# Doesn't get much better than this



## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

G'day all.
It's been a bit patchy up this way over the last three or four weeks so after a frustrating session in the bay yesterday getting bitten off by school mackerel and losing more rigs (yes I had a wire trace) than fish landed, I decided to do an early run today.
The fact that it was my birthday (yes, I'm now 57 years young) put even more emphasisi on having a successful morning and, fortunately, it couldn't have gone better.
I had my mind set on a quality Spanish Mackerel so I chose my baits carefully, re-did my line joiners, and hit the water at 5am.
Wide of the 'Shoal' just before 6am my Yellowtail Pike/Spaniard Special combo got hit hard by a fish that peeled more than 150 metres 20lb Fireline in less than one minute.
Fantastic stuff and a bit disconcerting considering I still had my helmet light on.
Anyway, everything held together, despite this feisty fish's efforts and ten minutes later I had boated this 19.5kg Spaniard.
I was back on Main Beach at 6.50am and home to my lovely wife by 8am, just in time to open my pressy's.
Yes, it doesn't get much better than this.


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## Scott (Aug 29, 2005)

What a birthday present. You must have been good this year mate.

Catch ya Scott


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## Peril (Sep 5, 2005)

Happy Birthday Billybob


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## Freak (Mar 25, 2006)

Fantastic effort BillyBob. 
I can remember readingin in one of your posts that after you gaf lift the fish you hold the gaf in one hand and the tail in the other and for the next ten minutes try to obsorb all the thrashing that the just boated fish throws at you. Im just wondering how the hell you managed to hold onto that sucker after just boating it? is that the hardest part?


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## YakAtak (Mar 13, 2006)

I could say Happy Birthday mate, but looks like I don't have to! That's one hell of a spaniard, and you got your exercise for the day too, all before 7am! Awesome stuff.


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## wongus (Feb 12, 2006)

Hi BillyBob,

Happy Birthday and congratulations on a great fish! May you have many more to come.


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## Dodge (Oct 12, 2005)

Billybob

No better way to start another year mate, and all the best :wink:


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## BJT (Feb 24, 2006)

Happy birthday billybob!! Great fish, i can't wait to get our there and start catching some fish once i get my prowler 15. 

Cheers


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## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

Thanks guys. I must admit, that has to be one of my most memorable birthdays... everything just couldn't have gone better from the minute I got up till I got home late last night from a great dinner out at the Noosa Sheraton.

Freak: Yeah mate. I find that the old 'drag 'em over the side and hold until settled' is still the best method for me. The real trick is to effectively exhaust the fish before bringing it to the side of the yak. Hard to describe at which point this is appropriate, as each fish is different. I must admit, this one was the fastest, strongest Spaniard I've come across so far... boy, did he take a lot of line in a short space of time! I'm glad I had 300m of 20lb Fireline to play with.
By the way, my gaffs are custom made with an extra long return. The point is linished, not sharpened to a point, so that it doesn't cut the fish. A cut, hurting Spaniard in your lap is not an exciting prospect.

meoldchina: I didn't measure the fish (should have done but there was a lot going on during the day) but my cutting board is 1.2 metres long and he was sticking out a good ways over the edge. I'd say about 1.4, maybe 1.5 metres?


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## hairymick (Oct 18, 2005)

Great Fish Bill, Happy birthday mate.


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## beefs (Jan 30, 2006)

Happy birthday Bill. I knew when I saw the post title "It doesnt get much better than this" and then that you were the author that we were in for a fairly special fish - thats an absolute corker!


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## PoddyMullet (Aug 29, 2005)

Plenty of space on that spaniard for all ya candles to fit BillyBob, happy birthday. I don't really have any concept of a reel losing line like ya describe, but I reckon you've replayed the tune a few times in ya mind


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## beefs (Jan 30, 2006)

Billybob said:


> ...
> By the way, my gaffs are custom made with an extra long return. The point is linished, not sharpened to a point, so that it doesn't cut the fish. A cut, hurting Spaniard in your lap is not an exciting prospect...


could you please explain for me what "linished" is Bill??


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## Dodge (Oct 12, 2005)

Billybob said:


> but my cutting board is 1.2 metres long


Bill that cutting board says a lot about your fishing my one is 450mm  and plenty big enough generally


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## sig (May 1, 2006)

happy birthday mate, that is the most amazing hookup and all from a kayak! Sig


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## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

scotty beefs: most gaffs are flat edge ground to give a hard, sharp point.
Linishing is done on a belt sander and means you get a 'soft', dull point with no hard edges. It's really no longer a gaff. I tend to call it my 'fish lifter' as that's precisely what it does.

I slide the tip under the gill raker and out through the mouth then lift the fish out of the water. Rather than provoking a serious round of body spasming and violent head shaking the fish seem a little bit confused at first. They still do their best to fight their capture but it's generally a lot more manageable than the fiasco you see on some boats when someone drops a large body-gaffed, seriously pissed off pelagic on the deck.


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## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

Gatesy: Yeah mate, that was a PB Spaniard. It would have gone well over the 20kg mark if its stomach hadn't been empty.


