Sydney Harbour, Pittwater, Northern Beaches and Offshore
Reports by Stefan Hansson, Narada Taranto & Darren Thomas
Fish Outta Water Fishing Tackle Store, Sydney

Fishing Report 11/12/2007

Not only is the water hotting up with the summer months but the fishing has begun to fire as well.

With the return of Squid in good numbers this week the Kingfish seem to be warming up and taking a liking to the light lines dangled by anglers across the Harbour.
Most of the reports filtering through are coming from the upper Harbour at areas around Clifton Gardens and Shark Island. Although the majority of fish are smaller there are some crackers amongst them with a few fish weighting
in at approximately 8-9kg. Squid are the preferred bait although the pickers seem to be destroying many of the live squid before they even get a chance to be snavelled by a king. Its frustrating fishing as it can take quite some time to get the bait tank filled with squid and with so many Jewfish around the temptation is to lay your bait close to the bottom to entice these
illusive fish into a run.
Des Toms of Hookem Cookem Charters has been successfully targeting these fish over recent weeks using a combination of Squid, Slimy Mackerel and
Yakkas. One such charter saw three of these fish landed in one short session and although they are not large fish they are fantastic sport and boast bragging rights amongst most Sydney fishos. The average size of these fish is between 70cm to the magic meter mark.
If you are really serious about these fish find turbulent water around structure and use large fresh baits fished close to the bottom. Sydney harbour has a host of shipwrecks that fish particularly well for Jewfish but
careful placement of the boat and bait is needed to make sure you're in the zone.

There are also plenty of other species around the harbour so don't despair if your after a feed of faithful old flathead or bream. The drift across Clontarf proved to be productive this week for flathead with over a dozen landed up to 67cm. Soft plastics accounted for the majority of the fish although if you prefer to soak a bait this will also produce plenty of fish. The added bonus with bait fishing is that there are a host of other species that will also climb on, including some lovely whiting and bream that also haunt the shallows and weed beds along these drifts.

North Harbour has been particularly productive with anglers chasing tailor and Flathead from between the moored boats and a few anglers have landed
nice Jewfish from some of the deeper holes between Reef beach and the Ocean world.

There are still Tailor thick through the harbour and they are easily caught using both bait and lure. Trolling around Shark and Clark Islands will produce lots. Diving minnows like Gold Bombers and Rapala CD 7 lures in
Quanta's and Silver Mackerel are consistently good lures but most small lures with a tight action will do well.

Long Reef anglers are still reporting some good snapper on soft plastics with the average fish weighing in at 2.5kg and some exceptional species around 6kg.
Huge schools of sweep are also around and although they are a pest for bait anglers some nice Kingfish have been pulled from the midst of the schools.
I managed to land a few Samson fish and Amberjacks at the same locations while chasing reds while Kaj Scholte pulled some big Trevally from the shallow reefs on 5 inch Berkely gulp's.

Beach fisherman braving the cold and windy conditions have been rewarded with plenty of Tailor and a few Aus Salmon thrown into the mix and although there has been few reports of Jewfish taken from the beaches with the recent rain Narrabeen and around the lakes entrance seems a good place to try.

Keep on fishing brave the weather and I have no Doubt you will be rewarded.

Narada Taranto
And the team
Fish Outta Water

Fishing Report 14/08/07

With the water at it's clearest and coldest this week catching fish has been
harder than usual but some good catches have still been recorded.
Offshore fisho Scott Hopewell trolled up a 60kg yellowfin just inside Browns
Mountain using 24kg line and an 8 inch McGoo pusher. Mick Lyons fished
overnight chasing broadbill east of the shelf, no broadies were hooked but
two 15kg yellowfin were boated and a Mako shark was dropped boat side.

Longy and the surrounding reefs are still holding Trevally and snapper with
thick berley trails required to entice fish.
Sydney harbour water temp is averaging 15 degrees reports Hookem's Des
Toms.
Salmon are deep at north head but the two clear water and moon phase are
effecting there bite. The odd Trevally are scattered throughout and are
normally thicker for this time year.
Clifton Gardens has the pick of bait spots at the moment holding slimies
around the marker buoys.
Come down to Fish Outta Water this Thursday night and Hone your technical
skills at our fish 'n' tips talk from 6pm. This weeks guest speaker is
Fishabout tours Stuart Reid renowned harbour charter fisho.

Rock and Beach guide Alex Bellissimo fished Narra beach with clients Mark
and George for a catch of salmon to 2kg spinning metal slugs beyond the
wash.
FOW customer Milan swapped the boat for the rocks this week and for his
first trip on the rocks Alex put him onto a 6kg Silver Drummer on 15lb gear,
cunjevoi was the bait and North Curl Curl was the venue.

Darren Thomas
Fish Outta Water

Winter Madness 08 07 08

The water temps have continued to drop this past week with temps now at 15
degrees. In addition the water clarity is quite amazing with at least 15m
visibility. Des Toms of Hookem Cookem Charters reports it is the clearest he has seen
the Harbour for many years and with mixed emotions as the clear water can
make the fishing a little tricky as the fish become easily spooked.

Anglers have been reporting fantastic catches of many winter species
including one of the best runs of Sydney Snapper I have seen in many years.

Anglers fishing from the rocky headlands from North Head to Barrenjoey
should find an abundance of Trevally, Bream Rock Blackfish and Luderick
available from both the washes and clear water, particularly in the lower
light conditions of late afternoon and early morning. A constant stream of
bread burley or mixed sand burley will greatly enhance your chances of
catching a good feed of fish. In addition it is advised to have a variety of
natural baits on hand as you will find some bait will produce better results
on different days and different tides. Remember variety is the spice of
life.
For the lure brigade there is an abundance of Australian salmon on hand and
some fantastic tailor to around 3kg available. These fish have mostly
fallen foul to small chrome lures like the Raiders and Snipers from 15gm's
to 60gm's spun through the washes and white water. Allow these lures to sink
for 2 to 6 seconds before winding them back in at warp speed. I have not
yet seen an angler wind too fast for a tailor or salmon so don't be shy of a
fast retrieve.
Salmon are also popping up on the Beaches along with some smaller Tailor
around the 1 to 2Kg mark. Pilchards on a size 3/0 gang hook are an ideal way
to fish for these two species although you may miss some of the smaller
species like bream and whiting. If its whiting and the like you are after I
recommend worms as bait and smaller long shank hooks.
If you really want to learn a thing or two about rock and beach fishing Fish
Outta Water are holding a talk this week by local angling ledged Alex
Bellissimo on Thursday night. All are welcome so come along and hone your
skills with the best in the business.

Boat fishos are also enjoying lots of success both in shore and off shore.
Sydney harbour is currently full of slimy mackerel and of course there are
still some eager King Fish keen to get an easy meal. Since the ban on
commercial fishing in Sydney harbour it seems that many summer species like
the king fish are staying around much longer although perhaps it's just that
there are actually still some left. One of our regular customers caught in
excess of seven this past Friday and although they were not huge 65cm to
85cm they are still great sport on inshore tackle.
Some quality Mulloway have also been taken in both North Harbour and Middle
Harbour by some very skilled or lucky anglers this past week.
If you prepared to sit and burley for an hour or so you should be rewarded
with plenty or Trevally and bream as they charge through the burley trail.
Keep your tackle light for this style of fishing with small 0 and number 2
size sinkers fished directly on top of the bait. The idea is to gently
drift your bait back in the burley trail until you feel the bites then pop
the reel into gear and gently load the rod. This will also see you land
some great snapper as they will generally hang in the same burley trail as
the Trevally only a little deeper in the water. This worked extremely well
for us fishing for Reds at both Long Reef and West reef during the week.
Reports have also filtered in of some fantastic snapper to 53cm caught
around Long Reef and East Reef on soft plastics. Be prepared to spend some
time finding them though as this form of fishing takes some expertise. The
key seems to be finding water of depth between 8m to 20m with a gravel or
rocky bottom.

The jigging brigade are as always landing great kings with a few of the
better models pulling the scales at 15kg although those smaller fish that
usually inhabit the harbour are out wide now on the reefs and eager to eat
gigs of any size.
Blues, pinks and silver Jigs are producing well at the minute in weights
between 200gm to 300gm. Vary your retrieve speeds and jig rates until you
find one that works then stick with it.
Good reports have come in from both the 12 Mile and the Peak although Long
Reef and the Colours have also produced some nice fish.

Whatever your favourite fishing, the best way to catch'em is to chase em' so
get out there and have a go.

Good Luck

Fish Outta Water
Narada Taranto &
All the team.

