My lack of diving continues unabated. I am almost depressed by the prospects of working while the spectacle of a calm ocean haunts my dreams. A strong S did push in over the weekend but it blew itself out way too quickly. Predictions are for another extended S blow this weekend.
It appears that sharks are thick all around Australia. A youngster was investigated twice by a 5m White off Tasmania and fortunately her cousin came to her aid and it is very likely his brave action saved her life. In my neck of the woods there have been 2 incidents involving Bull Sharks attacking surfers in shallow water. Some friends were diving recently when a Grey Nurse came up to the surface and investigated the one diver's flashers before turning and making some threatening moves at the diver on the surface, this in approx 20m water!
From a fish point of view, the diving has been hard but the glory goes to those who persevere. I heard of several Cobia, Wahoo and Amberjack being landed. Interestingly the Amberjack and Cobia appear to have come from particularly deep dives 30m+. One Wahoo was shot at by a diver on the surface when he estimated the fish to be 4kg. The fish was taken by a dive buddy and turned out to be over 10kg. Clean blue water can play havoc on your ability to judge fish size. When you believe you are close enough GET CLOSER.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Thursday, January 1, 2009
2 January 2009
My diving has been shelved over the last few weeks. When the Ocean looked good, I was at work and when I was available, the conditions turned to crap. The first half of the month was quite good but the second half has been really shoddy. Now that the excuses are out of the way, there have been some fish landed.
In the last week there have been some Dorado taken, as well as a Jewfish. My grapevine informs me that several Marlin have been seen around North Solitary Island (Big Island). I even heard of a Wahoo that was dropped at the FAD off Coffs. The guys also saw a Mako jumping around at the FAD, no surprise that the Dorado were so flighty then! The reason for the poor results has been the light NE which has kept a cold, dirty thermocline at the 15-20m level.
All predictions are for a hefty S blow over the next week which should finally push the good water in against the shore. It would be great to have some consistent conditions to dive in again. I am looking forward to a great year of diving. I hope to bump into one of the big Spanish around Pig Island this year. Last year a fish of over 40kg was taken on rod-and-line.
In the last week there have been some Dorado taken, as well as a Jewfish. My grapevine informs me that several Marlin have been seen around North Solitary Island (Big Island). I even heard of a Wahoo that was dropped at the FAD off Coffs. The guys also saw a Mako jumping around at the FAD, no surprise that the Dorado were so flighty then! The reason for the poor results has been the light NE which has kept a cold, dirty thermocline at the 15-20m level.
All predictions are for a hefty S blow over the next week which should finally push the good water in against the shore. It would be great to have some consistent conditions to dive in again. I am looking forward to a great year of diving. I hope to bump into one of the big Spanish around Pig Island this year. Last year a fish of over 40kg was taken on rod-and-line.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
19 December 2008
The last few days have seen little diving on my part. I have been busy helping my family move into our new home and arrange everything to their liking. Always good to be accumulating brownie points for later use when the weather improves.
Wednesday was my day off and I went diving with John and Michael Featherstone and Kris Banks. There has not been a substantial S blow yet and we still have a thermocline at around 15m (cold, dirty and really spooky).
Started at the FAD. Water was quite clear and warm. Massive school of Yellowtail mixed with Rainbow Runners and small Dorado. There was no indication of any bigger fish. We even tried pinning one of the smaller Dorado to encourage bigger fish to come and have a look. No luck. We then moved to the reef N of the Big Island (Hitler's). This was comfortable diving all above the thermocline. There was very little current which allowed a thorough look at the area. I stuffed up on a big Green Jobfish. Instead of lying still and patiently waiting for it to come closer, I tried to chase it. Total waste of time, fish disappeared pretty smartly. Due reward was collected shortly afterwards. A school of small Yellowtail swam up to me, I tucked over to look behind me and saw a Spanish following the 'Tail. Turned and tracked it. The fish initially raced off then seemed to stop and glide to the left, right into my target area. That is my first Spanish this season, not big but my dance card has been opened.
