Bush 'n Beach Fishing Magazine Location reports & tips for fishing, boating, camping, kayaking, 4WDing in Queensland and Northern NSW
Inshore/Offshore fishing
The inshore fishing has been red hot! The spanish mackerel have arrived in good numbers and have been proper chewing. Trolling gar has definitely been the standout technique. Early morning and late afternoons are by far the best bite times.
There’s been some nice snapper and grunter being caught as well, again early morning and late afternoon is the best bite times for them. Using 20g soft vibes and 5” soft plastic’s is always a good way to get you into both of these species. If you’re more into bait fishing using squid and pilchards is a great bait to get you into the action as well.
The offshore reefs have been fishing good as well! Plenty of red emperor, coral trout and spanish mackerel have been getting caught. The trout have been smashing pilchards and prawn imitation soft plastic’s.
The reds have been loving big flesh baits and squid in around 40 meters of water and the spanish mackerel have been hitting trolled hardbody lures and gar! Always remember to fish your favourite spots on the change of tide. Those little bite windows can change your day!
Burnett River
With the amount of baitfish currently in the river, paired with the water clearing up we have seen some solid blue salmon enter the Burnett! These salmon have been caught in the deep holes and around the bridges on soft plastics and vibes.
Finding the bait is the key to finding the big schools of these fish. Queenfish, trevally and grunter have also been around in good numbers. Floating out some whole sprat has got the bite from the pelagic’s and a small strip of mullet fillet has been ideal for the grunter.
Plenty of barra are also in the river with the rock bars producing most of these fish when using live baits. The prawning has been red hot at the moment, the better numbers of the prawns have been found around Strathdees, using a 10 to 12 foot top pocket cast net is ideal. We currently have a few of our nets on sale so if you’re after a quality net at red hot prices come and see us!
Elliott River
The Elliott sure is producing some quality fish! This time of year usually sees this river fishing superbly and with the amount of bait currently in the Elliott we are seeing just that. The sand flats are the go to place for most at the moment whilst the grunter, flathead and whiting are feeding throughout most of the day.
Fresh yabbies or even beach worms drifted along the shallow flats is sure to pick up a few of these quality fish. Up river in the creeks has seen anglers catching some ripper jack out of the mangroves. Any fallen trees are also a hotspot for these jack so be sure to drift a live bait or a whole sprat right into the structure.
The prawns have been in good numbers as well, the deeper holes in the creeks have been loaded with these prawns! Be sure to keep an eye on your sounder whilst up the creeks as you could come home with a great feed in just a few throws of the net!
Baffle Creek
The Baffle had plenty of anglers on the water over the weekend and we definitely saw some cracking fish caught from the river. Flathead, grunter and whiting were on the chew, small strips of mullet fillet worked best on these fish aside from the whiting which preferred beach worms and yabbies.
Fishing with a lighter ball sinker and leader got the bite, typically we saw most success on a running ball sinker rig as this allows the bait to drift naturally in the water column. Mangrove jack and big estuary cod have been some of the more sought after species for anglers as of late.
These fish have been caught consistently along the rocks bars and deep banks with fallen trees and mangroves providing plenty of structure for these fish. Using live baits has been the ideal bait for these fish however like mentioned above a strip of mullet fillet has worked very well.
On the crabbing front the upper reaches of the creeks have been the best place lately, using plenty of strong smelling bait in each of your pots has helped get a feed especially when there are a few other crab pots in the same area as yours. Some good numbers of prawns have also been up the creeks so whilst throwing in a few pots keep a close eye on the sounder for any large schools.
Kolan River
The mouth of the Kolan is the place to be at the moment! The sand flats and fallen trees have produced some solid fish over the school holidays. Dusky flathead, grunter and queenfish have been the most commonly caught species and the incoming tide is the time to be out and chasing a quick feed.
Small strips of mullet fillet or whole sprat rigged using a running ball sinker rig has got the bite. Throwing a few baits up on the shallow flats and some along the bottom edge of the drop offs has been a great technique. The big grunter have been patrolling the deeper edges around the sand flats so throwing out a few soft vibes has picked up some good fish whilst you have a few baits in the water.
Local Beaches
This week has yet again seen our local beaches producing some great quality fish. Woodgate beach has still been fishing great with some big flathead, bream and whiting being caught. Fresh yabbies, beach worms or pippies have been the go to bait for these fish.
Norval Park Beach and Rules beach have also been fishing well with the key to be finding deep gutters close to the shoreline. Anglers using fresh bait have got the better quality fish so be sure to try and find some fresh bait if you can. Having a few small metal lures ready to cast into a school of trevally or queenfish is also a great idea as some big schools of these fish have been on the move.
Lake Monduran
The barra in the dam seem to be on the chew with these cooler mornings enticing these fish to feed up before winter. The early morning and late afternoon bite times have been pretty consistent with some of the bigger barra landed during these bite windows.
Keep and eye on the Kolan River tide times because the change in tide is often a cracking little opportunity to nail a few barra in the dam. Slowly twitched and paused Jackall Squirrels have got some quality fish to eat, along the weedy banks and points has seen lightly weighted soft plastics being very effective.
During the middle of the day the rat barra have been tucked right in close to the banks especially those with plenty of shade from overhanging trees or lily pads. Casting your lure into this shade and working it back to the boat has definitely worked a treat.
CATCH OF THE WEEK
If you would like your catch photos published to be in the running for a $50 gift card every week, email your details and photos of local catches only to accounts@tackleworldbundy.com.au
From the team at Tackle World Bundaberg
Live the Tackle World L.I.F.E – Local Independent Fishing Experts
