Boof Diary 2019

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Truedogz
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Boof Diary 2019

Post by Truedogz » Wed May 01, 2019 4:56 pm

Since the debacle at the Codference my closest friends have told me that I’ve changed, that I don’t mix with people and rarely smile. Its probably true after that let down, I know that I rarely get a good nights’ sleep now and have a very negative view of the future. I’ve come to accept that the dreams I had for some native fisheries are not going to happen and let go of them. So I live for the present. I caught up with Dave and Brett at GoFish Nagambie who suggested I start posting again on FV and my best friends have encouraged me to do so. There are some great people here and others I would like to meet. I see on the site there are concerns about less fishing posts, some other members not posting, etc. So I’ll start putting in reports again but I definitely won’t be entering into any of the politics or discussions on native fish. Hopefully some of the other long serving members will start posting again too and share their experiences so we can all learn.

Most people would know last year I only used surface lures for cod and I have had some great trips with Dave. Last season I caught 73 fish, mostly 45 to 70 cm but got the metery out of the Goulburn. Talking to a few people meter cod off the top in the Goulburn are considered rare. So I set myself the goal of getting more big ones out of the Goulburn as a way of lifting my spirits in the new year. The strategy was to use huge lures and fish the habitats where big fish were most likely. As a consequence I knew I would catch a lot less fish but would I enjoy success? Apart from two trips chasing trout and Gippsland blackfish I have surface fished for big cod, typically twice a week. In the posts below are the results presented as a diary recording all catches as well as doughnuts.

In anticipation of some questions I will answer them now:

Where:
The Goulburn system from Trawool to Toolamba (caught fish at those two spots) including some of the tributaries/backwaters. As I live near Nagambie most of my fishing has been near Murchison and Mitchellston. I don’t have a boat it has all been off the bank. Because of the poor bank access I don’t fish in the Goulburn Weir much except the top end near Mitchellston which is 5 minutes from home. I’ve done two trips to the Murray in the general area where FV has its cod trip (I was going this year but at the last minute my work roster got changed).

The Gear:
Shimno Tranx 301 loaded with Siglon PE8 60lb on a Veritas 5-8kg 6’6” baitcaster. This is fairly heavy tackle so why? 1. You need heavy line for heavy lures; 2. If a cod gets off with a big lure in its mouth it will probably die as it won’t get rid of it unlike a small lure or a bait hook. 3. I fish on foot from the bank so I don’t have the option of using a boat to drag big fish away from snags. My back up reel is a Shimano Curado 201 with the same line and if I was to fish all night I would use it as it is easier on the arm. The Tranx is a great reel with a heavy smooth drag. I have a big swimbait rod which Dave has tried too but we both don’t like it. The Veritas casts the bigger lures more accurately if not as far as the swimbait rod (probably better for lakes). FG knot braid to leader, Fastach snap, 70lb mono (Schneider Leader Line) tied with a centauri knot.

The Lures:
My favourite lures last season were Taylor made cod wallopers, followed by pompadours, cod crackers and rubber frogs. They catch fish of all sizes. This year the smallest I have used are 120mm cod crackers. Mostly I have used 230 mm wake baits and King Hit lures, and some monster Muskie lures I imported from the US that look like Pompadours on steroids. I modify the lures with bigger, sharper hooks, extra swivels and stinger hooks. All have taken cod.

Techniques:
Go read the posts last year! (use the search function for boofs) Apart from that, in general I target faster water near snags, eddies and backwaters near deep water. Will fish close to the bank in fast water. Night fishing prefer no moon. For twilight fish evenings just after a full moon I do well. In shadows you can catch them in daylight.

