BNB Fishing mag | November 2021 by bnbfishing

Estuary • Offshore • Freshwater • 4WD • Camping • Touring

450

Includes GST

November 2021

Trip to the tip

Print Post Approved PP100001534 Volume 32, Number 11

Moreton Bay success

Outback escapes

Land-based flathead Offshore action

Gold Coast pelagics How to fish with vibes and blades ISSN 1832-4517

9 771832 451001

Proudly produced and printed in Australia

Freshwater features Hints for hitting Hinchinbrook

www.cruisecraft.com.au | 07 3390 4877 | info@cruisecraft.com.au Page 2 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

www.bnbfishing.com. au

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 3

IS NOW

1743 Ipswich Road, Rocklea

New name, new location, same great service & products.

NO SACRIFICES NO COMPROMISES NO APOLOGIES

FOURSTROKE

20% MORE TORQUE

300HP VERADO

12-15%

MORE TORQUE

BETTER ECONOMY

V6 3.4L 200HP FOURSTROKE

12-16% BETTER FUEL ECONOMY

V8 4.6L

250HP PROXS

16% BETTER FUEL

ECONOMY

LEADING COMPETITOR

TORQUE AT 3500-4500 RPM

200HP

4.6L

LEADING COMPETITOR

TORQUE

V8 LEADING COMPETITOR

V6 3.4L

LEADING COMPETITOR

MERCURY

Go online or contact your nearest Mercury Dealer to find out more about the Mercury V6 / V8 range, taking performance, efficiency and reliability to the next level.

* Mercury Finance terms and conditions apply. Photos for illustration purposes only.

Can’t make the yard? Shop online! For quality new and used boats! www.kareemarine.com.au

1743 Ipswich Road, Rocklea | Call 07 3875 1600

Page 4 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

www.bnbfishing.com. au

From the Bush ‘n Beach Fishing editor

HERE has this year gone? I was in a shopping centre the other day and they were getting the Christmas trees out! But I still have heaps on my to-do list for this year. That said, while it has been a crazy busy year, I did manage to get away for an epic mini lap of Queensland… along with plenty of other people from all over Australia. Unfortunately, no one has escaped the impact of COVID, with some faring worse than others. However, ‘things’ appear to be moving in the right direction, so hopefully Australia will be experiencing some type of ‘normal’ before the Christmas holidays. It will be great if families are able to come together and celebrate. Before this happens, I need to get to work and tick a few more things off my list for 2021! On the fishing front, the Australian Fishing Trade Association recently launched a Let’s Fish Australia campaign which is currently underway in Australia. Fishing, boating and travel are great ways to unite people and to

relieve the stress that many people have been feeling of late. This campaign is targeted at people of all ages and abilities and will be a great way to boost the recreational fishing industry. Freshwater A new working group is set to take on freshwater fisheries management, with the first meeting set for late October. Cur rently the stocked impoundment scheme returns around $800,000 dollars a year in funding, so it is important this money is spent and attributed wisely. It is worth noting that this money is not actually funding, rather money that has been paid by recreational fishos for their permit, less an administration fee, which is around 25 percent of the money collected. In my opinion, this percentage it too high and more funds should be going back into the resource. This is why I’m sure several people are hesitant to have an all-water licence – they are concerned about the percentage that will be swallowed by the government as an admin fee. I’m still in favour of an all-water licence,

The Let’s Fish Australia campaign recently launched by AFTA. www.bnbfishing.com.au

though I don’t think this is currently a priority – keeping the doors of business open has understandably been the government’s focus. Fishing What a relief the recent rain was. Enough to get a mix of bait and fish moving that will pay dividends as we come into summer. Occasionally we can get too much rain which dirties the water and makes angling a little harder. Mangrove jack should be out and about and now is the perfect time to target these hardfighting fish. Jack have become iconic recently, with plenty of trophy fish being caught and released, which is awesome to see. Whether you are lure fishing or soaking a dead or live bait, these fish can really test you and your gear. Don’t forget if you want specific information about how to catch fish or the best locations, check out bnb fishing.com.au Our website is regularly updated with weekend fishing reports and lots of tips and advice. Barramundi have started biting in the southeast Queensland impoundments, so it might be worth pencilling in a trip. Fishing can be tough at times in these freshwater storages, but when the barra are chewing the action is exhilarating. With barra off limits on the east coast from November 1 to January 31, these impound-

ments are a great way to get your fix. If you are planning on fishing Monduran Dam over the next couple of months, it might be worth entering their Family Fishing Classic, which runs from October 15 to December 15. Entry for adults is

only $20 and $5 for juniors and you have a great chance of winning cash and prizes. For more information, check out masafishstocking.org.au or give the team at Tackle World Bundaberg a call. Ben Collins

OUR COVER

JO scored her first fat 43cm Borumba bass. Picture by Grant Budd. You can read his article about targeting these fish on page 42.

NEXT EDITION: December edition will be on sale in newsagents from November 26. NOVEMBER SUBSCRIPTION PRIZE: See the subscription form on Page 97 to go in the draw to win one of 20 Gamakatsu packs from Frogleys Offshore valued at $70 each. SEPTEMBER PRIZE WINNER: Congratulations to A Black, Stafford Heights; B Toombs, Manly West and P Hayes, Hope Island who have each won a tackle box from Tackle Club valued at $100 recommended retail price.

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 5

November 2021 contents Tips for scoring fish in southern Moreton Bay. . . . . . . . . . by Sean Conlon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P8 Fishing for snag dwellers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Justin Willmer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P12 Plenty of pelagics on the Gold Coast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P16 Target focus on flathead. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Clint Ansell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P20 Offshore options for Northern NSW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Gavin Dobson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P22 Current and upcoming closures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P24 Tips for land-based flathead. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Sean Bekkers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P26 Offshore current kicks in - flathead fire in river. . . . . . . . . by Brett Hyde . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P30 The fishy business of artificial reefs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P32 Grief from gusts in north NSW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Tye Porter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P34 Warm water options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Sean Thompson . . . . . . . . . . . . P36 SCF Australia fishing competition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Keith Stratford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P40 Action heats up on Sunshine Coast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Grant Budd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P42 Tin Can Bay snapper sortie. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Craig Tomkinson . . . . . . . . . . . . P46 Building better biosecurity for prawn production. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P47 Tips for targeting tuna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Tri Ton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P48 Illegal mangrove clearing cops fine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P49 Seventeen Seventy BnB Trophy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Mick Clutterbuck . . . . . . . . . . . P52 WTF and closed season options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by John Boon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P54 Electric action at Hinchinbrook. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Keith Stratford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P56 Reef fishing northeast Cape York. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by ‘Billabong’ Bazz Lyon . . . . . . . . P60 QBFP with Gudjuda Rangers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P61 The Cape’s classic weekend. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Dave Donald . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P62 Asian green mussel found in Cairns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P63 Product News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P64 It’s definitely the vibe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Zac Panaretos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P66 Insights into boat insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P72 Quintrex takes fishing to a new level with Hornet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P73 Testing - performance of the Posi Lift Hull. . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Collins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P74 Simrad Yachting celebrates 75 years of innovation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P76 Telwater trailers to take the industry by storm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P77 Lowrance HDS Live 12 packed with features. . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Collins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P78 Navico partners with E1 Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P80 Marine Consortium customers to win. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P80 Porcupine Gorge a place to remember . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Paul ‘Chief’ Graveson . . . . . . . P82 Mini Queensland lap – dinosaur trails. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Collins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P84 Fantastic family trip to the tip – Part 3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Craig Tomkinson . . . . . . . . . . . . P88 Fishing local systems and familiar territories. . . . . . . . . . . by Neil Schultz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P90 Closed season ends and cod fishing begins. . . . . . . . . . . . by Brian Dare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P92 New teams barra tournament. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P93 Charter Directory ��P94 Trading Post ��P96 Subscription Form ��P97 Readers’ Forum ��P98 Page 6 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

www.bnbfishing.com. au

22 Like us on Facebook (Bush ’n Beach Fishing Magazine), post your photos, share in the laughs and win prizes!

Check out our YouTube channel BNBFTV for boat tests, product reviews and other interesting videos.

Follow @BNBFISHINGMAG on Instagram to see cracking catches from all around the country.

Subscribe to the FREE BNB e-news on our website to receive email updates packed with the latest fishing news and important information.

Our website bnbfishing.com.au is updated several times a day with the latest news and handy fishing articles.

The Team

EDITOR: Ben Collins ADVERTISING: Tiffany Brown PRODUCTION: Adrian Cardaci and 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: Spotpress DISTRIBUTION BY: Ovato 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.

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 7

Max with his biggest fish of the competition at 62cm.

Scott caught this nice 72cm flathead while completing the second half of the author’s course for on the water tuition.

Tips for scoring fish in southern Moreton Bay

W For A ll Your Fis hing Needs and More... Shop 4, 127 Colburn Ave

VICTORIA POINT

07 3820 9757

Page 8 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

OW, 2021 is really getting a bit of a roll on – it won’t be long and we’ll be writing articles about 2022. The fishing hasn’t been too bad in southern Moreton Bay and there have been a few nice flathead captured. And there are also a few bream still kicking around the bay islands, and squire, which hopefully we’ll start to see more of as we creep into November, and a few of those little speedster giant trevally turning up in the shallows – always a lot of fun on light gear. So, all the species other than bream have been targeted using soft

Southern Moreton Bay by SEAN CONLON

plastics or trolling hardbody lures. When chasing these fish in the shallows – which is water depth anywhere from around .5m to 6m – we’ve been using a 2-4kg rod with 2000/2500 reel spooled with 8lb braid and 1012lb leader. With the jig head size, if casting soft plastics, basically it has been 1/8oz for that really skinny water and 1/4oz for that slightly deeper water. And when trolling hard-bodies for flat-

head, we’ve been using the exact same set up. When operating light setups and in particular 6-8lb braid, it can be unforgiving – if when casting you get the line caught around the rod tip or around your finger, or the bail arm flicks over on you when casting many times – that braid can just snap and you’ll watch your lure sail off into the sunset. So be aware of that. It’s happened with a few customers – they have a good fish on, it takes a big run and the

* continued P9

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Scoring fish in southern Moreton Bay * from P8

first thing they do it is tighten up the drag. That light line instantly snaps and they’ve lost the fish. The other problem I see is high sticking light 2-4kg graphite rods – these do not enjoy their tip to be bent right over, so be very careful about that or you’ll end up with a two or threepiece rod. If you’re getting into plastics for the first time, you’ll need to have a little more finesse when fishing with that sort of gear, especially when you get yourself an 80cm flathead. You have to play the fish all the way to the boat, that’s what light tackle fishing is all about. One thing I’ve definitely noticed recently is that a lot of fish, especially flathead, are not diving straight onto the soft plastic. They bump it and mouth the plastic a few times over a few casts. What this means is you need to know when you’re getting a bump or a tap from a fish that’s not willing to take a soft plastic. What you need to do then is, if you know where you’ve been casting and feeling those taps or bumps, continually cast in the same spot until that fish makes a mistake and you hook it up. This happens a lot when I’m out, especially with customers and many times – if they haven’t done this a lot – they won’t even feel a bump or the tap but when the lure comes in and it’s squished up or it’s not sitting on the hook right we soon www.bnbfishing.com.au

know we’ve had a bite. This is when you need to keep casting at that fish – flathead probably won’t move much, so work the same area, that’s important. The other thing too is if you hook a fish up and it comes to the surface and spits the lure out, or you’re losing the fish close to the boat, cast straight back on top of its head or very close to it and keep working that same spot – they have a tendency to go straight back to the bottom. If you cast very close to them, you’ve already upset the fish by dragging it away from its home, so there’s a good chance it will have an aggressive bite at it. This is why I always encourage customers when they drop a fish to whack a fair few casts back over the top of that same spot, and eight out of 10 times they will hook that fish back up. While having a shot at flatties either on a low tide or high tide, it’s amazing how at certain times of the year GT suddenly become bycatch, and believe me on light gear they certainly give a great account of themselves. Most of the time when casting for flathead and you see bait start to get disturbed, there’s a good chance that if you put a quick cast in you’ll pick up a bit of by-catch, which is usually a little GT. Also when trolling hard-bodies along a mangrove line at high tide, it’s amazing how many times you think you’ve got a flathead but then it runs too hard, and the first thing GT go for are the mangroves, so

be aware of this because they’re good fun. Chasing squire around this time of year can be a little harder but I find that I’ll usually get a few extra fish around November onwards until after Christmas, and these fish will typically be hanging around flat rubble ground or on a bit of structure. You definitely need a good quality sounder to locate these fish and knowing how to read that sounder is very important too. Once fish are located, it’s a matter of putting in plenty of casts and most of the time your patience will be rewarded with some nice fish. If you find a few bream left after winter, they won’t be too bad – in that 30cm plus size – and most of mine have been caught on bait around little rocky areas off the bay islands. It’s the same thing with squire – a good quality sounder will * continued P10

Jaden with his first ever flathead at 61cm and caught on a bulldog crank.

Brad caught this southern bay giant trevally on a lightly weighted soft plastic.

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, November 2021 – Page 9

Shane with a solid 80cm southern bay flathead. Ashley scored a southern bay giant trevally on a Zerek Flat Shad.

Scoring fish in southern Moreton Bay * from P9

A few squire are still hanging around and are good fun on light gear.

MORETON BAY BOAT TRIMMERS

Specialising in: n Canopies n Side Curtains n Seating n Bimini Kits n Storm Covers Unit 2/19 Thorne St Wynnum Ph: 3396 1617 • Mob: 0402 755 189 www.moretonbayboattrimmers.com.au Page 10 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

pick these fish up. Then you only need to position your vessel in a way that you can feed out a nice berley trail and some fairly lightly weighted bait back into the school of fish. For the most part I don’t use a sinker, just a 2/0 hook with a soft glass rod and a 6-8lb mono and happy days! Get yourself a feed of those or just take a picture and let them go, whatever you decide to do is completely up to you. As the water warms up, you’ll find they are usually a little harder to catch because there are simply less of them around as we move into summer. On another note, I was lucky enough to fish the Flathead Classic this year. It was a bit of a strange event being online, but I did get to fish it with my family – my wife Jodie and my young son Max. The first day was brilliant with light winds and a bit of cloud cover. We hooked the boat up early in the morning and were on the water

by 6am and fishing at about 6.45am. The morning session was quite slow until around 9am, then the decision was made to troll a few hard-bodies on an area of bank no more than 100m long. This turned out to be a great decision as over the next few hours we racked up around 600 points. The fishing then slowed, so we moved to a few other locations and picked up the occasional fish. Then, as we were about to head home, we went back to the original area and had a nice slow troll along the same spot, where Max picked up a nice 62cm lizard. So, considering it was our first day and our first time fishing together for a while, and it was Max and Jodie’s first competition, our first day went very well. The only problem was the conditions were set to deteriorate and we were greeted the next morning by rain. Jodie had to work that day, so Max and I waited for the rain to move on and then headed out

at 9am to the original area and picked up a couple more fish. But by 11am it was no good because a 25 plus northerly ripped straight through the spot we were trying to fish. We moved to a few other places, but the water was rather dirty. Max hooked a few fish but unfortunately couldn’t keep them on the hooks to the boat and before we knew it day two was over. We only caught a couple of fish and we had a very long run home into a strong 30-knot northerly wind, so even though we had fun and Max put in a mighty effort, the day didn’t quite go as planned. Day three came around and after a night of storms, a bit of rain and plenty of wind we headed out with our number three team member Jodie to see if we could get a few more flatties added to our score. The timing was the same as day one – we hit the water before 6am and were fishing at 6.45am.

* continued P11

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Scoring fish in southern Moreton Bay * from P10

We quickly caught a few undersized frogs for an additional five points and then some just-legal flatties but unfortunately the conditions from the night before had disturbed the water quality we were fishing and no matter how hard we tried we could not pull any more fish from that area. We moved around a bit but sadly found a lot of snot weed and a couple of late five pointers. Before we knew it, our first fishing competition as a family had come to an end. Now, you might think because I do fishing charters for a living that my family gets to go fishing all the time, but that is far from the truth.

Max hasn’t fished for at least 10 months if not longer, so coming sixth in the juniors was a great effort. Jodie hasn’t fished with us with lures for at least two years or more, she caught her first flathead on a hard-body lure and she also caught her first ever flatty on a soft plastic! In this competition, she placed tenth in the womens and we came twelfth overall in the mixed teams. So, all in all for no pre-fishing and having never fished together in a competition before, I was super proud of them. Maxi fished the whole comp, which was a huge effort given the conditions, and Jodie fished Wednesday and Friday

due to work commitments on the Thursday, so they put in a great effort. And you never know, they might want to do it again sometime. As we all know with our jobs and our lives we are time poor, so if you can learn more to optimise your time on the water, remember knowledge is the key. Until next month, stay safe on the water and if you’re interested in any of our off the water tuition classes or on the water tuition classes, or you just want to do a fishing charter, give me a call on 0432 386 307 or send me an email at seanconlonsfishing@ hotmail.com or check out the Facebook page Seano’s Inshore Fishing Charters & Tuition.

A happy customer with a nice 76cm flathead.

Queensland’s Used Boat Specialists

SENSATIONAL RUNABOUT!

$ 32,995

ALLOY PACKAGE!

$ 63,995

Quintrex 481 Fishabout

Quintrex 460 Renegade SC

One owner since new, Yamaha F70Hp four stroke, Quintrex braked alloy trailer, Lowrance sounder/ GPS, Radio, UF 60L fuel tank, seating for 5, Bimini and front clear, inshore safety gear – sensational inshore fishily runabout!

New Sept 2020, Suzuki 70Hp 4S - 43hours, QTX alloy trailer, Offshore transom, Lowrance LIVE HDS-7 with side view transducer, 3 seats, VHF, LB tank, Boat latch on trl, SMG4 engine gauge, bimini, inshore safety gear.

Call 07 3890 2322 today! More pics online at johncrawfordmarine.com.au

AS NEW!

$ 36,995

Call 07 3890 2322 today! More pics online at johncrawfordmarine.com.au

Whiteline 6000

Baysport 640 Sports Deluxe

By Goldstar Boats WA, huge plate alloy package, one owner since new, Suzuki 150Hp 4 stroke, Redco Sportsman trl, Furuno sounder, Garmin GPS, VHF, Stereo, 200l fuel tank, Transom door, double bunks and so much more!

New September 2020, 34 hours use, As new condition and heavily optioned – Zipwake trim tabs, 9” touch screen Garmin, VHF, Full covers, SS targa, double bunks, Freshwater shower, Deck wash, Elec drum winch and on and on…..

Call 07 3890 2322 today! More pics online at johncrawfordmarine.com.au

HEAVILY OPTIONED!

$ 92,995

Call 07 3890 2322 today! More pics online at johncrawfordmarine.com.au

Whether you’re buying or selling, call us today on 07 3890 2322 or visit the sales yard at 1029 Manly Road, Tingalpa Brisbane. View our entire range at www.johncrawfordmarine.com.au www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 11

Lubin Pfeiffer with a flathead landed fishing weedless around the weed and rubble bottom.

Fishing for snag dwellers

Sean with a flathead landed fishing the mangroves and snags with a NedlockZ EWG jig head and TRD BugZ.

RUHLE

TRAILERS FOR INFORMATION ABOUT OUR COMPLETE RANGE OF BOAT TRAILERS CALL US TODAY

1800 429 442 2/1776 Ipswich Rd, Rocklea Qld 4106

Page 12 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

HE weather is warming up and our favourite snag dwellers are starting to stir, shake off the colder winter months and smash up the local herring and poddy mullet population. The ability to entice a bite from snag dwellers, such as flathead, bass, barramundi – impoundment for those chasing them during the closed season – and mangrove jack, often hinges on getting your presentation close enough or deep enough into the structure to attract their attention and draw a strike. In this article I want to run through some weedless rigging and how to effectively fish the structure that is holding the fish, to maximise your chances of winning the battle. The weedless rig For much of our fishing we can rig our plastics on a standard jhook style jig head and

Tackle Tactics by JUSTIN WILLMER

fish without snagging or fouling. Entering the arena of species such as bass, jack and barra though and a casting with a standard jig head could see your presentation snagged or fouled before you’ve even turned the reel handle. Timber, weed, lilies, reeds, overhanging vegetation and snag piles all provide shelter, create breaks in the water flow, attract and hold bait, and provide ambush points for these predators to strike from. Weedless rigging is actually quite simple, with many anglers finding it easier than having to feed more of the plastic onto a standard jig head. Rigging weedless involves capturing the

chin of the soft plastic, by feeding the hook a short distance into the plastic and then popping it out of the underside of the plastic. The section you have pinned is then slid up into the section of the weedless hook that holds it in place, we measure out where the hook needs to exit the back of the plastic and feed the hook point straight up through the plastic. The plastic will then sit straight on the hook, with the ‘chin’ held in place and the barb and hook point sitting against the top of the plastic to drastically reduce snagging and fouling. Weedless jig heads There are a variety of weedless jig heads * continued P13

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Fishing for snag dwellers * from P12

available, including unweighted, belly weighted and head weighted options and they each allow us to fish different structure and use different techniques. Unweighted – unweighted worm hooks, such as the TT Lures ChinlockZ jig heads, are designed with minimal to no weight and are ideal for fishing plastics across the surface or on a dead slow sink. These are often the go-to for anglers fishing soft plastic frogs on the surface, over lilies, weed and other structure. Try grabbing your favourite paddle or curl tail and rig it on an unweighted weedless jig

head and you may be surprised at the awesome action that it can create on the surface, inspiring some brutal surface strikes, for a wide variety of species. Belly weighted – weedless jig heads with weight added to the belly of the hook, such as the TT Lures ChinlockZ SWS, allow more weight for casting, assist in keeling the plastic on the surface while working the frog feet harder and can also be used to create a slow and natural horizontal sinking action in a variety of soft plastics. This is the go-to for surface frogs when you require more distance in the cast, especially when battling wind. By lifting the rod tip

on the retrieve, you can ensure that the plastic still gets up and rides on the surface. Not just for frogs though, this jig head can be used with your favourite curl tail or paddle tail for slow rolling structure and weed on the flats or working tight in around heavy cover. It’s a bit of a secret weapon paired with a jerkbait style plastic, accounting for plenty of jack and barra with the dart, dart and glide on the sink. Finally, one of the deadliest ways to fish this jig head is rigged in prawn and shrimp imitations, such as Z-Man 3.5” EZ ShrimpZ. Prawns love holding

Barramundi are a species that love structure and Reece pinned this one on a Z-Man and TT Lures Snake EyeZ.

Baitcast gear is often popular for barramundi and mangrove jack as it allows you to thumb the spool and lock things up.

Marine Electronics * continued P14

Sales, Service and Installations Mobile service and on-site fit-outs also available

... ...

Extensive Industry Experience Qualified Electronic Technicians Professional Sales, Service and Installations Dedicated to Customer Satisfaction CONTACT BLAIR, SCOTT, DECLIN OR LACHLAN

PHONE:

Shop 4, 1440 New Cleveland Rd, Chandler Q 4155

3245 3633 www.trymax.com.au

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 13

Josh from the Bivouac Boyz extracted this mangrove jack with a TT Lures Snake EyeZ and Z-Man MinnowZ.

BOAT WINDSCREENS

Custom designs, repairs and replacement • Boat windscreens • Cabin windows • Console windscreens

Quotes over the phone

20/42 Burnside Rd, Yatala QLD

Phone 07 3382 7883 E: allboatswindscreens@hotmail.com

Page 14 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

Weedless rigged paddle tails are dynamite on barramundi and mangrove jack. Winnie with a nice fish.

Fishing for snag dwellers * from P13

tight in around cover and this jig head creates a slow and natural horizontal sink, a natural flick and glide when the rod is twitched and a buoyant plastic, such as Z-Man ElaZtech, will sit horizontal at rest on the bottom, attracting fish and triggering strikes. Head weighted – weedless jig heads are also available with a fixed head weight, such as the TT Lures NedlockZ EWG, or freeswinging head weight, such a TT Lures SnakelockZ and these allow you to sink the plastic head forward to get it down into the structure quicker or hop and roll the plastic with a more head down diving and feeding action. This is a dynamite presentation for hopping, flicking and rolling paddle tail plastics, imitating a baitfish swimming over and through structure, for species as varied as flathead on the weed flats, bass among the reeds and lilies, and

barra and jack around heavy timber. Though not only an option for paddle tails however, and you will find anglers rigging almost any style of soft plastic on a head weighted weedless hook for fishing structure. The NedlockZ EWG is a smaller and often lighter finesse option that is ideal for bream, bass and other smaller predatory species. It is commonly rigged with a small, 2-3’’ crustacean or creature bait to fish slow and tight around structure, while also being suitable for the vast array of different plastic styles available.

Five tips to help land fish from structure Fish low light – by fishing in lower light conditions, such as dawn and dusk, these snag dwelling predators are often patrolling further out from the snags, giving you more chance of encountering them further from the structure and keeping them out of their snaggy home. Pepper the edges – when I approach a large snag pile or other prime fish holding structure, I will start by making casts around the edge of the structure or even running a couple high * continued P15

Jeff Wilton with a solid mangrove jack landed buzzing a TT Lures ChinlockZ and Z-Man GOAT across the top. www.bnbfishing.com. au

Fishing for snag dwellers in the water column and over the top of the structure. If I get the bite further from the structure, I have more chance of keeping the fish out and if I don’t get the bite, it’s time to get the lure right in there. Watch your line – I have fished with anglers and seen them get the bite through their line, however they don’t pick up on it and by the time the line becomes tight, the fish is already well back in the structure and it’s an instant bricking. If you see a tug or ‘tick’ on the line, or if the line speeds up or stop prematurely, strike. Remember, strikes are free!

410 Challenger

can get them to bite, bite more aggressively and hold onto the lure longer so that you can get a solid hookset and get them out. Hopefully this article inspires you to rig a few weedless plastics and throw them into the structure you’ve been looking at but have never been game to fish. Remember to be ready for the bite, strike hard and wind if you suspect a bite, while also being prepared to lock things up. You will win a few epic battles and you will also likely build a vivid collection of mammoth bust offs – but that’s fishing. See you on the water…

The softness of the Z-Man 10X Tough ElaZtech plastic clears easily on the strike for a solid jaw hinge hook set.

