Clean waters make for great bags

CAIRNS

Dan Kaggelis

dkaggelis@gmail.com fishing in the creeks. May usually sees these temps fall into the optimum range, which can also be a big plus.

May is typically a more stable month weather wise, which makes it ideal for fishing the Trinity Net Free Zone. The creeks and rivers are usually running clear and crisp as a result of the drier weather and smaller day time tides.

The target species will be jacks and barramundi in most of the Net Free Zone Creeks. The Cairns Inlet has been fishing really well for barramundi with some great captures coming land-based off the Marlin Wharf Pier. Live bait has been producing the best results for landbased fishers with mullet and flicking prawns working the best.

For boaties, flicking suspending hardbodies and vibes around the deeper bends has been producing the better fish in the Inlet. Large paddle-tails, like the 140 Molix, have also been finding barramundi casts amongst the artificial structure, especially at night when all lit up.

Other systems in the Net Free Zone, like the Barron and Thomatis, have also been producing both barramundi and threadfin salmon. The areas out the mouth of these creeks have also been giving up the bigger fish as well. This spot was once a very seasonal place to chase barra and threadfin but since the NFZ has come in it is now fishing awesome all year round, which is terrific news. The smaller systems like Moon River have been producing the odd mangrove jack and barramundi. They love a surface lure in this shallow system so make sure your hooks are sharp and your drags are tight. If you want to fish sub surface then