Page 45 - Bush 'n Beach Fishing mag

IQuick nip up The Narrows
N his retirement, reasonable bag consist- The fishing was Peter Butterworth ing mostly of snapper, steady throughout the spends quite a bit pigfish and rosy job- day, with fish showing
The Scotty cutting board is probably the best thing added to the boat.
New fishing weapon
* from P44
see what you are do- ing without being blinded.
Mitch has started to lean towards a fish bag because this can be folded to save space, and when it’s full of fish, it doesn’t take up as much room as an Esky.
Also up the front, we have the anchor light socket fitted, along with the VHF antenna.
The boat is ex- tremely economi- cal, with 40L giving more than enough reserve for big days on the water.
I opted for the stubby antenna, so it wouldn’t be in the way when casting.
The anchor well is big enough to fit the anchor and plenty of rope, and the bow sprit roller makes life easy for the drop and retrieve.
It can be a bit daunting going from a 20’ offshore rig to an open tinnie, but once you get used to it the thrill of the ride, and the bigger thrill of a huge fish from a small boat keeps you going back for more.
Rod holders fitted on the both sides of the boat give many options, and the Scotty rod holders have every configu- ration imaginable.
The local bars along the coast are ordinary.
One of the best ad- ditions is a Scotty cutting board.
Tweed is still shal- low and is catching any swell.
If there was ever an accessory that is a ‘must-have’, this is it.
Currumbin looks like a maze and your challenge is get- ting to the bar with the amount of sand that’s currently in the creek.
With deep pockets, it is big enough to store your tackle and tools such as pliers and knives.
Tallebudgera is much the same and would be worth giv- ing a miss, especial- ly if coming in on a low tide.
The gaffs are mounted for easy ac- cess on the rear seat and the points are protected with caps.
The boat is big enough to fish three people, but two would be preferable – particularly when carrying a 100L Es- ky and ice.
The Gold Coast Seaway is the pick of the bunch.
Until next month, screaming reels to you all!
of time fossicking for fish. up in patches.
gems and when having a clean-up recently, he found his old marks for ‘Tempest off Cape Moreton’ from the late 1990s and early 2000s.
The fish held hard on the bottom all day and if the bait was sitting at 1m, the fish wouldn’t touch it.
I changed to one of Brad’s 2-4kg outfits to get a better feel and this increased my hook-up rate.
He was keen to find out if they still held a few scaly nuggets.
Lighter lines were also the way to go, out fishing the heavier stuff five to one. CurtisIslandsession
We caught fish in good numbers, with the largest taken by Brad and hitting the 57cm mark.
So, he called fellow retiree Rob Schomberg and they headed off, with the sun cresting over Moreton Island.
More than keen to head out around Glad- stone and wet a line, Brad Muckert and I launched early from the yacht club and headed up through The Nar- rows before dawn.
Other species caught were grunter, cod, salmon, moses perch and even a juvenile black jewfish.
On arrival at the first mark, the sounder view was different to what Pete expected, but they had a drop anyway.
The plan was to spend the day flicking plas- tics, with the target spe- cies being grunter, fin- germark and threadfin salmon.
It was a brilliant day and I’ll have my boat up there over the com- ing weeks, and hope- fully I’ll get out more regularly in future. Next meetings
After losing three rigs in three drops using a 6-ball sinker, a bottom basher was given a go.
Meetings are back to the old schedule of the first Monday of the month at 6.30pm for 7.00 pm start.
It worked straight away but the spot held only undersized snapper.
Initially I used a 7’ 3-7kg spin rod and a 2500 size reel, a 14lb braid and 12lb leader, with a 1/8oz 1/0 jig head and a 4” Berkley Gulp Minnow.
They started looking at other old marks but got the same results.
So, see you at The Club Manly (bowls club) at 26 Faine St in Manly.
Slightly off course, the sounder began to show territory familiar to Pete.
Brad used a 2-4kg spin outfit, 6lb braid and 10lb leader, with the same jig and soft plastic.
The last meeting for the year will be held on Monday December 7 before reconvening in the New Year on Mon- day February 1.
The ridge and gut- ter he remembered ap- peared and they started pulling good fish on board.
On the first cast, I hooked-up to a nice fingermark of around 45cm at the back of the boat.
On behalf of the Pow- er Boat Anglers, I’d like to wish everyone a safe and happy festive season, and thanks for your support.
Note to self – if you’re looking at old marks and nothing’s there, start a grid search – it might surprise you.
It took me slightly off guard, as I was near the end of my retrieve but managed to set the hook all the same.
Until next month, safe boating.
Mick Clutterbuck
While they weren’t setting the world on fire, the anglers got a
www.bnbfishing.com.au
This fingermark was taken by the author on his first cast for the day.
Bush ’n Beach Fishing, December 2020 – Page 45