Fish Species Guide

WITH the cooler waters the mackerel and tuna are almost gone, so methods will have to change, as these are no longer easy to find. This is the time where the main target species becomes the hard-hitting, head-thumping snapper. These fish certainly know how to fight, especially when they hit the 80cm mark, which ideally should be returned after a …

WITH the Cape’s wet season finishing abruptly after a last burst of heavy rain at the end of April, the southeast trade winds took over from the northerly flow and were soon pumping at 20 knots or better by mid-May. This time of year is known in the north as ‘the run-off’, signified by the typically tannin stained waters pushing …

JULY fishing on the Gold Coast features typical winter species including good flathead, big bream, arrow and tiger squid, tailor, flounder, tuskfish and snapper just to name a few. Live yabbies, whitebait, and vibe lures all work well. Last year we saw many school mackerel take up residence for two months in the Broadwater, so let’s hope history repeats. squid …

UNFORTUNATELY, or fortunately, Murray cod can be the fish of a thousand casts. Cracking a pattern without experience can be a tough thing to work out. This is where I hope to impart a bit of knowledge to make it a little easier, but I am by no means an expert. Like most anglers that chase these elusive fish, I …

WINTER in the bay means three things, snapper stocks increase, tailor turn up in reasonable numbers, and the humble bream are easier to find due to it being their spawning season, and they school up around most creek or river mouths. Some of the better areas to target bream are the river and creeks on the northside, and areas like …

AFTER catching my first fish on a soft plastic about 35 years ago, I have been hooked and have fished many styles, types and colours of plastics, learning to rig and fish them a stack of different ways over the years. Soft plastics are relatively inexpensive, look real, feel real and with a squirt of scent they even smell and …

THE tracky dacks and ugg boots have well and truly come out of retirement. We have had a few patches of proper cold weather but apart from that winter has been quite reasonable. But some mornings it is hard to get out of bed to go for a fish. So I think getting a few mates on board helps to …

THERE are days when things just don’t seem to go to plan, and I’m not talking about losing a big fish. Sometimes you’re simply feeling a bit down and out. Sometimes there are periods when things just seem too much, and you want to spend a bit of time out to let your worries slip away.  We all experience times …

WINTER will be in full swing this month. All cold water species should be in good numbers throughout the rivers and creeks in Southeast Queensland. June started off very well, with constant cold temperatures getting the fish very active. The Brisbane River has still been fishing very well. July grunter I had a recent session with my mate Bretto on the river. …

WINTER on the Gold Coast can only mean one thing – snapper! As the water temperature has slowly slid into the low 20s and the hard southern current ebbs, snapper move back onto the local reefs to fatten up and spawn. With them will come yellowtail kingfish, jewfish, pearl perch and cobia, which makes every drop a lucky dip where …