have a boat on bribie island, not sure how to use it....

[ubdkdd]

Hey,

i am a new boatie but long time fishing nut who recently starting taking his inlaws 4.6m southwind (90hp mercury) out and around pumicestone passage.

I am loving the whole boating experience, as its something that i have never done before, and am conscious i still have a lot to learn.

my issue is that i grew up rock fishing for kings, cobia, jewies etc around southwest rocks/hat head, and the fishing i am doing now from the boat (ie bream, flatties etc in the passage) is a little .... um... boring.

Ideally, i would like to be out chasing macks and cobia etc out around spitfire channel on calm days, but really unsure whether the size of boat i have is suitable for doing so.

Is 4.6m big enough to head out to the channels safely? or any other advice for a new boatie who wants to make sure he's doing things safely?

cheers

[peterbo3]

Pick your day (less than 10 knots) & go early, with another boat or an experienced deckie if possible. Head back in before you need to. A VHF would be a good investment if not already on the boat. As you pass Skirmish Point there is a bit of snotty water known locally as the "washing machine". If you feel comfortable going through that, then a trip out to the shipping channel should not be a problem once you get some sea time under the belt.
The top end of the bay can be a scary place when wind opposes tide. The banks will break so local knowledge is very handy.

[PADDLES]

make sure you've got a vhf and an epirb for starters. if you live local it makes it a lot easier to pick your days, but 4.6m will be fine on good days to head around the front. in northerlies simply head to the south of bribie and chase mackeral, in southerlies you're stuffed, head up the passage instead.

[SgBFish]

I’ll assume you have a licence…
Join the local VMR at Bribie and be aware of the safety gear needed. You will need a 406 MHz EPIRB if you cross the line from Skirmish to Combie point on Moreton. I would recommend a VHF regardless of where you go in the bay.
Pick the right day and watch as Peter has said the wind Vs tide issue at the SE corner of Bribie they can stand up there. I.e. Afternoon NE wind and big ebb tide.

Boating is only cheap if you don’t value your life.

Scott

[The-easyrider]

Take your time to learn the layout of the banks out there as there is some spots that dry out at low water a good chart or chart ploter and a bit of study is all that is needed.