We moved around to the S side of the Big Island. The viz opened up beautifully. Viz down to 20m+. Lots of bait around and several schools of small 'Tail and Amberjack. I was looking for Wahoo or Cobia. Found several massive Black Rays at around 20m and diligently looked under them for Cobia. Encountered an Eagle Ray with an Amberjack but the ray spooked and took the Amberjack with it. Shoaling Hammerheads came through in a school of about 30 sharks. True to form, they were very skittish. When I thought I was not going to see a Cobia, dropped down to check out a ray and found 2 Cobia. What a blast taking a Cobia in such a classic situation. By this stage we had rustled up 2 Spanish, a Blue-Bar Parrotfish and the small Dorado.
We did our best to find some Mangrove Jacks but the conditions were deteriorating. We elected to move to The Wash. Again the thermocline was found at about 15m. I could find no fish in the dirty cold water but around the pinnacles there were plenty. Took a reasonable Yellowtail and as I tried to put my hand into its gills it broke free. Then I found a school of large Big-Eye Trevally. The school seemed very flighty almost harassed. Every dive at them, had them scuttling off into the deep, only to return several minutes later. With their next pass I exhaled and slowly sank down to them. This gave me a closer look and I managed to pin one. It fought very strongly and scraped along the reef, dislodging the spear.
We decided to call it a day and head back to Arrawarra. The Cobia is in the fridge being prepared as Gravlax and the 'Couta in a brining solution for smoking today.
The weather this weekend does not look good for diving but a quick jaunt out to look for Dorado may be a good bet. If that fails, I will take my bow out and go looking for some deer on the surrounding hills. I am really in need of some good old fashioned BILTONG!
Wednesday was my day off and I went diving with John and Michael Featherstone and Kris Banks. There has not been a substantial S blow yet and we still have a thermocline at around 15m (cold, dirty and really spooky).
Started at the FAD. Water was quite clear and warm. Massive school of Yellowtail mixed with Rainbow Runners and small Dorado. There was no indication of any bigger fish. We even tried pinning one of the smaller Dorado to encourage bigger fish to come and have a look. No luck. We then moved to the reef N of the Big Island (Hitler's). This was comfortable diving all above the thermocline. There was very little current which allowed a thorough look at the area. I stuffed up on a big Green Jobfish. Instead of lying still and patiently waiting for it to come closer, I tried to chase it. Total waste of time, fish disappeared pretty smartly. Due reward was collected shortly afterwards. A school of small Yellowtail swam up to me, I tucked over to look behind me and saw a Spanish following the 'Tail. Turned and tracked it. The fish initially raced off then seemed to stop and glide to the left, right into my target area. That is my first Spanish this season, not big but my dance card has been opened.
We moved around to the S side of the Big Island. The viz opened up beautifully. Viz down to 20m+. Lots of bait around and several schools of small 'Tail and Amberjack. I was looking for Wahoo or Cobia. Found several massive Black Rays at around 20m and diligently looked under them for Cobia. Encountered an Eagle Ray with an Amberjack but the ray spooked and took the Amberjack with it. Shoaling Hammerheads came through in a school of about 30 sharks. True to form, they were very skittish. When I thought I was not going to see a Cobia, dropped down to check out a ray and found 2 Cobia. What a blast taking a Cobia in such a classic situation. By this stage we had rustled up 2 Spanish, a Blue-Bar Parrotfish and the small Dorado.
We did our best to find some Mangrove Jacks but the conditions were deteriorating. We elected to move to The Wash. Again the thermocline was found at about 15m. I could find no fish in the dirty cold water but around the pinnacles there were plenty. Took a reasonable Yellowtail and as I tried to put my hand into its gills it broke free. Then I found a school of large Big-Eye Trevally. The school seemed very flighty almost harassed. Every dive at them, had them scuttling off into the deep, only to return several minutes later. With their next pass I exhaled and slowly sank down to them. This gave me a closer look and I managed to pin one. It fought very strongly and scraped along the reef, dislodging the spear.
We decided to call it a day and head back to Arrawarra. The Cobia is in the fridge being prepared as Gravlax and the 'Couta in a brining solution for smoking today.
