With my replaced fishing gear and 5 days late Dad and I finally got out onto the water for a fish today. We had a very slow days fishing and it just never really went off like it usually does. We probably caught 25-30 fish, but all were relatively small. The only fish of note were a nice little cod, a baby barracuda and a smallish snapper. All were returned to the water except for the cod, which will make our dinner tonight. Dad lost something huge, but the fight only lated for about 0.5 seconds. We fished 2 wrecks and a natural reef and were fishing with prawns and squid for bait. Because it was a slow day we didn't get the plastics out for a fish...
reade more...
Make your own spoon lure (homemade lures)
If you cut the handle from an old spoon from your kitchen, you can make two lures - one from the handle and one from the bowl (the bit you eat off). If holes are drilled through both ends of the bowl section and split rings attached with a hook at one end and a swivel at the other, an excellent spoon lure will result.
Similarly the handle can be drilled and fitted out with swivels, rings and hooks. The handle can then be bent slightly to give the lure some extra action.
These can then be painted all over or perhaps simply add an eye or some scales to make the lure more lifelike. A touch of red paint behind the eyes will represent gills.
While these lures seem crude they have been around for a very long time and they have been around for so long because they actually work!
Hopefully this picture will give you a better idea of the process (imagine this is the bowl of the spoon).
For more information about lure fishing why not pay a visit to the website http://lurefishingforbeginners.blogspot.com/.
reade more...
Similarly the handle can be drilled and fitted out with swivels, rings and hooks. The handle can then be bent slightly to give the lure some extra action.
These can then be painted all over or perhaps simply add an eye or some scales to make the lure more lifelike. A touch of red paint behind the eyes will represent gills.
While these lures seem crude they have been around for a very long time and they have been around for so long because they actually work!
Hopefully this picture will give you a better idea of the process (imagine this is the bowl of the spoon).
For more information about lure fishing why not pay a visit to the website http://lurefishingforbeginners.blogspot.com/.
Care for your fishing line
Whether fishing with mono or braid always check the line for nicks or frazzles or areas of abrasion that will cause a weakness. After every fishing trip, or after playing out a nice fish, cut off about 50cms of line and throw it away especially if it is badly frayed or cut up.
There are 3 main causes/reasons for doing this
1. The fish goes deep, pulling the line across rocks, logs or other hard objects
2. The fish is big and the line will rub across its body or tail (especially bad if the fish has sharp gills)
3. other objects, such as the boat, a jetty, surface objects or dock, and deep snags may bump into your line.
These factors will cause abrasion, eventually causing the line to break. Trimming the line before this happens will potentially prevent you from losing a trophy fish. Take the time...it is worth it.
Note: some braids can become frayed over time, which is not usually a detriment to their strength - always err on the side of caution.
reade more...
There are 3 main causes/reasons for doing this
1. The fish goes deep, pulling the line across rocks, logs or other hard objects
2. The fish is big and the line will rub across its body or tail (especially bad if the fish has sharp gills)
3. other objects, such as the boat, a jetty, surface objects or dock, and deep snags may bump into your line.
These factors will cause abrasion, eventually causing the line to break. Trimming the line before this happens will potentially prevent you from losing a trophy fish. Take the time...it is worth it.
Note: some braids can become frayed over time, which is not usually a detriment to their strength - always err on the side of caution.
Striper Fishing Video (including filleting)
I saw my first striper (also called striped bass) in an Australian magazine that featured a local writer that had visited the US. From what I know they are a great success story and can be caught in many places that they did not originally habitat after translocation (please correct me if I am wrong). They put up a really great fight and are wonderful on the plate. Like many other species fishing for stripers is best at dusk and dawn. These great fish are definitely on the first page of fish I really want to catch.
This is a great video showing everything from catching stripers to cleaning and filleting them. It really is a must watch. Enjoy
reade more...
This is a great video showing everything from catching stripers to cleaning and filleting them. It really is a must watch. Enjoy
Replacing my fishing rods
Dad was kind enough to find a store (or two) open today and offered to take me out and buy me a replacement rod to make up, in part, for the ones that were stolen. Thanks Dad! I also purchased a cheap combo to tide me over and get us back out on the water, hopefully, next weekend. It's going to be a slow process of building up my tackle supply again and I am still discovering things that were stolen, which isn't such a nice feeling. It also looks like the thieves also tried to activate our EPIRB from the boat so I am glad they didn't succeed at that!
reade more...
Dirty grubby thieves (I want my fishing gear back)
I am grumpy, no scratch that, really really angry. Dad and I had planned a nice Australia Day holiday fishing trip all week. However, when I turned up Dads house today to prepare the boat (ie. tie all the rigs and make sure Dad has put the bungs in) I found out that all my Penn and Okuma rods and reels (some almost new) have been stolen - leaving me with only a couple of $20 supermarket special combos. So not only am I out of pocket for rods I can't really afford to re-buy at the moment - it's a holiday tomorrow so I can't get to the shops to replace the stolen rods anyway!!
So all that means - NO fishing tomorrow!!
Even worse is the feeling that someone grubby has been in your stuff and gone through your personal items - it really does feel like you have been violated! Not a happy Australia Day really! However, putting everything back in perspective I must say I live in a great country and have lots more than many others in the world.
If the person who stole my rods and reels ever reads this (and I doubt they will) make sure you look after the stuff - those rods and reels have many memories attached and I couldn't bear to have them lying on some pawn shop floor.
If you have had this kind of thing happen to you - or if you want to donate to my tackle restocking ;-) please leave a comment
I promise tomorrow will be a happier post
reade more...
So all that means - NO fishing tomorrow!!
Even worse is the feeling that someone grubby has been in your stuff and gone through your personal items - it really does feel like you have been violated! Not a happy Australia Day really! However, putting everything back in perspective I must say I live in a great country and have lots more than many others in the world.
If the person who stole my rods and reels ever reads this (and I doubt they will) make sure you look after the stuff - those rods and reels have many memories attached and I couldn't bear to have them lying on some pawn shop floor.
If you have had this kind of thing happen to you - or if you want to donate to my tackle restocking ;-) please leave a comment
I promise tomorrow will be a happier post
Electric fishing reel - action video included
Technology is forever changing and being upgraded - for instance the CD is almost dead and DVD's are slowly going the way of the buffalo. Now after saying all that I don't think that the electric fishing reel is going to overthrow the "normal" fishing reel I think that it is one of the truly great inventions. It means that disabled people have much better access to fishing and it will certainly be useful for deep sea bottom bouncing and jigging. I have seen one of these reels in action first hand and was used by my mate with one arm after a mining accident - a truly amazing piece of equipment. The battery packs that these reels need are getting smaller and smaller all the time and are light enough to clip onto your belt.
I found a video to show you what I am talking about - it is obviously advertising material, but I think that it demonstrates the idea perfectly.
reade more...
I found a video to show you what I am talking about - it is obviously advertising material, but I think that it demonstrates the idea perfectly.