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MARCH 2018, Vol. 30 No. 5
Contents NORTHERN NEW SOUTH WALES Yamba 20 Ballina 22
simply showing their new products, letting the customers interact with it and making their famous pro-staff available to the fans. And it wasn’t just die-hard anglers that had fun; there were also activities for families. There were thousands of rainbow trout in a pool that were eminently catchable, and available for the kids, and they loved it. Why haven’t we got a tackle show like this in Australia? Plenty of people ask this question every year. Boat Shows ‘don’t have enough tackle’ and fishing shows don’t have the manufacturer support
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This beautiful Spaniard was caught out from Hervey Bay.
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to get off the ground. Plenty of show organisers have tried and failed. I’m a pretty vocal supporter of the industry getting behind a show that will excite the angling public. Is it happening yet? Not from the top down. At the moment, the vibrant Lure Show in Ipswich, Queensland each winter, is the closest we have – even if it’s a distant second to tens of thousands of tsuri-baka (fishing crazy) Japanese. But we do have ideas and a passion for the sport, and you’ll be the first to know when we make some inroads into making it happen.
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And you know what? Nothing has changed. After a few days at the Yokohama Fishing Show in January, the numbers may be down a little from the ‘90s, but the enthusiasm remains the same, both from manufacturers and the attendees. So what’s it look like? The best way is to watch the video on the Fishing Monthly YouTube channel or the www. tacklejunkie.fish Facebook page. In a nutshell, if you take the Brisbane, Rose Hill or Melbourne Boat Show and swap out the boats for tackle stands, that’s what the show is like. It’s a tackle junkie’s dream fix, and it would have been even more exciting if I could understand more than a little Japanese. The most amazing part of it, however, was that it was a no-purchase show. Apart from some merchandise and clothing under a certain price limit, all of the major companies were
AUST
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JAPAN - DOING TACKLE SHOWS RIGHT I hadn’t been to a Japanese tackle show in years. The last time was in the ‘90s with Quintrex Boats International’s Marketing Manager, Andrew Hill, as he opened a few doors for me to get an insight into a market that Australia was exporting around 2000 boats a year into. At that time, there were tens of thousands of uberkeen anglers, sampling all of the delights of the latest rods, reels, lures and baits. Fans lined up for hours to get autographs from their favourite fishing stars like Jim Murata (Japan’s Mister Shimano) and Norio Tanabe (the first Japanese angler to win a US BASS event, and the creator of the Nories brand). Show-goers paid money for the latest catalogues to get signed, and each stand had hands-on engagement with the fishing public.
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REGULAR FEATURES Back to Basics 18 Camping and 4WD 86 Cooking 92 Dam Levels 80 Freshwater 80 Fun Page 96 Junior Northern 76 Junior Southern 36 Politics and fishing 78 Sheik of the Creek 93 Suntag 90 Tech Tricks 16 Tournament News 94 Track my fish 88 Trades and Services 100 What’s New Fishing 54 What’s New Boating 108 SPECIAL FEATURES Trolling for Spaniards Cool off at Coolmunda Target topwater cod Scones in the camp oven
From the Editor’s Desk...
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TROPICAL NORTH QUEENSLAND Whitsundays 68 Ayr 69 Townsville 70 Hinchinbrook 71 Cairns 72 Port Douglas 72 Lucinda 73 Cairns NFZ 73 Cape York 74 Weipa 74 Cooktown 75
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CENTRAL QUEENSLAND Hervey Bay 58 Rainbow Beach 59 Bundaberg 60 Lake Monduran 60 Stanage Bay 61 Gladstone 62 Rockhampton 63 Yeppoon 64 Mackay 65
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SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND The Tweed 24 Southern Gold Coast 26 Gold Coast Canals 28 Jumpinpin 30 Gold Coast 32 Southern Bay 34 Brisbane 38 Brisbane Offshore 40 Northern Bay 42 Noosa 44
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Fishing Diary Angler: Dax Gallagher Location: Urangan Pier, Hervey Bay Date: September 13th, 2017 Conditions: clear, N 5 kts, outgoing tide, waning moon Black Magic Tackle: 60lb Tough Trace Note: When targeting strong fish with sharp teeth you MUST choose a leader with excellent abrasion resistance.
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Spanish Mackerel
Tips and tricks to troll for Spanish mackerel BRISBANE OFFSHORE
Kaspar Lenigas
Without a doubt Spanish mackerel are one of my all-time favourite fish to target. Not only are they fast and taste great, but they look mean and have a serious set of choppers that can effortlessly slice any baitfish to pieces. There are many ways to catch Spanish, but trolling for them with live and dead bait is the most effective way.
The specific techniques used for catching Spanish mackerel using baits are slowly becoming a dying art, with more people opting for the easier option of trolling lures, which can certainly catch them on the right days, but is by no means the most effective way to catch a better class or numbers of Spanish. Tr o l l i n g baits effectively can take a little time and skill to perfect, but there’s no better feeling than setting out a perfectly righted bait, locating fish
A couple of large Spanish mackerel – fish of this size can be a regular capture trolling large baits.
on the sounder then turning back and watching your rods in anticipation before they fold over and the drag starts screaming off. GEARING UP There are many options when it comes to choosing the right setup to target Spanish mackerel on the troll. In my experience the best setup is a lever drag overhead reel in the 20-30 size range with a high gear ratio matched with a 7-8ft long 15-24kg overhead rod. The benefit of using a longer rod is that you have far more manoeuvrability around the boat – these fish can change direction or power off very quickly when boat side and with a longer rod you can eliminate the risk of losing the fish to the prop or hull of the boat. Long rods also make setting baits apart much easier and with the added length you get much better shock absorption, excellent when absorbing the lunges and violent head shakes during the fight. I find the use of monofilament line on the reel and the absorption from a longer rod create a nicer take up of pressure to set hooks, allowing the fish to hit the bait and turn before the pressure is applied and the hooks set themselves. High gear ratio reels are great for Spanish mackerel, as mackerel can swim incredibly fast and change direction quickly; the higher ratio makes it easy to keep up with the fish during the fight and maintain pressure. Also high ratio reels make chasing after the fish with the boat much easier, as you can keep pressure on the fish. The combination of a long rod, mono and a high gear ratio reel
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MARCH 2018
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With a prehistoric looking head, razor sharp teeth and tiger stripes along their body, they sure are an awesome looking fish. certainly makes fighting mackerel very easy as you can keep an even pressure very easily throughout the fight, further eliminating the chances of the fish shaking the hooks. My go-to setup for this style of fishing is a Shimano Tyrnos 20 or 30 reel spooled with 60lb braid and top shotted with 50-100m of 55lb Schneider monofilament on a Wilson Live Fibre M10 10-24kg rod. The reason I use a top shot is so I can change it out to a new top shot when I feel like it and still get enough stretch from the 50-100m of monofilament top shot and lots of line capacity from the braid if I need it. You can run straight mono if you desire and still have plenty enough line for most fish you encounter. You don’t need to use any fancy or colourful mono. I find the cheaper lines like Schneider to be ideal, as they last long and are very strong and hard-wearing. The Tyrnos and M10 setup is ideal for trolling an array of live and dead baits effectively and will easily catch the majority of fish you encounter. I’ve caught many fish well over 20kg on this setup, but if you are purposely targeting larger fish in excess of 20kg with big baits, a heavier 37kg combo comes in very handy; it can handle the big baits you are trolling and help shorten the fight time, reducing the likelihood of your fish being eaten by sharks. I like to run no more than two setups when trolling for Spanish mackerel, but it’s perfectly fine to troll with one setup. The added benefit of running two rods is that
you can run two different baits to see what the fish are feeding on. As Spanish mackerel school up it’s not uncommon to encounter multiple hook-ups and I find dealing with two fish much more manageable than three, especially if I fish solo. It’s also much easier to run two baits effectively without tangles; just set them at different distances behind the boat.
HOW TO FIND THEM Spanish mackerel are by far one of the most common pelagics on our reefs and can be found on most inshore and offshore reefs from 10-40m deep in Southern Queensland and northern New South Wales from December through to July. For most of Queensland, Spanish mackerel can be caught year round. The size and numbers vary depending on the time of the year.
It can be carnage on the deck when you find a good school of mackerel.
Spanish Mackerel Trolling dead and live baits at slower speeds is by far the best way to find and target Spanish mackerel,
because these presentations have a natural smell and lifelike action, which is more likely to trigger a
A couple of great eating-size Spaniards from a double hook-up.
response and entice a bite, even if they may not be all that hungry or active. Like most fish you need to find the bait and Spanish mackerel can be on any reef, as long as there is bait or life to hold and attract them to the area. As you troll baits at slower speeds you can thoroughly cover a reef, so with the added bonus of a sounder it can make it easy to locate the bait and Spanish mackerel so that you can keep trolling over them until they decide to eat. Spanish mackerel will generally hold around the edges of the reef where the current is broken up, as this is where the bait and activity will be holding. You can find Spanish mackerel sitting off the reef in deeper water feeding on large bait schools or waiting to move up onto the reef at a key bite time, so it can pay to troll off the reef before looping around and trolling back over it again. As far as water goes, you can find them in either green or blue water – they don’t like dirty water. LIVE BAITS Live baits are the best bait you can use to catch Spanish mackerel. It can take some time to catch good live baits and keep them alive, but if there
Long rods are great when fighting Spanish mackerel; they have lots of shock absorption to stop them shaking hooks and are easy to move around the boat if the fish dart off. are fish on the reef you are fishing, you will find out very quickly if they are there. You can use a whole array of live baits, from small tuna and bonito to yakkas, pike, slimy mackerel, grinners, small queenfish and trevally as well as reef fish like
fusiliers, rainbow whiptail and rainbow runners. My motto is if you can rig it and it swims, they will eat it. Rigging live baits is quite easy as well. For smaller baits I use a small barrel swivel, which I connect my mono leader to. Then off the other end of
the swivel I connect 1-2ft of 40-60lb single strand wire trace with a haywire twist, which is then connected to a 4/0-6/0 ‘J’ hook, which is used to pin the baitfish in the nose or mouth. Off the loop connected to the J hook I crimp on a section To page 12
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11
Spanish Mackerel From page 11
of 80-90lb kink-resistant stainless steel cable; this allows the bait to move easily and you can catch multiple fish off one rig, as the wire won’t kink and damage as easily. To the end of the multi-strand cable I crimp on a size 1 or 1/0 treble, which I
prevent bite-offs. For larger baits over 1ft long to target larger Spanish mackerel I will use a 2-3ft 70-80lb single strand wire leader and a larger 6/0-8/0 J hook to pin the fish in the mouth. Instead of crimping on one 1/0-3/0 treble hook with 90lb kink-resistant stainless cable I’ll crimp
When making up live bait rigs I make up a whole heap of different ones to suit the different sizes and types of live baits I use and keep them separated in a tackle box. The reason I like to use single strand in front of the live bait is that it’s cheaper to use than cable and I believe it’s
Swivel
Single strand wire
Kink resistant cable
Treble
Slimy/yakka live bait Swivel Kink resistant cable
Treble
Single strand wire
Single strand wire
Tuna/bonito
Treble
Swivel
Tuna/bonito live bait
This diagram shows the author’s preferred ways to rig live baits for Spaniards. Two net leads as weight
Hook size 10/0-11/0 depending on bait size
This diagram shows the author’s preferred way to rig a dead swimming bait for Spaniards. You can see the copper wire helps to secure the nose of the bait to the hook. pin two thirds of the way down in the back of the live bait. Spanish mackerel have incredibly sharp teeth and you must use a good amount of wire leader to
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MARCH 2018
on another piece of cable off the loop to the first treble hook so I have two treble hooks to pin in along the bait, giving me a better chance of hooking the fish.
