Snapper, Christmas & Into the New Year: BIG Gummy's are Here !! While the Whiting are Biting, Fighting & Exciting !!

Western Ports BIG Gummy Sharks are HERE RIGHT NOW!!

Busy, Busy, Busy....Yes the entire TBC have all been ultra busy over the past few months & it hasn't always been easy to find time to compile a report for you all, but I've found sometime in between a lot of charters this season to put together this report & cache of pics from selected charters since before Christmas & up until the last few days.

Yes I know, I too would have liked to have had this report out far earlier, but as they say, You have to make hay while the sun shines... Well we've been making huge bales of the stuff as you'll soon see.

Snapper: Well it pretty much goes without saying that this season of 2011/2012 will  be remembered for the season Snapper were firing on all cylinders. The Port Phillip Bay fishery in particular this season has been nothing short of mind blowing with very reliable angling on all fronts on all styles of tackle/techniques for everyone. The average size this year was also something special with many 4-5 & 6kg Snapper making up many clients bags. The usual 2-3kg school Snapper were also about in unprecedented numbers and many days the bite was so crazy that as far as you could see, there was almost every boat in the area(s) hooked up with hard fighting Melbourne Snapper.

One little gem of an addition to our Think BIG Charters this season has been a burley product known as 'Zealcol Snapper Snacks' This yellow colored/squid enhanced pellet is a dead set Snapper Hypnotiser, Seriously they love this stuff & as its heavy, it gets down in the current quickly, especially when out wide in 21mtrs plus. Launching Way at Carrum retail this must have additive for any Snapper session. It also works very well when wetted up and placed in a burley pot boatside for Garfish, Mackeral etc.  

Pilchards were a definate stand out bait this season & any wonder given the huge schools of both these & small to medium size Yellowtail Scad or Yakkas. Slimy Mackeral & Garfish are also in abundance and can be easily caught onsite in many areas with the aid of a little berley & the use of small sabiki rigs. Fresh Snapper bait on site, makes it easy some seasons.

Currently there are still good Snapper being taken in Port Phillip Bay around the Seaford area. These are good fish to at 4kg upwards in a lot of cases. Many people give up on Snapper after Christmas, but there is some superb fishing to be had from now & especially into March & April & later, so if your keen on booking a Snapper Charter, give us a call.

Port Phillip Bay Think BIG Snapper Charters:   

03/12/2011: John & the boys had a ripper morning charter 

03/12/2011: Rod Callahan brought down a crew all the way from Cobram Nthn Vic to show them what Snapper fishing is all about. These guys are generally soaking baits in search of Murray Cod & were stoked to see buckled rods going off this afternoon. 

04/12/2011: Racing horse enthusiast John Loton & friends had a brief but productive morning off Chelsea & found some quality fish in the shallows that go hard on light gear.

05/12/2011: Facebook fan & reg client Alex Schuecher & crew had a big mornings action on Snapper out wide near the shipping transit lane.

 

06/12/2011: Regular Think BIG clients Mark Beaconsfield, his son Mitchell, Craig Joel & Shaun Carter all had their hands full this morning on a hotbite of Snapper, again outwide in the deeper regions. This is where the use of plenty of burley will help hold the school in your area.

07/12/2011: Compleat Angler Dandenong Staff Member Harley had a group of customers from the shop join him for a eve session on Snapper.

08/12/2011: Yep your on there Steve !!! Steve James another regular Think BIG client had a special birthday charter & it turned out a pretty personal affair with just Steve on the boat all to himself!! This caused little problems Steve reckons & he soon had his hands full trying to keep up with the action. Was funny to watch actually.

Well done Steve & a great Birthday pressie to land your personal bests so far on Melbourne Snapper.

08/12/2011: Michael Neighbour & crew from Drouin Vic had two bites of the apple to land this catch, after their original charter was cancelled after an hour or so as the weather was horrible. I offered them the benefit of a second trip when the weather cleared & the result was a very happy bunch of guys who took home a great feed of Snapper & some fair Flathead too.

09/12/2011: Lachlan & crew organised a Think Big Charter as a birthday gift for friend Sam & had a big session on school sized Snapper.

10/12/2011: Brian & crew with part of their catch on a slower than normal morning when we had a rock bottom barometer. Sometimes this has had no bearing on the Snapper activity or feeding pattern's, then other days it seems to almost shut the fish down, each charter is different from the last....

17/12/2011: Craig 'Clint' Eastwood had a birthday voucher as a gift & arranged a few other friends to tag along for this charter. Things weren't easy weather wise, but a hard buckle & a great Snapper of over 5kg was soon boatside. A move out wider saw multiple rods going to finish this great session off.

24/12/2011: As a wind up right before Christmas, reg clients Edwin Chen & Stuart Thornton had a top session after a bit of sounding with plenty of perfect whole eating sized Snapper. Perfect for Christmas feastings...

Speaking of feastings.....

That one time of the year when it's just 'grab that plate & fill it'..Thanks again Mum & brothers Danny & Gregory for a top Christmas spread as always.

January soon arrived as did the Great Grey Gummy Sharks & the ever popular King George Whiting fishery Western Port is famous for:

The transistion to Western Port was a welcome view after a fair haul over in Port Phillip Bay. Instantly we were enjoying the varied wonders Western Port has to offer & have been running almost every charter since over here. We are always available for charter in Port Phillip Bay, however we tend to fish Western Port almost exclusively at this exciting time of the season.

Those slender, keen nosed & lovely species we can't get enough of 'Gummy Sharks' have been on the prowl all over Western Port over the past few months & will continue to do so until at least June or later. The peak of this activity is generally from now until late March/April, but going on our outstanding results all through last Winter proper, we are expecting to see another memorable season on this, possibly our most popular & loved species.

