TR by Pedro
From: Pete
Date: 31 January 2012 13:51:42 AEST
Subject: fishing tuesday 31.01.12
Wind: NNE 9 knots swinging E 5-10 knots
Swell: E .5 to 1m
Participant: Pedro
I launched around 5am making it between sets with a wet bum.
Trolled a lure past the RM then headed for JS arriving with 1 small shark caught and released.
Tasted the water along the way and very fresh from the beach but saltier at JS.
Bottom fished with prawn and pilly till 11.30 with 1 keeper snapper and sweetlip. All in all very dead with no decent bites and losing very few baits.
There was some surface bustups at JS but they were short lived and it seemed like the predators were small.
There was plenty of bait on the sounder throughout the bay.
It could have been better but I did get to try out my new comfort cushion (inflatable seat) and fins so I'm ready for a race next time Jaro.
Cheers
Pedro
Since mid 2007, members of Noosa Yakkers have been writing and illustrating kayak fishing Trip Reports and publishing them by whatever means available. This blog collects all of our early reports (sent out by email) plus the later TR published here on Blogger, and more recently, Monthly Summaries of the reports published on our Facebook Group.
Laguna Bay quiet, 19Jan12
TR by Jaro
From: "Jaro Cerny"
Date: 19 January 2012 11:36:55 AEST
Subject: Fishing Today Thursday 19/01/2012
Conditions: Cloudy with ocasional very light drizzle and sun patches. Wind pretty constant at around 8 knots from the S to SE.
Participants: Pedro, Jaro
I arrived at the car park at 4.30am to find Pedro preparing his yak. Pedro had checked the scene and said it looked easy and easy it was. The tide was in and except for an ocasional big wave none broke at the end of MG so we both got out totally dry.
Due to the off shore wind the sea was calm in Laguna Bay. After getting organised we decided to follow the National Park coastline to Granite Bay. On the way birds in the hundreds flew over us out to sea. We were hoping that was an omen for things to come.
It was not to be as, except for the odd bird here and there, we didn't see any decent bird activity the whole time we were out there. On arrival at Granite Bay, as the conditions were still good, we decided to go to JS.
Once there, I started to do bottom fishing while Pedro continued trolling and after a while he too started bottom fishing. Pedro got one small bite for the whole morning. I had a little more excitement as when I was reeling in my pilchard to do another drift, I got a powerful strike and the fish started to pull out the line at a rapid rate. Half the reel went out and I was starting to worry that it was going to empty the reel when it went slack. Bugger!! It took everything. It was probably a shark and a big one at that.
After another half hour or so we pulled the pin at around 7.45am and paddled back to MG via the National Park uneventfully. The tide was now out and there were some big sets coming in. However, like the pros we were, we timed it perfectly and paddled in together and never looked like we could end up in trouble.
So all in all a disappointing day on a day when the conditions were pretty good.
Jaro
From: "Jaro Cerny"
Date: 19 January 2012 11:36:55 AEST
Subject: Fishing Today Thursday 19/01/2012
Conditions: Cloudy with ocasional very light drizzle and sun patches. Wind pretty constant at around 8 knots from the S to SE.
Participants: Pedro, Jaro
I arrived at the car park at 4.30am to find Pedro preparing his yak. Pedro had checked the scene and said it looked easy and easy it was. The tide was in and except for an ocasional big wave none broke at the end of MG so we both got out totally dry.
Due to the off shore wind the sea was calm in Laguna Bay. After getting organised we decided to follow the National Park coastline to Granite Bay. On the way birds in the hundreds flew over us out to sea. We were hoping that was an omen for things to come.
It was not to be as, except for the odd bird here and there, we didn't see any decent bird activity the whole time we were out there. On arrival at Granite Bay, as the conditions were still good, we decided to go to JS.
Once there, I started to do bottom fishing while Pedro continued trolling and after a while he too started bottom fishing. Pedro got one small bite for the whole morning. I had a little more excitement as when I was reeling in my pilchard to do another drift, I got a powerful strike and the fish started to pull out the line at a rapid rate. Half the reel went out and I was starting to worry that it was going to empty the reel when it went slack. Bugger!! It took everything. It was probably a shark and a big one at that.
After another half hour or so we pulled the pin at around 7.45am and paddled back to MG via the National Park uneventfully. The tide was now out and there were some big sets coming in. However, like the pros we were, we timed it perfectly and paddled in together and never looked like we could end up in trouble.
So all in all a disappointing day on a day when the conditions were pretty good.
Jaro
JS and SR, tuna wins, 14Jan12
Base TR by sunshiner, further contributions from richmond, jaro
Wind: NE 5-7knots
Swell: low E
Current: at Jew Shoal, none
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: richmond, eyetag, jaro, pedro, sunshiner
Three small white lights were bobbing around just off Middle Groyne at 4:00am and as I watched from my beach vantage point they started to move off toward the east. Eyetag, richmond and pedro were heading off for Sunshine Reef. Jaro and I launched shortly afterward when there was just enough light and both of us got a bit wet as the NE breeze, which had been blowing most of the night, had generated a very short period chop. Avoiding a small breaking wave at launch was almost impossible this morning but at least the water temp of around 25 degrees C minimized the discomfort.
We had a slow paddle out to Jew Shoal. I deliberately kept my speed down to better handle the chop and I noticed Jaro also was travelling slower than usual, but still faster than I was.
About 50 minutes after departure I reached the shoal, opting to head for the NE corner in order to drift fish NE to SW. Both of us had trolled HB lures all the way out without a touch. The water looked very fishy and there were quite a few flying fish, even inside the bay. Although initially there were quite a lot of terns flying around and dipping down every now and again, within 30 minutes or so they’d mainly shot through. I saw no sign of fishy predators today, but some baitfish were evident on the sonar.
Jaro was on a different drift line from mine, using bait as he usually does. I was using a single rod armed with a soft plastic. The bait started getting results, a small snapper, tiny sweetlip, and then sharks, several of them. My SP went untouched through two drifts so I knew that Jew Shoal had not improved much over our last few trips, which have been abysmal.
