Its nice to be back on the Blue on Fly

The North Queensland Flyfishers had our last trip for the year on the wide blue sea. We had planned a trip to the rivers but the weather came good and all four fishers Richard, Jeff, David and myself thought we might try for some tuna. We headed out to the west point area and found some small baitfish, this looked promising but there appeared to be no predators. So off we went out towards Rattlesnake Island. On the way we found some small schools of mac tuna working the bait. After 4 hrs of working and four tuna landed we were happy but a little frustrated with the schools. In many ways this is what tuna can be like! Richard finished the day with 2 tuna and Jeff and myself one each, David did not go home empty handed he landed a nice queenfish as we drifted Cockle Bay to finish. A good day and finished with a nice coffee at our regular meeting place!

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Barnacle St Boat Ramp

For the past 18 months, political interference and bureaucratic processes have prevented council from expanding parking facilities at Barnicle Street.

We have been forced to go to the highest level of approval known as a material change of use (MCU). We need you support in the form of a submission to support this MCU.

Please fill in the adjacent letter with your name and address and either send it to TCC or leave it with the staff for collection.

Thanks you for your support,
Vern Veitch
Councillor
Townsville City Council

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Fun in the Creek

With a late change in Saturdays weather we made a last minute decision not to put the big boat in the water and head out wide. Instead we took the tinnie back into the creeks. But today we decided to give the lure casting a break and give live bait a go. We left home a bit before 5am and arrived by 5.30. But the tide was still very low and putting the boat in proved difficult to say the least. But a little man handling across the mud and we were off. Although we were minus the transducer thanks to the rather dodgy launch.

We deployed the crab pots and went in search of some live bait. But despite the low tide the mullet proved difficult to find. After half an hour or so we had half a dozen and decided to anchor up and give them a go. They were a lovely size, and didn't last long in the water. Unfortunately each one failed to hook up and we were soon baitless once more. Off we went to check the pots and try get some more live bait.

We still had little luck finding the mullet, and this time the ones we did get were quite large. Oh well, back on anchor and the big baits were set out. Dads went off quite quickly. He thinks he basically fed it down the fishes throat. It was a solid fight and had us guessing as to what it was. But soon a nice Salmon was in the net. A first for the old man.

Over the next couple of hours we had a ball catching Bream, Mangrove Jack, Cod and Catfish on the dead baits. But the live baits remained pretty quiet. We pulled out around 11am with half a dozen quality crabs, 5 Bream (2 monsters at 32cm) and the Salmon. A nice feed for tomorrows lunch as we continue to build the kids cubby!

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Baptist Church Fishing Club - Comp Results November 2009

Despite very ordinary weather conditions the final comp of the year was again well contested with 15 anglers weighing a total of 20 fish. An additional 22 fish were released and 4 nice mud crabs also made it to the weigh master’s scales. A great effort by all who took part in the final comp for 2009 and love that smile Lachlan!

Individual results are summarized below:

Senior Male
Jordan Quayle 102.4 pnts
Gavin Jacobs 98.3 pnts
Rod Gear 75.0 pnts
Malcom Brown 56.8 pnts
Tim Jones 51.8 pnts
Dion Forman 48.0 pnts
Ian Ferguson 15.4pnts
Steve Holloway 2.0 pnts

Senior Female
Sylvia Gear 76.25 pnts

Sub-Junior
Lachlan Brown 25.6 pnts

Mud Crab
Mal Brown 16.7 pnts
Brent Quayle 13.1 pnts
Jordan Quayle 9.6 pnts

Catch & Release
Jordan Quayle 40.89 pnts
Sheldon Dreyer 20.8 pnts

Hard Yakka
Jayden Jacobs 35 pnts
Tim Jones 30 pnts
Steve Holloway 15 pnts
Peter Clegg 15 pnts
Matt Grills 5 pnts

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Mid-week Fingermark Session

Last night Dad and I shot out to West Point after work for a mid-week fingermark session. I wouldn't normally head out with work the next day. But with 2 months of not being able to get out because of the wind I was keen to take advantage of our current good weather. We left the ramp at about 4pm and immediately headed to West Point. We spent over an hour trying to collect live bait from various marks, but only managed 8 or so yakka. Most of which were quite large. We would have had one more, but Dad accidentally unhooked it and threw it back! I'm not sure what he was thinking!!

