arpie Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 (edited) Hi all I made a quick trip down to Wisemans on Wed to meet up with Pete/Tide'n'knots & have a go at Jewie fishing his favourite spots! Last year in Oct, we only managed smaller versions of the fabled jewie, so had high hopes of me getting into a legal fish or two, this trip! I arrived in the early afternoon & within 1hr of setting up camp, the boat was in the water & we were on our way! Well, almost ...... first I had to go back to camp & get into some clean gear, as the extreme tides had left a 2cm layer of mud all over the boat ramp & rocks. As I tried to manoeuvre the boat into a better position for gettin into, I slipped on the ramp, landing on my butt on the rocks, with mud all over my trousers & jacket & sleeves! oooooops! The water was still chocolate brown with 'waves' of brown mud, suspended in the water, wafting past the boat. I hadn't seen that in a long time! heading out After reaching our first spot, we anchored up & set the 'rod station' up with 3 rods each, each baited with lovely Hawkesbury prawns, that have been peeled! Pretty soon, I was onto the first jewie of the day, but it was a small one & went back. I am always amazed at the gorgeous colour of jewies when they are straight out of the water - almost a mauve tinge all along the spine area. BEWDIFUL! We both caught a few small ones, then Pete also got a legal one, and then I got a nice flattie that was about 53cm. Happy with that!! Then I get a better hit & I come up with my first legal Hawkesbury Jewie. Not a huge one, but still good to get. Some minutes later, Pete's rod goes off & he initially he thought it was an 'ok' fish, then, when it saw the boat, it peeled off line, trying to get away. It had been caught on the left hand side of the boat & had worked its way across the other 5 rods & lines & was now on the right hand side of the boat, resisting capture. I thought it a good idea to pull in my rod that was closest to the fish, so it didn't get caught up with the fish. Wouldn't you know it, as I am pulling it in, my line starts bouncing too & I can feel the weight of a fish on it ...... a nice fish. As both of us retrieved line, I said to Pete - I bet I have just foul hooked your fish ........ and put the rod down to grab the net, to assist in the landing of Pete's fish. Just as I put the rod down, the lines went in two totally different directions & simultaneously, we both knew that there were 2 good fish on, not just the one!! Unfortunately, my line had crossed Pete's & being the lighter of the two, went PING!! My good fish was GORN! Ne'er mind, the good news was that Pete's was still on ...... so we netted it & it was a beauty - 8lb! Pete's 8lb jewie Interestingly enough, on one rod, I used a circle hook that was snelled and every fish it caught was hooked in the corner of the mouth, making it easy to release the fish unharmed, as they usually just inhale the whole prawn & the hook is further down, requiring it to be cut off, to release the fish relatively unharmed. Give it a go one day ...... it works!!! Just remember - you have to let the fish hook itself tho - you mustn't strike! Sure, once you feel the weight of the fish on the line, perhaps give it a 'jerk' to set it firmly - just don't rip it from his mouth! Even if totally swallowed, assuming they are tied correctly with the snell, they are designed to slide back up the throat of the fish & lodge in the corner of the fish's mouth. Drag this jpeg onto your desktop & put it in your fishing folder, as a reminder of how to tie them! We up anchored at about 9.30pm and headed home for some dinner! TBone steak & fried rice. Yum. We had to be happy with the evening's fishing ..... my catch the day's catch We were up bright & early the next morning at 5.30am and headed back to the same spot ........ we got some small jew & then started pulling in catfish & eels, as well as heaps of weed. Pete's trick with the catties & eels is to hold the fish over the side & cut the line so the fish falls directly back into the water, without even touching it. Unfortunately, one effort resulted in the knife just hitting the line & the fish fell from the hook, back into the boat, via my foot! Holy Crap, Batman!! I bled like a stuck pig, and then the heat/ache started!! Luckily Pete had a thermos of hot water on board & promptly poured some over the bleeding wound & I didn't know what was worse - the pain from the cattie or the pain from the hot water! I then applied pressure & finally the bleeding stopped. It ached a bit, but was fine. Next day, the bloke in the next camp reckoned I was lucky I could even walk!!! Cam/Sails arrived late on Thurs afternoon, just as we were about to launch the boat for the afternoon fish ..... so we headed out again! Pete didn't know that we were a family of fishaholics! Sails in winter mode Once again, we got into the eels & catties & the occasional flattie & jewie (mainly throwbacks) ..... all good fun tho. Pete got a nice legal flattie & I think another legal jewie. It was a lovely evening to be out on the water, even tho the fish weren't active that night. We all 'missed' the odd strike, some were better than others, but the hooks just wouldn't hold. We up-anchored after 9pm & headed back to camp for some fresh crumbed Jewie with vegetable fryup that was really yummy!! I'd forgotten how nice jewie is! (Mainly because I have only caught/kept 2 in the 10 years I have been up here in Forster!) The red wine went down well too, thanks Cam! heading home Fri morning & we are up at 5.30am again, to a thick fog! We had a leisurely breakfast & headed upstream to 'the spot' and had another go at catching Hawkesbury Jews! The tide was already running out pretty quickly & Pete had noticed that they were biting better on the turn of the high tide just now, rather than half way thru the out tide. Also, the weed was really becoming a pain, wrapping around all our lines - the after effect of all the heavy rain from a week or so ago. The mist rolled in again & created an eerie effect .... misty morning We decided to pack it in & return home to have a quick bite to eat, re launch & just give the flick sticks a go ..... before I had to pack up to return home. Pete thought he had a hit with his blade, then promptly lost it to a snag! We cast to the boats & shoreline with no success, but it was just terrific being out on the water with both Pete & Cam, enjoying the serenity ........ errrr that was apart from the odd profanity that occurred with the line fouled round the lure, or the boat was drifting towards the rocks, or when another cattie or eel was landed ....... hey!! All Good Boatie Language! We thought we'd found some Trawler net all caught round a submerged tree trunk & tried to untangle it ..... and found that it was an elaborate crab or eel pot! Never seen one like this before!! It was very well constructed & had a long netted area for the eels/crab to go to once they'd got past the metal structure! weird eel/crab pot Then we headed back to camp for me to pack up, Pete to have a nanna nap & Cam to ponder his next fish! I had a terrific drive home & was not home long when I got an SMS from Pete saying that Cam had just landed a 64cm jewie! Well done Cam!! Grrrrr!!! Can't wait to read both their reports!! Cam will be heading home this afternoon & Pete heads home tomorrow morning. Just as well, as the Bridge to Bridge is on tomorrow!! Cheerio for now Roberta Keith & I are heading up north next week for a prolong trip along the coast .... oh yeah - Keith is doing the Byron bay triathlon next weekend, too! Looking forward to meeting up with Jewhunter & Slinky along the way, too! Edited May 2, 2009 by Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jewhunter Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Great report Roberta & what a nice bag of fish as well. Shame about the larger model getting away. Sounds like you had a fun session with Pete. He sure knows that area well. Looking forward to catching up for a couple of sessions next week. Cheers, Grant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew399 Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Nice work as usual Roberta! Sounds like a good session! So do circle hooks only work when tied with a snell? Iv been using the lighter gauge ones for a while on flatties and bream, all the flatties were hooked corner of the mouth but only about 50% of my bream have been, but i have been tieing with a blood or uni knot. Might give this snell a go! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenno64 Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Great read as always Roberta and good to see some nice fish caught! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.dawg Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Great report Congrats on all the fish and very nice jewwies you guys hav caught Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 2, 2009 Author Share Posted May 2, 2009 (edited) Hi Dicko The circles work more efficiently when tied by the snell, especially when on heavier line. As you can see by the diagram, the point of the hook is pointing towards the eye, whereas most hooks, the point is pointing to the sky and it also isn't 'kirbed' (got a slant on the pointy end) like many hooks. The stronger line also makes the whole hook sit at a specific angle as well, so less likely again to gut hook the fish. When snelled correctly, even if the fish swallows it right down, the shank of the hook will slide back up the gullet/throat till it reaches the mouth, where it usually turns & hooks the fish in the corner of the mouth. BUT YOU MUSTN'T STRIKE WHEN THE FISH BITES! You must leave the rod in a rod holder & allow the fish to take the bait, turn & run with it. It is only when the hook reaches the mouth that your rod buckles to show the registered hit & then you pick it up & play the fish. If you are holding the rod & strike as soon as you feel a nibble, chances are you'll either gut hook it or pull it out of its mouth. If you are a 'striker', just use a regular hook. Maybe also have 2 rods going - the circle hook in the rod holder & the other one more 'pro active' in your hand The circle hook I was using was an old Kiwi one that was really thick (good enough for tuna) and it still caught thejewies in the corner of the mouth. Even smaller ones, & they were all released easily & I retained the hook (until a bloody eel got it & I couldn't be bothered trying to retrieve it!) Good luck - let us know how you go cheerio Roberta Edited May 2, 2009 by Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glennmreid Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Great report Roberta. Good to see you had a great time and got into some good fish. You would think with the recent rain this would put the fish off the bite. That isn't always the case. Circle hooks sounds like the way to go. Amazing how they always hook the corner of the jaw, making the release of a fish much easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray R Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Hi Roberta, that was an action packed few days, good onya for getting your jewie and bad luck about your foot , I believe they give you quite a nasty jab. Just a short time at home , stock up on some gear and off you go again.. Enjoy your next trip and hope Keith does well in his Byron Triathlon.. Cheers.