Northern Bay

from Fishing Monthly Magazine | September 2022

Boat Test: Whittley CR2380

Flathead freshen up

NORTHERN BAY Tackle World Lawnton

As we start to move into spring, anglers can look forward to dusting off their warm weather tackle and get back into the swing of our favourite summer weather species. around the mouth of the Pine and Caboolture rivers are both prime areas to hunt down a feed of flatty tails. Soft plastics hopped in close contact to the bottom or a hardbody lure, either trolled or cast over the flats prove to be an ever effective technique.

If you find yourself in in the sights of a larger model. But if it’s a true croc you are after, upsizing lure to a Glide bait or larger soft plastic presentation will wean out the smaller fish.

With the water warming up towards the end of this month, we can start to see the elusive mangrove jack back on the cards again. These fish test the abilities of all anglers alike but the reward is second to none when you see red break the surface. While it’s still a bit cold expect jacks to be a bit sluggish, so a slab bait or well-presented prawn imitation will likely be your best chance of enticing a bite.

Always remember with jack fishing: If you aren’t snagging, you aren’t bragging!

FRESHWATER

While it’s definitely been a slow winter on the freshwater scene, we hope to see a bit more action with the weather warming up. The warmth should help the dams to equalise and get back to normal after ‘rolling over’ due to the large quantity of rain we received earlier this year.

The excitement this time of year for the fresh is not only the return of edge fishing in the impoundments but also the reopening of bass fishing in tidal waterways as of 1 September. After both Lake Samsonvale and Lake Kurwongbah spilling a tremendous amount of water earlier in the year, our local creeks are stocked with the healthiest supply of bass we have seen for a long time.

The afternoon bite is going to be more productive earlier in the month until we see a bit more constant warmth bringing a morning bite into play as well. Fishing shadowed overhangs and other ambush points are going to be the most effective with smaller profile lures along the lines of 2.5” ZMan Slim SwimZ, Jackall Chubbies and Nokie Tiny Kaishins. In low light periods it’s not uncommon to experience an unreal surface bite in these same areas with small popper and cicada style lures. BAY

While the snapper season is slowing down, it’s most definitely not over with a few location and technique changes still providing catches right through the warmer months. Moving to slightly deeper water that we would typically fish throughout the winter and even to larger area of structure, will still see some great catches coming in.

The deeper rubble off Mud Island in the 6-10m mark as well as the artificial reefs in the bay will be fantastic areas to try. Floating a lightly or along the beacons in the shipping channel. Small 20-30g slugs and 3-4” soft plastics sunk down and burnt past the markers are effective techniques to put fish in the boat. Don’t hang around at a marker for too long! If you aren’t seeing

There has been some great flathead fishing over the last couple of months.

Our usual winter species are starting to move on but not without a few fantastic end of season captures. Mid last month saw the end of the snapper closure with plenty of keen anglers taking to the water and pulling in some great catches. The artificial reefs in the bay, as well as the Redcliffe/ Scarborough area, have been productive as it’s been one of the better snapper seasons we have seen for a while.

We are still seeing tailor popping up along the Redcliffe Peninsular and throughout the Bribie Passage. This should continue to the end of this month before moving on until next year. RIVERS

This is arguably the time of year flathead fishers get the most excited about. Flathead will be making their way towards the mouths of our systems in preparation to breed later in the spring. This time of year we often see big numbers of flathead captures, along with a lot more of the bigger 70cm+ girls making an appearance.

The flats and drop off an area on a hot bite of smaller flathead, you can expect a big girl to be not far behind. Racking up scores on the little ones will eventually have your lure Snapper fishing will be a great option in September!

Mitch with a decent late winter jack. These will become common as the weather warms up.

unweighted pilchard or flesh bait is always effective. Soft plastics and deeper trolled hardbodies also produce great captures.

The warmer months do see a lot more by-catch while snapper fishing, with plenty of them being tasty critters along the lines of grass sweetlips, tusk fish and even a few of the smaller mackerel species.

Speaking of mackerel, while it is still early it’s the time to start keeping an eye out for school mackerel bait or fish after the first 2-3 drifts, keep moving. • 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.