This spring has gone down as by far the best season I have ever seen for the "Big girls" in the Basin. As we speak we have managed 12 fish over 90cm since late Sept, and more than that in the 70-90cm range. The aggressive nature of these apex estuary predators had to be seen to believed some days with extraordinary stuff like 90cm plus fish boofing 20cm fish off the surface at our feet. The sheer number of 20-40cm flatties that were predated on by the larger females was staggering. The above mentioned fish hooked by Bob Gray from Erowal Bay followed the small one up before inhaling it. It eventually spat the small one out at the net on two separate occasions before we retrieved the smaller one back to the boat to discover the hooks on the vx blade in her mouth and as such no possible chance of hooking the larger one.
This 72cm flattie ate this 37cm flattie and spat it out in the net!
My 7kg pb on 4lb leader!
Mr Healy was glad he recently moved to Erowal Bay and hooked up with us for a lesson. I believe it was his second flattie on a lure ever.
Aiden McCracken with a cracker. I met Aiden at BCF Penrith with a presentation I did at a club member night. He's very glad they booked a tour.
The "I'm totally stoked" award of the year goes to 12yr old Dylan Pollard. Not only did he catch and release the biggest fish of his life, he ended up on the the cover of the December issue of NSW Fishing Monthly Magazine. Check out my latest south coast report today. In stores now.
Generally speaking the 20 deg temperature mark can see the big ones slow down but as we speak it's 22-24 deg and they're still on the chew to a lesser degree.
Don Hatherly with a new pb on the "old school" flouro orange Mr.Twister he threw out for a laugh. Look what the first cast produced.
As far as the Basin goes it's been fairly consistent. As with all forms of fishing not every day is a diamond, but most days have seen pb's or set goals achieved and we've definitely had a laugh. The real noticeable absence this year has been the bream which have according to my observations had a spawning event in every season this year? The current wet pattern we are experiencing is definitely driving that urge in some way or form. The bream are still here, just not in the big numbers we have experienced in previous years. This situation can change over night and with the new moon this month we should see the surface lure season kick into gear.
Bob Gray from Erowal Bay with 60cm of c&r Basin snapper. One of the very few fish of that size that would be released as most are caught and killed by bait fisho's. This one was caught on an eco-gear zx 40 just after lunch. Bob had dropped 3 croc's in the previous hour in what was one of the all time sessions on the pond.Speaking of which. The whiting have kicked off with a blast. Whilst most fish have been on the small 26-30cm size to start with they have been aggressive and willing to eat the Lucky Craft NW pencil above all else.
BASS, THE RIVER AND YAKS
The yak trailer is finally done and Darryl no longer has to trundle the yaks from his place to the ramp. We now have opened up some serious territory in which to explore. Over summer bass will be the target. The upper Shoalhaven and Tallowa Dam are already producing fish. The first cicada's started singing a week or two ago and so now the surface lure season is officially ON! We have access to private property at the junction of Yalwal Ck and the Shoalhaven River which is stunning country.
Trish Wills with her first ever bass. Small fish like this are helping to ensure the health of the Shoalhaven bass population.
Why not purchase a gift voucher for xmas for that trip of a lifetime.
JERVIS BAY KINGS
They have started. The reality is that the kings are a year round target. During winter they move off to the deeper reefs well offshore. There are also residents around the cliffs, but it's summer that the warm currents bring the bait in close and the fish follow. We had our first session specifically targeting them last week and managed two fish to 74cm. The start of the season can be patchy but all things going according to plan we're set for an amazing summer given the amount of rain which has provided good nutrient for the bait to feed on. I've also acquired a new kingy popper rod (and a stack of poppers and stick baits:) which will be spooled with 50-80lb braid for the job. Lock and load kiddies!
Ian Jameson with the first JB king of the year! Happy days.
Darryl was out at middle ground on the yak as well. Darryl sleeps with his yak!
THERE'S A KEEPER ARRIVING IN DEC!
To top all this off the wife and I are expecting the arrival of grommet number two in early to mid Dec. It will be a challenging month to say the least but we've enlisted the help of family who will be spending the holiday months with us to lend a hand. Needless to say we won't be tossing this one back lol.
I'd also sincerely like to thank all of you who have fished with us this year and helped me personally to live the dream of being a professional guide. It's the best job in the world on it's day but i couldn't do it without your support. Have a very merry xmas and a safe and prosperous new year.
See you on the water some time
Greg Reid
www.bbsf.com.au
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