Cooktown

COOKTOWN Justin Coventry

The weather here has been strange to say the least with continual rain making our dry season still up, and barra are still able to move around so maybe the migration has helped them stay hungry. The lure fishing is some of the best I’ve seen in years with some very sizable fish around. I managed a on lure in a tidal creek, which was amazing to see it eventually landed, and it was land based. Even though everything worked out, when the first run went 50m downstream I thought there was little chance. However, slowly but surely it made its way back and the capture was completed. It was the most amazing barramundi moment to date.

The river water levels are still high and has provided some exciting sessions when the barramundi have been found. It’s multiple hook ups and action aplenty at the moment, which is so great to see. Barramundi have also been in schools in the estuaries and moving with the water and tide, and the bite seems to be as the school passes with the tide. descend on the wharf as the bite increases and the wharf will fill up, but there is a massive rock wall along the waterfront so lots of room to cast out a live herring to get into the action. Small trace will help to stop bite offs and not spook fish.

Great fun and lots of trevally are also in the mix and the acrobatic queenfish can put on a show once hooked. So plenty of fun to be had at the wharf this month.

Reef fishing is still up in the air with strong winds likely but it can’t last forever. There is some chance of a small window in September showing up but October should see some calm weather. Get the boat ready now and your reef gear as it’s just around the corner! The first weekend will be mayhem at the boat ramp but hopefully also mayhem out at the reef pulling in some nice coral trout. Looking forward to a fresh feed of coral trout. Yum!

Lure fishing for barramundi has been the best in years.

not so dry and the cooler weather hanging on as well. I thought this would slow things down fishing wise but the opposite has occurred with barramundi hungry.

The water levels are session with a 92cm fish taken in freshwater, which is my biggest freshwater barramundi to date. A mate of mine caught a 96cm, so they are getting up there in size to the 1m target.

I have caught a 1.05cm There has been plenty of action on the barra lately.

Moving with them provides more opportunities, and a boat and a quality sounder on side scan will help.

Next month the conditions might dry up a

The author with a 92cm freshwater barramundi.

little, but the expectation is that rain will be around most of the year but it will dry up as the year progresses. The fishing should also be hot once temperatures start to heat up. So, I can’t wait to see how it goes then.

The large holes hold fish and lure fishing snags provides the best chance to locate them. Once found, it’s worth multiple casts as small fish are more active and can steal a feed before the larger fish rises to feed. I’ve seen a number of small fish caught before the trophy fish attacks.

The wharf is still producing some nice jacks and it’s worth a try with some live bait around or under the wharf. Also, the mackerel are expected to arrive in numbers this month, so the fishing will improve. The locals will

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