P24 - FISH & BOAT, February 2019 Fishing Yarns Arsey Anglers By Anthony Davies No wonder he decided to move here. His PB fin- germark is so much bigger than mine that I try not When it comes to fishing, I seem to possessto think about it. Hooked in a deep offshore hole at even less luck than skill. If the hook could midnight ona carefully caught, meticulously present- possibly drop out then it will, if there’s a sined live squid? Nope. Les’ nearly 70cm snodger ate a - gle snag inthe pool my fish will find it, and if two linespilchard on a wire mounted gang of 7/0’s intended cross it always seems to be mine that breaks. But some for a Spaniard. of the fishos I know seem to have luck in spades.I reckon my old mate Murray topped that effort the Like Sandy, who once caught a neat 80cm Spanother day though. Murray isn’t fussy when it comes to - iard at the end Leads on a live sardine. Lucky enough,tackle, he once managed to get a full four years out of you might say, but he caught the fish on a $20 Kmarta single set of ganged hooks. plastic baitcaster loaded with about 80 metres of 10lbThe rig was brand new when I tied it on for him, mono, it was only on board for jigging bait.and decidedly old, blunt and rusty when a big shark spooledOne decent run would’vehim, but the fishM finally bit it off after 20+urray isn’t fussy when it comes to tackle,trips and a dozen mackerel spentthe entire fight jumphe once managed to get a full four years outand other toothy critters. ing repeatedly no more than-o “Have you got another one,fa single set of ganged hooks. 10 metres from the boat, Captain?” asked Murray. it must’ve had a shark on its tail. I managed to gaffBut those hooks were in great shape compared to the fish just as the little reel seized up for good; Sandy the old French 10/0 on Murray’s 80lb handline. Not a bad GT from a boat, an AMAZING capturedidn’t even lose a single bite to the shark. Oh; but the Said handline accompanies Murray on every trip, from the banks of a snaggy tidal creek.reel was wrecked, that’s bad luck? Not for Sandy, it waswhether we’re chasing whiting or wahoo. Usually MY reel! baited with something vile from the depths of Mur- ray’s freezer, it gets fed over the side to remain unmo- lested on most occasions. The other day there were some big mud herrings mixed in with the prawns I was netting for bait; I usu- ally save ‘em for doggy mackerel baits. But after we’d anchored and Murray brought out his handline, I butterflied one and tossed it to him. Somehow he impaled the herring on the hook, I reckon it hasn’t had a point since perms went out i g of fashion. Over the side it went, perhaps 8 ounces y of lead was overkill on a shallow sandbar, but I kept he f ish won t hea r ou c o m n see a surface boil and a flash of gold, and then theThere was a grunt from Murray as something fasted line off the handline spool. I looked up to T fish charged the boat. I managed to clear my rods, butMurray’s line had picked up the rope for the live baitbucket. Thank goodness for 80 lb mono! Septuage- narians don’t leave their seats quickly, I grabbed the line and skull dragged a lovely 80cm King salmon into P t intain the boat. Photo taken and fish consigned to the Esky, lyiseasier o ma Murray asks “Have you got another one, Captain?” o Of course, I butterflied another herring for him. N And of course, within minutes a nice fingermark orrosion, swam past my carefully presented live prawns and oc mullet to eat it! The very next Monday, our new storeman Paul An- h icalwashes , dronicus met me at the shop’s back gate. “Have a look em no c at the fish I got on Sunday” he says, opening an im- ! age on his phone. Everyone seems to take pix with NO WORRIES their phones now; sometimes I feel a bit silly carry- ing a digital SLR around. Hey, have you noticed that UFO’s and Aliens have disappeared now that every- Poly produces one has a camera in their pocket?“So me ’n Bubba was walkin’ home an’ this alien ap-peared, he was kinda skinny an’ grey an’….” t noise “Did y’all take a photo with your phone?” lesson wa er “Aw, shoot…….” But I digress. Paul’s pic was of a very decent GT. I know he doesn’t own a boat, so I was instantly curious. P “I got it off the bank at Thomatis” olyprovides Thomatis Creek is a tidal arm of the Barron River, it runs into the sea at Holloways beach, and there’s a softerride a small boat ramp and parking area at Holloways. It’s deep and snaggy for much of its few kilometres of length, probably better known as a jack spot than anything else. I guessed there’d be a story to tell, and there was. Paul is relatively new to the Cairns area, and had INGHAM - J&B Marine 07 4776 1188 • jandbmarine.com been scouting about for a good land- based spot or two. He’d worked out access to Thomatis Creek near the highway bridge, and over a few visits, he made HERVEY BAY - Barney's Marine 07 4124 3170 • barneysmarine.com.au friends with Don, a Biblically bearded regular at the spot. CAIRNS - Aussie MarineAdrians07 4033 8800 • aussiemarine.com.au On the Sunday in question, Don had been casting for bait at the mouth of the Barron, the pickings were slim, but he did manage a handful of baitfish about BUNDABERG - Marine Centre 07 4153 1819 • adriansmarinecentre.com.au10cm in length. Don had the little silver fish on hand when the boys met up to fish their regular spot. 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