Fitzy Down Under

[Fitzy_1982]

Didn't want to hi-jack the ireland thread so I'll stick any pics I get up here.

Got out for a fair run today, went to the ocean side 1st and tried a couple of spots but the swell was too big so after a few hours I gave up, still took a few fish. There was a big ass stingray following me around for awhile, they just creep up on ya when you're not looking.

Hit the bay on the way back, it was pissing rain but flat calm, took home a few scallops and a nice occy. Not sure how I'm gona cook it, any suggestions. Gordan Ramsay(Neil(Climbing Perch)), what would your recommendations be

Scallops aren't half the size as back home, biggest 100mm, smallest 85mm, no limits on size here just a bag limit of 100. I still threw any small ones back.

Time for a beer now me thinks:friday

 

[bobdonny]

savage man!!

 

[foxfish]

Living the life dude...

 

[climbingperch]

Hi Fitzy!
First of all, well done. I'm exceptionally jealous. Sorry for the delay in getting back, I haven't been on in a while. I presume you've figured out how to clean the octopus by now. There are many ways to prepare an octopus. You can do as the Greeks, grab it by the tentacles and bash it off the nearest rock for half an hour to tenderise it, but I prefer the Galician method of slow braising. Once you've cleaned your octopus, it's pretty much all edible. When you've cooked it in this manner, you can reheat it or have it cold in a variety of salads and dishes. Put your octopus in a large pot with about 300ml of olive oil, 100ml of white wine and 100ml of white wine vinegar. Place a cartouche (circle of greaseproof paper) on top of the ingredients and then cover the top of the pot with tin foil. Place in a pre-heated oven at 150 deg celcius for 3-4 hours until the octopus is tender. Traditionally, the octopus is then sliced into ringlets about 1cm thick, slowly reheated in olive oil and dusted with sweet paprika but there are countless recipes you can choose, a google search will throw up plenty. I hope you enjoy it. P.S. What are those fish and are they tasty??
Again, very jealous!
Neal.

 

[Fitzy_1982]

Thanks lads, That sounds good Neil, I knew you'd have a recipe for them, I'll let you know how it goes.

The fish are sweep and magpie perch, the maggie is nice, its like whiting, the sweep is like mackeral. Sweep is my favourite so far, filleted floured and fried, lovely.

I cooked up the scallops Sunday night, cut some rashers into squares, fried in butter, removed rashers, fried scallops and scallions in buttery rashery oil, threw rashers back in with the scallops, teaspoon of brown sugar,mix it all up, onto the plate, a drizzle of maple syrup. I'm not codding lads it's the nicest way I've had scallops yet. Try it and see.

 

[Fitzy_1982]

Neil, have you ever heard of using kiwi fruit juice to tenderise meat/octopus etc. It has been suggested to me by 2 people.

 

[climbingperch]

Heard of it alrite but I doubt it would tenderise an octopus either cook it the way I suggested or skin it ( not an easy job). Pedro should be able to give you some Portuguese ideas he's a big octopus fan, its worth the effort just a bit of work:martial melts in the mouth when you get it right. What do the Aussies suggest ????? God I wish I could find one here its my goal for next year along with a red mullet at least I got a trigger this year anyway.

 

[Fitzy_1982]

God I wish I could find one

Eh, Aussies or Octopus?

 

[bobdonny]

He means a kiwi fruit

 

[climbingperch]

Everyone's a comedian round here rofl I meant an octopus just for the record there is such a thing as the "Common Irish Octopus" but I can't find the Fecker. Todays top tip if you get another one Fitzy or a squid or cuttlefish try and keep the ink sac it makes an amazing colored sauce or black pasta. Sometimes you can buy it here but only in specialist shops and its bloody expensive.

 

[climbingperch]

Here's an example of how bloody expensive Squid Ink and here's how to extract it How to Harvest Squid Ink

 

[Fitzy_1982]

What do the Aussies suggest ?????

Slap it on the barbie, nice and crunchy!

He means a kiwi fruit

Thanks for clearing that one up Rob, I was getting worried there.