Think BIG Gummys !! Think BIG Charters !! PH: 0423 696 061

Follow this link for Think BIG Gummy Charter Dates

Gummy Sharks:

23/12/2011: Tarsh & friends from the Australian Defence Force chartered a specific Think BIG Gummy Charter. The aim was to experience what Tarsh had read about & viewed on YouFishTV Programs. The morning picked was perfect with some great action on a number of Gummys up to 15kg's. 

23/12/2011: Later this same day some longtime friends joined me in a social evening session on Gummy's on some new areas, we've recently come across that are proving to be reliable on the right tides.

Adam Xuereb with a good table size Gummy in the afternoon sunset on a balmy evening.

& as the night moved in, so too did some better sized Gummy's, this one was soon released after a quick photo.

27/12/2011: Edwin Chen whose a very regular client on all of our charters over the season, invited a work colleague out for an eve session on Gummy Sharks. Good nights action too !!

 

30/12/2011: Benny Lo who always seems to have a great day on all species had some great daytime action on hard running Gummy Sharks. It was another session of numbers with Gummy's to 14kg landed & released after pics.

31/12/2011: Matt 'Squiddy' Stewart & Think BIG Team player & all round top guy bows out for the 2011 season with this lovely daytime Gummy that made us all smile when that familiar bounce/bounce---rip--run>>>!! happened...Was a good way to end a fanatastic 2011 on the water with some very special people.

02/01/2012: Regular Gummy Chaser 'The good Dr Khalid, CEO of 'Dreamtime Limousines' & local Phillip Bayer from nearby Balnarring experienced a hot still night weather wise and even hotter Gummy Shark action with several good sized models landed over the charter.

15/01/2012: We had the distuingushed pleasure of having Charlie 'Savage Seas' Micallef aboard with a special client all the way from Malaysia. This day was memorable for two reasons, one I finally was to witness Australia's most equipped camera person I've seen yet, fair dunkum...You had to see the amount of footage & still's this crazy little, but so lovable & very passionate man can fire off in a few moments as each Gummy came aboard. The 2nd reason is we encountered a really hot bite on Gummy's in what could be best described as very trying condiditons, with wind against tide etc...Was a great day Charlie & am looking forward to getting out on the water with you again very soon mate. 

Charlie & client 'Victor' with the victors...well the start of a great session...

Going well there Victor with a bigger class of Gummy Shark.

Yet another quality Gummy landed by Victor this day & was soon released after this pic.

23/01/2012: A recent Gummy charter opened up with some good table sized specimens.

This was soon to change however as darkness closed in and the bite opened up proper.

Client Elkatarina (hope I spelt that correctly) along with her father Leon out here on holidays all the way from Russia really were Thinking BIG when they stepped aboard as the action just got better & better.

Another good Gummy landed moments after the one pictured above.

Elkatarina with her hands well and truly full cradling a BIG Gummy Shark that was a huge milestone for her & it really did put the icing on the charter for this magic evening.

 

Yep if you land too many Gummys you end up looking them, this glow eye effect is a result of flash when pic was taken just as she was to be gently released back into her marine homegrounds.

24/01/2012: This particular charter was an achievement for a certain Shaun Dennehey. A long road of trial & error was finally put to rest when that first rod bounced almost 17 mins to the second as I'd predicted after setting baits. Yes this time Shaun was into the fish of his dreams & something he has lost a fair amount of sleep over, well that and the recent birth of his newborn son 'Ethan'. So in many ways it was a special Think BIG Gummy charter.

 Well done mate & a great size as an account opener.

Skipper Fruits holds another solid Gummy Shark prior to release. 

Close friend of Shaun's, Omar also added quality Gummy Sharks to his list of favoured species. Once again we encountered a great session with good numbers of Gummys to 16kg.

Think BIG Gummys !! Think BIG Charters !! PH: 0423 696 061

Now!! Is the time to book your very own group or individual Think BIG Gummy Charter !! The season is shaping up as being fantastic all over Western Port & also in our neighbouring Sthn regions of Port Phillip Bay. We also will be offering some *Special Facebook Fan* BIG Gummy Charters from time to time over the next few weeks so stay tuned for these charters.

Follow this link for Think BIG Gummy Charter Dates

Near the end of the typing, not forgetting those inviting & always fighting & exciting

King George Whiting: These iconic species of both Western Port & Port Phillip Bay have treated all anglers it seems to a bumper season so far. Good quality Whiting are about now!! In many areas it's generally been noted that there is plenty of good sized '38-44cm plus' bait slurpers around a lot of the popular fishing mk's in both Western Port & Port Phillip Bay. The next few weeks leading into Autumn will see some very reliable Whiting fishing & the larger 'fumpha's' will also be seen in better numbers. The slower parts of tides have also allowed some deep water sessions with some absolute horse sized Whiting turning up on occasions. These larger Whiting almost go as hard as a typical 2kg or more Snapper when hooked in the current. Top fun on the light Shimano outfits we have recently aquired for these great fish.

Follow this link for Think BIG Whiting Charter Dates

King George Whiting:

22/12/2011: Bill & the crew from Aldrin Homes organised a group for a Think BIG Whiting Charter work break up & found some great action with plenty of Whiting for all clients & a great work breakup day.

Sample of Western Port Whiting along with fresh Mussels that caught them & the preferred tool of trade for easy mussel removal...the traditional 'butter knife'

30/12/2011: Ric along with reg charter client Benny Lo had a great time on a mixed species Think BIG Charter & started it out with a fine bunch of Western Port Whiting.

03/01/2012: My brother Danny along with a bunch of clients got amongst the Whiting in the shallow water on a calm morning.

Some good sized Whiting amongst school sized fish this calm morning.

06/01/2012: Damien Perry & crew soon had the live well filling nicely with plenty of quality Whiting in the shallows hitting the fresh Mussel as quick as the lads could get their baits down. Despite a large amount of boats in the area we were fishing, the fresh Mussel had these Whiting almost lined up & was an obvious winning bait on the day.

