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Allan, Craig and myself (Team Darkside) packed Al’s Pathfinder the night before in preparation of an early departure to the shores of Kalkite, leaving Canberra around 4:15am the next day was tough but the capital city provided a rather mild morning compared with times of yesteryear. Many Kangaroos alive and dead littered the streets out and down the Monaro Highway as we headed towards Jindabyne, anticipation was high and from all reports gathered through the wonders of the Internet, magazines and tackle shops, the fish were well and truly on and ready to commit.
Andre and his diesel guzzling 4WD joined the procession just before Williamsdale so we all pulled into the first Cooma Petrol Station for some Red Bull and a general catch up. The traffic was building already with snow bunnies and assorted tourists making there way to the ski fields for there daily dose, by all accounts the predicted weather reports over the last week were fantastic and Saturday was set to be the pick of them.
The plan for Team Darkside was to find a beaten track somewhere before the town of Kalkite and tack our way west closer to the Snowy arm to launch, what we didn’t expect was how difficult this was to become due to darkness and some unfamiliarity within our surrounds (Even armed with detailed maps of the area) so after a few puzzling minutes traipsing round Kalkite we conceded defeat and decided to launch with Jason and Leigh (Team Mod Squad) at the boat ramp just outside of town.
Last weekend Funda and Squidder found the weather was most harsh with a wind chill factor that would have been close to –5, making for uncomfortable conditions. Even the most prepared Fisherman, whether Kayak, Boat, or land based, would have found the conditions difficult. Safety is paramount on Lake Jindabyne with 100km winds, waves of two meters occurring as the weather turns and a chilly water temperature of 4 degrees early morning (It reached 7 degrees around 3pm).
After removing the three Polyethylene platforms from the car rigging up our Kayaks was quick and easy compared to packing the night before. A couple of Hobie Adventures (Allan’s modified with a Minn Kota), Craig’s Hobie Revolution, Andre’s Hobie Outback, Jason’s Cobra Fish ‘n’ Dive and my Hobie Quest adorned the waters edge ready for the days trickery ahead. Spare UHF handsets were distributed to members and we pushed off pre dawn in search of some legendary Salmonidae (Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout and Atlantic Salmon).
Looking for structure was a relatively east task, submerged trees and boulders lined the shoreline in most directions governed by shallow and steep muddy banks. Our sounders started showing fish immediately but were holding low on the bottom around 12 meters. Moving slowly opposite the ramp whilst trolling a Predatek Micro min almost paid off in the first five minutes, my light rod setup went off and just as I was set to play the fish out it jumped 3 ft in the air behind the Kayak and threw the hook.
Muttering some choice words to Craig over the UHF I had not realised he was replicating the result about 100m behind me, ultimately voicing a similar response. About 300m in front we spied Allan heading for a rocky point enjoying the perfect trolling speed produced by his electric motor while to the east Team Mod Squad were working the other side of the lake for an instant result. Leigh had sight cast to a magnificent Atlantic Salmon which became tentatively hooked whilst striking at his lure, the offending 8 minute battle resulted in a new PB for Red Pheonix and the first fish of the day.
Trolling became tedious with many fish striking short or snapping at our presentations, after many hours a few members decided to have a rest and fish Powerbait from various locations along the banks, I lost sight of my team mates as I continued moving around the shallow weed beds so moved across and back down the opposite side of the lake towards the ramp. Rounding a shallow rocky point I spotted a fin protruding in what would have been as little as 15cm, the fish (Presumed a Brown Trout) moved in and out sojourning
the edge while I carefully evaluated my floating position.
Taking my time I cast my Micro Min as close as I dared landing my lure on a boulder close by, slowly working it back I covered the water in the exact same point I had seen the fish 15 seconds earlier for no result. Slightly gutted I had spooked the fish with my rocky antics I moved on in search of my teammates and found them bank side fishing Powerbait just east of the boat ramp. Allan had managed to previously troll up a whopping 55cm Brown Trout using a winged lure (Pink Tasmanian Devil) and was enjoying some lunch with Craig and some tame Kangaroos.
The peaceful speechless tranquility was to be short lived though, Allan noticed one of his lines going tight and set the hook on a lovely 50cm Rainbow amid hoots and hollers, his big Brown Trout had not only secured the fish of the day but his Rainbow was putting serious runs on the board for Team Darkside. The fish kept rising all around us but ignored the subsequent offerings of brightly coloured artificial bait so we moved on, by this stage I was desperate for a fish so decided to cruise solo trolling along the exact path I had followed this morning (Made slightly easier with the use of a GPS).