450 Drifter

CE AN

AINTEN AINTEN SEE M YOUR LOCAL DEALER... M

LOW

Keep on knocking – I stood there once and watched my dad throw ten casts at a snag for bass and I said, “Come on, let’s keep rolling”. He thought the snag looked good and wanted to throw a few more casts, landing three bass from the next half a dozen casts. I was running and gunning, while he thought the snag looked prime and he kept peppering it from different angles and mixing up the retrieve until he switched them on. Scent up – if the fish are aggressive then you may not need scent to fire them up, however when they’re shut down and especially in cooler months, scent

LOW

* from P14

for money” “great value for money”

Brisbane Yamaha 07 3888 1727 IL TAB IT Also available in www.brisbaneyamaha.com.au

IL TABAlsoITavailable in

Also available in

BRISBANE NORTH

Also available in

“available in 5 different“available models” in 5

BUNDABERG

480 Brumby

530 Warrior

Adrian’s Marine Centre 07 4153 1819 S NOIS S NOIS www.adriansmarinecentre.com.au ES ES

SUNSHINE COAST

03 5022 7596 MILDURA 03 5152 3220 LUCKNOW 03 5562 6373 WARRNAMBOOL 03 5443 5717 BENDIGO 03 5822 2108SHEPPARTON 03 5174 1223 TRARALGON 03 9397 6977 WILLIAMSTOWN 02 6024 6555 WODONGA -

Baldwin Boats WESTMINTER Bairnsdale Boats BoatMarine City Richardson’s 08 9345 4311 Salem Boats Boats & BUNBURY More Sports Gippsland BoatMarine Supplies BoatSales Centre Aussie Boat 08 9721 4390 Leigh Martin Marine

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bens Marine 02 Boats 6646 3101 Baldwin MILDURA Bairnsdale Boats Fishermans Warehouse 02 4945 2152 LUCKNOW Marine - Richardson’s Hardy’sWARRNAMBOOL Car And Boat Sales 0408 628 150 Salem Boats BENDIGO Enterprise Marine 02 9913 7767 Boats & More SHEPPARTON Maitland Power and Marine 02 4933 3284 Gippsland Boat Supplies MarineTRARALGON Scene 02 4628 5000 Sales WILLIAMSTOWN - Aussie02Boat Merimbula Outboard Service 6495 9634 Leigh Martin Marine WODONGA Nowra Boats 02 4422 1999

1800 336 603

VICTORIA

www.polycraft.com.au

Bens Marine YAMBA - 02 6646 3101 07 4153 1819 Fishermans 02 4945 2152 07 4033 8800Warehouse NEWCASTLE Hardy’s Car And Boat Sales FYSHWICK 0408 - 628 150 07 3888 1727 Enterprise Marine MONA VALE 02 9913 7767 07 4972 0135 Maitland Power and Marine MAITLAND 02-4933 3284 07 4759 3218 Marine Scene CAMPBELLTOWN 02 4628 5000 07 5532 5812 Merimbula MERIMBULA 02 6495 9634 07 4948 3298Outboard Service Nowra NOWRA -02 4422 1999 07 5442Boats 4872

“little boat with big boat stability” “little boat with VICTORIA

YAMBA - Centre Adrian’s Marine AussieNEWCASTLE Marine FYSHWICK Brisbane Yamaha VALE CurtisMONA Coast Marine RisingMAITLAND Sun Honda- Marine CAMPBELLTOWN Nitro Marine MERIMBULA Whitsunday MarineNOWRA Laguna Boating-

BUNDABERG 07 4153 1819CAIRNS 07 4033 -8800 BURPENGARY 07 3888 1727 GLADSTONE 07 4972 0135TOWNSVILLE 07 4759 3218 SOUTHPORT 07 5532 5812CANNONVALE 07 4948 3298 NOOSAVILLE 07 5442 4872-

NEW SOUTH WALES

QUEENSLAND

arine Centre ine amaha t Marine Honda Marine e y Marine ating

Also available in

NEW SOUTH WALES

“big and beamy”

300 Tuffy

D SE

beamy”

“the great all-rounder” “the great

4 Durable 4 Stable 4 UV Stabilised 4 Quiet AB 4 Low I ST ILmaintenance STABILI 4 Tenders D SE

Also available in

599 Frontier

ell appointed” “versatile and well appointed”

PortAlsoOavailable CallinBoating 07 5493 2255 Also available in www.marinecenter.com.au TAT TAT LO IO LO IO

Also available in

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 15

03 5022 75 03 5152 32 03 5562 63 03 5443 57 03 5822 21 03 5174 12 03 9397 69 02 6024 65

Plenty of pelagics on the Gold Coast n Gold Coast Flathead Classic

F Makayla Marr was happy with this nice teraglin taken on a live yakka.

Bailey Smith with a 55cm flathead scored trolling a Lively Lures Pink Bit.

Full Scale Tackle owner Colin Powell tested his luminescent sinkers on the snapper. Page 16 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

OR those of you planning a fishing trip, November is promising to be another terrific month for chasing all sorts of inshore and offshore species. October proved to be exceptional on the flathead fishing scene, with the annual Flathead Classic hosted by the Gold Coast Sports Fishing Club and taking place at the end of the September school holidays. Over 5000 flathead were caught by more than 400 anglers during the three-day event. Being completely catch and release, all the fish were put back in the water for someone else to catch another day. The usual format was unable to go ahead due to COVID-19, so the event was completely online with fish being photographed on a brag mat along with the token for each day – that was how we did it this year. Some very big fish were caught throughout the duration of the event. A friend Michael Hannequin caught an 88cm fish on the first day, only to be knocked off on the last day by a flathead of 93cm, which took out the biggest fish of the comp.

Gold Coast by BEN SMITH

All the anglers – males, females, juniors and seniors – had a wonderful time and hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of prizes were given out each night of the event. These included Lowrance sounders, Samaki fishing rod packages, batteries, Eskies and many other fishing-related prizes, with a boat, motor and trailer package as the first prize for the last person standing. This year big thanks go to Telwater – the maker of Quintrex, Stacer and Yellowfin boats – our sponsor for team Weeds and Snags. We were able to catch a few good fish and nailed some flatties in the 60-65cm range but unfortunately, we were unable to take out any trophies this time around – still, it was a lot of fun. This year we concentrated our efforts in deeper water with Samaki Vibelicious 150mm 50g vibes, which proved to be a massive success using a vertical jigging technique. Whitebait was the most effective colour for us.

We were using 6’ fast taper rods with 2500-3000 size reels loaded with 10lb braid and 15-20lb leader. The method was fairly simple – in 12-18m of water, we lowered the vibe under the boat until it touched the bottom then lifted the rod tip about 30-40cm to feel the lure vibrate – remembering to keep the position so that the lines dropped perfectly vertical under the boat. You’ll find this method covers ground as you drift with the current, but always allow the lure to touch the bottom for a few seconds and sit there before you lift again because quite often the strike will be on the lift and, if it’s a big fish, it will feel like you’ve snagged. Keep working along the drift after you’ve caught a fish because there will usually be more not far behind. If you’ve got a GPS, onboard mark where you caught the fish so you can come back to the area, as there will be other fish around the same zone. If you’ve been over the drift a few times and find you’re no

* continued P18

www.bnbfishing.com. au

3491 PACIFIC HWY, SLACKS CREEK Q 4127

07 3808 7333 www.amcboats.com.au

Limited stock available 2021, taking orders now for 2022 delivery. The best brands are at AMC.

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 17

Plenty of pelagics on the Gold Coast * from P16

The author caught a 65cm flathead on a Samaki Vibelicious 150mm at Kalinga Bank.

Bradh's Smited Guiding Fishs Tour

longer getting fish or even bites, move on to the next spot. Timing is important, so try to be at these spots as the tide changes and starts to move because the bigger fish will be waiting for the first bait to push through over their heads and, if you’re lure resembles what flathead are looking to eat, you’ll be in luck. On the offshore scene, the fishing has been incredible, with table fish coming in left, right and centre. Great captures of teraglin, snapper, pearl perch and other assorted species have been the predominant catches over the past month, and these will continue into November, no doubt. The warm water pushing in means pelagic action and game fishing will be on the cards, even for small-

er boats this year. This warm water will bring an abundance of baitfish and of course not far behind will be species such as dolphinfish, marlin, yellowfin tuna and possibly even a few mackerel. If you decide that you want to get out and chase a few of these amazing fish, a good start is trolling skirted lures. Fat Boy Lures have been my preference over the past couple of seasons and have been working surprisingly well on all the species mentioned above. I run a set of four Shimano Backbone full roller rods loaded with 15kg mono as my spread. I’ll go into more detail next month on how I rig them, where to position them on the boat and what colour and size lures to use for best results. For those chasing

snapper, early mornings are still the best time to go, just as the sun rises. Trag have been going well in the evening and into the night still and seem to be hitting live yakka as their preferred bait. Actually, on a recent trip trag continued to bite well into the morning and we were able to bag out in a relatively short space of time. This was probably due to the fact that it was a few days before a full moon, so we could see the trag thick on the sounder under the boat. Remember, always try to use your electronics as much as you can and take advantage of the information you gather on your devices to plan the perfect fishing trip. Until next month keep fishing, stay safe and catch plenty.

GOLD ST COA

CKLE ALL TAOVIDED PR

30 years’ local experience Lure fishing specialist Bookings and inquiries: Personalised service Targeting all estuary species 0419 028 704

www.bradsmithfishingcharters.com.au Page 18 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

Tyler Cooper and his first teraglin caught off the Southport 18-fathom reef. www.bnbfishing.com. au

“Traditional Excellence Since 1946” NEW BOATS - USED BOATS - MOTORS - SERVICE - PARTS - ACCESSORIES THE HOME OF CRUISE CRAFT BOATS, STACER BOATS & YAMAHA OUTBOARDS ON THE BAYSIDE

F115

STACER 539 CROSSFIRE SC

Craftsmanship Since 1946

REDUCED!!

WAS $55,307 NOW $51,995 429 RAMPAGE

F30

NOW: $15,673

519 SEARUNNER F90

449 RAMPAGE

F50

NOW: $19,256

539 SEARUNNER F115

499 SEAMASTER F90

NOW: $45,809

EXPLORER 635HT F200 Craftsmanship Since 1946

NOW: $51,291

NOW: $61,209

NOW: $162,908

Wynnum Marine

P: (07) 3396 9777 31 Fox Street, Wynnum QLD 4178 F: (07) 3893 2046 PO BOX 301, Wynnum QLD 4178 E: info@wynnummarine.com.au www.bnbfishing.com.au

USED BOATS Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 19

Neil did a Jumpinpin charter with the author and we caught heaps of flathead on Samaki vibes and Ecogear plastics.

Nat with a 55cm Nerang River flathead caught on Ecogear Marukyu Isome Sandworm.

Flathead are suckers for soft vibe lures, this one inhaled a Samaki Vibelicious 70mm lure.

Warric caught and released this solid flathead in the Flathead Classic on an Ecogear Balt plastic. Page 20 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

Target focus on flathead

I everyone, isn’t the warmer weather enjoy-

able? Though my guess is that it won’t be long before we’re complaining it’s too hot! November is a good month on the Gold Coast for fishing in our estuaries for big flathead, large whiting and massive jewfish and it’s the start of huge mangrove jack running, as well as blue swimmer and mud crabs. The two fish I’ll be concentrating on targeting most are flathead and whiting. This is the last month flathead really fire before they focus on breeding more and feeding less during their summer multiple spawning events. They also get more sluggish and less active as the water gets hotter. I fished the Flathead Classic for the first time this year and what a valuable lesson it was. Warric and I were lucky enough to place

Broadwater Guide by CLINT ANSELL

second overall in the two-angler team division, with Warric finishing in third place for the senior anglers. We caught about 86 flathead over three days and most of the fish fell for Ecogear Balt 3.5” soft plastics, with the remainder on Samaki vibes, hardbodies and other soft plastics. The lesson was ‘don’t forget techniques that have worked well in the past’, and for me that was using soft plastics for flathead in shallow water. On our charters, Brad and I do very well drifting and jigging vibe lures. It’s a technique that has caught a lot of fish for us over the years and will continue to do so. We still use plastics at times but to some extent they have become old news – similar to

the novelty of other favourite lures that has worn off over time. They still work as well as ever, but they just become outdated. I have recently started to use plastics again, specifically for flathead, and it’s been so refreshing to rediscover the good old times. There is now a massive range of these lures to choose from, and some of my current favourites are the Ecogear Balt, as well as the Fish Arrow Flash-J Shad, Westin ShadTeez, Daiwa Bait Junkie and Samaki Boom Baits. A 3-4” plastic rigged on a 1/4 or 3/8oz 3/0 hook jig head is all you need for flathead. Use a 3-5kg 7’ soft plastic rod with a fast tip to impart enough action to work the lures. Couple the rod with a * continued P21

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Target focus on flathead * from P20

2500 size reel spooled with 12lb braid line and tie on 1m of fluorocarbon leader. You can use anything from a 10 up to a 20lb leader, depending on the size of flathead you are encountering and how fickle they are. The technique for using soft plastics is very simple. The biggest key to success is moving until you find actively feeding fish. There isn’t much point in repeatedly casting in the same spot if you’re not getting hits – flathead are an aggressive ambush predator that will strike at almost anything that moves when they’re on the chew. Stop at a possible area – which usually includes one or a combination of creek drains, weed beds, sandy contours and solid structure, usually in depths of 0.5-2m.

Then fan each cast to cover the area all around you. After casting out, let the lure sink to the bottom then flick the rod tip up once or twice with a short and sharp action, pause for one or two seconds, wind up the slack then flick and repeat until the lure is close and then cast again. Occasionally a flathead will follow each hop for a while then strike, so always work the lure right up to your boat or the shore before casting out again. The strike is often on the drop, which is very addictive. You’ll feel a sudden thud through the line. I usually drop the rod tip for two seconds to allow the flathead to fully grab the lure in its mouth, then strike two or three times to set the hook, otherwise this fish can often be holding the plastic only to spit it.

A few reminders worth mentioning – if there’s tidal flow cast into or across the current, if you get weed on the lures always clean it off before your next cast, always cut and retie your leader if it has been roughed up by a flathead you caught, always check you have rigged your plastic straight and it is swimming straight, and finally keep your rod tip low to the water when netting them. They hate their heads being lifted out of the water and will go berserk with headshakes – many big fish get lost this way. Until next month, tight lines and happy days on the water. To book on a charter with myself or Brad, or if you have any fishing related questions, SMS 0432 990 302 or email fishingwithclint@gmail.com, or find us on Facebook: Brad Smith Fishing Charters.

Bruno with a big blue swimmer crab from the Gold Coast Broadwater.

Darren caught and released this 67cm flathead caught on a Samaki soft vibe.

GOLD COAST ESTUARY CHARTERS

PRIVATE

CHARTERS FOR 1-4 PEOPLE

BOOK NOW!

Longest-running estuary lure fishing charter in SEQ with over 40 years’ experience Light tackle lure fishing charters guaranteeed to catch!! Spots, tackle, lures, tides, species, estuary tactics, moons, seasons and more!

SMS 0432 990 302 A rainy day didn’t stop Wendy and Richard from catching dinner near Sovereign Island. www.bnbfishing.com.au

Charter gift vouchers and online store www.goldcoastlures.com

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 21

Steve with a donkey of a snapper from the shallows.

Offshore options for Northern NSW Tweed to Byron Bay

O Mangrove jack are on the prowl and last month Steve found this beautifully marked 50cm fish.

A dilly full of good-sized spanner crabs. November is the pick of the months for these. Page 22 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

by GAVIN DOBSON

FFSHORE from the Brunswick Byron coast can be a bit tricky this month. However, it’s always worth a look, isn’t it! Sometime in November, mahi mahi will start patrolling the warmer currents out wider. Anywhere between the 32-fathom line and the shelf is where they will be cruising and trolling a spread of lures is going to be the best way to locate them. When you find one doing this it is likely to be large and an 8kg fish will be at the bottom end of the size range.

Mahi mahi of good size have been reported by spear fishers at the fish aggregating devices off the cape. I saw a few pictures of speared fish from a recent long weekend and they were good, but despite them being around in great numbers, they wouldn’t touch any of the fishos’ bait. The water was fairly cool and evidently they had lockjaw. If the blue water pushes into the FAD on the current this month, then it could be game on. Boaties get excited about mackerel at this time of the year but it’s * continued P24

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Here’re the new, two easy steps to buy a Quintrex with everything you could want. Choose an entry level, cost effective model like the Hornet, Fishabout, Ocean Spirit, Top Ender or Cruiseabout. Then, depending on your boating lifestyle, choose the options bundle that’s best for you.

The bundles can include Marine Radios, Burley Bucket Kits, Hydraulic Tilt Steering, Maritime Sport Seats, Sound System and Speakers plus a whole lot more. It’s the easy way to build your perfect boat – whether it’s for fishing or family.

QXBnBDEALER 001

BRISBANE Brisbane Yamaha 174 Eastern Service Rd, Burpengary Q T 07 3888 1727 brisbaneyamaha.com.au

www.bnbfishing.com.au

BRISBANE Brisbane Boating & Leisure 1743 Ipswich Rd, Rocklea Q T 07 3875 1600 brisbaneboatingleisure.com.au

BUNDABERG Boats Galore 142 Enterprise St, Bundaberg Q T 07 4152 6744 boatsgalore.com.au

GOLD COAST Surf Coast Marine 50-54 Brisbane Rd, Labrador Q T 07 5563 7733 surfcoastmarine.com.au

SUNSHINE COAST Caloundra Marine 8 Baldwin St, Caloundra Q T 07 5491 1944 caloundramarine.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 23

Current and upcoming closures

Tropical rock lobster closure from October 1 to December 31.

Spanner crab season closed November 1 to December 15.

Barramundi season closed November 1 to January 31. Photo: Department of Agriculture and Fisheries

NLESS otherwise stated, the closures start immediately after midnight the day of the closure and end immediately before midnight at the end of the closure period. Black jewfish Black jewfish is a no-take species on the east coast for the rest of 2021. The fishery will reopen on January 1, 2022. Murray cod A closed season applies to Murray cod from August 1 to October 31 each year in all Queensland waters contained in the Murray Darling drainage division, with some exceptions. A person must not possess or use a fishing line from August 1 to October 31 in the following locations: • Albert River – upstream from the junc-

tion of Canungra Creek and Albert River – includes Canungra Creek • Christmas Creek • Coomera River – upstream from the junction of Guanaba Creek and Coomera River – includes Guanaba Creek • Mary River and adjoining waterways – upstream of its junction with Six Mile Creek at the creek’s northern bank, other than waters up to the full supply level of Baroon Pocket Dam, Borumba Dam and Lake MacDonald • Running Creek • Stanley River – above Neurum Creek and Stanley River junction. Coral reef fin fish A coral reef fin fish closure applies from October 3-7, 2021 and then again from November 2-6, 2021. Tropical rock lobster A tropical rock lobster closure applies from

October 1 to December 31 for the Gulf of Carpentaria and Queensland east coast north of latitude 14°S. Barramundi Throughout the Queensland east coast, a closed season applies to barramundi from November 1, 2021 to January 31, 2022. Throughout the Gulf of Carpentaria, a closed season applies to barramundi from October 7, 2021 to January 31, 2022. It is also prohibited to deliberately target barramundi for catch and release during these closed seasons, as the stress of capture may prevent a fish from spawning. Spanner crab A spanner crab closed season applies from November 1, 2021 to December 15, 2021. For more information, visit daf.qld.gov.au

Offshore options for Northern NSW * from P22

way too early for inshore pelagics in any numbers. If it is a pelagic hit you’re after this month, best stick to out wide – you might even get a wahoo, though December is usually when they turn up in deeper water. It’s always worth a look inshore for a few reef fish at this time and you might score a jewfish or a snapper. Stocking up on pike, slimy mackerel and tailor is always another good task in November. A dedicated bait trip

can be a lot of fun and ensures you are in good stead for mackerel season. If it’s a feed of crustaceans you’re after, November is one of the best months for a spanner crab session. In NSW, the pro fishers have a closed season starting on November 21, but this doesn’t apply to recreational fishos. If you don’t know where to start looking for crabs, I suggest you keep an eye out for where the pro fishers are and drop some dillies in the vicinity. Failing this, try anywhere between 44-

Page 24 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

52m of water on the sand. It is a very easy operation to set a crab dilly or two and then go fishing. To set a crab dilly, you’ll need about 140m of 6mm rope. Because you are likely to encounter current at this time of year, a sand anchor will also be best with a length of chain. You’ll want 50m from your dilly to your anchor and then another 90m to a couple of good floats. To deploy, throw the baited dilly over and drive into the current, feeding the rope out until you reach the

anchor and then immediately throw it over the side. Keep steaming into the current and throw the floats over when all the rope is played out. Let everything settle for a few minutes and mark where your floats have ended up, then go fishing for a few hours and when you return you might have rounded off the trip with a nice feed of spanner crabs. If you want a bit more detail on this operation, get in touch with the team at Bush ‘n Beach Fishing and I’ll do a feature on spanner crabs if

there’s any interest. November is a great time to be fishing our rivers. Flathead will school up in our river mouths this month and will be susceptible to big soft plastics and live bait. Mangrove jack will be more serious about life this month, smacking bait and lures from our rock walls in the lower reaches to the snags in the middle to upper reaches. Trevally, whiting, mud cabs and school jewfish are also on the cards currently, so what’s not to love about November in the river? www.bnbfishing.com. au

PERFORMANCE

X RELIABILITY +

BRISBANE STONES CORNER MARINE 117 Old Cleveland Rd, Stones Corner (07) 3397 9766 www.stonescornermarine.com.au

GYMPIE WATSONS MARINE CENTRE 52 Wickham St, Gympie (07) 5482 2135 www.watsonsmarine.com.au

BUNDABERG BUNDABERG MARINELAND 95 Targo St, Bundaberg (07) 4130 0500 www.bundabergmarineland.com.au

MACKAY REEF MARINE 26 Prospect St, Mackay (07) 4957 3521 www.reefmarine.net

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 25

The author with a land-based flathead that ate a TT Lures 1/4oz 1/0 TT Lures DemonZ jig head and Z-Man 3.75” StreakZ in Shiner colour.

Tips for land-based flathead

N A go-to flathead presentation – a TT Lures HeadlockZ HD jig head and Z-Man 3” MinnowZ.

Kaitlin with a land-based flathead on her go-to ZMan 3” MinnowZ in Pinfish colour, a great whiting imitation. Page 26 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

OTHING beats catching quality fish while having your feet planted firmly in saltwater and sand. Sometimes, when I can't be bothered loading the kayak or hitching the boat up, I head down to the water's edge and flick a plastic around, it’s an excellent way to round out a weekend afternoon or break up the weekday grind. My favourite fish to chase land based is the humble flathead – you never know if you're going to hook a 20cm pocket rocket or to the mythical magic metre fish. How often do you hear the story of an angler down at the boat ramp hauling in a monster after you've spent hours out in the boat?

Gearing up When it comes to chasing flathead land based on plastics there are two main things you probably need to consider – your location and your gear selection. As an example, if I'm cruising the flats with no hard core structure around, I will opt to fish lighter lines, leader and presentation, while on the other hand around mangrove edges and rocks, I go heavier in terms of line and leader and also possibly look at weedless style jig heads. As mentioned earlier, I prefer the more relaxing approach to walking the bank with my feet in the water, so the gear I'm usually running includes 10lb Platypus Stealth fluorocarbon leader attached to 10lb Platypus

X4 braid and matched up with either a 1-3kg or 2-4kg 7' rod and 30 size reel – Okuma’s Cerros spinning rod and Epixor XT reel are a favourite set up. Presentation wise I try my best to match the hatch in the local area I'm working, where bait such as hardyhead and other small baitfish, prawns, crabs and yabbies are all on the menu. Presentations that resemble these will be what I opt for. Z-Man have a huge range of presentation that cover all of these. To get you started on flathead Z-Man 2.5” and 3” Slim SwimZ, 3” MinnowZ and even 3.75” StreakZ are all good patterns. With every style of fishing, colour will de* continued P27

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Tips for land-based flathead * from P26

pend on the day and water clarity. On clear water bright days, I go for a more natural colour such as Baby Bass, while on cloudier darker days and when the water is murky, I choose a colour to contrast such as Gold Rush or Pinfish. Next up is jig head selection, and for most of my land-based sessions TT Lures HeadlockZ has me covered. If you want to style your presentation up further, TT Lures DemonZ hand-painted jig heads are a good option. If you're keen to work tougher structure such as mangroves, timber and heavy weed, definitely look at throwing a couple of TT Lures SnakelockZ jig heads into your kit. Depth-wise on my land-based adventures I'll be casting in as little as 10cm and probably no deeper that 3m of water, so 1/4-3/8oz jig head weights cover these situations perfectly – even when the wind or tide isn't exactly in your favour. Some anglers will opt for lighter 1/8oz and 1/6oz in super shallow water when the tidal movement and wind are favourable. As most of you are aware flathead, particularly the big ones, have no problem sitting in very skinny water – occasionally less than 10cm – and with this in mind you're able to fish a lot of the water column by being land based. Location and technique The two types of bank I prefer to fish land www.bnbfishing.com.au

based are at an edge with a drop-off and a big flat with minimal structure. Edge bite When fishing a bank with a deeper edge or drop-off, I look to fish it on the last two hours of a run-out tide. Because at this stage of the tide, most of the bait will be coming off the bank and congregating in areas along the edge of the deeper water that provides cover, such as little rock bars or weed edges. During the last two hours of a run-out tide, more than likely there’ll be a bit of run left, so for this style of fishing I generally throw a 3/8oz 3/0 TT jig head, matched with a Z-Man 3” MinnowZ as a starting presentation. Though walking an entire edge of a bank and throwing heaps of cast is an effective way to catch flathead, I tend to look for areas that are likely holding bait. Including areas where you can see baitfish stacked up and also where you believe bait is likely to be holding. A favourite place of mine to target flathead is drains. Drains are where the remaining water off the flat is running out and these areas are flathead hot spots because food comes to them and the strike will often come at your feet. To effectively cover these hot spots, get as close to the water edge as possible without spooking bait or fish in the process. Plan to send your first cast up current of your position and the tide will work the lure back

naturally with your retrieve. Allow the lure to hit the bottom on the retrieve and, on this edge bite technique, I go for a hopping style retrieve. For the following cast I do the same, however I aim to fan all my remaining casts in the area to ensure I’ve covered as much ground as possible in that spot before moving on. If you’re convinced flathead are holding in an area but you haven't had any luck, try either adding more Pro-Cure scent to entice a bite or changing the colour or pattern of the plastic. Flats fishing Fishing the skinny water flats is probably the most exciting way to fish for flathead. Basically, almost any hook up you get will result in a flathead becoming airborne or skimming across the surface with your drag screaming in the process. These types of flats can often appear quite barren at first glance, however by wearing a * continued P28

That next monster flathead landed at the boat ramp could be yours and remember it doesn’t take much water to hold a flathead.

