Any spots for bait gathering and catching luderick?

[TheFishyFisherman]

Reading everyone’s report of winter luderick on fishraider has gotten me excited and wanting to catch them too since the winter hasn’t provided me with any big fish. I’ve only caught them off Narrabeen lakes and dee why beach on prawn and beach worms (dunno how I got my pb luderick on worm off the surf 🤔) and I’ve being seeing more of them at my usual fishing spot. I would like to know what rigs, spots and best bait gathering spots are! If anybody has any info that they want to share, Pls let me know!

Edited July 30 by TheFishyFisherman

[faker]

1 hour ago, TheFishyFisherman said:

Reading everyone’s report of winter luderick on fishraider has gotten me excited and wanting to catch them too since the winter hasn’t provided me with any big fish. I’ve only caught them off Narrabeen lakes and dee why beach on prawn and beach worms (dunno how I got my pb luderick on worm off the surf 🤔) and I’ve being seeing more of them at my usual fishing spot. I would like to know what rigs, spots and best bait gathering spots are! If anybody has any info that they want to share, Pls let me know!

well any ocean rock pool would have cabbage weed. Narrabeen headlands has stacks of it. there is parramatta river but i have only found some but only enough for me. i have been using iso floats and sinkers because i can them neutral bouyancy without thinking since its done for me

[44jeff]

As faker said, any ocean rock pool would have cabbage weed. Some ferry wharves and pontoons in the harbour should have solid amounts too. As for the rig, the basic setup outlined in DerekD's article on luderick is good.
 

As for spots, many ferry wharves have luderick. As you've fished balmoral before it's definitely worth a try. Wharves around the bridge like McMahons Pt Wharf are good as well. It is important to keep changing your depth to find the fish and some spots will do better at certain stages of the tide

Any light spin rod is fine. If you're fishing a wharf, a long rod is less important as you won't be casting your float far. If you're fishing spots where you need to cast further, it's important that your line floats.

Edited July 29 by 44jeff

[TheFishyFisherman]

I see them close to the bottom sometimes, should I use a light sinker or weir less rig in those circumstances?

[TheFishyFisherman]

1 hour ago, 44jeff said:

As faker said, any ocean rock pool would have cabbage weed. Some ferry wharves and pontoons in the harbour should have solid amounts too. As for the rig, the basic setup outlined in DerekD's article on luderick is good.
 

As for spots, many ferry wharves have luderick. As you've fished balmoral before it's definitely worth a try. Wharves around the bridge like McMahons Pt Wharf are good as well. It is important to keep changing your depth to find the fish and some spots will do better at certain stages of the tide

Any light spin rod is fine. If you're fishing a wharf, a long rod is less important as you won't be casting your float far. If you're fishing spots where you need to cast further, it's important that your line floats.

Thanks. That article taught me a lot of things. 

Edited July 29 by TheFishyFisherman

[TheFishyFisherman]

2 hours ago, faker said:

well any ocean rock pool would have cabbage weed. Narrabeen headlands has stacks of it. there is parramatta river but i have only found some but only enough for me. i have been using iso floats and sinkers because i can them neutral bouyancy without thinking since its done for me

I heard it’s better to get local bait. I think the green stuff on in the small rock pools at dee why is that stringy green weed (I’ll do research on that). I’ll try narrAbeen when I have the time. There might be some cabbage around the pylons in balmoral because I’ve seen bits of it float in the water (I’ve never really paid attention-I only pay attention to where the snags are). Also, would a pencil float work better? By the way, thanks for the locations!!!

Edited July 29 by TheFishyFisherman

[faker]

9 minutes ago, TheFishyFisherman said:

I heard it’s better to get local bait. I think the green stuff on in the small rock pools at dee why is that stringy green weed (I’ll do research on that). I’ll try narrAbeen when I have the time. There might be some cabbage around the pylons in balmoral because I’ve seen bits of it float in the water (I’ve never really paid attention-I only pay attention to where the snags are). Also, would a pencil float work better? By the way, thanks for the locations!!!

I found plenty near where you are but i can't give away my sources. 

