Fishing at Fingal Head - Northern NSW - 1 November 2012

Thursday

I was up early again – full moon had passed on Wednesday. Low tide would be just before 4.00 am. But it would still be a pretty big tidal flow. A northerly blow was forecast but it would be calm around dawn. I decided to drive back down to Fingal Head.

I arrived in between dawn and first light – just a little late. It was cloudy but as the northerly picked up it turned into a beautiful morning. I started with DUO Beachwalker MD 120 hard-bodied minnow in the orange colour. I had swapped back to treble hooks. There were bumps and splashes on each of my first three casts. On the fourth cast I hooked something. It pulled pretty hard and I thought I had connected with a good fish and then I realised it was a small Tailor – hooked through the back. I let it go and carried on casting but could not hook anything else.

I swapped over to a 65g Raider metal slug and moved round to the north edge of the rock platform and cast as far as I could. After about 20 casts I felt a knock at the base of the rocks. Then, on the next cast, a fish hit the lure right at the base of the rocks.  It was a small Tailor – around 40cm long. I let that one go. And decided to try some soft plastics on the lighter rod and reel combo – the Shimano Catana Coastline light rod, 2500 reel, 6lb braided main line and 10lb leader.

A local called Bill arrived with his Alvey and big rod and threw out a fresh prawn. His first cast produced an excellent Tarwhine, which looked to be about the 1kg mark. There were definitely fish around.

The northerly was making it easier to fish on the southern side of the rock platform now. I cast out a GULP 4” Minnow in the Smelt colour, on a 1/6^th 1 jighead and let it slowly sink. I cast in all directions and did not get any interest for about 45 minutes. The water was very clear and just in the mouth of the channel that separates the causeway from the mainland; there was a school of small baitfish, hugging the rocks. There is a slight overhang here and some deeper water close to the rocks. I dropped the plastic in to the middle of the channel and thought I felt the faintest of bites.  I flicked the bail arm over and released a metre or two of line. As I slowly retrieved it, it flicked tight and the rod bent over. Line started peeling and I started thinking - how and where will I land this?

I decided from the slow and powerful runs it was not a Tailor. I decided to coax it round the rocky outcrop to the front of the rock platform. The northerly had flattened the sea and it was safe to jump down a few steps to the wash area to grab a fish between waves, if I could get it that far. It did not want to come round the rocks and with the light rod and 10lb leader I could not apply much pressure. I left the drag pressure quite light and just kept winding. Eventually I dragged the fish round the rocks and saw it was a small Jew. I used the surge to get it onto a flat rock at the water line and then hopped down and picked it up, between waves. It was a good looking 55cm fish. I slit its throat and put it in the keeper pool.

The plastic and leader was a bit gnarled but OK so I threw it back out. Two or three casts later and I was on again. This time it was a much bigger fish and initially I really was not making much of an impression. But Jewfish tire quickly and after a while the fish was beaten but the swell was still making things tricky. I aborted a couple of attempts to pull the fish round the rocks but eventually it swam in the right direction. I got it on to the same ledge as the previous one, jumped down and grabbed it under the gills. This was a much bigger fish at about 75cm. I decided to keep this one as well. It was only 8.15 am.

I decided to swap the soft plastic for bigger one and put on a GULP Crazylegs Jerkshad in the Black Shad colour. I stuck with the 10lb leader and the 1/6^th 1 jighead. After about 10 more minutes of casting and retrieving close to the overhang – bang, I was on to a fish. This one was bigger again and after a long tussle I got it to the same spot. But this one was too much for the 10lb leader and as I pulled the fish onto the rock ledge, it snapped.

I decided to upgrade to the bigger rod and use 20lb leader. I stuck with the 1/6^th 1 jighead and the same soft plastic. I carried on or another hour but did not get another bite. Was it the heavier leader or had I spooked them? I am not sure. All the fish were caught in no more than 2m of water  - the Jewfish certainly don’t mind feeding in the shallows.

At about 10.00am I left the platform to Bill, cleaned up the Jewfish and went in search of ice.

Iluka - Shark Bay - 29 March - 2012

Thursday

On Thursday morning the weather had improved considerably, with a clearer sky and less wind, but the swell was still up. I decided to start at Shark Bay on the rock platform. There was a bit of west in the wind and it was quite cool.

I started on the west side and could not raise a bite. I moved across to the rocks on the east side. There are a number of ridges on this side with small inlets in between each. The surf was smashing into these but it was just possible to cast into the white water. I tried a few bays and caught another couple of good Bream – the bigger of the two was over 35cm. This time I was using the GULP 3” Minnow Grub in the Pumpkinseed colour again, but on a 1/6^th 1/0 jighead. I carried on fishing for a while and dropped a few more fish – which could have been small Tailor or more Bream.

Then I stopped to clean the two Bream in the rock pools. When I had finish I took them over to the surf to rinse them off. I shook them under the water for perhaps ten seconds and when I looked down, two Wobbegoongs were ready to steal them. I pulled the fish out of the water and quickly put them away in the keeper bag. I suggest you mind where you tread around here, as they must always be pretty close by.

Ballina - 25 March 2012

Sunday

After far too long working I am now back fishing and I decided to start with a trip down to Iluka to fish from the rocks. The weather did not look very promising but sometimes you just have to go for it.

I left Brisbane on Sunday morning and decided to stop off at Ballina on the way down. The wind was howling but I had never fished the Richmond River, so I pulled out my soft plastics rod and reel and wandered out onto a promising sand bank on the north side of the Richmond River Estuary. It was about 10.30 am and the tide was running out. I found a stretch of mangrove lined shore and walked along the edge casting and retrieving a GULP 2” Shrimp soft plastic in the Peppered Prawn colour on 1/8^th 1/0 jighead.

The mullet were everywhere – they were so thick that the plastic kept knocking against them as I retrieved it. Every now and then it would come back with a few Mullet scales on. I worked my way along the bank and I was surprised at how clear the water was, considering how much rain has fallen recently. I felt a few hits but I think these were just the curious Mullet or whiting.

After an hour or so I felt a solid bite and struck. There was not much weight but I had a fish – a tiny cod. I put it back, packed up and headed on to Iluka. Hopefully the weather will be kind enough to make fishing the rocks a possibility when I get there.