SOUTHERN BREAM SERIES - CLYDE RIVER 20/9/09

Saturday - The Pre Fish:

Craig450, Paffoh and I had a gentleman’s hour pre fish in the Clyde on Saturday, hoping to find the fish for Sunday. Craig had a cracker of a day and landed numerous legal bream, and the biggest EP we’d ever seen with his finesse plastic shenanigans. I caught a greedy flounder on soft plastics, then switched to a small suspending HB and got a legal bream of about 28cm, who became the ‘Taj Mahalivewell’s’ first guest and enjoyed a 3 hour stay, before swimming off strongly at the end of the session.

The good day got better after we packed up, as we enjoyed some of life’s greatest pleasures, gorging at Maccas after fishing all day without eating, buying stuff you want at the tackle shop, BBQ and beers with good mates while watching kayak fishing DVD’s and browsing the new Daiwa tournament catalogue.



Sunday – The Tournament:

About 10 kayak fishers contested Round 5 of the Southern Bream Series this morning on the Clyde River at Nelligen. Idyllic early conditions had us dreaming of full wells and upgrades, but the fish were pretty shut down (For everyone except Stu) and legal fish were hard to come by. I managed an undersized bream and a pretty perch in the first hour using small suspending hard bodies.

A few minutes after the perch I got my first legal bream of 25cm EXACTLY who was introduced to the ‘Taj Mahalivewell’. There was a boat section of the comp as well, and hence a lot of people fishing the same areas and as the day wore on it got harder to find virgin water. A gusty breeze sprung up at about 11am, and fishing light was difficult after this. I was lucky to pick up a second legal fish totally out of the blue at about 11.30, after casting the same lure flat out for the previous 90 minutes without a touch. He went 29 cm and contributed to a 2 fish 685 gram bag.

Luckily it was good enough for second, congrats Stu on a great bag and a well deserved win. Stu easily caught the most bream and even got a couple on the surface lures, which is a great achievement this time of year. There was a bit of excitement just before the weigh in, as one of the more extravagant and speedy boaters was pulled up by the water police right outside where everyone was assembled for an unknown offence and nearly missed the weigh in!

It was great to see a solid yak presence on the water (I think there about 10 entrants?), I had a ball, this was my first experience of the bream tournament scene and I now wish I'd started earlier, looking forward to the next instalment!

(Posted on behalf of a too modest Jason ‘Squidder’ Price)

THE DANGERS OF ROCK FISHING

Rock fishing is probably the most dangerous of all forms of fishing and it has claimed many lives and has inflicted serious injuries to anglers that have been caught out. As an experienced rock fishermen myself, i have always put safety first and have driven for 30 or more minutes to a rock platform only to find its too dangerous to fish and turned away from it without fishing at all many times. I had a bad experience just last weekend on the rocks which could have cost me dearly and should have never happened.

I was fishing one of my favourite rock platforms for Drummer, on the opposite side of the rocks there is a particular spot that im sure holds good fish but is often too dangerous to fish from. I kept an eye on this spot for about 45 minutes while fishing from my usual spot and everything looked fine, no waves were coming anywhere near the spot i wanted to stand so i made the decision to have a go. It all started off fine, for about 20 minutes i fished this spot without even getting my feet wet since the swell was not too bad, but a short time later i noticed the wave size was slowly increasing but still felt safe so i continued to fish there which was a big mistake and one i will never make again.

I had a small slightly elevated rock to stand on and a wave which was considerably bigger than the rest washed up onto the rocks and came up past me on the left but didnt come up to where i was standing but on the way back out it entered into a small channel in the rocks and came back down directly behind me and without being prepared i was swept off my feet and started to slide down the rocks toward the water. Luckily i managed to grab a peice of rock on my way down just enough to stop from sliding down any further, and i was able to scramble back up the rocks just in time before the next wave came in.

