Westernport mixed bag.

King George Whiting, KGW, Ting
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Irishfisherman
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Westernport mixed bag.

Post by Irishfisherman » Tue Jan 12, 2021 8:54 pm

After a great session at Black Rock my dad and I decided to head straight to Westernport to fish into the morning. With a new sounder and no GPS marks we found a channel off Tankerton and anchored up with little expectation. Initially there was very little action but as the tide started to flow we managed a few pinkies and a short head worm eel, still nothing spectacular but just something to keep us entertained. Suddenly the rod with a salmon strip starts loading up before the drag starts peeling. My dad grabs it and a long arduous fight ensues. Eventually he gets a big eagle ray to the surface, a large beautifully marked creature but not the desired species. With the action picking up I hook a fish on my whiting rod, which turns out to be a small gummy shark, the species kept coming and eventually we started getting some whiting. Unusually there were a few smaller ones around, all about 30-33cm, just big enough to keep, eventually we manage some larger ones with the biggest being 41cm. Eventually the action started to slow and with our goals achieved we thought we’d do a bit of drifting around Cowes and see what happens. As soon as I got there I hooked a heavy sluggish fish and to my delight it was a rock flathead-my first in years! I was amazed at their frog-like appearance and underhung jaw, very different to the yanks or sand flathead. It went 42cm and straight in the esky. We were then unfortunately plagued by wrasse, before in the dying minutes I hooked a fish that I’ve wanted to try eating for a while, the scorpionfish. I made sure to stay well clear of its spikes and carefully got it in the esky. Now verging on zombified with tiredness we decided to head home for a well earned rest. And for a little bit of an add on, today we headed out from Mornington for a quick session on the squid, we quickly got enough for a feed and headed home, I noticed a better size in the squid than when previously fishing in Frankston a few weeks back. Hope this helps or encourages some people.
Cheers.
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Sebb
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Re: Westernport mixed bag.

Post by Sebb » Tue Jan 12, 2021 10:49 pm

Oh mate sounds like you had another great session. Good on you, well done :tu:
You deserve a good rest after great couple fishing sessions. I'm sure you can sleep well the next few days with a big smile on your face ;-)
------------------------------
A fish is a fish :ft:
No fish is worth a life, stay safe

Fishbref
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Re: Westernport mixed bag.

Post by Fishbref » Wed Jan 13, 2021 3:56 am

Good on you, mate.

I used to throw wrasse back also until I had it steamed at an Asian restaurant; never looked back, always a keeper now.

canned_tuna
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Re: Westernport mixed bag.

Post by canned_tuna » Wed Jan 13, 2021 8:18 am

We used to keep gurnard back in the day...so a set of side cutters was kept in the tackle box to cut the spikes off which made handling a hell of a lot easier

Irishfisherman
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Re: Westernport mixed bag.

Post by Irishfisherman » Wed Jan 13, 2021 3:03 pm

Fishbref wrote:
Wed Jan 13, 2021 3:56 am
Good on you, mate.

I used to throw wrasse back also until I had it steamed at an Asian restaurant; never looked back, always a keeper now.
Yeah the wrasse are amazing mate, tastes like crab almost. Sadly the ones we got were too small.
Last edited by Irishfisherman on Wed Jan 13, 2021 4:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Irishfisherman
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Re: Westernport mixed bag.

Post by Irishfisherman » Wed Jan 13, 2021 3:05 pm

canned_tuna wrote:
Wed Jan 13, 2021 8:18 am
We used to keep gurnard back in the day...so a set of side cutters was kept in the tackle box to cut the spikes off which made handling a hell of a lot easier
Very nasty critters the gurnard, side cutters are a great idea, cheers for the advice.

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crumpet_avenger
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Re: Westernport mixed bag.

Post by crumpet_avenger » Wed Jan 13, 2021 6:33 pm

Hey buddy.
Great catch. You seem to be happy to catch anything that is on offer. The fact that you fish with your old man is awesome.
I remember going with my dad and hoping. We used to get leatherjacket and small whiting and be happy.

Gotta start somewhere. We tried GPS. Fishing were boats where. Caught bugger all.

Then we said bugger it. Try our own spots. 42 - 49 whiting and 2 kg pinkies are regulars now. Also larger gummies. We fish afternoon to avoid the ramp que.

Experience teaches you where to fish and when to fish in westernport.

Almost all of the summer clowns have gone now.
Let the fisherman begin.

Irishfisherman
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Re: Westernport mixed bag.

Post by Irishfisherman » Wed Jan 13, 2021 6:44 pm

crumpet_avenger wrote:
Wed Jan 13, 2021 6:33 pm
Hey buddy.
Great catch. You seem to be happy to catch anything that is on offer. The fact that you fish with your old man is awesome.
I remember going with my dad and hoping. We used to get leatherjacket and small whiting and be happy.

Gotta start somewhere. We tried GPS. Fishing were boats where. Caught bugger all.

Then we said bugger it. Try our own spots. 42 - 49 whiting and 2 kg pinkies are regulars now. Also larger gummies. We fish afternoon to avoid the ramp que.

Experience teaches you where to fish and when to fish in westernport.

Almost all of the summer clowns have gone now.
Let the fisherman begin.
Thanks very much mate, I’m very lucky to be able to fish with my dad, I always enjoy the competitive banter, especially when I’m catching more fish. I’ve also noticed, mainly with snapper fishing that it’s often a waste of time to anchor amongst everyone else. We’ve had far more luck seeking out our own spots.

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