Parts of Crab - phase two

So while parts are drying - here's an update
Yesterday arvo, I put together 10 sets of crab claws

I then tested my ideas for the base of the crab

The crab fly base to which every thing else gets glued
A bent long shank hook each side - add eyes (glass bead on mono) and deer hair fibres for mouth
was thinking of a glass rattle in there but can't find them in my tying material boxes

Sadly on testing to see if the claws move freely - I find the space of hook eye of the claw hook is too small for the metal that makes up the hook eye of the crab base structure - bugger!

Solution --- small split ring? (thanks Sam for the idea)
Don't know if it will work yet as need to get a very small split ring
Its a great advantage posing a question online and getting multiple answers to help

Back to the making the legs..........
Originally I was thinking of buying pre made store bought latex legs for the crabs
But might as well buy the entire fly or a lure and fish the dark side than do that!
If I was tying commercially - (20 years ago I did! - so silly!) - I would buy the preformed legs as much quicker to tie with and will do the job - but for me, for personal use - make your own.
Plus the monsoon is bucketing down outside and seeing when you can't go fishing -- let's tie flies for when it stops raining

After the rubber legs option was ruled out - I was focusing on the polarfibre based legs which I have written about in my last blog

But I was needing a few items from the shops. First an El Cheapo chemist for some coloured nail polish (hot pink and fluoro orange for the tip of the crab claws), then Bunnings for some black spray paint for the carapace, and lastly - Spotlight - for a bits and pieces like fabric paint in yellow for carapace spots - Serendipitously, I also found some interesting knitting wool from the "Florentine Collection" in Bruno colourings. It was in an odds and ends bin on special.

A bit thicker than I wanted for the sized crab I wanted to make, but if you cut it in the right places you could have a bi-coloured claw
A bit too flexible - but I think I had a solution for that.
I could not resist it - the colours where just right for local crab species - plus it was only a $1.40 for the ball of wool - so why not!
Also bought a crocheting needle for making the 'knee' knots so much easier.

So spent the evening cutting and sorting according to colour of tip and arm sections
I cut it all up and bagged it in groups in zip lock sandwich bags based on colour combos
A large ball of wool but couldn't stop till it was all cut up - caught up on TV shows online while I was doing it!

Then today I started to work on a set of legs for the 10x crab flies I am making
So chose a leg colour combo of dark brown arm and orange tip
Tied 'knee' knots in all of that colour (about 300 pieces), then took 60 of those knotted legs to work on for today

To stiffen up the legs - I used thinned clear silicone
This is made by putting the silicone in a container (a film canister for me) add enough mineral turps and stir thoroughly with something (a skewer for me) until the mixture is the consistency of condense milk or similar fluid. it stays quite separate in the container but keep stirring it will eventual meld into a single fluid.

I rubbed the silicone into material with my finger tips - right into the wool - and then smoothed the material and shaped a right angle into the material - bending at the knot and placed the legs on a stick proof baking tray. Once dry, they will be trimmed to size (they are a lot bigger than the polarfibre legs I was making).

this size issue creates dilemmas on top of dilemmas. Make one change for something not planned for and it ripples down the production line!

Tying these types of flies are so different to the simple coverall candies and clousers I turn out in bulk for local pelagics. But as I have posted previously that 2017 is hoped to be a time to step up the SWOFFING a level - more flats and while some flies will always work - more realistic flies will be needed too.

And while complicated and having multiple steps these crab flies I am tying will be worth it on that first fish that tips onto top of it to take the fly into its mouth. I felt the same when trout fly fishing many years ago - a simple red tag or red spinner or a nymph I used to make out of my orange moustache hair and the orange thigh fur of my ex's favourite cat! I hated more complicated flies due to my fat fingers which would bend the tiny hook as I tied material to them, but I tied them anyway cause it elevated the whole experience.

Stay tuned - more complicated time eating steps to follow  

First Makings of My Crab Fly

So starting first attempts at claws and legs, getting proportions right
Even testing the floating claws for buoyancy - neutrality
There has been lots of research and reading
And exchanges in Messenger App with other Darwin fly tyers - which has been good - shortens the learning curve
(thanks Sam!)

