mako1 Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Hit the cliff tops yesterday to see if I could get acouple of snapper or maybe a king. Arrived at the ledge at 5:45am and got all of the gear ready.The sea looked abit calm for rock fishing but it was just great to be out fishing in the nice conditions.By 6:00am I had two bottom rigs out wide and then sat back and watched the sunrise. I then started to rig up a pilchard under a float when right on 6:30am one of the bottom baits takes off.The rod was bent right over and some line left the reel.I grabbed the rod and went to set the hook when everything went slack .It felt like a good snapper and I was pretty angry to miss the hookup. I set the bait again and went back to cast out a pilchard.There were alot of pickers cleaning up my pilchard baits in close so I changed to prawns and started a burley trail.I was watching the float and I glanced at the set rods and one of them was buckled over.I set my rod down and grabbed the bent rod.I leaned back and this time I felt the weight of the fish.There were good strong headshakes so I new it was a snapper.It gave a great fight and it finally surfaced and I saw it was a nice snapper.I clipped on the cliff gaff and slid it down. I tried to gaff the fish but the gaff just wouldn't go in.All I could think of was don't fall off.Then finally on the fifth go the gaff found its mark and I brought the fish up onto the ledge .It was 52cm long and just over 2kg.I set the baits out again and kept on float fishing.I missed acouple of nice fish on prawn baits in the washes.They were probably drummer.Some big schools of yellowtail came in close and I caught one and set it out live but a squid got it but I couldn't tempt it to a pilchard on a squid prong.I also set out a live pike but it didn't get touched.I then put a fresh piece of yellowtail on the bottom out wide and five mins later it takes off.At first I thought it was a small king as it was strong and going for the rocks but I then got it to the surface and saw it was a nice bonito.This time with the sharpened gaff I got it first go.It was 55cm long.About 30mins later the yellowtail school which had moved abit out from the rocks were being smashed by what looked like bonito.It was great to watch.With the sun really strong at midday I called it a day as the fish went off the bite. It was a really great day out and a good feed to take home. Here is a pic of the catch(sorry about the quality of the pics,taken on a phone) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveD Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 nice day out from the sounds of things. I haven't seen a sunrise since new year but oh man theyre nice nice pics too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mik Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Jealous is all I can say. Well done mate nice fishees. Can you explain how the cliff gaff works. Sounds like u run it down the mainline? Maybe a pic if ya got one? Cheers & happy trails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jewhunter Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Great stuff mate! Looks like a nice spot. Any legal Snapper of the rocks is a good one & one of 2 kg's is very nice indeed. Sounds like a very enjoyable morning, thanks for the report. Cheers, Grant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netic Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Well done mate, you sure seem to be able to land fish from a variety of methods Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1975 Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 nice fish there mate. Would love to catch a snapper land based. Where abouts are the cliff tops? 1975 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy0884 Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Wooooo gotta love a nice fat red! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big_steve Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 thats a nice red off the rocks mate well done Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mako1 Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 Thanks for the kind words guys. It really was a nice day,just wish I had my propper camera as the sunrise was tops and the camera phone doesn't do it justice. Boofhead here is a pic of the cliff gaff It clips onto the main line and is slid down it to the fish.The three hooks,which swing freely,surround the fish and you just give a solid pull on the rope attached to it and it gaffs the fish and then you can pull it up using the rope.I had abit of trouble gaffing the snapper as it was blunt but I sharpened it and it grabbed the bonito straight away. 1975 the cliffs I fish are at the Kurnell peninsula.I fish the spots around the lighthouse and acouple south of the lighthouse.They range from 10m to 30m from the water.A long cast is needed to reach the drop off where the snapper hang out but if the wash is good you can catch them in close on pilchards under a float. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1975 Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 thanks mate, I fish close by at at Potter Point with my mate and normally catch groper, drummer and blackfish, i wonder if snapper are also around? I may have to try floating a pillie and try, how deep do you set the pillie under the float? and how far out do you need to cast out from the rocks to have a chance at a snapper? billy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CR@ZY OS@M@ Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 (edited) well done on the catch,i was out yesterday fishing land based at port kembla for the first time with my neighbour. i only caught a morwong but i had seen people beside us catch bonnies,nice size snapper and also king that was only 65cm on pillies on a float. Edited February 5, 2007 by Crazy John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mik Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Boofhead here is a pic of the cliff gaff Thanks for going to the trouble of furthering muh edumakashun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankp Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 nice report mako. sounds like a top day. well done frankp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Nice catch Mako and thats a nice sunrice in pic 1 penguin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IFishSick. Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Great stuff Mako, love to get fast running Bonito! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TunOFun Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Nice couple of fish from the stones mate, well done Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mako1 Posted February 6, 2007 Author Share Posted February 6, 2007 Billy(1975) there would be snapper around Potter Point. If there is a good wash working then fish in close with unweighted baits of pilchards and strips of slimies or stripies. If using a float the depth under the float depends on how shallow the water is. I usually start at 2m and either go deeper or shallower untill I find the fish.Bream are also a common catch especially during winter when the big ones move out to sea. The area around Potter point is shallower then the water towards the lighthouse so it would be more difficult to fish bottom baits out wide as you would get snagged alot,but you could still give it a go.If you do fish the deeper spots just look out till you can see the drop off(it's wherethe water gets alot darker and it's easy to spot from the higher spots)and try and reach it with a cast.I use squid and fish strips. The best time I've found is just before a southerly or after a southerly(when it's safe enough to fish from the rocks). Fishing during rain has also produced some great catches of snapper. There are also some massive kings in the area but I've yet to land one as they are quite quick to bust you off.I've stepped up my tackle now and am just waiting for a hit from a good king,but I still think they will clean me up on the reefs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrias Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 nice fish there mate too bad that i am afraid of height Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ophet Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Fantastic report mate, sounds like you had a great day. Good to see you try a variety of things. Very nice snapper indeed. Reminds me of the good old days of fishing off Coalcliff Rocks.... I know what you mean about it being too calm, but it is a great feeling to be out there early in the morning, smelling the ocean and hearing the gentle waves crash on the rocks. Nice one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mondo Rock Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 Hey Mako - do you ever fish Mistral Point at north Maroubra? I often see cliff fishermen up there and have heard reports of snapper etc. I've found a sneaky path to the bottom of the cliff and have made some half-hearted attempts to fish it for drummer and pelagics but with only limited success. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mako1 Posted February 7, 2007 Author Share Posted February 7, 2007 Hi Mondo,I've never fished Mistral point but have heard it is a great spot for snapper as there are some gravel beds within casting distance and it has deep water in close so it would be great spinning for pelagics when they are around.Try fishing the higher ledges when there is abit more of a bump in the ocean as snapper and other fish come in to feed during these times. I've also heard it's a very dangerous spot to fish from the lower ledges. Did you find this spot dangerous when you fished it? Keep fishing there mate,the more you get to know the spot and when it fires the more fish you'll land. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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