Pilchards

[Rickster 0]

Hi HookstersWent out for a fish on the weekend, on my way stopped in for some bait which was 2kg of pillies did'nt really look at them till i got to my destination. Well i have to say they were no bigger than the ones you get in a can of sardines, i could not even use them for any mullies as most will know bigger baits = bigger fish. so i guess they will be used for berley now, is this the norm across the board now or was this just a once off.Is it that hard to get decent bait now. Has anyone else found this as well ?

[adamibinfishin 224]

howdy rickster,sounds like they were frogmouth pillie size,haha.if you have the freezer space buy a 15 kg box of foodgrade premium pillies.can be split up quite easily and are awesome quality,can even eat them while out on the water .but seriously thats the cheapest way to go and you can go halves with a mate if you want aswell.buy some ziplock bags and you're good to go for many fishing trips

[phear 0]

where is the best place to get them? anyone wanna go halves in a box?

[adamibinfishin 224]

fish factory mate,raptis,all the bigger seafood joints gotem,can even barter a bit if your cheeky

[Guest]

speaking of pilchards....i went for a drive down the lincoln wharf during my lunch break today.Watching pilchard boats unload......onto the back of semi trailers! Seagulls were having a field day as there's always plenty that spill off the trucks onto the ground.The boats are not allowed to give out pilchards anymore but people can still pick the ones off the ground that spill.I picked about 20kgs off the ground a few months ago. Great for berley and occasionally bait.Think the quota is around 30,000 tonnes per year....but don't quote me on that.