Northern Bay

from Fishing Monthly Magazine | December 2022

Boat Test: Merry Fisher Sport 795

Flexibility is key to success

NORTHERN BAY Tackle World Lawnton

Welcome to the silly season! It’s fair to say that we have definitely had a very abnormal year in the fishing table this Christmas. RIVERS

Expect to see summer whiting in their prime this month, up on the flats foraging and fattening up. Areas like Hayes Inlet and Bakers Flats up the Caboolture River are literally the perfect storm for a good session on the jacks. A rising or falling barometer increases their activity, seeing them being more aggressive and, most importantly, a lot more likely to cross paths with. These fish love structure, the It’s a fantastic place to start but it is best to explore all options as sometimes they will surprise you. Both the Pine and Caboolture rivers provide some great structures for mangrove jack, with an abundance of mangrove-lined edges, fallen timber, rock bars and rock walls. A paddle-tail or hardbody cast deep into structure and rolled out is a great option or, if bait is more your thing, a lightly weighted mullet strip is hard for any jack to resist. These fish can be few and far between at the best of times but expect to be kept entertained by an abundance of by-catch ranging from cod, trevally, flathead and even sometimes the elusive barramundi!

It’s time to dust off the cast nets and start filling your bucket with prawns. Keep an eye on the deeper holes in your local river as the prawns will be showing up this month. Expect to see size and numbers increase leading up to the new Ryan Limpus with a couple of big bucks.

world with many hurdles and more than our share of rain events and bad weather. But, as always, fishers have done what they do best and adapted accordingly to still bring in some fantastic catches for 2022. And, it’s not over just yet!

With the weather warming up over the past month, we have seen some great catches coming in from anglers taking advantage of the conditions and longer days. There have been cricket scores of summer whiting, bream and flathead coming in from our estuary anglers.

The rains in the later parts of October have definitely contributed to the start of a cracking crab and prawn season with some good hauls coming in already. It looks like we will be seeing some cracking seafood feast on the some favourite hotspots for many anglers. Whiting will feed up in the shallows on an incoming tide picking off an abundance of food sources left from the previous low tide. A stealthy approach is always best as the bigger models can become quite smart and shut off. A longer rod allowing for a further cast is a great way to keep your distance whilst still getting in on the action. A well-presented worm or yabby on a long shank hook, lightly weighted is a longtime favourite but, being opportunistic, whiting aren’t too fussy and can generally be tempted on a variety of bait presentations. Remember, fresh is always best!

There’s no better time than now to be out on the hunt for mangrove jack. Hot summer days with a brewing afternoon storm are quite tighter the better.

When fishing pontoons, pylons or timber, jacks generally prefer to sit on the leading current edge. year. Find the boats, find the prawns is generally the saying this time of year with everyone out chasing a feed of these tasty crustaceans.

DAMS/ FRESHWATER

We have seen an improvement in our local impoundments after a slow year with countless dam releases making for tough fishing. The warmer weather has got the bass up on the edges again and hungry. When we think of bass in summer we generally think of surface! The warmer weather gets these fish fired up and eating hard off the top, taking advantage of the array of bugs and other food sources landing on the surface.

Fishing surface early morning and late afternoon will lead to best success on the bass. Cicada and frog imitation lures are often a favourite and catch the attention of saratoga too, which also take advantage of the warmer days to feed off the top. Spinnerbaits and lipless crankbaits are other great ways to fish the edges this time of year once the sun is up.

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Doubles for Franky on the Tsuri spinnerbaits.

School and spotty mackerel will be in good numbers this month. BAY

Summer in the bay means pelagics! School mackerel have been consistent lately on the shipping channel markers and we should start to see numbers of spotties not far behind in the coming weeks. Metal slugs, like the Halco Twisty in the 30 and 40g sizes are a favourite. Drifting past the pylons, sinking slugs to the bottom and burning them back up will have you into a few in no time. It is important to keep hopping between markers until you find fish and bait. Keep an eye on the horizon too for a school of longtail busting on bait throughout the bay!

From the team at Tackle World Lawnton, we thank you for tuning in this year and we wish you all a safe and relaxing Christmas Holiday on the water. We look forward to seeing you all again next year in 2023! • For more up to date information on fishing in and around Brisbane call into the guys at Tackle World Lawnton and they can point you in the right direction. The friendly staff at Tackle World Lawnton cater to all levels of experience and offer the widest range of brands at the best prices. They are located at 640 Gympie Road Lawnton (07) 3205 7475 or find us on Facebook and Instagram.