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Best conditions for where Im trying to catch bream? Thoughts?


Denisfisho

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Hi all,

I've recently made it a mission of mine to try and catch legal bream inside of a protected harbour in which alot of people especially younger kids tend to fish but seemingly not catch much of the bigger sized eating fish.

This place is about 5 minutes drive from me and Im looking for work so I have pretty much been going there daily testing out different ways to get the legal size bream to bite.

So far results are showing me that theyre biting best 2 hours before the peak of high tide and if i go at low tide im basically wasting my time.

Scent is proving to be necessary, 80% of my casts after applying scent gets a bite, probably not a placebo but could be.

two bream so far caught approx 23cm but not legal in NSW. THey have been caught on 1/20 jighead 2 inch and 2.5inch grubs both times.

Zman slimswims no bites, zman grubs 2inch plenty. Amount of bites diminishes significantly after heavier than 1/20.

The rain was seeming to help at the start but now the bite is almost non existent.

Just wanted to ask when fishing small harbours off jetties etc where you are basically dropping the lure into water what conditions are you finding help? (Including jighead, soft plastics or other lures etc). Maybe in the harbour I just shouldnt expect legal bream?

4 bream all too small to take home and its getting fustrating at this point :D.

Any advice appreciated 

Will mention Im also thinking about whether the smarter thing is just to catch live bait there and send it out, I dont think Id have trouble catching the smaller stuff with what knowledge I have gained.

Edited by Denisfisho
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I know nothing of the location, but are there any crabs around? If you can see any, maybe dead-sticking a cranka crab down to the bottom might do the trick. Often works when you have a lot of structure around.

Failing that, when I don't know an area, often I will use a gulp minnow, grub or crabby in the first instance. That's my ultimate 'confidence lure' but they get chewed up easily.

Cheap white bread is also a killer bait, if you berley and let the bait float or sink naturally without weight (depending on where the fish are in the water column).

 

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Gulp Shrimp 2" in whatever colour matches the bait they r eating, I usually use Camo as I fish dirty water usually.

Daiwa Baitjunkie 2.5" grubs are awesome too! I prefer them over zman, they action seems to get more fish for me. 

When fishing for Bream I like the keep working the lure flicking it off the bottom in sporadic but soft flicks.

Seeing as you are in clean and clear water use the lightest line u can feasibly use, I would use 4lb if I were you. 

Also give crankbaits a go! I LOVE fishing hardbodies for Bream and they always seem to work well. 

Look for places that would be more inclined to hold more Bream ie a marina or anywhere with man made / natural structure, fish love this! 

If you have any further questions don't be afraid to PM me i'd love to help out!

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21 minutes ago, Little_Flatty said:

I know nothing of the location, but are there any crabs around? If you can see any, maybe dead-sticking a cranka crab down to the bottom might do the trick. Often works when you have a lot of structure around.

Failing that, when I don't know an area, often I will use a gulp minnow, grub or crabby in the first instance. That's my ultimate 'confidence lure' but they get chewed up easily.

Cheap white bread is also a killer bait, if you berley and let the bait float or sink naturally without weight (depending on where the fish are in the water column).

 

The gulps get absolutely massacred here by the smaller and probably bigger fish too, usually lose the tails within 3 casts but even they havent been getting bites the last few days. I like them but I prefer zman as they dont get ripped easier.

I did have a cranka but my wife snagged it when she was learning how to cast, thats my own fault actually hah

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6 minutes ago, JamoDamo said:

Gulp Shrimp 2" in whatever colour matches the bait they r eating, I usually use Camo as I fish dirty water usually.

Daiwa Baitjunkie 2.5" grubs are awesome too! I prefer them over zman, they action seems to get more fish for me. 

When fishing for Bream I like the keep working the lure flicking it off the bottom in sporadic but soft flicks.

Seeing as you are in clean and clear water use the lightest line u can feasibly use, I would use 4lb if I were you. 

Also give crankbaits a go! I LOVE fishing hardbodies for Bream and they always seem to work well. 

Look for places that would be more inclined to hold more Bream ie a marina or anywhere with man made / natural structure, fish love this! 

If you have any further questions don't be afraid to PM me i'd love to help out!

I did see a video on youtube which seemed to show the action on baitjunkie is easier to create than on zmans. 

I have been using 4lb, its what helped me get the first bream there I think.

I love crankbaits too, I've bought atomic, cranka and some others but cant get a bite with them anywhere. I really do want to get good with them.

