Townsville

Dodging the barra

TOWNSVILLE

Dave

Hodge Things are heating up in the north, and water temps have been above 30°C in most creeks for months, and haven’t the barra loved that! END OF BARRA SEASON

The barra were very active in the last few weeks leading up to the end of season. Larger lures became the tool of choice for anglers in the know, and hardbodies and surface lures were getting taken by larger fish.

It’s easy to fall into the fish want on any given day. Sometimes it’s a suspending lure that gets the result, while on other days a floating lure will be more productive. One day you may need a 2m depth and on another day, just 0.5m or so.

There are numerous lures that will work, but for us, it’s the Halco Laser Pro 120mm and the Atomic Slim Twitch that are the best shallow water presentations. As for big fish specific lures, the Halco Scorpion 125 is where it’s at for us. For deep snags, the Halco 4m Scorpion or

Blue salmon are quite prolific when the jelly prawns are around on the flats. Tannhym caught this one on a small 3” plastic cast at a swirl on the surface.

Sadly, the barra have copped a flogging over the last couple of months, with commercial fishers coming from hours away to target our local population of fish, which already have an active commercial sector. This increased level of travelling commercial interest has made local anglers concerned about the future of the fishery. Look, I understand that the pros have to make a living, but how much pressure can one area withstand? I guess we’ll find out. CLOSURES

After talking to several commercial fishing employees and rec anglers, it seems that the recent coral fin fish closure was based on an inaccurate spawn prediction. In the weeks after the closure, anglers were reporting heavily roed trout and other species coming aboard. It makes you wonder whether the fin fish closures are just a gamble, or whether they genuinely benefit the fishery.

It also has me wondering about the proposed Spanish mackerel closure, which would last for a couple of years to allow stocks to recover. Why is it not a viable option to do what they do with barra, and have a closed season to allow the fish to spawn and repopulate the species? You could say, “OK, the Spanish are going to spawn between this month and that month, so let’s ‘spell’ them until they’re done with that”. Considering the speed in which the black jew laws were introduced, it seems quite easy to legislate a periodic closure. habit of using one style of lure, as it may produce consistently over time, but if you’re prepared to break out of that comfort zone and throw something different for a little while, the results

may just be worth it. More aggressive actions from a lure can often elicit a more positive response from bigger fish, and the rattle of split rings and trebles are often all it takes to get the blood pumping on those larger models.

Barra lures that are standouts usually have a few characteristics in common – durability, castability, buoyancy and terminal integrity. However, no one lure is an all-rounder, and it all comes down to what the the Poltergeist have been working well. Vibes and weighted plastics are usually reserved for the deeper water scenarios.

Anyway, the season is over now, but hopefully this will help you in deciding what to use when it all opens up again. JACKS AND

OTHER SPECIES

Depending on the amount of fresh that we get over the next few weeks, jacks are going to be our main target. Surface lures are our favoured way to target the jacks on early morning outings, and as the sun rises, our presentations get a bit deeper. Knowing that fresh sits on top of the salt, we need to sink or dive our lures that bit deeper if the jacks aren’t up in the fresh surface level. This often changes from day to day, so, if you’re not getting action in one area try another.

It’s not just the jacks, either – grunter, fingermark and other species often sit in that lower depth range to escape the fresh when it’s all flowing.

One thing is for sure, you’re going to encounter barra over the next couple of months, and they will show up anywhere at any time. For this reason, so we are very cautious about some of the normal spots we fish, as the barra can be hard to get past sometimes. Live herring and mullet, or slabs of fresh herring or mullet are going to get plenty of interest from a range of species in the coming months, so be prepared to make a quick release if a barra does intercept your bait.

It is illegal to actively target barra during the closure, so if you get caught swinging a foot-long mullet or tarpon on a 10/0 kahle in a hole up the river, it’s pretty obvious you’re not after grunter. And if you’re trolling a 125mm lure on 50lb braid and 60lb leader, again, it’s obvious what you’re doing, and Fisheries officers aren’t stupid.

RIVER MOUTHS

In order to find species that aren’t really freshwaterfriendly, try looking out towards the river mouths and in the bays that are up and down the coastline. Sound around until you find some

stuff on the sounder, and anchor just upstream from them. Yes, I know… barra will frequent these spots too, but you’ll often find more diverse species there too. Small, plastics and vibes will often be a very effective technique when chasing grunter, so have some of those at the ready.

With the wet season predictions all pointing towards a big wet, and a prolonged one also, this should be an interesting few months ahead for us. Remember too, if the storms are around and you’re in a small boat, think twice before putting yourself in harm’s away. They can pop up anywhere, at any time.

While ‘wild’ barra like this one may be off limits for a few months, don’t forget the stocked impoundments if you’re still a bit keen. Just get your permit.

Jacks will be on the cards for anyone flicking snags with smaller hardbodies and weedless rigs for these amazing sport fish. This one was taken on a 4” Atomic Prong in electric chicken colour.

In the freshwater environments a slow floating minnow style lure, like this Atomic Slim Twitching Minnow, will cast well, but make sure you have the right float rate. If you’re not skip casting now then you should learn the technique. Many captures come from a skipped lure into dark hides.