Subject: fishing today -- 15nov08
Date: Saturday, 15 November 2008 2:07 PM
Hi guys
Yet another quiet day fish-wise, but beautiful weather and great fellowship, so very enjoyable. We're having an unusually quiet time of it lately -- nobody knows why. I didn't see a single turtle or dolphin today, and of course the whale migration has probably ended until we see them next June, heading north.
Tide: 2.17m. 0912. Wind: gentle SE after several days of very strong SE weather with big swells. Swell today, small. Moon: Full moon 13nov. Overcast with a tiny shower early on, clear skies later. Water clear with a tiny amount of trichodesmium on the surface in patches.
Today did not disprove the notion that northerly winds put the fish off the bite -- but we now suspect that any wind or lack of it puts fish off the bite.
I arrived at MG at 0445 to find Jaro had already unloaded his yak and was setting up. Having dashed down to the beach to confirm an easy (with care) launch, I returned to my yak to find Harry driving into the car park. There was no sign of Steve, but more of him later.
I took this pic just before I launched. It gives some idea of the conditions. Note the setting moon.
Jaro was first out, then I, followed by Harry. Once ready, we set individual courses for our chosen start point at JS, Jaro leading. As the breeze was from the SE, I opted to head straight for the southern edge of the reef (to a mark on the SE corner).
The paddle out was easy and uneventful. It being a Saturday, there were several power boats at JS and there was one Hobie-borne kayak fisho, Dave, a Brisbane-based Army officer, whom I'd met before (and who last Friday 07Nov trolled up a 1.15m cobia near Granite Bay after fruitlessly fishing JS on the same day we were last there).
My first cast went out at 0550. Jaro and Harry were further west. It was about 30 minutes before I managed to snare a small black-tipped cod (undersize) and shortly afterward a grass sweetlip (also undersize). Harry later told me that he'd had two jig heads bitten off almost immediately on arrival at the reef but got no further action, indicating a possible school of mackerel moving through. After an hour or so, with Jaro and Harry also reporting little or no action and all of us experiencing a very slow drift to the NW, we tried the northern side of the reef, where Harry at last caught a just legal snapper using bait.
Then a radio message came in from Steve, on the beach. He was about to launch and Jaro told him that things were very quiet. In due course, Steve arrived, having experienced a bit of adventure in his surf zone transit (but he can tell about that if he wants).
For the last hour, around 0800, we moved back to the southern side of the reef where Harry livened things up with a brief encounter with a fish which took his bait, leapt clear of the water once, then eventually broke (or bit) him off. After discussion with Dave, who saw the fish when it leaped and my own brief sighting I reckon that this was probably a very large long-tom, or less likely, a very small marlin. Many years ago I hooked a tiny marlin out there and it behaved similarly, but it was taken on a fast trolled jig head, which was lost when the marlin cut the line on its bill.
And so we pulled the pin at around 0900, fishless except for Harry's unremarkable snapper. We saw a few birds working slightly to the west of our course home and went over to investigate but there was no sign of marine predators.
I took this pic of my yakking companions Steve, Harry and Jaro, all set to head through the surf zone after our trip today (hats off just for the pic). Note that there are no rods protruding. All landed safely.
We're thinking of heading out on Monday again, possibly to Hall's Reef this time, weather permitting. Those pesky spotty macs have to put in an appearance soon.
Kev
Red & Yellow Espri, black paddle
VHF channel 09 or 22 (if alone), Call Sign: sunshiner
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