[DerekD]

2 hours ago, TheFishyFisherman said:

I heard it’s better to get local bait. I think the green stuff on in the small rock pools at dee why is that stringy green weed (I’ll do research on that). I’ll try narrAbeen when I have the time. There might be some cabbage around the pylons in balmoral because I’ve seen bits of it float in the water (I’ve never really paid attention-I only pay attention to where the snags are). Also, would a pencil float work better? By the way, thanks for the locations!!!

Hi TFF,

Unlikely to be any cabbage weed on the pylons at Balmoral as it doesn't meet my specification for being in an intertidal zone and getting a good combination of water and air during the day. Once the tide drops it will be several hours before it gets back to the same height on the columns. The weed never gets the chance to build up. On the ocean facing rocks you have water washing over the rocks as the waves hit them ensuring a good and frequent supply of water during the day. The floating ferry wharves usually has cabbage weed at the waterline but in this case the waves comes from the frequent boat traffic. The weed can be found to about 5 to 8cm above the water line of the wharf. Higher than that they rarely get enough water washing over.

Once you've seen the conditions the different types of weed require for growth you will get better at recognising and finding the locations.

Regards,

Derek

Edited July 29 by DerekD

[XD351]

The floating pontoons are your best option if land based , if you have a boat or kayak then life if much easier because you can add channel markers , the steel mesh on shark net baths and moored boats to that list . For pontoons the biggest hassle is getting to the cabbage or weed as the top of the pontoon is usually around 1m or more above the waterline. You can make a couple of tools to help , a small scraper  attached to a broom handle and a small net with a fine mesh to scoop up the cabbage / weed you scrape off the pontoon- also attached to a Broome handle . 
There is a reason why luderick anglers won’t share their bait locations on social media- I know of a few that did and when they went back a couple of days later it had been pillaged, nothing left - probably someone supplying a tackle shop with bait had read the post and took the lot -money and greed are well known bedfellows.

Other areas you can try are the ocean pools or baths . 
luderick are everywhere in the harbour , even right up the rivers but some locations will hold bigger populations than others  , caught plenty from a boat under the spit bridge and a few off the shore up around Castlecrag. My biggest came from Valencia st wharf many years ago and places like Greenwich wharf , Clarkes point and Kelly’s bush are well know locations amongst the luderick fishing community.

luderick off the beach is nothing new , not common but it does happen occasionally. Weirdest thing I ever caught was a tiny cobia ! 

 

[44jeff]

11 hours ago, TheFishyFisherman said:

I see them close to the bottom sometimes, should I use a light sinker or weir less rig in those circumstances?

If they're in a spot with very little current you can use a light split shot only but when I see Blackfish feeding I prefer to use the float and just set the depth near the bottom

[TheFishyFisherman]

11 hours ago, faker said:

I found plenty near where you are but i can't give away my sources. 

at least you gave me a clue 

Edited July 29 by TheFishyFisherman
Spelling mistake

[TheFishyFisherman]

16 minutes ago, 44jeff said:

If they're in a spot with very little current you can use a light split shot only but when I see Blackfish feeding I prefer to use the float and just set the depth near the bottom

ok thanks

[james Cutler]

There is a stack of info on the Forum about Luderick. Look it up.

[TheFishyFisherman]

Thanks for all the info 😊

[TheFishyFisherman]

Also, are there any hot spots for luderick as well? I’m not a fan of rock fishing even though they are generally a rock dwelling fish but any info would still help. Also. How long w my leader be from the float or does that vary in different conditions/circumstances or do I keep adjusting the depth on my float rig?

Edited July 30 by TheFishyFisherman

[TheFishyFisherman]

11 hours ago, XD351 said:

The floating pontoons are your best option if land based , if you have a boat or kayak then life if much easier because you can add channel markers , the steel mesh on shark net baths and moored boats to that list . For pontoons the biggest hassle is getting to the cabbage or weed as the top of the pontoon is usually around 1m or more above the waterline. You can make a couple of tools to help , a small scraper  attached to a broom handle and a small net with a fine mesh to scoop up the cabbage / weed you scrape off the pontoon- also attached to a Broome handle . 
There is a reason why luderick anglers won’t share their bait locations on social media- I know of a few that did and when they went back a couple of days later it had been pillaged, nothing left - probably someone supplying a tackle shop with bait had read the post and took the lot -money and greed are well known bedfellows.

