Sydney Fly Fishing
Report by Justin Duggan, Justin Duggan's Sydney Flyfishing Tours.

 
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Sydney Flyfishing - December 07

Great fishing in the Harbour

It’s been great fishing again on Sydney Harbour with the season getting into full swing. The weather has been a little weird but most days have been very fishable. The afternoon storm build up has been more reminiscent of Darwin weather than Sydney and has provided some spectacular cloud formations to watch whilst we fish.
With tonnes of baitfish in the Harbour I sense there is going to be an incredible summer of fishing.

Kingfish, a summer favourite

Well it’s no secret that Kingfish are an awesome fish on any tackle but on a fly rod they are pure magic at any size. There are some very solid Kingfish in the Harbour at present as well as oodles of smaller “rats”. The schooling fish are mixed amongst stacks of Salmon and Tailor. The majority of the baitfish have been smaller so we have been using smaller flies and you guessed it…….the Tailor have been first to grab it almost every time. These toothy little fellas (some are not so little) have been biting off flies with regularity and I have found myself up until the wee small hours tying replacements each night. You might ask why we don’t use wire, well with the clear water and fussy, fussy Kings the wire is too visible and the Kings will shy away from the fly.
Your best bet for a Kingfish is to use a hard bodied lure to hook a Tailor and then to draw it into the boat quickly. Once at the boat the struggling Tailor usually will attract a few Kingfish and then it’s just a matter of dropping a fly beside the hooked fish. Jeremy Barlow managed some nice Kingfish by hooking a Tailor on fly first and then grabbing the 10wt off me and plunging a fly down for instant mayhem!

A morning session with poppers on the channel markers has produced nice fish during the week as well as some spectacular bust offs. Brian Elton and mate Robbie scored Kingfish within minutes of leaving the boat ramp and it was a real shock to Robbie who was experiencing his first saltwater Flyfishing trip.
It’s always interesting to watch peoples reactions when one of their first few casts gets inhaled by a fired up fish and Robbie did superbly to subdue a solid rat kingfish in his first moments aboard my boat, well done mate……..hows the arms??? Not to be outdone Brian decided to fish deeper and hook a monster that completely wiped him out leaving his head shaking and my flyline a few inches shorter…….oh, well mate, maybe next time. The guys also landed a stack of Tailor and solid salmon as well. Great stuff.
There are fish starting to stack up from Middle Harbour to Balmain and I have no doubt there is some incredible action ahead in the coming weeks.

Pittwater/Hawkesbury report - a fishery in trouble?

A few nice fish have been lurking in Pittwater this past fortnight and the odd school of Rat Kings have been swirling off Scotland Island. If you are prepared to run a berley trail around West Head or Barrenjoey there is a good chance of Kingfish and the odd bonito as well. Salmon seemed to have thinned out as well as the trevally but the warmer waters now pushing into the system should bring new fish to replace them such as Bonito, frigate mackerel and the odd tropical pelagic as well. Once again it is sad to say that this waterway continues to be a shadow of its former glory and it’s hard to ignore the minefield of fish traps, mesh netters and trawlers that dot the waterway. A trip up Mooney creek, Marramarra creek or Berowra creeks most weeknights will shock local anglers. As the run out tide sweeps through the mouth of the creeks the mesh nets are being strung across, ensnaring all in their path. Whilst this is not a nightly occurrence it does not need to be to damage the system. I do not begrudge any
fisherman an income at all but what’s the cost to our children? Are our kids to listen to our stories of the good old days when we used to catch fish? My hope is that we leave the future better…….not worse. Since the Harbour commercial fishing ban the professional anglers have moved to the Northern waters to etch out a living. The Hawkesbury/Pittwater area barely supported the locals, let alone a whole new swag of pressure. I hope fisheries will act and use our license funds to buy these guys out and compensate them fairly. Lets return the waterways to their former glory.

Tip of the month

Ok, I am prepared to tackle this issue and cop some abuse!! LOL. I have seen raging debates about which hand to wind the fly reel and I want to add my 2 cents here.
If your catching smaller fish or fish that do not take large or quick runs then the side you wind the reel is irrelevant. If on the other hand you are chasing larger fish or fish that take long runs then you must wind with your dominant hand………end of story!
Most seasoned anglers know that slack line can lead to dropped fish and many fish will often swim toward the angler, when this happens you need to wind flat out.
I’ve never seen a fish dropped when swapping hands in a fight but I’ve seen heaps lost when an angler has not been able to wind quick enough.
Try this, grab a pen and paper and draw a circle with your right hand and then your left. Which one is best? Get my point. Next time your on a trout stream don’t worry which hand your winding but when you step aboard a boat to chase striped tuna you may wish to re-consider!

There we go, another report with lots of action, stories and a little controversy, LOL
I suggest you grab your diaries and give me a call if you wish to fish what is shaping up to be Sydney Harbours best season for years, January is filling rapidly and December is gone all except 17th, 18th and 21st. Call me on 0414961221
Hope to see you soon, tight lines,
Justin Duggan

Sydney Flyfishing update for August

Back in the saddle

For those of you who have been wondering where I have been the last couple of months well I have been on a bit of an involuntary hiatus after a booked out spring and summer. Back at the beginning of winter my four-stroke motor reached a very sudden climax to its life. With the prospect of needing a new motor I decided to catch up on some overdue boat maintenance before putting the new motor on the boat. As it turned out the time off the water coincided with some totally awful weather patterns as the East coast was battered by a series of almost cyclonic low-pressure systems. The Hawkesbury River flowed with mud and logs like a scene from a disaster movie and the Harbour waters turned chocolate.
With the imminent return of my boat this week I am pleased to say the desperately needed rains have brought some new life into our waterways and the upcoming season is shaping to be a boomer!
New Evinrude E-tech motor

As Big Kev, Australia’s iconic product salesmen used to say, “I’m Excited!”

After having been a huge fan of four stroke motors for many years I had been aware of a buzz throughout the boating industry regarding the new generation Evinrude 2 stroke motors available on the market and I had been keen to investigate. Over the last year I have had some involvement with these motors whilst operating various other vessels and I was very impressed. These revolutionary motors offer all the benefits previously enjoyed by my 4-stroke motor but without the negatives! The Evinrude e-techs offer supreme fuel efficiency, quietness, incredible power to weight ratios, reliability and the lowest emissions on the market. With 200 fewer moving parts than 4-strokes in the motor head alone and 300 hours of service free operation these motors are a charter operators dream. After long consideration I am pleased to say that I will be sporting a new 90hp Evinrude e-tech on the boat and I look forward to a long and prosperous association with Evinrude motors through BRP Australia……………welcome aboard fellas!!!
I will also soon have some exciting news about new Marine electronics we will be using on board which will revolutionise the way we fish and will, I’m convinced, increase our catch rates substantially. I hope to have more on that in the next report.

So whats happening on the water

Salmon and Kingfish are still schooling in middle Harbour and are up to their usual tricks refusing 40 casts one minute and taking every offering the next. Its still loads of fun to chase these guys up and down the beautiful stretches of water in middle Harbour with forest lined hills and calm secluded Bays. I have managed to get out skippering on a few peoples boats and we have encountered some huge schools of salmon in the Harbour near the heads. Sporadic action has also been found in Cowan creek and Pittwater as well.
The Estuary Perch are still available in the Hawkesbury with a new zero bag limit from June to August ensuring that no one will be able to keep the spawning fish, AMEN to that and well done NSW fisheries. A new 65cm Size limit on Kingfish instead of the previous 60cm is a step closer to helping kingfish numbers but stops short of being an ideal size limit. Most research still shows kingfish are not sexually mature until well over 70cm. A size limit that allows fish to breed at least once makes more sense, but we are getting there!
Now that the waters are beginning to churn with salmon you can expect a host of sharks, trevally, Kingfish and jewfish to be shadowing the schools, so we will be rigging the 12wt ready to fire should we spy larger predators.

Time to hit the water with a special offer

After a somewhat long and unscheduled break I am keen to hit the ground running. I appreciate all those wonderful people who have offered support whilst I have been off the water. Putting your business on hold for 3 months is rather traumatic and I am truly grateful for all the support I have received from clients, sponsors and colleagues to make things a little smoother. Special mention to Ian Smith, Craig McGill, BRP/Evinrude, Peter Fry, Boaties marine super store at Gosford, Mark Bantich of Fly angler magazine, Andy Beer, Steve Cohn, Flylife Magazine and BLA.

