Bermagui

BERMAGUI Darren Redman

djsxstreamfishing@bigpond.com

Yes, it’s that time of year when the waters warm and life begins to blossom, producing a bounty of seafood. All that’s left for us to do is to hunt and gather, and then feast on the fruits of our labour.

Now, after the good winter rains, estuaries have been replenished with fish stocks that were able to enter rivers and lakes, which are opened to the ocean at present. Along with the fish comes the prawn spawn, and it will hopefully be one of the best prawning seasons for many years. Wallaga Lake has good prawns at present, and with a little scouting so do many of the other systems. For those anglers who like their culinary delights, not only are the prawns and fish very good, so are the oysters; the oysters in the Bermagui area are some of the best in the country. There are also lobsters, mussels and more. You will have to visit to discover the rest!

When the prawns are active in the estuaries, this is my favourite time to work those softy lures. These lures resemble a small fish or prawn, and when worked with the proper technique you can manipulate them to kick like a panicked prawn.

There are countless species of edible fish available in our area.

Will there be prawns?

TATHRA Darren Redman

djsxstreamfishing@bigpond.com There have been a few seasons now in a row with above average rainfall and flooding. This has really upset the balance in the estuary systems, especially the annual prawn runs, so will there be a prawn season?

If so, the warmer weather and warmer water will have the prawns on the move, and prawns mean there are plenty of flathead to be found for anglers. Now is the prime time for those big flatties to be moving about in the river, and at this time of year their main food source is – you guessed it – prawns. These tasty crustaceans are also good to keep for the dinner table.

If you want to target flathead this month, soft lures are the way to go. Early morning starts are a must, as the predators are looking for any stray prawn that hasn’t yet returned to the sand. Some of the strikes can be awesome.

If you prefer fishing with bait, try getting up before daylight, grab your prawning Crayfish are a seafood delicacy.

Early in the morning on the bottom of the tide is a prime time before the wind gets up. If you are in Bermagui, try around the main bridge at night where the lights fade out over the water. Prawns flooding out on the tide attract lots of predators here, and some of the imprints left in the sand the following morning by flathead will leave even the most seasoned anglers gasping.

Water temps are changing offshore, and how warm they get will determine how hot the fishing can be this early in the season. November is notorious for early-season tuna schools moving along the coast, which can create some of the best lure trolling sessions game fishos can experience. Not a lot of people visit here at this time of the year sadly, but those who do know that there have been plenty of yellowfin and albacore taken around the Melbourne Cup weekend. Sharks are also prevalent, following the schools of tuna, and many a record mako has been captured at this time of year. With them, striped marlin can handle relatively cool water and you can expect them to turn up this early as they love to feed on small albacore tuna. There is also plenty of kingfish activity up at Montague

To page 77 (Bermagui)

If there are prawns around there will be plenty of good bream chasing them.

gear and go and gather some fresh bait. Once you have your prawns you can keep them alive by simply placing damp seaweed over them. You can either fish them from the shore or, if you have a boat, just drift around on the tide above the bridge with a simple running sinker rig with the prawn hooked once through the middle. Not only do the flatties respond well to this, so do the bream, trevally, jewfish, and many more of the estuary’s inhabitants.

Moving offshore, we are seeing a great run of flatties, mainly tigers, with some very nice sand flathead thrown in. The tigers are prolific in anywhere over 50m of water, with the hot spots being out from Bournda and east of Wapengo Lake entrance. Check weather patterns as to which way you go, so you can travel home with it. The winds are likely to be predominately northeast, so I suggest you go north. This will also eliminate boat traffic out of Merimbula, plus give you the added bonus of fishing the reefs out from Aragunnu and Nelsons Head land.

Speaking of these reefs, there are plenty of morwong coming from them, with a handful of snappers thrown in. Ocean perch, leatherjackets and wrasse will keep anglers occupied while waiting for the better fish.

On the full moon, if you fish a little closer to shore out from any of the beaches within the area, you can target gummy sharks. These areas will also produce good sand flathead to top up bags.