Swains Reef Bonanza 2005 !

[Black_Rat]

G'day all,

Well were do I start ::) what a cracker of a trip with a great bunch of blokes and a brilliant skipper and deckie. We departed the BP Burpengary at about 5am and made our way to Gladstone. The trip was pretty free flowing except for when a police escort car tried to run us off the road from the other direction :o and with good reason an allmighty sized bucket for a coal truck or somthing almost two lanes wide came through. :o The new Navara came out unscratched and we arrived in town at about 11:30 and loaded the boat. It wasn't untill 5pm we departed so had a few drinks whilst waiting and a bit of sight seeing. We were blest with a magical ride all the way out (15 hrs) The only recommendation on the trip out I would make would be if your a lite sleeper bring earplugs ;). The first day we stuck to the mothership and fished bringing up a mixed bag of reefies including coral trout, Hussar, idione bream, red throat emperor, spangled emperor and undersized reds >:(. Days 2 - 4 saw much the same with some big bust ups occuring on the lighter tackle (30lbs :o) the most fun in the dories was had when trolling for Spanish Mackeral with some nice specimans caught up to 13.5 kgs, one big mutha was lost at the dory edge when it snapped the timber gaff handle :o and speed of after one hit with the donger ::) must have missed ;D (not me ;))
Plenty of Tuna, bonito, Spanish Makeral, GTs and pelagics kept us entertained when moving on the troll from spot to spot :) Even at night for entertainment some big baits went out at night for a shark catching and releasing. Except for one busted rod hey STUBBIE :-X ;D ;D ;D. We were lucky only few fish were lost to sharks. On the second last night I made the executive decision 8) to head halfway home overnight for a full days fishing in about 100m for some different fish species with some nice barr cod, snapper, jobfish and monster perlies comming aboard our best day all week. The weather was great if only overcast with one day raining which stopped no one from fishing ;D.
Pics to follow. First of all if your after a great skipper and crew Dan and Wally are about the most easy going blokes around who can't but do enough for you, so if your looking to do one of these trip I can't recommend the MV Australiana, Skipper Dan and deckie Wally highly enough [smiley=2thumbsup.gif] Stubbie, Pumps and Gbanger will attest to this.

Damo.

[Black_Rat]

New Navara & loading the ship :)

[Black_Rat]

Leaving Gladstone harbour on sunset almost glassed out :)

[Black_Rat]

Another hook up after a troll to another spot :D

[Black_Rat]

Deckie Wally on the back deck risking the rain and waves as usual with out a hint of a complaint :)

[Black_Rat]

a mixed bag from the dories the Red Throat Emperor were really on this day just on dusk ;D

[Black_Rat]

some of the guys comming back after an afternoon rain squall ;D ;D ;D a bit wet ::)

[Black_Rat]

a nice tuskie caught these really gave you hell unless pulled them out of the reef on a locked drag :o

[Black_Rat]

This is my only spaniard for the trip going 10kgs, was caught of the mothership whilst retriving my bottom bashing rig to check the baits. Got smashed halfway up and i thought it might be a shark so locked up the drag to skull drag him in ;D only to promptly back it off as soon as I saw it :) pretty ar$$y really for 50lb mono leader and a single 9/0 hook but i'll take it ;D

[Black_Rat]

a couple of my average coral trout

[Black_Rat]

The reef was amazing appearing in the middle of nowhere and dropping sharply away plenty of spaniards were caught along these edges ;)

[Black_Rat]

few more spaniards and a cobia

[Black_Rat]

Deckie Wally was kept filliting the 227 fish we caught over the week ;D

[Black_Rat]

a sunset and typical conditions :)

[Black_Rat]

another

[Black_Rat]

good sized snapper from 100m of water

[Black_Rat]

Some monster perlies were caught this is a smaller one :o

[Black_Rat]

conditions at the 100m mark ;D the piccie doesn't show the true height of the swell about 3 - 4 meters but spread apart in about 5 knt winds ;D

[Black_Rat]

some nice spangled emperor rare but fought hard and dirty :)

[Black_Rat]

This was one of two released reds about 1cm short of leagl (one was Stubbies), it was a bit of a let down not to land at least a few legal reds, so we had to re-book for August next year ;D ;D ;D

[Black_Rat]

The crew with the haul from the last day :)

[Black_Rat]

The haul back at the wharf as mentioned earlier about 227 fish or about 30 + fillets each :) enough to be satisfied without over doing it.