For the legs I am using some mottled polarfibre others that I am chatting with are using chenille
Had two lengths of fibres in the material box.

The short one would have worked but length made it harder to tie 'knee' knot. The longer fibres were easily trimmed once knot in place

Once tied I placed them on a drawing of my crab to ensure the size was right

Need more thinned silicone on the fibres to hold them together more  - will also give them that stiff leg action if slightly moved across sand/mud to get a fish's attention.

Placed a piece of sticky tape on them to keep the group together for later use - 9 more sets to go!

Next I used some thin black foam and cut a bow tie from it - note proportions to the hook size

This was then tied gurgler style to sides of shank of a small hook.

Then trimmed for claws and sides super glued together. 

Still got to paint one of the claw tips a bright colour - like it is on most natural crabs
9x more sets to go!

I tied a line to the hook and a sinker the other end to ensure it floated despite the hook weight. but not too buoyant as it would effect the sink rate of the fly - so this sort of testing gets that balance right

That's all so far - more to come!

Stay tuned

First Crab thoughts.....

So there's an awesome thread starting on the Australia Saltwater fly Forum website
http://www.saltwaterflyfishing.com.au/board/threads/permit-crabs.17006/

Focusing on crabs used for permit - but if fussy permit will take them - I am sure other crab eating species will too
Here are two images of crab flies from that forum thread -
So many talented tyers out there to inspire us!

Dont think mine will be of hte calibre above but no harm in trying and testing what ever comes off the tying vice.
So based on the info and inspiration from these learned SWOFFERS and what they have shared - I have started to design my own
Most crabs I have seen up here are predominantly black but there are others in the full range of colours - some tan with orange bits, ones with blue claws, ones with purple or red parts - but I think I will focus on black with bits of colour, for even ten black crabs I make, I will probably make four or so tan ones.

Here is my drawings and scribbles of my thoughts based on the materials I have on hand and a tying sequence of sorts

Here goes. Updates and pics later

Hopefully some captures on the flies in the New Year as well

Some of the local SWOFFERS here in Darwin are focusing on the rumours of permit within reach of day trips in Darwin region - which sounds very interesting and promising

Should be an interesting 2017!

Happy tidings for the festive season everyone.

Whats next in 2017?..................

So picking up the new (read second hand) aluminium trailer within a week (hopefully as
deposit is paid and now waiting on the sellers new trailer to arrive)

Next job is switch over the jockey wheel with my old trailer (its in better nick)
Then a little wiring but no rush on that with the old light board off old boat/trailer available

Then its a trip to marine mechanic - tune and service the motor, look at the motor ram (the bit that puts motor up and down that currently does nothing)
Finally, install new electric motor, install new sounder/GPS unit
Got to get a 2mp charge for deep cell - told by charging slowly the battery lasts longer (?????)

Have plenty of time over the next few weeks as I start school holidays as of this weekend and a heap of severance pay to pay for it all (starting at new school in new year)
(well wife taking most of last payday at this school for our rural block and building house starts in May)
But the bit of it that I get - should be enough to get boat on the water!

This week, I have also been showing my replacements at my current school how to do the things I do. One of those tasks was how to make a wooden jewellery or nick-nack box. A great project for students with hardly any skills with their hands. When I was at school 30 years ago it was one or two students per class who did not have the skills to make something. With the students I teach today, it is only one or two per class that I can trust with a hammer or tenon saw - very sad!

The advantage of showing this project to the new teacher all the "how to's" of making the boxes - being the boxes I made with them will end up as my fly boxes for on the boat.

Fun to make and so easy to make but vastly variable for many types of needs.
I also spiced mine boxes up with a few pencil drawings on the lids. I do a bit of water colours (not for a while) but never been one to do something from scratch so in this case copied an online design or two off some excellent artists - don't sell them so that might be OK, "oh well" if its not! It's hard to quote and reference the drawing right on the wooden box.

Now the task is to fill them up...............................
But what to tie????