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## Davey G (Jan 15, 2006)

Billybob said:


> Gatesy: Yeah mate, that was a PB Spaniard. It would have gone well over the 20kg mark if its stomach hadn't been empty.


so are you saying it shat itself when it realised that it had been lured by the LEGENDARY BILLYBOB? :lol: :lol: :lol:

Mate, you are a champion, and Noosa tourism should be paying you a commission!


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## fisher (Aug 30, 2005)

....and here I am thinking about chasing some garfish tomorrow.... :?


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## Russ (Feb 24, 2006)

:shock: :roll: not bad not bad.

 Many happy returns for the B'Day Billybob

PS...Ya better send out the invitations to ya 60th if ya want us all there :roll: hope there are a few Spaniards left for the rest of us by then :lol:

 fishing Russ


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## Milt (Sep 2, 2005)

Many happy returns Billybob,

What a fish, once again you have proved "you are the master and we are not worthy" :shock: :shock: :shock:

Well done.

Milt,


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## Kevin (Aug 29, 2005)

Nice work Billybob,

Sounds like a ripper day allround was had.


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## PeterJ (Aug 29, 2005)

Now thats a fish woooo hoooo


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## andybear (Jan 15, 2006)

Thats not catch of the day........thats fish of the year. Congratulations on the catch, and your birthday.

I just cant quite get something out of my deranged mind however. I picture Billybob sitting at the table, and asking his sweet lady whats for dinner, being told, its fish fish baked beans, fish and fish, but not much spam in it.

Cheers all
:lol: :lol: :lol: 
Andybear


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## YakAtak (Mar 13, 2006)

I don't like SPAM!


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## greg (Mar 2, 2006)

CONGRATULATIONS MATE
THAT IS A FANTASTIC BIRTHDAY PRESENT!


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## Cid (Nov 14, 2005)

Holy Mackeral! I mean, Spanish... :shock:

A top effort on a top day! Happy Birthday, Bill. 

cheers,
Cid


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## Freak (Mar 25, 2006)

billiybob says " I must admit, this one was the fastest, strongest Spaniard I've come across so far"

It almost sounds like you are surprised Billybob... um hello - its a meter and a half of mack and nearly 20 kilos worth. it is meant to be fast and strong isnt it?


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## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

Freak: Not necessarily mate. It depends on their condition as to how strong a fight they put up... when they last fed, how far they've traveled in the last 24 hours, their overall health etc.

Even more importantly, it depends on how they are hooked. If they're hooked in a sensitive part of the body like the throat or gullet it hurts them when they pull hard so the fight tends to be more restrained.

In the case of this fish it had just the bottom 6/0 hook in the lower jaw, half way between the corner of the mouth and the tip of the snout. That seems to be a nerveless, bony part of it's body so it was free to run as hard and as strongly as it needed to.

Fortunately for me it also meant that it was never going to be able to spit the hook... it took me a good five minutes of hard work with the long nosed plies back on Main Beach before I managed to get the Spaniard Special out.


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## fishbrain (Oct 19, 2005)

HAPPY 57th BILL ! Awesome Spaniard in any fishing circles but off a YAK just "INCREDIBLE"your a champion. How far out are the Shoals from Main Beach?  Cheers Fishbrain


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## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

Roughly 3.5kms.


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## sam60 (Aug 30, 2005)

another PB for Billybob and the bar has been raised yet again. Well done and happy birthday (belated).


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## troppo (Feb 1, 2006)

A big Mack on ya birthday is a real treat.


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## yaker (Aug 29, 2005)

.


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## Freak (Mar 25, 2006)

3.5 kms off shore is a fair paddle. Does sunshiner still hit the water with you? who else have you had come out with you into the bay?


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## Squidgie (Apr 11, 2006)

Awesome - Champion effort mate. Gives me something to aspire to after quite a few more years experience fishing from the yak!


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## Yakabe (Dec 16, 2005)

Great fish Billybob, and a happy belated birthday.


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## Fishmatics (Feb 9, 2006)

Great fish BB, can you post pictures of what tackle/trace/colour your caught this fish on?
Regards
Andrew
PS Happy belated Birthday!


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## Jake (Sep 23, 2005)

Im a bit slow catching up on the news here.....but Billybob...that is a bloody great fish.
Cheers,
Jake


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## Phoenix (Jan 12, 2006)

Astonishing stuff - happy birthday. Very impressive.


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## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

Fishmatics: It was a 6' 6", 6kg-8kg Wilson Live Fibre rod coupled with a Shimano 4500 Baitrunner reel loaded with 300 metres of 20lb Fireline and about 6 metres of 30lb Platinum mono trace.
As there had been a lot of school Mackerel around the previous day I'd terminated that with a 25cm, 28lb 'piano wire' trace.
My troll rig was a 'medium' Davo's Spaniard Special.


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## phil79 (Nov 7, 2008)

sweet


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## whoohoo (Feb 3, 2006)

Great effort Bill, and happy birthday. You'll need a chainsaw to carve up that one  !


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## spooled1 (Sep 16, 2005)

Congratulations Billybob, I hope you had a great birthday 4 years ago in May when you caught that fish in 2006.


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## Rstanek (Nov 5, 2007)

spooled1 said:


> Congratulations Billybob, I hope you had a great birthday 4 years ago in May when you caught that fish in 2006.


 :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## Guest (Jan 30, 2010)

hehehe.....dusting off some old classics to entertain the newer members?? :lol: 8)


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