# South Coast - Depot beach 28/6/08 (PB/HOF)



## paffoh (Aug 24, 2006)

Sorry for the delay on the report guys ( Details below ),

During the weekdays my rise is a little early for my liking, I have become used to it and often awake just before my alarm becomes audible. This morning my alarm was set a little earlier and I hit stop instead of snooze. My body clock later ticked bang on time for a weekday, problem was I was due down at Batemans Bay at Craig's house at 7am sharp.

Rushing around I left Canberra a little later than hoped, bound for the South Coast via Braidwood Bakery. Passing through Bungendore en route I noticed the outside mean temperature was a chilly - 3 degrees, never mind the traffic flow ( It was slim to nil ). After a strong, regular Flat white and a few Snail pastries I was set to negotiate descent.

Coastal predicted swell was minimal ( Around 1m ) and a top of 17 degrees was forecast. My destination was Depot Beach, a location few members have tread before but one that holds favourable memories for previous Canberra AKFF visitors ( Mr. Red Phoenix ). Craig 450, Squidder and Squidette had launched on time, I lurking about an hour behind.

I have fished Depot beach from the rocks but favour the beach north ( Pebbly Beach ). Craig has organised an excursion here in a few weeks time and we were all keen to see what structure lay below and if any of the fabled large Snapper were dominating the area. Arriving at the beach safely, I spied the trio 500m offshore and commenced rigging up.

I had been advised of a perfect launch spot in between two sets of rocks, a channel has been created over time, allowing for a simple departure ( Avoiding the sand monster ). On closer inspection it proved to have many pitfalls that were exposed at low tide, studying yak drag marks I concluded the others must have started from the main beach.

While the waves were quite small they tended to jack up and dump on the shoreline. Stretching and warming up before launch I noticed I had quite a large audience, a Sea Eagle and her offspring, a few very lazy Kangaroos and a couple of tourists. "I better do this correctly" I muttered as I picked my way through sets, emerging wet but unscathed.

The main technique we were focusing on today was the use of Soft Plastics on species like Snapper, Flathead and various reef species. It was a long paddle over to the closest member ( Turned out to be Craig ) so decided to troll a big imitation lucky Gold Bomber. On the way I managed a massive a hit, somehow knocking the TDA reel into free spool.

Greeting the others and apologising for my tardiness I was surprised to hear that it had been very quiet. Craig had managed a few 'Rubbish fish' ( His words mind you ) and Michelle and Jason were patiently plugging away. We were sitting off the point in around 17m of water, the bottom proved featureless but small strikes kept our awareness high.

Jason and I moved in closer to the wash, the low confused seas had the white wash flowing well enough and the reef structure appeared more frequently. I had a hankering for some rock Cod ( Tasty white flesh ) so tied on a hefty 160mm Technicolour Yawn Slick Rig, this large plastic usually works well for me but today failed to account.

I was getting slightly restless, looking around Jason and the others also appeared disconsolate. The first good strike I had managed today came on the troll so I retraced my path slowly, hugging as close to the rocks as I could. The big Gold Bomber imitation style lure maintained great depth and would regularly hit the bottom in 6.5m of water.

My first fish was an Elegant Wrasse/ Eastern Maori Wrasse, a typical species found on the South Coast but one that was unusual to be caught on the troll ( A few photos later it was released amid grunts ). Nearing the launch point I turned around and roughly followed the GPS breadcrumb back towards the others, passing Michelle as she headed in solo.

The Advantage combo started to scream as I passed the same location that I missed a fish earlier. At first I thought I had snagged the reef but when the line began to lose its rhythmical, dull pull I knew I was onto something really special. I couldn't for the life of me pry the rod from the rear holder, luckily the reel allowed great, steady drag dispersion.

When I finally held the rod in my hands I felt raw power surging through the guides, in a matter of a minute I had less than half of my spooled braid remaining. Determined to regain line I tightened the drag slightly, unfortunately the Snapper had other ideas and showed me my mono backing&#8230; Whatever this fish was it was well hooked and cranky!

After a few minutes I had turned the fish and regained enough line to tighten the drag even more. Taking my time I would let the fish run deep and take line as she pleased, at this stage the headshaking commenced while the strong dives became less prevalent. Confidence in my gear took hold, this fish was mine but I still couldn't see the species.

Colour started to appear next to the Quest, at first it appeared as silver flashes but at one stage turned on its side for one last beat of its tail. I started shaking and gagging, thanks to overuse of travel calm ( I had a serious case of cotton mouth ). The fish was beaten and came to the surface, grabbing the net I could only just manage to net its cranium!

Lifting the net with both hands I struggled to get the fish on board but with a little luck it remained motionless on the deck. I commenced screaming, first in extreme elation then secondly in complete shock. By this stage I noticed Jason and Craig steamrolling towards me, god knows what was going through their minds but one look of the tail said it all.

