Flatty Friday 24.07.2020 Sydney Reefs

[zmk1962]

Hey Raiders,

Thursday afternoon Maria surprised me with a request to overnight chasing Hairtail - but a quick check of the weather showed a forecast of only 4C which ended that plan pronto. So we settled for the next option which was to spend Friday adding a few more hours running in the new Merc - interspersed with exploring the reefs off Sydney harbour. The plan was to launch from Ermington Warf and punch out past the heads heading north towards Long Reef - but on this occasion stop to fish the reefs that we would normally cruise over. 

So with sunrise just on 7am, we departed Castle Hill at 6am (can confirm it was 4C, infact there was icy frost on the storm covers) and 20min later at Ermington came across this ....  a fit asian gentlemen taking his morning swim .... now there's a cardio workout !

Everyone launching boats at the ramp was well rugged up, 5 layers thick as Maria said.  Humbled (as we had bailed on chasing hairtail) we launched, and headed toward Sydney in the pre-dawn light... 

 

Full sunrise saw us just past the bridge ..... what a magnificent city we live in .....

Rounding the heads, the water temp was 17.6C, flat and calm and we sprinted to just past Dee Why. Salted pillies, SPs and frozen squid on board.

First few drifts produced 4 bluespot flatties around 40cm and two lost rigs on snags.  With our past few trips being Brown's adventures it was clear we were out of practice fishing light over reef grounds. But a good start to the day.  We moved around to different reef marks that were highlighted on Navionics and ones that Sam ( @GoingFishing ) had shared previously, landing a bunch of undersized pannies, and reef fish... but by 1pm had 12 solid flatties on board - a mixture of dusky and bluespot, and a keeper mowong.  

Maria with her 60cm dusky - caught on a sinker jig at the end of a paternoster.

Z's 60cm bluespot - caught on a strip of trevally fresh caught and repurposed for bait on Sam's hybrid rig.

A top day on the water, the conditions were absolute bliss, glassy at the end, but with enough run to keep the fun going. We ended the day with 2.9kg of skinned flattie fillets and a mowie which will be crispy fried Sunday lunch Thai style!

The only downside to the day was the fish cleaning facility at Ermington ramp. I mean seriously - that council needs to take a lesson from Brooklyn on how to spend our license fees. The tables were the filthiest I'd ever seen - and it wasn't the fishos fault - the council had fitted push down taps that you normally see in public toilets. There was no way to keep any water flow going to wash the table. I'll be writing to them to express my views. Personally I only use the fresh water to wash the area and clean my cutting boards, knives. So I was fortunate I brought back 20L of salt water and the water in the live bait tank to rinse the fillets and cleaned fish - they never touch fresh water. I understand why we can't fully process our catch offshore and have to bring back whole fish, but the quid pro quo then should be that we have decent facilities at the ramp that can be kept somewhat hygienic. Using the facilities as they are is a sure way to spoil any fisho's catch. Anyway, enough of a rant.... I'm just wondering what do the other Raiders that regularly use Ermo do?

Cheers Zoran

PS: The Merc just purred, pushing the Haines through the harbour chop with ease at all revs. We rounded Sydney Heads at 42kmh 4500rpm, hit 61kmh at 5350rpm off Dee Why... 6.1hrs on the clock, nearly there.

 

[Yowie]

Very nice catch, especially the big blue spot.

Very hard to see on the photo angle, but are a couple of those flatties Marbled Flathead?

[antonywardle]

Nice report. I was out yesterday, really nice day for it and managed some flathead too.

[zmk1962]

54 minutes ago, Yowie said:

Very nice catch, especially the big blue spot.

Very hard to see on the photo angle, but are a couple of those flatties Marbled Flathead?

Yowie you are 100% correct.... they are marbled not dusky.... been a while since I caught one but given the reef/sand structure and offshore they'd be marbled for sure.

Cheers Zoran

[GordoRetired]

That's a great feed of Flathead and another good report. The new motor sounds like a nice upgrade.