The author sending a flathead back to put a bend in the rod for another angler.

Flathead are readily available and love eating lures. Your next land-based flathead could be 20cm or could be the magic metre fish. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 27

The author fishing an edge bite with Okuma’s Cerros spinning rod and JAW 30 reel loaded with 10lb braid and 10lb leader.

A nice land-based flathead on the mat prior to release.

Tips for land-based flathead * from P27

Note how Kaitlin is holding the flathead behind the fins to protect from the spikes on the side of the head – caution when handling flathead.

Tackle box

Flathead • Okuma Cerros Spinning Rods – CER-S-701L 7’ 1-3kg or CER-S701ML 7’ 2-4kg •O kuma Epixor XT Spin Reels – EPXT-30 •P latypus Pulse X4 Braid – 10lb •P latypus Stealth FC Fluorocarbon Leader – 10lb •Z -Man 2.5” Slim SwimZ •Z -Man 3” Slim SwimZ •Z -Man 3” MinnowZ •Z -Man 3.75” StreakZ •T T Lures HeadlockZ jig heads •T T Lures DemonZ jig heads •P ro-Cure Mullet Super Gel scent •P ro-Cure Sardine Pilchard Super Gel scent Page 28 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

quality set of polarised glasses you can identify the areas to focus your casts. When scanning the flats for potential areas, look for the edges of weed or any structure such as rocks or logs, as these areas will probably be holding bait. Also keep an eye out for slightly deeper sections of water – ruts in the bottom – as you could be surprised what lurks there. In these areas, I fish as the tide is coming in and the bait is pushing up onto the flats.

Flathead don't mind pushing right up in the skinny water in search of a feed. As I am fishing skinny water in these areas, I opt for a 1/4oz 1/0 TT Lures jig head and have it matched up with a ZMan 2.5” Slim SwimZ. A 1/4oz may seem a little heavy, however I am more interested in covering ground on each cast so a little extra weight is welcome. Retrieve-wise I opt for a slow wind back, keeping my rod tip nice and high and maybe adding a little hop occasionally. No hard and fast rules

apply, it just comes down to what fires the fish up on the day. On a recent trip out with my dad, the water was knee deep and we could see the flathead come flying up behind the lure to inhale it. Super exciting fishing! I hope you enjoyed the read and that you're finding fish. Keep land-based flathead fishing in mind next time you have a short window of time or the weather is hampering any bigger adventures. Screaming dragz… Sean Bekkers

The Okuma JAW 30 is a great little spin reel for anglers wanting to get into lure fishing for flathead. www.bnbfishing.com. au

POWER YOUR LIFESTYLE WITH MERCRUISER – BUILT TO PERFORM, BUILT TO LAST, BUILT TO ENJOY Mercury MerCruiser engines and drive systems are designed, tested, and purpose built for the marine environment.

POWERFUL - High displacement delivering more torque FUEL EFFICIENT - Providing extended range DURABLE & RELIABLE - Complete peace of mind

Go online or see your nearest Mercury Dealer to discuss powering your time on the water.

Contact or visit us for more information.

AIRLIE BEACH

IPSWICH

Whitsunday Outboard Centre 17 William Murray Dr Cannonvale Q 4802 P: 07 4946 7286 www.whitsundayoutboardcentre.com.au

Ipswich Marine Centre 45 Huxham St Raceview Q 4305 P: 07 3294 3944 www.ipswichmarine.com.au

BRISBANE

GOLD COAST NORTH

Manly Harbour Marine 570 Royal Esp Manly Q 4179 P: 07 3893 2199 www.manlyharbourmarine.com.au

Onshore Marine Horizon Shores Marina, Cabbage Tree Point Rd Woongoolba Q 4207 P: 07 5546 2480 www.onshoremarine.com.au

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

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 29

Offshore current kicks in - flathead fire in river

Adrian found some quality bass upriver.

ELL yet another year appears to have virtually flown by and it won’t be not long before the big bloke in the red suit is here. I get the feeling that we’re going to have a very turbulent summer, with some destructive storms and plenty of rain coming our way. So, I would suggest taking every opportunity you can to get out on the water and make the most of this time of year while you can. The summer species in the river are starting to fire up and the offshore fish are not far behind them – the next month around the Northern Rivers is going to be great. The current offshore appears to have kicked into summer mode and over the past few weeks is running down the hill at a great rate of knots. This is typical for summer, but it does make fishing anywhere from the 48-fathom line and beyond a very difficult option at best and nearly impossible on some days.

BALLINA

BAIT & TACKLE

Makaira with a fantastic 73cm flathead caught when out fishing with her dad.

Ballina West Shopping Centre Pacific Hwy, Ballina NSW

02 6686 2527 Page 30 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

Ballina Bait & Tackle by BRETT HYDE

Even with the quite strong currents, some good quality pearl perch have been taken from the 42-fathom line out to about 65 fathoms. Slow pitch jigs had been having a fair degree of success until the current picked up. I do think jigs will still produce fish over the next couple of months, but anglers will need to make the necessary adjustments and significantly increase the weights they are using to counteract the increase in the speed of the current. The current has also caused the baitfish to ball up and compress in and around a few of the pinnacles out wide. Kingfish certainly enjoy this time of year, as it’s easier for them to attack schools of bait when they’re more tightly compacted. Unfortunately, similar to pearl perch, it can be very difficult for anglers to target them with either bait or jigs due to the increase in current. However, if you’re willing to persist and manage to get the jig or bait in the zone, with a bit of luck, you can certainly have great success over the next few months. The increase in current has brought with it a steady increase in water temperature and this has enticed some small black and striped marlin to town. As usual, skirted lures have been able to tempt a few fish, though a couple of smaller models have been landed or

lost on bait or soft plastics intended for other species such as snapper and similar. The increase in water temperature has meant the snapper that were holding on the close reefs are starting to thin out. They will probably be there for the next few weeks or so, but then the temperature will ensure that the 32s or wider will be a much better option for them. Back in the river, flathead have been firing over the past few weeks. Similar to the water temperature outside, the temperature in the river has also started to rise and flathead have moved out a little wider than where they were found a month ago. Most of the fish have been taken in 2-4m of water recently. They are staying a little shallow early in the morning because the start of the day has still been on the cool side, however as the day warms up they’ve been moving into deeper water. The better numbers of flathead were taken between the ferry and Wardell Bridge, but there are certainly fish above and below these areas if you want to try your luck. Bream in better numbers have been from the ferry to Broadwater, with most rock walls in that area holding a few fish. Small hard-body lures have been working well, along with prawns, pil* continued P32

www.bnbfishing.com. au

KEEP YOUR EYEZ OUT FOR SNAKEZ. The new TT Lures Snake EyeZ jigheads are on the loose. BLACK/ GLOW EYEZ

CHARTREUSE/ RED EYEZ PEARL/ GLOW EYEZ

GOLD/ SILVER EYEZ PINK/ SILVER EYEZ

Combining the painted finish and proven strike trigger of big, bulging 3D eyes from the Big EyeZ series with the snag resistance of SnakelockZ , the new Snake EyeZ range add another dimension to your favourite soft plastic presentation.

Snake EyeZ are a great match with these

3” MINNOWZ AND 4” OR 5” DIEZEL MINNOWZ FIND TT LURES ON

www.bnbfishing.com.au

2.75” BABY GOAT, 3.75” GOAT AND 4.25” BILLY GOAT

Receive the free

soft plastics...

4” SWIMMERZ AND 6” SWIMMERZ

fishing newsletter: ttlures.com.au/Subscribe

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 31

The fishy business of artificial reefs

CIENTISTS from the University of NSW have uncovered why artificial reefs attract more small foraging fish – or baitfish – than natural reefs. It’s an important finding that could lead to more effective manmade reefs being built to help recreational fishers. Using a high-tech fish finder called a multibeam echosounder, the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences researchers gained a three-dimensional picture of five natural and three artificial reefs off Sydney during the day and at night and under different conditions. They found that the tall vertical habitats provided by the 9m high artificial reef allowed baitfish such as yellowtail scad and mado to spread out and feed much higher above the seafloor, while still remaining close to the safety afforded by physical structures. Because they had a higher structure to protect them, these bottom-of-the-food chain fish also had more access to food – drifting plankton – than they

would receive on a lowlying natural reef. Thanks to the ‘meal delivery service’ – the East Australian Current – consistently delivering a conveyor belt of plankton as their food, these baitfish are eating more, with subsequent benefits for their predators, including the bluespotted flathead, one of the most iconic commercial and recreational fish in NSW. The study, which has been published in Marine Ecology Progress Series, has implications for the eight artificial reefs in NSW. One of the study authors from the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Iain Suthers said, “Zooplankton and these small fish support around half of the fish biomass.” “The schools of these small fish are sometimes referred to as a ‘wall of mouths’ as they persist over a reef and peck the zooplankton from the tidal flow. “They connect plankton to the fishery and underpin the sustainability of bluespotted flathead and this has implications for the

sustainability of coastal fishing near heavily urbanised areas because the flathead ambush these small baitfish,” Prof Suthers said. The study describes the so-called ‘pinch point’ of the coastal food web and helps explain why reefs around Sydney can be such productive habitat for forage fish, despite a 50 percent decline in kelp, which itself supports coastal food webs and subsequently fish off the NSW coast. A research fellow at the University of Plymouth in the UK and lead author Matthew Holland, who conducted the research when he was a PhD candidate at UNSW Science, said artificial reefs allow the fish to use space differently than they do in nearby natural habitats. “Across temperate and subtropical coastal areas, like the coast of Sydney, much of the seafloor is relatively flat and featureless,” Dr Holland said. “But rocky reefs or any form of hard structure on the seafloor is rare overall and fish tend to congregate on structures such as artificial reefs.

“By building artificial reefs as ‘skyscrapers’ rather than ‘singlestory buildings’, we can provide more usable space for the fish, which can travel up and down in the water column while remaining close to these structures for protection from predators.” Dr Holland said they were surprised by the huge quantity of plankton actually drifting over the natural and artificial Sydney reefs. “We collected zooplankton samples by towing nets behind the boat during our surveys,” he said. “Based on the speed of the current, we worked out that 43g of zooplankton was delivered to each square metre of reef every hour during the day. “Based on the energy requirements of the fish we studied, each square metre of reef could potentially support up to 25kg of fish feeding only on these tiny organisms.” The eight artificial reefs in NSW are installed at South Head in Sydney, Port Hacking in South Sydney, Shoalhaven, Port Macquarie, Merimbula, Newcastle,

Wollongong and Tweed Heads. As per the artificial reefs, oil rigs off California have been found to be some of the most productive reef habitats. Prof Suthers said the study justifies the decommissioning of old oil and gas pipelines or platforms in the Bass Strait and the North West Shelf for use as artificial reefs. But Dr Holland said that while the scientists demonstrated why artificial reefs can be more productive than natural ones, they aren’t necessarily a replacement for natural reefs. “Natural reefs often have higher biodiversity because they contain a wider variety of habitats which can therefore support a wider variety of organisms,” he said. “It is important that we preserve natural reefs as well to maintain this biodiversity.” Now the scientists are keen to see their findings shape the design and location of future artificial reefs in the hope of enhancing coastal environments and improving opportunities for recreational fishers.

Offshore current kicks in - flathead fire in river * from P30

chard and mullet fillets for the bait fishers. You definitely know summer is here when you start seeing floats up and down the river. Plenty of people are out and about chasing mud crabs and the better tide around the moon phases will be

your best bet for catching a feed over the next month. Both of the creeks seem to be producing some crabs, with the run-out tide the best time to try your luck. Along with crabs, whiting show up around a bigger tide too, with some good

Page 32 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

quality fish coming from Mobbs Bay, North Creek and the main on a run-in tide. The usual bait accounted for most fish but a number of the better-quality fish have been taken on surface stickbaits. Bass have also kicked into summer mode and

quality fish are spread out from Swan Bay to Lismore. Early morning surface lures, such as frog or cicada imitations, have been working quite well. And as the sun gets higher, small mumblers, diving hardbody lures and skirted

jigs come into their own. With the minimal rain we’ve had, the water quality in this area has been quite good, so stick with more natural colours where possible. Well, that’s about all from me, until next time, tight lines! www.bnbfishing.com. au

✓ Powerful acceleration ✓ Outstanding fuel economy ✓ Ultra-low emission ✓ Japanese engineering BRISBANE Neptune Marine Oceania Unit 1/3361 Pacific Hwy, Slacks Creek www.neptunemarine.com.au 07 3290 6370

GOLD COAST (NORTH) Me Tender 8 Waterway Dr, Coomera www.metender.com.au 1300 853 950

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

BRISBANE (BAYSIDE) Cleveland Marine Unit 1/32 Enterprise St, Cleveland www.clevelandmarine.com.au 07 3286 9077

GOLD COAST (NORTH) Tim Stessl Marine 1 Carl St, Oxenford www.timstesslmarine.com.au 0429 680 504

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

BRISBANE (NORTH) Cunningham Marine 23-25 Snook St, Clontarf www.cunninghammarinecentre.com.au 07 3284 8805

ROCKHAMPTON Rockhampton Marine 289 Campbell St, Rockhampton www.rockymarine.com.au 07 4819 1181

TOWNSVILLE B & M Outboard Repairs 35 Civil Rd, Garbutt 07 4779 6569

tact your local Tohatsu dealer or visit www.bnbfishing.com.au

www.tohatsu.com.au Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 33

Grief from gusts in north NSW

Mischa with a chopper tailor from the Iluka Bluff.

ELIEVE it or not there was a time when the vast majority of people who owned fourwheel-drive vehicles where either hunters, farmers or fishers. These days everyone has one, and vast areas of the state including beaches and state forests are being locked up due to the large number of reckless and stupid clowns who have no regard for the safety of themselves, those around them or the general public. Sadly, these people don’t give a damn what

Flash back to early 1980s when anglers used to be able to drive right to the point of South Wall Ballina. Page 34 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

Just Jew by TYE PORTER

places are locked up – they simply take their big 4WDs and little peabrains to the next available location, and the story continues to repeat itself. Thankfully, this is one area of life where the average Joe is starting to fight back against these clowns – by videoing their antics and handing the footage to the police. Locally, this has happened on more than one occasion and along the beach at Shark Bay recently, and to their credit the police have been more than happy to convict the offenders. Believe it or not, doing burnouts and doughnuts on the beach carries the same penalties as if it were on public streets and actually falls under hooning laws. So be warned – if you or someone you’re with gets the urge to act hard-core on our local beaches, those of us who love and appreciate the access we still have will fight to keep that very privilege. Hooning can be reported to Queensland Police either online or by calling the Hoon Hotline on 13 46 66. On the fishing front, the far north coast of NSW continued to be battered by 30-knot wind – from the west, north and south, with maybe one or two days a week when the wind actually abated below 20 knots. When I was a young-

ster, I used to thrive on such conditions, however I’m now far from young and look for any excuse to not go fishing. Inside the Clarence River, luderick have re-appeared in reasonable numbers at the old ferry approach at Iluka, with a few nice fish even coming from the jetties upstream at Harwood opposite the pub. Whiting have been the big movers and shakers, with some honking fish to a tad over 40cm being landed along the southern bank of Goodwood Island during a falling tide at night, while over on the Yamba side of the river, Romiaka Channel has been the pick of the spots for these tasty little critters. Flathead are spread far and wide with nice pan-sized fish up to 50cm being boated as far upstream as Brushgrove on fresh school prawns and white pillies, and of course the old soft plastic lure is also taking plenty of fish. Jewfish have been taken on minnow lures from the headlands at Iluka Bluff and Lovers Point over at Yamba, with the average fish weighing in around the 10kg mark. Meanwhile, both the Yamba and Iluka breakwalls are producing the occasional larger fish on squid bait at night during high water and a hand* continued P35

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Grief from gusts in north NSW * from P34

ful of schoolies on soft plastic lures during a slack low water. Tailor are still standoffish with very few decent fish being reported recently, however given the wind that has been blowing, beach and rock fishing have generally been restricted to early morning. Yet again this month, offshore fishing was severely hampered by the wind and swell, with only the die-hard fishos putting together mixed bags of teraglin and snapper from the close-in reefs. I had planned to have pictures and a report

of daytime fishing for jewfish off the wall this month, but due to the lack of bait and poor health I hope to nail that task for the next issue. Bass are well and truly on the chew in the freshwater tributaries of the mighty Clarence River, so that’s an option if you’re heading this way on holiday and the wind cancels out coastal saltwater fishing. The fishing has been far from exciting, so here’s hoping November sees the weather return to some form of normality. Until next month, safe fishing.

Mischa Porter with a nice turrum taken from the southern side of Iluka Bluff on lure.

Subscribe to our

channel!

Click here

Check out in-depth video coverage of the latest boat and product reviews plus fishing action and handy tips. www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 35

Light breeze and surf are ideal to chase whiting in low tide beach gutters.

Bass are a warm water option on live bait in the big dams and lakes in southeast Queensland.

Warm water options

S Sand crab pots set in a line along a drop into deeper water.

A nice feed of tiger prawns from the shores of Moreton Bay after a hot day and calm night.

EZY THROW CA

STNET S

If it’s not an Ezy Throw then it’s not an easy throw! The original design and the best!

7’, 8’ and 9’ spreads and 6’ for kids and kayakers.

PH 0408 884 173

www.ezythrowcastnets.com.au Page 36 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

ADLY, for we keen beach fishos, the winter and early spring season is finishing up. However, at the time of writing – nearly the middle of October – there are encouraging signs that tailor are continuing on, with great catches at Fraser Island and by Brad Smith’s Fishing Charters in the Broadwater estuary. Flathead are another fish that will slow down as the water temperature rises, but November should still see a few good catches. Keep an eye on the water temperature and as it heads into the mid 20C and beyond, consider an early morning fish for these species or deeper water during the day. The good news for a range of species and seafood delights is that things are only just starting to heat up! Crabs and prawns As the late afternoon storms pick up, along with the water temperature, mud crabs will be on the move. In late spring, I prefer

Fishing Tips by SEAN THOMPSON

to set my pots in the warmer shallows and at the entrances to drains, alongside deeper muddy banks, among fallen trees and on the deeper bends of creeks and rivers. Be aware, if we don’t get much rain crabs may head further upstream, so take account of that when setting your pots. If you’re unsure where crabs might be in your local estuary, spread the pots out to try to cover your bases on where they might be concentrated. Sand crabs have also made an encouraging start in north and south Moreton Bay. Try and line your pots up along a contour line on your GPS maps – sign of a drop-off – and so that the scent of your bait will be carried to other pots. If you have a couple of people on your boat, you could start with four pots in shallower

water at 4-5m and four deeper at 6-8m and move them according to the crab catch rates. My old favourite of tiger prawns from the shore will also be firing up towards the end of November if conditions suit. Sadly though, the past couple of years have seen either strong wind around the best times or huge patches of blue green algae, which I didn’t want to wade in close to shore. But if we get a few very warm days and light wind around when low tide is a couple of hours after dusk, it will be a good time to be out wading with prawning nets and a powerful headlamp to spot their red beady eyes in the shallows of less than 1m deep. Interestingly, catches of banana prawns have also started to make an appearance, though the ones I’ve seen are * continued P38

www.bnbfishing.com. au

SEA JAY BOATS NEW MODELS

590 TITAN

AVENGER SPORTS Console

460 RANGER Heavy duty tiller

AVENGER Tiller

AVENGER

TERRITORY Console

For more information visit www.seajayboats.com.au Talk to your nearest Sea Jay dealer for pricing and options. STRENGTH

www.bnbfishing.com.au

WORKMANSHIP

CUSTOMISATION

SINCE 1989

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 37

Warm water options for SEQ * from P36

The author’s son Josh with an awesome barramundi caught in October from the Bli Bli Barra Park.

A bright headlight and prawn dip net will catch tiger prawns from the shallows.

A decent haul of sand crabs caught on mullet bait.

Cleveland Upholsterers & Marine Trimmers Grant Street Business Centre Unit 4, 7-9 Grant St, Cleveland Q 4163

• Boat canopies and interiors • All types of furniture upholstery Email: cleveup@people.net.au Page 38 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

still small to medium, which means hard work when peeling them. Let’s hope it’s a bumper season – so check your nets now for any repair needs or, if you haven’t tried before, pick yourself up a net and start practicing using many of the techniques on YouTube so you’re ready to go when the season is in full swing. Summer fish targets Of course, one species that will fire through summer on beaches and estuaries are summer whiting. These great little fighters are best targeted using live beachworms from the beach or live bloodworms or yabbies in the estuaries. Keep your line and leader light – around 4-6lb – and you will definitely catch more fish. When it comes to beaches, better catches of summer whiting will come in spring tide periods, in the four days leading up to and a couple of days after both a full and a new moon period. Wind and swell are other critical factors. Ideally, look for light southeasterly breezes in light and light to moderate swell so fish come in close to shore to feed. Look too for shallower gutters close to shore rather than deeper gutters that tend to hold more dart. In the estuaries, late afternoon to night and very early morning will deliver best results, again around a full and a new moon. Mangrove jack are another well-known warmer water fish.

These fish are tough angry fighters so strong leaders of 30-40lb are recommended around their very snaggy homes of fallen trees and bridge pylons. Live bait of mullet and winter whiting are a great option at anchor around these spots. During the middle stages of a tide, consider trolling diving lures under bridges and along rock walls with tight drags too. Barramundi are also another well-known late spring and early summer option in southeast Queensland. While numbers of wild fish increase the further north you go, these are a great local option for those who want to catch one close to home, or just work on your lure or live baiting techniques for barra for a trip north later in the season. Bli Bli Barra Fishing Park is a great option from the newbie angler to the experienced. These are strictly catch and release fish, so they can be pretty cunning which makes the challenge all the more exciting. This is a great place for a bit of a fun and fishing variety. When you visit, speak to the staff about what’s working, but live bait of prawns or baitfish

were firing at the time of writing, as well as a few slim minnow soft plastics. Pilchard and pellets are other standard fare. Finally, for the freshwater enthusiast, bass are another great summer option, and southeast Queensland is blessed with great stocked dams for this species. Hinze, North Pine, Somerset and Wivenhoe dams are only a few of the many stocked impoundments to target bass and other native species over summer. Live bait of freshwater yabbies, shrimps and big earthworms are great options among drowned timber or old riverbeds. Check out the video on my YouTube channel Ontour Fishing Australia for a nice session on bass at Somerset using live shrimp under a float. So, there you go – a few late spring early summer options to try as the water warms… and I didn’t even touch on reef species! So, good luck and as always, please follow along and feel free to reach out to me with any questions or your own reports via my social media platforms of Facebook, Instagram and YouTube at Ontour Fishing Australia.

A nice feed of mud crabs caught overnight after a summer storm last year. www.bnbfishing.com. au

AND YOU AIN’T SEEN NUTHIN’ YET!

For 50 years Stacer has been helping Aussies have fun on the water. Whether it’s with family and friends or a bunch of fishing mates. Everybody loves our quality fit-outs, unbeatable build strength and ultra reliability.

Other brands find it hard to compete – especially for the price. So if you haven’t owned a Stacer yet, maybe it’s time to say hello to your local dealer. And get ready to have a Stacer in your life for the next 50 years.

STBNBDEALER 001

We might be 50, but we think we’ve only just hit our straps. We’ve got a whole lot of new features and developments planned, so our boats are getting even better.

For more info information contact your local Stacer Dealer: BOONDALL | NORTHSIDE Marine 2294 Sandgate Rd, Boondall Q 4034 T 07 3265 8000 E info@nsmarine.com.au northsidemarine.com.au

www.bnbfishing.com.au

ROCKHAMPTON | RIFEN MARINE 6 Dooley St, Nth Rockhampton Q 4701 T 07 4927 9150 E rifen.boats@bigpond.com rifenboats.com.au

CALOUNDRA | NORTH COAST BOATING 22 Enterprise St, Caloundra West Q 4551 T 07 5493 9376 E sales@northcoastboating.com.au northcoastboating.com.au

WYNNUM | WYNNUM MARINE 31 Fox St, Wynnum Q 4178 T 07 3396 9777 E info@wynnummarine.com.au wynnummarine.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 39

This dart may be tiny but it scored the author the win in the dart category.

This solid flathead ate a live pike on a 70lb leader when pre-fishing for jewfish.

Phil with pike-munching jewfish.

One of the jewfish that helped take out the inshore jew category. Page 40 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

SCF Australia fishing competition

HE SCF Australia Garmin Research and Fishing Competition was held at the start of September. My friend Phil and I decided to have another go it at this year. In 2020, we targeted a lot of different species and ended up missing out on a few prizes by a centimetre or two. This year we came up with a good plan and even got out for a few pre-fishing sessions leading up to the competition. Our goal was to target four different species at different stages of the weekend. We knew where the fish were that could take out these sections of the comp, so all we needed to do was catch them. The competition has a great concept.