Throughout 2017 I am looking at being more deliberate about my flats fishing - basically more of it!

Over the last seven years that I have been in Darwin, I have been lucky enough to catch a plethora of pelagics - queenfish, macks and trevs but although some trips we only get a couple, on other trips it is almost too easy to catch fifty plus fish under the right conditions. With the occasionally over-sized specimen mixed in to keep me on my toes.

So dedicated time (investigative and lots casting to learn what I don't) for flats species specifically with so many good flats species up here in Darwin and surrounds - milkies, bluebones, bastards, Barra (my nemesis fish), blue salmon, threadies, Jacks and more. Inspiring and most exciting, is being told of (and seen but not caught) the occasional permit at a couple of Spot Xs, also rumours of bonefish on some of the outer islands of Bynoe Harbour and similar type locations like near Dundee, Perons and Vernons (top of Tiwis too) - so must be more fish out there as viable targets - if it is focused on. Heaps of reef type flats too next to deep water.

Most fishermen (fisher-persons) up here - bait danglers, lure tossers, and in part fly fishers - fish for jewfish, golden snapper, and barra (particularly) as their ("be all to end all") primary targets - yet so many more species at different phases of the tide if you change your viewpoint.

Soooooo much to learn, to explore and so many possibilities for such good sight Swoffing - in 2017!

So to fill up the freshly made boxes - it is crab shrimp and such flies to be made (tying blog entries posted as they are designed, made and tested). A few bits of pre-work too, in eyes, claws, bodies, dubbing brushes, and other fly parts can be made before the final fly creations are complete.

Quite exciting really - so much anticipation of what is to come, the tying, let alone the Swoffing!
Yes, many hot days in the sun in skinny water (need a push pole)...........

But who wouldn't want to see a subtle fish cruising through the water oblivious to you (for the moment),
Cast the perfect fly you made yourself to it,
Watch the fish react positively to the fly
(yes, many will be negatively reacting towards the noises I make, the poor approaches made and flies cast on to their heads too!)
But that one reaction,
That one take,
That first response to the hook point sliding home,
That first moment of desperate rush with the zipping line rooster-tailing across the flat

That will make it all worth it! 

Might even get one to the enviro-net for a photo and release

Cant wait for the journey and the ride!
Want to come along!
Lets go!

GT banger popper - the making of

So I was hoping to catch big fish a while ago at the Vernon Islands but no fish showed up - let alone big ones

Since then I have been going to make some Bob's Bangers type flies for this use of attracting big fish with a big surface fly

I ended up making a jointed popper fly (a bastardized version of Bob's Banger) - basically a 6/0 seaducer off the back and foam head with plenty of bling up front (details and images below)

Its a bit rough (very rough!) but here's what I did and the fish don't seem to mind the rougher edges of this fly compared to a beautiful symmetrical carved popper (see video of its use at end of this blog entry)

First I shaped up some foam off a foam kick board - so much cheaper then buying foam sheeting
I couldn't find a metal cylinder the right size to sharpen to punch out a few nicely formed cylinders of foam - so shaped them with a razor blade out of a craft knife

Wrapped the foam in gold tinsel
Colour the face with a red permanent marker

I punched a hole through the middle and placed them on a skewer for the next step








Covered all this with epoxy and added an stick on prism eye

I would have liked bigger eyes and eyes more contrasting to the tinsel wrapped around the head - but you work with what you have sometimes
Add a light coating of epoxy over the eyes

While all that dries on the rotary drying device.........
.........I then focus on dressing the rear hook section

Working from the hook bend to the hook eye - add........

 




Craft fur, feathers flaring outwards (so they pulse when you strip and stop the fly through the water), and then extra long ice chenille,  and you are done with rear hook

Attach the rear hook to the Waddington shank
I wrap this shank with thread to ensure it doesn't come apart in a fight












I cover the thread on waddington shank with epoxy and slide on the prepared foam cylinder
and your done (after it dries of course)

When in the water the popper part is in surface and the hook part is hanging down  as it swings on the rear Waddington eyelet (found it gives a better hook up rate)  - the materials of the rear hook are very subtle in their movement and flash helps too

Get it wet next time your are fly fishing - enjoy a big bloop and an awesome surface strike

The Stig

Early Start - late finish

For this weekends fishing trip, I asked for a 4am start - but was given 4:30am by Peter as our load the boat time frame - (he likes his sleep ins! and me, well I am a morning person!)

