Page 77 - Bush 'n Beach Fishing magazine

KAYAKING
& canoeing
Yellowpatch is Curtis Island’s best kept secret
* from P76
ern side of Facing and
We did manage to land enough bream and flathead to provide a couple of meals, but we certainly weren’t returning home with a freezer full of fillets.
Curtis islands to Cape Capricorn.
Our plan on arrival was to do a little bit of fishing, a little bit of hiking, a little bit of canoe product testing and a huge bit of next to nothing.
I suspect the empty freezer was more to do with the skill level of the anglers rather than the availability of fish to be caught.
All in all, the perfect recipe for an escape from the rat race.
The water in the estu- ary was so clear, we could see to the bot- tom in most places and there appeared to be no shortage of fish down there.
We had brought with us two new canoes to test on this trip – the square stern Kingfisher 14’ and the Sprite 11 pack canoe with a new recliner-style fishing seat fitted.
Testing new boats was such hard work.
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Both canoes were de- signed for the fishing market and we wanted to wet a line in both to see how they per- formed in an estuary environment.
Having decided that fishing perhaps was better left for others, we took the obligatory hike up the sand blow.
The square stern Kingfisher 14’ in par- ticular we wanted to evaluate as a potential tender to a large boat such as ours.
The view of the is- lands to the north ex- tends to the Keppel Group and includes the rugged Hummocky Is- land.
It’s a tough life oc- casionally having to go to beautiful places and mess around in boats, but we survived it.
The backdrop of crystal-clear blue wa- ter against the golden yellow of Yellowpatch itself – spectacular!
The two canoes per- formed admirably and will be added to our One Tree Canoe lineup, hopefully in time for Christmas.
The birdlife in the area was quite prevalent and we were lucky to see whistling and brahminy kites circling overhead – bet they caught more fish than we did.
The fishing during our trip was consistent, if not particularly fruit- ful. www.bnb shing.com.au
The hiking in the lo- cal area at Yellowpatch was a little limited due
It’s quite a hike to the top, but well and truly worth the effort!
* continued P78
Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2020 – Page 77