We headed down for a quick afternoon session on Wednesday—not ideal conditions, but when you get that itching, you gotta go “scratching.” It was one of those days when the wind was hooning ESE at 35 KMH, gusting to 45 KMH plus, and everything was getting sandblasted.
You’ve really got to want to fish on these types of days.
We had a 2.5 m swell and a 10-second period, with a strong side current running up the beach in a very deep gutter right against the shore and a bank not too far out. Fortunately, the wind blowing down the beach helped counter the current and kept our baits in position.
We put out three baits: two with prawn and chokka, and one with bloodworm. Fifteen minutes later, I reeled in the first line to find the bait had been stripped… a good sign! With the rods in the stands and the wind bouncing them around, it was impossible to see when you got bites, so we were going to have to get pulled flat to see a bite. Holding the rod in one’s hand was exhausting, and it was still impossible to feel the bites. After a while, one of the rods dipped significantly more, and the first steenie was on. It was good to see they were still around, and we ended the day with five undersize steenbras, all safely released. Not exactly a steenbras smash, but good fun in the howling wind.
I think it’ll be a while before I need to fish in that kind of wind again. Not only is it tiring, but the sand gets into places you didn’t know existed, and your tackle takes a beating.
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