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Ep.7 - Estuary Perch & Bream
After a successful early morning on the water chasing bream and school mulloway with Tackle Tactics Pro Anglers Luke Smith and Corey McLaren, the boys made the call to venture up river in search of the iconic estuary perch.
Andrew (cameraman) and I were both pretty pumped that the call had been made as we had both caught plenty of bass over the years but never seen an estuary perch in the flesh. That big eye that makes them such an effective hunter in low light, the scooped head that is one of the keys to differentiating them from bass and those powerful runs all needed to be seen up close.
By now the sun was high in the sky and with the banks fairly exposed the bite was slow. As we began to encounter more shaded banks, shaded pockets and structure though, the action began heating up. Switching to the ZMan 2.5" GrubZ Corey hooked up to a solid EP to kick off our episode and the plan had come together. We took a moment to admire the fish and it was into the live well for a swim.
Releasing the fish back into the water immediately can spook other fish that are in the snag, so we opted to keep a few fish on board for a photo and release later in the session. It's important that you have a quality live well if you do choose to keep fish alive for later release and also that you monitor them to ensure they are in good condition, especially in hot weather.
I was casting hard from the back of the boat in an attempt to land my first estuary perch. It was more about capturing the boys in action, fishing for some of their favourite species, however the chance was there and the lures were flying. Corey and Luke both landed more estuary perch making pinpoint casts to structure and pockets. The fish were loving the GrubZ fished lightly weighted on a 1/20oz and 1/16oz jighead that were allowed to slow fall into the zone and worked with small shakes and hops.
The more you fish this tight structure, the more accurate your casts become and after sacrificing a few jigheads I was starting to get my eye in. A flick deep into a pocket in the reeds and a solid hookset that had me cheering, before a solid bream surfaced... it's all good, some more cheering... we just love fishing.
It was a mix of estuary perch and bream, before I made another cast deep into cover, began a retrieve and set the hook on a fish close to the surface. Surely the estuary perch had seen my Slim SwimZ wafting down with those big eyes and nailed it on the drop... no, it was a yellow eyed mullet, jagged in the back and it went off. As you can imagine this 'estuary mullet' caused me some grief for the rest of the session, but that's a great thing about fishing with mates, there's always plenty of stories to tell later.
It was excellent to watch the guys in action, finesse fishing with their ZMan 2.5" GrubZ and Slim SwimZ, light HeadlockZ finesse jigheads, 4lb leader and finesse Okuma combos. You can tell these guys fish together often by the banter, the automated process with the electric motor and net when a fish is hooked and the way that they worked together to thoroughly dissect the bank with casts, covering all of the pockets, angles and structure.
I did hook my estuary perch... however I was messing around while the camera was readied and it managed to shake the lure and win its freedom. Thoughts of I should have just netted it soon turned to that's fishing and it's a great excuse to take my wife on a Victorian holiday where we both may have a chance at an EP, while exploring this beautiful part of the country.
A double hook up for the boys on estuary perch was the perfect opportunity to close out the session as we had a fair drive ahead of us and plenty of stories to share on the way back. It was great to get down south and catch up with the boys, take in a few of the sights and enjoy some of the great fishing on offer in this part of the world. The time had come to bid farewell and hit the road on our journey north a little, where our next target would be the fiery fins and solid build of the English perch or redfin.
Cheers,
Justin Willmer
Gear List
ZMan 2.5" GrubZ - http://tackletactics.com.au/ZMan-Lures/Curl-TailZ/ZMan-25-GrubZ
ZMan 2.5" Slim SwimZ - http://tackletactics.com.au/ZMan-Lures/Paddle-TailZ/ZMan-25-Slim-SwimZ
TT Lures HeadlockZ Finesse Jigheads - 1/20, 1/16 and 1/12oz #1 - http://tackletactics.com.au/TT-Lures/Jigheads/HeadlockZ-Finesse
Pro-Cure Super Gel Scent - http://tackletactics.com.au/Pro-Cure
Okuma Helios Spinning Rods - http://tackletactics.com.au/Okuma/Spinning-Rods/Helios-Spinning-Rods
Okuma Cerros Spinning Rods - http://tackletactics.com.au/Okuma/Spinning-Rods/Cerros-Spinning-Rods
Okuma Helios SX Spin Reels - http://tackletactics.com.au/Okuma/Spinning-Reels/Helios-SX
Okuma Epixor XT Spin Reels - http://tackletactics.com.au/Okuma/Spinning-Reels/Epixor-XT