BNB Fishing Mag | March 2024 by bnbfishing

Spanish mackerel closure

495

Includes GST

March 2024

Moreton Bay snapper

Print Post Approved PP100001534 Volume 35, Number 3

Offshore action Dirty water fishing tips Estuary options

ISSN 1832-4517

Spotted mackerel Jack tactics

03 Proudly produced and printed in Australia

9 771832 451001

Estuary • Offshore • Freshwater • 4WD • Camping • Touring www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 1

Page 2 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 3

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Page 4 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

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From the Bush ‘n Beach Fishing editor

’M not sure where to begin – it has been another ‘crazy’ month to continue the year on. Unfortunately, the weather gods are against us, which has made both fishing and boating more than slightly tough. And, if your normal haunt is the southern part of Moreton Bay, well… it has been even tougher. That doesn’t mean it’s impossible to catch fish – you simply need to fish a little smarter. By that I mean work out where the cleaner water is and fish the last of the run-up and first of the run-out. Saltwater is denser than freshwater, so if it’s dirty fresh on top, you can have clean saltwater underneath – this is obviously dependent on the depth you’re fishing and the time of the tide. But this is where the fish and bait will be holding, which means this is where you need to have your bait or lure. The northern part of Moreton Bay and further north along the

coast is fairing much better, with a mix of mackerel and reefies keeping anglers happy. If you’re looking to get out and want to escape the rat race around Brisbane, a trip further north or south would be a good option. Alternatively, if the wind and swell permit, try to get offshore. Now is a good time to chase a few line-burning pelagic, but make sure to throw some reef fishing gear in too because they’re also on the chew. Just remember that the second southern spanish mackerel closure runs from March 1-21, so they are a notake species during that time. I know several anglers aren’t happy about this and there has been varied data regarding their numbers, but it is only six weeks in total (inclusive of the first closure) that we can’t chase them in the southern area. Not a huge price to pay to ensure their sustainability. Spotted mackerel On social media re-

Getting kids into fishing early is key.

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cently there was a ‘debate’, for lack of a better word, regarding the commercial ring netting of spotted mackerel in Moreton Bay. While I know this frustrates several fishos, it is currently legal. The short of it is, in September 2021 there was an amendment to the legislation to allow ring netting for spotted mackerel, but there was also a big reduction in the total allowable commercial catch. My understanding is that this is up for review this year, so I’m sure there will be more information coming to hand in the not-toodistant future. I go into more detailed information on this issue on page 24 of this edition. Mary River sooty grunter While most anglers associate tilapia and carp as invasive or noxious species, it is important to understand that any fish that is non-indigenous to an area can cause damage to local fish species. The sooty grunter falls into this category if caught in particular waterways and should be treated as such. As detailed by Fisheries Queensland, any sooty grunter caught in the Mary River catchment are deemed to be a non-indigenous fisheries resource and must not be returned to the water after they have been removed, including as bait. However, unlike tilapia and carp – which are subject to movement controls under the Biosecurity Act –

fishers are free to keep and eat sooty grunter in this catchment. Alternatively, fishers should dispatch the fish in a humane and responsible manner. The Mary River is home to several threatened species and these

rules are in place to protect iconic species such as Mary River cod, Australian lungfish and Mary River turtles from unnatural predation and competition from other species. Ben Collins

OUR COVER Spanish mackerel closure

495

Includes GST

March 2024

Moreton Bay snapper

Print Post Approved PP100001534 Volume 35, Number 3

Offshore action Dirty water Dirty fishing tips Estuary options

ISSN 1832-4517

Spotted mackerel Jack tactics

03 Proudly produced and printed in Australia

9 771832 451001

Estuary • Offshore • Freshwater • 4WD • Camping • Touring www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 1

KEIRA DOBSON with her first spotted mackerel of the season taken from the local reef. Gavin Dobson goes into more detail on this species and others in his article on page 38.

NEXT EDITION: April edition will be on sale in newsagents from March 22. MARCH SUBSCRIPTION OFFER: See the subscription form on page 84 to be one of the first 50 subscribers this month and receive a Rapala fishing buff, valued at $19.95 RRP each. JANUARY PRIZE WINNERS: Congratulations to G. Firth, Ormiston; G. Murree, Maryborough; G. Hatchman, Albany Creek; P. Lord, Redland Bay and R. Edols, Coalfalls who will each receive a lure pack from S Tackle, valued at $69.75 RRP each. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 5

March 2024 contents

Surprise snapper success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Sean Conlon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P8 Fishing Events Calendar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P10 Tips for dirty water targets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Keith Stratford . . . . . . . . . . . . . P12 Tide Times - Brisbane Bar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P13 Family trip to West Peel Artificial Reef. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Mick Clutterbuck . . . . . . . . . . . P14 Encouraging kids to fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Mark Templeton . . . . . . . . . . . P16 Post-rain dirty water tactics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Justin Willmer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P18 Spotted mackerel ring netting update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Collins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P24 Live baiting and trolling for perfect pelagics . . . . . . . . . . by Jason Comino . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P26

Redland Bay Amateur Fishing Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P27 Nerang River whiting with Youngy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Sean Thompson . . . . . . . . . . . P30 Invisible invaders of our waterways. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P32 Tips for catching sand whiting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Clint Ansell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P34 Macks pre and post closure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Mitchel Zygnerski . . . . . . . . . . P36 Maximising mackerel mayhem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Gavin Dobson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P38 No match for mahi, snapper and macks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Brett Hyde . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P40 Jewies, knobbies, macks and trag. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Tye Porter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P42 Product News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P46 Yamaha launches new V6 4.3-litre 350hp outboard. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P52 Future uncertain for major boat brands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P54 Repower with a Mercury outboard. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P54 Charter Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P55 Crabs, jacks and barra. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Chris Rippon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P56 Fishing for those fussy fish. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Tri Ton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P58 Tide Times – Waddy Point. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P60

Great fishing from close-in reefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Gary Churchward . . . . . . . . . . P62 Crystal-clear waters of Curtis Island. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P63 Cracking catches on Capricorn Coast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by John Boon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P64 Rec fishers call for quota. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P66 Hooked on paradise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P68 Preparation and planning for a peninsula trip . . . . . . . . by 'Billabong' Bazz Lyon . . . . . . . P70 Crocodile country considerations to reduce risk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P71 Best of Western Australia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Collins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P72 Fishing trail guide for southeast Queensland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P76 Changes ahead for SIPS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Brain Dare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P76

Secret life of fish ear bones. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P78 Fishing fresh muddy water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Neil Schultz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P79 Glenlyon has gone green. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Brian Dare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P80 Dam Levels. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P81 Trading Post. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P82 Readers’ Forum ��P83 Subscription Form ��P84 Page 6 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

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The Team

EDITOR: Ben Collins ADVERTISING: Chantal Rimmington PRODUCTION: Tiffany Brown Lisa Jones

Bush ‘n Beach Fishing magazine is published monthly by Collins Media Pty Ltd ABN 43 159 051 500 ACN 159 051 500 trading as Collins Media. Phone 07 3286 1833 Email: ben@collins.media PO Box 162, Wynnum, Qld 4178 PRINTER: SpotNews DISTRIBUTION BY: Wrapaway Max. recommended retail price $4.95 (includes GST). CORRESPONDENTS: Editorial contributions are welcome, as is news from clubs,associations or individuals; and new product news from manufacturers. Entire contents copyright. Nothing may be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher. It is the responsibility of advertisers and contributors to ensure the correctness of their claims and statements. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 7

Using a Zerek Flash Minnow Wriggly, Ed caught a nice 43cm snapper.

A solid 58cm snapper hoovered a Zerek Flash Minnow Wriggly.

Surprise snapper success When the water cleans up, we’ll be chasing a few more of these.

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Page 8 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

ELL, what a dismal start to 2024! With all the rain earlier in the year, the water around the southern bay islands was very ordinary, to say the least. Throw in the wind and trying to coordinate dates when people can go fishing with the days and weather windows available and we’ve managed only one day on the water between Christmas and writing this article. In the 15 years of doing this, I would have to say this was possibly the worst start to a year I’ve ever had. Anyway, let’s hope all this rain and poor weather will turn into a cracker winter session – fingers crossed. So really, the only thing I have to write about is the one charter,

Southern Moreton Bay by SEAN CONLON

and the only reason we went was because the fisho was up here on holiday. I explained the situation and he said he was happy to just go out, have a day on the water and perhaps learn something, and if we caught a fish it would be a bonus. With this information and low-to-no expectations, we settled on a date with a nice big incoming tide to at least give us the best chance of getting some clean water. We didn’t need to start super early because we were going to fish the incoming tide, so I met Ed on the pontoon at 6am.

We had a quick discussion on the plan, which was to chase a few snapper on soft plastics with the incoming tide and then do a bit of bait fishing on the turn for whatever would eat the bait. This suited Ed because he hadn’t had much luck with lures previously, so he wanted to see if we could catch something on the soft plastics. And, as he’d come from down south where they enjoy eating flake, he also requested that when using bait on the turn of the tide, could we try for a small shark for him to take home. Once the plan was sorted, it was time to * continued P9

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Surprising snapper success * from P8

head out to see if we could make it happen. Remember, I hadn’t been out on the water for four weeks, so the first place we went to was where I’d caught fish a month prior. The water quality was fairly poor, so we tied a couple of dark coloured Zerek Live Flash Minnow Wriggly lures on, lined up the drift and deployed them, then we waited to see what would happen. We made a few drifts for absolutely nothing unfortunately. It looked like the poor water quality was going to be our nemesis. Making our way back to the top of the drift line again, we arrived in water that looked slightly better. I said to Ed that we’d do one more drift and if we didn’t get anything, we’d make a move. So, we cast the lures back in and started drifting in the cleaner water. Bang, straight away Ed was on with his first southern bay squire – not a big fish at 35cm but it was at least something with scales. I don’t like to keep them when they’re right on 35cm, so we let it go and quickly cast the Flash Minnow Wrigglies back into the water. No more bites on that drift, so it was lines in and back to the top of our drift to repeat it again. By then the water was getting cleaner – not great, but better. Ed cast his trustee Flash Minnow Wriggly, and he wouldn’t have drifted for more than 50m when bang – he

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was on to a good fish. Ed was enjoying fishing with the light gear and this fish pulled plenty of string on 10lb. It didn’t take long before we had a nice 45cm snapper in the net. After a quick photo, we went to the top of our drift again to repeat the same process. Ed cast his lure back in and we drifted about 200m when, happy days, Ed’s drag started screaming. It was a nice 43cm snapper in the net. Things were looking up. After a quick pic, we continued on that drift for another several hundred metres, though there were no more bites for that run. We went back to the top of the original drift and started again, and I mentioned to Ed that we were running out of time. We were getting close to the top of the tide and the drift was starting to slow down, so if we were going to get any more fish, we needed to get them over the next couple of drifts. We wouldn’t have drifted 100m when Ed’s drag started making that sound we all love. Soon after, Ed had another decent 45cm snapper in the net – same deal, a few quick pics and the fish was put on ice. We continued the drift and picked up a couple of small grass sweetlip, which were returned to fight another day. With time for one more drift as the tide was getting very close to the top, we returned to the top of our original drift line, applied some scent to the Flash Min-

now Wrigglies and got them back in the water, hoping to get Ed his bag of four snapper to take home for dinner. We picked up a couple more grassies that were released to fight another day, and then we heard that great sound of the drag screaming again. However, this fish didn’t play like a snapper. Ed had scored a nice southern bay trevally in the net. After a couple of quick pics, I asked Ed if he liked eating this species and, because he liked stronger tasting fish, it was bled and put on ice with the three snapper. We continued the drift, which resulted in only small undersized grassies that were all returned. As it was then the top of the tide, we couldn’t drift any more and the technique had basically become obsolete. Ed wanted to try some bait fishing to see if we * continued P10

Trevally also fell victim to the Zerek Flash Minnow Wriggly.

A decent 45cm southern bay snapper fell to a Zerek Flash Minnow Wriggly.

Tick all the boxes and catch more fish! FISHING TUITION

WITH SEAN CONLON

A four-hour off-water course for up to four people covering: Target species BOOK TODAY Moon phases Weather and tides Techniques Environment Tackle tips

0432 386 307 seanconlonsfishing@hotmail.com Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 9

Edward with a 45cm snapper taken on a soft plastic.

FISHING EVENTS EVENT

DATE

LOCATION

2024 Moura Muddy Water Apr 13-14 Classic Fishing Competition

Moura, Qld facebook.com/groups/MouraFish Stocking

Boyne Tannum May 3-5 HookUp

Gladstone, Qld boynetannumhookup.com.au

King of the Pin May 31-Jun 2 Alberton, Qld kingofthepin.com.au Womens Fishing Classic

May 11 - Jun 8 Southeast Queensland womensfishingclassic.com.au

Sanctuary Cove May 23-26 Gold Coast, Qld International Boat sanctuarycoveboatshow.com.au Show Rainbow Beach Jun 2-8 Family Fishing Classic & Expo

Rainbow Beach, Qld rainbowsportsclub.com.au

Evans Head Fishing Classic

Evans Head, NSW evansheadfishingclassic.com.au

Jul 5-12

AFTA Tackle Show Aug 15-17

Gold Coast, Qld afta.net.au

Moreton Island Fishing Classic

Aug 28-31

Moreton Island, Qld moretonislandfishingclassic.com.au

Baffle Creek Family Fishing Festival

Sep 16-21

Baffle Creek, Qld bafflecreek.com.au

Flathead Classic

Sep 24-27

Gold Coast, Qld flatheadclassic.com.au

Fitzroy River Barra Bash

Oct 9-12

Fitzroy River, Qld fitzroyriverbarrabash.com.au

Tackle World Bundaberg Family Fishing Classic

Oct 19-20

Lake Monduran, Qld masa-fishstocking.org.au

To have your competition listed in the calendar, please phone (07) 3286 1833 or email ads@collins.media Page 10 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

Surprise snapper success * from P9

could score a shark, so we put the lures away and headed to a new spot. We put the berley pot and some bait out and waited. Unfortunately, we caught only undersized grassies there too, so we packed it all up. As the tide was running out and the water had turned very brown, we headed north to stay in cleaner water. We pulled up at the next spot, the berley pot and bait went out and we waited. While there, we had a visit from Queensland Fisheries – they checked my paperwork and our fish, had a quick chat and they were on their way. By then, we had only about half an hour left in the charter when, you guessed it, one of the bait rods went off. The drag screamed and before long we had a decent 1m blacktip shark in the net – yes, they do always play up a bit. This was what Ed wanted, a little flake for dinner, so the fish was quickly bled and put on ice. Then it was time to

pack everything up, put the rods away and head for home. On way back, the water on that run-out tide was absolutely putrid. By 1.30pm, Ed was back at the pontoon with a nice feed of three snapper, a trevally and a shark. We loaded his Esky up and sent him on his way. We both had a great day. We went out with lowto-no expectations and pulled a fishy rabbit out of the hat. Let’s hope the weather plays the game, the water tidies up and we can get back out there catching fish. As we all know, with our jobs and lives we are time poor, so if you can learn more to optimise your time on the water, why not – remember knowledge is key. Until next month, stay safe on the water and, if you’re interested in our fishing tuition or want to do a fishing charter, give me a call on 0432 386 307, send an email to seanconlonsfishing@ hotmail.com or check out the Facebook page Seano’s Inshore Fishing Charters and Tuition.

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Email: admin@wynnummarine.com.au Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 11

Ben Monro landed a solid flathead jigging a Pro Lure Clone Prawn.

Ryan Holdsworth managed a lovely mangrove jack recently.

Tips for dirty water targets

Luke Stratford caught a decent flathead casting a soft plastic over the flats.

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ARCH is normally an excellent month to chase fish and crustaceans around Brisbane. Mud crabs were well and truly on the move towards the end of January, and there were also plenty of smaller prawns getting around, which meant things were looking good for the coming weeks. Then the rain turned up and dumped 300mm overnight around the north Brisbane area. The Pine and Caboolture rivers were hit very hard – it will take some time for them to clear enough for crabs, prawns and fish to move back in. Flathead were around in good numbers too before the rain hit. We were getting anywhere between 10-30 flatties in a session, with good fish over 60cm among them. At the time of writing, I guess these fish are now somewhere closer to Moreton Island! Hopefully they come back once the clean-

Local Luring by KEITH STRATFORD

er water starts to push back into the rivers. It could take a good couple of weeks for any salty water to start pushing back in, so by the time the March issue hits the shelves it should be fishable, as long as we don’t receive any more rain between now and then. I like fishing the dirty water – it concentrates the fish to an area that has some salt and they tend to bite better. Trying different lures and colours can make a big difference in any situation, though it’s

essential when fishing murky water. My friend Benny was fishing for flatties before the rain flushed them out. He was getting a few fish on the new white-coloured Pro Lure Clone Prawn, but the fish weren’t biting very well, with a few missed fish from it. He swapped over to the chartreuse-coloured Pro Lure Clone Prawn and the fish instantly started belting it and better-quality fish started coming aboard. * continued P13

The chartreuse Pro Lure Clone Prawn works very well in discoloured water.

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Tips for dirty water targets