Fishing Report 03 07 08

Plenty of fish have been caught during the week past and the rougher
conditions previously endured are mostly responsible for this bite. Long
Reef trailer boat fisho's have been landing good snapper on most local close
in reefs, with some fish hauling the scales down to 6.2kg. A bit of current
and fishing unweighted down the trail has been very successful and in many
situations the fish have been left biting as bag limits were reached.
Fish Outta Water is launching our 2007 Fish 'n' Tips Nights this Thursday
6pm with crowd favourite Des Toms doing a winter kingfish special on Sydney
Harbour locations and preferred methods, this will include new 2007 spots
and promises to be a red hot night so call the store on 9949 9488 for your
free booking. We're currently holding our Big Mid-Year Sale with many
bargains for every fisho. Don't hesitate the sale will only run for another
2 weeks.
The Peninsula's Beaches are firing at the moment with Narrabeen, Collaroy
and Queenscliff holding Tailor and Bream, Dee Why angler Dennis Bennett
caught good flatties to 40cm using pillies and a light rig during an evening
session off Collaroy.
Bait-fishing tactics have been tested recently but some very hungry squid
down Manly way aren't to choosey and are keen on small jigs of various
colours. A 2 hour pre work morning session had 7 medium squid in my bag,
here's hoping a big jewey likes them as much as I do.
Darren Thomas

Fishing Report 25/6/07
Quite ferocious conditions kept fishing to a minimum during the week, yet those willing to brave the weather caught some good fish at their locations. The harbour isn’t so chocolaty brown anymore and seems to be fishing reasonably, Pete Roberts fished up the Spit way to land bream, trevally and a big flathead, Pete berleyed hard and used squid and prawns to catch a feed.

One customer fished off Little Manly Point hooking plenty of cowanyoung and a couple of keeper reds along with two nice flounder. The stones copped a good belting and stirred up a few species for rock fisho’s, Alex Bellissimo used the long cash to land snapper to 1.8kg on pilchard baits fishing at Avalon. Warringah anglers held a rock and beach comp on the weekend which was won by Dave Penmad with a catch of drummer, trevally and groper. A few trevally and bream off Palm Beach Wharf using pilly fillets in freezing conditions.

Report: 28/05/07

With the seas flattening out somewhat this week, it certainly seems to have
most fish adjusting to the changing conditions and not so eager for a chew,
never the less there's still good angling to be had peninsular wide.
Schooling salmon are just offshore a couple of km's in footy field size
schools and will edge closer in the coming weeks; kingfish are still taking
baits on offer, Nathan Cefai jigged at the peak and landed fish up to 8kg.
Long Reef has trevally, morwong and snapper (plate size) taking baits worked
down the trail but be prepared to spot hop till you locate some active
baitfish.
The stones have quietened down as expected when the wash decreases but a bit
of a berley trail will kick things on. Alex Bellissimo reports Groper to 8kg
caught by Al Jamal and Co. using Red Crabs while Spiro Arkoudis landed
drummer up to 10lbs using peeled prawns. Fishing the wash with plenty of
bread berley. Further north Bluefish pt produced 4 bream to 800gms and
groper to 2kg for angler Binni Lee.
Sydney Harbour remains consistent with snapper, kingfish, and bonito
throughout middle harbour and some good large squid are obtainable at most
local spots. Hookems Des has surface temps fluctuating between 18.5 - 19.7'
Celsius.
Pittwater Pete reports kingfish taking various baits, throughout the system,
squid and yakkas' aren't playing hard to get for a change and are the
prolific baits to target these bigger fish. Good flatties are holding on the
mackerel beach flats, try Careel Bay and Stokes Pt for bream on pillies.

Darren Thomas


FISHING REPORT. 22/05/07
Seasonal changes currently in motion have plenty of fish on the chew & flat
seas during the week allowed many an angler access to their favourite spot.
The Stones are holding good fish but not on every ledge, so look around. DY
rocks came good for a feed of reds on sat arvo, fishing wide with strip
squid on the bottom caught some good platys. Curly rocks has Samson fish to
2.5kgs while Alex Bellissimo reports of 1 trip fishing with a customer
which resulted in 27 landed bream & 2 solid drummer . King Dave Penman had a
good session rock fishing catching 20 trevally & 6 reds to 1.2kgs, Palmy
rocks is holding some big squid with early evening the best time.
Sydney harbour has a few jews on the hunt around forty baskets with two fish
weighing 5kg a piece being landed by Milan using strip fillets.

Des Toms from Hookem Cookem Charters reports water temps at 20.5 degrees on
average for the past week and has seen some nice fish landed on board his
charters. Big Tailor, Travelly and that very tasty fish the John Dory have
found their way on to his customer's lines. Des recommends trying Old Mans
Hat, Middle Harbour and Quarantine for your best chances of a feed.

Offshore Deb West fished on board Runner reef charters with the Japanese
jigging team this Sunday for a healthy feed of Yellowtail Kingfish.
Deb reports that the morning was quiet although there appeared to be plenty
of fish on the sounder. Fortunately the skipper (Jim) had a few tricks up
his sleeves and found where the fish were feeding. Although small the action
was fast and furious with triple hookups common. Over twenty fish were
boated although only enough to feed the immediate needs of the jiggers were
taken.

The best jigs were River To Sea knife Jigs, Zest Knife Jigs and Daiwa
Sacrifice sticks.
Although when King Fish want a feed there is little they won't eat.

Pittwater Pete reports Kings still on the chew and getting bigger. Squid are
still a top bait and are also easier to get at the moment. Salmon are
schooling up and have moved into Pittwater but Pete reports that they are
hard to locate at the moment so make sure that you have a 14gm slice rigged
and ready or you may miss your chance for a shot at the school.
When even the birds are struggling to keep an eye on the schools you know
they are very spooky

Darren Thomas
Fish Outta water.

FISHING REPORT
15/05/07

It's been a while since I have been able to arrive at my local bait grounds
and have found that it has been overloaded with all manner of bait.
Palm Beach wharf was firing on Monday night. At first glance there were
approximately 20 squid of various sizes although not all of them were
interested in the jigs I offered. Plenty of Bait can be found at most spots
and is easy to catch with the right bait and tackle.
According to Harbour and Pittwater anglers this fresh bait has been
producing good catches of the right fish with plenty of anglers turning
there bait into a feed of quality table tucker.

That ugly fish the John Dory have moved into the harbour over the past week
with some fantastic fish landed on live bait. One of our local customers
walked into the shop with a big smile and 2kg's of cleaned John Dory on
Monday. Thant's a good dory in anyone's language.
Hookem Cookem's Des Toms reports some big King Fish on the prowl around
Bradley's Head with the majority of them being taken on Live Yakkas.
Some unsuspecting anglers have found them selves rushing to get more drag as
they hooked large fish around Shark Island where the old poles were.

Big Tailor are also on the cruise and can be caught both on bait and lure.
Bonito, Watson's leaping Bonito and smaller Kings (Hiromassa) have been
taken west of the Spit Bridge in the slightly warmer waters.

Offshore the Jigging Brigade have been catching smaller kings at the Peak
the Colours and some of the small offshore reefs although the Leather
Jackets are causing some problems at the 12 mile with many a jig lost. If
you like Leather Jackets please take some, just head to the 12 Mile and fill
the esky. I would hate to be another fish down there as they seem to eat
everything alive or dead.

The closer reefs are producing some nice table sized snapper to the 4kg mark
with nice mowies and flathead thrown in.

Off the stones has been a little quiet although the usual suspects such as
Tailor and Aust Salmon have been around in small numbers. A few keen pig
fishermen (Drummer) have reported some nice fish taken on that smelly bait
Ab Gut although they have had to work for their rewards.
Larger squid have also been available from the stones so if it's calamari
you want head to the local rock platforms and flick a squid jig out. For
best results try The pheromone Jigs or the Yammashita Jigs in Brown
Pilchards and Pink Try the sizes of 1.8g 2.0g and the 2.5g smaller jigs are
producing the results at the moment.

Happy fishing

Darren Tomas & the team at
Fish Outta Water

FISHING REPORT 08 05 07
Finally a cracker of a weekend ,no wind, no rain & super glass conditions
allowing plenty of fishos comfortable terms to access their favourite
spots. The harbour provided the most reported success with anglers still
hooking kingfish, Peter Roberts fished west of the spit in 22 meters of
water & landed 5 kings, 2 of which were via a deepwater offshore method in
jigging. Although not reknowned in such shallow water it certainly has an
aggressive effect on these pelagics proving too irresistible. Plenty of
yakkas & squid are available at the usual haunts so most baitfishing
sessions have been short & sweet. Balmoral has tailor & trevally taking
pilchard baits & metal slugs while over at Manly some rogue kings in the
6-8kg range are getting around & are noticeably attracted by lures retrieved
at fast speeds.
With the swell down a bit the beaches are holding whiting & the occasional
flathead, Manly, Dee Why & Narrabeen are popular venues with beach & tube
worms working a treat. Once again if you choose to fish after dark expect
the odd noah to find your bait particularly in these calmer conditions. Al
Bellissimo & Rob Marich caught 18 whiting during one beach session, while
off the stones Jacob Rowles landed 9 pigs & a good bream fishing the
berleyed wash at Long Reef. Al spun up some rat kings off Curl Curl using
ganged garfish & Claudio Toya fished Narrabeen hooking some good
trevally.
Northward bound Pittwater has quietened down somewhat but blue swimmer
crabs are still on the menu & quite reasonable sizes are being caught on
the flats. With water temps on the decline & currently at 20-21.4 celcius it
wont be long before the trevs invade the system.

Darren Thomas.