There are a lot of anglers keen to get out after the time off and it is well worth it at the moment.
I am offering 4 people the opportunity to purchase 5 tours for the price of 4 which is a potential saving of hundreds……….especially when you bring a friend along for free!
For more information please contact me on 0414961221
I am now taking bookings with charters beginning next week and considering last years booked out season I suggest you get in fast.
I look forward to seeing you on the water soon,
Cheers,
Justin Duggan

Sydney Flyfishing Report April 2007

Sydney harbour puts on a show
Sydney Harbour has turned on an amazing show for Sydney Flyfishing clients this last couple of weeks. The wonderful Kingfish season has continued along with a large number of great fly and sportfishing targets. We have also had some thrilling light tackle fishing for big mullet that has really added a wonderful dimension to the last few weeks.

Current fishing
Currently there are very large schools of bait dotted through Middle Harbour with a myriad off species joining the feast. David Shaer of the UK experienced hours of wonderful fishing action as a massive baitball sheltered under the boat. The ball consisted of thousands of Australian anchovies about 3 inches long that had bunched together to avoid the dozens and dozens of predators that had surrounded them. The Anchovies were climbing over each other to flee the predators. Watching high speed smash and grab raids by so many tuna and Kingfish was awesome. The surface strikes that even included a Bonito doing a triple back twist over the rear the boat actually splashed David and I. It was a matter of sinking a clouser minnow under the bait and stripping it back with stops and starts. The species found under the bait included Kingfish, Pacific bonito, Watson’s Bonito, Frigate Mackerel, Tailor, Aussie Salmon, Amberjack, Sampson Fish, Northern Barred Longtom and Bream. No doubt a host of other species such as Sharks and the odd Cobia and Spotted Mackerel will be lurking.

Mullet Madness
For the last 3 years I have been putting in a fair bit of effort to target the large mullet that aggregate at the mouths of our bays and Harbours with the first of the April Westerly winds. These fish are simply an incredible fighter and a fussy fly taker. When these fish gather in large spawning aggregations we are able to coax them using 6 pound leaders and small baitfish flies or weed flies. Hooking the fish well enough to land them is awkward with the large soft blubbery lips providing poor hook purchase. If hooked properly the mullet prove a hard tussle with some fights extending to nearly 20 minutes as the mullet continually dived for reef and rocks. We hooked numerous fish up to 2.7kg this last fortnight, which is a stunning effort on line of the same weight and 5 wt fly rods.
Well done to Cameron Mennie and his dad as well as Sean Lyndsay-Clark for the stunning captures this week.

Apart from the Mullet in Broken Bay and the very odd Kingfish in Pittwater I can say that the Harbour is still by far the best choice for fishing. I am so sad to see the dozens of fish traps that litter Pittwater since the Harbour commercial fishing closures. We counted 27 between mackerel Beach and Barrenjoey last week, which I am afraid to say this will be the gauntlet many species will have to run to get upstream for times to come.

For those keen to target mullet I suggest a small size 8 floating weed fly or bait profile. Use light line and cast to the fish that are milling about in circles on the surface. Do not cast to fish swimming in a daisy chain along the shore, they will not feed. The fish sipping on top are the feeders! Look for jumping mullet near the wash zones at the headlands as they try to free their milt and eggs.

Tip of the month and available dates
Remember to wear appropriate footware when fishing with fly on board a boat. Appropriate footware usually consists of shoes that will not snarl flylines like slip on laceless shoes or booties, laced shoes are a poor choice. The best way to avoid snarls is to fish bare footed. This way you can feel the line beneath your feet and there is no cleats or laces to catch on. The downside is the possibility of treading on a hook so use barbless whenever possible.

May 9th and 10th are free at this stage as too are May 23rd, 24th, 28th and 29th.

For a bunch of photos of the baitball action plus the mullet go to the news and reports section at www.sydneyflyfishing.com.au

I cannot wait for the upcoming weeks as the warmer waters that filter in and out and the change of season brings some hot fishing action.
Cheers,
Justin Duggan

Magic March
Welcome to another Sydney Flyfishing report and what a ripper March we have encountered. Great numbers of fish have been caught over this past month and I would have to say it has been the best Kingfish season I have encountered.
There is no doubt that Sydney Harbour is reaping the rewards of the professional fisherman closeout with tons of baitfish schooling throughout the Harbour system.
Unfortunately Pittwater continues to suffer from very poor fishing for the most part. A chat to Pittwater regular and fellow charter skipper Greg Joyes of Calmwater fishing charters sounded very grim and my fleeting visits to the area have proven very tough for a small number of fish. Greg has managed some good results on Jewfish and Marlin outside the Bay but the inshore reports from Pittwater are poor. This has certainly upped my fuel bill as i am now spending nearly every day guiding on the Harbour rather than the waters of Broken bay/ Hawkesbury where I live.

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Sydney harbour solid Kings
We have now managed a fair number of larger Kingfish aboard Sydney flyfishing tours this month on both fly rods and spinning gear. Not all the larger fish have been landed and I have found myself re-rigging leaders and tying bimini twists on numerous occassions this last few weeks as the bigger hoodlum kingfish have won their freedom. I am sure a fair number of our flies are decorating the barnacle encrusted pylons and rocks scattered through the bays and channels.

Those that have landed bigger fish in the last few days include Sydney Flyfishing regular Rod Kimberley who managed a nice fish over 6kg from right next to a channel post. Rod used some serious pressure to turn the fish from almost certain freedom and then proceeded to dog it out with the powerful kingie as it made repeated lunges for the bottom. I think it really would surprise people how much "hurt" you can exert on a fish with a fly rod and 20lb leader and well done to Rod for landing this fish from tough terrain.

Most the known structures and wrecks are holding Kingfish as well as large Tailor and Bonito. The odd Sampson fish and Amberjack are also present.
Larger clousers and flies tied from larger white hackles are proving deadly as too are 9inch white stickbaits for the spin fishers.
Sydney Flfishing regular Steve Cooper was not content with landing a pair of 5-6kg Kings on his 9wt fly rod and returned for more action. Steve decided he wanted to "blood" his new Sage TCR 6wt on a rat Kingfish. I took Steve to a beacon that had been producing a lot of small Kingfish so he could christen his rod. Steve cast a white clouser and received a hit almost immediately, stripping again, Steves line sprung tight. I can only assume that the fish had already turned when Steve connected because what unfolded next was total pandemonium. The fish proceeded to empty the line off the deck in seconds with Steve spurting expletives as the line burnt his fingers on his left hand. Next it was the fingers on the right hand that were to cop a hiding as the reel spun into action and the handle clipped Steves knuckles, ouch! Now Steve really knows how to fight fish on fly and he had 20lb leader with the rod pointed straight at the fish, he was also using the flyline as a handline and then holding the reel as firm as he could once the flyline was clear of the deck but this fish was seriously solid. It's hard to judge how much line was lost as the fish screamed off and won freedom on the rocky bottom but we have landed some pretty solid fish lately and they did not take anywhere near as much line nor move as quickly as this fish did. I guess we should have known that the minute we wanted a smaller fish a monster would come along.

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Baitballs galore
The main Harbour body has been plagued by frigate mackerel as they invade the coastal bays in search of frogmouth pilchards. What I love so much about these little tuna is that they round up the anchovie schools and herd them into tight packed balls on the surface. Cartwheeling, diving Terns and gulls signal the frenzy and it's not long before a host of other fish join in. We have managed Kingfish, Bonito, Salmon, Tailor,Snapper, Watsons Bonitoand frigate Mackerel from beneath the bait balls. Try sinking lines and an olive and white surf candy with a short sporadic retrieve. The crystal clear harbour waters have meant the need to drop as low as 14lb tippets for constant hook-ups. Rose Bay, Clifton Gardens, Double Bay and Rushcutters Bay have the best action. Sharks of all sizes are also with the bait so try to stay in the boat!!!!!

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Tip of The month - GIVE NO LINE.
When chasing smaller Kingfish with a fly rod it is important to know the limits of your rod and your leader system. If fishing near structure you have the need to stop the fish as quickly as possible from returning to the structure and rubbing your fly line around the barnacles. To do this you often have to hold the flyline and "Give no line". This involves holding the flyline or even taking a wrap of the line with your stripping hand. The rod angles must be minimal as the pressure exerted by the fish can snap a high lifted rod like a twig. Given that it is impossible to break 20lb tippet through a bent fly rod I try and keep a fractional bend in the rod tip to act as my shock absorber and tippet protector. You need to be quick to react and move the rod to avoid smashing it on the side of the boat. You also have to be quick to allow line to slip to the fish should the fish run away from the structure.
With larger Kingfish you have to try and make a judgement call........QUICKLY!
If you try to hold a big kingie on 20lb leader you will get smashed. Instead, I prefer to try to go gently and ease the fish clear with gentle coaxing rather than going hard. (Big kingfish are too powerful to stop on a fly rod with locked up line). You will need a lot of luck but if the fish runs clear you can then try to put some hurt through the fly rod and keep the fish off the bottom. It is possible to turn the fishes head around or lift it a little off the bottom but it is impossible to pull directly against the power of the fishes tail. For this reason it is best to get above the fish once it has cleared the structure. Every Kingfish seems to react slightly differently so be quick to make decisions and quick to move around the boat and avoid rod damge!!!

