Coral Bay....day 7
Our week has come to an end and today was our last chance to catch a few fish to take home. Catching a red would be a highlight and after getting some advice from the Faulkner Family and with dan1 passing on one of his 'red' spots, we headed out thru the south passage with a brisk NE wind and some swell.
As we approached dan's spot, the sounder lit up so we knew we were in the right place.
The drift was pretty quick, even with the sea anchor so we were continually moving and drifting back over the spot. The first fish into the boat was Mrs gates' nice 40cm Blueline Emperor, followed by the daughter's boyfriend's 47cm Blueline.
After mrs gates lost all the gear after a solid hookup, Cam was onto something big and boated a beautiful 4.5kg Red...all credit for this fish goes to Dan...thankyou so much, we're humbled by your generosity.
On the last piece of bait for the day and the week, I hooked into something big that was putting up a real tussle until the patenosta hook loop broke and we were all left to wonder at what could have been. Oh well, we'll just have to come back and try again.
Thanks to all the members of team gates for making it a great family holiday. Thanks to all the fishwrecked members for their support and comments during our daily reports.
The boat is packed, the house is cleaned and we're all set for an early start for the long haul back to Whitehills....hopefully we'll be home by 7pm Saturday night.
regards
rusty...
If life is boring, you must be doing it wrong!
dan1
Posts: 379
Date Joined: 11/07/07
gr8 times
good to see you got a red always a great feeling to see that red colour come up well done guys
glad to help
CCC
Posts: 539
Date Joined: 29/03/10
Wick boat photo!!
Wick boat photo!!
Faulkner Family
Posts: 18055
Date Joined: 11/03/08
good to see you got some red
good to see you got some red in the esky. one thing, them reds can play nasty by biting off hooks.
well done to all on your trip,. one thing we found is 1 week is just not long enough. next year make it 2 then again , why not make it three
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together
dan1
Posts: 379
Date Joined: 11/07/07
agree
we stared with one week no enough now we stay no less than 2 usually three weeks to get some time to relax as well
28 days to go
Faulkner Family
Posts: 18055
Date Joined: 11/03/08
9 days for us til we leave
9 days for us til we leave perth for CB
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together
Browny
Posts: 316
Date Joined: 04/01/11
after reading your daily trip
after reading your daily trip reports, sounds like you and the fam had a great trip Rusty!
Agree with above comment too....cool boat piccy!
Sigh................wish I was back up that way.
I just love Exmouth: Its a quaint little drinking town with a fishing problem!
r.gates
Posts: 573
Date Joined: 15/11/10
Next time...
Next time we come up here, it will definitely be for at least 2 weeks...even if the whole family can't make it for that long.
Hope all you guys who are heading up here soon, have as great a time as we had....the weather, the fishing, the whalesharks, the snorkelling. For those of you who are considering heading up this way, bite the bullet and make the booking, you won't be disappointed.
I thought the boat pic was pretty cool, too!
regards
rusty...
If life is boring, you must be doing it wrong!
bitten
Posts: 803
Date Joined: 07/04/10
nice work rusty followed your
nice work rusty followed your posts good to see you got onto a couple of decent fish bet you wish you knew about dans red spot on the first day hey :)
clean em up next time mate
ealzee
Posts: 611
Date Joined: 14/11/11
Loving ya reports mate so
Loving ya reports mate so jealous right now! Fantastic red there too
kill it??? eat it!!!!
r.gates
Posts: 573
Date Joined: 15/11/10
Coral Bay Wrap-up
We were awake at 4am yesterday morning and we hit the road at 4.50am, knowing it was going to be a long day. After 15 hours and 1225kms, we pulled into our driveway at 7.50pm....an average speed of 84kph.
All up we covered 2560kms (including a quick trip down to Warroora station) @ 16.1L/100kms, which was quite acceptable for the Navara....using a tick over 400L of diesel at a cost between $1.50 - $1.89/L. We also used 200L of ULP in the boat and we never touched any of the spares I'd packed or had to pull out any of the tools that I'd taken with me....I guess that's why we do our maintenance, even though the unforeseen can still occur.
The only hairy moment of the trip yesterday occurred about an hour in, when I was confronted by 2 roos sitting in the middle of the road. Fortunately, both hopped left as I was braking and veering right...only just got the Nav back from the panel beater 2 days before our trip, as I'd hit a roo a couple of weeks ago.
We stayed at Coral Bay House in Marlin Crt and it served our family well....the wide verandahs and sails out the front gave us plenty of space to find some relief from the 38C temperatures. We also had plenty of room to park the boat and it was close to all the amenities...I suppose everything is in Coral Bay!
There were many highlights including the family being together for the week, the great weather, the swim with the whalesharks, catching fish we'd not caught before, including Cam's first Red.....one thing's for sure, we'll be coming back and next time, it's definitely for longer.
regards
rusty...
If life is boring, you must be doing it wrong!
dan1
Posts: 379
Date Joined: 11/07/07
house
Rusty was that house #2 marlin ct on the hill thats where we are staying
Faulkner Family
Posts: 18055
Date Joined: 11/03/08
sounds like it was a great
sounds like it was a great trip for you and the family. always pays to take at least 2 weeks when your going away north. as you discovered 1 week just isnt long enough. was good to see how you were going on a daily basis.
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together
r.gates
Posts: 573
Date Joined: 15/11/10
#2
Hi Dan
Yes, we stayed at #2 Marlin Crt...plenty of room on the verandahs for our gear, also plenty of room on the verandahs to chill out, great outdoor area next to the bbq for meals, room to park the boat down the side of the house....served our family really well.
I'm already planning a return trip to CB....could be a 'boys only' in 2 years....and staying at least 2 weeks!
She who must be obeyed has pencilled in 2 weeks in Esperance this time next year but I'm sure the fishing will be pretty good down that way, too.
regards
rusty...
If life is boring, you must be doing it wrong!
Faulkner Family
Posts: 18055
Date Joined: 11/03/08
gotta put your foot down
gotta put your foot down Russ, tell the boss your going to Coral bay next year not Esperance. how far do you think you would get.?.
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together
r.gates
Posts: 573
Date Joined: 15/11/10
How far??
I'd probably get the boat and whatever else I could fit in it, then she'd change the locks on the house and the gate....that's about as far as I'd get, Russ! That wouldn't be too bad, would it??
regards
rusty...
If life is boring, you must be doing it wrong!
Faulkner Family
Posts: 18055
Date Joined: 11/03/08
thats a bit further than i
thats a bit further than i would get. Sandy would want the boat as well if we had one that is. just give her all the pro's and con's about going to CB and Esperence, just make sure there are more pro's and less cons for CB and more cons and less pros for esperence. or you could just tell her the truth and say it is windy and cold down south this time of year and its nice and warm up north. i know where i would be going
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together
ca11um
Posts: 335
Date Joined: 25/12/11
Great stuff mate!! good to
Great stuff mate!! good to hear you got a nice red as well ;)