So I should have asked for a 3:30am start and I may have got the 4am start I hoped for!
(but then again when Peter is really tired, he reverts to the side of the road he grew up driving on! Like once we were launching early at Bynoe - lol)

Peter has been very keen lately for exploring and seeing what we could find at a new location
More species- maybe some big fish! and while I love just catching fish - I could do with a new location, more species and a big fish or two if the fishing gods are smiling upon me
So we thought an offshore location to start with was our first option and few spots in the harbour after if the wind came up stronger

So with a few GPS marks from a new website I found - we head off - launching by 5:15am at Dinah's.
But when we get near we see the GPS marks are not worth S#@T - one was in the middle of Melville Island ! Lesson to be learnt: Always double check those wonderful GPS marks you are given before you head out!!! (while not this time but especially ones from the 'dodgy fly tier' we all know, whose 'local' GPS suggestions are usually in Siberia somewhere!)

We still give the area a good search.
however, nothing shows on the sounder or is seen in the surface water for as far as we can see
We troll (dark side), we seek, we troll, we seek
I go to sleep - snoozing while Peter works hard to find reef, structure or fish on the surface
Peter has a few goes at knife jigging on sub-water humps 70-80 feet down - the only result is he gets a bit sweating with all that exercise and winding.

We start to travel back to Lee Point - shortly after we find patches of really muddy water as the tidal current starts to really get flowing after the high tide at 8:20am or so
We find plenty of algae scum on the surface too but no milkies hoovering it
No bait schools, no pelagics harassing them

We continue trolling dark side back to Lee Point in hope of a stray big mack - a needle in a very large haystack so to speak

Off to our left I spy a flash of something floating in the water in the choppy waves
We circle back to have a look
It looks like a dead fish floating on the surface in amongst the algae surface scum

Peter casts his big knife jig near it - it does nothing.
Despite my bagging him about it never reacting to the lure - he casts again
Is it actually dead?
But no - proving me wrong again - the fish chases the big lure across the surface to right near the boat
Before it dives out of sight and we think its over
But a few moments later we spy it again playing doggo on the surface a little further away

This wakes me up from my stupor of trolling lures - instantly
I grab a rigged fly rod - an intermediate line on an 8w with a silicone surf candy on it and start casting furiously
This with quite poorly casting skills sets on display - much to Peter's enjoyment! the sledging was on big time!

I eventually get the fish to follow the candy cast past it and allowed to sink a touch - but after a few meters following the fly it again dives deep out of sight. But then reappears 50m away laying on its side just under the water surface, like it is sunny itself (been told they act dead to attract small baitfish who shelter under its shade - then catches and eats them??)
I change over to a small shrimp pattern size #1 and start casting again
Peter suggests some casting practice to a plate in the backyard - thanks Pete!

About the 10th cast later (trust me as I am sure Peter was counting every bad cast aloud!) the fly placement is finally perfect and it reacts and swoops on the fly
The fish was U-G-L-Y! to also say the least (like chew your arm off ugly, so you don't wake it)

It turned out to be a 48cm Tripletail
The fight was a little weak to say the least in my opinion (in some web sties it speaks of good fight and lots of leaps that tripletails are capable of )
A few quick photos and release - and we continue on our journey to Lee Point - sadly nothing seen for the 20+km ride back to Lee Point (9news fishing segment Sunday night said Fenton patches good for macks - liars!)

When we arrive we see heaps of bust ups around our favourite spot at Lee Point
The tide is dropping and the reef is almost exposed
The predators are chasing the baitfish right over the reef - exposing their bodies as they do so
So it was very easy to know where to cast!