We then anchored up on a mark, set out the live baits and waited for the sun to set. Dad managed a few runs on the live bait, but I'm not convinced they were Fingermark. But my live bait swum around for ages. I think he eventually wore the hole in his back bigger and won his freedom!

As dark arrived we deployed the squid light and got ready. I have never really give this whole squid thing a good go, so I was keen to see how it went. Once it was fully dark we had a few hanging around the light. I netted them and quickly sent them back. But they just got picked to pieces by small fish. The sounder was alive with squid attracted by the light, but they did hand a little deep. Every now and then a big school would come close enough to scoop up. I was getting up to 10 in a single scoop! But the average size with about 2in long. So a little on the small side. The result being most getting picked to pieces by small fish.

We managed 3 BIG runs, each of which turned out to be big rays. But finally I pulled one lone Fingermark to the boat. With work for me today we had to pull up anchor and head in about 10.30. In bed by midnight I'm still very tired today :(

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Townsville Boat Ramps - Cungulla

Cungulla is a small beach-side community to the south of Townsville. It is accessed by first turning off the highway toward AIMS, and then turning right about 5mins down the AIMS road. From town allow about 45mins drive.

There are actually two boat ramps located at the small township of Cungulla. One is easy to find and most people know about, but the second is more hidden and difficult to get to. The first is in town and clearly sigh posted. Basically turn left as you arrive at Cungulla and then right just over the little creek. The ramp is a single lane concrete ramp on a small creek that snakes its way through Cungulla Beach. The ramp is only suitable for small tinnies on a half tide an up. The creek that winds through the beach is shallow but loosely marked. I would guess there is ocean access on a reasonable tide. But I suspect the ramp is mainly used to fish the sand flats for bream, whiting and flathead. The photo below was taken on a very low tide. You can see the makings of the creek. There are no amenities here, and there is barely enough parking for a couple of cars!

The second ramp is of much greater interest. It provides relatively easy access across to the mouth of the Haughton River! I have traversed the small creek that runs to the Haughton in my 3.86m tinnie on a 0.9m low. It was tricky, but we got there. To access the ramp you need to drive a very short distance along a beach track. I'm not sure a 4x4 is a definite requirement, but I would want one for the track. To locate the track you need to drive to the southern end of the Cungulla township. Here you should see a sandy track run off into the bush. The track then runs along the top of the mangroves and soon opens up to a sand area with a house. I have tried to indicate this to the best of my ability on the Google Earth map below.

This short video shows the quality of the track into this ramp. The drive only takes 5mins and is mostly on firm sand.

The ramp itself is a reasonable quality concrete block ramp. Its a bit rocky and broken up at the bottom, making it a little less user friendly at a low tide.

But, right beside the ramp, is a lovely stretch of nice firm sand that makes beach launching a better option. This is where a 4x4 is needed. Again there are no amenities, but parking is sufficient for most days. This is by no means a busy ramp! On a good tide 5mins will have you at the mouth of the Haughton.

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My turn for a Jack

Just home from a creek fish with Dad. We fished the top of the big morning tide with hard bodied lures at the mouth of a local creek. I dropped a total of 3 nice Barra, one of which I think was well into the 80's. It hurt, but considering it was going back anyway I guess it was no biggie. But persistence among the mangrove roots did eventually pay off with a 41cm Mangrove Jack. This is my first keeper Jack on a lure, and has been a hard one to find. He almost won his freedom too! Got me into the snags almost immediately. But I could always feel him on the end of the line. A bit of pushing my rod under the snag eventually saw him make it to the surface. And without a landing net it was a quick lift into the boat.