in discoloured water, resist eating them. Trolling deep rocky especially down deep. I find they are more areas is always a good aggressive, and the option. hook-up rate is excelMake sure your leadlent. er is at least 40lb or That doesn’t mean above and be ready to you will land the tow them out of their fish after it’s hooked homes. though. Vibes that make plenAUSTRALIA EAST COAST They have a well-de- ty of noise in the water AUSTRALIA, EAST COAST BRISBANEBAR BAR AUSTRALIA, EAST COAST served reputation as are also a good choice ––BRISBANE BRISBANE BAR LAT 27° 22ʼSS is dirty. LONG153° 153°10ʼ 10ʼEE LAT 27° 22ʼ LONG the ‘red dog’ of the es- when the water Timesand andHeights HeightsofofHigh Highand andLow LowWaters Waters Times Time TimeZone Zone–1000 –1000 tuaries and they rareMud crabs will move JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL APRIL ly disappoint when back in quickly after Time mm Time mm Time mm Time mm Time mm Time mm Time Time Time Time Time Time Time Time Time mm Time mm hooked. 0022 the rain, don’t 0022 1.70 1.70 0058 1.98 1.98 0113though 1.88 0220 2.16 2.16 0038 2.08 2.08 0148 2.28 0220 0148 0324 0141 0113 1.88 0038 0058 2.28 0141 2.15 2.15 0324 2.10 2.10 16 16crab160824 110609 110648 110824 110711 161045 0609 0.64 0.64 16 0653 0.48 0.48 0711 0.82 0.82 16 0834 0.85 0.85 0648 0.82 0.82 16 0824 0.89 0834 0653 0.89 0824 0.96 0.96 16 1045 0.92 0.92 I’ve MO always done very be worried about 1245 2.26 2.26 TU 1316 2.47 2.47 1315 2.05 2.05 FR 1418 1.86 1.86 1234 1.95 1.95 SA 1351 1.66 1.66 MO 1351 1.59 1.59 TU 1629 1.51 1.51 MO1245 TU1316 TH1315 FR1418 FR1234 SA1351 TH FR MO1351 TU1629 1928 0.73 0.73 2003 0.48 0.48 1948murky 0.68 2044 0.62 0.62 1856 0.65 0.65 1955 0.70 2044 1955 2147 2003 1949 1948 0.68 1856 0.70 1949 0.79 0.79 2147 0.98 0.98 well on 1928 dark coloured bing very water. 0105 1.70 0153 1.99 0200 1.87 0326 2.12 0118 2.04 0249 0105 1.70 0153 1.99 0200 1.87 0326 2.12 0118 2.04 0249 2.17 0251 2.12 0440 2.07 2.17 0251 2.12 0440 2.07 lures for mangrove If there’s a0.94 slight taste 17jack 170954 170947 220652 220801 17 220734 220953 171147 0652 0.74 0.74 17 0748 0.63 0.63 0801 0.94 0954 0.97 0.97 0734 0.93 0.93 17 0947 0.98 0748 0.98 0953 0.95 0.95 17 1147 0.86 0.86 1323 2.17 2.17 WE 1402 2.28 2.28 1354 1.90 1524 1.66 1.66 1313 1.80 1.80 SU 1507 1.51 1323 1524 1.51 1523 1.55 1.55 WE 1739 1.64 1.64 in dirty TUwater. WE1402 of salt in 1.90 the SA water, FR1354 SA SA1313 SU1507 TU FR SA TU TU1523 WE1739 2006 0.73 0.73 2047 0.51 0.51 2029 0.71 0.71 2142 0.70 0.70 1930 0.71 0.71 2056 0.83 2006 2029 2142 1930 2056 2113 2316 0.83 2047 2113 0.84 0.84 2316 0.94 0.94 The deepest darkest there will be crabs on 0155 1.69 1.69 0254 2.00 2.00 0300 1.87 1.87 0444 2.12 2.12 0210 2.01 2.01 0407 2.11 2.11 0418 2.16 2.16 0544 2.09 2.09 red has330155 always 180254 180444 the move. 180407 18 330300 330210 330418 180544 0743 0.85 0.85landed 0852 0.78 0.78 0909 1.03 1.03 18 1131 0.98 0.98 0836 1.01 1.01 18 1121 0.96 0743 0852 0909 1131 0836 1121 1121 1235 0.96 1121 0.86 0.86 18 1235 0.78 0.78 1404 2.06 2.06 TH 1454 2.07 2.07 1448 1.75 1.75 SU 1653 1.55 1.55 1406 1.66 1.66 MO 1651 1.49 1454 1448 1653 1406 1651 1658 1831 1.49 WE 1658 1.64 1.64 TH 1831 1.79 1.79 WE1404 TH SA SU SU MO WE SA SU WE TH me plenty of0.73 jacks 2136 in 0.54 there are many 2050 0.73 2136 0.54Often2123 2123 0.74 2255 0.75 0.75 2021 0.78 0.78 2225 0.90 2050 0.74 2255 2021 2225 2245 0.90 2245 0.79 0.79 these conditions. empties0417 getting about 0256 1.71 1.71 0402 2.05 2.05 0417 1.93 0559 2.18 2.18 0324 2.00 2.00 0527 2.11 0256 0402 1.93 0559 0324 0527 0536 2.11 0536 2.28 2.28 0021 0.85 0.85 4is0844 19col19some 191232 44the 19 441005 441232 190021 0844 0.95 19 1008 0.89 0.89 1034 1.05 1254 0.89 0.89 1005 1.03 1.03 19 1232 0.87 0.95 1008 1034 1.05 1254 0634 0.87 1232 0.71 0.71 19 0634 2.14 2.14 White4 another afterSU rain and 1452 1.95 1.95 FR 1554 1.88 1.88 1603 1.65 1.65 MO 1820 1.57 1.57 MO 1531 1.56 1.56 TU 1811 1.59 1.59 1812 1.81 1.81 FR 1315 0.70 0.70 TH1452 FR1554 SU1603 MO1820 MO1531 TU1811 TH TH TH1812 FR1315 2140 0.71 0.71 2230 0.57 0.57 2231 0.73 0.73 also be 2141 0.81 0.81 2353 0.86 2140 2231 2141 2353 1914 0.86 1914 1.93 1.93 our that works well. 2230 good crabs will 0407 1.78 1.78 deep 0514 2.13 2.13 0534 2.05so check 0013 0.73 0.73 0453 2.08 2.08 0630 2.17 0407 0514 0534 2.05 0013 0453 0630 0005 0112 2.17 0005 0.67 0.67 0112 0.77 0.77 Hard-bodied among them, 20 200700 201323 55lures 551203 551143 550640 200717 0958 1.01 1.01 20 1134 0.92 0.92 1203 0.98 0.98 20 0700 2.26 2.26 1143 0.95 0.95 20 1323 0.78 0958 1134 0.78 0640 2.41 2.41 20 0717 2.18 2.18 divingFR also excel them to make sure 1549 1.85 1.85 SA 1705 1.73 1.73 1725 1.63 1.63 TU 1352 0.79 0.79 1708 1.59 1.59 WE 1905 1.73 1.73 1329 0.56 0.56 SA 1350 0.62 0.62 FR1549 SA1705 MO1725 TU1352 TU1708 WE1905 MO TU FR FR1329 SA1350 2234 0.68 0.68 2330 0.57 0.57 2343 0.68 0.68 1923 1.67 1.67 2310 0.76 0.76 2234 2330 2343 1923 2310 1911 1951 1911 2.00 2.00 1951 2.06 2.06 in murky water. they’re worth taking. 0516 1.90 1.90 0620 2.23 2.23 0640 2.21 2.21 0116 0.66 0.66 0609 2.23 2.23 0057 0.76 0516 0620 0116 0.76 0114 0.53 0.53 0156 0.69 0.69 They66move a lot of are0.84 a few 21 21ways 210057 21 660640 21 660609 660114 210156 1116 0.99 0.99 1257 0.87 0.87There 1319 0.84 0750 2.33 2.33 1300 0.80 0.80 21 0719 2.24 1116 1257 1319 0750 1300 0719 0733 0754 2.24 0733 2.52 2.52 21 0754 2.19 2.19 1653 1.78 1819 1.67 1837 1.68 1437 0.71 1826 1.71 1403 1653 1.78 1819 1.67 1837 1.68 1437 0.71 1826 1.71 1403 0.70 1417 0.44 1422 0.56 0.70 1417 0.44 1422 0.56 SA SU TU WE WE TH SA SU TU WE WE TH SA SU SA SU water, make plenty of to tell if a crab is full. 2330 0.62 0.62 2012 1.77 1.77 1948 1.86 2330 2012 1948 2002 2026 1.86 2002 2.18 2.18 2026 2.17 2.17 commotion under 0031 it 0.56The 0048 best way is0207 to 0.58 0616 2.06 0031 0.56 0048 0.57 0.57 0207 0.58 0026 0.64 0.64 0145 0.67 0616 2.06 0026 0145 0213 0236 0.67 0213 0.42 0.42 0236 0.65 0.65 220718 22cara220800 771231 22 770711 770821 220828 1231struggle 0.92 22 0718 2.34 0736 2.39 2.39 0832 2.38 2.38 0711 2.41 2.41 22 0800 2.29 0.92 0736 0832 2.29 0821 2.56 2.56 22 0828 2.18 2.18 and jacks to 2.34 push77under the 1756 1.75 1.75 MO 1402 0.78 0.78 WE 1420 0.70 0.70 TH 1515 0.66 0.66 1400 0.64 0.64 FR 1438 0.65 0.65 1500 0.35 0.35 MO 1452 0.51 0.51 SU1756 MO1402 WE1420 TH1515 TH1400 FR1438 SU TH SU SU1500 MO1452 1926 1.67 1.67 1940 1.78 1.78 pace next to the2050 tri-1.85 2050 1.85 1929 1.86 1.86 2024 1.97 1.97 1926 1940 1929 2024 2050 2100 2050 2.34 2.34 2100 2.27 2.27 0024 0.56 0.56 0128 0.53 angle. 0146 0.53 0146 0.46 0.46 0248 0.53 0.53 0131 0.49 0.49 0227 0.60 0.60 0306 0.36 0.36 0315 0.62 0.62 230128 80828 230248 230227 880024 8this 880131 880306 230315 0709 2.23 2.23 23 0808 2.41 2.41 0828 2.55 2.55 23 0909 2.41 2.41 0804 2.56 2.56 23 0837 2.32 0709 0808 0909 0804 0837 0905 0900 2.32 0905 2.52 2.52 23 0900 2.14 2.14 hard, you0.63 1336 0.82 0.82 TU 1455 0.70 0.70If TH 1513is0.57 0.57 1547 0.63 1449 0.51 0.51 SA 1509 0.60 0.60 MO 1540 0.30 0.30 TU 1521 0.48 0.48 MO1336 TU1455 TH1513 FR1547 FR1449 SA1509 MO FR FR MO1540 TU1521 1855 1.75 1.75 2020 1.71 1.71 2036 1.88 1.88 2124 1.92 1.92 2022 2.02 2.02 2057 2.06 1855 2020 2022 2057 2136 2133 2.06 2136 2.47 2.47 2133 2.34 2.34 have a 2036 good crab. 2124 0115 0.48 0.48 0217 0.49 0.49 0241 0.34 0.34 0324 0.49 0.49 0229 0.36 0.36 0303 0.55 0115 0217 0241 0229 0303 0324 0356 0354 0.55 0356 0.36 0.36 0354 0.62 0.62 The colour of the shell 240852 240943 240909 990758 990915 990851 990948 240931 0758 2.38 2.38 24 0852 2.45 2.45 0915 2.68 2.68 24 0943 2.42 2.42 0851 2.67 2.67 24 0909 2.32 2.32 0948 2.43 2.43 24 0931 2.08 2.08 1434 0.71 0.71 WE 1539 0.66 0.66 1601 0.47 SA 1617 0.62 1534 0.40 0.40 SU 1537 0.56 0.47 0.56 1616 0.28 0.28 WE 1550 0.46 0.46 TU1434 WE1539 FR1601 SA1617 SA1534 SU1537 TU FR SA TU TU1616 WE1550 is often a giveaway too.0.62 1951 1.78 1.78 2105 1.76 1.76 2127 1.99 1.99 2155 1.98 1.98 2111 2.16 2.16 2129 2.13 2.13 1951 2105 2127 2111 2129 2155 2220 2206 2220 2.56 2.56 2206 2.39 2.39 A brown or rusty0357 col- 0.48 0204 0.40 0.40 0300 0.47 0.47 0332 0.26 0.26 0357 0.48 0321 0.28 0.28 0338 0.54 0332 0.54 0444 0.40 0.40 0431 0.64 0.64 100204 250300 10 251013 100321 250338 10 25 100444 250431 0845 2.51 2.51 25 0931 2.47 2.47 1000 2.76 2.76 means 1013a2.41 2.41 10 0936 2.71 2.71 25 0939 2.30 1000 0936 0939 1030 1004 0845 0931 2.30 10 our10 generally 1030 2.28 2.28 25 1004 2.00 2.00 1528 0.61 0.61 TH 1617 0.65 0.65 1646 0.40 0.40 SU 1644 0.59 0.59 1615 0.33 0.33 MO 1603 0.53 0.53 WE 1650 0.31 0.31 TH 1618 0.47 0.47 WE1528 TH1617 SA1646 SU1644 SU1615 MO1603 WE SA SU WE1650 TH1618 good full 2045 1.82 1.82 2144 1.80 1.80 2215crab. 2.08 2225 2.03 2.03 2158 2.29 2.29 2200 2.20 2215 2.08 2225 2158 2200 2303 2241 2045 2144 2.20 2303 2.60 2.60 2241 2.41 2.41 If the shell 0252 0.34 0337 0.45 0420 0.22 is green 0429 0.49 0.49 0409 0.25 0.25 0412 0.55 0252 0.34 0337 0.45 0420 0.22 0429 0409 0412 0531 0509 0.55 0531 0.50 0.50 0509 0.68 0.68 110932 261008 26 111018 261007 11 111112 261038 0932 2.62 2.62 26 1008 2.47 2.47 11 1045 2.77 2.77 26 1041 2.38 2.38 11 1018 2.67 2.67 26 1007 2.25 1045 1041 2.25 11 1112 2.09 2.09 26 1038 1.92 1.92 and11 looks itMOcould 1618 0.54 0.54 FR 1650 0.65 0.65 1728new, 0.36 MO 1709 0.57 0.57 MO 1654 0.30 0.30 TU 1630 0.50 0.36 1709 0.50 1723 0.38 0.38 FR 1647 0.50 0.50 TH1618 FR1650 SU1728 MO1654 TU1630 TH SU TH TH1723 FR1647 2137 1.86 1.86 2217 1.83 1.83 2302 2.16 2256 2.07 2243 2.38 2231 2137 2217 2302 2.16 2256 2.07 2243 2.38 2231 2.25 2347 2.56 2315 2.41 2.25 2347 2.56 2315 2.41 be empty. 0340 0.29 0.29 0411 0.46 0.46A quick 0507check 0.25 0501 0.54 0.54 0456 0.29 0.29 0446 0.59 0.25 0501 0411 0.59 0620 0.62 0.62 0547 0.73 0.73 120340 27 120507 27under120456 270446 12 27 120620 270547 1018 2.69 1041 2.45 2.45 12 1126 2.71 2.71 27 1108 2.31 2.31 12 1059 2.55 2.55 27 1035 2.17 1126 1108 1059 1035 1154 1114 1018 2.69 1041 2.17 12 1154 1.89 1.89 27 1114 1.83 1.83 1706 0.48 1719 0.65 1807 0.35 1734 0.56 1730 0.31 1655 1807 0.35 1734 0.56 1730 0.31 1655 0.50 1757 0.49 1717 0.55 1706 0.48 1719 0.65 0.50 1757 0.49 1717 0.55 FR neath the carapace will SA MO TU TU WE MO TU TU WE FR SA FR SA FR SA Ben ‘Bream’ Monro was at it again. 2228 A solid bream 2228 1.91 1.91 2248 1.86 1.86 2349 2.20 2.20 2329 2.10 2.10 2327 2.43 2.43 2303 2.28 2349 2329 2327 2303 2353 2248 2.28 2353 2.37 2.37 scored when targeting flathead. let you know. 0427 0.27 0443 0.48 0.48 0554 0.34 0.34 0535 0.61 0.61 0543 0.40 0.40 0520 0.65 0427 0.27 0443 0554 0535 0543 0520 0031 0630 0.65 0031 2.47 2.47 0630 0.79 0.79 131103 281111 131207 28also claws are 131139 281103 13 13 28 130713 281155 1103 2.72 2.72 28 1111 2.42 2.42Worn 1207 2.56 1136a2.22 2.22 13 1139 2.36 2.36 28 1103 2.07 2.56 1136 2.07 13 0713 0.76 0.76 28 1155 1.74 1.74 1753 0.45 0.45 SU 1746 0.65 0.65 1845 0.38 0.38 WE 1800 0.57 0.57 WE 1803 0.36 0.36 TH 1721 0.53 0.53 1239 1.70 1.70 SU 1752 0.62 0.62 SA1753 SU1746 TU1845 WE1800 WE1803 TH1721 SA SA SA1239 SU1752 goodTU sign that the crab 2317 1.94 1.94 2320 1.89 1.89 2336 2.27 2317 2320 2336 1832 2.27 1832 0.62 0.62 has been well 0514 0.29 0.29 0516 0.52 0.52 0036feeding 2.22 0002 2.10 2.10 0012 2.43 2.43 0556 0.73 0036 2.22 0002 0.73 0119 2.34 2.34 0035 2.33 2.33 140514 290516 14 29likely 140012 290556 14 14 29 140119 290035 1148 2.70 2.70 29 1141 2.37 2.37 0642 0.49 0.49 0610 0.71 0.71 14 0630 0.55 0.55 29 1134 1.95 1148 1141 0642 0610 0630 1134 0815 0721 1.95 14 0815 0.87 0.87 29 0721 0.84 0.84 and it will most 1838 0.44 0.44 MO 1814 0.64 0.64 WE 1247 2.35 2.35 TH 1204 2.10 2.10 1218 2.13 2.13 FR 1747 0.57 0.57 1335 1.55 1.55 MO 1246 1.66 1.66 SU1838 MO1814 WE1247 TH1204 TH1218 FR1747 SU TH SU SU1335 MO1246 2355 1.90 1.90 1921 Esky 0.44 filler. 1827 0.60 0.60 1837 0.45 0.45 2355 1921 0.44 1827 1837 1915 1837 1915 0.77 0.77 1837 0.69 0.69 be a good 0007 1.96 1.96 0551 0.60 0.60That’s 0125 2.20 me this 0058 2.37 2.37 0011 2.24 0007 0551 0125 2.20 0058 0011 0215 0129 2.24 0215 2.21 2.21 0129 2.28 2.28 it from 150602 301211 150733 150721 300634 15 15 150930 300827 0602 0.36 0.36 30 1211 2.29 2.29 15 0733 0.67 0.67 0721 0.73 0.73 30 0634 0.82 0.82 15 0930 0.93 0.93 30 0827 0.86 0.86 month. 1232 2.61 2.61 TU 1843 0.64 0.64 1330 2.11 2.11 1300 1.88 1.88 SA 1208 1.83 1.83 MO 1454 1.48 1.48 TU 1354 1.61 1.61 MO1232 TU 1843 TH 1330 FR 1300 SA 1208 MO TH FR MO1454 TU 1354 1921 0.45 0.45 2000 0.52 0.52 1912 0.57 0.57 1816 0.63 1921 2000 1912 1816 2016 1939 0.63 2016 0.91 0.91 1939 0.77 0.77 Hopefully the rain 0031 1.90 1.90 0050 2.20 2.20 gives us a break so 310031 310050 31 31 0629 0.70 0720 0.90 0720 0629 0.70 0.90 1241 2.18 2.18 1250 1250 1.70 1.70 WE 1241 SU SU WE the rivers can clear up 1914 0.65 0.65 1853 0.71 1853 1914 0.71 enough to encourage ©Copyright CopyrightCommonwealth Commonwealth Australia 2022, Bureauof ofMeteorology MeteorologyNew Moon © Australia 2022, fishofofand crabs to Bureau move First Quarter Datumof ofPredictions PredictionsisisLowest LowestAstronomical AstronomicalTide Tide Datum back in. Full Moon Last Quarter Hope to see you on First Plenty of nice tailor were feeding around the MoonPhase PhaseSymbols Symbols NewMoon Moon FirstQuarter Quarter FullMoon Moon New Last Moon Full LastQuarter Quarter mouths of the rivers before they were flushed out. the water. 77

* from P12

The next afternoon, my son Luke and I jumped onto Benny’s boat, and we banged 30 flathead in 2 hours, nearly all on the chartreuse Pro Lure Clone Prawn. There were also a stack of tailor feeding among the bait schools. Quite a few of them were decent fish up around 50cm, so they were well worth targeting. As the bait starts to push back in, I would expect flatties and tailor to move back in, however only time will tell. Mangrove jack and estuary cod are species that don’t mind the dirty water. After a good flush out, they will push back into systems very quickly and should be a good target this month. I prefer to target jacks

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Tide Times

2024 2024

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 13

Grandpa gave some fishing tuition to his grandsons and their friends.

Harlen showed off his result, captured with a little help from a very proud Grandpa Warwick.

Family trip to West Peel Artificial Reef

A RW ICK MacLean had made several attempts to get his grandsons out fishing over the Christmas break but unfortunately the ducks never quite lined up, so a trip didn’t eventuate. Australia Day loomed

Power Boat Anglers by MICK CLUTTERBUCK

and, with the weather looking good, they decided to have a crack. The plan was to fish West Peel Artificial Reef then head to Peel

Offshore reef fishing fanatics WANTED One of Brisbane’s oldest deep-sea fishing clubs has vacancies for new members. Owners of suitable vessels encouraged. All levels of experience. Those without own vessels also invited to apply. Approximately 15 deep-sea trips per year. One week-long fishing holiday to town of 1770. Monthly meetings, video shows, guest speakers and free nibbles. 4WD beach fishing and camping. Inshore fishing also on the agenda. Interested? Then call Dave (0455 125 358) or Tim (0436 625 590).

POWER BOAT ANGLERS REEF FISHING CLUB INC Page 14 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

Island for a day of swimming, with lunch on the beach to celebrate Australia Day. After waiting for the running-late children (his daughter), they finally set off and headed to the reef. On arrival, with the area pretty much to themselves and barely another boat around, they began a drift at the northern end. Grandson Harlen was first to get in the water using a Shimano Charter Special TR2000LD (lever drag) reel on a Penn Spinfisher SSM 6’6” 8-12kg rod, baited with a piece of mullet on a 4/0 circle hook and a pea sinker. All of the crew had this as their offshore outfit and, if the weath-

er decided to play ball, they planned to go out to have a crack in some deeper water. Harlen is one of a set of triplets – two boys and a girl Zadie – and he and his brother Brodie love fishing. They’ve been out with Grandpa on their own for six hours with no problems, not bad for a pair of seven-year-old kids. Of course, the boat was all noise because as well as the triplets, two friends had come along too… to liven things up a little. Harlen was doing as he’d been taught, basically float lining and, because the drift was fairly quick, slowly feeding line to keep the bait in the strike zone. Suddenly there was a cry, “I’m on Grandpa!” Instantly Warwick could tell it was a good fish and that Harlen re-

quired a little help to hold his rod – he’s still a little tacker after all. While Grandpa did the rod holding, Harlen did all the winding and soon had the fish to the boat, where Grandma got involved to expertly net the fish and bring it aboard. Imagine everyone’s surprise on seeing a nice 76cm mulloway on the deck – something Grandpa has never caught – it certainly made his day. Brodie was impressed too, saying it was the best fish ever and that he was looking forward to a good feed the next night. With the fishing part of the day out of the way, it was off to Peel for a little family time, a feed and some relaxation. They even bumped into fellow club member * continued P15

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West Peel Artificial Reef * from P14

Tim Tilbury, who was with his son and making the most of a great day too. As the day progressed, the weather deteriorated, making it a fairly rough trip home, though all round, everybody was happy with the Aussie Day outing. Moreton Bay mackerel competition With no outside trips scheduled over the Christmas/New Year break, Power Boat Anglers like to organise a few inshore social outings and one we try to have each year is the Moreton Bay mackerel comp. This usually consists of whoever is available on a given weekend heading out and competing to see who can catch the most total length of mackerel. I’ll be honest, this year’s event was a bit of a fizzer… to put things mildly. Members reported that they had fished the bay from top to bottom and all points in between using various methods but all drew blanks. Many had seen huge bait schools all over the place but not the toothy predators. I didn’t fish the comp but took a friend to the Sandhills, where we caught a mackerel while chasing whiting. On the whiting front too, it was very hard work – we only managed 20. I was fairly sure they were there but so too were the grinners, and they were thick – at the time I didn’t think I’d ever seen that many before. That was until I went fishing again in early February. We caught four whit-

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ing and once more, while I thought plenty were about, the grinners were ferocious – continually busting us off, with one hitting the bait and the others striking the sinkers and swivel, cutting us off that way. I’ve never lost so much tackle in my life. A first happened for me on this day too, watching grinners launch themselves out of the water to chase baitfish. We were coming in to the Sandhills and saw the water absolutely boiling in several areas. We thought we’d happened on some mackerel going to town on schools of bait. Nope… as we got closer, we realised the long skinny things hurling themselves out of the water were grinners. We cast a few slugs in to see if there was anything under them but all we caught were those brown pests that spat baitfish out when at the boat. I’m sure it’s happened to many before, however it was a first for me. No wonder we couldn’t get whiting – there were literally thousands of grinners smashing these fish. Hopefully their mackerel predators move in soon and things get back to normal. Any interested parties are invited to come along to our monthly meetings that occur on the first Wednesday of every month at ‘The Club Manly’ (bowls club), 26 Faine St Manly from 6.30pm for a 7pm start. The next meetings will be Wednesday March 6, then Wednesday April 3. Until next month, safe boating.

Some of the crew with a keeper from a trip out with Grandpa.

Parents chilled while the kids made the most of a beautiful day.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 15

Encouraging kids to fish

Quiet achiever Steve put some effort in to pulling this cracker tuskfish.

V changed things up when fishing Moreton Bay and managed to land a cracking tailor.

–WANTED– Pre-trained old fishing gear!

We will come to you if you have bulk gear!

0402 703 519 Page 16 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

ANUARY and February are done and dusted – hopefully the bad weather we had will stay there and we can enjoy a cracker March! So far this year, we have seen some great catches in the Moreton Bay region. I think with the water clearing and the wind dropping, there’s going to be a lot of fish being caught. A note of caution for all the boaties out there. When you park at a public ramp and shoot out for a day on the water, your trailer is left unattended. Unfortunately, there are some peanuts out there who get their kicks from lifting your trailer coupling up, creating a very dangerous situation. I was at the local ramp the other day having a fish and watched as a big fibreglass boat was loaded onto a trailer. As the boatie drove off, there was a huge bang. The trailer hitch had come off the ball and smashed into the vehicle’s tray. It took about 20 minutes to get it safely rehitched and luckily, in this instance, no real damage was done. This had the potential to turn a great day on the water into suffering from serious injuries or even a fatality. Remember, there are peanuts out there, so when you grab your vehicle, take a minute and give everything the once over. Where you can, place a lock on the hitch to prevent this from happening. Small actions like this can save you, a friend, your family and/or bystanders.