Here's an example of how bloody expensive Squid Ink and here's how to extract it How to Harvest Squid Ink

WTF, where do you come up with this stuff, have to try that- if I knew that sooner I could have done my Christmas cards with squid inkrofl

Got some good dives in over the last few weeks. On the 4th I headed down the peninsula to Sorrento, in the water for 7am, dyin with a hangover from a booze cruise I was on the day before. We were looking for squid. The 1st spot we tried had no squid but it did have a shoal of luderick which you dont come by every day. I found the shoal 1st but messed up my shot with my line getting caught around my real. The other 2 with me soon got onto them and by the time I came across them again they were too spooked. There was a few boat ramps where we were diving so I checked out underneath them, got a nice leather jacket for my troubles. We decided to move onto another spot to try for the squid. Jumped in at Portsea, there was a fair current running so we anchored up our float lines about 100m off shore. I use an inox anchor, best piece of kit I ever bought, especially in current. I use it on every dive now. It's great for working an area if you've berleyed or to rest in current.Legendary Skindiving Equipment - Australia's Best Spearfishing Online Megastore
Anyway there was no squidleys around on this occasion so we called it a day. It was still a great dive with 10+m viz

Tried a new spot the following wednesday and the wednesday after that. A place called Mt Eliza. There is a group of rocks about 5-10m wide that runs out about 100m to sea. On each side it drops off to around 6m. It's the best spot I've been at so far in the bay. On the midweek dives I took a squid, mullet, sweep and loads of muscles off the rocks. Didn't venture too far past the tip of the rocks on these occasions as I was on my own.

Went back yesterday with another diver from the club and smashed it.In the water again for 7am, we went out past the rocks maybe 150m, diving in 6m. There is a huge gulley that runs through some huge bommies(rocks). Best fun I had in ages. I was burleying with Pilchards that we bought in the shop. I chopped them up and stuffed them in under a rock with a few scattered around the outside. I swam away about 10 m to the other side of a rock and let it brew then dived down and crept along the sand on the edge of the rocks. It brought in Trevally, Sweep, and I bagged my 1st Pinky Snapper. It's the 1st time I even seen Snapper. I could have had a kg+ Snapper, I was hiding in behind the rock and there was loads of small pinkys coming in. Then this big bad ass snapper stuck his head around the rock, if I had of taken the shot I would have had him on my stringer but I just sat there looking at him. As soon as he seen me he was gone. I had tried the same approach 5 or 6 times now so I decided to come in from a differant direction. I dropped down and crept along the rocks on the opposite side and thank god I did, I stuck my head out over the rock and a huge 2m wide stingray came shooting in right over where I was before. It would have frightened the bejasus out of me. The diver I was with lost a nice snapper, it ripped off his spear, I had a trev rip off on me aswel, gutted. Here's the video of the snapper he lost.
[ame=http://vimeo.com/33821727]Untitled on Vimeo[/ame]
Great dive, when we got out it was 30 degrees so I hopped in for a cool off. Nice pic eh! When I got home the misses was laughing at me. I dont know how the F*ck this happens with my head in the water but I had a sunburn line on my head with a white patch in the shape of my hood. I look llike a right tit.

Roll on Christmas, 2 and a half weeks off work, plenty more reports to come.

Happy Christmas Boys & Girls

Fitzy:t

PS: Regan I'll have all the spots sussed out for you when you get here in March. What's you pb Snapper so I can try beat it before you get here.

 

[scottwilson]

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[bobdonny]

Alan...the pics are so much....... larger when viewed on a desktop as opposed to my mobile

 

[Fitzy_1982]

Just back from chasing Kingfish in Wilsons Prom. I havn't posted in awhile because I knew this trip was coming up and I was hoping to have a few good pictures but unfortunetly I only have a story of the one that got away.

Headed across to Wilsons Prom on the East coast of Victoria on Saturday afternoon. Bed early and up at 5.30 on Sunday. Headed down to a place called Walkerville to launch the boat from the beach. The boat was in the water for 8ish and off we went, 30km from the launch point out to the Glennies. We were after kingies and nothing else.