So how did I go? Read the following posts ...
Last edited by Truedogz on Thu Jun 06, 2019 5:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Truedogz
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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by Truedogz » Wed May 01, 2019 5:05 pm

Jan 3 Goulburn River
No boofs

Jan 7 Goulburn River
2 boofs, small fish

Jan 8 Goulburn River
40 cm trout cod
3 boofs, small fish

Jan 9 Creek
One boof missed from a reasonable cod

Jan 21 Goulburn River
Murray cod ≈ 102 cm sunset
Trout cod ≈ 35 cm 1 hr after dark
One boof missed twilight, small fish

Got the big one in a backwater near fast water, it went out and made three or four great runs. For its size a great fight. No big boof, the take sounded like a slap. A long, skinny cod:
big cod 1.jpg

Jan 23 Goulburn River
Murray cod ≈ 120 cm daylight, one hr before sunset.
Got it in broad daylight in quieter water near logs. The take sounded like a slurp. This is the spot with a pic of it coming in; compare the size of the log in the water with the fish:
coming in.jpg
The bank was too steep and greasy and the fish too heavy to get out of the water so I pinned it against the bank with my leg. Couldn’t get the brag mat under it properly so I stretched it over the top of the fish to measure it. From the eye to the tail it was about 115 cm so roughly the fish was 120 cm. After this fish I bought a steel tape measure as it is a lot more convenient. Not fat but deep in the shoulders. It really pulled, I had to thumb the spool to turn it and I could feel it twisting about. You can catch them in daylight off the top!
its big.jpg
about 120.jpg

Jan 29 Goulburn River

No boofs

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Brett
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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by Brett » Wed May 01, 2019 5:11 pm

Welcome back Will, you are a wealth of knowledge on targeting natives in and around your local area, sorry we couldn’t catch up for a bit longer on the weekend. I will however let you know of the next planned trip up that way and try to catch up then.

Glad you’re back, keep positive 👍. Cheers.

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davek
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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by davek » Wed May 01, 2019 5:13 pm

Hey good to have you back Will, great to see your pics last night and catch up, looking forward to another outing with you, cheers davo
It's an exhilarating feeling catching a fish
But it's an even better feeling releasing them

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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by Sebb » Wed May 01, 2019 5:16 pm

Hi Truedogz,
I have only been recently active in FV. That is one hell of a report.
You have inspired me to make better reports.
Respect :notworthy:
Last edited by Sebb on Wed May 01, 2019 7:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
------------------------------
A fish is a fish :ft:
No fish is worth a life, stay safe

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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by rb85 » Wed May 01, 2019 5:19 pm

Welcome back Truedogz by the look of the reports you had a very rewarding summers fishing. Got to love surface fishing those 120cm are beasts.

How did you go targeting blackfish any luck?

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Truedogz
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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by Truedogz » Wed May 01, 2019 5:22 pm

Feb 5 Goulburn River
No boofs

Feb 6 Goulburn River
1 boof twilight

Feb 11 Goulburn River
5 boofs from small fish before sunset

Feb 13 Goulburn River
No boofs

Feb 20 Goulburn River
Murray cod ≈ 110 cm one hr after dark

Took this photo of the spot a few days later. When I caught the cod it was totally dark:
110 spot.jpg
The take was another slap, like a cricket bat hitting the water. Again had to briefly thumb the spool. Was fishing on a reasonably flat spot, so I managed to lift the fish onto the mud and laid a brag mat next to it. The fish was a good 110 cm:
head.jpg
110 cm com.jpg

Feb 25 Goulburn River
One boof, small fish


Feb 26 Goulburn River
Murray cod ≈ 60 cm
Two other boofs

Mar 7 Goulburn River
Big boof in fast water in daylight
Murray cod ≈ 70 cm one hr after dark
nice cod.jpg
Mar 18 Goulburn River
Murray cod ≈ 60 cm

Mar 19 Goulburn River
Trout cod ≈ 25 cm

Mar 24 Goulburn River
One boof reasonable fish

Mar 25 Goulburn River
No boofs

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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by Truedogz » Wed May 01, 2019 5:27 pm

Apr 1-3 Murray River
First evening
No boofs

Next morning
No boofs

Second evening
two boofs from different fish, estimated around 70 cm
Murray cod ≈ 65 cm one hr after dark:
Murray cod.jpg
The river was falling fairly fast and it was very quiet on dark the first night with one small boof. The second evening conditions were great for night fishing, a clear starry night with no wind. About 10 pm I could hear a fair amount of boofing by small cod. With the water falling the mud flats were being exposed and heaps of shrimp and bait fish were crowding the edges adjacent to where the dropoff into deep water occurs. The small cod were picking them off. Here is a pic of the area in daylight:
mudflat.jpg
Third morning
Murray cod ≈ 100 cm 2 hr before sunrise

