Jervis Bay Sunday 20th

[KaneMc]

Went down to Huskisson on Jervis Bay last weekend with the and decided I would try a charter while I was there as I don’t get to go out on a boat very often. Contacted JB Charters and got the last spot of five on a bay charter for the next day. Met up with the four other blokes at 6am, they were all good sorts down from Queensland and a good days fishing looked on the cards.

First stop was to try and Jig up some Calamari for livies but the only one we caught after 20 mins was way to big so we headed out of the bay to try the deeper waters. When we got our there it was pretty tough going. 1.5 meter swell and another 1.5 sea on top of it. Peak wave period was very low and on top of that you get a lot of wave reflection from the vertical cliffs out there. Made for some pretty tricky fishing. We did one drift at about 100 meters and after only pulling up a Nanigai (which I don’t know how to spell) the skipper decided discretion was the better part of valour and so we headed back to just inside the bay. We did several long drifts from just behind the Bowen Island putting out a heap of burley for a couple of small pinkies, about a thousand spikie Flathead and one dead Fairy Penguin. The last was floating belly up on the water so we collected for the Marine Park dudes down there (turns out they didn’t want it so we put it back). We tried further out in 40 meters and 50 meters which turned up a few barely legal flathead, some more spikies and some small red spot Whiting (when they didn’t just flog your bait).

We were getting desperate for at least a feed for us all so we headed further into the bay for some Calamari. On the way we trawled around the foam on the Beecroft Peninsular for 3 nice size Salmon. We picked up a few Calamari each and then called it a day.

All in all it was a little light on the fish but I got a descent couple of feeds of Calamari out of it so it didn’t turn out too bad. The crew was excellent (cleaned and gutted everything on the way back in for us) and the QLD blokes were all good value. It was great to be on the water again.

From what I heard while I was down there the bay hadn’t been fishing too well but the locals were hopeful as most of the commercial guys had moved out once the Marin Parks came in. The water was still pretty cool too, 16 – 17 I think, so once it picks up it is likely to get a little better.

Edited November 22, 2005 by KaneMc

[digger]

when fishing 2 weeks ago and the swell was about 3m at a place call the swallows.there was only about 15 boats out that day.