There was 2 pairs of divers in our boat and it was a comp so there was 4 other boats out on the day aswel. We were diving 25-50m of water with an average 15m viz. We used flashers in the water to try and bring the fish in. They were set at around 12m. We took turns working the flashers while the other dived on the flashers to see if there was anything coming up from the deep. We had made a decision at the start to stay in the same spot for the day and just persist rather than moving around wasting time. The idea was that the kingies would eventually cruise by. We were at it for nearly 3 hours with nothing, all the other boats had come and gone so we said feck it we'll move on. We were swimming back to the boat, there was a diver from the other pair a few metres to my right, his partner was nearly at the boat and I looked back to see where my partner was. When I turned back around and put my head in the water there was a school of 15-20 kingies, maybe more, and they were only 5m below me. I didn't say a word and just dived right down into the middle of them. They surrounded me and I couldn't believe it. They were all 8+ kg. I lined up a shot and pulled the trigger, the spear hit the kingy half way between the ribs and tail. I started finning to the surface and I could feel the tension building on my line, I was thinking please hold please hold but no, it ripped out. I dont think it penetrated through for the flopper to engage, gutted. I had a 1.1m gun, if it was a bit more powerful I would have had it but thats the way it goes. I'm just stoked I had a crack at them.

The season doesn't end until April so I'll be arranging another trip very shortly. I think the next one will have to be when an old spearfishing buddy from Kiwi land comes to visit in march

Here's some pics of the day with the winning fish(not mine) that went 8.7kg and 12kg

 

[bobdonny]

nice going man!
gun is fine, but maybe you need more powerful rubbers?
I upgraded mine and the difference is amazing.
curious tho, is it hard to get back into that boat? Is there a transom ladder or side gunnel ladder.

 

[Fitzy_1982]

nice going man!
gun is fine, but maybe you need more powerful rubbers?
I upgraded mine and the difference is amazing.
curious tho, is it hard to get back into that boat? Is there a transom ladder or side gunnel ladder.

Cheers Rob!
It actually wasn't even my gun, it was a Rob Allen carbon with 19 mm rubbers, pretty powerful. Just a bad shot.
A mate of mine was back at the same spot yesterday, 8 hours diving with 2x 12kg fish taken.

Don't know about the ladder situation on that boat, that was another boat in the comp that day. We were in a Haines hunter v19r, with no ladder. We relied on whoever stayed back to man the boat to pull us out of the water. I've seen ladders on other boats that are just a little fold away ladder that you through over the side.

 

[bobdonny]

Cheers Rob!
It actually wasn't even my gun, it was a Rob Allen carbon with 19 mm rubbers, pretty powerful. Just a bad shot.
A mate of mine was back at the same spot yesterday, 8 hours diving with 2x 12kg fish taken.

Don't know about the ladder situation on that boat, that was another boat in the comp that day. We were in a Haines hunter v19r, with no ladder. We relied on whoever stayed back to man the boat to pull us out of the water. I've seen ladders on other boats that are just a little fold away ladder that you through over the side.

Thanks, I have a side gunnel ladder that can be folded away, but you need to take your fins off first. I'm considering a transom ladder, but you will still need to take off fins... I've seen some scuba ladders that don't need you to take off fins, but I'm not sure they would work with long fins?

Practice your aim then

 

[Fitzy_1982]

It has been awhile since I put up a post so now that it's winter in Melbourne and I'm bored, I thought I'd put up a few pictures and wipe the slate clean for a fresh season of diving.

Plenty of diving during the summer, it's great living 2 minutes from the coast, I was getting out atleast twice a week.now I know how Bobdonny and the rest of the Cork lads feel:t Plenty of Bream, Snapper, Flathead and Sweep taken in some great conditions(and bad). Nothing too nasty spotted apart for some big bull rays and seals. I've seen a few harmless sharks so hopefully it will stay that way.

Saturday was the 1st time I have been out in probably a month due to the weather, rain and wind, I might aswel be back in Ireland. saying that it's the middle of winter and the water temp is only 13 degrees so you'd get a few hours out of it. The goal on Saturday was to get onto the big squid that come into the bay at this time of year to lay their eggs. I didn't find any squid but I did find a few patches of eggs so it wasn't a complete loss, atleast I know they will be there at some stage.

I'll endeavour to put more reports up from now on.

 

[bobdonny]

Nice wan fitzy you getting the offspring into snorkelling at all? That shark looks a bit on the skinny side