April is now full but there are spaces left for May so get in quickly for a chance at some awesome fishing. Call me on 0414961221 or better still email justin@sydneyflyfishing.com.au

Until next report, happy fishing,
Justin Duggan

Sydney Harbour phenomenal fishing
Hello all and welcome to a somewhat belated report. The reason for the late report is not because things are slow but quite the opposite, things are frantic.
After a booked out November and December I am now booked out until the beginning of March and the remaining March bookings are filling rapidly.
The reason for the busy times is no doubt due to many people experiencing great fishing aboard Sydney Flyfishing Tours and returning for more action.
The great news is that the fishing in Sydney Harbour is simply unbelievable. The ban on Commercial fishing has left acres of baitfish and prawns to be marauded by packs of Kingfish, Salmon and Bonito. We have actually witnessed Prawns being eaten by Kingfish right off the front of Kirribilli House (John Howards residence) As well as in front of the Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge.
I have ventured into pittwater for a couple of charters over the last few weeks and have been left very deflated by it's poor performance compared to the Harbour. Whilst there are fish present, they are in much smaller numbers than the Harbour and the lack of bait is a likely symptom of increased commercial pressure. I just cannot justify a trip to Pittwater at the moment unless you are restricted by geography.

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Better Kings lurking
We have been targetting Kingfish in nearly every Bay between The Harbour Bridge and Roseville Bridge over the past few weeks and even today we were rewarded with dozens of schools throughout the Sydney Harbour system.
Nearly every channel marker has held fish and we have found ourselves outfishing lures and plastics on numerous days.
Many of the markers have been attracting schools of kingies which have been visibly swimming around the markers with their tails breaking the surface. The first fly to land is smashed in seconds and then after a few fish are landed then the kings usually retreat to deeper water near the channel marker. The key to success on the markers has been to use weighted flies on fast sink lines and to get as close and as deep as possible to the marker chain, "If you aint near the chain you aint in the game" has been my mantra repeated so often this past month.

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My fly of choice of late has been a 6 inch squid fly I have tied with long hackles that are tied inward rather than splayed outward. The head is made of flexo tube which overlays a wrap of lead and crystal chenille. Essentially what you end up with is a 6inch long squid fly that almost perfectly imitates the stick baits that are so often loved by Kingfish. Used with a sinking line and a quick stop start retrieve my clients have accounted for over 60 fish on this fly over the last week including fish over 5kg.
Steve Cooper and his dad gerald experienced an amazing kingfish session last week including an awesome bit of action when we found kingfish between 5 and 6 kilo finning around some structure. Steves First cast with a popper was monstered and his 9wt Sage TCR bent to the test. After a good run the hook pulled and we returned to try for another. The next fish Steve hooked went beserk and I can honestly say it was some serious ability by Steve that saw him give the fish no quarter and a healthy fish of nearly 5 kilo was boated.
The next King Steve hooked was a step up again and it took a good 10 minutes of rod and boat work to drag the fish clear of danger and on to the deck. Watching a skilled angler like Steve apply every ounce of pressure possible to turn the fish just proved that these fish can really be stopped just as easily, if not more, than the majority of anglers with spin or baitcast tackle. I believe the pressure Steve exerted on this fish at stages of the fight was a hairs breath of 10kg. There are of course much bigger fish to tangle with as well.

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Where it's all happening
Ok, for those of you who want tips, here we go.
The Kingfish can be found at watsons Bay, Taylors Bay, Rose Bay, Clifton Gardens, Rushcutters Bay, North Harbour, Goat Island, Clark Island, Shark island, Double Bay and all of Middle Harbour, namely sugarloaf and Bantry Bay. Look for surface schools or work structure early morning with poppers and clousers.
Huge masses of Frigate mackerel were working off Chinamans Beach today heralding the arrival of warmer water. These guys are best chased on light gear like 5wt rods, 8 pound tippet and small eye flies.
Bonito are mixed amongst the Kingfish and are best targeted with small white and blue candies. i use 20 pound Nitlon flourocarbon for most fishing at the moment in case the bigger Kings decide to latch on.

For Pittwater, try Towlers Bay for morning Bonito action as well as the East and West of Scotland Island. The wrecks are sporadic due to the excess exposure and traffic from the last few years but they are still worth a quick look. Salmon are off Barrenjoey and Box Head and Cowan Creek has some Bonito, Kings and Salmon in Yeomans Bay.

Tip of the Month
Remember when casting at schools of breaking fish to keep your flyline in your hand as you deliver the cast.........this allows you to start a retrieve the minute the fly hits the water. I have seen numerous missed opportunities when fish grab the fly as it lands whilst the angler is still fumbling for line control.

I hope you get a chance to experience some great fishing with us over the coming weeks.
Until next time,
Cheers,
Justin Duggan

Sydney Flyfishing Newsletter

Merry Christmas
Seasons greetings and a very Merry Christmas to all.

What a wonderful start to the festive season we have had, I can honestly say this has been our best season ever.
The fishing has been magnificent for the past 3 months. First it was Pittwater that turned on a phenomenal show of fish, including some very large kingfish and now it is Sydney Harbours turn.

Harbour magic
Whilst Pittwater seems to have slowed to a crawl with regard to the fishing, Sydney harbour has turned on a treat. Waves of Kingfish have invaded the Harbour and we have been finding schools working the surface in nearly every bay between the Harbour and Spit Bridges. Large aggressive schools of salmon have been working their way into the Harbour as far as Balmoral Beach and they have mixed on several occasions with the kingfish. Bonito have also been travelling with the "Hoodlum" kingfish although they are only small.
The best flies to date have been small size 6 polarfibre minnows in white and olive (try the felty's) and small felty's UV sprats and chartreuse clousers. We have been locating bait schools scattered throughout the bays and dropping clousers on Rio deepsea lines has proved deadly as Steve Cohn and Roland Brown discovered. Both anglers managed numerous Kingfish as well as Bonito. Flathead were also in plague proportions beneath the baitballs. Most of the bait encountered appeared to be larger Australian anchovies.

Sharks galore
With so many fish presently in the Harbour it is little wonder that the sharks have followed. Rod Kimberley and I witnessed a larger whaler shark around 12-13 feet long smashing through the salmon just off Dobroyd Bombora last week. The show was great the first couple of times but it got a tad annoying when the salmon would scatter and take a long time to work the surface again.

Earlier this week Andrew Byrnes and his Friend Mark got among Salmon and Kingfish on fly and Lure. Mark had great success on a rapala skitterpop whilst Andrew used small candies to account for Kingfish and salmon. Upon returning to Middle Harbour I spotted a Hammerhead shark cruising within 80 meters of bathers off Clontarf beach. The bathers were bemused by the sight of Andrew casting madly with his fly rod right in front of them. After several casts Andrew hooked the shark that managed to clear the water before smashing back to the surface and diving for the bottom. After a brief tussle the hook pulled free, much to our disappointment.
But wait.................there's more!!
The following Day Andy Elsegood and Andrew Stevenson were aboard and as we rounded the corner of middle Harbour I relayed the story of the lost shark. Not minutes later and we had spotted a small cruising hammerhead in front of Clontarf beach again. After several casts Andrew Stevenson was on!
After a brief struggle Andrew boated the little fella and we grabbed a few quick snaps as well as removing a bait hook from the little guys mouth.
Well done to Andrew on a fairly rare fly capture. Hammerheads have a large front surface area that is highly sensitive to electro stimulation (such as metal hooks and wire in salt water) making them shy away from our flies well short of taking them. It was great to sight cast to a finning shark in front of Bathers and Kay Akers...................and they are thinking of removing the shark net at Balmoral!!

Season ahead looks magnificent
It has been a busy December with Sydney Flyfishing Tours booked out. January is pretty much taken save for the 8th and the 19th. February is also filling quickly so please contact me if you wish to reserve a day.
There should be a wonderful variety of species available between now and May/June including Sampson fish, Cobia, Spotted mackerel, Amberjack, Kingfish, Salmon, Bonito, Frigate mackerel and hopefully a few tuna.

If your after a last minute gift for chrissy then why not consider a gift voucher for casting tuition or a flyfishing tour? Contact Justin for more information on 0414961221.

