greatwhitehunter

I have read Scratchie's notes and have recently moved to Corlette. I have a 50hp engine on a 5 metre boat - its nothing flash, a little underpowered and I wont be going offshore in a hurry because I dont trust my boat or seamanship well enough to handle big seas - maybe short runs offshore on dead calm days sometime in the future - so hoping to find some good places to catch fish in the Bay. I love fishing and I put in a lot of effort, but the results suggests I am pretty sh@t at it which is disappointing but true I have fished the Bay maybe 50 times in the past - but a lot of that was pre-Marine Park - and most of the hotspots I used to fish are now sanctuary zones. I don't fancy $500+ fines or losing my boat or gear - so I need to learn new places and ways to fish. Scratchie's notes and the attached comments are very useful. I'd love to take Scratchie out on my boat some day as I am sure I'd learn a hell of a lot in just a day. I probably do more wrong than right and I am sure some of the things I do are plain idiotic. I have a lot of questions. These are my most burning ones: * best land based prawning spot on southern side of the bay? * best boat based prawning spot on southern side of the bay? * how do i find "the wreck" in Corlette and when I do, what side of it do I fish? * best places to catch mud crabs? * best rigs/baits/times/locations for fishing the Nelson Bay breakwall from the boat? * best places to catch squid (Shoal Bay moorings but where else?) ? * Any daytime places for squid? * tips on dealing with getting around the bay on windy days and best places to fish on windy days? * Best way/rigs/bait/etc to fish the island just north of Soldiers Point ramp? * Are shovel-nosed rays actually good eating? (Fish markets poster rates them above snapper??) * Recommended trailer/outboard/marine electricans on the southern side of the bay * What breed are the small sharks (mostly around 1 metre or so) that I keep catching when I use pilchards near Jimmy's Beach or the breakwall? Are they worth eating? I've caught maybe a dozen but let them all go.