SCF Competition by KEITH STRATFORD

There are 15 inshore species to target and 15 offshore species. You need to catch the biggest two of each species to take home the prize of $500 cash. There are a few other categories to target as well, but we settled on three inshore and one offshore species. The briefing was held on the Friday afternoon with fishing to commence from midnight Friday and finish at 12noon on the Sunday. We planned to start at Bribie Island to target our first few species and then move to the Caboolture River to try for a shark and possibly a threadfin salmon. Our agenda kicked off

with filling the live well with yellowtail pike, as these are an awesome live bait and jewfish, our first target, are very fond of them. We planned to have a go at both the offshore and inshore jewies. The offshore section was always going to be a tough one to win, but we got on the board early with a 75cm and an 81cm. We didn’t bother hanging around to try for an upgrade. The next target was tarpon. I have a couple of consistent spots that hold some very solid fish. Phil score two thumpers in two casts measuring 63cm and 64cm. * continued P41

www.bnbfishing.com. au

SCF Australia fishing competition * from P40

Doing the damage on both fish were 1/4oz blades. Again, we didn’t bother hanging around to try to upgrade as we were fairly confident they would hold. We were starting to get a bit tired, but the tide was almost perfect for our inshore jew spot. Thankfully they were on the chew straight away and I landed an 89cm and an 87cm in consecutive casts. This gave us a chance to roll the swag out and catch an hour or so of sleep before it was time to hit the beach in search of dart. We don’t normally fish the beach for dart and we struggled to get one off Bribie beach in the pre-fish, but it was worth a try. To our surprise, I got two small ones straight up on some cured yabbies we had pumped the week before. Once more we didn’t attempt an upgrade. Dart isn’t commonly targeted in the comp, so we thought we might be in with half a chance. We pulled the boat out from Bribie and went home to quickly freshen up before heading down to the Caboolture River for the night. It was nice to finally relax a bit knowing we had a few leading species on the scoreboard. We bombed out with sharks that night though and got to bed fairly early so we could push upstream and look for threadfin. Phil was the first to hook up at one of my favourite thready banks, www.bnbfishing.com.au

however it turned out to be a nice trevally. We quickly checked what the leading score was for trevally and were surprised to see it was only at 101cm. Phil’s fish measured 53cm, so we only needed another one about that size. A few casts later a whole school of trevally swam past the boat and one of them ate Phil’s plastic. This one also measured 53cm, shooting him to the top of the leader board. By this time, our offshore jew had been knocked off but the inshore jew, tarpon and pathetic little dart were still leading and we had the trevally too. That was enough for us. We pulled the boat out, went home for a shower and headed up the coast early for a few well-earned beverages before the presentation. It’s a well-formatted competition run out of Your Mates Brewery Co at Warana on the Sunshine Coast, with a laid-back feel where everyone has plenty of laughs and drinks. All four of our species held on to win, so it was a successful weekend for us. There was a stack of awesome fish landed during the competition, with way too many to name here. If you want to check out the results, head over to the SCF website and have a look. They also run other competitions throughout the year, which are also very well run and a stack of fun.

One of Phil’s trevally that helped him take out the trevally category of the SCF competition.

One of the tarpon on the mat ready to be photographed and released.

SCF competitions are a lot of fun and are very well run. There is also a good chance of walking away with a prize. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 41

Harry Pimm and Isaac Flynn doing it with a pair of big snapper from Double Island. Photos: fishingnoosa.com.au

Action heats up on Sunshine Coast

Evie Von Hagins with a beautiful 50cm mangrove jack on 4lb.

Tim Harrison with a 68cm flathead that was released after a quick picture using the author’s favourite 4” PowerBait Minnow. Page 42 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

OVEMBER is a great time to start planning for the month ahead as we gear up towards my favourite time of year – the pelagic run. This year things could be varied with the absence of La Niña and El Niño. Last year was very different to previous years, so keep an eye out and be prepared before the fish arrive. For now, expect to find a few big spanish mackerel patrolling the shallower coastline from Double Island towards Mooloolaba, particularly if we get a heat wave. If you have a kayak, whole trolled bait are best. Extra-large mack tuna, garfish or big pillies on a troll rig and a short length of single strand wire are the go. DI often produces amberjack, trevally, goldband snapper, saddle tail sea perch, nannygai, jewfish, snapper and red emperor, to name a few. At times it is well worth the trip or load the trailer and drive to Tin Can Bay.

Sunshine Coast by GRANT BUDD

Be sure conditions are suitable for your level of experience as the Wide Bay Bar can be dangerous. Big fish, sharks and bust offs are commonplace here, so go in well armed. I love high speed jigging for amberjack and trevally because the hit can be similar to trying to stop a freight train! I find PE5 jigging gear the go as sharks are often present. As always Oceans Legacy have something for spinning and overhead reels and take a beating with ease. Look at polyethylene braids from Shimano and Varivas, 150-250g jigs and get some Shimano Ocea leader in the 80-100lb range. Take a look at various jigs around 100-200g from Gomoku and Samaki. Slow jigs also work very well while drifting and as always upgrading the hooks is essential, as are long leaders to cope with getting

rubbed up against the reef and sharks. For those fishing closer to Noosa, North Reef has been holding a great mixed bag of species with jewfish around the 1m mark. These fish will take a wide range of bait including live, slab and strip on snelled 7/0 octopus circles and 60lb leader. Another way to target these fish is on slow jigs, with the Samaki Ribcage an option for deeper water. Soft plastics between 5-7” work very well, especially while drifting and lifelike presentations such as the Chasebaits Flaccid Shad which has a great swim action. Keep leaders down to 30-40lb so you get the best action when using lighter jig heads around 3/4oz. While snapper, cobia, tuna and mackerel are present it is always a great idea to have a pilchard floater out. * continued P44

www.bnbfishing.com. au

GEKI: PARTING SEAS

A REVOLUTION IN INNOVATION Our award-winning flagship GEKI series of outboards boast advanced 4.4L DOHC VVT 4-Stroke powerheads, the largest displacement V6 outboard range ever produced. Loaded with innovative Suzuki technology to deliver the perfect balance of power and thrust, with outstanding Lean Burn fuel-efficiency and trusted reliability, all in a lightweight and stylish package.

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 43

Action heats up on the Sunshine Coast * from P42

These work well on Sunshine Reef with a light berley trail during a neap tide. Be sure to pick up some pellets, tuna oil and aniseed oil and mix with sand for a killer berley mix. Sunshine is the place for big coral trout, grass sweetlip, venus tuskfish and of course snapper. Out here a mix of styles work well, with 20lb set ups being perfect for soft plastics and light jigs in the 40-80g range. Dropping live bait works very well for trout, but gear needs to be increased to 50lb or greater as this part of the reef can be very unforgiving. Much like North Reef, the pilchard floater is often the key to success, particularly on cobia and mackerel. As things warm up,

the headlands are a great place to cast larger stickbaits such as the Rapala X-Rap Long Cast or Nomad Riptide. If looking to get started in stickbaiting, Shimano have many options for the priceconscious angler with the new Jewel range a great starting point. Match this with a new Penn slammer and a quality casting braid to help stop the big tuna and mackerel that often swim this area. Elsewhere, a continued run of small dart, whiting and trevally can be found in the gutters and holes from Teewah heading north to Double Island. Closer to the river mouth, the middle groyne in Noosa occasionally has spotted mackerel, dart, flathead, bream and trevally. They will take small

slugs such as the TT Hardcore in 20g sizes. You can use standard 7’ estuary combos here and have a lot of fun. At the moment, mangrove jack are high on the target list. These fish are powerhouses and must be experienced if you fish the estuary. These fish can easily be caught on a live bait, but to target them on lures requires more skill, with more satisfaction once captured. Learning where they hang out is important, but know Noosa has many areas for them to lay in wait. Casting or slow trolling hard-body lures, casting soft vibes and working soft plastics all work well and we have a huge array of options on offer. Angling at night can be very productive as jack will often break

Jo Behrens with her first fat Borumba bass going 43cm. Page 44 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

from cover under a night sky. Many anglers see these fish as prized sportfish with most returned only to be caught again. Mangrove jack must head offshore to breed, so please consider your bag limits before keeping them. Big flathead can be found in the lower part of the river particularly at this time of year. Big female fish come down to the river mouths to breed and as such fish over 90cm can be caught. They will respond well to shallow trolled hard-body lures such as the Atomic Hardz Slim Twitcher and the shallow Samaki Redic, which has a big side profile. Flathead can also be caught at night in areas of permanent lighting, attracting them toward baitfish drawn in by the light. Big paddle tail soft plastics work very well at night, so check out the Molix RT Shad and Shad 140 Swimbait. Daytime angling will see bream, whiting, flathead, trevally and maybe a jack in the Frying Pan and dog beach areas. Surface lures are a lot of fun for whiting and trevally as the hits can be huge! When skipped across the flats, angry packs of whiting as well as trevally and bream can suddenly appear. If looking for polaroid glasses, we stock a huge range of Spotters and Costa Del Mar, which are perfect for flats fishing. For bait anglers, a simple running sinker rig

with some red whiting tube and a live worm works wonders. The freshwater has provided anglers with a shot at bass and yellowbelly. The early morning bite has proved a great time to chase bass on surface with 8-12lb leaders best, depending on the snags. Weedless rigged ZMan Finesse Frogz and the Chasebaits Bobbin Frog are two great options for casting deep into weeds. Once the surface bite shuts down, jerkbaits and blades are best deployed, especially if the water is warm. If the wind is up, smaller tail spinner jigs such as the Jackson Iga Jig will turn the fish on if they’ve shut down because the vibration and small size often proves irresistible and just enough to trigger a reaction bite. Don’t forget to check online what the current dam and lake conditions are, as temporary closures occur around summer. Lastly, while checking the conditions out, don’t forget to purchase a SIPS permit and enjoy November on the water. For all the latest information, log onto f ishingnoosa.com. au for up-to-date bar and fishing reports and don’t forget to drop into Tackle World Noosa, Noosa Boating and Outdoors and Northshore Bait & Tackle in Marcoola for the best advice, gear and bait to help you catch the big one! Be sure to follow us on Facebook and remember, tight lines and bent spines!

www.bnbfishing.com. au

BASS HUNTER 480

A boat for every budget...

...Stessco has it!

Contact your local dealer today! IPSWICH Ipswich Marine Centre 45 Huxham St, Raceview 07 3294 3944 www.ipswichmarine.com.au

www.bnbfishing.com.au

SUNSHINE COAST Sunshine Coast Yamaha 14 Machinery Ave, Warana 07 5346 9981 www.sunshinecoastyamaha.com.au

ROCKHAMPTON Rockhampton Marine 289 Campbell St, Rockhampton 07 4819 1181 www.rockymarine.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 45

Tin Can Bay snapper sortie

My 25-year-old crab pots – a good tip to make them last is once back from crabbing wash down with freshwater, leave to dry completely and then store somewhere out of the sun, such as a shed. This stops the mesh from going rotten.

To keep wooden oars from splitting due to sun exposure, paint them with oil-based paint a few times and let dry completely.

Ryan in front of a lovely feed of mixed reef fish caught from Double Island. Page 46 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

I, with November not far away, what can we expect to see in the Sunshine Coast area? Well, more storms should start to come through and hopefully some coastal showers, and a lot of migratory birds such as koels and channel-billed cuckoos will come from the north. Hopefully, the whales are headed south and, once they go, this generally indicates the run offshore has started to kick in – and when the run starts, so do the pelagics. I will start crabbing the Noosa River system and working some of my 25-year-old pots – while they need constant sewing up, the 10mm galvanised rings are still in great condition. For bait, I use old fish frames or chicken carcasses and if the crabbing is good, I check them every day. If the crabbing is slow, I check them every two days. I have a new second-hand 3.7m Quintrex tinnie with 15hp two-stroke Yamaha outboard, and it will be great to get a few hours in it to build my confidence with the motor, particularly for when I go north in April or May, and maybe head to Nhulunbuy, if open. Fishing wise, I finally did an overnight offshore trip with my friend Ryan in his 5.56m Shark Cat with twin 90hp two-strokes on the back. Now call me old school but I would rather go to sea with Ryan and his two

Noosa to Fraser Coast by CRAIG TOMKINSON

older two-stroke outboards with separate twin fuel tanks, two separate fuel filters and a couple of batteries than in a boat with a single brand new four-stroke – but that’s me. If the boat had a smaller auxiliary that would be fine but I’m not keen at all on single motors, even if new. Ryan’s boat is well set up and we both fish with mono fishing line. It was a shake down run because Ryan had recently built a brandnew alloy trailer with four-wheel disc brakes and breakaway system and he had only just registered the trailer. Being a spur of the moment trip, we had no bait except for about 8kg of freezerburnt pillies, some old squid and a few ice bottles in my freezer. We headed up to Tin Can Bay, fuelled up on the way, called into the IGA, bought a loaf of bread and a hot chook and off we went. We logged on with the Coast Guard and crossed the bar as it got dark, and because it was blowing 10-15 knots eastly, we poked around about 11km off the bar to some rubble grounds that fish well all year round. We did a line off drift to see which way we would anchor then we shot the pick out. Ryan was tired as he is a fly-in fly-out worker and had just come

off night shift, plus we both take anti-seasick pills that cause drowsiness, so Ryan laid down and I watched for about 30 minutes to make sure the anchor was holding. I rigged up a running sinker rig with a double hooked snood of 6/0s and got a bite, but as the pills had kicked in and I couldn’t keep my eyes open, I went to bed. I woke up at around 2am and had a drop, getting belted on the way down but didn’t hook up, so I woke Ryan and he dropped one down, hooking and landing a nice cobia. I hooked and landed a nice snapper and we got our bag of snapper in no time. We fished on hoping to get a few sweetlip and pearl perch with no luck. We had to move because every drop was a nice snapper that were released. By now it was daylight, so we pulled the pin and headed a bit closer to Double Island. But the fishing was slow and after about an hour, we headed in. If you are keen to see our trip, I made a little video – it’s on YouTube under Craig Tomkinson Productions. There are a few there, so check them out. Hopefully, I’ll get to do a few more trips with Ryan over the coming years. Until next month, be safe on the water.

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Building better biosecurity for prawn production

R E SE A RC H and development project at James Cook University in Townsville will receive $378,564 in funding from the Cooperative Research Centre for Developing Northern Australia. The Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia David Littleproud said the project is a collaboration with the Australian Prawn Farmers Association to identify the most common biosecurity risks to the prawn industry. “Pathogens and viruses are a couple of the biggest challenges that are facing the industry as it tries to grow the sustainable

fresh seafood market,” Minister Littleproud said. “The research and development will focus on the impact of purified viruses on the survival, growth and biology of prawns. “Producers will be able to better manage their breeding stock by understanding which have genetic resistance, with the outcome of a disease resistant or tolerant prawn.” The research builds

on the data from CRCNA biosecurity audit of 2020, which identified the most common pathogens and viruses found in tiger prawn populations across Queensland. Lead researcher Dr Kelly Condon said that purified strains mean researchers can then develop tests to more easily and accurately identify when pathogen strains are present in commercial and wild caught

prawn populations. “It means farmers can, with the knowledge of the resistance genes, be able to screen populations and select for the individuals that have the resistant gene,” Dr Condon said. Australian Prawn Farmers Association research development and extension sub-committee’s Tony Charles said this project could deliver big wins for the industry. “Although these pathogens and viruses are not harmful to human health, this knowledge will increase certainty in biosecurity management and hopefully help our prawn farm-

ers grow their business profitability,” Mr Charles said. CRCNA chief executive office Anne Stünzner said the project will deliver much more than improved biosecurity management tools for the prawn industry. “This project takes a lot of the guess work out and gives producers and the industry better biosecurity management tools for decision making,” Minister Littleproud said. “Innovations like this are critical for our aquaculture industry as its rises to the challenge of expanding into northern Australia.”

WIN A $50 GIFT VOUCHER $

GIFT R E H C U VO

Sign up to the BNB e-news for your chance to win $50 to spend at The Tackle Warehouse! A weekly winner will be drawn from new and existing subscribers. Winners will be announced in the Friday e-news update.

Visit www.bnbfishing.com.au to sign up www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 47

Kai with a tank diamond trevally.

Brodie wrestled a big trevally.

Tips for targeting tuna

T Jacko with an extremely long golden trevally. Measured in at 117cm.

Jared knows how to keep me happy with a feed of grunter. This one caught under some trevally.

> Hervey Bay > Fraser Island > Sandy Strait

HE windy weather continues here on the Fraser coast. But we now have a northerly wind in the mix too – which is regular at this time of year as the temperature climbs to summer levels. The fishing however has not built to match. Usually I would encounter many schools of hungry surface-feeding mack and a few longtail tuna through September. Not this year though, and it’s a bit of a surprise considering how many tuna we caught through winter when only targeting fish in deep schools.

Fraser Guided Fishing by TRI TON

Maybe the tuna were working areas I haven’t seen before. By early October mack tuna had arrived in decent numbers and this made fishing a heap easier. Still, not too many longtails lurking around. Most times tuna are relatively easy to catch using a fast retrieve, but they can get difficult if they’re eating small bait, which is very common here. If you see a lone long-

tail in the school, target it. I find that the fish doing the bulk of the baitfish herding, tend to be fussiest. Up here they would be the mack tuna. With this in mind, if you see the sounder light up under some tuna it is often easy money dropping lures into the fish because they might be different species working with the tuna, and for the most part they * continued P49

Get into the best fishing action! Full and half day tours All levels of experience Experienced guide

www.fraserguidedfishing.com.au > 0427 230 261 Page 48 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

A monster flathead for Archie Dunne. www.bnbfishing.com. au

Tips for targeting tuna * from P48

are extremely easy to catch. I tell anglers to ignore the tuna if they are fussy and drop below. When I say it’s easy, I don’t mean they hook themselves and I often see anglers miss bites. If you follow me on social media, it’s common to hear me announce to the angler that they ac-

tually have a fish on. These are the times I watch the rod tips. As you can imagine it’s hard to watch every angler every moment on every drop. I get asked how I can tell and it’s purely being observant enough to notice the subtle changes in the tackle as the lure is worked. Don’t expect the fish

Sam with a solid giant trevally on a soft plastic.

to hammer everything because most of the time they mouth the lure and spit it after a few seconds. Being mindful and in the moment is key. I will usually fish alongside clients to decide whether the fish are worth persisting with. Fun to watch the reaction if I get a bite fairly quickly while they “have tried everything.” I make note that it doesn’t matter what tackle you have, “we humans are the weakest link in the system,” and it’s not the rod and reel or perhaps the lure. Once you get the basic skills down pat, you learn how to know exactly what is going on down there.

Illegal mangrove clearing cops fine

MAN from M a r yb o rough has been fined $25,000 in the Maryborough Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to destroying marine plants and conducting unauthorised works in a declared Fish Habitat Area at Kalah Creek. The defendant had previously been cautioned by the Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol over similar activities. After receiving a

further complaint, QBFP executed a search warrant on the property. In addition to the fine, the Court issued an enforcement order to restore the damaged mangroves. Mangroves are important environments for fish breeding and damaging these plants can impact on our fish stocks. If you are aware of damage to marine plants, you should contact the Fishwatch Hotline on 1800 017 116.

Hydraulic boat steering for a hard day’s fishing Go wherever and whenever the fish are biting with confidence! Made in Australia for our tough marine environments.

Photo courtesy of Vindicator Boats.

For product information and to find your nearest authorised dealer contact Graham HyDrive Engineering Pty Ltd – Queensland Unit 12, 73-75 Shore Street, Cleveland 4163 T: 07 3821 6580 E: qld@hydrive.com.au W: hydrive.com.au www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 49

FOR THOSE WHO CHOOSE TO

FROM THE CROWD

THE WORLDS

R CO SC AN Q

OUTBOARDS Now available in Pearlescent White or Signature Grey in F50, F70, F90, F115, F150, F200, F250, F300 and F425 XTO

Page 50 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

www.bnbfishing.com. au

CONTACT YOUR LOCAL DEALER BRISBANE | Northside Marine P: 3265 8000, 2294 Sandgate Rd, Boondall, QLD www.northsidemarine.com.au

BRISBANE (BAYSIDE) | Wynnum Marine P: 3396 9777, 31 Fox St, Wynnum, QLD www.wynnummarine.com.au

BRISBANE (REDLANDS) | Marine Care Qld P: 3186 5270, 30 Gordon Road, Redland Bay, QLD www.marinecareqld.com

BRISBANE (NORTH) | Brisbane Yamaha P: 3888 1727, Bruce Highway, Burpengary, QLD www.brisbaneyamaha.com.au

BRISBANE (SOUTH) | Stones Corner Marine P: 3397 9766, 117 Old Cleveland Rd, Stones Corner, QLD www.stonescornermarine.com.au

BUNDABERG | Bundaberg Marineland P: 4130 0500, 95 Targo St, Bundaberg, QLD www.bundabergmarineland.com.au

AC TION HEM IN T E E S ODE TO

GYMPIE | Watson’s Marine Centre P: 5482 2135, 52 Wickham St, Gympie, QLD www.watsonsmarine.com.au

HERVEY BAY | Buccaneers P: 4124 6988, 19 Islander Rd, Pialba, Hervey Bay, QLD www.buccaneers.com.au

SUNSHINE COAST | Sunshine Coast Yamaha P: 5346 9981, 14 Machinery Ave, Warana, QLD www.sunshinecoastyamaha.com.au

TWEED COAST | North Coast Yamaha P: 02 6680 3322, 4 Lucky Lane, Billinudgel, NSW

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 51

Bruce Sparkes-Carrol with nice rosy jobfish.

Helaine Wilesmith scored a great 4kg coral trout.

Seventeen Seventy BnB Trophy

Rob Schomberg was happy with this fantastic coronation trout.

Offshore reef fishing fanatics WANTED One of Brisbane’s oldest deep-sea fishing clubs with a 100 percent safety record 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 Darren (0413 511 436) or Robin (3269 5013). POWER BOAT ANGLERS REEF FISHING CLUB INC Page 52 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

ESPITE the grim weather forecast for the start of the week, most members headed north early on the Saturday hoping for a Sunday pre-fish session before kicking back for a few days waiting for another window of opportunity. Sunday turned it on with most boats at the ramp at about 4.30am, eager to be first to their secret spot. Karma Krusin lead the boats out of the creek in the dark on a lowish tide and headed for the Boult area, while the rest of the fleet headed north. The wind wasn’t too bad with the occasional white cap but the residue from the gusty days prior kept speeds down. Terry tried a few spots on the way to their traditional 60-70m grounds wide of Boult but could only manage a lone trout, a few reef fish and two big slimy catfish. Pressing on and heading wide, they were met by 2m swells outside the reef that saw the accompanying boats of Darren and Warwick disappearing in the bottom of the troughs, bar

Power Boat Anglers by MICK CLUTTERBUCK

the roof mounted aerials and rods. Once out, they prospected over a wide area for several hours with very little result, so they headed back in closer to the Bout area. Finding some new ground, the lumps held good fish and it wasn’t too long before the box had a nice colour to it. Dale found a new secret trout bait and was putting them in the box one after another, much to the disgust of Craig and Terry who could only manage the odd tuskfish and redthroat emperor. Dale soon passed on a secret bait and Craig started nailing trout almost instantly – still don’t know what the bait was though. A few longer drifts found more decent lumps and the box started looking reasonable. A double hook-up of cobia with another big model swimming around the boat had the fishos super excited and busy. A few more drifts

over the paddock on the way home topped off the day with a few nice grass sweetlip and another trout for Dale. The next four days were restricted to socialising, trailer repair and more socialising due to the weather. Friday was looking good and the majority of crews planned to make the most of it by doing an overnighter. Boats arrived at the bar at around 6am expecting to have to wait for a bit of water but the deeper dog-leg northwest section of the entrance proved to have good depth. Most headed to Fitzroy with a fairly pleasant wind though a confused lumpy sea that was enough to keep the speeds down again. The Sea Ya crew of Bruce Sparkes-Carroll, Stefan Slomka and his brother Martin decided to do their own thing and head out wide for change. On the first drop in 65m the fishing was * continued P53

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Seventeen Seventy BnB Trophy * from P52

hot, as long as hussar were the target. They sounded around and eventually found a decent bump that produced a few nice maori cod. Gear failure on Stefan’s part put paid to one of the better fish and he was left wondering what might have been. The sea soon flattened allowing a trip out to the 90m mark to see what was happening there. They found a slight show of fuzz on the bottom which produced some nice snapper, pearl perch, redthroat and a quality rosy jobfish taken by Bruce. The species variety was completely different to what they were used to inside the reef but after a few more drifts the fish turned right off, apart from a huge shark that gave Bruce a decent work out for a while. Elsewhere Karma Krusin started the day with a few drops around the Fitzroy bommies that didn’t produce enough to get excited about. They ended up spending the day in the 5060m area further north and, while not setting the world on fire, the fishing was reasonably steady with a good mix including quality trout and a couple of red emperor for the skipper. The last fish of the day had Craig huffing and puffing for a good while with thoughts of an oversized red, though it revealed itself as a 1.2m cod, which was released boat side. The night in Fitzroy started with a beautiwww.bnbfishing.com.au

ful sunset with Karma and Obsession rafted up sharing a few cold beverages, good food and plenty of banter. The highlight of the night was the shower of space junk from the disintegrating satellite Starlink 1855 that spanned nearly the entire horizon. Saturday morning, Terry and crew were back out in 60m of water and onto a fairly decent bite producing more good fish for Dale, the trout whisperer. They left them biting to try their newly found Boult grounds on the way home but hardly got a touch there or out in the paddock. Thankfully they had done OK over the past day and a half and while a few more fish would have been nice, they certainly weren’t complaining with what they already had. Near perfect conditions saw another fast run home in order to catch a falling tide at the bar and allow time for the clean-up before departing for the big smoke the next morning. Though I’m sure no one really wanted four consecutive non-fishing days, there were a few plusses for the week too. Over the three days when most boats got out, fishing conditions were fairly good despite the at times slightly lumpy conditions and everyone was able to catch a great feed with some decent trophy fish to go around. The weather predictions were also mostly spot-on for the whole week – bad when predicted bad and good

when predicted good. Overall another excellent week, so onward and upward for next year. Note that meetings occur on the first Wednesday of every month at the ‘Club Manly’ (bowls club), 26 Faine St Manly from 6.30pm for a 7.00pm start. Upcoming meetings are Wednesday November 3 and Wednesday December 1. Until next month, safe boating.

find us on facebook • Win prizes • Chat to readers and writers • See who’s catching what

• Post your brag shots • Join in on the fun banter • Have a laugh

www.facebook.com/bnbfishing

Helaine Wilesmith and a monster 12.3kg red emperor.