08/01/2012: On a very ordinary day weather wise I had the good fortune of having Kurt Emmerson to assist as deckhand with this charter. As it progressed it was pretty clear there was basically no-one else out this day. This allowed us to enjoy a top session despite the sometimes crazy weather with frequent downpours lashing us all. Client Trent Showler & crew showed how to do it in the rain & came up with a top bag of Whiting.

Kurt assists, Trents wife, who had the whole charter on their toes as she single handedly outfished them pretty much with her keen angling skills.

Trent swings em in under the cover of the canopy, smart move Trent as you kept dry !!

 Smile says it all.

A weary but very happy charter with a sample of a great Whiting session...even a few Garfish held by a crazy guy up front, who enlightened us all to the finer points of skinning Eel's with your teeth....Apparently its a quicker easier method than using boring old pliers like most folk do....

10/01/2012: The Gravox crew from Watsonia assembled along with a reg Think BIG client Alex Schuecher. The brief was simple. Daryl & crew had come prepared with around 5kg's or more of ready to go Mussel meat, complete with his favourite mussel gravy all in a huge decor container. With some moving about over the course of the charter we found some good action on Whiting in all depths from 10mtrs right down to just 1.6mtrs. As usual its always a funny session with the Watsonia crew & this was no exception with a lot of ribbing & jokes the whole time.

Alex soon got into the swing of things when there were some earlier threats of pants being pulled down if he didn't stop loosing baits so fast to biting Whiting!

Alex with a hefty haul of spotted bones, with the Gravox master himself Daryl holding court in the background.

Wayne shows how it's done..

 Yes '2 Fillets boys' as the saying goes.

Great catch of Whiting for the boys. Afterwards they even helped with the washdown of Think BIG. Now that's customer service !!

13/01/2012: & Edwin Chen had some fun amongst the Whiting with some real good sized models during the charter.

These are great fun & suberb eating especially at this size of 44cm's !!

19/01/2012: Local angler & reg client Robert Johnstone was aboard on a Whiting charter & found out a whole lot more on the finer points of putting these top fish into the livewell.

20/01/2012: Craig Saunders arranged to have a guided tuition session aboard his vessel for a closer look & better understanding of Western Port. Some quality Whiting were also landed during this trip. Craig has since gone on to land very good catches of Whiting on every trip since this tuition trip.

22/01/2012: Adam & Davy, both good friends joined me on a rare day off & we set out on a day when there was perhaps 6 or so trailers at Stony Pt, Yes she was a tad windy, but we continued on. Moving about we found a good patch of Whiting along the Middle Spit on the start of the ebb tide. This session was quick but productive with a nice bag of succulent fillets the results for persisting.

Easterly winds means leasterly to some folk, it certainly didn't effect these spotted beautys.

25/01/2012: Craig Joel along with his son Andrew & friend Duncan found out that the more you work your baits & keep a check on things the better the catch can be at charters end. Also was good to see the younger guys go from raw 'L- Platers' to quick reflexed whiting anglers over a few hours of careful guidance. Well done guys, you certainly put in the effort.

Young Andrew with a solid two hands full of fresh Western Port Whiting.

26/01/2012: Aust Day again & of course we're going fishing for a change. The Watsonia Gravox crew were in for this session & along with another local fisho Lou Rocca the day was going to be a fun one for sure. As the tide eased some real Fump Daddy sized Whiting were turning up with Lou showing us all how to extract the better fish of near 50cm's!! amongst some already very good Whiting of 43/44cm's. Lou has recently spent many hours of painstaking exacting laboratory work on the finer points to Whiting rigging successfully & with fish like these below landed by him alone, we all bow our hats to 'Lou the Professor Nibble Tip Tub Thumping Whiting Guru'

 Solid Whiting & a feed on it own pretty much !!

Wayne with a great bunch of BIG Aust Day Whiting from Western Port

Think BIG Whiting !! Think BIG Charters!! PH: 0423 696 061

Follow this link for Think BIG Whiting Charter Dates

Well this is just a sample from recent charters on some of our favourite species & highlights from what is continuing on within Think BIG Charters. If you have a yearning to be apart of any of our specialist charters, please give us a call or an email.

Until the next Think BIG Charter Report

Thanks To All & Cheers,

TBC

Snapper On The Bite Both Day & Night

Well as another south westerly rain & wind-filled front passes across Melbourne, I've found a bit of time to prepare this report on the last few weeks of what could only be described as superlative & very very consistent Snapper fishing for almost anyone prepared to give it a go.

Once again this season has seen absolute huge schools of Snapper move into both Western Port & Port Phillip Bay. With Port Phillip Bay producing possibly the best ever season seen yet, I know this is often mentioned each passing year it seems, however there is no doubt that it is fishing more consistently than our beloved Western Port. Even the media recently (Ch 9) had a story on the outstanding Snapper season many Melbourne based anglers are witnessing. 

Big Snapper too have also been recorded in higher numbers so far this season in Port Phillip Bay with the Northern regions around Sandringham through to Port Melbourne offering some real solid fish of over 7-8kg's on occasions. There has also been a few over the magic 20lb or 9.2kg range landed. Most of these larger Snapper are the result of fishing the small hours of 12am through to dawn & are often in depths of 9-5mtrs. Winga & the rest of the YouFish TV Crew have had some great Snapper sessions in the past few weeks in these areas & have found these Snapper absolute screamers in the shallower reefy contours these fish prefer to feed in.

Crimson Shallow Water Snapper- Port Phillip Style

Pawsey's never too far from a buckling rod & screaming reel on Big Snapper

Another solid middle of the night Nthn Port Phillip Bay Shallow Water Snapper.