harder for mackerel to see. At the end of the day live bait rigs are a disposable item, so the cheaper you make them, the better. When running live
baits I like to run my strike drag around 3-5kg, as it is very easy to set the hooks into a Spanish mackerel’s mouth as they come flying through, snipping the bait in half and usually getting caught on a treble in process. When setting out live baits it’s more than fine to run two live baits on the surface. If you want to get serious, you can run one down deep (10-15m) on a downrigger and one
on the surface; this will cover more of the water column, giving you a better chance of catching a fish, as Spanish will sit deeper in the water column during the day. When setting livies back I will run them at different distances so they don’t tangle. I set one 30m behind the boat and the other 40-50m. I find 1-2 knots and knocking the boat in and out of gear to be the most effective way of trolling,
as you don’t want the bait spinning. If the bait is spinning, you may need to slow down the trolling speed. For tuna, bonito and larger fish you may need to bump the speed up to 2-3 knots to keep them swimming, so you have direct contact with your bait; this increases the hook-up rate. Using larger baits can be hard, because you can’t run them with small baits To page 14
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Spanish Mackerel From page 12
that easily; they can be hard to come by some days and harder to keep alive if you don’t have tuna tubes. Some days I will catch big live baits at a spot I’m fishing for Spanish and instantly rig them up and send them out. That bit of effort is the only way you will catch the quality fish some days. DEAD BAITS Dead baits may not be as effective as live baits some days, but they are a very good alternative on days when you’re not able to catch good quality live baits. With any bait fishing the old saying ‘fresh is best’ certainly comes into play – the fresher the bait, the better it swims and looks, which greatly increases your chances of a bite. When collecting live baits it’s always a good idea to catch a heap when they are around, keep what you need for the day’s fishing alive and put on ice then vac seal and freeze them when you get home to use as dead baits later on. The baits you catch yourself are better quality and cheaper than buying your baits from a fish shop. There is a huge array of dead baits that you can use to troll with and if you can swim it, mackerel will eat it. The pick of the baits are garfish, pike, sauries, tailor, slimies, yakkas and bonito, but you can also use small mac tuna, school mackerel, fusiliers, silver trevally and grinners. Some days they will eat anything and some days if they are shy, seeing something different can trigger a bite. Rigging the baits correctly can be hard, because you must soften the bait, rig it on the hooks the right way and tie it off, securing it to the hook rig so it swims correctly; if the bait spins you won’t catch many fish. Learning the skill to rigging baits properly and getting them to swim can be frustrating and take time but once you get it right and look at the bait swimming seductively next to the boat like a real fish, you know a Spanish mackerel is going to nail it when you troll it. Rigging up the bait properly is key to success, you can go out and buy premade rigs but
You will be surprised what you can use as a live bait for a Spanish mackerel. This fish was caught while free spooling out a live baby dogtooth tuna. making them is cheaper and they work better. For smaller baits like garfish, pike, yakka, slimies, smaller tailor and sauries I like to use set of 3-4 ganged Mustard 7766D tarpon hooks, depending on the bait size I will use a 7/0 or 8/0 set of gangs. I leave the hook eye straight on the nose hook and for the trailing hooks I bend the eyes up a bit with a vice and pair of vice grips, this is so the hooks sit better in the bait once its rigged. To open the eyes of the hooks I use a pair of side cutter as they open the hook eye up nicely without damaging/fatiguing the metal too much. On the nose hook I will add a small amount of net lead and crimp it on to help keel the bait and help it swim. I also use a 20cm length of copper wire and wrap it around the shaft of the hook near the eye 4-5 times and push it through the eye of the hook to hold it on. The copper wire is use to stitch and secure the bait to the front hook. Like live bait rigs I like to use a 1-2ft length of 50-60lb single strand wire leader attached to the front hook to prevent mackerel bite offs and sometimes I will feed a squid skirt on the wire leader and slide it over the head of the bait so it acts as a bait attractor and to stop the bait washing and the eyes bulging on smaller baits.
For larger baits like tuna, large tailor, bonito, school mackerel and anything else over a foot long I will use a gang of 4-5 10/0 or 11/0 7766D tarpon hooks and bend all the eyes up including the nose hook as the tow point on the nose hook will naturally pull the nose of the bait down making the larger baits swim far better. I add the copper wire to the nose hook as well so I can secure the head and nose of the bait to the front hook. I also add a net lead to the front hook and second hook; this will assist in helping the bait swim and allow it to swim a little deeper. I then attach a 2-3ft length of 70-80lb single strand wire to the rig. I don’t use squid skirts on large bait rigs but if you want to you can use one. The bait must be thoroughly defrosted before rigging. When rigging the bait I first soften the bait by softly squeezing the body and moving its tail in a snakelike motion. I then feed the copper wire up through the bottom and top jaw of the bait then place in the first hook on the underside of the fish and push it in until the hook eyelet lines up with the nose of the bait. I then close the bait’s mouth, tying the copper off and securing it to the front hook. I then line up the other hooks and push the bait back and place the hooks in along the belly, starting with the
second hook and working my way along. The bait should sit straight and have some movement if you wiggle it while holding the wire leader. When trolling dead baits I like to run a fair bit of strike drag – 5-8kg is more than enough and you’ll have more hook points to set. Also the hooks are larger, so it takes a bit more force. You’ll miss the odd hook-up – mackerel must bite the bait in half
to find the hooks – but the burst of bait when they hit and miss can cause a frenzy and other mackerel may jump straight on. The trolling speed for dead baits is 3-4 knots and you can troll big or small baits together. I like to run my large bait 30-40m behind the boat and the small one 50-60m. Spanish mackerel can be boat-shy some days, so the further you set the baits back, the better; it can also allow the bait to swim a little deeper. THE FIGHT Unless you’re using a deck winch or wire line, you won’t stop a mackerel on its initial run, but that’s the one reason I love catching these fish. Their first run is so fast! Who doesn’t love the sound of a screaming reel? Once you’ve got the bite and hooked the fish, it’s important to keep the boat motoring forward and clear the other rod if it hasn’t gone off. Once the fish has settled keep the boat slowly moving forward and pump and wind the fish; it should be getting towed by the boat once it has stopped running. If it’s a big fish, slowly turn up on it and wind the line in as quickly as possible to keep pressure on the fish until you are on top of it and motoring away
A typical school-sized Spanish mackerel. Spaniards love overcast and low light periods, as they will generally sit and feed higher in the water column.
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from it to keep it coming with the boat. Once the fish is moving with the boat take your time bringing it in gaffing range, as they can dart off on shorter runs. Once the fish is in gaffing range place a gaff shot in around its head to avoid damaging the flesh. Gaffing a fish in the body can be very dangerous as the fish can thrash about swinging a serious set or choppers around with a few sets of hooks. Mackerel are a fragile pelagic and don’t handle being caught and released, and a high percentage die. If you wish to target them, it’s important that you do the right thing by the fish and keep it. Once bled and iced, Spanish mackerel are a superb eating fish and their flesh is fine to freeze and eat at a later date. There is a rare chance of ciguatera poisoning from large fish, but you would have to be very unlucky to get it, as cases are very rare. If you’re worried, eat smaller portions in one sitting. I hope this information gets you interested in targeting these awesome speedsters, helps you catch a feed for you and your family and possibly land a trophy specimen. Until next time, stay safe and good luck.
GIFT
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Tech Tricks
Get that sinking feeling BRISBANE
Gordon Macdonald masterbaitertackle@hotmail.com
Getting your baits down to where the fish are hiding has been an important part of successful fishing since the dawn of time. Once, fishers would use coral and small rocks attached to vine and sinew lines to get baited bone or shell hooks into the strike zone. These days we have the
same basic requirement, however fishing has advanced dramatically and we now have specific types of weights suited to numerous fishing applications. Commonly called sinkers, these weights are designed for a specific situation, however many anglers are often confused as to which one is best for their application. These are just a few of the more common sinker types. There are also pyramid, sand
grip, reef-bean, bell, spoon, split shot and many more. While any sinker can get your bait to the bottom, good sinker choice can increase bait presentation and placement and also decrease snagging. At the end of the day this adds up to more better results and a lot more enjoyment. Let’s have a look at some of the more common sinkers styles and which of your fishing applications they are best suited to.
BALL SINKER The most commonly used sinker is the ball sinker. Its spherical shape makes it ideal for a broad array of situations and it’s available in more sizes than any other sinker style. It will easily roll across the bottom and therefore allows a good bait presentation, as it will move easily in the current or when a fish takes the bait. The ball sinker casts well and is the most commonly used sinker in the running ball sinker rig, which is the rig most anglers use for basic bait fishing in the rivers, creeks and estuaries. Some anglers tend to use ball sinkers for all their fishing applications, although there is often a sinker that is more specifically suited to their needs.
SURF For anglers fishing in the surf environment there is a sinker that has been specially devised to minimise one of the main issues involved with this type of fishing – line twist. There’s a lot of water movement in the surf environment with waves rolling in, sweep and currents running along the beach. Ball sinkers and many other shapes will roll around due to water movement and therefore twist your line. The surf sinker is somewhat disc-like, a flattened version of a ball sinker, some would say. Due to its shape it is more likely to drag or shuffle across the bottom than roll, which greatly limits line twist. To twist-proof the rig further many anglers will have a quality rolling swivel above and below the sinker. 16
MARCH 2018
STAR The shape of the star sinker promotes it bedding down easily into sand and soft mud. It is designed to go at the end of the rig (paternoster) for better casting. The star sinker has a swivel embedded into the lead as a line attachment point to minimise line twist. Its pointed shape also adds to its casting attributes. For any situation where you want to minimise bait movement, the star sinker is a good choice. The exception is snaggy areas, because the shape of this sinker will cause it to get wedged in structure and snag easily.
GRAPNEL The grapnel sinker really came to the fore with the interest in slide bait fishing. This form of fishing, which is commonly done from the beach or ocean rocks, is a little different to other forms. Firstly, the sinker is cast out and allowed to sink to the bottom. Small tugs on the line will make the grapnel sinker bed down into the sand. Soon the main line can be pulled taut without the sinker moving and a slide bait rig with attached hooks and bait is clipped on the line. The angle of the line will have the bait slowly making its way out to the sinker with gentle lifts of the rod tip. This allows large baits (dead and live) to be fished a long way out from the shore without the need to cast the actual bait. The grapnel sinker is like a small anchor with galvanised wire arms that can be bent outwards to ensure it grips the sand and rocky bottom. The flexibility of the arms also makes it the best option for rocky areas when slide baiting. Excessive tension will see the arms straighten and the thin profile of the lead reduces wedging between rocks.
BREAK-AWAY A more advanced version of the grapnel sinker is the break-away. This one was purposely designed for slide baiting applications with spring stainless-steel arms and more teardrop profile. The anchoring arms lock into position via a recess in the lead body and a great degree of force is required to encourage the four arms to dislodge and fold backwards, freeing the sinker from its purchase in the sand. The break-away sinker is the best option for slide baiting on the beach, especially when using large live baits, as it beds deeply into the sand and holds well against a reasonable degree of pressure. Break-away sinkers are also available in heavier weights than the grapnel sinker, which increases casting distance for the slide-bait angler.
Tech Tricks
BARREL SINKER The long, slender profile of the barrel sinker makes it great for fishing rocky and snaggy aquatic terrain. It’s less likely to foul by getting wedged between rocks and has less resistance in the water making is unlikely to move around much once it settles on the bottom. The barrel sinker can also be used in strong currents and is popular for keeping baits down under a float as it has low resistance. Some even add large barrel sinkers to the line above trolling lures, such as spoons, to keep them below the surface. Personally I’m surprised that more anglers don’t use barrel sinkers for most of their fishing as they are less intrusive and offer greater snag resistance than other sinker profiles.
BEAN The oval, slightly flattened shape of the bean sinker means that it won’t roll around on the bottom as much as the ball sinker. Before the introduction of surf sinkers, it was the choice of many beach fishers. Additionally the bean sinker is a favourite of many reef fishers; it’s less likely to snag than a ball sinker and due to the flattened sides it will plane up quickly on the retrieve, which minimises snagging. For those fishing the edges of the vertical reef for trout and sweetlip, the bean sinker is often fished just above the hook. This can offer a slight flutter to the bait as it sinks. If a snag is forthcoming then a few short sharp taps with the rod tip will often see the sinker jump upwards on the line and then dislodge the hook as it falls down and hits it. The bean sinker is one of the older styles and is a great option for a broad array of fishing.