Fishing Report 30/4/07
An absolute cracker of a wet week just rolled through turning our blue water
bays a nice chocolaty colour and in turn every stormwater outlet would've
been worth a cast as some anglers found. West of the Spit Bridge one angler
landed 9 bream to 1.2kgs on soft plastics and 3 flathead to 3.4kgs,
bloodworm was the most popular colour in squidgies and powerbaits. Pickering
Point and Tunks Park still have kingfish and bonito smashing baitfish early
mornings, just spot the working birds or surface action.
Plenty of weed has invaded most beaches and with the strong wind and tides
fishing the sand wasn't easy, more sharks are lurking at night mostly
whalers on Dee Why, Narrabeen and Mona .
Vale beaches with some good Tailor here and there on pillies and gangs, a
good cast behind the suds puts you in the zone.
At the turn of the runout tide Narrabeen lake has whiting on beach worms and
as the flow speeds up heavier lead will be required.
Rob Marich fished with Alex once the swell subsided catching kingfish,
bonito, salmon and snapper in the wash at Dee Why.
Further North Pittwater Peter reports frigates scattered throughout the
system busting up patches of micro tucker, west head and the joey has the
odd king while
unweighted baits cast around the Marinas are proving too big a temptation
on the resident bream.

Darren Thomas

Fishing Report 23/4/07
Some pretty severe storms during the week seemed to have stirred up some fish and the changing water clarity encourages predatory species to hunt. Our harbour and beaches are providing plenty of action if you don’t mind a bit of rain, Fishabout Tours operator Stuart Reid reports captures of Kings, Salmon, Tailor, Bonito, Blackfish and even a Cobia to his clients this week all from Sydney Harbour. Hookems Des Toms tells me Harbour Temp is at 21.4’ celius and cooling slowly making Yakkas easy to get and quite small in size similar to a CD-7. Trevally have moved into the Harbour and have been caught at the Wedding Cake and Nilssen Park on unweighted baits in the trail.

To the stones and fishing guro Alex Bellissimo put Peter Kyvetos into some 8kg Hoodlum Kingfish and landed Pete his first Groper of 6kg.

The beaches are producing some good Whiting & Beach Worms are bait of choice try Manly Dee Why and Bungan. Charlie Male landed a small Cobia while chasing Mulloway off the Beach although he was near the rocks, no Jewfish were caught but plenty of Sharks landed.

Pittwater Pete is still getting Kings and says to try West Head with Livies for these fish and expect some Bonito to pop up as visitations are common.

Darren Thomas

FISHING REPORT 9/4/07

Wildly uncomfortable conditions greeted competitors fishing the ‘Sydney Game Easter Classic’ over the weekend. Fishouttawater staff members Andrew Thorpe & Nathan Cefai fished aboard “wildwing” skippered by Richard Timbs in the comp, Thorpey tagged a black marlin while young Nathan landed & released a small yellowfin. These 2 fish were enough to win ‘champion boat’ in the tag & release category, fishing aboard the smallest boat in the fleet in Richard’s 23 footer. Andrew’s report stated conditions as fresh to frightening,at one stage the guys took a big wave over the back kicking all 3 bilge pumps into gear.The decision to whip back to Sydney past broken bay safe waters was a very wise one earning the Champion boat tag & release trophy & a few grands worth of prizes.Champion boat capture went to tantrum who weighed in a 264kg blue marlin.Andrew parks is fishing the wave rider off manly & informs me of plenty of small dollies on the chew & schools of striped tuna 4-7kms out working smaller baitfish.Sydney harbour wasn’t to busy over the long weekend & plenty of kingies are still being encountered preferring live yakkas & squid at all local haunts.The spit bridge has been holding good squid & is worth a shot with ya jigs around the moorings & pylons.

Befor the blow the stones fished hard with one angler landing a 9kg long tail tuna while live baiting.Alex Bellissimo put clients al & mohommad into the bream catching 8 fish to 800grams,during a late session al’s recommendation of a sweep for live bait did the trick catching Edward Harrison a 5kg jewey on Narrabeen beach.Charlie male hooked some big sharks,while soaking jew intended slab baits at Newport beach.I have been informed that today manly boat ramp is back in action so small boat fishos wont have to head west to launch avoiding the “rosey ramp rage” caused by so many bodies forced to use the only boat ramp operable on the northern beaches to access the harbour.Relax and enjoy,after all it is the holidays.

Darren Thomas
Fish Outta Water.

FISHING REPORT 19/03/07

Sydney’s offshore fishing kicked it up a notch on the weekend with plenty of reports from big dollies to Wahoo, Beakies & even Tiger Sharks. Broken Bay Game Fishing Club held a tournament during the 2 days; the continental shelf had some good action with Dolphin Fish to 10kg landed & multiple Marlin hookups & plenty of raised fish. “City Slicker” fished wide for the above action with Blue Marlin & Tiger Sharks captures also filtering in. The 60-70 fathom line has striped tuna working baitfish off Warriewood, still no resident dollies holding on the fads just the odd bigger fish taking lures intended for larger prey.

The Peninsula’s beaches got a decent stirring with Warra Beach holding some massive Whiting to 850gm; Nathan Cruckshawk landed 9 fish in the 30-43cm bracket using beach worms under Alex Bellissimo’s tuition. While Vinny and Lou hooked Salmon to 2kg and reported Flathead to 45cm.There seems to be whiting on most of the beaches as we speak.

Sydney Harbour’s Kingfish population continue to harass boat and land based Fishos alike, it seems to be a waiting game, you can cast chase them from spot to spot or wait for their arrival as they aren’t holding in any particular location.

The dosimeter has Roseville water temp at 23.8’ Celsius. Des says Clifton is the spot for big Bonnies, while Balmoral is Salmon territory. Further north of the Spit Bridge and North Harbour have Kings taking more Strip Squid baits and CD7 sized Yakkas.

West of the Spit Deb fished on her day off for three legal keeper Kings and another School Jewie for the icebox.

Easters here and its Sale time at Fish Outta Water stores. Specials on everything from rods, reels, lures and line. Our City stores in George St & Manly Vale Superstore are open 7 days over Easter

Pittwater Surface Temp is 2 degrees warmer than the Harbour with Pete Lablang recording some 27+ degrees at Bayview Marina with most of the action around the Careel Bay, Stokes Point location including Kingies, Tailor, Bream and Leather Jackets. Birds working near the basin and behind Scotland Island. Palm Beach and West Head have ripper bait holding with Yakkas and good sized Squid being very obtainable and squid drifted close to the bottom are near certain Jew baits.

Darren Thomas

Fishing Report Feb 26

The combination of large seas & excessive high winds created hard fishing conditions during the week but still plenty of fish were caught particularly in & around Sydney Harbour.

Hookems Des Toms has water temps from 22.3 c to 25.6 degrees & reports dirty water throughout. This isn’t always a bad thing with Des recommending to fish in the murky water cause that’s where the action is. Squid are proving quite tricky & yakkas at times are scarce. There’s still surface action all over with Clifton, Rose bay & Middle harbour holding salmon, frigates, tailor & bonito, with the kings sighted under the tailor school. Small metals are working on the tunas, & squid is the kings preferred choice of bait. Deb West landed 7 more kings over the weekend & her tally since Christmas is upwards of 90 fish, bonnies are keen for a lure or two with Dennis & Mat Rice trolling up some good fish around Nth Head in sloppy water.

The big swell fired up the beaches with Collaroy holding good bream & Dee Why engaging in salmon & tailor, both beaches are shark hangouts after dark with Dee Why wearing a closure recently due to a shark alert. Narrabeen lagoon has many a prawn skipping about & on the run out tides fishing the mouth has whiting & bream lying in wait for these small crustaceans.

Rock fishing was quiet due to big seas & winds but beforehand Alex Bellissimo managed 9 platey snapper to 1.2kgs fishing the wash using slimey fillets. Pittwater has similar minimal visibility but squidding remains consistent & kingfish are regularly on the chew with some salmon & tailor schools around The Basin. The bonnies are proving sporadic in their pursuit of the micro tucker they hunt, most fish caught are between 2& 3kgs with 7-14gram metal slugs being most anglers choice of hardware.

Darren Thomas

Fishouttawater

FISHING REPORT FEB 19
Sydney is currently experiencing an influx of warm water inside our bays and guess who’s finally moved in to our local offshore marker buoys? The dollies are back folks & its about time, yee haa, FOW staff member Bryan Lynch caught plenty of 2-3 kg sized fish & reported some leatherjackets in amongst them, here’s hoping they hang around long enough for us all to get into em. Fow city store manager Andrew Thorpe fished south of Browns with Richard Timbs to land 2 blue marlin, the boys hooked a 150kg & a 117kg fish respectively in 25.9 degree water.
Closer to shore the rocks are firing & Alex Bellissimo informs me various species are on the chew, Al fished with Rob Marich off Narrabeen headland whilst using pillies & prawns landed 20 bream up to 750grams. Over at Nth Head during another charter clients Peter, Matthew & William hooked kings to 95cm(approx 8kg) on kokoda poppers & live yakkas. Al tells me there were plenty of bust-offs on 30lb braid & this session laid on some wicked visual fishing with the kings chasing lures right to your feet.
Sydney Harbour has water temps up to 25.1 degrees but visibility is down to a minimum, these big tides have pushed in some murky water & Hookems Des Toms reports baitfishing has been easier but try Balmoral for bonito & big frigates, Rose Bay is holding surface feeding tailor & salmon while Clifton Gardens is still the kingfish hotspot. Quarantine has mako sharks stealing baits including livies & the odd hammerhead has been sighted cruising the topwater. Des verifies the Little Manly boat ramp closure for 8 weeks commencing from Feb 20 causing Roseville to cop the overload so try & keep calm & avoid any ramp rage.Plenty of jewies are about, Ashley Leafman landed an 8kg model amongst a bag of salmon,bonito & tailor during an arvo session in Middle Harbour.
Pittwater Pete reports some quite murky water up his way but plenty of flatties & bream around the drop offs with nippers being a preferred bait, I fished with Pete during the week catching squid in the morn & converting them into kings up to 67cm downrigging a local reef in the arvo. Pittwater is clearing but there are still plenty of fish on offer

Darren Thomas
Fishouttawater.


