Hamelin Bay
I need some info from a SALMON FISHING point-of-view. Am thinking about heading down there in mid to late March, staying at the caravan park, probably tenting it for a few days.
Are the salmon running consistently past the park for much of the day during that time? Can I use light gear, including 2-4 kg line and lures going down to 5 and 7 grams? Or is it 10-12 foot beach rods and mulies/heavy metals? In other words, how much casting distance is required?
Also, what's the boat ramp like? Is it for tinnies only or can it handle a bigger (19 foot) boat? Also, I hear the cray diving is pretty good down there...worth taking the dive gear?
Lastly, anyone else thinking of doing the same thing? My plan is salmon/crays all day, Coopers Pale Ale all night, and that's about it!
Pete D
Posts: 1681
Date Joined: 07/06/07
Hamo
One of the nicest caravan parks in WA.
Will be there in a few weeks myself for the annual long weekend but 90% diving.
Hope you are good at reversing! About 25m reverse down wooden ramp with a nice drop on each side. 4WD low range is best. There is a concrete bit at the base of the ramp in the shore break which can have a nasty drop underwater...depending on conditions.
The ramp is open to the ocean so with a bit of swell it can be a real challenge and dangerous (don't have people standing between boat and winch post
).
Make sure you have a few people to help out on retrieve and get the safety chain on. I'm in a 23, so 19 will be fine. I'll get some pics this year!
Great diving behind the island, but there won't be many crays after our weekend
Salmon are usually to the north of the ramp in the big bay. About 3km north is a usual haunt or where the shore breakers are, usually just out of casting range from the boat (well were last year, but we had big waves to watch out for).
Agree with the Pales at night!
Cheers Pete
scano
Posts: 1246
Date Joined: 31/05/07
hammelin bay
Hey Auslobster
Me and Bodie from this site will be down there at the same time of year. The Salmon are mainly around really early morning and last year it was mainly Big rods and large metals that caught the most fish. We are going to be down there for about 12 days and staying with a pretty big group so should be good times.
Some good numbers of King George and flat head ect from the beach in the arvo and a few unstoppable's if you baloon out a rig at night. The boat ramp can support pretty large boats but as mentioned earlier watch out for the ocean swells.
you can keep your pale ale's, I'll stick to Corona's.
scano
Faulkner Family
Posts: 17863
Date Joined: 11/03/08
the ramp can be tricky as
the ramp can be tricky as mentioned , quite often covered in weed 4x4 an absolute must with good tyres
diving around the islands is great , never done it but been with my uncle when he went down below ,always a good feed crays and big green lip abs
good fun diving around the ramp as big rays come in for a feed and most of the big ones have lost their tails due to boat props but you can hand feed them , verry friendly
RUSS & SANDY
"A family that fishes together stays together"
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together
pgreen1
Posts: 395
Date Joined: 20/02/08
As mentioned the caravan
As mentioned the caravan park is great. As for the ramp i have a heavy 23ft boat and have little trouble launching and retrieving, i power on and off my trailer and find it easier at that ramp. If the wind blows up its only a short drive round to augusta where there is a quality ramp with three different inclines. I will be down there again this year. There are also many land based options as well.
Enjoy a good hard ...... Fish
carnarvonite
Posts: 8627
Date Joined: 24/07/07
Hamelin
The most reliable spot for salmon and big tailor is up the Boranup end of the beach which means driving back out on the road about 11km[I think] and turning to the left and heading back in on the sand track[unless you can catch the pro's as they go through the gate]You'll need polaroids to see the fish in the gutters if they are not schooled up.Oddly enough the schools nearly always head south along the beach even on the "up run"so you can follow them up the beach.
With the boat,if you head due west for 8-9 miles the bottom will run down from 35 fathom to around 50fathoms,just after it levels out on the bottom is a strip of coral about 100metres wide running northward.Its good for big nannygai,pinkies and the odd dhuie as well
If as said before the swell comes up while you are at sea it is best to drop some one off to take the car and trailer around to the Flinders bay ramp at Augusta.While working out of there as a pro it was like watching Funniest Home videos with all the goings on with people trying to retrieve their boats in a big swell.For the possible damage to people and the boat its not worth the saving on fuel for a 7 mile trip to Flinders bay
till
Posts: 9358
Date Joined: 21/02/08
Auslobster: just knocking
Auslobster: just knocking back a coopers pale now after a fresh cray, think your holiday plans are near perfect.
Auslobster
Posts: 1901
Date Joined: 03/05/08
Thanks for the info...
...and to hlokk, who PM'd me. It doesn't seem that light gear for salmon is the go down there, not particularly interested in chasing them with heavy lines/rods. Will probably now wait the extra couple of weeks and do some day trips to Dunny.
Again, appreciate the help, certainly sounds like a nice place and might organise a family holiday there for the spring...
Auslobster
Posts: 1901
Date Joined: 03/05/08
Hey Jamie!
Where'd you get the cray from? Did you come down my way yesterday? Next time give me a heads up 'cause I'm on nightshift atm and can definitely swing a morning dive!
till
Posts: 9358
Date Joined: 21/02/08
We were right up north, out
We were right up north, out of the Mindarie Marina, and then s-w a few miles. I only bagged one legal size, I sure wish they would hurry up and walk back in!
I heard about some guy bagging out in 5m off halls head, perhaps they walked in down your way already?
I'd be out tomorrow if it wasn't for my brother having my boat full of pesky freedivers, the weather looks pretty average to awful till Tuesday next week!
Bodie
Posts: 3758
Date Joined: 05/11/07
Auslobster as Scano said We
Auslobster as Scano said
We are going down for 12 days during march.
The boat ramp is known as the most dangerous in WA, many people dont think of the possible injuries that can come from retrieving your boat.
Ive been going down every year my whole life, and there would be atleast a dozen people each year who need help getting their boat back on the trailer.As everyone else said, dont take that ramp lightly, if your unfomfortable with driving on and off, or its pretty rough dont bother, head to augusta and play it safe.
Had a few people head off to hospital with busted ribs, arms, sliced open feet etc. If your gonna drive back on your trailer then make sure everyone is off the ramp.
As for the fishing and diving, crays are in big numbers down there, and you can even get jumbos free diving from shore. Back of the island is a pretty good place to go, but if the swells up, play it safe waves roll through that area pretty heavily.
But crays are to be had all over the place, so much reef down there, and only in shallow water.
Salmons can be had from anywhere mate, Scano can vouch for this, but the number of times people go walking right up the beach looking for fish, and the schools are sititng on the reef right next to the ramp... Dolphins always work this area so follow them!!
about 500m from the ramp straight out, about 200 m off the north side of the island, there is a small reef that water breaks on, there is some HUGE sambos on it.... i dont know anyone who can stop a 25+ kg sambo in 8 metres of water!!! Ive never stopped one, and busted 100lb more times than i can count.
Species that are plentiful in this are.
Salmon, Skippy (Big skippy), herring...everywhere, Big KG's...if you know where to look, Dhus from 8 metres of water 500m from shore, pinks out the back, YTK's, flatties, Groper (I saw a blue groper 2 years ago swimming in 3 metres of water on the sand on the front of the island... estimated 8-10kgs)
o yeah... dont forget this one
Lots of sharks too :) any pro cray fishermen down there wouldnt be able to count the number of great whites they have seen in 1 season...and with the seals usually hanging around the reefs just of the back of the island, im not supprised!!