[Black_Rat]

I would have to say 30lb gear is OK but I wouldn't be fishing lighter than 50lb as there were a few fish lost even on the 50lb gear ;) Fishing in 100m of water really showed us how much of an advantage the Braid brigade had over us whilst feeling every bight on the braid the mono failed to pick up but the most serious of bites :o so a reel of mono for shallow reef areas and a reel spooled with braid if you can afford it i'd have to recommend fishing this area.
Damo.
Bring on 2006 only 370 + sleeps

[mariner_22]

Hey mate sounds like you did reasonably well. We did about the same but did not get any snapper or pearlies, got a fair few chinaman and barramundi cods that had to be put back. On the other hand we did get some reds, wouLd have had a few more if we had not had them eaten by monster groper on the way up :o :o. What was the boat like as I will probably book out of gladstone next time as the drive from Brissy to Mackay is a bitch ;) ;)

[Black_Rat]

M22,

The Australiana was a great boat, ample dining area pleanty of fishing space even with 13 down one side comfy beds, but bring earplugs if ya go it was pretty noisy on the way out were i slept either that or a bottle of rum to knock yourself out that night ;D mate Dan and Wally are deadset ledgends you won't be disappointed
Damo

[krtazy]

well done mate it looks like you had a great time.

[bazzaman]

Ah the swains brings back lots of memories from last year. What a great trip it is not just for the fishing but the socialising and meeting new people. Good to see you bagged a few. Not heaps but a good feed. I heard some boats coming back with over 500 last year and one of em is the KANIMBLA!.....Thats a slaughtering not just a feed! And what made it worse all the blokes were proud of their catch. Over kill if you ask me! Looks like you blokes did well, good stuff!

Shane

[cHiCo]

Great report and pics, damn about the Reds, but think about how big they will be next year :D:D:D

[Black_Rat]

Stubbie looking impressed with his flea Coral Trout :P ;D ;D ;D

[Black_Rat]

Me looking equally impressed or a bit under the weather [smiley=shocked2.gif] [smiley=smug.gif] [smiley=dizzy.gif] [smiley=drunk.gif] ;D ;D ;D
Not my spaniard but the best of the trip at 13.5kgs
Record for the boat is a 24kg Spaniard :o

[kleiny]

looks like a great time had by all, fish & beer what better combination is there.
kleiny

[Mick]

Top effort guys. I bet you all had a blast. Just wondering what the conditions would have to be like for the charter to be cancelled? For example, over 25 knots and its called off?
The swell is very obvious in the photo with the beer. mmm..., beer, geez i could go a beer, oh hang on its only 9am. Better wait an hour.

[stunnedmullet]

Great report and great pics Damo. Just made me realise I really should take that day off and go fishing ;D ;D
The mullet(aka Damo as well)

[NeilD]

Looks like a great time was had. What did the week cost you all up. We do the Bunkers on a regular basis but I would really like to get out to the Swains sometime.

Neil

[Black_Rat]

Looks like a great time was had. What did the week cost you all up. We do the Bunkers on a regular basis but I would really like to get out to the Swains sometime.

Neil
Neil,

Trip cost $1470 which is the same for next year
We had a kitty of $230 each which covered 3 cartons of beer of your choice, secure parking, bait used on the trip (about $630 all up), terminal tackle (sinkers, hooks swivels, roll of 50lb mono for dropper rigs) and cans soft drinks consumed on board.
Say $100 for Spirits or smokes
So $1800 was the average bill per person for the seven days
Damo.

[Black_Rat]

Just wondering what the conditions would have to be like for the charter to be cancelled? For example, over 25 knots and its called off?
The swell is very obvious in the photo with the beer. mmm..., beer, geez i could go a beer, oh hang on its only 9am. Better wait an hour.
Mick,
Not sure what winds they wouldn't go out in, i'd imagine if there was a strong wind warning they would delay departure by a day or so. One night there it would have easily blown 40knts + but because we were behind a reef only had a small chop wich is different to SEQ chop :-X The skipper did get a gail force warning that night and it wasn't looking good for the next two days but we were lucky and it blew its self out overnight :)

;D it was a bit like what time is it ?? ...... ah well it's 10am somewhere in the world as we cracked one ;D ;D ;D
Damo.

