Early Winter H&C Bay

[jdanger]

A month or two ago, one of the young locals who I bump into occasionally mentioned he was getting excited for upcoming winter salmon which cruise up into the back of the bay through winter. I've been fishing for less than a year so I was pretty keen to see what he was on about.

Sesh #1

First week of June and I arrive late in the afternoon to find an angler flicking 3" gulp minnows on 1/4oz jigs at tailor bustups with young mate spectating. Juvenile chopper after juvenile chopper were making their way into the angler's keeper bag for jew bait, along with a legal model which was the biggest tailor I've seen come out of there.

That was more than enough encouragement for me, so out goes my Z-man wriggler on a 1/16th head, only to get smashed on the second cast by some freaky aqua-train. Whatever it was, it was definitely a PB for me. I called it for a salmon or big tailor... "take it easy!" coaches my young friend, only for the hook to pop out a minute or so into the fight. Spewing. We were close to seeing colour, too.

10 minutes later and the other guy pulls in a ~kilo sambo, which I netted for him. By now the school had moved too far out for me to reach, and the sun was almost completely gone--I'd have to get that salmon another day.

The evening was salvaged by a few good bream off the wharf, including an SP PB of 31cm using the Z-mans (one of the bream was caught on a bit of salted pillie I brought along to mix things up).

Bumped into PRED-ATOR and his mate later in the evening, though aside from the chopper things had gotten quiet by that point. Final highlight of the evening was getting popped by a ray which picked up the bit of bait I'd been soaking.

Sesh #2

About a week later and my RDO was spent walking around the bay for a day time flick. The sambos weren't on the cards as they only seem to be around when the sun is either rising or setting on a high tide, but that didn't stop me trying.

Tally for the day was 1 flattie, coupla bream, and a handful of greedy chopper.

Sesh #3

Failure! The wind was high, the barometer was low, and all I managed was a single chopper, which I dropped, for my first donut in a while. Win some, lose some.

Sesh #4

Keen to make up for the previous trip, tides and sunset lined up for another crack at the sambos. I had my second outfit with 10lb braid and 12lb leader, 3" minnows and 1/8-1/4 jigs. I arrived to find the same two guys from sesh 1, the younger one armed with his rod this time around. I was shown a photo of a 3kg sambo landed in the same spot a couple of days earlier, but today they just weren't there to play.

The flatties were, though. I didn't have my measuring tape but both would've been around the mid 50s. First came in on my 6lb/6lb main/leader rig, the second on the 10lb/12lb. Good thing too as the second one inhaled the minnow and was practically gut hooked (got the jig back with minimal damage). The leader was heavily messed up and I would've been chomped off for sure on the lighter rig.

Sesh #5

Spent last Friday afternoon/evening out again, this time planning to meet up with Squidgyedges for an overdue catchup. First cast and I was onto an acceptable flattie, then launched straight into the busting tailor which had become a regularity by now. Nothing of size, but boy were they thick. It was almost a fish-a-cast for nearly an hour, though the action quietened by the time Alex arrived. Once again, no salmon.

Things went super quiet once the sun went down, though Squidgyedges did managed a new species for himself with a healthy 31.5cm winter whiting near the well-lit wharf. Gotta be happy with that!

Will keep trying for one of them sambos; the adrenaline from that first connection has definitely set the hook in my mind!

Edited June 26, 2013 by jdanger

[nbdshroom]

Good stuff! You'll get that salmon sooner or later. I'm still itching to have another crack at em. Got the one hookup months back (nearby to H&C with SargeRX8) which was dropped after playing it for a good 5 mins with it at my feet. I didn't have a net (and still don't) so was just trying to tire it out.

Decent 31cm bream too. I don't know how they big they get up there but that sounds like a very respectable size around the contours of a bay.

Edited June 26, 2013 by nbdshroom

[PRED-ATOR]

Nice fish dude and good seeing you again. We caught so many more tailor afterwards lol. Spewing about that mystery fish you lost, i reckon it would have been an awesome fight!

[jdanger]

Pete, the bream get pretty good. Just ask pred-ator!

Always good to see you Stan. Looks like my next shot at the sambos won't be for another week. Can't wait. To paraphrase scratchie, the thing took more line than Lohan with nice headshakes to boot. Jew maybe? Who knows.

Edited June 26, 2013 by jdanger

[matt17]

Awesome report mate! You will get that salmon soon

ps up the wanderers

cheers

matt

[daveyb]

if ur fishing at the back end near the canels it was probley my younger cousins you met they live few houses up,there was some salmon busting up there about a week ago when we were having a flick for flatties just on the mouth of the canel as well as shit loads of tailor,ive been told the odd kingie gets taken there to by a older local bloke who fishes it regularly

[Houdini]

You said the very first guy was keeping juvenile chopper then caught a legal.

So was he keeping undersize fish?

[jdanger]

Yeah daveyb, I reckon that was them. Nice blokes.

and yeah Houdini, he was. Pretty common practice around there. I've had someone who identified themselves as the local fishing inspector instruct me on more than one occasion to use undersize tailor for bait. He even went as far as ripping the trebles out of one and killing it in the process despite me pointing out that I was using lures, not bait. Overly familiar fishing inspector, if you ask me.

[adfrew]

Nice fish Jake, I've been meaning to go and get some of those Zmans and different Squidgies, to try and expand my range a little. Keep up the good work that Sambo will be yours soon enough.