Ganguddy Goodoo

Enjoyed this. I reckon an under appreciated part of the Australian landscape. Brings all that Australian literature I read as a kid to life. Camping next to an Australian river listening to the sound of the water and the wind in the Casuarinas is just special. And Neil I think you are more technologically savvy than this gen xer.

I wouldn't be surprised is the Capertee was stocked with trout back in the dark ages (legally or illegally as fresh water fishing is popular in Lithgow/Oberon/Mudgee). i've been down the Wolgan and its major tributaries like Annie Rowan and Rocky Creek a bit over the years and can't recall seeing any trout (wasn't looking though and often travelling downstream). Very different to the tributaries of other blue mountains rivers like the side creeks of the Kowmung which hold large resident fish.

Not me but I'd love to hear from anyone who has. Are you after bass or trout? I'm not sure if bass would make it that far upstream.

thanks GH. We actually have a slightly heavier Overthere which is great for chucking 30-40g metals. The Seabass was awesome for 15-20g lures and for walking long distances down the beach looking for gutters. The young bloke wants to get a rod that can handle bigger lures (100g ish) as he just wants to catch big fish. I've told him to just learn as much as he can and fish in as many different places as possible. At least he is getting back into fishing after not showing any interest for a few years.

Ancient thread but I have a bit of an ironic update on the Seabass 9'6. I've landed plenty of salmon, bream and fatties off the beach/rocks with it and really like it. My son managed to break the tip landing a thumper of a salmon off the rocks last weekend. Claimed the brag mat indicated 89cm but also said the fish was moving around making it difficult to measure. I told him to take off 15cm and buy me a new rod.

Hey fishos, Long time between posts for me. I picked up a small tinny about 9 months ago from a friend moving overseas. Due to a lack of priorities it has sat in the garage ever since. I'm under increasing pressure from my wife to move it and also from my son who has suddenly got interested in fishing again. In the future I'm going have to store it in the front yard. Figured I'd get a wheel clamp, coupling lock and chain everything together. Can anyone recommend a brand of wheel clamp that would fit a small boat trailer ... eg Clampit, Nemesis etc. Cheers GG

Feel for you Bn. About 15 years back I remember I crossed (rock hopped) the Bidgee to go climbing. During the morning water came downstream from a dam release making the river too dangerous to cross back resulting in a 12km walk to get back to the car safely. It was a hot day but pretty funny in hindsight. Like you I'm also not a big fan of public land managers excluding people from natural recreational areas through red tape. The way I see it the more people who spend time in the bush the more people will care about the bush. As these people spend more time in the bush the less likely they will behave badly in the bush in terms of fires and rubbish. I reckon for areas within about 3 hours drive of a major city the permits a probably necessary for camping as areas can become so overcrowded they become pretty ordinary places to be. For areas further away from major cities the local parks office is so under resourced they are starting to use permit systems to control numbers to save dollars so they can at least so some of the other land management activities the reserves requires.

Enjoyed the story. Love bass. I've never had the patience and dedication to chase big fish. I just enjoy fishing new water ... so just another type of bushwalking for me. Have you considered changing things up and trying to catch fish in as many different places as possible ... maybe explore all those rivers coming into estuaries and rivers on the south coast. You might be able to keep things interesting and your motivation up and occasionally a big fish will reach the net. I've met a few local Canberra trout fishos who chased big fish in the spawn run when they were younger but as they got older prefer to avoid the crowds and chase smaller fish on dry flys in remoter water.

Hi Neil, I've spent lots of time in Tassie for walking and climbing before I started fishing. Magic place. I was last down there about 2.5 years back and did alright on the trout in random lakes. I also fished the breakwall at Lowhead near Georgetown and got some fatties and salmon (bait and SPs). I think this area is the mouth of the Tamar River. I took the kids mountain biking at St Helens and there is heaps of fishing activity around there (recreational and commercial). I didn't get a chance to wet a line here. I'm looking forward to further replies on this topic for when I next head down there. I think there is a license required for freshwater but from memory you do not need one for salt (but check that). Have a great trip.

I usually take a small "keg" for wallet, car keys, licenses etc. I find it is the only thing guaranteed to keep your stuff dry if you end up in the drink. I reckon you need at least 3 dry bags to be absolutely watertight in situations of prolonged immersion. Gold for kayak fishing.

Oldest trick in the Australian bushwalkers playbook. My kids still fall for it regularly.

I wouldn't chuck a 30g lure on 4lb leader but I reckon the majority of line breaks that happen during casting are due to poorly tied knots. Done that a few times.

Let us know how you go. I have started exploring a few different beaches down there. Apart from the odd ray I haven't caught anything other than salmon off the sand since autumn. Bengello is my local. More variety off the rocks.

Good to see a few cyclists on Fishraider. I'm a long term commuter (bike paths and firetrails only so don't have a go at me) and will get on the roadie once a week for fitness. My wife is heavily into it and rides in a bunch 4 mornings a week. My kids both mountain bike as their second sport. I'm a bit outnumbered in my household as most of our social network is based around cycling (they seriously outnumber fishos and climbers which is a bit of a shame for me). @Derny Driver I'm still a relative novice so am still very much a receiver rather than a giver of wisdom in the fishing department. It is great to learn new things. If you are riding a mountain bike you should hit the South Coast for a fishing/mtb weekend/week. So many good trails around Tathra and heaps going in at Narooma and Mogo.

