arpie Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 Hi guys Gdcalmer & I have been looking forward to getting out onto the lake with some other yakking mates this weekend ...... we wanted to try new lures & fishing methods to catch those pesky bream! We arrived at Pipers Bay mid morning on Fri to find some other yaks were out & about already, so we popped our yaks in (Wendy was using my Minnow as she is still searching for her own ...) and we started fishing the creek by the Campground. Pretty quickly, Wendy is onto a nice flattie. I go in search of mullet, after not being able to raise a single 'blurp' on lures or poppers! At this stage, I was not happy!! However, I found another lovely reflections shot ... I left Wendy in the creek & headed over towards the Channel that takes you to The Keys & tossed poppers & lures around with gay abandon .... It was very shallow, so the fish finder was going off every minute or two, warning me of the shallows ..... and of my presence to every fish within a very wide parameter! I had a few bloops & follows & a couple of long toms went ballistic trying to catch my lure ..... how they ever get a feed, I'll never know, as they can't seem to catch a fairly slow lure, let alone a fast moving fish! Then, my lure went backwards & it took me a second to realise that a squid had tried to hijack it!! I tried to reel him in, but after 3 attempts to kidnap my lure, he gave up! I continued along the channel into the bay across from the Keys & saw some schools of mullet playing around. They weren't interested in my lure & nor were the bream! Over Christmas/New Year, the bream were going nuts over the poppers at that same spot!! Ne'er mind. It was a lovely day & I headed back towards the creek, where Wendy had another flattie in her bag. She offered me some bait & I SUCCUMBED TO TEMPTATION!! I also caught a fish!! (Not that I am very proud of it .....I think the hook was bigger than the fish! ) Most yakkers were planning on fishing the bay in front of the campground on Sat Morning, but due to our 'not real good results' the day before, Wendy & I decided to try the shallows in & around the Breckenbridge Channel. I think we made the right decision! 7am looms & Wendy & I are the only ones on the water there! The water is surprisingly clear, as the tide is nearing the top of the tide - given how dirty it had been just days earlier ...... I made my way over to the shallows behind the island & Wendy headed up towards the boatsheds in the Breckinbridge Channel. On my 2nd throw (with a home made lure! ) I score a big long tom!! At least I've caught something! A lure that had worked the day before looked a bit like the top of a pen, so I went home & had a go at duplicating it! I think it needs to be a bit more Waterproof tho .... A few casts later & I hook onto an energetic fish ..... I called it for a flattie, as he was ducking & diving .... so I was surprised when a reasonable sized Blackie popped up ..... on my Chubby!!! Things are looking good!! During the next hour or 3, I caught about 6 bream, missed a few, & dropped even more! I had the chubby tied on with a loop knot & couldn't be bothered cutting the line, changing to poppers etc, so decided to stick with the one lure for the rest of the session! I also landed a flattie & a pike! Talk about a variety of fish taking lures!! The tide was turning & The wind had come up, so it was time to pedal around to the front of the island & try the channel there .... on the falling tide! Casting towards the weed beds in front of the Boardwalk, I had an instant hit for a small bream & the next cast, WHACK!! It was pulling me around in a circle ..... the bloke fishing on the boardwalk was amazed ..... 2 fish in two casts! He upped & left ...... but then again, So did the fish! A quiet patch followed! Wendy & some other yakkers appeared & started fishing the same area & a variety of fish were hooked or lost .... Wendy had wrestled with a magnificently conditioned 39cm bream that she had caught on mullet! She was stoked! Other yakkers were in attendance & offering encouragement as it took about 4 mins to subdue the monster! Beautiful fish! I also donated my 32.5cm fish to Wendy's bag, for a feed for her parents. I hooked about 5-6 'just legals' whilst on the Little St side of the island ..... including one right in front of the Red Spot Boat Hire place. Bream often congregate there, as they toss out any leftover worms or prawn bait that had 'gone off' from the day before ....... keep that in mind next time you fish Forster ..... One guy gave us all crabs ..... of the nicest variety ..... soldier crabs!! He found them scurrying across the sand on the island & gave chase! Huge soldier crabs, too! Not the tiny ones I have seen in more recent years! Soon, it was time to head home & we packed up our gear, planning to repeat the session on Sunday morning! Wendy had caught another nice bream, so with mine as well, that brought the tally to 3 kept ones & a fine dinner that night! Sunday morning & some yakkers who had fished the shallows in front of the campground had been disappointed with big wind & little (or no) fish, so most were planning on hitting the Breckinbridge Channel, along with Wendy & I! One guy was talking about throwing some lures around one of the leases ...... we all know what happens when you do that!! 7am & Wendy & I are pretty well the first ones on the water there ..... nice clear water, rising tide, fish to catch! I immediately make my way to the shallows I'd fished the day before & put the same lure on ..... figuring, if they liked it