I hope the coming season finds you all safe and well and that you don't put on too many extra kilos after the Christmas Dinner.
Cheers,
Merry Christmas,
Justin Duggan

November fishing just too good!!!
Wow, what a week, what a month!!!
The fishing lately has been absolutely outstanding with some of the hottest surface action I have seen. Most Sydney Flyfishing Clients have enjoyed casting to hot surface feeding fish from morning till afternoon. Some of the schools of fish have fed without stopping for several hours at a time.

Big Salmon
The bulk of the surface activity in Pittwater has consisted of Salmon and Tailor along with a mix of Kingfish. What has been amazing has been the sheer amount of bait as well as the fussiness of the predators.
Picture throwing a perfect bait imitation into a white foaming mass of Tailor, Salmon and Kings only to have it returned untouched!! Tailor will usually eat anything but even they have been a bit fussy and I am convinced it is because there is just so much bait for them to choose from. This has meant multiple casts into the schools before achieving a hook-up.
The best results have come from the drop and draw technique I have endorsed so heavily over the years. The fly must be moving before it touches the water, try 2 or 3 strips then pick up and cast again. The key is to cast very quickly with minimum false casts. The other key factor has been to pin your casts straight on top of the area of most activity.......pick your fish. It amazes people that we are sight casting to individual fish within a school of hundreds.

The majority of salmon hooked have been well sized, including some 4kg models and one fish that followed a lure was easily 5 kilo and more likely 6kg.

Those on board that have used lures or plastics have been having some good results although the majority of fish hooked are tailor.
It has been interesting to watch other boats fishing the schools with live baits or down rigged squid, as yet we have yet to see one bend a rod. That scenario will change over the coming weeks as the bait increases in size and more predators arrive.


Kingfish amongst the schools
We have managed to hook several small kingfish on fly in the last week from amongst the schools. Those fish have been smaller than average however. Small flies with silver flashabou or pearl lateral scale were great on a long, even strip.

2 very large Kings were hooked on plastics by my clients this week as well. One fish slammed a 6 inch sluggo from amongst the school and was still heading to New Zealand when it hit the mooring ropes 70 meters from where it was hooked, the Dickson clan who were on board are still talking about "that fish". The second fish was over a meter long and followed a 9 inch sluggo to the boat before we re-presented the lure and it was slammed. Only a few seconds later and the 50 pound Braided line had been ripped off the locked drag far enough for the fish to hit the barnacle encrusted structure...........PING!!
That's kingies folks.


This is just the start of the season
What has been exciting is that the last few weeks of hot fishing has signalled the beginning of the season.........theres a lot more to come.
The Harbour has great salmon schooling action at North head but the fish are fussy. As soon as the schools are in toward North Harbour they have started hitting anything thrown at them. Mate and fellow charter operator Stuart Reid suspects spotted Mackerel are stealing his lures in north Harbour which coincides with my other buddy from Calmwater charters, Greg Joyes trolling up a pair of 3.5kg specimens in Broken Bay. If you are keen for one on fly then a good pilchard based burley trail and a flashy deceiver style fly and wire bite tippet would be a good idea. Kings are slowly heading into the Harbour and are reported from middle Harbour. Schools were busting sporadically near the spit.
Box Head still has some great salmon schools as well as Pittwater for Kings, Salmon and Tailor,.........but remember they are fussy.
Cowan creek also has some great salmon and Kings but they are hard to find.....try Smiths Creek, Yeomans Bay, Jerusalem bay and Cottage Point.

Now is definitely the time to put the coldwater lines away and change to tropicores as the land and sea heat up. Don't forget to give your lines a stretch before using them.

TIP OF THE MONTH

I often get asked about my leader construction so I thought I would run through it for those interested.

For 9 wt or below I attach the leader to the flyline using a 7 turn nail knot of 40-50 pound supple mono (jinkai, berkley big game or black magic supple trace). I make this butt section about 3 feet long and terminate it with a 2 turn surgeons loop. For 10wt or above I use 50 lb braided loops and use the 40 pound mono looped via a surgeons loop to the braided loop.

I now make a guides bimini (quick, hand tied) in some 20 pound fluorocarbon and loop it to the surgeons loop in the butt section. I use around 3-4 feet of the 20 pound. This is now my basic saltwater leader.
If I wish to add thinner line to the 20 pound I use a 4 turn surgeons knot which is 100%. Flies are tied using a 100% loop knot.
This whole system maintains a breaking strain close to 100% of your weakest line and is actually very quick to tie once practiced. It also keeps the leader around 6-9 feet. Remember to wet all knots before pulling tight and check them. Fluorocarbon is best wet with water rather than saliva before pulling tight.
For more information check out the new dvd called Arbor to Fly presented by Peter Morse. This DVD provides step by step instructions and is only $19.95 from all good tackle stores.

For a whole stack of photos of the past weeks fishing visit
http://www.sydneyflyfishing.com.au/newsplus.html

Until next time,
tight lines
Justin Duggan

Let the fun and games begin
I am thrilled to report that the best salmon season in my memory is still continuing with gusto. Huge waves of salmon schools converged like a locusts on Broken Bay during the week. The average size of fish was around 2.5 kg but we caught numerous fish up to 3.7kg. Some of the schools were predominantly large fish around 3.5kg and amongst them were some absolute "honkers" estimated at around 4.5kg-5kg.
The fish were their usual moody selves with every fly being eaten one minute then only select flies the next. White and Pink gurglers were a popular fly for some of the larger fish.
Curious salmon would swim up to the gurgler to investigate and as soon as they got close we would jerk them away in a game of cat and mouse. Eventually one would get frustrated and swallow the gurgler in a frenzied lunge.
With the water temp at 21 degrees the salmons metabolism is working at optimum level so they are fast and hungry!!

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Kingies arrive
The first of the surface feeding kingfish have arrived in Broken Bay (attached photo of P.DeBoer stripping his fly through the school) and they are punctual as usual. October is relaible for the return of these prize fighting fish.

David Love managed a nice little rat King from amongst the school. The fish are typically fussy at this time of year and require good casting and precise presentations. By using a teaser rod we managed to extract a Tailor from the school which, once held at the boat, turned the kingfish from their fussy behaviour into an aggressive pack of wolves. Whilst the first fish landed was only 55cm it gave a good account of itself.
There are some much bigger fish to be found at the moment as David discovered when his 40 pound leader got shredded on structure by a 1meter plus individual. The hoodlum only followed the first presentation but took the second offering half way back to the boat. It's unfortunate that the structure is only 10 feet from the surface as the fish found it all too easy.
Try sinking deep lines around headland dropoffs around the Mouth of Broken bay, Pittwater, North and South Head with large clousers or flashy profile flies.20 pound flourocarbon leaders are the minimum strength I would use.
I have had great success on Nitlon Flourocarbon and would thoroughly recommend it. I have used numerous brands over the years and have had some unexplained breakoffs with several brands. Nitlon as well as the Rio, Gillies and seaguar flourocarbons are well tested and in my books, very reliable.
Flies for the fussy kings are best tied on size 8 hooks and must be strong. Gummy minnows as well as small Olive,white or silver baitfish profiles are great. The key is gentle boat driving, fast casts and lighter leader 12-14 pound.
I had the pleasure of watching New England guide and good guy Gordon Low punch out 80 foot casts in 30 knot westerly winds with a 6wt sage TCR. Within minutes of us discovering the fish Gordon managed a corker of a cast right to the head of the school. His line went tight only to go slack a split second later. Just getting a take from these fussy fish is an awesome feat, let alone having to allow for wind and chop with a 6wt rod. Gordons amazing casting abilities put him in the front seat later for targetting salmon. He was actually able to pinpoint the bigger fish from within the school with deadly accurate casts...............a pleasure to watch.
Although I have spent all my time on the salt of late I have great reports from the Hunter Valley impoundments on the Bass fishing. I will be able to run a few trips chasing the mighty lake St Clair bass over the next few weeks so be sure to email me if you are interested.

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So what does the season ahead hold?
With huge schools of baitfish present in all the bays and rivers I am predicting a bumper season. Bonito have turned up in good numbers with the salmon. Kingfish are also mixed with the schools off North head.
Striped tuna have teased us in both Broken bay and Sydney Harbour. Peter and David De Boer managed to put flies right into the fish on a couple of occassions (no mean feat) only to get ignored. Trevor Kitchin had the opposite problem when the fish decided to hit the afterburners and make an accurate cast near impossible, I reckon they would have bitten if they could have been reached. A single low flying Tern denoted the fishs presence. The Tern dived only once the fish erupted on top but they were gone again in seconds. The key is to get the boat in front and wait. The fly or lure MUST be moving before the fish get to it.
The Tuna should be with us a few more weeks and they often feed more aggressively from late October to November. Mackerel Tuna are also a visitor at this time of year.
I cannot wait for the Bonito and frigates to mix with those Pittwater and Middle harbour Kings to give us that wonderful "lucky dip" fishing that is so reliable through the coming months.
Within the next few weeks I would suggest early morning popper sessions at Harbour Kingfish haunts such as the wedding cakes, Sow and Pigs as well as the headland wash zones. Felty's offshore warriors on intermediate lines are a favourite.