[GoingFishing]

Awesome report and a nice bag of fish Z !!! Glad to see the hybrid paternoster still producing some results, i find that i catch better size fish on that rig.

I am wondering whether Marias Dusky is in fact a marbled too? It looks like it could be.

Ps how did the fit swimmer not sink and drown swimming with the added weight of those enormous nuts of steel 🤣😅

 

[PaddyT]

Nice Zoran, was out on Friday myself but went looking for kings-unfortunately  my first donut day in a while. Current was non existant at Longie and then at the 12- we were marking fish and even had kings busting the surface at the 12 but couldnt get them to bite bar one brief hookup-no run-no fun. I reckon the ramp at Ermo is a bit ordinary- much prefer Roseville myself.

[zmk1962]

1 hour ago, GordoRetired said:

The new motor sounds like a nice upgrade.

Couldn't be happier mate .... its a beast ! Cheers Z

 

[kingie chaser]

The water was way warmer than the outside temp so when you stand on land with just your budgies on for 30 minutes the water aint to bad 🤣

Great report, some good feeds coming.

I have no issue cleaning fish(scaling & gutting) with fresh water, once the fillets come off thats a different story.

After the fillets are off nothing gets washed in any kind of water, shouldnt need to imo!

[zmk1962]

33 minutes ago, GoingFishing said:

Awesome report and a nice bag of fish Z !!! Glad to see the hybrid paternoster still producing some results, i find that i catch better size fish on that rig.

I am wondering whether Marias Dusky is in fact a marbled too? It looks like it could be.

Ps how did the fit swimmer not sink and drown swimming with the added weight of those enormous nuts of steel 🤣😅

 

Thanks Sam. We fished one rod each with the hybrid and another rod each with a 2hook paternoster, SP jerk shad on top hook, pillie or squid bait second hook and a sinker jig on the bottom. 

Maria's big marbled flattie and a few of the others were caught on the sinker jig.

The hybrid accounted for the big bluespot and the mowie.

The rest were on the paternoster and mainly on the SP jerk shads ... very few keepers were on the bait but most of the juvenile throw backs were on the bait.

Regarding the swimmer... agree they had to be steel ... brass ones would have definitely frozen off ...hahaha

Cheers Z 

 

[zmk1962]

14 minutes ago, PaddyT said:

Nice Zoran, was out on Friday myself but went looking for kings-unfortunately  my first donut day in a while. Current was non existant at Longie and then at the 12- we were marking fish and even had kings busting the surface at the 12 but couldnt get them to bite bar one brief hookup-no run-no fun. I reckon the ramp at Ermo is a bit ordinary- much prefer Roseville myself.

Oh sorry to hear Paddy... I'm now glad I didn't push out to 12mile.  Fortunately there was just enough run to keep us going around the reefs.

Roseville was my go to ramp to head offshore as it was closer to the heads and hence less fuel used with the old 2 stroke even though its a bugger of a drive from my place and has the $8 parking fee. But with the 4stroke being so efficient, and Ermo being only 20-25min drive with free parking, its probably going to become my launch point going forward. 

Ermo ramp is ok to launch (watch the river cat !) - bit weird how they designed it so that you can't walk the boat to the trailer like you can at Roseville. IMO both Roseville and Ermo have crap fish cleaning facility compared to Parsley Bay Brooklyn. 

Cheers Z

[zmk1962]

10 minutes ago, kingie chaser said:

The water was way warmer than the outside temp so when you stand on land with just your budgies on for 30 minutes the water aint to bad 🤣

Great report, some good feeds coming.

I have no issue cleaning fish(scaling & gutting) with fresh water, once the fillets come off thats a different story.

After the fillets are off nothing gets washed in any kind of water, shouldnt need to imo!

Yes he was fully clothed.... in his budgies! Still a brave man to paddle around in that water. 