Peter handle mine and his in the mad rush of heaps of fish for the first time that day

We catch a range of fish - once I get three species in three casts - Mack first, then Brassie, then Queenfish
All are small though (sub 50cm - most sub 40s!), so as the tide continues to drop out we search the other reefs between Lee Point and the entrance of Buffalo Creek.

The fishing is really slow but we eventually find some macks and queenies (40-50cm) around a reef barely covered by the tide about 2km east of Lee Point proper.
The bait are holding to the top of this small patch of reef for safety but the predators really slam into them every now and then. We chase them about for a while

A lure tosser and his girlfriend in a nice bikini show up in a hornet(?) - see our bent rods and stop near us - but they are tossing big trolling lures and the baitfish are a fifth of the size of the lure - so they catch nothing - despite casting their lures almost into our boat - as if that is the reason we are catching fish and they are not!

Then we spy three or four large black smudges spread out over a small area, travelling along with the tidal flow towards Lee Point
Really tight bait balls travelling with tide in about 3m of water
The bait are harassed by a few predators and we follow - we get a few, we chase a lot!

Not too much happening at Lee Point as we drift towards it - so we motor to East Point hoping the current lines will concentrate the fish/bait into a more consistent activity location as this area has done many times in the past

Passing the shallow reef between Lee Point and Nightcliffe - we see more baitfish than we have seen in long time. the black slick was audible as it moved along. This one 'patch' of bait would have been 20-30m wide and 150-200m long - quite amazing how much there was!

Interestingly, hardly a predator was harassing them, there were a few we chased but the broad open area they were in meant they were very hard to get close to and to get a cast to.The massive amount of bait in such a tight group and the noise they were making as they bubbled the surface, could have been intimidating to the predators maybe ?

We continued our travels towards East Point
About halfway from Nightcliffe to East Point, we see massive amounts of birds working but under the birds it is just those one of those large schools of long finned trevally (20cm max) - more often then not any surface action in this particular area is usually these small trevally.
Once we identify them by their smaller splashes, we drive past them onwards and towards East Point

Here we find lots, and I mean lots, of birds working again but larger slashes under them
Peter seems to have the mojo touch today and is getting a fish almost every cast even when he not really trying but myself and my results indicate my mojo is no where to be found! I experience many, many lost fish, countless short takes at the fly, a plethora of hits on the fly just as you let the flyline go to grab the next strip of line! Come on you have all experienced that! Probably not as much as I did this trip! Uuuggghhh!!!!!

Once we were using the same fly (two that I had made!), we cast almost parallel to each other (i.e. same location), same brand and type of fly line, different brand of rods yes but....., and using the same strip........ and ...............

He was getting fish and I didn't!
This repeated several times mind you!
Talk about no mojo for the Stig! (and mega mojo for Peter!)

We chase a few groups of predators working the area wide of East Point hoping for bigger fish but they are flighty and moving fast. We arrive in perfect wind drift position and they still disappear (Peter still manages a few though!)

We eventual tuck ourselves inside the up current side of East Point. Here the baitfish are trapped against the rocks - the birds and predators are going nuts

You would grab a hooked and played out fish at side of the boat, take out the barbless fly, toss the fly back into the water and then the fish  - and already the rod tip is bent over and the fly line would be zinging away as another fish had taken the fly as it just sat in the water at the side of the boat!

We have a great time catching fish after fish - well - Peter gets three to the one I get, that is!
Peter wanted bigger fish today but I needed a few for Marine science class  (dissection day!)
The sun was setting, it was a long day but it was great to get amongst heaps of fish
Peter accommodated my need over his - on ya Peter!

We have multiple double hookups with the picturesque Darwin Harbour sunset surrounded by dark storm clouds as a backdrop to our fun  -who'd want to live any where else????? (except maybe those northern seychelle islands!)

One time, I break a leader off my sinking line with one strong fish, and rather than tie on another leader and fly, I grab the intermediate rod/line combo I used to catch the tripletail earlier in the day - and get straight back into it the very next cast.

