competitions

Bream Catcher competition time!

This month Bream Catcher is running a competition where you can win a pair of Brewsees Pryviator Mavericks Bottle Opener Polaroid Sunglasses.

What you gotta do:

1. Like and Share the June 2019 issue (this issue) of the Bream Catcher newsletter
2. Tag a mate in the comments on the original post of this newsletter located on the Bream Catcher Facebook page
3. Inbox or email us a Photo of your best/latest bream catch. Be sure to include a little story of what, where, how, etc.

(Email submissions to us at: breamcatchernewsletter@gmail.com)

The rules:

1. Competition Starts at 6pm, Monday June 3, 2019
2. Competition Ends at 8am, Friday June 21, 2019
3. Winner chosen by Bream Cather Staff
4. Winner announced and contacted in a separate post prior to the July 2019 issue of the Bream Catcher newsletter.

So send us something, like and share, tag a mate and all of that stuff and get in the draw to win!

Getting Into Bream-On-Fly

By Sean "Bear" Forward

Introduction

Why is it that anglers seem hell bent on alienating different forms of fishing? Spin vs. cast, fly vs. everything else. It just seems very strange that we want to cut ourselves off from certain styles of fishing without really giving it a go. I've been very lucky to have done a large variety of fishing and while some of it isn't for me, my philosophy is 'try it all, you never know what you're going to miss.'

Over the past few years I've slowly, but surely, eased my way into fly fishing. First starting out on the dams within a few hours of Perth, then something a little closer to home by chasing flatties on the Swan. As my passion for breamin' grew, so did the need to target them on fly, the feeling of getting any fish on fly is something you really have to experience.

In this article I will discuss how you too, can experience my passion that is Getting into Bream-on-Fly.

A Quick Tip before we begin

Don’t fool yourself, spend a little time and money and get some casting lessons from someone who knows what they are doing. You’ll thank yourself in the long run and save yourself hours of frustration.

Then once you've had the training, practicing casting in the park is a great way to hone your casting skills - It may look silly, but well worth it!

Rod

The million dollar question is where do we start?

The advantage here is that there are also a few good fly brands at cheaper prices, but don’t kid yourself. Fly fishing gear is expensive compared to spin, especially if you start getting into the higher end gear. It’s always a good idea to check out the buy and sell pages on some of the fly fishing forums. You never know what will come up and you could save yourself hundreds of dollars from new prices and end up with a good rod.

There are always going to be different opinions on the subject, but I would recommend a 5-6wt fly rod to start with, especially if you’re WA based where the wind is never far away. Having a few trips under your belt now, you might want to add a 4wt to the quiver to the quiver if you’re looking for a lighter presentation. If you’re fishing from a boat them look at getting an 8’ rod or even 7’6” to make it easier in the tight spaces.

If you’re in Perth, check out the range at Bluewater Tackle Myaree and Tackle World. They stock Sage, TFO and Innovator and have a good number of guys on staff who are experienced fly anglers and more than willing to help. You can access the online store using the link below:

Reel and Line

As for reels, don’t spend a huge amount of money here. With brands like Slayer (https://www.facebook.com/flyfishingtimeaustralia/), Shimano and others, you can get yourself a good reel for well under $100. This leaves yourself room to move on a good fly line. Another can of worms to open.

Personally, when it comes to line I'd recommend you stick with one of the better known brands like Sage, RIO, Airflo etc. A good fly line is going to save you a lot of grief. To get you going I would even look to get 2 reels, each with a different line. The first would be a floating line with a sink tip. Ideal for general fly fishing around the river, flats and lakes. For the second reel I would look to get an intermediate line. There are several different sink rates and I would stick to one of the slower rates, with bream it’s all about staying in the zone as much as possible.

Flies

Lastly, flies. As with any sort of fishing, there are more styles of flies than you can poke a stick at and they are not going to be cheap. We're lucky enough to have a few good stores in Perth, such as Fly World, which also has an online store, but don't discount some of the Oz based eBay sellers who have some good product for very competitive prices. In a short word, clousers are the way to go without getting into it too much. Without doubt, if you get the bug, there are fly patterns for every situation that look like just about anything you want and many have their place. For instance, there are some god topwater patterns like gurglers and disco shrimps that can be deadly.

If you’re also the creative type, have a go at tying your own flies. You don’t have to spend a fortune on an expensive vice. My first Dan Vice was only $90 off eBay and have helped me tie hundreds of flies. It will cost a bit to get you going with materials, but these will tie a lot of flies and means you can play around a bit with colours, styles and there is nothing more satisfying than catching a fish on a fly you’ve tied yourself. I’ve heard it said ‘if it ain’t chartreuse, it’s no use’ and while our chartreuse and white clousers did count for a lot of the fish we caught, so did other combinations like red\white, tan white and so on. A little bit of flash doesn’t hurt either.

To get going I would pick a few fly patterns and start with the materials for these first. This will give you a good shopping list rather than just buying random items and trying to make a pattern out of them.

For me, a simple clouser pattern like the bream clouser that came out of the Saltwater Flyrodders Club (http://saltwaterflyrodders.com.au) here in Perth is an ideal fly to start with. Its a good, basic pattern to hone your skills, ideal to play with colours, but a tried and true pattern. A video of how to tie the clouser is available below:

Check out my pattern for a whiting gurgler that has been a great topwater fly for me:

Lastly, no bream fly kit would be complete without one of Muzz Wilsson’s BMS fly. While Muzz is no longer with us, his pattern with live on forever. The full video is available below:

We’ve just started our journey, but let’s save some more for next time.

Bags, tubes and lots more.