[Black_Rat]

We found this bloke dressed in rags and a turbin floating on a peice of drift wood ? .... so we gave him some aussie clobber, a beer and wacked on a gimble for him to do some fishing with us ;D ;D ;D he seems to have 'bin' everywhere ;D

[Commodore]

Great report BR, good pics too, I am going up on the 21st August for a week on Wyllaway cruises, cant wait. ;D
Looks like your refugee had no problem adjusting to his new surrounds. ;)
Cheers,
Matt

[agnes_jack]

Way to go Damo!!!!!
Some nice fish there mate well done.

Regards, Tony

[Black_Rat]

Deck space was good with one bait board servicing 2 - 3 blokes with plenty of staintess steel rod holders :)

[blue_rogue]

Great report Black Rat. It should be compulsory for all Ausfish boys to do an picture report as homework for the their trips away, like yours.

What a great trip the Swains reef is. Drinking plenty of piss with all your mates and fishing till you drop every day.

Heading up there in 7 weeks for the annual trip to Swains. Looking forward to it...

[willbarra]

gday blackrat ,just read your post looks like you had a ball .were heading up november 19 , aboard the grey scout ,any tips for a first timer to swaine ,would be welcomed ,also i was thinking of taking a 10wht fly rod .enjoyed your post [smiley=2thumbsup.gif].

[Black_Rat]

Great report Black Rat. It should be compulsory for all Ausfish boys to do an picture report as homework for the their trips away, like yours.

What a great trip the Swains reef is. Drinking plenty of piss with all your mates and fishing till you drop every day.

Heading up there in 7 weeks for the annual trip to Swains. Looking forward to it...


Yep nothing better then fishing with ya mates, beers flowing, fishings great and the music is pumping on the back deck ;D dosen't get much better. Good luck on ya trip look forward to the reports and i reckon after day two it was a mutual decision by all it should be an anual event :)
Damo.

[Black_Rat]

gday blackrat ,just read your post looks like you had a ball .were heading up november 19 , aboard the grey scout ,any tips for a first timer to swaine ,would be welcomed ,also i was thinking of taking a 10wht fly rod .enjoyed your post [smiley=2thumbsup.gif].
1. Ear plugs if your a lite sleeper.
2. Heavy gear 50lb +
3. Plenty of tackle. We lost about 100 3/4 pound leads, 50 pound leads, 50 8 ball sized sinkers, 30 sets of 6/0 3 gang hooks, 200 8/0 hooks, 100 9/0 hooks & 150 - 200m 50lb mono for dropper rigs.
4. 20m of 120lb + stainless steel trace with 50 + crimp sleeves (60lb wire trace got torn to shreads by some big fish)
5. Big lures for trolling or the squid type lures (bring a few normally only last one or two strikes)
6. More booze or smokes then you think you'll consume (long way to 7/11 from swains if ya run out ;D)
7. Motion sickness pills. Kwells or Travelcam.
8. Wetweather gear.
9. A gimble (a bait bucket and knife on a belt were handy)
10. Good mates/company

Enjoy ya trip :)

Damo.

[Gbanger]

also add 3 lighters per person... 9/0's seem to be the way to go

[TonyM]

Great trip and great report Black_Rat - well done mate :-)

I haven't been to Swains yet but it's racing up my list of "must do's" :P

[willbarra]

back to the cave to re organise , so rat i take it there were no fly casters on board .?? 135 sleeps to go . :o

[Black_Rat]

Yeah no fly caster and no burley casters which was good ;D
Defnitely take a flyrod for some action there are plenty of pelagics about. A 10 kg + Spaniard on a fly rod :o hang on ;D

[regy]

Well I hope I have a good a trip as yours, I leave on Saturday 16th on the Australiana and will keep you posted on how we went

[Black_Rat]

Look forward to it regy, look forward to a good report Dan and Wally will look after ya. :)
Damo.

PS: Don't forget the earplugs ;)

[regy]

Have posted some photos of my trip under Regys Swains Trip , the weather was not nice to us