STRIKE WHILE IT’S HOT

[Des 692]

With a very mild Spring and early Summer, Yellow Fin Whiting lure fishing has had a few challenges this season.

The weather patterns have not sustained a constant water temperature. It barely heats up when a cold change with a series of cold days would chill off the water. It looks like we may have turned the corner.

We have not yet seen a sustained warm spell to put the warmth into the water and hold it there for a prolonged spell. It is the sustained higher water temperatures that has the greatest impact on the ecosystem and the behaviour of the YFW. Yes we have been finding a few YFW on lures, but nothing like those hot bag out sessions of last year.

So today after a few, rare consecutive days of 30+C I was off to seize the opportunity and “Strike while the water was hot”

Comparative water temperature maps. What a difference a few warm days make

 

I was trying to avoid the cooler water in the morning, by starting around 11.30am. Sleeping in ! The water was still surprisingly cold at the start. Thermal lag, meant the water was still holding onto a cool temperature after a spell of cold days earlier in the week. Hence the importance of a sustained period of warmth. It was hard to find fish showing interest in any of the surface lures in the incoming tide.  Fish would not rise for the lure. The few fish spotted, were hanging back from the lure and staying deep. They were keeping as cool and calm as the water temperature.  I went subsurface with the Ecogear ZX43 blade to catch a couple of good fish.

 

The Salmon Trout have moved out & the Trumpeters have moved in. A sure sign of warm water.

Still it was not until the tide started to run off late afternoon, and the water had warmed up from the heat of the day, did the fishing come alive. Increasingly overcast conditions did put a dampener on the fishing. You always catch more in sunshine. I had to resort to some UV enhancement tricks to engage the fish. UV sprays and UV flash tinsels can transform the standard sunny day lures into successful overcast day lures. A quick spray on your lure. It dries fast. Although it leaves a strong lacquer smell. So rub it over with some S factor or Pro-Cure scent to negate the smell. Today my ever reliable Sugapen 95 could only catch fish with the UV enhancements. 

 

I worked through a variety of surface lures today. The other successful ones being Zipbaits Fakie Dog DS, Ebi Panic, MMD Splash prawn-AW Yabby, 

 

And one I have not used for a couple of years, the Atomic K9 Bulldog which took the biggest fish.

The smaller size lures where better in lighter winds and the bigger and noisier lures in the stronger wind spells.

 

The day finished strongly with the fish more aggressive in the warm water late in the day. I released a few fish in the high 20s to 30cm and kept 17 fish in the 31- 40cm range. Most were in the 35 to 40cm range. A clear sign of the warm water attracting a new batch of juvenile prawns onto the sand flats along with the larger predatory Yellow Fin Whiting.

 

Happy Hot days and some Hot fishing sessions ahead !

 

Cheers, Des

[Kelvin 2,021]

Nice work Des

[Territory Lad 1,137]

Great work @Des

Hopefully the new year brings some better surface YFW conditions.

[Des 692]

ONLY A FEW, BUT GOOD FISH

An afternoon session today did not realise a lot of fish, but they were all quality.

The Zipbaits Fakie Dog DS lure did the damage.

A couple of 40cm and a 43.5cm Yellow Fin whiting make the 32 and 35cm fish look insignificant.

Cheers, Des

[Territory Lad 1,137]

Nice @Des. Some real quality size there.