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Monsoon March sparks great fishing in NFZ CAIRNS
Dan Kaggelis dkaggelis@gmail.com
March is always a top time to be fishing the net free zone. February usually sees the biggest amount of rainfall and this will start to ease in intensity as we move into March. This will mean the creeks and rivers will begin to slow a little and even begin to clean up if the rain stops for a while. This can really spark the fishing up, especially in places like the Trinity Inlet, which always cleans
are in the right spot. I love picking out the big tides this time of year and fishing the run out in the drains. It’s a sure-fire way to get hooked up on some great barra and even the smallest drains can hold some awesome fish. Barra aren’t the only fish on the run this time of year and the threadfin salmon continue to build in big numbers out the front between Machans Beach and Trinity Beach. It has been a cracking start to 2022 for these fish, which have been in big numbers. The Net Free Zone has seen big numbers of these
Big threadies love the rain and they have been chewing hard on the beaches.
Use your sounder to find the schools of threadies before casting. up quickly due to having no catchment intake. If this does happen, the barramundi will be feeding hard along the dirty water lines, drains and mud banks. Look for signs of creek prawns flicking along the edges and if you find them you
fish return to the area and lots of recreational anglers are enjoying these trophy fish. They are best targeted using vibe style lures but prawn imitations or slowly worked soft plastics are also a great option. I prefer to fish around the tide changes and to target larger schools
hard. Jacks love to sit in these slack water areas and wait for bait to come past before ripping them apart. Make sure your leader and line is up to the task as these fish will blow you away if they get a chance. I have been using the new Sunline X Plasma of late and it is an awesome braid. Doesn’t hold water, is super thin and tough and is so awesome to cast. Getting your lure in the right spot is three quarters of the challenge and this stuff makes it so easy. Next month we should see even further easing of the monsoon unless we have a late burst. If the place dries up the fishing will become much easier and more consistent, which would be awesome. If not, it’s more of the same from this month.
of fish. I take my time scanning around on my Humminbird Gen4 Helix to find the bigger schools before wetting a line. The other fish that will be firing is the mighty mangrove jack. These guys are going to be tight to structure this time of year so a well-aimed cast with a 3-4” plastic paddle-tail will be ideal. You may have to use a little bit more weight this time of year if the creeks are running. This time of year is all about targeting the backwater of snags, which aren’t running
Jacks will be tight to structure, so cast accurately and make sure your line can hold up to these hard running dirty fighters.
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Barramundi will be feeding hard, especially in the drains on the big tides. From page 44
Once again, rainfall is important but not over the top. We remain in the laps of the weather gods but if we get our way, look out. To finish up I’ve been part of the QLD Fishery Advisory board for nearly two years and glad to announce that with the assistance of Chad Ludrow and Jaeden Vardon we have secured
a grant to research the shark depredation problem we have noticed considerably in tropic waters over several years. On our Dragon Lady charter vessel we will use a shark deterrent mechanism this year to help prevent losing valuable fish stocks to our toothy counterparts. We are already set up to supply critical information to research in regards to building this database in
relation to shark species analysis of depredated fish retrieved to the vessel. The next exciting step is to see if the devices prevent this shark activity occurring and ultimately see that they will reduce the amount of incidents that have grown considerably as mentioned. At the end of the day, we wish to sustain our fishery best we can as a recreational sector.
• Comfort in all Conditions
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Arrange your inspection and call QLD’s Arvor Dealer today! 1029 Manly Road, Tingalpa
07
3890 2322
View the entire range at www.johncrawfordmarine.com.au
MARCH 2022
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