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spinner Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 sounds like an amazing trip, ive been to the hawksberry a few times with no success. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berleyguts Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Great report, Roberta. I've got a van at Wiseman's Ferry but have mainly been learning to ski behind my friend's boat and haven't put the punt in yet. Hopefully I'll give it a bash soon. Were you fishing below the ferry? My van is upstream from the Webbs Creek Ferry (opposite Del Rio) and I think it's a fair way down (in the punt) to the better looking water below the Wisemans Ferry. Baz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 2, 2009 Author Share Posted May 2, 2009 Hi Baz We were staying at the Ski Association Caravan Park & had to go past both ferries downstream to get to Pete's spots. Well worth making contact with him, so that if you ever co-incide a trip to the river with him, it would be worth going out with him! I know it was somewhere between Wisemans and Spencer (closer to Wisemans!) I am shocking on details! I know I'd recognise it again if I saw it tho! Cheerio Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WANNAFISH Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Very good and very educational report Roberta. May more jewies come your way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slinkymalinky Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Great few sessions Roberta... you all sure look rugged up. I'm really starting to appreciate being up here at this time of year... I'm heading out tomorrow with JH and apart from a vest pre-dawn I'll still be in shorts and short-sleeved shirt. Shame you lost your better Jewie. You, JH and I are really living the 'one that got away' stereotype at the moment Some beautiful fish though and a great read. Cheers, Slinky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erroll Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Roberta, another entertaining post as as usual a terrific result. well done. cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 2, 2009 Author Share Posted May 2, 2009 ....you all sure look rugged up...... hehehe I was the lucky one - I had the electric blanket on my bed! Warm as! I offered my '12v electric throw rug' to Pete, but he was adamant that he was warm enough ........ It was very cold when we were underway, early in the morning & late in the evening. The old waterproof jacket helped cut down the windchill factor tho. The Wonderscarf came into its own, tho! It was a new experience for me, cooking dinner at 10pm at night tho! They tell you that if you eat & go to bed, you'll have a belly ache .... not so! Ask Pete about his sinus problem tho ....... Cheerio Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roosterman Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 well done on getting into them roberta .. that water sure looks muddy though... bugger about your foot hope its all good now... cheers....steve.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berleyguts Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Hi Baz We were staying at the Ski Association Caravan Park & had to go past both ferries downstream to get to Pete's spots. Well worth making contact with him, so that if you ever co-incide a trip to the river with him, it would be worth going out with him! I know it was somewhere between Wisemans and Spencer (closer to Wisemans!) I am shocking on details! I know I'd recognise it again if I saw it tho! Cheerio Roberta Thanks Roberta. I think I know the area from another post... down near the wind sock, perhaps. A few weeks back, I cruised down there in my mate's boat for a look. Nice fishy looking water. It took about 20 minutes to cruise back to Carinya at 30mph, so I guess it would take a while in my punt with 6hp! Still, worth it when I have the time, I guess. Cheers, Baz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted May 2, 2009 Author Share Posted May 2, 2009 Hi Baz We did the wind sock as well, for no joy, only more catties! On a good day it is good for bream etc, apparantly! Cheerio Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussie big bob Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Roberta Great read and the cattie sounded realy painfull. Cant wait to read your reports from up north if you get to do some fishing. Cheers Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hodgey Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 Great report Roberta. That's a nice mixed bag. Fresh fillets caught alongside the water they came from ..... delicious Sounds like everyone got onto some fish. Cam was just waiting for you to take off before he hit his straps! Good luck to Keith in his up-coming comps and best of luck on the water mate. Look forward to the report(s) when you get back. Cheers Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quaddy Posted May 3, 2009 Share Posted May 3, 2009 Great report Roberta. Thanks for taking the time. The water still dirty????Think i may delay my north coast trip another month or so. Very interested in the set up of the tinny. Am currently bringing mine up to scratch. Have fun at the triathalon, man I do not miss doing those. All that time training when I should have been fishing or surfing ha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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