Stefan Slomka’s 6kg troutzilla. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 53

How’s this for a local threadfin. Daniel Brind with a cracker. Persistence always beats resistance.

WTF and closed season options

L Local spanish guru Chris Nash with a beast 30kg model from north of Yeppoon.

Cody Storey and friends did a trip to the Rockhampton region recently. This is what it’s all about – bent rods and good times. Page 54 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

AST month was the tenth anniversary Women That Fish Barra Classic, run on the mighty Fitzroy River. The masterminds behind the WTF comp, Shara Van Haren and Kalana Thomas, need to take a bow for the quality event they have put so much hard work into. We have been involved with this competition in the past and it has been nothing short of spectacular, catering to all skill levels. Unfortunately, this year we were unable to attend but I got a good run down on the proceedings. Day one would have to go down as one of

Capricorn Coast by JOHN BOON

the toughest in the comp’s history. Any of the anglers who braved the conditions on that first day would have had full wet-weather gear on because it rained practically all day. I checked the radar at about 9am on day one and it showed it was bucketing down. By reports, most of the anglers were still on the water, which was a huge effort. There weren’t a lot of fish sent in on the first day which was no surprise given the weather. Chasin Tails was in

top spot with 188cm of barramundi registered and the longest barra for the day was a cracking fish caught by Shelly Newton at 94cm. The conditions for day two couldn’t have been more perfect, with rain clearing, blue skies and next to no wind. The barra came in thick and fast with the good conditions. It was definitely a race to the finish and at the end of the competition the overall champion team was separated by only 1cm. * continued P55

www.bnbfishing.com. au

WTF results and Cap Coast closed season options * from P54

Champion team of one was taken out by Gone Fishing with a total bag length of 261cm, champion team of two was won by Chasin Tails with a bag length of 262cm, and champion team of three was won by Bluefin Sports Yamaha with a bag length of 240cm, which gave Chasin Tails the overall win. The champion individual angler was won by Shelly Newton with a bag length of 261cm, including a couple of beautiful barra that measured in at 92 and 94cm. The smallest barra overall was taken out by Helen Maclean at 34cm – a great sign that there are some juveniles swimming around from last year’s recruitment. The longest barra was caught by Vicki Manns at an impressive 97cm, pulled from very tight structure. The longest other species was a king threadfin caught by Kelly French at 128cm. So many prizes were given out including a boat, motor and trailer package, Humminbird sounders, Humminbird 360 transducer and loads more. You didn’t even have to catch a fish to walk away with a prize. Many sponsors make this event possible – to find out who, check out the WTF Facebook page. Make sure you give it a ‘like’ to stay upto-date and to keep an eye out for next year’s dates. Right, what’s been happening on the Capwww.bnbfishing.com.au

ricorn Coast lately? Well, the saltwater barra season is now closed, so you will need to look elsewhere for your piscatorial pursuits. I think the first fish on the list for this time of year is a late season little black marlin. I’ve been busting at the seams to get out and give it a go but haven’t had the opportunity as yet. I know Yeppoon sportfishing charters have been out smacking a few of late, so if you’re not confident chasing marlin, give the pros a call and they should be able to hook you up. If you’re not interested in marlin then the bay pelagic action should get you fired up. School and spotted mackerel have been running red hot in all the usual areas. We did a trip recently chasing bay reef fish and were getting snipped off quite regularly. We changed our technique from the bottom to pelagics and were rewarded with a good feed of school mackerel. Trolling spoons seemed to be one of the most effective ways to catch them. Trolling smaller barra lures – such as Classic – has also been reliable in the past and is such a simple technique. If they don’t respond to a trolled lure then try doing some nice slow drifts over them with a pilchard or garfish, this can get the action going again. Leaving wire off the rig used can see you get more bites too but

you also run the risk of being snipped off. Occasionally, I will use a swivel and split ring on the front of the gangs to get the mono leader away from the hooks a little. If the weather isn’t favourable for heading out the front, then

chasing a king threadfin in the Fitzroy River on a neap tide should be high on the priority list. Some great schools of king threadfin can be found throughout the river, so it’s only a matter of putting in time to search for them.

If you can find a school outside the more popular areas, you will find it easier to get a bite out of them. Less pressured fish equals more bites. Well, that’s it from me, so take care and I might catch you out on the water.

Vicki Manns with the biggest barramundi caught in the Women That Fish Barra Classic competition at 97cm. Skipper Kelly Manns putting them on the fish.

Collis Holloway with a beaut marlin caught north of Yeppoon. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 55

The author jigged this nice fingermark in deep water on a 3” Berkley Gulp Shrimp.

Chris caught this small barramundi on a Zerek Live Cherabin from the rocks in the background.

Electric action at Hinchinbrook

ACH year I manage to get up to Lucinda for few

Cod are prolific around Hinchinbrook. They keep things interesting between mangrove jack bites.

This nice mangrove jack was finally landed after snapping Chris’ rod. Page 56 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

days. This year my brother and I planned the trip around a great set of tides in late August. We have found fish bite a lot better around a larger tide coinciding with a new or full moon. Over the past few years we have been very lucky with the weather, with calm sunny days being the norm. This year was a bit different. The forecast was looking terrible, with strong wind and plenty of rain on the menu. We normally fly into Townsville where Dad lives and drive to Lucinda with his little tinnie. This year, we decided to hire a 4.1m Polycraft with an electric motor for the four days we were there. We arrived at Lucinda on the Thursday afternoon and picked the hire boat up on the way through. It was the pick of the days before the horrible weather came through. The tide was perfect for one of our favourite

Hinchinbrook by KEITH STRATFORD

mangrove jack creeks, so we left Dungeness Creek and started to make our way up the channel. Unfortunately, we didn’t get very far, with the motor spluttering and eventually dying. We got it started again after five minutes and managed to idle back to the ramp. That put a bit of a dampener on the trip – my brother and Dad drove back to Townsville that night to pick up his tinnie, so we had something to fish out of the next day. The weather wasn’t too bad the next morning with a 10-15 knot breeze pushing up the channel. We managed to get to Haycock Island around the tide change where we scored a nice little fingermark, with Chris getting monstered by a proper one. A couple of jumbosized tarpon got in on the action, along with a sand bass and a couple of small cod.

The wind picked up as the tide turned, so when the waves started coming over the back of the boat, we had to look for calmer water. We packed enough gear to rival a small tackle shop on this trip because every year we work out something different that requires a certain type of gear. We were really keen to cast a heap of surface plastics around for jack and barramundi, which was the main reason for hiring a boat with an electric motor. We tried to set up some drifts that would give us a chance to get a few frogs in among the mangroves, but the wind made it nearly impossible and the constant starting and stopping of a two-stroke outboard wasn’t helping. I did manage to get one small jack before we pulled the pin to head up the back of the creeks. As the tide dropped

* continued P57

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Electric action at Hinchinbrook * from P56

the channel calmed down a bit, so we went back out to fish some rocky banks around the bottom of the tide. Normally the cod are thick in these spots, but we couldn’t even catch one of them. Chris managed a little barra on a Zerek Live Cherabin, but it was very quiet. We decided that soaking some bait was going to be our best option in these conditions and we had plenty of pilchard in the Esky. We have a couple of spots there that fish well for jack on the right tide. We had to wait for the tide to start pushing in, so we anchored near to one of our spots and drifted in some half pillies. We managed to hook all sorts of things out of this snag, including grunter, jack, bream, cod and even a couple of very nice barra. Both of the barra were around 80cm and busted me off on a 30lb leader with a locked up drag. I’ve never hooked barra up there on pillies

before, so I was a bit shocked. Once the tide started pumping in, we moved to our little honey hole. It was a bit quiet to start with but as the tide got a little higher, mangrove jack and cod went crazy. We landed a stack of good fish and got smoked by a heap as well. One of the bigger cod came in with one of our hooks in its mouth from a previous bust-off. The fish just kept on chewing, though unfortunately we had to leave to sort our boat issues out. Apparently, the hire boat was good to go, so it looked as though we would be back in action the next day! We got on the water nice and early in the hire boat and planned a big day ahead. The weather was very ordinary with strong wind and rain squalls coming through regularly. We got right up one of our favourite jack creeks early and planned to cast plastics at snags and mangroves as the tide started to drop.

A nice mangrove jack taken by the author. www.bnbfishing.com.au

Everything was looking good as the tide dropped and the fish had to come out from the back of the mangroves. A few jack started busting up around the snags and things were looking very promising. But then the electric motor started playing up again. It wouldn’t turn itself off unless it was disconnected from the battery, which made it impossible to use in a small creek. We have had a few epic jack sessions in this creek over the past couple of years, so we decided to stay in the creek for the whole tide and work the snags with lures and bait as we drifted through with the tide. The action wasn’t amazing, but we ticked over enough jack and other species to keep us entertained. The sandflies were definitely chewing harder than the fish. They were out of control and the rain squalls seemed to make them even hungrier. We had a bit of a late start the next morning. The constant heavy rain showers made it very easy to stay in bed a little longer. The weather was the same as the previous day, with plenty of wind and showers around. We spent a fair bit of time casting lures around creek mouths and drains in Sunday Creek for barra but came up empty handed. We also tried trolling the edges as the tide dropped for no result. * continued P58

Chris with a standard sized jack taken on a pilchard.

A frogfish is one of the uglier species found in the rocks around Hinchinbrook.

This mangrove jack was well and truly in the snag. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 57

A nice table-sized grunter taken from the snags at Lucinda.

Electric action at Hinchinbrook * from P57

This greedy cod didn’t get so lucky the second time!

Snags such as this hold plenty of mangrove jack. Page 58 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

The fish were very quiet everywhere and the bait was also noticeably quiet. We had Dad in the boat with us for the day and wanted to show him how hard the jack chew at our favourite spot. We got there right on cue, but the fish were quiet. We stuck it out for a while longer hoping they were running a bit late… and it paid off. Suddenly there were

double and triple hookups on solid jack and big cod. Dad was having a ball trying to wrestle them out of the snags. Chris hooked a really nice jack and it ended up snapping his rod before swimming back into the snag and bricking him. While he was sorting out a tangle from the rod breaking, the fish swam out and I handlined it in for him. The action never stopped and we had to

leave them chewing to get back to ramp before dark. It’s mind blowing to see how many jack and big cod can be feeding in a small area and in only a couple of feet of water. Those jack sessions were the highlight of the trip in very tough conditions. Hinchinbrook is one of my all-time favourite places to fish, but it can still be very tough when the weather doesn’t play the game!

Snags around Hinchinbrook are worth a few casts for mangrove jack. www.bnbfishing.com. au

Gamakatsu are at the forefront of hook development continually growing

Gamakatsu is Australia’s largest range of hooks

CIRCLE HOOKS Octopus Circle (OCC)

HOOK FEATURES High Quality Tempered Carbon Wire Construction

When using this hook anglers do not strike on the bite, rather the fish is allowed to run with the bait and as the line comes tight the hook will roll into the corner of the fish’s mouth. Sizes: 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0,7/0, 8/0

Turned Eye

Offset Point

Conical Hook Points Micro Barbs

Circle Hook

Superior Chemically Sharpened

GENERAL HOOKS

HEAVY DUTY HOOKS

Baitkeeper (BK)

Live Bait (LB)

A heavy-duty estuary hook featuring two slices on the shank for holding on worm and peeled prawn baits. This is a high strength hook for its size.

A high strength hook with a short shank for superior hook-up rates. This is a great hook to use for tough and toothy fish from mangrove jacks to yellowfin tuna.

Sizes: 8, 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, Red. Available in pre packs and 25 packs

Sizes: 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0, 7/0, 8/0, 9/0, Available in pre packs and 25 packs.

Barbed Shank

Offset Point

Straight Eye Straight Eye

Baitholder (Black BHB, Bronze BH) Inline Octopus Circle (IOCS) Gamakatsu’s Circle Inline Point Octopus Hook is the same design as the Octopus Circle, but without the offset. Sizes: 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0,7/0, 8/0 Available in pre packs and 25 packs

Straight Eye

Circle Hook

Inline Point

Inline Big Bait Circle (IBBC) Gamakatsu’s Inline Big Bait Circle hook has the exactly the same design as the Big Bait Circle, but without the offset point. Sizes: 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0, 7/0, 8/0, 9/0, 10/0 Available in pre packs and 25 packs

An Australian freshwater standard, but also incredibly popular in saltwater for bream and as a general all-round estuary hook. Bronze sizes: 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0. Black sizes: 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0. Available in pre packs and 25 packs.

Turned Eye

Offset Point

This is a heavier gauge circle hook for bigger fish but with a straight shank. It is a great hook to use for all large cut baits in both ‘floater’ and deepwater paternoster rigs, or with live baits. It can be slow trolled with live bait for sailfish/ small marlin. Sizes: 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0, 7/0, 8/0, Black. Available in pre packs and 25 packs

Circle Hook

Straight Eye

HEAVY DUTY CIRCLE HOOKS Nautilus Circle Light (NCL) A 3x wire hook that was developed for fishing live baits, the Nautilus Light is an ideal hook that’s long on strength. Produced from forged high carbon steel, the Nautilus Light features a straight eye and offset point for superior performance. (NB: sizes are approx. 2 sizes smaller than standard hooks) Sizes: 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0, 7/0, 8/0, Black. Available in pre packs

Circle Hook

Straight Eye

Offset Point

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Straight Eye

Inline Point

A heavy duty hook with an excellent straight point and shank length greatly favoured in southern states for surf fishing for salmon and tailor.

Red Sizes: 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0. Black Sizes: 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0. Available in pre packs and 25 packs.

Sizes: 8, 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0, 7/0, 8/0, 9/0, 10/0, Black. Available in pre packs and 25 packs.

Straight Eye Straight Eye

SPECIALTY HOOKS

Ideal for presenting a prawn-like shape this is a great hook to use for whole unpeeled prawns. Also great for pipis and King George whiting. Sizes: 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, Black. Available in pre packs and 25 packs.

Straight Eye

Gangster (GS) A top quality ultra-chemically sharpened gang hook. Featuring a turned down eye and offset point this is a great hook for ganging pilchards, squid and any other cut baits for tailor, flathead, and snapper. Sizes: 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, Black. Available in pre packs and 50 boxes.

Inline Point

An estuary standard that no fisherman should be without. Very popular for a wide range of estuary species Red Sizes: 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0. Black Sizes: 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0. Available in pre packs and 25 packs.

Straight Eye

Inline Point

Long Shank (Red LS, Black LSB) Offset Point

Sizes: 10/0, 11/0, 12/0, Black. Available in pre packs and 25 packs.

O’Shaughnessy (OS)

Shiner (SH) Big Bait Circle (BBC)

This hook will never let you down. It’s built tough and strong to handle whatever you throw at. Great for XOS yellowfin, marlin, broadbill, and sharks.

This ultra fine gauge hook allows for the most delicate of bait presentations due to its light weight and allows baits to sink very slowly and naturally.

Inline Point

Circle Hook

Live Bait Heavy Duty (LB)

Worm (Red WM, Black WMB)

Barbed Shank Straight Eye

Barbed Shank

Inline Point

Turned Eye

Open Eye

Inline Point

Gangster Straight Eye (GSE) This hook has the same properties as the Gangster but with a straight eye. For use with just about any cut bait requiring larger ganging hooks. Sizes: 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0, Black. Available in pre packs and 50 boxes.

Inline Point

Siwash (SI) This is a great saltwater fly hook and general purpose straight hook with big eye. Featuring a round bend and resulting wide, perfect for bigger fish such as tuna that are eating small baitfish. Sizes: 8, 6, 4, 2, 1, 1/0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0, 6/0, 7/0, 8/0 Nickel. Available in pre packs.

Big Eye

Inline Point

Straight Eye

Open Eye

Inline Point

Distrubuted by

www.frogleysoffshore.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 59

Eligh and Drew Polderman with a nice large-mouth nannygai, caught near Restoration Island, Lockhart River area.

Reef fishing northeast Cape York

Drew Polderman with a goldspotted cod, great eating at this size, and common on both east and west coast reefs off Cape York.

Josh Lyon with a very tidy Weipa fingermark. Page 60 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

ELL, as of November 1, wild barramundi are off the take list in Queensland until next February. However, the current weather patterns open up other fabulous fishing options on Cape York, while we leave barra to go do their spawning thing. November is slap bang in the middle of the ‘build up’ season here – with rising heat and humidity and increasingly calm wind spells as the lively southeast trade wind loses its tenacity. These spells allow anglers to get out to the reefs and along coastlines to fish for a wealth of tropical species in some truly magnificent country. The general Cooktown area is the closest and prime reef fishing destination for travellers coming from the south – a four-hour

Cape York by ‘BILLABONG’ BAZZ LYON

drive from Cairns. On a ‘glass out’, it will take only half an hour to boat to Egrett or Boulder reefs. Another 15 minutes or so eastward lies Big Uncharted Reef, while further south the enticing and sizeable Cairns and Osterland reefs, and many smaller reefs, promise many days perhaps weeks of fishing for succulent coral trout, red emperor, maori seaperch, jobfish and sweetlip of different types. Small and largemouth nannygai tend to favour rubble areas and small rises in the open water away from the main reefs. And of course, pelagics such as spanish mackerel, cobia and longtail tuna in particu-

lar are always around and worth targeting. Plus, the Outer Reef is quite reachable in good weather from Cooktown in any seaworthy boat. Passionfruit and coronation trout, along with green jobfish abound in these waters and some of the great trevally that patrol the reef edges are of epic proportions! Never disregard fishing along the coastline too, for spaniards and fingermark in particular. The next prime, more easily reached destination on the east coast is the Kutini-Payamu (Iron Range) area. Most years, November is the month our family and friends gather to camp at Chilli Beach * continued P61

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Reef fishing northeast Cape York * from P60

in the Kutini-Payaumi (Iron Range) National Park for a week or two of absolutely cracker fishing in a very scenic area. The fish available follow a similar pattern to the Cooktown reefs, with nannygai and fingermark perhaps even more common in the inshore reefs. Though the recent cyclone knocked the rainforest about, there are still a few nice shady camps along the beach, and the caretakers have provided a freshwater bore for campers back along the road. You can beach launch at Chilli Beach or the small settlement of Portland Roads, a little further to the north. There’s plenty to see around here too – the old wartime bunkers near the Lockhart River airstrip, the local com-

munity where you can purchase fuel and food, and the picturesque Quintel Beach where a barge delivers essential supplies on a regular basis. Restoration Island, which can be seen from Chilli Beach, features very strongly in Australia’s history. This is where Captain Bligh and 18 sailors reached after being cast adrift from the Bounty in 1789, covering nearly 4000 miles in a 22’ open boat. Bligh named the island ‘Restoration’ as this was where they found plentiful food and water and were ‘restored’. Back to fishing! Weipa is the major western Cape York destination and I have covered it fairly well recently. Needless to say, it too offers great reef fishing

– on generally smaller reefs than those along the Great Barrier Reef – and often in surprisingly shallow water. Fingermark and tuskfish make up a major part of the catch here. For reef fishing generally around the Cape, pilchard along with other hard bait of fish fillets, squid and jigs, soft plastics and hard-body lures will all produce well, according to the species and location. Personally, I find jigging soft plastics over the reef cracking fun – likewise casting poppers over reef edges for coral trout and anything else on the chew. Weatherwise, there are predictions about of an early wet season onset – possibly in November – something to be mindful of should you venture up this way. Until next month, tight lines and stay safe!

A plump coral trout, without doubt one of the best easting fish on the planet.

Anchored off the idyllic Chilli Beach, Kutini-Payamu (Iron Range) area of Cape York.

Custom Marine Welding • Aluminium • Stainless steel • Mild steel welding & fabrication • Boats & trailers repaired and modified • T tops with rod holders for all boats • Custom fuel tanks to survey • Bow rails • Electric outboard mounts • Water & fuel tanks for boats, trucks, campers & 4WD underfloor storage • Vehicle tool boxes & canopies

T: 3807 7846 M: 0414 736 606 E: cmwelding@yahoo.com QBFP officers joined the Gudjuda Indigenous Rangers recently to clean up illegal pots.

QBFP with Gudjuda Rangers

HE Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol officers joined the Gudjuda Indigenous Rangers recently to haul in and remove a significant number of illegal crab pots from Townsville and

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Burdekin waterways in their latest cleanup operation. Over five days, the clean-up focussed on Plantation, Ocean and Barramundi Creeks, the Haughton River and Cleveland Bay – removing 119 aban-

Jacobs Well Road & Rotary Park Road Behind Gem Freedom Service Station

www.custommarinewelding.com.au

doned and derelict pots from the marine habitat. Good relationships were built from the joint operation and Gudjuda Rangers were very helpful and passionate about cleaning up their sea country. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 61

Big spanish mackerel were scarce but Brett Taylor managed to find this ripper at 18.6kg dressed.

The Cape’s classic weekend

N Weighmaster Gavin Roberts weighed this chunky blue salmon caught by a junior fisher.

The Parr brothers braved the rough conditions to bring home quality nannygai and fingermark. Page 62 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

OT even a 25 knot southeast trade wind could blow away the fishing fever that infuses the community when the Weipa Fishing Classic weekend comes around! Just as the hugely successful Weipa Bullride that ran two weeks earlier, the event attracted a massive crowd intent on having a great time and possibly catching a few fish or three! This year the Classic venue changed to the town’s new showground and from all reports the vibes were very positive. Even with an attendance of close to 3000 on each of the three nights, there was plenty of room for exhibitors, food outlets, camp

Cape York by DAVE DONALD

chairs and blankets to be accommodated in front of the new stage. The Classic’s hardworking committee must be congratulated on what was an extremely smooth and professionally run event. With two boats, a couple of quads, and a host of other fabulous prizes, the value of the goods handed out over the Classic approached $200,000. Rough conditions on day one saw most of the boating activity limited to the rivers, though a couple of larger craft braved the conditions to target a

few reef species. The Parr family managed to find a productive spot early in the day before the wind started pumping, landing some lovely nannygai, fingermark and coral trout in the process. The mackerel, though, were very scarce indeed. Many families headed up the estuaries and found plenty of pikey bream, grunter and a few blue salmon on the chew. Both the barramundi and king salmon proved to be finicky biters – a common complaint during strong wind * continued P63

www.bnbfishing.com. au

The Cape’s classic weekend * from P62

gusts – but a couple of honey holes produced fish in the 80cm and early 90cm range for the leaderboard. With the trades easing slightly on day two, Tom Hockey and I headed a long way upstream to try to get out of the wind. We raised plenty of small barra, a few mangrove jack, cod and queenfish but nothing remotely close to making the leaderboard. Meanwhile, a couple of boats working out of Mapoon finally found a few big mackerel, the best weighing in at over 18kg. All that was needed to have a chance in the major prize draw was a numbered ticket, and

the 2200 allocated had all been sold. On the final evening, 23 lucky individuals lined up on stage as the numbers were drawn down towards the major prize – a 5.2m Aluvan Razor plate hull boat powered by a 115hp Suzuki fourstroke outboard. Also on offer were the Honda SXS700 Pioneer side by side, a Quintrex 370 Outback Explorer with 20hp Yamaha, $7500 cash or a big $5000 diamond, if you happened to be one of the runners up! The excitement for the final draw is always palpable, with Jamie Hutton eventually being the last person standing to win the Aluvan.

As with most of the other winners, you couldn’t get the smile off his face! Believe it or not, the Classic committee has already started to plan the 2022 event and have decided to move it back to its regular time slot on the Queen’s Birthday weekend in June. With COVID restrictions in southern states hopefully easing well before that time, next year’s Classic is sure to be a highly anticipated event. Given that this year’s tickets sold out a couple of days prior, even with the COVID limitations, I’d suggest that anyone contemplating making the trip to Weipa should start planning immediately.

The Weipa Fishing Classic major prize winner Jamie Hutton took a seat in his new $45,000 Aluvan Razor with his son Jake.

The casting and cast net throwing competitions were fiercely contested. Simon Milevsky showed how it’s done!

Asian green mussel found in Cairns

SINGLE well est ablished Asian green mussel has recently been found on a vessel in Cairns. Asian green mussel is an invasive and prohibited marine pest which has been detected in Queensland several times in recent years. Asian green mussel out-competes native species, fouls hard surfaces including vessel hulls, seawater systems, industrial intake pipes, wharves, artificial substrates and buoys and can be poisonous to humans. It can be introduced via a ship’s ballast water, as biofouling on boat hulls and

www.bnbfishing.com.au

through internal seawater systems. The single AGM measured 17.5cm – equal to the largest recorded AGM – indicating it had been on the vessel for an extended period of time. Internal examination indicated it was a mature male capable of reproduction. The vessel had been moored in Trinity Inlet since February 2013. It is understood it had not left the inlet since. The vessel was moved recently to be cleaned, leading to the discovery of the invasive mussel. This is being treated as an environmental

detection – the result of a spawning event in the area leading to the settlement of this individual. Recent Q-SEA marine pest surveillance activities were undertaken in the area and are awaiting laboratory analysis. Q-SEA are also working with Ports North and Marine Safety Queensland to identify high risk vessels and mooring piles to conduct further investigations. If you see something you think might be Asian green mussel, report it immediately to Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23 or via the online reporting portal.

A single well established Asian green mussel found on a vessel in Cairns measured 17.5cm. Photo: Yirrganydji Rangers

Asian green mussel can be introduced via a ship’s ballast water, as biofouling on boat hulls and through internal seawater systems. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 63

BG MQ ARK

BRINGING rockstar looks to the rockstar performance of the 20 BG MQ, the new BG MQ ARK has it all. Striking in black and gold and featuring Daiwa’s legendary aluminium round knob, the BG MQ ARK is loaded with all the innovation and technologies of the 20 BG MQ. A monocoque body headlines the BG MQ ARK list of features, with its innovative design eliminating the traditional two-piece body construction. MQ eliminates the use of side plates and features a screwless body design removing potential entry points for water and grime, and significantly enhancing overall body strength and rigidity. Casting performance is unmatched courtesy of a long cast ABS spool, while carbon ATD drag, infinite anti-reverse, air rotor, machine cut handle and metal alloy body deliver stunning performance, balance and strength. Grab gold medal performance and looks with the new BG MQ ARK. Available in 3000-20000 sizing. For more information, visit daiwafish ing.com.au

Biwaa Raffal

THE unique construction of the Biwaa Raffal makes it stand out from the competition.