At 06:15 richmond, out at Sunshine Reef, came up on the radio announcing he was hooked up to something big. Then pedro, who was near him, started to relay occasional updates to the rest of us. I’ll let richmond tell his story and add it to this post.
By 8:00am I was convinced that Jew Shoal was dead today, except for the small fish and sharks that jaro had been attracting. So I headed for home, the first of us to do so, having a very fast ride back with comparatively little effort due to the NE breeze and chop right up my tail.
That’s all from me. Hopefully the others might have some more interesting stuff to pass on.
::::::::::::::::
Contribution by richmond
I met Ian and Peter in the carpark early this morn, we basically launched around the same time and headed off to Sunshine Reef with me straggling 5 minutes behind.
I'd decided to troll a Halco laser Pro and a ganged pilchard with a skirt. The Spaniards that had been caught of late I'd noticed were on floating or trolled pillies high up in the water column.
After an hour or so of trolling I headed off in a northerly direction when I had a massive strike on the ganged pillie. This fish was very fast and strong. My reel was singing and I'd lost enough 30lb braid to only show the mono backing on my reel. I was calling it for a big Spaniard as it really burnt some line and actually headed for the surface after that scorching first run. I also thought a possible Cobia when it headed for the surface but it was too quick for a Cobe.
After 20 minutes or so, Peter trundled over to keep me company, thanks Pete I appreciated it. Peter arrived to see me in a bit of a mess with my other line tangled around the line connected to the fish. What a mess! I cut the line either side of the tangle and kept fighting the brute.
By now I'd worked it out to be a tuna of some sort and quite big or so we thought. Ian had arrived also to witness the pain and anguish I was going through.
I slowly started to win a lot more line back onto the reel, when the tangled mess around my main line hit the tip guide it forced the tangle down toward my leader which was ok and what I'd hope would happen. I was running a long leader, about 2.5 metres in length, and when the tangle hit the leader knot it stopped the line going through the tip guide!
We could now see the fish, a very, very stubborn and tough Longtail of about 10/12 kg.
As I couldn't wind any further than my leader knot and with the fish doing tight circles below the yak, I decided to grab the leader and coax the fish to me. As I had no give with the leader wrapped around my hand, the Longy decided on another short burst and ping, it wins its freedom after fighting me for at least 1/2 to 3/4 of an hour!
Inspection of the leader found a very frayed area where the line had parted.
I learnt a bit today fighting that fish, it was my own fault that I lost it, bad management from not winding the other line in early on in the fight and a couple of other bad decisions I also made.
You live and learn. Thanks to Pedro and Eyetag for sticking around and thanks to the now emancipated Longtail that fought well above his weight.
They are an awesome fish.
Jeff
::::::::::::::
From: "Jaro Cerny"
Date: 14 January 2012 15:03:23 AEST
Subject: Fishing today 14/01/2012
Hi Yakkers,
Nothing much to add to Kev's report. Hooked 3 sharks... 2 busted my line as I got them to the yak, the 3rd I boated and let go, much to the chagrin of Carolyn as she loves flake so I promised her that the next one I catch will be taken home.
I had many bites and hook ups but most were just size or undersize snapper which I released. I kept one snapper (37 cm) to keep Carolyn happy (and she was). I was eager to use the sail with the brisk wind at my back but would you know it the wind died down considerably just as I was leaving JS. Still it was a help, coming homing at a nice and easy 7 k/h.
Jaro
Wind: NE 5-7knots
Swell: low E
Current: at Jew Shoal, none
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: richmond, eyetag, jaro, pedro, sunshiner
Three small white lights were bobbing around just off Middle Groyne at 4:00am and as I watched from my beach vantage point they started to move off toward the east. Eyetag, richmond and pedro were heading off for Sunshine Reef. Jaro and I launched shortly afterward when there was just enough light and both of us got a bit wet as the NE breeze, which had been blowing most of the night, had generated a very short period chop. Avoiding a small breaking wave at launch was almost impossible this morning but at least the water temp of around 25 degrees C minimized the discomfort.
We had a slow paddle out to Jew Shoal. I deliberately kept my speed down to better handle the chop and I noticed Jaro also was travelling slower than usual, but still faster than I was.
About 50 minutes after departure I reached the shoal, opting to head for the NE corner in order to drift fish NE to SW. Both of us had trolled HB lures all the way out without a touch. The water looked very fishy and there were quite a few flying fish, even inside the bay. Although initially there were quite a lot of terns flying around and dipping down every now and again, within 30 minutes or so they’d mainly shot through. I saw no sign of fishy predators today, but some baitfish were evident on the sonar.
Jaro was on a different drift line from mine, using bait as he usually does. I was using a single rod armed with a soft plastic. The bait started getting results, a small snapper, tiny sweetlip, and then sharks, several of them. My SP went untouched through two drifts so I knew that Jew Shoal had not improved much over our last few trips, which have been abysmal.
Jaro battling yet another shark this morning
At 06:15 richmond, out at Sunshine Reef, came up on the radio announcing he was hooked up to something big. Then pedro, who was near him, started to relay occasional updates to the rest of us. I’ll let richmond tell his story and add it to this post.
By 8:00am I was convinced that Jew Shoal was dead today, except for the small fish and sharks that jaro had been attracting. So I headed for home, the first of us to do so, having a very fast ride back with comparatively little effort due to the NE breeze and chop right up my tail.
That’s all from me. Hopefully the others might have some more interesting stuff to pass on.
::::::::::::::::
Contribution by richmond
I met Ian and Peter in the carpark early this morn, we basically launched around the same time and headed off to Sunshine Reef with me straggling 5 minutes behind.
I'd decided to troll a Halco laser Pro and a ganged pilchard with a skirt. The Spaniards that had been caught of late I'd noticed were on floating or trolled pillies high up in the water column.
