Anglers tackle heat to hook superb catches
BY ALL reports, angling all round has been bliss. Fish have been caught in the estuaries and along the shores, and the deep sea has also produced well.
The freshwater anglers are rather secretive about their catches and locations too, but reports are that they have been in the mix as well.
Seventeen-year-old aspiring angler Sean Callaghan has done a “hat-trick” at Kromme, it seems, and has produced without fail. Sean bagged shad, grunter, garrick and kob during his stay.
This young man tells me (via e-mail) that most outings netted more than 15 grunter, caught mostly on bloodworm and pink prawns.
It seems the later part of the pushing tide has been the most productive for him.
Sean has experimented with art-lure in the shallows to just after the water has invaded the banks, where bait was previously extracted at low tide.
Garrick took well on live bait and shad are always on the bite at sunrise. Having angled there during the December holidays, he released the majority of his fish, although the table was blessed with the occasional fry. Today’s photograph is of a typical Kromme River grunter and shows the good condition these fish are in.
The last few weeks have been scorchers and good headgear would have been a blessing.
Good Polaroid sunglasses are a great help too, as it allows you to see into the water beyond the surface glare. This helps tremendously when bringing in a fish that has not given up the fight.
We’re experiencing a stagnant neap tidal period. However, it is improving by the day.
Typical of this time of year, the wind will blow in the afternoon so the early risers will fish while the water is calm.
This weekend the east wind prevails and the odds are not in favour for the angler. But the saying goes: “You can’t win if you have not bought a ticket!”
Low tide is at 4.17am tomorrow, making an opportunity to angle the pushing tide at sunrise.
Sad to say, some anglers are messy people, and leaving their angling spots worse off than the way they found them seems not to bother them.
I fail to see how hard it is to bring along a black bag for your refuse and use the bins nearby that are serviced in time.
This helps contain the litter from blowing away and leaving an eyesore for the next visitors to the site.
During the holiday periods, people place tremendous pressure on the cleaning department of the metro.
The day after New Year I decided to take a few children down to Tiger Bay for an outing and a little observation.
The fishing area there was far from what one would have liked. It was simply disgusting.
All around the estuary you can see the work being done to contain the litter, but users of the estuary need to re-think their habits too.