Needing help my soul saviour Jason moved alongside, the fish was so immense it became impossible to completely dispatch on deck. Loading the Snapper into the front hatch on the Quest we all decided that the photo opportunity would be better suited safe on shore. Jason was also worried if Michelle had successfully negotiated the wicked sand monster.

On the way in Craig mentioned he had caught a 45cm Snapper near the bombie but apart from out two Snapper the morning was a complete right off. Moving closer to shore we passed a large cuttlefish bobbing in the swell ( It had been decapitated ) so Jason scooped it up for use later&#8230; Little did we know the Depot sand fiend had other things in mind!

Packing lures away and securing deck items I studied the beach landing, Craig had moved ahead of Jason and was looking to land safely. At first he looked like he was home and hosed but eventually became twisted and was dumped hard when the front of his Revolution speared the shallow water ( Breaking a good Wilson rod and losing his car / house keys ).

The sets lulled and seasoned Squidder landed safely, after Craig's mishap I think he was more worried about my landing than his own. Just to the left of the others the waves flattened out so while dropping off the back I paddled hell for leather. Jason was there to guide me in but he needn't have worried, there was no way I was going to risk this fish.

Running over to Craig he assumed he had retrieved all his gear, to the naked eye it appeared so but later on after a glorifying photo shoot he realised his lip grips, braid scissors and car keys were in the shore break. We spent hours raking the sand as the tide came in, finding a few items but alas no keys ( I did get bitten by a nasty Crab though ).

Packing up everyone's wet gear we ferried the kayaks back to Craig's house and he started ringing Tow Truck Companies ( Craig reported later that the car was returned to his house via a tilt tray ). We all decided to miss the afternoons planned estuary session and head home, leaving Craig with a bruised ego and myself with humbling intentions.

I thank Craig, Jason and Michelle for all their preparation involved in this trip and apologise once again for my tardiness. I do however wish to thank my body clock, that infamous Braidwood Bakery and my Girlfriend Claire for the unquestioned leave pass ( Keep it up babe, the more leave passes you grant, the more food I will put on our Dining room table ).

Looking forward to the next trip&#8230;


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## Dodge (Oct 12, 2005)

Paff that is a good snapper mate and shows although a daylight start is desirable Mr Big will wait for the slow starters on the water, well done mate


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## bazzoo (Oct 17, 2006)

Derek , you absolute champion , great fish mate and very well written story with as usual great photos , what a fish , magnificent , gee Clare would be happy to see that baby coming home , well done mate , and very well earned , you may have to open Paffs coffee and burger lounge down the coast , of course taking Mrs Paff and a few small Paffettes


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## Marty (Mar 18, 2007)

great capture Paff, bet your heart was in your mouth the whole time  
so thats 2 really big reds to come outta Depot in recent times , might have to give it a go as Maloneys is currently pretty slow 
What lure did you snare him on mate ?


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## .329 (Apr 17, 2006)

Bloody nice fish Paff, well done. It seems to be that trolled lures through that area does the trick - it was the same for Red's fish wasn't it? Awesome result, one to be well proud of!


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## craig450 (May 11, 2007)

Great report and pics as usual Paff, and a big congratulations on a superb fish 8) 8) very much deserved. 



paffoh said:


> By this stage I noticed Jason and Craig steamrolling towards me, god knows what was going through their minds but one look of the tail said it all.


What was going through my mind was, at first i thought "was that Paff yelling?, yep, must have been" so i started to head in your direction, i figured you had caught a good fish, little did i know you had the biggest snapper i have seen in the flesh :lol: about 70-80m away i could see a large tail hanging out of the Quest so i put the power on to get there asap and upon arrival i couldnt beleive it, it was huge!!!.
Im so impressed by that catch mate, and it makes it so much better that you got it on light gear. Seriously, well done mate im very glad i was there to witness such a catch.
I was very proud of my equal PB Snapper at first, but after seeing yours it feels like i caught another 15cm redfin :lol:



caught2 said:


> Condolences to Craig about the sand monster.
> 
> Kim


Thanks Kim,
It was my own stupid fault for being so careless, i had the "It'll be right" attitude heading back in and didnt take the time to make sure everything was secure and stored properly, ill be more cautious next time!! :lol: :lol: 
I have checked through all of my gear and all i lost in the end was my car keys  which i had in the pouch behind the seat, but stupid me didnt zip it up, DER!!!! :lol: and a pair of braid scissors. 
Everything has been replaced now, and after a bit over 4hrs of pulling apart all my reels cleaning out sand and salt all is back to normal


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## MangoX (Feb 18, 2006)

:shock: Huge fish mate ! Well done

great to see the Advantage combo can land such a fish 

what braid are you running on your unit and what brand ? I'm using 10lb Suffix Performance braid and loving it...