The weather this weekend does not look good for diving but a quick jaunt out to look for Dorado may be a good bet. If that fails, I will take my bow out and go looking for some deer on the surrounding hills. I am really in need of some good old fashioned BILTONG!
Sunday, December 7, 2008
9 December 2008
Buoyweather has been a little on the conservative side recently. Indications have been of really poor weather but we have been enjoying some very settled, clear and warm sea. On Saturday, some dive mates convinced me to go out to the local wave-recording buoy. Apparently, news of some Dorado was doing the rounds. The sky looked pretty ominous and the swell was quite impressive but we made the most of it. I have found the wave-recorder to be quite mediocre to date. I drifted toward it in the strong current, fully expecting the usual Yellowtail creche to come out to great me. What a pleasant surprise to see a school of Dorado swim past. My shot was poor but Justin nabbed one, not big but a great start. A few more drifts saw Kurt and I heading toward the recorder. I saw the school and started to stalk them but Justin began shouting at me from the boat. I looked across to see Kurt into a nice bull. It fought like a demon. Fortunately, I was in time to make a securing shot. It weighed a convincing 13kg.
Kris took some friends to dive at Split Solitary on Monday. The conditions were great and I did not need much convincing to head out with him on Tuesday. The NE had churned the sea up a little. Viz was poor, around 8m, but the sea was quite warm. I made several dives on a school of small Yellowtail but nothing worthwhile was in the offing. I made a dive to the bottom to lie and wait for something to come knocking. Something did. On the edge of viz a large shape loomed, distinct white belly, dark back. The shark stayed on the periphery, in the gloom. I decided it was probably a Raggie but the consensus is that it may have been a little White. A short while later, a Raggie came up to have a good look at me in midwater. With the poor viz, the shark activity and the lack of suitable quarry, we decided to call it a day.
Big family excitement. We have been flitting from one holiday accommodation to another and finally we now could move into our new home. To celebrate, John Featherstone suggested we go diving.
Friday had us heading out to the Coffs FAD. I jumped in and surprised a Marlin. I don't know who was more startled. The Marlin obviously had chased any other quarry away from the FAD. We headed to Grouper but the water was mucky. The N-S current convinced us to head to the N end of Grouper. We took a few Yellowtail but then the Raggies showed up again. They were very feisty. Discretion being the better part of valour, we elected to try Black Rock. What an exciting place to dive. The rock sticks up out of 20m of water. We encountered lots of bait in the vicinity but the current pushed us off the hotspot very quickly. I did manage to shoot a large Yellowtail that took me way upcurrent. This made for a few anxious moments with 2 divers being separated by a few hundred metres.
We moved onto The Small Wash near Black Rock. This is another inspiring spot that just seems to scream fish. We were hoping for a large Amberjack or Samsonfish but were prepared to settle for a Cobia or Jew. Unfortunately, our quarry were not co-operating. We dived hard and at one point, I thought, as I finned along the surface, that I had just seen a Cobia. I quickly ducked down to be confronted by the largest Yellowtail I have seen up to now. I made a good holding shot. The shot was confirmed by Kris and John, both happy that the fish was secure. Moments later I was dragged down about 15m by the seemingly very alive fish. Then nothing..... gone! Perhaps the Raggies were enjoying what they perceived as their just desserts.
The weekend was spent unpacking and sorting through our boxes from South Africa. The club held a competition on Sunday which seems to have been very productive. Yellowtail Kings featured extensively but then there were Samsonfish and Cobia tossed into the mix. The luckier divers managed some Pearl Perch, Mangrove Jack and Red Bass (Bohar Snapper).
The weather is spectacular and I am keen to get out and try some new things I have read on www.saspearoranking.co.za. I am intending to restring my 1.4m gun with dyneema directly from the reel to the spear, leaving the clips and bungee off. The other piece of gear I intend acquiring is a belt-reel. This will allow an additional length of line available, to clip to the gun, if something big strips the line off the reel on the gun. These belt-reel are available from Rabitech.
