Longtails off Straddie

[Steady]

Just a quick note. A meat fishing friend of mine went out through the South passage on his way to a snapper session last weekend and was gobsmacked by the number of longtails busting up all over the place. He couldn't get a taker for a small slug but they would follow all the way to the boat. Might try to get out there on sunday but not sure about the wind.

The Southern Bay doesn't seem to get too much action this late in the season. Has anyone else had any reports of schools around the bar, top of Straddie??

[Wesley_Pang]

Steady,

My brother-in-law reports huge schools of Mac Tuna around the South Passage Bar.

Very few Longtails around the northern bay - Bribie to Tangalooma.

Wes

[Duncs]

I heard a report of monster Longtails working around the sunken reef at Peel on Monday. Went there on Tuesday and didn't see a single one > ??? >
I have heard that there are regular pods of fish working in the back of the surf on north and south straddie though. Mike Connolly got one there a couple of weeks ago on a slug that went 17.5kg

Cheers

Duncan

[Steady]

Thanks lads,

I'll have a look around there tomorrow (Sunday) morning and let you know if I spot any.

[Duncs]

More reports from SP and meat fisherman over the weekend that there are a stack of longys outside the south passage bar, especially near the Rufus King. Not spooky at all, but wont touch slugs or plastics - just swimming around the boats slurping tiny bait off the surface.
Not sure what all the wind we're going to get this week will do to them though.

Cheers

Duncan

[Steady]

Went out on Sunday, what a beautiful morning. Out through the South passage and there was about 8 acres of Macs grazing on smal bait in scattered paddocks. First hook up on first cast, mullet over white polar fibre maybe 50mm long. I can't remember having a fish peel so much line off my long abused Scientific Angler. Lost about 200m before starting the boat for a chase, with white wisps of smoke coming off the reel - I thought it was going to pack it in. The fish pretty well knackered itself, it came to the boat without incident and was easily revived. At just under 1m it was probably about 10kg.
The tuna were feeding on small white bait and easily approached. After many refusals the fly of interest proved to be a severley stripped back clouser (from the proffesor, via Nat) Lost eventually to a bite off (or bust off - shoulda checked that leader). Two more at 8kg and one wanna be 3kg were brought to the boat before they went quiet around 11am. Lots of fun after not seeing the backing for a while.
Sorry no photos - fishing on my own again.

Didn't see any longtails. The meat fishers might be getting them wrong.

Anyone else have any joy?

[Wesley_Pang]

Steady,

Thanks for the report.

Let us know when you bump into some Longtails.

Wes

[Steady]

One more thing...

A bunch of tactless slug chuckas rocketed up late in the session and blundered around in a demonstration of the most dire clownage to, I would like to believe, the mildest annoyance of the happily grazing tuna.

If you are seeking pleasure take a tuna from under their noses, its sublime.

[Lucky_Mick]

Hi Steady,

Thanks for the report, it must be great to get a nice mac at the moment.
Still don't understand why Wes hates macs though, they're a great sporting fish

Never fished that far south in the bay, where do you launch from?

Cheers,
Mick

[Quinny69]

When Maccys are concidered TRASH, You know were spoilt with fish up ere in Qld. I like Macs, great fish, Just cause you cant eat them dont meen they arnt a great sportfish. MQ

[duckbill]

Gotto agree with you on that one Quinny... Any fish that takes a fly is worth fishing for - even pike...

[Duncs]

Hi Mick,

To get to the south passage you can easily launch from Wellington Pt and go via the Rous Channel, Victoria Pt via the Rainbow Channel or Raby Bay via either channel. If I am going on a pelagic hunt out that way I usually plan to go up one channel to the south passage area and back via the other channel, with a detour around Peel Is for good measure. Often you will find all the action is in one area, so it can be worth putting in the km's to find them.

Cheers

Duncan

[SNELLY]

Steady,

Yes the bain of the fly fisher - or any fisher for that matter - people without a clue how to apporach a feeding school.

Come up here and you get boats with two sportfishing cordlines trolling straight throught the middle of the school

Snelly

[Lucky_Mick]

Hi Duncan,

Thanks for the info. I think I'll get a proper chart for that area first, the beacon 2 beacon's too disjointed to my mind, though I always carry it.
The area looks very shallow and quite treacherous from my north bay chart and will probably give the area the once over with a local who knows what he's doing

I only really have to worry about gilligans in the north, though its not like I've a big boat either.

Is the south passage to the open sea OK or is it a bar crossing? Do only big offshore rigs go into that area?

Cheers,
Mick

[Wesley_Pang]

Guys,

I'd rather not spend much time chasing Mac Tuna. I'll give them a shot or 2 but soon tire of them.

I'd rather spend the time looking for Longtails. Mac Tuna can really be hard to tempt sometimes, and before you know it you've spend too long chasing them.

I'd rather land 1 Longtail than 10 Mac Tuna. I recon 10 to 1 is how the comps should be scored too. Mac Tuna just don't run as hard, and aren't as big as the Longtails. I'm keen to land a 20kg Longtail.

I keep 1 Longtail per trip. Keeps the wife happy. If she's happy I can fish more.

Mick,

Get a Dept of Transport Chart. There's one for the Northern and another for the Southern Bay. Boat books in the city is great for charts.

Wes