yesterday, they'll like it today! Well, they did!! After about 15 mins I had my first fish in the yak - a nice fat bream. Then I dropped 4 or 5! One was a very nice one, but it rolled in the weedbed & got the treble caught in it, so he managed to escape! I would have loved to have seen him! Other yakkers had joined Wendy & I as we probed the sandbeds in & around the weedbeds. Then I headed to another weedbed right near a lease, where I caught some nice bream as well! All were in top condition, if not overly large! I was just pleased to be catching .... on my (now) favourite Chubby ... the other two I bought rarely saw the light of day! Then, I hooked onto a really large Pike that gave me a lot of curry ..... jumping around & performing triple axels in the air - quite the Olympic Performer!! I had the rod across my knee as I tried to subdue this monster of the shallows, when it jumped, causing my rod & reel to go into the drink! Nooooo!!!! I got them back on board (as they were still attached to the bloody Pike) & tried to subdue it once more ..... it jumped again & this time, impaled my thumb on one of the lure barbs ...... whilst it was still bouncing around, driving it home even further!! You Mongrel, I screamed (or words to that effect ..... Rod was getting used to my vocabulary by now .... he was close enough when I lost the other 4 fish! I was in a quandry .... my reel was full of salt water & the rod across my legs, sticking out both sides of the yak, my left hand was almost strangling the pike whilst my right hand was trying to avoid moving anywhere, to prevent further damage & pain to an already sore & bleeding thumb that had the barb buried up to the bend!!! Greg to the rescue ..... I had a small set of pliers in my top pocket, attached to bungy cord & he gamely reached for those, across the tangle of arms, fish & rod! He bravely got the pliers in place & after the first attempt didn't work, we got the angle better & the barb came out! Not to bad at all, really! Thank god it was a smallish hook!! I threw the pike in the water, where it valiantly tried to revive itself .... & eventually swam off with a very sore neck ..... Rod gave me some of his precious fresh water to douse down my reel, which by now was sounding very sick & didn't want to turn much at all! I was amazed at how quickly the effect salt water has on the internal workings of a reel! Not Good!! All up, I must have caught about 8 bream & the pike & I hadn't resorted to bait at all today! It was quite a pleasant morning's fishing! Wendy had been fishing a different area, but had had some hits on lures, which has whetted her appetite for lures, whereas most if not all of her fish had come from bait .... the ever terrific humble Mullet strip!! Another mid 30's bream again today! Unless anyone had bettered her 39cm bream from Saturday, Wendy caught the biggest Bream!! Go girl!! By now it was almost lunchtime & my reel needed a drastic bath in Inox or Lanox, so I called it quits for the day, as did Wendy! We'd fished an average of 5-7 hrs for both Sat & Sunday, plus 4-5hrs on Fri, so were pretty well 'all fished out'!! I left my yak in Wendy's capable hands, so she can indulge in a little water sport whilst I am away .... Keith & I are heading off to Byron Bay next week for the annual triathlon & I will take my rod with me (test out the reel at least.) I think I'll be having a quiet time of it at Byron, lounging around, reading & checking out the shops ....... saving up my energy for a bit of blackie fishing at Yamba on the way back home! I had a lot of fun & am now more confident in catching bream on lures than ever! I caught more on the one hb this week than I have on sps in the last 4 years! Thanks for the encouragement & instructions, Hodgey & Krazy!! Cheerio Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirks Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 great report there roberta hopefully in the june holidays we will catch up and get out in the yak and get some fish. Kirks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 4, 2008 Author Share Posted May 4, 2008 Hi Kirks Make sure you bring a couple of chubbys Cheerio Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brickman Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 all the cool pics and a great report just makes me want a yak the hole stelth mode thing would be a blast it's just being that close to the water freaks me out some what keep up the good work ladys gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussie big bob Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 Roberta Great report and pic's. With all the work on at the moment . I only get to read what others are catching till work drops off. So keep them coming as i realy do enjoy reading them. cheers bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roosterman Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 great report roberta.. well done to you and Gdcalmer .. i thought i was right there with you reading that ... then i snapped out of it as me in a yak would not be a good idea .. amazing how that luderick hit your hb..thats the second one in recent times i have heard of... so the lakes all cleaned up now eh... keep the reports coming,,,,may make me want to visit the outlaws and sample some of those forster fishies ... cheers...steve.