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PostPosted: 21 Jan 2013, 15:15 
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For me anyway, the snapper season started off slow, but have seen a few good fish since the New Year. But normally Willie scrubs up well at this time of year - the viz may never be that flash but there are usually good snapper and shootable bream to be found.

However, I have had two trips there in the last few weeks and the viz has been even worse than usual (one day it was about 1 m, the other is was about 2 m). If I can see the end of the gun, I can usually see some snapper that come into my berley, but the last couple of times I saw zip, zilch, nada. Not even a bream. (I did see a few duskies and some zebs though).

The water on entry (at the "swimming pool") has been quite clear, but as soon as you clear the rocks, the clouds of murk roll in.

Has anybody else had a similar experience at Willie? Or is it just me not attracting fish?

Ric

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Ric Fallu started spearfishing in Pt Phillip in the early 1960s, and never really stopped


Last edited by ric.fallu on 01 Feb 2013, 10:38, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 21 Jan 2013, 16:51 
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Sorry for taking this offtopic, but in the very near future I'm looking to spearfish at Willie, right next to the swimming pool / rocks.
What do you use for burley?


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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 21 Jan 2013, 19:04 
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you need to swim out much further than that or you will accidentally spear a swimmer. There isn't much point using burley until you learn some basics even if you do you will scare anything on it before you get a chance to spear it and most probably before you see it.

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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 21 Jan 2013, 21:20 
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hey ric. i dove williamstown today, first time in over a year. jumped in at 1pm with a light southerly breeze viz was great at around 6m! :shock: but it was a little hazzy. after about 1 hour the southerly picked up and the viz droped to 2-3m on the bottom with the chop starting to be an issue. and at 7pm it was total shit with a 30knot southerly.
as for fish life!
i shot 2x pinkies 30-31cm lost a 3rd all single mooching fish.
1x 30cm Bream
3xAuz salmon small.

heeps of glassies/white bait with a salmon school busting them up with birds. all fish had heeps of bait in their guts.

heeps of fun, good times back at the Local. 8)
oZ
pS.
sorry no pics this time and left the gopro at home :cry:


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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 22 Jan 2013, 11:14 
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Thanks for comments on file and the PM with other comments.

If Ozdog is who I think, he should know.

About berley - smash sea urchins. If you are keen, take pilchards from a bait shop. Some nice fish have been taken close to the very edge of the swimming pool (I know of at least one rat king taken there and have seen some nice snapper over the years). But don't shoot, or even stay there with a speargun if there are people or dogs.

Willie is usually easy entry (at the swimming pool). But I have a real problem with dogs when I get out. I won’t say I have been attacked, but I have received several “serious” barkings. They (the dogs) prolly think they have found the creature from the black lagoon.

There is a hell of a lot of reef at Willie, and few problems with other divers coming in and competing for your fish.

I have been getting consistently better viz on the east side of PPBay (Black Rock/Mordy). Mostly its been around 6 to 8 m viz – which is more than adequate in the shallow water there. You can shoot fish in 2 m viz, but it gets bloody hard to find a suitable spot – no point laying down berley if the spot doesn’t hold any fish.

I have seen a few nice fish over the last month in PPBay, but so far the best snapper I have taken this year was 41 cm. Got it late last week. Pic attached. Some people like to try for a stone shot – I got this fish with my famous a*sehole shot – almost right up its clacker!

The Fisheries dept comment that the last few years have been poor breeding years for snapper, and it seems to me that there have been fewer small fish around. But I have noticed a few 2 – 3 cm snapper come in for the berley – they might be young of this year?

There was a mess of snapper at Mordy yesterday (Monday) morning, but they were _very_ spooked and didn’t seem to find berley all that attractive. I suspect that they had encountered spearfishers on Sunday and were more cautious as a result. I found some other snapper on another part of the reef, and they were nowhere near as wary, but nothing of much size – maybe about min legal.

I was planning a dive this morning, but was too slack to get out of bed. I should have gone. Maybe tomorrow morning?

Ric


Attachments:
File comment: Maybe not exactly up the clacker, but close. Any shot that brings the fish home is a good shot.
41cm snapper.JPG
41cm snapper.JPG [ 48.96 KiB | Viewed 4587 times ]

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Ric Fallu started spearfishing in Pt Phillip in the early 1960s, and never really stopped
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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 22 Jan 2013, 17:12 
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Nice fish Ric,
I haven't had much luck with the snapper/pinkys so far this season.
From memory as follows
Late sep mordy 36cm
Early jan schnapper point 38cm
Early jan kitty miler bay 41cm
Early jan mordy 2x 30cm

Been a very quite season haven't seen any masses of pinkys normally just 2 or 3 or the lone ranger.

If you dont mind me asking what's your pb for PPB and what area was it in?


