Ningaloo 2018
All done and dusted for another year. Just finishing up the cleanup after getting home late Sunday. Weather was mostly good, after missing a lot of the first 5 days due to a passing front. Fish had been good prior to our arrival, and were still around for a while, then, bang, one day the water went cold and green, just like it was in Kalbarri all summer, and the pelagics fled. Really hard going for a while; we actually went four days without losing a lure, as there were f*all fish to take them and then to be taken by sharks. We managed a feed of demersals by working hard at it, but the billfish, Wahoo, Spaniards and even the bloody YFT were gone.Nothing left but ocean cockroaches, AKA Stripeys.
This year was going to see a big effort on the bills out wider--our very first foray , and only a brief one, saw us 2 from three on nice little blacks. way to christen the new rig, which had only had a total of three trips out of home before it was loaded up for the trip north.
Sails were about at first, but we weren't adapting very well to using outriggers for the first time--we usedto run straight off the rod tip, and free spool the monent one turned up. We worked it out in the end, and had a best day of four released, but lost a hell of a lot more than we landed--bill-wrapped leader ( 80lb and 120lb) bustoffs were especially common, but we were using exactly the same gear as previous years when it wasn't really an issue, so ??? We even hooked one on an X-Rap 20, and got it nearly to the boat.
Wahoo seemed to be around in better numbers than previously, apart from the cold, green episode, our best day was 3 and we weren't even targeting them, bycatch to sails, mostly.
Spaniards were about at first, then went quiet, but there were some good fish among them.
The sharks got what was probably the best one--the head and shoulders that were left covered the bottom of a full-sized fish bin
we managed the usual quality demersals, but not as many as last year, sharks make it very hard, and you just give up rather than feed them quality fish.
There were a few of the smelly, bitey buggers around this year--no, not sharks, big barracuda.
This lure had the unparellelled distinction of surviving nearly the whole trip, and ended up looking a lot worse than it does in this pic--it accounted for
5 wahoo, three YFT, 2 spaniards, plus a sharked YFT and spaniard--then was snipped off by a 'hoo where the line cut the water, late in the trip.
Lots of beautiful evenings, sundowners on the beach
Faulkner Family
Posts: 18023
Date Joined: 11/03/08
looks like you gave the new
looks like you gave the new tub a good workout. would have been a magic trip . well done , oh to be retired ,
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together
uncle
Posts: 9474
Date Joined: 10/02/07
Good trip and a good write up
all aggressive fish love bigjohnsjigs
Deleted
Posts: 6265
Date Joined: 26/04/14
great pics. epic looking
great pics.
epic looking trip well done
ranmar850
Posts: 2702
Date Joined: 12/08/12
yeah, retired....
The transom door proved to be useful for ore than just boarding--we found it was the easiest way to get fish on board that we wanted to release, just surf them up. And, strangely, they would lie there quietly across the step, until you unhooked them and pushed them back in. It was weird, YFT normally batter themselves to death on a deck, but they would just lie there, as below.
Fuel useage overall was extremely close to 1 nm per litre for the day, and we rarely shut down all day. We saw figures like 44nm for 47 litres, or 48nm for 51 litres. Some day the litres were less than the miles. The electronics package worked very well, and the autopilot was absolute gold. The only issue was the refusal of the system to see the water temp from either of the transducers--it was picking it up from some other source--I suspect the temp was coming from some OAT sensor on the motor. You could see the actual, just needed to go into the transducer menu.
bsir
Posts: 574
Date Joined: 24/04/11
Camp
Looks like an awesome trip.
Where were you camping?
ranmar850
Posts: 2702
Date Joined: 12/08/12
Winderabandi Point
On Ningaloo Station. Halfway between the homestead at Point Cloates and Yardie creek.
Adam Gallash
Posts: 15644
Date Joined: 29/11/05
Awesome
Awesome write up and pics, top sized pelagics!!
Site Admin - Just ask if you need assistance
meglodon
Posts: 5981
Date Joined: 17/06/10
Thanks for sharing
Very good write up and pios, 4 metre bronze now that would be a sight to see I didn't think they grew to that size either.
ranmar850
Posts: 2702
Date Joined: 12/08/12
Bloody thing was enormous.
We've had issues with big, 3 m-plus bullsharks up there in recent years, one that took a big sail last year was huge, but this was def a bronzie. They're not even fun to catch, just like winching a bloody great anchor off the bottom at that size, just dumb resistance , inch by inch in low gear. Little jobs up to 1.5 m or so can be fun, go like mackerel.
I got some gopro video of it, but stuffed up the boatside--it was so big I didn't get the head fully in frame !!!
rob90
Posts: 1526
Date Joined: 06/02/13
Thats living! Great report,
Thats living! Great report, and top pics.
Hi my name is rob............. and I'm a........... fishaholic
Dale
Posts: 7930
Date Joined: 13/09/05
Nice fishing had there, ripper hoos as well. Just as well they taste good.
"Just because you are a Character, Doesn't mean you have Character."
