Spontaneous Jigging session

[AlbertW]

Hey Raiders,

This report is a bit late as school has been a bit busy, but my mate called me up for a session on his boat again at the peak on saturday and since I had caught the jigging bug last time I was set on dropping jigs. As it was so short notice, I couldn't pick up my new jigging setup consisting of a lexa tw 400 and the new trophy hunter slow jig rod (I picked them up on sunday and they both feel great) but luckily my mate's grappler was free so I decided to borrow his setup. At the baitgrounds we could actually load up on some bait his time as I had brought some bread for berley. With around 10 yakkas and slimeys in the livewell we started the long journey off to the peak. Things looked promising at the peak as around 10 other boats were there. We positioned ourselves to spotlock and dropped down some 200g speed jigs, my mate had accidentally left one in my bag from last time so I decided to tie that one on first. First drop down I started to work on practicing mechanical jigging and boy was it tiring! Second drop down, I was a bit skeptical of how a fish was going to eat a hunk of metal being ripped up the water column when suddenly I felt the rod load up. Initially I thought it was a snag but then quickly realized it was nowhere near the bottom, the fish only felt like deadweight at first but it finally woke up after a few pumps of the rod. It immediately started swimming to the bottom but I kept tension and managed to keep his head pointed upwards. Behind me my mates had also hooked up at the same time so it seemed that a school of kingfish had just past us. WIth their heavier outfits they were able to land their fish with not much hassle but my kingy decided to tangle itself with the other lines and to make it worse my line was rubbing against the space between the motor and the boat. Miraciously i was able to keep tension on the fish and after my mates untangled our line I managed to pump the fish out back towards the side of the boat. A couple more runs and we managed to boat all 3 kings! Mine came in at a new PB at 69cm! After that the fishing slowed down a lot and we only managed one more kingy on exactly 65cm which we released, however a bunch of mack tuna were around and we managed around 8 of them. A couple barracouta were also caught which was a new species for me. After heading back inshore we did some bottom bashing to not much results, only one trag, two snapper and some common reefies. Overall I have a lot more confidence in jigging now but l can't wait to try slow pitch next time! 

(p.s the kingfish sashimi was really nice and the friends I gave some mack tuna to said it was nice as well)

(p.s.p.s does anyone have tips for preparing kingfish or recipes? We bled and iced the kingfish and I left it in the fridge overnight before sashiming it)

Thanks for reading!

Albert

[Yowie]

Nice work there, and as you found, if the jig looks like a fish then it is there to be eaten.

 

[big Neil]

Good onya Albert. I love your enthusiastic reports and the successes that you have as you continue learning new things and experiences. Nice variety of fish there to get stuck into.

Cheers, bn

[AlbertW]

2 hours ago, Yowie said:

Nice work there, and as you found, if the jig looks like a fish then it is there to be eaten.

 

Cheers Yowie, i guess they'll eat anything if the actions right haha 

2 hours ago, big Neil said:

Good onya Albert. I love your enthusiastic reports and the successes that you have as you continue learning new things and experiences. Nice variety of fish there to get stuck into.

Cheers, bn

Cheers BN, personally I'm a bit jealous of the murray cod fishery there haha, looking forward to your next trip down to the city 

[Larkin]

Nice kingy Albert!

Definitely hard work jigging the peak. The kings will be down lower, so only jig the lower 20-30m, then let the jig drop again. It will save your arms. The Mac tuna and baracoota are up nearer the surface.

Theres a great ceviche recipe for kingfish in the “kitchen” by whiskey299

I usually sashimi it or pan fry it (skinless fillet)

For pan frying I’ll just rub it with garlic salt, dried parsley flakes, salt and pepper, extra virgin olive oil. And I’ll make a side of tartare. Whole egg mayo, fine diced pickles, pickle juice, chopped capers, chopped dill, salt, black pepper. Add a salad or fries and your good to go.

Edited May 30 by Larkin

[Robbo from Sydney]

22 hours ago, AlbertW said:

Hey Raiders,

This report is a bit late as school has been a bit busy, but my mate called me up for a session on his boat again at the peak on saturday and since I had caught the jigging bug last time I was set on dropping jigs. As it was so short notice, I couldn't pick up my new jigging setup consisting of a lexa tw 400 and the new trophy hunter slow jig rod (I picked them up on sunday and they both feel great) but luckily my mate's grappler was free so I decided to borrow his setup. At the baitgrounds we could actually load up on some bait his time as I had brought some bread for berley. With around 10 yakkas and slimeys in the livewell we started the long journey off to the peak. Things looked promising at the peak as around 10 other boats were there. We positioned ourselves to spotlock and dropped down some 200g speed jigs, my mate had accidentally left one in my bag from last time so I decided to tie that one on first. First drop down I started to work on practicing mechanical jigging and boy was it tiring! Second drop down, I was a bit skeptical of how a fish was going to eat a hunk of metal being ripped up the water column when suddenly I felt the rod load up. Initially I thought it was a snag but then quickly realized it was nowhere near the bottom, the fish only felt like deadweight at first but it finally woke up after a few pumps of the rod. It immediately started swimming to the bottom but I kept tension and managed to keep his head pointed upwards. Behind me my mates had also hooked up at the same time so it seemed that a school of kingfish had just past us. WIth their heavier outfits they were able to land their fish with not much hassle but my kingy decided to tangle itself with the other lines and to make it worse my line was rubbing against the space between the motor and the boat. Miraciously i was able to keep tension on the fish and after my mates untangled our line I managed to pump the fish out back towards the side of the boat. A couple more runs and we managed to boat all 3 kings! Mine came in at a new PB at 69cm! After that the fishing slowed down a lot and we only managed one more kingy on exactly 65cm which we released, however a bunch of mack tuna were around and we managed around 8 of them. A couple barracouta were also caught which was a new species for me. After heading back inshore we did some bottom bashing to not much results, only one trag, two snapper and some common reefies. Overall I have a lot more confidence in jigging now but l can't wait to try slow pitch next time! 

(p.s the kingfish sashimi was really nice and the friends I gave some mack tuna to said it was nice as well)

(p.s.p.s does anyone have tips for preparing kingfish or recipes? We bled and iced the kingfish and I left it in the fridge overnight before sashiming it)

Thanks for reading!

Albert

well done Albert

[Marky mark]

Good stuff, love that moment when you jig, jig and jig away then suddenly it all comes to a grinding halt and you're hooked up! I've had a fair bit of joy with the slow pitch stuff in shallower water up to 45m or so but not patient enough to wait for the flutter all the way down there out in 60m plus. A livie on a paternoster is often a good bet when your arms give out!

I'm such a heathen me and the kids prefer our kingie filleted, skinned, cut into boneless chunks and then seasoned flour, egg wash and breadcrumbs to coat followed by a shallow fry in half butter and half oil to get a golden crumbs. Lemon or mayo mixed with wasabi and away you go. I have to fight the 11 and 8 year olds to get a bit though! The wife and my eldest both love the sashimi as well but it seems to be better the following day, gives it a chance to firm up in the fridge before slicing.

[jenno64]

Nice work Albert, fat king too!