TEARDROP Also called a bomb sinker, this sinker style is a great one for drift fishing. It’s best for sandy areas and those with minimal snags. Due to the swivel attachment point, it’s unlikely to add twist to your line. The teardrop sinker is commonly added to the bottom of paternosters and similar rigs. It’s popular with whiting fishers who drift fish and those casting paternoster style rigs from the beach who still want their bait to move around (which the grapnel, breakaway and star sinker don’t permit). Those bobbing baits on the bottom for golden perch, cod and others will often use a small teardrop sinker. Additionally this sinker can be added as a chin weight for swimbait lures to get them deeper on the retrieve. It is available in much lighter weights than the snapper lead and is therefore a good option for shallow water applications where you want the sinker at the bottom of your rig.
GLOW SINKERS Over the last decade or so, glow sinkers have become popular. These are mainly available in an egg shape or snapper lead profile in pink, green or white. The main idea of the glow sinker is that it acts as kind of a teaser or enticer. In deeper water it slightly illuminates due to the glow coating, the theory being that fish will come to investigate this unusual glow and then find the bait. When fishing at night, you will need to shine a torch on the glow sinker for a few seconds each time you retrieve it to ensure it will glow when deployed. Many anglers swear by the glow sinker’s effectiveness for night fishing and deeper water applications where it’s a degree darker.
SNAPPER Depending on where you live, this sinker could be called a snapper lead or dropper sinker. It is predominately used for deep water fishing where anglers are using a paternoster rig. It goes on the bottom of the rig, with the hooks a metre or so above, so it minimises snagging, especially when drift fishing. The snapper lead will simply drag across and over most rock and rubble structure. It can vary from a teardrop shape to a thin, elongated profile, the latter being the less likely to snag. The eyelet at the top of the sinker is the attachment point for your leader. Many simply put a loop in the end of the leader then put this through the eyelet and pass it over the bottom of the snapper lead to attach the sinker. This makes it easy to change sinkers from one size to another without cutting and shortening your leader each time. Snapper sinkers come in an array of sizes between 1-32oz and are a good option when fishing on the drift.
SINKER SLIDER For those fishing braid, heavier sinkers can pose a bit of a problem as they can abrade the line with constant sliding up and down. You either have to run a long monofilament or fluorocarbon leader so you can put the sinker on it instead of the braid, or use sinker slider. These plastic tubes come in several sizes and have a snap attached to which you can clip a snapper lead, teardrop sinker or star sinker. The tube will not abrade the line and the fish can easily run with the bait against minimal or no resistance as the line will slide through the tube easily. Additionally it’s easy to change the sinker weight when necessary without re-rigging. MARCH 2018
17
Stickbaits and how to use ‘twitchin’ sticks’ NSW STH COAST
Steve Starling www.starlofishing.com
Twitching, jerking and ripping shallow-running hard-bodied stickbaits have fish-catching relevance that extends far beyond our northern barra waters. Lure terminology can sure be a confusing
world where that term is greatly overused. Other Bomber colours certainly catch fish – often exceptionally well – but chromed gold or the more translucent tiger lily version (with dark bars over a prismatic gold and orange insert), have established themselves as the go-to Bomber finishes, especially amongst keen barra fishers in the north
excellent Japanese-made contenders from the likes of Jackall, Smith, Ecogear and Nories, along with a host of others far too numerous to list. There are also various cheap copies, a few of which work well, and some of which don’t. Buyer beware! Some of the important characteristics shared by the more successful twitching minnows are a
The classic Gold Bomber 15A in its Aussie-inspired barra bomber colour on top of a pile of similar shallow-diving twitch or jerk minnows – they’re all deadly under the right conditions.
Small bibs, a long, thin body and positive buoyancy characterise lures in this class. subject! Lures in the family of hardbodies I’m looking at here are often referred to by Aussie anglers as shallow-running minnows. However, there are plenty of shallow diving minnows out there that don’t necessarily tick all the boxes when it comes to the specific style of presentation I’m discussing, which can best be described as twitching, ripping or jerking… Yep – they’re Americanisms, for sure, but also rather apt descriptions of the presentations involved. One make and model of lure represents this niche so well that its name is frequently used to describe the entire family. That lure is the Bomber Long A, especially in its 15A (12cm) size, but also the smaller 14A (9cm) version. One colour in this lure (metallic gold) also sells as many as the rest put together. The Gold Bomber is a genuine classic in a
of the country. However, twitching a shallow-diving stickbait is a great way to catch all manner of fish and not just barra. By varying the lure model and size, this technique can easily be applied to bream, flathead, mangrove jacks, trevally, bass, estuary perch, redfin and even trout, to name just a handful of prime targets. Nor is their use confined the freshwater and estuary or inshore scenarios. Ripping and twitching shallow minnows can also be a great way to fire up tailor, salmon, kingfish, bonito, mackerel and tuna out on the blue water. Obviously, there are also many of other contenders capable of performing the same duties as a Bomber in this role. These include Rapala’s X-Rap and Shadow Rap ranges, Reidy’s B52, Classic Just Under, Cranka’s Shallow Minnow and several
long and thin profile, small bib, shallow operating depth, pronounced rolling action and positive buoyancy. In other words, they float at rest. Neutral buoyancy or suspending models certainly have their place, but sinking options are not so useful in the role described. This is worth bearing in mind if you’re upgrading hardware, as it’s easy to turn a floater into a sinker by fitting excessively heavy hooks and rings. All of these bomberstyle minnows are at their best when employed in their deadly twitching mode, especially when the target species is found in relatively shallow water (usually less than 2m), or suspended near the surface. The simple instructions printed on the back of the Aussie-inspired (and beefed-up) “Barra Bomber” 15A’s packaging offer a basic but useful description of one popular presentation
The old balsa Rapala Flat Rap is one of the author’s favourite twitch baits. strategy for working these and many similar floating/ diving twitch minnows: • Cast near a snag or cover and wait until the lure comes to rest as it floats
• Give the lure a sharp jerk with the rod and immediately take up the slack • Wait until the lure floats back to the surface • Count to five and repeat
While lures in this category are best known amongst barra fishers, they are capable of catching many other species.
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from Step 2. As the pack instructions go on to explain, “The strike nearly always occurs when the lure is floating up, or when it is on the surface.” In reality, the nuances involved in twitching a shallow running minnow of this type are limited only by the inventiveness of the angler. By varying the size of the lure to suit the target species and adjusting your rod work accordingly, twitching stickbaits is an applicable (and often deadly) method across an incredibly wide range of angling scenarios. In my opinion, it’s also an approach far too often overlooked by Aussie anglers. Why not make yourself a promise to give it a try this year?
GIFT
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We’re having an absolute pearler this month! YAMBA
Dave Gaden
Welcome to autumn! Early summer was pretty ordinary for those fishing offshore on the close reefs. Sure, there were some days when the fish lit up the way they should, but there were a lot more days when they just sat under the boat in the cold dark water and wouldn’t eat. We fished a lot out in the 50 fathoms chasing fish and it was great, with heaps
the wide grounds, mainly pearl perch, blue morwong and pigfish, but a lot of the snapper will come in and be more accessible to those with smaller boats. Fishing south from the North East Corner to Red Cliff in 30-50m of water will find good fish this month. A standard paternoster rig on the bottom with pillies or mullet for bait will be fine, but don’t forget to have a couple of floaters working. A floater for the mackerel should have 300mm of very fine wire
around the many bommies you’ll have a good chance of picking up a big Spanish mackerel. Get a few livies in the tank and just troll one behind the boat at dead idle, around 4 knots, around the bommies. You’ll be surprised at how productive that can be. The close reef up north can be trag city at times, and when these fish are on it’s not hard to bag out in an hour, and they can be quality fish to 70cm. Along with these will be some good bluespotted flathead on the reef
feeding on their own kind. You will be landing these fish and having them spit small flathead onto the deck almost every time. The FAD to the south has been a great success this year, with almost everyone I’ve spoken to who has fished it coming home with mahimahi for dinner. If you haven’t been out there, give it a go this month, it’s a bit of a drive but heaps of fun. Last month we had a pretty poor month on the crabs in the estuary unfortunately. We write these
A quality pearly for Rebecca Ciantar.
Young Max with a decent pearl perch. of snapper and pearl perch coming out of the deeper warmer water. These fish should have started to move into the close reef this month in good numbers like in previous years. There will still be quality fish on
to either a set of gangs or single hook with treble stinger with a pilly. This will catch all the spotties you can handle. You should also set a floater for the bigger snapper. Here I use a small lumo (glow
in the dark) sinker down to two snooded 6/0 circle hooks with a long strip of mullet or mac tuna. A small overhead reel is handy here, as you just flick the bait up current and let it sink down to the strike zone. When fishing like this on anchor and using coloured braid, you can see the fish are actually sitting in the same zone, and you will watch the line slowly peeling off until it hits the same depth and you’ll be on! This really is great fun. Be sure to berley hard if you are anchored.
Small to medium mulloway should be a reasonably easy target on the wrecks offshore. The old ferry just at the back of the bar, The Zodiac (approximately 12nm east of the bar) and the waverider approximately 7nm southeast (most would know this spot, as the FAD was anchored to it for the past four years). Fishing north around Black Rocks and South Evans this month with be well worth the 10-12nm drive from the bar. In close
Cameron Wall from Yamba with a beautifully-marked flying gurnard.
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reports a bit in advance, and I am still hopeful we will get a show of blue swimmers in reasonable numbers before the season ends. Dad’s rule of thumb was you catch crabs in months with an ‘R’ in them. Obviously here we just about get muddies all year round, but the swimmers will like it warmer. Whiting in the river should still be good this month throughout the whole lower system from Palmers Island to the mouth of the river. The shallows at the entrance to Lake Woolawayah, the southern side of Sleepers Island and the north side of Pelican Island will all be worth a try. Once again, live yabbies will bring a lot of better fish unstuck, so put the time in to get the best bait and it will make a difference. Flathead are going to
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Ryan Attard from Shelly Beach with a really solid pearl perch.
Jane with a nice mahimahi that came from the FAD.
start to gather around the usual haunts like the back channel on the Iluka side around the entrance to Nihill and Esk islands as well as around Joss Island at the entrance to Lake Woolawayah. A little further upstream, up from Browns Rocks is the entrance to Serpentine Channel on the side of Turkey Island. The bank of Turkey has a lot of old steel cane barges laid out, slowly rotting away. Have a flick around these with some larger dark plastics or blades, and it can be some of the best flathead fishing you will do this month. Off the stones there has been reasonable tailor all year, and the bait shoals are endless, so give them a crack from the end of the break walls. There is still a chance of hooking a longtail or big mulloway while doing this, so be prepared for anything, and as always be safe, the rocks are dangerous. Call into the shop at the marina and we will be more than happy to send you where they are biting on that day, or jump aboard one of my charters and we will do our best to send you home with a feed!
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21
Surface fishing is going off BALLINA
Joe Allan
The Richmond River has been fishing well over last month. The fresh water has stirred up most of the species in the lower
or the weed beds around North Creek. Make sure you have something rigged for a good-size flathead, as you will come across some good fish and be able to sight cast to them in the shallows. The mud crabs have been firing with good
on light crankbaits. You will come across a few of our red friends – the mighty mangrove jack – so be prepared to either beef up your gear or go back to the tackle shop with your wallet. But they say if you’re not losing lures, you’re not catching fish and having fun. There are some good numbers of bream getting
caught off the beaches. The dart and tailor have been a little quiet. Try the gutters around Boundary Creek along South Ballina for some good-size flathead. Blades, slugs and heavy soft plastic will do the trick if you can’t come across some fresh bait. Offshore there have been some quality snapper on the 32s as well as some good
Paul Starkey with a cracking snapper caught off Ballina. A feisty mangrove jack caught on an Atomic Shiner 75 Double Deep. reaches. The very long, hot days and humid evenings have really got the surface fishing going gangbusters. If you want to chase bream, try the Pimlico Island flats. If you’re after a feed of whiting, try the flats across from the town centre around the RSL club
catches reported along the mid sections of the river. Try baits such as mullet frames and luderick frames. The bigger tides seem to have bought the best numbers on. The rock walls along the town stretch and up Emigrant Creek are producing good numbers of quality bream
Jake Stewart with a thumping flathead caught from the town stretch of river in Ballina.
