This is my first trip report so might be a bit dodgy but u gotta start somewhere.
Launched from Eimeo boat ramp as usual at 7am to head out the front of bucasia and shoal point with dreams of catching my first legal spanish. Conditions were even better then predicted and just when that smile that cant be taken off starts to creep on I realize I left the proven and prefered $20 lure at home, but recently got an imation lure in the bargain bin for $7 that had seen some water but no fish. I tied on my wire leader and clipped him on threw him out the back thinking i haven't got anything else that size i can troll if this lure is no good. Oh well ill make do with the poppers that haven't caught a fish yet.
As i get out to the first lot or reef i can see plenty of bait on the sounder but no signs of feeding fish or birds in the air anywhere. Nothing has touched the lure for the first half hr but it was all I had and I thought im not gonna change it until I see a bait ball and it not produce. I am yet to try a popper in this situation.
Onwards to the rocks that come out off bucasia beach. Its now been a lil over an hr and the tide is starting to slow before reaching its lowest at 9. I was drifting along in 2m off water casting the shallow diver and working it slowly across the bottom, pausing for it to float back up if it felt like a snag. Two casts and lure has its first fish, a rock cod of roughly 35cm. I was amazed to find a crab barely kicking already in its mouth, it took a lure twice the size of its stomach with a full mouth. Greedy bugger! I took his breakfast and sent him on his way. 6 days ago i caught a 53cm tusk fish and his stomach was full of crab so I thought why not doesn't look like any peligics are around. A few more casts and a stripey or spanish flag of equal length shows his affection for the lure. Send him back and look at the time after a quick photo and its nearing 9 o'clock.
I navigate my way to the outside of the reef and start to troll the edges and a few snags later im nearly at the bommie that gave me two fingermark a week ago in near identical condtions just a bit later in the day. Check the lure swimming correctly, yep. Check the depth, yep. just a lil further to go and my lure will be running over it and BANG! Meters from where i was anticipating a hit and the reel is singing! wow thats a good run i thought might be a spaniard as i swung the kayak around and took the rod. His first run was over and with little drag I suspected another undersize model. Two clicks on the drag and my first bit of pressure on the fish saw him take off peeling line away rather too quickly, a few more clicks and its going faster then before. Ok good fish Dale lock it up! More then half of my 250m of 30pd braid was in the water and all locked up on shimano sahara 4000 this beast was pulling me along and still taking line. By now I could see line on the reel that has never been wet, is this my first spooling? I dunno but im gonna do my best to make sure its not. I put it in the rod holder and start paddling after him. Umm he is still taking line and i think that's the back of the spool. I turn around put the trolling motor on high speed and paddle and finally the drag shuts up. This is all in about 2 mins from strike. Feeling like i may actually have a chance with this fish i pick up the rod and start winding, now able to win some line back, awesome! I turn the motor off and start to make progress on the fish. Nope he doesn't like that another run. This time im ready, as he takes control of the yak again and i can tell which way its heading i turn the motor back on and try to keep up and not loose line. on we went like this which felt like ten but prob more like 5mins and I could tell he was starting to tire. His runs were still hard enough to take line but much shorter and
then I turned him, i did my best to get the little bit of slack line as quickly and smoothly as possible but felt two two head shakes as i did and the line went slack. Oh no, no no no, NO!!!! {Insert favourite profanity here} and repeat louder, repeat louder again and finally cry a little inside. Wind the rest of ur line in. While doing so i started to wonder what gave out. Dodgy knot? cheap split ring? no it was the brand new, brand name wire trace rated at 120pd breaking strain. WTF?!?!
Well that wasnt the end of the day for me determined my luck would change. Loosing my $7 barra lure I put on a smaller lure that has caught a undersized spanish but after that who knows what might happen. It wasnt to be. I repeated the tactic of just outside the reefs and bommies with shallow and middle diving lures for the next hr with no success. Stopping for lunch i deployed some bait. The crab on one rod and a prawn on the other hoping a nice tusk fish would see me home with a feed. Nope several cod and i think lil barracuda over the next several hours and I finally gave up at 12 and headed home. The wind had kicked up a bit and other then a few lil ones getting over the side I stayed mostly dry.
Hope u enjoyed my first report.
