plfishfingers
19-10-10, 03:17 PM
Hello everyone
The last week has seen the fishing conditions pretty crappy to say the least. On the odd day when we have been able to venture out we have found the fishing a little slower than I would like.
The squid are still frightfully difficult to get from inside Pittwater. The better areas have been on the ocean side of Barrenjoey Headland drifting with paternoster rigs. Most of the squid are being found in patches so it wise to use a rig with two jigs on it.
The kingfish have been a fair bit easier on the ocean side as well with big kingfish being caught along our coast.
There are still a heap of bonito about as well so depending on what you are trolling will dictate what you catch.
For those of you that like downrigging offshore, the best bait has been slimy mackeral otherwise yellowtail will do.
In areas along the coast we have been finding schools of rat kingfish amongst the bonito schools and the bigger kingfish are deeper not that far away.
For those of you that cant help yourselves, the small kingies are eating squid strips, soft plastics as well as poppers.
If you want a bigger kingfish try trolling or better still downrigging a bonito. You may have to wait a little longer but if your reel starts to scream, you know that the fish on the other end is no rat king.
Flathead are still about on the 50m mark but the leatherjackets are starting to gather again. On the sand the blue-spot flathead are ready to breed so catching two at a time is not uncommon.
Over the reefs and gravel beds there are still some snapper being caught and some fish of 3kg are being caught on plastics as well as bait.
I find that a lot of our customers are first unable to detect bites in the deeper water and I have found circle hooks to be of great benefit to them.
Recently one of my customers trusted me and used circle hooks for the first time and went home with a smile from ear to ear. He couldnt believe that he no longer had to feel for a bite as most of the fish hook themselves. Jim managed to catch the two biggest snapper 2 & 3kg, marbled flathead, tiger flathead, mowong and blue-spot flathead.
We have repeated this scenario on many trips since and I am honestly thinking of using circle hooks only when reef and flathead fishing offshore.
You must remember that these hooks work best if tied with the correct knots that allow for hook movement.
Another great way to actively target reds is of course to use soft plastics but also Lucanus Jigs are brilliant.
Whilst at Shimano recently I was explained how these jigs not only work when just left in a rod holder but also when ripped in. Mark explained that he stumbled onto this technique when fishing in 90 feet of water and was actually ripping the line back in quickly so they could move areas. Whilst retrieving the lure he hooked up on a decent snapper as he did on the next three casts.
These lures have worked for me whilst just leaving them in the rod holders and let the boat movement apply all of the lure movement. So if you have a chance to look at one of these lures at your tackle shop they are worth the money.
The fishing back in Pittwater has been better but there are still kingfish in the river to be caught. As mentioned the hardest part has been to find squid.
The kingfish are on the move and most mornings there are birds working at some point along the river, this is where to start.
Some of the kingfish that are being caught are of great size but these fish are being taken with baits set in the lower third of the water column.
Trevally are still being caught at Flint & Steel but they are only just legals. Flathead are being caught at the edge of the reef and on the odd day a run of jewfish are being caught. The jewfish bite is sporadic so a few visits may be needed and from all reports the incoming tide is when they are on the bite.
The Broken Bay area is seeing flathead, flounder, tailor, salmon and bonito being caught in different areas.
Remember that if you own a downrigger you can use it to catch flathead with lures and is a very productive way to catch them when the area has been found.
I hope that this report sees you all iching to get on the water and hope that I will see many of you on our boat in the coming summer.
Best wishes
Peter Le Blang
Harbour & Estuary Fishing Charters
0410 633 351
www.estuaryfishingcharters.com.au
plfishfingers@bigpond.com
The last week has seen the fishing conditions pretty crappy to say the least. On the odd day when we have been able to venture out we have found the fishing a little slower than I would like.
The squid are still frightfully difficult to get from inside Pittwater. The better areas have been on the ocean side of Barrenjoey Headland drifting with paternoster rigs. Most of the squid are being found in patches so it wise to use a rig with two jigs on it.
The kingfish have been a fair bit easier on the ocean side as well with big kingfish being caught along our coast.
There are still a heap of bonito about as well so depending on what you are trolling will dictate what you catch.
For those of you that like downrigging offshore, the best bait has been slimy mackeral otherwise yellowtail will do.
In areas along the coast we have been finding schools of rat kingfish amongst the bonito schools and the bigger kingfish are deeper not that far away.
For those of you that cant help yourselves, the small kingies are eating squid strips, soft plastics as well as poppers.
If you want a bigger kingfish try trolling or better still downrigging a bonito. You may have to wait a little longer but if your reel starts to scream, you know that the fish on the other end is no rat king.
Flathead are still about on the 50m mark but the leatherjackets are starting to gather again. On the sand the blue-spot flathead are ready to breed so catching two at a time is not uncommon.
Over the reefs and gravel beds there are still some snapper being caught and some fish of 3kg are being caught on plastics as well as bait.
I find that a lot of our customers are first unable to detect bites in the deeper water and I have found circle hooks to be of great benefit to them.
Recently one of my customers trusted me and used circle hooks for the first time and went home with a smile from ear to ear. He couldnt believe that he no longer had to feel for a bite as most of the fish hook themselves. Jim managed to catch the two biggest snapper 2 & 3kg, marbled flathead, tiger flathead, mowong and blue-spot flathead.
We have repeated this scenario on many trips since and I am honestly thinking of using circle hooks only when reef and flathead fishing offshore.
You must remember that these hooks work best if tied with the correct knots that allow for hook movement.
Another great way to actively target reds is of course to use soft plastics but also Lucanus Jigs are brilliant.
Whilst at Shimano recently I was explained how these jigs not only work when just left in a rod holder but also when ripped in. Mark explained that he stumbled onto this technique when fishing in 90 feet of water and was actually ripping the line back in quickly so they could move areas. Whilst retrieving the lure he hooked up on a decent snapper as he did on the next three casts.
These lures have worked for me whilst just leaving them in the rod holders and let the boat movement apply all of the lure movement. So if you have a chance to look at one of these lures at your tackle shop they are worth the money.
The fishing back in Pittwater has been better but there are still kingfish in the river to be caught. As mentioned the hardest part has been to find squid.
The kingfish are on the move and most mornings there are birds working at some point along the river, this is where to start.
Some of the kingfish that are being caught are of great size but these fish are being taken with baits set in the lower third of the water column.
Trevally are still being caught at Flint & Steel but they are only just legals. Flathead are being caught at the edge of the reef and on the odd day a run of jewfish are being caught. The jewfish bite is sporadic so a few visits may be needed and from all reports the incoming tide is when they are on the bite.
The Broken Bay area is seeing flathead, flounder, tailor, salmon and bonito being caught in different areas.
Remember that if you own a downrigger you can use it to catch flathead with lures and is a very productive way to catch them when the area has been found.
I hope that this report sees you all iching to get on the water and hope that I will see many of you on our boat in the coming summer.
Best wishes
Peter Le Blang
Harbour & Estuary Fishing Charters
0410 633 351
www.estuaryfishingcharters.com.au
plfishfingers@bigpond.com