Annual Weipa trip

[LuckyFil]

Just back from my annual Weipa trip with 5 mates on one of the houseboats and 3 tenders.

Despite the good wet this year we didn't find the creek fishing great - we managed a couple of small barra and average sized fingermark but thankfully the blue water fishing didn't disappoint. Our first session in the harbour leads delivered a quality cobia trolled up on a Rapalla CD 14 who was lurking near one of the lead markers - he had a couple of cracks at my lure whithout hooking up and when we did a second circuit over the same track he hit my brother Steve's lure and stayed connected. There were a few tense moments as I retrieved my lure with one hand and steered the tinny with the other away from the post before the come could wrap the line around it. Took a while to get him to the boat and it became obvious the net wasn't the tool for the job so had a shot with a blunt gaff and got him on the second attempt.

The other crew scored a nice spanish in arsy circumstances. They'd slowed the boat to clear weed off one of the lures and when retrieving the other rod the spanish grabbed it.

With 2 decent  fish aboard on the first afternoon it was looking good. We had some spanish mack sashimi and cooked up a bit more and compared it to the cobe, both dusted in flour and lightly fried. Great start to the week and looking like the one feed of steak we took with us may not be required!

The bluefin were plentiful next morning with no effort required to catch a few on metal slugs again right in the harbour entrance. Not huge fish (around 5-7kg) but heaps of fun. Kept one for sashimi and a bit of bait for bottom fishing and released the rest.

Took the houseboat down to Boyd Bay as is our habit as we know its a good mooring in most conditions. A couple of crews fished on the way down but not much action although conditions were very pleasant and all enjoying the balmy /hot weather of 34 degrees compared to Sydney's recent chill.

The bluefin continued to be easy picking throughout the week although the sharks made it hard to get them to the boat at times, especially when using the fly gear - ended in tears every time.

We did the run down down to the Norman Creek one day but found it very quiet despite the huge tidal run that day - a couple of fingermark , golden and diamond (pennant?) trevally, but no barra although one crew saw a good one but couldn't tempt a hit .

Most afternoons 2 crews hit the reefs only a few hundred meters away for blackspot tusk fish, grassy sweetlip and multiple odd reefies (and of course sharks) all in 3-4 meters of water! The fly fisher amongst us hit the shallows for plenty of tarpon, queens and small trevally.

Didn't get picks of everything as we've been going for so many years now we don't bother with a lot of photos but have included a few.

Still the most fun week of fishing and chilling with mates I know of.

Cheers Phil

 

  

[Soulman]

Awesome report Phil and the few photos you have included paint the picture pretty well...

[Scratchie]

Awesome report phil. It's definitely on my "must do list". And when I do, I'll hit you up for some info!  

cheers scratchie!!! 

[big Neil]

A very enjoyable read Phil, really created a feeling that you all had a great time. Some quality fish there too. BN

[LuckyFil]

A couple more pics - alligator gar / long tom on SP and a last sunset fish off the harbour leads

 

[Jewhunter]

Thanks for the report mate. It's one of my very favorite places to fish. Gotta love a Weipa sunset.