Bush 'n Beach Fishing Magazine Location reports & tips for fishing, boating, camping, kayaking, 4WDing in Queensland and Northern NSW
With the northerly winds blowing and not looking to change any time soon, offshore fishing around the Bundaberg area will be a bit lumpy out wide. It’s time to do maintenance on the boat and trailer before the weather comes good and it’s Christmas time.
BUNDABERG INSHORE
For those anglers who are mad keen and want to poke their noses put the front, there have been plenty of mackerel and tuna on the close reefs and around the mouth of Burnett Heads. Casting slugs into and around the schools should pick you up a feed.
THE BURNETT RIVER
Summer time is just about upon us and the weather is really starting to heat up. There are great reports of mangrove jack being caught in the past few weeks with temperatures rising and the fish really coming on the chew. For those casting lures and wanting to have a go at catching the red dog on a lure, set yourself up with a rig with 20lb braid and 30 to 40lb leader. Lure of choice is a 3” to 4” soft plastic, preferably rigged weedless so it may be cast tight into mangroves or around rock bars without being snagged. For those who want to sit back and have a beer, use a good fillet of mullet with a light sinker and about a 4/0 size hook, wait and then hang on! That could be your fish of a life-time.
There are good reports of 60cm grunter also being caught with good sized flathead out of the Burnett by casting soft plastics into the deeper holes. Always make sure you have a heavy enough jig head to get your soft plastic to the bottom – very important.
LAKE GREGORY
Before the sun rises high in the sky and it gets too hot to fish, get out early and cast a few spinnerbaits around the edges of this little dam, or go up into the timber. This should produce a few good reaction bites to get some quality bass. Once the bite slows around the edges, move out into the deeper water to find those school fish. Casting a soft plastic or blade lure and slowly retrieving back through the school should pick you up a few more fish.
LENTHALLS DAM
Lenthalls Dam is approximately just over an hour’s drive south of Bundaberg. What a great little dam to catch a barra! I had the opportunity to take my young son there to catch his first ever barra and his biggest bass to date. Just off the highway and into the forestry, this top little lake is all weed edges and lilies. Catching barra in Lenthalls Dam is the same as any other lake – follow the wind to find that warmer water. Casting 4” soft plastics, jerkbaits and lipless crankbaits were getting the bites for us. To get onto this lake you can not have any more than a 60HP four-stroke or E-Tec motor and the speed limit on the dam is 6 knots. The gate opens from 6.00am and closes at 6.00pm. Limited short-stay camping is available and pre-booking of a camp site is essential. Information is available at https://www.frasercoast.qld.gov.au/wbw-camping-and-recreation
LAKE MONDURAN
With the water level dropping, the water temperature rising and the barra getting bigger, now is the time to get out on this dam and get your barra fix. Good reports of fish in the 90cm range are coming in fast. If you follow the rules and follow the wind, casting suspending hard bodies around timber snags and off points, you will catch a barra. Most importantly, persistence is the key.
Keep on casting,
Shane Anderson
