Blackwattle Bay 30-3-22

[Mike Sydney]

Day started off pretty poorly but got progressively better. 
Headed out at lunchtime to visit a tackle store in Yennora on @motiondave’s recommendation with an eye on some of the crab lures they stock. Several varieties including the crusty crabs which have been hard to find in retail stores of late. 

Google reckons they were open but alas, I arrived at midday only to find they don’t open until 2pm. Not what I wanted to see after a 40 minute drive. Not one to be deterred I decided to wait it out, and kebab in hand waited out the two hours in the car park, amusing myself by watching and judging the patrons of the adjacent ‘legitimate’ Thai massage. 
2 o’clock came and went and the shops still not open so I headed home without crabs - hopefully the same can be said for the patrons I saw.

In the evening I went to Blackwattle bay for a fish arriving at 8pm just ahead of the high tide. Using a GrubZ on 1/20th with 6lb I got a bream first cast along the wall which is always nice, followed half hour later with a pair of flathead, the larger maybe mid-40s. 

The night continued to improve, as I was joined by the delightful  @Obsessed Fisherman an hour later.

We spent some time fishing surface before I decided to roll out the big guns, tying on a brand new ecoGear Breamer 35 vibe. Within a couple of casts I was smugly announcing fish on, but what felt like a solid hookup clearly wasn’t as I dropped her mid-fight. Naturally, I snagged and lost the new lure the very next cast and the night was over.

Great fun fishing with a fellow raider and perhaps a visit to the Yennora tackle shop next week instead (my back is feeling a bit sore from all this fishing after all 😂 )

Bonus pic - this luderick I nabbed on a slim SwimZ from under a bridge in the Cooks river on Monday night. One of the happiest looking fish I’ve ever caught. 

 

[big Neil]

Now that's an interesting report Mike Sydney. Never seen a "HAPPY" Blackfish before. Maybe you should apply for the Fishraider award, for catching the biggest so far???

Meanwhile, I hope you find the store in Yennora open sometime, so you can stock up on your depleted lures. At least you weren't too bored while waiting for the approaching opening time.

Always good to catch up with fellow Fishraiders, looks like you and Obsessed Fisherman enjoyed the experience. One of the greatest benefits to being a member of this site, I reckon.

Look forward to your next post, keep up the good work. bn

[Little_Flatty]

Nice work @Mike Sydney and @Obsessed Fisherman!

Sorry to hear about the lure loss. I recently purchased a few Ecogear and TT blades myself just to see what the fuss was about. I can report that they actually work! That said, I'm scared to use them everywhere because of the snagging risk. 15-25 dollars per lure, lost a few times, adds up to a bit! But as one of my mates says, the Japanese lures get the eats!

[Isaac Ct]

Well done Mike, that has gotta be one of the most annoying things in general. Something says one thing but it isn't true and you have to pay a price for it. You made up for it with a couple of nice fish, great stuff.

[Mike Sydney]

40 minutes ago, Isaac Ct said:

Well done Mike, that has gotta be one of the most annoying things in general. Something says one thing but it isn't true and you have to pay a price for it. You made up for it with a couple of nice fish, great stuff.

Yeah it was a pain but I’ll survive, the shop is mainly online and to be fair I rang first to check they were open and got no answer so should’ve taken the hint then and stayed home. I could’ve purchased from them online but I’m too impatient to wait for shipping. 
 

@Little_Flatty the Breamer is virtually identical to the ZX series. The only difference I can tell is that the Breamer is slightly transparent vs the solid metal ZX. Though it must be a hard plastic rather than a metal to get that transparency. Otherwise the lure profile seems identical and in my brief time with it, seemed to fish exactly the same. With the snags I think often I snag my line rather than the lure itself. 

[Mike Sydney]

2 hours ago, big Neil said:

Always good to catch up with fellow Fishraiders, looks like you and Obsessed Fisherman enjoyed the experience. One of the greatest benefits to being a member of this site, I reckon

Yes it was terrific to meet another raider. I haven’t met as many of you as I’d have liked being a “night guy” but it was great to have the company. Any other raiders out after dark in Sydney do reach out!

