Wind: Nil in close but 10 knots SE at JS
Swell: Small but lots of chop out wide
Current: Minimal
Launch point: Middle Groin
Participants: Clappo
Pulled up to an empty car park at 4.00, which reminded me how much I love shift work and having days off during the week.
After pulling a doughnut Mackerel wise and the fact that Salty had some luck the day before, I decided to back up with another trip today. Yesterdays trip included one small shark just out from the nets and trolling around a halco HB for several hours without a back treble on it after getting a strike earlier on in the morning. I thought then that I should check my rigs more often. Anyway similar conditions today except for dead flat launch at about 4:30 am. Trolled a Halco HB plus a weighted pillie with a pink skirt (thanks to Salty for that post trip info) out to a fairly rough Jew Shoal. At least I think it was Jew shoal as my GPS battery gave up the ghost about 400m short of the mark. Took a few land marks to get my bearings and ploughed on muttering to myself that I must remember to check my GPS batteries more often. Had the place to myself for about an hour, no birds working and no strikes. Plenty of balled up bait on the sounder so I persevered. At around 6ish the birds turned up in good numbers working in several locations all within a couple of hundred meters of each other, and of course on cue along came the stinkboats also.
I decided to change my pillie to an average size gar and carried on. Paddling into the wind was hard going and I probably was only trolling at around 3-4 knots but on the downwind leg it was more like 7-8 knots. It was on a downwinder that I was rewarded almost immediately after changing baits with a good strike. After getting a small shark the day before I wasn't going to get to excited until I had a closer look. Disappointingly the fish came straight to the kayak without much of a fight. He was quickly measured (800mm) subdued and dispatched into the hull of the Stealth without to much trouble.
Rerigged with another gar and set off again but by now the sun was getting higher and the stinkboats were stirring the place up quite well. Several more passes proved fruitless so I headed for Granite and trolled the rest of the way in close around the bays back to M.G. Upon arrival I pulled in my lines and found that I had had another strike on my gar rig just missing the rear gang. I wondered how long ago that was. I must remember to check my rigs more often.
Landing was a non event and the beach was fairly deserted for 8am making for a fairly boring pack up and photo session. When I got home I decided it was time to join Noosa Yakkers as I had been reading the blog for quite some time now gleaning lots of intelligence put forward by its members, some of which I had met along the way. Time to join in.
My New Years resolution is the check my gear more often in case you haven't guessed.
Clappo
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