We are surrounded by several hundred birds and what must be thousands of queenfish in the 50-60cm size range.
In those last 30 minutes we easily caught 20 or so fish between us
simple role cast distance from boat, a couple of strips and on
In front of a few other boats catching squat on bait and lure, I might add!!
Go the fly!!!

With the fish still going crazy as the last rays of sunlight lit up the colourings of the cliffs and rocks at East Point - and after a very long day we finally headed to the ramp around 6:30 - a very long day indeed

Peters phone camera takes great shots!

So.................
Where to next??
What to tie for that location and the fish you hope to catch??

Have a heap of student reports to write by monday - so no fishing this weekend -= maybe next weekend? always planning - always keen!

Get out there you SWOFFERS!
You might not get the size and/or type of fish you planned to get
But keep looking - then have some fun with 'bread and butter' predators in Darwin Harbour at least!
And if you keep casting like Peter always is - you might get a that big one eventually, like Peter does regular (but not lately!)

20161105 - Darwin Harbour trip report

With no planning with Peter for fishing the weekend - I was planning to be working on my rural block getting it ready for plowing and seeding. It had to be done but so boring!

But I get a message late Friday night - "you want to go fishing?"

Is the pope catholic?
Does a bear shit in the woods?
(or is is the pope shitting and the bear catholic?)

Regardless - my very quick message response was
 "I am already packed and ready to go - c u at 5:15am your place!"

Its a very calm morning at the ramp, heaps of boats launching

We motor straight out to Weed Reef first as reports earlier in the week were very encouraging
The tide is still coming in til after 8am, less run too

We get a few little ones but nothing goes off like our last trip, nor like the morning trip for fellow Swoffers earlier this week

first hook up

For Weed Reef - I reckon it has to do with the timing of the coincidence of the run out tide and dawn - and by the time sun up higher in the sky its all over

The calm conditions and massive sun made fishing hot and sweaty - man that sun has some kick!
So after waiting as long as we can for the fish to pop - we head off for newer waters and get an ever thankful breeze across sweaty shirts to cool us down as we skip along the water

Nothing showing at Mandorah, so head across towards East Point.
Half way we verge off line towards a red buoy I have had success at other times
Here we have water 30+m deep and as the water surges out of the harbour - it hits a plateau that is only 15m or so deep. This cause the water to compact pushing upwards and thus concentrating the baitfish moving along with the out going tide

The queenfish were there in numbers if a bit patchy in their appearance. with only a few birds indicating their presence when nothing slashing the surface.

As the mud clouds rolled through with the tide the bait would be on the edges of these clouds and the predators when finding them would go nuts. A cast would be made into this mayhem and an ensuing hookup would occur. No major size - 45-55cm mostly. But after a few hours of nothingness at Weed Reef - so much fun!!!!!!!

It was a bit choppy in this location due to the disturbed water but at times you could see the queenfish body surfing the waves. then you could lead them with a cast, followed by a quick strip and you would be on. Peter got the best fish of the day 71cm with this type of approached. I spotted the fish, Peter made the perfect cast (I had just cast to a different location just before I saw the fish in the wave), almost instantly Peter came up tight and an extended fight ensued.

Now I know we have been catching lots of fish lately and I know it was a hot day, we are both getting thicker in the middle and less fit as each year passes - but Peter needs to work more on his enthusiasm when fighting the fish - he is getting a little lazy with his feet up at times.

The fishing at the red buoy quietened down as the tide bottomed out - so we move on to find more active fish

We find more queenfish 500m out from East Point and worked the schools as they zipped about chasing concentrations of bait. We follow the large number of birds over the top of them and pay attention to their movements to show us where to cast in the hope of a better return rate for effort in the cast.

With the electric running out of battery and a few fish in the esky for some old people around my place - plus an increasing wind - we head back into the harbour towards the Dinah Beach boat ramp.

with it being just after midday, we stop off at the Stokes Hill Wharf for a pit stop of a steak sandwich and chips - awesome - canopy up, nice meal, great scenery! What a great harbour we have at our doorstep. Fighting fish one moment and a few minutes later a hot meal - and then after that more options for fishing only a few more minutes away!

