in mind for next time.

We were anchored at the fixed green marker I mentioned which leads into the main deepwater shipping container boat thoroughfare, where we had quite a few hard hits before a solitary kingfish followed one of the fillet baits back to the boat around 5pm. I had decided on all or next to nothing rigs on 8/0s and picked it just right to get plenty of good snaps and bends on the rods, the good bends and the next to nothing hook up rate, although the boys had already earned a good assortment of nice take home fish. I must say good determination and good work Brett and Kevin !! I was expecting to get sharks on the big slab baits with a chance to strike a fossicking school of jew coming in with the afternoon run in tide.

Sorry for the lack of pics but photos should have been taken of the variety of fish to give members an idea of the fish that can be caught in conditions like yesterday in that section of Botany Bay.

The night time jew session resulted in several legal tailor being caught, under float and chemical light because we were being slaughtered by bream on weighted jigs needed to hold in the current. The session was aimed at whatever bi catch that could take the big 8/0 hooks and lot of our live tailor and yellow tail were being constantly killed by bream.

During our jewfish session at Captain Cook Bridge, we finished up catching a good supply of legal size tailor to take home as quick start bait for next time which were all donated to me by Brett and Kevin. A good size soapie jew which ran hard and dropped off near the boat on a large prawn bait, appeared to be well hooked up by Brett on his own rod. That was bad luck as I really wanted the boys to catch a jewfish or two.

Yet another take home flathead was caught by Brett and his Dad and a fat, healthy 320mm bream in the pic below took one of the 8/0 barbs on a live yellowtail for my wife Shirl who only asked for one good sized bream this time and I got Shirl the fish she asked for, also wanting the boys to have any jewfish which were kept.

There were a lot of landbased jew fishermen at Captain Cook Bridge, some of whom I fish with myself. They were settled in with the long jew rods well spread and would have been fishing on till sun up as usual. I reckon had we started in the early evening and fished on till daybreak, we may have done well. Still with jewfish being as they are, you never can really be sure when they will hit but the fact is, as we all know, they will.

This is the only pic we managed to take on the day, we should have taken photos of the variety of take home fish as well for the report back. The foot long take home bream ordered by my wife Shirley hit my live yellow tail at CC Bridge only to get caught on the barb of the big 8/0 Mustad live bait tail hook on one of my two hook live bait jew rigs. We had a lot of livies hit around the eyes, nose and the mouth area and killed by bream.

While we're on the subject, a livie dead and rigid on the hook does not make an attractive bait and the bait should be trimmed up to expose the flesh and represented. It's a good idea to firmly break the backbone, slit the stomach section and open the flesh right thru to the tail and take the gills and guts out as well. You can expose more flesh by cutting out a long section of skin and a thin strip of flesh along the top of the livie in between the two snelled hooks. This presents a far more attractive bait than just having a dead fish sitting on the bottom to attract crabs and other vermin.

Overall I had a very good day fishing with Brett TunOfun and his Dad Kevin, and boys I know you'll both be primed up better for bay and estuary thinking for easier fishing and I am sure you'll be getting yourselves another good take home supply again next time.

Cheers

jewgaffer

Edited May 7, 2008 by jewgaffer

[fishhunter76]

Great report jewgaffer. As you said there are jewies out there, just when they hit you'll never know. Ill be out there sometime this week around botany cotainer wall hunting for them too. Anyway good luck next time Byron.

[brickman]

so much detail and all the little hints mate your a legend i have learnt more in 6months reading your posts than 15 years off rockhopping keep up the exellent reports

gary

[CR@ZY OS@M@]

nice report jewgaffer.

more pics would hae made a ten out of ten report though.

well done anyway

[arkedup]

Hi Byron

sounds like a good night of fishing shame the big jew werent there for you guys but thats the way it goes sometimes

Maybe that soapy went back down to tell his brothers that the Jew Gaffer is above and to beware

Looks like those possumereno gloves arrived from ebay just in time for the cold nights ahead

arked

[jewgaffer]

Hi Byron.........

.......Looks like those possumereno gloves arrived from ebay just in time for the cold nights ahead

arked

The gloves did arrive Grant . I ordered a full finger pair as well. They are very warm for fishing, light and comfy and easy to handle fish and easy to wear when doing rigs and cutting baits. Easy rinsable, quick dry and non rot material as well. They were developed for Alpine fishing in NZ and made out of posssum fur apparently and merino with polypropelene blended in. I got them from a seller in Tasmania and will be buying another lot while they are available at the price. I'm very happy with them to look after my hands as I get problems from cold air exposure in winter and summer nights as well.

They are NZ made fishing gloves and earn 10/10 compared with other fishing gloves Grant

Cheers

jewgaffer

[TunOFun]

Thanks for your company and expertise on Friday Byron.

It was a pleaseure to fish with you and a good time was had by all.

As always you were more than helpfull with your vast fishing knowledge.

We didnt get a jew but am looking forward to hitting the Hawkesbury with you in the near future to have another crack..

Those snags always do the job on a cold night, something hot in the guts.

Cheers Brett