Skinny Water Gummies

Appears courtesy of Victorian Fishing Monthly magazine.

Written by Dan Lee.

One of my earliest fishing memories is hassling my father to catch a Gummy Shark. And my not-so-secret is that I still find them one of the most intriguing species in Melbourne to target. Quite simply, I love them!  My initial fancy for skinny water Gummies was twigged when I heard a report of people sighting Gummies feeding on top of the shallow Mud flats in Westernport Bay.    As an avid angler of the species in Southern Port Phillip this raised a couple of interesting questions. I had noted that many of my marks in the 12 – 16m range were only a hundred or so metres from sand bars, or more pointedly, the sand flats surrounding the Fort and Mud Island. Was it possible that you could catch Gummies from on top of the sand rather that sitting at the bottom of the channel edge? Well, that was a question I was willing to explore and here is what I learnt along the way.

The Theory

There has been a lot of talk about Gummies using contour lines, or the edge of channels, to navigate both Westernport and Southern Port Phillip Bay. Whilst this is clearly true, demonstrated by the large numbers of Gummies taken while fishing the edge of channels or ‘drop-offs’, there is more to it. As active scavengers I believe they roam up and down the embankments, and in the right conditions, up onto the sand flats themselves looking for food. With the tide rushing over the shallow 1 – 2 metre sand flats, crabs and other tasty morsels are regularly swept off to the deeper edges where they are consumed by these scavenging sharks.

Daniel Edwards with a Port Phillip Bay thumper!

The Challenge

Anchor on the sand flat between 10 - 20 metres from the embankment. You will be in roughly 1 – 2 metres of water which gives you some options. You can keep a couple of rods in short, up on the flat, and cast or “roll” a couple of baits out deeper onto the embankment. Either way, you will not have baits deeper than 8 metres, which certainly provides for an exciting tussle once you hook-up! Look for the steepest embankments you can find. You really want a distinctive drop, where the water depth changes dramatically within casting distance.  

Time of the year

Gummies are best targeted between January and June, however they are one of the species that are available all year round in Melbourne. The difficulty with this style of fishing is that it demands an element of stealth and in the peak of summer there is a lot of noise, boat traffic etc on the water. My recommendation would be to focus on April & May and, depending on your inclination for cold evenings on the water, through the winter months or at night. Very simply, this is a covert affair and quiet days on the water will heighten your chances of a fish.

Up close and personal with Mustelus Antarcticus, commonly known as the Gummy Shark. 

The “Roll the Ball” method –

In truth I fish two styles while hunting Gummy Shark in skinny water, using a total of four rods. The first style employs the common ‘Westernport Rig’ consisting of an ‘ezy rig’ sinker clip, appropriate tear-drop sinker, 1.5metres of 60 – 80lb Jinkai trace and an 8/0 Gamakatsu Octopus hook.

The second style, I term the “Roll the Ball” method which employs the use of a large ball sinker situated between the swivel that connects the main line to the leader and the hook at the other end of your leader. This means that it is not a true running sinker rig as the ball sinker can only move the length of the leader.   I usually fix two 5/0 hooks at the end, with one snelled at a length suitable for Californian squid found at most tackle stores. The reason for this particular rig becomes apparent once you understand the technique I use. Firstly, I either cast or lower my bait to the sea floor behind the boat – but not further than the edge of the embankment. Over the next half an hour or so, I frequently “roll” or let out line for a period of 30 seconds at a time. The current will roll the bait and sinker along the sea floor. I continue this frequently in order to mimic a dead squid being washed off the flats. Be sure to use a ball sinker large enough to keep your bait on the bottom. Once the bait has gone a suitable way down the embankment you can leave it sit or retrieve and start the process again. 

In this particular style of Gummy fishing I am an advocate of berley. Having said that, I like to use fresh berley – which usually consists of the fish frames I am using for bait. And in my experience you just cannot go past Australian Salmon. It is absolutely my bait and berley of choice! Fishing the skinny water of Port Phillip Bay, means that you will not need to put your berley in a cage on the sea floor, which would usually be the method I employ in deeper water. Given that the boat sits in only a metre or so of water, the berley will reach the bottom fairly quickly if either dispersed by hand or mashed through a berley pot.

Tim Ffyfe with a skinny water gummy shark taken while 'on the roll'.

Tides

While fishing the Mud Island and Fort sand flats the tides play an important roll. The key factor is whether you fish the north side of the Island or Fort or the south side. This will largely be governed by which tide you fish. Keeping in mind that you are sitting in only 1 - 2 metres of water and you want the transom of your boat, your fishing platform, facing the drop-off or embankment. Remember, we are counting on the fact that Gummies will approach and move up the bank scavenging for food as it gets washed off the sand flats. This means that on a flood tide you will most likely find an appropriate drop off on the north side of Mud Island or the Fort, while an ebb tide will see you fish the south side as water flows off the sand flats back into the South Channel. Clearly, you will need to align the wind direction with the tidal flow, so planning your trip with some attention to detail is a must. You do not want to be confronted with wind-against-tide, which will make this process nigh on impossible!  

Personally, I prefer to fish the last couple of hours of the flood tide. My simple reason for this is that Gummy Sharks are active scavengers, they are not lie-in-wait predators. I believe that Gummies come further up the embankments under the cover of flood tide – remember this is going to give them an extra metre of water to hide under.           

Fishing Dusk 

The best time to target skinny water Gummies is dusk. And there is one very practical reason for this. When fishing on top of sandbars, Mud flats etc, you do not want to be scooting around in the darkness. By fishing dusk, you can launch your boat while there is still daylight.   You can scout out your area with the comfort of light and little risk of running aground. Drop your anchor, set your baits and wait for the sun to go down.

An impressive and exciting fish to target.  The first time you see the unmistakable silver sheen just below the surface of the water you will find yourself seriously hooked on gummy shark fishing.

Silence, silence and more silence.

Without doubt skinny water fishing requires a level of silence. When you’re sitting in 1 – 2 metres of water, dropping a sinker on the floor will sound like dynamite to a feeding Gummy. Remember – sound travels a lot further in water.   Having said that, a 10 – 15 knot wind will create an ambience of natural water sounds and offer you some cover. Be wary of loud talking, the radio and accidental banging in your boat. If you use an anchor winch make sure you anchor a good hour prior to your ‘peak’ fishing period. That way you don’t scare away any potential customers who might just be lurking on the edge of the deeper water; waiting for their chance to venture up onto the sand flat.

Limit your catch…

Catch and release is an exciting part of conserving our gummy shark fisher for generations to come.