Other areas you can try are the ocean pools or baths . 
luderick are everywhere in the harbour , even right up the rivers but some locations will hold bigger populations than others  , caught plenty from a boat under the spit bridge and a few off the shore up around Castlecrag. My biggest came from Valencia st wharf many years ago and places like Greenwich wharf , Clarkes point and Kelly’s bush are well know locations amongst the luderick fishing community.

luderick off the beach is nothing new , not common but it does happen occasionally. Weirdest thing I ever caught was a tiny cobia ! 

 

Wow, a cobia off the beach?! That’s really cool 😎!!!!

[sashkello]

4 minutes ago, TheFishyFisherman said:

Also, are there any hot spots for luderick as well? I’m not a fan of rock fishing even though they are generally a rock dwelling fish but any info would still help. Also. How long w my leader be from the float or does that vary in different conditions/circumstances or do I keep adjusting the depth on my float rig?

These days I've caught them almost literally everywhere... Apart from beaches, just any spot with structure they are biting (and did hear them being caught on beaches as well). Make sure to burley and they will come. From Spit to Balmoral to Clifton, to any rock or jetty spot in Middle or Sydney Harbour. 

Length of leader I wouldn't say matters too much, just make sure it's long enough so that you can reuse it if you get bitten off, but also not too long so that it doesn't swing around too much - it will tangle. I start with about half a meter and then it gets smaller as I lose hooks sometimes  

Yes, adjust depth with float stopper. They usually bite closer to the bottom, so there is a balance between snag risk and getting in the strike zone. 

 

[TheFishyFisherman]

Ok thanks!!

[sashkello]

1 minute ago, sashkello said:

I’m not a fan of rock fishing

You don't have to go on open ocean rocks. There are plenty of rocky shorelines with nice spots which aren't exposed to the waves.

[TheFishyFisherman]

Good news raiders! I think I found a spot for bait collecting!!! It should look like green hair? Right? The camera quality isn’t good so it looks like algae from a distance. I think ther might be cabbage a bit further where the little rock pools are but the surf was too rough today to go any further

Edited July 30 by TheFishyFisherman

[TheFishyFisherman]

There are also several rocks covered in that stuff closer to the beach which I can access during low tide.

[ireallylovefishies22]

59 minutes ago, TheFishyFisherman said:

Good news raiders! I think I found a spot for bait collecting!!! It should look like green hair? Right? The camera quality isn’t good so it looks like algae from a distance. I think ther might be cabbage a bit further where the little rock pools are but the surf was too rough today to go any further

That stuff looks great, should work well for luderick. As said before, ferry wharves and floating pontoons are generally the best areas to target luderick if you aren't keen fishing off the rocks. Again, make sure to adjust your float depth every once in a while, until you find the fish, but generally 3m is a good starting point. Having a bait 2 or 3 feet off the bottom is where you'll probably get the most hookups.

[TheFishyFisherman]

Thanks!!!! I finally feel more confident now. Going to try for them this weekend maybe in the morning or late arvo if I get a chance to get some of that weed

Edited July 30 by TheFishyFisherman

[TheFishyFisherman]

? It says that there’s much less weed in the winter because of the cold… so now I’m having doubts….. could someone describe what it’s like or maybe check the pic? It does have the light green edges around it that i see in other images but I’m new to this. I also forgot to ask, what is the best time and tides? 

Edited July 30 by TheFishyFisherman

[XD351]

Ok , the weed ( really it is an algae - ulva  intestinalis) growth rate slows with colder water and less UV light which both occur in winter . It is still around , it just takes longer to grow and if you can eliminate one of the two occurrences above - ie warmer water or areas exposed to more sunlight you might do better . There used to be acres of the stuff in ermington bay and the bay next to the putney boat ramp - even in winter but the rivercat killed it because the wave action or wake tends to break the weed up and it doesn’t grow back to a usable length . The stuff in the photo is worth a try as long as it is long enough to make a bait out of - I would like around 50mm as a minimum as I can roll that then wind it around the hook .