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Tip of the month
When casting poppers It is best to choose flylines with shorter, more aggressive front tapers. Keep your leaders shorter than usual, say around 6ft. Lines such as Rio Tarpon or clouser line or Scientific anglers Striper or Bass tapers are great.
If you intend to use small poppers or leave the fly paused for a while between strips then a floating line is best. I like to use intermediate lines with larger poppers for the kingfish. The intermediate lines pull the popper under creating a loud bloop. The also prevent the popper skipping across the surface in large leaps which is so often the case when stripping fast with floating lines.
When casting poppers cast larger loops and ensure to not overpower the rod hand, rather, put all the power into the line hand haul.

Well, that's all for this report. I am looking forward to an awesome season ahead. If you want to book a charter or maybe a tune up flycasting lesson be sure to email me at justin@sydneyflyfishing.com.au or phone 0414961221

Tight lines,
Justin Duggan

August an absolute cracker!!
Well, what happened to our typical windy August? Who cares I say..........stunning days of 23 degrees, sunny, cloudless and not a breath of wind. Add to that some of the most enormous salmon schools we have ever encountered and you could say it has been the best Winter ever on Sydney Flyfishing Tours.


Australian salmon.....perfect for the fly angler
Australian Salmon were just purpose built for the fly angler. They are quite often willing fly takers, they jump and they fight way above their weight. The massive schools of fish that have invaded Broken Bay and Sydney Harbour are still a challenge to hook with most success coming on the fly rod.
On the rare occassion that there has been a few boats around the school it has been the fly anglers with the bends in their rods. Whilst the lure guy's tear their hair out winding metal lures frantically through the school the whoops and hollers of excitement echo over the water from the fly anglers. I've often wondered what makes a guy crank a 120 gram metal lure at 100 miles an hour through the schools when the salmon are feeding very, very slowly on tiny, tiny bait.

All alone in the big city
Even in the middle of Australia's biggest city it has been very rare that Sydney Flyfishing tours has had any competing boats on the salmon schools, no doubt due to the fact that I operate on weekdays. The salmon have also been schooling in some very unusual areas, out of reach of the normal locations searched by most.
The lack of competing anglers or charter boats has meant the schools of fish have stayed on the surface feeding for hours. It has just been a matter of placing the boat in front of the school, cutting the engine and waiting as the writhing mass works it's way all around the boat. The usual offerings of Felty's white epoxy bunnies, eyes sprats or gummy minnows has done the trick, 12 pound tippet on intermediate lines is my prefered medium. We have also had great success on sliders, gurglers and poppers cast to the edge of the schools but you have to pick when the fish are feeding most aggressively.

If you are keen to tangle with a few salmon then check out Box Head, Lion island and Barrenjoey in Broken bay or the areas between old mans hat and Bluefish point in the Harbour. There are a number of fish working further up the Harbour as well as Cowan Creek and Pittwater.
The Perch season has been the worst I can remember and I have to say that the amount of people fishing known haunts has gone up ten fold this year.
Fisheries are working very hard at stopping the large numbers of illegal mesh nets up-stream which would have a devastating effect on the Perch. The divulging of exact fishing locations on some internet chat sites has no doubt helped lead to the increased pressure as well. Given that the perch return to the same locations every year to spawn it will only take a few boats to catch and keep the big females before we see a big reduction in numbers. Females are usually surrounded by a Harem of males . Research shows that a 38cm female is anything up to 28 years old a similar size male is arround 12yo. They are slow growing and females do not breed until around 35cm. The proposed ban on taking perch during spawning season cannot happen quickly enough in my opinion. We did manage a few nice perch this season and I can only hope next year is a better one.

Great time to fish
Apart from the huge salmon schools we have managed a few shots at some great size sharks that have been hanging around Broken Bay. Whaler sharks in the 30-50kg size bracket have been common as well as a larger Mako shark which took a liking to David Toohey's salmon off Box head 2 weeks ago. What was funny was that the shark bit the back off the salmon and refused to eat the rest.......................see, even the sharks think they are crap eating!!
I have also been putting a fair amount of time into fishing for flathead over the past month with some great results. Michael Guberina and his mate Brian experienced a good Flathead bite in the first week of August. After experiencing some huge salmon schools the guy's took to flicking flies and plastics in Brisbane Waters. Finding good water of around 10-12ft depth Brian came up tight on a nice fish of around 2kg. Claiming the fish as his best flathead to date Brian continued fishing as I casually mentioned "we can get you a bigger one mate" with tongue firmly in my cheek. A few casts later and Brian hauled a crocodile off the bottom. The fish came up easily enough but upon spying the boat did a serious dive for the bottom. Now Brian promises he did not touch the reel when the fish dived (I believe you mate!!) but for the leader to snap without the drag giving line was heartbreaking. We will never know what truly happened with that fish but I can assure you we will be putting the time in to get amongst some more. I doubt Brians fish would have left any change from 5 kilo and was probably bigger (fishermans story).

Tip of the month

When fishing deeper water with sinking lines I prefer to have my flies sinking slightly faster than the line, so as to avoid a belly in my line and leader system. Sometimes a particular fly you have in your box may be the ideal size or colour but is not heavy enough. To enable you to weight flies quickly I carry a small dispenser with a variety of lead splitshot that can be placed at the front of the fly to add weight. Lead wire is also able to be applied as well as a great new product called Tungsten Putty. Rio produce this putty which can be moulded to the front of the fly like plasticine.

Until next report,
tight lines,
Justin Duggan

July 2006
From Drought to Flood
What a difference a day makes, or should I say a month.
After a very tough June the fishing has turned full circle and is now fantastic.
Whilst I spent most of June postponing charters in the hope the fishing would pick up, July is now filling quickly thanks to the arrival of hoards of Aussie Salmon.
Throw in some great weather and add some Estuary perch, big Tailor, large Flathead and some seriously oversize kingfish and you have a recipe for hot fishing


Salmon arrival
The Schools of Aussie salmon that we can rely on every Winter have turned up in droves. Sydney harbour and Broken Bay have both turned on some great action, as 6 year old George Mccormack could attest in this photo .
The usual offerings of small micro flies on intermediate lines have seen us hook-up consistently on these often fussy fish. We have also had great success on soft plastics for those who are not familiar with flyfishing.
No doubt there will be some good Tailor, Trevally and Kingfish shadowing the schools......oh, and the odd Dolphins and Sharks.

Whales, seals and stunning weather
Winter is often a breathtaking time of year to fish. The weather patterns are usually dominated by high pressure systems which generally move quite slowly.
Unless there is a weather front passing through then the days are usually predictable. Water temp of 18.c and significantly cooler land temperatures create a temperature inversion which sucks cooler winds off the land and out to sea. These are the morning Westerly winds. As the land temperature heats up closer to the sea temperature, the winds die down and we often find glassy smooth seas and lovely air temperatures. Due to this weather we have been starting charters a little later in the day, which makes for a comfy start, 5am starts are too dark and cold!!!
Travelling back from a day chasing Salmon and Estuary Perch with Darren "dash" Laver and Sean "moose huntin " Rankin, we were chuffed to see an Australian fur seal sunning itself smack in the middle of cowan Creek. This beautiful young seal had spent the previous 3 days playing in the shallows off Juno point. I often witnessed the seal playing as I rounded the point each morning.

Being able to drive alongside the seal in oily smooth conditions was great but the backdrop in one of the most breathtaking waterways in the country made the situation almost surreal. The young pinniped seemed to lap up the attention as I shot dozens of photos of it within 2 meteres of us......it was like a modelling shoot! There was a small cookie cutter shark bite on the seals side, a site I saw regularly at my days as a Zoo keeper. The bite was healing and the seal seemed otherwise in great health.

To add to the wildlife sightings there was anything up to 30 whales breaching and playing off Box head 2 weeks ago as they made their annual migration North. This is possibly the greatest whale migration on record. Let's hope they can avoid Japanese Whaling ships on their travels!

