Opening the 20/21 LBG account

[DougieK]

Great read & photos Dougie
Geez, a long way around, I would have thought.
Cheers Gra

It's about 45 mins longer through Eden, but worth it to avoid Melbourne peak hour and the mindless monotony of the Hume from about Benalla to Goulburn.

[DougieK]

Great report Dougie K if I happen to do a Marlin trip early next year I might just plagiarise the **** out of your opening paragraphs.

Or just describe what happens on your trip. Instead of writing a report "fished 6 days, got one king" actually tell the story of what you're doing. It's actually really rewarding.

[rb85]

Most of team CBFt trips go something along the lines of launch boat, catch fish then go home and drink beers.

Jokes aside I did enjoy the read

[Troy McLure]

Great report and a great part of the world. Do you ever target Groper or Drummer whilst you’re waiting for the Kingfish to show up? I’ve seen some Groper caught years back in southern NSW and they pull like buggery.

[Sebb]

Oh what a story. Sounds like you really enjoyed what you did there. Good on you.
Must be a good rod and reel to be able to land that kingfish.
I can't remember where exactly but I went to Merimbula few years ago and was told and went to a good rock ledge that people can catch tuna and marlin off it.
High drop to the water and a bit of a walk from the carpark but sure it was amazing rock ledge and straight to deep water.

[DougieK]

Great report and a great part of the world. Do you ever target Groper or Drummer whilst you’re waiting for the Kingfish to show up? I’ve seen some Groper caught years back in southern NSW and they pull like buggery.

Not really. I've seen quite a few people who do and some of the Groper coming in are pretty spectacular but it's not really what I'm interested in. I befriended a guy up at Coffs Harbour earlier in the year who was very good at it, it looks like fun but i've never really dedicated any time to learning the ropes.

[DougieK]

Oh what a story. Sounds like you really enjoyed what you did there. Good on you.
Must be a good rod and reel to be able to land that kingfish.
I can't remember where exactly but I went to Merimbula few years ago and was told and went to a good rock ledge that people can catch tuna and marlin off it.
High drop to the water and a bit of a walk from the carpark but sure it was amazing rock ledge and straight to deep water.

That rod is probably my all time favorite piece of fishing gear. It doubles as a heavy squid rod when I dont' want to carry an extra into a ledge or when IP steals my actually squidding combo, is utterly perfect for spinning salmon off beaches, collecting bait of ledges and light spin work from the rocks. I've caught everything from a palm sized squid to a 4-5kg Mack tuna on it, and now it's handled a kingie as well. It's a step up from a Tcurve coastal which it replaced, but without spending the 1000 odd bucks on a Zenaq or Ripplefister or something like that. 3 piece and came with a hard case so I can break it down and stuff it into my pack when I'm climbing in and out, and weighs almost nothing. First day casting it I put a busted 75g slug clean across Port Campbell harbour and into the wall about 5m up on the other side. Google maps tells me it's 141m. I cannot speak highly enough of this stick.





The reel is just a stock stradic with 12lb Tasline. I have no idea why these somehow got a bad rep, since I broke my biomaster this little thing has been killing it across the board. Tasline is incredibly abrasion resistant, casts beautifully and retains it's knot strength over a long period of time. The '12lb' is a bit of a myth, leftover from the days where diameter was measured in breaking strain, it's PE1.2, and breaks at 20.6lbs.



The Merimbula ledge you're referring too is probably either Pulpit or City Rock at Green Cape. Commercial fishing / over fishing / climate change /environmental damage has basically destroyed the LBG scene off there. Guys get kings sometimes, but nobody has seen a Tuna or Marlin for 10+ years now. They're stunning places and the ledges I served a lot of my early LBG time on, but if you're targeting game fish you're better off being north of Bateman's.

Pulpit rock from 2016



City Rock, same trip, featuring a bonus Mango Mongo.

[russellh2]

What a fantastic read - While I do most of me fishing in freshwater, I have done a number of trips to Gippsland - Metung / Lakes Entrance and further up to Eden & Malacoota fishing rivers and lakes with reasonable success targeting Bream and Flat head - Spectacular part of Aus.
Question if I may - Have you fished ( Land based ) Greencape, about 30Ks Melb side of Eden or the Beach at Lake Wonboyn, in same area??

[DougieK]

What a fantastic read - While I do most of me fishing in freshwater, I have done a number of trips to Gippsland - Metung / Lakes Entrance and further up to Eden & Malacoota fishing rivers and lakes with reasonable success targeting Bream and Flat head - Spectacular part of Aus.
Question if I may - Have you fished ( Land based ) Greencape, about 30Ks Melb side of Eden or the Beach at Lake Wonboyn, in same area??

The post before yours literally has a pictures of me and Cam fishing Green Cape.

Green Cape, 30 years ago, was a mecca of land based game. Yellowfin Tuna and Marlin were landed quite regularly off 'Pulpit' and City Rock was a spectacular sharking spot. Years of abusive over fishing (both commercial and rec), coupled with environmental issues, have seen it almost impossible to hook a yellowfin from the shore, and the marlin never seem to show up anymore. There are stories from the 80's of 20 odd guys fishing Pulpit and landing multiple fish each over a weekend. As it is the last recorded catch of one was 2012 (it might have been 2010, i'll ask the guy next time I see him). I spent 28 days fishing Greencape in 2016, and probably that many again from 2017-2020, and i'm yet to land a game fish there.

The Kingfish come through from time to time, but it's almost impossible to time them. You're much, much better off driving north of Bateman's if you're chasing big fish off the rocks, going all the way to kioloa / JB / Kiama etc.

You can read some of my previous exploits at Green Cape here, including my first NSW land based game experience. It's a spectacular place to go fishing, and if you just want a great experience and aren't too worried about hooking a big one, Pulpit is one of the most incredible places you can spend a couple of days staring to the horizon. Or alternately, Saltwater Creek campground is one of the most consistent salmon beaches i've ever fished.

viewtopic.php?f=186&t=14701

and here

viewtopic.php?f=186&t=15745

and this last one pretty much sums up fishing at Green Cape in 2016-2020

viewtopic.php?f=186&t=17022

[dazz999]

Great reading thank,s for posting it