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size trag. The mahimahi have still been very consistent off the FADS. Since mid-December numbers of mackerel have not been what everyone would have liked. The mackerel have been all over place. One day they’re at Black Head and the next at Riodens Reef. The upper reaches of the river have been hit and
miss for Aussie bass. The big influx of fresh from the Tatham Arm has dirtied up the junction at Coraki. Chatterbaits, spinnerbaits and dark-coloured loud crankbaits around the drains and creek mouths are your best bet at finding some good fish. The fish will start to get active again once the water starts to clear up.
ADVERTORIAL
Movement restrictions apply this prawning season With the prawning season kicking off in South East Queensland it is important to remember movement restrictions are in place in Moreton Bay. To help protect Queensland’s beautiful natural waterways, fishers must not move raw prawns, yabbies and marine worms out of the white spot disease movement restriction area in South East Queensland. The restrictions are in place from Caloundra to the New South Wales border and west to Ipswich. They also apply to uncooked, frozen crustaceans as freezing does not destroy the virus. WHAT IS WHITE SPOT DISEASE? White spot disease is caused by a virus that affects crustaceans such as prawns, crabs, lobsters and yabbies. The disease was first detected in prawn farms along the Logan River south of Brisbane in
December 2016 and then subsequently in prawn and crab samples collected from the Logan River, Brisbane River, Moreton Bay and Deception Bay. In some situations, white spot disease can cause mass mortalities in prawns. While white spot disease does not affect fish, it is not known what impacts the disease could have on the marine food chain and local fish stocks. Prawns infected with white spot disease do not pose a risk to people’s health and are completely safe. LATEST RESULTS FROM TESTING The last round of testing for white spot disease was conducted in October 2017 and all samples returned negative results for the virus that causes white spot disease. This doesn’t necessarily mean white spot disease is gone, but it does indicate the disease may not be established in Moreton Bay. To confirm white spot disease has been
eradicated, Biosecurity Queensland will need negative test results consecutively for two years. The next round of testing is scheduled for March and April 2018. IDENTIFYING WHITE SPOT DISEASE Prawns with white spot disease may have a loose shell with numerous white spots on the inside surface of the shell and a pink to red discolouration. However, please note infected prawns and yabbies may not display any symptoms and white spots may appear for a range of reasons including freezer burn and bacterial and fungal infections. REPORT WHITE SPOT DISEASE If you find a prawn you think may have white spot disease it is important you take a photo of the prawn showing the spots, keep the prawn chilled and contact Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23 or report it through the white spot disease reporting form online at www.daf.qld. gov.au/wsd.
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Most target species are fired up right now THE TWEED
Anthony Coughran
Summer storms, humid nights and high water temperatures have fired up most species, and anglers are taking advantage of this. We’re having an unbelievable pelagic season this year. Great numbers of wahoo, dollies and marlin are still gracing us with their presence on most close reefs off Tweed. This allows the smaller boats to catch good pelagic species in close. The estuaries are still on fire with the high water temperatures. Jacks, GTs, whiting, flathead and bull sharks are all hitting hard. The upper rivers and back creeks of the Tweed are all fishing well at dusk and dawn for big surface-sucking bass. I know I keep saying it, but Tweed anglers are truly blessed with endless options and are getting the best out of all areas of fishing.
Finn Booth with a wahoo and his brother Max with a mahimahi. Nine-Mile, Five-Mile, Fidos, Kingy Bommy, the Hastings bommy, and Black Rock Reef for best results. There are still good mixed reefies on close reefs; float lining pilchards, microjigs and plastics will still catch a good feed. The odd cobia has been caught this month. Troll live baits at idle until you sound up good bait schools with arches off the back side of
The author with a pair of 13kg cobia taken from a close reef off Tweed. OFFSHORE The pelagic species are still running amok on close reefs off Tweed and right down to Cape Byron. Trolling skirted lures around the close reefs will put you onto some good marlin and wahoo. The 24s, 36s and 50-fathom reefs have been producing some really quality wahoo, mahimahi, blacks and blue marlin. Odd smaller black marlin are taking live baits on close reefs, so close reefs are well worth a troll too. The FAD traditionally produces some great mahimahi this month. Throw metals and plastics at these speedsters as they sit under the floats. Finding floating structure is the key to finding some pure gold. Look for fish traps, floating debris, dirty current lines and isolated bait schools to find these fish. The Spaniards and spotties have started to show up finally. Trolled baits, floating pilchards, live baits, metals and stickbaits are all producing fish on various reefs off the Tweed. Try 24
MARCH 2018
them, then go to neutral with the boat. Allow your baits to sink. This will put you on the money and onto a nice cobia. Try Nine-Mile, FiveMile, the mud hole, Fidos and South Reef. Good-size kingfish have been caught out wide on jigs. Try Deep Southern, the Tweed Canyons, isolated wrecks and the Windarra banks for one of these brutes. This time of year is when the odd larger king shows up on those deeper reefs, and anglers struggle to stop some of the larger models. Yellowfin tuna are sitting out wide. Look for bait schools in 25-27°C water to find these torpedoes. Trolling skirted lures over these schools, throwing metals and unweighted pilchards or live yakkas proves irresistible to most good-size feeding fish in the school. The odd spanner crab has been around outside the 24s and inside the 36s, and they’re a great way to get a feed if you spend the day trolling skirts out wide. Drop
the pots off on the way out and pull them in on the way back; this could see you with a seafood feast. Yakkas, pike and bonnies can be found at Kirra Reef, Point Reef, Ten-Minute Reef, the eastern yellow marker and the south side of Kingy Bommy if you need live bait. ESTUARY Great numbers of jacks have been caught so far, and with a month or two to go in the season they will only bite harder and more often. High water temperatures around 30°C and good amounts of bait in the system have meant the jack numbers just keep growing every year. Another great indication of this is the amount of estuary cod now in the Tweed. Numbers are looking like they are finally recovering from the spearfishers in the 1960-80s. Jacks and cod love sitting with each other and quite often feed off each other. The cod love cleaning up and stealing the jacks’ baits after the jacks stun their prey. Alternatively, the jacks will feed off the cod ambushing the bait; when the cod strike at the bait school the jacks will come in from the other side and pick off any loose stragglers, so where you find the jacks, you will find the cod and vice versa. Most bridges and rock walls in the Tweed region will hold a few good jacks and cod at this time of year. Live baits work at night on the run-in tide, and artificials fish better on the
run-out during the day. Cast artificials at pontoons, pylons, rock bars, walls, drains and underwater trees and structure. I normally run three setups when fishing artificials for jacks: one has 30-40lb line with a heavy plastic or deep diver hardbody, one has 20-30lb with a lighter plastic, vibe or surface lure, and one has 15-20lb and a smaller artificial. By using three different setups or more with three different styles of lures, you cover most hatch sizes and can fish the entire water column. You will also use less leader, which will save you a little money in the long run and means less time tying knots and more time casting at structure. When fishing live baits around bridges at night, you will need a couple of setups. I like running three setups again. I run a 30-40lb as a light setup for small singlehook baits, a 40-60lb setup for medium size doublehook baits around 15cm, and a 50-80lb setup on a doublehook rig for baits over 20cm. I still get smoked at least a few times a night on the 50-80lb – some fish you just can’t stop. Good numbers of GTs and bigeye have been around the bridges and rock walls. Blades, vibes, plastics, surface lures and small metals are working best. Using live herring around these bridges at night should score you a nice GT, too. Lots of whiting have
Nick Dillon and Andrew Strong with a tasty pair of mahimahi.
been hitting surface lures on most sand banks in the Tweed region, with some true elbow-slappers fighting over each other to smack high-speed retrieved surface lures. Sugarpens, small and clear poppers, walk-the-dog lures and resin-headed small grub plastics are all catching good fish. Yabbies and worms are a fun way to keep the kids entertained and get a good feed. Some good school-size flathead have been sitting up in the skinny water, with 2.5-5” plastics in natural colours fishing best on the flats. Lots of bull sharks have been in the upper
really well in the back creeks, upper river systems and dams. Jigspins, plastics, vibes and blades are fishing well once the sun is established. Casting into shaded areas or deeper holes is a must once the sun is up and can often lead to a bigger model. The dams are fishing well around the lilies of a morning and up around the timber once the sun is up. Uki has been fishing well in the morning with cicadas. The Upper Clarence has been fishing really well with lots of big cod and fat bass over 50cm taken recently.
Guy Hutchins with a big old cod at Boyds. river systems. Try soaking a freshwater eel, stingray flaps, whole live mullet, large tuna heads, whole tuna or whole bonito around Stots Island and the sugar mill for a bit of toothy fun. There are still good crabs moving around. Try the deeper hole in dry conditions and up in the drains after storms. Crabs will go to these drains to the fresh to wash off parasites. A well-placed pot will score you some nice muddies. BEACHES The bigger dart have moved into most Tweed Coast beach gutters and are in good numbers. Try small metals, small plastics, pilchards, white bait and worms for a good feed of dart. Remember to take an esky with you, because dart go off quick and should be put straight on ice for the best quality fillets. The odd tailor is still around. Metals and pilchards have caught a few around dusk and dawn in the deeper gutters and around most headlands. Some nice whiting are in the shallower gutters on the Tweed Coast. Worms will catch a good feed of beach whiting. Beach worms can be found on Fingal, Caba, and Ocean Shores beaches. Pipis can be found on Kirra Beach. FRESHWATER The surface suckers are in full swing now. Most surface lures are fishing
NEXT MONTH As the storms roll through it pushes the bait down the system and brings the evergrowing and ever-hungry jacks and cod out of hiding. They are eating everything now as they try and bulk up for the spawning season. The pelagics will start thinning out over the next month as they keep on their migratory paths. The mackerel will start moving onto closer reefs to feed up on their migratory paths. They will hold on the close reefs for a few days while the bait and weather can sustain them, moving on once they run out of food or when the northerlies pick up. Snapper will start slowly moving back onto the closer reefs over the next two months. Sounding up schools will put you onto fish. GTs and bigeye will sit around the river mouth and rock wall and can be really fun on light gear. Whiting and flathead will still sit up in the skinny water and continue to feed up. Next month is the last real month of the crabbing season, so they will be moving around as they fatten up for their hibernation period. The bass will start to push downstream to the salt this month. Any major back creeks and upper river systems that feed into salt will fish well. As will any weir wall, drains and dam walls.
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Offshore and inshore fishing is looking good GOLD COAST
Mark Ward barra09@live.com.au
March is a great month for fishing on the southern Gold Coast. Mangrove jack and whiting are at their best this month and offshore fishing improves, especially on the close reefs. OFFSHORE I’d like to report on what’s being caught recently as well as what
we can expect this month, however, the weather has kept us all off the water. It’s a shame because the mackerel have been on the move, with some good catches of spotties on the inshore grounds. With spotted mackerel on the chew, Mermaid and Palm Beach reefs can resemble the M1 on weekends, so patience and manners are a must. If you want to avoid the crowd, don’t ignore the gravel patches and smaller
Whiting are a great fish to target in March. Renee O’Neill landed this one in the Terranora Arm of the Tweed River.
Charlotte Turk from Townsville with a great 45cm salmon from a recent fishing trip with her dad at Cardwell.
