Cool mornings are hard to face when leaving home and heading out for that morning trip: Westerly winds cut deep and your fingers feel the pain as you try and thaw the block of pilchards you forgot to take out of the freezer the night before.

Botany Bay, like many large bays, is extremely open and the wind can make your planned trip just about impossible. The only sheltered spots are along the shore or tucked in behind the Container Wall or the runway.

Port Hacking may be a better spot to fish some days as there is plenty of protection from the wind in the many arms that stretch from the main channel. But if the wind is too strong, pull the pin and plan your trip for another day.

At this time I like afternoon trips which allow you plenty of time to watch the weather and plan. I leave around 3pm and head towards Trevally Alley and try for a few trevally, the most reliable targets in the cooler months. These guys love hanging around structure but you will find them all over the Bay.

Bare Island, a top spot for an afternoon outing, holds large numbers of trevally and most times they are a better size than you will find along the Container Wall. Snapper at times will hold around Bare Island with the odd good one mixed with plenty of smaller fish.

Bream in smaller numbers will hold around the reef and leatherjackets call this spot home all year round.

The Oil Wharf is a top spot on a run-out tide with a westerly blowing. Tailor and trevally feed along the wharf with bream on the bottom and the odd better snapper as well. Many anglers fish into the night along the wharf for tailor and jewfish.

On many an afternoon trip I head to the bait grounds first and load up on small live baits and, if I’m lucky, bag a squid. Then I anchor at one of the spots that I have listed and try for a few trevally or bream and around 5pm I like to head back and anchor just out from one of the many bridges the cross the Georges River, where I normally then spend two or three hours targeting jewfish.

Jewies have improved since the closure of Botany Bay to netting and I think stocking has also helped a little. Each week I hear of fish caught around the Bay and up-river. Most are 3kg to 5kg with the odd fish of 10kg to 15kg.

I have found good fish on both tides so as long as the water is moving you are in with a chance of bagging a jew. Anchor your boat about 50m from a bridge and fish towards one of the pylons. You might have to lift your anchor two or three times to place your boat in the right spot do this but you will be rewarded for that extra work.

Live yellowtail and squid are my favourite baits, so take the time to find them for best results. A 10kg outfit suits the smaller run of fish but you might need something a little heaver if a big boy wants to play.

I normally fish the bottom with two live baits and two squid. So far the live baits are in front as far as hook-ups but this may change on the next outing.

So why not finish work early and head out and fish into the night. You will have the place just about to your self and the fishing at times can be red-hot. Just give me a call and I’ll have you out on the water after work targeting trevally, bream, snapper and tailor and a session on the jew to finish off the trip. Call 0418 169 439 to book or visit www.fishingsydney.com.au for the details.