fishmaniac Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Hey all, With the forecast for a southerly yesterday afternoon a mate and i decided to head offshore for dolphin fish (as opposed to pushing it wide in searching for YFT). With the push of warm water and reports of many dollies we thought we would give it a go with 2kg of pilles. It was absolutely insane. So much so that I was personally getting sick of catching the poor buggers by the end of the session. First stop was the sydney FAD. It held many fish and they followed the boat for about 1km on the first drift. They were taking pilles like there was no tommorrow. My mate had a bait not even in the water yet as he was undoing a small tanglke and the dollie broke the surface in an attempt to grab the bait that was suspended above the water !!!!!! We then went to the waverider bouy which held 3 times as many boats yet not many dollies. We decided to then troll towards 12 mile to pick up some stripies. We managed three stipies overall on small pink jet head skirts. We did not make it to 12 mile after running across some fish trap bouys (or personal FADs) where we found masses of dolphin fish. We then caught heaps of dollies, at this stage it became pure catch and release after attaining ou bag limit on keepers. These fish wich were caught about 15km out were of a bigger class than those around the sydney fad which is only 8km out. We then trolled home as we cleaned the fish. About 2km out from North head on the way in i see a school of dollies free jump past the back of the boat. In due course (that being a matter of seconds later) both rods went off. These dollies were small and went back. Overall the day was crazy. We both managed to catch the same one fish. We thought it had crossed lines. Turns out the greedy fella took both baits and had both hooks in his mouth!!! We caught well in excess of 100 fish. We lost count at around 80. I tried tossing around some small metals and they were not interested. Although we did pick some up on skirts, the most productive method was cubed pilles hands-down. 8lb main line with 30lb foulorcarbon leader. I would have downsized to 12lb if they were picky but the heavy stuff made hoisting over the side of the boat much easier. Some fish fought hard and showed some great air displays where as some just came straight to the boat. I still prefer a session on harbour kingies though Cheers, Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman5 Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Great work mate!!! We were going to do the same as you yesterday but the 15/20knot Southerly forecast put an end to that plan What were the seas like out there anyway?? cheerz fisho5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Well done Andrew, sounds like a top day , Those Dollies sure are thick at certain spots at the moment, even better yet they taste great. penguin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmaniac Posted May 10, 2009 Author Share Posted May 10, 2009 Hey Penguin, Yea there are plenty around! You did well on the dollies yourself recently!! Fisho 5, We did not go wide due to the approaching southerly that was forecast for that afternoon. The chop was bad at first light coming from the SW. About 1m or so of chop at the FAD. The wind eased as the day progressed and the swell was long. It actually turned out to be a good day! Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim77 Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Great work Andrew I am very envious. I have had a couple of good sessions on the Dollies my self this season but not as crazy as yours by the sound of it. Weather and work commitments plus the fact that my usual offshore fishing buddy Fishbones has been tied up with work as well, has meant that i haven't been out for a while. I'm hoping to get out again before the water cools off and they disappear again. Fresh dollie fillets mmmmmmm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeh191 Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Great catch there Andrew, Heading out tomorrow morning hoping to find some bulls and maybe some kings. Hope the weather is kind to us tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim77 Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Good luck if you get out Mike! You must be itching to give your boat a run. Let me know how you go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the one that got away Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Nice catch there fishmaniac! Any pics?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexit Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Nice work on the dollies mate tell me you didn't do that trip in your tinny Andrew? alex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercer007 Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Wow, what a session. Would have loved to have been there with you guys.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmaniac Posted May 11, 2009 Author Share Posted May 11, 2009 Nice work on the dollies mate tell me you didn't do that trip in your tinny Andrew? alex Hey alex, I did not go out there in the tinnie mate, at least not with that forecast!!!! We were in a 6.5m sea legend. A bit more of a safer option. See you on the water soon!!! Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishin.kiddo Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Lots of fun right there. Seem to be lots of reports about abundant amounts of dollies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
searunner525 Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 Sounds like theres good numbers of dollies around at the moment i think i might have to chuck a sickie and get out there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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