slinkymalinky Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Just wanted to share an awesome trip I took in April 06. Mrs Slinky and I left the kids in the hands of the In Laws and joined a live aboard charter for 8 days on the Western side of Cape York. After agonising over what to leave behind with the strict luggage limits on the light aircraft that flew us into Bamaga, we still went aboard the great vessel groaning under the weight of tackle we'd managed to squeeze in. The trip down the coast South from Sesia was amazing with the water like glass... no swell at all the for the whole trip and only little wind chop to deal with occasionally. The view south from Sesia wharf A quick stop at a little bump in the coast called Vrilya Point and almost immediately, every rod was loaded up with a succession of Queenfish, Longtail Tuna, GTs and Mackerel falling to chrome slices and poppers. Mrs Slinky had her first ever go with a carbon fibre rod and learned all about high-sticking on her first cast as she showered those around her with graphite particles... she still managed to land a nice little Spaniard. Ouch! For 6 days solid we fished our bums off. The routine was moor in a river mouth, have a leisurely breakfast each morning, hop aboard a guided skiff, fish till lunchtime, eat a restaurant quality meal, fish until dinner time back aboard the skiff, then eat drink and sleep it off until the next day. Mouth of the Jackson River To say the fishing was mind blowing is an understatement. We caught 29 species between us and the only problem we had was choosing from session to session what to chase. The Long Tail Tuna were so predictable and easy to catch they quickly got boring and we spent our time alternating between flats fishing for Golden Trevally and the like (couldn't hook any of the Permit), chasing bait balls, creek bashing for Barra and Jacks, and walking the shores with rods in hand. These guys were everywhere and became our fallback on the rare occasion when things were quiet elsewhere Sharks were an occasional menace but even losing the odd fish right beside the boat added to the spice of the trip. Don't fall in... We caught so many firsts and PBs that it's impossible to list them all but here's just a few. 80cm Bludger Trevally on fly Mrs Slinky's 1st Cobe A much hoped for Diamond Trevally on a Halco Scorpion 90 Golden Trevally were thick... this one on fly went about 90cm The biggest mullet I've ever seen... caught by another patron on a secret fly. My first Saratoga... about 65cm again on a trusty 90mm Scorpion this one of around 55cm on fly and Longtail on fly... they go hard! Best Queenfish for the trip... just on 1m caught by Mrs Slinky while I was 'having fun' feeding the sharks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray R Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 What an absolute corker of a fishing trip, bet you were sore after hauling those things in. Imagine getting bored catching longtails, very jealous Tony. Congrats to you and Mrs Slinky for some great captures.. Cheers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercer007 Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Sounds like a once in a lifetime trip the Slinky's had there. Some great catches, and in such beautiful soroundings. Thank's for sharing. Cheers Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiro Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Top report Slinky... Awesome read!! what was the damage for a trip like that?? neat pics too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Man, I wanna go on a fishing adventure like that. Thanks for the pics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregL Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 That brings back some memories! Great trip that and was something I did quite a few times. The diversity of the area is amazing with great fishing offshore to the fresh water reaches which are worth a trip just itself! My highest species count for a trip was 28 different species all on plastics and 38 species in total including ones on bait and hardbodies. Oh man I have been trying to stay calm and collected but less than 3 weeks to go before my first sea plane fishing adventure! G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moro Mou Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Great summary of what looked like a great trip Slinky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squid hunter Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 what an awesome looking trip slinkymalinky regards Squid Hunter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUDude Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Excellent adventure ! slinkymalinky Nice 'toga, thats one fish high on my "to catch" list. Cheers, GUDude Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sails Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Hi slinky, thanks for reminding us about what is out there when you get away from civilisation. That looked like a fantastic trip, well done. cheers Sails Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outfisher Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Top fishing there slinky Luck for you there was no wind and the water was flat what a great fishin trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimnicdusty Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 great report, looks like you had a ball catching all those fish, 29 species thats a top effort. what time of the year did you go? cheers jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bar Up Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Mrs Slinky had her first ever go with a carbon fibre rod and learned all about high-sticking on her first cast as she showered those around her with graphite particles... she still managed to land a nice little Spaniard. Great report their Slinky.... Could you provide an insight to what you mean by "High-sticking" in relation to a carbon fibre rod? Bar Up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tevoro Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Top report Slinky!!! Awesome pics.. What a trip! So jealous now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robeebee Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 great pics and an awesome report mate trip of a lifetime Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckytom Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 WOW!!! SLINKY!!! You're killin' me. The whole thing just looked super! What a trip! I love that kind of stuff as I'm sure fellow Raiders do as well....Good on Ya"ll. CHEERS....Tom the Yank P.S. I hope you got Mrs. Slinky a new Stick!... What time of year was it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james7 Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 WOW! What a trip!! That's sensational fishing! Fantastic photos. I love the "half" fish photo (must have been a decent shark) and that Diamond Trevally is a weird looking thing. Never seen one before. Twenty nine species is amazing! Did you have a favourite? Thanks Slinky and Mrs Slinky for the report. Cheers Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mondo Rock Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Great report their Slinky.... Could you provide an insight to what you mean by "High-sticking" in relation to a carbon fibre rod? Bar Up High sticking means pulling back on the rod too far during the fight - particularly at the end of the fight where the fish is at your feet. If the butt of the rod is pointed straight up in the air when the fish is at your feet, or even angled slightly backwards as you pull against the fish, then the curve in the rod can be well over 90 degrees. Not too bad in a fibreglass rod, but carbon rods just don't bend that way. In my experience it's difficult to stop someone from high-sticking. As soon as the adrenaline hits they forget about it entirely. That's why I now have fibreglass rods for my guests!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hodgey Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Great report and photos mate. That's a great part of the world. Some fantastic fish on offer, and all of them seem to have one thing in common ... they pull like freight trains! I bet Mrs Slinky is very aware of rod capabilities now Very envious of a superb trip Cheers Skip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewgaffer Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 That's a good variety of fish Slinkymalinky, you're catching just about every species now that you're up in Qld .. Beats that Hawkesbury two tide session session we had Tony, we only managed undersize jew and only a few soapies worth taking home and nothing much else at all on a good day with eight rods out .... Well done mate it's too cold to fish down here Cheers jewgaffer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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