Kris took some friends to dive at Split Solitary on Monday. The conditions were great and I did not need much convincing to head out with him on Tuesday. The NE had churned the sea up a little. Viz was poor, around 8m, but the sea was quite warm. I made several dives on a school of small Yellowtail but nothing worthwhile was in the offing. I made a dive to the bottom to lie and wait for something to come knocking. Something did. On the edge of viz a large shape loomed, distinct white belly, dark back. The shark stayed on the periphery, in the gloom. I decided it was probably a Raggie but the consensus is that it may have been a little White. A short while later, a Raggie came up to have a good look at me in midwater. With the poor viz, the shark activity and the lack of suitable quarry, we decided to call it a day.
Big family excitement. We have been flitting from one holiday accommodation to another and finally we now could move into our new home. To celebrate, John Featherstone suggested we go diving.
Friday had us heading out to the Coffs FAD. I jumped in and surprised a Marlin. I don't know who was more startled. The Marlin obviously had chased any other quarry away from the FAD. We headed to Grouper but the water was mucky. The N-S current convinced us to head to the N end of Grouper. We took a few Yellowtail but then the Raggies showed up again. They were very feisty. Discretion being the better part of valour, we elected to try Black Rock. What an exciting place to dive. The rock sticks up out of 20m of water. We encountered lots of bait in the vicinity but the current pushed us off the hotspot very quickly. I did manage to shoot a large Yellowtail that took me way upcurrent. This made for a few anxious moments with 2 divers being separated by a few hundred metres.
We moved onto The Small Wash near Black Rock. This is another inspiring spot that just seems to scream fish. We were hoping for a large Amberjack or Samsonfish but were prepared to settle for a Cobia or Jew. Unfortunately, our quarry were not co-operating. We dived hard and at one point, I thought, as I finned along the surface, that I had just seen a Cobia. I quickly ducked down to be confronted by the largest Yellowtail I have seen up to now. I made a good holding shot. The shot was confirmed by Kris and John, both happy that the fish was secure. Moments later I was dragged down about 15m by the seemingly very alive fish. Then nothing..... gone! Perhaps the Raggies were enjoying what they perceived as their just desserts.
The weekend was spent unpacking and sorting through our boxes from South Africa. The club held a competition on Sunday which seems to have been very productive. Yellowtail Kings featured extensively but then there were Samsonfish and Cobia tossed into the mix. The luckier divers managed some Pearl Perch, Mangrove Jack and Red Bass (Bohar Snapper).
The weather is spectacular and I am keen to get out and try some new things I have read on www.saspearoranking.co.za. I am intending to restring my 1.4m gun with dyneema directly from the reel to the spear, leaving the clips and bungee off. The other piece of gear I intend acquiring is a belt-reel. This will allow an additional length of line available, to clip to the gun, if something big strips the line off the reel on the gun. These belt-reel are available from Rabitech.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
26 November 2008
The cloudy rainy weather appears to have settled in for the time being but the EAC is sitting in very close on most days. In spite of the sea being a little rougher than normal, it has been clean and extremely diveable. The results are starting to speak for themselves.
On Sunday past, went out with Kris, to the E side of Split. Ocean was pretty rough and the W wind was causing the waves to break backwards! Behind Split we had some respite and I started burleying some pilchards. The viz was poor but the sea was a comfortable 22. I was quickly surrounded by a ball of interested fish. Started diving to the bottom about 19m and continued the burleying. Apart from the ravenous bait ball, there were very few additional enquiries. I was starting to feel like a much maligned, door-to-door salesman, when an Amberjack showed up amongst the bait. It was quickly dispatched. Some damage to one of the pontoons on the rubber-duck cut our diving short.
The sea was really settled on Monday and I decided to take a swim, after work, off Korora Beach. Bumped into 2 mates in the water on their way back. The comments had something to do with a crazy South African going out at this time of night. Although no fish were found, the viz and temperature are improving quite dramatically.
During consulting on Wednesday, phone rings, John Featherstone, what was I doing in the afternoon. I took a moment before saying: DIVING. Good call. The conditions were fantastic. Headed out to the Big Island (North Solitary). Current was running S-N (Uphill according to the locals). Checked out the pinnacles N of NW Rocks, then the gutters N of NW Rocks. All the time Angelo Spada's words were ringing in my ears: 'GO UPCURRENT'.
