Sydney
NSW
Dirty water fishing PITTWATER
Peter Le Blang plfishfingers@bigpond.com
What a month it has been! We have just about had more water fall from the sky than what is in Pittwater. I am joking of course, but when you have unbelievable amounts of rain for an extended period it does seem that way. With all the extra fresh water that has been running into Pittwater, our normally clean, clear, blue water is a chocolate brown instead.
It just means you will have to approach fishing a little bit differently to get the rewards. For most of my life I have been told to get the freshest bait possible to maximise catch rates. Now, however, there is a different avenue to take, and that is to introduce smells when fishing dirty water as well as bright colours or noises when using lures. When we fish Pittwater in the deeper water, that murky brown will disappear usually a few metres from the surface, and clean water will be
Flatties like this one are ready to pounce on lures around the weed beds. Unfortunately, for some species it’s not ideal but there are a lot of other species that can be targeted.
below that. The area of the cleaner salty water will be where a lot of larger fish will congregate, but being
at a depth where the water is colder, they won’t bite as often. In these cleaner water areas, by using live baits and fresh baits you should be able tempt some larger fish such as jewfish, flathead, and a variety of midwater species such as kingfish and tailor. Throwing out the anchor and using a weighted berley bucket of oily, finely-ground fish to disburse sparingly should see some success. By using lightly-weighted fishing rigs and floating baits down into the berley trial you should see a great deal of success providing you have the patience. Live baits such as yellowtail or squid should attract any midwater pelagic species that are in the area to have a look. By placing these baits midwater, cruising pelagic species should find them irresistible. Quite often when using yellowtail in deeper water I will splash on a bit of glow bait on the yellowtail. This fluorescence will make the offerings stand out and hopefully be seen from a greater distance, or become a target when fishing around a larger school of yellowtail. If you are going to fish the shallower areas, I would suggest using smellier types of bait such as strips of pike, slimy mackerel and even granddad’s old recipe of cheese and garlic mixed with bread and cat food tuna. If you use this recipe, you’ll go home smelly after a day’s fishing but you should have a few bream to feed the family. When using granddad’s recipe, you will also attract a lot of other species whilst fishing the dirty water. Using a float and a small amount of the bread mix recipe should see many different species being attracted and getting
It’s fun for young and old once the kingies are found. caught such as bream, leatherjackets and even flathead or flounder. For the lure fishers it’s time to break out those freakishly, brightly coloured, noisy lures to use. In the brown water, brightly coloured lures with a rattle will attract the attention of species such as bream and flathead as well as jewfish. Direct your efforts to the edges of weed beds or drop-offs like the ones you will find up and down Pittwater. Holes up the back of many of our bays will see larger fish waiting to ambush smaller prey coming from the shallower waters or soon-to-becomebare mudflats. Some of these larger holes will house monster flathead, and there should be some nice bream and even a jewfish or two to tangle with. Both hardbodied lures and soft plastics will work in these scenarios. Soft plastics will put vibration through the water, which is exactly what noise will do as well. If you have S factor or Halco paste in your tackle box, don’t forget to coat your lure
with a smear. Another small lure to try in the shallower, dirty water is a popper. By causing splashes of activity on the surface of the water there are quite a few species that will be excited by this, and the commotion may trigger a whole school of fish to become active. There are many different types of lures on the market, and fishing dirty water can be a wonderful place to try them all out. For those anglers wanting to catch larger fish, fishing offshore may be the better option once some cleaner water has been located. When I mention the cleaner water, I’m not referring to the colour of it but more the amount of debris that is travelling along the coast. With many rivers that have been flooded along our New South Wales coast, there have been lots of logs, garden furniture, plants and a host of other objects to annoy you. I am hoping the next month should see good snapper and reef species being caught in water
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58
APRIL 2022
Decent squid are easier to find in the cleaner water near Palm Beach.
depths around 60m, and as per usual try to find baitfish before lowering your baits or throwing out the anchor. We will quite often use pilchards or frozen squid when fishing 60m of water, but we will also use yellowtail or other baitfish that are caught whilst fishing these areas. Our headlands along the coast will also see kingfish being caught and targeted by many anglers. Downrigging yellowtail or slimy mackerel will normally see you catching a few but do not forget to cast lures out as you are travelling along. By casting lures out the sides of vessel you will give fish a chance to chase lures to the boat, and if they do not smash your lure there will be live baits to tempt them anyway. Long Reef attracts a lot of attention nowadays, but with a little study of maps you will also see there are many other reefs that will attract these fish and you will not have to deal with a lot of the crowds. So, as you can see, even though we have had a lot of rain, catching fish is still possible – and by using new methods, heaps of fun can be had by all. I hope this report sees you dry and excited to get out fishing with your mates and loved ones in the near future. If you have difficulties catching fish, remember to call your local charter operator and book a day in with them. Most of us are quite happy to share the information that we have gathered over many years, and this alone will increase your knowledge in a short period of time. • Peter Le Blang operates Harbour and Estuary Fishing Charters, phone 02 9999 2574 or 0410 633 351, visit www. estuaryfishingcharters .com.au