Northern Moreton Bay by MARK TEMPLETON

Now… we have an angler who’s been spoken about in a few articles when showing off great catches from Jack and Dan. So, it is time to introduce Steve. Steve normally tries to avoid the limelight, but I think after all the effort he put in to pulling a cracker tuskfish, he needs to sit back and enjoy everybody seeing this great fish. Well done Steve – a great photo and an awesome fish! And we have come across another up-andcoming fisho, Grayson. From the get-go, this young angler has been keen to get out there and catch a fish. He had hardly finished grabbing the bait before he was out the door. We love seeing enthusiastic youngsters such as Grayson getting into fishing, and having very supportive parents is a major part of their success. Grayson’s dad is super proud of this young fellow, he’s sent enough photos of Grayson’s catches to last me 10

articles I reckon. This one caught my eye, so I thought I would share it for those parents who are thinking of getting their kids involved in fishing. It is an awesome pastime for the young ones – it gets them to think about how to achieve things and helps with their problem solving skills – not to mention the smiles it produces. Well done Grayson, we look forward to seeing more of your adventures. While we are talking about kids, this one is a little older but the smile is the same. V, or ‘Big Mac’ as we call him, changed things up when fishing Moreton Bay and managed to land a cracking tailor. While there are bigger models out there, this was V’s first tailor which came in at 49.5cm – his tailor benchmark. Over the past couple of months, a number of good quality tailor were caught around Moreton Island, Stradbroke Is* continued P17

From the get-go, Grayson has been keen to get out there and catch a fish.

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Encouraging kids to fish * from P16

land, the Brisbane River, and the Shorncliffe and Woody Point piers. Well done V, it certainly is a change up from the mack tuna you’re always catching. Taking advantage of the awesome weather, Riley and his dad Scott (from Crabba Australia) hit Moreton Bay for a day out. Using local Moreton Bay squid, Riley found himself hooked up to a local bullet train – a 50cm grunter. If you’ve ever done battle with one of these fish, they certainly test your gear and exploit any weak points. A 50cm model is one to be proud of – well done Riley and thank you Scott for sharing the photo. If you chase sand and/ or mud crabs, drop in-

to Tackle Land or your local tackle shop and check out Scott’s range of Crabba tools – the ultimate tool for controlling and measuring crabs. Well done Riley! We try to focus on both kids and family in these write ups and in store particularly. There’s a very old and good reason for this, teach a child to fish and… There are so many endings to this sentence. Kids learn so much from us from a very young age. Fishing teaches problem solving, patience, respect, communication skills and so much more! Teach your young ones how to fish and encourage a great start to life. Be safe out there and maintain the passion.

Using local Moreton Bay squid, Riley found himself hooked up to a local 50cm grunter.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 17

A decent flathead on the author’s go-to Z-Man 3” MinnowZ paddle tail plastic.

Post-rain dirty water tactics

Alex with a solid flathead following the UV paddle tail and added scent theory.

ITH a lot of rain falling in many regions over the past couple of months, it’s common to be faced with dirty water when you head out for a fish, and this can in turn make the bite tougher. In this article, I want to breakdown a few tactics that have helped me to consistently attract the bite in these challenging fishing conditions.

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Tackle Tactics by JUSTIN WILLMER

Lure action When visibility is poor, we need to rely on other senses to assist the fish to find our lure presentation and a great starting point is lure action. I predominantly fish with soft plastics, so my go-to presentations become those with plenty of in-built action, such as paddle tail and curl tail plastics. This in-built action gives me confidence that the lure is ‘swimming’ on the drop, moving with the current flow when at rest and again, that tail will be working whenever I retrieve the lure. This action creates vibration that is detected through the lateral line of the fish. The other presentation that I commonly go to for these tougher dirty water bites is a vibe, such as a TT Quake Power Vibe as a soft vibe option or the Switchblade + and SwitchPrawn+ as a metal vibration blade option. As their names suggest, these lures are designed to vibrate aggressively in the water, calling fish to the lure

presentation and triggering strikes, which makes them a perfect option for dirty water fishing. Lure noise Fish not only sense vibration through their lateral line – running along the upper half of their body – but also through their ears (called otoliths or ‘ear stones’). Put simply, otoliths are calcium structures behind the brain of the fish that interpret vibration or sound waves in the water as sound. So lures with a lot of action in the water are sometimes referred to as ‘noisy’ presentations because they emit a lot of vibration in the water, while not actually emitting noise or sound as we would interpret it. Therefore, to a fish, a vibe or plastic with a lot of action can be a noisy lure, again helping the fish to locate your presentation. Some lures come with ‘noise’ added – as we would understand it – in the form of blades and rattles. Hard-body lures with rattles added for example. * continued P20

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 19

Z-Man’s Oil family of colours are popular in dirty water with their UV pop, this one in Midnight Oil colour. A prawn imitation, though we stuck with the Dirty Oil UV colour and plenty of scent on the Z-Man 2.5” PrawnZ.

Post-rain dirty water tactics * from P18

A selection of dirty water colour favourites. From the top there’s Sexy Mullet, Electric Chicken, Gold Rush and Midnight Oil.

Another great option, especially in freshwater, is a ChatterBaitZ, spinnerbait or a jig spinner with blades designed to create more vibration and make the lure presentation easier to detect. One new release I’ve been experimenting with and am super excited about is the Z-Man Rattle-Snaker, a tool that allows you to insert a glass rattle into your soft plastic presentation to add noise to your soft plastic. Stay tuned because the Rattle-Snaker is going to be a game changer in

some fishing scenarios. Lure smell As well as ears, fish have nostrils complete with small sacs that contain smell receptors designed to detect smells in the water that flows in and out of them. As anglers, this gives us another avenue to attract the attention of the fish, especially when visibility is decreased and we are relying on other senses. I am a big believer in applying scent to my lure presentations and my go-to is Pro-Cure Super Gel, with its gel base sticking to all lure types and only requiring

a small amount applied every 30-50 casts. I rub scent all over the lure to increase the surface area and dispersion of the scent. Pro-Cure Super Gel contains real ground bait, as well as the techy stuff, such as amino acids, bite stimulants and ultraviolet enhancements. It is ideal for masking foreign scents, such as fuel, sunscreen and bug spray, that may discourage the fish from biting, while also attracting and triggering strikes. With a bunch of flavours available, you can * continued P21

A bank created a dirty water line that separated the dirty main channel from the cleaner water of this side channel. Page 20 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

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Post-rain dirty water tactics * from P20

match the scent to your presentation, target species or environment. I commonly carry a baitfish scent, such as Mullet or Sardine/Pilchard and Saltwater Yabby/Nipper, to suit where I frequently fish. So, we have chosen a presentation with action and noise, or added our own noise, and have now scented that presentation to increase our chances of attracting the bite… what else can we do to increase our chances of catching fish? Lure colour This subject is covered quite often, however it is also super important and one of the easiest variables for us to control. I have frequently referred to a ‘three colour’ theory that I follow. This is basically light and natural colours when fishing clear water and bright days, dark silhouette colours for low light and dirty water, with the UV/fluoro option in the kit in case nothing is working. You may find a UV/ fluoro colour that becomes your go-to, however I often start with the other two options first. So, what are some go-to colours for dirty water? I prefer solid colours

rather than translucent colours and the addition of some glitter can catch the available light and attract fish. My go-to dirty water colour would be Gold Rush (black back with gold glitter belly), with a couple of other solid dark colours thrown in. The UV/fluoro colours are also ready to go, including Sexy Mullet, Electric Chicken and the proven Oil family of colours from Z-Man – Motor Oil, Midnight Oil, Blood Oil and Dirty Oil – with their fish-attracting UV pop. Where to fish? Okay, we’re pretty confident that we have the right presentation for fishing the dirty water, now where do we fish it? It may sound a bit strange, however my first recommendation would be to find areas of cleaner water. You may look out over the water and only see a brown mess, but look closer at what is going on and you’ll find areas that – based on current flow, tide, inlet points for stormwater, proximity to the ocean and other variables – are clearer, even if only slightly. The mouths of systems will often be cleaner due to their proximity to the ocean and you can also chase the incoming tide, which often brings an

influx of cleaner water into the system. At times, the main channel can carry the dirty water on the dropping tide, while side arms and backwaters maintain better clarity. Often, we have hunted sections of cleaner water and areas with defined dirty water lines and these areas have produced the fish. Unfortunately, we have arrived at our destination and the water is brown as far as the eye can see, so where do we start? In this situation, I generally start around weed beds because they maintain a higher level of salinity for longer periods, or I will fish the * continued P22

The TT Fishing SwitchPrawn+ created the vibration and attracted the bite.

Pro-Cure Super Gel contains real ground bait, as well as the techy stuff, such as amino acids, bite stimulants and ultraviolet enhancements. Photo: Sean Bekkers

Check out how brown that water was, but fish still have to eat and the one percenters will make the difference. www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 21

Post-rain dirty water tactics * from P21

Following the tips outlined in this article, a rubble patch in cleaner water produced this fish.

With its lively paddle tail, the Z-Man 2.5” Slim SwimZ is a favourite for the author.

deeper sections of the system – the freshwater will flow over the top of the heavier salt water and the fish will frequently move deeper in the salt following rain. In the fresh, the fish will often move right up into the newly flooded grass to feed on all the food that has been made available by the water rise, or up into the headwaters where food is being washed into the system. As this flooded vegetation begins to rot however, you will find the fish move out of these areas and into the main channels and basins, where the water is more oxygenated and less contaminated. It’s important to understand your target species though, as species such as bass and barramundi may stack up near the walls of impoundments in an attempt to head downstream when the rain coincides with spawning time.

Don’t forget the basics There are two key factors that I will always go back to when fishing, and these become even more important when the bite is tougher, such as when fishing dirty water post-rain. Those two key elements are structure and bait. Regardless of when or where I’m fishing, my main focus is on locating the key structure in the system – be it manmade such as rock walls, stormwater drains and pontoons or natural such as drains, ledges, rock bars, laydown timber, weed edges and so forth. Structure breaks up the water movement and creates eddies, pressure points, ambush points, shelter and attracts bait. This brings me to the second point, bait. There is an old saying that so often rings true and that is ‘find the bait, find the fish’. Even after heavy rain, in dirty water the fish still need to feed, so pay

attention to areas that are holding bait. Schools of bait, bait flicking, bait on the sounder. Wherever you can find bait, it’s worth spending more time fishing. And don’t forget to try ‘matching the hatch’ by finding a presentation that closely imitates the bait in the area. These are a few tips for fishing the dirty water that follows rain events and I hope they help you get hooked up to a few when the bite is tougher. Remember also that your mindset is an important part of fishing, so go in to the session knowing that it may be tough and you may have to grind it out. This will make each bite and fish more rewarding and, if you do happen to come across a hot bite, which can happen as the system begins to settle again, it may become one of your most memorable fishing adventures yet. See you on the water.

find us on facebook • Win prizes • Post your brag • Chat to readers shots and writers • Join in on the fun • See who’s catching banter what • Have a laugh

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The Z-Man Rattle-Snaker allows you to insert a glass rattle into your soft plastic for added noise and vibration.

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Spotted mackerel ring netting update

HE recent commercial netting activities in Moreton Bay, initially raised on social media, has triggered a reaction from many recreational fishos. With most of these anglers having fished the bay for years, they no doubt saw the damage ring netting did to fish stocks back in the 1980s – which has taken years for the fishery to recover from. Before I continue, I want to make it clear that ring netting for spotted mackerel is currently legal in Moreton Bay and is subject to a total allowable commercial catch quota – which for zone 4 Moreton Bay is about 25 tonnes. Unfortunately, as it appears from recent correspondence, I and many other recreational anglers have obviously missed the legislative

Fisheries Review by BEN COLLINS

amendments that took place in September 2021 as part of the ‘‘East coast inshore fishery harvest strategy: 2021-2026’. While no excuse, many of us were probably paddling very hard to keep our businesses afloat at that time and missed this amendment. To gain some clarity on the issues, I raised it with Fisheries Queensland and received a response from its executive director Dallas D’Silva as follows… In September 2021, the East coast inshore fishery harvest strategy was implemented, and more competitive total allowable commercial catches were introduced for species such as spotted mackerel.

Historically, this species had a 140-tonne TACC along the coast, with only logbooks to record the progress to that total. Since the change, the TACC was reduced to 48 tonne for the whole east coast, with much more improved reporting. The TACC for management region 5 (south of the Great Barrier Reef) was set at 20,650kg and was based on proportion of historical harvest at the maximum of 48,000kg. In these legislative amendments and as a commitment within the harvest strategy policy, input controls were relaxed for certain parts of the fishery as red

tape reduction. Two input controls that were relaxed from the Fisheries Regulation 2008 was that spotted mackerel could not be targeted by net and, if caught incidentally, had a possession limit set at 15 within the one trip – this significantly reduced the opportunity to ring net spotted mackerel due to the large aggregations they form. As a result of that September 2021 change, spotted mackerel have been more targeted by the net fishery in this area from that initial date as is evidenced in the 2022 year I have provided below and is still well below historical levels caught by the line and net fishery. Please note 2023 only includes logbooks until June, so is a partial fishing year.

Spotted mackerel have been more targeted by the net fishery in this area from that initial date as is evidenced in the 2022 year. Note that 2023 only includes logbooks until June, so is a partial fishing year.

Please note this has not been a new legislative amendment introduced in this structural adjustment process. There are potential risks remaining with this fishery in terms of potential impacts on fishing aggregations. We will continue to monitor the fishery against the harvest strategy and a future stock assessment, and address issues through the working group, expert panel and fishery stakeholders. While this cleared up some of the concerns of the legality of the action, it did raise others – such as the breakdown of the working groups, consultation period, when the next review will be and how this decision was arrived at given the decrease in numbers of fish caught between 2019 and 2021. I’m still researching answers to these questions and will let you know as soon as I do. Due to our print deadline, I wasn’t able to provide further information on this here. Though, one item I did find was the ‘Schedule of performance monitoring, assessment and review’ – page 17 of the ‘East coast inshore fishery harvest strategy: 2021-2026’ – which details a review of the assessment and monitoring activity for spotted mackerel in Year 4 (2024). Watch this space.

East coast inshore catch quota for the Queensland spotted mackerel fishery as at February 14, 2024. Page 24 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

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C ASTfrom the past Kristen Trask and Jan Patterson with Kristen’s wahoo landed during the Redcliffe Challenge.

Keena Fox and the author with her 13kg wahoo taken during the Mooloolaba Billfish Babes Tournament aboard Big Business.

Live baiting and trolling for perfect pelagics

EATURING a great article from the Bush ‘n Beach Fishing mag archives, welcome to Cast from the Past. If you have a hankering to read about a certain topic, drop us a line and we’ll do some deep diving. Here’s a piece by Jason Comino from March 2014 covering tips for targeting pelagic off the top of Moreton Bay. At the time of writing, the southeast wind was very persistent and allowed only very small windows of fishing opportunities, which were mostly mid-week.

Top of the Bay by JASON COMINO

It is to be expected at this time of year, but I have to admit that it’s pretty hard to take when there are such great numbers of pelagic fish on offer offshore. Lately, we have been doing most of our trolling between Cape Moreton and Hutchison Shoal, with the best bait balls east of Flinders Reef around Hutchies itself. This season has been very interesting, as the fish have been changing

their minds on a daily basis about what they are going to eat. Early mornings were by far the best bite periods and later in the day, the bait schools in most areas dropped deeper in the water column. This was the time to start live baiting for billfish predominantly, but we’ve also caught wahoo, dolphinfish, tuna and spanish mackerel using the same technique. Being versatile has

Ricky Gleeson and Jo Mulders with Ricky’s 11kg dolphinfish aboard Northside. Page 26 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

been a distinct advantage, so covering all bases with equipment and rigging was essential to ensuring a smooth transition from trolling to live baiting. This was beneficial in preventing time wastage and ensuring all rigs were ready to be dropped into the water the instant the boat came over a bait school. The live baiting rig I use is very simple and consists of a 1m piece of 100lb fluorocarbon leader material, with a loop crimped into one end and a 3-ball sinker crimped in position directly below this at the top of the leader. Then all that’s required to finish the rig is to crimp a 7/0 or 8/0 Gamakatsu circle hook to the end to attach your live bait to. If you’re fishing multiple rods while live baiting, be sure to attach different sized sinkers to each rig to work various parts of the water column. Obviously, drifting off the bait is a problem, but this can be coun-

tered by simply idling around the edges of the school you’re fishing. Once around the school, simply pull the throttle back to neutral and drift off with the wind and current again. Perfect conditions are ideal for this type of fishing, as the more the weather influences the vessel’s movement, the more difficult it becomes to keep the boat in position. When fishing live bait, be sure to have overhead reels very close to free spool, so that when the bait is picked up by a fish, there’s minimal pressure on the other end. This encourages the fish to swallow the bait and in turn gives a much better hook-up rate than simply loading the rod up right from the start. Remember to never strike with circle hooks because they are designed to pull out of the fish and catch in the corner of the mouth, rather than gut hooking. Striking only increases the chance of the * continued P27

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C ASTfrom the past Live baiting and trolling for pelagics * from P26

hook missing its mark and wasting an opportunity on a possible trophy fish. When trolling, I have been running a combination of lures and skipping garfish, with some really good results on both billfish and other species such as the ones mentioned above. I have been running skipping gar right behind the teasers and then a third gar on the short outrigger. Other positions in the spread have been dominated by lures such as Pakula Original Hot-

heads, Black Bart El Squid Jr and Sn, and the Black Bart Pelagic Breakfast. The best colours for me lately were Yellowfin, gold/black, luminescent and the Blue Mackerel pattern. When things go quiet, I’ll often make changes to the spread of lures to try to encourage a strike, and I’m constantly amazed how often this technique works. This season alone, I’ve had so many lines ripped out of my hands when trying to band them to put onto the

outrigger poles or tie them down as flat lines. My best advice is to do this when things get slow, or simply adjust and put some live bait in the water to chase up a bit more action. We have only a couple more months of pelagic action left for the season, so now is a great time to master a few new techniques and have them in the arsenal for later in the year. I hope to see you out on the water before the sensational run of game fish comes to an end. Good fishing to everyone.

The author’s 550lb blue marlin caught on Big Business.

INCE the early 1980s, the Redland Bay Amateur Fishing Club has catered for members of all ages with an interest in fishing. The club has a full itinerary of scheduled events throughout the year, running three 4WD camping fishing trips during the year – two on North Stradbroke Island and one to K’gari. We encourage a family spirit and an atmosphere of friendship and fun at all our outings. In addition, RBAFC is pleased to announce that the RBAFC Sports Fishing Competition is continuing for 2024. The rules have been tweaked a little to make this competition more widespread and availa-

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ble to be fished around Australia in the people’s choice category. With this members’ competition, we will have four winners per month – two species, member’s choice senior and a member’s choice junior. This can be accomplished by capturing an image of the particular species on any brag mat, including a designated codeword, and submitting it either by emailing to sports fishing@rbafc.org or via the app upload feature. Photos will be shared on the Redland Bay Amateur Fishing Club Facebook page. As codes get released each month, they will be emailed to members, and available on

the RBAFC website, Facebook page and via the app. Prizes are awarded on the longest fish caught in each category. This competition is for the angler who loves to catch the big ones but also gets gratification from seeing them swim away. This is not to say that you can’t take home a feed, as there is nothing better than fresh fish, though you don’t have to kill some species, yet are able to still take home awesome prizes. The member’s choice category will be for every other species other than the ‘species of the month’. Again, this will be a photographed fish on a brag mat with the codeword of the month.

All the entries will be looked at and the best seven catches presented to the members at the general meeting, where the winner will be decided. Please read the rules carefully and if you have any questions, email us at sportsfish ing@rbafc.org or phone Matt on 0415 149 350. Renewing member-

ship fees for 2024 are: • Family (including partner) or Single $80 • Pensioners $40. • Juniors 16 years and under at sign-on – February 4, 2024 – are free. Sign on is available all year, however the membership years starts on February 4. For more information www.rbafc.org

RBAFC runs events throughout the year. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 27

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March20/12/2023 2024 – Page 29 10:17 am

Youngy with the best fish of our recent night-time sortie, just under 40cm. A hook-up by the author on dusk on a recent summer trip.

Nerang River whiting with Youngy

The author’s preferred hook, a #6 Aberdeen 860 TruTurn hook.

White-painted rod tips make subtle bites much easier to detect at night.

Lying your rods low and flat in the boat across a rope can be very productive. Page 30 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

I folks, for those of you who are regular readers of this magazine, you may remember the great articles by Wayne Young (or Youngy) from the Gold Coast. For quite a while, Youngy taught readers how to catch whiting, in particular in the faster bigger rivers of the Gold Coast, chiefly the Nerang River. Wayne gave up writing a couple of years ago, though I’ve been fortunate enough to stay in touch with him, and even more fortunate to have headed out with him just before this article was due. Unlike my first trip with Youngy a few years back when, with regards to the right conditions, all the ducks were in a row, our most recent was very different. The Nerang River and its catchments had been subject to considerable rainfall over the Christmas and New Year period, resulting in the Hinze Dam reaching 100 percent capacity and, being an un-gated dam, spilling over into the river. With this comes heaps of fresh and discoloured

Fishing Tips by SEAN THOMPSON

water pushing down towards the entrance. What this does is send a lot of what Wayne rightfully calls vermin – catfish, toadfish, pony fish and bream – down into the popular areas for whiting, from the Isle of Capri to the Sundale Bridge. In addition to this, the night that coincided with me having a fish with Youngy, the moon was in the middle of its phase. This is not the best time for whiting as it’s after they’ve gathered and spawned around the new moon. To add to the already tricky mix, for most of the afternoon before we left, it was blowing 2025km southeasterly and it settled down only a little before we headed up the river. But not to be deterred, Wayne assured me there was always somewhere for whiting to be caught in the Nerang and he had found fish a few nights before, albeit not to the same quality as usual.