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MARCH 2018
reefs. Mackerel will move around chasing bait and will be close to the beach breaks at times. There are a hundred techniques to catch them with strip baits, livies or pilchards on a float being the most popular. Lure fishing with slugs is a great way to target feeding fish with the trick being to work out how deep the fish are. We have seen them take a slug from just below the surface and other times the lure needs to hit the bottom before the retrieve is started. Rigging pilchards or garfish to troll is another technique that can be deadly when the fish are scattered. Bottom bashers may still encounter a few snapper as well as trag jew and some big schools of flathead. The deeper water is also producing good catches of pearl perch. On the wider grounds there have been amberjack and some good-sized kingfish. Jigs and live baits will produce the goods. These fish absolutely crunch jigs and are the hit and run experts, so learning how to deep water jig is very rewarding. There should also be some marlin around this month but the weather has made it hard with no recent reports of fish. This can all change with a run of good weather, so expect them to still be eating trolled skirts. Offshore fishing at this time of year can also produce wahoo, mahimahi and Spanish mackerel on lures as well as a host of species when fishing the bottom. It’s a great time of year to get out, so when the weather allows, make the most of it. BEACH AND ESTUARY The southern Gold Coast’s beaches and estuaries are alive with good catches of whiting and March should see it get even better. Fresh baits are the trick to success, with worms and yabbies in the estuaries and worms and pipis on the beaches. Wrigglers and bloodworms are the best worm baits for the creeks and rivers. They can be hard to get and expensive to buy, but the big whiting love them. On the beaches, a pipi threaded onto a long shank hook with a small piece of beach worm will also account for the bigger fish. Whiting are very shy and spook easily. You’ll always catch the smaller fish but if it is the big ones that you’re after then stealth is your best friend. This means never walking into the water and staying well away from
Mangrove jack will be in good numbers during March. the water’s edge. This is especially true in the surf. The bigger whiting will be feeding very close to the shoreline, so locate a gutter that sees deep water and waves breaking right on the shore; standing well back and lobbing baits close to shore will do the trick. Night fishing is another way to sneak up on whiting. The Nerang River is the best spot to chase whiting at night. They can be found in 2-5m of water. Instead of being up in the shallows, they will be in the deep edges of sand banks between Budds Beach and Isle of Capri. They love a lot of run in the water, so a simple running sinker rig with a long leader of around 2m is ideal. Using the lightest sinker that you can get away with is ideal. Cast out to the side of the boat or upstream if you’re fishing from the shore. This will see the bait move with the
current. Often you’ll need a size 4 or 5 sinker. The light sinker is only to keep the bait moving. Whiting don’t get too spooked by heavier lead, as they seem to hit baits hard and hook themselves. Striking too early is a common mistake; let them hit the bait and wait for the rod to load up. Mangrove jack also love the hot days and even an afternoon storm. Anglers familiar with the North Queensland wet season will know what the afternoon build-up is all about. Those thick, dark clouds begin to appear on the horizon and the water becomes very still. This is the best time to chase mangrove jack as well as early in the morning just before sunrise. Live baits and lures both work well with surface lures producing spectacular strikes, adding a real visual aspect to the fishing. A good tip for anglers wanting to chase mangrove
jack on surface lures is to look for clear water with plenty of baitfish. Jacks can be stubborn and stick close to structure. When there are nervous baitfish and clear water, the jacks will be out on the hunt. Continue to work close to structure though, as even when they are on the chew they don’t wander too far from home base. There have been a few good catches of flathead a bream in the Tweed but the warm water has made them a little hit and miss, especially in the smaller creeks. The lakes and canals between Mermaid Beach and Miami have been fishing extremely well. Soft plastics have produced everything from trevally to giant herring with early mornings being the best time. Overall, it is one of the best months for lure fishing inshore along with some exciting opportunities offshore.
Late afternoon cloud build-up and glassed-out water mean jacks are on the bite.
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The fishing stays hot after summer is gone more fish than deep water; this could be because of the heat of the water in such shallow ground. Baitfish like to sit up there on the flats in small, scattered schools and for a flathead there’s no shortage of food. Quite a few people have been coming into work asking for flathead surface lures. Basically, the best advice I can give them is fish the same way you do for whiting in the shallows – just a little bit faster with slightly heavier gear (if needed). You’ll find quality fish sit up there at times, so don’t be surprised to see a 70 or 80cm lizard rise on your lure!
GOLD COAST CANALS
Josh Dunn Instagram: @josh__dunn__
While the weather is starting to cool down slightly due to the rain and overcast weather, the fishing is far from cooling down! Lately plenty of pelagics are getting around along with bream, flathead and the odd whiting. March is my favourite month for surface fishing and the main species are mangrove jack and bream. Try using poppers that make a lot of noise and push quite a bit of water. Poppers aren’t the only surface lures that work; walk-the-dog style and small unweighted plastics definitely catch fish. Remember to change up your retrieve every now and then. I’ve found for bream and mangrove jack pausing the lure occasionally has been producing most fish. For trevally, a constant fastpaced retrieve will turn the predators’ heads! Whiting have been caught on most sand bars including Crab Island, Paradise Point the Council Chambers and most flats throughout Tipplers Channel
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MARCH 2018
As mentioned earlier, within the next month or two we should see temperatures drop slightly along with rainfall. In the past years, comparing the average monthly rainfall from February to March, March’s total dropped 40mm in comparison to February. So we should see less rain this month, which can benefit and negatively affect in different ways. In conclusion, March can be a productive month on the fishing scene in the canals. While a variety of species are biting, we will also see great weather! See you on the water!
Trevally aren’t the only predatory fish lurking at night. Flathead won’t pass up an easy meal under a bridge! and Jumpinpin. Small walkers around 60-100mm work well in most colours. If you spot weed beds, don’t pass them up so easy, as plenty of baitfish will use the weeds as shelter – whiting and bream won’t be too far behind. There is no shortage of trevally at night around bridges where the
streetlights are hitting the water. The new ZMan 3” Slim SwimZ are a perfect baitfish representation. As they are only half an inch larger, they have a larger tail and body profile, making the plastic look more lifelike when retrieved at a slower pace. Calico candy, blue steel and mood ring are favourites at night, rigged
on a TT Lures 1/6oz 2/0 HeadlockZ. Flathead have been found in good numbers at times, and at other times it may feel like a flathead never existed on the Gold Coast. In saying that, March can be a funny month for lizards, especially with the sudden changes in weather. Sand bars are producing
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Big fish are on the March JUMPINPIN
Mick Morris gembait@tpg.com
There have been pelagics hanging around chasing bait schools just off the Pin Bar over the warmer months and hopefully they will stick around a bit longer if the water stays warm enough for them. Mackerel, wahoo, dollies, small marlin and tuna are all on offer and the best part is that you don’t have to venture far past the Pin to access some real action. It looks as though it’s going to be another cracking prawning season similar to
last year’s that continued into May. Banana prawns have shown up in good numbers along the main channel from Jacobs Well through to the Powerlines and up in the deeper water near the Saltworks and Karragarra. This should fire up the bay snapper that will come down chasing a feed of prawns. In previous years when the prawns are on, snapper to 5kg can be caught around the Pin. Try around the deep water off Macleay, Giants Grave, Steiglitz and Rocky Point. It’s a good time of year for bream as they start to feed up for their breeding season in the coming months. The best baits to try are prawns,
yabbies, white bait and mullet gut. Flesh baits like bonito and mullet fillets are great baits as they stay on the hook longer and give you more of a chance to catch the fish. Using small hardbodied lures or twitching small soft plastics/vibes are great ways to target bream around the Pin area, as there is an abundance of structure you can target where they like to congregate. Jetties, rock walls, pylons or any mangrove/snag will hold bream. The pick spots to try this month will be from the Pig
about, which means they are undersized and need to be put back. They need to be over 75cm and have a bag limit of two. Live baits are working the best as usual but large banana prawns, pilchards, mullet fillets or bonito fillets work well too. Try around the deep water off Swan Bay, Kalinga Bank, Short Island, Giants Grave and in the Logan near Marks or Pitts Rocks. You can expect the flathead to keep biting all month with soft plastics producing some great catches now that the
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water has started to clean up. I’ve been catching flatties on plastics casting and retrieving them by twitching them along the bottom to imitate an injured baitfish, or drifting using a lifting action straight
up and down (tea bagging) to look like a rising baitfish. Flathead will usually hit the bait when it’s on the way down so be sure to give it a good lift upwards. If bait fishing is your go-to, live
mullet and herring are the best followed by prawns, pillies and whitebait. You’ll find good lizards at the first of the run-out tide from Kalinga Bank to the Bar in the deep, the Stockyards, west of Short Island, Cobby Passage and the mouth of the Logan. Try trolling the edges and drains from half tide down as the water starts to fall off the banks around Pandannus weed bank, Tipplers, behind Tabby Island, near Rocky Point and the Slipping Sands. There are still some good muddies coming from the rivers and sandies around from the mouth of the Logan to Mosquito and Tabby Tabby Island. The deeper parts of Canaipa Passage has been producing some good sandies as well. • Thanks for all your reports and fish weighed in. Drop us a line at Gem Bait and Tackle if you’d like to order bait or get some up-to-date info on what’s biting on (07) 3287 3868 or email gembait@ tpg.com.au.
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Marlin are out wider this March March is a good month to target a wide range of pelagic species off the
GOLD COAST
David Green
Gold Coast. This season so far has been quite erratic, with good numbers of
This whiting was caught on a Sugapen.
marlin showing up early in the season on the inshore grounds one day and being absent the next. In March most of the black marlin action takes place on the wider grounds on the 70-80m line around the areas where big schools of slimy mackerel, pilchards and yellowtail are found. Slow trolling live baits and deep live baits is generally the most effective option but through the month the black marlin diminish in numbers as they migrate south on the East Australian Current. Most of the fish encountered in March tend to be bigger, ranging from 40-100kg. Mahimahi become less common this month while wahoo numbers often increase. These are the main two by-catch species encountered when chasing billfish on the troll. If you are lucky enough to find a floating object out at sea, there are usually mahimahi and wahoo close by. Out further beyond the 100m line March is a great month to chase blue marlin. Trolling a spread of big skirted lures on 37kg tackle is the usual method.
Laura Priest with a nice black marlin.
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MARCH 2018
These crazy fish average around 140kg and fishing for them from a small boat is one of the greatest challenges in fishing. They can empty a reel in less than a minute, so it’s important to chase the fish with the boat immediately after the hooks go in. I’ve caught quite a lot of blue marlin from my 6m tinny and every one of them has been a challenge. It requires a lot of patience when the fish goes deep and some of our fights have lasted several hours. In closer to shore, March is a great month to chase both Spanish and spotted mackerel. Areas such as Palm Beach Reef, Mermaid Reef and the Gravel Patch off Burleigh Heads produce a lot of mackerel this month. Anchoring up and berleying with chopped pilchards can be an effective method to bring mackerel around your boat, and spinning with metal lures, floating pilchards and live baits are all effective methods. Slow trolling rigged dead baits such as tailor and bonito is another very effective method. Perhaps the best method of all, particularly when the fish are shy, is to slow troll live baits using a downrigger. Set the bait so it’s about 5m
Brylee Wheeler with a beautiful mahimahi. off the bottom and slowly troll it around the reefs, pinnacles and bait schools where the fish are holding. At times trolling hardbodied minnows and skirts can be very effective, but over the last few seasons this has been the least productive method I know of.
There should be a few wahoo starting to appear on the Nine-Mile Reef off Tweed Heads this month. Trolling high-speed skirts, slow trolling live tuna and jigging can all be effective. This spot requires a fair bit of current to fire up, but when the blue water
runs hard over the NineMile Reef there are usually wahoo around with quite a few good specimens over 20kg turning up. It’s hard to troll too fast for a wahoo, and some locals commonly troll at around 15 knots! Bottom fishing is generally slow this month
and is usually affected by current. There should still be a few juvenile snapper, pearl perch and tuskfish around on the 36 fathom line, but this will improve in coming months as the water cools. ESTUARIES March is a good month to target whiting, mangrove jack, mulloway and both sand and mud crabs. There should also be plenty of big banana prawns in the lower end of Moreton Bay. The water tends to cool down a little towards the end of the month and this sees an increase in fish activity. It’s also a common time of year to see big dumps of rain or the aftermath of cyclones and rain depressions. This can produce great crabbing and fishing once the dirty water settles down. In March, the mangrove jack often start to move towards the Seaway area. In most northern areas mangrove jack tend to move offshore when they reach around 45cm, but on the Gold Coast a lot of these fish stay in the estuaries for a lot longer, and 50-60cm fish are relatively common. In the Seaway area, the jacks increase in numbers around the rock walls, especially at the end of the north wall. These fish will eat live baits and jigged soft plastics but are notoriously
difficult to get out from their rocky lairs. Further up river, March is a great month to chase mangrove jack on surface lures early in the morning. In the hour around dawn jacks are very active and often move considerable distances from cover. Poppers such as the Storm Chug Bug or the Lucky Craft G Splash both attract plenty of attention. Whiting should be in good numbers in the Nerang River, Pimpama River, Coombabah Creek and on the flats around Wave Break Island this month. Small stickbaits worked over the flats and good live baits like baby soldier crabs, yabbies, blood worms and shrimp are all very effective. The run-in tide generally fishes well. As well as whiting, expect a few 40-50cm flathead and bream as a by-catch. The Seaway and Jumpinpin entrances produce reasonable numbers of mulloway from 70-100cm this month on live baits and deep soft plastics. If the bait schools are thick there are generally a few mulloway in attendance. Upriver March is a good month to chase mud crabs and the banana prawns have already started to show in numbers, so it all points to an excellent prawn season ahead.
