Mate,
Saw this elsewhere about Cooby: http://www.kfdu.com.au/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=34671
Cheers,
Pete
Anybody got an up to date report on how it is fishing? I will be in a kayak...
Mate,
Saw this elsewhere about Cooby: http://www.kfdu.com.au/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=34671
Cheers,
Pete
====================
Hobie Outback 2012 &
Hobie Oasis 2012
====================
Thanks for that. Very interesting hey? It has been a few years since I made the trip from Ipswich to Cooby dam but I must admit I got heaps of yellows. Back then I released them all but these days I eat the smaller ones.
Just as I was about to leave I caught a huge bass. At the time it was my PB at 45 cms. No photos of it but I have been told a million times that there are NO bass in Cooby!!!
Reading the post following the link, I will have to try again...
For want of a better place I gave Billies Bay a shot today. Two huge tilapia and about ten eel-tailed cat fish. I tossed all the jew fish back but I often wonder what they taste like
Nice work, wrip. Good to see you got a pb bass of 45cm. I'm yet to eat a bass or yellow.
Billies Bay holds many good memories for me. Had a cracker couple of months in June & July 2008 there. Got my pb bass of 53cm out front of Billies (pic attached). Got good numbers of fish every trip that year. Then the big rains came in early 2009 and things weren't quite the same.
Re fishing Wivy in the warmer months. One thing that seems to hold true is to get your trolling speed up to 3kph to 5kph to avoid the catfish, as they tend to be sluggish and won't chase a lure going that quick.
Cheers, Pete
====================
Hobie Outback 2012 &
Hobie Oasis 2012
====================
My PB for both Bass and Yellows is now over 55cms. Since Sept 1 I have hit 55cms for bass three or four times in the Brisbane river using my yak. Since Oct began, the Brisbane river shut down almost 100% for me and I can't catch a decent bass for love nor money.
Billies Bay is not lucky for me when it comes to Bass or yellowbelly. I fish round to the left of the ramp in the deep water but no luck so far
Would not mind one like your photo
55cm are solid fish. Nice one.
Have attached my map from 2008. The blue lines are where I trolled and always scored numbers of fish, even in the middle of the day on a cloudless day. The peninsular of land in between the 2 light blue lines was just below the water line, though had weed standing out of the water. The red star was where I got the 53cm bass. The peninsular is now well under the water. But the formation is still there and provides structure for the fish to eat in and then easily head back out to the much deeper water of the main basin. Well worth investigation still. From Billies ramp to the inside blue line took me about 20 mins in the Hobie pedal yak on a slow troll.
Cheers,
Pete
====================
Hobie Outback 2012 &
Hobie Oasis 2012
====================
I will be out there tomorrow if the wind is OK. I don't usually go 'right' off the ramp (Frightened to go toward the main dam) but I will give it a try and see what happens
I might even be in Sat's news "Idiot old bloke swept away in Kayak"
It generally takes me 1.5 hours to go from Billies Bay ramp to Platypus Cliffs. Have been out in the middle once during a squall and had waves crushing all over me. Wasn't great fun. Was heading back from Platypus Cliffs when it turned nasty. Was coming close to the peninsular (near the blue lines) with just one rod still out when the rod buckled over with a strike, which was a bit freaky. Had to play a 40cm+ bass with waves hitting me from the side. Wivy can easily turn on you all right.
After that trip I always wore a PFD. Suggest you consider the same. The other place that is always worth a look is horse paddock, which is down in the far right corner. Have a look at Fitzy's map on his web site (www.sweetwaterfishing.com.au)
Good luck. I look forward to your report.
Cheers, Pete
====================
Hobie Outback 2012 &
Hobie Oasis 2012
====================
Love to go across to the cliffs but it is too far for me to paddle Not as young as I used to be
Unless I am in a very safe place I always wear a PDF. Even in the brisbane river if it is at all windy.
I must admit that in all the trips I did across to the cliffs I rarely caught anything there. Yeah think it's about 4.5 klms across.
Smart approach.
Other memory of bad weather there was the first Wivy kayak & canoe convention about 5 years ago. Was a nice fine day. SEQ Water let us launch down near the wall. So we headed around the corner and headed up to Billies. Only problem was that around midday a 30 knot gust came in from the north-west. Had this in our faces all the way back. I was in my old Hobie Outback and had waves crashing over the nose slapping me in the crouch, which wasn't a lot of fun. Took forever to get back in. As soon as you stop pedalling/paddling you went backwards fast. Needless to say evweryone slept well that night.
====================
Hobie Outback 2012 &
Hobie Oasis 2012
====================
Can't help but smile You have already experienced what I don't want to have to. I have a Kayak I got from Ebay. Cost me less than $400 and is set up for fishing. BUT, it even though it is very stable I go backwards when it is into the wind.
Have to laugh at myself sometimes. I also have an inflatable kayak which is supposed to be puncture proof. Great, I can blow it up in five minutes, or so, and it is easier than lifting my current yak on to the roof rack. First time out in it, I was catching plenty of bass in the Brisbane river. The biggest I tossed into the front of the yak.
The problem was that it is puncture proof from the outside and not the inside! Nine punctures later the damn thing almost sank. Found out that I can still actually swim a bit.
I made it back to the ramp but it was never the same again.
One has to be suspicious of inflatable kayaks for that very reason.
Had a small zodiak inflatable I bough second hand really cheap which also came with a 2hp outboard when I lived in Mackay in the early 80s. I got it to fish the Pioneer river. Had a great time in it until late one arvo the motor mounting bracket wore a hole in the plastic and the damn thing start deflating real quickly a couple of klms upstream. Decided to try and make a quick run back to the ramp (with a 2hp outboard that's not that fast). Got about 500 meters from the ramp when it sank and had to swim into shore with my hands full with 2 rods, tackle box etc. A couple of guys back at thee ramp gave me a round of applause as I emerged from the water, and then told me how they had been fishing at the ramp and had just caught a couple of small (2 meter) tiger sharks on live mullet. I went a very pale shade of white. Fished from the bank after that episode and never looked at an inflatable from that day on.
====================
Hobie Outback 2012 &
Hobie Oasis 2012
====================
Trolled the blue lines for a few hours with the only result as catfish. I don't give up though and will try again next week. (I was going to say the blue lines were very hard to see on the water -but I won't say that)