Bush 'n Beach Fishing Magazine Location reports & tips for fishing, boating, camping, kayaking, 4WDing in Queensland and Northern NSW
Spring has sprung fishing
Well, that’s farewell to winter as we ticked over into September. The cold nights gave way to warmer day temperatures and a noticeable change, until the rains moved in for Friday and Saturday. Until that, the post-new moon provided hot fishing offshore for some and quiet for others.
Out wide around North Reef and beyond, there were some extra-large cobia coming in. These fish were easily around 20kg plus and, with smaller fish around 10kg, those who scored certainly got a good arm stretching! These fish were taking anything from a live bait to a lure. If you are new to using lures offshore, you can try soft plastics. If you have tried soft plastics, then try soft vibes such as the Nomad Vertrex or Samaki Vibelicious 150mm. These lures are yet to gain popularity but work exceptionally well, often getting smashed on the drop. You can expect to catch almost everything on these, with snapper, jewfish and cobia prime targets.
After the rains, you can expect the fishing to turn on again because many reef fish love a good dump of rain. These rains were not super heavy, so expect the river to be running clear with little to no discoloration offshore. Snapper and grass sweetlip have been on and off, though you can still expect to find some prized eating fish around the 50-70cm size. Last week North Reef was popular, and out wide is where the bigger fish tend to be this week, so it’s going to be a case of monitor your sounder and cruise about.
Surf fishing has seen a few jewfish on the run up to the new moon, with most coming after dark. These fish can be taken on lures, but fresh bait tends to do best. Tailor were running around with trevally following close by. Should you want to try for a jewie, a fresh slab of legal-size tailor can work very well on a snelled rig with 50-60lb mono leader such as Platypus Hard Armour, which is supple enough to tie complex knots yet retains great presentation.
River fishing has had a flush of freshwater, which often pushes bait and fish toward the mouth. With this in mind, if launching a boat, try around sandbags, rock wall of the river mouth and the Frying Pan areas. There are new channels forming that many fish will be exploring and making the most of. One such fish are flathead, which sit and wait for smaller prey to pass overhead. Whole whitebait and prawn on light running sinker rigs work very well, particularly in the current. For those lure fishing, smaller 3-4” soft plastics on 1/6th jig heads will work well. Check out the new range from Bite Science and grab a pack of matched jig heads on BKK hooks.
As we see the water temperature start to creep up over the coming weeks, you’ll also notice mangrove jack featuring around rocks and heavy structure. Try fishing around the bridges and areas that receive sun because heat will disperse into the surrounding water, which some fish like. Lastly, with the rains, it’s always worth setting a few crab pots along the mangrove edges in the upper reaches of the river. We have 2kg bags of crab bait that is sure to bring in any nearby crab. If you need any supplies, we carry a wide range of accessories and can help get you set up.
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!
