An abundance of tailor in protected corners of Lake Macquarie should provide relief for windblown anglers this weekend.
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Strong westerly winds were set to ease early Friday before picking up again and persisting through the weekend, although the forecast of mostly sunny skies is a bonus after the barrage of wet weather in recent months.
The winds are no doubt a deterrent but Jason Nunn, from Fisherman's Warehouse at Marks Point, said Lake Macquarie's western corners were ideal spots to catch cover and a few fish.
"It's not going to be too bad in the sense of being a west-nor-west wind, and around that 15 to 20 knots, you will be able to stay inshore," Nunn said.
"The lake isn't too bad in those winds. The west side of the lake is going to offer plenty of protection - areas like Bolton Point, Toronto, Rathmines, Fishing Point and the Myuna Bay area.
"All along that peninsula is perfect because it is totally out of the wind, with the protection of the hills and trees there.
"And the lake is still fishing very, very well. There's a lot of tailor around and this would be a great opportunity to get into those protected sides and troll.
"If you locate where the bait is, troll a few tailor up and find out what schools are getting fed on, then you can even have a bit of a jig with your soft plastics and concentrate on the bottom because there's still quite a few flathead around and mulloway."
Nunn said the size of fish in tailor schools was hit and miss but numbers were strong, with good reports from protected areas at Rathmines and Toronto.
"The other afternoon I ducked down for an hour, because I got three the night before, and as soon as I got there, I was on and caught 10 no problem. The biggest went 57cm," he said.
"And I love catching tailor, because they fight. There's been big numbers of them around."
Up Port Stephens way, it's a similar story.
Brent Hancock, from Tackleworld Port Stephens, said "we're lucky that we've got heaps of protected areas you can fish".
"Most of the ocean beaches and ocean rocks, when we get these howling westerlies, there's usually no swell, so it's a beauty," he said.
"The bay though is a hard one. It's open to that westerly so it's hard to find protection, although the Nelson Bay breakwall fishes pretty well."
He said tailor, bream, drummer and snapper were biting off the rocks, while salmon, tailor and bream were regular catches on the beaches.
"Before this westerly, there were a few longtail tuna around in the bay and off the rocks," he said. "There's some good snapper around, and you might get a crack on Friday."
TO THE BREAM
The tail end of the mullet run signals a push onto bream and luderick, according to Nunn.
"The beach hauling crews on Blacksmiths have left and that's an indication of how bad the mullet season was," he said. "And because we're on the tail end of the mullet, the fish that follow are bream and luderick.
"They are building in big numbers and I've had some cracking reports of five, six kilo luderick getting caught in the Swansea channel area. There's a lot around the rock platforms and that will continue right through June.
"But there's a metre and a half of swell this weekend so you're going to have to wear a lifejacket and safety is paramount.
"The eastern side has been fishing really well for bream. Just with this westerly wind, you will just need to find some protection, but down on the Swansea flats area is a good example of that. Possibly coming back in the channel is the way to go, because that Salts Bay area back towards the bridge, there's been a few bream and kingfish there."
He said beach fishing would also be an option with salmon, tailor and bream on offer.
His tip for offshore was to stick to the inshore reefs and "fish that 20-30 metre line for snapper".
"Guys got quite a few reds up to about 60cm on the weekend, in close on those reefs, where there's also trag and tailor," he said.
"A couple of our local boys got tailor up to 60cm off Caves last Friday."
HEY THERE TIGER
There's been little to rave about game fishing-wise recently but a group of Lake Macquarie anglers had a memorable catch on Saturday.
They caught a 540kg tiger shark about 30 miles off Lake Macquarie - on 15kg line.
"There hasn't been a lot of game fishing action because the currents have been running so hard," Nunn said.
"The current has backed up off a bit now.
"Hopefully over the next couple of weeks a few of the boats will be able to get out and have a look when it all settles, but I have heard of yellowfin down on the south coast, so the signs are encouraging."
"If the current keeps backing off, hopefully we will see some."