Skills still need a lifejacket.
Our lakes and dams are still some of the best spots to enjoy water sports. But still water can still be dangerous. So when boating, make sure you have the following: - Lifejacket(s) - Sun protective gear - An anchor - A signalling device - Oars & bailing equipment - Drinking water - Firefighting equipment
Play it safe on our lakes and dams and always wear the proper safety gear. seqwater.com.au MARCH 2018
33
The prawns are bringing in the bigger fish the shallow water as shallow as 1m. Look for birds feeding on the surface – this is a dead giveaway. Summer whiting have still been about throughout the southern bay. Reports of large fish have been common over the last month. Most fishers have been targeting these with freshly dug worms. Digging worms yourself will often yield better results. The best spots this month
SOUTHERN BAY
Nick Whyte
The past month has been a good month for prawns, and with the prawns the predators aren’t too far away. The mulloway, flatties, threadies and bream have been dominating catches. You’ll be surprised where you can find them, especially right up in
have been in the Logan River at the Lone Pine or the Council Chambers in the Nerang River. The Brisbane River has been producing some great fish and there have been large numbers of threadfin salmon and mulloway from the port area. There have also been some fish upriver but the larger fish have been towards the mouth at the moment. The fish can be stacked up in great schools and sessions of 10+ fish over a metre are common at this time of year. Just remember that these fish suffer from barotrauma when pulled from deep water and if you are practicing catch and release, try and have a release weight handy to get the fish back to the bottom. Take care when handling them and don’t keep them out of the water too long. Targeting these fish is awesome fun
Glen Kampe with a goldspot cod caught on a Cranka Crab.
Richie Lucker with an average mulloway.
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but if you don’t release them properly, they will have very little chance of survival. There are still some nice mangrove jack being caught
E
and there still should be some good numbers around this month before they head offshore to breed. At this time of year you can find big congregations around the bar and river entrances. The Seaway is the place to fish this month, and Amity rock wall is worth a look. Remember to fish heavy for these guys, as you will be targeting the larger fish. They’ll have no
problem taking you back into structure on light tackle. All canal systems and creeks have been producing good numbers, but it seems as though the Coomera has been the pick of the bunch this month. Some great quality and plenty of numbers are coming from there. Work all the main bridges around Sovereign and up through the river. Deep plastics and deep
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Nabeel with a cracker threadfin.
running hardbodies are the go. The 6” paddle-tail plastics like the ZMan SwimmerZ rigged on heavy jigheads will see you coming up with the goods. Spotty mackerel have been prevalent in the top part of Moreton Bay. Sand hills have been a regular producer. Most fish are still an average size but there is the occasional bigger fish up to 1m. The longtail should heat up this month with bigger schools pushing down into the bay. There have been reports of fish to 20kg; at the moment they’re still only small schools and very hard to target with lots of boat traffic. With the prawns running the bream will be throughout the southern bay around all the shallow rock points. This is a great time of year to target these fish on small topwater lures. The rocks around the power lines, the top of Macleay at Pats Point and Lambs Rocks are all great places to have a look. If you have a great capture from the southern bay you would like to share, email them through to techfishing@ hotmail.com. Until next month, tech-it-easy.
ADVERTORIAL
Fishing restrictions in place
on the Logan River
Anyone fishing in Southern Moreton Bay and the Logan River should be aware of new fishing restrictions that prohibit all forms of fishing in and around prawn farms in South East Queensland. The fishing restrictions have been imposed to reduce the risk of introducing diseases, like white spot disease, into prawn farms along the Logan River. This means all fishing, including crab potting, cast netting, line fishing and bait gathering is prohibited within 100m of water intake and outlet channels and in drainage channels used by land-based prawn farms in the Logan River region. Signs are being erected to help you identify the locations where the restrictions apply. The restricted areas are
relatively small so should not have a big impact on fishers. While you may need to change where you fish, these restrictions will help protect Queensland’s natural waterways. Please familiarise yourself with the areas that are now closed to fishing, as heavy penalties may apply. WHY ARE THE FISHING RESTRICTIONS IN PLACE? Prawn farms and the waterways around them are high-risk areas for aquatic diseases. Fishing in these areas may increase the likelihood of a disease being introduced to the farm if contaminated bait is used. DURATION OF THE RESTRICTIONS The fishing restrictions are in regulation and will be in place indefinitely.
RESTRICTED AREAS A map showing the locations of where fishing is now restricted is available at daf.qld. gov.au/wsd.
WHAT IS WHITE SPOT DISEASE? White spot disease is a highly contagious viral infection that affects crustaceans such as prawns, yabbies and marine worms.
When found in high intensity production areas, such as prawn farms, white spot disease results in the rapid mortality of prawns. The virus that causes white spot disease does not affect humans at all, so all prawns in Queensland are
completely safe to eat. REPORT ILLEGAL FISHING If you see illegal fishing please report it via the 24-hour Fishwatch hotline on 1800 017 116 or the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries on 13 25 23.
WHITE SPOT DISEASE BIOSECURITY ZONE
No fishing within 100m of prawn farms along the Logan River Logan River
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Report illegal fishing – call 13 25 23 or visit www.daf.qld.gov.au/wsd
Southern Junior
Chasing shallow water stalkers MORETON BAY
Ryan Smith
Over the last couple of weeks I have been chasing estuary species such as bream, whiting and flathead on surface lures in shallow water. Walking the sand flats with a handful of lures has got to be my favourite way to fish. Targeting fish in water that barely covers
your ankles is a whole lot of fun. A variety of species such as whiting, bream, flathead, tailor and even sharks will push up on the flats and actively hunt for food. This food includes yabbies, prawns, a variety of baitfish and little crabs. Always take into account what food is going to be in the area where you are fishing. On the flats, I like
Putting assist hooks on the back of surface lures allows you to hook even the most finicky of fish.
to use surface lures like the Bassday Sugapen and Daiwa Slippery Dog, and recently I have been trying out the new Nomad Chug Norris and Dartwing. I like to use these around the low light periods and also on overcast days, however they will still work on bright sunny days. Other lures I like to have in my box are a range of deep and shallow crankbaits like the Atomic Crank 38 and Jackall Chubbys. A few packets of soft plastics are also handy to have, especially any around the 3” size with a paddle or curl tail. Fairly simple and light gear is required for walking the flats, and chances are you already have a combo that would fit the bill. A rod at 7ft and around the 2-6lb class with a small 1000-2000 reel loaded with some 6lb braid is all that is needed. Leader material matters, because monofilament leader floats while fluorocarbon leader sinks. When using the small surface lures, I like to run a monofilament leader so the lure isn’t being pulled down under the surface by the
weight of the fluorocarbon leader. The stretch in the monofilament also helps you not to pull hooks on fish, especially with the small assist hooks that I like to run on the back of surface lures. However, if I am using soft plastics or hardbodies I will use a fluorocarbon leader because it is almost invisible underwater. Google Maps is one of the best tools out there when you’re looking for a spot to fish. Recently, the edges of weed beds and small drains when the tide is receding have been holding the better numbers of fish. A deeper drop-off is also a great spot to target as the tide comes up on top of the flat. When this happens, the fish come out of the deeper water and onto the flat to begin searching for food. The weather is another consideration when flats fishing. Low light times are usually the best, but if you aren’t a morning person then the daylight hours can still produce some good fishing opportunities, albeit not as consistently as low-light periods. The worst days are bright sunny days with no wind; they
The author caught this whiting using a Bassday Sugapen. can be very hard to fish. Conversely, overcast days with a 10-knot breeze can produce some of the best flats fishing around. As always, when fishing the flats a long cast is needed so you should always work with the wind and not against it. One last tip is to always be quiet when moving around in the water so
you don’t spook any fish. Sound travels a lot further underwater, and the quieter you can be, the more fish you will catch. If you are chasing any further advice or looking for a few lures head into Bayside Bait and Tackle in Victoria Point where the guys are always willing to help. Tight line and screaming drags!
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Bay anglers enjoying a broad array of species BRISBANE
Gordon Macdonald masterbaitertackle@hotmail.com
Anglers fishing Moreton Bay have been blessed with quality fishing over the last few months. Pelagic activity has been great with a broad array of mackerel and tuna species as well as an occasional cobia and yellowtail kingfish being caught. Other Moreton Bay bounties will continue into March including crabs, prawns, snapper, sweetlip, tuskfish and more. Estuarine anglers have also scored with mangrove jack, threadfin, mud crabs, estuary cod, trevally, flathead, bream and others on offer. Basically, March anglers will be treated to a broad array of quality species no matter whether they are fishing within Moreton Bay or the river and estuarine systems. Let’s look at a few of the more prominent options. PRAWNS The start of the prawning season has been excellent with great catches reported from late December in the Pine and Caboolture rivers with mainly small to mediumsized banana prawns. By mid-January, there were reports from the southern bay with the Saltworks and numerous spots further south including the power lines and out from Rudy Maas Marina being good places to have a few shots with the net. By early February the prawns were mainly medium–sized with a healthy scattering of large bananas and the occasional black tiger being caught. It was very early for these southern bay areas to fire and hopefully the abundance will continue over the next few months. Additionally the Caboolture, Brisbane, Pine and Logan rivers will still be worth a try in the coming months. Your sounder is extremely important for locating prawns. They will generally show up as a haze close to the bottom when you have your sensitivity set relatively high. On my Lowrance prawns show blue and on my Humminbird it is a bluey-green colour. Due to current, your net will not always sink directly down and you need to judge the net drift so it still lands over the prawns when it hits the bottom. A metre or two off the mark may see you get a few prawns. If you get it right, you can get several 38
MARCH 2018
kilograms in a single cast. It’s actually possible to get your full 10L limit in one shot. Usually when the prawns are this thick you will only keep the large specimens and release the smaller ones. Consequent casts will see you fill your limit with large bananas – happy days! There are a lot of quality nets available to keen prawners. Until recently you could only buy a locally-made net if you wanted a quality 12ft top pocket model, ideal for the purpose. These are generally well made yet relatively expensive and you would often need to wait a few weeks to get a net, especially in the height of the season. Drew Argus’s Pro-Throw nets have filled a gap in the market by offering a series of locally designed, well made nets
MACKEREL The spotted mackerel were great during late January and well into February. While they weren’t constantly on the boil, there were plenty available for those willing to put in the effort and have a decent look about. I had plenty of great sessions chasing them with the majority found in the eastern side of the bay from up near the Curtin south to the Harry Atkinson. There have been a few reports from in front of Wellington Point, the Naval Reserve Banks and the Peel Island area. Recently, I hadn’t heard of any reports further south, however spotties often reside in the Banana Banks area late in the season, so this area may be worth a look during March. Late in January and early February
As they spread and sink flatter, quality cast nets will make the task of gathering a feed of banana prawns easier and more enjoyable. that are readily available at most good tackle stores and won’t break the budget. I have owned several quality prawning nets over the years and recently purchased a four-reduction 12ft top pocket Pro-Throw. I find it a great net that casts well, spreads easily and sinks relatively flat for maximum coverage by the time it hits the bottom. Check them out if you are considering a quality prawning net; you won’t be disappointed.