Tea Tree Snapper Comp 2011

Once again the annual Mornington Tea Tree Snapper Competition was held on the last Friday of October. This year saw an adjusted start time of 5am Fri morning with the comp going all the way through until Sat afternoon. As always happens the everchanging Melbourne Spring weather was true to its name & ensured this comp was soon tagged 'tongue in cheek' an Endurance event....With some crazy strong Northerly winds forecast ahead of a strong rain filled front it was going to be a big task for all entrants.

Strangely, just an hour or so after lines down at 5am, there was an almost eerie stillness on Western Port as a very small weather window showed itself briefly. This was just what a certain entrant needed to find that winning fish, as moments later most of the Think BIG Charter & YouFish TV Team were to hear & see with their very own eyes. Local angler Mark 'Sully' Sullivan had found that winning Snapper. This monster Snapper later weighed an official 10.55kg's on the club scales.

Click Here for more Info & Pics of this Outstanding Angling Achievement & Exciting News for YouFish TV.

For the rest of the field it was a fantastic effort & input in some very average weather conditions at times. With wind driven rain hitting most entrants in the face because of tidal flow, a lot of people did pull out earlier on during Friday afternoon & into Saturday morning. Below are a few pics of Snapper landed during the comp.

Winga with a nice pair of solid Tea Tree Snapper from Western Port

Joseph 'Quick where's the Camera' Fernand had some fun too !!

Client Ben Emery had this Snapper while out on Think BIG during the Tea Tree comp. This Snapper had gained its freedom prior via a dodgy knot on a circle hook.

Profile of a very hungry King George Whiting taken whilst targeting Snapper one eve prior to Tea Tree, at better than 41cm's it once again shows how many of these better Whiting are about in areas many consider Snapper only locations...

A look over some of our recent Snapper sessions on Think BIG Charters:

Yep, I think you'd best grab that Buckle !!! This has been very typical of the nature of recent Snapper strikes, no messing about, just a steady & direct loading of the rod. This is the moment all Snapper anglers nationwide live to witness.

We've experienced some very hot action recently with many multiple hookups occuring on the better days. These days have usually coincided with steady to rising barometer readings, however we've also experienced many very memorable charters while out in average weather patterns.

Youfish TV Assistant Sean Hildyard with a Port Phillip Bay Boston Screamer landed off Seaford on a pre work filming session with Winga & Joseph Fernand from YouFish TV

Reg Think BIG Charter Client Edwin with a quality Port Phillip Snapper

Some truly memorable Snapper action on this charter on the 22nd Oct out from Carrum on Port Phillip Bay

 Part time Deckhand & good friend Matt 'Squiddy' Stewart has been on some great sessions recently.

The Banana theory debunked yet again!!

Jamie Watson & crew had a top morning out after winning a Nova FM radio competition & arranging the prize to be swapped over to a Think BIG Charter, Well done guys & a huge thanks for the support !!

Nugget White with a good pair of typical Spring Snapper from Port Phillip Bay

Squiddy with a quality Snapper landed in some pretty awful conditions off Seaford one morning

Western Port can always be relied on to produce some excellent bycatch in the form of solid fit Gummy Sharks while targeting Snapper in some areas

Mark Beaconsfield has a knack of finding some good quality fish most charters 

Some brilliant colors apparent on this Western Port Snapper from Elizabeth Island & notice the missing section of tail fin. Theres a lot of competition out there under the waters surface for these tasty Snapper including Seals & many species of Sharks.

A fog filled chilly morning off Rhyll produced some good fish including the one pictured below

Once the sun burnt off the low fog & cloud later in the morn, we found a few more Snapper

 Western Port Snapper with a client from Compleat Angler Ringwood

Neil Isoderio who's a very regular client has had some good Snapper recently including this hefty Snapper landed off Seaford.

Another solid Snapper from the same session

Great mornings action with many multiple strikes & soft plastics also accounting for Snapper to 4kg

Chelsea was the scene this particular morning for a great session on Snapper to 5kg

Think BIG Charters mechanic Alan Heib from Southside Marine Services Ph 0424 315 112, was aboard on this charter to lend a hand as decky & had a ball with the clients & later found time for a good fish of his own as can be seen below

 Nice effort Alan, on a day when things were shutting down bite wise.

Carrum local & long time friend Neil with a nice fish on a perfect arvo on Port Phillip Bay

We recently had the good fortune of having Dallas Dsilva from the DPI Fisheries department aboard for a Snapper charter. Along with his father who was celebrating his birthday we had reg clients Edwin Chen, Herman Cabral & Karl Hughes. These guys experienced one of the hottest snapper bites for the month & were amazed at how aggressive the fish were for over 3 hours !!

Dallas with what he told me was his first actual Snapper from the Bay & not some tiny little undersized Pinkie Snapper

Edwin with a plastic smashing Snapper

A pigeon pair for Dallas back at the ramp at Carrum

A trio of more keener Snapper anglers would be harder to find than these guys

Trent along with his family had a good session on Snapper off Chelsea & Aspendale one grey & stormy morning

His son certainly took out honors for the charter though with this quality Snapper taken on Silver Whiting

David Diogardi & the crew from Olex Cables in Lilydale had a fun filled morning. The Sri Lankan guy Samuel was an absolute crackup during the action. Top fun guys !!

A windswept & storm approaching eve up Nth in Port Phillip Bay near the Transit lane produced some good Snapper like the one above for some Compleat Angler Charter clients.

Nice way to celebrate a birthday charter, this was off Chelsea in close during a strong sth westerly front

Steve from Compleat Angler Ringwood arranged a group together for a Port Phillip Bay Snapper Charter & had some great action.

The crew from the Coldstream Footy Club after a great Snapper Charter

Recently we had the good fortune of a travelling angler all the way from Jakarta Indonesia. Facebook is a wonderful business tool & it's how Diana Itink initially found Think BIG Charters. She also took up the offer of staying at the Somers Holiday Villagewhilst here in Melb.