John suggested looking at the S end of the Big Island. Bait everywhere when I got in. Wishbone snapped. Second gun and a Spanish swims up. Very skittish and just out of range of the back-up gun. I dived and a big Yellowtail comes right up to me. BANG, into the boat. John has loaded a small Spanish. Head off to where the wash is creating a foamy area above a 20m drop. Bait and pelagics all over the place. Yellowtail, Amberjacks, Mack Tuna and Bronze Whalers. I dive again to find a nice sized Rainbow Runner. Follow it for a while as it turns left then right trying to figure out my intentions. Mistake. It ends up on my stringer. I was pulling a flasher at this time and everything seemed interested in it. Dived again, another big Yellowtail, great headshot. Stopped in its tracks, no fight at all. Swim the spoils back to the boat 200m away. Murray loading another Yellowtail. I bumped into a massive wall of good Big-Eye Trevally but they were way too clever to offer a shot. Turned and lined up on a massive Cobia. About to pull the trigger when it dawned on me I was about to plug a Whaler. Pop my head out and both John and Murray are already on the boat getting their gear stowed. Time to head back. Another Spanish comes in but stays just out of range of the gun I am carrying. I try all the tricks I know. Dive down, lie still, feign disinterest, fin toward an interception point, nothing works. The fish is not going to relent and give me a shot. Oh well, my primary gun will soon be sporting a new wishbone and those stand-offish Spanish will get the surprize of their lives at the increased range. John was very excited, he had seen a monster Amberjack, which had stayed out of range, but he had been surrounded by hundreds of Spanish Mackerel. He had noticed Snapper down deep but was afraid to start burleying with all the Whalers about. Murray was feeling a little worse-for-wear but he had lost a good Mackerel and a Blue-Bar Parrotfish. His ego had taken a pounding.
With so many good fish around, everything is on line for a bumper season.
On Sunday past, went out with Kris, to the E side of Split. Ocean was pretty rough and the W wind was causing the waves to break backwards! Behind Split we had some respite and I started burleying some pilchards. The viz was poor but the sea was a comfortable 22. I was quickly surrounded by a ball of interested fish. Started diving to the bottom about 19m and continued the burleying. Apart from the ravenous bait ball, there were very few additional enquiries. I was starting to feel like a much maligned, door-to-door salesman, when an Amberjack showed up amongst the bait. It was quickly dispatched. Some damage to one of the pontoons on the rubber-duck cut our diving short.
The sea was really settled on Monday and I decided to take a swim, after work, off Korora Beach. Bumped into 2 mates in the water on their way back. The comments had something to do with a crazy South African going out at this time of night. Although no fish were found, the viz and temperature are improving quite dramatically.
During consulting on Wednesday, phone rings, John Featherstone, what was I doing in the afternoon. I took a moment before saying: DIVING. Good call. The conditions were fantastic. Headed out to the Big Island (North Solitary). Current was running S-N (Uphill according to the locals). Checked out the pinnacles N of NW Rocks, then the gutters N of NW Rocks. All the time Angelo Spada's words were ringing in my ears: 'GO UPCURRENT'.
John suggested looking at the S end of the Big Island. Bait everywhere when I got in. Wishbone snapped. Second gun and a Spanish swims up. Very skittish and just out of range of the back-up gun. I dived and a big Yellowtail comes right up to me. BANG, into the boat. John has loaded a small Spanish. Head off to where the wash is creating a foamy area above a 20m drop. Bait and pelagics all over the place. Yellowtail, Amberjacks, Mack Tuna and Bronze Whalers. I dive again to find a nice sized Rainbow Runner. Follow it for a while as it turns left then right trying to figure out my intentions. Mistake. It ends up on my stringer. I was pulling a flasher at this time and everything seemed interested in it. Dived again, another big Yellowtail, great headshot. Stopped in its tracks, no fight at all. Swim the spoils back to the boat 200m away. Murray loading another Yellowtail. I bumped into a massive wall of good Big-Eye Trevally but they were way too clever to offer a shot. Turned and lined up on a massive Cobia. About to pull the trigger when it dawned on me I was about to plug a Whaler. Pop my head out and both John and Murray are already on the boat getting their gear stowed. Time to head back. Another Spanish comes in but stays just out of range of the gun I am carrying. I try all the tricks I know. Dive down, lie still, feign disinterest, fin toward an interception point, nothing works. The fish is not going to relent and give me a shot. Oh well, my primary gun will soon be sporting a new wishbone and those stand-offish Spanish will get the surprize of their lives at the increased range. John was very excited, he had seen a monster Amberjack, which had stayed out of range, but he had been surrounded by hundreds of Spanish Mackerel. He had noticed Snapper down deep but was afraid to start burleying with all the Whalers about. Murray was feeling a little worse-for-wear but he had lost a good Mackerel and a Blue-Bar Parrotfish. His ego had taken a pounding.