After an hour or so of trolling I headed off in a northerly direction when I had a massive strike on the ganged pillie. This fish was very fast and strong. My reel was singing and I'd lost enough 30lb braid to only show the mono backing on my reel. I was calling it for a big Spaniard as it really burnt some line and actually headed for the surface after that scorching first run. I also thought a possible Cobia when it headed for the surface but it was too quick for a Cobe.
After 20 minutes or so, Peter trundled over to keep me company, thanks Pete I appreciated it. Peter arrived to see me in a bit of a mess with my other line tangled around the line connected to the fish. What a mess! I cut the line either side of the tangle and kept fighting the brute.
By now I'd worked it out to be a tuna of some sort and quite big or so we thought. Ian had arrived also to witness the pain and anguish I was going through.
Above and below, pics by eyetag
I slowly started to win a lot more line back onto the reel, when the tangled mess around my main line hit the tip guide it forced the tangle down toward my leader which was ok and what I'd hope would happen. I was running a long leader, about 2.5 metres in length, and when the tangle hit the leader knot it stopped the line going through the tip guide!
We could now see the fish, a very, very stubborn and tough Longtail of about 10/12 kg.
As I couldn't wind any further than my leader knot and with the fish doing tight circles below the yak, I decided to grab the leader and coax the fish to me. As I had no give with the leader wrapped around my hand, the Longy decided on another short burst and ping, it wins its freedom after fighting me for at least 1/2 to 3/4 of an hour!
Inspection of the leader found a very frayed area where the line had parted.
I learnt a bit today fighting that fish, it was my own fault that I lost it, bad management from not winding the other line in early on in the fight and a couple of other bad decisions I also made.
You live and learn. Thanks to Pedro and Eyetag for sticking around and thanks to the now emancipated Longtail that fought well above his weight.
They are an awesome fish.
Above: My pillie rig
Jeff
::::::::::::::
From: "Jaro Cerny"
Date: 14 January 2012 15:03:23 AEST
Subject: Fishing today 14/01/2012
Hi Yakkers,
Nothing much to add to Kev's report. Hooked 3 sharks... 2 busted my line as I got them to the yak, the 3rd I boated and let go, much to the chagrin of Carolyn as she loves flake so I promised her that the next one I catch will be taken home.
I had many bites and hook ups but most were just size or undersize snapper which I released. I kept one snapper (37 cm) to keep Carolyn happy (and she was). I was eager to use the sail with the brisk wind at my back but would you know it the wind died down considerably just as I was leaving JS. Still it was a help, coming homing at a nice and easy 7 k/h.
Jaro
First tuna a YFT, 11Jan12
TR by sunshiner
Wind: calm initially, then NW to about 5 knots at Jew Shoal
Swell: low northerly
Current: toward east at Jew Shoal
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: jaro, sunshiner, jimbo, turtleboy, GrantW, windy, beejay, gemini
Several people had their sleep interrupted this morning. They happened to be sleeping in campervans parked in our carpark. Jaro, in his usual parking spot, was rummaging around in the dark around 4:00am setting up his yak on one side of one such van, as I pulled into my favourite spot on the other side of the van. Then the garbage truck arrived. I’d be surprised if the van’s occupants stayed another night.
The moon was shining brightly, still 2.5 hrs short of setting so Jaro’s frequent rejoinder about the futility of day-time fishing while the moon is full came to mind. I resolved to remind him of it if the fish were biting, and had the opportunity to do just that a couple of hours later.
Six of the flotilla launched around 0430, turtleboy and GrantW (you must get a callsign/nickname, Grant) having been delayed somewhat at Grant’s surprise birthday party the previous night. Gemini and jimbo opted to travel to Little Halls Reef while the remainder of us, led by windy, headed for Jew Shoal.
We’d just set out when Gemini came up on the radio and announced he was hooked up, trolling. At the time I figured he was at shark central, near the river mouth, but nevertheless I deviated west just in case he’d come across a patch of feeding tuna or mackerel instead of the probable shark. With his quick confirmation that he’d caught and boated a small shark (and therefore had bagged out on sharks) I turned again for Jew Shoal.
The morning was sultry and calm, already hinting of the hot northerly winds to come. Here’s the scene from my armchair ride position.
Figuring that there would possibly be a NW breeze, as the DIP live weather indicator had shown at 4:00am, I headed initially for the western edge of Jew Shoal, intent on drift fishing for snapper if there were no pelagics evident. Not only were there no pelagics, but also there was no significant breeze so there was no point in deploying my drogue when I started drift fishing around 05:30. Soon however the GPS told me that we were drifting east, so I was being carried across just the territory I hoped I would be. Now, would there be any fish biting? Or would it be just like the previous several trips with little or no action?
Quite quickly I had a partial answer, at least. My SP was clobbered as it drifted along near the bottom in around 17m depth. Shortly I had a keeper in the boat.
The very next cast I hooked and released a juvenile black-tipped cod. Clearly things were different today than on several recent trips where I couldn’t even attract a bite from the reef ooglies. Jaro was fishing nearby with pilchard and prawn baits and soon reported bites also, and then a really nice (probable Noosa Yakkers Record) grass sweetlip.
Windy and I were keeping an eye out for pelagics as we drifted along and before long the unmistakeable white splashes appeared under a flock of terns to the east. This action, as is typical, lasted only a couple of minutes before fading away. But at least we knew that there were some predators around. Then a bust-up happened just behind me. My attention was drawn to it because I could hear the splashes. Things were warming up so I started to swap my SP for a metal slug just as windy announced that there was another bust up just to the north of us and thus behind me. This was too much for windy who set off in pursuit, pedalling his Hobie furiously while holding his casting outfit in his right hand. I was also approaching the feeding fish, somewhat slower than windy and saw him cast and yell as he hooked up immediately. By now I could see individual fish jumping and could identify them as small yellowfin tuna but as soon as I readied a cast the feeding frenzy ceased.
This gave me the opportunity to hang around windy who was fighting his first ever tuna with a huge smile on his face and saying stuff like “AWEsome!”
