Sydney Rock

SYD ROCK & BEACH Alex Bellissimo

alex@bellissimocharters.com.au

Fish prices have risen sharply in the last few months to levels that are unaffordable to lower income earners. Yes, there are species you can buy that are a lot cheaper, but if you want to have at least two meals of fish a week without spending a fortune, the best option is to catch your own.

I speak to a lot of my clients and fellow anglers and most say, “I only eat fresh fish. Freezing is not an option”. By contrast, I eat a lot of frozen fish. That’s because I spend most of my time guiding clients, so I don’t have fresh caught fish on tap. However, frozen fish can taste nearly as good as fresh if you use a vac sealer machine (the cheaper models are well under $100). You can store multiple bags of vacuumsealed fish in your freezer, allowing you to have several great feeds of fish at a much more affordable price than store-bought fish, which are nowhere as fresh as what you catch. Plus, you know where the fish has been caught. I read an article on farmed salmon in one of the Nordic countries, and it mentioned it can be one of the most toxic foods you can eat because of the method of farming they adopt.

So get out there and learn the skills of catching your own fish for a feed. You will become fitter, especially being a landAll sorts of weird species can be caught from Sydney. This diamond trevally was caught and released whilst distance casting for snapper off the rocks.

based angler, and live a healthier life.

ROCK FISHING

We’ve been experiencing pretty much the peak of the trevally run. The average size is from 33-40cm, which is the tastiest size in my opinion. The larger ones (over 1.5kg) are great sport but I find that the flesh has a stronger flavour, and can also contain microscopic worms. When you fillet silver trevally over 1.8kg they often have what looks like a honeycomb – hollow flesh associated with this microscopic worm. Normally this honeycombed flesh is close to the backbone of the fish, between the backbone and the flesh. If you happen to see this in the larger trevally, you can simply cut out that section of flesh. It is not detrimental to your health.

Trevally are normally in schools so catching more than one is very common. They love pilchards, peeled prawns and pink nippers, and they respond well to a berley trail of soggy bread, pilchard and whatever bait you’re using as part of the berley trail. Light ball sinkers from 00 to 2, with a 1/0 or 2/0 suicide pattern hook, 4-6kg leader or mono is best to increase

your bites, and to enjoy the sport of landing these hardfighting fish. You can also encounter other species like bream, snapper, salmon and more.

Trevally have been in good numbers at Little Bluey, the suburb of Manly, North Curl Curl ledges from the swimming pool to about 90m north of, Dee Why ledges approx. 200m east of the swimming pool, and the font ledge of Mona Vale pool.

Rock blackfish (AKA black drummer or pigs) are in good numbers with this cooler water temp. This species is the whole package for rock anglers. When rock fishing you learn how to keep an eye on the waves, as the variation of depths in the vicinity fished is variable, therefore waves are often more tumulus and dangerous and peak up/stand up. You learn about how to fish hard-tofish terrains. You learn how use a variation of sinker weights depending on the variable currents. You learn how to find fish in hardto-fish spots. You learn how to hook rock blackfish and other species that you often encounter. You learn how to extract a species that dives for cover under sharp boulders and caves, therefore improving your fighting strategies.

These are just some of the techniques you learn from fishing for this great species, and they will become one of your favourite fish on the plate as well. Common baits for rock blackfish are peeled prawns, cunjevoi, bread and cabbage weed. When cleaning this species you will note the abundance of weed in their intestines.

Rock blackfish are commonly found around boulders and ledges where there is cover, and robust tackle is recommended to catch them. To cover most bases for this fish I recommend a 7-15kg outfit and line to suit. I use the Daiwa Over There 109MH Heaps of trevally and a couple of juvenile samsonfish for Lilly Khiury and partner George. There were a lot more fish released as well.

Rob Marich fishing the purest form with the Luderick Special Centrepin Alvey. Luderick can be caught all year but they are most often targeted in winter.

Leonard Nizeti didn’t expect to beat his PB whiting several times over on this outing. This slab went 44cm. The westerlies and flat seas push the temp right down, which forces them to move.