The brief was: I'd like to catch a Gummy Shark & possibly some Squid...Well although we didn't have the most ideal of weather conditions for this trip we ended up finding what we were after.

This male Gummy absolutely raced off with the squid ring bait during the last stages of an ebbing tide

Some on the Shimano Sephia range of Squid Jigs

& the tried & proven old school method of a simple whole Silver Whiting suspended under a styrene float fished near a drop off...no need to go all EGI & wear your wrists out....This method is very very reliable at extracting the larger models.

Think BIG & YouFish TV fan Shaun Dennehy has had some memorable outings recently & also added good sized Snapper from Port Phillip Bay to his angling line up

Shaun, Yvonne & Linda with a sample of their recent Port Phillip Bay Snapper outing

Rebecca & friends from Inverloch also got amongst the Snapper on a picturesque afternoon on Port Phillip Bay

Harry & crew from Austruck in Seaford had a crazy session on Snapper off Seaford

Charter Bookings:

With Christmas just a few short weeks away, now is the time to book your end of year Think BIG Charter. We still have a few dates available with some weekend openings also available.

Check out our Booking Calendar link here for the latest dates available

BIG GUMMY SHARKS ARE IN WESTERN PORT NOW!!

Don't forget that it's now time to consider that other favorite of our fishing calendar & thats the Giant Gummy's that Western Port & Sthn Port Phillip Bay are famous for. These big breeders are moving in now & are a great species to land, especially when over 20kg's !! Check link below & stay tuned for reports on these big grey crab crunchers as the season moves ahead.

Gummy Shark Charter Info & Rates

Whiting are just so inviting when they're biting !!

Whiting too are also another favorite & are available right now in Western Port in good sizes & reliable numbers for the most part

Whiting Charter Info & Rates

Until the next report,

Have fun & stay safe.

Cheers,

TBC

W'Port & PPB'S Snapper Trickle, Soon a Steady Flow

Now that the Football Season is over for another year!!

                                &

BIG Congratulations to 2011 Premiers Geelong!

& that the BIG race at Bathurst has passed.

Each passing week will see a slow & steady rise in anglers fishing both Western Port & Port Phillip Bay. With this weekend forward seeing many keen Melbourne Snapper anglers commencing their Snapper seasons fishing. Recent bouts of some typical Spring weather in the form of sudden downpours of rain coupled with strong winds has put a few gaps in days of suitable weather for some.

However its during the tail end of these fronts when the barometer has steadily climbed that has seen a more reliable bite window for most. Water temps have climbed slowly since mid Sept, with ave temps in W/port & Port Phillip Bay around 13.5/14 or so depending on tide. On occasions there has been some smaller spikes in areas where temps have been around 15 or higher. The passing of the full moon this week will see tides slowly gain in strength & should see a spike in Snapper being active for many anglers.

Some Sounder pics below were taken in Port Phillip Bay in early September & as you can see, there is certainly some quality Snapper about.

Snapper Season is Now !!

Click here for Think BIG Snapper Charters, Bookings & Information on Spring Charters

Our ever reliable hard working Lowrance X-135 displaying some good clear sharp images of Snapper & the structure these fish have possibly been hanging close to for much of Winter along with Rock Cod, that can be seen hovering above the actual structure.

 More good imagery from a slightly shallower mark.

Some recent Charter Pics of Snapper from Western Port & Port Phillip Bay

Jade Shannon from Cobram was a recent guest at the Somers Holiday Village

Having never fished Western Port before it was a pretty stoked & shaky Jade in pic above after landing this lovely Western Port Snapper during a run out tide off Lysaughts. Bait was a simple strip of fresh Calamari.

Somers Holiday Village Manager Jason also had some fun & opened his Snapper account for 2011 with this fine specimen, again on Squid on a single 6/0 circle hook.

  Nice result after a few hours fishing.

One of our field team Think BIG Members ' Pete aka Bloats' with yet another nice Snapper from Western Port. Peter has found good success recently on a variety of baits including Squid, both freshly caught & the increasingly popular alternative Californian Squid & the humble but deadly early season bait, Pilchard.

Nick brought along his daughters for a quick arvo session on a blustery day recently & was stoked to land this plump Snapper.

His daughter couldn't help herself with another nice fish & was very keen to hold it for a pic.

Winga with his lovely daughter Billie braved some chilly conditions & had this typical school sized Snapper engulf a generous sized Squid Ring bait. Billie has been putting in some enormous missions with Dad in recent weeks & has to be one of the most dedicated young anglers I've seen for a while, she has great patience & understands the waiting game is part of it all at this time of year.

To the victor go's the spoils, this Snapper was the result of a focussed & dedicated campaign in Western Port & was also a historical moment as it was landed by Billie, with a little bit of guidance of course by Dad. These larger fish of 7kg or better aren't easy pickings & are the result of putting in the time & sitting tight & not racing all over the place trying to find a quick bit of action....

Snorzey Pawsey & Josh do it again!!

Yes these two lads have been keeping busy on the Snapper in the past few weeks with some very good quality the result of spending time on the water. Once again a variety of baits has worked including Californian Squid & Pilchard.

 Josh with another good quality Western Port Red landed last week during a top session.

This Snapper was landed in some average weather conditions on Port Phillip Bay recently, bait used was Silver Whiting.

Landbased Snapper are always a very good angling achievement, bagging out though is something that doesn't happen all that often. Local Melbourne super keen angler Eren has been doing extremely well of late with quality Snapper. As is the case in many landbased scenarios when chasing Snapper, the timing of these sessions is possibly the most important factor.

In a nutshell you need to be fishing these locations as soon as the wind has turned from a Nth Westerly & back into a Southerly or Sth Westerly. When this occurs the barometer will immediatley be on the rise & this usually see's an increase in Snapper landed in landbased areas. You'll also notice the turbid water in the background, this cover will see a longer period of Snapper foraging inshore, but may only last as long as 24hrs or so before it's over as waters clear with settling weather patterns.

