# NSW. sweet dreams of Bumbo Bream...



## john316 (Jan 15, 2009)

Due to some things that would be of no interest on this forum I haven't been here in trip reports for some time but today we had a ball, albeit a bit of a cold one.

The child bride and I had a late start but headed to Bumbo just off the Tuross River to give her new toy a test run. After heading out with a pair of Hobie Adventures for quite a long time, today we headed out with my A.I. and "The Tug", (I have been told not to call it "the barge") a second hand Hobie Pro Angler. For such a big beast it actually handles quite well. A big part of our kayaking trips is the togetherness and stopping for picnics and coffee breaks and her new Tug has so much carrying space there will be no need to worry about how to fit the thermos or the esky any more.









We launched at a spot that is often frequented by water-skiers but with the approach of winter we had the area all to ourselves. We had not been up the Bumbo creek before and I was a little surprised at the distance from the Tuross river to the lake but even more surprised by the lack of structure on the river bed. I wanted there to be fish but after the recent severe flooding I was expecting to find that the fish were still down closer to the mouth of the Tuross.









As we left the creek and entered the lake I began to see some structure on the sounder and while the child bride headed off around the lake look for a landing site I baited a jig head and cast ahead and let it drift back towards me. This effort was rewarded with a tentative jerk at the bait so I opened the bail arm and fed out a little line before slowly retrieving it again. As the line began to come tight there was a hint of movement, not the typical run of either a bream or a flathead but there was something there. As the fish came towards the kayak there was a familiar feel as it got close enough to see the boat and took a dive which stripped a bit of line off the reel but even though it completely changed the feel of the fish, it was never going to be a record breaker. When it started to fight I picked it for a bream and soon enough I had the fish alongside the boat and in the landing net. On the ruler it made legal length so I put it in the keeper net for a photo op and then continued towards a bend where there were some shadows falling across the water and a good looking snag.

When I cast the bait across the shadows near the snag I had a sudden snap and run that stripped a lot of line off the reel but then just let go. Whatever it was that took the bait had not taken the hook but had been strong enough to pull line just with the bait in its mouth. I replaced the damaged bait with a fresh one and cast back across the same area and this time when the bait was taken there was an immediate and savage run which converted into a good solid fight. This was not one of those times when you just turn the handle and wind a fish in. The rod was bouncing as the fish surged left and right, up and down. The struggle was to keep the line tight and, after too long between serious fish, to trust the rod, reel and the line to do what they were designed to do. As the struggle ensued I caught a glimpse of this fish and every fibre of my being wanted this fish in the bag as this thing was a beast of a bream.

The thump from the tail of the bream was different from any other I have fought before, and I have had my share of good bream. Patience, and good equipment worked in my favour and I finally netted one of the best fish I have ever seen and I placed it into the keeper and joined the child bride for a coffee and a photo that I am going to treasure as long as memory holds out. This fish was not only a large specimen, but it was very thick through the body, full of muscle and in beautiful condition ready to breed. Following the photo I released the smaller fish quickly and paused while I held the old girl in the water and supported her while she just lay in my hand for a moment before swimming forward about half a meter. She just held position in the water for aprox 2 minutes and then slowly swam away without any fuss and after the tension of the catch I found the release to be far more emotional than I expected.

















I have caught many fish, released a lot and kept quite a few for the table but this one was different in some intangible way.

After this we drifted out to the Tuross River with the last of the tide and slowly made our way back to the truck and packed up as the darkness began to overtake the day. We were cold and tired but somehow this is a day that will not be remembered for the discomfort at the end but for that enduring moment when an old breeding fish held position a few centimetres from my feet before slowly moving away into its own familiar habitat.

I caught another good bream before we reached the truck and the bride also took her first fish with The Tug, but all in all, this day was about that one fish and that moment when it was released.

Long may she live

John


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## mrwalker (Feb 23, 2009)

Another nice report John, keep em coming. Some fish are more special than others,eh? Maybe its the location, the weather, or just the mood we are in on a particular day. Cheers, Dave.


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## Oddrod (Sep 27, 2009)

Good report John, one of my favourite creeks on the South Coast. Used to camp up there many years ago.


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## john316 (Jan 15, 2009)

patwah said:


> Well done John, any idea on the size?


Paddy, this may seem a bit crazy from someone who keeps a PB list, but to be honest the size just didn't matter. She was undeniably legal so I didn't need to check for that reason and at the time it was just about the moment. I have wondered the same thing since and discovered that I've lost my brag mat so a measuring photo wasn't an option even if I had wanted one. The only indicator I have is that the smaller fish in the side by side was a tad over the 26cm mark.

cheers

John


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## forbs (May 20, 2008)

Good effort John. I would of thought the Bream in Tuross would almost be shutting down now. Never really thought of it as a winter (late Autumn Fishery). I think the Bream in Tuross have definitely thickened up since the lake has been open. I was amazed at the amount of prawns and bait fish in the place over the summer. Tuross used to be known as a skinny bream area but this year we caught a lot of really fat bream. All bodes well for the future. Might make a trip down there next week and try my luck. Thanks again for the report john.


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