Wind, wind, wind, wind...........aahhhggggg

Nothing but wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, wind, and more wind, and stronger wind............................

See video for a calmest part of the day

This was Thursday with volunteer bus driver from school
Not a fish to be seen, wind everywhere and huge chop and waves
White caps everywhere, even on leeward side of headland and islands etc

So not the best day for SWOFFING or driving a boat
from Wickham Point to the ramp it was every wave splashing into the wind and covering us
very very wet and wild today

maybe next time (thinking about Sunday with ex-deckie in his boat)
until then
tight lines and fast fish

20150622 – All over Darwin Harbour – Twice

First Day of school holidays and first time using my own boat in several weeks

Was going to take out the volunteer bus driver from school but he was a bit under the weather

So it was just me fishing, which was fine…..

Up a little later than normal due to dropping Youngest daughter off at day care. Found out later in day she told everyone who would listen that Daddy was fishing today. Must teach her a new word – SWOFFING! As far better than fishing or dangling let alone trolling!

Having fueled up and iced up the day before so as soon as daughter was tucked into day care, it was a straight road to the boat ramp. Was on water by 7:45am. Would have been earlier but left chain on boat and after three attempts to jolt the boat off the trailer I remembered I stopped undoing chain as bolt had rusted frozen and needed pliers to get it undone.

Once up ramp a bit, undid the bolt – at least I had put the bungs in (who hasn’t at one time or another done that!) Steering free and easy, motor starts first try – awesome (has the school holiday curse been lifted????)

Quite windy, chop short and messy – I must have toughened up since my last sook about windy conditions the harbor seems to be producing, because I head out quite optimistic (unusual I know!)

Headed out to Shelly Island first – tide had two more hours of inflow before reversing, so the wharf side of island usually holds a few fish as this stage of tide.

Fish not in the usual tide line but out the front of the island, every few minutes bursting the surface attacking bait pushed up against the island shallows. Trevally, queenfish the main but a few of the typical slashes that suggest small macks mixed in with them. I hook up almost instantly, lost a few flies to macks, kept a bigger trevally for dinner. Tossed the rest back. A half hour of fun and they just disappeared as if they were never there.

Sorry pic not in focus - only one I took for the day too! have to pick up the standard.

Next stop was Caitlyn bay – nothing

East Point – macks about and lost two flies to them, Then some BIG queenies zipped in and out without taking my flies and scaring me as to their size and potential fight (that didn’t happen!)

With only a bit of incoming tide left, I raced out front to Lee Point (Deckie Peter in his boat in the previous afternoon wind lull got into a heap of fish, so I was hoping  they were still there)

On arrival very windy and subsequent swell and chop, no fish seen. After a half hour of blind casting I got two macks, and a queenie. But thought I would head back into main harbour to see what was about out of the wind

Would find a few birds working make a few casts catch a fish or two – then quite again. So off to another spot, rock bar, reef or current confluence. I made it all the way to back of Harbour and the Elizabeth River and an island just at mouth. Caught a few macks here, one with a perfect V cut behind its anal fin – just like one its mates had taken a chunk out it.

Back to Shellie Island, a few more fish on the outgoing tide. Next was Wickham point – now this was a great time

The water levels were dropping so the sand bar at the back of Wickham point was funnelling the water and thus  the bait through a narrow chute, confused and disorientated as they transverse the sandbar making them easy takings for the queenies and trevally waiting for them.

By the time I caught three the tide had dropped too far and the bait moved else where as too the predators.

First time for the day visit to Weed Reef – not much showing at usual halfway down tide locations. A few more of the usual for some blind casting.but that is boring. I love casting to fish busting up the surface. So off to Mandorah T bar reef south of wharf. Only very small stuff here.

Wind had been dropping off all morning – so headed for East Point. Nothing here of note. So out to Lee Point again.

Water was bubbling all over the reef. Mostly larger macks to 70cm, under them some 40cm goldens.

Was losing heaps of flies to the macks, so added on a haywire twist of 20lb single strand wire in front of the fly. Figure eight knot on end of wire to tie the mono leader to with a uni knot (slides down to figure 8 knot). Not much wire just 5cm or so. Still it impacted strike rates on the small white clousers I was using.

Caught 6 macks and a couple of goldens before it was time to head home. I have no nav lights so had to back at ramp before sun went down.

Had a 70cm+ golden on but lost it on second netting attempt after 15 minutes of struggle - where is the deckie when you need him!!! oh that's right working!

On way back in I fished East Point, Caitlyn bay, the area in front of the Deckchair Cinema and Shellie Island again for a few fish each location. Nothing huge, nothing constant – at least 50 fish over the 10 and half hours on the water but it seemed a hard day.
Averaged out to five fish an hour but lots of travelling time to and fro.

Twice around the harbour. Well maybe not around twice but at least it was out and in twice and lots of swerving from one side of the harbour to the other side and back.

