A better class of fish on offer

Illawarra

Greg

Clarke

The beaches are worth a look this month for whiting and bream. They have been feeding all summer, so now virtually every fish is a solid one, better than average, with only the odd throwback.

The water is still warm, keeping many fish on the hunt. This is especially true for whiting, so good catches are on the cards. Throw in flathead, trevally, salmon and a few late dart, and there is plenty of action to keep you busy – and that’s just during the day. When it gets dark, the big boys come out to play, with some solid jewies getting about the beaches. There have been some goodsized tailor reported as well. Just pick a deep gutter on any beach and use fresh bait, not frozen for best results. There is plenty of quality bait around this month.

The ocean is generally calm during this transition period from summer to winter, so you get good comfortable conditions to go about your business as well.

dropped off. Maybe the water was a bit too warm. However, in early March we started to get a couple of guys finding a few, and I think that should continue into April. As the trag gain momentum and increase in numbers for our offshore anglers, hopefully mulloway and maybe a few snapper will also be caught.

Flathead will be thick offshore through April as they move out after spawning. Hopefully the slot limit helped with the spawning, and I reckon in 3-5 years we’ll know how well the slot limit has worked. We need those high breeding rates because flathead (and bream) are the most popular bread-andbutter fish for recreational anglers in NSW. Everyone wants to catch them, so we need a healthy fishery and good recruitment to meet demand and fishing pressure.

When you catch a flathead that you intend to release, please don’t put it on a red-hot brag mat. Put water on the mat to cool it down, or use a damp towel. Don’t hold a big girl vertically by the jaw or she can get internal injuries that will slowly kill her. Keep her horizontal, and swim her before release, so she can recover and, later on, lay lots of eggs.

• Fisherman’s Warehouse

Tackle World has a large range fresh and frozen bait as well as a huge range of rods, reels, lures and

Then we throw in Easter and ANZAC Day so you get even more days to have a crack at them. It’s a good month for anglers.

A lot of fish are in close at this time of the year, particularly snapper during the full moon over Easter.

Fishing the shallow bommies and close-in reefs during the late afternoon and evenings is the way to go, as the fish feed in the dark using the full moon to guide their way.

A good berley trail and unweighted baits in the shallow waters will produce the goods. There are plenty of tailor and salmon getting in on the action during the evenings too, along with lots of little whaler sharks, so you may need a few extra hooks or move to another less sharky spot.

During the day the snapper seem to move to deeper water so they can be receptive to jigs and plastics, but they are touch-and-go at best after feeding all night.

After the full moon the kings will be about all the usual spots, taking live yellowtail and mackerel. The islands, Bellambi, Bass Point in close and Wollongong reef accessories. They also sell and service outboard motors, and have a competitively-priced selection of new and secondhand boats. The friendly staff are all experienced local anglers, and they’re always happy to share their knowledge, whether you’re a a bit further offshore are going well. Down rigging seems to be the way to go, and when a king is hooked, out go the jigs to get the followers.

Big bonito are always about this month as well, with some monsters among them up to 6kg. They like live baits too (and can be a nuisance when chasing the kings), or targeted trolling stick baits and casting whole pilchards when a few are found in an area.

All along the coast you will spot terns and seagulls on the water diving and carrying on, and they are always worth a look as this is the month of bait balls of anchovies and other baitfish. They are always interesting as there will be pretty much every species of pelagic ripping in to grab as many hapless baitfish as they can before they are all gone.

Mackerel tuna, bonito, frigate mackerel, tailor, salmon, trevally, big slimy mackerel, kingies and even snapper and some stray spotty mackerel will get in on the frenzy. The action can be short and sweet if it is a small bait ball, but if it is substantial the action can go on for quite novice or experienced angler. Drop in for a chat at 804 Pacific Highway, Marks Point, or give them a call on (02) 4945 2152. You can also find them on Facebook, or check out their website at www.fishermanswarehouse .com.au. some time, sometimes hours. On these occasions there will generally be some much larger predators about, with lots of sharks of varying size and species, possibly yellowfin tuna, even in close, marlin and even dolphins and whales. It’s a free-for-all, and sometimes it’s just worth watching as the frenzy unfolds right in front of you. If there are whales involved, they generally stuff thing up as they usually take most of the bait in one go, but it’s still worth the price of admission just to see.

Further offshore there are still marlin about, with black, blue and stripes all on the cards, and a grand slam not out of the question. A few smaller yellowfin tuna will start to show up out wide, and if the currents are right they may turn up in closer, so be ready.

Dolphinfish (mahimahi) of varying sizes are still around the FADs and traps, but you never know what size or how many will be there from one day to the next. Still, it’s well worth a look just in case.

There are plenty of good flathead over all the sand drifts and they don’t look like slowing up just yet. You can also encounter some nice snapper, mowies, samsonfish and even the odd pearl perch and spangled emperor that have come down with the currents.

On the rocks there is more pelagic action with small mackerel tuna, frigates, salmon, bonito and tailor pushing the schools of bait in hard against the rocks.

Kiama area, Bass Point, Port Kembla break walls and even Wollongong harbour walls can erupt with masses of fish churning the water. At these times, every cast is a fish. Some anglers take way too many in these conditions, which is a bit disappointing.

After the turmoil is over, casting cut baits in the same area will get plenty of other species. Bream, trevally, snapper and even flathead like to move in to pick up the odd scraps and scales left behind.

On the deeper ledges it is time to get the live baits out again, as the big mackerel tuna and longtails will be about this month. With the big push of hot water that came down the coast this year it could be a bumper season for the autumn appearance of longtails. They are usually solid fish of 20kg or better in our neck of the woods, as they have been feeding up and getting fat as they move down the coast. Keep a live bait out at all times as you never know when they will come past. The lake is still producing good numbers of flathead but they are starting to slow just a little as the shallows cool during the lower night temperatures this month, and then later the first southwesters in the mornings that herald the start of the mullet run up the coast.

Some big whiting are being caught over the flats in the lake, along with good bream in the deeper holes and around the bridge pylons during the evenings. A few prawns might still be around to scoop during the dark, and they make perfect bait live for all lake species. Get in now before it starts to cool down and slow down next month. Good luck.