I can see the bream in the structure and know their usual spots there so I dont have to spook them now but still hard to get them to bite. Cant wait until the water clears up.

Thanks for the offer, maybe you could suggest me your favourite crank?

and thanks for both your replies.

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Absolutely love Atomic deep divers in Ghost Gill Brown and Pro lure cranks in any colour they are deadly! Generally I like to belt my hardbodies into the dodgiest spots and see if I can land a Bream! When Bream fishing in clear water throw your lure to their back and wind in across their face, when they are in a school they generally will go into a feeding frenzy!

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If you’re catching small bream some legal ones will hook up too, 0 from 4 isn’t that bad yet! 
For the area I would start on the long jetty and cast at the base of the pole things on the right hand side, as well as alongside the jetty edges. On the left hand side cast back towards the sand beach. 
Jamo’s advice is spot on,crankbaits are great for bream and atomic hardz 38 deep diver would be my go to. 
Still on the jetty, you can run lures along the face of the seafood restaurant close in tight to the wall. 

Round by the yachties cafe you can stand near the ladder and cast along the walls there and obviously all around the boat moorings, though I don’t with crankbaits as I’ve lost a few to ropes. 

As for the plastics they all work, I prefer a Zman as I lose tails or sections with other brands. 

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12 minutes ago, Mike Sydney said:

If you’re catching small bream some legal ones will hook up too, 0 from 4 isn’t that bad yet! 
For the area I would start on the long jetty and cast at the base of the pole things on the right hand side, as well as alongside the jetty edges. On the left hand side cast back towards the sand beach. 
Jamo’s advice is spot on,crankbaits are great for bream and atomic hardz 38 deep diver would be my go to. 
Still on the jetty, you can run lures along the face of the seafood restaurant close in tight to the wall. 

Round by the yachties cafe you can stand near the ladder and cast along the walls there and obviously all around the boat moorings, though I don’t with crankbaits as I’ve lost a few to ropes. 

As for the plastics they all work, I prefer a Zman as I lose tails or sections with other brands. 

Thanks for the advice mate. I do see some people throwing spoons in my marked area and wonder what they are targeting. I have so far caught 2 bream 2 trev 1 snapper and 1 gurnard plus live bait.

There are underwater ropes on that corner of the restaurant but damn I can't help casting there every session haha.

I have atomic deep but it doesn't go that far down even if I fixed it to go straight and just don't feel confident catching anything near the surface, always end up losing confidence and swapping back to plastics.

Very hard to get bites with anything last 2 days.

Edited by Denisfisho
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6 hours ago, Denisfisho said:

Thanks for the advice mate. I do see some people throwing spoons in my marked area and wonder what they are targeting. I have so far caught 2 bream 2 trev 1 snapper and 1 gurnard plus live bait.

There are underwater ropes on that corner of the restaurant but damn I can't help casting there every session haha.

I have atomic deep but it doesn't go that far down even if I fixed it to go straight and just don't feel confident catching anything near the surface, always end up losing confidence and swapping back to plastics.

Very hard to get bites with anything last 2 days.

Likely they are targeting tailor or other pelagics with those spoons.

Re the Atomic Deep, if you look closely around structure (especially at dawn) you might often notice that the bream are not hanging very deep at all, even if the water is deep. Which leads to the time of the day. When have you been fishing the area?

8 hours ago, Denisfisho said:

The gulps get absolutely massacred here by the smaller and probably bigger fish too, usually lose the tails within 3 casts but even they havent been getting bites the last few days. I like them but I prefer zman as they dont get ripped easier.

I did have a cranka but my wife snagged it when she was learning how to cast, thats my own fault actually hah

Fair enough, stay off the gulps then. I too will use something else when there are lots of pickers around.

I still have a strong suspicion that any likely crab imitation would be quite effective in the area.

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All good advice above and though I'm not familiar with the place, if its fairly deep straight off the edges of the wharves, try dropping a black Strike Pro Micro Vibe in around the pylons. These vibes imitate a loosened mussel and the bream smash them on the drop. They also work around boats, markers etc, though pylons is where they really shine.

For tips on fishing these environments, google bream fishing at the Docklands. The guys down there have been fishing similar structure for over 20 years and are the Jedi masters at the game.

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23 hours ago, Green Hornet said:

All good advice above and though I'm not familiar with the place, if its fairly deep straight off the edges of the wharves, try dropping a black Strike Pro Micro Vibe in around the pylons. These vibes imitate a loosened mussel and the bream smash them on the drop. They also work around boats, markers etc, though pylons is where they really shine.