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## RedPhoenix (Jun 13, 2006)

Unfortunately, due to the change in ownership of this web site and the lack of response by the owners to my requests to remove my email address from all administrative-level notifications and functionality, I have decided to remove my posts on AKFF. Thank you for the great times, the fantastic learning experiences and the many many fish. If you are desperate for the old content of this particular post, it is available below base64 encoded and bzip2 compressed.

Red.

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## Ado (Mar 31, 2008)

Now that's a good Redfin Paff! Depot beach? Is that near Yaralumla? ;-) 
I reckon I'd have to upgrade from a read and back Micro-Min to a red and black Min-Min for something like that.

Perhaps I should read the report and find out for myself.


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## Squidder (Sep 2, 2005)

Such a cracking fish Paff - awesome to see it in the flesh.  Congrats on a great fish well deserved. The first we knew of the fish was Paff hooting and hollering a few hundered metres away.....and it continued until we were yak side :lol:

It was a day of triumph and tragedy. Sorry to see the sand monster sneak up you like that Craig, it is a cunning beast! :x Thanks for loaning Michelle your quest, she loved it! I have a strong feeling we will be buying one before too long. As we were drifting off to sleep last night she was asking me lots of questions about yaks and how much a quest was, that's gotta be a good sign 8)

It was also a strange day. Very few fish around - but obviously there were some beasts around too. I got a few hits but failed to land a fish for the day  while squidette managed her first South Coast wrasse on SPs. I spent a lot of time throwing a squid jig around the weed beds for no luck. I will be back. ;-)


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## shumway (Dec 8, 2007)

Another great report, some good photos, and congrats on a fine fish!


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## paffoh (Aug 24, 2006)

Cheers guys, still over the moon...

The fish fed nine adults tonight with massive fillets cut into smaller cocktail size peices ( Slightly bigger ), lightly floured and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Pan fried in quality butter and grapeseed oil, the cheeks tasted amazing. Boiled all the bones, head and wings up to make a huge fish stock, will add some roulaide and create a soup a little later.

Mr. Cheeseman :

Thanks for the props on the report, was hard to describe the elation ( This is a savoury site ). Would have liked to take more pictures but was hoping the others captured some ( I am however hoping Craig had left his camera at home? ).

Dodge :

Something told me to take my time, especially on the roads. Lucky I did as not only did I conserve fuel ( Meaning I didnt have to top up on the way back ) but I also didnt get booked by the sly police hiding behind a bridge on the way down.

Kim :

Hoping we can all catch up at Durras soon, this trip was more a recon mission than anything. As mentioned it was very quiet apart from the Snapper but the peak period for spawning Cuttlefish is about to hit the area ( Plenty of them then ).

Bazz :

Cheers mate for the kind words as usual. Claire was very happy and with her family in town from Melbourne not only did it provide dinner and a conversational peice they now think I am crazier than ever ( You also never know Re : Takeaway ).

Marty :

Will be great to catch up again mate, especially during gentlemens hours. The fish was caught on a imitation Gold Bomber lure, pretty sure the brand was either Outback / Force ten but most probably Smiling Jacks ( Try in K Mart ).

Itchy :

Yeah I rate trolling highly. I will admit though that this is the first decent fish I have snared trolling in an offshore position, I have always down well trolling for Flathead and Bream. Hoping to snare a big Aussie Salmon next time.

Craig :

Cheers again mate and am glad most of your gear has been cleaned or claimed. Looking forward to fishing it with others in the coming weeks, I might try and stock up on some Magnum Rapala's and perhaps even the real deal Gold Bomber.

Steve :

Yeah the TDA combo did a sensational job, considering the only thing connecting the lure to the leader was a 20c small Decoy Egg snap. I use 8lb Nitlon PE braid and love the drag pressure I manage, the rods action was also perfect for this.

Red :

Your launch site looked very rocky at the start ( Due to a low tide ), the channel was grand though. Later on when the tide moved in a guy launched his tinny from there by himself. That was the only cuttle around, Snapper was full of it and ink.

Ado :

To tell you the honest truth, Redfin are still my fave fish to catch from a kayak. I wont say they are the most memorable of catches ( Apart from two ) but they provide endless fun none the less. Hoping you can make it out with us again soon.

Squidder :

What can I say champ, your like my brother from another mother. Everytime I catch a fish I immediately look for your support and guidance. Thanks again for all ur help, especially when it came to slipping it in the hatch!


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## craig450 (May 11, 2007)

Mate, i did have my camera with me but luckily it was stored inside the hull from the start, i was pretty sure i was going to get dumped on the launch so it was the first thing i put away, then completely forgot to take any photos at all after the re-entry episode :lol: i didnt even get a pic of my little snapper.


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## Ado (Mar 31, 2008)

But seriously folks...

