IT IS said that ‘good fishers know when not to go fishing’.

Well, I don’t know where that leaves me because last Monday I went fishing and I should have stayed home.

For me to catch cracker snapper, in front of the Outer Light off Fingal Island, I need a couple of variables to fall into place.

I need a southerly wind and a rising sea.

A flat sea in a north-easterly, I can’t get a bite.

With the southerly blowing, I can anchor and let the wind blow me over my snapper hot spot.

With the current and the wind going in the same direction I can toss an unweighted bait, of cubed yellowtail, just short of the breaking bombora and hang on!

Slowly, slowly the bait sinks until, whammo!

The rod buckles and the reel screams under the weight of a runaway snapper.

Lately I have been catching thumpers up to eight kilograms.

Now, about last Monday.

The southerly kept blowing and blowing and the sea kept rising and rising.

Around 3 o’clock I made the decision to launch Stinkpot in the corner of Fingal Beach and head for the lighthouse.

Conditions weren’t too bad until I left Fingal Bay and motored into the open ocean.

It was then that I should have turned around and went home.

I kept going and dropped anchor 30 metres from the wash.

The sea was cranky and sitting in Stinkpot was like riding a wild horse.

First cast I hooked something that took off like the last bus to Bobs Farm.

A bigger than average salmon leapt out of the water.

I was surrounded by a school of salmon and couldn’t get my bait to the bottom where I was most likely to catch a snapper.

Finally, a snapper to three kilograms beat the salmon to the bait.

Snapper are fantastic fighting fish that take real effort to land.

Another snapper soon after, as conditions worsened.

With the waves increasing and the wind howling I finally made the right decision and headed home – exhausted.

By John ‘Stinker’ CLARKE