WE decided that for Easter this year we would embark on a road trip from Brisbane to Seventeen Seventy.
Most of the best fishing at Seventeen Seventy occurs offshore and given the hit or miss pattern of recent Easter breaks we knew we were gambling on getting in some quality fishing, or any fishing at all. Well it paid off and like most, my family and I enjoyed what can only be described as an epic weather period over the Easter break. Blue skies, whispy scattered clouds, low winds and a flat ocean was the order of the day and we were ready to take full advantage.
The first sign that we were in for a great day was the presence of bait – we had no trouble finding and securing a supply of yellowtail. From there it was off to the fishing grounds where along the way we passed several groups of birds working over bait schools. A few smartly casted slugs saw a small but reasonable bluefin tuna come aboard. It’s so much fun to fight with these little sea bullets on light gear.
We left them biting and headed for the reef where our freshly caught livies were destined for glory. Soon they were down on the reef edge and it was only minutes before the first rod confirmed that the big red fish were there – and they were keen!
Over the next few hours we boated several coral trout – all over 60cm – cod at around 80cm and nearly a dozen red emperor, all of which were returned safely to the reef. Rounding out the day’s catch were appearances by cobia, hussar, triggers and myriad of other emperor species and reef fish.
Seeing red – (above and top) there were plenty of amazingly coloured cod and other reefies caught and released.
The photos and the smiles tell a good story, but among the most rewarding moments of our trip were the comments from our family members visiting from overseas along the lines of “this was one of the best days out we have ever had”.
Seventeen Seventy is a special place and being able to show off this fantastic Queensland town on demand made for a memorable holiday and a set of top-shelf fishing memories.
Info on Seventeen Seventy available HERE.