We have time before enough water at ramp - so check out Shelly - this location needs a heap of water rushing in past the northern tip to really fire - which it wasn't!. We check out the gas platform supply wharf but nothing but tight small balls of tiny baitfish. I get a couple more queenies at the drop off into deeper water but increasing heat and wind plus no fish makes it hard fishing and casting - so we head back towards Stokes Hill Wharf.

Nothing else seen along the way and when we arrive at ramp there isn't enough water to even float a 2.9 tinny with oars, doesn't stop some from trying to get their boats out. One big greek boat (lots of flags and a boat wrap to indicate the country of origin of its occupants), one of those aluminium pontoon style boats with a 250-300hp outboard churning up the 30cm of water at the ramp edge to get his boat on the trailer. Mud, small rocks and water go it all directions and it eventually gets on the trailer. Wonder what damage that had done to his prop??

Another guy is seen towing his boat along walking through the waist deep water (at times shoulder deep). He started back at the rock bar out from the lock of the housing estate next to ramp and Peter filmed the whole episode hoping for something to sell to Channel9 especially if the guy got taken by something in his walk through the water and mud (macabre voyeurs we were). Talk about Darwin Awards and comedy capers. His later attempts to get the trailer down the ramp were comical at the very least as too taking out the entire two lane ramp for backing and the many attempts to get the boat on the trailer.

We anchor amongst a few other sport fisherman who known better and are waiting near the 5knot buoy for more water at the ramp. However, when there was enough water, the etiquette of late comers after us and about five others, was quite selfish taking up the entire dock while they ever so slowly chatted with others and eventual left to get their trailers from the carpark - totally ignoring the queue of boats as they drive pass us waiting for our turn after the greek boat and the guy towing his boat through the mud to get off ramp.

We stay calm and collected, no raging and yelling like others and eventually we are out of the water by 4:30pm (got to ramp at around 3pm)

The boat was cleaned and the fish we kept handed out to friends not long after

I must say how thankful I am to have a mate like Peter, we vent and dump our week to each other while fishing, we work well fishing and casting our fly rods at the same time with out too much mayhem and tangles - and if it hadn't have been for him and his boat while my boat (trailer!) has been out of action - I  think I would have gone off the deep end - Thanks Peter!

It is good when you find the guy who you can fish with regularly with getting (too much) on each others nerves. 5 years we have been fishing together now, no blood spilt yet! (touch wood!)

So when and where next????????????

Looking forward to the completion of the new ramp at Dundee Beach, hope to do a few more trips to the Peron's and beyond after the wet season. those creeks they feed into Anson bay south of the Peron's need more attention, maybe staying over night protected in one of the Peron island bays.

As always more flies need to be tied, where's that new material I got recently hiding on my fly tying desk???...................
 
Until next time - please remember - 100% fly fishing always!

Weed Reef for an hour

During the week, regular SWOFFING partner, Peter, and I planned a day on Darwin Harbour over the weekend
The wind was forecast to be better (that is less of it) on Sunday but both of us had plans for that day
So Saturday was the day - wind was predicted to increase from 10am to 15-20knots

There would also be lots of water movement on the tide flow but it was a high tide at dawn which can be exciting fishing at a few of the Darwin Harbour hotspots we have come to know quite well over the last seven years of SWOFFING the local waters here in the top end.
We thought we could fish the top of tide for pelagic predators (queens and trevs), then hit the creeks and drains during bottom of tide at midday (maybe catch the million dollar barra - Peter not me - remember they are my nemisis fish).

But maybe we should have planned for just a few hours and came home..............(read on)

view from Dinah Beach Ramp as we launch

The dawn was spectacular as we zipped along dead calm water towards Weed Reef
The sun a brilliant colour in the early morning haze

great sunrise as we head across the harbour

As soon as we get to Weed we see surface action - awesome!

almost there! anticipation is high!