Gummy Sharks Day & Night Continue to Delight !! 

Click here for Think BIG Charter Info on Gummy Shark Charters

One of our most popular species with clients are Gummy Sharks & we've had a superlative Winter season on these sleek grey tidal cruisers.

With some memorable dusk shots it makes for a good evenings session on the greys.

Shaun Carter & friends had a great session on Gummys.

Mick with a perfect sized Gummy for some fresh mouth watering Flake fillets.

Shaun again with another sizeable Gummy that fought very well & was soon released as they should be soon after pic was taken.

Hold them gently but firmly into the current and allow time to recover, making sure they are breathing nicely & you'll feel them pulse & kick as they revive. Once your certain it's ready, release & watch her swim off gracefully to where she belongs. Think Future ;)

And the night just got better & better with Shaun holding another beautiful Gummy Shark.

Long time friend & amazing mechanic, builder, seasoned deckhand, & occasional Sub catcher....you name it Mick Torpy can do it...holding a top Gummy of better than 15kg prior to release.

This Gummy had a sneaky agenda & was initially brought up along boatside & was about to be netted, when it decided to let go of the Yakka chunk bait it had been just hanging on too...something I hadn't seen until now. It swam off & within 3 mins had taken a bait from the rod next to the first & was eventually landed & is held here by Mario.

Regular Think BIG Clients, Matthew Elliott, Chris Karapavlou & Big Shaun Dennehey all help to hold this Seven Gill Shark for a quick pic before release.

These big spotted bait stealers with heaps of sharp leader chaffing/destroying serrated teeth aka Seven Gill Sharks have also provided some fun for quite a few clients over the last few months. There is one thing common with all of these we've landed, there all over 50-60kg's & are always greeted with a lot of wow's!!, as many clients have never seen a Shark, let alone hold one of these sizes in Melbourne waters.

Whiting are Exciting when they're Biting!

Click here for Think BIG Charter Info on Whiting Charters

While most of Melbournes anglers are being swept up by Snapper fever, there is also some very good alternatives for the lighter rod brigade...

Yes those very popular Whiting aka 'Spotted Bones' have been showing up in recent weeks in a few areas of Western Port.

Here's Jamie Martin with a sample of the quality Whiting available now.

At better than 43cms & as thick as a medium sized Don Salami. From this size upwards these Whiting aren't smallgoods & really do put up a spirited fight when hooked. Strips of tenderised squid has worked well.

A HUGE Thanks also to all recent & ongoing Think BIG Charter Clients.

See you on the Water,

Cheers,

TBC

Spring Has Arrived & With It Follows Melbournes Red Tide

Yes folks,

It's that time of the year again when things are starting to move along slowly but surely. Recent spikes in water temps in areas of both Western Port & Port Phillip Bay have seen a few Snapper landed by those putting in dedicated time & perservering. The last 3 weeks has seen some unprecedented weather patterns with many fine days with above average daytime temperatures. This in turn has the desired effect of lifting water temps, however slight, it's these small changes that have seen Snapper around the 5-6kg bracket in both Western Port & Port Phillip Bay.

The vast majority of Snapper landed in recent weeks have been during gentlemens hours from mid morning onwards, particulary nearing a tide change. As the season heats up so to speak, the early morning bite will increase, especially during the first few weeks of October. Often the bite period can be short lived, so it pays to have everything organised & be on the water well before first light with baited lines in ready....

Here's a few pics of some quality fish landed over the last two weeks out of both of Melbournes favourite Snapper haunts.

 

I first met up with Robert Johnstone at 1.30am at a service station while fueling up Think Big after a Gummy Charter a few weeks ago. He approached me on a motorcycle & was pretty stoked & keen to tell me of the Snapper he'd landed earlier that day. This area is around the Silver Leaves through to Observation Point & is a mecca for many thousands of Snapper every year. It's also an area where that 'grey-white-pointed nose speedster' aka the School Shark is often hooked but all too often lost mid battle or nearing the end when boatside....but more on that later....

Youfish TV Fan Matt Callus found this handsome Snapper a couple of weeks back while fishing Western Port. Unsure of bait, but from the backdrop view off a pilchard dangling of an outfit, This may have been the bait of choice.

Our long time friend snorey Pawsey also found some quality action a couple of weeks back in Port Phillip Bay, fishing in 18mtrs, He along with good mate Joshua had some fun with Snapper to almost 6kg. Again this was a late morning bite.

 

Fruits got out in Port Phillip for an exploratory trip & had this nice early season opener of 4kg off Carrum in 18mtrs. Fishing with an old school friend Pat from Whittlesea who also happens to be a member of the Mr Fisho website, He was stoked to see a new season Snapper !

This was taken on a single circle 5/0 Gamakatsu with a tail section of Silver Whiting. Down sized flesh baits seem to work well during these earlier times, with full blown larger head baits working better as temps slowly increase.

Regular weekday client Khalid snuck out early Tuesday morning of this week & found what he always had wanted, a plump fresh hard fighting Port Phillip Snapper. At just on 4.5kg, he was pretty stoked & later informed me it was a task to fit in his fridge at home!!

Fruits with a Snapper from Port Phillip Bay this week. This fish took a fancy to a freshly caught Salmon chunk. The Salmon had been caught less than 24 hours before, little things like this will always help find better hookup rates. 

The New Moon in September will see a rise in Snapper activity in both Western Port & Port Phillip Bay, so pace yourselves everyone, as it's still early days yet & will only get better towards October onwards.

Gummy Sharks Continue on Throughout The Port!!

The ongoing action on these tidal cruising hound sharks with spots continues on very well with consistent catches on pretty much every single charter. Some of these Gummys have been large too!!

