Tewantin angler Mick Bochow fished a likely surf gutter he'd scoped out around first light at Double Island Point on Wednesday morning hoping for a tailor. And his early bird effort paid off handsomely when this 3.5kg greenback tried, unsuccessfully as you can see, to run off with his whole pilchard bait. Photo: fishingnoosa.com.au

Tailor and jewies to improve on Sunshine Coast beaches

July 26, 2019

With Sunday and Monday blowing 30 knots or more it came as a welcome surprise to see glassed out conditions on Tuesday and much of the week. In the lead up to the Full moon the fish were certainly chewing hard with some outstanding captures in the river. Offshore we saw a solid mixed bag of species and a few signs of things to come.

Out wide the snapper are getting a little bigger with some reported to 80-90cm. These fish have been caught around DI, The Hards and Barwon banks. Along with these fish cobia, scarlet sea perch, pearl perch, venus tusk fish, amberjack, kingfish and some solid jewies too! Live baits seem to be the go for a lot of these bigger fish when the bite is hard so be sure to take some Sabiki rigs with you. If you don’t like the hooks swinging about and getting stuck in your carpet then why not try a Sabiki rod. These rods keep all the hooks internally and away from fingers and toes.

In closer North reef has been providing anglers with a mixed bag of snapper, tuskies, pearlies and jewies. This is the time of year where jewies and snapper are certainly coming on strong so be sure you give soft plastics and jigs a try when out wide. Using 5-7 inch paddle and curl tail soft plastics loaded with scent and just the right weight jighead will bring your offering to life, so be sure to have a good assortment in your kit. Don’t forget to tie a loop knot when attaching your jighead. This ensures it comes to life when jigged. Alternatively why not try the Mustad Fastach clip. This lets you quickly change lures and jigheads without cutting into your leader. If headed out that way don’t forget the spanner crabs are about so set a few dillies on your way out for a great mix of seafood on your return.

Sunshine reef continues to provide anglers using baits and lures with a mix of snapper, pearlies, sweetlip, cobia and even the odd mackerel. We are almost at the tail end of the mackerel season but having a floater out is still a great way to connect to one whether it be a live bait or a drifted pilchard. In close along halls, castaways and further south toward Arkwright Shoal, reports of big snapper have been coming in from the shallower waters. These fish taking a mix of soft plastics and baits lightly weighted. Run sounders to find the fish and be sure you drift over them several times before moving onward.

The river has seen some amazing captures with the most memorable an 85cm diamond trevally coming from Woods Bay! This fish fell for a micro jig which is one of the best ways to target trevally. Take a look at Blue Blue Dea Ride, Jig Para and even the smallest Halso twisties.

Be sure to use finer gauge assists for maximum hook penetration if fishing light lines and leaders. The lower areas of the mouth and dog beach continue to provide anglers with solid flathead and bream along with some very chunky golden trevally. With all trevally you need to let them run so have your drags pre-set and braid changed over if old. Remember we offer a free spooling service with all line bought in-store. Around the current line, woods bay and the coastguard are the best spots to try and find these fish. Of course up river they can be found too. Flatties and bream are also found around these areas so there really is no need to head up steam while the lower area is going so well.

Surf fishing is going well with light winds and swell. Dart, bream and whiting are ever present during the daytimes around the river mouths and along the various beaches up and down the coast. Tailor and jewies are still a bit quiet but after the full moon you can expect to see these fish come on the chew as the moon fades and the tides reduce. Low light has been best for these fish so get set up at dusk and keep baits of worm, mullet and pippies fresh.

Freshwater has also been firing although cold the bass are chewing and schooled up in deeper waters. If headed to MacDonald or Borumba be sure to throw jerk baits at the edges during the mornings and then break out soft plastics, vibes and jigs as the sun rises. During the hotter afternoons why not try surface as the bass are still smashing various frog and smaller stickbaits like the ever faithful Sammy 65 from Luckycraft.

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 Davo’s Tackle World, Davo’s Boating and Outdoors in Noosa and Davo’s 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!