My injuries were minimal, a badly bruised and swolen wrist on my right side from when i put my hand down to try and break the initial fall, at first i thought the wrist was broken but as it turns out it was not. And a deep cut to my backside which i assume happened during the water slide towards the water. At the end of it all when i was back up into a safe location on the rocks, i realised i still had my fishing rod in my left hand, and the rest of my gear was stored well up the top of the rocks from the start so i was lucky not to lose any gear as well. It was a stupid mistake on my behalf to have even considered fishing in that spot since i always avoided it because of the dangerous location but a mistake i will never make again.

I have always promoted rock fishing safety to everyone i introduce to the sport but on this particular occasion i made a foolish decision and nearly paid the price for it, and i consider myself lucky to have come out of it with only minor injuries and no lost gear, it could have been much, much worse. If you are new to rock fishing and thinking about giving it a go, please take all of the neccesary precautions like checking the weather forecast for wind, swell and wave direction and once you have chosen a location sit back in a safe spot for at least 10 minutes and watch what the waves are doing and see how it will affect your position on the rocks.

Rock fishing can be very rewarding but always put your own safety first, you may not get a second chance if it goes wrong.

ACT - BRINDABELLA RANGES 9/12/09 (O.T)

I feel like a new man, I have kicked the emo...

This is 'Big Willie', my MY03 Subaru Forester X 2.5 Mod (My pride and joy). I have emptied my wallet into many features and am enjoying our Bromance. I had been itching to get him mega dirty and get some photos but decided to do some video too. Due to dust I left it in its waterproof housing most of the time and as you will see I am glad I did. What to do on your day off, go for a drive and remember my old stomping grounds. This time no GPS to use (Stolen) but topo maps and brain skills got me through mostlt familiar terrain (I say mostly, couldnt film the scary bits by myself).

Found some lovely tracks and some insane ones, tried some of the latter and failed a few. The Uriarra section has been 'Gated' and blocked off most of the fun sections I remember so headed up East West rd to the top of the ranges. Mt Corree is still closed for vehicle acess due to road conditions, Two Sticks rd does traverse some interesting areas though (Including the Powerline trail). After crashing my car into a tree a few weeks ago (Contributing to past emo Derek) it was good to get some confidence back offroad, this is the ultimate fire trail Forester and makes me happy and smile.

Be good to get a few mates up here for a day or two (In real 4WD's to keep me in check), plus its on the way down into the valley to Goodradigbee river and Trout city. Season open is only weeks away and my fly rod is busting for a lash, must get those casting skills in check very shortly (Practice makes perfect).

Enjoy the video (Had a blast making it)

NSW - LAKE JINDABYNE 5/9/09

Craig450 with a 62cm Jindabyne Brown Trout

It has been a while since my last visit to the Snowy mountains so after a bit of planning a date was set for the 5th and 6th of September for a weekend of trout fishing at Lake Jindabyne. I started the trip from here on the South coast on friday night and stayed with my friend Alf in Canberra so we could make the rest of the trip down together. We spent Friday night preparing the boat and all of our camping and fishing gear and set our alarms for 4am the following morning.

I was too anxious to get to the lake and had a very restless night and before i knew it, it was time to get up and start the journey. We had a smooth run all the way to Jindabyne and were taking our first load of camping gear to our favourite spot at approximately 6:30am, we unloaded the gear and went back to the ramp for the last of the gear when Paffoh and Squidder arrived with both yaks loaded onto Paff's heavily modded Subaru Forester.

The last of the gear was quickly transported over to the camp site and ditched on the bank and exchanged with fishing gear and we motored over to the nearest timber snags to our camp site and started throwing plastic's deep into the structure. Not much was happening there so we started on a trolling run and a while later the wind came up just enough to convince us to head in to cook up some lunch and try our luck bait fishing from the shore. 4 rods were cast out with various baits including some fat scrub worms and different coloured powerbaits but we still had not seen a fish after 2-3 hours, the thought of heading home without a fish was running through my mind and i didnt like that idea.