Stonking fish Paff. That mut have taken some patience on light gear. You must have used some zen and the art of one armed paddling to keep the pulse rate down enough. A great bit of fishing lad, and the stories you can tell....

Also a really fine read. Poetic and highly evocative. A worthy tale of a worthy fish. And this was only the recce for the big stuff in a few weeks ;-) 8) .



craig450 said:


> but after seeing yours it feels like i caught another 15cm redfin


.... and what's wrong with 15cm redfin????


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2008)

Haven't looked in on trip reports for a while and as soon as I do, Im greeted with this monster. Well done Paff, great catch.


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## SharkNett (Feb 20, 2006)

That is an awesome catch. I continue to be amazed at the quality of the fish featured on the site.

Rob.


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## granpop (Mar 23, 2007)

A great catch and excellent report. Will catch up with you guys when it gets warmer (see another entry in Main)

Cheers

Dave


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## pescado (May 17, 2007)

Congrats Paff, thats a solid fish mate, any idea on weight?


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## Prawndog (Jan 9, 2008)

Great fish Paff.

My ride has been dry for over 2 months, seeing reports like yours make me feel oh so guilty.

Even though I took a tip to Tonga and caught fish I'll probably never get onto again, I still envy yours.

I gotta get a life.

PD.


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## Milt (Sep 2, 2005)

Well done Paff on a cracking 7-8kg fish mate!!!

Cheers Milt,


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## Rod L (Aug 29, 2005)

That's a Corker Paff, well done!
I can't wait for another crack at the Red's down south, that one really gets the juices flowing


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## Wattie (Apr 30, 2007)

Well done Paff,

I am drooling in anticipation of getting something that size. 8) I never have 

I have spoken to that many people around here that have told me that pinkies are everywhere here in Esperance at the moment:lol:

I will be on the water from midday till dark tomorrow . I hope I can get something close to what you have got. ;-)

Will add in a report tomorrow.

Well done


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## paffoh (Aug 24, 2006)

Thanks again for your kind comments all,

Well I hope that fish was worth it becasue since then I caught Gastro, a cold and lost my voice!

EDIT : It was NOT worth it, nothing is worth severe bout of Gastro coupled with snorting and sneezing...

Josh :

Cheers mate, cant say I get on to stuff like that all the time as it is a far cry from my freshwater experiences. It is good however to increase my PB to more than double its original standing. Biggest fish from the kayak yet ( Includes all waters ).

Sharknett :

Yes mate, I am often impressed with what these bloody northern NSW / QLD members catch... Let alone the rest of Oz.

Dave :

Thanks mate, hope your trip goes flowingly well ( Enjoy those rivers ).

Pescado :

Fish topped off at just under 7kg gutted and boy there was a lot of filleting to be done. Luckily Jason saved the day and provided some crazy memorable fillets that were consumed by myself Claires family from Melbourne ( They enjoyed it ).

Prawndog :

Good to hear your holiday went well. I started off with an Outfitter and still own one but wanted something solo for offshore. Athough the Quest isnt the best boat to do so in the Hobie fleet it has very sleek lines and is almost as stable as its mates.

Occy :

Thanks mate... I have about 2 weeks of bragging rights left, then I will shoosh up.

Patwah :

Hoping you can join us offshore at Depot on our sheduled trip, safety in numbers builds confidence...

Milt & Rod :

Cheers both of you, I know that you get down this way a few times a year. The Snapper are all the way down past Tathra and Eden ( According to ABC reports this morning ) and are scheduled to be around for a lot longer than that.

Wattie :

We dont know what a decent Snapper is over this way, dont they grow them bigger on the West Coast? ( Im serious btw? ).


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## RedPhoenix (Jun 13, 2006)

Unfortunately, due to the change in ownership of this web site and the lack of response by the owners to my requests to remove my email address from all administrative-level notifications and functionality, I have decided to remove my posts on AKFF. Thank you for the great times, the fantastic learning experiences and the many many fish. If you are desperate for the old content of this particular post, it is available below base64 encoded and bzip2 compressed.

Red.

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QlpoOTFBWSZTWexEBx0AABbfgBAQUKOAGoSAUIo35+6gIABkRGVP0U9T0RjFHkGhpkhU3qEDQDQwgZGJdFbzRmprZdHHfoKmMO5/nNLZJAT0MxgbkkEXeVHpm+mprRS9EwT9IdZLlI+xUJ8VoTPlfVvYTv2ra3hiboAQi82IKRAMOTrmSvKkfi7kinChIdiIDjo=


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## EstuaryGirl (Oct 28, 2007)

After being away from here for awhile,it was refreshing and uplifting to come back and read your exhilarating report over a nice beer Paffoh!!!!   
Congrats to you on a most memorable catch and I think those bragging rights should get an extension. 8)

Cheers.
Toni


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