Lizardboy Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 I just got back from one of those fishing trips that you never forget, my first taste of big river fishing of the NSW north coast. The place blew my mind, but it wasn't the size or the number of fish I encountered that impressed me so much it was the sheer beauty and pristine condition of rivers I fished. Before I left one of my mates had put me in touch with Aaron, an old friend from Grafton who he'd grown up with. All it took was one phone call and I had a place to crash and a local fisho to show me around. Over the course of a few days I fished the Clarence, the Nymboida and the Mann Rivers and I have to say that a canoe is the only way to properly experience these waterways. I got to take on rapids for the first time and even though I came un stuck, rolling the canoe on more than one occasion it was all part of the experience...you just have to be prepared for it by having things tied down and in waterproof containers where necessary. The Minn kota and battery seemed to handle be being briefly submerged just fine. I lost my baitcaster outfit briefly during a rollover, it was few seconds of panic before I spotted the gold frame glistening from beneath the shallow rapids. The fishing was good, but we had to work hard, I had a couple of fishless trips and our first session fishing the Clarence only yielded bass in the 25-30cm range. We did an overnighter on the Nymboida, camping on the river bank, the weather was perfect, many a beers was consumed as we told fishing yarns around the camp fire and after dinner the bass evaded us, but we had good fun catching and carefully releasing some small eastern cod on surface lures. Continued... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizardboy Posted April 6, 2005 Author Share Posted April 6, 2005 Continued... The water we fished was remarkably clear and I spotted everything from tortoises, eel tail catfish, Nepean herring and cod whilst cruising along in the canoe. At one stage we spooked a large cod from its snag and it headed off into the depths before cruising back right under the canoe to check us out. In a big eddy just below some rapids in another pool we looked down below us only to see three cod sitting under us, one of them followed us round for several minutes, sheltering under the shade of the canoes, but had no interest in our lures. The highlight of the trip was pulling my PB 51cm bass from one of the meanest looking snags I've ever seen, from a distance it just looked like a large fallen log, but on closer inspection the following day their was a whole lumber yard of timber involved. A large tree must have fallen from the cliff above and taken several other smaller trees with it when I fell, giving it a lattice type appearance. I'd been busted off, once the previous day fishing the same snag before upgrading my leader, tying on another Jackall and landing a nice 2.5kg cod. The next day I hooked up throwing to same snag within a couple of casts and with the powerful surging runs I was certain I was onto another cod, it wasn't until the fish was laying defeated beside the canoe that I yelled oh my... its a f$%king bass , then I remembered I'd left the net in the car and the barbless hooks looked to be only lightly pinning the fish, with a bit of luck I was able to slip in the lip grips on the first attempt in gently cradling her as I pulled her aboard for a few quick snaps. Thanks to all the fishraider members who pointed me in the right direction before I left. I'm already planning my next trip. Lizard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clutch Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 lizard, that pic of you holding the Bass says it all and that is some beautiful scenery. Glad you were able to keep the camera dry with those roll overs! Top pics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken A Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 Great report Lizard & a damn fine bass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffo Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 what a ripper of a trip, beautiful looking place. i must organise a trip like that some time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Byron Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 Top Stuff Gus!! Great report and I can feel the serenity just looking at the shots. Bet that awesome wild bass was just the icing on the cake on a memorable trip. Superb buddy!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hooky. Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 Well done there lizard, certainly looks like a great place to be Great pics as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jethro Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 Great report Lizardboy. Its an awesome part of the world. Great picture of the cod. I have fished the area a few times but never managed to get one I would be interested to hear what parts of the Clarence you fished. Did you get up to Copmanhurst?? Also did the guy you fished with mention anything about "The Gorge". I want to plan a trip to fish it and it would be handy to get some info on what we can expect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarkie Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 Great report Lizard, and well done on the pb bass. Can't wait to upgrade my pb to those sort of specs. Cheers, Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MarkD Posted April 7, 2005 Share Posted April 7, 2005 Excellent report and congrats on a fantastic Bass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jocool Posted April 7, 2005 Share Posted April 7, 2005 As the others have said...Great report! How about that snag ay? What a beauty! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lightweight Posted April 7, 2005 Share Posted April 7, 2005 That is one nice Bass... and a great report with great pics. It is good to hear that the environment up that way is well looked after and the rivers are in pristine condition. It also gives me belief that one day i may just land a 50cm Bass. LW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_lure Posted April 7, 2005 Share Posted April 7, 2005 Top Report and Pics Lizard, love that wild looking country Ill have to stop going South and Head North for a change cheers Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Narralakes Posted April 7, 2005 Share Posted April 7, 2005 What a great report of your adventure, congrats on the PB bass, that is a trophy fish for a wild river bass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Extasea Posted April 7, 2005 Share Posted April 7, 2005 Nice one Gussy! I'll have to make the next trip for sure Well done with all fish, accept where is my pic of the Herring that was requested?? anyway will now have to get to work to reclaim the biggest bass from you. . . i see many casts in the future should have told Azza NOT to take you to the best spots on your first Grafton trip Good luck on the weekend!! al Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizardboy Posted April 7, 2005 Author Share Posted April 7, 2005 Great report Lizardboy. Its an awesome part of the world. Great picture of the cod. I have fished the area a few times but never managed to get oneI would be interested to hear what parts of the Clarence you fished. Did you get up to Copmanhurst?? Also did the guy you fished with mention anything about "The Gorge". I want to plan a trip to fish it and it would be handy to get some info on what we can expect. 41103[/snapback] Cheers Guys Jethro, We mainly fished the Mann and the Nymboida that flow into the Clarence. I checked Copmanhurst out briefly, but ended up fishing a bit further upstream around the Lilydale bridge. The Gorge was mentioned and sounded amazing but I didn't get to fish it this trip. apparently the access point for the Gorge is private property, but the old bloke who runs the cabins there lets you launch and camp there for a small fee. The best thing to do when exploring on my own seemed to be...visit a local tackle store, buy some lures and a topographic map and get them]to point out the good spots and access roads. If you want to get to the real sweetwater you have to be prepared to do a put in and takout trip, covering several km's of river a dayfor few days, which I didn't get to do, but next time for sure with a little more planning. Extasea, Thanks for putting me in touch with Aaron...couldn't have worked out better Sorry about the herring i needed an excuse to go back. Lizard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffo Posted April 8, 2005 Share Posted April 8, 2005 lizard-how do the cooler months affect the fishing in these areas? was there alot of planning for this trip? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hookem_Herby Posted April 8, 2005 Share Posted April 8, 2005 Great work LB and what top pics mate. Congrats on the PB and getting a few fish in previously unfished/known territiory. Very good effort. Herby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizardboy Posted April 10, 2005 Author Share Posted April 10, 2005 lizard-how do the cooler months affect the fishing in these areas? was there alot of planning for this trip? 41498[/snapback] Jeffro, I'd say avoid it over winter and wait until spring, but the water was still warm, so it may fish well for a couple of months yet. It's big river country, The Clarence runs for miles and miles, much of the water I was fishing was a quite a way upstream, according to Aaron my host you tend to get larger bass, but not as many in these areas. A few bass may choose to hang around these areas over winter, as do the protected eastern cod as I understand it. but most of the bass would have started their annual pilgrimage downstream to the brackish, where they school up and breed. You could probably do ok over the cooler months if you fished the river closed to Grafton, but upstream may be a bit slow and I'm told the area gets quite cold over winter as does the river. There wasn't heaps of planning as I mainly did day trips and Aaron new and had fished many of the areas previously. There would be a lot more planning for a put in and take out canoe trip as you need to have cars at either end, and take a lot more beer...i mean gear :1prop. Gus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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