Fishing Report
Report Fishing 15/02/07


Sydney harbours water temp of 24degrees might be encouraging for kingfish
appetites but one down side to the warm water is the attraction of sharks.
Des from Hookem& Cookem charters has spotted plenty of late at spots like
Quarantine, Neilson Park ,Wedding cake and Clifton's Gardens .Some of the
sights are of sharks around the 12-15 feet. Apparently they are spooking the
kings a little as you could imagine so des reckons that the best times are
early mornings and late arvo's. Squid have been around in most of their
usual haunts and there were plenty of Bonnies around mid week.
In the calmer water west of the spit bream have been taking poppers and
plastics especially right up near Rossie . Tunks Park and the moorings
around Northbridge are becoming regular afternoon king fish drop in centres.
Further north Pittwater Pete said that there are Bonnies taking small slugs
throughout the system and plenty of kings on the rigger at his special
spots. Squid are available around the edges& still the choice of bait with
the Yakkas a bit hard to come by. The yacht club moorings through to Bayview
have whiting taking nippers on the flats as well as some Flatties around the
drop offs. Big Kings have been reported with some going as big as 15kg being
landed.
Offshore has phenomenal temps with water up to 26.9c wide of browns to the
Bait Station& finally a good showing of beakies with most boats hooking a
Marlin .
Hopefully conditions prevail for the Port Stevens interclub starting soon
with Ross Hunter already up there fishing the ground and scoring a Grand
Slam with a Black, Blue and a Striped Marlin on the weekend as well as other
multiple hookups.
Looks like the fishing is firing all over the place at the moment.

Report Fishing 05/02/07

FISHING REPORT

Our summer run of kingfish are becoming more prolific as each day goes by
with some anglers landing up to 14 fish per day and on a weekend day at
that. Furthermore there would have been 10 boats on this particular spot.
Des Toms from Hookem Cookem put 26 kings on the deck of his charter boat
over the weekend for his clientele and all from Clifton Gardens. Saturday
morning I arrived at Cliffo at 6am and saw Des fishing in amongst 10 boats
10-15 metres apart. I opted for a North Head run instead (not so popular)
with the Old Mans Hat laying on some awesomely big squid up to 1.5kg on the
larger prawn style jigs. A quick troll lobbed some Bonnies on metal slugs
and a Salmon. The surface temperature was 20.9 degrees celcius off the front
while an absolute stunning 23.9 degrees was all over inside. Another thing
all over inside was small boat fisho's and 10 per spot was the capita. Still
in the harbour Peter Roberts fished Nielsson Park for kings, 2 fish in 2
minutes to be precise and Frigate Mackeral and monster Slimies are working
in patches, Shae Straker fished with her dad and got an absolute cracker.
Rock and beach fishing is on the up with Alex Bellissimo reporting good
sessions, small rats to 65cm and Bonnies have been cubed up, 85 gram metals
doing the hookup. Flat rock at Curl Curl has Salmon are plenty during the
day and even bigger ones at night, Charlie and myself hit it during an
evening session with Charlie landing a good 4kg Salmon and plenty of sharks.
Flat Rock the morning before gave me a nice little red approximately 35cm
using squid heads on the bottom. Alex fished various beaches during the week
and fishing Manly with Hiro uchino using live beach worms caught Whiting and
Flathead. Drummer fishing with Alex, Rob Marich caught his first pig
weighing 3 kg while using peeled Banana Prawns at Manly. Alex hooked a
Whaler Shark on 27 pound string that tore off 250 metres of mono and his
baited Slimy fillet. Give Alex a ring to place a booking as some February
days are available. Al's Mobile is 0408 283 616.

Jan 28

Well another good week on the water for all. There was some average weather
around but some great results and days out for those willing to brave the
wind and get amongst it.

I can't remember how long it has been since I have seen so many small king
fish in the harbour.
As always finding the freshest bait proved to be the challenge. Squid are
by far the most productive bait at the moment and as these smaller fish are
not as fussy as the larger ones small strips are the best way to get your
bait to go the distance. On both harbour trips this week I managed only
three squid a trip but averaged over ten Kingfish a session. Small live
baits like yellowtail are also working but with varying results and given
the time it takes to gather them it's hardly worth the time invested.
After working all my favourite spots for squid and catching none I ventured
to some more unfamiliar grounds to gather the few we caught. The areas that
produced were inside South Head Balmoral Warf and Dobroyd head. Jigs varied
in colour but success seemed to come from smaller jigs such as the
Yammashita and Yo Zuri's in green, brown and blue. For some reason my usual
favourite of pink didn't produce but results were obtained from using scents
and sprays like Ultra Bite and Yumm.

Most of the Kingfish we landed were measured between 60cm and 70cm although
we defiantly hooked larger fish but lost them due to the lighter lines and
tackle. We have found that the lighter the tackle fished the better the hook
up rate, so on both trips we fished 10kg line on the heavier 10kg rods and
5kg on the lighter outfits. One of the reasons we fish outfits so light is
to catch snapper and bream which have been plentiful up to the 1.2kg size
around structure and some of the well known wrecks. Most of the smaller
kings caught were landed on the 5kg outfits although this did account for
some spectacular burning runs that ended in rod shattering bust offs.

Local angler Kaj landed 14 kings this way on Sunday using a hard earned
squid as bait. Positioned off Neilson Park in 20m of water he was able to
control some of the screaming runs and landed a 63cm king on 4lb braid.
Very sporting indeed!!

My usual haunts further up the harbour around the Roseville Bridge and Shark
Island lay quiet this week with barely a picker to snavel a bait.
Bonito on the other hand have been plentiful with early morning trolls along
both North and South head producing loads of fish. Smaller lures such as the
Rapala CD 9 and Gold bombers on shallow divers yielded the majority of the
fish as we worked close to the stones and around small rock edges.
Bonito are a fantastic fighting fish with reasonable eating qualities
provided they are prepared well. Remember it is imperative they are bled and
iced immediately and try to limit them from flapping around on the floor of
the boat as this bruises the delicate flesh.

Local angler Nathan Cefai had some hot sessions off the stones as he tossed
chrome lures like raiders off blue fish and North Head. The target of
course was kingfish although a large amount of Bonito, Tailor and Australian
Salmon were also thrown into the mix.
There have also been reports of Drummer in the Washes and nice snapper being
pulled from the bottom with peeled prawns, Pilchards and cunjevoi.

During the week nights Charlie Male patrolled the beaches in search of the
ever sort after Jew Fish. Again fresh bait is key, (see a pattern emerging
here)
as the hardest task when fishing for Jew Fish is finding the fish then
presenting a fresh enough bait to entice the run. Two nice fish were landed
from Northern beaches by Charlie and in true Jew Fish fashion both came on
the same night. He arrived at the shop next morning for a quick meeting with
the lie detector and a camera before his 11kg and 6kg fish were carted off
for dinner.
Nathan Cefai also landed a nice fish of 6kg but chose to release it and
return in the future for another round once it has gained a few pounds.

Continuing up the beaches to Pittwater where Pete Leblanc reports healthy
catches in his beautiful part of the world. I don't have much opportunity to
fish this area but there are few areas as picturesque. Pete has the good
fortune to live on one of Pittwater's Islands and Knows the area like no one
else if there are fish there then Pete knows where to find them.
The basin has lent it's self to some great Whiting fishing with some
thumpers caught on very lightly baited lines. School sized Jew is also being
picked up in the same sandy regions as they patrol the flats for an easy
feed.

Just like in Sydney harbour Bonito are patrolling the washes off West Head
and the surrounding headlands at times they are busting up on the surface
and are easy for most anglers to catch providing they have the right tackle.
Pete reports that Rapala's and diving lures are working a treat and more
importantly stand up to the abuse dished out by these toothy critters.

Off shore has been a little quiet due in part to the colder currents and
water but I have not yet spoken to participants of the weekend Game comp so
I will give you a better report on the big blue next week. Despite this
some smaller fish were taken out wide but when I say small I mean bait size.
I witnessed one 33kg striped marlin taken from the shelf and a 60 odd kg
fish tagged and released.

Mack tuna and Mahi Mahi are scarce but are still around working the fads and
the warmer current lines. All in all it's a tough call when you do the
costing on fuel to get out there.