So off we went and, to cut a long story short, we ended up with a very decent catch of 22 whiting for the night. Not a record by any means but pretty damn good in the conditions. The purpose of this summary of our trip was to highlight a couple of things. First, Youngy is a damn good whiting fisho and second, his style of fishing the Nerang River – which is very different to many other spots such as the beach – is very productive. So, what are some of Wayne’s key tips that work so well in good or bad conditions? The river itself Youngy advises that the Nerang River is an exceptional place to fish for summer whiting as the sand canals built in the 1960s are full of canal wriggler worms and jelly prawns, which provide the fish with plenty of food. However, because there is so much food, * continued P31

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Nerang River whiting with Wayne Young * from P30

Wayne suggests that the fish are a bit ‘lazy’ and don’t chase their bait as fish in the surf or the shallow estuary flats would. For this reason, you need a varied tactic, as will be described shortly. The other reason for its success was because there’s no commercial fishing pressure, which means more fish. Areas to look for The Nerang’s high banks and man-made canals mean the water shelves away quickly and, being fairly narrow with a big funnel at the entrance, it has much more of a tidal run. This means you need a different approach to the small sinker setup of the flats. What you are looking for in the Nerang River are sandbanks that, due to the depth of the river, are not exposed at low tide. These banks have soft sandy bottoms, which means the pressure of the river flow will scour out undulations on them and carry food such as worms and prawns along them, thus attracting fish for both protection and food. Even without a sounder, you can spot these areas in 2-3m of water by the lumpy ripple effect on the water surface as the tide and a gentle breeze pushes in. Otherwise use your sounder to spot these undulations, which appear like corrugated road bumps on the sandy bottom. Another good place to try is slightly off the edge of the sandbanks in the river, where the sandbank meets the channel. The channel markers are a giveaway on these locations and are a good place to start.

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Technique Due to the fast flow of the river, the best strategy is anchoring. However, if you use only one anchor, the current can move your stern from side to side, meaning the fish will have to chase your bait – something the Nerang fish prefer not to do, according to Youngy. To deal with this fast-flowing current, you want to use two anchors – one at the bow and one at the stern – to prevent the boat from moving around. It is then a matter of covering your bases with the rods – having four well-spaced rods out can be very beneficial to finding the fish. The technique is to throw your lines out with very long traces of about 1.5m long and lay up to two long whippy rods about 9’ or so low to the water out the back of the boat and two shorter whippy rods of about 7’ at the side of the boat. Rods in the 1-3kg or 2-4kg weight range are ideal. In addition, you also need a heavier 4 or 5-sized ball sinker to hold your rig in place during the middle stages of the tide. The benefits of the longer rods is that they allow you to cast and manage the very long traces and are soft enough to absorb the bite and lunge of the fish when they swallow and run off with the bait. The next most important tip from Youngy was something that took me a while to put into practice, being so used to shallow estuary fish or beach whiting usually picking the bait up and running. In the Nerang, if get you a bite on your rod, don’t touch it!

This is the fish mouthing and crushing the bait. Tougher tackle-shop purchased Cribb Island bloodworms will take longer to crush and swallow than thinner mangrove worms, so if you have the former, you really have to be patient. Also, don’t overload the hook! Use just enough bait to cover the hook up to and including covering the eye of the hook. Then, when you feel a hit, wait until the rod tip dips down firmly before you lift and strike. If you miss a fish, try feeding some line back out to the fish with the rod still in the holder. Another tip given was that you should ideally be fishing for whiting at night during the late spring to summer months. And you can do away with my favoured red tubing in the surf, as it is ineffective and just adds more weight. During winter though, these fish are a daytime proposition, however I’d still ditch the tubing because they are more wary than the surf fish that will smash the bait. Finally, try to avoid the slow period from about one hour before to one hour after the change of tide, as this tends to attracts more bream and pests such as toadfish, and whiting prefer the run. That’s it for this month. My thanks again to Youngy for a great trip and for the tips he has so graciously shared over the years. For more reports and tips, be sure to follow my Ontour Fishing Australia social media channels, in particular Facebook, YouTube and Instagram.

Nerang River whiting rigs for both an Alvey and a spin reel. Run the sinker between two swivels for an Alvey.

Top baits for Nerang River whiting, live bloodworms.

The end result, the author’s student son Mattie and his friend enjoyed a feed of whiting.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 31

Everyone can help by opting for non-plastic alternatives in our daily lives, participating in local clean-up initiatives and supporting organisations such as OzFish Unlimited. Discarded rubbish pollutes our waterways, destroys aquatic habitats, poisons animals and can deplete a waterway’s oxygen.

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CREATING BETTER HABITAT FOR BETTER FISHING Page 32 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

waterway’s oxygen. That’s just the big stuff that you can see. Microplastics, fragments of plastic less than 5mm in size, are infiltrating our rivers, oceans and even the air we breathe. These particles originate from larger, broken-down plastic items, synthetic fabrics and cosmetic products. Microplastics come from the bigger items we sometimes find on our waterways, so it’s crucial to pick up what we can see before they get too small to dispose of. Researchers recently discovered microplastics in the soils of a remote walking and running trail in the Dumaresq Dam Reserve near Armidale, NSW. Since they’re plentiful on land, you can bet that few Australian waterways are free from the clutches of microplastics. Whether it’s the remote rivers untouched by urban development or the vast expanse of the ocean, these pollutants have made their presence known. They travel through air currents, run-offs from agriculture and urban wastewater, creating a cycle of pollution that affects even the most secluded areas.

While industry is responsible for some microplastics, more pollution comes from everyday people. Every year 130,000 tons of plastic leak into Australia’s marine ecosystems, a large portion of which is single-use plastic. By 2050, plastic in the ocean may surpass the weight of fish. While the situation may seem daunting, there are steps we can take to mitigate this crisis. Opting for non-plastic alternatives in our daily lives, participating in local clean-up initiatives and supporting organisations such as OzFish Unlimited, which regularly organises events to remove debris from waterways, are some examples. For more information on clean-up events, visit ozfish.org.au/projects/ keep-it-clean or organise one ozfish.org.au/ projects/wasted-waterways-clean-up-day The partnership between OzFish Unlimited and the NSW Department of Primary Industries is funded by the Recreational Fishing Trusts and Marine Estate Management Strategy, making events such as these possible.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 33

Noah snagged a 37cm whiting on a Nerang River charter with the author.

Using an Atomic double deep lure on a charter with Brad Smith, Bodie caught and released a very respectable mangrove jack.

Tips for catching sand whiting

H Duane captured many solid sand whiting on a Broadwater charter.

For families on charters with the author, this is a typical catch from the Gold Coast Broadwater lately. Page 34 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

I everyone, well we are coming towards the end of a hot, wet and windy summer, which is a relief! On the plus side, the fishing has been epic. I know I’ve been talking about sand whiting a lot lately but this month I will share again some tips for targeting these hard-fighting and delicious fish. Summer rainfall at the start of this year was well above average on the Gold Coast. The Hinze Dam was overflowing, resulting in a continued flow of muddy water downstream to the Nerang River and southern end of Broadwater. This in turn caused some of the best whiting fishing I have ever experienced. Whiting are very tolerant of dirty water, though even they have their limits. If the water colour is a chocolate brown, it pays to go looking downstream to find water that is a lighter brown or dark green colour. Here you may find big

Broadwater Guide by CLINT ANSELL

schools of quality sized fish. Also, in the southern Broadwater, there are areas whiting love to frequent over the warmer months. Combine this with rain pushing them downstream from the Nerang and you have some fantastic fishing opportunities. My favourite areas to fish for whiting during these times are the shallower banks slightly downstream from the Southport School, the western channel from

Sundale Bridge to the Broadwater Tourist Park and the area from the Aqua building to Charis Seafoods at Labrador. A school of whiting are constantly on the move feeding, so I prefer to drift and cover ground to find them each day. If you find a big school, anchoring works well. If they’re scattered, keep drifting. When there’s a strong wind blowing in the same direction as a strong tide, sometimes * continued P35

A juvenile mulloway caught and released when fishing for whiting in the Nerang River.

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Tips for catching sand whiting * from P34

there’s no choice but to anchor, otherwise you’ll drift too fast. Pumping yabbies at low tide is essential to catching good whiting in the Broadwater. My favourite areas to pump are the southwest corner of Wave Break Island and the southern half of Curlew Island. If you can’t get yabbies, live beachworms are the next best thing and can be bought at Aqua Adventures in Southport. The best tackle for whiting fishing in the Broadwater is a softtipped bait fishing rod at least 7’ in length, a 2500 size reel spooled with 10lb monofilament line, 2 or 3-sized ball sinkers, small swivels, 1m or a little more of 6-8lb fluorocarbon leader and #4 sized baitholder hooks. Using a running sinker trace, thread the hook into the yabby’s tail, then up through the body and out near the head. If you’re drifting, let the bait run out about 5m from the boat, then wait patiently for bites. Do not strike when a whiting first starts nibbling the yabby or you’ll miss a lot of fish. Wait until the rod buckles over, then strike hard once and play them out carefully.

There’ll be lots of bycatch, such as smaller whiting, bream and flathead, so to find the bigger whiting, it pays to cover ground and persist. If anchored, cast the bait out at least 10m with the tide and either sit the rods in rod holders until a fish is hooked or very slowly wind until a fish grabs the bait, then stop and let them eat. Whiting love a moving bait. I hope these tips help you catch an amazing feed of this delicious fish. For a bonus catch, put crab pots out near where you fish – blue swimmer crabs live in the same sandy areas. Some sand whiting facts… Sand whiting can be found from Tasmania all the way to Cape York on Australia’s east coast, as well as Lord Howe Island, New Caledonia in the Pacific Ocean and Woodlark Island in Papua New Guinea. They are most prolific in southeast Queensland and northern NSW. Interestingly, they have the ability to completely burrow into the sand and remained hidden until a danger has passed by. They begin breeding at

around 22cm in length and in southern Queensland, spawn multiple times from September to February. Juveniles reach over 16cm in length after their first year of life, 26cm after their second year and 30cm after their third. In NSW, sand whiting have a minimum legal length of 27cm and a bag limit of 20 per person, while in Queensland there is a minimum size of 23cm and a combined bag limit of 30 for all whiting species. At Tweed River, Brad Smith has been targeting mangrove jack as well as flathead, jewfish and bream using deep-diving trolled Atomic lures and Samaki soft vibes. To book on a charter with myself or Brad, or if you have any fishing related questions, visit goldcoastrivercharters. com, SMS 0432 990 302 or email fishing withclint@gmail.com, or find us on Facebook at Brad Smith Fishing Charters.

Even little mulloway like this one have been found among whiting schools in the shallows.

A big whiting hooked onto a yabby off Southport on the Gold Coast.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 35

The crew with a bag of spotted mackerel.

Macks pre and post closure

Spotted mackerel everywhere.

Schools of spanish mackerel. Page 36 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

’DAY everyone, I hope you found my previous article useful in trying to get yourself onto a spanish mackerel or two. As most of you would know, we have two separate closures for Queensland tidal systems – one was February 1-21 and the second closure starts March 1, finishing March 21. Up until this point, I’d been right into the spanish that were out the front of my local reef. It has been fishing exceptionally well this whole season, with fish schooled up and holding on local reefs consistently for a while now. Something that helped this season was spending time finding the schools of mackerel and then dropping either a bait or a lure to them. Lately, I have been towing livies for spaniards and have come up trumps – with big spotted all the way to goodsized spanish smacking them. When sounding around, I look for a variety of things. The first being bait, which in my opinion is the most important. Second is the mackerel

Gold Coast Broadwater by MITCHEL ZYGNERSKI

– you can easily identify them by how they are marking. If you’re seeing a large school of fish showing up as squiggles all over the screen, then you have found your school of mackerel. Thirdly, if you can see that the fish are stacked on either a rock, ledge or even a channel in the reef, these spots will be your best chance of landing your target. Whether you are going to anchor, drift or tow, you will want to know everything. When on Palm Beach Reef, anchoring in large crowds can be very efficient if you have a school of fish or bait below you. Early in the morning, you’ll find that you can only sound up bait, which is perfect – a bonus is if the mackerel are already on top. A big obstacle is current. If you have wind against current, it can make managing your bait properly and catching fish very difficult.

Or if the current is running too much, it can force your bait to the surface, which is very challenging for any fisho. A major tip is to constantly berley as soon as you’re anchored when targeting spotted mackerel. If you can keep the school at or around your boat, you’ll be in for one hell of a day. You’ll find that the boats anchored around you will struggle to catch fish. This is because you basically have control of the school, which is so zoned into the berley you’re throwing into the water, they won’t move for anything. If you have been fishing Palm Beach or Mermaid reefs long enough, you will know how this feels and, no matter what you do, the fish will not budge until the person has moved or bagged out. On another note, as always Mermaid Reef has started to fire up towards the end of the * continued P37

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Mackerel pre and post closure * from P36

season and you’ll find Palm Beach Reef will start to die down. I’m still yet to figure out why the fish swap reefs, but they do – whether they are schools starting to migrate back north or different schools still making their way south. Either way, it’s good for everyone because they are usually very thick, with most fishos being able to get stuck in and take a feed home. I had a fairly good session recently, as opposed to others out there. Back at the ramp, I spotted two younger males on a jet ski and got talking to them. They mentioned that all they were able to catch were mack tuna and bonito. On hearing that, I immediately offered them

two of my mackerel because I had ample – to see their faces light up with excitement made my morning. Of course, when I got home, my immediate thought was that I should have taken a photo of the young anglers – oh well, next time. About this time in the season, the spanish at Tweed and Brunswick heads will really start to thicken up, pushing to the 12kg mark and above. This is very common around these areas, particularly now with the closed season. You’ll find Tweed will be very busy, as many Queenslanders will venture south in order to get themselves some spanish mackerel, if the spotted mackerel decide to vanish without a trace.

If you aren’t into the mackerel fishing as much, there have been reports of huge numbers of snapper still on the bite out in the deeper areas off the Seaway and Jumpinpin. If there isn’t much current, the perfect idea is to venture out and get some summer snapper for a bit of a change. On a recent trip out to the 50s, there was barely any current and the snapper were right up in the mid-water column, so out came the float-lining gear and up came the snapper and pearl perch. That’s about all I’ve got for this month. I hope you’ve found some of this information useful and that it will help you land a few more mackerel. Cheers!

A spanish mackerel pulled up from a school by the author.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 37

The first spotted mackerel of the season for Keira.

Maximising mackerel mayhem

Mathew managed a rainy day spotted mackerel.

Keira and a brace of spotted mackerel from the local reef. Page 38 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

I everyone, sorry I missed an article last month. Right on crunch time, when it was due, I had my appendix removed. A very common procedure I know, yet it had me out of action for a couple of weeks, on doctor’s orders. I’m still on light duties, though the doc did say I could go fishing… if I had minions to do the work. So, Keira put her hand up for fishing and I drove the boat. We’ve had some fun on mackerel, mostly spotted, however the sharks towelled us up on a few occasions. The taxman problem is getting bigger. I watched Greg Lamprecht’s recent YouTube release and was frustrated for him as he lost good fish on isolated spots that a few years ago wouldn’t have held sharks. He had his say about the situation and, like the rest of us, acknowledges that the problem is only getting worse. Watch YouTube reports anywhere from the northern half of NSW

Tweed to Byron Bay by GAVIN DOBSON

and right along the Queensland coast and you’ll soon see that the problem is widespread. It’s ‘Cape Carnage’ everywhere now. Recently, Lewan had a 3m bull shark land on the corner of his boat. He saw the shark coming as he was about to gaff a mackerel, so he quickly pulled the fish from the water. But the shark didn’t slow down, instead it launched from the water, giving Lewan and Stratto a bit of a shock. Stratto was up the front of the boat and said that from his angle there was a split second when he thought Lewan was a goner. As I write, a report was released of a lady having had her leg mauled by a bull shark in Sydney Harbour. With all the shark activity on our reefs, I decided to head in really close, to a spot where I haven’t had a shark problem before. I got a few spotties,

and while they weren’t as thick as those on the main reefs, at least when we did hook up, Keira could play the fish out as per normal. There’s no doubt about it, mackerel are super fun and I love eating them. We’ve been crumbing small pieces and enjoying mackerel nuggets or making delicious mackerel curries. Treated right, spotties hold together surprisingly well in a curry. I do prefer to eat spanish mackerel, however there’s nothing wrong with a spotty in my books, especially if you bleed them and drop them into a good slurry immediately. The best bait for spotted mackerel so far has been the good old pilchard – either whole or half. We’ve had an abundance of tiny yellowtail scad about 70mm long hanging on the bait reef lately and spotties are * continued P39

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Lewan captured a decent spanish mackerel.

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and kingfish made the effort worthwhile. I imagine the current will pick up soon and with it pelagic species will arrive – the next couple of months is prime wahoo time. In the river, the fish have been pushed down to the lower half and are providing some good feeds. Trevally are lacking, however whiting and flathead are reasonably common. A few soapy jewfish are about, though the two species absolutely going off are mud crabs and mangrove jack. All in all, things are trucking along OK. Enough cyclones already! Hopefully we get a good run of weather so we can make the most of the fishing that’s available.

also finding these irresistible. Trolling pink squids has worked, as has throwing a small stickbait or metal slug. On the spanish mackerel side of things, when they’ve been about, slow trolling live bait has been successful, though they haven’t shown up in any real numbers yet. Out wider, there haven’t been too many pelagic due to the complete lack of current. A few rat yellowfin have come from Windarra Bank, but that’s about it really. Most boats that have ventured out hoping for a wahoo or mahi mahi have resorted to bottom fishing to save the day. This was quite successful, with a few snapper being caught, but great numbers of pearl perch

* from P38

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 39

03 5022 7 03 5152 3 03 5562 6 03 5443 5 03 5822 2 03 5174 1 03 9397 6 02 6024 6

Mother Nature no match for mahi, snapper and macks

ELLO all and welcome to this month’s edition of BNB. At the time of writing, the weather was incredibly indecisive. At the very best, it has been extremely difficult to deal with and predict. One minute we’re getting 800mm of rain and the next it’s a heat wave that lasts a week. Let’s hope it begins to settle to some degree in the coming months, but I guess it is the season for low pressure systems

Ballina Bait & Tackle by BRETT HYDE

and cyclones showing up at any moment. The unpredictable nature of the weather at this time of the year is not uncommon, however it does seem to be more volatile and erratic this year for some reason. Hopefully, we can all get through to Easter unscathed, I’m sure the weather will be more settled afterwards.

The fishing offshore has been extremely inconsistent over the past month and, as you can imagine, we have had some fantastic days out there, though we have also experienced some absolute shockers. For the most part, mahi mahi have been fairly good, yet there were plenty of quiet days too – almost as if they were off their food or spooked by boat traffic. So far, live bait, pilchard and soft plastics seemed to have been the most consistent methods to catch them, as opposed to skirted or bibbed lures being trolled. Bottom species were slightly more consistent, with some good catches of snapper, flathead, teraglin and tuskfish on the 32s over the past couple of weeks. The north 42s and 48s have also produced a few snapper, along with some average kingfish and a number

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Sonny with a 74cm giant trevally that munched his surface lure in the river.

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02 6686 2527 Page 40 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

of better-than-average pearl perch. With the fast current at this time of the year, heavy slow pitch and speed jigs have been working fairly well, as have a few live bait and cut bait such as mullet and bonito. The water temperature on the close reefs has been up and down like a yoyo in recent weeks. To this point in time, we’ve had a reasonable showing of mackerel but, if the strong wind and rain continue, they could definitely slow the mackerel up in coming weeks. For now, it would be best to concentrate your efforts around Black Head and Lennox Point until the water warms up a little and the fish move further south to congregate around the Riordan shoals. Slow trolling live bait has probably been the most effective method to catch spanish mackerel recently and smaller metal spinners were quite popular for spotted mackerel. Though much like mahi mahi, as the season progresses and they become more aggressive and competitive, spotties will show plenty of interest in a well-presented blue pilchard. On the beaches, we’ve had a good run of summer tailor, as well as some nice captures of bream, whiting, flathead and dart. The usual bait such as worms, pilchard and pipis had some success over the break, but a few exceptionally big tailor came from a couple of the beaches too. Bonito, mullet and small metal spinners have all been great options to try for tar-

getting some of these larger models. Back in the river, we’re still dealing with some discoloured water that came downstream after the solid rain received in early January. The larger tides around the full and new moons did help to start the clean-up process, however it may take a couple of rotations of the larger tides until we see significant amounts of clean water pushing back up the river. The discoloured water has certainly not bothered the bream at all, with plenty of fish showing up along the rock walls. Most anglers reported a few fish above Wardell Bridge, though the bulk appeared to have concentrated from the mouth of the river to Pimlico Island. Flathead were a little harder to tempt. I believe the warmer weather may have caused them to sit a little deeper in order to keep cool and to locate some slightly saltier water in the deeper channels. And brighter colours in the paddle tail plastics and some larger-than-average swimbaits have all tasted some success. Mud crabs have enjoyed the lack of visibility in the river and were moving about quite freely, with both the main river and north creek producing decent numbers in recent weeks. Their numbers should remain fairly good for a little longer this season. Well, that’s all from me this month. Until next time – tight lines.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 41

Jewies, knobbies, macks and trag

Sydney angler HT with a healthy school jewfish taken at the old ferry approach on a whole torpedo squid.

