Brown's Mountain Monday

[Oscarthebeagle]

With conditions suited Dad (Hookerbruce) and I decided to take a run out wide in his boat, 5.6 ally half cab. Sunday arvo was spent double checking the boat and gear before the trip. Launched from Kurnell at 530 and headed out, conditions where still messy early so we stopped at the Peak to have a look and a think before we ran wide. Jigged up a 71cm Kingfish and a barracouta and dad got a pinkie and morwong on bait (at least we had caught something for dinner) before we decided to keep heading out. The run out took nearly 2 hours and we found plenty of ski jumps, holes and capping waves on the trip out.

Pulled up a couple of km short of the mountain and put out a spread of lures, trolled over the mountain and off to the SE for 10 km before looping around to come back to the mountain from the south. Very quite one small stripped tuna, water was consistently 20-21 degrees.

Time for Plan B, Deep Dropping, we don't have an electric reel as we haven't fished this depth before (and I don't really agree with using them). Our was a homemade set up; an average sized Alvey mounted upside down and back to front ( think about it) on an overhead rod, home made rail mount rod holder, 80lb braid, 3 hook dropper rigs I made last year and a sash weight. Having never used this we before we had a short (50m) practice drop away from the other boats, our system seemed to work so we took our place in the line up and dropped to the bottom.

Very little current and a slow drift, using the engine to keep the angle right. After 15-20 mins curiousity got the better of us and we started the retrieve. It felt very heavy and a lot of hard work, winding slowly and taking turns Cursing at our stupidy to try this, no wonder everyone uses electric reels, idiots, never dropping this down again we say to each other as we take turns on the handle. After a lot of huffing and puffing we catch site of colour, it can't be a fish on our first drop ever, than more colour, not one not two but three Gemfish on our first drop. No wonder it felt heavy two fish about 90cm and a 110cm fish, with renewed confidence we motor back up for a second drop this time we pay more attention and wind up when we feel the first fish on the line still hard work but the result is worth it a 106cm Gemfish.

With our bag limit of 4 fish and feeling like we accomplished something we put away the bottom gear and cube for the next hour or so without luck. Losts baits but only to very small fish, some baits had been chewed between the pilchard bones, know idea what it was. Conditions have improved and it takes an hour and quarter to run home to botany take the boat out just on dark.

All in all a long day on the water but well worth it. Not sure we will get out again this season but nice to know it's very do-able and well within range of the boat, just need to find the tuna next time.

Thanks for reading

Ashley

[Cheyne_r]

Nice gemmies, I'm with you, we don't use electrics, it's just not fishing. We use a big reef queen deep drop winch. Works a treat, just get a but of a work out.

[scaffsta]

Well done dude my very first fish at browns was the very same sort of set up, hard work. Now days i use an electric reel.

[batfishing]

Well done, and well written

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[jenno64]

Great fish and result overall and if you hadn't given away the boat specs in the post I'd be even more impressed with the last pic:)

[hookerbruce]

It wasn't that hard to wind the fish up from the depths it is quite doable, but I may think about an electric reel when I get older. Will probably do it again to get a couple of fish for the table as it

saves going home without a feed when the tuna don't co-operate. They did cook up good for dinner.

The rest of the family were very happy with a feed of gemfish.

Bruce

[JohnDory]

Nice going and a good read

Thanks

[Moonshine]

Well done!

[NaClH2OK9]

Nice work. Another string to the bow

[hookerbruce]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR BEAGLE