We each have our own preference for fish preparation, with flatties I have standardised on a technique where you fillet and skin without scaling and gutting first (I posted a video in the kitchen previously with lots of commentary from FRs on their fav techniques), but with that technique I find you do need to quick rinse the fillets to remove the slime and body juices - fresh brine from out wide 👌  .... But regardless if you prefer to scale/gut rinse in fresh ... it's impossible to do with one hand pushing down on the tap valve. It's clear in this case the council wants to deter this activity while stating they have provided what is necessary (fresh water and a table).

Cheers Z

[Welster]

Great report Zoran and interesting rigs.  Those flatties are a good size and tasty feed.   I think you may have a couple of records there. 
 

Interesting rigs that you used.  
 

Its a shame about the cleaning tables and obviously not much thought has gone into the tap, I must say I have never used a public cleaning facility and prefer to do it at home when cleaning the boat, 

 

 

Edited July 26, 2020 by Welster
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[wrxhoon1]

Glad you had a good day Zoran and a good feed of flathead. You should have enough hours on the new donk by now as well.

The Asian guy you saw  at Wharf rd boat ramp is there frequently especially on cold winter mornings .

Nothing wrong with the launching ramp there but I agree with the cleaning table it is a disgrace, I won't clean any fish there .

As for walking the boat to the trailer it doesn't effect me as I drive off, drive on. One thing I don't like coming back in the afternoon in summer I find several boats hogging the pontoon going nowhere. All I need to do is dock for 5 seconds to drop my driver off and go away until the trailer is backed, drive on ( no more than 2 minutes) and get out of there.

The other issue is the bloody tree on the left side when driving up, I had to watch my hardtop and the way the kerb is curved on the other side you had to watch so you don't scrape the tyres on it. I have 8 ply truck tyres but I still don't want to compromise my sidewalls. I wrote to the council last year and they trimmed the tree, much easier now.

There are 3 more boat ramps close by, Silverwater bridge , Putney and Rhodes, all suitable for large trailer boats. I prefer wharf rd because they have cameras on the carpark and less road traffic going back home.

I don't know if you are aware but all the area around Melrose Park , all the way from Victoria rd down to the boat ramp on the western side will be re-developed, all up about 10,000 apartments. When completed I very much doubt you will be able to find parking anywhere near the ramp.

[PaddyT]

Zoran get the yearly NP pass for your car, you can get a very good price on that when you register your car-means you can use Bobbin Head, Akuna, Roseville without the daily charge.

[Rebel]

Great report and Super photos. Well done.

[zmk1962]

18 hours ago, PaddyT said:

Zoran get the yearly NP pass for your car, you can get a very good price on that when you register your car-means you can use Bobbin Head, Akuna, Roseville without the daily charge.

Hey Paddy, yup I was a long time NP pass holder -- back when we were regulars at Apple Tree bay ... but I found I wasn't getting the value out of it so I let it lapse .... maybe it's time to reconsider.

Cheers Z

[zmk1962]

19 hours ago, wrxhoon1 said:

Glad you had a good day Zoran and a good feed of flathead. You should have enough hours on the new donk by now as well.

The Asian guy you saw  at Wharf rd boat ramp is there frequently especially on cold winter mornings .

Nothing wrong with the launching ramp there but I agree with the cleaning table it is a disgrace, I won't clean any fish there .

As for walking the boat to the trailer it doesn't effect me as I drive off, drive on. One thing I don't like coming back in the afternoon in summer I find several boats hogging the pontoon going nowhere. All I need to do is dock for 5 seconds to drop my driver off and go away until the trailer is backed, drive on ( no more than 2 minutes) and get out of there.

The other issue is the bloody tree on the left side when driving up, I had to watch my hardtop and the way the kerb is curved on the other side you had to watch so you don't scrape the tyres on it. I have 8 ply truck tyres but I still don't want to compromise my sidewalls. I wrote to the council last year and they trimmed the tree, much easier now.

There are 3 more boat ramps close by, Silverwater bridge , Putney and Rhodes, all suitable for large trailer boats. I prefer wharf rd because they have cameras on the carpark and less road traffic going back home.