ISHING on the Clarence Coast area over the past month has been fairly reasonable. Excellent catches of snapper, mackerel and teraglin provided boaties with plenty of action on the days they were able to put to sea. Currently it seems as though, if it’s not blowing 20-30 knots from either the south or north, then we’re cursed with a sloppy easterly wind, which makes life quite difficult for the smaller vessels. Thankfully, we’re heading into autumn and the cooler weather isn’t far away. It won’t be too long before we see a lazy southwesterly wind for

There has been no shortage of turrum at the Iluka Bluff. Page 42 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

Just Jew by TYE PORTER

the first few hours of each day. And now that I’ve said that, we’ll be battered by back-to-back cyclonic east coast lows because if anyone can put the mockers on fishing, it’s yours truly. Spanish mackerel have finally turned up offshore in healthy numbers, so it’s only a matter of time before these toothy speedsters start haunting the local headlands and breakwalls. A handful of spaniards have already been taken from my old stomping grounds

at Evans Head called Forty Foot, which is located on Goanna Headland underneath the lighthouse. And I’ve seen pictures of a few smallish longtail tuna that were boated offshore at Evans as well. All in all, the countdown is on for both of these species to make an appearance along the Iluka and Yamba breakwalls. The humble old mulloway has had it pretty easy lately, with very few anglers chasing them from the walls recently. However, those who went out didn’t do too well. Little wonder given the toy rods they were using, and then on top of that, half of them didn’t even have a gaff or net. During the landbased pelagic season even, it astounds me the number of fools who go out fishing for tuna and mackerel without a gaff, expecting to be able to use somebody else’s. Newsflash – don’t ask for mine – it’s not going to happen. If you’re too stupid not to have one, then tough. Don’t get me wrong, if some poor soul is out there fishing for bream and happens to hook onto a big fish, then by all means, I’ll be the first to lend a hand. However, if you’ve spent thousands on flash rods and reels to specifically catch a big * continued P43

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Jewies, knobbies, macks and trag * from P42

fish and you don’t have even a pocket gaff… you’re on your own. At low tide, there is a little discoloured water coming out of the system from recent rains along the Orara River, but thankfully it hasn’t been enough to affect the fishing in any way. The southern end of Iluka Bluff has been lousy, especially when you’re after a feed of school jewfish or tailor. Even though there are little turrum trevally of about 5kg – and yes, they are great little fighters – it can soon get boring. Speaking of tailor, they’re biting quite freely along Main and Back beaches at dusk and into the night, which is great to see. And plenty of just-legal fish were taken inside the river in front of the Coast Guard tower on metal lures during the high water early morning. Large schools of luderick have also been spotted here feeding on top of the water, which would be seen only out along the breakwall normally. The old ferry approach has provided the occasional small mangrove jack landed on live whiting and luderick have kept the locals happy during the day, while at night, a handful of small jew have been on the chew. Local angler Rebekah Ellis has tried to snare a jewfish from the beach using whole butterflied mullet as bait, to no avail. However, she did

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manage to land a baby shark that I reckon was only a couple of centimetres longer than her bait. The beach up along Shark Bay has been changing daily due to the erratic wind and swells. The formation starts to take shape one day, only to get a strong wind change and increased swell the next, which fills in any good water overnight. All in all, if you actually know how to fish, getting a feed hasn’t been very hard lately, with good numbers of the bread-and-butter species around. So, March is the ‘full speed ahead’ month for land-based game fishos chasing mackerel and tuna right along the coast, with anglers travelling from far and wide to get among the action. If that’s not your cup of tea, you can head out along the walls and headlands for bream, tarwhine and big bronzed luderick or wet your feet in the surf for a feed of tailor, bream or school jew. Not a lot should change offshore, with most boats still trolling both spotted and spanish mackerel while the short season is still in full swing or, if you happen to prefer bottom bashing, then the humble old snapper and teraglin will be there to keep you occupied. So go on, get out there and get among them… and don’t forget your gaff. Until next month, safe fishing.

Iluka angler Rebekah Ellis with a tiny shark she landed on a local beach using a whole butterflied mullet bait that was nearly as big as it. This fish was released.

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www.bnbfishing.com.au Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 43

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 45

Atomic Bucket Hat

THE Atomic bucket hat is a three-coloured striped classic soft fitting bucket with subtle branding and a comfortable fit. This hat is going to bring an edginess to your fishing. Featuring a small Atomic logo and tag, this understated hat is available in three sizes – kids, small/medium, large/x-large and is made of a 100 percent cotton. Visit frogleysoffshore.com.au

rial – soft, life-like and supple, buoyant for a natural presentation and virtually indestructible. Built on a tough extra heavy duty Mustad hook, the HerculeZ is ready to take on the big hitters. Available in 3”, 4”, 5” and 6” sizes, HerculeZ comes in eight proven Z-Man colours, including light and natural colours, dark silhouette colours and ultraviolet reactive colours to cover a wide variety of species and conditions. Zinc is a harder metal than lead, ensuring your internal weight maintains its shape hit after hit, and your HerculeZ retains its beautifully balanced swimming action that attracts predators and triggers strikes. Tie one on and buckle up! Visit z-man.com.au

Berkley Adjustable Rod READY to get your arms stretched? Tube The HerculeZ soft swimbait range is HerculeZ Swimbait

awesome! Available in a wide range of sizes for big hitters such as for barramundi, Murray cod, mangrove jack, flathead and mulloway, with a smaller 3” option that is ideal for smaller estuary and freshwater species. A detailed shad body has all the features to represent a wide variety of baitfish, drawing aggressive strikes from predatory species. The unique boot tail design puts out plenty of thump and vibe, while upturned three-dimensional eyes provide a solid strike trigger. Best of all, this swimbait is made from the amazing 10X Tough ElaZtech mate-

Page 46 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

THE Berkley Adjustable Rod Tube 4’7’6” is an effective solution for storing your most valuable fishing assets. The Berkley Adjustable Rod Tube can be extended to fit rods up to 7’6”, thanks to the adjustable inner sleeve that is secured via a hook and loop design. Made from durable 600D Oxford material over a solid insert to protect rods from damage. The Berkley Adjustable Rod Tube features a full nylon zipper for corrosion resistance and stores 4-6 rods depending on rod/guide sizing. Recommended retail price $109.99. Visit berkley-fishing.com.au

J-Braid Expedition

THE number one braided line brand in Australia is even better with the introduction of J-Braid Expedition. Featuring the same IZANAS fibre construction that has made J-Braid so popular, J-Braid Expedition features Daiwa’s silicon coating PE technology to create a slicker smoother braid with hydrophobic properties that increases durability and enhances feel. J-Braid Expedition’s silicon coating means the braid does not absorb any water, importantly this means the braid also does not absorb the silt and sediment present in that water, which is the major cause of braided line wear over time. By shedding the water thanks to its hydrophobic properties, J-Braid Expedition will last longer than traditional braided lines, providing more value and greater performance. The benefits don’t stop there either, with an incredibly high weave count, J-Braid Expedition is braided tighter than almost any other line on the market, providing an incredibly round profile braid that will not separate and fray when in use. Daiwa’s history of producing the finest braids on the market is only strengthened with the introduction of J-Braid Expedition. Available in two colour options – a hi-vis orange and metered multi-colour – in 150m, 300m, 500m and 3000m bulk spools across PE ratings from 8lb through to 90lb sizes. Visit daiwafishing.com.au

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Berkley Pro-Tech Bazz Bait 80S

Daiwa 23 TD Commander

FEW Daiwa rods possess a history like the TD Commander. Rooted deep in the folklore of Daiwa, the Commanders traditionally referenced Japanese angling icons, hand-picked to develop their own custom models in series such as the original TD Battler. Developed with input from local angling heroes, the TD Commander line up is designed to perfectly cater for Australian conditions and species. TD Commander is the showcase of Daiwa technology, with SVF Nanoplus blanks paired with X45X full shield technology to further elevate their performance. Lightweight and sensitive, SVF Nanoplus represents a significant upgrade from the previous version, making the new TD Commander now lighter and more sensitive than ever. A combination Fuji titanium SiC and Daiwa AGS guide train is lighter than an all-titanium setup and reduces the weight further increasing sensitivity. In the baitcast models, a debut of Daiwa’s new reel seat concept – Zero Seat, a brand-new offset trigger grip that sits the reel lower in the hand – improves palming of both large and small baitcast reels alike. With an expanded model line-up catering to both spin and baitcast, north to south, there’re are now more options to feel what Daiwa technology can do for your fishing. Visit daiwafishing.com.au www.bnbfishing.com.au

THE Berkley Pro-Tech Bazz Bait 80S perfectly mimics the erratic action of a fleeing baitfish. Designed for Australian species and conditions by Berkley engineers with input from Berkley Pro-Team anglers. The smaller bibbed design gives anglers the perfect tool to fish shallow laydown structures, flats and rock bars with the same suspending super tight action as the deep version of the Bazz Bait. All Bazz Bait 80S lures are fitted with Owner rings and ST-56TN hooks to keep the toughest brawlers connected when you need it the most. Features include: • Natural baitfish profile body • Super tight high frequency action • Can be slow rolled or twitched to induce explosive strikes • Fitted with quality Owner hooks and rings • Available in eight colours. Visit berkley-fishing.com.au

TT Deluxe Z-Man Bait Binders

THE ultimate storage solution for your 10X Tough Z-Man soft plastics is here! Z-Man soft plastics are best stored in their original packets and the TT Deluxe Z-Man Bait Binders feature extra

heavy duty rings designed to fit the prepunched, reinforced holes located in the bottom corners of Z-Man packets. Other features include larger heavy duty zips, carry handle, water resistant durable material and an internal pocket for storing a jig head tray, leader and snips. Available in Small (single) that will hold approximately 10 packets of Z-Man 3” MinnowZ (more packets in less bulky models) and Large (double) that is designed to hold 20 packets of Z-Man 3" MinnowZ. By clipping your Z-Man packets straight into the binder, there is no need for clear plastic sleeves to hold the packets and take up space in the binder – it is quicker and easier to access plastics, and there’s no need to remove the plastics from the binder, where they can then be misplaced or blown into the water. Visit tackletactics.com.au

Berkley Telescopic Catch N Release Net

THE Berkley Catch N Release Net is a great all-round general-purpose net suitable for a wide range of fresh and saltwater species. The telescopic handle design allows this net to fit neatly into back corner of the boat or under the casting platform when it’s not needed. Features include: • Fish friendly catch and release silicone mesh netting with increased depth • Revised anodised aluminium head frame profile and improved yoke design • 55cm integrated ruler to measure your catch • Features a wrist lanyard to secure net while landing fish. Recommended retail price $119.99. Visit berkley-fishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 47

Berkley PowerBait Shrimp

THE Berkley PowerBait Shrimp was born out of findings from Berkley’s Fish Research Labs in the US. The research and development team tested many shrimp profile variations and discovered that fish attacked offerings with no legs far more than those that had legs. Hence, the new PowerBait Shrimp has no legs for a good reason – fish prefer it that way. Forward facing antennas help stabilise the bait for a natural shrimp action, which when combined with a range of six great colours, the new larger 5” size as well as the winning PowerBait scent formula leads to you catching more larger fish. Visit berkley-fishing.com.au

Daiwa Double Clutch 115EXDR

THE iconic Daiwa Double Clutch jerkbait range welcomes its new and deepest running member with the release of the 115 EXDR. With the EXDR standing for ‘extra deep running’, the new Double Clutch 115 EXDR reaches depths greater than ever before. Featuring fully through-wire construction to withstand the rigours of heavy duty barramundi fishing, the 115 EXDR dives to depths of 4m and has been specifically designed to cater for the emerging trend of targeting suspending

Page 48 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

barramundi with forward-facing sonar. The new Double Clutch 115EXDR is equally at home on the steeper snag-laden banks of our northern rivers where you need lures to crash-dive steeply into the strike zone of lurking predators. Like all Double Clutch models, the 115EXDR is fitted with Daiwa’s unique silent gravity oscillation system, a technology that gives the Double Clutch its trademark erratic darting action. The Double Clutch 115EXR is 115mm in length, 24g in weight, is fitted with 4X Japanese trebles and rings and is available in eight colours. Visit daiwafishing.com.au

Tackle Tactics Measure Mats

PERFECT for keeping track of your personal bests, photographing your catch and earning bragging rights among your family or friends. Printed on quality vinyl and displaying some of your favourite brands, the Fish Measure Mat has markers for every centimetre and comes fitted with a plastic stopper plate to rest the fish against, making fish measuring quick and easy. Light, compact and portable, the Fish Measure Mat rolls up for simple storage and transportation. Whether you’re on foot or in a watercraft, the Fish Measure Mat makes fish measurement safe, speedy and simple. Available in two sizes to suit those travelling light and hunting smaller species, to anglers hitting the impoundments for barramundi and Murray cod, or heading offshore after blue-water bruisers. 2613 – 75cm long x 23cm wide. 2614 – 140cm long x 35cm wide. Visit tackletactics.com.au

Tackle Tactics Fish Ruler

CONSTRUCTED from the same quality materials, the 130cm Fish Ruler is narrower in design, making it even more compact for backpacks, kayaks and other applications where space is at a premium. The 130cm length allows you to measure many of Australia’s larger predatory species or trim the length of the ruler down to suit your fishing applications. 2619 – 130cm long x 8cm wide. Stow one in your kit. Fish on! Visit tackletactics.com.au

Sterling Black Panther Holster

FOREVER trying to sniff out where you last left your tools? Sterling holsters deliver versatility and easy tool access and storage right by your side. The two holsters come with a lanyard hole to secure your snips and suit a wide range of Sterling tools, including Black Panther Snips and Autoloading Knives. They’re tough, durable and always there when you need them! Visit wilsonfishing.com

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 49

LIGHT, POWERFUL, DURABLE…

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CONTROL

The game has changed… The ALL NEW Mercury 15-20hp FourStroke battery-free EFI range changes the way you will think about portable outboards.

• 13% lighter than previous model • Battery-free EFI for fast, reliable starting • New exclusive multi-functional tiller handle, adjustable for left or right handed operations Page 50 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

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Available now from:

AIRLIE BEACH Whitsunday Outboard Centre 17 William Murray Dr, Cannonvale Q 4802 P: 07 4946 7286 E: woc@whitsundayoutboardcentre.com.au www.whitsundayoutboardcentre.com.au

GOLD COAST TR Marine 167 Currumburra Rd, Ashmore Q 4214 P: 07 5532 5812 E: elle@trmarinegc.com.au www.trmarinegoldcoast.com.au

BRISBANE NORTH Holt Marine 25 Queens Rd, Everton Hills Q 4053 P: 07 3353 1928 E: info@holtmarine.com.au www.holtmarine.com.au

IPSWICH Ipswich Marine Centre 45 Huxham St, Raceview Q 4305 P: 07 3294 3944 E: enquiries@ipswichmarine.com.au www.ipswichmarine.com.au

BRISBANE SOUTH Australian Marine Centre 3491 Pacific Hwy, Slacks Creek Q 4127 P: 07 3808 7333 E: info@amcboats.com.au www.amcboats.com.au

ROCKHAMPTON Rifen Marine 6 Dooley St, North Rockhampton Q 4701 P: 07 4927 9150 E: rifen.boats@bigpond.com www.rifenmarine.com.au

CAPALABA Mike’s Marine 9 Smith St, Capalaba Q 4157 P: 07 3390 3418 E: admin@mikesmarine.com.au www.mikesmarine.com.au

SUNSHINE COAST North Coast Boating 22 Enterprise St, Caloundra West Q 4551 P: 07 5493 9376 E: sales@northcoastboating.com.au www.northcoastboating.com.au

GOLD COAST Onshore Marine Horizon Shores Marina, Woongoolba Q 4207 P: 07 5546 2480 E: onshoremarine@ozemail.com.au www.onshoremarine.com.au

YEPPOON Sea Breeze Marine 150 Scenic Hwy, Yeppoon Q 4703 P: 07 4933 6366 E: info@seabreezemarine.com.au www.seabreezemarine.com.au

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 51

BOATING & marine

The much-anticipated all-new V6 350hp outboard, the most advanced V6 outboard Yamaha has ever produced.

Yamaha launches new V6 4.3-litre 350hp outboard

The new 350 will be hitting Australian shores in autumn, with Yamaha dealers currently taking pre-orders. Page 52 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

AMAHA Marine has announced the release of its much-anticipated all-new V6 350hp outboard – combining big horsepower, state-of-the-art features, industry leading boat control integration, premium level performance and Yamaha’s legendary reputation for reliability. Yamaha was the leader in bringing big horsepower engines to the outboard market, introducing the V8 350 way back in 2007. Since this time, Yamaha has dominated the Australian offshore market when it comes to high horsepower and boat control system integration, with the new V6 350 filling an important segment in

Yamaha’s extensive big horsepower line up. The new 350 has been built on Yamaha’s most reliable and proven big block V6 platform, which has been completely redesigned with an upgraded 4.3-litre capacity, extra-strong gear case and many other engineering enhancements brought across from Yamaha’s pinnacle XTO 450hp outboard – making it the most advanced V6 outboard Yamaha has ever produced. This engine delivers genuine 350hp in an impressive 286kg industry leading lightweight package, making it more suitable to a wider range of offshore boating applications than ever before.

Advanced integrated steering system The new 350 is both smart and good looking, coming with Yamaha’s state-of-the-art built-in digital electric steering. Neat and compact, this integrated steering system delivers extremely smooth, quiet and responsive steering, with additional technical smarts to give you even more control over your boat. The system removes the need for steering pumps, hoses, hydraulic lines and bleeding procedures, resulting in a cleaner and less cluttered engine well and the easiest outboard to fit on the market. More charging power when you need it most The enhanced heat * continued P53

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BOATING & marine Yamaha launches new V6 4.3-litre 350hp outboard * from P52

management system keeps everything nice and cool under the cowling. This not only improves engine durability and reliability but creates more available amps at idle, when it is needed most to power the increasing array of electrical devices used in today’s modern boats. Industry leading boat control integration When it comes to cutting-edge technology, nothing compares with the integration of the new 350 and Yamaha’s exclusive Helm Master EX boat control system – sold separately. With its extensive point modes for making fishing easier, autopilot navigation functionality and joystick manoeuvring capabilities, no other outboard can offer the same level of control as the Yamaha 350. Now with the additional precision control of a variable speed bow thruster (optional) on single to quad outboard applications, HMEX delivers a premium experience previously only available to much larger non-outboard powered vessels. Stronger and more efficient gear box To handle the enormous power generated by the new 350, Yamaha’s engineers have enhanced the gear case, ensuring maximum torque transfer from

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the power head to the propeller and improved long-term durability. The enhanced gear case also features Yamaha’s thrust enhancing reverse exhaust technology, which redirects exhaust bubbles away from the propeller when operating in reverse and under 2500RPM, resulting in cleaner water for greater prop grip and significantly improved thrust. This is handy for navigating around marinas and docks, reversing onto your catch and when used in conjunction with Yamaha’s HMEX boat control system. Sleek and sophisticated design styling The new 350 takes its styling cues from Yamaha’s V6 and XTO line up, portraying a masculine and sophisticated design look. Available in Yamaha’s signature grey or pearlescent white, these engines are immaculately finished, with raised chrome graphics to complement even the most premium boats. For convenience, an optional propeller light rear panel is available for HMEX full manoeuvrability mode. When the engine is operating autonomously, the rear panel light flashes to create propeller safety awareness for boaters and swimmers. More convenience For an improved user experience, the new 350

comes with Yamaha’s TotalTilt feature, delivering faster and easier engine tilting. TotalTilt allows the user to completely tilt the engine up from any position, with a simple double-push of the ‘up’ trim/tilt button, or fully tilt down to the bottom of the tilt range by the same double push of the ‘down’ trim/tilt button. Another handy feature is the optional dual-flush system, allowing the boater to flush the engine or multiple engines at once from in the boat. 350 outboard availability The new 350 will be hitting Australian shores in autumn, with Yamaha dealers currently taking pre-orders. Visit yamaha-motor. com.au/products/ma rine/outboard for more information.

The engine delivers genuine 350hp in a 286kg lightweight package, making it suitable for a wide range of boating applications.

The enhanced gear case features Yamaha’s thrust enhancing reverse exhaust technology, handy for navigating around marinas and docks and reversing onto your catch.

The new 350 takes its styling cues from Yamaha’s V6 and XTO line up, delivering a masculine sophisticated design look. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 53

BOATING & marine Future uncertain for major boat brands

B The future of iconic alloy boat brands Stessco and Anglapro, and potentially Gulf Runner, has been cast into doubt after a liquidator was appointed recently.

Stessco is a boat brand with about 25 years of history behind it.

Anglapro was launched in 2009 as a cut-price trailer boat brand in the wake of the global credit crunch that crippled Australia’s boating industry.

RISBANEbased Stessco, Anglapro’s owner, makes the call to wind up the business. The future of iconic alloy boat brands Stessco and Anglapro, and potentially Gulf Runner, has been cast into doubt after a liquidator was appointed recently to wind up the business that makes them. Q ue ensla nd-ba se d Merlin Marine and Leisure is a family-based business that has a purpose-built manufacturing facility north of Brisbane. A notice published on the Australian Securities and Investment website showed a liquidator was appointed on February 7 after a company meeting, where it was resolved to wind the company up. The liquidator Ian Currie of BRI Ferrier

was asked for comment. The fate of Gulf Runner, a standalone boat brand developed for a new retail model with outdoor lifestyle retailer Anaconda, was not mentioned in the documents. Stessco is a boat brand with about 25 years of history behind it. It currently produces a range of side and centre consoles, runabouts, bass boats, tinnies and fully blown offshore boats rich in standard equipment under names including Albacore, Sunseeker, Amberjack, Renegade, Tornado, Tripper, Catcher and Squire. It carved out a niche in the Australian market with its range of affordable and premium models suited to a range of uses and budgets. Stessco most recently made over its Albacore

range in 2022, featuring a new design and 4.0mm bottom and side sheets as part of a refresh of the brand, and its first-ever plate boat. In 2022, Merlin Marine and Leisure also brought back the Gulf Runner name as a standalone brand built for a new retail sales concept, with the boats sold exclusively and for a set price via the Anaconda chain of outdoor lifestyle stores. Anglapro, meanwhile, was launched in 2009 as a cut-price trailer boat brand in the wake of the global credit crunch that crippled Australia’s boating industry. The brand was established by Derek Rodway from Sydney-based Good Times Marine after he was unable to buy a cheap well-built boat that suited his needs.

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0434 002 644 Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 55

Phoenix and a nice cod out of Snapper Creek. Jarrah has been putting in the hard yards chasing a few local mangrove jack.

Crabs, jacks and barra

Rebecca bobbed up a Tin Can Bay golden trevally.

