Noosa

Steady river fishing

The Noosa River has really turned it on over winter with plenty of quality fish being caught, however with all the rains it has made conditions a little trying.

Good trevally has been on the chew with some big GTs, golden trevally, cale cale lighter the better.

September usually means the start of the jack season, that is to say that they tend to feed more actively as the waters start to warm. Mangrove jack are in good numbers in the Noosa River with the area between the lakes the prime hunting grounds. This area is tree-lined, has some great rock bars and some get gobbled up quick in the right circumstances.

Flathead are on the chew at this time of the year as well. This is the time of the year when these fish tend to nest up so often you will find groups of younger males hanging around a larger female. Please remember size and bag limits with these fish as there are plenty of quality fish to go around. Some great spots to try are around the shallow near the Tewantin boat ramp, the drop offs near Makepeace Island and opposite the sailing club.

The Gympie terrace stretch has been great for families with younger children, the protected water are teeming with smaller whiting, bream and flathead which is great fun for the kids. Best tip here is to use light gear and small hooks with baits like prawns, worms or squid.

To the south, the Maroochy River has had its fair share of big trevally, along with tailor and flathead. Fishing under the bridges with surface poppers and small metal slugs is the way to go here. The river mouth has seen bigger bream, whiting and the odd queenfish.

Along the beaches those big schools of tailor have been more offshore making it frustrating for our local beach anglers, those with drones have spotted the schools just out of reach for even the best beach caster. To get into the tailor you will have to make you way north and hit the Noosa North Shore and head up to the area just to the south of Double Island. It seems that the migration route sees the fish come in around here before moving up to Fraser Island. Anglers in this area have reported some quality greenbacks just on dawn and again at dusk and this has been even better with the high tide.

The number of mulloway that have been caught off the beach this year has also been down on previous years. This may be due to the fact that baitfish along the coast have been a little scarce. Best time to try is around the new moon using strip bait of mullet or fresh tailor.

For the rock hoppers there have been some big sea bream taken around Yaroomba, while Noosa National Park has been a hotspot for juvenile snapper and sweetlip.

The offshore reefs are really firing with bigger snapper now settled in and most of the bigger reefs are producing good fish.

The reefs off Double Island have been worth the trip with plenty of species from the deeper reefs. Big snapper, pearl perch, cobia, red emperor, mulloway, cod, and some solid cobia have all been boated. Those that were still looking for mackerel were not disappointed with some good Spanish and tuna still in the area. Unfortunately the sharks continue to be a problem with a lot of anglers loosing quality fish to the taxman in the grey suite.

North Reef has been popular with snapper anglers; this reef is a great plastics’ anglers have had some great results here with pinks and white jerk shad style lures seeming to be the better performers.

A run over to Halls Reef in spring is always worth a look as the tuna usually show up here first along with the big schools of pilchards.

Ava out fished her dad picking up this very nice sweetlip from around the Gneerings.

trevally and arm stretching diamond trevally all making their presence felt. Fishing around the current lines on the incoming tides near the river mouth and around the point in Woods Bay has been very productive. Lightly weighted live herring or even half a pilchard or unweighted prawns have all accounted for plenty of fish.

For the lure anglers, slow hopped jigs fished through the deeper parts of the river has been very effective. This method really comes into its own, especially when fishing during daylight periods or when the river is busy with all the boat traffic that a sunny day on the Noosa River will attract. Now the trick is to hop the lure from the bottom with a slow roll these fish will usually pick them up on the drop. Some of the better lures ate the Jigpara Range for the lighter setups and the Gomoku Trick Metals for the heavier set ups. Of course, if the fish are very active, a cast and fast retrieve is your best approach. If you are into plastics, then anything in a prawn profile slow rolled will work well. Long fluorocarbon leaders of at least a rod length are essential for daytime sessions and the big snags all ideal habitat for jacks. Suspending lures cast deep into the snags is the best approach at this time of the year. The best colour we have found have been predominantly red and suspending style lure seem to work the best keeping the lure in the fish’s face for longer. If you just want to put fish in the boat, then a live herring or poddy mullet will

Rowan got slammed by this solid queenfish in the Maroochy River.

Cooper picked up this very pretty diamond trevally on a Jigpara jig.

place to set up a good berley trail. Having a berley pot hanging off the anchor rope with a frozen berley log and then further enhancing the trail with cut pilchard dropped at regular intervals has been very effective. Fishing a pilchard floater through the trail should see you with some good results.

Sunshine Reef has been worth a look with plenty of juvenile snapper, sweetlip and coral trout on offer. Soft Snapper and sweetlip will be on the bite at Little Halls and it is always worth having a bit of a troll around here as the sun gets up with tuna and mackerel on the prowl. • Don’t forget to check in to www.fishingnoosa.com.au for all the latest up to date info on fishing and bar crossings. The knowledgeable teams at Tackle World Noosa and Northshore Bait & Tackle at Marcoola can provide you with the right equipment, bait and advice to ensure success!