Broken Bay weekend

[essjay]

Starting to enjoy this warmer weather and abundance of snapper. Went out Saturday late around 12 as I slept in and it was a bit of a washing machine with swell coming in two directions and more wind then I had hoped for. I didn't mind as I got a new PB with a 48cm model with a pillie floating off the back. 

Came back around the same area sunday, got up on time this session and was on the water and off at 8am. Hit the spot at 9 and fished to 12.30. Got a few smaller pinkies around 30-35cm which I threw back. Landed some other by catch, some of which I did not recongise. 

Managed these two lads towards the end of the session using a spj and a pillie, setting a new pb with the 50cm.  Jeez these larger models can pull the drag. Awesome fun. Got reefed by two much larger fish, felt like snapper but could have been anything. Truth is I was just to slow to react to the rod going off while i was either rigging another line up or mixing burly. Lesson learned.  Also got my butt handed to me but what I suspect was an eagle ray. Great day. Shame I forgot my hat and wore short sleaves. paying the price for that today. Snuck a 45cm flathead in off a sp on the way home in the hawkbury, it was made for a delicious lunch today.

take away from the weekend session is burly really helps a lot!

[Larkin]

26 minutes ago, essjay said:

Starting to enjoy this warmer weather and abundance of snapper. Went out Saturday late around 12 as I slept in and it was a bit of a washing machine with swell coming in two directions and more wind then I had hoped for. I didn't mind as I got a new PB with a 48cm model with a pillie floating off the back. 

Came back around the same area sunday, got up on time this session and was on the water and off at 8am. Hit the spot at 9 and fished to 12.30. Got a few smaller pinkies around 30-35cm which I threw back. Landed some other by catch, some of which I did not recongise. 

Managed these two lads towards the end of the session using a spj and a pillie, setting a new pb with the 50cm.  Jeez these larger models can pull the drag. Awesome fun. Got reefed by two much larger fish, felt like snapper but could have been anything. Truth is I was just to slow to react to the rod going off while i was either rigging another line up or mixing burly. Lesson learned.  Also got my butt handed to me but what I suspect was an eagle ray. Great day. Shame I forgot my hat and wore short sleaves. paying the price for that today. Snuck a 45cm flathead in off a sp on the way home in the hawkbury, it was made for a delicious lunch today.

take away from the weekend session is burly really helps a lot!

Well done essjay!

some nice snappers - good fun when they get to that size.
If you sound up any baitfish over reef, there will usually be a few lurkers underneath looking for scraps.

[essjay]

30 minutes ago, Larkin said:

Well done essjay!

some nice snappers - good fun when they get to that size.
If you sound up any baitfish over reef, there will usually be a few lurkers underneath looking for scraps.

thanks Larkin

I was looking for bait and saw a bit, not a lot. Ended up settled in a spot between reef breaks and pumped a mix of prawn and aniseed pellets mixed with tuna oil and pillie mulch. Then after about 20 minutes of burly trail started casting into it once I had rigged up. Seemed to work ok. I stuffed up with the two larger hits as the drag was too loose on those reels each time & I was too slow to react. Got some new jigs to try this weekend and intend to try the reef system out the front of the Entrance which looks like deeper water.  Another change I made recently was to start fishing barbless. I am finding barbless is much better for me and much easier on the fish. No more swearing at snags in the carpet, clothes or any additional trauma on the fish I catch.

The other bonus for me was I hooked something big with my bigger setup (PE3 rod, Certate 6000sw and 40lb braid) running a pillie with a sinker off the back. I wasn't able to land it after 20 or so minutes but boy what a fight we had. I snapped it off in the end as it was not giving in, I wasn't getting line back and was growing tired. Plus I didn't want to miss the morning bite window chasing what felt like a a wet angry carpet. Hearing the rod groan was music to my ears along with the reel squealing as line peeled off. Its the first thing that rod reel combo has hooked.

Looking forward to next session, that much is certain.

[Larkin]

Probably hooked a big ray like you said, or maybe a bronzie - I’ve hooked both in the past and they are usually long hard slogs. What a shame you didn’t get a peek.

plenty of good weather coming up - and also the annual coral spawn due to happen later this week after the full moon. Last year I found there was plenty of baitfish around the reefs during/after the event.

Edited November 7, 2022 by Larkin

[bessell1955]

They are cracker fish, well done!

[Isaac Ct]

Nice snapper, well done. Always a good feeling cracking the PB. Looks like we have a few raiders cracking the snapper code at the moment.

[Rebel]

Great report.

Top photos.

Well done.