Frustration was setting in but confidence was still high, I passed Squidder on a bank who had fared well with two nice Rainbow Trout on Powerbait and had a quick chat before moving on in search of Leigh. Coming to a set of trees that showed high signs of life holding deep I managed to troll up somebody’s lost snagged rig with a Tasmanian Devil on the end, I removed the bonus lure and placed the old line in my pocket to discard later on, this water way contained many strands of monofilament dangling on exspoed branches due to wayward casts and perhaps previously high water levels.
Tying on a Jackal (Lipless Crank Bait) I cast between the sticks hoping to avoid the snags, counting down till it hit the bottom. From my first presentation a lift of the rod tip produced a hit and the fish was hooked, desperately trying to throw the hook the fish hit the surface early but I was ready and controlled it with a tight line into my net, I was unsure of the species so mentioned to Squidder I was joining him bank side to identify, secure and measure my catch. It was then recognised as a 46cm Brown Trout, a new species and a my first Salmonoid from a Kayak, thanking Jason for his help I rushed back hoping to produce another.
Finding the fish still in the exact same spot I cast the Jackal again allowing it to hit the bottom, the rod tip was lifted from my first cast but this time it was hit on the first flutter providing an exciting fight. This fish felt similar but slightly larger, playing the game dirtier than its counterpart with loads of darting and weaving before attempting to jump. With gin clear water I found myself at an advantage, spotting the fish rising quickly the line was kept tight and another Brown Trout was netted (I was now on a hat trick!).
‘You wont believe this Jason!’ I squealed into the UHF before bursting into fits of laughter and paddling frantically toward the shore, I may have had the fish in the net but it was going mental trying to avoid becoming my PB and another fish to Team Darkside’s tally. This Trout measured 51.5cm and was to be my fish of the day, by this stage my ranting on the UHF had brought fellow members in search of a trophy Brown.
I bid Jason farewell and hit the water in hope of my hat trick, unfortunately this ws not achieved but the fish were still there with some huge specimens appearing on the fish finder.
Leigh appeared around a point and joined us all for a rest and another Powerbait session on the edge just down from Jason, many stimulating tales were told and fish shown off and paraded like short-skirted girlfriends on a nightclub strip. Before most members had a chance to rig up there fake bait Allan was already on, landing another nice 50cm Rainbow Trout and bringing his total to three fish and a crushing five for Team Darkside. The sun started to set behind us so jackets were once again donned as the temperature started to drop, we all packed up and commenced one last troll over to the boat ramp arriving around 4:30pm.
Was a big, long day out, an impressive one and ultimately a rewarding experience for all (Fish or no fish) on the shores of Kalkite. We loaded the vehicles and said our goodbyes before driving home, collecting a bag of ice along the way. Thanks everyone for a truly awe inspiring day and the collective company only AKFF can provide, congratulations to Team Mod Squad for a commendable effort on the water.
Andre and his diesel guzzling 4WD joined the procession just before Williamsdale so we all pulled into the first Cooma Petrol Station for some Red Bull and a general catch up. The traffic was building already with snow bunnies and assorted tourists making there way to the ski fields for there daily dose, by all accounts the predicted weather reports over the last week were fantastic and Saturday was set to be the pick of them.
The plan for Team Darkside was to find a beaten track somewhere before the town of Kalkite and tack our way west closer to the Snowy arm to launch, what we didn’t expect was how difficult this was to become due to darkness and some unfamiliarity within our surrounds (Even armed with detailed maps of the area) so after a few puzzling minutes traipsing round Kalkite we conceded defeat and decided to launch with Jason and Leigh (Team Mod Squad) at the boat ramp just outside of town.
Last weekend Funda and Squidder found the weather was most harsh with a wind chill factor that would have been close to –5, making for uncomfortable conditions. Even the most prepared Fisherman, whether Kayak, Boat, or land based, would have found the conditions difficult. Safety is paramount on Lake Jindabyne with 100km winds, waves of two meters occurring as the weather turns and a chilly water temperature of 4 degrees early morning (It reached 7 degrees around 3pm).
After removing the three Polyethylene platforms from the car rigging up our Kayaks was quick and easy compared to packing the night before. A couple of Hobie Adventures (Allan’s modified with a Minn Kota), Craig’s Hobie Revolution, Andre’s Hobie Outback, Jason’s Cobra Fish ‘n’ Dive and my Hobie Quest adorned the waters edge ready for the days trickery ahead. Spare UHF handsets were distributed to members and we pushed off pre dawn in search of some legendary Salmonidae (Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout and Atlantic Salmon).
Looking for structure was a relatively east task, submerged trees and boulders lined the shoreline in most directions governed by shallow and steep muddy banks. Our sounders started showing fish immediately but were holding low on the bottom around 12 meters. Moving slowly opposite the ramp whilst trolling a Predatek Micro min almost paid off in the first five minutes, my light rod setup went off and just as I was set to play the fish out it jumped 3 ft in the air behind the Kayak and threw the hook.