I don't know if you are aware but all the area around Melrose Park , all the way from Victoria rd down to the boat ramp on the western side will be re-developed, all up about 10,000 apartments. When completed I very much doubt you will be able to find parking anywhere near the ramp.

Hey Jerry, Yeah 6.1hrs on motor, so next trip is definitely out wide which would see me fully run in by the time we are back....and as for Mr Asia good luck - I wont be joining him any time soon.

+1 for all your comments about the pontoon. I usually have a 2nd boat pilot so we can do exactly as you describe, however Maria has not developed her boating skills to the point where she can bring the boat to the trailer (we are making progress tho) and she is not strong enough to manage the winch... hence why Roseville and Brooklyn have been our favourite ramps. But we make it work whereever.

 +1 for comments regarding the tree and kerb.... clearly no boatie in that council department. I will take a drive to check out the other ramps as fall back thanks - it's been many years since I last visited them. From memory most of then needed a 2nd pilot to work hence why we never used them. 

And -1 for the proposed developments ...I know we need more housing in sydney but without additional public transport the extra traffic will be horrendous....the parking non-existant.

Cheers Z

 

[jeffb5.8]

20 hours ago, wrxhoon1 said:

but I agree with the cleaning table it is a disgrace, I won't clean any fish there .

As for walking the boat to the trailer it doesn't effect me as I drive off, drive on. One thing I don't like coming back in the afternoon in summer I find several boats hogging the pontoon going nowhere. All I need to do is dock for 5 seconds to drop my driver off and go away until the trailer is backed, drive on ( no more than 2 minutes) and get out of there.

The other issue is the bloody tree on the left side when driving up, I had to watch my hardtop and the way the kerb is curved on the other side you had to watch so you don't scrape the tyres on it. I have 8 ply truck tyres but I still don't want to compromise my sidewalls. I wrote to the council last year and they trimmed the tree, much easier now.

Correct about the fish cleaning tables, I have even used dish washing liquid and a scrubber on the table, before I started for that one time I actually caught a fish worth bringing home.

Rydalmere / Ermington is the pick of the ramps, Silverwater the pontoon does not float so is very slippery and the wash from the river cats is huge, don't want to be there trying to get a large boat on when a river cat goes past.

I wonder if it was council who did the trees, I was there a few weeks back and heard a few blokes discussing coming down with a chainsaw next time as they just broke one of their rods as it was hooked up in the tree.

Putney is good and Rhodes is also good although parking is limited.

[letsgocrabbing]

1) The asian guy has been swimming there for years. He follows the mangrove line down towards silverwater bridge and the ferry skippers I know, keep a keen eye for him especially the winter darks. We used to see him at 6am. Can"t believe a bull shark hasn't got him.

2) The table is filthy. I tried addressing the issue with council several years ago but found it's a bit of a demarcation dispute between Ryde and Parra....typical public service mentality. so gave up. We take our own large cleaning boards down there.

3)Twice in the last 4 weeks some wanker has undone the ubolt we use to secure the trailer hitch and then the hitch. Check your trailer every time you retrieve, All 3 of us checked it the last time before we left home; just to be sure we hadn't stuffed up. 

[letsgocrabbing]

Forgot to mention the ludicrousness of the sign advising you not to eat fish from the river. Far more dangerous to eat fish you have cleaned on that table yet they don't sign that.

[kingie chaser]

If you dont have a lockable trailer hitch pin then I would be getting one, they are only about $15.

I got one about 3 weeks ago, cant believe it took me so long to get although my safety chain is locked to my tow bar.

If I had a very expensive boat I would also be getting an additional coupling lock. 

 

Unfortunaley councils need to be constantly pushed until you get some action, I think we are lucky at Botany as I see a guy come daily to empty the garbages & clean the fish cleaning room which is a great little facility.

If you were to sue them for food poisioning they might start to take action, a bit like not filling pot holes of fixing trip hazards on pathways.

