Cracking morning at Peel...

[Peter4]

A little bird told me there were plenty of snapper and tuna in the bay during the week so I had to have a go today. Kyle wanted to watch the Bathurst 1000 so I did a pre-dawn solo run to Peel. The first surprise was the complete lack of boats on the water, the second was the huge shows of bait on the sounder.

Fished Hanlon to start. First drop with a 12g blade yielded a small snapper. Next drop a 35cm snapper, then another 35cm snapper and then a sand whiting! It was getting light enough to put out my second rod - a 4" jerkshad on a deadstick. Just as I picked up the first rod the deadstick is hammered! After a good tussle a 48cm snapper comes aboard. While I net it I see a small touch on the blade. I quickly grab the rod as the blade is nailed by a much bigger snapper. After a long fight the hooks (or what's left of them) pull and my battered blade is retired for the day. I then pick up a small snapper on a threadybuster 60. It is chased to the boat by three small sharks that circled me for 30 seconds before disappearing again. The sun comes up the snapper go off the bite.

I head to Goat Island, stopping on the way to throw slugs at schools of mac tuna and longtails that popped up everywhere. Never seen so many schools of tuna on the bay! Not a touch though...

As I start tossing my bream lures at Goat I see a huge barra like boil in the shallows. Not sure what it is I leccy over and am startled when a big fat dugong surfaces next to the boat!

For the next two hours I had a heap of fun chasing fish on the shallow reefs on the high tide. Lost four lures to unstoppables (mostly grassies I think) - two mirashads and two bevy shingos. Landed a 44cm tailor, a 32cm grassy, a squid and a 36cm snapper that went very hard on bream gear! Oh, and about 30 pike!

Chased more tuna on the way home but even though I got very very close and managed quite a few casts, they were not interested in anything I threw at them.

Motored home in a bumpy northerly - still hardly a boat to be seen! Great morning on the bay.

Pics to follow...

Cheers

Pete

[Plasticin]

Hey mate, long time.

Thought I saw your rig around Goat this morning. Plenty of schools around but by 9am every bloke and his 2 stroke was chasing them. Didn't see any long tails but did mistake a few of the schools of mac tuna for them... big fish every bit of 10kg. Good to hear you got onto the snapper

Cheers Scott

[Barramag]

Good report Pete,amazing two days so different weatherwise,Last time out we had a dolphin come up right next to the boat,much to the grandsons delight.Gotta love the wildlife hey.Pity you didn't get your arms stretched lol.Hope Kyles shoulder is mending.
Paulo

[al49]

great little session pete that happened to me last year on the early tuna ,i had a fair bit of success on the gold fleck sliders hopped thru them,or burned just something different to them i suppose

[Archer]

Sure was a cracker of a day out there! We managed one Longtail about 7kg's after fruitless efforts with slugs a change to a plastic had instant results!
Highlight was the Whales 3 humpbacks looked to be male, female and calf swimming straight through horseshoe bay!!
We followed them for a while. Saw 2 others later on through the day aswell.
Was also surprised (pleasantly) by the lack of boats esp early on was just nobody around. Started getting abit busier around lunch time so we headed for home.

Joe

[DEANO68]

top mornin on the water pete..cant believe kyle opted out..!! still home for the race anyways.!!...

[Tropicaltrout]

Sounds fantastic on all accounts there, the whales sound like there numbers are always rising.... and fishing well going off.

Cheers Nath

[Bazil Brush]

Sound's like a fun morning Pete, well done

Baz

[matt fraser]

Sounds like a great morning Peter! that early snapper action was full on. Lot of fish caught all day too, Imagine if you had Kyle on board.......

Cheers,

Matt

[Peter4]

Thanks guys...should also mention that the coral had just spawned and the water was cloudy with the sperm & eggs. I reckon that may be responsible for the huge schools of baitfish and hence the snaps and tuna...

Scott, good to hear you're still about! You shoulda come over and said g'day. There were definitely some big mac tuna about but also longtails. I know as one group jumped right next to my boat as I was on the plane heading east across the top of Peel...

Day would have been topped off if I managed a tuna ot two!

Cheers

Pete