One-piece solid resin construction and a full stainless-steel frame means Raffal can handle the biggest predators and toughest conditions. Unlike many gliders, the Raffal has no rattles and makes no noise – it’s silent. A slow retrieve or trolling speed produces an S-style swimming action, while a vertical rod direction produces an erratic action to stimulate reaction bites from the most reluctant predators. Biwaa Raffal gliders are available in 4”, 5” and 6” models which weigh 43g, 75g and 105g respectively. Five colours make up the range including Roach, Fusiler and Blue Mackerel. See ejtodd.com.au for more information.

Platypus Hard Armour Game Leader

THE range of Platypus Hard Armour leader has now expanded to include Hard Armour Game Leader, which is available in convenient 50m hanks and 100m lure bag packs, including a re-usable lure bag. Available in both Clear and Ice Blue colours, Hard Armour Game leader has been formulated to offer anglers extreme abrasion resistance, controlled stretch and outstanding knot and crimp strength. Proudly made in Australia, Hard Armour Game leader provides anglers with the confidence to take on Australia’s hardest fighting fish, with over 120 years of fishing line design, development and manufacturing experience. Available in 100lb, 150lb, 200lb, 250lb, 300lb, 400lb, 500lb and 600lb breaking strains, with suggested retail prices from $19.90 in the 50m hanks and $39.90 in the 100m lure bag packs. Note the 600lb is packed in 40m and 80m packs. For more information, visit tackletac tics.com.au

Page 64 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

Tackle Tray Carry Bag

KEEP all your gear at your fingertips with the new Daiwa Tackle Tray carry bag. Available in two sizes – medium and large – this classic styled bag features three external storage pockets, zippered top access, carry handles and an adjustable removable padded shoulder strap. Classic in black and featuring the iconic Daiwa DVEC logo, this robust tackle carry bag is essential for all anglers and comes loaded with tackle trays – with the medium model pre-loaded with three 3600 sized trays, while the large model features three 3700 sized trays. Whether it’s packing for a day on the boat or heading to your local beach or jetty for a quick spin, the new Daiwa Tackle Tray carry bag will make your angling experience organised and enjoyable. For more information, visit daiwafish ing.com.au

Daiwa Beanie

THE new Daiwa beanie is a modern take on the classic fisherman’s beanie. Perfect for early morning surf checks or long cold nights on the water, the Daiwa beanie is an essential for the serious angler who wants to look the part on and off the water. Classic in looks and cosy and comfortable, the new Daiwa beanie is available in four awesome colours. For more information, visit daiwafish ing.com.au

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Molix Jerk 95 DR

THE range of new Molix Jerk 95 DR lures look fantastic. They are cast well and are a fraction of the price of similar lures on the market. The large reinforced bib ensures stability during the fastest of retrieves. Barramundi and mangrove jack anglers will especially love the tight twitch rolling body action of this versatile lure. The dynamic load system allows weight in the lure to shift during casting for increased distance. Fitted with reliable size #4 BKK trebles, the Jerk 95 DR is available in six fantastic colours. See ejtodd.com.au for more information.

larger diameter Tough Digigear, transferring all of that power delivered through the handle to your line, ultimately stopping those fish in their tracks. A tubular hollow Air Bail is also equipped on Saltist MQ, improving line management and line flow back into the line roller for unmatched performance with even the lightest braids in windy conditions. Available in a full-size range of 2500 up to 20000, Saltist MQ has something to cater for every corner of the country. Whether you’re looking for a strong and tough small spinning reel to fish our coastal estuaries and rivers, or a large heavy tackle spinning reel suited to casting lures and dropping bait for reef species and pelagics. All Saltist MQ models are also now equipped with the aluminium round knob to offer the best grip and stability. If you’re looking for a new saltwater spinning reel capable of standing up to the test, look no further than the brand new Saltist MQ. For more information, visit daiwafish ing.com.au

Z-Man 9” GrubZ

Daiwa 21 Saltist MQ

WITH a revolutionary single piece aluminium monocoque body, the new Saltist MQ reel is now better equipped than ever to take on the rigours of Australian saltwater fishing and the hard-fighting fish that call Australia home. Arguably one of Daiwa’s most famous features, Magseal combines with the monocoque body to make Saltist MQ one of the best protected from the harsh environment reels Daiwa has ever produced. The single piece MQ body houses a

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Z-MAN’S popular 10X tough jumbo curl tail is now available in some dynamite new colours that will have offshore anglers pumped, and anglers putting this plastic to work on mulloway, barramundi and big flathead in the salt and Murray cod in the fresh, standalone or as a chatterbait and spinnerbait trailer. The proprietary Z-Man ElaZtech construction means the 9” GrubZ is extremely durable – to stand up better to aggressive fish and toothy critters – and has a super soft and flexible feel that keeps fish biting, and a natural buoyancy that sees it come to life in the water.

The long curl tail creates a seductive action that draws the bites on the drop, on the bottom or even when left in the rod holder to dance with the water movement. New colour additions to the range include Coconut Ice Glow, Nuked Chicken Glow, Fusilier, Pink Glow and Atomic Sunrise. Big profile, big action and 10X tough to handle the big bites! Now available in 12 colours, with three per pack and a suggested retail price of $12.95. For more information, visit tackletac tics.com.au

Shimano Sustain FJ

THE 2021 Sustain series is one of the strongest in the Magnum Lite range. Re-engineered from top to bottom, the new Sustain series features a range of new upgrades, such as MicroModule II and MGL rotor to improve its finesse and on-water performance. This model incorporates MGL rotor to create a light start-up, which allows the angler to wind faster and set the hooks quicker. Combining the MGL rotor with the Hagane body produces a light yet strong reel that can handle big saltwater battles. It is lighter than its predecessor and the Sustain now features a long-stroke spool to provide anglers with improved casting distance. MicroModule II gearing is combined with Shimano's cold-forged Hagane gear and silent drive technologies – for smoother reeling performance. The matte black finish with gold trim and 8+1 ball bearings is sure to impress all anglers and the new feature upgrades will keep turning the heads of hardfighting fish. For more information, visit shimanofish. com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 65

Michael Starkey landed this solid snapper fishing in up to 20m with a 75mm soft vibe.

Redthroat emperor will attack a vibe cast down the side of a reef.

It’s definitely the vibe

This bass snavelled an Atomic Semi Hardz Vib 50.

This mulloway was a sucker for a vibe.

TURKEY BEACH 2 Bedroom Villa Holiday Rental • Outdoor BBQ and pergola For • Fish cleaning facilities enquiries • Large yard with room and for the boat bookings • Undercover carport phone • Close to boat ramp 0458 742 153 • Linen available www.turkeybeachfishingvilla.com Page 66 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

VERY sport has stand out technological developments that have helped to improve the performance of athletes. Fishing is no different. Fisherfolk Australia wide would agree that since Bushy introduced ‘blades’ to the public in the mid to late 1990s, it changed the game for the better. Blades have been refined over time to become the more popular version of ‘vibe’ that are now a staple in every fisho’s tackle box. Blades had their place in estuaries predominantly targeting bream. Vibes have expanded the reach of fishing opportunities using a similar concept. Vibing has grown to have vast applications across fresh and salt species, pelagic and residential from blue water to land-locked locations. This article explores the variety of settings that these formidable lures find themselves and their practicality. Estuary With a reputation for being one of the top

lures for table fish, a good place to start your vibe journey is at your local estuary. The tight wobble and vibration produced by the lure tends to fire up an abundance of species. Brackish water with minimal visibility is no obstacle – predatory fish are able to detect the presence of a wounded bait fish mimicked perfectly by vibes. Mulloway are a fish that tend to move through estuaries in large schools. At times larger fish may be found patrolling these systems unaccompanied. Positioning or anchoring a boat at a prospective spot is a great way to target jewfish with vibes. Deeper holes, bridges and moorings are sites notorious for lurking silver. Fan your casts out to ensure that as much ground as possible is covered and trust the process. Fish an hour or so each side of a tide, with high tide particularly produc-

tive in low light conditions. Big mulloway have been known to eat smaller vibes and 60mm Atomic Hardz Silent in Silver Ghost or Muddy Prawn colour tend to have a high strike rate. Occasionally big flathead come to the party as by-catch. For land-based anglers, the old dusky flathead is a more accessible option on vibes. Areas to investigate are undulating sand flats that provide ambush points. Small lures such as the Atomic Semi-Hardz are ideal, with bream being a common by-catch. The ideal retrieve involves a slow roll with frequent yet gentle raises of the rod tip, this means keeping the lure at a relatively fixed position in the water column with a gentle wind of the reel. To locate other potential hot spots use Google Maps with ‘satellite view’. Sand flats that reel off into deeper water are prime real estate. * continued P67

www.bnbfishing.com. au

It’s definitely the vibe * from P66

Fish the sand flats on a rising or high tide and move to the drop-off as the water empties into it, towards the bottom of a tide. Flathead will be scattered along the edges picking off baitfish that have no choice but to go with the flow. When fishing estuaries a delicate approach is essential. A light rod tip that matches the lure size and target species is ideal. An affordable rod from the Atomic Arrowz range is the estuary model. The subtle action in the tip keeps the vibe in the strike action as it flexes and bends with each raise of the rod. Having too heavy a rod will reduce contact with the lure, as they have minimum bend when manipulated. To put it plainly, a light rod when raised the same distance as a heavier rod will give more vibration from the lure without pulling it away from the action on the bottom. For anglers seeking high end rods with top of the range Fuji guides that are able to be cast all day, go no further than the Samurai Infinite. The same laws regarding fishing light apply to most freshwater scenarios. The basic methodology is to bounce the vibe across the area in which predators are suspected. Slow rises of the rod are best, the angler can feel the vibrations through the tip. Allow the lure to sink, picking up the slack. www.bnbfishing.com.au

When the slack line falls abruptly, the lure is on the bottom and can be lifted again. Impoundment Iconic imagery of dam fishing is painted by the sunken tops of old gumtrees piercing the surface, providing a flagship perch for eagles to swoop their prey. Vibes have become the focal point for impoundment anglers looking to access the deeper structure provided by the sacrificed trees. For those with kayaks or an electric motor, fishing vertically with vibes at the base of the trees can aid in staying close to the structure throughout the water column. Barramundi, bass and Murray cod are all at the top of the list. Choose a size of vibe that reflects the target species. These fish can be lazy, so multiple casts at each snag can motivate a bite. A rattling Atomic 60mm vibe in natural colours such as Gold Ghost are a must for cod fishing, mixing it up on a quiet day with vivid colours – Ghost Pink Chartreus or Tristos Ramjet – is always an intelligent strategy. Fresh Land-based and waterbased anglers are able to prospect ground using vibes sinking to the bottom. Information such as the depth and the type of bottom similar to weed or gravel can be identified. A greater understanding of the country is always an advantage. For example, gorge country generally has

rocky or muddy bottoms with minimal snags. Gauging an understanding of the bottom enables you to fish in the strike zone at the base of snags as opposed to being cautious around losing a lure. During winter, fish such as bass are known to shut down. Surface lure fishing is slow to say the least. With vibes, year-round fishing is accessible. Bass congregate in deeper sections, if tempted with a wellpresented option they will still bite. Tidal sections of rivers or flowing corners of creeks are opportunistic. Cast into the ebbing side and slowly work graduated banks and pools. Warmer climate freshwater species such as jungle perch and sooty grunter will aggressively attack vibes in deeper sections of skinny creeks and junctions. * continued P68

Bream love a vibe hopped off the bottom in winter.

A jewfish taken with an Atomic Semi Hardz Vib 75.

Unlucky! Wonder what that was?

MARINE WINDOWS & DOORS We make windows and windscreens for everything including:

• Runabouts • Half cabins • Walk-arounds • Cruisers • Trawlers • All over Australia Free quotes from your templates. Acrylic or glass. In or out of survey. Quality guaranteed. Very competitive rates. Excellent freight service.

9 Cameron St, Clontarf Q 4019 Phone 07 3284 5088 Fax 07 3284 5089 email amw@myaccess.com.au www.austmarinewindows.com.au Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 67

Double the barramundi action, caught on Atomic Semi Hardz Vib 75.

It’s definitely the vibe - offshore to inland * from P67

Smaller lures are ideal and the Atomic 40mm Semi-Hardz vibe in an array of colours is effective. Offshore The renewed frontier of vibe fishing is taking place in blue water. With the dynamic nature of these lures it was only a matter of time before they gained rec-

ognition off the coast. Rock bars and species such as mangrove jack, fingermark and trevally are a brutal mix. Anglers often are disappointed by the size of the fish landed compared to the savage nature of the battles. Vibes access these locations, and heavier setups and tight drags are recommended.

Pelagic fish on the sounder mid-water are synonymous with vertical jigging. Species such as kingfish, amberjack and cobia have stretched the arms of many light game fishos. While highly effective, vertical jigging can become tiring and in tightly bunched schools, the jigs can often sink too

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

www.facebook.com/bnbfishing Page 68 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

quickly past the feeding frenzy. Atomic Semi-Hardz vibes in 110mm and baitfish colours such as Silver Ghost are an unlikely alternative. The large surface area on the top of the lure makes for a slow natural sink. This technique is more applicable in waters around 60m deep due to the sinking rate. Shoals, platforms and bommies are destinations where residential reef fish love to hang out. Warmer species such as red emperor, coral trout and nannygai – to name a few – will pounce on a vibe. People are tentative when it comes to using vibes, as once on the bottom there is a high risk of getting snagged. Swap the trebles over to Gamakatsu single lure hooks. The singles make a huge difference and allow the angler to put more pressure on the fish to avoid getting smashed.

The 75mm Atomic Semi-Hardz is a great option coupled with a 30lb Samurai Reaction rod and 30-60lb leaders, depending on conditions. For beginners looking to chase snapper, vibe fishing is less complicated to navigate compared to jerk minnows. Vibes do the work for the angler and take a lot of the guessing out of twitching and feeling for a subtle take. The trebles are more likely to stick. When it comes to choosing the right colour, it is crucial that the angler is confident it will work. Always start by selecting a lure that will best match the hatch. A range of colours and sizes are important, though an abundance of species can be captured on the exact same lure. Atomic vibes are highly effective and reasonably priced. Time to get in on the action. Zac Panaretos

www.bnbfishing.com. au

YSTEM S G N I H S FI

ACTIVETARGET™ LIVE SONAR + ACTIVE IMAGING™ COMPATIBLE

FULL NETWORKING CAPABILITY

AVAILABLE IN 7” & 9” SIZES

PRELOADED WITH C-MAP® ENHANCED EMBEDDED CHARTS

HIGH RESOLUTION MULTI-TOUCH SCREEN

TARGETING FISH JUST GOT EASIER ®Reg. U.S. Pat. & Tm. Off, and ™ common law marks. Visit www.navico.com/intellectual-property to review the global trademark rights and accreditations for Navico Holding AS and other entities.

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 69

THE ULTIMATE MID RANGE PACKAGE 75-115HP FOURSTROKE Mercury’s 75-115hp FourStrokes offer 2.1 litre displacement providing superior mid-range fuel economy, quick acceleration Mercury’s 75-115hp FourStrokes offer 2.1 litre displacement with smooth overall operation and sound quality... along with providing superior mid-range fuel economy, quick acceleration the lightest weight 115hp available.

with smooth overall operation and sound quality... along with

• Unbelievable Power and Torque the lightest weight 115hp available. • Lightweight and Compact Design • Outstanding Reliability • Unbelievable Power and Torque • Low Maintenance

• Lightweight and Compact Design

• Outstanding Available now from:Reliability • Low Maintenance

Page 70 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

www.bnbfishing.com. au

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

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

BRISBANE Brisbane Boating & Leisure 1743 Ipswich Rd, Rocklea Q 4106 P: 07 3875 1600 E: sales@brisbaneboatingleisure.com.au www.brisbaneboatingleisure.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

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

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

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

BUNDABERG Adrians Marine Centre 28 Ritchie St, Bundaberg Q 4670 P: 07 4153 1819 E: sales@adriansmarinecentre.com.au www.adriansmarinecentre.com.au

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

CAIRNS Aussie Marine 5 Hannam St, Bungalow Q 4870 P: 07 4033 8800 E: sales@aussiemarine.com.au www.aussiemarine.com.au www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 71

BOATING & marine Insights into boat insurance

How an insurance policy excess can help

S your boat insurance excess excessive? Well, that depends on a number of factors and they are worth understanding if you want to ensure that you’re securing the best policy to cover your marine on-water and on-land needs. Firstly, what is an insurance excess? Many people will understand that an excess is an amount of money they will need to pay at the advent of a successful insurance claim. It is the ‘out of pocket’ expense or your contribution, and it’s the same for many other forms of insurance. However, what are less well known are the correct answers to some very important insurance excess considerations. Some example considerations are: • Is an increased

excess applicable for certain events such as a lightning strike or a cyclone? • If you have a larger vessel, is there an excess payable if you sustain a claim while berthed in your usual berth? • Is there an excess that applies to a tender and its outboard? • Does the excess apply if your vessel is a total loss? Not all policies are the same with regard to excesses and you don’t want to be dealing with the usual difficulties of an overseas call centre when it comes to getting answers at the time of lodging an insurance claim. The questions above are typical of those you need to ask before taking out a marine insurance policy. But back to excesses themselves, how they work and why they exist.

Let’s assume that something goes pearshaped and you lodge a marine insurance claim. And let’s assume that your marine insurer says in effect: “Yes, you have a claim and we’ve assessed the repairs to be $10,000 and we have approved that amount.” Of that $10,000, you might be required to pay $500 or so, with the insurer covering the remaining $9500. So, why is there an excess in the first place? Excesses have the benefit of keeping insurance premiums reasonable. By removing the potential for very small claims – typically the very small knocks, bumps, damaged and lost equipment – premiums can be kept at a competitive level. If you hire a motor vehicle from a large brand name car company, you will invariably find there’s an excess on the insurance policy as part of the rental agreement. Some companies offer the facility to pay an even higher fee to remove the excess completely. Likewise, with

household insurance there often are excesses applicable. In general terms, the principle is the same whether it is marine insurance, motor vehicle insurance or home insurance – by removing the small ticket items from insurance coverage, premiums can be kept down. Not only that, but a significant amount of administration time and paperwork is removed as well, which again results in keeping insurance premiums competitive. So, while an excess can keep the cost of your premium down, it also can be a disadvantage in some circumstances if you don’t fully understand what it entails. The key issue is to make sure you know when an excess applies, how it is applied and whether you have enough detail about the excess to make an informed decision before entering into a policy contract. Specialist marine insurers such as Nautilus Marine have an intimate knowledge of where boat owners should be in terms of their excesses and can explain them in detail.

Nautilus doesn’t adopt a ‘one size fits all’ approach to marine insurance – there are different streams suited to different applications. And that’s where localised, informed and specialist marine insurance comes into play. Have a chat, explain what types of boating you do, where you operate your vessel, where you keep it, the details of the boat and other equipment such as electronics and accessories as well as whether or not it is on a trailer. That will give you a good overview of what to expect when a formal, written document called a product disclosure statement is presented to you, along with an invitation to insure in accord with its terms and conditions. Any special conditions and excesses should always be explained clearly in your insurance policy’s product disclosure statement. If you need further information, contact Nautilus Marine Insurance on 1300 780 533 for any boat insurance requirements.

Advice in this article is general and might not apply or be right for you. Before acting on it, consider its appropriateness having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs. Nautilus Marine Insurance is a business name of NM Insurance Pty Ltd ABN 34 100 633 038 AFSL 227 186 (NM Insurance), the issuer of Nautilus Marine Boat Insurance. Consider the Product Disclosure Statement at nautilusinsurance.com.au before deciding whether to purchase a policy.

Page 72 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

www.bnbfishing.com. au

BOATING & marine

Quintrex takes fishing to a whole new level with 2021 Hornet

S part of the new 2021 Quintrex line-up, Australia’s ultimate fishing boat, the Hornet is getting a revamp. Reducing from nine models to five, the new Hornet has been redesigned to deliver an all-inclusive product, adapting from both the previous Hornet model and the now discontinued Stealth Hornet. The three Hornet models – 450, 481 and 500 – will complement the pre-existing Hornet Trophy line-up with the 420 and 440, in order to continue delivering a fully comprehensive size variation across the range. Quintrex new product development manager Jorge Alejandre said: “Derived from market research and dealer feedback, the Hornet has been streamlined and recrafted to meet the needs of a wider range of fishers, achieved by an array of www.bnbfishing.com.au

design changes including an increased freeboard making it better suited to a greater variety of waterways, including lakes, estuaries and open water.” Together with a deeper layout comes more storage room and greater possibility for more optional extras or longer adventures that serve for camping onboard. In line with an all-new boat bundle approach, aimed towards simplifying the boat buying process for those new into the market, customers will now be gifted the ease of choice with five bundle options available to choose from. Not only easy but also affordable, consumers can now opt for an entry level boat that only features the bare essentials with the Hornet, a range of boat bundles for ease of upgrading the vessel to suit a particular lifestyle or go all out with the deluxe

Hornet Pro which includes all premium features. The Hornet Pro will incorporate standard features including a VHF radio, berley bucket, lean seat, seat option upgrade and more. Quintrex marketing and communications manager Madeline Bishop said, “Each bundle has been crafted to meet the needs of our most frequent boat buyers, for example those looking for a budgetfriendly boat simply to get out on the water, a premium vessel with all the frills or something more pointed such as a comfort bundle for families, a fishing bundle for avid fishos and a captain’s bundle for the driving comfortability.” “Each option included in these packs have been carefully selected by our team, who are avid fishos themselves, to deliver the best on-water experience possible.”

Options included in each boat bundle are: • Comfort bundle – lean seat, seat upgrade from Angler Sport to Bass Sport, and a sound system and speakers • Fishing bundle – berley bucket kit, VHF radio, lean seat, LED cockpit lights and switches • Captain’s bundle – upgrade from mechanical to hydraulic tilt steering, upgraded steering wheel. With customers still able to option up with individual items, Quintrex will continue to deliver the same high level of customisation that the brand is renowned for. The overall ride experience has further been ramped up with mechanical tilt steering standard across all Hornet models and hydraulic tilt steering across all Hornet Pro models. As the new line-up hits the water, the entire Hornet range will

don fresh stripes with the 2021 Quintrex design plus dual maxi brackets as standard across all base and Pro models, and a modular bow aimed towards improving overall product quality. The Hornet is crafted around the Apex Hull, which is heralded as the industry’s most innovative design, delivering an unparalleled ride experience and stability at rest thanks to its cutting-edge concept. “The 2021 line-up has been derived from over 75-years of industry excellence and aims to continue the strong Quintrex name within the market by enhancing our product and incorporating changes driven by customer feedback,” Ms Bishop said. To find out more about the 2021 Quintrex range, visit quintrex.com.au or contact your local dealer today.

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 73

BOATING & marine At rest the boat is very stable.

Proof the Posi Lift Hull works.

Testing - performance of the Posi Lift Hull

OT all boat tests or in this case boat reviews are the same. The main reason this one is a little different is because I tested the boat with an 18hp Tohatsu, even though the Ocean Craft 5900 is rated to 170hp. Why, you ask? Well, the new owner will fit a different engine and the owner of Ocean Craft Mike wanted to prove that the hull design lived

up to its branded name of Posi Lift Hull. Surprisingly enough, the Ocean Craft 5900 with two tote tanks of fuel, safety gear and two people on board got up and stayed on the plane relatively easily. The length and design of the hull were the reason for this and, even when moving around the boat, there was little impact on the cruising speed –

Seating was available on the pontoons.

The test boat was fitted with a bait board and rod holders. Page 74 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

which topped out at around 24-25km/h. Sure, this is not fast but given the horsepower on the back, you must give kudos to the hull. For this test we ducked out through the Caloundra Bar and did a quick lap around the shark baits off the beach. Conditions were very good, so the 5900 LongBoat was not challenged at all. This package was relatively basic, but as for all Ocean Craft boats, they are built to order. The setup as tested lent itself well to a dive or fishing boat, but if you were going to it make more family friendly, you’d need to add a bench seat at the back. However, it was possible to comfortably sit on the large pontoon sections of the boat around the helm. It would also be possible to add a large front casting platform in front of the helm, making it a good all-rounder. The high sides around the boat from the helm backwards and across the stern provide good protection and lean points for offshore fishing. The lockers at the rear provide a decent amount of dry storage – I could easily fit the Phantom 4 DJI drone backpack in there as well as another

separate camera bag. In fact, there were four large compartments that would be ideal for storing lifejackets and fishing tackle bags. Additional storage was available in the helm, which had a lockable section. Another feature of the 5900 LongBoat is its beam width measuring 2.14m at the widest point. This is something that has been done deliberately so it can fit down the side of a house or in a garage. The total height of the boat on the trailer is 2.14m, which allows it to fit in most garages and carports. In terms of the horsepower I’d put on the back – I’m not 100 percent sure. Given how well it performed with the little Tohastu, I think one of the new four-stroke outboards around the 115hp range would be more than ample and a good combination of speed, power and performance plus very good fuel efficiency. If you are interested in finding out more about this or other Ocean Craft boats, check out oceancraft.com.au There are a host of models to choose from, all of which can be heavily customised. Ben Collins

www.bnbfishing.com. au

R E D A E L T N E M A L I F O N O M M U I PREM

O G

Hard!

UP TO

MORE ABRASION RESISTANCE THAN LEADING COMPETITORS With the Hard Armour Leader range from Platypus, you get straight facts. An exhaustive R&D process has resulted in monofilament leaders that deliver increased knot strength and up to 20% more strength and abrasion resistance than competitor’s equivalent diameter leaders, while retaining the trademark Platypus feel. Hard Armour... This isn’t Voodoo, this is Science.