the baitfish were around 2-3cm long and as such the spotties were mainly eating profiles of this size. An array or chromed, pearl or pink offerings in the 10-25g range were successful. This month most of the bait will have grown somewhat and larger offerings including slugs and slices up to 50g will work. Other offerings, such as jighead rigged jerkshad plastics, small stickbaits and baitfish-profiled flies will all work a treat on
Longtail numbers have been sporadic in recent seasons. Hopefully in March anglers will find a few quality specimens throughout Moreton Bay. spotties when delivered with a flat-stick retrieve. From a distance, the surface splash of a spotted mackerel is quite distinctive and somewhat different to that made by school mackerel and all tuna species. Spotties will often herd the bait into a dense ball and then take turns slashing through this bait as they feed. These bait balls, often referred to as ‘meatballs,’ can even rise slightly above the water surface as the bait below pushes the condensed ball upwards. Casting past the meatball and retrieving your slug adjacent to it will usually guarantee a strike. When the baitfish are less condensed, the feeding can be even more frantic, widespread and less organised. While retrieving through the fray is likely to get you a strike, biteoffs are more common when using monofilament and fluorocarbon leaders. A small piece of wire in front of your lure can guarantee you don’t get bitten off but will usually reduce and sometimes halt strikes. Even if you’re not actively feeding on the surface, spotties will often cruise just below the surface as they hunt for baitfish. The V-shape wake, visible in calm conditions, is a giveaway of their presence. A lure cast ahead of them so that it intersects their path will often be chased down and engulfed. Spotties can be taken on slugs jigged around the beacons, however they are more open water feeders than school mackerel. A pilchard beneath a float will often produce a few fish around the fringes of the bay islands, the Measured
Mile area and the artificial reefs. Spotted mackerel numbers should hopefully continue well into March. OTHER BAY PELAGICS Wi t h increased numbers of baitfish in Moreton Bay, anglers will also encounter quite a few other pelagic species. School mackerel, mac tuna, longtail tuna and cobia can all be encountered in varying numbers. Longtails have been scarce in recent months, however over the next few months we should hopefully see their numbers increase. Stickbaits, chromed slugs, baitfishprofiled flies, jerk-shad plastics, pencil poppers and numerous other lures can be used to tempt longtail tuna. Live baiting around the beacons, around current lines and along the edges of major channels is likely to produce. School mackerel numbers have been overshadowed by the spotties over the last two months, however there are still a few around. Jigging beacons with chromed slugs and slices or deploying pilchards and small live baits into these zones will likely reward. Pilchards will also produce the goods round the fringes of the bay islands, in the major channels and at the artificial reefs (Curtin, Harry Atkinson, Bill Turner, Scarborough and Peel). The occasional surface feeding schools may be found, however many of the schoolies will be caught deeper in the water column. Schools of mac tuna, bullet tuna and bonito may also be found randomly throughout the bay. Small chromed slices, slugs and
baitfish-profiled flies are the best way to tempt these smaller tunas and bonito, which both make excellent baits for an array of species. Cobia can also be caught at various locations throughout Moreton Bay, and while the occasional cobia is taken on lures, most are tempted with live offerings. Deploying baits such as yakkas, slimy mackerel, fusiliers and crabs around the beacons, the edges of ledges and the artificial reefs is likely to get you stretched. However, cobia can show up almost anywhere and will occasionally be taken from the fringes of surface feeding pelagic schools and on lures targeted at snapper and the like around the reef, coffee rock and rubble grounds. BRISBANE RIVER A good array of species will be on offer in the Brisbane River during March. Threadfin are one of the more commonly targeted species, however cod, mulloway, flathead, bream, snapper and numerous others are serious contenders. Hopping vibes (both soft and hard) and jigheadrigged plastics along the edges of the declines into the main riverbed, adjacent the numerous jetties and around submerged ledges is likely to yield a broad array of species. Live offerings including mullet, herring, banana prawns and gar are prime offerings when fished close to the bottom in these zones. Plenty of sharks, rays, pike eels and catfish will also take a liking to these offerings. If you specifically want to target sharks, larger live offerings
such as mullet and catfish are the way to go. Catfish are a prime food source for river whalers, who have become accustomed to eating the tail section and leaving the head and three venomous spikes, so you need to ensure you have at least one hook near the rear of the tail to guarantee a hook-up. Fishing around lit areas such as the bridges at night with a catfish (up to around 40cm) suspended a metre or so below a float is highly likely to produce. The catfish are a bottom dweller, so they feel uncomfortable in the upper sector of the water and constantly struggle. This will attract and excite any shark in the near vicinity and will increase your chances considerably. These catfish, as well as other larger baits such as eels, mullet fillets, tuna strips and the like, can be fished on the bottom along the edges of the river decline with surprising results. Further upriver where there is less boat traffic, these baits can be fished close to shore as the whalers have a tendency to cruise this shallower zone as they move up and down with the tide. This allows anglers to target them at an array of locations along the river’s length all the way
Anthony Johnson recently subdued this 123cm cobia on 16lb leader while fishing plastics in the Rainbow Channel. up to Mount Crosby. Sounding the declines and ledges in the Brisbane River will increase your chances of locating threadfin, which show up prominently on quality electronics. Casting to these fish with vibration baits, plastics, micro-jigs and the like will reward.
Often numerous fish can be taken in a session along with an array of other species. The dredge holes along the retaining wall at the mouth, lit areas at night and areas where current is altered due to natural or artificial structure are prime places to probe. March is also a good
month for cod. The retaining wall at the mouth, the Claras Rocks area, along the sunken wall and around the bases of the larger jetty pylons are all prime places to search. Cod will take most lures and baits presented to them and are scrappy fighters and prime table fare to boot.
CRABS Good numbers of blue swimmer crabs should be on offer during March throughout Moreton Bay. The larger males are often available in numbers and a single pot can contain double figures of keepers if set in the right area. Pots should be set for at least a few hours, preferably overnight, however with the prevalence of pot theft and raiding many are hesitant to leave their pots unattended for too long. The outer margins of the bay islands, the edges of prominent channels and the main gutters leading off the sand flats are prime places to set your safety pots. These are best baited with whole mullet, fish frames, chicken carcasses or a fish head. Smaller baits such as pilchards and fish offcuts are also worth using but will need to be encased in a mesh bag. With the few decent storms we have had in recent months, the mud crabs have been fairly consistent for those who target them. While setting pots anywhere in the estuary, creeks and rivers may produce the odd muddy, smart placement will greatly improve results. Towards the top of the tide, setting your pots at the mouths of the gutters
and drains leading out of the mangrove expanse will heighten results, as muddies feeding in these areas will retreat through these outlets with the falling tide. Taking the time to ensure the entrances are facing directly into the direction of water flow will also pay dividends. Collapsed mangrove banks, deep holes and the upper reaches of small estuarine creeks are all prime pots to set pots for muddies. CONCLUSION March is a great month to be out on the water. Conditions are still fairly hot, but it’s pleasant to be in the great outdoors. Numerous species are on offer and March is one month when all sorts of possibilities are likely. Whether your focus is fishing, prawning, crabbing or a combination of all three, there will be plenty to offer those who like to secure their own seafood feast or just have a bit of sport. Good numbers of mackerel, mangrove jack, crabs, prawns and other pelagic species will still abound. We should also begin to notice an increase in quality snapper, longtail tuna and other estuarine, river and bay species. Often the hardest part of your day is deciding what species to target next.
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Toothy pelagics rising to baits this month BRISBANE OFFSHORE
John Gooding
March can be a very productive month for targeting the razor gang east of the South Passage Bar and normally they’re good quality fish. After a good early run of wahoo, north of Cape Moreton both Spanish mackerel and wahoo catches have been sporadic. As I’ve mentioned in previous reports, the Spanish mackerel hung around a lot longer than normal last season and there’s no reason we won’t see another solid late
A bag-out on amberjack with a few quality trag as a bonus.
This is the result of a double hook-up on live bait. run. The years we see a lot of strong northerlies during the pelagic season, fish numbers are normally down, but the weather pattern so far this season has been more the usual dominant southeasterlies, which bring the cleaner water in close to our coastline along with the baitfish and pelagics in pursuit. At this time of year, I prefer to target both Spanish mackerel and wahoo with live bait and slimy mackerel or smaller tuna such as mac tuna or Australian bonito make quality baits. To keep the tuna alive you will need
tuna tubes on your boat but you can usually keep quite a few large slimies alive in your bait tank as long as you don’t overload the tank. Troll speed with the livies should be at dead idle and having baits both on the surface and down deep with the aid of a downrigger will both take their fair share of fish. Be sure to keep a close eye on your rods as baits can get cut in half without the reel even turning. Don’t rely on your reel racket for strike notification; if you watch your rod tips, you can quite often see the rod tip flickering as
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your livie is getting nervous as they see what’s coming. When trolling areas such as Point Lookout, you can often have a strong southerly current, so I prefer to troll with the current and keep my baits deeper in the water, so at the end of my run I will wind the gear I and run back to the start of the run and get the baits back in the water. Peak bite times are dawn and dusk, but I’ve caught plenty of quality fish in the middle of the day on tide or weather changes. One last tip – make sure your reels have smooth drags as these fish can be well over 20kg with explosive pace and substandard gear can cause you to lose the fish of a lifetime.
On charter lately we’ve still been predominantly live baiting, with amberjack and trag making up the bulk of catches and they should continue this month. Other options this month include working the 100m line east of Point Lookout for pearl perch, especially on those steamy glassed-out days and the wave buoy off Lookout should be holding a few mahimahi. • Until next month, enjoy your fishing, take care on the coastal bars and if you’d like to join me on charter (max. eight persons), give me a call on (07) 3822 9527 or 0418 738 750 or visit my website outlawcharters.com.au.
A colourful group with a mixed bag of amberjack and trag.
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Great summer weather has kept fish biting NORTHERN BAY
Grayson Fong graysonfong@bigpond.com
We had a great summer, with weather patterns showing great consistency in the temperatures during the day and even the wind direction throughout
the weeks. Being quite a humid summer, water temperatures stayed consistently warm, making fishing rather fruitful with feeding activities remaining high for most species. With northerlies dominating the holiday period, it was been nice to see a nice
cooler southerly change hang around throughout last month. Our rivers have been on fire lately with the twice yearly prawn run gracing us early, giving anglers something to chase while having a break from fishing. Schultz Canal, Nudgee Beach, the Pine,
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Deception Bay and the Caboolture River have all produced good hauls of school and banana prawns, giving hard-working cast netters some reward. This has lead to good fishing in these areas too with the abundance of bait keeping bream, flathead and school mulloway in our northern bay estuarine systems. BREAM A reliable indication for increased bait schools in an area is usually the presence of bream, both big and small. The Redcliffe Peninsula has shown better-than-average numbers of bream with good consistency shown by sizes around 27-28cm fork
length. Many of these have been roaming in packs of 6-8 fish; be sure to remove your hooked fish quickly, as there is a high chance you may be on again with the next cast. Mullet strips, raw chicken and cooked prawns have been the most successful baits for bream, with a lot of anglers also getting good hauls on soft plastics and hardbody lures like crankbaits. Transparent colours have been working a treat, as the water clarity has been quite good recently with little rain activity keeping the fish spread out. The peninsula hasn’t been the only place firing with bream – our estuaries are showing good form, particularly the Pine and Caboolture rivers and Pumicestone Passage. The Pine and Caboolture rivers have been working better on the incoming tide, with the bream chasing bait and prawns up into the rivers and amongst the mangroves, which is quite a contrast from Pumicestone Passage, which has been firing on the receding tide. This is a good time to take advantage of the many creek mouths in the Passage as anchoring at these mouths can help you ambush fish on the move. Light sinkers with baits and deep diving cranks on light leaders can ensure your presentation remains in the strike zone for longer. Flathead numbers have really picked up over the last month, as recent rains and our annual prawn run have these stealthy assassins schooling up around our river months. The pick of the areas has been the lower reaches of the Pine River, with flathead reports extending all the way up to Dohles Rocks. The ebbing tide is the choice of times for many of the locals. Soft plastics have been pick of the artificials. For the diehard baitos, pilchard
Jesse Gough with some decent estuary prawns. halves, live poddy mullet or herring, whitebait and even mullet strips have been working a treat. With this warm weather, there have still been some reports of mangrove jack being caught. The Pine and Caboolture rivers are the places of interest. Live baiting prawns at night has been working well for the patient anglers. Slow rolling soft plastics working for the cast and retrieve lure buffs. Sand crabs have still been caught over this back end of the summer, with
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Pumicestone Passage and Scarborough being the pick of the places. Good mud crabs have also been caught, but the numbers have been slow due to intermittent rains. TIP OF THE MONTH Just because water is all around you when you’re fishing, that doesn’t mean you can’t have any in the boat for drinking! Be sure to pack a minimum of 2L per person when heading out for the day, on sunny days and cloudy ones too. Hydration can save your life!