For tips on fishing these environments, google bream fishing at the Docklands. The guys down there have been fishing similar structure for over 20 years and are the Jedi masters at the game.

@Green Hornet You just put me at peril of another lure purchase! 🤬😈🤣

I have to remember to bring my travel rod next time I visit Melbourne! Looks fun, and dropping lures by pylons is probably something my six year old daughter is capable of (landing a 30+cm bream is another story...).

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41 minutes ago, Little_Flatty said:

@Green Hornet You just put me at peril of another lure purchase! 🤬😈🤣

I have to remember to bring my travel rod next time I visit Melbourne! Looks fun, and dropping lures by pylons is probably something my six year old daughter is capable of (landing a 30+cm bream is another story...).

You should give the Docklands a try if you get a chance. At the worst you could add a black bream to your capture list.

A guy over in WA is making these and they're proving to be extremely successful on big fish.

They're still in the development stage, but I believe he intends to put them on the market once he's totally satisfied with the design.

 

D6.jpg

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8 hours ago, Green Hornet said:

You should give the Docklands a try if you get a chance. At the worst you could add a black bream to your capture list.

A guy over in WA is making these and they're proving to be extremely successful on big fish.

They're still in the development stage, but I believe he intends to put them on the market once he's totally satisfied with the design.

 

D6.jpg

I just had a search and it looks like they are already on the market on WA. Just search of 'Micro Mussel'. Price on par with your typical high end imported vibes.

@Green Hornet stop piquing my interest with new lures! 🤣 My collection has been relatively modest until this year! :D 

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14 hours ago, Little_Flatty said:

@Green Hornet You just put me at peril of another lure purchase! 🤬😈🤣

I have to remember to bring my travel rod next time I visit Melbourne! Looks fun, and dropping lures by pylons is probably something my six year old daughter is capable of (landing a 30+cm bream is another story...).

I used to follow a guy on a bream forum years ago that specialised in land based bream spinning in metro Melbourne, he used to catch (and assume he still does) some absolute beasts

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fishing very public urban areas for bream, crappy weather a bit of cloud cover and wind chop  can often make bream lose a few of their inhibitions especially arounds walls and areas that food like crabs get dislodged from a bit of chop 

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13 hours ago, Little_Flatty said:

I just had a search and it looks like they are already on the market on WA. Just search of 'Micro Mussel'. Price on par with your typical high end imported vibes.

@Green Hornet stop piquing my interest with new lures! 🤣 My collection has been relatively modest until this year! :D 

The Micro Mussel is a copy of the lure I put up in the pic. 

And you know the answer to how many lures does a fisherman need?....................One more.😉

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local knowledge  is key ,  what works in one place does  not work somewhere else , tides  , bait, lures , time of the year , if there's been rain or not,  day or night , time of the month , barometric pressure ,  water temperature, it all plays a role ,  those that keep a diary   and fish a place often  usually out fish  someone that does not , there's some real keen  east coast fishermen  with their own channels  that post  their own videos  from time to time , start watching some of their videos and take notes  , use what they use , and in time everything will start getting easier ,  

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1 hour ago, leonardgid said:

local knowledge  is key ,  what works in one place does  not work somewhere else , tides  , bait, lures , time of the year , if there's been rain or not,  day or night , time of the month , barometric pressure ,  water temperature, it all plays a role ,  those that keep a diary   and fish a place often  usually out fish  someone that does not , there's some real keen  east coast fishermen  with their own channels  that post  their own videos  from time to time , start watching some of their videos and take notes  , use what they use , and in time everything will start getting easier ,  

Agreed and I am starting to get a clearer picture of what I need to do with some small results.

For me it's just not working with the rainwater anywhere but I did walk past and chat with a kid who in the span of my two snags caught 3 bream and 2 flatty. I've never really baitfished before but seeing him slay the fish while I was struggling was a good reminder that the fish are there I just need to keep learning. I'm new to the area and it's only natural locals have the knowledge.

I've found lake illawarra is a really difficult lake for me to catch fish and you can see in my previous post nearly made me quit lure fishing but I'm still keen to keep trying. The wind and rough conditions is probably not helping a newcomer to the area also.

In the meantime I may go dam fishing for redfin and return to gong fishing when the waters are abit clearer.

 

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On 3/8/2022 at 10:30 PM, dirvin21 said:

I used to follow a guy on a bream forum years ago that specialised in land based bream spinning in metro Melbourne, he used to catch (and assume he still does) some absolute beasts

I think I know who you mean. Larry, aka Yellow Door?

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