For the rubber chucker plenty of nice flathead have been filleted and
cleaned over the past week mainly from deeper water around Middle and North
Harbour.
Smaller fish seem to inhabiting the sand flats and gutters along the sandy
stretches but occasionally a larger lizard will eat your shad if worked
right past its nose. If it's the flats you fish and larger fish you want
then target high tide when the Flat Head are hunting small whiting and
mullet as well as sunning themselves to warm up.
Bream are still around but as usual they are fussy and quite canny. The
usual lures and soft plastics are still accounting for the majority of fish
but the skill is in the hands of the angler who has to entice these weary
fish into a strike, nibble or a peck as the case may be.

Until next time fish hard, fish smart and above all fish for fun.

The team at Fish Outta Water
City and Manly
Narada Taranto

Well summer is in the air but the water is still as cold as ever.
Average temps at the peak and the 12mile have been around 19 degrees with
the arrival of some cold currents. To add to this the water colour has been
atrocious with a grey to black soup appearance punctuated with small purple
jellyfish. Despite this the boys and I managed to boat 8 kings on jigs at
the peak with the larger fish reaching 13kg and the average being 6kg. The
gigs that seem to be working best at the moment are the darker colours and
lumo jigs such as the river to sea Knife Jigs, Zest and Williamson for the
budget conscious Jigger. Once the water clears back to blue the jigging
will improve and I expect to see a much better catch rate. Remember to get a
great catch rate you need to have a healthy release rate.

On the northern beaches plenty of whiting, tailor and bream are still being
landed by the enthusiastic beach angler. Narrabeen, Palm, and Dee Why seem
to be the pick of the sandy stretches at the moment particularly at dawn and
dusk when the beaches are quieter. With the sweltering heat anglers are
finding the challenge is avoiding the careless swimmers not catching the
fish.
As I said early mornings and late afternoons the middle of the day is best
saved for watching the cricket/tennis and drinking a coldie.

The lakes have yielded plenty of prawns in the past five nights with most
prawn anglers choosing to convert these tasty critters into a healthy catch
of Whiting or bream. Alex (FOW Staffer) and some of the local boys caught
their bag of whiting and landed some healthy E Ps on live prawns during the
cooler hours of the afternoon.

Sydney Harbour has been firing with heaps of King Fish caught by all. The
Kings seem to be further up the harbour at the moment inhabiting the bays
and points through out Middle Harbour, North Harbour and even up beyond the
Harbour Bridge. Most of the fish being caught are between 55cm and 60cm so
anglers need to take care to make sure that the fish they keep are of legal
size. Remember they have a tendency to shrink once dead.
There have been rumours of some anglers getting busted off on 30lb and 50lb
braid close to the wedding cakes and a few secret spots but as of yet I have
not seen one of these monsters.
Some of the larger fish that have been caught have tipped the scales at
around 10kg but they have been landed by very capable and experienced
anglers.

Fresh squid is the pick of the baits with both squid strips and live squid
doing the trick. The hard part is as always catching the Squid. Work the
kelp beds around Middle Head, Balmoral and North Harbour. Again Early
Mornings are the best.
If you are prepared to catch the bait and put in the hours the rewards are
great.
Local angler Deborah West has moved her count to more than sixty king fish
since Christmas day with numerous Bonito and Reds in amongst the screaming
runs of Kings as they head for the nearest mooring or snag.

Keep fishing and remember the harder you work at it the luckier you will be.

Good Luck from all the Staff at Fish Outta Water
Narada Taranto
Fish Outta Water

Fishing report 15 1 2007

Only just since last week reports have virtually doubled with many a specie'
on the chew and some warmer water helping to keep them local. This week
reports of bonito taking various baits and lures are prolific and this sign
usually means plenty of fun to be had at all sides of the peninsular. In the
harbour, Bonnies have been busting up west of the spit through to north head
chasing their usual micro tucker with most captures being on small baits or
7-14 gram metals cast into top water schools. Rat kings and some hoodlums
(up to 90cm) seem to be in all corners of the harbour readily accepting most
baits from whole live and dead squid, live yakkas through to prawn baits.
One Fow customer has 43 captures to her name since January 1st with morning
sessions proving most successful.

Over to the stones fishing tuitionist Alex Bellissimo confirms reports of
bonnies busting up at Nth Head with salmon and plenty of rats being landed
by his clients. One client being Andrew Costa hooked and landed a 5kg
Jewfish during a blue groper session using red crabs for bait. Alex further
reports that Dee Why beach has trevally with Collaroy Beach holding whiting
to 38cm using beach and tube worms while further north Mona Vale rocks has
snapper to 750grams with tarwhine, bream and salmon also on the menu.

Charter operator Pete LeBlang informs me Pittwater surface temps are at
times in excess of 23 degrees Celsius with bonito schools often surfacing
and rat kingfish smashing baitfish with some bigger kings scattered
throughout. Sampson fish are a new species on the prowl while plenty of
bream, whiting and flathead are taking live nippers readily at Towlers bay.

Darren Thomas
Fishouttawater.

Fishing report 08 01 2007.
Well happy new year to all you anglers out there, I hope you've been fishing
cause there's been a few around. The offshore scene has reports of small
dolphinfish on our local wave rider buoy's and plenty of rat kings, these
species are providing plenty of light tackle action and surely it wont long
before some larger fish show up. The fluctuating ocean temps are reaking
havoc with fish metabolisms out there; small blacks and stripes are being
caught with most action beyond the shelf. Closer to shore Long Reef boaties
have been tangling with rats, reds and amberjacks with a few trevally on the
side, all species are eagerly taking most baits on offer.

Our beaches are holding whiting and tailor with a few good jewfish to 11kg
caught during the week; Manly, Dee Why and Avalon being most popular venues
and arvo to evening sessions most successful

Sydney harbour water temps are ranging from 18.6 degrees to 23.9 degrees
Celsius and some days reports of up to 8 kingfish with mad sessions, while
the next can be an absolute tour even just to locate yakkas and squid!
Manly, The Spit, Watson's Bay and Cliffo are all proven spots but its just a
waiting game so be ready as hookups can be many and captures can be few.
Flathead and trevally are 2 species currently easier to target, burleying in
Nth Harbour and at Clontarf will provide trevally in the trail while west of
the spit drifting around Seaforth and the marinas some flathead of up to 5kg
have been hooked. Currently the summer fishing season is on a late start so
be prepared to move around and find the fish and ye shall reap the rewards
of your labours.

Darren Thomas.
Fishouttawater.

Fishing report 2006-12-18

Well you certainly can tell here at Fishouttawater that we're in our busiest
week of the year cos there's plenty of fish on the chew.
Des Toms tells me that since the main wedding cake fell down in the harbour
last week plenty of rats moved in, most of em are only 55-60cm but a lightly
cast strip squid bait is just too tempting. Over at the gap and around at
colours on sth head trolling stickbaits close to the boat or using the drift
dragging baits are 2 methods quite popular for ensuring hookups.

Land based charter operator Alex Bellissimo fished with Jason Rouse landing
pigs to 3kg and kilo snapper in his berley trail fishing off Mona Vale
stones, Alex mentioned to be kelp aware cause it was a problem. Binni Lee
fished with Alex landing salmon to 2.5kg and whiting to 34cm using beach
worms freshly caught from curly; these fish were caught at Dee Why.
Alex fished Nth Head chasing kings and while using a 200gram Land & Sea
Knife Jig in green/blue hooked and landed an 88cm kingfish which weighed in
at 7kg.

Offshore at the shelf it was action a plenty with one boat hooking black,
blue and striped marlin also landing 20 wahoo, 10 yellowfin and 6 mahi all
10kg plus, all fish were caught between Browns Mountain and the Bait
Station. Various beakies were hooked during the week making for a ripper
preseason opener.

Finally to those who supply our fishing reports, thank you guys very much
from Dan, myself and the Fow staff and merry Christmas and super angling to
all our readers and may 2007 be a year to break some personal bests.

Darren Thomas and staff.
Fishouttawater.

Fishing Report 12-12-06

Bit of rain, bit of wind, bit of sun, a pretty good week for fishing
actually with some good results.

Dave Penman fished a couple of km's offshore using live baits bagged 5 legal
kings to 5 kg and hooked a 4kg cobia on a drifting yellowtail.

Hookem Cookem's Des Toms has harbour water temp up to 22.1 degrees Celsius
and on average 21 degrees, visibility is very clear. Des reports kingies at
Quarantine (marker buoy) and sth head keen on stick baits and squid strips,
while over at Clontarf more cobe's to 5kg have been landed. Harbour yakkas
are fairly shy but worth the effort to catch.

Rock and beach fisho Alex Bellissimo reports plenty of salmon off the
beaches taking a variety of baits from worms to livies. Alex fished with
Mark Vandenburge off the stones landing pigs to 2 kg on bread and cunje at
Warriewood. During another lesson Alex put Tony Gibbons into some salmon to
4kg whilst whiting fishing, first they caught the beach worms converting
them into bream to 750 grams, trevally to a kilo and whiting to 35cm.