Big Kings, Perch, Tailor and Flathead
The Estuary Perch migration is in full swing as many of my clients have found out. We have had some great sessions on these wonderful fish using both fly and soft plastics. The fly has actually outfished the plastics on numerous occassions.
I managed a social day on Broken Bay with my mate Mark Rigg during the week.
Mark and I found the salmon schools fairly easily and had some fun knocking over salmon on fly. Mark took charge of my 8wt Sage TCR and I nearly required a pistol to coax it back from him..........they're really that good!!!

Mark and I decided to hit some Perch spots using some soft berkley 3inch bass minnows. After around a dozen Perch to 40cm we hit a pocket of flathead. Nearly every 2nd cast resulted in a fish. After numerous fish, Mark's rod buckled over to a solid weight but the line was coming in easily and there was no fight. After Mark called it for weed the weight dropped off. Winding his line back for another cast a very large flathead followed Marks plastic and swirled on the surface, unfortunately Mark did not see it, but my expletives confirmed what I had seen. "Where did it go?" exclaimed Mark, shattered that the weight he called for weed must have been the flathead.
"Over there" I said, as i picked up a rod and cast in the vicinity. Bang! "Fish on" I cried..............You ba#@*rd, Mark replied as my rod buckled under the weight.
When over 3 kilos of flathead finally came to the surface Mark was in two minds as to weather to congratulate me or push me in. I had just stolen the fish from under his nose......poor bugger!!
A quick photo and a weigh on the lie detector and the big girl was set free to breed another day.

We have been having great success on Tailor around the wash zones. A Felty's offshore warrior popper has been doing the damage in the mornings. Try Box Head, Barrenjoey, North head, Dobroyd Head, West Head and Lion Island.
With school holidays upon us I had the pleasure of 6year old George and 9 year old Jo McCormack joining their dad Mick for a day out.
With the young fellas aboard we trolled up a stack of Tailor then hit the salmon schools. Dad Mick took to the 7wt rod whilst the kids tried spin rods.
The salmon in Broken Bay were up and down but willing to co-operate for the young fellas.....what a thrill.

There have been some good kingfish swirling in Pittwater and no doubt they will take some coaxing with the fly rod. I would suggest staking out the known beats such as the Western Shore between longnose Point and Soldiers point to ambush the surface sipping Kingies.
A trip earlier in the week saw US client Andrew Maddox want to try his hand at a big kingfish. I staked out a new favourite spot in some moorings and bridle rigged a large Tailor that Andrew hooked minutes earlier. Leaving the fish just below a baloon he took to blind casting larger flies. The weapon of choice was 12wt Sage Xi2 loaded with 450 grain shooting head and 20 pound tippet.
Around 10 minutes after setting the Tailor the balloon began to rip back and forth more urgently. I slowly pulled the "bait" closer to the boat and sure enough, up came 3 beautiful kingies. Andrews patience was remarkable as he waited for the best shot. I ripped the Tailor in using jerky rod movements and the kingies fired up. Andrew took his shot as I ripped the Tailor clean out of the water. The shot was spot on and within seconds the fly was engulfed by a king of around 10kg. To say Andrew knew how to hurt a fish was an understatement and although the tussel was fairly brief, I really felt Andrew had the upper hand (for once).
I can only assume there was a mooring rope/buoy sub surface that shredded the leader like a cheese grater. There could not have been more than 40 foot of line clear of the rod tip which was travelling close to the surface (about 15-20foot at a guess), the water was 40 feet deep. Anyway, Andrew had actually turned the fish and had it's head running sideways which is a very positive position to be in. I had the boat in a slow reverse and the fish was not reacting too violently. Well done anyway Andrew and just remember "that's kingies!"

TIP OF THE MONTH
Joining two sections of flourocarbon or monofilament tippet usually involves a choice of numerous knots.........heres a tip to narrow your choice.
The most common knots used are double blood knot, double uni knot, double nail knot or 3-4 turn surgeons knot.
Whilst the Double blood, double uni and double nail knots provide a maximum breaking strain of about 85% of the lines strength, the 4 turn surgeons knot is 100%. The surgeons is also the easiest to tie.
The surgeons can also be used to tie shock leader to 20 pound tippet by doubling the 20 pound first.
Check out our connections and recipes section for tying instructions.

Until next report,
Cheers,
Justin Duggan

May 2006

Tough fishing the past month
The flyfishing in Sydney over the past month has been a little tougher than the previous March/April period. Whilst most anglers have encountered fish we have had to work very hard. Locations that have produced fish one day have been devoid of activity the next, forcing us to search further afield.
The news has not been all bad however as there have been some shining moments.

Large Kingfish taunt us again
Over the past month Sydney Flyfishing tours has encountered some very memorable Kingfish in both Broken Bay and Sydney Harbour. Sydney Flyfishing regular Steve Cooper introduced his father to soft plastics fishing for kingies on Sydney Harbour. After Steve managed some fish on the fly rod it was dad's turn to have a swing with a 9inch sluggo at one of the wedding cakes. I have found combining a spin angler with a fly angler often pays dividends and I will often use a sluggo teaser to encourage fish away from the structure and towards the fly. Whilst Steve cast his fly into position his Father began a fast rip of the sluggo using a Saltiga rod and reel combo. I usually expect a number of 60-80cm fish to follow the plastic toward the boat but to see a 15kg torpedo emerge only inches below the surface and charge the sluggo was heart stopping.
Talk about teasing us!! The fish pulled up short and turned toward the depths. We tried an instant change of colour then retrieve and multiple fly offerings but our friend did not want to play. The decision to run a berley trail back to the structure also failed to coax our friend back within shot.........that's fishing folks.

The second encounter with bigger kingfish occured at Broken Bay. Russel Conchie along with his father and girlfriend Julie managed to see not one but close to a dozen fish estimated between 8 and 15kg. The first sighting was when the fish followed the teaser to the boat but they descended too quickly to chase the fly. Russel managed to get a fly down deep to the fish but it was not until the fly was nearly in the rod tip that the fish finally appeared and swum around the boat, once again, quickly returning deep......a subsequent berley trail saw a brief follow again but no hook-up.
I returned to the location in following days prepared with heavy teaser rods and the option to bridle rig frigate mackerel and use squid as teasers but the fish had moved on........no doubt they will stick around this year again through Winter , the hardest part is finding them as they seem to have no set routine.

Whilst the bigger fish have teased us we have still managed some nice Kingfish and Amberjack (pictured) from the Harbour this month, however Broken bay/ Pittwater has a severe shortage of the usual schools.

Some time spent on the sand flats of Broken Bay have seen us catch a few smaller flathead including the Bar-tailed flathead pictured above.

Mullet and Mahi Mahi
Once again the first of the cool winds has seen the spawn run of mullet congregate at the mouths of the estuaries.
Whilst the mullet are usually hard to tempt on fly without the use of bread berley and bread flies the spawn run mullet are much more obliging.
Chris Price and friend John Nelson got amongst some 2-3kg mullet using small baitfish profiles such as size 8 fuzzles,5 wt rods and floating lines. We witnessed mullet chase the fly for brief bursts and managed to land and hook a fair number of fish. I just hope the mullet escaped the netters that so often target these fish. Why do they allow spawning fish to be netted like that???? The potential stands to remove massive numbers of fish before they drop eggs and milt, wiping out 2 generations in a hit!! Surely this is a practice that needs to stop.
A trip to the Fads off Sydney with mate Mark Joseph yielded inumerable Dolphin fish of around 2.5kg and whilst they are not big fish, they are stacks of fun. The wave rider buoys closer to the coast are usually poor fishing compared to the lesser known fads further afield so it is worth doing the research. Whilst Mahi Mahi (dolphin fish) are prolific and grow rapidly, I still would urge people to stick to a reasonable bag limit as these fish are delicious fresh, yet sub standard as frozen tucker. It has been common to see massive hauls of these fish at the boat ramp and it is hard to see this practice as anymore than greed. Had we been so inclined, It would have been possible for Mark and I to take around 70 fish home............what the hell do you do with 70 fish???
The best results with the Mahi Mahi was to vary retrieve and flies as soon as the fishes mood changed. If a couple of retrieves went without answer then we changed flies and rretrieve rate. A speedy double handed strip turned some quieter fish into a neon blue pack of "wolves" and saw some spectacular and lightning fast strikes.

Returning to the inshore reefs there was numerous kingfish holding as well as ample bait.
Fast sinking lines, weighted flies and tungsten putty were most effective in keeping the flies deep in some fast current and choppy seas. The new felty's Kingfish clouser is a real winner and is weighted beautifully. Coupled with the Rio Deepsea line and 20 pound tippet it was possible to get the fly down to fish holding at 90 feet. Whilst the flies were down deep Mark screamed out to look beyond the back of the boat. I looked up in time to see 3 or 4 very large fish scream past at a seriously fast rate of knots. The dark backs and speed could only lead us to call them for Longtail tuna in the 18-20kg range. This would tie in with the report from last week of large Longtails porpoising on bait in Broken Bay.