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 4, 2008 Author Share Posted May 4, 2008 (edited) Shouldn't be long now till the big silvers come in to play, Steve! Give me a yell if you come up! I heard rumours that one gun was getting into some good ones last week ..... but the water was still pretty dirty, so a good sign, if true!? Look forward to Yamba again - had fun with the blackies there last year. Cheerio Roberta We can go out in the yak & attack the rack blacks! Edited May 5, 2008 by Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewgaffer Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 Great report Roberta You and Wendy are going extremely well as a team that's for sure. The way these lures are working we might even see the last days of blackfish weed with all these great lures you've discovered. Keep a note of the latest and hottest lure models for us when I go up there and stay with old Syd next time ay. Cheers jewgaffer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hodgey Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 Great report as usual Roberta! That is a very nice reflection shot! I was thinking about you on Saturday, wondering if the bream were being kind to you and your yakking mates. An older bloke I knock around with has had a lot of success recently on a Cordell Lure in identical colors as your Chubby. (Guess I'll be buying more tackle again this week ) Hope your reel survives its 'swim' alright. You scored a nice variety of fish in what appeared to be great conditions on the water. Gotta be happy with that! Congrats to all, Hodgey P.S: reckon your 'pen-top' lure has merit. Let me know what you finish up with! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 4, 2008 Author Share Posted May 4, 2008 Hi Hodgey I bathed the reel in inox & a lanox lookalike ..... it felt much better. May get it serviced, tho - I am not good at pulling reels apart - they always end up in a worse state than they started out! Here are the original prototypes of my Pen Lure ..... They need some waterproofing & tweaking, but I reckon the ridgey one will work a treat!! Cheerio Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james7 Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 Loved reading your report Roberta. It's just like being there. Some good bream caught and the photos were excellent. It makes me feel like giving yakking and lure fishing a go some time, although that I doubt I have the patience. Cheers and thanks Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Plenty of fish caught there Roberta, if only I could get out and fish as often as u do, I'd think I died and went to heaven penguin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 5, 2008 Author Share Posted May 5, 2008 (edited) Hi Penguin & Peter hehehehe .... better move to Forster - there is always somewhere within 5 mins paddle of anywhere that is out of the wind, no matter what direction it is coming from!! The weed beds are producing lots of bream - saw a guy in a boat get heaps on mullet - fishing like Wendy virtually unweighted excep,t maybe, a swivel. If you haven't tried yak fishing, give it a go!!! You don't have to paddle far to get fish! If you hire a yak, just take 30ft of line & a dumbell with you (as an anchor ..... don't forget to tie it to something before you throw it in .... ...... I've seen people do it twice .... in a row!! ) It really is stealth fishing at its greatest, plus you can get into leases & away from boat wash. Patience isn't really required - I don't normally travel further than a 10min paddle from base & I am in to some top fish. I reckon you'd have all the skills required, Peter - tossing lures or using baits - you'll get good results, because you tend to really prospect each area really really well, rather than spending most of your day moving from one spot to another in a stink boat! That is where the hobies come into their own - you toss the lure whilst you are either travelling or holding your ground in a light (or heavier) current! Hands Free pedalling/paddling! Brilliant!! If you haven't tried one, take your rod & lures down when you do! That is what I did in Husskisson last year .... & within weeks was arranging the purchase of my Hobie! My 'sit in' gets equal use as the hobie - but for this weekends fishing, I couldn't have done it as well in the sit in. Hobie Outback for sale for $1600 in Sydney by a Fishraider! http://fishraider.com.au/Invision/index.php?showtopic=29788 Cheerio Roberta And after a day on the water, you are tired but not stuffed!! Edited May 5, 2008 by Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewgaffer Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Loved reading your report Roberta. It's just like being there...... Cheers and thanks Peter Ditto Roberta. Reading one of your reports it is just like being up there fishing with you. You and Wendy have a good chance of catching a jewfish or two right now by the look of things up your way. Old Bar has been producing school jew off the beach. Forster sounds near perfect after the rain for having a good go at the jew as well, with the run in tides cleaning the area up nicely while bringing the debris feeders on in the dirty water. I reckon it might be worthwhile doing a session with Wendy in the Quintrex, anchoring around the wall near the mouth one night during the present mid evening run out tide. Have the larger mullet schools been coming into Forster as yet? Cheers jewgaffer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 5, 2008 Author Share Posted May 5, 2008 Hi Jewgaffer, I think the Pros have been cleaning up on the mullet recently - I know the jewies have been 'going off'!!! It'd be fun dealing with the problems of landing one, tho! Cheerio Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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