At 3pm we decided to head off for some more trolling along the western side of the lake from Kalkite to Waste point with still no sign of fish once we reached Waste point. We pulled in the trolling rods and cast soft plastic's along the banks of Creel bay and finally got a hit but unfortunately no hook up. We started the run back with the trolling lures back out and proceeded down the Snowy arm back towards the main lake and about half way down the Snowy arm the wind got up again and before we knew it we had some pretty heavy waves following us which were throwing the boat around quite a bit and it was only getting worse.

i have fished lake jindabyne quite a bit and this was easily the scariest situation ive found myself in, but we didnt panic or get impatient and just found the best speed to travel as safely as possible and stuck fairly close to the bank just incase. I was releived to finally make it into the main lake which allowed us to travel head first into the wind which was a slightly wet ride back but much easier to deal with. After what felt like an eternity we made it back to the camp site and the first thing we did was load the fire bucket up with wood and got the fire going before settling in for the night with the bait rods back out.

Just on dark, Alf finally landed a fish which picked our confidence up again after a very slow day of fishing, not from lack of effort though. The first fish of the trip was a Rainbow at 35cm, not a big one but a very welcome addition to the esky. About an hour had past with no more action when Alf's rod alarm went off again, and he landed another rainbow of similar size to the first, and no more than 20 minutes later he was on again this time to a 46cm model. 3 nil down and i was starting to feel the pressure, we always have a little competition between us when we go on a fishing trip and unfortunately for me i usually lose.

Then it finally happened, after about 13 hours of fishing my rod started jumping up and down and i landed my first fish for the trip which was a 40cm Rainbow. I was still 3-1 down but my spirit had been lifted and within the hour i had levelled the score 3-3 and the pressure had been shifted to Alf fearing my late come back.
With both of us hoping for the next fish to break the level score, a couple of hours passed with no action and we thought that was it for the night so we decided it was time to get some rest and make an early start in the morning, just as we stood up Alf's alarm went off again and he landed the best fish of the day which was a 51cm rainbow in top condition, and again took the lead 4-3.

We called it a night and went for the comforts of our swag's and after a short, but much needed rest we were back into the fishing just before first light. I was on a deadline to get home on Sunday so we fished land based again so we could slowly pack up our camp site while we fished some more. The camping gear was all packed and loaded into the boat and we still had an hour to spare so we cooked up some breakfast and relaxed for a while, we had been fishing for nearly 3 hours of the morning session and had not seen any action and with only about 30 minutes of time left i was convinced i had lost yet again to Alf and was dreading the drive home listening to him gloat.

Just as i had lost all hope my rod went off again, this time it was bent a lot more than past fish and quite a bit of line was running off the Steez 2500 reel, i grabbed the rod from the holder and felt good weight and big tail beats and immediately called it for a good Brown, and sure enough after a solid fight i had a nice Brown trout on the bank ready for a photo which measured 62cm and would have been approximately 2.5kg. That fish made my day, i had levelled the score again and landed the best fish of the trip. I was a very happy chap at that point, at least i didnt have to put up with the gloating and bagging that Alf loves to dish out.

We had finished packing every bit of gear except one rod each and mine went off again in the last minute of the session and i landed the winning fish, another 40cm Rainbow, from 3 nil down i had managed to make a comeback and finished 5-4 in my favour, i was the one dishing out the bagging and gloating all the way back to Canberra, which was my first opportunity to do so for a long time. It was a great weekend away, and a good warm up session for the upcoming troutfest comp next month which im really looking forward to, i cant wait to get back up there for another trip.

AKFF.NET (THANKS FROM KFA)

I just wanted to share with you all my new found happiness and recent sheer surprise, governed by the general populous at AKFF and a select, very generous few. Recently my house got broken into and Claire and I were left devastated, our lives were violated and are free giving spirit crushed. Between us we felt demoralised, withdrawn, alone and blanketed in our own sorrow… We were well and truly lost.