[zmk1962]

48 minutes ago, letsgocrabbing said:

1) The asian guy has been swimming there for years. He follows the mangrove line down towards silverwater bridge and the ferry skippers I know, keep a keen eye for him especially the winter darks. We used to see him at 6am. Can"t believe a bull shark hasn't got him.

2) The table is filthy. I tried addressing the issue with council several years ago but found it's a bit of a demarcation dispute between Ryde and Parra....typical public service mentality. so gave up. We take our own large cleaning boards down there.

3)Twice in the last 4 weeks some wanker has undone the ubolt we use to secure the trailer hitch and then the hitch. Check your trailer every time you retrieve, All 3 of us checked it the last time before we left home; just to be sure we hadn't stuffed up. 

Hey @letsgocrabbing, 

1) crazy - I know it's a cardio workout, but I'm not sure which would get the heart pumping more: the cold water or knowing the bull sharks are circling. Either way, I'll do my cardio elsewhere - and keep an eye out for Mr Atlas Asia when launching early.

2) hmmm.... with the council amalgamations its now clear - Paramatta owns the problem. I'll start a dialog with them, but pretty sure I'll be back on here to collect signatures from other affected Raiders.

3)  Unbelievable. You'd have to wonder what goes through their tiny minds. @wrxhoon1 said there are cameras in the car park area - I think you have a legitimate reason to request council to review the footage of the dates corresponding to your incidents  - it's clearly a safety issue that some idiot is creating - intentionally putting people and property at risk. 

Once the boat is off and the trailer is parked, I always put on a tongue coupling lock, a padlock through the tow hitch and a lock on the tow chain. It's a pain and seems to take forever when all I want to do is push off but.....so far I've been ok. Thanks for the heads up.

Cheers Zoran  

 

Edited July 27, 2020 by zmk1962

[wrxhoon1]

1 hour ago, jeffb5.8 said:

 

I wonder if it was council who did the trees, I was there a few weeks back and heard a few blokes discussing coming down with a chainsaw next time as they just broke one of their rods as it was hooked up in the tree.

Putney is good and Rhodes is also good although parking is limited.

It was Council that cut the tree back then, In my opinion they didn't cut enough. They told me at the time that shouldn't be in the way . I asked them to remove the curved kerb about 1 mt closer to the toilet block. Their answer " we haven't had any complaints about that". I guess if a lot of boaties complained about it they would have to do something .

It was last October that I requested, maybe time to do it again.

Wed, 23 Oct 2019 at 9:18 am

 

 

 

 

Thank you for submitting your request to City of Ryde.

 

Your reference number is 2275801.

 

Your request has now been referred to a Council Officer for investigation.

 

Should you wish to discuss this matter further, please contact Council at cityofryde@ryde.nsw.gov.au or phone 02 9952 8222 to speak to a Customer Service Officer.

 

 

Regards,

Customer Service

City of Ryde

 

 

[wrxhoon1]

Zoran , 

The boat ramp is in Ryde council not Parramatta.

You will find part of Melrose park ( it is Melrose Park  not Ermington) is Parramatta council and part Ryde council. The boundary is Wharf rd.

Next time you are there have a look at the high poles in the carpark , you will see the cams, I don't know how much of the carpark they cover. I make sure I park where I think they cover but can't be 100% sure . In any case I used this ramp for the last 30 years never had a problem. I use a wheel clamp and a coupling lock, same when parked at home or when traveling away and parked. Maybe I should put 2 locks on the safety chains as well, it wouldn't hurt. The only extra time is the wheel clamp, coupling lock and chain locks can stay on from the time I hitch until back home and parked.

My LC doesn't have a late model dash cam, as it is now 7 years old I don't intend of upgrading the cam, hopefully the new model soon to be released will have same as my other car. It utilises the cars cameras and it records if anyone hits the car even when parked. You have an app on the phone that will saw you the car at anytime, great feature and it shows every angle, front rear and sides, dash cams normally only give you front and back. 

Edited July 27, 2020 by wrxhoon1