Further north Pittwater Pete says the kings have slowed down a bit but he's
still catching jewfish on the downrigger using live squid, although only
soapies, the heaviest weighing in at 4.5kg. Squid are proving hard at times;
you can get two in three casts or two in three hours, just see how you go.
Most mornings tailor can be found between Careel bay and the basin.
Pittwater water temp has been up to 23.6 degrees on the surface, well worth
a shot.

Fishouttawater is currently having a "massive" summer clearance sale so
there are plenty of Chrissy bargains to pick up and with our summer fish
arriving a new combo might just be what Santa ordered.

Darren Thomas.
Fishouttawater.

Fishing Report 05 12 06

A fishing November to remember, first the hottest day, then the windiest
November day and during the week the coldest November day. These were all
100 year old records broken this month yet November has still been one of
the best fishing months this year.

Most beaches are holding good salmon and whiting with bream, trevally and
jewfish all being respectable by catches not to mention good sized tailor.
Manly beach, Dee Why and Collaroy have been the pick during the week with
plenty on offer.
Local reef fishos have found good reds, rat kings, trevally a plenty and
even early season amberjacks from Newport and Long Reef right through to
Manly. Rock fishos are doing very well with trevally and salmon catches in
solid no's and sizes. Curl Curl, Dee Why, Avalon are the standout ledges
with some fish on the chew into the very late hrs of the night.
Sydney harbour has 19-20 degrees water temp with each week showing more and
more promise than the previous. Kingfish reports and sightings are
multiplying as the weather warms with not all anglers staying connected
during their confrontations. One angler that did stay connected was Nathan
Cefai, fishing Nth Curly he live baited the stones to land an absolute
cracker of a king at 1.3m and 28 kilos!!! Great Fish.

Fishing Report 14 11 06

Water temps are back up to 20 degrees in the harbour and slightly warmer
offshore bringing a few good species on the bite. Deborah West fished her
favourite spot on Sunday night for another good jewie around 6 kilos on 3kg
string using a squid strip, would've made for good viewing. Kingfish
encounters are becoming more common week to week, Scotty McNeill live baited
bluefish point with yakkas capturing 2 fish to 75cm also losing two fish to
the bottom and hooking one that couldn't be stopped!
Hookems Des Toms says the harbour has vastly improved over the week with
baitfish and squid gone into hiding, but his preferred spot is the Eastern
Wedding cake. Des has confronted kings at Nth Head, Spit Bridge and Middle
Harbour also.

Pittwater is fishing well with flatties and bream taking baits around Sandy
Bay and Bayview, whilst small tailor and salmon schools are scattered
throughout providing some surface action. Lion Island is holding small
schools of rat kings very fixated on micro tucker. Trolling flies and/or
suspending under clear bubble floats are methods working well as these fish
aren't interested in many traditional methods and even live squid aren't on
the menu.

Offshore fishing is hotting up with plenty of bottom species taking baits
and plastics on local reefs. Narada Taranto fished on Sunday with the
jigging brigade landing kingfish to 15 kilos outside at the 12 mile drifting
various deep reefs.

Darren Thomas

Fishing Report 7.11.06

This previous week of rain has turned our season about face sending fish off
the bite with some fishos having success when the conditions prevailed.

Alex Bellissimo reports the beaches at and around Dee Why have been fishing
well. Dave Slaytor used tube worms to get some huge Tarwhine up to 1.6kg,
Bream up to 650gms and Whiting around 30cm.
Alex also fished the stones with client mike smith for some healthy pigs to
1.5kgs and put Michael Fitzpatrick in the zone with some nice Bream and
Tarwhine to 750gms .

Further north Avalon Beach has had plenty of Salmon for Charlie Male while
Palmy wharf laid on the bait with some healthy squid including one bumper
unit weighing nearly 2kgs. Pittwater Pete fished the Hawkesbury mouth on
the drift using prawns landing plenty of flatties up to 55cm with the
cooling water temps now down 2 degrees to 18.5. Peter said this has slowed
the bite just a bit but a little cunning and persistence will achieve the
results.

Now there is some good news if you work in the City. Fish Outta Water is
opening our second store at 478 George Street 1st floor in the Mick Simmons
store next door to the Hilton Hotel.
Situated across the road from the QVB we are opening our doors this coming
Monday so pop in and check us out as it will be the best tackle shop in the
2000 post code.

For more information ring the store in town on 02 9283 1907
Or the Manly Vale Store on 02 9949 9488
Darren Thomas

Fishing report for the 30.10.06

The beaches, Harbour and Pittwater have all produced good Mulloway captures
over the past week. Fresh squid pilchards and plastics have provided the
results securing some very healthy school Jews.
Manly Beach fished well for John Wells who bounced pilchards off the bottom
and cast unweighted baits into the washes. This produced two nice tailor and
a fat Salmon before a nice school Jew tore off towards Queenscliff. Wells a
renowned light line fishos took off after the fish hoping that his 5kg line
and 10Kg trace would hold without straightening his small 1/0 ganged hooks.
Soon after a nice 4kg Jew lay gleaming on the beach.

During the week another two fads were installed (Fish Attracting Device's).
This takes the current total to 14 for the season. Fisheries list these
fads on their web site and more information about them including the GPS
locations can be obtained from contacting them. There is reported to be
another seven on the way but as they are only installed for 9 months a year
it is important to see which ones are current.

The Long Reef wave rider boy is still holding some kings and with the
warming water should soon hold some Dolphin Fish for those of you keen to
tangle with the Beautiful Mahi Mahi. They are perhaps the fastest growing
fish in the sea with a six month old fish weighing 1kg and reaching a
staggering 10kg in one year. It's just as well they are such fast growers
and swimmers as they are damn tasty to boot.

Between South Head and Blue fish is where Des Toms from Hookem Cookem is
catching some large Salmon. Most have been hooked in deep water but the
schools are still busting up on the surface. I fished at Blue Fish
listening to yells of delight as Des's clients tangled with these
magnificent sport fish on light line. Des also reports that Kingfish can be
caught at the spit although it is important that quality baits be used.
Remember fresh is best.

Moving up the harbour FOW Deb West fished a 130mm Squidgy Fish (silver fox)
down deep for a lovely Jew tipping the scales at almost 6kg's. That's a
great eating size just ask Deb who's still enjoying the sweet taste.

FOW's Narada Taranto and Charlie Male both caught good fish this past week
both from the shore and the canoe.
Narada worked the stones at bluefish for nice Salmon, Bream and Kings.
Further up stream he landed some quality flatties over the sand and broken
bottom with 100mm shads and stick baits doing the damage.
Charlie fished Avalon for a good feed of Tailor using pillies and Gangs,
then changes tactics and fished Pittwater from the canoe to find plenty of
fish on the chew including 2 Jews from 2.5kg to 4kgs. Charlie found that
cubing rather than burly did the trick and got the bigger fish interested.
Both Jews had cubed pilchards in them on cleaning.

Water temps are up so hold on the fishing is hotting up.

Darren Thomas.

Fishing Report 16 10 2006

Talk about out of the frying pan and into the fridge. That's one of way of
describing some of our recent weather conditions. Uncomfortable seas and
howling southerlies certainly didn't help fishos during the past week
either, but some yellowfin were still boated proving that they haven't shot
through yet. 'Wahoo' cubed over the weekend out wide to capture 3 yellowfin
to 35kg, whilst a not so successful Jamie Ward and crew lost a 40 kg model
on 6kg line. After a long fight, the swivel eventually wore through the line
leaving the boys with a long, hard slog home and no result.
Schooling striped tuna provided the day's only consolation with fish to
5kg's being landed.

Long Reef wave rider buoy is holding rat kings with one boat cubing up a 6kg
mahi mahi, but couldn't tempt it with any method or bait available. Closer
in fishing the reef there have been plenty of mowies available taking baits
on the drift, so too are marble flathead and gurnards with pillies working
very well.

Andrew Parkes fished Sydney harbour throughout this week downrigging live
squid and squid strips and landed legal kings with small arrow squid and
baby cuttlefish found in their stomach contents. Parksey suggested to one
boat to try downrigging white plastic stickbaits as squid couldn't be
caught, with this method doing the job and two legal kings being boated west
of the spit bridge.
Mick gates went kayaking out the front amongst three salmon schools to
capture a mixed bag including 2 salmon, 1 tailor, 1 trev and 56cm rat king,
Mick was using Berkley soft plastics during his 1.5hr arvo session. Some
salmon have moved into the harbour and are keeping down deep so trolling
deep divers and downrigging are proving quite successful.

Pittwater Pete reports kingfish in Broken Bay taking squid down deep with
yakkas as a second choice of bait if squid can't be found, which is often is
often the case. Lion Island to west head has flatties hitting deep baits on
the drift some salmon and tailor are moving around Pittwater but aren't all
that easy to find due to thin no's. both yacht clubs are holding good bream
around the pylons quite fussy at times these fish have taken a liking to
good old bread baits, unweighted and cast in close.

Darren Thomas.
Fish Outta Water.

