Barra Theory Time

[Awoonga]

Lets see if you can get your head around this one...Just thought that l would share this gem with you....And yes l would like your thoughts... ...Ready....Ok when we are go fishing we are trying to catch fish.... yea l know a no brainer that one..Take it one step further.You want to target large fish .. You are not interested in little fish... meter + are the ones you are after... Now take a Typical Bay at Awoonga ...Cut this bay up So what have we got ? edges, deep water and what else...Comon you with the pink shirt on...Trans...Transitional water... Each area contains fish...Year classes or maybe three year classes or lets put it another way size dependant... Each zone has a "class "of fish and those fish that are in that zone feel comfortable there...Now l believe that a lot of Awoonga fish are transience moving from one area to another when they enter a bay they keep to there "zone"... you may get three fish groups moving in and out at the same time...The tricky part is finding out where the big girls are in what zone..For me Deeper water holds bigger fish What l have found is the young males tend to be along the edges . These fish are the bucks with a attitude anywhere from 50 to 80 cm They will move quickly though the area and onto another.. The next size up tend to keep to the Transitional water. Areas that have dropoffs Somewhere to disappear to real quick at the first sign of trouble.. And in the deep the large ladys some that have been caught before and understand they are not the apex predator and have learnt cunning and are not easily fooled... Do they cross over ? yes If the young males have pushed the boneys into the shallows the large fish will be in there to get a feed...But they wont stay there...Moving back to the deep water as soon as the food source has gone...Ok guys over to you

[NAGG]

Yep .... No worries Trev

Cheers

Chris

[darylive]

yeh thats great so did you catch any fish on the weekend?

[NAGG]

No really ..... I can only speak of limited observations but taken from several impoundments!
I agree with transient fish ...... small groups of bigger females move around big open lakes like Awoonga , Tinaroo & Faust .... rather than holding station at a prominent piece of structure where the smaller males can often be caught.
Prior to the increase in water levels at Faust a couple of years ago ......... Clear lane ways could be seen in the weed ....... very much like a goat or cattle track .. We actually saw several big girls move through as a pack one morning8-) 8-) ..... Certainly a year class.
At Tinaroo ..... sitting off a point 1 fish landed & 1 lost within 30mins while sitting off a point ....... an hours casting either side ........ This was repeated again the next day
Awoonga ...... Big girl bay ..... You know what happened there - lost fish & a couple landed in a 30 min rush.
This behavior is much like how Yellow tail kingfish patrol a rock ledge.

with regard to the males ..... The 70-80cm fish
They do seem to hold in an area......quite often around a certain piece of structure ( as we saw at Awoonga...... at our special anchoring spot ) ..... Over 30 fish landed from the one area over 4 days ...... with only 3 or 4 better fish either hooked or landed ........ 65-80cm was standard
We had the same situation a Teemburra ( a protected little area with some great structure) ....... All the fish were 50cm ish !

So from my little experience ...... if I wanted to give myself the best chance of a big fish ....... i'd position myself off a prominant point or edge of a weed bed that is close to deep water & leads into some shallower exposed wind blown cove , bay etc & flog it to death!
A known place ...... would be the point off the cattle yards at Mondy8-)

Good thinking thread .... Trev

Chris

[BR65]

Bang bang Trev
how did you go in the hook up???
bait is the key, those big fat girls dont get big and fat by starveing themselves.
But what about in the cooler weather?. I havent fished Awoonga much, are the bays predominately open like I see on the tube, or is there a bit more timber structure?
In the open bays in the cold, are the bigger girls still siting deeper, or up shallow sunning themselves like elderly matrons on the promenade deck of a cruise ship?
The fish I see down at Monduran do seem to be in year group/size "gangs", but most of mine were comeing from snag bashing, since the inflow earlier this year Ive started fishing more points and open water, good example was a trip a couple of months ago, small bay with internal points, one point had a 115, next point 30 meters away had a couple of 80's and a 102 on it. Definately transient fish with the movement of the bait, Ive fished that same spot 3 times since for didley squat.

[Awoonga]

How did l go ?;D ;D ;D ;D ;D :D :D :D :D Does that answer the question... there is a bit of a story under Johnnys Awoonga thread in Reports

[Steve B]

All my theories will be in my upcoming book to hit the shelves called "how to catch barra without leaving your computer" and the sequel book "101 recipies for big impoundment barra" is currently in production.