Time for Salmon, Perch and jewies
It is now the time where the salmon schools begin appearing in Broken Bay and the Harbour. If you have yet to target these fish on fly you just have not lived!!!
Strong fighters, able leapers and willing fly takers is a great summation of our staple Sydney flyfishing diet, the Australian salmon. Expect a few Kingfish to be shadowing the schools as well as a few stragler Bonito that have been in the wash zones of late.
I will be spending a fair time on Estuary Perch as well this coming May. These fabulous fish are a close relative of the Bass and are great fun on light fly gear. We have had sessions of well over 30 fish most seasons so dust off your 6 and 7 wts, density compensated sinking lines and shrimp flies.

Whilst I have spent very little time on the Jewfish of late due to a large number of daytime bookings, it is now time to think about braving some cooler temperatures and tangle with some big jewfish on fly. With the potential to mess with fish in excess of 50 pound I would anticipate a number of bookings filling quickly. Times and tides are limited so call me for more details.

I am confident there will be some good fishing over the coming weeks as the water cools so I wish you the very best and hope to see you on the water soon,
Cheers,
Justin Duggan

Apologies to all for the late report, between moving house, guiding and chasing marlin at Port Stephens life has been tough…………..well that’s my story anyhow!
Since it has been a while I thought I would make this report a bumper issue!

It is hard for me to not mention the recent press that Sydney harbour received about High Dioxin levels found in some Bream.
The Fantastic news for the fishery is the removal of all Commercial fishing from the Harbour. This is an awesome outcome for the environment and will see a huge change in our fishery……very much for the better.
I would just like to say that there has seemingly been a savage amount of scare mongering present with this story. I do regret the hardship that many commercial fishers now face without there jobs and hope the compensation is fair.

The only species of fish tested to date has been bream and they represent around 2% of fish available in the Harbour. These bream are much more likely to become involved in the process of biomagnification from the contaminated sediment in Parramatta river, especially given their diet of crustaceans, worms and other benthic critters.
Whilst Sydney Flyfishing Tours has always swayed heavily to catch and release I will be stunned if the Pelagic fish which travel into our clean Harbour water for a small part of their life have any high dioxin levels at all. Their main diet is small baitfish that feed on krill and zooplankton.

So what’s the wash up for Sydney Fly fishermen and women?

EVEN BETTER FISHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The past few weeks of fishing in Sydney have proven to be a little erratic. One minute we are pulling in fish hand over fist, waters churning and birds diving. The next minute it is like a different waterway, sluggish half hearted follows from tentative kingies, no surface action and lifeless water.
Thankfully the good days have far out weighed the tough ones.
Almost all charters this past few weeks have seen clients tangle with kingies, bonito, tailor and some late season Salmon.
The higher water temps often see the kings go a little quiet but at the moment every day is different.

I strongly recommend working the Harbour channel markers with a surface popper on first light. This proved the undoing of another kingie only this morning. John Lance placed his first cast within 1 foot of the structure and proceeded with a double- handed strip. Just shy of the boat the water opened up as a kingie made a desperate lunge for his popper.
John was quick to return fire and proceeded with a slower single handed retrieve. This allowed lots of time for the fish to hone in on the target……….wallop……..2nd cast and he is on!

Once you have worked the surface it pays to place a few deep casts adjacent the structure, sometimes the kingies will sit deep and ignore the first light popper offerings.
I like to position casts up current of the structure and allow some slightly slack line to encourage the fly to travel deep. Rio T-14 or LC-13 shooting heads have proven themselves over and over again. If you are unlucky enough to get your line shredded by a kingie then at least you only loose a $21 shooting head and not a $140 line.
Try flies that sink faster than the fly line such as clousers and jiggies. Do not be afraid to use longer clousers in the style of the famed “sluggo” soft plastics.
Kingfish do not have teeth and will rarely snap at the tail of the fly, preferring instead to engulf them whole.

Once hooked the best option is to attempt to move the boat away slowly and applying only gentle pressure to the fish.
Using brute force with the fly rod often encourages the fish to go berserk and unless it is a kingie under 80cm there’s a fair chance your going to loose as the fish bolts for structure.
I always fish 20-pound leader and once the fish is free of the structure then it’s time for some fireworks.
The other option if you hook your kingie slightly wide of the structure is to manoeuvre the boat between the fish and the structure. Most kingfish will run the opposite direction to the direction of pull.
If you can get enough side pressure on the fish whilst placing the boat close to the channel marker there’s a fair chance the fish will run wide.

After spotting a nice sized king of around a meter Remy Galet Lalande and myself set about persuading him away from the channel marker and on to our fly.
Shortly after Remy’s fly line ripped of the deck and his reel started screaming. Whilst I set about reversing the boat toward the marker Remy “went to town” on the fish. The plan came together as the fish headed toward the City and away from the jungle of chains and barnacles. It was not long before a rat king appeared and whilst it was not the big one it was good practice for future encounters.
The lesson here is to treat every hook-up as a big fish.

Frigate Mackerel and Bonito have been scooting through North Harbour as well as Middle Harbour.
Try finding an ambush point close to shore as the little frigates scoot along the rock ledges and sandy drop-offs.
Good places to park yourself with a 5wt, 8 pound leader and a small surf candy are the Rose Bay sand flat, Clifton Gardens and Clontarf.
Try a berley trail at Quarantine for Bonito and kings………have a 12wt, a red and white flashy profile fly and wire bite tippet handy for those awesome little whaler sharks that have been turning up in the trails.

Confirmed reports of Cobia and spotted mackerel in the Harbour coincide with 25.4 degree surface water temperatures between North and South head.

Unfortunately the News from Pittwater is still grim and I can only say I am glad to be able to tow the boat to Sydney harbour at the moment.
There has been the odd kingfish in Pittwater but the searches have been long. Good numbers of Frigate mackerel are kicking about in Cowan creek and there is bound to be some other pelagic activity there as well, hopefully those big kingies that so often frequent that area.
The Frigates are present around the moorings at the back of Pittwater and are well worth a chase on 5 weight rods. We have seen well in excess of 50 meters of backing leave our reels on these little speedsters this week. If you are not up for chasing frigates then there are the odd patch of Watsons bonito in Pittwater but otherwise the Harbour is your best bet!

Breaming in Cowan creek has been exceptional, especially with surface flies. Pick some of the oyster- studded areas adjacent beaches and try some small surface poppers, even in the midday sun! Don’t be surprised if the fish nudge each other out of the way to grab the flies.

I have not had a chance to look for jewfish on fly for a while but living on the Hawkesbury river keeps me in tune with the local happenings. There are lots of smaller fish present in the lower river at the moment and I will be hoping to get amongst a few on fly in the coming days.

The Hunter Valley Dams of Glenbawn and St Clair have slowed with the warmer water. It is essential to have a sounder to locate the Bass holding in schools in the deeper water. Chris Ingle managed to score in excess of 15 Bass to 51cm in Early February. I like to use Bass Vampires and dark clousers on a density compensated sinking line to drop down to these fish. Small twitches and jerks of the fly with plenty of pauses is the trick. Be sure to keep the line tight when pausing, this is when most hits occur. You can be almost certain of some smashing surface strikes in the early or late evening around the weed beds in St Clair. Try the old faithful Dahlbergs with a floating line and mono rather than fluorocarbon line so as to keep the fly on top. A bit of floatant on the front of the Dahlberg helps for those long sessions when the flies become a little water logged.

There seems to be a mass of Baitfish around both broken bay and Sydney Harbour at the moment and that should see some great fishing over the coming weeks.

TIP OF THE MONTH -When double handed stripping it is best to place the rod under the opposite arm to your casting hand i.e. the hand that normally holds the rod when stripping line.
This way when a fish is hooked you can grab the rod with the correct hand in one movement without an awkward double shuffle.

Autumn is a superb time to be Flyfishing in Sydney and I strongly encourage everyone to consider a trip in the coming weeks.
Charters are available for April but are filling fast. You can call to place yourself on the waiting list for any late cancellations in March or to share a charter.
I am still taking bookings for casting tuition as well.
The truth is that all casters, myself included, need some fine-tuning now and then. The best way is to have someone watch your cast as opposed to trying to do it yourself
Tuition costs are $50 per hour, for more info call 0414961221 or email justin@sydneyflyfishing.com.au.
Happy fishing,
Cheers,
Justin Duggan

Merry Christmas and a fishy new year

Sydney harbour is just going off!!
The fishing over the last few weeks in Sydney harbour has been simply awesome.
Huge numbers of Australian Salmon, kingfish and Tailor have been in nearly all of the lower harbour from cokatoo Island to north harbour.
Frigate mackerel, bonito and even the odd cobia have also been spotted.