Fishing report 09 10 2006

You couldn't half tell we're now in the three windiest months of the year;
the weekend was an absolute blowout with a Saturday nor'easter and a Sunday
soueasterly change it certainly made it challenging to fish in any boat
anywhere.
Its pretty quiet in the offshore reports dept but bottom bashers not so wide
had more success with long reef working for rats and larger kings, snapper
to 4kg taking unweighted baits and striped tuna are being encountered a
couple of km's offshore and metal lures being trolled around 4-6 knots.

Harbour guide Des Toms has been working salmon schools at the heads each
morning at sparrows using plastics and whitebait copies but bigger
stickbaits are undoing rat kings at Bluefish Pt. a quick troll sth around
Nth Head has produced bonito and big tailor hookups providing heaps of
action with the different species keen for shiny lures in the whitewater.
Harbour water temps range from 18.5 at heads central with 19.2 at the spit
and a very toasty 19.7 under the coathanger. Slimey mackerel to 35cm are
around the Manly - Nth Harbour area and are keen on small baits and lures
eagerly taking both on different occasions, burleying a solid trail at Forty
Baskets provided plenty for the bait tank. John Dory aren't too far behind
and Reef beach is a choice of spot to confront these big mouthed delights
but remember to slow down your live baits to increase your hookup rate or
better still use the smallest livey in the tank and weigh him down two
metres off the bottom on a metre of leader. West of the spit nuisance
Leatherjackets are scattered almost to Roseville biting off plenty of rigs
usually because of bait residue from your hands contacting the line after
you bait up - be wary. More kingfish hookups at the spit on livies are a
regular occurrence with 5kg hoodlums to 77cm attacking live squid baited
down deep. Live squid are very popular and fairly accessible with prawn
style jigs undoing many a squid's freedom. Flatties, bream and whiting were
the catch of day for one lucky angler fishing plastics over the sand flats
at Clontarf, with a big 40cm flying Gurnard thrown in also hooked via this
artificial method over the weekend.

Up north to Pittwater drifting inside the Joey more flatties can be located
bouncing pillies across the sandy areas. Livies around west head or squid
around the Joey rocks have been the gun for baits targeting kings in Broken
Bay, downrigging is your best chance over and around reefs and headlands.
The leeward sides are preferred by fishos choosing this method, for a
different choice of livies try Careel bay for good sized garfish to 28cm
taking lightly weighted bread baits worked down a heavy burley trail.

2006/2007 Fishouttawater tide charts are available free from the store so
pick up a couple and increase your catch on your next trip.

Darren Thomas.
Fishouttawater.

03.10.06

With the swell on the rise over the last week and the wind gusting up to 40 knots, the offshore fishos kept trips to a minimum with some anglers reporting that the yellowfin have moved on. One boat did report hook-ups with six fish counted to 25kg but plenty of boats didn’t turn a reel.
Fishing closer to shore was a more preferable choice with kingfish on plastics at North Head causing headaches with more fish lost than boated. Bonito and salmon schools in the vicinity are taking trolled lures and live baits with fly rods also mixing it up. Des Toms from Hookem Cookem has harbour temps at 18.1 with generally warmer water bringing Snapper, Tailor, Squid, Trevally, Salmon, Bonito and those pesky leatherjackets all within range of his customers. Plenty of squid and finger licking yakkas are also available with Quarantine also holding slimy mackerel.
The current murky water has plenty of species searching for food, further west Andrew Thorpe wet a line at North Bridge and landed a nice pan sized napper of a kg or better.
Off the stones fishing instructor Alex Bellissimo reports some decent Pigs taking a mix of cunje and cabbage weed around North head and just inside. Clontarf fished well for whiting to 30cm and at Manly a small flathead was happily caught by 7 year old Andrew McIntosh during one of Alex entertaining lessons.
The beaches have kicked up a gear with Bream, Whiting, and Trevally devouring worms on Dee Why, Curley and Narrabeen With the latter of those laying on two excellent Jews on two consecutive nights. Weighing in at 7.5kg and 17kg these quality fish gave Alex a good run as they devoured his live yakkas. On the second night Alex did loose an even larger fish and the gleaming monster fish scale attached to the point of the hook laid testament to the size.
Sure it May still be a bit cold and windy but don’t let these minor inconveniences deter you from fishing your favourite spot, the fish still have to eat –fish on

Darren Thomas.

Fishing Report 2006-09-25

Our hottest day in 100 years fell during the weekend with some very strong
winds in tow, these two ingredients kept offshore fisho's onshore with
reports decreasing considerably.
Jamie Ward of Broken Bay Game Fishing Club fished nth of Browns Mountain
trolling lumo skirted lures for two Yellowfin weighing in at 24 and 25
kilos, cubing was not an option in the extreme breezes drifting boats way
too fast. While this large patch of warm water sits just offshore, hopefully
this awesome run of tuna will stay around.

Sydney Harbour has more visible signs of improvement with Tailor and Salmon
schools being reported though at times isolated just watch out for the
feeding gulls, soft plastics and hard bodied divers are connecting anglers
to the fish. Des Toms reports the water temp at 18.1 degrees and recommends
burleying for Trevally down deep and expect a few Flatties on the move due
to breeding season. The Spit Bridge and slightly west has some Kingfish
taking baits, not many legals but a promising sign for a bumper season.
Expect to see a few dolphins milling around chasing Salmon and the like,
with plenty of food in their vicinity it's not the last report of these
guy's we'll get.

Long Reef fisho's are catching mowies a plenty soaking deep baits, with good
platey reds to 2.5kg also on the chew attracted by consistent trails of
burley.

Off the stones angling tuitionist Alex Bellissimo recommends a long cast to
target snapper around 36cm and fishing the wash for luderick which are
currently quite prolific and in some spots can be seen in plague
proportions. If a beach fish is more suited to your style, live beach worms
have been too irresistible on Dee Why with whiting to 750 grams biting
eagerly.
If you haven't got your 2006/07 FOW tide chart yet drop in to Fish Outta
Water and pick a couple up

Darren Thomas
Fish Outta Water.

Fishing Report 19 09 2006

Very consistent weather and oceanic conditions are suiting many an angler
for offshore fishing in what so far has been a pretty decent tuna season.
Light breezes and minimal swell has allowed plenty of small boat fisho's to
get out to the mountain and nearly all have reported many a hookup out wide
mostly cubing, with fin averaging 30 - 35 kg.
David Rothwell fished browns during the week and landed three Yellowfin to
50kg, cubing pillies did the trick with 2 triple hookups for the day both
after 4:30pm. Dave said they left browns at dark with the fish still biting.
Jamie ward caught a 26kg fin on ten kilo tackle and reported a dolphin fish
capture at browns weighting in at 14 kg on the cubed pilchards again. Some
boats headed out less than 24 hrs later in mirrored conditions to not even
sight a fish; it's more a case of them finding you.
Rob and Joe Roberts bottom fished browns between tuna strikes for some 15kg
Gemfish, plastic lumo squid trailing a squid strip worked on these bottom
dwellers, Sept and Oct are the preferred months for these southward
migrating fish.

Closer to shore working seagulls on salmon schools around Nth Head are
alerting attentive anglers of their presence but can be quite boat shy very
often, so a long casted lure is normally required. Bonito are in the same
vicinity and mutton birds are their visual indicator, trolling has been the
most productive to hook these guys and the two kilometre mark has larger
schools with even bigger fish.

Off the stones fishing tuitionist Alex Bellissimo fished with Mark
Vandenberg to land Bream to 700 grams and closer to the beach, Whiting to
32cm. Billy Plummer landed Luderick and Pigs fishing with Alex at DY and
bigger pigs to 3kg satisfied clients Mike and Gavin with plenty of bustoff's
making it for an educating Bellissimo rock session.

Stable Conditions will be worth getting amongst this week and with
opportunities arising that "Fish of a lifetime" might not be so illusional
as realistic.

Darren Thomas.
Fish Outta Water.

12 09 06

During the week our wettest day in 120 years rolled through so you could understand reports being just a bit on the thin side, monstrous seas and howling sou'easters put paid to any offshore reports and Browns Mountain looked a lot quieter than the previous boat park it was last weekend.

When conditions allowed a few anglers wet a line for some success, Fow staffee Charlie Male found plenty of salmon on Manly Beach with an occasional Trevally falling to his squid strips. Fishing tuitionist Alex Bellissimo found the right spot during the blow to
land a few Snapper to 800 grams and Luderick to 1.4kg on bread baits fishing the wash around Sth Whaley and further reported Salmon to 3.5kg gracing the rocks up there caught by long casting pillies bottom fishing.

Pittwater provided Bream and Leatherjackets for some lucky anglers prevailing rough conditions but by no means was it easy. Schooling Salmon have thinned right out but try Mackerel Beach for a shot at them.

Luderick have started schooling around the local wharves and pools in the harbour with fish being caught at Forty Baskets and Clontarf, a mix of sand and green weed will bring these fish in.

With all this rain and dirty water McCarrs Creek and the Hawkesbury up north and Middle Harbour down south will be suitable locations to target mulloway when the current conditions stabilise and that should be around Wednesday/Thursday.