A few pics from a great day
Launched from Eimeo boat ramp as usual at 7am to head out the front of bucasia and shoal point with dreams of catching my first legal spanish. Conditions were even better then predicted and just when that smile that cant be taken off starts to creep on I realize I left the proven and prefered $20 lure at home, but recently got an imation lure in the bargain bin for $7 that had seen some water but no fish. I tied on my wire leader and clipped him on threw him out the back thinking i haven't got anything else that size i can troll if this lure is no good. Oh well ill make do with the poppers that haven't caught a fish yet.
As i get out to the first lot or reef i can see plenty of bait on the sounder but no signs of feeding fish or birds in the air anywhere. Nothing has touched the lure for the first half hr but it was all I had and I thought im not gonna change it until I see a bait ball and it not produce. I am yet to try a popper in this situation.
Onwards to the rocks that come out off bucasia beach. Its now been a lil over an hr and the tide is starting to slow before reaching its lowest at 9. I was drifting along in 2m off water casting the shallow diver and working it slowly across the bottom, pausing for it to float back up if it felt like a snag. Two casts and lure has its first fish, a rock cod of roughly 35cm. I was amazed to find a crab barely kicking already in its mouth, it took a lure twice the size of its stomach with a full mouth. Greedy bugger! I took his breakfast and sent him on his way. 6 days ago i caught a 53cm tusk fish and his stomach was full of crab so I thought why not doesn't look like any peligics are around. A few more casts and a stripey or spanish flag of equal length shows his affection for the lure. Send him back and look at the time after a quick photo and its nearing 9 o'clock.
I navigate my way to the outside of the reef and start to troll the edges and a few snags later im nearly at the bommie that gave me two fingermark a week ago in near identical condtions just a bit later in the day. Check the lure swimming correctly, yep. Check the depth, yep. just a lil further to go and my lure will be running over it and BANG! Meters from where i was anticipating a hit and the reel is singing! wow thats a good run i thought might be a spaniard as i swung the kayak around and took the rod. His first run was over and with little drag I suspected another undersize model. Two clicks on the drag and my first bit of pressure on the fish saw him take off peeling line away rather too quickly, a few more clicks and its going faster then before. Ok good fish Dale lock it up! More then half of my 250m of 30pd braid was in the water and all locked up on shimano sahara 4000 this beast was pulling me along and still taking line. By now I could see line on the reel that has never been wet, is this my first spooling? I dunno but im gonna do my best to make sure its not. I put it in the rod holder and start paddling after him. Umm he is still taking line and i think that's the back of the spool. I turn around put the trolling motor on high speed and paddle and finally the drag shuts up. This is all in about 2 mins from strike. Feeling like i may actually have a chance with this fish i pick up the rod and start winding, now able to win some line back, awesome! I turn the motor off and start to make progress on the fish. Nope he doesn't like that another run. This time im ready, as he takes control of the yak again and i can tell which way its heading i turn the motor back on and try to keep up and not loose line. on we went like this which felt like ten but prob more like 5mins and I could tell he was starting to tire. His runs were still hard enough to take line but much shorter and
then I turned him, i did my best to get the little bit of slack line as quickly and smoothly as possible but felt two two head shakes as i did and the line went slack. Oh no, no no no, NO!!!! {Insert favourite profanity here} and repeat louder, repeat louder again and finally cry a little inside. Wind the rest of ur line in. While doing so i started to wonder what gave out. Dodgy knot? cheap split ring? no it was the brand new, brand name wire trace rated at 120pd breaking strain. WTF?!?!
Well that wasnt the end of the day for me determined my luck would change. Loosing my $7 barra lure I put on a smaller lure that has caught a undersized spanish but after that who knows what might happen. It wasnt to be. I repeated the tactic of just outside the reefs and bommies with shallow and middle diving lures for the next hr with no success. Stopping for lunch i deployed some bait. The crab on one rod and a prawn on the other hoping a nice tusk fish would see me home with a feed. Nope several cod and i think lil barracuda over the next several hours and I finally gave up at 12 and headed home. The wind had kicked up a bit and other then a few lil ones getting over the side I stayed mostly dry.
Hope u enjoyed my first report.
A few pics from a great day