As always the best fishing has come with the use of fresh baits aquired prior to settling in on an area.

Now here's a true genuine Great Grey Sub!!

Kurt Emmerson who's a regular client on Think Big! has an uncanny knack of being present when 'Big' things happen. This big grey girl at a conservative 25kg's was a subtle take at first & didn't really perform as hard as we've seen similar sized Gummys perform, once netted this was easy to understand however as she was fairly bursting at the seams with a very full belly of future gummys for everyone to enjoy. So after a quick few pics & revival boatside, she was soon off none the worse for the experience. Well done Kurt, again you've seen some special stuff.

 Jamie from Pakenham arranged an rdo charter along with a few other work mates and possibly picked the best glassed out mild to warm day weather wise we had seen in a week or so. After some fresh bait collection we set off & soon had a few undesirables in form of draughtboards & port jacksons...par for the course of fishing reefy areas in winter. As the tide primed up we had this sporty male Gummy engulf a bait and create a bit of fun for Jamie. Nice way to round out a lovely day on the water.

Recently we had Alan Heib of Southside Marine Services out with us for an evening Gummy Session. Around an hour or so into the session we had this creditable Rock Ling take a yakka chunk bait. At 2.5kg it was a nice size Ling & more importantly, possibly one of our Southern Waters finest eating species. Rating highly on the menu & commanding a good price all year round, it was a little bit mouth watering when Alan showed me a pic of the finished result & mentioning it was up there with the best eating fish he has encountered yet.

 Don't think there's much that can top a feed of fresh Rock Ling & Gummy Shark with a side of Salad & Chips...Did I mention Gummy Shark ?? Yes Alan was later to add Gummy to his menu with the capture of this good sized model later on.

This Gummy took a small chunk bait of fresh Yakka and woke up mid fight & really got going.

Here's a close up of one of the marine worlds most efficient & sensitive sensory systems. All over this part of their heads hundreds & hundreds of tiny scent & vibration receptors enable these to sniff out crabs in the sand from long distances.

School Sharks Are On The Move & Proving Elusive As Always!!

Yes those speedy grey,white pointy nosed Sharks are beginning to show their presence.

Just a day or two back our very own YouFish TV Camerman Joe Fernand, saw his Uncle Tony down within the Western Entrance of Western Port in hope of a Gummy, however a sizeable School Shark showed up & was almost, almost.....landed...Unfortunately as in many other cases leader failure in the closing seconds was the link in the chain that caused the loss....

Below is a fleeting glimpse of this enigmatic species that is just that much harder to boat within the boundaries of typical Gummy Shark rigging.

The next few months will see many more of these excellent sportfish hooked, We are going to be giving these our best shot in the following months so stay tuned...

Big Squid Are On The Prowl

Once again as we move into Spring proper, so to do we see huge increases in the number of larger & larger Cephalopods in both Port Phillip Bay & Western Port. Thes actively growing Squid all have one thing in mind, Eat & Grow Fast!!!Lay Eggs, Spawn....Then die....They increase there size and weight at a huge rate this time of year & are often quite aggressive towards an artificial or baited jig.

Recently we have found some good fishing in some of the deeper regions of lower Western Port. These areas aren't as well suited to the current growing fashion of shallow water EGI techniques, however it's a style of fishing that doesn't require high end 'egi style rods' etc, with a common Whiting or Soft Plastics outfit more than adequate for these Squid, These methods will be outlined soon on an upcoming segment of YouFish TV. We also have charters available over the next few weeks on Squid where many methods are explained & shown on these trips.

Just checkout the booking calendar link or call Shaun direct on '0423 696 061'

Here's the sort of calibre Calamari that not only near wrenches the rod from your hand on the strike, but also takes a good deal of line before being boated. It's also possibly the Number 1 BIG! Snapper Bait you could use when seeking larger Snapper in any location in Victoria.

Salmon Aren't Always On The Surface

A recent bait collection trip to the Sthn areas of Port Phillip Bay showed the effectivness of slow trolling deep diving minnow lures, despite no visible surface activity. All too often many anglers want to see the obvious surface signs of fish busting up & Terns & Gannets wheeling and diving signifying Salmon.

By keeping a close eye on the sounder when in depths of 5-8mtrs, especially around structure, these Salmon can sometimes be found schooled up on these areas as they pluck off baitfish at will. Slow trolling by this, I mean walking pace with lures around 20-25 mtrs behind boat can find the action your after. It's also worth mentioning that the old style Paravane some anglers may have seen is also another proven way of finding these Salmon & also Couta & Snook when in a similar scenario.

Here's a chunky Salmon landed on above outlined techniques by a balaclava wearing Khalid. Yes it was a tad chilly this morning, but well worth it with Salmon of this size on 2kg outfits, Lots of fun & even better as a fresh Snapper bait as Khalid was to find out, when he turned this into a 4.5kg Snapper the very next day.

 'Matt addicted to most fish Squiddy' with another quality Salmon landed on the Deep Diving Tilsan Bass Minnow, also adding that "These are one of my absolute favorite fish to land" Couldn't agree more as Salmon have been way underated for too long now & are slowly gaining more popularity as a sportfish that is well worth targeting.

In the coming weeks we will have more to report on & will be Thinking Big! as always

Until then stay safe & enjoy life for what it is.

Cheers,

TBC

Winter Gummys Day & Night, Soon Melbourne Snapper Will Be On The Bite!!

With a distinct mildness to the air temps sporadically over the past few weeks, Winter is closing down as the new Spring arrives & with it will be a steady increase in all of our favourite species. Not the least will be everyones favourite 'Snapper'. For many reasons this single species has created a huge increase in the marine industry over the past 30 years, although it's during the past 10 years that has seen their status skyrocket as Melbournes Premier Bay & Port BIG! Fish to target.

