In Search of a "Grand Slam"

Notice that the words GRAND SLAM are in inverted commas... So much hype has been thrown about attaining a Grand Slam at many of the popular lodge fishing destinations that I thought that the humble Fly Chucker (aka yours truly) should have that same thrill while still being chained to a desk and a schedule.

In keeping with the concept that a Grand Slam consists of catching 3 of the prevalent sport fish of the locale - and that a super grand slam constituted of 4 prevalent game fish- I came to a decision that a Bream, Flathead and Tailor would constitute a grand slam for our southern Estuary systems here in Sub Urban Sydney. Of course catching a Whiting Tailor and Flathead would also Constitute a Slam. Following in this vein, it would follow that 4 species would make a super slam (think of the flats slam and really lower your expectations- I needed something to challenge myself) I had to make it achievable but still a challenge so I decided that all species had to be landed in one session in order for it to be considered a slam.

A lot of words, but hey, at least it's something to strive for.

Having conceived this plan, it was time to go fish. My initial efforts-and efforts till the writing of this post- have met with 2 species a day at best. However, these attempts have made me refine my techniques to better my chances of reaching my goal. From redeveloping my fly (yes I only fish THE ONE fly now) to adjusting my retrieve, I dare to say that I feel that I am getting somewhere nearer to understanding my local estuary. As yet, I've managed to land, in no particular order, Bream, Flathead, Tailor, Whiting and trevally with the one fly and retrieve.

Unbelievable but true. Truth be told, I am most happy with being able to catch a trevally on the fly rod. More so that it has been in my local estuary. This is due to the fact that I have never been able to even locate a single trevally in a location other than those near the harbour.

More on them in the next post.

One Singapore Morning

After waving goodbye to Sydney (for the time being...) I headed back to Singapore to spend the Easter Holidays. I was actually more interested in catching up with all the food that I had missed so much... but strangely didn't get to eat them either.

Okay, back to fishy business... sorry for the digression. My fly escapade in Sydney only produced a small bream and an even smaller Tailor. But did manage to land a few nice breambos on bait... a welcomed consolation. I touched down in Singapore on early Friday morning and thought to myself, "hey, I could squeeze in a short session the next morning..." And I did... albeit getting out of bed an hour late. With no time to lose, I had to hit the water and high-tailed outta da place before the rangers start their round(s).

Reached the spot at 730am and tied on Reuben's Pinkhead DNA Gotcha... although the fly wasn't kind to me in Sydney, I decided to tie it on just to make sure Reuben's faith in it was not in vain :) Was surprised that I had the whole place to myself... as I was expecting a few regulars to be there.

As the fish were (usually) pretty in close, 40 foot casts were all that's required. Not expecting much, I starting a series of short strips... 10-15cm/strip. And in less than 10 casts, I saw the water 'boil' but still no takers... hmm... there's a fish... *strip* *strip* *boil* *strip* strip *boil* *strip* *strip* ZZZzzzzP!!! Fish on! What a magical feeling. The peacock then decided to throw in a couple of aerial displays for this fish starved fly fisherman. In about 2mins, it was by the bank for the customary photo shoot and release.


After the release, "Could there be another one?" I thought to myself. Made a cast, and as the fly came into view, I saw how the wing of the Gotcha gets pushed down and sprung back up as it was twitched in the water. On the next cast, as it came into sight again, a smaller peacock came up, flashed the white of its mouth.... "Where's the fly??" I struck. And it took off.... I savoured every moment of the fight knowing that this will be the only fishing session of my easter holidays. It too found itself on the edge of the bank after the tussle to say hello to my phone cam.


After the release, a quick check of the phone showed 8:03am. A couple more casts and it was time to go... but not before I landed a palm sized peacock.

Until next time, good fishing to you all...
-Justin-

Justin's Easter trip

For those who have been following out humble blog, you'd know that Justin is now based in Hong Kong and is still on his quest to unravel the secrets of the mangrove Jacks that abound there. Anyways, Justin paid us a little visit during the Easter week and we made the best of it.


Due to work commitments and timing issues, we decided that it was best to visit our trusty spots. The week kicked off with a trip to Rhodes and a very through exploration of Glebe throughout the rest of the week.

We were off to a great start with 5 fish landed on our first outing. It followed by a lack luster morning effort at double bay and Glebe. We then switched methods and were into some decent fishes. We enjoyed out time greatly and new ideas and techniques were opened to us. Also, surprises such as learning that it was possible to fly fish for our bread and butter species at night were aplenty.

Here are the pics!

Oh and... we had the obligatory BBQ as always.

Tight lines and good fishing!

Fly after fly after fly...

March has seen some really weird weather changes. Cold one day and Scorching the next. Similarly, Fishing fortunes have been just as mixed. With some days firing under any condition and some days cold in the best of situations, days off work had to be optimized.

Deciding to dedicate all fishing time to the long wand and determined to be able to fish in all situations using flies, I made an attempt to be totally prepared for any plausible situation that might I might encounter.

Some research and reading led to a 7wt LOOP OPTI-Coast 9'6 loaded with intermediate line with a back up spool of fast sinking line. Leaders were constructed from 8, 12, and 20 lb flurocarbon. Looking at the diverse nature of urban fishing in Sydney also resulted in the fly box(es) being filled with a number of flies that would be more at home in a trout bum's tackle bag.

From Really Chunky,Gaudy Clousers to minute size 8 "Gotchas", even "downsized"bush pig streamers were cast in my piscatorial efforts. What resulted was a greater appreciation for choosing the right fly and paying attention to the smallest of details and changing tactics to meet them. Like all matters to do with fishing, I was successful sometimes and am still scratching my head over others.

The lessons learned from both successful and unsuccessful attempts have made me more confident of my abilities as an angler and even added some new tricks to my arsenal. If you are ever in Sydney and want to do some Back Country angling for our native "Bread and Butter"species, give us a message and we can try to organize a day for a fish. No glamorous scout boats or lodge service, just a good day out to quell that piscatorial itch that all anglers suffer from time and again.(That's the only way to make it free)

In the meantime, enjoy the photos and tight lines!
Till next time...