[Little_Flatty]

6 minutes ago, Mike Sydney said:

@Little_Flatty the Breamer is virtually identical to the ZX series. The only difference I can tell is that the Breamer is slightly transparent vs the solid metal ZX. Though it must be a hard plastic rather than a metal to get that transparency. Otherwise the lure profile seems identical and in my brief time with it, seemed to fish exactly the same. With the snags I think often I snag my line rather than the lure itself. 

I have often thought about the nature of snags. Like you, I have suspected a lot of my snags are 'line' snags instead of 'hook' snags, especially considering 40-50% of my plastics fishing is done weedless and I still get snagged occasionally.

I wonder if anyone has done any research on this? Surely someone has. If it was run by an academic institution, I'm not sure which faculty it would come under though! Engineering? Design? I'd envisage it would start with a study of various underwater environments, then simulating experiments under controlled conditions to test snaggability vs ability to hook fish.

I suspect such an exercise might be right up @Volitan's alley 😎 (hint hint🤣).

[bessell1955]

Good to see that all ended well.

[Mike Sydney]

For what it’s worth the tackle shop guy emailed me this morning he’s got the Covid and is stuck at home until mid next week. His range looks great I’m keen to visit again soon.

[Rebel]

Great report.

Super photos.

Nice Bream.

[Edward1995]

On 3/30/2022 at 11:59 PM, Mike Sydney said:

Day started off pretty poorly but got progressively better. 
Headed out at lunchtime to visit a tackle store in Yennora on @motiondave’s recommendation with an eye on some of the crab lures they stock. Several varieties including the crusty crabs which have been hard to find in retail stores of late. 

Google reckons they were open but alas, I arrived at midday only to find they don’t open until 2pm. Not what I wanted to see after a 40 minute drive. Not one to be deterred I decided to wait it out, and kebab in hand waited out the two hours in the car park, amusing myself by watching and judging the patrons of the adjacent ‘legitimate’ Thai massage. 
2 o’clock came and went and the shops still not open so I headed home without crabs - hopefully the same can be said for the patrons I saw.

In the evening I went to Blackwattle bay for a fish arriving at 8pm just ahead of the high tide. Using a GrubZ on 1/20th with 6lb I got a bream first cast along the wall which is always nice, followed half hour later with a pair of flathead, the larger maybe mid-40s. 

The night continued to improve, as I was joined by the delightful  @Obsessed Fisherman an hour later.

We spent some time fishing surface before I decided to roll out the big guns, tying on a brand new ecoGear Breamer 35 vibe. Within a couple of casts I was smugly announcing fish on, but what felt like a solid hookup clearly wasn’t as I dropped her mid-fight. Naturally, I snagged and lost the new lure the very next cast and the night was over.

Great fun fishing with a fellow raider and perhaps a visit to the Yennora tackle shop next week instead (my back is feeling a bit sore from all this fishing after all 😂 )

Bonus pic - this luderick I nabbed on a slim SwimZ from under a bridge in the Cooks river on Monday night. One of the happiest looking fish I’ve ever caught. 

 

Great report, what side of the bay were you on, the fish market or the roadworks side? 

[Mike Sydney]

Opposite the fish markets near the end of Cook St. 

You’ll appreciate this too Edward - I was at lilyfield tonight where your last report was, got a couple bream and a flathead at the bridge, but then dropped the biggest bream I’ve ever seen right next to the UTS as I grabbed my leader and tried to lift it up the bank. Snap. Looked and fought like a mid forties. So sad 😞 . I thought it was a big flattie most of the fight but knew the lift would be dodgy.   Stings! 

[Pickles]

A really interesting report Mike - blackfish on a lure - a great capture

[Larkin]

Worst thing when you loose a new lure on day one ☹️
well done on the bream and flatties!

[Mike Sydney]

12 hours ago, Pickles said:

A really interesting report Mike - blackfish on a lure - a great capture

Just my second on a lure, of course I wasn’t targeting them. My only other one was on a crankbait a year back. Both in very shallow water with not much else to eat, presumably !