AUSSIE MADE, AUSSIE TOUGH... ARE YOU USING PLATYPUS? FIND PLATYPUS ON

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Receive the free

fishing newsletter: fishplatypus.com.au/Subscribe

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 75

BOATING & marine

Simrad Yachting celebrates 75 years of innovation in 2021

IMRAD Yachting, the global marine electronics leader for powerboating and sportfishing, is recognising its 75th  Anniversary with a slate of initiatives, including the celebration of boating’s ability to bring people together, detailing the history of notable Simrad products and publishing its own list of Simrad 75 Great Boating Destinations. Simrad executive vice president at Navico, its parent company, Mike Fargo said, “Our heritage in marine electronics goes back to 1946, when surplus radios from the war were converted for use on commercial vessels and Simrad’s very name comes from the amalgam of Simonsen Radio.” “Since then, Simrad’s innovation and technology has been featured on hundreds of thou-

sands of watercraft over the decades, from small RIBs and sportfishing vessels to luxury cruisers and superyachts. “Our core focus has always been to enable boaters – whether that’s for fun, relaxation, sport, adventure or work.” The first of three anniversary videos include a brand video that kicked off the 2021 anniversary year and spotlights historic Simrad products dating back seven decades. Recently, Simrad unveiled two short vignettes emphasising the adventures and personal bonds that are created out on the water. Simrad revealed a list

Page 76 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

of some of its noteworthy products through the years that have influenced marine electronics and provided enjoyment to millions in the boating community across the world. They include the RS80 Simrad VHF radio, B24 broadband radar, NSE multi-functional displays, AP50 autopilot and the NSOevo3S. The ‘World of Simrad’ blog also recently announced its own list of 75 great boating destinations where powerboating and sportfishing reign supreme – a bucket list of sorts for the power cruising, sportfishing and luxury yachting enthusiasts

around the world. By tapping into the brand’s rich boating heritage and global reach of its passionate personnel, Simrad released the poll identifying favourite boating hot spots for its birthday year. “With the anniversary, we thought it would be fun to honour our tradition with a look back at key products, a series of emotive videos and our ‘Simrad 75 Best List’ by tapping into our knowledge and global reach of boating destinations,” Mr Fargo said. “Simrad stands for innovation, reliability and performance that provides boaters with the assurance they can do more out on the water, safely and confidently.” Product and boating experts at Simrad Yachting around the world nominated their favourite powerboating and sportfishing loca-

tions which was then narrowed down to a final selection of 75. The focus was on small town departure points for offshore cruising or specific small bodies of water or islands that make for a unique and special boating experience. The US led the list with 11 selections, while New Zealand and Australia each notched six. Mediterranean countries such as France, Greece, Italy and Spain also had multiple nominations. “There are some amazing places to explore in this world and doing it with Simrad electronics makes it enjoyable and extraordinary,” Mr Fargo said. “A big congratulations to our Simrad 75 best selections.” For more information on the Simrad range of electronics, visit simradyachting.com

www.bnbfishing.com. au

BOATING & marine

Telwater trailers to take the industry by storm

N coming months there will be a new army of trailers on the block, with Telwater launching its first loose trailer brand – Move Trailers. While the line is set to hit the pavement soon, Telwater has decades of trailer building history under its belt – first putting its tools towards the original prototype build in 2003. Following two years of research and development, which was said to be the “perfecting stage” of Telwater’s craftmanship, the Gold Coast built range made its public debut in 2005. Over the next 16 years of production, Telwater would develop a fully-fledged force of trailers, where today the brand boasts an impressive and comprehensive range, suited to aluminium, plate and fibreglass boats. As the muscle beneath the industry’s leading aluminium boat brands while on the road – Quintrex, Stacer, Yellowfin and Savage – www.bnbfishing.com.au

Telwater trailers have quickly gained traction in the market becoming renowned for their strong, durable and dependable reputation. Telwater general manager Sam Heyes said: “Throughout our 16 years of production, we have continued to develop and improve our products in line with industry demand and the evolution of engineering, and now we are excited to be able to afford this safety and certainty of safe trailering to every boatie with a Telwater built trailer.” Built from strength within, Move Trailers are crafted around a sound structure of marine grade aluminium, meaning their lifespan triples that of a steel build. Their C-channel and I-beam frames – as opposed to box sections – ensure water is not retained, preventing wa-

terlogging and weight overload. Whereby the aluminium build results in the prevention of rust, increased durability and a more lightweight product, therefore making Move Trailers easier to tow and manoeuvre. Other key build qualities that set Move Trailers apart from the industry are: • A wide range of standard features including LED lights, a waterproof plug and play wiring harness, moulded wheel guards and a swing-up jockey wheel – as a benchmark for safety and functionality while on and off the boat ramp • An expansive selection of optional extras. The optional extras include: • A catch and release system – a carefully structured design to take the grunt out of the drive-on and drive-off

experience at the boat ramp – specially built for the solo boatie or those who enjoy simplistic trailering • A spare wheel carrier – to ensure that no bump in the road gets in the way of an adventure • A trailer walkway – for safe movements when walking along the submerged trailer while at the boat ramp. “As passionate boaties ourselves, we understand the importance of keeping our boats as safe on the road as they are on the water, so with purpose-built engineering we have delivered a wide range of models to suit all trailerable boats – from aluminum, to plate and fibreglass,”

Mr Heyes said. Boasting nearly 30 models within the range, Move Trailers have almost every boatie covered, with a trailer available for boats ranging from 3.5 to 7.1m in length. The movement doesn’t stop there with Move Trailers catering to a wide range of customer needs, and both braked and unbraked or hydraulic options are also available. Get on the move with your boat by purchasing a top-quality trailer at an affordable price for your new rig or upgrade your old wheels by contacting your local Move Trailer dealer today at moveboattrailers.com. au/dealers.aspx

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 77

BOATING & marine

Lowrance HDS Live 12 packed with features for fishos

NNOVATION in boating equipment is always exciting and it is great to get your hands on the latest gear. I recently upgraded my Lowrance HDS Carbon 12 to the Lowrance HDS Live 12 version and, though this unit has been around for a while, I was excited to install it. As I have two small boats – a 4.5 Polycraft and a 4.1 Ezytopper – I have set both boats up to run the same unit, which is what I did with my older Lowrance. This only required buying an additional bracket and transducer as the bracket for the Live was a little bigger than that of the Carbon. Some people may think that running 12” devices on these sized boats is overkill, but being able to see structure, bait and fish clearly definitely improves the chances of hooking and catching fish.

And after I upgraded from a 9” unit to a 12” several years ago, it made it very hard to go back. Lowrance has made a few design changes including making the unit a true flush mount with the whole component now a little thinner overall. This was good news for me as it fits better on the small dash of both the Polycraft and Ezytopper. Four new buttons on the Live are programmable for whatever feature or function you want. This customisability is great as it means you can easily change to a mix of preset screen setting at the touch of a button. Another noticeable design change is that the GPS is now located on top of the unit. For most open boats this gives the unit better access to satellites and enables the component to remain sleek and thin. Other key features that set this

The Lowrance HDS can be split to show up to six different displays.

Active imaging is next level on the Live. Page 78 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

device apart from the rest is its active imaging, which allows you to scan areas to the side of the boat. It’s worth remembering that in order to get the best images, you need to go very slow and ensure the transducer is set up correctly. The 800kHz setting also gives the best readout and detail. If you are using the 3-in-1 transducer – which is a combination of CHIRP, side and down sonars – you can utilise the fish reveal function and you end up with a high-resolution view of fish and structure. I’m still playing with this feature but will post some pictures on our socials. And there are additional features such as smartphone notifications – messages pop up on your screen – and LiveCast smartphone integration – for watching videos or viewing things such as Google Maps. This is next on the list to try though I won’t be showing the kids that feature or I’ll never get them off the Lowrance unit. Note, these are features of the 12” and 16” models. Finally, in what could be described as a real game changer for many fishos, another innovation of the Live is the active target live sonar, which can be utilised through an additional transducer. I currently don’t have this fit-

ted to either boat but it is something I’m considering. The active target live sonar enables you to see fish in real time – you can even see them chasing and taking a bait or lure. These are traditionally installed on the front of the boat on a separate transduce pole. Rob Payne Engineering – on Facebook – make a stylish and functional unit that I’d check out if you are planning on upgrading to the active target live sonar – robpayneengineering. com.au I’m still playing with and learning about the new unit and will have more updates and videos on social media and in the magazine showing the unit in action, so you can get a practical understanding of the features and how they work or impact your fishing and boating. A side note – the Lowrance HDS Live does take a little longer to load than the previous model, however once up and running it is very responsive. This isn’t an issue as I usually turn the unit on when launching the boat, so it’s ready to ‘rock and roll’ as soon as I am. If you are in the market for a new sounder/GPS or are keen to check them out, there are several retailers who will let you play with them instore. Fish on! Ben Collins

Once used to the screen detail of a 12”, it is hard to go smaller. www.bnbfishing.com. au

LIGHTWEIGHT DESIGN HEAVYWEIGHT POWER Power and performance come at a cost, that being weight. So when it comes to selecting an outboard for your boat, the balance of power and weight becomes an important issue in making the right choice. Until now, powering your boat with a 200hp class outboard meant V6 power. That has all changed with Suzuki’s DF200A. With the DF200A, our goal was to build an outboard that provides all of the power and performance of a 200hp class V6 outboard using a lighter, more compact four-cylinder configuration.

BAYSIDE SUZUKI MARINE

3/55 Shore St West, Cleveland QLD 4163 baysidesuzukimarine.com 07 3488 2019

SURF COAST MARINE

50-56 Brisbane Rd, Labrador QLD 4215 surfcoastmarine.com.au 07 5563 7733

www.bnbfishing.com.au

AUSTRALIAN MARINE CENTRE

3491 Pacific Hwy, Slacks Creek QLD 4127 amcboats.com.au 07 3808 7333

BOATS GALORE

142 Enterprise St, Bundaberg QLD 4670 boatsgalore.com.au 07 4152 6744

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 79

Navico partners with E1 Series - electric powerboat championship

AVICO has announced a partnership with the E1 Series, the world’s first electric powerboating championship, scheduled to kick off in early 2023, with up to 12 teams set to race on a tight technical course reaching speeds up to 50 knots. The announcement coincides with the E1 Series unveiling its first full-size model of the RaceBird electric powerboat at a presentation ceremony at the Yacht Club de Monaco in Monte Carlo, Monaco. Simrad electronics will be the official marine electronics partner of the E1 Series, while C-MAP becomes the official cartography partner. Both brands will as-

sist to support the development of onboard systems and RaceBird’s cockpit for use in a future E1 Series powerboat racing championship. Navico chief executive officer Knut Frostad said, “Navico is incredibly excited for this E1 Series partnership featuring Simrad and CMAP, and to be part of the development process together with E1 and other partners towards designing and producing the most advanced electric race boats in the world over the next year.” “The electrification journey is quickly taking hold in the boating industry and we believe the E1 Series is a perfect platform to raise the bar around innovation and

encourage action in marine conservation and sustainability.” The E1 Series partnership is designed to create the world’s first Union Internationale Motonautique sanctioned electric powerboat racing championship, with competition held close to shore in urban areas featuring the RaceBird, a hydrofoil-type boat now under development for use in the series. The RaceBird was designed by SeaBird Technologies and Victory Marine and features an electric outboard motor, enclosed safety canopy and hydrofoil technology. The boats will be powered by a 35kWh battery from Kreisel and a motor with 150kW peak power output, with a

projected top speed of 93km/h. Using innovative hydrofoil technology, the RaceBird powerboats will rise high above the water’s surface, allowing for minimum drag and maximum energy efficiency. The boats will be manufactured by Victory Marine. C-MAP and Simrad products will provide specialist navigation and marine electronics for the RaceBirds and support craft at race events,

integrating Simrad’s latest technology into the cockpits and C-MAP’s digital cartography and mapping technology for teams and race management. “This is a fantastic day for racing fans across the world as the new RaceBird is unveiled, and we look forward to seeing the technologies Simrad and C-MAP will integrate into this new electric powerboat racing championship in the near future,” Mr Frostad said.

Marine Consortium customers to win in unsold stock purchase

HORTER waiting times for some marine and recreational products will be one of the benefits resulting from a consortium having purchased all of the unsold stock as well as other assets from Arnold’s Boat Shop. The unsold stock had been sitting in a warehouse in Sydney. Customers also can expect a wider range of marine and recreational products, a more efficient on-line purchasing and delivery system, better communication and greater discounts on several lines as a result of the acquisitions. The consortium of established marine retailers purchased unsold stock and remnants of Arnold’s Boat Shop, including its web domain, from Worrells Solvency

and Forensic Accountants. Creditors elected Worrells on May 21, 2021 to be the official liquidators of Nold Trading Pty Ltd – the operator of Arnold’s Boat Shop – following Worrells earlier appointment as administrator of Arnold’s. The consortium’s first objective was to quickly get the unsold products into the marine and recreational marketplace to help offset the impact of manufacturing shortages and COVID-19 related distribution issues. A spokesperson for the consortium said, “The acquisition of unsold stock and other elements will allow us to cut waiting times for some products and get them efficiently into the hands of customers.” “By providing better

Page 80 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

warehousing, ordering, communication, sales and distribution systems, that process can start almost immediately. “Waiting times for some marine products have blown out to weeks, months and in some cases, possibly a year. “Boaties are understandably unimpressed when told they have to wait extended times for the arrival of parts, some of which are required before they can get their boats back on the water. “Thanks to our acquisition of the unsold stock and existing resources, we will be able to cut those waiting times in some cases.” None of the members of the consortium have any corporate connections or association whatsoever with the previous owner or opera-

tions of Arnold’s. consortium The spokesperson said the group would retail and wholesale the unsold stock under the banner of the arnoldsboatshop. com.au website. However, it was the assets, domain and other remnants that the consortium had purchased, not the Arnold’s business itself. “The consortium will continue to sell via a reconfigured Arnold’s chandlery website and will collectively keep it as a separate entity to their own existing businesses,” the spokesperson said. “The business model will be one of fast, efficient ordering and dispatch across a massive range of products, with all business conducted through online orders

rather than establishing a series of new retail shopfronts for the brand. “The consortium will seek to attract previous clients back with outstanding value for money offers, an increased diversity of products as well as efficient and transparent sales processes. “The Arnold’s brand also will supply products to existing marine retailers in order to assist them to retain longstanding customers.” Note, previous customers of Nold Trading or Arnolds Boat Shop who have queries about previous product purchases or deliveries, should contact Andrew Blundell at Worrells. Issued on behalf of Arnold Boat Shop Marine Consortium arnolds boatshop.com.au

www.bnbfishing.com. au

BARRA FISHING CHARTERS WITH PHIL’S BARRA TOURS

WE COVER EVERYTHING INCLUDING AIRFARES, ACCOMMODATION WITH MOST MEALS, PROFESSIONAL FISHING GUIDE AND YOUR CHOICE OF FISHING LOCATION FOR THE ADVENTURE OF A LIFETIME, AT OUR BUDGET RATES.

DALY RIVER

DUNDEE BEACH

MELVILLE ISLAND LODGE

CAIRNS NQ

FINNISS RIVER

CORROBOREE BILLABONG

DUNDEE BEACH

BROOME WA

MELVILLE ISLAND

MOTHER SHIP CRUISING ARNHEM LAND

SHADY CAMP

SOUTH ALLIGATOR RIVER

For Information

www.barratours.com.au Mobile: 0404 485 006 Email: phil@barratours.com.au

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 81

C ARAVANNING & adventure

One of the many waterholes at Porcupine Gorge.

Porcupine Gorge a place to remember

I all, travelling Queensland during the pandemic has been a special experience, mainly due to the lockdowns that have kept many southern travellers from their winter pilgrimages to western Queensland and the northern regions. The vast openness of our state is accentuated

Touring by PAUL ‘CHIEF’ GRAVESON

when the roads feel a little more isolated than usual. I feel so blessed to be living in Agnes Water and without the restrictions and lockdowns we so often hear about. With that said, let’s

The majestic Pyramid towers over the gorge. Page 82 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

get back to travelling through Julia Creek, Richmond and a side track we had planned to take out of Hughenden to a place we’d heard of called Porcupine Gorge. It’s an easy trek of about 60km from Hughenden to the 5410ha Porcupine Gorge National Park. The park has a limited number of campsites, so booking a spot through Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service is essential. Standing at the lookout viewing the endless savannah, you contemplate how one small creek can carve such

an impressive gorge. The action of nature over millions of years leaves me feeling quite insignificant, particularly when you consider the small amount of time we are on this planet. You will need to have a reasonable level of fitness to undertake the track to the bottom of the gorge, but the reward is to find yourself in a timeless landscape that has been untouched. For me, there was a strong connection to the land and this feeling can be so overwhelming and spiritual. You will see a rock feature called the Pyramid as its stands proudly over the permanent waterholes below. In times of good rain,

the creeks flow and the water carves natural sculptures with smooth flowing lines into the sandstone cliffs. The flowing water drives tiny pebbles in circular motions to carve round holes into the sandstone giving the landscape an eerie feeling. You can look all around and see various sized craters that nature has slowly created. Even in winter the temperature here can be warm, so I suggest carrying extra water for the return trip up the slope. QPWS have done a fantastic job in making the steep track to a safe standard and though it is only 2.4km to the bottom, it can * continued P83

www.bnbfishing.com. au

C ARAVANNING & adventure

Memorable Porcupine Gorge * from P82

be a tough walk up, particularly if you’ve spent time exploring and walking around the bottom of the canyon. Keep in mind those waterholes make the ideal spot to have a swim and cool down while washing away dust from the track. The actual camp area is known as the Pyramid camp site and it has a number of facilities such as a few picnic tables and a non-flush toilet. There is a day users car park for those who wish to walk the park and head to Hughenden for accommodation. The camp sites are numbered and allocated when you book through QPWS online. The sites are wellsized, so you’re not cramped into a small

confined spot with neighbours within talking distance. Campfires are permitted, which makes for a fitting end to a day exploring. While sitting around the fire, you may encounter a rufous bettong as it cautiously moves around the shadows of your camp site. Sometimes known as a rat-kangaroo, this small marsupial is more often heard than seen, as it scurries around your camp searching for a meal of grubs and insects. We had a memorable night sitting in darkness as our rufous worked up the courage to sneak around our chairs. Turning on a light source provided us with a short glimpse before it hightailed into the darkness, though I

The small stones that rotate with water pressure. www.bnbfishing.com.au

did manage to get one picture before it disappeared. Being a small native creature of only about 1.5kg, this animal has found itself on the menu of foxes and western feral cats, but thankfully rufous are still in good numbers and have not suffered the devastation many of our native animals have endured. I would recommend that if you are within cooee and travelling the dinosaur trail, make sure to take the time to visit Porcupine Gorge and immerse yourself in another part of fantastic western Queensland. Next month, we’re back on the coast and getting ready for Christmas, so take care and enjoy our great outdoors.

The end result is the beautiful landscape.

Sandstone walls carved by water. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 83

C ARAVANNING & adventure

If you haven’t been there already put the dinosaur trails on your destination wish list as it’s fun for the whole family.

Mini Queensland lap – dinosaur trails

ESTERN Queensland is known for many things including the Royal Flying Doctor Service, the Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame, the Qantas Founders Museum, all in Longreach, and the Tree of Knowledge, sheep shearing and more recently the site of the discovery of several dinosaur bones. In fact, Queensland has one of the largest and best collections of dinosaur fossils in the world. All of these attractions make western Queensland a place well worth visiting. After leaving the

Exploring Queensland - Part 3 by BEN COLLINS

Gemfields, our next stop was at a property just outside Barcaldine, a town renown for the Tree of Knowledge memorial. The camp did not have any power or water – apart from the hot artesian spring that could be pumped into a large bath-style container, which was why this particular spot was chosen. Relaxing in the hot spring as the sun set painted a truly spectacular picture. Unfortunately, we

Page 84 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

were a little late getting to the spot – it wasn’t exactly signed well – so the solar-run pump only had a small amount of sun left to pump the bath full. At least the kids had a nice hot bath, though maybe next time we’ll visit without the kids, so mum and dad can have a bit of rest and relaxation. The late-night dip was still very enjoyable, with the flat dusty country providing a fantastic backdrop for the myriad of stars.

Throw in a large sprinkling of cows and we felt we were in the middle nowhere. Anyone who has travelled the outback during rainfall will appreciate how boggy the black soil can get. Thankfully, we managed to get back on the highway and were heading west before the heavens opened. It was awesome and the area had a good drenching, and while we know how precious water is especially in the outback, the unseasonal rain continued for a few days which meant we were held up in Longreach. We had planned and

booked to go on a paddle steamer and see a show, however this was cancelled as we were unable to get to the departure point. Despite the rain, we managed a visit to the Qantas Founders Museum and the Longreach School of the Air. Both excursions were enjoyed by the kids and the adults and are well worth doing. When planning the trip, it was decided not to visit the Hall of Fame – as much I still want to do it, we felt it would be too much for the kids. If you are visiting, make sure to book well * continued P85

www.bnbfishing.com. au

C ARAVANNING & adventure

Mini Queensland lap – dinosaur trails * from P84

in advance for the activities you want to do, as many of the tours fill up quickly. After a couple of days of rain, which was quickly soaked up by the dry ground, we were on the road again – destination Winton to drive the famous dinosaur trails. To be honest, I was a little unsure of what to expect – though the kids and everyone were super excited. However, after visiting the first part of the tour, I was hooked and even keen to come back at a later stage as a volunteer to help excavate or clean the fossils – however as there is typically a long list of volunteers, I may need to wait a while before getting called up. The dinosaur trails encompass three main towns including Winton, Hughenden and Richmond, which all have a slightly different story to tell. Our base camp for one night was in Winton, which allowed us to unhook the van and travel the 110km out to

the Lark Quarry Conservation Park, site of the Dinosaur Stampede National Monument. Fortunately, the water had mostly dried up and the road was open, so we could make the trip out. The Lark is basically a depiction of a dinosaur stampede, which was created around 95 million years ago, but I won’t go into too much detail as it will spoil the experience for those who want to visit. Just outside of Winton is the Australian Age of Dinosaurs, which was our first port of call the following morning and the first stop – though we did backtrack a little – before heading north to Hughenden. This place was spectacular, nestled high on a ridge you have an appreciation of the sparseness of the outback and what it must have looked like. On this tour, we were able to get very close to the dinosaur fossils, and even touch them. The fossil preparation laboratory was one of the spots it was pos-

Camp done and dusted. Our camp for the night next to a hot spring and a fire – what more could you want? www.bnbfishing.com.au

sible to volunteer at, to remove bits of dirt and rock from around the fossils – after training, of course. If you’re keen to get a better understanding of how fossils are found and excavated, this spot is the place to visit. A side note – it also had the best reception and wifi of all the places we visited during our outback travels – and laptops did come out briefly! With the next camp planned at Hughenden, we set off north. The road was a combination of one lane, bitumen and dirt. As the rain had only recently cleared, there were plenty of large rut marks on the sides of the road where vehicles had to get off to make way as they approached each other. The ground was still a little damp under the surface and I could feel the car and van move a little as we passed various vehicles. This is a reminder to take caution when travelling on outback roads – in some places you are literally in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately, around this time our travel partners were having issues with their hired van – the hot water system was not working and also leaking. This meant our free camping was reduced and we had to spend more nights than planned at designated * continued P86

Winton is a good base if you’re planning on exploring the area.

Australia has some of the best fossil displays and collections in the world.

Despite the windmill spinning, a solar pump was used to fill the tub in the background with hot artesian water. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 85

C ARAVANNING & adventure A model built to scale of a platypterygius. Below you can see the skeleton, which was found near Richmond in 2000.

Getting a little hands on at the fossil preparation laboratory.

Mini Queensland lap – dinosaur trails * from P85

The kronosaurus queenslandicus measured around 10m long and was discovered in 1899 near Hughenden.

Some of the artwork around Hughenden. Page 86 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

caravan parks – which were basically booked out. Luckily for us, some had vacancies due to rain stopping people getting through to their booked sites. When travelling, as much as it is important to have places booked and a set itinerary, you need to be flexible and adaptable as things don’t always go exactly to plan. After setting up camp in Hughenden, we decided to hit the local pub for a feed and get ready for our trip out to Richmond the following day, which was the final leg of the dinosaur trails. In hindsight, it may have been better to go to Richmond directly from Winton, rather than going out and back. As mentioned, each part of the dinosaur trails has its own unique story – in Richmond you get to ex-

plore Kronosaurus Korner, which is home to Australia’s premier marine fossil collection, and originated from the inland sea that existed around 110 million years ago. Having a love for anything marine, this part of the tour was very interesting. Aside from the actual tours, there are plenty of other things to do in

these western Queensland towns. So, if you have some free time and aren’t on a tight schedule, I recommend spending a few nights and immersing yourself in the outback culture. Next month, the trip continues north to Porcupine and Cobbold Gorge. Visit bnbfishing.com. au for Parts 1 and 2.

The Richmond polycotylid is Australia’s most complete plesiosaur and is on display at Kronosaurus Korner. www.bnbfishing.com. au

www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 87

C AMPING & outdoors

A lookout on the road between Mossman and Port Douglas.

At the mouth of the Bloomfield River at Ayton in far north Queensland.