With so many good fish around, everything is on line for a bumper season.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
20 November 2008
Just as I think I am getting to grips with understanding how the weather works, things change and more variables come into the picture. I watch Buoyweather religiously to look for potential breaks in the weather. However, the CSIRO also provide a map of the most recent current and surface sea temperatures. This is indicating a warm patch of water has moved in off Coffs and has been quite stable for the last week. My spearfishing mates have been getting Yellowtail with the odd Samsonfish thrown into the mix. There have been some Pearl Perch taken as well as a Venus Tuskfish which is a highly sought after species resembling a wrasse.
I have not been able to dive since the last swim in from the side, but yesterday we took a quick run out to Bullocky, a small patch of reef about 3km off Coffs Harbour. The current was ripping through and we did not have a suitable marker buoy (I am so looking forward to getting all my gear again). I managed one productive dive, jumping in on a huge school of bait. I noticed a Rainbow Runner and followed it to about 19m where it ended up with a spear through it and soon to be the main star of a Sushi dish.
South of Coffs about an hours drive is a headland called Southwest Rocks. A report came that some spearos got a small Spanish Mackerel there on the weekend which is good for us. That should mean the Spanish ought to be in our area within a week. Apparently a very early start to the season. Here's hoping it will not be a false start.
The Caterpillar Hot Current Gamefishing Tournament was held at Coffs over the previous weekend. The deepsea guys saw the start of the poor weather and some 220 fishers were limited to 1 day of fishing out of 4. 3 Blue Marlin were caught with one being a new NSW record fish, several Yellowfin Tuna and Dorado also made their way to the scales. The bad weather marking the start of the tournament has been with us for more than a week now. The result has been extensive flooding in Brisbane and Sydney. We have been spared the flooding but the continued rain has put a damper on things. I certainly hope the weekend competition will be granted some respite.
I have not been able to dive since the last swim in from the side, but yesterday we took a quick run out to Bullocky, a small patch of reef about 3km off Coffs Harbour. The current was ripping through and we did not have a suitable marker buoy (I am so looking forward to getting all my gear again). I managed one productive dive, jumping in on a huge school of bait. I noticed a Rainbow Runner and followed it to about 19m where it ended up with a spear through it and soon to be the main star of a Sushi dish.
South of Coffs about an hours drive is a headland called Southwest Rocks. A report came that some spearos got a small Spanish Mackerel there on the weekend which is good for us. That should mean the Spanish ought to be in our area within a week. Apparently a very early start to the season. Here's hoping it will not be a false start.
The Caterpillar Hot Current Gamefishing Tournament was held at Coffs over the previous weekend. The deepsea guys saw the start of the poor weather and some 220 fishers were limited to 1 day of fishing out of 4. 3 Blue Marlin were caught with one being a new NSW record fish, several Yellowfin Tuna and Dorado also made their way to the scales. The bad weather marking the start of the tournament has been with us for more than a week now. The result has been extensive flooding in Brisbane and Sydney. We have been spared the flooding but the continued rain has put a damper on things. I certainly hope the weekend competition will be granted some respite.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
13 November 2008
I thought I was going to be on call this previous weekend and did not have much faith in getting into the Ocean. Saturday, Kris called and wondered if I would be interested in a quick swim off Sawtell, S of Coffs. Michael also informed me, he would be on call. We arrived at Sawtell Headland and did a rock-hop toward the S. The viz had looked good but was not particularly flash when I put my head underwater. We persevered and swam around the headland, toward the island on the N side. I found lots of good gutters, up against the steep sides, but no Jewfish. The wind came up and a strong rip was developing. We called it a day but not before Kris took a nice pan-sized Luderick. I bumped into schools of these fish but they were moving so quickly, I had little chance of taking one. On Tuesday I got a text message that the rock and surf guys, fishing where we jumped in, got into a school of big Snapper. A question of being in the right place at the right time.
