Peron Island Billies
Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2011 3:29 pm
BC and I headed out to Channel Point late Thursday for great billie tides and a favourable weather forecast.......BOM got it wrong again 
We travelled out to the 35 meter mark west of Sail Highway with deep blue water and slight seas. Unfortunately there was no bait, no birds, no tuna and even worse....no billies. After a couple of hours trolling teasers we had donuts for our score. We came inshore and trolled teasers through sail highway where we raised a couple of sails but they were not coming up to the back of the boat where we could chuck a fly at them. We managed to get amongst a couple of tuna on fly for the evening session before heading into shelter behind South Peron for the night.
Friday morning saw a 20knot southerly hammering up the Peron Island channel and it wasn't looking too good for a days fly fishing for billies. We hammered our way back out to Sail Highway through a sloppy mess of a westerly swell with a southerly chop, white caps, still no birds and a wet arse. Trolling teasers.....trolling teasers......trolling teasers......nothing
About lunch time the weather settled enough to actually see the teasers through the wite water and we actually managed to raise two sails near sail highway. All the billies were being really tentative and wouldnt convert over from the teaser to the pitch bait. Managed to get one sail right up to the prop but wouldn't play the game with the bait or fly. Up to this point we were 5-0-0......not a great conversion rate and we didn't really have a proper shot at them on fly. With a half hour to go before calling stumps we decided to put away the fly gear and put a hook in front of the switch bait, a nice fresh 10 inch mullet rigged behind a 4/0 circle. It only took 5 minutes and the rod was slammed, let the line release for a count of 10 and throw the bail arm over. The line came up tight and up jumped a billie. 20 minutes later the fish was beside the boat, hook out, tag in, quick photo and on its way to play again another day. Not quite the same thrill as chasing them on fly but any day that you get to stick a tag in a billie is a great day!
A quiet beer to reflect on the days proceedings and we were on our way back home.
Thanks to Craig for the new hat...
The Channel Point road had recently been graded but we still had to slow to 60kmh through the rough spots. We came back through Berry Springs and the road was even better than the Channel Point road and it took just on 2hours 20minutes to get back home to Howard Springs. Best that I have ever seen the roads.
Cheers
Warren
We travelled out to the 35 meter mark west of Sail Highway with deep blue water and slight seas. Unfortunately there was no bait, no birds, no tuna and even worse....no billies. After a couple of hours trolling teasers we had donuts for our score. We came inshore and trolled teasers through sail highway where we raised a couple of sails but they were not coming up to the back of the boat where we could chuck a fly at them. We managed to get amongst a couple of tuna on fly for the evening session before heading into shelter behind South Peron for the night.
Friday morning saw a 20knot southerly hammering up the Peron Island channel and it wasn't looking too good for a days fly fishing for billies. We hammered our way back out to Sail Highway through a sloppy mess of a westerly swell with a southerly chop, white caps, still no birds and a wet arse. Trolling teasers.....trolling teasers......trolling teasers......nothing
About lunch time the weather settled enough to actually see the teasers through the wite water and we actually managed to raise two sails near sail highway. All the billies were being really tentative and wouldnt convert over from the teaser to the pitch bait. Managed to get one sail right up to the prop but wouldn't play the game with the bait or fly. Up to this point we were 5-0-0......not a great conversion rate and we didn't really have a proper shot at them on fly. With a half hour to go before calling stumps we decided to put away the fly gear and put a hook in front of the switch bait, a nice fresh 10 inch mullet rigged behind a 4/0 circle. It only took 5 minutes and the rod was slammed, let the line release for a count of 10 and throw the bail arm over. The line came up tight and up jumped a billie. 20 minutes later the fish was beside the boat, hook out, tag in, quick photo and on its way to play again another day. Not quite the same thrill as chasing them on fly but any day that you get to stick a tag in a billie is a great day!
A quiet beer to reflect on the days proceedings and we were on our way back home.
Thanks to Craig for the new hat...
The Channel Point road had recently been graded but we still had to slow to 60kmh through the rough spots. We came back through Berry Springs and the road was even better than the Channel Point road and it took just on 2hours 20minutes to get back home to Howard Springs. Best that I have ever seen the roads.
Cheers
Warren
. he'd hooked and lost a few so when he went for a dive and spotted one he couldn't help himself, the "straight gaff fly pattern" 
as he called it nailed it just below the dorsal and put up a spirited fight, the fish was released a little worse for wear.
, Daisy