Fantastic family trip to the tip – Part 3

FTER a break at Hann Crossing, we headed towards Cooktown. We crossed the Normanby River – a lovely looking area – then continued up the road for a few kilometres to some big ranges covered in a northern species of small messmate trees – which is very similar to Gympie messmate but

Heading North by CRAIG TOMKINSON

nowhere as tall, mature Gympie messmate trees are huge. If you’re ever around the Como forestry area, check out the doggerel trees – they are massive, some of the biggest trees I have seen. I grew up with Gym-

pie messmate on our family farm – a fantastic timber for building houses, farm sheds and stockyards. From there into Cooktown we spent an hour or so checking the place out. It featured a fantas-

The stunning Wallaman Falls near Ingham. Page 88 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

tic foreshore precinct with green-grassed areas, barbecue plates and play gym gear for kids and adults, and with what appeared to be free power because I saw four or five caravans and motorhomes with their 240V cords plugged into the council power outlets – how good was that? After exploring the Cooktown area and visiting the various statues, monuments and displays, we did a quick grocery shop, fuelled up and headed south past the Black Mountain – famous in the area for the black granite rocks. We then drove past the Lions Den Hotel and on to Ayton, which is a small town on the northern side of the Bloomfield River (Banner Yearie). We found a tight windy track that popped

out at the Bloomfield River mouth. As we pulled up, we saw a big 4.5m crocodile on the other side of the river… just sunbaking. There were a few people about, so I had a chat to a local who said they were catching good-sized javelin fish and bream on prawns. From there we drove through the steep hills of the Bloomfield – a dirt road with steep pulls of 20-degree angles up hill and about 30 degrees down. We were lucky because while it had been raining, the road was wet but dry enough to tow our wind-up van – there are big signs saying no trailers or vans past a certain point. It was a fantastic drive along that road to the ferry and over the

* continued P89

www.bnbfishing.com. au

C AMPING & outdoors

Fantastic family trip to the tip – Part 3 * from P88

Daintree River on to Mossman. Every caravan park was full as it was school holidays at the time, so the place was very busy. We had to drive back up the range towards Mount Carbine to find a free camp. The next day we drove down the range and along the coast to Port Douglas – this road is so scenic and rivals the Great Ocean Rd, as it winds along beside the ocean – I loved it. We drove up the Kuranda Range to Kuranda. We had already done the train and gondola on previous trips, so this time we spent a couple of hours at the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary and the shops, then had lunch and checked out Barron Falls. From there, we moved on to Atherton and visited the Crystal Caves – a lovely spot full of rocks from all over the world. Then along the tablelands and down the Palmerston Range to Ingham to see Wallaman Falls, Australia’s highest single drop waterfall at 279m. This was an unreal place and because the Ingham area had received heavy rainfall over the few days before we arrived, there was plenty of water www.bnbfishing.com.au

coming over the falls. As we pulled up and got out of the fourwheel-drive, we could hear the roar of the falls – it was deafening after a while. Wallaman Falls are a must on a far north Queensland visit – they are the best falls I have seen. From here we poked on down the coast past Ayr and about halfway to Bowen we found a great little beach with no camping fees and no vehicle permit was needed to drive on the beach. I won’t mention its name because it’s too

nice a place to have too many people visit it. If in the area, you’ll just have to find it yourself… though if you do find it, keep it quiet. We aired down and drove along the beach – it was so nice, and we had a couple hours there before moving on to the Stanage Bay turn-off. We camped the night there, had a great fire and headed home the next day. In all, we did 7721km in 17 days, burnt around 1250L of diesel at a cost of about $2000 and had a ball. Stay safe in your travels.

A curtain fig tree on the Atherton Tablelands.

The beautiful and well-kept Cooktown waterfront. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 89

These days Wivenhoe is our most regular venue, being less than 20km from home and yielding these types of fish… we’re not complaining.

Fishing local systems and familiar territories

UR ever-evolving reality in these ‘interesting’ times has changed our perception of many aspects of life. Many of us had fishing trips to venues far afield routinely scheduled for

Fishing for Sport by NEIL SCHULTZ

our angling year before ‘travel restrictions’ and ‘border closures’ became part of our vocabulary.

Living so close to Queensland's southern border meant that NSW waters were regular

Graham’s spotty mackerel was the result of getting to know the movements of baitfish and predators close to home on Moreton Bay. Page 90 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

haunts for thousands of Bush ‘n Beach magazine readers, myself included. The percentage of my fishing south of the border was not obvious until after border closures became necessary to slow the spread of the virus. A winter favourite, all of my luderick outings were undertaken in northern NSW and have been missing from my calendar for a couple of seasons now. A significant chunk of my Murray cod angling too was undertaken on the southern side of the border. Likewise, fishing for bass on the big rivers, chasing schools of salmon from the beach and flicking flies at trout in the New England high

country have been sorely missed over the past two years. On the positive side of the ‘new norm’, fishing our local systems has highlighted the benefits of angling familiar territory. Fishing locations close to home tend to be those on which we spend the most time. This in turn translates to the habits and seasonal movements of fish becoming familiar to us. Regularly productive locations within a lake, reef or river are added to our knowledge base and allow more time to be spent at these hot spots. For example, Moreton Bay can be hard to crack for newcomers to the re* continued P91

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Fishing local water systems * from P90

gion and ‘once a year’ anglers. Being so close for many of us, it is handy for quick excursions when the weather looks good and spur of the moment outings. Selecting a target species and indulging in plenty of hours of reconnaissance will eventually lead to repeated success. Even when chasing pelagics, the same areas will often hold fish at a particular phase of the tide for weeks on end. Those spots of regular fish activity added to your GPS will give a shortcut for future outings. The key is time on the water observing – easily achieved when fishing close to home. You'll eventually determine a pattern, knowing spot A is reliable at first light, spot B during slack water, spot C during a run-out tide and so on. Learning about our stocked lakes is a similar process – spending enough time on the water to establish a pattern of fish activity in given locations. When Lake Somerset

was first stocked, we'd fish it every weekend for the entire season to determine the hotspots and when to best fish them. We followed the same game plan on Wivenhoe, Leslie and even little Lake Dyer – which was the best silver perch lake in the state for several years –fishing them all day once or twice a week until we had the fish and conditions figured out. Familiarisation is most easily achieved on local water systems, but it can also be applied to more distant locales. During the late 1990s, my wife and I spent so much time in the tropics that we were given ‘honorary northerner’ status by the locals around the lakes we fished. At one stage I even left my boat at a barramundi lake for three months to avoid the need of towing it there and back every other weekend. Don't despair the border closures and travel restrictions – make the most of the opportunity to get to know your local sources well – you may see your catch rates improve incrementally.

Fishing Somerset regularly revealed patterns of fish movement that yielded fish such as this nice bass on a consistent basis. www.bnbfishing.com.au

Another Moreton Bay favourite, longtail tuna can be creatures of habit and easy to find once you’re familiar with those habits.

Spending hundreds of hours on a couple of tropical lakes saw the scoring of fish with almost monotonous regularity.

The by-catch on barramundi lakes can be as much fun as the big chrome fish. Sooty grunter are a worthwhile target in their own right. Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 91

Closed season ends and cod fishing begins

S you start to read through this article, you’ll find it’s time to get into cod fishing once again, and on both sides of the border rivers in Queensland and NSW. Where I live – on that section called ‘the wiggly bit’ of the border – the Dumaresq River and then the Macintyre form the border between the states. Until the end of November, it will be closed season on rivers and most storages in NSW, except for Copeton Dam and Blowering Dam. The above two storages allow the taking of cod from 55-75cm, to eat or to catch and release.

Glenlyon Dam by BRIAN DARE

Let’s go back over possession limits in NSW for our main table fish on rivers and dams. The no-take species in rivers are catfish and silver perch. In the listed storages and dams, there is a size limit of 25cm for silver perch with a bag limit of five and possession limit of 10. Catfish are no take in western rivers and 30cm legal limit in listed dams and storages. With yellowbelly, there’s a 30cm minimum length, a bag limit of five and a possession limit of 10. Murray cod is 55-

75cm legal length take home, a possession limit of four and a bag limit of two. And there you have it for NSW. In Queensland this year, during the closed season on rivers it was a bit of a dud for cod, also on dams that hold the Murray cod species. In this neck of the woods, we saw the storages climb out of their previous low water dismal situation to where most are now three quarters full to overflowing – which is great news. On-farm storages are full, the river on the

border is still flowing very well and any more rain will cause some flood concern out west. I mentioned NSW and its bag and size limits, let’s do Queensland now. The minimum length for Murray cod is 60cm with no maximum size limit for dams or rivers, and a possession limit of two over 60cm only. Golden perch have a 30cm minimum size limit and no maximum, with a possession limit of 10 for dams and rivers. Silver perch are 30cm minimum, no maximum and a possession limit of two only on dams, with no take whatsoever on rivers. Catfish are 35cm min-

imum, no maximum and a possession limit of five on dams and rivers. As previously mentioned, we are still seeing good flows in the rivers, with some inflow into the storages. I don’t think we have seen the last of the rain just yet this year, as we move into our wet season with the threat of large cyclones a possibility. With a bit of luck, we may see some natural recruitment of both silver perch and yellowbelly in rivers and storages. Yes, storages! Given that both species move into new areas upstream and given the right conditions, we * continued P93

GLENLYON DAM TOURIST PARK A great place to fish! • Powered and Unpowered Sites • No Domestic Pets or Generators • Kiosk • Ice • Gas • Petrol • Amenities Blocks and Laundry • BBQs • Hire Boats • EFTPOS • Fishing Permits

14 CABINS bookings necessary

GLENLYON DAM TOURIST PARK via STANTHORPE 4380 Contact Debbie or Brian Dare for more information or for bookings Ph: 02 6737 5266 E: glenlyondamtouristp@bigpond.com Visit our new website at Page 92 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

glenlyondamtouristpark.com.au www.bnbfishing.com. au

Closed season ends and cod fishing begins * from P92

will see spawning take place. The large spawning action sees the eggs float down en masse with grass, seeds, weeds and such – similar to frog eggs on the edge of river and storage banks. Hopefully, if this takes place, we will see an increase in fish numbers in conjunction with the goldens we will be stocking this year. Keep in mind, a yellowbelly over 5kg can produce up to and over 750,000 eggs. They don’t breed every year as Murray cod do but use the conditions when they occur. Currently, yellowbelly of over 5kg are being caught on blades, small lures, crayfish and shrimp. If you use the standing timber of rock ledges, you’ll catch a feed. As per last year, this year saw the shutting down of anglers who came to fish at Glenly-

on if they weren’t local. A couple of things to keep in mind on the way out here is that floating logs are still on the move, with old sections opening up. With this in mind, you may not recognise previously visited spots and you might come to grief if you rush straight out, so be warned and wary. We have some large sections of duck weed on the dam, which moves around the storage due to wind and water movement. It’s not a major concern to boat motors as long as you take your time moving through it. If Glenlyon fills and we see water heading over the spillway, the weed will clear and go downstream in the river. As for cod watching… in between duck weed movement, we have been watching the males do the ‘housework’ while mum goes ‘shopping’, as he looks after heaps of potential babies soon to hatch.

New teams barra tournament

J’S Compleat Angler of Gladstone Tackle have teamed up with Barra and Basstasstic to bring you a new barra fishing teams tournament. The LJ’s Compleat Angler Gladstone Tournament will be held on Awoonga Dam from December 3-5, 2021. Capped at 50 teams, bookings are open and anglers are invited to register to fish. www.bnbfishing.com.au

Get in quick to book your spot at facebook. com/basstasstic or bar rabasstasstic.com

Laim from LJ’s Compleat Angler.

Wade Garland and his son Benji from Toowoomba. Benji caught this yellowbelly on his dad’s new style lure from Whiptail Lures.

DAM LEVELS CURRENT AS OF 18/10/2021

DAMS

PERCENTAGE

JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT Atkinson * 4 4 4 4 4 Awoonga 42 42 51 50 49 Bjelke-Petersen * 7 6 6 7 6 Boondooma * 23 23 25 25 24 Borumba * 81 82 81 79 75 Burdekin Falls * 99 96 91 88 82 Callide * 21 21 50 49 48 Cania * 31 31 30 31 28 Coolmunda * 101 100 100 99 97 Dyer/Bill Gunn * 5 5 4 4 4 Eungella * 83 82 81 80 79 Fairbairn * 17 16 15 14 13 Glenlyon * 54 69 73 74 75 Hinze* 99 97 95 94 92 Julius * 91 89 87 86 83 Kinchant * 99 99 83 83 77 Leslie * 27 53 57 57 57 Macdonald* 100 101 99 95 88 Maroon * 100 100 99 99 99 Monduran/Fred Haigh * 39 38 37 37 35 Moogerah * 42 43 42 41 39 North Pine/Samsonvale * 98 96 64 64 62 Peter Faust/Proserpine * 62 61 60 60 58 Somerset * 72 70 65 64 62 Teemburra * 98 98 97 97 94 Tinaroo* 93 92 85 84 79 Toonumbar 101 101 100 98 96 Wivenhoe * 42 42 42 41 40 Wuruma * 37 35 34 31 29 Wyaralong* 99 100 99 99 98 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.

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 93

C HARTER directory TIN CAN BAY

Fish ‘N’ Cruise Charters ALL MEALS INCLUDED

FV Nightbeat

• 2-5 day trips • Up to 8 people • Private charters • Modern facilities • Air-conditioned

WE PROVIDE • All meals cooked on board • Rods, tackle and bait • Bedding/linen • Drinks & snacks (BYO alcohol) • Fully covered deck • Separate shower and toilet

0428 711 718 or 0427 745 204 E: fishncruise@yahoo.com.au Fraser Guided Fishing charters cater to children as well as adults. A proud young angler.

www.fishncruisecharters.com.au

FRASER COAST

MORETON BAY

Fish the bay with Sean Conlon > Hervey Bay > Fraser Island > Sandy Strait

Full and half day tours All levels of experience Experienced guide

people max

Learn how to fish with lures and soft plastics

Get into the best fishing action!

www.fraserguidedfishing.com.au > 0427 230 261 Page 94 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

• Inshore charters BOOK • Small groups only TODAY • All gear supplied • Full/half day Off-water courses also available.

0432 386 307

seanconlonsfishing@hotmail.com www.bnbfishing.com. au

C HARTER directory BALLINA / BYRON

Fozie’s Fishing Adventures 0427 834 376

ADVERTISE HERE

ADVERTISE YOUR CHARTER THIS SIZE 5X2 FOR ONLY

$390

+GST

INCLUDES WEB LISTING

Total price for 6 months

• Half and full-day adventures • Whale watching • Scattering of ashes ceremonies

info@foziesfishing.com.au www.foziesfishing.com.au

SWAIN REEFS / GOVE / KIMBERLEY

TO BOOK CALL 07 3286 1833 OR EMAIL ads@collins.media GOLD COAST

Carlo Fishing Charters NEW 100-FOOT VESSEL!

• 38 years family owned and operated • Fishing Swain Reefs, Kimberley, Gove • Meals included

BOOK OR ASAP F ! 1 2 0 2

• All cabins with aircon and ensuite • Affordable 7-day, 10-day and extended charters

www.carlofishingcharters.com.au

0428 753 293 www.bnbfishing.com.au

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 95

Like to learn more about crossing coastal bars safely and using electronics? Tuition with Bill Corten Professional coastal bar crossing instructor and offshore fishing trainer since 1996. Coastal bar crossing and electronics tuition: • Hands-on experience crossing

• Learn how to get the most out

coastal bars safely

of your GPS and sounder

• Direct supervision mastering

• Interpret sounder readings and

all bar crossing skills

shows

• Fine-tuning of skills in breaking

• Fine tuning your sounder for

swells and white water

better results

• Overcome your fears and learn

• Using your electronics to find

vital safety skills as part of an on-water training course.

reefs and structure • And much more.

Contact Bill Corten M: 0447 233 247 / 0447 ( a f f a i r ) E: reel_affair@yahoo.com

December Edition Copy Deadline – Advertisements must arrive NO later than November 8, 2021

POST TO PO BOX 162, Wynnum QLD 4178 or EMAIL with a photo to ben@collins.media When completing this form please leave one square of space between each word (Hyphens, full-stops, commas, word spaces count as one letter) ALL ADS MUST BE PRE-PAID 1 1 2

Cost per insertion: 2 lines $15, $1.10 per line thereafter. Contact details must be included in ad. NAME: ...................................................................................... PHONE NO. ................................................... MONTHS OF INSERTION: ...................................................... AMOUNT: $ ................................................... CREDIT CARD NO.: ___ ___ ___ ___

___ ___ ___ ___

EXP DATE: ..................................................................... SIGNATURE: ..........................................................

Page 96 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

ARVOR 705 SPORTSFISH – brand new model – selling fast and next stock boat available for immediate delivery – fully optioned with Mercury 225Hp 4S, bow thruster, Simrad combo GPS/Sounder, VHF, Marine toilet, lock up wheelhouse and so many class leading features. John Crawford Marine, Queensland’s Used Boat Specialists since 1964 – johncrawfordmarine.com.au Ph. 3890 2322 BLUEFIN 450 WARRIOR – braked Dunbier trailer, Yamaha 60Hp 4S tiller steer ES and PTT, huge open inshore tinnie with smooth plate sides, carpeted floor, casting decks, late model Garmin 9” Echomap 95SV, inshore safety gear – $19,995. John Crawford Marine, Queensland’s Used Boat Specialists since 1964 – johncraw fordmarine.com.au Ph. 3890 2322 NEED A NEW TRAILER for your 4m tinnie? JCM has available for immediate delivery, brand new Redco Sportsman RES1213S trailers to suit alloy hulls from 3.9 to 4.3m tinnies. Upgraded with Predator alloy wheels from $2,299.00 including free fitting! John Crawford Marine, Queensland’s Used Boat Specialists since 1964 – johncrawfordmarine.com. au Ph. 3890 2322 QUINTREX 420 BUSTA 2017 – Enjoy the outdoors and the fun of fishing with your family or friends in this terrific tinnie. Comes with a Suzuki 30hp outboard, ideal for four aboard, casting platform, carpeted low floor, forward storage, and side pockets to fit all the fishing gear. This little pocket rocket is quite spacious, in fact, it’s virtually all fishing room! $12,950. Call AMC Boats on 3808 7333 or visit amcboats.com.au SEAJAY 448 NAVIGATOR – centre console, one owner since new, Yamaha 50Hp four stroke, Redco braked trailer, Garmin touch screen GPS/Sounder, Bimini, Inshore safety gear, Bait board, Boarding platform and more – $24,995. John Crawford Marine,

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Subscription prize for November! Queensland’s Used Boat Specialists since 1964 – johncraw fordmarine.com.au Ph. 3890 2322 SMARTWAVE SW4200 CENTRE CONSOLE 2015 – Dry, smoothriding with great stability at rest, easy to keep clean and easy to handle at the boat ramp. This boat is perfect for those who love to fish, or the whole family – kids and all! Inclusions include 40hp 2-stroke Mercury outboard, anchor, bimini, paddles, rod holders and tie down strap. $17,990. Call AMC Boats on 3808 7333 or visit amcboats. com.au SOUTHERN FORMULA 19 – commissioned early 2020, Dual Mercury 115Hp CT 4-strokes – 55 hours and freshly serviced, Easy Tow tandem trl, Raymarine Touch Pro 12”, Simrad, Outriggers, fresh and saltwater wash down, drum winch and so much more – $124,995. John Crawford Marine, Queensland’s Used Boat Specialists since 1964 – john crawfordmarine.com.au Ph. 3890 2322 STACER 479 NOMAD SIDE CONSOLE 2010 – the Nomad is a terrific family, fishing and social boat with plenty of space and a good fishing layout. It comes standard with pedestal seating with four deck mount positions and is great for a run up the creeks and rivers or a coastal jaunt. It sits on a new trailer and the motor has just been serviced. $21,990. Call AMC Boats on 3808 7333 or visit amcboats. com.au WANTED – Make selling your late model trailer boat simple and hassle free. Quality, used trailer boats are always in demand with John Crawford Marine, Queensland’s Used Boat Specialists since 1964! Call today to see how our experienced team can help you on 07 3890 2322 or visit johncrawfordma rine.com.au www.bnbfishing.com.au

Packs va lued at

e a ch

www.frogleysoffshore.com.au

Subscribe this month to go in the draw to win one of 20 Gamakatsu packs from Frogleys Offshore. * Valid until November 30, 2021. Picture for illustration purposes only.

SUBSCRIPTION FORM ONE YEAR $50 (inc. post)

TWO YEARS $95 (inc. post)

Receive 12 issues delivered.

Receive 24 issues delivered.

December edition will be posted to you on November 24, 2021

New subscriber

Renew/extend subscription

YES, please send me two free BNB stickers Send your cheque, money order or credit card details for $50 or $95 (inc. GST) to Bush ’n Beach. We’ll advise you when your subscription runs out. Return completed form to: Bush ’n Beach Fishing PO Box 162 Wynnum 4178, ph 07 3286 1833 or go online www.bnbfishing.com.au Name:.......................................................................................................................... Address:...................................................................................................................... .......................................................................... Postcode:.......................................... Date:.................................................................. Phone:............................................... Email:.......................................................................................................................... PAYMENT DETAILS

❑ Money Order

❑ Cheque

❑ MasterCard/Visa

Card No:..................................................................................................................... Expiry date:................................................................................................................ Name:......................................................................................................................... Phone:........................................................................................................................ Signature:................................................................................................................... GIFT CERTIFICATES

❑ Happy Birthday

❑ Happy Father’s Day

❑ Happy Fishing

To:............................................................................................................................... From:.......................................................................................................................... Subscriptions are non-refundable. They can be transferred to another subscriber.

Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 – Page 97

Caught this jungle perch with a Jackall Squirrel 79 Hank Tune at Lake Monduran using a Shimano Raider Barra with the 13 Fishing Concept TX2 Baitcaster and 30lb Sufix braid with 50lb Black Magic Tough leader. Benjamin Geddes

A tailor caught in the Parramatta River – getting out for a fish during lockdown. Adam Jones

Here is 12-year-old Maxxy with his new personal best flathead caught recently on the Gold Coast with ‘flatty whisperer’ Ross McCubbin – 78cm, caught on a soft plastic shad (and released). Scott Boothey

Tellise loves to fish. Here she is trying for a bite off the Goodna boat ramp. Thanks to those who wrote articles on wheelchair accessible fishing spots. Kelvin Mcelhenny

To have a photo of your catch featured in Readers’ Forum, simply email ben@collins.media with a good-quality picture, your name and details or hop onto our Facebook page and send us a message. Page 98 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021

www.bnbfishing.com. au

Corrosion Resistant Aluminium Frame & Side Plate

Ergonomic Padded EVA Knobs

Magnetic Braking System & Multi Disc Drag System

Long Casting Spool Included

Jigging Handle With Power Knob

“Open-Frame V Shaped“ Line Guide

The ATC Combat Plus V2 200/201 has been upgraded with new components and improved internal parts. Featuring the new open-frame 'V' shaped line guide that improves the smoothness at high drag pressures and with less resistance when casting, total distance is significantly improved. Improved brass gears are at the heart of the extra strength and durability and make this reel more robust and able to handle more pressure from heavy drag pressures and the constant casting of larger lures. This design allows the Combat V2 to maintain its solid 12kg drag pressure. The V2 200 Combat Plus comes with shallow and deep spools and an additional power handle for offshore use opening up the uses to include Murray cod, barramundi, black jew, snapper, mulloway and fingermark up north to kingfish, snapper, salmon, Murray cod and mulloway down south. Features • Corrosion resistant aluminium body and side cover • Up to 12kg drag force • Improved line guide: “Open-Frame V Shaped“ line guide for smoother drag and casting • Enhanced magnetic braking system • Super robust brass alloy material main gear and pinion gear • Multi disc drag system with carbon washers • 10+1 Stainless Steel Ball bearing System • Shallow Spool for long cast included • Power Handle for offshore usage included Model

Retrieve

Gear Ratio

Line Capacity

Shallow Spool

Ball Bearing

Drag Range

Line/Crank

Weight

014CBPV2200

RIGHT

7.0:1

0.28/210, 0.33/160 MM/M

0.20/120, 0.25/100 mm/m

10+1

12 kg

76 cm

225 g

014CBPV2201

LEFT

7.0:1

0.28/210, 0.33/160 MM/M

0.20/120, 0.25/100 mm/m

10+1

12 kg

76 cm

225 g

For more information please visit

WWW.WILSONFISHING.COM

IS NOW

DRIVE AWAY $

EXPLORER OUTBACK

440 HORNET TROPHY

Includes: Mercury 25 ELHPT, alloy trailer, QLD rego, smooth water safety gear

Includes: 65L fuel tank, front cast deck, transom step, Mercury 60hp, alloy trailer, rego

12,300

29,581

DRIVE AWAY $

37,462

48,195

QUINTREX 460 S/C

500 CRUISABOUT

Includes: Thruster bracket, catch and release, upgraded seats, Mercury 75hp, alloy trailer

Includes: Mercury 75hp, transom door, Lowrance sounder, Bimini, alloy trailer, rego

DRIVE AWAY $

59,652

67,173

540 SEA SPIRIT

570 TERRITORY LEGEND

Includes: Bimini, VHF radio, hydraulic steering, bunk infill, Mercury 135, alloy trailer, rego

Includes: Duel fuel tanks, thruster bracket, trim tabs, Mercury 150, alloy trailer

40-60HP FOURSTROKE

Finance & Insurance available

INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY PROVEN RELIABILITY POWERFUL PERFORMANCE

A POWERFUL PACKAGE * Mercury Finance terms and conditions apply. Photos for illustration purposes only.

Can’t make the yard? Shop online! For quality new and used boats! www.kareemarine.com.au

1743 Ipswich Page 100 – Bush ’n Beach Fishing, November 2021 Road, Rocklea | Call 07 3875 1600 www.bnbfishing.com. au

BNB Fishing mag | November 2021

Articles inside

New teams barra tournament

Closed season ends and cod fishing begins . . . . . . . . . . . by Brian Dare

Fantastic family trip to the tip – Part 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Craig Tomkinson

Mini Queensland lap – dinosaur trails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Collins

Fishing local systems and familiar territories . . . . . . . . . . by Neil Schultz

Porcupine Gorge a place to remember . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Paul ‘Chief’ Graveson

Lowrance HDS Live 12 packed with features . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Collins

Telwater trailers to take the industry by storm

Simrad Yachting celebrates 75 years of innovation

The Cape’s classic weekend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Dave Donald

Asian green mussel found in Cairns

Testing - performance of the Posi Lift Hull . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Ben Collins

Product News

Insights into boat insurance

Quintrex takes fishing to a new level with Hornet

QBFP with Gudjuda Rangers

Reef fishing northeast Cape York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by ‘Billabong’ Bazz Lyon

Electric action at Hinchinbrook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Keith Stratford

WTF and closed season options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by John Boon

Seventeen Seventy BnB Trophy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Mick Clutterbuck

Building better biosecurity for prawn production

SCF Australia fishing competition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Keith Stratford

Tin Can Bay snapper sortie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Craig Tomkinson

Illegal mangrove clearing cops fine

Action heats up on Sunshine Coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Grant Budd

Tips for land-based flathead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Sean Bekkers

Warm water options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Sean Thompson

Grief from gusts in north NSW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Tye Porter

The fishy business of artificial reefs

Fishing for snag dwellers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Justin Willmer

Current and upcoming closures

Offshore options for Northern NSW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Gavin Dobson

Target focus on flathead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by Clint Ansell