It was awesome to see so many fish viciously whipping across the surface of calm water, chasing the poor little baitfish
The location of the predators was the usual riffle of water at the tidal out flow compacted over the gravel bar

first cast first hook up of morning

Using fast sinking lines, we started with two different flies - Rodgy Dodgy big eye minnows for Peter and a silicone surf candies for me - both of us caught multiple fish. a mixture of Queenfish, Golden trevs and Brassies to 50cm. The bigger trevs were lots of fun! So strong! The Goldens were hooked mostly from gravel bar, while the Trevs and Queens were mostly hooked in the area in front of the gravel bar. always exceptions to the rule but all very enjoyable! We also had fun keeping the hooked fish away for the occasional four to five foot long shark - none got bitten but close a few times - we let them run and then get the line back once the shark exited the area.

See the edge of clam and riffle behind Peter (using a big fly and his 12w just in case a big one about!) 

The predators will travel along the gravel bar searching for baitfish moving toward them with the tidal flow or hide in the water covered mangroves till bait schools come past to then rush out and aggressively feed after which slink back to the sunken trees or the riffle line. At times their passionate and ferocious feeding takes them over the gravel bar moving with the tidal flow but they soon come back to the prime feeding areas

tossing a little one back, can you see the bust ups between boat and gravel bar to left of mangroves

Next cast hooked up again

Double hook up this time!

We anchored the boat in the very fast tidal flow with Peter's 24 volt 80lb thrust electric motor (awesome bit of machinery!!) - within casting distance of the tree tops and casting distance of the gravel bar. We could then cast sideways, let the fly sink and drift towards the gravel bar then retrieve fast when line at 45 degrees to boat.

After several fish to hand using the silicone surf candies I tie and like so much for harbour predators, I switched over to a salt water gurgler - foam back, ice chenille body and synthetic tail - simple but highly effective fly when saltwater predators are zeroed in on surface feeding action - especially in the shallow water of Weed Reef.

Crazy Gurgler - Foam backed, Pearl Ice Chenille, synthetic tail (the red is from the last fish that ate it and bled a little)

On this morning in the shallow clear waters of Weed Reef, I could see the fish actually chase the fly as it was cast over them, you could see their wake and bulging surge towards the surface fly then hitting it and sometimes hooking themselves as soon as the fly landed. Rarely did the surface fly not get some serious interest in just one or two strips of the fly line. Soooo much fin!

Watch the surface fly action here -

Land - hit 

Strip - hit

Strip - Hit!

Strip - take

Yeeehaaah!!

Then before we even knew it - the action was over - the water so calm on one side of the gravel bar and so riffled on the down tide side. And no real action could be seen anywhere on the reef flats - amazing after so much action for the last hour and a half!

With a few more hours till the tide phase we planned to hit the creeks, we then ventured to a few other harbour pelagic hotspots. But nothing at the entrance to Cullen bay - like for others during the week, or the smaller Kaitlyn bay near it. Next we found a few birds working up current of East Point but no luck there. Finally at Lee Point we were quite confounded at nothing really showing any where. I got a couple of 40cm macks but not much else showing or in return for plenty of casts. Then the wind started increasing - it was all getting a bit depressing no fish, very hot and lots of wind about to visit.

We cut across the harbour to Mandorah to get out of the wind and work our way to West Arm. But wind kept chasing us.  We park the boat outside the T bar south of Mandorah Jetty put up the canopy to protect us for the hot sun straight up in the sky.

Peter has one of his gigantic made on the spot salad sandwiches and I have a 'nanna nap' on the front deck.

But then we decide to call it a day - it is so very hot, additionally the wind really howling right up the harbour with multiple white wave caps the clear indicator of the high wind speed.
The ride across the harbour was very wet and bumpy - no fun at all!
After that ugly ride, we had the boat on the trailer at 2:30pm (plenty of water at Dinah Beach Ramp) and had it cleaned and emptied back at Peter's place quite quickly.

We both agreed that in hindsight we should have came straight to ramp after Weed Reef and still got the same results without the bumpy wet ride in mid afternoon. Then again we have caught nothing at Weed and cleaned up with heaps of fish at Lee Point on other trips.

Ok, where and when next?????
Still got flies to tie, a rod guide to get repaired, a boat and trailer to work on, life goes on!