South Coast Travels

[Nicnat]

Packed the family off for a quick few days down the coast at Lake Tabourie. Weather was a bit crap and it was alternatively blowing a gale from either the NE or SE but managed to get a few sessions in the protected northern corner of the island where the sand meets the rocks. The scene of my first SP caught flathead earlier this year which went around 90cm, I was looking for a repeat performance. For those that don't know this area, you are fishing next to a finger of rock that extends north with generally a crystal clear sand bottom with just a few patches of weed and rock. The last couple of hours before low tide seems to get a lot of bait congregating in this corner with the predators not far behind.

To cut a long story short after quite a few salmon and flathead caught on pilchards by my 8yr son (Rod Hogger) I managed my second flathead on plastic. Not quite as big as the first but still a good fish at 72cm. Gave a great account of itself in 2 feet of water on 6lb gear. Had the 4inch Squidgie fish way down it's throat and bleeding profusely so ended up as dinner. Everything else went back to grow up a bit more until the next time we get there.

As an interesting aside, this spot produces both sand & dusky flatheads. The duskies are all good fish (50cm plus) and they sit had up against the rock patches in very skinny water and the sandies are all further out on the pure sand away from the rocks. These guys only average 30cm but you can get one every other cast.

Would have liked to show you a few more photos but we had to wade through a chest high channel in wetsuits to get across to the island so all non-essential items including cameras staid behind.

[jewgaffer]

..... For those that don't know this area, you are fishing next to a finger of rock that extends north with generally a crystal clear sand bottom with just a few patches of weed and rock. The last couple of hours before low tide seems to get a lot of bait congregating in this corner with the predators not far behind.

......As an interesting aside, this spot produces both sand & dusky flatheads...... These guys only average 30cm but you can get one every other cast.

....... we had to wade through a chest high channel in wetsuits to get across to the island so all non-essential items including cameras staid behind.

Hi Nicnat Well done on the sps! I know the island well, I used to get Shirl marooned there overnight when fishing for jew, telling her I didn't know that every tide would finish up being a huge king tide.

When my kids were little, mind you the oldest is over forty now, we used to stay in a caravan at the Tabourie turn off and fish around the Tabourie area every other weekend. At one stage we put a deposit on an older brick two storey house which had a view to the ocean between the trees in the backyard. It was on the highway not far from the caravan park where we check in, but we bought a block of land high up in Vincentia instead, only to have the new golf course car park built right behind where our back fence would have been. Went back later only to find the Tabourie house prices away from the old lake houses had near trippled

Dusky's get together in the estuaries from around the 300mm size and spawn in close outside. They must be as lively as rabbits and they travel along the coast and they'll move into any estuary to breed again where it best suits the females.

Cheers

jewgaffer

Edited December 6, 2008 by jewgaffer

[taloyoak]

nice looking lizard you got- well done!

[VA911]

You gota love that park.

I have been going down there since i can rember with the family and now on my own and with mates. There is some ausome fishing to be had on the island. You name it its there, Jews, kings, snapper, BIG groper, Huge salmon and have even landed a 80cm+ taylor from the rocks there.

Well done on the flatty.

Vince

[squid hunter]

yea it is a top spot isnt it

havent had much success myself though.. always seems to be too hard to access the island so ill prob be giving it a miss in the future

i did get this ripper mullet in the estuary earlier this year though..

Edited December 6, 2008 by squid_hunter

[brendong]

Great Spot is Tabaz!!!!

There are some monster hammer heads that live off the back of he island too. I've surfed there more than I've fished there but the island does look like it holds plenty.

Tell me - Is the lake still closed at the moment?

[Nicnat]

Poddy Trapper - yep we've done a lot of surfing there as well and the lake is still closed.

Jewgaffer - nice theory given to the Missus on being marooned. Not sure mine would take that so lightly

Squid Hunter - as the lake has been closed for a while there are many monster mullet in the lake. The kids chase them with prawn nets in the shallows and we put 2 out as live baits off the rocks. Both got crunched by small whaler sharks