Mr Wolf
Happy dayz
Posts: 450
Date Joined: 29/04/18
Awesome pics and report mate
Awesome pics and report mate ,absolute quality love that last pic of the fire looking out to the boat that just says, fuck were living it !!
Happy dayz
Happy dayz
Posts: 450
Date Joined: 29/04/18
Awesome pics and report mate
Awesome pics and report mate ,absolute quality love that last pic of the fire looking out to the boat that just says, fuck were living it !!
Happy dayz
Happy dayz
Posts: 450
Date Joined: 29/04/18
Awesome pics and report mate
Awesome pics and report mate ,absolute quality love that last pic of the fire looking out to the boat that just says, fuck were living it !!
Happy dayz
ranmar850
Posts: 2702
Date Joined: 12/08/12
definitely living the life
now I just need to get up there ealier, beginning of May, to get the end of the warm water and more prolific pelagics and bills. It was disappointing to have the marlin disappear after our first successful attempt , only had a total of one missed strike for the rest of the trip.
Swompa
Posts: 3871
Date Joined: 14/10/12
That's living! Great photos.
That's living! Great photos.
kirky79
Posts: 1351
Date Joined: 13/01/12
Awesome
Been waiting for the report. Didn't disappoint, some ripper pelagics!! Looks like around the same camp sites we choose when up there
ranmar850
Posts: 2702
Date Joined: 12/08/12
We were in 34
have it booked out for coming years
we've been everywhere from 20--used to be great, now just a big sandhill, last time I looked, 33 for a few years, but Phil has been a bit too successful with his re-vegetation efforts and some sites are now tiny, just good for a tiny tent.
kirky79
Posts: 1351
Date Joined: 13/01/12
Bit further up
Than us. We're normally in 21 or 23.
Woodsy65
Posts: 163
Date Joined: 21/05/15
One word
Jealous!
Sea goat
Posts: 958
Date Joined: 26/03/17
great report!
great report!
PCracker
Posts: 20
Date Joined: 19/06/16
Great Photos and report,
Great Photos and report, going to get up there one day
Can i ask how you set up your anchor mooring, trying to work out where your pulley is located if your using one.
Cheers Brad
Cheers PCracker
ranmar850
Posts: 2702
Date Joined: 12/08/12
Easy
Pulley is shackled to the anchor chain. Rope is endless--well, tied together in the middle, near where the riding rope is attached, and star picket in beach is for tying off the rope with a couple of half hitches thrown over it when the boat is out where you want it. It is probably confusing looking at some of the pics--overnight, I run a second anchor, tied off to a stern cleat, dropped up on the beach. This means that if something goes wrong with the main mooring, the boat won't go too far, dragging the second anchor behind it. And it has a second use--pull the boat toward the beach on the main rope, and, when close enough, use the stern rope to pull it around and hold it there while you board and transfer gear on.
PCracker
Posts: 20
Date Joined: 19/06/16
Thanks for that,ive run the
Thanks for that,ive run the endless rope before but not the second anchor just incase,will do that in he future though.
Cheers
Cheers PCracker
ranmar850
Posts: 2702
Date Joined: 12/08/12
I've seen too many boats go missing there
strong SE overnight seems to do it. Sometimes it's obvious, ilke the bloke next to me who tied his dinghy to his trailer above the high tide mark, with a bit of ski rope. high tide overnight, swell outside so beach very surge-y at high tide, snapped the rope. Others were less obvious, I've seen a 6.5m ali twin engined CC go missing on it's first night.
I rescued a good dinghy with electrric start PTT four stroke on it a couple of years back, found it just inside the breakers, returned to owner. I also put an LED globe in the anchor light and leave it on, very assuring to just be able to glance and see it's there in the dark. LED globe will mean you can leave it on for 2 nights and a day, if neceessary, no need to turn it off immediately next morning if you are not going out, won't drain the second battery at all.
PCracker
Posts: 20
Date Joined: 19/06/16
Ive seen a few break the
Ive seen a few break the moorings in Gnaraloo, one big cat ended up rolled in the ne corner reef another one managed to get out the bay and was last spotted headed to Africa off NW Cape, was to far out to save so let it go and claim insurance, somone was going to have a food find...
Cheers PCracker
Rodrat
Posts: 1672
Date Joined: 13/01/07
Awesome!
Some quality fish there for sure. Well done, great pics
FISH FOR THE FUTURE
Colt_Striker
Posts: 624
Date Joined: 26/07/09
Mate sensational quality
Mate sensational quality pics & fish, post's like this convince me to keep my boat during these extended periods of not being able to get out, cheers.
ranmar850
Posts: 2702
Date Joined: 12/08/12
keeps the outboard mechanic surprised
call him up in Early August needing a 100 hr service--"didn't I do that LAST month???" He did the 20 hr serivce on the new motor late June, just before I went away, now has 134 hrs... probably only do another 100 before next June, regardless of how much I want to get out.
Fish_Hunter
Posts: 91
Date Joined: 18/01/15
yep very cool report
well done, great pics !! as i sit here at work dreaming .. wishing :)
FIFO's got knobs on it - but it buys my toys !!