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Page 56 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

’DAY crew, where is this year going? I hope you are all well and have been able to wet a line over the past few weeks in between the crazy heat and rainy days we’ve had. Despite the town seeming to be a little quiet recently, it was all systems go in the shop, even with the weather not really on our side. From all reports, crabs were playing the game though. With big tides and plenty of fresh water about, crabs were on the move. We received some great reports midmonth of fishos able to get right up to the upper reaches of the creeks and into the mangroves to bag a feed. There seemed to be heaps of people out and about chasing a feed of crab, we even sold out of our 900mm Crabbing Gear Pro Pots earlier in the year. But don’t stress, we had a delivery in the first week of February and have plenty of other traps in stock to keep you going. The hot and balmy days sure do lend them-

Tin Can Bay by CHRIS RIPPON

selves to chasing a few mangrove jack and, as we all know, there’s no shortage of them in the Great Sandy Strait. Skipping lures into the dark shadows of underhung mangrove-lined creeks and working hard-bodies deep into snags is my favourite way to catch this angry red fish. Though using some of our locally caught flicker mullet or catching your own live bait is also a sure-fire way to get stuck into them. Now that February 1 has landed, barramundi are back on the catch card and are most likely hanging out in some of the same spots you chase jacks in. If you ask me, it’s time to up the leader and start throwing some big lures around. And I’m expecting to see a few more barra popping up on social media in coming weeks. A few nice catches of both goldspotted and blackspotted cod have come in from fishos working vibes along the

ledges and in the deeper holes. Casting ahead of your drift and hopping vibes back to the boat is a great way to work the depths and, despite what many think, they are less prone to snagging than you might think. Vibes are a super versatile lure and these days come in a range of sizes to target a massive array of fish species – from bread and butter fish such as flathead, bream and trevally to jacks and barra. These days, there’re even offshore versions for catching snapper, nannygai, jewfish and trout. Even red emperor will eat a vibe! If you haven’t used a soft vibe before, swing into the shop and we’ll point you in the right direction for getting out there and catching a feed of your desired fish. Over the past couple of months, squid have also been caught in and * continued P58

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 57

Crabs, jacks and barra * from P56

around moored boats, from Norman Point down to Crab Creek. Not in big numbers but worth having a crack at for a couple of hours to take a nice feed home. Catches of whiting have also been on the menu. We found the start of a run-out tide produced very well when fishing worm and yabbies on our local flats. We have been taking the kids out the front of the house most days for a swim and a fish and have been catching good

numbers of whiting. Nothing massive, though most of them legal and, if we needed to eat, we would have survived another day. But more importantly, the kids have been having a blast and are outside making some great memories, and that’s living Barry! That’s it from me for another month crew, I’ll see you in the shop or even out on the water. Take care and tight lines. The Chandlery Bait and Tackle for all your fishing and boating needs.

Quality family time, with the kids chasing a few whiting out the front of the house.

> Hervey Bay > Fraser Island > Sandy Strait

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Henry jigged up a solid morwong.

Fishing for those fussy fish

ATCHY is how I would describe the fishing over the past month. I wish I could say it was as hot as the weather! How can massive schools of fish go from relatively easy to catch to impossible? Literally overnight too. Well, it felt that way to me at least. Take for instance schools of golden trevally – easy enough to manage one day for three female anglers with limited experience. One sleep after, two experienced fishos spent

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Fraser Guided Fishing by TRI TON

a longer period of time on the fish, possibly two hours longer, and boated only two! There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to it, with multiple lures producing bites over the week or so that I came into contact with those specific trevally. It made watching the fish beneath us extremely frustrating. I can make a hypothesis about why, but would it be conclusive, probably not? Even the tuna were fussy at the start of the month. You had to do everything right.

And I admint, even I found it a tad difficult to hook on some days. Spotted mackerel, if you could find them, were willing as always. The beauty was that the weather was fairly steady, and the fish stayed put, so… reliable. Then, throw in a few rough days and it’s like a desert. At the time of writing, I’d driven up past Wathumba and there was not a single bust up between there and Coongul. Luckily, we struck some easy tuna out wider in the morning, easy * continued P60

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 59

SCAN QR CODE

Tide Times

AUSTRALIA EAST COAST WADDY POINT 2024 2024 LONG 153°21ʼ 21ʼEE ONG 153°

DDYPOINT POINT(FRASER (FRASERISLAND) ISLAND) DDY

ighand andLow LowWaters Waters gh Y MARCH MARCH

ime mm me

Time mm Time

Time TimeZone Zone–1000 –1000 APRIL APRIL

Time mm Time

Time Time

110 1.74 10 1.74 723 1.05 23 1.05 259 1.50 59 1.50 918 0.77 18 0.77

1712 0.74 0.74 SA 1232 1.37 1.37 FR1712 SA1232 FR 1824 0.87 0.87 1824

1222 1.28 1.28 MO1222 MO 1756 0.87 1756 0.87

234 1.78 34 1.78 921 1.10 21 1.10 415 1.35 15 1.35 021 0.83 21 0.83

0005 1.67 1.67 0148 1.90 1.90 0005 0148 0612 1.08 1.08 0924 1.05 1.05 0612 0924 1144 1.45 1.45 SU 1407 1.27 1.27 SA1144 SU1407 SA 1750 0.77 0.77 1937 0.95 0.95 1750 1937

0145 1.80 0145 0323 1.80 0323 1.83 1.83 0917 0.98 0.98 0917 1048 1048 0.90 0.90 1410 1.25 1.25 WE 1639 1.38 1.38 TU1410 TU WE 1639 1918 0.90 0.90 1918 2140 2140 1.02 1.02

353 1.85 53 1.85 112 1.04 12 1.04 550 1.27 50 1.27 131 0.86 31 0.86

0107 1.67 1.67 0307 1.89 1.89 0107 0307 0744 1.12 1.12 1051 0.99 0.99 0744 1051 1233 1.35 1554 1.27 1233 1.35 1554 1.27 SU MO SU MO 1842 0.81 0.81 2100 0.99 0.99 1842 2100

18 18

0305 1.85 1.85 0305 1020 0.84 0.84 1020 1542 1.31 1542 1.31 WE WE 2100 0.86 0.86 2100

456 1.91 56 1.91 214 0.96 14 0.96 717 1.27 17 1.27 236 0.84 36 0.84

0229 1.70 1.70 0229 0943 1.07 1.07 0943 1401 1.27 1.27 MO1401 MO 1953 0.83 0.83 1953

0416 1.89 1.89 0410 1.95 1.95 0506 1.80 1.80 190416 190506 19 440410 1139 0.92 0.92 1109 0.69 0.69 19 1151 0.76 0.76 1139 1109 1151 1711 1651 1.43 1.43 TH1651 TH 2228 0.74 0.74 2228

546 1.96 46 1.96 248 0.89 48 0.89 813 1.32 13 1.32 329 0.79 29 0.79

0343 1.79 1.79 0510 1.89 1.89 0506 2.06 2.06 0543 1.80 1.80 200510 200543 550343 550506 1052 0.94 0.94 20 1209 0.86 0.86 1151 0.55 0.55 20 1214 0.68 0.68 1052 1209 1151 1214 1542 1.26 1755 1.40

0508 0.98 0.98 0031 1.93 1.93 0026 1.81 1.81 0214 1.88 1.88 160031 110508 110026 160214 1106 1.57 1.57 16 0730 1.05 1.05 0730 0959 1106 0739 0739 1.05 1.05 16 0959 0.96 0.96

17 17

1.33 TU1711 1.33 TU 2216 0.96 0.96 2216

TU1542 1.26 WE WE 1755 1.40 TU 2121 0.80 0.80 2313 0.88 0.88 2121 2313

1533 1.30 1.30 TU TU1533 2017 2017 1.06 1.06

17 17

1745 1.57 1.57 FR 1745 FR 2326 0.60 0.60 2326

0421 0421 1.81 1.81 1122 1122 0.83 0.83 1723 1723 1.46 1.46 TH TH 2243 0.95 2243 0.95

18 18

1758 1.55 1.55 FR 1758 FR 2328 0.86 0.86 2328

1830 1.65 1.65 SA 1830 SA

626 2.00 26 2.00 312 0.82 12 0.82 853 1.39 53 1.39

0444 1.92 1.92 0444 1142 0.78 0.78 1142 1658 1.33 1.33 WE1658 WE 2247 0.69 0.69 2247

014 0.72 14 0.72 703 2.03 03 2.03 338 0.75 38 0.75 927 1.46 27 1.46

0536 2.06 2.06 0626 1.92 1.92 0014 0.50 0.50 0040 0.72 0.72 220626 22 0040 770536 770014 1225 0.63 0.63 22 1258 0.72 0.72 0638 2.15 2.15 22 0645 1.76 1.76 1225 1258 0638 0645 1758 1.43 1859 1.56 1301 0.37

TH 1758 1.43 TH 2344 0.56 0.56 2344

0551 1.91 1.91 0554 2.13 2.13 0005 0.78 0.78 210551 21 0005 21 660554 1233 0.79 0.79 1227 0.44 0.44 21 0615 1.78 1.78 1233 1227 0615 1828 1.48 TH 1828 1.48 TH 2355 0.79 0.79 2355 FR 1859 1.56 FR

1829 1.72 1.72 SA 1829 SA

1233 0.62 0.62 SU 1233 SU 1900 1.74 1.74 1900

1254 0.56 0.56 SU 1301 0.37 MO MO 1254 SU 1911 1.88 1.88 1930 1.84 1.84 1911 1930

053 0.64 53 0.64 737 2.04 37 2.04 407 0.70 07 0.70 958 1.51 58 1.51

0624 2.18 2.18 0624 1304 0.50 0.50 1304 1847 1.56 1.56 FR 1847 FR

128 0.60 28 0.60 808 2.03 08 2.03 434 0.68 34 0.68 027 1.55 27 1.55

0032 0.44 0.44 0103 0.64 0.64 0146 0.48 0.48 0154 0.71 0.71 24 0103 24 0154 990032 99 0146 0707 2.26 2.26 24 0727 1.91 1.91 0802 2.00 2.00 24 0747 1.66 1.66 0707 0727 0802 0747 1339 0.41 1344 0.62 1408 0.36 1343 0.51

SA 1339 0.41 SA 1930 1.69 1.69 1930

0030 0.70 0.70 0059 0.46 0.46 0116 0.70 0.70 230030 23 0116 23 880059 0657 1.93 1.93 0720 2.10 2.10 23 0715 1.71 1.71 0657 0720 0715 1322 0.66 1334 0.34 SA 1322 0.66 SA 1928 1.63 1.63 1928

SU 1344 0.62 SU 1957 1.70 1.70 1957

MO 1334 0.34 MO 1954 2.01 2.01 1954

1317 0.52 0.52 TU 1317 TU 2001 1.93 1.93 2001

TU 1408 0.36 WE WE 1343 0.51 TU 2038 2.12 2.12 2033 2.00 2.00 2038 2033

159 0.59 59 0.59 838 1.99 38 1.99 500 0.68 00 0.68 055 1.58 55 1.58

0116 0.37 0.37 0135 0.62 0.62 0236 0.57 0.57 0234 0.74 0.74 10 0116 25 0135 10 0236 25 0234 10 0750 2.28 2.28 25 0755 1.87 1.87 10 0846 1.85 1.85 25 0822 1.60 1.60 0750 0755 0846 0822 1415 0.36 1406 0.59 1443 0.44 1411 0.53

232 0.61 32 0.61 905 1.93 05 1.93 524 0.68 24 0.68 125 1.61 25 1.61

0201 0.38 0.38 0210 0.64 0.64 0331 0.71 0.71 0319 0.80 0.80 11 0201 26 0210 11 0331 26 0319 11 0833 2.23 2.23 26 0823 1.82 1.82 11 0930 1.69 1.69 26 0900 1.53 1.53 0833 0823 0930 0900 1451 0.37 1429 0.58 1518 0.55 1441 0.58

305 0.67 05 0.67 933 1.86 33 1.86 548 0.69 48 0.69 158 1.64 58 1.64

0248 0.46 0.46 0246 0.70 0.70 0437 0.84 0.84 0409 0.86 0.86 12 0248 27 0246 12 0437 27 0409 12 0917 2.10 2.10 27 0853 1.74 1.74 12 1016 1.52 1.52 27 0941 1.45 1.45 0917 0853 1016 0941 1528 0.42 1454 0.59 1553 0.67 1514 0.66

340 0.76 40 0.76 002 1.77 02 1.77 613 0.70 13 0.70 235 1.66 35 1.66

0338 0.62 0.62 0326 0.78 0.78 0553 0.95 0.95 0506 0.91 0.91 0506 13 0338 28 0326 13 0553 28 13 1000 1.92 1.92 28 0926 1.66 1.66 13 1106 1.39 1.39 28 1025 1.37 1.37 1000 0926 1106 1025 1606 0.52 1520 0.62 1633 0.81 1551 0.76

421 0.87 21 0.87 032 1.67 32 1.67 641 0.71 41 0.71 317 1.67 17 1.67

0437 0.80 0.80 0409 0.88 0.88 0713 1.00 1.00 0612 0.95 0.95 0612 14 0437 29 0409 14 0713 1044 1.72 14 1.72 29 1001 1.56 1.56 14 1211 1.29 1.29 29 1117 1117 1.29 1.29 1044 1001 1211 1645 0.63 1547 0.67 1729 0.93 1636 0.84

SU 1415 0.36 MO MO 1406 0.59 SU 2015 1.80 1.80 2027 1.77 1.77 2015 2027

MO 1451 0.37 MO 2100 1.90 1.90 2100

TU 1429 0.58 TU 2058 1.83 1.83 2058

TU 1528 0.42 WE WE 1454 0.59 TU 2147 1.96 1.96 2132 1.87 1.87 2147 2132

WE 1606 0.52 WE 2236 1.98 1.98 2236 TH 1645 0.63 TH 2329 1.97 1.97 2329

TH 1520 0.62 TH 2208 1.89 1.89 2208 FR 1547 0.67 FR 2247 1.88 1.88 2247

WE 1443 0.44 WE 2124 2.18 2.18 2124 TH 1518 0.55 TH 2211 2.18 2.18 2211 FR 1553 0.67 FR 2259 2.13 2.13 2259

SA 1633 0.81 SA 2353 2.05 2.05 2353

SU 1729 0.93 SU

TH 1411 0.53 TH 2108 2.05 2.05 2108 FR 1441 0.58 FR 2145 2.05 2.05 2145

SA 1514 0.66 SA 2226 2.02 2.02 2226

SU 1551 0.76 SU 2312 1.96 1.96 2312

SA 1619 0.74 SA 2330 1.84 1.84 2330

MO 1355 1.26 MO 1852 1.02 1.02 1852

Fishing for those fussy fish * from P58

biters that were eating small herring. However, the sharks found us and the limited tuna we were on didn’t give us the numbers to run from sharks. That’s not a good sign for anglers who are on the water on windier days. K’gari can give you protection in certain wind directions, though if the fish are out wider, you will be stuck in a barren windy wasteland. Sounds inviting, doesn’t it? Though with luck, this can change as the tides get larger. And it should get better as our weather cools moving into autumn. Tuna should flood the bay again. So, if you’re a relative-

ly new lure angler, it’s probably the best time to come to Hervey Bay. I have my fingers crossed for a solid season… just like the spotties returning over the past few months. To me, the fishing has felt a bit lacking over the past few years. If you’re a regular reader, you may be aware of my theory on the El Niño and La Niña cycles and their effect on my local system. If you follow my social media, you may remember images and videos of massive bait balls and endless schools of rampaging tuna in close to K’gari. It seems like forever since I knew for certain that if I simply drove up to Wathumba, there would be mayhem awaiting.

Yet, I have a feeling it will be back sooner than later. It’s interesting to see how nature ebbs and flows, even if it does make life hard when you rely on its bounty to make a living. It was almost as if the past few years of the previous El Niño were a big bang finale. And now I feel like the wheels are starting to crank again… slowly but surely winding up. So far it seems as though it’s going to plan – spotted mackerel are back and I’m also seeing more flying fish. Certainly not common in the La Niña years. I’m looking forward to the fishing in March and April, that’s for sure. At the very least, there should be a drop in the heat and humidity!

MO 1636 0.84 MO

0555 0.96 0.96 0459 0.97 0.97 0059 1.96 1.96 0009 1.90 1.90 0059 0009 15 0555 30 0459 1132 1.52 1.52 30 15 1037 1.46 1.46 15 0843 0843 1.01 1.01 30 0729 0729 0.94 0.94 1132 1037 1728 0.75 1619 0.74 1355 1.26 1238 1.25 FR 1728 0.75 FR

Koby enjoyed a little surface action and took home a feed of spotted mackerel.

TU 1238 1.25 TU 1740 0.91 0.91 1740

SCAN QR CODE

0604 1.04 1.04 31 0604 1120 1.36 1.36 1120 1658 0.81 SU 1658 0.81 SU

ureau of Meteorology Meteorology reau of New Moon

First Quarter

Full Moon

Last Quarter

First Quarter Quarter First

Full Moon Moon Full

Last Quarter Quarter Last 16 16

Page 60 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

A great sense of achievement for Tamara when she caught her first trevally.

Sydney boated her first trevally.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 61

Sam with a good-sized grass sweetlip taken on a Zerek vibe from the southern reefs of Facing Island.

Great fishing from close-in reefs

Phil with a nice trout taken on a prawn-style lure from Facing Island.

UTUMN has arrived and with it hopefully some reprieve from the constant heat we had during January and February. During February, strong wind was the norm, with only small breaks in the constant

Sebastian boated a typical-sized mack tuna from the area. If you’re lucky, a few longtail might pop up as well.

Page 62 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

Gladstone Region by GARY CHURCHWARD

blustery conditions allowing people to sneak out wider. This restricted most people to the harbour, rivers, creeks and inshore reefs and headlands around the region. With any luck, as we move further into March, we will see longer periods of stable weather and less wind. This month, I’ll touch a little more on the closer-in reef section around Curtis and Facing islands. Some great fishing is to be found close by if you’re willing to put in the time and effort to find ground that doesn’t regularly see too much fishing pressure. Facing Island has great reef structure around most of the outside of the island, with scat-

tered smaller shallower reefs on the inside. Most of the structure surrounding the island is obvious and a quick trip around the island at low tide will show where most of it starts and moves into deeper water. Google Earth is a great tool and shows a breakdown of what reefs are close by Facing Island. Most of these reefs run out to about 12-13m in depth from where they turn into more isolated patches of broken ground. If you come across some of this isolated ground, typically it will have seen less fishing pressure and can hold slightly better quality fish. * continued P63

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Great fishing from close-in reefs * from P62

Curtis Island is slightly different. The structure around the bottom of the island is more scattered and doesn’t run as deep, typically finishing about 8-9m deep. Spending some time sounding for more isolated bigger sections will pay off here, with better numbers and quality of fish. If you’re travelling north along Curtis Island, you need to be aware of the zoning rules, with a big part of the coastline covered by a Green Zone. Structure around both islands is not in the form of bommies and pinnacles but more broken rubble and rock with small coral formations. It is surprising the number of coral trout that can be caught close by near the island, with fish between 40-55cm. The most common size is from small to 45cm, and you will get the occasional fish that you won’t be able to handle and it finds its way home. Grass sweetlip are another fish regularly taken in these areas, with fish up to 50cm common, though they typically range from 25-40cm. Other species to find around here are stripies, tuskfish and the ever present and in plague proportions wire netting or honeycomb cod. You will also find schools of tuna roaming this area, at most they are mack tuna, though the occasional school or longtail will pop up. I use lures, and while

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almost anything will work, I do have my favourites. My go-to lures include the ever faithful Berkley Gulp Shrimp, 4” and 5” jerk shads and 4” curly tails, as well as 80-100mm vibes. Colour is a personal choice, yet white anything with red and natural clear colours have worked well for me. Long drifts and staying over the top of your line vertically jigging have worked better than casting and retrieving – this technique allows me stay in contact with my line and gives the fish less slack line to get back to their home. A good electric helps with this, especially in windy or faster current, but if you don’t have an electric, casting and retrieving will work just as well. I tend to fish between the 8-12m range and find this is where most of my better-sized trout sit. Your typical barramundi gear will handle almost anything that’s thrown at you, with a leader size of 30-40lb suiting. Moving closer in, smaller fish such as stripies, small trout and cod take over and make

up most of your catch. Other species that may pop up every now and then are snapper, small red emperor and moses perch. Hopefully this will give you a few options to still get out and catch some fish next time the wind is blowing too hard to venture out wider. Barra season opened at the start of February, with some cracking fish caught in the Fitzroy River and Port Alma. The Fitzroy River barrage gates are open, with the floodwater pushing down from inland and the river running a nice chocolate colour. Barramundi will still be caught in the town sections but, for the best results, I would be chasing some cleaner water around the port. Locally, a few good barra have been caught since the start of February and while the weather stays warm, they will still be about, as will plenty of mangrove jack. Fingers crossed, by the end of March, we might see some schools of blue salmon too. Cheers and happy fishing from Gladstone.

Cod are common. This 60cm model took a 5” jerk shad.

Off the coast of Gladstone, Curtis Island is a fishing mecca.

Crystal-clear waters of Curtis Island

HIS is rugged exploration at its best – fourwheel-drive tracks to remote and secret fishing spots, back to basics bush camping, beaches, sparkling ocean, wilderness and wetlands. Curtis Island is accessible by private boat or by a regular ferry service – though once on the island and camping, you will need a 4WD to get around. Camping is permitted halfway up the east coast at the sand blow at Yellow Patch, not far from the Cape Capricorn lighthouse. More accessible for campers (only 1km from the barge landing point) is the grassy campground on the outskirts of the community of Southend. Southend has some accommodation and eating options available for day trips or longer stays. Birders will be in spotting heaven with jabirus, rainbow lorikeet parrots, cockatoos, herons, brolgas,

sea eagles, wood ducks, black swans and the rare yellow chat all inhabiting the island. The aptly named Turtle Beach is home to the third largest flatback turtle rookery in Queensland, so if you’re visiting between October to March, you may see nesting and hatching on the shore. This island has seen many changes in its years, from a working cattle station, current liquefied natural gas hub and with plans to develop a luxury resort on the island in the future, it could just be the Gladstone region’s best kept secret. If you don’t have a 4WD, be sure to check out the Guide to Curtis Island with a two-wheel-drive. And remember, before embarking on your adventure to Curtis Island, be sure to check park alerts on the Queensland National Parks website – parks.des. qld.gov.au/parks/cur tis-island

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 63

Dan Baker with a beautiful red emperor captured off Yeppoon.

Mick Slade boated a decent local grunter on a soft vibe.

Cracking catches on Capricorn Coast

Ethos Weeding and a cracker fingermark managed from out the front of Coorooman Creek.

One of Dan Baker’s deck hands snagged a solid night-time red emperor.