Available at all good tackle shops soon.

[BR65]

Future best sellers Im sure, though for ease of use may I suggest a spoken word version for us lazy sods;D

[NAGG]

All my theories will be in my upcoming book to hit the shelves called "how to catch barra without leaving your computer" and the sequel book "101 recipies for big impoundment barra" is currently in production.

Available at all good tackle shops soon.

ahhh so that's what it was that had you hanging over the bucket last week ...... You cooked some Mondy barra soaked in lemonade , soy sauce & battery acid marinade :P

nah mate ....... I read the review:(
Nagg

[SQUIDDA]

Pink shirt?Thats Metro not Trans isn"t it???

[Tropicaltrout]

All my theories will be in my upcoming book to hit the shelves called "how to catch barra without leaving your computer" and the sequel book "101 recipies for big impoundment barra" is currently in production.

Available at all good tackle shops soon.

Don't forget "The Basin Of Trollers" and this best seller comes with a cd single called "Big Girls Don't Go Back"

[Steve B]

Don't forget "The Basin Of Trollers" and this best seller comes with a cd single called "Big Girls Don't Go Back"

Love it Nath, It would make a good read whilst trolling around aimlessly!!

On a serious theory note, thats what this thread is about, and a good idea at that. I have really not got too many theories. I haven't studied the fish and its behaviors very deep at all in the past, nor do I fully understand thermal water currents and movements, and how they occour, but I do understand its importance. i firmly believe lunar cycles have a positive affect on fish feeding patterns at certain phases, positions and times. I have difficult 'reading' the water to identify the key important information it hold. Thats why I am only now beginning to concentrate my attention on learning about these variables and their impacts on feeding patterns.

There is a reason why some fishermen/women are heads and shoulders above the rest of us, and its their superior understanding of these factors and knowing how they affect fish feeding. Then acting and adjusting this knowledge to suit any given situation.

Me at the moment, I concentrate on 5 basic principles to locate 'fishy' areas, I then apply about 5 different methods (lures, casts, retrieves etc) . To explain every theory for every circumstance would require a novel from me. The likes of Jas, Johny Mitchell etc would be volumes of encyclopedia' for their theories.......Its just too many different things for different days, weather, dams, techniques, fish and moods to explain in a post.......I love sharing info, but I really am not that knowledgeable. I most of the basics in order, but deeper understanding is still in progress. I am just really fortunate to get more opportunities than most to get out and fish....thats where theories evolve for me.

One other thing.....this may sound strange...but I often just get a 'feeling' about certain areas for fish. Sometimes when an area is quiet, something just changes and you can feel it...I dont know how to explain...but fish often bite then for me.

cheers steve

[Tropicaltrout]

One other thing.....this may sound strange...but I often just get a 'feeling' about certain areas for fish. Sometimes when an area is quiet, something just changes and you can feel it...I dont know how to explain...but fish often bite then for me.

cheers steve

Yep you are spot on there Steve I know that feeling too, I am sure we all have from time to time, but its weird you will work a shore or a series of trees and nothing but you get this emence gut feeling and bang it all changes.

Nath

[Dick Pasfield]

one other thing.....this may sound strange...but I often just get a 'feeling' about certain areas for fish. Sometimes when an area is quiet, something just changes and you can feel it...I dont know how to explain...but fish often bite then for me.

A subliminal response to a set of circumstances that provoke animals into hunting and feeding. As humans and fish are animals it stands to reason that these triggers would have a similar affect on both.

Providing that enough of the triggers coincide the human predator would be capable of picking up on them (even though our predatory urge has been somewhat dulled by lifestyle recently)

[Gordie]

I think I have sorted it out fellas.

I am putting Polycarbinate panels in the bottom of my boat.

Regards Gordon

[A_DIFF_PERSPECTIVE]

Quote:
one other thing.....this may sound strange...but I often just get a 'feeling' about certain areas for fish. Sometimes when an area is quiet, something just changes and you can feel it...I dont know how to explain...but fish often bite then for me.
A subliminal response to a set of circumstances that provoke animals into hunting and feeding. As humans and fish are animals it stands to reason that these triggers would have a similar affect on both.