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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 22 Jan 2013, 22:04 
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viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1419&hilit=snapper+slappers


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P8220035.jpg
P8220035.jpg [ 27.34 KiB | Viewed 4536 times ]
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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 22 Jan 2013, 22:46 
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When's that from Oz?

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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 22 Jan 2013, 23:39 
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thats a great fish oz, what was its length/weight?


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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 23 Jan 2013, 10:32 
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Marmo

My PB landed for Port Phillip was a 44 cm fish last year. (Edit - Whoops - later check had that at 49cm - see later post). I tried to stretch it to 45cm (I meant 50) but it just wouldn't go. It was taken near Quiet Corner. It looked pretty much like the one Oz had in the pic. It had a hump but was leanish in the body.

Last week I saw an equivalent fish at Mordy. I had a shot but hit the rock beside it. C'est la vie. As mentioned in previous posting, I went back for a second look on Monday but I suspect the fish there had had a bollocking on Sunday - in any case, the snapper were there, but very spooked. I only got a couple of sightings, right on the edge of viz.

A couple of years ago (prolly more like 4 years), I encountered a snapper at Black Rock that would have been 4 kg. I put a spear into it, it shook, and the spear fell out. Maybe I hit it on the gill plate. Maybe I should have used a heavier spear. In any case, after the spear fell out, the snapper turned around and swam up to have a look at me. I went into a speargun loading frenzy but, of course, by the time the gun was loaded, it had swum off. I never saw it again.

I see quite a few 36 cm fish, and the occasional 40 cm snapper, but anything passed that size seems exceeding rare. Small pinkies have been noticeable by their absence over the last year or two - suggesting poor fishing for the next few years. I have seem some very small ones this year though.

Seems to me that on the PPBay coastal reefs, they are all much of a muchness when it comes to bigger snapper. You just have to keep on going and hope for something good. Low viz is not too much of a problem if you can locate an aggregation. Also seems to me that the time is right now.

The anglers seem to think different. They see the big fish at the start of the season - late Sep on, and at the end - March. They also seem to fish in about 14 to 20 metres. That's too far to swim from shore in boat infested PPB. If anybody who has a boat has an urge to take me diving in PPB this March, I would be pleased to cooperate!

Its very educational to take a walk passed the Willie angling club at about 9 am. There are some very nice snapper landed there. If you look where the boats aggregate first thing, its generally a long way offshore. A couple of years ago I did a long swim off Willie (maybe 2 kilometres) and found a great ledge at the 7 metre mark. It was winter, and I saw no snapper (though my mate shot one resting between two rocks) but the water was clear. Looked great for snapper, but you really need a boat.

This morning I went to Black Rock, I took a look at the place where I saw the 4 kg fish, but the south westerly was raising a chop, and the water had that leaden colour suggesting really poor viz. I didn't get wet.
Maybe tomorrow.

Ric

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Ric Fallu started spearfishing in Pt Phillip in the early 1960s, and never really stopped


Last edited by ric.fallu on 24 Jan 2013, 11:18, edited 2 times in total.

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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 23 Jan 2013, 18:23 
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Hey Ric I am thinking about hitting somewhere up tomorrow if u want to meet up? Was going to go altona Willie through to black rock maybe even mount Martha depending on winds if u keen?

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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 23 Jan 2013, 19:44 
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Thanks for the reply Ric, I work In altona north will try head out there soon,
Was at mordy this evening for a meeting, viz didnt look as bad as It would but didn't get in the water, looked to be about 2-3m sill very drivable for snapper imo tomorrow should be ok as mordy seems to hold some good fish after a westerly


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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 23 Jan 2013, 21:18 
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hey crew. im going to check out Schnapper point Morington tomorrow morning 7.30am. then head back towards melbourne if your keen. i know Dom (thommo...) is keen any other takers welcome.
oZ


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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 24 Jan 2013, 11:14 
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Seems I missed all those offers of dive partners - I only look at forums once a day, or maybe every two days. I can be messaged 0439 673 097.

Had a dive at Parkdale this morning. 6 - 7 m viz. Saw a few snapper but some were very spooked - maybe they had a bollocking too. I did get some to come around, but they were about min legal length, so I didn't shoot. There is not much reef there, so you can't leave the spooked ones and head off for new ground.

And a "whoops!" I went back to my files to look for the pic of the PB snapper I got last season and realise I had the length wrong. It was just under 50 cm - I tried to stretch it to 50 but couldn't quite make it. Its just that I am naturally modest about my catches. This time I include a pic - which shouldn't suffer from poor memory.

Ric


Attachments:
File comment: The bigger fish (with the start of a hump) is 49+cm total length
50cm snpr and eurotoo.JPG
50cm snpr and eurotoo.JPG [ 76.4 KiB | Viewed 4412 times ]

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 Post subject: Re: viz at Willie
PostPosted: 24 Jan 2013, 15:06 
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Nice snapper


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