I bottled my frustration and only unscrewed the cap a week or two ago, repairing the situation involved sharing and spewing my thoughts and frustrations to all. It worked but also had a strangely bizarre effect on our relationship, which also seemed to repair itself. We were not alone, many offers of assistance were fielded from around the globe and each and every one of them touched our hearts… How lucky we must be.

I spent days and nights trying to figure out why we deserved them and also why so many people actually gave a damn. For me it came down to really one thing, community. We have both met so many wonderful people through AKFF and genuinely enjoyed the experience over and over again. Some of you are amongst my best friends; others would be if distance and location wasn’t so separating.

Last Friday night I received a surprise visit by Patwah, Fishwhisperer, Craig450 and Squidder. Claire was on a trip to Melbourne so I was fending for myself, trying to keep my mind free of the culmination of negativity over the past few months. They brought beer, laughs and companionship. Not only that but they blew my mind, I was presented with a card and an AKFF gift voucher for replacement goods worth $1000.

At first I missed the last zero, and then I struggled for words (Even before the zero incident). Tears welled but this time I would not fail, I have cried far too many times this year. I now know the meaning of Awesomeness, that feeling when you realise people care beyond a pat on the back. I am sure I repeated our complete gratitude over and over again (Without Claire), but just in case I didn’t I wish to elaborate further.

I don’t know what to say except thankyou, thankyou everyone. This time I can address the forum as a whole and truly thank the 20+ thoughtful individuals for their goodwill, gestures and kindly gifts. You have brought both Claire and I back from personal disaster and set our relationship back on its well worn path. Claire’s voice over the phone when relayed the significant news was sheer, eloquent pandemonium.

It is true I lost some fishing gear but it was a very small amount compared to the other stock missing. Rest assured that this thoughtful offering has been accepted with both Claire’s and my best wishes, it will not be used to fuel my past tackle buff desires. We are not sure where it will be allocated to but a small slip in asset management has left us without a business laptop. We shall see in time how this insurance claim settles.

In closing I would particularly like to thank Justcrusin, Revo, Dunebuggy, Grinner, DaveyG, Rstanek, Redphoenix, Leftiant, Patwah, Pescado, Bazzoo, Scleburne, Koich, Craig450, Fishwhisperer, Squidder, Squidette, Skorgard and the AKFF forum and its members in general. There are many others I wish to thank for other contributions to the ‘Cheer up emo kid’ fund, these are listed for all to see and tokens detailed below:

Josh/Yakass - Replacement Canon G7 camera and 2GB SD card (Thankyou).
James/Feel the sting – Replacement Ugly Fish Tornado Sunglasses (Thankyou).
Paul/Skorgard – Personal cheque made out for $100 (Thankyou)
Stu/Blueyak – Donation of two special surface lures (Thankyou)
Faraz/Ugly Fish Eyewear – Support and replacement items (Thankyou).
Craig/Craig450 – Replacement reel, Daiwa Caldia Kix 2000 (Thankyou)
David/Kas – Offer of personal assistance, ABU 5600 reel (Thankyou).
Barry/Bazzoo – Offers of personal support and understanding (Thankyou).
Steve Fields/Hobie – Offers of personal support and assistance (Thankyou).
Patrick/Yankatthebay – Offers of personal assistance, Monitor (Thankyou).
AKFF mods and members – Support, understanding and counselling (Thankyou).

Hoping we didn’t leave anyone out, every offer has touched us in many different ways. Words struggle to reflect justice worthy of a sticked thread, so I will end this on a broader positive for all to reflect on. Just when you think your all alone, it’s the minority of people in your life who come to the rescue (Quickly become the majority). The solid backbone of my life which I am proud to call my second home…

The Australian Kayak Fishing Forum.

Yours with love,

Derek Steele & Claire Stunden

ABT 09/10 HOBIE KAYAK BREAM TOUR INFO

Kayak Breamers,

The new Hobie BREAM Kayak Series is set to kickstart in a couple of weeks. The opening round takes place in conjunction with the last Ford Ranger BREAM Qualifying round of year at Nelson.

Entry forms (can be printed off but can only be lodged at the event), series rules, calendar and event information sheet for the Glenelg event are now online and available for download.

Click the link to find out all there is to know about the new 2009/2010 series:

Entry Form - http://www.bream.com.au/abt/2009/kayakef.pdf (Lodged the day of the tournaments only)

Series Rules - http://www.bream.com.au/abt/2009/kayakrules.pdf

ABT Membership Form - http://www.bream.com.au/abt/2009/member09.pdf

Series 2009/2010 Calendar - http://www.bream.com.au/modules.php?nam ... le&sid=533

ABT LAUNCHES 09/10 HOBIE KAYAK BREAM TOUR

Building on the momentum of a successful inaugural BREAM Kayak series, Hobie Kayaks is proud to announce the schedule for the 2009/2010 Hobie BREAM Kayak Tour. What started as a small series in Queensland and NSW has rapidly expanded into a tour which incorporates events in WA, SA, Victoria, Tasmania, NSW and Queensland.

Although competitors fish in their own craft for the qualifying events, the Tour will culminate in the ABT Hobie BREAM Kayak Grand Final, where all qualifying competitors will fish from identical, factory supplied Hobie kayaks - complete with recirculating livewells - to create a truly level playing field.

ABT Director, Steve Morgan, identified kayak tournaments as an area of significant growth. "Kayak tournament fishing is an inexpensive, accessible and healthy way to satisfy an angler's competitive urge. There's no telling how far kayak tournament fishing can take you. For instance, the 2009 BREAM Kayak Champion, Victorian Scott Lovig, earned a place on this year's Australian Fishing Championships (AFC) TV show," he said.

Hobie's Steve Fields in even more excited about what the season will bring. "The timing of this series is just right. The momentum from the last series coupled with the excitement of the successful launch of the tournament-designed Hobie Pro Angler will ensure that this series is successful."

ABT BREAM Kayak events are unique in that anglers catch bream on lures and then keep their three, biggest, legal fish to present to the weighmaster at the end of the fishing session. Anglers get to see first hand the quality of the bream their fellow competitors land.

Competitors already familiar with the current BREAM Kayak tournament format will be interested to know the following modifications for the 2009/10 season.

2009/10 CHANGES
Anglers will now fish for a limit of three bream instead of two.

Two day events will feature a new format where an angler can fish either/both of the tournament days, however, their best bag of the two they can weigh will count towards the final results, Angler of the Year (AOY) points and Grand Final qualification. Combination of the two days' results will be used for Ranking Points only.

Each state's events will culminate in a State Titles, where a larger number of Grand Final qualifying spots are up for grabs. State Titles are decided on a cumulative two-day bag.

Several events will be run in close proximity to ABT BREAM events, so that kayakers and power boaters can interact at weigh-ins and share knowledge and techniques. At some venues, competitors will fish the same body of water and at others adjacent water bodies will be used.

ABT Hobie BREAM Kayak Tour Calendar

Sep 19-20 Glenelg River VIC 2xday

Nov 7-8 Narrabeen Lake NSW 2xday

Nov 14-15 Gold Coast QLD 2xday

Dec 12-13 Redcliffe QLD 2xday

Jan 9-10 Noosa QLD 2xday

Jan 23 Sydney Harbour NSW 1xday

Jan 26 Bemm River VIC 1xday

Feb 6-7 Westlakes SA 2xday

Feb 13-14 Walpole WA 2xday

Feb 28 Scamander River TAS 1xday

Mar 13-14 Forster NSW 2xday

Mar 27-28 Mallacoota VIC 2xday

Apr 17-18 Camden Haven NSW 2xday

May 2010 BREAM Kayak GFNSW 2xday

Full rules and entry forms will be uploaded on http://www.hobiefishing.com.au and on http://www.bream.com.au on September 4 - including specific details for the opening round on the Glenelg River.