Think Big! will be out in search of these Early Season Snapper very shortly & will be reporting on this as the season unfolds. There is still time to book now & save for your Think Big! Snapper Charter with a 10% saving if booked between now & 15th September. These early season Snapper are generally a lot more shy on the bite than Snapper later in Oct-Nov & can test any anglers patience, especially when you know your sitting on a hot set of marks you've sounded up !! Fresh bait & patience is the key to landing these Snapper in Western Port, just two of Think Big! Charters items to success.

Since the last report, We've had some very consistent charters on Gummy Sharks of all sizes ranging from 6kg up to 17-18kg & also quite a few med to large sized 7Gill Sharks around the 45-90kg range. As the title suggests we have had some memorable charters both during the day as well as during the darker hours.

Squid too have moved in in reasonable numbers & have been found in many areas from Flinders all the way up to the Quail Bank off Warneet. Good weather patterns are the key to better succes on these cephalopods. The next few weeks will see huge numbers move inside to Western Port proper & with it will be an influx of many other species that all go hand in hand with Snapper fishing.

There is still also some very good quality Whiting- aka Spotted Bones or 'Fumphas' as we call them available in the lower reaches of the Western Entrance. At over 45cm's they are very popular when found. Not always available in large numbers at this time of year, it's more a thing of quality over quantity. There's also been some large colorful leatherjackets mixed in that also make for great table fare.

Here's a run down on recent charters with some quality fish landed.

      Clint from Altona was pretty suprised when his turn came along and a nice Gummy raced off into the night.

 

Clints pretty stoked with his first Gummy Shark from Western Port 

Close up profile of a night cruising crab hunter 

  Matt 'Squiddy' who's recently admitted a serious addiction to night time Gummy Shark fishing holds another fine Gummy landed recently.

Nick, 'Squiddys good friend' also had a bit of fun with this smaller model the same evening.

Benny Lo & co recently chartered Think Big! for an extended 8 hour trip on all facets of Gummy Shark fishing. After bait collection we set off & had been at anchor for around 45 mins when we had this terrific girl of 17kg plus engulf a bait & race off as fast!!! A good team spirit amongst the clients had them share the rod around throughout the fight. Eventually we land this girl and after this pic it was soon safely back & swimming strong after a short revival boatside. These guys were so happy with their initial success that spirits were quite high for a while.

Later as night moved in they also had some fun on solid Gummys of 8-9kg rounding out a top charter.

  Cliff 'The Boss', with a good Gummy Shark.

Benny Lo with another night time Gummy Shark.

Davey & work mates from CMV Trucks in Westall booked a trip recently and had the best of both worlds with perfect weather conditions & some quality Gummy Shark fishing also.

This solid fish of 10kg plus was a good way of opening up Michael's experiences with Tidal Gummy Shark fishing in Western Port. 

Megan added Gummy Shark to her list of preferred captures recently on a windy and chilly day on Western Port.

Here's something I'd not seen until recently, Client Edwin here is locked in battle with a big gummy of 17kg's or more, the rod he's using is a 'GIPANG', a high end Japanese rod capable of serious fishing, although its rated way above what is required for Western Port, it was a good test for this lovely tough little rod.

Quick Pic before gentle release.

 Swimming into current to ensure proper revival.

Kelly & Sien also had a great charter recently & hold aloft a darker kelp hugging Gummy prior to release.

2 weeks ago we had Winga aboard with Youfish TV fan Sonia Lawford celebrating her 50th Birthday as a suprise present by husband Jim, & funny too, as Winga was celebrating his 40th Birthday also.

After securing fresh bait, we set off in search of a great grey & found what was required...

Here's a short vid of rough quality, taken quickly with a mobile ph in some windswept conditions recently. If you turn up speaker volume you'll hear the braid racing from the spool as this Gummy raced off. This fish was around 17kg and had the last laugh by rolling from net & off the hook, still it was to be released at any rate.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbAlbOvo2CU

Squiddy with another solid fish landed recently while out on Think Big!

Another recent Gummy addict is Matt Leeson who has had several successful charters.

Yep those huge grey bait stealing Sharks the 7Gills drive everyone a bit loopy!! This one was released soon after pic. Some folk reckon these dont give much of a fight, Having asked this to all clients recently who've just landed one, they seem to disagree.

Whiting are Just as Inviting & Exciting when Biting in Winter !!

Yes there is still a few good sized Whiting to be caught in Western Port, traditionally at this time of year with temps just starting to rise after pretty much bottoming out, the lower reaches of the Western & Eastern entrances are prime areas to have a go for the spotted bones. As these fish are nearing their maturity & will soon depart the bays & ports for an oceanic existence, they are often of a good size.

45-50cm is normal for these fine fish and they really go well on light tackle. Best baits at this time of year are tenderised Squid, the fresher the better & also Pippi's, however with the current price of Pippi's still sky high, I'll stick to using Squid. Depth from 12mtrs on slower tides down to 5mtrs during the runout tide have seen the best results. Ventnor through to the small bays inside the Knobbies are likely areas to try for these excellent fish. Calm conditions are also a pre requsite for safe fishing here as ocean swells can be hazardous after strong winds offshore cause rising swells to build.

Patrick here holds a quality Spotted Bone landed amongst a mixed bag recently.

Benny Lo with another good example of Winter Whiting on tenderised squid strips.

Often in these areas there is also a fair bycatch in the form of very good sized Leather Jackets of many varieties & colours as well as the prized Blue Throat Parrot Fish. In recent years these fish have been seen as a sought after species that not only fight well but also are very good on the plate.

The next Think Big! report will have some fresh new pics & news on Snapper so stay tuned for it's going to be a very good season !!

Check out our Charter Booking Link for all the latest Snapper charters available in coming weeks.

Cheers & Thankyou to all recent & ongoing Think Big! Charter Clients.

TBC