Mackay

MACKAY Cameron Christian

December means hot humid weather with plenty of afternoon storms and, as a result, early mornings and night fishing can be a great option for fishing this harsh weather. The wind and rain typically dictates offshore activity, however with plenty of beaches, creeks and dams there are heaps of back up options around Mackay.

With the reef closure now over, many boats will be looking to head offshore to target species like red throat emperor and coral trout. Reds are usually available in deeper waters like the shipping channel while plenty of coral trout can be targeted in the shallower reefs like those around Round Top and Flat Top islands. Pilchards are a reliable bait and rigging them with a small sinker can help the bait waft down to the shallow reefs. Anglers should pay close attention to currents however and adjust lead accordingly. Speaking with local tackle shop staff will find the best spots where the offshore species are feeding and the best baits and lures to target them.

With the barra closure still going, the next prize target in the creeks will be jacks and the really hot, humid and calm summer days are ideal for snag

Aaron Darr with a decent coral trout caught just off Round Top using a Nomad Rip Tide. Darcy McFarlane from the winning team,The McFarlane Boys, with another monster barra from the Teemburra comp.

bashing for jacks. Both lures and live baits worked near dense structure like rock bars, mangroves and shopping trolleys will catch fish. Jacks will also readily reside in very shallow water, particularly around mangrove roots. Some can also be found around the rocky headlands and inshore islands like those around Eimeo and Shoal Point.

Live or fresh baits like mullet, herring and prawn placed as close as possible to the structure will typically work best however lures may be used to cover more ground and locate the resident jacks. Good lures are those which can be worked as close as possible to the structure and therefore weedless prawns and swimbaits are a popular option while divers, like Killalures or Warlocks, are great for working structure like mangrove roots.

Fingermark are also usually found in good numbers during the summer months and can typically be found schooling in the deeper holes in the creeks, toward the mouth or just offshore. The harbour walls can be a great place to target both jacks and fingermark with plenty of good cod also thrown into the mix. The harbour walls typically fish best at night around the lights for these species with live baits and lures both working well. Ensure good tackle however as these hard fighting species will need to be muscled from the rocks.

Flathead, grunter and whiting will also still be hanging around the flats despite the warmer weather. As usual, look for the rubble or mud patches or yabby beds toward the high tide with grunter typically favouring the larger tides. Using fresh baits like prawn or yabbies will score fish around the structure mentioned above while small soft plastics, shallow divers and soft vibes are also a great option remembering to cast at any nearby gutters or drains particularly as the tide falls.

The summer months are typically best for impoundment barra, however large influxes of cold rainwater could upset the barra this year. For the persistent angler however, there are still fish to be caught, particularly around common bite times including around the afternoon storms after a sweltering summer day.

A recent MTA barra comp at Teemburra showcased the effects of inconsistent weather on impoundment barra with 20 teams fishing and many teams not catching any fish and only five teams making the three fish bag. The dam potentially fished poorly due to a significant dump of rain and a wind change in the week leading up to the comp.

As always, however, some teams were able to find the fish and pick up on the feeding pattern to score great barra. Successful techniques included using suspending divers, like Jackall Squirrels and Samaki Redics, thrown at weed edges on wind-blown points, working them in typical jerkbait fashion leaving long pauses and getting hits on the long pause.

Other teams worked swimbaits, such as the Thready Buster 140s, by throwing them up high onto weedy wind-blown points and working them down the tapered edge to the deeper water. Bonus fish were also reported being picked up by jigging above fish swimming directly under the boat whilst patrolling these wind-blown weed edges.

When consistent weather patterns do occur, barra fishing in all the dams around Mackay should really boom over the summer months. The barra will typically avoid the heat of the day and fishing very early mornings and night will be the best times. When the water cools off at these times, barra can readily be found up of the shallow weed flats like those found in Kinchant and Faust. If attempting the catch barra during the heat of the day, look for the fish taking refuge around the thermoclines in the deeper sections of water.

MAFSA have been busy lately releasing 100 tagged barra at an average size of 350mm into the Gooseponds and 188 into Teemburra. With tagged barra now released into both Kinchant and Teemburra it will be extremely exciting to see the growth rate and catch data coming from our dams in the years to come. After an unsuccessful attempt in September, MAFSA will soon try to breed sooties again in the hatchery and, with luck, there will be fingerlings in the hatchery by the time this report is published.

December can be a harsh time of year around Mackay, however many species hanging around our creeks, reefs and dams really thrive off these hot, humid and stormy months so why not have crack at an early morning creek bash, a mid-morning reef jig and a late afternoon impoundment barra.