Page 73 - Bush 'n Beach Fishing Magazine

CAMPING
& outdoors
Time for a Cape York trip
* from P72
them a heads-up using your CB radio to assist in getting past safely, particularly in dusty conditions.
cellent opportunity to throw a lure or fly at the multitude of species inhabiting the bauxite reefs and sandy beach- es that stretch south of Weipa township.
It’s a great opportuni- ty to see the place with- out the usual crowds.
A little courtesy goes a long way.
There’s no Macca’s up this way but I can as- sure the burgers are the best you’ll ever taste.
Normally the heaviest traffic to the Cape oc- curs in July and August then tapers off after the school holidays at the end of September, with few vehicles on the road during October and No- vember.
Several trevally spe- cies, queenfish, finger- mark, tuskfish, mack- erel, tuna and those revered fly fishing targets such as permit giant herring and blue bastard can be prolific at that time of year and ready to eat.
The secret ingredient is the meat – it comes from the properties where the roadhouses are sited.
Fingermark are one of the best eating sh in the sea and there are plenty in the Cape’s estuaries and reefs. William landed this beauty off a trolled Halco Scorpion lure.
2020 has been a horror season for Cape charter operators with most having bookings cancelled for the entire season.There could be spots available with the professionals if you can make the journey.
Hot weather equals hot shing! One bonus for shers visiting before the bar- ramundi closure starts can be trophy sh such as this beauty.
Bush ’n Beach Fishing, September 2020 – Page 73
You can’t get more genuine and fresher than that!
The weather can be hot at that time of year but so is the fishing, consequently if you have a chance to travel and the current COVID travel restrictions see the Cape remain open to traffic, it could be an opportune time to make the effort to visit while there’re not many people about.
One consideration that is sometimes mis- understood concerns the arrival of the wet season.
In fact, the fishing has been noticeably better this year because there are not as many charter and visiting boats on the water.
There are predictions of La Niña happening this year, but it would still be unusual for the road to be undrivable before the start of De- cember.
Of course, the main target for visiting fish- ers is barramundi, so be aware that the Gulf of Carpentaria season closes on October 7.
Early wet season storms don’t really cause dangerous wash- outs or affect river crossings, so as long as you travel carefully on any wet sections, get- ting up and down Pen- insula Development Rd is not usually too dif- ficult.
The place is still defi- nitely worth a visit after the closure starts but barramundi are defi- nitely off the menu af- ter that date.
In a nutshell what this means is the Cape is open for business and looks like remaining so until year’s end.
Inshore waters along the coast are usually very clear at that time
of year, so it’s an ex-
www.bnb shing.com.au
In recent years, the big wet hasn’t really arrived until well into January, so travelling the road leading up to Christmas has been fairly easy.