beach launches

Having done not particularly well the last 3 times we went off to sea, it was about due that we had a bit of luck, and we did, getting 54 flathead, mostly big fish too including a real mammoth tiger flathead. Having given some to Norm, and had a fish and chips tea, we're still 16 fish up in the freezer. It was quite an adventure coming in the new mouth of the patriarchs estuary as it has moved. Imagine sitting at sea - all you can see is the dunes, and the back of the waves - and you have to decide exactly where to run in, and there will be no real chance to change your mind. From the beach side the color and where the waves break tells you the deeper bits... from the sea, not so easy. You have to come in on the plane, but on the back of a wave. you're thus moving fairly fast. If you stop, it will be sudden, and dead stop. Then the crew has to hastily jump overboard turn the nose into the waves, or if it is back or side on you will swamp and possibly lose the boat, and certainly get into one hell of a mess... then wading, push/pull the boat either back into water deep enough to run the motors, or into a sea gutter (sheltered by a sand-bar) or the mouth of the estuary so the recovery vehicle and trailer can get there - hopefully the sand is hard enough. The ute nearly bogged in a patch of rotten sea-weed buried in the sand today. Beach launch/recovery ranges from mildly exciting to terrifying.