Tag: Squid

over the last 18 days I have been fishing in Lake Macquarie,Swansea ,NSW.my target was to catch as many flathead and squid as I could manage . The results , 85 flathead , 126 squid , 5 mud crabs , and 9 blue swimmers . Plus bream , whiting , tailor as by catches .alos I couldn’t fish everyday due to weather and wife .
Most of the fishing was done around the marks point drop over and the various flats and channels from the old marina site where the coast guard or maritime live .
I have told you what gear I used previously , so I will concentrate on where and when and what . My rules are that any flathead under 40 cm gets released , and any over 58 cm gets released . The best eating are the ones between 40 cm and 55 cm . Also the ones over 55 cm are female and are the breeders so you want to let them go . Males only grow to about 55 cm .
Whilst plenty of times they were hard to catch , there were a lot between 60 cm and 72 cm ,sometimes to the point where I would catch 5 flathead and have to throw back 3 due to being too big . My biggest for the trip was 78 cm Don’t forget , my gear is only 10 lb leader and 6 lb braid .Not one fish wore through the leader and was lost . The reel was a 2500 and the rod a 2-4 kg 6’6″” .
I actually caught one 70 cm flathead on my bream gear , 1000 reel, 1-3 kg rod 6 lb leader , 4 lb braid , with a # 2 small hook . Shows you fish light and have fun playing them.
Where did I fish ? I always drift , never use the anchor . I think you have to find them . Don’t wait for them to come to you , they may never come .I fished the channels where the tide was running fast , the flats when the tide was right , and sandy bottoms where there were weed patches scattered around it . I didn’t need to go anywhere else . I fished all tides , but different spots depending on the tides . In future blogs , I will explain each area in more detail of how and when and with what .Below is Byran with his 40 cm bream from the lake .

john’s 72 cm flathead .a beatuful fish . I taught John my methods with soft plastics last year . Now he catches flatties all the time in the lake , whenever he needs a feed .

Don’t worry about the weather either , many of my best catches was in the rain and wind . Jus work with the wind and current in your drift .
In my opinion , anchoring is a waste if time if you want to catch a lot of fish . Hunt them down , it is much more fun and the time goes more quickly .

the 78 cm flathead . I was alone so the photo was the best I could do quickly before releasing him .