Posted by Jase on 13/5/2012, 1:10 pm, in reply to "winter snapper?"
I managed 8 yesterday afternoon/evening between 32cm and 37cm and a gurnard during a surfcasting fish with the family. All 3 rods got big benders. One clip failed and we lost the fish and the rig. The other 2 never were hooked properly, although one hung on for a good minute.
Over winter fish metabolisms slow down. Small baits are better, and pick your times to fish (dawn/dusk). I've found a dropping and even low tide to be best from the beach, and the opposite for the rocks. Also areas around rocks with lots of weed. Don't be surprised to see plenty of trevs around at the moment. There are heaps around up here. A few gurnard turning up still. We have managed 2 in the last 2 trips. Good, chunky fish. In fact all fish have been in exceptional condition.
Also a great time of year to target big spotty sharks on crab baits. Try and let the females in pup go and keep the smaller ones if you want a feed. They put up a hell of a scrap.
For those not too familiar with spotty sharks/dogfish/spotted smooth hounds be aware of the "imitation" spiny dogfish. They have sharp spines on their tails and behind their dorsal fins. Other than that they look very similar to SSH.