IT’S that time of the year when the luderick ‘invade’ the port.

Swimming in huge schools along the beaches the fish gather in the quiet bays from Birubi to Fingal until a change in the weather pattern drives them further north.

Like the mullet and bream which travelled earlier, the luderick pour out of the rivers and estuaries and head for the open ocean as part of their spawning ritual.

Over the past months the mullet have been preparing to travel in the Myall Lakes system and the upper reaches of Port Stephens.

At night it is not uncommon to hear them as they splash on the surface and continually jump.

It is all action on one of the hottest luderick fishing spots on the east coast – the Nelson Bay Breakwall.

Take a wander down and watch the recreational fishers as they line up on their specially selected rock before tossing their floats and baited hooks.

To witness the luderick fishers at work on the breakwall is the cheapest entertainment in town.

By John ‘Stinker’ CLARKE