Spotted mackerel season

Well, here we are in January and the pelagic species have been firing on the local reefs.

With spotted mackerel coming down in big numbers, the larger models are always the first to show up.

And with the average-sized spotty being above 80cm in length, any fisho would be over the moon.

With a solid week of southerly wind and nice warm water making its way down, it was a recipe for success and that’s exactly what we had.

My first session out on the local produced a bag out before 6am and saw me heading off to work by 7am.

I will say that filleting 10 spotted mackerel after a full day of work was a mission in itself.

The spotties were on fire that morning, with a slight westerly wind in the morning that glassed off by 5.30am – creating a muggy and overcast morning – which was the icing on the cake.

Just drifting the reef seemed to do the trick on this particular morning.

 

Having two half pillies out the back underneath a float, spinning with metals and a slight trail of berley turned them on for a crazy session, with double and triple hook-ups.

The rig I run for mackerel is quite simple.

A swivel with 28lb seven-strand wire down to a 3/0 Mustad Hoodlum hook is a very effective rig that I’ve been using for years, with zero faults.

It’s always a perfect hook-up and the hook is small enough to hide in the pillie if the fish are being skittish.

Running 20lb mono on an old-school 4500 Shimano Baitrunner is a spotted mackerel catching machine – a nice rod with a soft tip to allow for stretch in the line and the right amount of pressure is essential.

The beauty of a Baitrunner is having the reel set with a light drag to allow the fish to run freely, feeling little to no resistance.

And, once they are running, you flick the switch and the reel is back to normal drag pressure.

When spinning for these line burners, I like to run a 5000-size reel or an old-school Shimano TSS4 with 30lb braid and 30lb leader, which is then tied to a Halco Twisty, Nomad Metal or a Gillies lure.

 

I use a range of sizes, from 20-50g to give myself maximum chances to land a fish or two.

There have been many sessions where the fish are so zoned in on a certain sized lure that they will only eat that size and colour.

A silver or gold colour is always my first choice, giving off a strong flash that represents a fleeing baitfish at high speed, this will catch the attention of any pelagic.

With Currumbin Bar still being dredged, it is a tricky bar to navigate – sand banks are constantly changing the direction of the channel and surfers are out early with the sunrise.

Tweed Heads has been very good lately, particularly after the recent dredging, which has created quite a safe passage for this time of the year.

Seaway is still the pick though, being so deep and close to all the main reefs mackerel will congregate at.

Mermaid Reef has been producing nice numbers of mackerel recently, as seen from the charters’ social media pages.

Which allows for recreational fishos to see the fish arriving, then get out there and score some fish for themselves.

 

Towing a pillie behind the boat is always the best option at the start of the season.

There are plenty of towing rigs on the market, but the most efficient and easiest rig would have to be the Reaper Rig from Lure Us In, with more time spent fishing and less time mucking around rigging the bait up, it allows for all anglers to catch a mackerel.

With its simple but effective design, the Reaper Rig takes all of 10 seconds to rig the pillie up and start fishing.

A single-head spike locks the bait in place behind the moulded design and a rig of two trebles that hook into the underside of the bait creates the awesome swimming action and lifelike performance that will trick any fish into eating.

At the time of writing, the northerly wind was kicking around, making it harder to get mackerel in large numbers.

I find the northerly shuts them down, turning the water green and cold.

Not to mention the amount of rain the southern parts of the Gold Coast had, which turned the water cold and brown.

The best option for right now would be to have all your gear ready and get yourself keen because they aren’t too far away from any reef on the Gold Coast.

Let the fun and games that spotted mackerel bring every year begin!