I'd love to go back tomorrow morning for another look, but unfortunately I have a cubby to build for the kids!

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Coral Reef Fin Fish Closure 2

Just a friendly reminder that the 2nd and final Coral Reef Fin Fish closure for 2009 commences this Saturday the 14th November and runs until Wednesday 18th November. The closure is inclusive of these days. If you are in any way unsure of the species involved in the closure please check this DPI link. Mangrove Jack and Fingermark are still fine to keep, as are Spanish Mackerel.

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Last Comp Weekend

Well the weekend just gone was the last Baptist Church club comp for the year. With only a few points separating myself, Dion and Ian for senior male for 2009 I determined to fish hard. Dad and I started Friday afternoon with a very quick trip after work into Ross River. We took Lachlan with us as he had been desperate to get out for a fish. Dad and I lucked out with just a few under size bream, but Lachy managed two keepers and a small cod.

Saturday we were off to the Haughton for a serious fish. But despite working very hard all morning, and going through a lot of bait, we only managed a couple of bream each. My two were about 27cm fish, and would score ok, but were definitely not enough to secure any kind of win in the comp.

Lucky for me it was pretty tough going for everyone, and despite coming 4th overall for the weekend comp, Dion and Ian didn't manage too much either. So with any luck I have enough points to take out senior male. Lachy's little fish scored him enough to win sub-junior for the weekend, and a 0.9kg crab we caught got biggest muddie. Not too bad for a very slow weekend.

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Baptist Church Fishing Club - AGM & November Comp

The AGM is on tonight so come along and check the highlights from 2009, vote in the 2010 Committee and eat some prawns and other good tucker!

When: Thursday 5th A @ 7.00pm
Topic: AGM
Where: BCFC Club Room (Church Hall 38 Canterbury Rd, Kirwan)

This months Comp is OPEN so you can fish wherever you like between 12.01am Nov 6th – 5.00pm Nov 7th followed by a weigh-in and BBQ at the Baptist Church. Boat trips and landbased spots for the weekend will be organized tonight after the AGM.

Everyone is welcome. If you would like any more info on the above, or BCFC in general, just shoot me an email at dtforman@bigpond.com or post a comment.

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Dad's Jack!

Well, Dad is out there fishing the creeks today chasing the last of his top 10, a Mangrove Jack. And just moments ago he MMS'ed me a pic of a lovely 46cm specimen. He has also landed a ripper Bream at 34cm. Dad has only just joined the Baptist Church Fishing Club after moving here from NSW just a couple of months ago. So he has managed to reach his 10 species in well under half the fishing year. That is some feat! Most years we don't even get a member land more than 8 or 9 species in the year. I'm thinking there is some 'slight' advantage to being retired and able to fish at any time ;-)

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Tarpon on the chew

Dad was off chasing Tarpon today. It was one of this top ten species that he was still missing. And from the mobile phone pics he MMS'ed me earlier, they are on the chew. The one he kept went 1.43kg cleaned. Not a bad lump of fish! These fish are great sport on light gear, and a good alternative for a bit of fun while the Barra are off limits.

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Slow fishing at the Baratta's

Dad and I took the tinnie down to the Baratta's on Saturday. The plan was to fish the entire day for Barramundi before the closure took place Sunday. I have never been to the Baratta's before, so it was also to be an explore and adventure. But the fishing was slow to say the least. I'm not sure if it was the lack of experience in the system or just that the strong winds had put the fish off, but we barely turned a scale all day.

I managed one small Barra (the one in my fishtank at home is bigger), one small Jack and one soapy Jew. Dad managed a few cod and a Barra....couda. BUT, we did manage to take home 5 Muddies!!! Our best effort yet!

And FYI, the ramp down there is fantastic!! 3 lanes with a floating pontoon in the middle. And while navigating the mouth is interesting, there are some markers that run a fair way out that indicate a channel. With a little local knowledge, you could get a big boat out fairly easily. Something I will be keeping in mind for future.

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