Winter smorgasbord

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Post Options Post Options   Likes (6) Likes(6)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Winter smorgasbord
    Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 4:19pm
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Another cracker of a day at sea on my lonesome, this time a bit closer to home. The biggest Snap had a wicked forehead on it and was a stunning deep red! Unfortunately it was blown up so made its way into my new chilly bin. Was a good dive with other big Crays being in Berry, and two Packhorse just under size. The visibility was actually pretty good considering the recent weather. Was a bloody mission by myself with a swift current, and I'm feeling it today lol. John Dory alley wasn't on fire but managed a few, and a King joined the party taking a livey under a balloon. The Snapper fishing in the evening was insane, with every bait getting absolutely hammered in 4 meters of water by Snaps in the 3-7 pound mark! Really good conditioned fish that were epic colours and scrappers. I already had my limit from the morning so they all went back to get bigger. Pulled hooks on a big boy which always hurts, and pulled the pick with them still going nuts on dark! Not a bad way to christen the new chilly bin!


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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Muppet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 4:43pm
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Mean mate as usual
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 4:53pm
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Cheers Dan. Was really blown away by the straylining in the evening! Hard to beat the excitement of a screaming baitrunner in the shallows.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Muppet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 5:14pm
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Nice
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote smudge Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 5:53pm
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Wow, nice catch!
Best gurnard fisherman in my street
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 6:26pm
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Cheers Smudge was another long and productive day. About to go fillet the JD's now 👍
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote brmbrm Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 7:38pm
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Nice work!  (OK, not work)
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 7:41pm
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Cheers brmbrm. Will be going back to work tomorrow for a break! Feeling like a old man right now lol
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Catchelot Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 8:09pm
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Nice bro very impressive!Clap
"The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever." - Jacques Cousteau
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote r20b_pp@hotmail.com Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 8:30pm
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Oh yea boy the man. Mean selection there mate cant wait for your summer reports if these are your winter ones
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 8:54pm
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Cheers Catchelot. Was a happy man when the sun was setting and every big bait was getting slammed within 20 seconds. Love winter fishing when it's on!
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2020 at 8:59pm
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Cheers Gumboot. Have given the Gurnard a break this year but will hopefully go nail some big ones next year... Love winter fishing, so quiet compared to summer and only have to get up at 1, 3 or 4 am 😂. Hopefully nail a Marlin and a few trophy Kings this season! Decided to post on here a bit more, and this is a fairly common affair to be honest. Was actually a little slower than normal lol 🤙
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Snappa Geoff Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jul 2020 at 8:45am
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Another Action packed Report Johnny! Top results and photo's.Beer
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jul 2020 at 9:42am
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Cheers Geoff. Nothing massive but a bin full of goodness. The fish are bloody good eating at this time of year, fat as!
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote The Tamure Kid Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jul 2020 at 10:06am
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Great report, mate. You managed to find some quality fish not far from home.
Glad that you've made a call to post more. As a small tinny owner, your stuff is inspiring. Bonus point for spelling smorgasbord right - I always struggle with that one!
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Muppet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jul 2020 at 10:17am
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On Sunday I was out with Joker nearby on the bait and his mate I thought was you Johnny. We all got a king but I got the first lol.

Very nice guy the Joker.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jul 2020 at 5:00pm
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Thanks TTK it's good to know people appreciate the posts.

All these species were caught within 10-15 odd minutes from the harbour and in depths from 4-30 meters. Very easy to get "horizon fever" with bigger vessels, and in the process you can bypass some amazing action within minutes of the ramp. Sometimes going wide pays off big time, but 90% of the time the people I talk to back at the ramp who have gone wide are surprised at what I have managed to accumulate in close.

Do the basics right .eg learn how to catch fresh bait and livebait (if that way inclined like me), spend the time to learn how and when an area fishes well and keep a log of it (incoming/outgoing/autumn/winter/moon/wind), target certain species in areas favoured by them in certain seasons, etc. Soon enough these sort of results will pretty much become the norm for anyone.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote BananaBoat Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jul 2020 at 8:44pm
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Intersting post there Johnny Watson

"Horizon fever" has me smiling at times around my spot x, which is within the inner harbour over the warmer months...Te Atatu, Pt Chev, Meola
Have seen many a fishoes zoom past me, then return later, only to find out some had bummed out
I am limited to distance in my kayak, but like you say further on.....
Do the basics right, spend time learning how your patch works.... seasons, tides, moon phase, wind direction & so on...especially doing a log
Have done a journal for some time now, that has been truely valuable.... wish I did this when I first started out kayaking 3yrs ago... some of my best fishing is so close to the boat ramp, when I tell others, they do not believe me, haha

Thanks for sharing bro, I like the detail you do
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Johnny Watson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jul 2020 at 9:41pm
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Thanks BananaBoat, that's awesome. Sounds like you and I share a lot of the same principles.

Some great fisherman on this page who also do extremely well in their small boats and kayaks on a regular basis!

I had a kayak for a year or two, and would almost always do well very close to shore in very shallow water in the Tamaki Straight. It's hard to beat the stealth of a kayak, and I felt I could catch fish at almost any time of the day in almost all conditions, often just adjusting my techniques on any given day to suit what they wanted. An example being when the bite was slow and there was no current. I would cube up a few pillies and biff them out in random patterns in the general casting zone. I'd then chuck out a chunk the same size on a softbait set with a medium sized recurve hook attached to a light leader with no weight at all. This almost always resulted in good pannies, often in a matter of seconds haha. Then the next trip a whole Jack Mac would be the flavour of the day. I outgrew the yak as I usually take about 7 rods and carry at least 30-50 liveys lol. Sometimes being in a position like kayak fishing and not being able to "blast off" to the next spot puts you in a position where you need to adapt to get a result. That can be a good thing on days because no matter where you end up going it can just be "one of those days" bite wise, but instead you end up doing the basics right and making the situation work in the area you are in, or getting a good zilching lol.

Have kept a fishing/diving log book for nearly 10 years now, never once missed logging a single trip! It's a bit of a chore at times but is really beneficial when planning, or thinking about planning trips, whether days, weeks or even months in advance.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote N' Joy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 Jul 2020 at 3:27pm
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Johnny, a few John Dory on live baits??
 
Where are your crew members mate? A few solo trips...
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