Woke up about 4 am and could hear the same activity on the water. Headed out onto another mud flat and nailed the fish in the pic below. On the mud stretched out I put a tape measure over him and he was bang on a metre:
just on a metre.jpg



Apr 8 Goulburn River
Golden perch (yes!) ≈ 35 cm twilight

Apr 9 Goulburn River
No Boofs

Apr 10 Goulburn River
No Boofs

Apr 16 Goulburn River
No Boofs

Apr 17 Goulburn River
No Boofs

Apr 18 Goulburn River/Goulburn Weir
Murray cod ≈ 107 cm 2 hr after dark

I caught this one in the top end of the weir near Mitchellston. The take was a slap and the fight not outstanding as it was not conditioned like a river fish, it was all about dragging a weight in against slow current. Got it on a big Muskie lure. I got it onto the mud for a pic and while getting ready it kicked and I dropped the camera into the water shorting it so no pic!! It still doesn’t work. I’ve since got going my other camera I drowned last year but it plays up. Got to get a waterproof camera!

Apr 22 Goulburn River
No Boofs

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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by Truedogz » Wed May 01, 2019 5:36 pm

Apr 29 Murray River
Murray cod ≈ 130 cm sunset
Murray cod ≈ 93 cm sunset

Apr 30 Murray River
Morning, no boofs

I bent the wing of the musky lure on the cod a few weeks ago so after setting up camp I flicked it out at camp a few yards a dozen times bending the wings to retune it. An 80+ cod hit it near my feet, in daylight about 3 pm. I thought well they must be on today. I went a few ks up the river late arvo.

Had a few casts in a run bringing the lure upstream and out of the corner of my eye I saw something. Sitting in mid water about 15m downstream was a big cod, could see the whole fish. I didn't panic and cast the lure at him but back where I had been. The cod went down and disappeared and I thought I'd spooked him. Next I saw a dark patch under the lure and when I looked carefully what looked like a white throat. I paused the lure for a second then moved it and the cod gently sipped it off the top. Once it felt the rod all hell broke loose and it headed out into the fast water. After I got him into the bank I kept saying "that's a f***in big fish".

I just managed to get a lip grip on this fish - it wouldn't open wide enough the jaw was that thick! The cod did the usual trick of rolling but with the belly up I slid the tape measure down and it went well past 120, it was in the high 120s, maybe 130 cm!!!!! I've attached a few shots, they don't do the fish justice. Also a pic of the head of the 110cm fish from February compared with this one. You can see how small the lure looks compared to the
head of the fish and how much bigger the head is compared to the 110. It wasn't a fat fish but had deep shoulders and a huge lower jaw. Released and quickly swam off:

look at that huge lip.jpg
DSCF1591.jpg
DSCF1593.jpg
comparison.jpg


Next fished 20 yards downstream and landed a fish about 93 cm which gave me the loudest boof of the season then headed back to camp about 7 pm:

93 cm.jpg

Had trouble sleeping so about 4 am went out flicking again and didn't get a sniff. The weather was changing so I came home.

Counting the 7 cod I caught in December it’s a total of 21 cod compared to 73 last season. The big lures have really reduced the numbers – but I’ve got 6 meteries, 4 from the Goulburn, 2 from the Murray. It’s a bit boring but I have learnt to zone out. Next season I will use the smaller lures more as the smaller cod 60-80cm make great boofs and are a lot of fun.

The only metre plus cod I’ve caught off the top that made a big detonation on top was the one I caught last season. The ones I’ve taken this year were relatively quiet, slaps and slurps – until they were hooked!

If I get any more this season I’ll add them to this thread.
Last edited by Truedogz on Thu Jun 06, 2019 5:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Boof Diary 2019

Post by davek » Wed May 01, 2019 5:46 pm

Pretty substantial post there Will, :thumbsup: cheers davo
It's an exhilarating feeling catching a fish
But it's an even better feeling releasing them

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