Providing that enough of the triggers coincide the human predator would be capable of picking up on them (even though our predatory urge has been somewhat dulled by lifestyle recently)

Yes, yes, yes, now we are gettin the gist of provoking our minds to think.
Steve B, You are onto it. It is called blending with nature, the same as what every animal and barra does- they blend with nature because they are nature- so too are we.
Dick Pasfield has it in one. Some of our human instincts are being lost in lifestyles where we no longer require them, so we become less tuned to our environments.

Steve, Nath, that feeling you describe has answers for you. Maybe you could write down your experience on a note pad and recall what changed or what occured for you to think it was 'fishy time'!
I too had those experiences 8 yrs ago where I was with friends on Awoonga driving along and I stopped the boat and said "over there,,,,,we must be over there". They asked why?,,I said i don't know, but we just have to be there because everything looks right. But what looks right, they asked? I said "I don't know, but we must fish." We did and we hooked lots of hungry barra.
The point is that you/anyone as an angler notice plenty of things that occur during any day. They may not mean a lot until you ask yourself 50 dumb questions about that topic. If you answer them to yourself you give yourself thousands more ideas and clues to work with over time.
That day that I noticed something about that piece of water was the way that it moved, the shape of the waves, the formation of the bubble/wind lanes on the surface. At the time I never knew about currents. It was the opener for me.

It is the same when you 'feel' like a barra is going to bite or when conditions change or you think you know when it is going to happen. Maybe it is simple as taking off your jumper or noticing a 'look' or a inner gut feeling about something you have experienced before but never expanded upon why,,,,,,,,until now that is!! Why do you take your jumper off, why do you put one on? What is happening to the environment at that same time you do that?
I fished with a man yesterday, smart angler who catches lots of Awoonga barra. We'd fished for 30 mins. Nature threw in a trigger and I expected a barra within two minutes. It happened. I asked this man at the end of the day if he noticed when that fish bit. He said no. I bet he is still thinking about it now. That's all I want anglers to do more of, is start taking more notice of their environment and of course monitoring individual angler's actions. Take notes, compare results. Check your clock.
Later in the same day another trigger came into play. I said "a barra in 4 casts". I was wrong, it took about 10 casts. More barra hook ups followed in the next ten minutes. As mentioned in a post of mine yesterday, the weather governs when and why barra feed. Dairy keeping is golden. They paint a far out picture that will blow your mind.
Areas to expand on include- when, where, why, how? Go and take a peek at that list of variables once again if you want questions or topics to ask yourself. Bore yourself to death now with 50 million silly questions that will give you 50 million silly answers that you can call upon to sift through to build yourself a bigger picture. But only if you want to. Silly questions are the best ones.
Johnny

[Roo]

And here i was thinking Dick was calling Steve a Neanderthal.:-X :o ;D

[Dick Pasfield]

And here i was thinking Dick was calling Steve a Neanderthal.:-X :o ;D

Fair go, the only thing I'd call him is late for dinner;D

[Big_Ren]

It’s about instincts and having the confidence to trust those instincts. Some call it a sixth sense….whatever….but every single one of us are born with natural instincts.

It’s how we react to changing circumstances in a constantly changing environment that will often dictate our success or misery.

Others have touched on it but it’s the miniscule band of highly successful anglers…….the real thinkers if you like….who are attuned to the subtle nuances within their environs that rarely return to the ramp without a broad inner smile.

They are the ones who are able to harness a more than healthy percentage of their arsenal of instincts, while for most of us, those instincts are left wallowing as untapped potential.

It’s plain easy to rock up to your little honey spot and start boiling the water to foam without giving too much thought to anything. It’s the easy way out…good company, a nice day on the water, a few laughs and perhaps a barra or too.

How many of us take that less travelled road and really give serious consideration to what is happening around them and why? Certainly not as many I would suggest. It is almost akin to the professional punter who spends day upon day studying the form of the horses he might back, ruling out different variables along the way, studying patterns from previous successful forays, before finally making his ultimate selections. I would bet he comes home with a fatter wallet than Joe Punter who backs every nag and jockey carrying a nice colour.

