Bush 'n Beach Fishing Magazine Location reports & tips for fishing, boating, camping, kayaking, 4WDing in Queensland and Northern NSW
Warmer times to come – Noosa Report
Welcome to November and everything we love about the coming month. Though it’s still quite cold in the mornings, the water temperature is on the rise. We are now starting to see some summer species coming through, which means those with casting rods and metal lures can get excited.
Offshore has been a mix of glass out and windy days and those who had the time managed to pick a few days of great fishing. Sunshine and North reefs, along with Chardons and Jew Shoal have all offered up snapper, pearl perch, tuskfish, cobia, jewfish, tuna and mackerel. There are new changes to the spanish mackerel fishery, so be sure to check these out before they arrive in big numbers. For now, we’re seeing broad barred or grey mackerel, which often get mistaken for spanish. They are still excellent eating and are well worth keeping for a feed.
For those using bait, a pilchard floater is the consistent catcher of mackerel and snapper. For lure anglers, a well-cast sinking stickbait such as the Fish Inc Right Wing in Bonito colour works very well, as do smaller Rapala X-Rap Magnum Prey stick baits. If drifting, you can try a variety of soft plastics or smaller jigs such as the new Nomad Ridgeback, which is perfect for casting and working the depths for fish. For those dropping dillies for spanner crabs, now is the perfect time to get some of these fine eating critters because this is the final month before the seasonal closure kicks in. We stock all the dillies, rope and floats to get you started.
From the beaches, those who managed to make the trip to K’gari have reported bulk tailor, with fish around the 30-50cm size. These fish are well worth experiencing and, if you have yet to catch a fish on a slug, you can do this with ease up here. We have a great range of surf-casting gear and lines to match your reel. For those on the coast, the warmer water is seeing an influx of small whiting on a low and an incoming tide. The warm sand heats the water and this species love it. Try using a small bait of beachworm and peeled prawn for the best success.
River fishing has seen some chunky flathead and bream from the lower estuary. Peeled prawn, whitebait and herring are proving to be the best bait. Fishing on 3-5kg spin sticks and 10lb braid or mono is getting the job done nicely, with some trevally and tailor picking up bait and screaming off with them. For those running lures, the smaller Keitech Easy Shiners are working well in the darker colours following an evening rain mid-week. Between the lakes has seen quality fish landed, including bream and smaller jewfish. Small jewies must be kept in the water for as long as possible before removing hooks and such. With this in mind, it’s a good idea to have a landing net, especially if targeting anything big.
With the school holidays almost over, the Noosa River will soon return to the sleepy river it once was, making the next few weeks the perfect time to get out there and enjoy some great fishing.
Now, for all the latest information log onto www.fishingnoosa.com.au for up-to-date bar and fishing reports, don’t forget to drop into Tackle World Noosa, Noosa Boating and Outdoors and Northshore Bait & Tackle in Marcoola for all the right equipment, bait and advice to get you catching. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and remember, tight lines and bent spines!
