Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Mornington, Mt Martha, McCrae, Safety Beach, Mt Eliza
Basti
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Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by Basti » Sat Feb 14, 2015 12:12 pm

I've been targeting mainly squid and salmon for the last few months and haven't had much success. decided on Tuesday that i was in need of a change of target. got to bed early with plans of a dawn session at balcombe estuary. I'd fished the creek a few times before but never early and with only one little 20cm bream landed near the mouth.

Arrived just on first light to a foggy wednesday morning and decided to wet some hard-bodies. The creek mouth was closed. first cast was from the little jetty in the open bit. i could see some swirls around the edges of the weed so a surface walker was tied on. third cast in, and i had a swirl right behind my lure. got excited and struck (noob move) only to pull the lure away from the fish. mentally kicked myself and put the lure back into the same weed edge and started working it. This time the fish was on target and i hooked my first ever bream on a hard body.
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I was a little underwhelmed to say the least. By now the sun was starting to peek over the horizon and i could see tons of the little buggers following every cast right to my feet. none were brave enough to have a go though so i decided that it was time to move on to the boardwalk section and pepper some snags.

the rest of the morning was a lesson in frustration as i was out of practice with accurate casting in tight conditions and getting nothing but follows from schools of tiny bream and hooking every branch in sight. at times i would see bigger bream (estimated <30cm) cruise right past my feet and blooping at the surface in the snags but they were very wary, only following from a distance. i did see a stonker that would have been at least 35 but he had obviously seen me and wasn't fooled. tried every walker and minnow in my box. Switched to plastics later on and started getting hits. However I reckon that they were littlies picking at the tails of the plastic. ended the day at 1pm with no fish to show for it and one lure lost (amazing i didn't lose more).

a small bonus; this guy was doing his thing next to me at one point, within touching distance. I was being quiet so as not to spook fish, but he wasn't fazed by casting, tying lures or going through my tackle bag. only left when a couple of walkers came clomping down the boardwalk.
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went home tail between legs and tried to figure out what i'd been doing wrong. watched a couple of videos and it was pretty obvious . I wasn't pausing the retrieve. it was just twitch twitch twitch all the way back. OK i sez, go back and try again. Roll around Friday morning and i slept through the first two alarms. hastily got dressed and drove down without stopping for coffee (crazy, i know).

Got there at 6.30 and thought i'd skip the flats area and just head straight for the trees. Also planned on sticking with the same lure the whole time and making sure i figured it out. boy am i glad i did. At the third snag i'd cast to (8am. i really gave the first two a working over lol), there was a big swirl at the lure. kept my cool and paused it half a sec, twitch twitch, pause, another swirl, another pause. then twitched it further and just as i paused again the line went tight. much swearing and holy craps upon seeing colour ensued, a short sweet fight and i was reaching into the water to comfort lift my first legal bream! what a fantastic feeling! :woohoo:
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a quick measure and pic and i lifted him up for the release. that's when i noticed that he was gill hooked, and no amount of delicacy would see a successful release. bugger had wolfed the lure. I was surprised at how sad i was at not being able to release. Oh well nothing for it but to iki him and get my lure out. I hadn't planned on keeping any fish so I was caught with only a plastic bag to put him in. the session would have to end early but there was still time for a few more casts.

it was at the tree lying in the water further up the creek that i had my next hookup. a cast so lucky that i had to stop and congratulate myself saw the lure sitting for a while in the water. just before i started the retrive i saw a bow wave from an investigating bream. gave it a few twitches and saw him dart away. pause again and he came back, with a mate. started the lure walking, and like clock work he hit it on the third pause. headed straight for the tree but i managed to turn him. he started a run straight towards me and as i tried to gain line, i put the rod tip into the branch above me. slack line and in an instant he was gone. :doh1: damn. this snag was absolutely chockers with bream and i ended up getting another hook up and a couple of follows with strikes that missed the hooks again and again. Didn't manage to land any but god damn surface lures in clearish water is heart in mouth stuff.

20min later finally put the lure permanently into a tree on the opposite bank and decided that that was my cue to call it. Stopped at bcf on the way home and replaced the lure, plus a few more colours. can't wait to give them a crack again.

Bream taste great. and my new kitten agrees :-D

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Raulfc7
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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by Raulfc7 » Sat Feb 14, 2015 12:17 pm

Well done Basti good report
"Do good when you remember, and what you forget will be revealed to you; and do not surrender your mind to blind forgetfulness."

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bowl
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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by bowl » Sat Feb 14, 2015 12:21 pm

Thanks for reports. :victory:
To many boats kayak, helicopter , catch a fish,catch a fish

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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by Snapper Snatcher » Sat Feb 14, 2015 12:33 pm

You have done really well getting your first bream on a hardbody for it to be on surface! Especially locally.
Fishing Victoria Species Comp:

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kaotay
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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by kaotay » Sat Feb 14, 2015 12:59 pm

Well done!

shazdoggg
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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by shazdoggg » Sat Feb 14, 2015 1:08 pm

Snapper Snatcher wrote:You have done really well getting your first bream on a hardbody for it to be on surface! Especially locally.
x2
When I got time,
I wet a line cos Im a junkie,
been fishin since a kid,
I like it cos it numbs me..

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hornet
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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by hornet » Sat Feb 14, 2015 4:27 pm

Good one basti, the successful lure was it a sinking one or floating lure >
He who has the most fishing rods WINS ! :ts:

Basti
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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by Basti » Sat Feb 14, 2015 4:48 pm

Thanks fellas. I'm definitely hooked on surface fish now lol. The lure is an Atomic hardz surface walker. It's the one in the first pic with the baby bream

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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by Nude up » Sat Feb 14, 2015 5:01 pm

Great read well done

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Re: Balcombe 11th and 13th feb

Post by purple5ive » Sat Feb 14, 2015 9:44 pm

Nice man. I've neen meaning to get down there for a while now. That tims prawn is a cracker colour. And well done on surface too. Ive never done that yet. Hopefully many more to come. Bit of a bummer about the iki though. Now starts the problem.of collecting bream lures... It gets very addictive and fast.... beware you have been warned.....
Is there much weed in there now...??

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