# QLD: 24 & 25 Nov 2012 Cressbrook Dam - Bass & Redclaw



## Kahuna (Aug 9, 2010)

A last minute decision saw me and my eldest daughter heading to Cressbrook Dam late yesterday afternoon to drop some yabbie traps in and have a troll for some bass along the way.

We were on the water a little after 5pm and the wind was creating a little bit of slop.










We headed NNE from the boat ramp towards a little bay on the opposite side of the dam.

As we neared the area we were going to drop the yabbie pots in, one of the rods bent over.  At first we both thought we must have snagged a lump of weed, but once it neared the yak it took of on a few spirited runs. We netted a nice bass (probably a PB for me), got the lure out and was trying to get a measure and photo of the fish. Between my butter-fingers and a camera shy fish we parted company before the measure and photo shoot could be completed. :shock: :lol: This guy had fallen victim to a Gold Chisel StumpJumper.

We then headed to the NE edge of the bay and droppped the yabbie pots in at depths from about 5 - 10m. From the rubble on the bank it looked like there should be some good spots for the red claw to hang out.

We turned and started trolling back along the edge of the bay. Unhappy with the action (or lack thereof) of one lure I swapped over to a SMAK 12, which soon claimed bas #2. This time the fish was photographed in the net, before any measuring etc was attempted.










He went 33cm on the ruler, but wasn't very fat.










With the light quickly fading, we trolled back to the boat ramp, loaded up and headed home.










This morning the wife and girls joined me for a BBQ breakfast at Cressbrook.

After the bacon and egg rolls were demolished my eldest daughter and I headed off to check the yabbie traps. The conditions were pretty well spot on this morning.










We trolled across to the bay and checked our yabbie traps. The first two had between 15 - 20 red claw in each, plus a few shrimp. The third, which was in deeper water, had nothing and the last had a coupler of tiddlers. When we got back to the ramp we picked out 10 - 12 of the bigger ones and let the rest go.










My youngest daughter then came for a quick pedal and a troll. She was happy enough to wind in the lines and "catch some lures" and even a bit of weed. We saw a large mob of roos lying in the shade over near the camp ground.

When we got back to the boat ramp it was starting to get really hot in the sun, so we were glad to be heading home for lunch.


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## Kahuna (Aug 9, 2010)

Hey Brad,

Yes, the redclaw are bloody good eating. We used a coriander prawn recipe and they were delicious.

Here is a pic of some of the catch. A few escaped through the scupper holes on the pedal back, but I guess that gets rid of the small ones easily!










The camping there is pretty good. We camped there a few years ago when the dam was pretty low. It was a fair slog from the campsite to the water then, but now the water is almost lapping at the campsites. I probably wouldn't like to camp there over summer though as the heat can be really oppressive. Nice for an early morning or late afternoon fish, but the middle of the day would be rather unpleasant.

Here's a little more info about Cressbrook.

http://www.toowoombarc.qld.gov.au/f...ties/lakes-and-dams/1976-lake-cressbrook.html
http://www.sweetwaterfishing.com.au/Cressbrook.htm


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## keza (Mar 6, 2007)

Sorry, bit slow on the uptake with this one.
That is a great haul of red claw, I would love to do that, to mix the bag a bit. 
Is that a particularly good haul or do you often get them ?
The only times I have tried for yabbies, I would one or two, which wasn't worth keeping.


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## Barrabundy (Sep 29, 2008)

I wish I could access redclaw like that, never caught one in my life apart from a visit to a cattle property out west which is stocked with them.

Done any fishing in the last week or so ;-)


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## Kahuna (Aug 9, 2010)

No, unfortunately not mate. ;-)

The locals up your way are mad keen. Saw some great looking spots, very tempting! Hopefully next time I'm up there I can fit a bit of fishing in.


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## Kahuna (Aug 9, 2010)

keza said:


> Sorry, bit slow on the uptake with this one.
> That is a great haul of red claw, I would love to do that, to mix the bag a bit.
> Is that a particularly good haul or do you often get them ?
> The only times I have tried for yabbies, I would one or two, which wasn't worth keeping.


I haven't done much red-clawing, but this was a pretty good haul. Some blokes out there used to get 80+, but there is more pressure now. Apparently the local tackleworld has sold over 800 opera house traps this year alone, plus whatever has been sold at bcf, ray's and the other couple of tackle stores.

Saying that, they seem to breeding up well. Lots of little ones coming on.


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