syd harbour blackies with a nice bonus

[roosterman]

hi guys,

well due to the winds a trip wide for gemmies and tuna was canned and a backup plan to demolish the spawning blackies down the harbour was implemented...

last minute call out had Matt join me at sparrows fart down taronga zoo wall and burly and floats deployed.

matt was first to hook up so i left my rod and we eventually net the first fish then as i put net down i go to pick up my rod and bugger..... theres about 50 loops of line birdsnest and line goes from rod tip straight down to where my float should be ...... quickly sort line but this fish has well and truly buried my only float deep into the kelp .

after a bit of praying and coaxing the fishing gods return my float for me and im astounded i got it back... cracking weather and straight onto fish,looks like a nice day ahead.. well i wish it stayed like that but unfortunately the fishing was ok but weird fussy feeding and my conversion rate of downs took a hiding like the parra eels ... the downs came in patches and a few nice fish converted by me and Matt.. he called it a day mid morning and while packing up i started to get onto another good bite with better downs than previously and lost 2 very big fish due to pulled hooks as they tried burying me deep with locked up rod..bugger.. farewelled mat with a feed of fish not a bad morning but things just started hotting up.. i was hoping you were not gonna regret leaving mate but yep the downs kept going for an hr or so... some of the downs were absolute rockets and some especially my first 2 just sat on baits.. very hard to work it out when sooo varied but makes it all the better challenge.. was nearing packup timre as i knew that wind was due and had a couple of lost fish close in then bang im down good,set hook then all hell breaks loos again....... turn him twice but 3rd time he goes under wharf around pylon and im waiting for that pop.... with my 12 ft rod backwards under wharf i eventually steer him out nearly falling in as i try putting brakes on him but bugger got me deep in kelp...you got to be kidding .. i saw the bugger though and now knew i was in trouble.. after about 3 - 4 minutes of heatbreaking coaxing and basically resigned to losing it he swims free and into the deep... :yahoo:i yell as i am now back in the ring with a chance,albeit with prob badly damaged 10lb line/6lb leader. by now he is pretty much slower and as i get him swimming back in i drop net in his path and wooshka... woooooohoooooo and a little crowd watching it all unfold cheer and congratulate me .. little were they aware of how great this moment was though..this fish answered why some of the downs we were missing no matter how early/late we hit em... a aprox 40cm sergeon .. after re-rigging up i got one more blackie then the wind hit so called it quits..

my tally for the day was about 15 - 16 fish between 40 to just legal and one trophy sergeon on luderick gear. kept 8 for a feed and told the others i will hopefully meet them another day..... some of the ones i cleaned had no food in em and all showed signs of spawning.. a great day out and home by 1pm with a good feed..

plan "B" was a great success...

cheers....steve.....

[prawn*]

sounds like a fun day thats a good size surgeon!! i love watching people get snapped off fishing the piers for them when i target them i use 50lb braid 40lb leader so i can stop them i was sick of getting snapped off they go like guided misiles when they are 30+cm ive seen some monsters surgeons in the harbour

[james7]

Gotta love Plan B Steve!

Top day and plenty of fish!

I've never caught a surgeon, but have heard tales of their power.

Well done getting one on blackie gear.

Cheers

Peter

[luderick -angler]

Steve,

On the spawning ru it started about 4 - 5 weeks ago as we were getting good fish but not a lot around Watsons Bay and Camp Cove I think they werethe first trickle then all of a sudden 2 weeks ago bang the harbour is full of them especially around the kelp beds on the Noth Side and lower harbour south side! Yesterday we got fish as far up as Ryde and big fish so should be a cracking sumer in the harbour and off the stones provided they hang around, incidentlly I checked Dad's old diaries from years ago and this run co-incides with those diaries same places same time of year! I actually predicted to my amte Scrubby (fellow fishraider) this would happen.

Anyways mate well done on th fish at theZoo and on the wrong tide too for there traditionally!

Cheers

[stormy]

Good one Steve. I went last week (further south of Sydney) and the fish were very timid, just sitting on the baits. Going out again today, to take a newbie under my chicken wing and try to show him a bit of what I have learnt over the years. He has already departed from my advice though and bought a threadline. Not to worry. What does your diary say about runs in my neck of the woods, L.A?

[macman]

Was a very nice morning out, Steve was great company. The fish were timid on the bite though and very hard to work out any sort of pattern and depth, they were all over the place. I'd never fished the zoo and its been years since I have fished that deep, all of my spots these days are less than a rod length. I was tagging along and Steve provided the weed AND the berley, Thanks again Steve.

Matt

[roosterman]

Steve,

On the spawning ru it started about 4 - 5 weeks ago as we were getting good fish but not a lot around Watsons Bay and Camp Cove I think they werethe first trickle then all of a sudden 2 weeks ago bang the harbour is full of them especially around the kelp beds on the Noth Side and lower harbour south side! Yesterday we got fish as far up as Ryde and big fish so should be a cracking sumer in the harbour and off the stones provided they hang around, incidentlly I checked Dad's old diaries from years ago and this run co-incides with those diaries same places same time of year! I actually predicted to my amte Scrubby (fellow fishraider) this would happen.

Anyways mate well done on th fish at theZoo and on the wrong tide too for there traditionally!

Cheers

that diary of yr old mans would make some mighty fine reading,wish my one woulda wrote it down but he used to say its all up here(pointing to head) bloody no good to me as he is no longer with us.....

only started again on em 2 weeks ago after a long break and found them fussy one mid week morning sth side harbour got 2 legals in 2 hrs.. got a couple nice ones down georges too...ol mate told me couple weeks ago slaying em upriver..

ive found zoo fires on top half run up till rundown. gotta catch up for a fish soon..

cheers...steve....

[roosterman]

Was a very nice morning out, Steve was great company. The fish were timid on the bite though and very hard to work out any sort of pattern and depth, they were all over the place. I'd never fished the zoo and its been years since I have fished that deep, all of my spots these days are less than a rod length. I was tagging along and Steve provided the weed AND the berley, Thanks again Steve.

Matt

was great morn out there Matt and with the varied downs makes it very challenging..

was a pitty the downs were very fussy but i think it was because there was mixed schools there of small fish(for this spot) and sergeons barging in every now an then...

that spot is notorious for sergeons and pigs.

the one i lost as you came over with net was either a pig or big blackie as when i turned him from under i saw him scoot out wide till hook pulled and was prob mid to high 40's . the other couple who buried me deep into kelp were prob big sergeons/pigs but will never know..

challenging days like that are soooo rewarding but if ya dont convert any then its sooo devastating on confidence ... thx for the company mate....