Luke from Leisure Coast Bait & Tackle at Corrimal bemoaned that another absolute cracker of a week's fishing has been and gone, with winter westerlies making their early presence felt.
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Beaches continued to fish well as the water is clearing up and there have been some big whiting getting about, albeit not big numbers.
However, the size is sure making up for the lack of quantity.
There are plenty of bream and tarwhine lurking, well taken with beach worms and pipis, using peeled prawns as back-up.
Also plenty of good-sized flatheads about, with some big duskies getting into the beach areas - no doubt they have been washed out of the local creeks after all the rain.
For the salmon and tailor guys, the ever-reliable dawn and dusk sessions are worth suffering the chill and there are some stud, big tailor cruising in the end-of-day's gloom.
A couple pushed three kilograms.
There were again some good kings and bonito around the bommies and Port islands, with kings around the eight-kilogram mark and some hefty bonnies taken. A few schools of longtail tuna screamed through as well.
Rocks have produced plenty of kings and bonnies over the past month - as well as salmon and tailor - on both baits and lures, including metals and stickbaits.
Heaps of good snapper were caught out over the reefs last week, with many of them near the three-kilogram size taken on baits and plastics.
The wider reefs out over the 60-metres depth line had plenty of schooling fish over them from a single kilogram to 2.5kg, but those bigger reds came in from the shallower reefs of 20-30m.
The afternoon bite was again the better bite for the bigger fish with the hot session bite as always, coming on just before the sun goes behind the escarpment up off the northern reefs.
The bite window is only short but generally yields some big fish but out in the deeper stuff, bait is the key, find the bait and work the edges for the reds.
Website: www.reeldealfishing.com.au
Email: gazwade@bigpond.com
Officers cast net wide over illegal action
Over the past few weeks, there have been school and public holidays in NSW and adjacent states.
Throughout this period, there's been a typical influx of tourists into many coastal areas that resulted in an increase in recreational fishing.
Therefore, Statewide Operations group officers all along the coastline supported district officers to conduct various patrols.
High compliance rates were observed, particularly with interstate fishers, including most having paid the NSW recreational fishing fee.
One night further up the coast, officers observed two fishermen in the recreational fishing haven using live mullet as bait. During a subsequent inspection, officers located one cast net inside their vehicle. The offender told officers that this net had been used to catch and keep live mullet as bait.
The man received a $500 infringement notice and the cast net seized, live mullet released back into the water.
It is a reminder to all fishers that cast nets are illegal in NSW waters and their possession in, on or adjacent to, NSW waters is an offence.
Anyone observing suspected illegal activity should call the DPI Fishers Watch service on 1800 043 536 or report it online at: https://fal.cn/3fMUz.
Reminder for the approaching closed trout season until October and the special requirements for anglers wishing to fish the lower area of the Eucumbene.
Possession of an MLAK key will not guarantee access through the locked gates as a special ballot permit is required.
You can apply for access via email to angler.access@dpi.nsw.gov.au.
Ulladulla jet skiing 'bandit' captured
A repeat offender had his vehicle, jet ski and trailer seized at Ulladulla following a routine compliance patrol.
Fisheries officers from Batemans Bay and Statewide Investigations and Operations Group Squad, apprehended a repeat offender with an indictable quantity of abalone and commercial quantity of eastern rock lobsters.
Officers were conducting random compliance patrols when they came across a well-known fisheries offender diving from a jet ski.
Authorities apprehended the man and allegedly found him in possession of 61 abalone (30 times the legal limit) and six eastern lobsters (three times the legal limit).
They later allegedly found a further 33 abalone hidden in the jet ski.
Fisheries officers seized the shellfish and lobsters along with the alleged offender's vehicle, jet ski, trailer and diving gear.
The matter will be progressed to prosecution.
Anyone observing suspected illegal activity should call the DPI Fishers Watch service on 1800 043 536.
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A repeat offender had his vehicle, jet ski and trailer seized at Ulladulla following a routine compliance patrol.
Fisheries officers from Batemans Bay and Statewide Investigations and Operations Group Squad, apprehended a repeat offender with an indictable quantity of abalone and commercial quantity of eastern rock lobsters.
Officers were conducting random compliance patrols when they came across a well-known fisheries offender diving from a jet ski.
Authorities apprehended the man and allegedly found him in possession of 61 abalone (30 times the legal limit) and six eastern lobsters (three times the legal limit).
They later allegedly found a further 33 abalone hidden in the jet ski.
Fisheries officers seized the shellfish and lobsters along with the alleged offender's vehicle, jet ski, trailer and diving gear.
The matter will be progressed to prosecution.
Anyone observing suspected illegal activity should call the DPI Fishers Watch service on 1800 043 536.