By now we'd been joined by turtleboy and GrantW, with gemini also paddling into our patch from the western side of Laguna Bay. Windy’s success and the facts that the tuna could still be seen popping up from time to time, while the bottom fishing was pretty quiet, resulted in seven of us paddling north from Jew Shoal, trying (usually unsuccessfully) to get close enough to cast slugs to the fish. Despite this effort, no-one else achieved a hookup but it must be admitted that the casting opportunities were very limited. But it was so frustrating to see these magnificent little speedsters leaping from the water and not be able to challenge them.
Eventually, enthusiasm for the chase wavered, especially as the bustups became less common and further away to the north. Jaro and I returned to drift fishing with jaro achieving instant further success despite the increasing light levels.
All of this time we’d been tracking jimbo’s progress to the west. He’d gone from LH Reef, where he’d bagged a small sweetlip, to Halls Reef and there met maverick, one of our Noosa Yakkers who now has a stinky and was using it today to get a feed of sweetlip. Jimbo eventually decided, around 0830, to head off back to Middle Groyne, a 5km or so paddle from Halls Reef.
Gradually the rest of us at Jew Shoal decided to head back too, knowing that the air temperature was likely to rise to uncomfortable levels in the absence of a cooling breeze. Jaro was the last to leave, and he left them biting, getting quite a bit of action between 0830 and 0900. Perhaps jaro will give us a little more info about the details of his catch?
The return paddle/pedal was undertaken in very hot conditions with sweat pouring off me, at least, due to the high relative humidity and the lack of cooling breeze. No problems were encountered at the last stage as it was now high tide and there was no surf zone in the channel close to the wall. All were on the beach by 1015, with beejay being the tail-end charlie.
Here most of us plunged into the sea to cool off. It’s a great place to finish a yak fishing trip on a hot day. Any day, come to think of it. Grant’s family were present to welcome him home and make sure he didn’t stack it in the surf again.
Another fun day yakkers, even though the fish were scarce. Thanks for coming along.
Wind: calm initially, then NW to about 5 knots at Jew Shoal
Swell: low northerly
Current: toward east at Jew Shoal
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: jaro, sunshiner, jimbo, turtleboy, GrantW, windy, beejay, gemini
Several people had their sleep interrupted this morning. They happened to be sleeping in campervans parked in our carpark. Jaro, in his usual parking spot, was rummaging around in the dark around 4:00am setting up his yak on one side of one such van, as I pulled into my favourite spot on the other side of the van. Then the garbage truck arrived. I’d be surprised if the van’s occupants stayed another night.
The moon was shining brightly, still 2.5 hrs short of setting so Jaro’s frequent rejoinder about the futility of day-time fishing while the moon is full came to mind. I resolved to remind him of it if the fish were biting, and had the opportunity to do just that a couple of hours later.
Six of the flotilla launched around 0430, turtleboy and GrantW (you must get a callsign/nickname, Grant) having been delayed somewhat at Grant’s surprise birthday party the previous night. Gemini and jimbo opted to travel to Little Halls Reef while the remainder of us, led by windy, headed for Jew Shoal.
We’d just set out when Gemini came up on the radio and announced he was hooked up, trolling. At the time I figured he was at shark central, near the river mouth, but nevertheless I deviated west just in case he’d come across a patch of feeding tuna or mackerel instead of the probable shark. With his quick confirmation that he’d caught and boated a small shark (and therefore had bagged out on sharks) I turned again for Jew Shoal.
The morning was sultry and calm, already hinting of the hot northerly winds to come. Here’s the scene from my armchair ride position.
0455hrs. Looking west
0512hrs. Looking east, with beejay centred
Figuring that there would possibly be a NW breeze, as the DIP live weather indicator had shown at 4:00am, I headed initially for the western edge of Jew Shoal, intent on drift fishing for snapper if there were no pelagics evident. Not only were there no pelagics, but also there was no significant breeze so there was no point in deploying my drogue when I started drift fishing around 05:30. Soon however the GPS told me that we were drifting east, so I was being carried across just the territory I hoped I would be. Now, would there be any fish biting? Or would it be just like the previous several trips with little or no action?
Quite quickly I had a partial answer, at least. My SP was clobbered as it drifted along near the bottom in around 17m depth. Shortly I had a keeper in the boat.
0540hrs. It’s nice to get a keeper in the boat so quickly.
The very next cast I hooked and released a juvenile black-tipped cod. Clearly things were different today than on several recent trips where I couldn’t even attract a bite from the reef ooglies. Jaro was fishing nearby with pilchard and prawn baits and soon reported bites also, and then a really nice (probable Noosa Yakkers Record) grass sweetlip.
Windy and I were keeping an eye out for pelagics as we drifted along and before long the unmistakeable white splashes appeared under a flock of terns to the east. This action, as is typical, lasted only a couple of minutes before fading away. But at least we knew that there were some predators around. Then a bust-up happened just behind me. My attention was drawn to it because I could hear the splashes. Things were warming up so I started to swap my SP for a metal slug just as windy announced that there was another bust up just to the north of us and thus behind me. This was too much for windy who set off in pursuit, pedalling his Hobie furiously while holding his casting outfit in his right hand. I was also approaching the feeding fish, somewhat slower than windy and saw him cast and yell as he hooked up immediately. By now I could see individual fish jumping and could identify them as small yellowfin tuna but as soon as I readied a cast the feeding frenzy ceased.
This gave me the opportunity to hang around windy who was fighting his first ever tuna with a huge smile on his face and saying stuff like “AWEsome!”
0720hrs. Windy had never gaffed a fish before, apparently, so he was sweating with this, his first tuna.
Windy bags his first tuna. Very unusual for a first to be a YFT instead of a mac tuna! May there be many more with Noosa Yakkers.