Sunday was to be spent with my wife at the local food and wine festival. This was just behind Park Beach. The food was great (lots of local berries included in the desserts), followed by copious quantities of the local wine and beer. I took a quick look at Little Muttonbird Island off Park Beach and the viz was great. Called Kris and took a late afternoon swim. As the afternoon passed into early evening, so the place came alive. Kris is still building his confidence and spent most of the time near me. Just as he moved off to check out some likely reef, a huge Yellowtail came to investigate the Bream (very similar to a Stumpnose) hanging from my buoy. My gun was not loaded and I watched in disbelief as the fish circled me with complete disdain. It is great to see good fish like this off the shallow points. Apparently the population was decimated in previous years by indiscriminate trapping by commercials. Since the ban on trapping has been imposed, the Yellowtail Kings are on their way to recovery.
Reports from my spearing contacts show that the conditions are improving and more trips are coming to fruition. Early in the month, John and Michael got some Pearl Perch N of Arrawarra. These fish were hanging around massive bait shoals. The other interesting point was that several good Mangrove Jacks were also seen amongst the bait but proved to be flighty. John headed out to test the new motor on his 'Spearfishing DownUnder Magazine' boat. They stopped at Middle Ground and took some Samsonfish and Yellowtail. The conditions were pretty good according to the reports I got.
Every Friday the local newspaper publishes the results of the week's recreational fishing. Several Jewfish and Snapper are being landed from the beach. The deepsea guys are taking a fair number too but are also picking up Samsons, 'Tail and Pearlies. One of the premier deepsea fishing tournaments took place in Coffs this weekend and it will be interesting to see the results. As I write this, Kris, Michael and John are out on the Ocean hopefully getting some good spearing in. I will have to console myself in the meantime, with training in the local municipal pool and playing U/W hockey.
Sunday was to be spent with my wife at the local food and wine festival. This was just behind Park Beach. The food was great (lots of local berries included in the desserts), followed by copious quantities of the local wine and beer. I took a quick look at Little Muttonbird Island off Park Beach and the viz was great. Called Kris and took a late afternoon swim. As the afternoon passed into early evening, so the place came alive. Kris is still building his confidence and spent most of the time near me. Just as he moved off to check out some likely reef, a huge Yellowtail came to investigate the Bream (very similar to a Stumpnose) hanging from my buoy. My gun was not loaded and I watched in disbelief as the fish circled me with complete disdain. It is great to see good fish like this off the shallow points. Apparently the population was decimated in previous years by indiscriminate trapping by commercials. Since the ban on trapping has been imposed, the Yellowtail Kings are on their way to recovery.
Reports from my spearing contacts show that the conditions are improving and more trips are coming to fruition. Early in the month, John and Michael got some Pearl Perch N of Arrawarra. These fish were hanging around massive bait shoals. The other interesting point was that several good Mangrove Jacks were also seen amongst the bait but proved to be flighty. John headed out to test the new motor on his 'Spearfishing DownUnder Magazine' boat. They stopped at Middle Ground and took some Samsonfish and Yellowtail. The conditions were pretty good according to the reports I got.
Every Friday the local newspaper publishes the results of the week's recreational fishing. Several Jewfish and Snapper are being landed from the beach. The deepsea guys are taking a fair number too but are also picking up Samsons, 'Tail and Pearlies. One of the premier deepsea fishing tournaments took place in Coffs this weekend and it will be interesting to see the results. As I write this, Kris, Michael and John are out on the Ocean hopefully getting some good spearing in. I will have to console myself in the meantime, with training in the local municipal pool and playing U/W hockey.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)