24Jun 2023 by Warren Prior No Comments
Bonito off the Kayak in Sydney Harbour

Bonito off the Kayak in Sydney Harbour

Kayak Fishing, Lure Fishing, Salt Water
After months of diving, focused primarily on my divemaster training as well as gaining experience teaching and guiding, I decided that it was time to get back onto my kayak with a fishing rod. The plan, a calamari catch and cook. This meant the usual early morning start. I even managed to beat the sun to Tunks Park boat ramp. The parking lot was thankfully empty, which meant it was easy for me to offload my kayak and kit up for the day. I launched at sunrise, and immediately started paddling towards toward Spit Bridge, and my secret squidding location. Behind me I trolled a small Rapala, hoping to pick up a kingfish or Aussie salmon en route. Sunrise at Tunk Park boat ramp Heading out on my kayak on…
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29Jan 2022 by Warren Prior No Comments
Kayak Fishing Cowan Creek…Again…

Kayak Fishing Cowan Creek…Again…

Fly Fishing, Kayak Fishing, Lure Fishing, Salt Water
Somehow December was all about the diving, and I didn't manage to get in any fishing while on leave. Hell-bent on righting this wrong, I loaded my kayak onto the roof and headed down to Cowan Creek. To be honest, my expectations weren't high; I'd visited Bobbin Head the week before to fly my drone and the water looked like a mud-bath. But you can't catch a fish without a line in the water, and a day spent paddling through a nature reserve is never time wasted, so I headed out anyway. When I arrived at Bobbin Head I was pleasantly surprised - the water had cleared up nicely despite the ongoing rain, and so my hopes lifted. I was quick to get onto the water and decided to paddle…
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21Nov 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Rescue Diver Training

Rescue Diver Training

Diving, Salt Water
There’s no doubt about it, diving comes with a few inherent risks. And while it’s safety record is great, and it's standards are high, your safety is ultimately your own responsibility. And if you can extend that responsibility to also include others, amazing! With that in mind, I signed up to do a Rescue Diver course, which also includes an Emergency First Responder certification. As is the norm with PADI courses, the weeks preceding the course were spent going through online training, and writing short online exams. We then gathered at the dive shop on Friday evening to meet our dive buddies, do a short knowledge review, and collect our gear. And then the real fun began… Day 1 - The Skills Little Manly on a cloudy morning I arrived…
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25Sep 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Kayak Fishing Cowan Creek (Bobbin Head)

Kayak Fishing Cowan Creek (Bobbin Head)

Fly Fishing, Kayak Fishing, Lure Fishing, Salt Water
After far too many weeks in lockdown I decided to take advantage of the fact that I was still allowed out on the kayak. Amazingly, I hadn’t used it since moving into our new house, so I was itching to get out there and explore my new local waterway. I loaded my kayak on the ute’s roof the night before, saving me the effort of doing so in the morning. I then set about kitting up my rods and locating all my fishing gear, some of which was still boxed up from the move. At 6am the next morning I headed for Bobbin Head Picnic Ground, making my way carefully through the Ku-ring-Gai Chase National Park. The roads were packed with cyclists, slowing my trip down to the boat ramp.…
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03Jul 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Two Days Fishing Moreton Bay

Two Days Fishing Moreton Bay

Bait, Salt Water
My family and I amazingly managed to escape the latest Sydney lockdown by flying into Brisbane, two weeks prior to a planned Keppel Island vacation. That said, it wasn't all plain sailing, and we were forced into 14 days of lockdown by the Queensland premier. Thankfully we were still allowed out to exercise, which happened to include fishing, and so this is exactly what we did. Over the course of our 14 day lockdown Nick and I took the boat our twice, both times in Moreton Bay, focusing in on the Peel Island area. We drifted bait over structure, picking up a handful of species including snapper, sweet lips, cod, tuskfish, and so many more. We also took the opportunity to tag some fish, giving back to the fishing community.…
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03Apr 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Bonito on Fly in Middle Harbour

Bonito on Fly in Middle Harbour

Fly Fishing, Kayak Fishing, Lure Fishing, Salt Water
December Brisbane trip...cancelled due to Covid...April Brisbane trip...cancelled due to Covid... And so, on a beautiful April morning, I launched my kayak from the Tunks Park boat ramp, fly rod in hand. The plan for the day was to go after some pelagic species on fly, specifically the Sydney harbour kingfish. I wasn't sure what to expect, as Sydney had experienced mass flooding the prior week. And as a result, the water was murky brown, with a lot of suspended debris, as I paddled out towards the rising sun. Sunrise in Middle Harbour I opted to head towards the harbour mouth, hoping the water would be cleaner closer to the ocean. As it turned out, this proved to be a good strategy. The water colour quickly changed from muddy brown…
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17Jan 2021 by Warren Prior No Comments
Aussie Salmon on the New Rod

Aussie Salmon on the New Rod

Kayak Fishing, Lure Fishing, Salt Water
For Christmas I was gifted an Okuma Azores jigging spin rod (Z-S-602M) and a Daiwa Saltist 4500 spinning reel, and was itching to put it to the test. This despite the fact that it was intended for a deep sea fishing trip (that was cancelled due to Covid) and was definitely overkill for my fishing in the Sydney Harbour. None the less, I loaded up my kayak and headed out with the new rig, hoping to get into a decent kingfish, that would really put it to the test. I launched my kayak at Tunks Park boat ramp, and started trolling my way towards Clontarf. Normally I would focus on fly fishing the likely holds, and troll a single rod as I moved between spots. However, since I was out…
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24Dec 2020 by Warren Prior No Comments
Tailor on Fly in Middle Harbour (and a Few Squid)

Tailor on Fly in Middle Harbour (and a Few Squid)

Fly Fishing, Kayak Fishing, Lure Fishing, Salt Water
Sunrise at the Tunks Park boat ramp 'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. But whilst all this was true, there were fish to be caught, so I loaded up my kayak, and headed to the port... I launched from my usual, Tunks Park boat ramp, to a glowing orange sky and started paddling towards towards Clontarf. To kick things off I stopped off at my squidding spot, where I quickly landed a few southern calamari for dinner. The nice thing about the squid is that they're either there or they're not...and today they were there. With dinner sorted, I packed away the squid rod and got down to some fly fishing. I fished around the Clontarf area,…
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