Whatacatch

Well done simda. How do you enjoy the trophy?

Well done guys for releasing those beauties.

Dumb question but how do you troll live yakkas if not down rigging?

Thanks Ian. Currently up at Lightening Ridge and I reckon the guys that hunt for Opals have the same sense of anticipation every time they dig. When we fish we are in it for the hunt and thrill of landing the fish

Congrats Samo. Contrary to the sceptics you can get some fantastic advice here. Keep it going and be the sponge like me learning. Cheers Rich

Lads I always wear a life jacket but my mates and I now are considering upgrading to the helmet as well. I ski and snowboard and don't think twice about the helmet..... Not worth taking the risk

They do get them in the Harbour but perhaps not as regular as kingies. I caught one a few years ago just inside north head. Also picked one up at Long Reef a few weeks ago. Great fighters and good as sushi I as long as you cut them thinly,

Great work. How long did it take to land the successful,king? Also how long do you think the frozen squid last effectively?

Good job on the jewfish. My recent lesson from the fellow raiders is to upgrade the freshness of the bait. Target live yellowtail and live squid. Increases your hit rate

Must say the bacon and eggs went down a treat. Big thanks to BigW for those cheap gas cookers. They make the early mornings awesome to wake up to on the water.

Is it my imagination or are the kings a bit smaller this year?

Baffler - Picked them up near the spit drifting. I have had as many bad days there as good but last Saturday just got lucky..

Belated report from last weekend... Andrew and I headed out Friday night from Roseville in hope of Kingies. We had broken our drought earlier this year with the down rigger and fresh squid but it only makes you hungrier. So we left Roseville about 9pm Friday night. Hit the squiding spot and over the next 2 hours managed to pick up about 20 nice squid between us - they were a bit bigger than usual so we were absolutely stoked. Pulled up stumps and picked up a mooring to bunker down for a few hours sleep. Whilst I was getting the cabin uncluttered Andrew decided to throw out a squid to see if anything was in the deep blue sea. Literally 1 minute later the rod buckles over and I hear "I'm on". He is not the most experienced fisherman (but keen as) and as such is jumping for joy knowing that whatever the fish is it is a keeper. Not long after a beautiful silver fish slides and crokes up next to the boat - not big but he is stoked with a 60cm Jew. The thought of sleep totally disappeared I am in the water with a squid in a matter of seconds. Over the next hour we managed to pull up 5 jews ranging from about 55 to 65cm. Not massive fish but still our esky's are overflowing and we only just started fishing. So with a full stomach and full esky's we attempt some shut-eye. Last Saturday was a cracker and there was no shortage of boats hitting the squidding spots very early. I woke up at 5.30am, pulled out the thermos and made a cup of tea. Absolute beautiful morning and people were making the most of it. With a bait tank full of live squid I was in no hurry to get up. Pulled out the $20 gas burner and started cooking bacon, sausages and eggs. Great way to start the morning. With a full stomach we head out to Long Reef in search of kingfish. We work the reef for a good couple of hours trying drifting, downrigging and anchoring with no luck. Caught a few just legal snapper but with an esky full decide they can live for another day and they go back. By 10.30 we decide to head back to North Head to see if there is any action there. Plenty of boats but not too many reports of kingies. Did manage a few octopus and a flounder but simply enjoyed the morning. By midday we decide to do some downrigging along the shore line. After 5 minutes the line does something strange. Grab the rod and it starts absolutely pealing line. Tighten up the drag and enjoy a good 10min fight. There was only one option as to what it was and it brought a big smile to my face as I start thinking of sashimi kingfish. A successful netting sees an awesome 75cm kingy flapping on the bottom of the boat. Andrew and I swap roles and decide to do another run through. Sure enough same spot and 5 minutes go by and the rod buckles over. Andrew is on to his first big kingfish and jumping for joy. He is awestruck in the strength of these beasts. End result was a fish almost exactly the same size. With that we decide enough is enough. Downrigger comes in and we buzz back to Roseville very very happy campers. Best boating experience I have had. I hope there are better to come and can’t wait to land a meter plus kingy or a tuna over the autumn months.

That would be awesome if you could find something like that.must be people whose trash becomes my treasure. Thanks Kingfisher.

Hopefully that was there resting place