It was almost the holiday curse back as I pulled the boat out. While the boat was on the trailer half way up the ramp I stopped and pulled the boat bungs - SADLY about 20 litres came out - damn! another keel crack!*^&*&%&#$^%#

But on filling it up with water when home not a leak (one very very tiny one (not near keel either) but certainly not 20 litres worth. So why why why...?????

Then I remember I haven't taken the boat out for at least four weeks which means the rain storm from three weeks ago was the culprit not a crack - thank goodness!!!!

It’s been a long time since I fished that long, let alone half the day in 5-10 knot winds.

What’s next? Thursday looks good for another time in and out of the harbour.

Until then..

One more thing on bungs -when I was pulling out after a long day - a couple of young blokes had left their bung out when they launched and by the time the ute driver got back to the boat the little tinnie was a third full of water. We hauled it up the ramp and let the water run out. Took four of us to haul it but tide was coming in so once water was out they wouldn't have issues relaunching it.
So make sure your bungs are in before launch next time out!

Follow by Email option suggestion

If you are going crazy waiting for the latest Blog
(so erratic and irregular I know!!!!)

Try following the blog by email
Very simple to set up, non-invasive, no strings attached - unfollow any time

You do this by entering your email in the second dialogue box on the right
See image here for what to look for
It's the box under the ugly man holding a Blue Salmon caught off Wickham Point

Once your email is entered - every time a new blog is added you get an email to tell you about It saves a lot of checking the blog and nothing has changed

I do this for about 9 blogs I visit

Just a thought from the NT SWOFFER

20150614 - Lee Point Trip report - Goldens, Macks and queenies

Spent late Saturday afternoon helping Canadian Pete, putting in a 24 volt battery system and his new toy - an 80lb motorguide GPS guided trolling motor.

What a huge electric thruster. You can even get 36volt version now. I remember buying one of the first models available in Australia - a hand tiller one I had on a canoe to fish Hinze Dam on the Gold Coast – it was a no combustion engine dam. Would have been late 80’s early 90’s

How things have changes. Track memory, anchor points, home points all at the touch of a button

The scary thing was drilling those holes to hold the plate down and getting it right!

 so absolute 

Once that was done – the rest was easy.

Still a few more things to do – wiring on trailer a bit iffy and get another 120amp battery (using one 

of mine at the moment)

So with that done a little sleep and up at 5;30am to get on water at Dinah Beach ramp before the sunrise.

Weather was going to be windy but manageable in Peter’s higher sided, thicker hulled boat when compared with mine.

We head out to Lee Point with a short stop in Caitlyn Bay – just in case some Golden trevally in that same corner on that same stage of the dropping tide – but not today.

Once out to Lee Point several other boats were there but none fly fishing

Around these boats, fish were readily seen busting up bait that was huddled for shelter over a reef that was being exposed by the dropping tide

The other boats were casting lures and baits for no effect except some small yellow tail pike

Second cast I was on to a mackerel, Peter not much later.

We had double hook ups and at least one of us hooked up most of the next two hours.

The other boats – almost nothing. You could hear them talking about how they wished they had taken up fly fishing.

we had a great time, watching the mackerel react to the flies in very clear water. they were just rolling around in amongst the bait. You could even pick the fish you wanted to cast to - awesome  fun!

It was almost embarrassing the fish numbers we were catching (when compared to the other boat working the same area – Golden trevally when you let the fly sink right down to edge of reef, - yellow tail pike, queenies and mackerel depending on the stripping action you put on the fly and location of cast. used clousers in white,  blue over white, and surf candies  blue, charteuse, and all white. I don't think fly type mattered as much as size, stripping action and location cast to.

While Nothing big - heaps and heaps of fun - Queenies to 45cm, mackerel to 50 (but quite solid in the hand not skinny like previous outings), Goldens to 40cm (kept a few of these Goldens for dinner)

We ventured off to find bigger fish. Found some tuna but they were quite sporadic and only in ones and twos. Bust up here, bust up over there – chase them and they wold bust up  where you once were!

No luck with the tuna - quite frustrating to see them and not get them!*(^*^$*^%#^&%#

Spent rest of day visiting our favourite spots around the harbor for not much else – a queenie or two, a Mack. Once Peter got a small Strippie that got muscled by a huge dark shape that stayed connected for a while before breaking the leader and shredding part of the fly line.

So tough day but plenty of fish early on – best part no one but  fly fishers getting in to the fish at Lee Point – GO THE FLY!!!!

When is the next trip???????????  

(four weeks of school holidays coming up  next week so should get more SWOFFING in - I hope as usually something goes wrong with the my boat in the first trip of school holidays and I don't fish for the rest of the holiday break!

Here is a very bad bit of filming of a small golden under the water just before netting and release

Juvenile Goldens are so vibrant in their colours and in their never say die fighting style that makes them  feel far bigger then what eventually get to the net!

