4 minute read
Getting ready for the red dogs
OCTOBER is one of the best months to chase mangrove jack around southeast Queensland.
The water temperature will be on the rise and the angry red fish will be hungry and looking to empty your wallets.
Many years ago, I used to keep records on all the jacks I’d caught, and October was always one of the best months.
Back then, not many anglers would start chasing them until November, and I tell you, they definitely missed out.
Though times have changed and anglers are chasing MJs year round now.
They can be caught in every month of the year, however it takes a little more effort during cooler months.
Many people assume mangrove jack move out of the estuaries during winter, but that’s not the case.
The Gold Coast Broadwater, Jumpinpin Channel and the Tweed River all have deep bar entrances where schools of jacks can concentrate during winter, but a lot of fish will stay in the upper reaches.
They don’t need to feed as often as they do during the warmer months, but they still need to eat at some point.
They will be a lot more active this month and will be happy to eat a well-presented lure or bait.
Mangrove jack prefer to hang around structure such as fallen trees, rock bars, jetties, pontoons, rockwalls and deep holes. Getting your lure or bait as close as possible is the key to getting a bite from these aggres sive fish.
They spend a lot of their time deep down in cover but under the right circumstances they will happily rise to eat a surface lure.
Times of low light such as early mornings, late afternoons and into the night tend to get the most action on the surface.
Other species – treval ly and the occasional barramundi – will also happily eat a persuasive surface lure in the right conditions.
Look for snags high er in the water column, particularly if they are shaded in the mornings and afternoons.
During the night, jacks move around a lot and will hang around the lights that baitfish are attracted to.
This is a good time to hook a big fish away from structure.
The MMD Splash Prawn is an outstanding lure to chase MJs with on the surface.
They have accounted for a stack of mangrove jack, along with other species.
If jacks aren’t biting on the surface, try switching over to a weedless-style plastic or a hard-body that gets down into the fish’s face.
Don’t give each snag one cast and move on – it can take a lot persistence and patience to consistently catch MJs on lures.
Some days you will nail a mangrove jack first cast and other days it will take 500 casts.
When I fished for jacks exclusively, I would choose a stretch of bank of about .5-1km long and work that for the entire session.
It’s a good way to get to know the river you’re fishing.
Trying different tides and techniques takes a lot of dedication, but it’s a real buzz when it all comes together.
Mangrove jack are a very addictive fish to chase and they put a real dent in your wallet, however they’re well worth it.
I recently upgraded my boat to a 4.5m Polycraft – mainly to expand my options and to get my family out in a little more comfort – so I’ll be doing a lot more fishing in the bay, along the front of Bribie Island and some offshore stuff when the weather allows.
A couple of fishos were coming back across the bay recently and stopped to have look around when they noticed a stack of fish on the sounder, so they dropped some lures down and were both immediately hooked up to giant herring.
They had a ball landing and losing plenty of these speedsters.
These are only some of the species that are becoming more common in the bay.
That’s it from me this month, hope to see you on the water.
