Wind: North westerly 5 knots, increasing to 10 knots
Swell: small easterly
Current: at Little Halls Reef and Halls Reef, none
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: jaro, stormin, beejay, sunshiner, gemini, pedro, isobar (pronounced eesobar) and friend Pete
I saw the first small flying fish of the summer out there today, two little guys about the length of my finger, frantically fleeing my yak as I paddled back to Middle Groyne. I always think of these little guys as the harbingers of summer. Unfortunately they were the only fish leaping out of the water I saw.
Of the starters today, four of us launched together, about 0515, while stormin, just finishing another 12 hour work shift, launched around 07:30. I don't know what time isobar and Peter launched, but it was certainly after the first group.
Our (first group) launch, at dead low tide, was a bit tricky for anyone who cared about keeping a dry bum, but not so bad that we were likely to get unseated on the way out. Jaro and I watched beejay get a bit wet on the way out, then we held back and charged through together, timing it for dual dry bums. Fist pumping here! Gemini was a little later and got his radio wet so I presume he took a wave or two.
Little Halls Reef and then Halls Reef, if necessary, was my plan and I was first away from the unpacking area, accompanied by a pod of bottlenosed dolphins, and followed closely by jaro. Several terns made themselves obvious, dipping down to the sea surface where occasional dimples indicated that small baitfish were present. However by the time jaro and I reached Little Halls Reef there had been no action on our trolled offerings, so we immediately altered course slightly to starboard for Halls Reef, a further 2+ km away. The wind was right in our faces so we were travelling a little slower than normal but the sun was shining brightly and whitecaps were scarce so all was good.
About 1.5km from Halls Reef and at 6:00am a whale at the reef breached a couple of times directly ahead and shortly afterward jaro took a strike on his new overhead trolling outfit. Our hopes were high for a good pelagic but the hook pulled very early in the encounter.
On arrival at Halls Reef jaro and I opted to drift fish for a while as there were no signs of surface action at all. Then beejay, still paddling toward us, came up on the radio and announced he'd just boated a mackerel taken on his trolled lure. This turned out to be a small but keeper school mackerel, and a potential NY record claim, possibly knocking off axjax's schoolie established last December.
Eventually the four of us settled in to drift fishing or trolling around Halls Reef. Still there was no surface action and little or no action down deep either. Whales turned up again but not close or convenient enough to warrant getting the camera out. Beejay, using whiting fillets for bait, apparently, was managing the occasional fish and added a grassy and a high 30s snapper to his take home bag. I'd caught one black-tipped cod and had scored one decent strike on my SP, only to be bitten off immediately as the fish started to take line against the drag. Every year about this time I start rigging my SPs with flexible wire traces because every year in summer I get bite-offs, almost certainly from the three most common mackerel species we encounter.
By about 9:15 or so, gemini and I, still fishless, had begun to troll our way back to Middle Groyne, with a lovely increasing breeze right up our tails. About 2km out from the groyne was where I flushed out the flying fish, both of them heading downwind after launch as they usually do, to pick up max speed over the water.
Then there was the usual grinner, obligatory if you’re using a deep running lure, as I was, in the hope of a snapper or cobia.
One hook in the jaw and the other in the bum. And still he swam away after being towed rotationally who knows how long!
By now the water was much deeper at Middle Groyne but the waves, generated by the strengthening northerly, indicated that caution was required. Gemini and I both went through to the beach pretty easily, even though I had to broach the Supalite at the last second to avoid a possible embarrassing shallow water rollover.
Jaro and beejay were not far behind us, having sailed all the way back. Jaro took the gentle approach to the beach while beejay, muttering "Speed is your friend", charged in to the beach in fine style, paddling hard. I think gemini shot some of this on his GoPro and hopefully he'll post it on youtube and link it from here.
On the beach the kids, who'd been waiting for the fish to arrive, now flocked around beejay as he dug his catch out of the pod. The schoolie looked like a possible record claim so we put him on the mat.
Beejay's school mackerel. Min legal length: 50cm, possession limit: 10. This one 72cm.
Stormin now was ready to run for the beach. The video, in production now, will show how he went. Video now uploaded, see below.
Out the back now appeared isobar's friend, Peter, in his plastic SIK and isobar in his Stealth Evolution. We watched as they both successfully made their way in. Isobar's transit is also in the video (linked below).
A couple of beach pics:
Four fine yaks, three plastic, one fibreglass.
Isobar with his small bonito catch in one hand and his Evo on his shoulder, climbing the sandhill.
Despite the lack of fish it was well worth the trip today, if only for the exercise. Thanks for coming along, yakkers.
Kev (sunshiner)
Video (44sec) added at 3:30pm
Additional video and GPS track by Gemini
GPS Track
Distance 15.0 km
Max Speed 6.4 km/hour
Avg Speed 3.1 km/hour
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