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I spent a week in Wallaroo in May trying to find a kingfish, mainly around the jetty.
I drifted and floated whole slimeys and threw all kinds of SPs and metals about the place while drifting, trolling and at anchor, and never saw one. The trips weren't uneventful though.
The first morning all I brought aboard was a wet pigeon, which I rescued while bumping and scratching my bow on the pylons, getting showered by wheat chaff from above as the workers cleaned the jetty in preparation for a grain ship's arrival. However it didn't bring me the same fortune as it did for Solatree when he rescued one and found the snapper. I went for an evening trip as well, and found some salmon trout so the day wasn't quite a donut.
Tuesday wasn't rough enough to stop a grain ship docking but it was too rough for me, so I chilled out and checked out Point Riley to the north.
Some workers on the jetty on Monday had told me to try the breakwall for kingfish and I figured they were giving me more than a hint about fishing, but when I got the same advice at the Compleat Angler, I decided to give it a go on Wednesday morning. I struck out at the rockwall and marina, and headed back to the jetty. There was a huge cloud of Salmon Trout there but the only things that seemed to be harassing them were the dolphins and I. One of them appeared and grabbed the whole slimey I had under a float at the same time I connected with a salmon trout. Much stress as line peeled off the loosely set reel, but it stopped and mercifully the dolphin had plucked the slimey off the twin snelled circle hooks without hooking itself.
Thursday I headed out for an evening fish at anchor with a tub full of berley. Wind, chop and swell made the anchoring process a bit hairy, but it settled down and I got to collect salmon trout again. I made a paternoster rig with a halco twisty as a sinker after reading one of Ado's offshore reports, and it gave me a couple of triple headers.
Friday morning, I brought berley again but kept the anchor on board and threw lures about the place. Seeing some snapper was a nice change from the salmon trout even if they were all undersize. I did manage to pick up a king george whiting on a 4" nuclear chicken gulp minnow which was cool to see.
Saturday, I had been invited to join Drew, Ian, Mark and Andy on an excursion to another part of Yorkes. It was just what the doctor ordered; a (very pretty) change of scenery from the jetty pylons, good company and lots and lots of hungry, naive snapper that couldn't seem to help themselves near a drifted plastic.
Heading back on Sunday, I got to join the parade of classic cars that had arrived for the Cornish festival. So while I hadn't seen a kingfish, I did at least get to see a Delorean; good trip in all
I had the camera rolling for much of it and captured most of the highlights:
I went with Vimeo here since Youtube blocks it from playing on mobiles, but here's the 'tube if you prefer:
I drifted and floated whole slimeys and threw all kinds of SPs and metals about the place while drifting, trolling and at anchor, and never saw one. The trips weren't uneventful though.
The first morning all I brought aboard was a wet pigeon, which I rescued while bumping and scratching my bow on the pylons, getting showered by wheat chaff from above as the workers cleaned the jetty in preparation for a grain ship's arrival. However it didn't bring me the same fortune as it did for Solatree when he rescued one and found the snapper. I went for an evening trip as well, and found some salmon trout so the day wasn't quite a donut.
Tuesday wasn't rough enough to stop a grain ship docking but it was too rough for me, so I chilled out and checked out Point Riley to the north.
Some workers on the jetty on Monday had told me to try the breakwall for kingfish and I figured they were giving me more than a hint about fishing, but when I got the same advice at the Compleat Angler, I decided to give it a go on Wednesday morning. I struck out at the rockwall and marina, and headed back to the jetty. There was a huge cloud of Salmon Trout there but the only things that seemed to be harassing them were the dolphins and I. One of them appeared and grabbed the whole slimey I had under a float at the same time I connected with a salmon trout. Much stress as line peeled off the loosely set reel, but it stopped and mercifully the dolphin had plucked the slimey off the twin snelled circle hooks without hooking itself.
Thursday I headed out for an evening fish at anchor with a tub full of berley. Wind, chop and swell made the anchoring process a bit hairy, but it settled down and I got to collect salmon trout again. I made a paternoster rig with a halco twisty as a sinker after reading one of Ado's offshore reports, and it gave me a couple of triple headers.
Friday morning, I brought berley again but kept the anchor on board and threw lures about the place. Seeing some snapper was a nice change from the salmon trout even if they were all undersize. I did manage to pick up a king george whiting on a 4" nuclear chicken gulp minnow which was cool to see.
Saturday, I had been invited to join Drew, Ian, Mark and Andy on an excursion to another part of Yorkes. It was just what the doctor ordered; a (very pretty) change of scenery from the jetty pylons, good company and lots and lots of hungry, naive snapper that couldn't seem to help themselves near a drifted plastic.
Heading back on Sunday, I got to join the parade of classic cars that had arrived for the Cornish festival. So while I hadn't seen a kingfish, I did at least get to see a Delorean; good trip in all
I had the camera rolling for much of it and captured most of the highlights:
