Surf Casting and Angling Club of W.A. (Inc.) Bluff Creek field day report March 2003.

Gone on Friday and back on Tuesday, in between - Bluff Creek. Apart from the safaris, this would have to be the highlight of the field days for the club. A long weekend of camping and fishing on the beautiful south coast. As we left Perth on the Friday the weather was fine with a promise of a hot weekend ahead. But as we approached the south coast the clouds started to roll in. By the time we had arrived there was full cloud cover and a moderate south easterly blowing, it stayed like this for most of the weekend. Driving along the beach towards the campsite we were greeted from a distance by what looked like a rocky outcrop running down into the water. From memory the only rocks that high should have been at either end of the beach. As we got closer the rocks revealed their true identity - weed, a great mound of it. There had obviously had been some wild weather in the recent past which had pushed the weed inshore and up on the beach, not a good sign.

The Club owns an air conditioned holiday house at Kalbarri which is available for rent to the public and club members at competitive rates

The other strange thing about that mound of weed was that a sentry had been posted there who was waving madly at the approaching vehicles. Bob had taken the trouble to stand guard and to make sure no one got into difficulties by directing vehicles away from a very soft section of the beach onto a track behind the sand dunes.

The other legacy of the recent weather was that the beach was seriously eroded to the east of the creek which meant that access to the rocks at the eastern end of the beach was very difficult. As the weekend progressed it became impassable because of the amount of traffic along the beach.

During the night and early the next morning members and visitors arrived and set up camp near the creek. By sign on at midday Saturday, the numbers had swelled to 15 members and 8 visitors.

As the weed was so extensive, finding a clear spot was the first priority. Most fished directly out in front of the camp or to the east. Large herring were everywhere and were on the bite for most of the time. The only thing that tested most drag settings the first day were huge clumps of weed which were constantly on the move.

The Sunday morning was amazing, tons and tons of weed had literally disappeared overnight. We now had the choice of spots as the clear water showed up all the channels and gutters, this was more like the Bluff Creek I remembered. Unfortunately most of the bigger fish had not come back with the clear conditions.

Just one decent salmon and a few sammy juniors (that's Tony speak for small salmon) were landed for the weekend. There was also a rumour of another good size salmon getting to the beach but unfortunately it miraculously grew legs and out ran its pursuer and scuttled back into the water.

Herring was the most prolific catch by far, skippy were generally small and in moderate numbers and a few whiting and flathead were also landed. The visitors did well for themselves, the heaviest salmon for the weekend was caught by Jim King and a 600g flathead was landed by Mark Hansen. Brian Stokes did well to weigh in his 30 fish comprising 5 species.

Club members were not left out with the likes of Tony, George, Terry Fuller, John Romano, Morris Kolman, Paul Thompson, Vix and I all weighing in over 25 fish each. A couple of others to cause a stir with their "bulging" bags were Peter Stoeckel and Terry Willison.

Extended field trips like this one is not only about fishing, there are ample opportunities for memorable moments to occur. The Sunday communal BBQ was a good example, held at the Bob Henderson and associates tent emporium, it was a very sociable event.

While most of us were out fishing, Bob and his associates set about setting up for lunch which was obviously a very long and thirsty task. The need for life giving liquids was essential for getting the job done. John Romano's idea of jacket potatoes and onions cooked in an open fire was seized on by Terry W and carried out with as much distinction that could be mustered under the circumstances.

Other highlights of the weekend were George's toilet, so popular that it had to be relocated before the weekend was out, and Bob finding nirvana behind a Nissan steering wheel which could not be prised out of his hands all weekend.

Fishing, camping and social, Bluff Creek had it all. Not as many fish as last year, the salmon were conspicuous by their absence but none the less a first rate field trip.

Hope to see you on the beach next time. Malcolm Harris, Field Day Officer.

Results.

Angler		Weight	Species	Fish	Total Points
Tony D'Alonzo		8.8 kg	6	30	198
George Holman		6.7 kg	4	26	157
Brian Stokes (V )		6.59 kg	5	30	155.9
Malcolm Harris		6.375 kg	4	30	153.75
Morris Kolman		5.095 kg	3	30	130.95
Vix Alexander		4.75 kg	3	25	127.5
Paul Thompson		5.52 kg	2	30	125.2
Peter Stoeckel		3.475 kg	3	21	114.75
Terry Fuller		4.45 kg	2	24	114.5
John Romano		3.545 kg	2	27	105.5
Bob Henderson		2.1 kg	2	11	91
Terry Willison		1.9 kg	2	12	89
Jim King (Visitor)		3.3 kg	1	1	83
Mark Hansen (Visitor)		2 kg	2	9	80
Filomena D'Alonzo		1.65 kg	2	11	76.5
Charles Riegert		1.3 kg	1	6	73
David Maxted		0.75 kg	1	5	67.5
Ida Thompson		0 kg	0	0	40
Wendy Hansen (Visitor)		0 kg	0	0	40
Anita King (Visitor)		0 kg	0	0	40
Serah King (Visitor)		0 kg	0	0	40
David Moyir (Visitor)		0 kg	0	0	40
Tracey Moyir (Visitor)		0 kg	0	0	40

Sportsperson of the Year Section Winners for March 2003.

Best Scale Fish	Jim King (Visitor)	Salmon	3.3 kg
Best Bag of Scale fish	Tony D'Alonzo	Mixed bag	8.8 kg

Field Day Prizes for March 2003.

Best Scale Fish	Jim King (Visitor)	Salmon	3.3 kg
Best Bag of Scale fish	Tony D'Alonzo	Mixed bag	8.8 kg

Field Day Sections for 2002/2003 up to March 2003.

Section	For	Angler	Species	Weight.
1A	Best Scale Fish (1st Six Months)	Spencer King	Salmon	4.475 kg
1B	Best Scale Fish (2nd Six Months)	Tony D'Alonzo	Cobia	12.45 kg
3	Best Shark (4.5 kg min)	Tony D'Alonzo	Shark	8.15 kg
4	Best Mulloway (2.0 kg min)	Tony D'Alonzo	Mulloway	4.35 kg
5	Best Tailor (1.0 kg min)	Tony D'Alonzo	Tailor	2.1 kg
6	Best Salmon (3 kg min)	Spencer King	Salmon	4.475 kg
7	Best Skipjack Trevally (0.5 kg min)	Paul Terpkos	Trevally, Skipjack	1.50 kg
9	Best Scale Fish (Other than above)	Tony D'Alonzo	Pink Snapper	2.45 kg
10	Best Bag Of Scale Fish	Tony D'Alonzo	Mixed Bag	33.05 kg
11	Best Bag Of Mulloway (2 Fish Min)	Tony D'Alonzo	Mulloway	13.30 kg
12	Best Bag Of Tailor (2 Fish Min)	George Holman	Tailor	7.10 kg
13	Best Fish On S/H Rod 4kg b/s line (max)	Bob Henderson	Black Bream	0.746 kg
14	Best Fish Caught on Fly Rod	John Jardine	Tailor	0.875 kg

Field Day Top Ten up to March 2003.

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This page last updated 3 April 2003.

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