Muttering some choice words to Craig over the UHF I had not realised he was replicating the result about 100m behind me, ultimately voicing a similar response. About 300m in front we spied Allan heading for a rocky point enjoying the perfect trolling speed produced by his electric motor while to the east Team Mod Squad were working the other side of the lake for an instant result. Leigh had sight cast to a magnificent Atlantic Salmon which became tentatively hooked whilst striking at his lure, the offending 8 minute battle resulted in a new PB for Red Pheonix and the first fish of the day.
Trolling became tedious with many fish striking short or snapping at our presentations, after many hours a few members decided to have a rest and fish Powerbait from various locations along the banks, I lost sight of my team mates as I continued moving around the shallow weed beds so moved across and back down the opposite side of the lake towards the ramp. Rounding a shallow rocky point I spotted a fin protruding in what would have been as little as 15cm, the fish (Presumed a Brown Trout) moved in and out sojourning
the edge while I carefully evaluated my floating position.
Taking my time I cast my Micro Min as close as I dared landing my lure on a boulder close by, slowly working it back I covered the water in the exact same point I had seen the fish 15 seconds earlier for no result. Slightly gutted I had spooked the fish with my rocky antics I moved on in search of my teammates and found them bank side fishing Powerbait just east of the boat ramp. Allan had managed to previously troll up a whopping 55cm Brown Trout using a winged lure (Pink Tasmanian Devil) and was enjoying some lunch with Craig and some tame Kangaroos.
The peaceful speechless tranquility was to be short lived though, Allan noticed one of his lines going tight and set the hook on a lovely 50cm Rainbow amid hoots and hollers, his big Brown Trout had not only secured the fish of the day but his Rainbow was putting serious runs on the board for Team Darkside. The fish kept rising all around us but ignored the subsequent offerings of brightly coloured artificial bait so we moved on, by this stage I was desperate for a fish so decided to cruise solo trolling along the exact path I had followed this morning (Made slightly easier with the use of a GPS).
Frustration was setting in but confidence was still high, I passed Squidder on a bank who had fared well with two nice Rainbow Trout on Powerbait and had a quick chat before moving on in search of Leigh. Coming to a set of trees that showed high signs of life holding deep I managed to troll up somebody’s lost snagged rig with a Tasmanian Devil on the end, I removed the bonus lure and placed the old line in my pocket to discard later on, this water way contained many strands of monofilament dangling on exspoed branches due to wayward casts and perhaps previously high water levels.
Tying on a Jackal (Lipless Crank Bait) I cast between the sticks hoping to avoid the snags, counting down till it hit the bottom. From my first presentation a lift of the rod tip produced a hit and the fish was hooked, desperately trying to throw the hook the fish hit the surface early but I was ready and controlled it with a tight line into my net, I was unsure of the species so mentioned to Squidder I was joining him bank side to identify, secure and measure my catch. It was then recognised as a 46cm Brown Trout, a new species and a my first Salmonoid from a Kayak, thanking Jason for his help I rushed back hoping to produce another.
Finding the fish still in the exact same spot I cast the Jackal again allowing it to hit the bottom, the rod tip was lifted from my first cast but this time it was hit on the first flutter providing an exciting fight. This fish felt similar but slightly larger, playing the game dirtier than its counterpart with loads of darting and weaving before attempting to jump. With gin clear water I found myself at an advantage, spotting the fish rising quickly the line was kept tight and another Brown Trout was netted (I was now on a hat trick!).
‘You wont believe this Jason!’ I squealed into the UHF before bursting into fits of laughter and paddling frantically toward the shore, I may have had the fish in the net but it was going mental trying to avoid becoming my PB and another fish to Team Darkside’s tally. This Trout measured 51.5cm and was to be my fish of the day, by this stage my ranting on the UHF had brought fellow members in search of a trophy Brown.
I bid Jason farewell and hit the water in hope of my hat trick, unfortunately this ws not achieved but the fish were still there with some huge specimens appearing on the fish finder.
Leigh appeared around a point and joined us all for a rest and another Powerbait session on the edge just down from Jason, many stimulating tales were told and fish shown off and paraded like short-skirted girlfriends on a nightclub strip. Before most members had a chance to rig up there fake bait Allan was already on, landing another nice 50cm Rainbow Trout and bringing his total to three fish and a crushing five for Team Darkside. The sun started to set behind us so jackets were once again donned as the temperature started to drop, we all packed up and commenced one last troll over to the boat ramp arriving around 4:30pm.
Was a big, long day out, an impressive one and ultimately a rewarding experience for all (Fish or no fish) on the shores of Kalkite. We loaded the vehicles and said our goodbyes before driving home, collecting a bag of ice along the way. Thanks everyone for a truly awe inspiring day and the collective company only AKFF can provide, congratulations to Team Mod Squad for a commendable effort on the water.