By now we'd been joined by turtleboy and GrantW, with gemini also paddling into our patch from the western side of Laguna Bay. Windy’s success and the facts that the tuna could still be seen popping up from time to time, while the bottom fishing was pretty quiet, resulted in seven of us paddling north from Jew Shoal, trying (usually unsuccessfully) to get close enough to cast slugs to the fish. Despite this effort, no-one else achieved a hookup but it must be admitted that the casting opportunities were very limited. But it was so frustrating to see these magnificent little speedsters leaping from the water and not be able to challenge them.
Eventually, enthusiasm for the chase wavered, especially as the bustups became less common and further away to the north. Jaro and I returned to drift fishing with jaro achieving instant further success despite the increasing light levels.
All of this time we’d been tracking jimbo’s progress to the west. He’d gone from LH Reef, where he’d bagged a small sweetlip, to Halls Reef and there met maverick, one of our Noosa Yakkers who now has a stinky and was using it today to get a feed of sweetlip. Jimbo eventually decided, around 0830, to head off back to Middle Groyne, a 5km or so paddle from Halls Reef.
Gradually the rest of us at Jew Shoal decided to head back too, knowing that the air temperature was likely to rise to uncomfortable levels in the absence of a cooling breeze. Jaro was the last to leave, and he left them biting, getting quite a bit of action between 0830 and 0900. Perhaps jaro will give us a little more info about the details of his catch?
The return paddle/pedal was undertaken in very hot conditions with sweat pouring off me, at least, due to the high relative humidity and the lack of cooling breeze. No problems were encountered at the last stage as it was now high tide and there was no surf zone in the channel close to the wall. All were on the beach by 1015, with beejay being the tail-end charlie.
Here most of us plunged into the sea to cool off. It’s a great place to finish a yak fishing trip on a hot day. Any day, come to think of it. Grant’s family were present to welcome him home and make sure he didn’t stack it in the surf again.
Elouise, GrantW’s daughter, volunteered to pose with windy’s YFT.
Gemini’s shark, one less to hassle us as we troll the bay and good food for gemini’s family (Reminder: possession limit 1, max size 1.5m)
Jaro’s grass sweetlip, 47cm, breaking his own record in the new Noosa Yakkers Record Fish List, providing he applies to the recorder as required by the rules.
Another fun day yakkers, even though the fish were scarce. Thanks for coming along.
One Snapper, Pedro, 10Jan12
Hi All,
I launched this morning around 4.45am and headed for little halls trolling a HB. As the wind was NW, I planned to then head for JS with the tailwind.
I arrived at JS without a hit so changed to a spaniard special and trolled around for another hour without any joy. Not to be beaten, I bottom bashed for about two hours and finally landed a 44cm snapper.
The bay seems even thicker with baitfish and there was some surface action NE of JS. I caught up with but they didn't like my offering. They seemed to be small bonito. I also saw a stinky land a longtail around 8kg.
Sorry I can't report a bagout on snapper,spotties and spanish ( I think I would sink)
Good luck tomorrow.It might be worth taking a bait jig as there were plenty of herring at JS.
Pedro
I launched this morning around 4.45am and headed for little halls trolling a HB. As the wind was NW, I planned to then head for JS with the tailwind.
I arrived at JS without a hit so changed to a spaniard special and trolled around for another hour without any joy. Not to be beaten, I bottom bashed for about two hours and finally landed a 44cm snapper.
The bay seems even thicker with baitfish and there was some surface action NE of JS. I caught up with but they didn't like my offering. They seemed to be small bonito. I also saw a stinky land a longtail around 8kg.
Sorry I can't report a bagout on snapper,spotties and spanish ( I think I would sink)
Good luck tomorrow.It might be worth taking a bait jig as there were plenty of herring at JS.
Pedro
Tough time at JS, 08Jan12
TR by sunshiner with contributions by richmond, kodaz, jaro, justin
Wind: calm inside the bay, then SW to about 5 knots at Jew Shoal
Swell: low ENE
Current: none at Jew Shoal
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: eyetag, richmond, jaro, sunshiner, justin mabey, justin's friend Dan, kodaz, kodaz' brother Duncan
This is only the first part of the TR as I (sunshiner) came home early, leaving the others out there. Hopefully some of the other participants will add their contributions, incl pics if available. I found no subject worth adding to our photo collection, at least none that I had an opportunity to record.
On sauntering down to the water’s edge with my yak (love that trolley) at first light I came across Justin and Dan standing next to their yaks peering at the swell and surf break in the very low ambient light. It turned out that it was Dan's first surf launch (other than a failed attempt on the Gold Coast). But Justin was looking after him so I headed off before them, launching without difficulty and was glad, a couple of minutes later, to see Dan successfully clearing the small break which featured occasional dumpers. I imagine he was relieved too!
Jaro and I headed for Jew Shoal, following our illustrious fellow yakkers eyetag and richmond who were about 40 minutes ahead of us. Weather at Jew Shoal was vastly different from yesterday in that today’s SW breeze gave us little or no drift, whereas yesterday’s SE breeze was vigorous enough to give a good drift toward the NW and stir up the ocean a bit too. Maybe that was why, after an hour, we hadn’t caught anything, although yesterday wasn’t particularly memorable for fishing quality anyway.
Today there were many schools of baitfish showing on the sonar and occasionally near the surface, as the swooping terns indicated. But I didn’t see any marine predators at all, and I don’t think anyone else did either, at least up until the time I left. The one bright spot in the first two hours was the capture of a snapper (size guessed at 50-55cm) by use of a soft plastic bait, by Dan, the guy who did his first successful beach launch today. [Editor: Note that the fish ID was conveyed by radio call and as a result the species was mis-reported. The fish was actually a slatey bream.]
By around 7:00am I decided I’d had enough and out of boredom headed for LH Reef trolling a Halco LP, leaving my seven companions to continue their vigil.
All the 3.5 km or so across the bay to LH Reef the sonar showed schools of baitfish down deep, in mid water. But not once did I see a surface splash which might indicate a tuna or mackerel. From LH Reef I paddled directly the further 3plus km to Middle Groyne in glassy conditions (wind dropped to zero) to finish my day’s fishing, being on the beach by around 8:30am. This was my fourth early morning launch in five consecutive days. All I had to show for around 50km paddling was two small snapper and bulging biceps!
