Bush 'n Beach Fishing Magazine Location reports & tips for fishing, boating, camping, kayaking, 4WDing in Queensland and Northern NSW
Well, we weathered the storm and have come out the other side – winter is now officially behind us. Pack away the Ugg boots and tracksuit pants and watch the water temperature start to rise. September is a great time to get back into those prime estuary species. September Capricorn
Metabolic rates will be on the increase and tropical species will leave their lethargic selves in the rearview mirror to get on the hunt for an easy meal. So, what sort of tropical species am I talking about? That’s an easy explanation – all the cool species, such as barramundi, mangrove jack, king threadfin and snapper. September Capricorn
Recently, I was chatting to fellow Bush ‘n Beach Fishing scribe Keith Stratford, and he believes that September is one of the best months to chase jack. I am by no means an expert at catching jack but the good models I have caught locally weren’t available until the water temp had risen and stabilised into the October period. In all honesty, I haven’t put much effort into chasing central Queensland mangrove jack during September, but with Keith’s experience and advice I think I might have to get out there and have a go. I think you should too, and then we can compare results. September Capricorn
If you’re looking to get yourself a couple of deadly jack plastics, I have a couple of standouts that have worked a treat and can easily be skip cast into overhanging mangroves. The first is the 3.5” Molix RT shad. It’s only a small plastic but it puts out an incredible thump with its pulsating tail. This would be the soft plastic that has worked best for me on those red devils, and Blueback Herring has been my pick of colours .
The second jack confidence plastic for me is the 3.5” Castaic Jerky J Swim. This is another fantastic paddle tail option. They don’t thump as well as the Molix but with their cylinder-shaped body they are super easy to skip cast. My favourite colour for these would be Blue Gill. It’s not a colour I would generally go for but I’m glad I have – if you drop this plastic in the water it looks like the tail glows, which is cool.
You can run both these plastics on a standard jig head, but I would rather run them on a weedless weighted hook with a nose spring, such as an Owner Flashy Swimmer. That way, you’re ready to cast them anywhere and don’t need to change.
