Fishin’ Maggie

What’s New On The Rock

I took a short trip to see my Sydney tribe and the resultant grandkids during the week. The weather was nuts, talk about extreme.  Monday was 38, Monday night was the hottest day since 1868 (lucky me), Tuesday was a mind numbing 39. Wednesday plummeted to 17 degrees, Thursday 20 and raining and Friday 20 and drizzle. I’m glad to be home, at least here I know it’s going to be hot all the time. I did trek up to the fabled Thompsons Creek Dam at Lithgow on the Tuesday chasing that mystical Rainbow and Brown trout on soft plastics. Just my luck, a 50 km/h westerly wind kicked that small dam up so rough we had tsunami sized waves on the side we were trying to fish. I’ll never complain about Island fishing being tough again.
After telling the story about the boy that tumbled off the jetty last week, a local told me that his big Labrador was playing and fell off the side of the jetty, splashing into the rough waters. Our local dog hero leapt gallantly in the waters, grabbed the waterlogged Lab, swam to the ladder, and then had to lift the heavy Mutt and himself all the way up the ladder. That’s dedication.
Some very keen local boys decided to check out what was left in the stinger nets at Horseshoe Bay at the extreme 0.19 low tide at 2 o’clock in the morning last week. Unfortunately by the time they got there, there were lots of dead fish, at the end of the net because they couldn’t escape the net on the low, and ran out of water (Maybe we need to look at a new net design for shallow beaches) The boys discovered a heap of deceased juvenile Mackerel, Mullet and other common beach species.

So what’s biting around Christmas?
We still have plentiful Grunter taking Pillie and Gar fillet straight off the beach. Smaller Grey Mac’s around WestPoint are still smacking almost any lure, no talent required. Flathead and Whiting on prawn are still a southern favourite, and Whiting are Plentiful. To keep things interesting we still have the unknown freight trains cruising past angler lines on occasion. These big buggers still take all your gear and sometimes rods too, if you are not watching. On this note commiserations to an angler at WestPoint who lost a rod just this way. Although he asked not to be named, he did admit to having a beer and a smoke in his grasp at the time that his rod disappeared into the ocean. I do thank him though, because he always buys new rigs from us.

There are Big Trout around Whitfield Cove, and in Nelly Bay if you are in a tinny, this year the beautiful Coral Trout have been unusually abundant.

Brewer Reef is also fishing well for Trout, although the Spaniards have left the area for deeper waters.
Merry Christmas on behalf of Janie and I had all our staff and we hope everybody has a prosperous Christmas and a very happy New Year. Thank you for all your support in 2016

Until next time gone Fishin’…. be back at dark-thirty

Cheers Dale

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