The bay has huge amounts of baitfish at present and nothing is hassling them. Surely the mackerel will find them soon?
Kev
::::::::::::::
Update from Richmond
Well, what have I got to add? Bugger all!
After Kev headed off to LH I continued fishing with my soft plastic and ended up landing a barely legal Grassy that went 32cm. Other than a couple of small taps, that's all I could muster!
We did see a tinny at JS hooked up to something pretty decent, it turned out to be a fella in a grey suit.
Lovely conditions, but gee it's tough work of late. I hope Justin's mate Daniel didn't meet the sand monster on the way back in, because there were some good dumpers when I went and had a swim after my yak was on the roof. Oh well, we've all met the monster before haven't we?
Congrats to Dan by the way on a nice fish for his maiden offshore voyage.
As everyone else has been saying...........................where are the pelagics?
There's always next time.
Jeff (Richmond)
::::::::::::::::
Update from Kodaz
Kev, can't report much else. My brother and I followed in your footsteps to LH reef about 30 minutes after you left. Saw plenty of baitfish but not a single splash to indicate there was anything worthy of capture. I'll see you guys again when the pelagics move into the bay.
Jono (Kodaz)
:::::::::::::
Update from Justin
Hi guys well I haven't got much to add other than it was a beautiful morning for a paddle. I had one hit all morning which I failed to connect too.
My mate Dan did well for his first surf launch getting out well and made it in quite respectable although he did meet the sand monster right at the end haha. Also he managed a good fish believed to be a morwong can someone please confirm I've added a picture it went 63cm and took a gulp soft plastic.
Cheers Justin
::::::::::::::::
Update from Jaro
Hi Yakkers,
I have, using Jeff's vernacular, bugger all to add to today's report. I was the last to leave JS at 10.00am being obviously the most determined to to catch something but to no avail, having just three fruitless bites all day.
Still it was a beautiful day on the water. A gentle north easter came in as predicted so I had the wind directly behind me for the paddle home and so had a wonderful sail home doing a steady 7k/h with no effort.
Dan and Justin, who were already onshore were most impressed...especially with the speed that I travelled.
By the way, as Jeff said, getting in was very tricky, timing and knowing when to stop and start during entry was vital in coming in upright. After a few anxious moments I made it OK.
Dan showed me the impressive sized fish that he had caught (his first from a yak I believe). There was some conjecture as to what it was and I ended up thinking it was more than likely a slatey bream which I now am certain that is what is was after looking up Google. I had warned Dan that if it was a slatey bream it would be best put in the rubbish bin as it is awful to eat after the experience I had with it.
Cheers
Jaro
Wind: calm inside the bay, then SW to about 5 knots at Jew Shoal
Swell: low ENE
Current: none at Jew Shoal
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: eyetag, richmond, jaro, sunshiner, justin mabey, justin's friend Dan, kodaz, kodaz' brother Duncan
This is only the first part of the TR as I (sunshiner) came home early, leaving the others out there. Hopefully some of the other participants will add their contributions, incl pics if available. I found no subject worth adding to our photo collection, at least none that I had an opportunity to record.
On sauntering down to the water’s edge with my yak (love that trolley) at first light I came across Justin and Dan standing next to their yaks peering at the swell and surf break in the very low ambient light. It turned out that it was Dan's first surf launch (other than a failed attempt on the Gold Coast). But Justin was looking after him so I headed off before them, launching without difficulty and was glad, a couple of minutes later, to see Dan successfully clearing the small break which featured occasional dumpers. I imagine he was relieved too!
Jaro and I headed for Jew Shoal, following our illustrious fellow yakkers eyetag and richmond who were about 40 minutes ahead of us. Weather at Jew Shoal was vastly different from yesterday in that today’s SW breeze gave us little or no drift, whereas yesterday’s SE breeze was vigorous enough to give a good drift toward the NW and stir up the ocean a bit too. Maybe that was why, after an hour, we hadn’t caught anything, although yesterday wasn’t particularly memorable for fishing quality anyway.
Today there were many schools of baitfish showing on the sonar and occasionally near the surface, as the swooping terns indicated. But I didn’t see any marine predators at all, and I don’t think anyone else did either, at least up until the time I left. The one bright spot in the first two hours was the capture of a snapper (size guessed at 50-55cm) by use of a soft plastic bait, by Dan, the guy who did his first successful beach launch today. [Editor: Note that the fish ID was conveyed by radio call and as a result the species was mis-reported. The fish was actually a slatey bream.]
By around 7:00am I decided I’d had enough and out of boredom headed for LH Reef trolling a Halco LP, leaving my seven companions to continue their vigil.
All the 3.5 km or so across the bay to LH Reef the sonar showed schools of baitfish down deep, in mid water. But not once did I see a surface splash which might indicate a tuna or mackerel. From LH Reef I paddled directly the further 3plus km to Middle Groyne in glassy conditions (wind dropped to zero) to finish my day’s fishing, being on the beach by around 8:30am. This was my fourth early morning launch in five consecutive days. All I had to show for around 50km paddling was two small snapper and bulging biceps!
The bay has huge amounts of baitfish at present and nothing is hassling them. Surely the mackerel will find them soon?
Kev
::::::::::::::
Update from Richmond
Well, what have I got to add? Bugger all!
After Kev headed off to LH I continued fishing with my soft plastic and ended up landing a barely legal Grassy that went 32cm. Other than a couple of small taps, that's all I could muster!
We did see a tinny at JS hooked up to something pretty decent, it turned out to be a fella in a grey suit.
Lovely conditions, but gee it's tough work of late. I hope Justin's mate Daniel didn't meet the sand monster on the way back in, because there were some good dumpers when I went and had a swim after my yak was on the roof. Oh well, we've all met the monster before haven't we?
Congrats to Dan by the way on a nice fish for his maiden offshore voyage.