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HIS month I was going to cover the Shimano King of Kings competition but unfortunately, I’ve run out of time. Keep an eye out for an in-depth run-down next month. For this issue, we’ll have a good look around at what’s been happening locally. With the warmer weather, the estuaries have all been about grunter, fingermark, mangrove jack and barramundi. Threadfin salmon schools have been a little hit and miss for the average angler, however charter operators such as Hooked Fishing Charters and Guided Fishing DownUnder have been able to keep clients onto big whiskered speedsters. Lately, I’ve been lucky enough to see some fairly amazing sights when on the water. I went fishing with a guru by the name of Mick Slade and what I learned in one day about grunter would blow your mind. Some of the grunter schools would have had to be seen to be believed. Schools of 50 or so weren’t uncommon. One insight when chasing grunter for me

Capricorn Coast by JOHN BOON

was that they do move about a lot. Fish such as fingermark prefer to find their own piece of comfortable structure and that’s where they hang. Grunter can be a complete pain in the butt to target when they are moving, though if you’re willing to put in the hard yards and keep your thinking cap on, the desired results will happen. Grunter are just like any other species in that you have to find out what works on the day. One day they will love soft vibes and the next it will be 2” prawns. Keep an open mind and keep cycling through lures. If you’re a bait fisho, looking for areas such as gravel patches or gravel ledges is a great start to soak some bait. As I just talked about with lures, vary your options. If you’ve got four rods, then put out a live mullet, dead mullet, prawn and squid – you will quickly figure out what they want. The Fitzroy River has been hit and miss, which is fairly common at this time of year.

The barrage gates have been opening and closing regularly, pushing filthy run-off water down the river. Port Alma has been a much better option to chase a barra and the Port Alma side of Casuarina Creek has also been fishing well, when you can find the cleaner water. Fingermark have been fishing fairly well and any of the locals in the know haven’t had to work very hard for a tasty feed. If you’re new to targeting fingermark, my best piece of advice is to look for structure out in the middle of the creek. Wrecks are a very reliable find for this species and even well-known wrecks will still produce if you fish them a little differently or at various times. A fallen tree out in the middle will likely hold fingermark at some stage. Generally, the last half of a run-out tide and first half of a run-in are ideal times for targeting these fish. That’s enough for the estuary sides of things, * continued P65

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Cracking catches on Capricorn Coast * from P64

let’s look at how the offshore scene has been fishing. At this time of year, sharks are still running an absolute muck, so if they’re giving you a hiding, my recommendation is to move on. Putting in the hard yards to find isolated small structure such as wonky holes and rocks is a great option. They still do hold sharks at times, yet at a minimum compared to bigger structure such as offshore wrecks and pinnacles. Just remember that isolated structure will hold a better quality of fish as well. We’ve been lucky enough to pull red emperor and large-mouth nannygai up to 13kg from isolated structure

offshore from Yeppoon. Speaking of reds, they have been fishing very well – when you can find a weather window in between the lows, cyclones and high-pressure systems. Be careful when travelling, not only during the day but at night as well. We are getting reports of floating debris such as logs slightly under the water line. Most of the quality reds have been taken on quality bait such as fresh slabs of squid flesh and whole big squid. The art of catching big reds is to use bait that the pickers can hammer without cleaning your hooks in a few seconds. The pickers will help berley the area and all the commotion will alert larger predators

such as red emperor of an easy meal. You need to leave those bait on the bottom and not strike at the pickers. This is the hardest thing to learn for anyone new to chasing reds. You’re waiting for either the weight to come on your line or, if they are proper hungry, a good solid thud followed by weight. Once either of those two things happen, strike as though your life depends on it. Well, that’s it from me this month. Barra season is back in full swing, so once I catch a swag of them, I’ll pick another species to chase. I like the idea of catching my first tripletail. Catch you and be safe.

Alex Mapes caught a banger of a red emperor wide of Yeppoon.

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Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 65

Lynchy with a barramundi from around the mouth of the Daly River. Photos: Warren Smith

Rec fishers call for quota n NT must act to protect barra fishery

T Warren Smith with a 98cm from the mouth of Love Creek, along the coast from Shady Camp.

HE Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the Northern Territory, the peak body representing the recreational fishing sector in the Northern Territory, is calling for urgent weight-based barramundi catch quotas to be introduced for key Top End catchments, including the Daly River and Roper River. This follows concerns

A barramundi from a creek out the front of the Daly River during run-off. Page 66 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

that commercial fishers were targeting bigger harvests from important recreational and Traditional fishing areas, after access changes were announced last year. Barramundi are big business in the NT, supporting thousands of jobs and forming the backbone of a $270 million recreational fishing and fishing tourism industry. With over 60,000 – or one-in-three – adult Territorians going fishing each year, the social, health and wellbeing benefits are widespread and well understood. Together these factors should mean that optimal fishery management is a given, yet nearly a week into the 2024 commercial barramundi fishing season, calls for government action to urgently protect some of the Territo-

ry’s most valuable and iconic fisheries remain unanswered. Traditional Owners closed significant areas of intertidal waters to barramundi netting in 2023. Recently, the Northern Land Council explained to the ABC that “TOs have deep increasing concerns about the impacts of current commercial fishing practices, particularly gillnetting, and the impact on barramundi fish stocks that they are seeing in their communities.” Up to 50 percent of the commercial barramundi catch is understood to have been displaced by recent intertidal closures. Yet, while the fishing area has shrunk, the number of commercial fishing licenses and kilometres of gillnet remain the same, leading

* continued P67

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Rec fishers call for quota * from P66

to genuine concerns of increased harvest from the remaining open catchments. AFANT has been engaged with the Northern Territory Government seeking the introduction of conservative interim catch quotas to ensure that 2024 commercial catches do not exceed recent average harvest levels in any catchment. To date, there has been no announcement from the NT Government. How can you help? After reading the above, you may be wondering what you can do to help. AFANT chief executive officer David Ciaravolo asks that you like, comment (tag your friends) and share AFANT posts to help raise awareness of your concerns. A week into the 2024 NT commercial barramundi season and there is yet to be an announcement in response to our requests for conservative catchment-based quotas to protect key areas for recreational, tourism and Traditional fishing from increased commercial fishing effort and harvest. You may have seen a video on Instagram or Facebook outlining our concerns. If not, we invite you to check it out, scan the QR code below. If you are one of the many people or businesses who have shared this post, I want to say thank you for helping to spread awareness, it was shared 115 times for over 11,000 views. We have received a lot of feedback and support, which I also thank you for. We have spoken to the NT Country Hour and ABC Radio Darwin

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Breakfast to outline our concerns. You can listen to those interviews at abc.net. au/listen/programs/ntcountry-hour/nt-coun try-hour/103397812 and facebook.com /Amat uerFishermenNT/vide os/1046369436595804, or scroll down for more information. This has not merely been a media campaign. Our recent public commentary follows numerous meetings and correspondence behind the scenes with NT Fisheries, the Minister for Fisheries and the Minster for Recreational Fishing and their offices. Since October last year, AFANT along with the NT Guided Fishing Industry Association have been working together to urge the NT Government to implement interim controls to limit the take of commercially netted barramundi through catch caps/quota in places such as the Daly and Roper catchments. While we have had a constructive dialogue and I am confident that we have been heard, we remain disappointed at the lack of concrete action. We do not think that what we are seeking is radical at all. We think it is entirely reasonable and conventional that additional controls are required in response to commercial netters not being able to access the intertidal waters where up to 50 percent of their catch came from only a couple of years ago. There are simply now too many licences and too much net for too few fishing areas. Additional controls are needed to keep the balance while the fishery reform continues.

We point to the fact that when there have been areas closed to netting by government in the past, there has always been a rationalisation/reduction of licences and the kilometres of net available to the fleet. In the absence of such structural reform or buyouts, quota – a limit on the weight of fish that can be harvested – could constrain catch to recent averages and prevent an increase in harvest from being allowable while longer term management is developed. Why the benefits from and values of recreational fishing and the fishing tourism industry in the NT have not yet been assured through an announcement of appropriately strong interim regulations remains something of a mystery. We have, however, been informed that the commercial sector has been resistant to the proposals we have put to government. From our conversations with ministers and their staff, we are hopeful that our persistent advocacy and informed professional advice will ultimately see action taken in this space. If that actually happens and whether that action is strong enough still remains to be seen. Rest assured, we will continue to work on this important of issue. David Ciaravolo AFANT CEO

Watch the video on Instagram outlining AFANT’s concerns.

Piggsy with a nice Daly River run-off barramundi.

Just shy of the 1m mark from a barrage up near the boat ramp at Shady Camp. Note the dark colouring from living in freshwater.

A 101cm fish trolled up at the mouth of Tommycut Creek. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 67

The Whitsundays offer something for every angler, from seasoned veterans chasing record-breaking catches to novices eager to hook their first reef fish. Photos: Topnotch Game Fishing

Hooked on paradise n Fabulous fishing in the Whitsundays

A diverse fishing playground with inner reefs and reef shelves in abundance, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park hugs the coast.

UT yourself here – turquoise waters stretching towards a horizon dotted with emerald islands, the sun warming your skin as you stand on the deck of a sleek boat, anticipation running through your veins. Suddenly, a line screaming taut – the fight is on. The ocean erupts in a flurry of shimmering scales and primal power. This is game fishing

This is game fishing in the Whitsundays. Page 68 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

in the Whitsundays. Where adrenaline meets awe and the thrill of the chase mingles with the breathtaking beauty of paradise. The Whitsundays aren’t only a postcard-perfect archipelago – they’re an angler’s arena. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park hugs the coast, creating a diverse fishing playground with inner reefs and reef shelves in abundance. Black marlin, sailfish and tuna – some reaching epic proportions – patrol these pristine waters, their movements dictated by the lunar cycle and the promise of baitfish shoals. The Whitsundays offer something for every angler, from seasoned veterans chasing record-breaking catches to novices eager to hook their first reef fish. Troll, cast lures or jig – there is a diverse bounty waiting under the surface. And the challenge of

hooking up… exhilarating. But the magic of Whitsundays’ game fishing goes beyond the catch. It’s the holiday that has something for everyone, from snorkelling, diving, sky diving or relaxing by the pool with a cold drink, all options leave you to fish the Whitsundays without a worry. And then there’s the scenery. As you navigate the azure labyrinth of islands, their peaks rising from the sea, you’re treated to a rare natural beauty. Whitehaven Beach with its silica sand stretching for 7km and shimmers under the sun. Uninhabited islands beg to be explored, their fringing reefs teeming with tropical fish and vibrant coral reefs. Every turn reveals another postcard-perfect vista, a reminder that you’re fishing in paradise. * continued P69

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Hooked on paradise * from P68

Fishing in the Whitsundays is easy with local charter operators, many family-owned and operated, offering years of expertise and genuine passion. They’ll share their knowledge of the water, guide you to the best spots and help land that trophy catch. And after a day of battling giants, there’s a stunning trip back to shore and a delicious lo-

cal seafood dinner waiting in the restaurant or fish shop. So, whether you’re a seasoned angler or a curious first-timer, the Whitsundays beckon. This is more than simply a fishing trip – it’s an adventure that will leave you hooked on paradise. The Whitsundays are waiting, rod in hand, ready to reel you in with the magic of game fishing in paradise.

Turquoise waters stretch towards a horizon dotted with emerald islands, this is game fishing in the Whitsundays.

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The Whitsundays are an angler’s paradise.

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 69

TOURING & exploring Good ground clearance is needed if you are doing any hardcore four-wheel driving on the Cape.

Effective recovery gear is of course essential when travelling the tough tracks on the peninsula. A great tow job on the track to Cape Melville.

Preparation and planning for a peninsula trip

ELL, what a doozy of a summer we’re

having! Cyclones, tropical lows and some of the most intense and widespread thunderstorms on record. Plus, of course, the cracking heat and humidity. Overall, this is definitely one of the wildest seasons I’ve seen. Apparently as a result of sea surface temperatures being considerably above normal around eastern Australia – even though the broader Pacific Basin has been in an El Niño climate pattern… or was. I am seeing many

Top End Touring by ‘BILLABONG’ BAZZ LYON

comments of concern about whether Cape York and the trip to the Tip will be doable this year. It’s important to understand that torrential rain and flooding is normal for the peninsula each wet season. It’s when there’s a failed wet that locals get concerned. At the time of writing, there had been a good ‘normal’ wet over most of the region and, unless something monumental happens, this dry season is going to

Wallaby Creek near Rossville after Tropical Cyclone Jasper. It used to be a shaded rainforest stream. About 3m of rain fell in only five days. Page 70 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

be business as normal. However, speaking of monumental, most readers will be aware that Tropical Cyclone Jasper delivered exceptional rainfall totals between Innisfail, Cairns and the Cooktown area. Of course, this is the northern part of the Wet Tropics – the wettest part of Australia and where heavy rain is normal. However, how TC Jasper sat and pumped out rain was something else! At home, slightly out of Cooktown, I recorded 1.4m of rain in five days, with the rain gauge overflowing a couple of times. In places, from roughly Black Mountain south to Port Douglas, it was double or more than that and the havoc wreaked was unbelievable. Friends from down that way told us that they started hearing wild roarings above the

sound of the rain, realising the sound was from landslides avalanching down mountain sides, sometimes lasting for 10 minutes. The scars across the landscape indicate that this was a huge and very rare weather event. While the Cape should be business as usual, the old Cairns Regional Electricity Board track (commonly known as the CREB track) and the southern end of the Bloomfield Track from Cape Tribulation to Wujal Wujal look to be closed for the foreseeable future. There are so many other priorities to repair. The other more general questions asked of a ‘trip to the Tip’ are about vehicle modifications such as suspension lifts, tyres and recovery gear, and also sleeping arrangements if you’re not towing something – swags versus tents, versus roof-top tents and such. Vehicle modifications and requirements In my experience, if your vehicle already has

good ground clearance, a suspension lift really isn’t necessary. Some of the newer model vehicles with a tray and/or twin cab are on the low side, and a lift may be beneficial. As I’ve mentioned before, the critical factor is to make sure the suspension is in good condition because it will cop a real flogging. Sagging springs, old shock absorbers and suspension bushes should all be replaced. If you’re going hardcore and doing the full Telegraph Track, it’s best that someone in the party has a winch and all the accessories. Otherwise, everyone should have a tow strap and shackles kept handy, Maxtrax or similar and, of course, a good shovel. Lots of vehicles suffer alternator and/or starter motor issues through water ingress, so a tarp or ‘water bra’ to put over the front of the vehicle in deep crossings can be a very good idea and save a lot of dramas. * continued P71

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TOURING & exploring Preparation and planning for peninsula trip * from P70

Just make sure any ropes are properly tied off so they can’t wrap around anything. When it comes to tyres, mud terrain or good all terrain are ideal – with strong sidewalls to minimise staking being the top priority. Sleeping arrangements Well, of course this is largely personal preference, however people are naturally mindful of the crocodiles. The thing is, if you camp safely back from the water’s edge, as advised on the Department of Environment, Land and Water’s ‘Be Crocwise’ web page –

qld.gov.au/environment/ plants-animals/animals/ living-with/crocodiles/ becrocwise – there shouldn’t be a problem whatever you use. While rooftop tents are a neat way to go, you do have to of course fold them up anytime you want to drive anywhere. Plus climbing up and down a ladder is not for everyone. I definitely see their appeal, however they’re not for me. Swags are great, though remember the insects in the tropics can be overly friendly at times. So, you really need one with a built-in insect screen or use a

mosquito net suspended from a branch, vehicle or similar. The other option is a tent that you can put your swag and/or bedding and other items in. This gives you protection from insects and also some privacy. We’ve used two or three-person pop up tents for years and they very work well, for us. It takes longer to take them out of the bag than to ‘throw’ them up. Packing away is easy too, once you learn how – they are a great fast camping solution. Until next month, stay dry, cool or whatever is needed and keep living the dream!

Pop up tents are a great quirky and easy solution for camping. When camped at Cape Melville, we used an Outdoor Connection Easy Up 2 dome tent, which has great side ventilation.

Crocodile country considerations to reduce risk

E croc wise and reduce your risk. Crocodiles are a common occurrence in ‘croc country’. No waterway in croc country can ever be considered crocodile free. That’s why being croc wise is so important. Where is croc country? Croc country (considered to be typical crocodile habitat) begins at the Boyne River south of Gladstone and extends northward up the east coast and across far north and northwest Queensland to the Northern Territory border. Crocodiles can sometimes also be found outside of croc country. Crocodiles can be found in freshwater and saltwater locations

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along the coast and up to hundreds of kilometres inland. Saltwater (estuarine) crocodiles can also live in freshwater, it’s just that they generally prefer the saltwater environment where there are more food sources. Understanding crocodile behaviour Crocodiles are apex predators that use ambush tactics, such as lying and waiting at the water’s edge, to capture their prey. Just because you can’t see a crocodile, doesn’t mean there’s not one close by. Crocodiles can stay underwater for over an hour and can be completely concealed, even in knee-deep water. Night, dusk and dawn are when crocodiles

are most active. And during and after high tides and heavy rains – crocodiles can move further upstream during very high tides and periods of flooding and may move into new areas where they haven’t been seen before. Top tips to reduce your risk Stay at least 5m from the water’s edge, crocodiles often hunt their prey at the water’s edge. Dispose of your food and fish scraps in a bin or take them home. Crocodiles are attracted by an easy meal, so make sure you take your food, fish scraps and bait away from the water, camp site and boat ramp. Any scraps left in these areas put future visitors to the area at risk.

Keep your pets on a lead and away from the water’s edge. Animals, and dogs in particular, are attractive prey to crocodiles. Avoid using small watercraft such as kayaks and paddleboards. The smaller the vessel, the greater the risk – crocodiles have taken

people from small vessels. Stay well away from crocodile traps. For more information, visit qld.gov.au/environ ment/plants-animals/an imals/living-with/croco diles/becrocwise Department of Environment, Land and Water

Map of Queensland and typical known crocodile habitats. Source: DELW Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 71

TOURING & exploring

There was a slight sea breeze during our stay at 14 Mile, so to provide a little shelter, we parked the van the opposite way. Thankfully, the wind abated and we got to enjoy this magical place.

Best of Western Australia

Even from inside the van the view was breathtaking.

The weed on the beach at 14 Mile made fishing a little tough on the first few days but some nice dart were still caught. Page 72 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

TOTALLY understand how families can spend one, two or even more years travelling around our awesome country. It is not for everyone, yet if it’s something you’d like to do and you can make it work, I encourage all to do it – you won’t be disappointed. My main regret was not going for longer, though we do tend to go with what we think is right given our personal situation. In my articles and when having conversations about our trip, I’m always saying I want to do it again and next time for longer. I’m not sure when the next time will be and there are no immediate plans on the table, however the desire to get back on the road is still there. Some people are surprised by this, but it truly was an unforget-

Family Adventures by BEN COLLINS

table time and one that strengthened our family bond and allowed us to grow as individuals. Who knows, it might be 10 years before I get to do a similar trip. By then my eldest daughter will well and truly have her licence, so it may be a very different family trip. And she has talked about doing it again with us in 10 years’ time, so hopefully that will still be the case when the time comes. In saying this, I’m sure we’ll have plenty of other adventures before then – I’m just not sure where, when or for how long. Carnarvon Despite staying a night in Carnarvon was not initially on our agenda, we ended up staying a couple of nights.

Not because there was heaps to do there, it simply worked out that way. Though we still managed to get to a local speedway event, explore the Carnarvon Space and Technology Museum, fish the river mouth and enjoy some local takeaway seafood. Plus, the Carnarvon Capricorn Holiday Park pool and bowling green kept both the kids and adults entertained. While definitely not at the top of the list of towns to stay at, our time there was pleasant and allowed us to get ready for more time off grid. Camp 14 Mile and Coral Bay Once again, we were back on the coast with a Park Stay WA at 14 * continued P73

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TOURING & exploring Best of Western Australia * from P72

Mile beach, adjoining the Ningaloo Reef. Situated on a raised section of beach, our camp was literally 20m from the water’s edge. Some of the camp sites were massive, with completely uninterrupted views of the water – we were lucky and scored one of these. Though, on arrival the wind was coming in off the ocean, so we decided to park the van with the awing opening to the protected side. Not that it really mattered, as we simply put chairs on the other side when the wind dropped. Plus, we still had great views from inside the van. If you are planning on visiting here, you will need a four-wheeldrive – while the road in wasn’t tough, it was a bit rough. You will also need to be self-contained because there is no power,

no water and there are no toilet facilities. However, about 2km from camp, a dump point was provided. As we’d experienced in a few of the places we’d visited, it wasn’t long before we met like-minded travellers and the stories started flowing. As squid and cuttlefish were on the chew within 50m of shore, the kayak saw plenty of use at 14 Mile. While we did see an occasional shark, and even caught a few big shovel nose sharks at night, generally the water was safe for swimming and snorkelling – not that there was much to see directly in front of camp. And though there weren’t any facilities, Coral Bay was only 45 minutes up the road, which could be accessed via the main entrance and following the highway or a track through the

back of the dunes. We did duck up one night for dinner at the hotel, and to check the beach out. The caravan park there was packed and the little town busy, so we were happy we chose to be off grid, but each to their own. South Lefroy I rate myself as a reasonably experienced off-road driver with a decent amount of beach-towing experience, though after reading several reviews and comments about getting to South Lefroy Bay campground, I did have some concerns about getting bogged. Because we were travelling by ourselves, I took extra precautions so that we didn’t get bogged, particularly with a fully loaded van on the back. However, the reviews on WikiCamps had me second-guessing.

A bit of night-time fun to keep the kids entertained. The shovel nose shark was released unharmed.

* continued P74

There were several 4WD tracks to explore along this stretch of coast, and plenty ending with a view like this. www.bnbfishing.com.au

Once the wind dropped, we couldn’t keep the kids out of the water.

There’s nothing better than fresh squid – yum. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 73

TOURING & exploring Walking along the beach and up the sand dunes was a great way to burn a few calories.

It doesn’t get much better than this – cooking dinner on the beach as the sun was setting at South Lefroy. Probably a refreshment somewhere close by too.

Best of Western Australia * from P73

Hard to keep a kid off a steep sand dune. The bay in the background was to the south of South Lefroy and a haven for turtles.

Despite having to travel along ‘the worst road in Australia’, we made it to our camping spot at South Lefroy, and what a beauty it was. Page 74 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

Comments such as ‘The worst road we have been on ever’, ‘If you are on sites 1 to 6 you will get bogged’ and ‘Extremely soft sand near sites 1 to 6’. And guess what… we were on site 6. From experience, getting the tyre pressure right, selecting the right gear and having good momentum were key factors to not getting bogged. As it was our first time to South Lefroy, I also wanted to check how bad the track to the beach was before attacking it. Thankfully it was nowhere near as bad as I was expecting, so we easily made our way onto the beach – a lot of worry for nothing. My point here is to read the reviews but also understand that experiences vary a lot be-

tween people, so what might be the worst road for some may be the norm for others. After cruising onto the beach, we were soon in search of our spot, which was set about 100m back from the ocean. This might seem a long way in, however on a king tide, the water comes all the way in and can lap at your camp. Fortunately, we

planned our stay around the neap tides, so that wasn’t a concern for us. As for most of remote beach camps, you need to be totally self-sufficient at South Lefroy Bay campground. Though there were a couple of freshwater bores a few kilometres away, so there was access to extra water if needed – which you would if staying for a week or more. * continued P75

With our kids having grandparents who live on a working cattle farm, they were eager to show Pop their new ear tags, which we hooked onto their hats.

