Surf Casting and Angling Club of W.A. (Inc.) September 2000 Fishing Field Day:- Open - anywhere in WA Tidal Waters

Due to Andy (our Field Day Officer) being on holidays at the Mackerel Islands, I was doing the field day and weigh in. Well Spring often brings good weather and although it was a nice sunny weekend, the wind and swell brought bad news. A group decided they would fish the area around Wedge Island, where they found the fishing pretty good, when the wind was ok. Another group decided to fish around Moore River, but found the fishing very slow. Tony decided to fish the area around S-Bend, and found a few tailor, lots of undersize mulloway, some whiting (of which one went almost 40cm). The final "group" decided to fish the Trigg area with Ian Taggart and me. The wind was too rough to get out a decent cast and because of the large swells, the beach was unfishable. The winds and swell died down a little bit, and then the idiot in a few of us took over. Ian Cook, Ian Taggart and myself decided that we would attempt to fish the reef.

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

Onlookers began laughing at us, as they sat on the shore, warm and dry. Within my first three casts, I hooked up on a solid tailor that looked to be around the 3kg mark. Unfortunately, like the Rotto field day, it spat the lure around one metre from where I was fishing. Ian Taggart then hooked up, and brought in a nice tailor that was around 2.5 kg. Then I hooked my second tailor, but that too spat the lure. I've been using a javelin lure for most of my tailor fishing around Perth, including Rotto, and I think most of the fish "threw" the hooks because of the lure's body shape. To Ian Taggart's amusement that lure was donated to the reef gods. Not to worry, as that lure was one of the 25 or so, that I have recently found down there. There were no more tailor, but one of the highlights of the evening was seeing Cookie fall in just about every hole at Trigg.

I think that if the winds had been more favorable then there might have been more fish caught, but it was still a good weekend.

One last comment: Even though you may not catch (or keep any fish) you can still get points if you attend the weigh in.

Mat Sneddon (Assistant F.D.O)

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Meeting at the workshop we packed up and left around noon and headed for Wedge Island, stopping off at the Lancelin Bakery before heading for the sand tracks.

With "whatisname" leading, we weaved and rattled along the tracks then dropped down onto the beach about one third of the distance. Our gallant leader said "She'll be right fellas" and headed off keeping close to the sandhills. A couple of k's on we at the rear stretched our distances apart as we noticed the beach getting very narrow and softer. Then it happened.

One quite new 4x4 went down in a big way, sand spewing everywhere and it's bum nearly in the water. We stopped and watched our leader flounder with a nudge nudge wink wink. Being good mates we let him stew for a while before trudging forward and offering our assistance. Shovels, arms and hands went to work and with a lot of pushing and grunting we had our leader out of the bog. He moved up the beach, swung around and came flying back, barely leaving a tyre print in the sand as he flew past us and headed back onto the track. We followed, sticking to the tracks to Wedge.

With the hot water system fired up, the pot belly ready to go, we then hit the beach in front of the shacks and checked out the water. Continuing on, we ended up at the usual reefy spot just before dark.

To give the 'learners' some space, Junior and I tracked off down the beach to check out a likely gutter. Flicking a bit of burley over the next hour started the bite to come on just as it got dark. Over the next hour we chucked back quite a few undersize until finally I collected a couple of mulloway that were legal. By this time the 'reef mob' had packed up and joined us to call a halt and head back to the shack.

After a hot shower, one or two medicinal throat soothers, a good nosh up and the room warm enough to go shirtless we decided to hit the sack for an early start (sorry, wishful thinking).

Next morning, after a couple of coffees and a bit of mucking around, we headed back to the location we were at the night before. The lads baited up as I trudged back looking for that gutter again, but after wasting one and a half hours I returned to find the lads getting stuck into a good tailor bite.

Now, I'm not used to seeing this lot catch fish and I was stumped for a while, so I sat back and watched this small miracle happen. Why, I soon saw one grinning eager beaver haul back on his rod and winch in TWO tailor attached to his three hook rig. Gawd, did he boast of his fishing prowess until we stuck it up him that he had wasted one hook. That gobsmacked him for a short while.

Being the best of mates you would think that they would have called me sooner or even offer me room alongside to have a go also. "Yeh, pigs do fly" they said. Anyway Junior said "Here, take my spot. I've white anted it anyway and I've caught my quota." I jumped in and caught a couple before the bite went dead. A lot of happy chappies headed back to the shack.

As the lads showered and cleaned up I said, "Don't worry I'll cook some lunch for you all" (now it's my turn). Sneakily, I prepared "IT", then with the assistance of the "braggered", we served "IT" up and they dived into "IT". I glanced at my watch and thought two hours should do it. Being a gentleman I can only comment that if 'natural gas' could be bottled then auto gas would be ten cents per litre, and watching those bush dashes were bloody enjoyable.

We made the weigh in on time and our "master of the scale" was dumbstruck to see the motley crew actually weighed in some fish.

Who knows what might happen at Port Gregory.

W.I.S.M.

P.S. The gardener won again.

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Attendance: Seniors - 7, Juniors - 0, Mini Juniors - 0, Visitors - 0.

Total fish weight:- 17.05 kg - weighed in gilled and gutted.

It should be noted that many members are now choosing to fish for the sport and not the competition. These members are following the catch and release ethic, and although they choose not to weigh in, it doesn't mean they are not catching plenty of fish. New competition rules in 2001/2002 will allow them to catch and release and still get field day points.

Field Day Prizes.

Copyright © 2001 Surf Casting and Angling Club of W.A. (Inc.)

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