SEASON OPENER

[Des 837]

Spring has sprung with a couple of days of warmish weather getting it started.

It seemed a good chance to try Lure fishing Yellow Fin Whiting and kick off this season with perhaps a catch or two.

The YFW lure box has not seen daylight for awhile. It was time to freshen up the lures by replacing the now well rusted out assist hooks on them.

The reels have been greased and oiled up. Trying best to prepare them for a season of abuse and dunking that wading fishing will inevitably deliver them.

All prepared I set off for a couple of days in search of my first lure caught YFW for this season.

 

The plan was to fish both warmish days ahead, determined to get off the mark for the season. I had also planned on fishing two different areas on either side of the upper St Vincent Gulf, hopefully increasing my chances.

Day one, was a hard slog with barely a YFW sighted. But plenty of Flathead about. The other variety that comes to life in Spring on the Sandflats. I spooked a few.  I dropped a couple. I had not prepared my lures by replacing the rusted hooks. They certainly will be a focus of my next session.

I had to resort to bait to find a few YFW and keep me informed as to the whiting’s presence and whereabouts.

 

Day two, which I felt might be the better day, as a result of the water warming after a couple of warm days. It proved to be the day.

It did take some effort with fish finally taken later in the day on the incoming tide. Again, probably the warmest weather spell of the two days.

I did not experiment at all with any new lures and stuck to my old favourites of the Ecogear ZX and the Bassday Sugapen.

Only 2 of the 8 lure caught fish were taken on the surface. Their body temperatures and metabolisms are still low. Making them a bit lethargic to be aggressive surface predators. As in past seasons the sub surface lures usually starts the season more successful.

Another influencing factor is, awaiting the arrival into the shallows, of the new season’s juvenile prawns from their annual, mid gulf spawn. The availability of this seasonal food source will also stimulate predatory surface feeding behaviour.

 

There is a considerable difference in water temperature on the two sides of the St V  Gulf. The Eastern side being far shallower, is the first to warm up. The Western side was significantly cooler. However this will soon even out after a more prolonged spell of warm weather.

There are signs of a promising season ahead with some very hot conditions predicted.

Every cloud has a silver lining.

[Softy 2,991]

Geeze Des you don't mess about. I've not even considered them yet.. still wearing my Oodie around the house.

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[Hunter69 1,491]

Nice work des. Never caught one on lure myself.