As keen anglers we are frequently asked for advice on where to go to find a decent coastal fishing spot within 2-3 hours drive from Canberra. As many of you will know, it’s both an easy and a difficult question to answer, because pretty much any beach, rock formation, estuary or coastal river will produce good (or terrible) fishing at…
Category: Beach
Back to basics – bait fishing off the beach
I spent the long weekend at Arugunnu, a campground in the Mimosa Rocks National Park on the far south coast of NSW. It is a special place for me, as it’s where I caught my first fish and spent a lot of time camping with my family as a kid. The thing I notice most when I get close is…
The little things
As I get older, I feel like life is getting busier. I think this is a feeling shared by many. I’m not sure entirely why it happens; is it manufactured or real? Nonetheless, there seems to be less time for fishing. The good thing about it is that I’m starting to appreciate being in the great outdoors more than ever.…
Seals, spiky fish, salmon, surf and sun; A weird and wonderful weekend at Wallaga
Winter is over folks! I’m happy to call it. I spent nearly all of last weekend on the south coast of NSW in board shorts and thongs – and at last count I still have ten fingers and ten toes. With another winter behind us it’s time to cast our minds (and our lures) forward to 9 glorious months of…
The Southern Australia mixed dozen challenge
Spoilt for choice How many amazing fishing options do you have within 2 or 3 hours drive from your front doorstep? Can you count them? Could you fish them all in a weekend? With the exception of Dan in the top end, the rest of us at Flick and Fly call south east Australia home. From here we can fish…
A few weeks in Eden and a few fish… Holiday recap.
I spent a lot of time in Eden over the holidays. First for Christmas and then for my cousins wedding. It was a pretty perfect holiday, spent balancing family time, girlfriend time, friends time, drinking by the pool time and fishing time. Fishing on family holidays is always a bit of a balancing act, so a lot of my fishing…
Like father, like son
Has fishing changed in a generation? 1958 An 11 year old boy took his turn casting into the melee. He was fishing the mouth of the Waitara River in New Plymouth, New Zealand. It was a sunny Sunday afternoon, 1958. Men and boys of all ages were lined up shoulder to shoulder along the sand casting metal lures or ‘slices’…
Wallaga Lake fishing report – June 2013
I spent the last week housesitting for my parents down at Wallaga Lake. I was there by myself and had worried that I might get bored. That certainly wasn’t the case: how could a keen fisherman, writer, cook and gardener possibly get bored with such a wonderful playground at their fingertips!? Having a whole week to play with is nice,…
How to kill bream and snapper
Another in the ‘How to and Q&A series’. Killing bream and snapper is arguably more difficult than some of our more ‘streamlined’ species. Instead of simply knocking them on the head, cutting the throat or severing the spinal cord, bream and snapper are best killed by spiking. Spiking might seem daunting at first, and you might have the unpleasant experience…
Reflecting on 20 years of fishing & Wonboyn Report
Like many anglers, my first taste of fishing was with the ‘old man’, my dad. I still have very fond memories of catching slimy mackerel off the breakwall at Moruya Airport on the NSW south coast. The locals weren’t impressed, for some reason”Slimies” were only considered good for one thing … bait. Of course, not everyone agrees with that sentiment. …
A few moments to escape- fishing on a non fishing holiday
Well, I’ve just returned to Melbourne from the Rockhamton area. Returning to Melbournes dreary weather after four days of warmth and sun is tough to say the least. I was up in sunny Queensland for a wedding and not to go fishing, so only got in a few little sessions. The wedding as held on a farmstay just out of…
Winter at Wallaga Lake, July 2012 fishing report
It’s nice when a plan comes together. But for some reason, I was umming and aaghing about heading down the coast this weekend. Luckily, at the last minute, I decided it was probably better than sitting around in chilly Canberra and jumped in the car with keen fisho, Andy O’Brien, to hit up Wallaga Lake for the weekend. On arriving,…