There has been the odd quieter day but they are few and far between.

It is hard to find a bay or corner of the Harbour that does not have fish.


How to catch the little beggers!!
Whilst there has been awesome numbers of fish they are still at times a little fussy. Clousers tied out of polar and seafoam coloured DNA on size 4 hooks have been the most succesful. Size 6 felty's clousers have accounted for Kingfish under the salmon schools. Felty's olive candies worked a treat today as well but it still is a case of getting a very good presentation for hookup. Try using lead core or fast sink lines and get the fly deep below the front of the schools.
The use of poppers in the early light has also proven effective.

There has been a great advantage in being able to move from pittwater to the harbour with the trailer boat......due mainly to the fact that pittwater is fishing much more slowly than the harbour.

I have had an accurate report of massive bait balls gathering at the mouth of Broken Bay today so it may not be long to wait before it all happens.

A few spaces available
I have freed up a couple of availabilities for charters between Christmas and new year for those keen to take advantage of the insane bite currently happening in the Harbour. Every time I mention available days they are taken rapidly, so be quick.

On another note I have been testing the new Cortland Downunder line over the last few weeks and to say I am impressed is an understatement.
This line was developed by Cortland in conjunction with Peter Morse and the results are stunning.
This line has a 45foot front head and a floating running line. The line itself is so incredibly well behaved that we could not get it to tangle even though it was not treated to a stretch and was straight out of the box...........Once stretched and used the line just gets better and better.
Sydney locals can try getting the lines at Complete Angler, Otto's fishy business or by mail order from the Alpine Angler or fly world WA. I am sure that most good fly fishing shops will also stock it. The line has been designed exclusively for Australia so will not be available from overseas to the best of my knowledge.

School Holidays
I have had the pleasure of running many tours with Fathers and sons over the years and now is the time to consider introducing the young ones to fishing.

Whilst dad can cast flies or lures I am happy to look after the young fellas with casting tuition with lures and soft plastics.
To see young 11 year old Sahoud hook his first Kingfish this week not to mention salmon and Tailor was exciting. To top it off his grandad managed to also hook and land some stunning kingfish and salmon.
All Children under 15 are free aboard Sydney Flyfishing Tours.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish everybody a wonderful and safe Christmas and a very, very happy new year.
Thankyou for your interest in Sydney Flyfishing and I hope to see you on the water soon,

Merry Christmas,
Justin Duggan

November
Awesome week of fishing
Welcome to another Sydney Flyfishing update...............and what a week it has been.
All clients this week have been amongst some great action and multiple hookups were all too common.

A mass of bait has aggregated at the mouth of Broken Bay and turned the whole area into a feeding frenzy.
Some truly amazing Salmon schools were working well inside Pittwater today (friday 28th) as Bob Ramsden and Ken Holman witnessed.

Further up into Broken bay John Murphy of New Zealand managed to cast at some seriously large fish working a shallow sandflat.
The discoloured water made identification of the culprits difficult but our bet was on Mack tuna and Bonito (although a large shadow below the boat did look like a metre odd kingy).

Salmon galore
Swedish tourist Kristian Starck experienced his first saltwater flyfishing trip by hooking 4 species. The look on his face when he landed his first salmon was as good as the smile he got from trying his first ever mango on the boat that day.

Once again, smooth long retrieves, small flies and quick , long casts are the key.

Try dropping bigger flies into the school for jewies, kings and bonito.

Warmer water.............more species
The water in Broken bay has pushed to 21 degrees and we have consequently witnessed the first run of striped tuna. The fish have been very fast and a little out of reach of most casters to date but I am sure we will be loosing loads of backing to these aquatic feraris soon.

We have managed a few Bonito with the warmer water and all have come on sinking lines near wash zones, Try quick retrieved blue and white Felty's clousers.

Bob Ramsden and Ken holman witnessed a group of 5 kingies chasing our offerings in pittwater with one fish well into the 90cm mark. We have been managing Kings to 70cm so far this week.
The large number of people targeting kings in pittwater now has lead to a change of tactics for the fly anglers and we have been finding fish in some unusual places. There are some great fish to be tangled with.

Tailor of good size are working Pittwater in the early hours around the Western Shores.

The Harbour has produced salmon at north head and the odd kingie as well.
Kings and tailor are sporadically working middle harbour as well.


Jewie sessions
Don't forget that there are some positions available for those keen to target jewies on fly or lure. A recent fish with mate Peter Morse produced 4 very solid hits from jewies but the hard mouths can sometimes make for tough hookups.

Casting lessons have been going well and all anglers who have used my services for tuition are getting good results on the water and casting in the park.

There are a few spots available between now and Christmas and I strongly urge you to consider getting out soon,
regards and happy fishing,
Justin Duggan

October

Watching the rain fall and the wind howl has given me a chance to update the
Sydney Flyfishing report for you all.

We have been having mixed results over the past few weeks with the large
salmon schools in the Harbour and Broken Bay providing the most fun.
Small Muz Wilson fuzzle flies and felty's sprats have accounted for fish in
the Harbour, Broken bay and from the moorings in Pittwater.

Kingfish have been holding deep with sporadic surface activity in Middle
Harbour and Pittwater.

The Bream fishing in the Lower Hawkesbury has been tough, as too has Cowan
creek. I suspect the fish are holding in other areas such as Bar point and
Berowra since the clear water has only seen us sight cast to a few small
fish.

We have been managing some Bonito from the wash zones and amongst the salmon
schools using lead core shooting heads and clousers in size4 through to 2/0.
Try varying your retrieves to induce a strike and use heavier leader such as
20 pound in case the bonito turns out to be a larger king or jewie!!

I have had the pleasure lately of introducing numerous overseas guests to
the beauty of Broken Bay and Sydney Harbour and I always enjoy watching
their faces light up when viewing the waterways and when catching some of
our awesome sportfish on fly and lure.

On a lighter note the weather appears to be on the upper and warmer currents
are starting to appear.

I am heavily booked at present however there are some spots available closer
to Christmas.
For more information please visit www.sydneyflyfishing.com.au

Cheers and happy fishing,
Justin Duggan

October
Sydney fishing superb
WOW, what a week!
Sydney Flyfishing clients have been having a blast this week with huge salmon schools, big bass and those ever present kingfish.
The amount of bait at the mouth of the harbour and Broken Bay has been amazing and it has turned out to be a smorgasboard for a hoast of predatory fish such as salmon, kingfish, bonito, trevally tailor and sharks.......not to mention marine mammals such as dolphins and seals.

Just check out the mass of fish turning the water to foam as Chris Breeze hooks up in this photo!!

HUGE Hunter Bass
Those of you who missed the opportunity to target Big Hunter Bass on Lakes Glenbawn and St Clair have a little more time to have a shot at these monsters.

Steve Cohn was one angler who joined Sydney Flyfishing tours for a chance at his first Australian Bass.
Steves first bass was over 50cm and took an Ingles "Glenbawn Special" fly.
The water was quite cold (15-17 degrees) however, by finding the warmer shallows and placing casts into the pockets between the weed Steve managed the beauty pictured here!

Bass tours for October
If you want the opportunity to chase bass, yellowbelly and silver perch only a couple of hours from Sydney then please email or call me to put yourself on the list. Next tours will be running in Early to mid October.

7wts with density compensated sinking lines and a floater are fine, as well as a handful of clousers, bass vampires and dahlburgs.
Of course, I can supply you with a full compliment of sage rods and an arsenal of lines and flies.

Tip of the month
Before taking to the water I strongly advise giving your line a thorough stretch.
Stretching line behind the boat is ok but nowhere near as effective as stretching it between two anchor points.
I like to stretch the line on land between two people and then place it in a stripping bucket such as my Lowys tangle tub.

Failing this you should place the line under your foot and methodically stretch the line for the whole length you intend to cast.
Nothing is worse than a snarled line when you are casting or hooked up.

If you are stripping line off the reel make sure to clear it all and re-stack the line before casting. The reason for this is the line stripped off the reel will be laying backwards ie front of the line will be on the bottom of the pile.

October is Kingfish arrival month and we are already getting hook ups and follows on most trips so book now to avoid missing out.
Until next update,
Happy fishing,
regards,
Justin Duggan

12 September

Acres of schooling salmon

There are literally acres of salmon schooling at the mouths of Broken bay and Sydney harbour and haven't we been having a ball!