A little too much wind (and me getting soft!)

I must be getting spoiled...........
The wife almost had to kick me out of the house to go SWOFFING on the weekend

Problem was I wasn't quite in the mood - a few hard changes about to happen at school - staffing wise - which I instigated. gave me a bit of punch in the guts feeling
Had to be done for the sake of the students, but sad for one older teacher at the school not quite cutting it anymore, great guy but but but......
Overall, it really affected my usual enthusiasm for any opportunity to go SWOFFING
Almost to the point of defeatism when adding the strong wind forecast for most days over the long weekend

With my arm almost twisted behind me by my wife - I stayed Saturday night at a mate's place right in Dundee a few hundred metres from the beach.

Saturday afternoon I went for a walk along the beach north of Dundee Lodge area
There were schools of trevally and queenfish moving along the beach heading north about a hundred yards out
Easily seen as they disturbed the surface with the occasional slash at bait they were chasing
A pod of them came by every fifteen minutes or so
but ALWAYS just out of casting distance - bugger!

Worse still I lost (i.e. fell out of top pocket) my good reading/seeing glasses somewhere along the way, despite retracing my steps a few times looking for them (that pissed off the the wife and my chances of a few hundred bucks of tying materials I had been earning brownie points for!)

Then had a great chin wag around the fire Saturday night with mate Steve and his wife
Went to bed early and woke up just before dawn

I hadn't brought the boat due to my fishing funk, and forecast of lots of wind
So I walked along the rocks and beaches north of Dundee lodge
High tide was a couple of hours away and the packs of pelagics were there again moving along the beach heading north

As the sun poked its head over the dunes behind me, the wind started to pick up too.

There were the occasional free jumping mackerel in closer than the trevally and queenfish packs
And I managed to get one small one

The water was quite nice in close but fairly choppy offshore - so I was glad I hadn't brought the boat and paid the $30 for launching assistance by the tractor at the boat ramp - even if I could have fished close due to the wind direction, but the further you got from shore, the bigger the waves - so glad I hadn't launched the boat - bit to much of a hassle for this old bloke (isn't that a sad statement!!!)

And there really didn't seem to be any concentration of fish to target anyway - well that could be seen from the beach at least
But the water looked good at the very least

I did think about fishing on Monday in the local Darwin harbour but the wind has been fairly constant lately
10-15 most mornings and getting stronger till about 3-4pm, tapering off to almost calm in the evenings
but without navigation lights I haven't ventured out.
I might have to if the strong wind keeps ruining most mornings!

See - I am getting soft and spoiled  - If the wind is up - I am not up to it to go SWOFFING
If things continue in this vein, I might even need one of those blue tablets to get things up (so horrible the thought!!!)

There was a time when the wind wasn't even a factor in my fishing except for in the choice of location to fish
Maybe its because I know how good the fishing can be here in Darwin and if the conditions are not quite right this week they will be next week.

Here's hoping for next week!
See you on the water

New boat for Deckie, making me the new deckie!

Well Peter finally got jack of my boat falling to pieces and bought his own

we are planning some more remote trips with his more reliable and younger boat, motor and everything else
we may take both boats for added safety too - Vernons, Perons and Coburg even!

We popped out in the new boat into local harbour last weekend
Tides looked awesome!
A little windy - too much for my boat but Peter's has higher sides and has a better dead rise
So lucky we had his new boat

We visited all the usual places ( but time constraints didn't see us get as far as Lee Point)
All for just a few Trevally the size of my hand

We put it down to the poor timing of rain the night before - first time in 8 weeks and a fair bit too
Fish were seen in sounder hugging bottom but we couldn't interest them
On Wednesday there were reports of a pleura of baitfish
We hardly saw one on the weekend !

Still good to get out and test Peter's boat
Handled the ugly wave chop the harbour was serving up to us with ease

I only had half a day due to school reports needing to be completed by the next day
So we were back at Dinah Beach ramp just after midday
Peter's wife met us there and we swapped places - and they headed back out into the harbour and I went home to write some reports

So harbour zip, a few weeks before - Bynoe zip too fish wise.

Was this a trend?
Was it due to my pride of fishing prowess (or lack there of as shown in no fish for quite a while now!)

Anyway.......
Always the optimistic....

I am currently planning a trip to Bynoe for this weekend as a bit of business Saturday morning and will spend night at a mate's place on Dundee Beach for Saturday night
A long weekend too but I can only do Sunday fishing for myself
As wife wants a boating trip for the family on Monday and a picnic on a remote beach on the other side of Darwin harbour

Tides don't seem too bad with a 2.5m low at 3pm and a high of 6.9m at 9:10am
Plenty of movement. Hope water as clear as last time
Will head out of Six Pack Arm boat ramp just before dawn -
don't have wind forecast yet so that might change

Let's hope Bynoe has some fish willing to take the fly this weekend !
Trip report to follow..........