Jo5hC Posted January 5, 2023 Share Posted January 5, 2023 Went to Burrill lake camping with the fam and wanted to try out topwater fishing for the first time. Day 1: Arrived at the park where we were camping pretty late so I just fished from the jetty in the campsite. Using a Slippery dog 65mm and got one hit from what I think was a bream but did not manage to hook it. I also saw a couple flatties swimming underneath the jetty at night which was quite interesting. Seems like they were attracted by the lights. Day 2: Woke up early and decided to go for a fish at the jetty and a tailor smashed the topwater (sorry no photo). Later in the day my dad and I went to try out a spot recommended by @XD351, the flats next to Rackham Crescent. Saw a lot of activity of fish on the flats but I got no hits on the topwater. The rain started coming down which was a sign to leave. On the last cast, my dad hooked on to a decent flatty on a chunk of chicken. (Couldn't take a photo as we were in a bit of a hurry to get back and the rain was getting worse) We decided to keep it so the family could try it out and it was delicious. Day 3: I went back to the jetty in the morning and saw a lot of bream just underneath it. One of them had to be close to 40cm! I tried chucking the topwater underneath and around the pier and I got some follows from the bream but they didn't want to commit. My dad came along and brought some of the chicken. I dropped a piece of chicken next to the jetty and low and behold, one of the smaller specimens crunched it. I think it was around 23 cm. After that, the bait kept getting harassed by smaller fish so it couldn't get down to the bigger bream underneath. In the afternoon I was just casting the topwater around and got a garfish that we released. We went back to the flats in the evening but this time armed with a nipper pump. We pumped a couple of nippers and I was still trying topwater. I could still see a lot of fish activity but nothing wanted to take the topwater. I tried a bit of chicken and somehow managed to catch a mullet on it which fell off the hook. On the last cast my dad again hooked a flatty on a piece of chicken, a bit bigger than the previous one and we also decided to keep it seeing as the family loved it last time. Day 4: Before we left, I tried one more time at Smithy's point but this time with a Zman 3.5 inch grub. The winds were a crazy 30km/h but the point was protected so it wasn't too bad. Last cast again I was rewarded with a decent flatty. 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebel Posted January 5, 2023 Share Posted January 5, 2023 Great Holiday. Lots of fun. Nice fish & photos. Well done. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XD351 Posted January 5, 2023 Share Posted January 5, 2023 (edited) Great to see you got a few 👍🏻 Awesome report 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 Edited January 6, 2023 by XD351 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pickles Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 Well done @Jo5hC- great report and god work with the SP’s. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFishosGrill Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 Well done!! always wanted to try Burrill lake, we always holiday down at Sussex after school holidays are finished. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blaxland Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 Not sure of size but garfish were once regarded as good table fish and do make excellent bait. Nice report 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yowie Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 A few nice fish, so a bit of fun and a feed to keep everyone happy. That is a River Garfish, quite edible, otherwise good bait as Blaxland suggested. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunc333 Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 nice report jo5hc 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluebenbomb Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 Well done on the fish, sounds like a wonderful holiday to me. Didn't know garfish would take surface lures, but that's something that I can try next time I get out. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jo5hC Posted January 6, 2023 Author Share Posted January 6, 2023 47 minutes ago, Bluebenbomb said: Well done on the fish, sounds like a wonderful holiday to me. Didn't know garfish would take surface lures, but that's something that I can try next time I get out. Yea it was quite unexpected! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsswordfisherman Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 Good report! Was that the Discovery Park? I never catch anything off that wharf 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big Neil Posted January 6, 2023 Share Posted January 6, 2023 Good report of some quality family time fishing. You certainly are keen and will go a long way in your fishing endeavours. Keep going, bn 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jo5hC Posted January 6, 2023 Author Share Posted January 6, 2023 6 hours ago, mrsswordfisherman said: Good report! Was that the Discovery Park? I never catch anything off that wharf Yeah it was. There weren’t many people catching anything there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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