You might have already listed these; Go Betweens Triffids Nick Cave As you noted Debra Conway is fantastic but String of Pearls is her best album. Also dig a bit deeper with The Church ... try Tantalised.

@XD351 and @Mike Sydney Have you considered pointing your respective friends to "Men In Flight" (Mens mental fitness program ... using outdoors and flyfishing (salt and freshwater options). Probably not appropriate while you are acutely unwell but potentially very valuable to those struggling with the black dog.

For me bank walking rivers and creeks ... trout, bass, yellas and cod. Calming environment and always much easier to relax when you have had a walk. I started fishing relatively late and have always felt a bit jealous of young folk who seem to pick up "fishing intuition" much more easily. Going to more remote water with little fishing pressure evens up the score for me.

Ive struggled with backpain my whole adult life. I find I'm uncomfortable in my Hobie even with a modern seat. I mainly fish fresh water and I find the best solution to regularly pull up on the shore and walk around.

Nice. Could you see the fish to cast at?

So are you gonna let us in on that secret shirt. Help a few fishraiders do a bit better. Over time we hopefully get an understanding of what is driving those patterns. Cracking the code in tough conditions can be just as satisfying as catching a big fish.

My 10 cents. Probably depends on the type of lure. I always use a loop knot on diving hardbodies with a bib, probably because that seems to be the conventional wisdom (and it is recommended on the lure packet). The way i see it heaps of fishos have played around making their own lures. Many of these guys would have been curious intuitive types who would have put a fair bit of time into testing their prototypes in the backyard pool. Passionate anglers are always fine tuning their lures and retrieves. Almost everyone seems to use a loop knot. A Stumpjumper will still wobble away with a uni knot but maybe not as freely.

Thanks @big Neil. I'm definitely in the slow decline stage of life. I'm trying to follow my physio mate's advice of use it or lose it, so am making an effort to get myself out bushwalking or fishing whenever the opportunity comes up. I'm glad you enjoyed reading the reports, and just remember that guys like yourself and @wazatherfisherman sharing their wisdom are super valuable to other readers.

Made the trip up from Canberra to attend this event. Over a 100 people turned up with representatives from 40 nationalities (super happy about that). The morning was spent rotating through 5 workshops. 1) General Rock Safety talk from a fisheries bloke (George)- basic safety gear and pre trip planning 2) Talk on weather, tides, swell and rock platform structure by long term rock fisho Spiro 3) Talk on boating, regulations and life jackets by a guy from Maritime 4) Beach Safety talk from Surf Life Saving Volunteers 5) Talk from Team Kingies guys who showed the gear they take and shared a few war stories. Lunch provided Afternoon session was watching surf life savers pick up a person in the water with RIB and jet ski. After this they gave out free life jackets. I think the increase in drownings over the last few years has more than a few people worried. Hopefully education events like this will help. Overall I thought the initiative was worthwhile. Definitely aimed at people new to rock fishing and the environment. Personally I don't think I learnt huge amounts of new stuff but still benefitted from listening to knowledgeable people who are passionate about their subject matter. Sometimes you pick up nuances on meaning from face to face interaction you don't get from a book or youtube. If any of the attendees end up reading this I feel getting a practical apprenticeship from a long term fisho would be a sensible next step. That is understanding the stuff presented and the free life jacket probably isn't enough to get you to a level you would want to be at. If you end up down on the south coast and want to go for a fish feel free to message me (not super experienced but keen and cautious)

Had another crack. This time started at the crossing that takes it's appearance seriously and walked up a creek that sounds like a bird of prey. Not sure if cryptic references to fishing spots are a thing. Started at 8am. No real action in the 1st hour. Maybe being 20 minutes behind a couple of other blokes had something to do with that. After they turned around and I started spooking fish and getting a few follows, all in ankle deep water. It took a lot of casts to get one on. Left him at my feet in the water to get my phone out. It took advantage of the situation and had another run, wrapped itself around a branch and busted me off. Noob mistake. Spooked more fish but no more hookups. Always good to cover new water even if its very scrubby.

I know what you are talking about @BaitDropper. I have x3 oak trees and a liquidamber in my yard so have a lot of leaves to rake and mulch this arvo. I'm a big fan of @Little_Flatty ability to sneak in a short session whenever he can. Most of my free time is spent driving kids to after school activities. I'm not complaining because i enjoy that. I remember being a new parent 14 years ago and news feeds were full of parenting articles about not making your child's life too busy and free time for imaginative play was the way to go. Now I over program my kids to keep them off a screen. More and more I'm starting to understand @big Neil advice of living your best life while you can. I remember in my pre-fishing, pre-kids life driving up to the blue mountains every weekend to go climbing and walking. Summers were spent in Tasmania doing the same. I dream about going back to some of those places with a fishing rod. Easy to take things for granted. I used to roll my eyes at old farts talking about what they did in their youth. Now i can see how much they valued the experiences and friendships.