Sometimes it just plain hurts to think. Perhaps it is because we don’t understand why some of the stars might be aligned in a particular scenario. Perhaps, subconsciously, we don’t want to challenge ourselves in case we might be wrong.

Johnny is dead right though……..there are no silly questions.

This is a wonderful thread….keep the responses coming.



Cheers
Paul

[NAGG]

Is it just me thank thinks that we are just dancing around the peripheries here :-/ While its fine to talk about gut feelings ( a place looks fishy) instincts or to talk about the weather .................................................. .................................................. ......But what are we looking for in a landlocked impoundment ? ....... Why is it that you can flog a piece of water to foam ..... then make a lure change or alter a retrieve style & catch fish ? ...... to me this just leads to more questions
Or why you can be fishing the same conditions ( strong SE winds) ..... & catch fish throughout the day ....... & do it for several days .......What was the influence here :-/ ..... It might have been shitty , but it was stable shitty
As someone that loves their barra fishing ..... but spends most of their time fishing tidal waters where I can see the natural influences of moon , tide phases & movement , cover or lack of , air pressure ( rising or falling barometer) , water temps etc .......... I can & do get the feeling of a place looking fishy ( but for obvious reasons ..... In my own mind)

Back to Barra though ....... I've had success in the shallows casting using stealth , while another boat the size of Queen Mary has also had success trolling deep water!
Or you find a prominent piece of structure with bait showing in ideal conditions in a changing light ....... & nothing!

So with my lack of experience ....... I have seen & consider the following *Fishing improving during change of light periods , fishing improving with an upcoming summer storm or during the calm before the storm , Fish shut down with a sudden temp drop , wind blown shallows produce during days of constant SE winds , prominent points or weed beds near deep & shallow water can be stationing areas! .... certain moon periods = greater insect activity & CAN = surface feeding baitfish & boofing barra . Look for bait!!!!! ...... Some of this may be cliche , but all have been observed .... with a limited amount of time on the water ....... It may be right or wrong..... or just a small part of the equation:-/ :-/ :-/
I too get that fishy feeling in impoundments ...... but much less than I do fishing for wild fish! ...... & more often than not WRONG!!!!

Cheers All

Nagg

[Steve B]

And here i was thinking Dick was calling Steve a Neanderthal.:-X :o ;D

Ha ha Ah:D;D Roo, I have lost some skin off my knuckles from time to time!! I will wear my fred flinstone suit in summer and get some photos!! Dont show Kim, she might get a bit turned on!!!!;);D

Dick, Dont worry about Roo, hes from NSW...those prissy, soft hand, latte drinking southerners think we are all rednecks and neanderthals up here!!

Oooga Booga Steve

[Dick Pasfield]

Dick, Dont worry about Roo, hes from NSW...those prissy, soft hand, latte drinking southerners think we are all rednecks and neanderthals up here!!


Well......since he's from NSW and thirty years ago I was too he'd have to be right;D.

Nothing personal, footy, State of Origin, and the colour Blue rise to the top at this time of year;)

[themissus]

Ha ha Ah:D;D Roo, I have lost some skin off my knuckles from time to time!! I will wear my fred flinstone suit in summer and get some photos!! Dont show Kim, she might get a bit turned on!!!!;);D

Oooga Booga Steve

Oh be still my beating heart:-* :-*

[NAGG]

Ha ha Ah:D;D Roo, I have lost some skin off my knuckles from time to time!! I will wear my fred flinstone suit in summer and get some photos!! Dont show Kim, she might get a bit turned on!!!!;);D

Dick, Dont worry about Roo, hes from NSW...those prissy, soft hand, latte drinking southerners think we are all rednecks and neanderthals up here!!

Oooga Booga Steve

Is that a hint of Western Qld dialect I sense in that response ?

Chris

[Steve B]

Chris,

you will start talkin like that when you move to these parts....:D

Its infectious.

Steve

[NAGG]

Chris,

you will start talkin like that when you move to these parts....:D

Its infectious.

Steve

Steve , I've already started my course of preventative medication ...... EXTRA DRY ( taken orally ... approx 1000ml / day
...... but I'm told I have to up the dosage once I arrive in Qld;D

Hey are you over your bug & managing to get on the water ?

Chris