Port Hacking - mixed bag

[Yowie]

Headed out early this morning, near Lilli Pilli in the deep. A bit of wind up early.

What you see in the photo is what I kept, the others returned. Baits were pillies, yakka strips, squid.

The only legal reddie out of the many I pulled up. The watsons bonnie took a pillie off the bottom, and a good sized crab from the deep water. At this time of year, the bigger ones can be found in deeper water.

Kept those 2 tailor, and released 5 more, with one of them at 48cm. Caught and released 6 or 7 jewies (lost count) the biggest being in the low 60's, released a flounder about 30cm, and a salmon in the high 30's.

A couple of the jewies were followed up by a few kingies, one definitely keeper size, but as the missus said no fishy fish - kingies and the like -  so I did not bother to have a crack at them. As it was, a kingie grabbed a handline and took off, finger burning action for a little while, and eventually around the anchor line and gone.

Headed home and cleaned the fish. Filleted all fish and threw the carcases into the water. It did not take long for a couple of dozen bream to appear, a few of them legal. All bream headed straight to the bonnie carcase, ignoring the others until that one was eaten. Shows how the tuna species are preferred baits due to the high oil content in the meat, same as mackerel and pillies.

 

As a side issue, my neighbour told me of his friend who lives on the waterfront in Gymea Bay. The friend was fishing off his wharf a few nights ago and pulled up a bream that measured 52 cm. Size confirmed as correct, so that is a big bream for the Hacking.

[Isaac Ct]

Good stuff Yowie, nice bag. I plan to head out this weekend, hopefully, the fish are still around.

Well done.

[Yowie]

1 hour ago, Isaac Ct said:

Good stuff Yowie, nice bag. I plan to head out this weekend, hopefully, the fish are still around.

Well done.

Thank you. They were on the bite, so some are cruising about.

A number of smaller fish hitting the surface near the boat, looked like frigates. Threw the lure at them for no interest.

[Larkin]

Nice catch Yowie! 👍
Snapper and crab - can’t beat that!

must of been a decent amount of school jewies coming through the hacking.
 

[Yowie]

48 minutes ago, Larkin said:

Nice catch Yowie! 👍
Snapper and crab - can’t beat that!

must of been a decent amount of school jewies coming through the hacking.
 

Thank you. Mate pulled up one tonight off his wharf in North West Arm, also under sized, and a nice tailor.

There is an unusually large number of big jelly fish up river at the moment, the large white ones, but it has not affected the fishing.

[Oscarthebeagle]

Well done Yowie. Looks like you were having a nice morning till a red bowrider boat with a wakeboarder tried to run you over!! I pottered past you in my boat just after.

On the Jellyfish I have never seen them like that in the river, have seen them like that in the Georges River and Woronora but never in the Hacking before, not sure what is causing it but hopefully they don't last.

Ash

[Yowie]

2 hours ago, Oscarthebeagle said:

Well done Yowie. Looks like you were having a nice morning till a red bowrider boat with a wakeboarder tried to run you over!! I pottered past you in my boat just after.

On the Jellyfish I have never seen them like that in the river, have seen them like that in the Georges River and Woronora but never in the Hacking before, not sure what is causing it but hopefully they don't last.

Ash

Thanks Ash. Numb nuts in the speed boat kept running inside me near the shoreline, no regard for anyone else on the water.

I saw someone in a boat heading inside me at a slow pace, so guessing that was you.

The jellies have been around in numbers before, many years ago there were big numbers, however, this year they have been in the biggest numbers ever, and lasting for a few months now. As I was heading home, I could feel them bumping into the motor at times, so there will be quite a few pieces floating about.

Dave.

[Rebel]

Top haul again.

@Fab1 will be so jealous.

Nice crab.

Well done.

[Yowie]

3 hours ago, Rebel said:

Top haul again.

@Fab1 will be so jealous.

Nice crab.

Well done.

Thank you, the fish were biting.

Have not heard from Fab for a while. Last report, he had skinned knuckles.  🦈

[Isaac Ct]

21 hours ago, Yowie said:

Thank you. Mate pulled up one tonight off his wharf in North West Arm, also under sized, and a nice tailor.

There is an unusually large number of big jelly fish up river at the moment, the large white ones, but it has not affected the fishing.

Every since the jellyfish have come in I've been catching a fair amount of squid..??

[Yowie]

25 minutes ago, Isaac Ct said:

Every since the jellyfish have come in I've been catching a fair amount of squid..??

Don't know about that. I have not caught any (though not trying too hard)

[bessell1955]

Great looking Blue swimmer!

[jenno64]

Very nice bag Dave, you could cook a 4 course degustation menu with that lot! The crab alone looks like a nice entree for 2!

[Yowie]

9 hours ago, bessell1955 said:

Great looking Blue swimmer!

It was a good size.

[Yowie]

9 hours ago, jenno64 said:

Very nice bag Dave, you could cook a 4 course degustation menu with that lot! The crab alone looks like a nice entree for 2!

Thanks Rob. I cooked and shelled the crab, then cooked up some rice, eggs, mushrooms, mixed veges, added some various sauces and a slurp of honey, mixed in the crab meat to heat up and it served 2 as a main meal, washed down with a sparkling wine.

Edited April 1, 2023 by Yowie

[Pickles]

Nicely done Dave - 52cm that is a stonker of a bream, probably over 40years old.

[Yowie]

1 hour ago, Pickles said:

Nicely done Dave - 52cm that is a stonker of a bream, probably over 40years old.

Thanks Bob.

My biggest bream is 3.5 pound, so maybe around the mid 40's or a little bit above, at a guess. 52cm would be a great fish to pull out, and very old as you stated. 

[Fab1]

On 4/1/2023 at 10:21 AM, Rebel said:

Top haul again.

@Fab1 will be so jealous.

Nice crab.

Well done.

Not at all.I’m guaranteed catching nothing sitting here.Won’t be long b4 my boats gonsky now.

On 4/1/2023 at 1:52 PM, Yowie said:

Thank you, the fish were biting.

Have not heard from Fab for a while. Last report, he had skinned knuckles.  🦈

The mrs has been nursing me back to health mate.😂😂Good work as always mate.

[Yowie]

12 minutes ago, Fab1 said:

Not at all.I’m guaranteed catching nothing sitting here.Won’t be long b4 my boats gonsky now.

The mrs has been nursing me back to health mate.😂😂Good work as always mate.

Good to hear you are still alive and kicking. One of those days where the fish were biting after sun-up, in fact the jewies came on the bite after sunrise.