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View Full Version : Boxing Day Test - Squire for tea!



SnodgerHunter
30-12-2006, 04:37 PM
It was an awesome day for a test match so we decided to scoot out to Spot X for a session of fishing with the gentlemen - what turned out to be a test of wills and skills, with 3 PBs being absolutely smashed! #It was the day after Christmas, and the conditions looked ugly :( but we braved the chills and spills as we headed to fish some little known territory out on the reefs offshore from the sunshine coast. Many boaties have come to grief on the shallow and unpredictable Caloundra bar that was to be our launching pad out to the grounds.

As we headed out through the breakers (sometimes peaking and splashing thumping into the front of the 5.5m runabout ), Shayne reminded me to pick the gaps while keeping the bow head-on to the 2-3m swell....getting out for a duck was simply not an option.

We arrived at Spot X at 6:30am, and started to drift slowly over the chosen location. By the time we arrived and into the morning wore on the conditions actually started to improve slightly. With the 10knot SW slowly dying in the butt, we knew it would be a remarkable day...and it was! For eons we have been hard-line bait fishos, never even breathing on a squidgy, berkley, or any such (rediculous) 'artificial' 'fisherman-catching' soft plastic or otherwise lure. But to my surprise, they actually work! We stuck to the berkly 3 and 4" minnows and podgys in a range of colours and they all worked a treat!

Anyways so we casted out our soft plastics and waited...hmm would these things really work? THUMP...WAMM...I was hooked into something bigger than a bream and it was headed for the bottom. After a few good runs it came up a 47cm PB squire! What a way to start the innings! I am still amazed at the ferociousness with which the fish struck the SP. What a way to open the account!

The trip was shaping up to be a real test match, and with only 1 fish landed in the first hour, we knew we needed some quick runs on the board to keep up the run-rate. I knew it would be hard to beat my 47cm, but what the heck I chucked the plastic thing back out there, let it flutter down in the breeze...and...not even...nothing in fact...for ages...And then ZZZZZZZZ something thing grabbed the 4" podgy plastic. 1 awesome fight later it was hugging the net. My 55cm PB squire!!!!!! I was using 10lb fireline and the 11g squidgy jighead.

After getting lost in a pod of dolphins, we then motored to a different spot to get away from them, then made another drift where we got a triple hookup - Shayne, Dave and I all got slammed at the same instant!!!! Amazing stuff - I have seen double hookups before, but I have never experienced 3 simultaneous rods go down synchronized like that! It was as if the same fish sucked in all the baits at once! Dave pulled up a nice bream of 27cm, Shayne pulled up a really serious squire of 53cm (not bad for a first squire huh?) and mine went 55cm (right off the meat of the bat!!). With 2 PBs in the same day, I was stoked! As a table fish those squire beat the heck out of a mackerel or kingy or even a bream or flathead if you ask me!

So in the end the scorecard read all-out for 3 awesome squire (47.5, 53, 55cm) a nice bream, a sweety, and a hell of a run from an oversize mackerel and a snap off from the same. What a day! It was tough goin but like Symonds and Hayden when the runs werent comin that fast we stuck in there and the boys did the hard yards but once we got settled and got our eye-in it turned out to be some awesome quality in the squire for this time of year. The wicket was a bit lumpy at first but quietened down nicely for a spectacular innings of fishing! Does anyone call these fish snapper, or just large squire? When is a squire become a snapper, it would be great to hear some thoughts on this.

Cheers & enjoy your fishin,
SS

SnodgerHunter
30-12-2006, 04:50 PM
some dolphins that wouldn't leave us alone...

SnodgerHunter
30-12-2006, 04:51 PM
the 55cm PB squire/snapper...

SnodgerHunter
30-12-2006, 04:53 PM
back at the ramp

BAR_UP
30-12-2006, 08:07 PM
Shene enjoyed your story, your right about the Caloundra bar can be a real bitch at times specially if an Easterly swell. Be carefull next week Thursday has .200 low tide the bar my not be passable. "BAR UP". PS Stop chewing your fingernails!. ::)

hooknose
30-12-2006, 08:27 PM
Love your work Snodge !!, the gulps work a treat hey!!

Cheers !!!

Sea-Captain
30-12-2006, 09:06 PM
snodgers ahoy!!.....great pics 'sniper'.

BAR_UP
31-12-2006, 08:33 AM
SS, i reckon any fish you have to measure to see if it is legal is a Squire, anything else is a Snapper. I too am exploring sp's being a seasond bait fisher (livies) and think what a load of bullshit these plastic things are but i know as soon as i have a good day with plastics i too will be hooked!. ;D

capt._mud
31-12-2006, 11:59 AM
I wish the swell had been 2m to 3m along with every other surfer.....

A few squire for your efforts helps I guess....

Glad I watched the cricket at home though with a few mates and crabs,prawns and beers.

Glad to see your catches are slowly improving.

SnodgerHunter
01-01-2007, 01:30 PM
yeah Bar Up your too right mate. In my experience the fish are either easily keepers and don't need measuring (snapper), or obviously need measuring (squire)-theres not that many fish that are in between. maybe the fish put on a growth spert after they reach keeperish size?

Happy new year!
SS

One_Day
01-01-2007, 04:52 PM
SS,
Great report on test match fishing! Good to see you've picked up the plastic bug, a whole lot of fun. Be warned though you'll start collecting packs on packs of the damm things to the point where you'll have to ditch the tackle box and find new ways to store them (a garbage bag works great!!) ;D

Fishnwell
01-01-2007, 06:23 PM
Hi guys,

Were you using berly with the soft plastics?

Sea-Captain
01-01-2007, 07:19 PM
When the current and wind allowed we did drop small amounts of berley in the vicinity of our drifting plastics - however we rarely use berley when drifting - just find a suitable reef and drop those plastics in the right conditions - tidewise -moonwise-and windwise. hopefully with a little patience ...........whamO

capt._mud
02-01-2007, 08:22 AM
From the old school.. snapper were usually regarded, once they got their knob,(on their head that is!) usually up around the 3 kg. mark.....
So they were just babies. (squire)

Scalem
07-01-2007, 06:16 AM
Well done SS

The bait has not attracted flys in my boat for a good 5 years now, Plastics is the ONLY choice for me. #Although I mainly catch Snapper in Morton bay because my boat's not big enough to go offshore, I have an uncle on the Sunshine Coast I deckie for, who has a much bigger rig than mine. #I think the only reason he uses bait is to satisfy the bait diehards who deckie for him occasionally. #Keep going with the PLaccies mate, and don't be afraid to use 5" in bright colours offshore (chartreuse or Nuclear Chicken). #The colour pink is a good one. #If you have not had a strike, crank a pink minow back to the boat as fast as you can. :o

Good fun!

Scalem

Livey
07-01-2007, 06:05 PM
Nice fish mate. I wuold call them large squire the bigger even snappery squire. Fisheries in Qld are promoting anglers to abondon the use of squire as a term for snapper due to some confusion in bag limits (probably just an excuse for those that have been caught) 5 squire and 5 snapper? Who thinks that 35cm is still too small for these fish as a legal limit. I would be happy with 45cm. But maybe thats too big for some inshore fishos.