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TOURING & exploring Best of Western Australia * from P74

If the sun is out and you have plenty of food, water is the main thing you’ll require, and it does need to be managed. The JB Scorpion holds 240 litres of water and we also had an extra 40 litres in jerry cans, so we had more than enough for our five nights at this spot – but the girls do like their showers. And having a quick freshwater rinse after a day in the salt water and sand is certainly worth having extra water for. In terms of what you can do here – well, we snorkelled and relaxed. That was our daily routine and we loved it. Though to explore the area, you could throw in a little 4WDing too. Bullara Station I find it a little ironic the number of times our travels took us from the bush to the beach or vice-versa.

For the next section, we detoured inland instead of taking the Yardie Creek Rd north. The main reason for this was due to our booking for a camping spot at Cape Range National Park, which was only the second place we had booked before heading off. Hence, we needed to fit in with that commitment, which in turn meant we had a few spare days before spending a week in Exmouth. Fortunately we stumbled across a cracking bush camp stay – Bullara Station. Even better, we managed to snag ‘burger night’ as one of our nights there. Burger night is on a Friday yet, due to its popularity, can be hard to secure a booking. I recommend booking early for this one. Aside from the flamegrilled patty, which is

cooked over a massive open fire on a huge hot plate, there is also free music to listen to as you catch up and have a yarn with fellow travellers. The burgers were good value and tasted great. If you miss burger night, there’s also a café and restaurant that will satisfy your appetite. Alternatively, you can buy a cut of meat directly from the station – it’s a working cattle farm. Apart from the good food and great atmosphere, there are plenty of other things at the station to keep you busy. Walking trails (including one for watching the sunset), stargazing, 4WDing to the Exmouth Gulf (which is still on the property) and damper tasting are only a few of the other attractions to enjoy while you are here.

We had a cracking bush camp stay at Bullara Station.

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Bullara Station extended to the Exmouth Gulf, where the kids played and the adults relaxed.

A few small mangrove jack and bream were landed in a little tributary.

Hard to go past a Bullara burger or two, especially when they’re cooked over a fire. The second burger was for Greta… truly! Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 75

Changes ahead for SIPS

Fishing trail guide for southeast Queensland

tocked dams and weirs in Queensland offer fantastic recreational freshwater fishing experiences – and our regional fishing trails are a great way to explore the sunshine state. With more than 60 dams and weirs across five regions – north Queensland, central Queensland, Wide Bay-Burnett, southeast Queensland and the Murray Darling – there are plenty of places to wet a line and catch a great feed. The Stocked Impoundment Permit Scheme provides a sustainable fishing option, with over 2 million fish stocked in Queensland dams and weirs every year. The money you pay for your SIPS permit is used by community stocking groups to maintain fish stocks so you can enjoy your fishing – now and in the future. Before you head off… • Download the Qld Fishing 2.0 app so you have Queensland’s recreational fishing rules at your fingertips • Buy your SIPS permit via the Qld Fishing 2.0 app or at

fisheries.qld.gov.au or call 1300 575 359 (or at Queensland and selected NSW Australia Post outlets) • Check with the relevant local authorities – for example local council, Seqwater, Sunwater – that the dam or weir is open and safe to use • Make sure your vehicle is suitable to drive on unsealed roads (gravel and dirt) if required, check if you need four-wheeldrive capability and make sure your registrations are up to date • Check the weather conditions and make sure you have all necessary safety gear • Download the Freshwater Fishing and Stocking Association of Queensland’s Fish Monitoring app to keep track of your catches. The southeast Queensland fishing trail is a joint initiative of the Queensland Government and the FFSAQ. For more information, visit the Queensland Fisheries website and look for the southeast Queensland fishing trail guide. Department of Agriculture and Fisheries

Page 76 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

FEW things of note took place recently. Some interesting correspondence was received from a couple of fellow recreational anglers, along with a few phone calls. Before I go any further, the following are my thoughts alone. That said, reproduced below are a couple of emails I received regarding a fishing permit enquiry and the right priorities for Queenland’s future. First though, a letter was received from John Dexter, the principal fisheries manager at Fisheries Queensland. It reads as follows: Dear Secretary This letter is to advise that a decision has been made not to continue the SIPS Working Group in its current format. The current SIPS Working Group will be dissolved and replaced with the SIPS Advisory Committee (SIPSAC) where it will advise on the administration of the SIPS. It is hoped that this will streamline and simplify the administration of the scheme while still providing an important avenue for SIPS groups to advise on the schemes administrative and decision-making processes. The SIPSAC will be appointed and managed by the Principal Fisheries Manager – Freshwater, Licencing and Aquaculture. Terms of reference have been drafted for the SIPSAC in line with those used by the previous working group. Two SIPS representatives will still be appointed as members on the Freshwater Working Group. Expressions of interest

(EOls) for the Advisory Committee are now open. Please advise your members of the opportunity to apply for the newly formed SIPSAC. EOls will also be advertised in the Freshwater Fishing and Stocking Association of Queensland newsletter. To apply, please complete the attached application form and email to sippermits@daf.qld. gov.au by 29 February 2024. Please note that being a member of the SIPSAC is not the only way to get involved. Fisheries Queensland will continue to engage with alI freshwater and stocking stakeholders and is particularly looking forward to the Freshwater Fishing and Stocking Workshop due to be held later this year. If you would like any further information, please contact Thomas Hart, Fisheries Manager (Freshwater) on 0467 956 667 or by email at thomas.hart@daf.qld. gov.au Yours sincerely John Dexter Principal Fisheries Manager Fisheries Queensland This is an election year for Queensland and funding issues are still a concern for both salt and freshwater fisheries. And, with the cost of a yearly SIPS being married into annual consumer price index increases, these are major financial concerns for all anglers who fish freshwater locations. One of many subjects that need to be discussed. Back to the emails from concerned recreational anglers regarding a fishing permit enquiry and the right priorities for Queenland’s future.

The first was from the Callide Electorate Office on September 6 2023 in response to a fishing permit enquiry and reads as follows: Good afternoon [concerned angler] The Flynn team passed on your email regarding a proposed All Waters Permit System for Queensland. As an avid fisherman myself, I’m always keen to explore alternatives that continues to improve our fishing opportunities in our own backyard. I will raise this with our Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, Tony Perrett MP, for consideration as part of the LNP’s policy formation process in the lead up to next year’s state election. I know that much more can be done to improve the management of our waterways, and unfortunately we see regular failures from the state government. Thanks for raising this issue with your federal member! Enjoy the rest of your week. Kind regards, Bryson Head MP Member for Callide P: (07) 4845 1100 E: Callide@Parliamen t.gld.gov.au P.O. Box 559, Biloela, QLD 4715 64 Callide St, Biloela, QLD 4715 W: www.brysonhead. com.au Fa: www.facebook. com/BrysonHeadMP/ In: @BrysonHeadMP Leader of the LNP went fishing for voters to read ‘The Right Priorities for Queensland’s Future’ with this: Dear [voter] With 12 months to go until the next election, I have launched the * continued P77

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Changes ahead for SIPS * from P76

LNP’s blueprint for the future of Queensland. The Right Priorities for Queensland’s Future outlines fundamental priorities for an LNP Government, which focus on the issues that matter most to Queenslanders. The priorities have been developed after listening to thousands of Queenslanders during health crisis town halls, backyard crime forums, residential care forums, community housing provider engagement and meetings with small and family business from every corner of the state. The five key priority areas for an LNP Government, which will guide policy and decisions, are: • Making our community safer • Saving you paying for Labor’s failures • Securing our housing foundations • Working harder for Queenslanders Because we have listened to Queenslanders, our priorities are the priorities of Queenslanders. For too long Queenslanders have been forced to endure the chaos and crisis of this Labor Government, but we are charting a new course for Queensland’s future, with the Right Priorities. Over the coming months we will be continue visiting every corner of our great state to speak with Queenslanders about the issues that matter most to them. Please click* here to read and download our blueprint The Right Priorities for Queensland’s Future. Yours Sincerely, David Crisafulli MP Leader of the LNP

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*The Right Priorities for Queensland’s Future blueprint can be viewed in its entirety at lnp.org.au/wp-con tent/uploads/2023/10/ LNP-The-Right-Priori ties-for-Queenslands-Fu ture-Dec-2023.pdf The voter’s response to this email was: Hi David, Perhaps you could start something with this. We currently have a SIPS that the revenue goes into restocking and other projects at a limited number of dams and weirs. It was initially introduced for restocking only but typically the government gained access to allow for applications for other projects. For many years NSW have had an All Freshwater Permit system, where all people who fish freshwater must buy a permit. This allows permits to be purchased cheaper, raises heaps more revenue and would restock all non-tidal waters. I know from personal experience that the Dawson River is very low on yellowbelly stocks because when the river floods, the fish travel downstream over several weirs that the fish cannot migrate upstream from to spawn. This project is being initiated by Brian Dare who would supply information if required. It is without a doubt that the coming of age should be taken into account for Fisheries Queensland. It should no longer be part of the Department of Agriculture (farming) but named the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture, working under its own identity – as it is with other Australian states. Have your say! Brian Dare

The letter received from John Dexter, principal fisheries manager at Fisheries Queensland.

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FREE Hop on to bnbfishing.com.au Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 77

Secret life of fish ear bones

HE study of fish ear bones, or otoliths, provides a fascinating window into the aquatic world – similar to how dendrology, the study of tree rings, offers insights into terrestrial environments. Otoliths record valuable data about the life of a fish. These calcium carbonate structures reside in the head of fish and grow in layers throughout a fish’s life. Each layer represents a specific period of growth, revealing not only the age of the fish but also insights into their living conditions. On the latest episode of OzCast, Professor Lee Baumgartner unveiled his research into otoliths, which details remarkable stories about fish populations. Intriguingly, fish, being cold-blooded, lay down rings at different rates throughout the year, influenced by environmental conditions.

But otoliths hold more secrets than only age. They encapsulate the chemical composition of the water in which the fish lived, effectively recording the environmental conditions at specific times. This capability allows scientists to construct a detailed timeline of a fish’s life, including where it lived and the quality of water it inhabited. A significant revelation from Lee’s study was the discovery of extensive migration patterns among fish populations. For instance, many fish found dead in the southern basin of the Murray River, particularly around Deniliquin and Echuca, were born in the Darling River. These fish had migrated from their birthplace in the Darling River to the Murray River as larvae, then moved upstream. This finding under-

scores the interconnectivity of river systems and the importance of considering these connections in environmental management and conservation efforts. The insights gained from otolith analysis are invaluable for understanding fish populations and managing aquatic ecosystems. By revealing the life history and migration routes of fish, otoliths help in tracking the health and diversity of fish communities. This knowledge is crucial for conservation efforts, particularly in regions where water systems are heavily impacted by human activities. As we continue to explore these ‘rings of the aquatic world’, we gain a deeper understanding of our waterways and the diverse life they support, guiding us towards more informed and effective conservation strategies. Visit ozfish.org.au for more information.

Professor Lee Baumgartner

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By revealing the life history and migration routes of fish, otoliths help in tracking the health and diversity of fish communities.

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Large lures with a wide action will grab the attention of predatory fish in coloured water.

Fishing fresh muddy water

ONSIDERING the drenching much of the Sunshine State received over the past couple of months, I figured a few pointers on fishing muddy water would be timely. I’ll deal mainly with freshwater, as that’s my forte, and also where many of us are likely to encounter brown water. Don’t become disheartened when rivers are running high and dirty because fishing is still a very worthwhile endeavour. Many of our native freshwater species are triggered to move when stream levels rise. Golden and silver perch push upstream, so that after spawning, when their eggs tumble along with the flow prior to hatching, they will still be in favourable environments. Many of our grunter

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Fishing for Sport by NEIL SCHULTZ

species also push upstream during a fresh, none more determinedly than the little spangled perch. These hardy little fish will swim across flooded paddocks, along stormwater drains and leap up weir walls in their drive to move upstream. Whether the fish are migrating or sedentary, feeding activity often increases during a fresh, at least for the first few days. This may purely be due to a change in their immediate environment’s condition, or it may be in response to the sudden increase in food items available. Small aquatic prey species including insect larvae, shrimps

and crayfish will be dislodged from their safe hiding spots to be snapped up by hungry fish. Terrestrial organisms also become available to fish as they are washed into streams or drown as grasses and other bankside vegetation floods. That all sounds very promising, yet there are a few changes in the fish’s behaviour to keep in mind. Fish have very limited visibility when the streams are muddy, resulting in them hanging very close to solid cover when not migrating. We’ve had some extraordinarily successful outings on streams in flood when targeting Murray cod – yes, they * continued P80

Bibless rattlers such as a Halco Trembler attract fish by sound.

Cod maestro Kevin Clark with one of a score of cod caught on Predatek Boomerangs when the river was in flood. The Boomerangs’ wide action and internal rattles worked brilliantly. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 79

Fishing muddy water * from P79

are one of my favourite species. During 2010, cod guru Kevin Clark and I canoed along a river running a little high and rather muddy, firing quick casts into likely looking spots as we were propelled along by the current. After a dozen or so fish, it became obvious that the fish were close to the shore and right up against solid cover. Lures cast either behind or in front of a stump or rock breaking the current were snapped up by hungry fish before their prospective meal was washed away in the flow. Note that fish will often sit on the pressure wave on the upstream side of structure instead of being tucked in behind. If you study how water behaves around such hard objects, you’ll notice that it will scour holes immediately down current and it takes velocity to do that. During a fresh, fish will seek positions with less velocity to rest and ambush prey. Observing water flows during a fresh will also reveal how there are often narrow currents along the shore that run slowly in the opposite direction of the main flow. Our target species know this and will hug the shoreline tightly to take advantage of those milder currents. So, now we know where to cast, we need to explore what to cast. As stated earlier, fish have very limit-

ed visibility in muddy water. This has them relying on other senses to find prey, and the most effective of those are hearing and their lateral line. We’ll score best with lures that create strong vibrations in the water. Most anglers immediately think of rattles, and they certainly have a place in muddy water. At times though, hard-fished water may need a slightly more natural approach. A lure that shifts a lot of water, either via its bulk or action, will be picked up by a fish’s lateral line. Wide-actioned plugs are a personal favourite, with the large Predatek Sandviper working exceptionally well for cod. If targeting golden perch, bass, sooty grunter and the like, you’ll do better with a smaller lure. Consider even switching to a chatterbait or a spinner with Colorado style blades. Both of those lure types generate plenty of vibration that will help fish find them in the murk. When it comes to colour choice, either a fluoro chartreuse or fluoro red, or the complete opposite end of the spectrum with a purple or black, should do the job. Casts need to be tight to cover and retrieves as slow as you possibly can without the lure ceasing to swim correctly. Even though the local streams are running the colour of a strong cappuccino, I’m going fishing.

Page 80 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

Lachlan Marshall was stoked with his biggest Murray cod catch.

Glenlyon has gone green

HEN you drive into the storage camping area, you need to keep your sunglasses on due to the bright green area that confronts you. Looking outside the main storage visitor centre, you see the water sitting at 65 percent capacity and the white rocks, which is the section known as The Caves. This area requires a good troll and casting of lures. It’s getting close to the shutdown of water heading out west, as the month of February is when most of the water required for crops is finished. What then takes place is cod nesting selection of sites, which are guarded until breeding season in August. With this in mind, it now comes down to you the angler picking what you think would be a good area to work. It used to be trial and error about six years ago, or advice gained over a few quiet drinks

Glenlyon Dam by BRIAN DARE

and waiting for the information to flow out. Not today – we have screens that give you an up-to-date view of what’s below to target. I hear a little of the talk about how you get to see the cod watch the lure drift down past its head and it moves off! Mark the location for later, and after about 30 minutes, come back, turn off all the electronics and fish. Even 25m from the mark, troll, cast or tie off to a tree and cast

spinnerbaits, mumblers or blades. If it’s a cod, that will be its home area for the surrounding 15-20m. As for a female, all she will do is look at the real estate and mind the location, then move on for a feed or to check out the next joint. It’s not the job of the female to find a home site to guard – that role belongs to the male cod. As for yellowbelly in storages, they are always on the move – in * continued P81

Oscar Daly from Tenterfield captured a 43cm yellowbelly on a shrimp.

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Glenlyon is green * from P80

flowing water, small tight water locations, bird nesting night sites, good shrimp bait spots or shallow water areas with rock ledges – not too deep down, only about 4.5-5.5m depths. Most of the storages are stocked by fish management groups. The stocking of cod, yellowbelly, silver perch, bass and barramundi would have been completed by now. This gives you many areas to target. Rivers come to mind, and in most cases it’s the flow of water that will dictate which you decide on fishing. I should mention access to rivers and streams, as all too often you’ll arrive at a location for public use.

You guessed it – more than likely it will have been trashed by grubs – with broken bottles, disposable nappies, beer cans, general rubbish and waste… access lost. If you can bring in all the things you need to camp with, take home what’s been used. We are seeing bridge locations and the travelling stock research slowly being closed off to public use – yes, access gone! The next four months will be the prime time to fish and given an early Easter this year, most will head west or east to warm water for that break. Winter of course is when you see cod anglers hit all the large western dams prior to the big frosts.

DAM LEVELS CURRENT AS OF 14/02/2024

DAMS Atkinson * Awoonga Bjelke-Petersen * Boondooma * Borumba * Burdekin Falls * Callide * Cania * Coolmunda * Dyer/Bill Gunn * Eungella * Fairbairn * Glenlyon * Hinze * Julius * Kinchant * Leslie * Macdonald * Maroon * Monduran/Fred Haigh * Moogerah * North Pine/Samsonvale * Peter Faust/Proserpine * Somerset * Teemburra * Tinaroo * Toonumbar Wivenhoe * Wuruma * Wyaralong *

PERCENTAGE OCT

NOV

DEC

JAN

FEB

59 57 77 75 83 76 19 30 81 48 97 33 88 82 89 70 86 72 94 90 80 49 66 77 98 79 87 66 81 92

52 54 72 73 77 69 18 27 73 43 95 29 79 80 86 62 83 64 91 86 77 47 64 75 95 73 87 64 77 91

50 54 76 75 75 73 17 25 74 40 95 30 75 79 85 60 82 60 91 86 77 46 63 75 94 70 88 62 76 93

48 55 76 75 91 90 18 25 71 43 99 28 68 103 84 70 76 104 97 87 84 50 66 82 97 105 101 64 80 101

73 57 84 85 100 109 18 25 72 80 100 39 65 101 100 72 75 103 100 89 100 65 66 80 100 103 102 70 81 100

For updates on dams, visit sunwater.com.au or seqwater.com.au *This symbol indicates that a Stocked Impoundment Permit is required to fish these dams.

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Outstanding fuel economy Superior durability and optimised weight Exhilarating boating performance Fine-tuned ECU programming

BOWEN Tropical Trailerboats 32 Gordon St, Bowen www.tropicaltrailerboats.com.au 07 4786 3899

GOLD COAST (CENTRAL) Tim Stessl Marine 8/7-9 Activity Cres, Molendinar www.timstesslmarine.com.au 0429 680 504

TIN CAN BAY The Chandlery Bait & Tackle Shop 1, The Marina Emperor St, Tin Can Bay www.tcbchandlery.com.au 07 5486 4744

BRISBANE Neptune Marine Oceania Unit 1/3361 Pacific Hwy, Slacks Creek www.neptunemarine.com.au 07 3290 6370

MACKAY Phoenix Powersports 165 Paradise St, Mackay www.phoenixpowersports.com.au 07 4952 2436

WOODBURN Woodburn Marine 83 River St, Woodburn woodburn.marine@outlook.com 0402 512 603

GOLD COAST (NORTH) Slades Marine 16 Paradise Pde, Paradise Point sladesmarine@bigpond.com 07 5577 1011

SUNSHINE COAST Port O’ Call Boating 29 Production Ave, Warana www.marinecenter.com.au 07 5493 2255

Page 86 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024

www.bnbfishing.com. au

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, March 2024 – Page 87

SALE

DEMO

481 CRUISEABOUT

510 FRONTIER - MERCURY 115HP PRO XS CT

With savings from both Mercury and Quintrex - you won't be disappointed

A dream for the dedicated fisher – there're not many places you can't go

JUST IN

SALE

590 TERRITORY LEGEND

420 RENEGADE - MERCURY 50HP

Taking the challenge straight to the water

The outlaw of the Quintrex family will turn heads at the ramp

IN STOCK

SALE

520 OCEAN SPIRIT PRO - MERCURY 115HP

600 FISHSEEKER - MERCURY 90HP

The only decision you have to make is Tangalooma or Stradbroke

This hunter of fishing waters will have you craving weekends

HANDS DOWN

Ambidextrous Adjustable Tiller

Relocatable Port or Starboard Shift Lever

Exclusive Heated Grip (Optional) Troll Control

THE MOST INTUITIVE TILLER STEER TECHNOLOGY FOR 40-115HP

Bi-Directional Throttle Control

THE MERCURY ADVANTAGE

• Troll control with 10 RPM increments. • Most tiller tilt angle adjustments. • Most side to side angle adjustments. • Only tiller in market with relocatable port or starboard shift lever. • Integrated engine information display. • Industry first heated grip (optional).

Exclusive Heated Grip Control (Optional)

Information Display

Throttle Friction Adjustment

Can’t make the yard? Shop online! For quality new and used boats! www.brisbaneboatingleisure.com.au Ipswich Rocklea | Call 07 3875 1600 | Formerly Karee Marine Page 88 – 1747 Bush ’n Beach Fishing,Road, March 2024 www.bnbfishing.com. au

BNB Fishing Mag | March 2024

Articles inside

Crabs, jacks and barra

Invisible invaders of our waterways

Sign up now for events at Redland Bay Amateur Fishing Club

Tips for dirty water targets