Admire The Tall, Chase The Small

Out last Monday on Shannon’s big beautiful Wellcraft:

The plan was to run down the Hawkesbury, out through Broken Bay, and up to FAD 17 and the lobster trap buoy field between there, and Texas Reef. We’ve been catching mahi to 12 kilos in that area but you never know until you get there what size they will be. First stop the FAD, where Shannon cast in using our light combo and 10 gram jigs:

Result: kingfish. But like so many recently, just undersize:

One thing I can say with total confidence is that mahi LOVE our 10 gram jigs. Maybe 70% of the 100 or so mahi we’ve caught in the last month were taken on them? And at $44 for ten *including delivery* you can’t go wrong:

10 GRAM JIGS

Onto the trap buoys where we caught maybe a dozen mahi but once again, too small. Using three kilo trout gear makes every hook up a lot of fun! And hitting 53 knots on the way back in was a new one for me. Here’s a compilation video which kicks off with my young crew last week:

Clip 1: finding a floating tree
Clip 2: small mahi hooked
Clip 3: Shannon hooks up
Clip 4: kingfish fights harder than expected

Back out on Friday, this time with Facebook friends Benny and Tom. Picked them up at Watsons Bay than across to Rose Bay wharf, to get Mev. Over to Middle Head where we quickly filled the tank with small live yellowtail:

Around to our favourite down rigging spot just south of the Gap. We set two baits 10 metres down and worked our way south. It didn’t take long:

Clip 1: dang king goes around my burley cage (attached to the downrigger, yes I got him in)
Clip 2: Mev hooks up on the downrigger at South Head
Clip 3: Benny hooks up on the downrigger at South Head
Clip 4: Tom hooks up on the downrigger at Clifton Gardens

Downriggers are the go. So many times we’ve arrived at the white mooring buoy off Clifton Gardens or the Yellow Can off Nielsen Park. Only to find other boats thrashing the water to foam with their lures and baits – to no result. We run a small yellowtail or squid head off the downrigger ten metres down – to match the kingie marks on the screen. They’re sick and tired off the Slug Gos passing overhead but they can’t resist a struggling live bait drawn right past their nose. Without a downrigger, you’re just making fishing harder for yourself:

DOWNRIGGERS

The VIDEO above also shows the session back inside, with one of the crew hooked up at the white can off Clifton Gardens. That’s a great spot when it’s rough outside. I got some interest there, jigging with our 702 combo:

What a top day on the water. I dropped the lads back at their respective wharves just after noon and kicked back with some fish and chips at Watsons Bay:

Feeling very good about life and keen to get out there again this week
Andrew Hestelow

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