05 09 06
Boats were reported at Browns on sat all cubing for yellowfin in absolute pristine conditions but results were very few fish boated, what a complete turnaround from last weekend because trolling lures was successful 100% for the three boats out there applying this method. Scott McGowan of McGoo lures trolled up 4 yelleybeans to 15kg, 2 from the shelf and 2 more at browns. One of these fish is a pending record for Jack Peterson at the Parkway Pirates fishing club, all fish were caught on 15 kg line. The 2nd boat caught 1 fish to 30kg well away from the flotilla and just inside Browns, funnily enough last weeks plague proportions of mako sightings has dropped to zero. With all that berley in the water there would have been a la carte of fish attracting delicacies for fish to choose from and the lure hitters may have been more after a chase than a feed. One fisho reported that his fin spat out enough cubed bits to make a block (2.5kg).

Closer to shore rat kings were in abundance at Newport reef, Mark Olsen and Aaron McLean hooked around 30 fish, all released with the biggest going 60cm. Berkley soft plastics playing a big role during this session.

Just around the Joey inside Pittwater Fow staffee Charlie Male captured his first king since moving to NSW, it went 68cm and eagerly took a down rigged yakka amongst the moorings at "The Supermarket" whilst I can't say I was as lucky. Pete Le Blang reported the surface action has slowed up with the odd school of salmon and tailor popping up. Whiting and keeper Bream with the odd good sized Trevally are being caught but berlying is a must in the super clear water, Pittwater's water temp I found was 18.4 degrees Celsius on sat at Careel Bay up another degree from last week.

Rock and beach fishing continues to reward anglers with good numbers and species of fish; Billy Plummer whilst under the tuition of guru Alex Bellissimo caught Drummer to 2.5kg during a 10 fish session and left the fish biting on departure. Long Reef has Trevally to 1.2 kg, try Warriewood for the pigs and a 2.5 kg Bluefish was landed on cunje, this species is certainly an unusual capture in our territory. Give Al a ring on 0408283616 for a very worthwhile angling adventure.

Des Toms from Hookem' Cookem has Harbour water temp at 17.6 degrees Celsius and recommends Nth and Sth Head for salmon and the gap for small kings, while Dobroyd Pts and Quarantine are holding good yakkas; squid are playing hard to get but inside Nth Head is the venue for trevally and small slimey mackerel. Fish Outta Water's "Fish n' Tips" night this Thursday instore at 6pm is hosting Gary Brown, Talking on all aspects of Estuary and small boat fishing so book early for a free seat!!!

Darren Thomas

28 08 06
A week of rare winter beauty has been bestowed on us of late, with fine weather, little wind, stacks of warm water and ‘Fin still schooling up off the shelf. Though it means Browns is a weekend carpark, at least most of those making the trip offshore are being rewarded, with Yellowfin to 60kg, a few Albacore, and big oceanic sharks some of the more recent landings.

Early in the week a few lucky souls were able to get a day off from the grindstone, including James Drummond, who couldn’t stop smiling or eating fresh sashimi on Monday after landing his first Yellowfin off the shelf out of Broken Bay. 30kg is not a bad fish to start on, and it was shortly followed by two more similar size “schoolies”. Rob Roberts also managed a few fish out wide of Browns over the weekend, starting on the ‘Fin, mixing them in with a few Albacore during the day, and polishing things off with a nice mako around 180kg before it was time to head back in. The sharks have been big and plentiful with Mako’s, Tigers and Whalers all lurking ready to investigate a strong berley trail.

The beaches are also feeling a little sharky at the moment, with numerous reports of night time whalers coming in from Manly to Palmy. Warwick Woolcott landed every night time skinny dippers delight, a 5 foot bronzy, from a close gutter at manly, on a Tuna fillet. Charlie Male has also picked up a few lately, around the 3 foot mark, from gutters at Avalon and Whale beaches, where some giant greenbacks are also doing the rounds stealing pillies on dusk.

Sydney Harbour thankfully does not have the same numbers of sharks as can be seen elsewhere at present, but it is slowly picking up after a lack lustre winter, as tailor and salmon start to move in. Small schools of salmon particularly have been splintering off the main aggregation of fish that have held around north head, and a bit of surface action can now be found inside Quarrantine Pt amongst other places. Tailor have moved in even further, with schools around Middle Head, Clifton Gardens and closer toward town belting into gold bombers and 40gm metal slices. North Harbour and Dobroyd are also providing haven for some legal Reds, from 30 up to 45cm. The bigger fish seem to be reserved for unweighted baits on light line, though they aren’t too fussy, taking pilchards, hawesbury prawns and squid.

Pittwater has had an up and down few winter, but things are on the up. Pete Le Blang of Harbour and Estuary charters is enjoying himself, particularly as he has tracked down a secret stash of Kingies, from 65 – 75cm. His last three charters have all resulted in similar size Kings for some very chuffed customers, with even bigger fish hooked up and dropped. Aside from these imprecisely positioned kings, Pitty has been offering up a bit of surface action mornings and evenings as separate schools of Salmon and Choppers take turns in balling up baitfish in the warming 17 degree waters. Small metal slices around 7gms cast from the edges of the schools are proving the best attack. For the more serene fisho, a bit of a drift off the sea plane landing area has been productive for a few small to mid sized flatties, as well as the odd flounder. Failing that, a few grunters are still about, and can be berleyed up off Stokes Pt and West Head.

08 08 06
Fishing has been a bit patchy during the last week, especially inshore where below fourteen degree waters have continued to be the go throughout both Sydney Harbour and Pittwater. This is the time of the year when water temperatures are always at their coldest in both these areas. The beaches are offering a bit of respite, with temps closer to 16 degrees and a few decent fish about. Offshore the water is slightly warmer, at least 16 degrees but often up to 18 and even warmer out over the shelf. Don’t forget, now is a great time to stock up on a bit of gear, so get down and check out the bargains in Fish Outta Water’s End Of Financial Year Shimano Stocktake Sale, on now!!

Fishing the harbour has been hard work in the last week, particularly closer to the heads, where lake clear water and massive temperature variants are making even catching baitfish hard at times. Water at the heads was 18.8 degrees during the week, though move 200 metres to Quarantine Pt and you will get only 16.8, and only 13.8 at the boat ramp at Roseville. The finicky Salmon at the heads have been a nightmare, sounding at the mearest hint of a boat approaching and neglecting all but the best presented lures. Thankfully they are dispersing slowly into the harbour proper, where small groups of individuals have begun to target larger baits. This is allowing a few to be picked up on the troll, as is happening with the Tailor. Rapala CD7’s and CD9’s, Gold Bombers and a range of similar lures have been doing the trick this week, with dawn and dusk accounting for most of the action. Up river things have been fishing a little better, even though the water is much colder, with the odd Bream inside Middle Harbour and a few more calling the Parra River home. The recent National Bream Circuit Grand Final on the Harbour last weekend testified to that, with fish over a kilo reasonably common. Mark Olsen snuck away with a nice fat fish of 1.38 kilos, to put him in fourth place on the ladder for this year. Great result! He even managed an Estuary Perch nearly 45cm long at Balmain. If only it counted! A couple of Jewies were also a noteable by catch during the competition. The bays west of the harbour bridge have been fishing better than the rest of the harbour in general, with a few decent Blackfish getting about, as well as the odd school of travelling Tailor and Trevally.
The Rocks and Beaches are still feeling slightly warmer than some of that harbour foreshore, if only the swell could hold off for a day or two here and there. Still, the fishing is holding up ok. Alex Bellissimo has been taking a few customers down for his guided fishing tours again this week, and as usual has been cleaning up. With Ken Waugh this week, a session on the pigs was to be had, and 8 fish just under the two kilo mark later both teacher and student were well satisfied! For something different, Al also reports now is the time to go hunting for a few Silver Drummer off the rocks. Don’t forget this Thursday Night 10th August @ 6.00pm at Fish Outta Water a free talk on fishing the local rocks and beaches will be given by Alex. This will be his last free talk so don’t miss out on this chance to learn from the best! The close beach gutters have also been fishing well when conditions allow, with Longy throwing up a few Bream from 600-800gms, as well as a mix of Tailor and Trevs for the lucky ones.

31 07 06
It must be more people taking advantage of the warmer weather, because it’s sure not the warmer water that is turning fish back on this week. From ‘Fin out wide to Flatties in close, from bream off the beach to blackfish in the harbour, the mixed bag of Sydney winter fishing has had a positive week. Trevally, Tailor and Salmon are also continuing to run in and around Sydney, and a few can be found off a couple of ocean headlands as well as in Pitty and the Harbour.
Last week, for the first time in almost a month, the arrival of some small to mid sized Yellowfin Tuna coincided with reasonable fishing conditions, and quite a few boats were able to get in on the action. Both cubing pilchards and trolling proved successful, with 7 and 8 inch pushers the pick of the lures. Fish around the 25kg mark were found the length and breadth of Sydney, from Terrigal in the north down past Browns, especially around bait schools. Closer in there is also a bit of bait about, and a keen eye is being kept on it by a few fat Salmon, when they can escape the dolphins.

Though colder water has had some impact, the beaches are still holding their own, as they generally do in winter, with schools of Tailor and a few Salmon moving up and down around headlands. Dee-Why and Curly have been figuring prominently, both for live baiters and the metal slice spin brigade. Sharks are also showing their winter prominence, with Queensy being a hotbed of late for small Bronzi