As everyone else has been saying...........................where are the pelagics?
There's always next time.
Jeff (Richmond)
::::::::::::::::
Update from Kodaz
Kev, can't report much else. My brother and I followed in your footsteps to LH reef about 30 minutes after you left. Saw plenty of baitfish but not a single splash to indicate there was anything worthy of capture. I'll see you guys again when the pelagics move into the bay.
Jono (Kodaz)
:::::::::::::
Update from Justin
Hi guys well I haven't got much to add other than it was a beautiful morning for a paddle. I had one hit all morning which I failed to connect too.
My mate Dan did well for his first surf launch getting out well and made it in quite respectable although he did meet the sand monster right at the end haha. Also he managed a good fish believed to be a morwong can someone please confirm I've added a picture it went 63cm and took a gulp soft plastic.
Cheers Justin
::::::::::::::::
Update from Jaro
Hi Yakkers,
I have, using Jeff's vernacular, bugger all to add to today's report. I was the last to leave JS at 10.00am being obviously the most determined to to catch something but to no avail, having just three fruitless bites all day.
Still it was a beautiful day on the water. A gentle north easter came in as predicted so I had the wind directly behind me for the paddle home and so had a wonderful sail home doing a steady 7k/h with no effort.
Dan and Justin, who were already onshore were most impressed...especially with the speed that I travelled.
By the way, as Jeff said, getting in was very tricky, timing and knowing when to stop and start during entry was vital in coming in upright. After a few anxious moments I made it OK.
Dan showed me the impressive sized fish that he had caught (his first from a yak I believe). There was some conjecture as to what it was and I ended up thinking it was more than likely a slatey bream which I now am certain that is what is was after looking up Google. I had warned Dan that if it was a slatey bream it would be best put in the rubbish bin as it is awful to eat after the experience I had with it.
Cheers
Jaro
JS getting better, 07Jan12
TR by sunshiner
Wind: calm inside the bay, then SE to about 10 knots at Jew Shoal
Swell: low ENE
Current: none at Jew Shoal
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: jaro, sunshiner, bigkev, andy-cav, carlo
Third day out of four for me today and I'd yet to hook a fish in 2012... Today HAD to be different.
At 0345, wakey time, Seabreeze was indicating 10-15 knot SE at DIP so I reckoned Jew Shoal would be breezy, but not too bad, so it was go.
Launch today was easy, so before long jaro, bigkev and I were headed NE into the small chop generated by the SE breeze wrapping around the headland. The SE breeze cut in at full strength quite quickly when we left the shelter provided by the headland and the chop and swell quickly combined into a sloppy SE sea with very occasional whitecaps.
Anticipating the SE wind, I'd headed from Middle Groyne directly toward the SE corner of Jew Shoal, intending to drift NW across the shoal in search of snapper unless feeding pelagics were present (which they weren't). My first cast was at about 0525, the breeze helping me to cast the 1/8th ounce jig and almost weightless SP a good distance downdrift.
Even though the drift was pretty quick I'd made up my mind today to stick with the light gear, essentially exactly copying the technique described in this blog "Snapper on SPs", which was written about five years ago. I also wanted to try out a new SP at the request of a friend, who imports them. And, as I often do, I fished with only one rod, giving it my full attention.
The combination of light jighead, buoyant SP and 6kg braid made the rig sink v-e-r-y slowly, so much of the time after a cast I was watching loose line lying on the surface as the jig descended. Nevertheless, the jig was getting down to 18m OK, as I could confirm with a brief hangup on the reef at that depth on the second or third cast. By the time the yak was directly above the sinking jig the jig was pretty close to maximum depth and before long I had the first take and retrieved this beastie.
Five minutes later the jig got hit again, this time with a more valued fish.
A quick radio call made sure that the other Noosa Yakkers out there knew that the snapper might be around and biting.
I noticed today that the water seemed a lot clearer than it was last Wednesday, the first calm day after the big blow, and it also seemed more fishy. Very noticeable were flying fish, up to 75mm long, many of which became airborne in my path as I pounded upwind against the chop when resetting my drift. These fish are wonderfully graceful as they leave the water in an upwind orientation (probably to get airborne as quickly as possible, like aircraft), then curve off to one side while flying (actually gliding), presumably to confuse predators. One I saw travelled an estimated 30m in the air before returning to its normal environment.
At some stage soon after bagging the snapper I noticed a patch of a couple of dozen terns milling around in a SW direction, about 500m away. Shortly afterward bigkev reported that he could see large splashes under the terns whose behaviour had now changed to being focussed on and close to the water’s surface. I was tempted to change rigs and paddle over but opted to wait until the action stabilized into continuous feeding. Sure enough, in a few minutes the terns had dispersed and no sign of the activity remained. It was about now that andy-cav turned up, having left Middle Groyne quite a bit later than we did.
Jaro, meanwhile, had been feeding the sharks on pilchards and some baby snapper on banana prawns. No one else was reporting any action. But Jew Shoal now had a fishy feel about it, with the clean water, the flying fish and one snapper in the bag. Then jaro came up announcing that he had a keeper snapper in the boat (later measured at 45cm).
It was just over an hour between snapper for me. The next one fought much harder than the first so I was surprised to find that it was the same size.
I fish with this casting rod held in my hand so can sense any bump or take immediately and react accordingly. The important thing with a rig like this is to make sure your drag is smooth and properly set as the take is often sudden and always unexpected. Note also that the jig can be taken at any time after it hits the water.
I rely heavily on my GPS to show me where I am on the shoal, especially the Tracks page. Returning to the start of a successful drift is easy -- all you need to do is paddle back up the present drift line (it helps if you clear old tracks from time to time). Also marking a waypoint where you catch a fish is useful for returning to the exact capture place.
Jaro and I had previously agreed that, because we intended to fish tomorrow, we'd return home early unless exceptional reasons held us out there. So by 8:00am we'd agreed to head back and it was only now that I became aware that carlo was out there with us (I spotted his rig and called him on the radio to confirm).
