The Good Old Days

[GoingFishing]

Gday Raiders

Met a bloke at the ramp yesterday at the cleaning table and we got chatting about what it was like to fish off sydney decades ago.

He mentioned that The Peak off Sydney was the go to place for tuna and marlin and that kings in the 15-20kg bracket were very common. What a time to fish off Sydney !

Im not looking for an environmental debate in this thread! But would love to hear from the older and more experienced fishos and invite you to tell us your stories. 

[kingie chaser]

Yep & 5 cents worth of mixed lollies used to fill a big white bag, bread was 15 cents a loaf & leaded petrol was 20 cents a litre!

I was also 6'2 & 85kg once with a full lock of ginger but as we know things change & not usually for the better ?

 

Lots of reasons why fishing isn't what it used to be but s!@t happens & the powers to be(DPI here) have to try & regulate it as best they can with professional catch quotas, size & bag limits & stamp out illegal fishing.

 

I recall my old man used to go fishing of rainbow beach with some mates & catch a squillion fish, sell most of it to pay for the trip but still bring home a boot full, no thoughts to catch just what you need back then which is sad really!

 

Edited August 26, 2018 by kingie chaser

[frankS]

I remember when I first started going beyond the heads to fish, the Peak was everybody's choice and I was not exception. Back then there was no GPS no Sounders ( might have been around but I couldn't afford one ) and we had to go by compass and land marks, was a bit touch and go to get over a decent spot, If you was first or 2nd boat out there it was just good luck if you were over reef, there would be 20 or 30 boats on the Peak at prime times and the action was usually hot.

When I could afford a sounder it was the flasher style that read the bottom and if you were very lucky and had everything adjusted right you could see flashes of fish, WOW that was technology and it was amazing, then several years later the first G P S units were available to the public and I bought a Garmin 120, It picked up 8 satelites and you could follow tracks to get to your spot, store waypoints etc, it was the start of the end for places like the peak as every man and his dog could now buy a boat and travel offshore and find fish.

I got my first boat around 1962 and by 64 was going outside, think it was around 69 or 70 that I got my first sounder and wasn't till about 86 that I got my first GPS.

Sometimes I would spend more time playing with my new toys rather than fishing and trying to find new spots, as back in them days you knew you could catch plenty of good fish whenever you wanted them.

Things sure have advanced in the past 50 years or so.

Frank 

Edited August 26, 2018 by frankS

[kingie chaser]

Thank goodness for progression & technology or we would still be trying to find our favourite spot with a sextant ?

Gotta love new toys!

 

[Blackfish]

I fished the Peak back in the late 70's and yes there was some fish there. Gee it was a long way out and the big adventure just to fish there in those days. As FrankS said it was all land marks to find it as GPS wasn't around then. Certainly a buggar when the city was covered in fog, but I was lucky and fished with a fellow who did have a sounder that made finding the Peak easier (The North or South). Most just joined the pack and had no idea, so if they someone anchored they did the same. I remember one day all these boats must have seen someone already anchored so they presumed that was the mark and they are miles away.

When the fish were on you could just about stepped from one boat to another and Gee there was some angry boaties. There were some big fish kills by some out there to. But like all fishing it wasn't always like that, sometimes it was just plain dead.

It was the start of the Jigging craze, Penn Jigmaster Reels, Policansky Leverdrags, ABU 10,000. Sportex 3327A (I think) blanks. Wayne Hanstead and Joe Gospel brought out the Iron Glass range as well as the ground breaking "Irons" .      There was also the good old Butterworth 996 blanks.

Fish wise yes 10-20kg Kings were around as well as all the sizes up to there. We only jigged in short periods because it was bloody hard work and always had lives down. We also caught Yellowfin which were not that uncommon on lives out the back of the boat whilst waiting for the Kings, I caught one jigging but only a little tacker of about 15kg, also caught them on floater baits for Snapper . We only used handlines for Snapper and didn't they scream off, again only small ones thank goodness  We also caught some very nice Snapper when the current was right.

If you stayed out there till dark, which we did there was some big Trag to be caught and they were all big.

Its nice to reminisce sometimes but I'm sounding like a old man , well maybe there's a reason for that.?

Hopefully the real keen kids that are fishos now can do the same in 50 years time,

[fragmeister]

Good read Blackfish!

Cheers

 

Jim

[PaddyT]

Still kings and marlin and trag to be got there, tuna are gone but thats because of the smashing they got and still get in the recruitment areas in the Sth Pacific purse seine fishery. Kings are on the improve every year since the removal of floating fish traps.