You can catch me at https://www.facebook.com/groups/BreamOnFly/, but if you have a question for next month, feel free to email me bear@roaminangler.com.au

You can also view me on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX1O9vQ5SdG8y6aTyajurdQ

In the meantime, tight lines and stay safe.

Back to basics - Bream off the rocks

By Ricky “Sticky” Farrell

Introduction

With the cold winter months hitting there is no need to put away the fishing gear and hibernate like a bear. Indeed, it is during these colder months of the year when I embark on my favourite kind of fishing: Rock fishing.

As the title of this article states, I will be discussing how I like to get back to basics when targeting bream from the rocks. I will discuss: Areas I like to fish from the rocks; Tides; Rod and reel, and line; Tackle; Berley; Bait; and The hook-up.

Areas I like to fish from the rocks

When scouting a location to fish from the rocks I look for cuts, channels and coves, with a mix of rock, weed and sandy bottom all in one area. Also a spot that has white water created from the waves surging on the rocks is a must, as this is where the fish will look for cover and any dislodged food. But with all this in mind I make sure the spot I fish is safe. No fish is worth your life!

Tides

Depending on the area you fish some spots will fish better on high tide or low tide. This just comes down to trial and error, so it's worth trying both tides. In my area of Port Stephens (NSW, Australia) I find the last two hours of the run up to high tide and first two hours of run out to low tide are very effective times to fish for bream.

Rod, Reel, and Line

A medium-heavy rod anywhere from 10ft to 12ft, preferably with a soft-tip but plenty of power in the butt-half, is ideal for rock fishing. Personally, I use a 10.6ft rod like a Wilson Shore Line or Wilson Live Fibre rod. I combine this with an Alvey 455B XL Blackfish reel, but a size 4000 to 6000 spin reel will also work fine. At the end of the day its best to use what feels most comfortable for you for fishing.

10lb to 15lb line is ideal when rock fishing for bream. My choice is 15lb Schneider Klear line monofilament line. I find this line to be reliable and durable with low memory, with consistent breaking strain, that makes for high knot strength and abrasion resistance. I find that not only is it good for bream, but it also gives me more chance to land other species such as drummer, snapper or grouper which regularly happen to lurk when you have been chucking berley. Indeed, you never know what's gunner turn up in a berley trail!

Tackle

Hooks anywhere from size 4 to a size 1/0 are ideal for bream. I regularly use a size 2 suicide hook, but long shank, bait holder or kirby kendal style hooks will also do the trick.

For weight I use size 1 Jarvis Walker ball sinkers. I find one sinker is usually enough. However, if there is a particularly heavy swell I'll use two sinkers.

There are many rigs you can use for bait fishing for bream, but my favourite is a basic running sinker rig. To rig this up, all I do is thread the ball sinker(s) through the line, and tie the line to my hook using a simple Uni knot. The end result will have the sinkers resting on top of the hook. The benefit of this rig set up is that a fish can attack a bait, and run away with it without feeling much resistance before I set the hook.

Berley

When I find the spot I'm going to fish, the first thing I do is make a berley mix. I put two loaves of bread in bucket and add water to create a fine soup. The soup consistency is important as it acts as an attractant and not food. During a single session I usually take at least five loaves of cheap bread as i like to get a good heavy berley trail going.

I chuck three big hand fulls of berley into the water before I've done anything else. Then I find that while rigging my rod up this gives the berley time to work and bring the fish in. While I'm fishing I chuck in a hand full of berley every few cast to keep the fish around.

Sticky's hot tip: It doesn't hurt to ask your local bakery for some old bread to use for berley. It can be a lot cheaper.

Bait

I like to use cooked prawns - yes, the ones in the deli section of Coles and Woolworth supermarkets - for bait when bream fishing from the rocks. Not only do bream love them, but they also catch many other species such as drummer, snapper, grouper, leather jacket & luderick. In fact, there's not many fish out there that won't eat a prawn!

When rigging my bait I only want enough bait to cover my hook. Therefore, I'll chop the bigger cooked prawns in to 3 sections (head, body & tail) or the smaller prawns in half. I find using these smaller sizes makes it easier for the fish to take the bait down in one go, instead of just picking at it.

Sticky's hot tip: Green prawns, cunjevoi, crabs, pipis, mullet strips, bontio or tuna strips or cubes and also pillchard choped in cubes are other baits that also work well for bream from the ocean rocks

Technique

I cast out letting the bait hit the bottom, then I let it sit for a minute. If I don't get a bite I'll give the bait a lift up off the bottom to try to attract a fishes attention. I repeat the lift and pause process, always staying tight with the line. When the bait gets too close to the rocks I'll reel it in so it doesn't get snagged.

Once I hook a fish I like to play it by letting it take line. However, the trick here is to keep enough tension on the line to prevent it from snagging, or without pulling the hook from the fishes mouth, or snapping the line. But in saying all that, sometimes you just need to lock up when fishing heavy structure.

Wrap-up

If you haven’t given rock fishing for bream a crack, give it a go, it’s inexpensive, great fun, and you will find some big fish. If you are already doing this style of fishing I hope there’s a tip or two here that helps you hook into a few more.

Cheers.... Sticky

About Sticky

Ricky "Sticky" Farrell is a mad fisho who has been fishing the area of Port Stephens, NSW, Australia for the last 20 years. He is the creator of Sticky Fishy Fishing. You can check Sticky out on his social media platforms by clicking the links below:

Sticky also has some great videos on YouTube with tips to catching bream from the ocean rocks, break-walls , beaches & estuary's. He also has a vast array of videos that include tips to catching many other fish species