Andy-cav and I headed off directly for Middle Groyne while jaro, getting his money’s worth out of his sail, headed for Granite Bay which would then place him upwind of Middle Groyne.
We three arrived at Middle Groyne within a couple of minutes of each other, proof once more that jaro’s sail, once deployed, gives him a very good average speed so I reckon I'll ask for a tow next time we come back from JS in a NE breeze.
Richmond was waiting for us on the beach, touting for Noosa Yakkers Record Fish claims (none today, unfortunately). And shortly behind the first three came carlo and bigkev.
Thanks for coming along guys. Who’s up for another run tomorrow?
Wind: calm inside the bay, then SE to about 10 knots at Jew Shoal
Swell: low ENE
Current: none at Jew Shoal
Launch point: Middle Groyne
Participants: jaro, sunshiner, bigkev, andy-cav, carlo
Third day out of four for me today and I'd yet to hook a fish in 2012... Today HAD to be different.
At 0345, wakey time, Seabreeze was indicating 10-15 knot SE at DIP so I reckoned Jew Shoal would be breezy, but not too bad, so it was go.
Launch today was easy, so before long jaro, bigkev and I were headed NE into the small chop generated by the SE breeze wrapping around the headland. The SE breeze cut in at full strength quite quickly when we left the shelter provided by the headland and the chop and swell quickly combined into a sloppy SE sea with very occasional whitecaps.
Anticipating the SE wind, I'd headed from Middle Groyne directly toward the SE corner of Jew Shoal, intending to drift NW across the shoal in search of snapper unless feeding pelagics were present (which they weren't). My first cast was at about 0525, the breeze helping me to cast the 1/8th ounce jig and almost weightless SP a good distance downdrift.
0529hrs. Sea conditions as seen from my yak, looking east, camera held down near water surface.
Even though the drift was pretty quick I'd made up my mind today to stick with the light gear, essentially exactly copying the technique described in this blog "Snapper on SPs", which was written about five years ago. I also wanted to try out a new SP at the request of a friend, who imports them. And, as I often do, I fished with only one rod, giving it my full attention.
The combination of light jighead, buoyant SP and 6kg braid made the rig sink v-e-r-y slowly, so much of the time after a cast I was watching loose line lying on the surface as the jig descended. Nevertheless, the jig was getting down to 18m OK, as I could confirm with a brief hangup on the reef at that depth on the second or third cast. By the time the yak was directly above the sinking jig the jig was pretty close to maximum depth and before long I had the first take and retrieved this beastie.
0535hrs. Yellow emperor. Do not kiss or lick this fish, or lick your fingers after handling it, as it is believed capable of secreting toxins under stress. More here.
Five minutes later the jig got hit again, this time with a more valued fish.
0540hrs. My first snapper for 2012 (41cm).
A quick radio call made sure that the other Noosa Yakkers out there knew that the snapper might be around and biting.
I noticed today that the water seemed a lot clearer than it was last Wednesday, the first calm day after the big blow, and it also seemed more fishy. Very noticeable were flying fish, up to 75mm long, many of which became airborne in my path as I pounded upwind against the chop when resetting my drift. These fish are wonderfully graceful as they leave the water in an upwind orientation (probably to get airborne as quickly as possible, like aircraft), then curve off to one side while flying (actually gliding), presumably to confuse predators. One I saw travelled an estimated 30m in the air before returning to its normal environment.
At some stage soon after bagging the snapper I noticed a patch of a couple of dozen terns milling around in a SW direction, about 500m away. Shortly afterward bigkev reported that he could see large splashes under the terns whose behaviour had now changed to being focussed on and close to the water’s surface. I was tempted to change rigs and paddle over but opted to wait until the action stabilized into continuous feeding. Sure enough, in a few minutes the terns had dispersed and no sign of the activity remained. It was about now that andy-cav turned up, having left Middle Groyne quite a bit later than we did.
Andy_cav and aircon hat
Jaro, meanwhile, had been feeding the sharks on pilchards and some baby snapper on banana prawns. No one else was reporting any action. But Jew Shoal now had a fishy feel about it, with the clean water, the flying fish and one snapper in the bag. Then jaro came up announcing that he had a keeper snapper in the boat (later measured at 45cm).
It was just over an hour between snapper for me. The next one fought much harder than the first so I was surprised to find that it was the same size.
0652hrs. Snapper #2. Note snapper teeth marks on the jighead. The SP is one of the "Gastronomic Bait" series, 3.5 inches long, made in Japan, also used by richmond in capturing that yellowfin tuna a couple of weeks back.
I fish with this casting rod held in my hand so can sense any bump or take immediately and react accordingly. The important thing with a rig like this is to make sure your drag is smooth and properly set as the take is often sudden and always unexpected. Note also that the jig can be taken at any time after it hits the water.
I rely heavily on my GPS to show me where I am on the shoal, especially the Tracks page. Returning to the start of a successful drift is easy -- all you need to do is paddle back up the present drift line (it helps if you clear old tracks from time to time). Also marking a waypoint where you catch a fish is useful for returning to the exact capture place.
Jaro and I had previously agreed that, because we intended to fish tomorrow, we'd return home early unless exceptional reasons held us out there. So by 8:00am we'd agreed to head back and it was only now that I became aware that carlo was out there with us (I spotted his rig and called him on the radio to confirm).
Andy-cav and I headed off directly for Middle Groyne while jaro, getting his money’s worth out of his sail, headed for Granite Bay which would then place him upwind of Middle Groyne.
We three arrived at Middle Groyne within a couple of minutes of each other, proof once more that jaro’s sail, once deployed, gives him a very good average speed so I reckon I'll ask for a tow next time we come back from JS in a NE breeze.
Richmond was waiting for us on the beach, touting for Noosa Yakkers Record Fish claims (none today, unfortunately). And shortly behind the first three came carlo and bigkev.
Thanks for coming along guys. Who’s up for another run tomorrow?
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