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March madness for local offshore anglers! NOOSA
Peter Wells
March is one of those great months when offshore anglers are rewarded with good numbers of both mixed pelagic and reef species. Sunshine Reef has seen its best run of coral trout in some time with quality fish to 6kg being caught. Well-presented pilchards and live baits have been their undoing. Mixed catches of snapper, Moses perch, Maori cod, spangled emperor, redthroat emperor and Venus tuskfish have all been landed. Spanish and spotted mackerel and mixed tuna species have been in good numbers with anglers working the birds and casting 30-50g slugs or 5-7” flick bait soft plastics. For those with larger craft, the reefs off Double Island have been producing great catches with snapper, Maori cod, Venus tuskfish, coral bream, Moses perch and pearl perch all hitting the decks with the odd big red emperor also in the mix. Most anglers fishing these reef patches have been filling their live bait tanks with yakkas and slimy mackerel, which have accounted for the better fish. Fresh mullet fillets, bonito fillets, whole squid and pilchards have been the dead baits of choice. Soft plastics
have also claimed some good fish with the Gulp and ZMan 7” Jerk shads rigged on Berkley Elevator Heads delivering great success on these reef species. Micro-jigs have also been producing the goods with the new Wonderfalls from Shimano
Kalini Love with a spectacular golden trevally taken from Old Woman Island on a ZMan soft plastic.
Steve Cook with a monster Spanish taken off Coolum Reef using a yellowtail pike as bait. The big Spanish tipped the scales to 29.8kg.
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and Palms Slow Blatts jigs proving their worth. Heading south the red hot fishing action continues on North Reef with grassy sweetlip, Venus tuskfish, goldspot wrasse, snapper, Maori cod, scarlet sea perch and pearl perch all on offer.
Baits have again been the most popular method in this area with the ones listed above working well. Good rigging methods are a standard running ball sinker rig with snelled hooks and this rig is most effective around the tide changes when there is minimal current. When drifting switching to a paternoster rig can be very effective. For those opting to fish lures, downsizing to lures like the Gulp or ZMan 5” jerk shads has been rewarding. Trolling big hardbodies has also been getting plenty of action with the Nomad DTX Minnows a real winner. Trolling allows anglers to cover larger areas of water, which in turn presents your
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offering to fish. Those who love to slow troll the Spanish Special exclusive to Davos, have again got the runs on the board. These rigs are perfect for a slimy or large pilchard and are designed to be trolled at very low speeds. They are rigged with a squid skirt and with blades flashing they really attract those big pelagics. The Noosa River has again been producing some great fish. Tailor and trevally have been in great numbers with surface poppers and walkers the way to go. Anglers are seeing some great surface action with these predators following schools of bait in on the high tide. Team this with an early morning or late afternoon and you are on a real winner. Areas like Woods Bay, Noosa Sound, Munna Point and even the ski runs have all produced good fish. Flathead have been plentiful in the river and drifting with the tide flicking prawn profile and paddletailed soft plastics has seen anglers picking up some quality fish. Mangrove jack are still feeding hard, with plenty of fish being taken around the pontoons and pylons that line the banks of the river. For those fishing upstream working the many fallen trees that line the river edge has been successful. Trolling the rock bars around Johns Landing has been a prime spot. Whiting are still in good numbers, with the Frying Pan and Gympie Terrace both producing some great fish. For the bait anglers live beach worms, peeled prawns and yabbies have been the gun baits. For those who love chasing them on the surface, give the Ecogear PX55F and the Shimano Risepops a go, as both these lures have claimed some very solid elbowslappers lately. On the beach, the fishing has been excellent and as the waters starts to cool we
will see some good quality mulloway. Most anglers are gearing up for the mulloway at this time of the year. The area between Teewah and Double Island on Noosa’s North Shore is a real favourite with anglers. The good old mullet fillet is still the favoured bait for many. Rig these on ganged hooks and cast to the back of the gutters, then roll them under the white water. Extra large bream have been in the gutters around Sunshine Beach at the top of the tide. Flathead have also been amongst them taking frogmouth pilchards on gang hooks as well as fresh mullet strips and live yabbies. Dart have been spread all along the eastern beaches. They
are good fun for the young kids on weekends who are still learning to fish; peeled prawns, live worms and squid are the best baits to use for them. The southern beaches around Coolum and Yaroomba are great spots to chase whiting with live worms, yabbies and fresh pipis doing the job, particularly on the start of the run-out tide. • 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 Davo’s Tackle World Noosa and Davo’s Northshore Bait & Tackle at Marcoola can provide you with the right equipment, bait and advice to ensure success!
Mike Sultana with a 69cm flathead taken from the Maroochy River. Mike was fishing a Samaki Vibelicious Thumper Tail in the chartreuse colour.
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National 4x4 Outdoors Show The National 4x4 Outdoors Show, Fishing & Boating Expo has been Brisbane’s leading event for outdoor enthusiasts for over two decades and is back in 2018, bigger and better than ever before. Held on 16-18 March at the Brisbane Showgrounds, the event will feature thousands of the most exciting 4x4, fishing, boating and outdoor products from Australia’s industry leaders, as well as a great range of demonstrations and access to some of the country’s most well-known experts. The massive 2018 event is also set to be bolstered by an exciting new partnership with the Boating Industry Association (BIA). The collaboration will see the BIA and its members take over the John Reid pavilion with a marine display reminiscent of the old Tinnie and Tackle Show. The BIA was last involved in the show in 2014, and a demand for exposure in the Brisbane area has led to a new partnership for this year’s event. With
The National 4x4 Outdoors Show, Fishing & Boating Expo is on at the Brisbane Showgrounds 16-18 March, 2018. offroading television personalities. Get up-close and personal with stars such as Rick from The Offroad Adventure Show, Roothy, Jase Andrews and Simon Anderson (All 4 Adventure), Spida and Sheree Everitt (Great Australian Doorstep), Shaun and Graham (4WD Action) and Pat Callinan from Pat Callinan’s 4x4 Adventures. For the offroading enthusiast, the Eagers Holden proving ground is a must-see,
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The event will feature thousands of the most exciting 4x4, fishing, boating and outdoor products from Australia’s industry leaders. Queensland laying claim to more registered boats (256,000) and boat licences (694,000) than any other state in Australia, the partnership makes perfect sense. The Waeco CFX Outback Stage presented by Dometic will also return once again this year, offering the best and brightest of Australia’s
offering visitors the chance to put the latest Holden Colorado through its paces and test their own skills behind the wheel of a 4WD on a variety of surfaces. Following its successful debut in 2017, Base Camp will also return, with its interactive campsite simulation tripled in size. Base Camp provides
families with the chance to truly experience all the great Australian outdoors has to offer, from traditional summer sporting activities to lazing around enjoying live music and bush tucker. You can also hone your culinary skills by learning from those in the know, including Paul Burt and Peter ‘Spida’ Everitt on the Catch and Cook stage at Base Camp. The Action Arena will also be back in 2018, bringing with it an incredible range of adrenaline-fuelled entertainment for the whole family. The All4FMX ATV show and Cam White Pro BMX Team will be testing the limits across the weekend in a series of death-defying performances that cannot be missed. With thousands of bargains and brands on sale, industry experts on hand for the best advice and inspiration for all your outdoor adventures, the 2018 National 4x4 Outdoors Show, Fishing & Boating Expo truly has something for every enthusiast. The National 4x4 Outdoors Show, Fishing & Boating Expo is on at the Brisbane Showgrounds 16-18 March, 2018. To purchase tickets and for further information about the show visit www.4x4show. com.au/brisbane. – National 4x4 Outdoors Show, Fishing & Boating Expo
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New Bluefin model range Cunningham Marine Centre are excited to announce the release of the Bluefin 2018 model range. Incorporating new designs, value added extras and traditional favourites, which are sure to please. Bluefin has worked very hard with its dealers and design team to develop a new modern look and to package boats with more standard features which will appeal to boat buyers. What others call optional extras,
Bluefin has incorporated into its factory standard. The 2018 range coincides with new pricing which sees savings of up to 20% on selected BMT packages across a great lineup of boats including side console, centre console, sports fishing, bowriders, runabouts, cabins and open dinghies. Now supported with a 3-year factory warranty on small boats and an industry leading 5 years on large boats. And of course all powered by the Industry leading
Mercury Four Strokes outboard range. We will also have on display Revival Fibreglass boats, NZ built Smartwave poly boats & Mercury inflatables Cunningham Marine Centre ‘Dare You to Compare’! The new 2018 range can be viewed at our Redcliffe showroom or visit us at the Brisbane 4 X 4 & Fishing, Boating Expo March 16-18 at the RNA. – Cunningham Marine Centre MARCH 2018
47
easter holiday feature
Cool off at Coolmunda TOOWOOMBA
Jason Ehrlich fishability1@bigpond.com
Coolmunda Dam was completed back in 1968 by damming the Macintyre Brook just east of Inglewood. The lay of the surrounding land is relatively flat in comparison to other Queensland lakes, but with the catchment of another two smaller creeks, the dam can fill after a good downpour. The chief use of the lake is to supply irrigation water and town water supplies. During the dryer times when the demand for farming water is high, the lake can be drawn down rather quickly. The deeper parts of the lake are around 16m when full; once you venture out of this old flooded river bed, you’ll soon find the gentle sloping banks taper away gradually and much of the lake’s perimeter is very shallow. This can make fishing a little tricky.
and attracts plenty of fishers and water skiers during the warmer months. With good facilities on offer, it’s also popular with caravan owners. PLACES TO STAY Two location options for accommodation are available. The Lake Coolmunda Holiday Park is situated on the drive in to the boat ramp. Here you will find air-conditioned cabins, laundry, barbecues, an amenities block, powered sites, shaded tent sites, a swimming pool and a tennis court. Unlike a lot of other lakes and camping spots, pets are welcome, provided they are kept under control. For bookings, give the park a call on (07) 4652 4171. Closer to the water, you will find the newer camp area. Powered sites for caravans and camping are available. There is a great amenities block and barbecue area as well us undercover tables. Shaded sites are limited. The benefit of staying so close to the water is you can leave your
storms at times, so whack in a few extra tent pegs and keep an eye on the weather and wind when fishing. Having said this, most of the time smaller boats over 3.4m long are fine to access the fish at Coolmunda. Even kayaks can be used, but it’s a fair paddle to access the best water. The boat ramp is great when the water levels are above 60%. As the dam drops more, the concrete disappears and you will be launching from the gravel below the ramp. The lower the level, the trickier it gets. Smaller boats are fine with cars at low levels but you may need a 4WD if you are dropping in a big heavy boat. When the level is above 60%, there are few obstacles in the dam’s main basin. It always pays to watch your fish finder to keep an eye on the depth if you are unfamiliar with the lake. As you venture further up the dam towards the timbered creeks, there are some very shallow areas out in the open
The Lake Coolmunda Holiday Park amenities block, camp kitchen and cabins make for a comfortable stay. Tossing a bait in from the shore is only a viable option when the water level is higher or from some of the steeper edges. A vessel to reach the deeper water is certainly beneficial and knowledge of where the creeks and river run will ensure you stand a much better chance. The species on offer are eel-tailed catfish, spangled perch, silver perch, golden perch (yellowbelly) and the mighty Murray cod. LOCATION Coolmunda can be reached from the Cunningham Highway between Inglewood and Warwick. The ramp is a stone’s throw away from the turn-off 13km east of Inglewood. This puts it a little further away from the major centres. Still, it’s a popular place on weekends 48
MARCH 2018
boat in overnight and jump in and out as you please during the day. Bookings and more information can be made through The Lake Coolmunda Holiday Park on (07) 4652 4171. There is also an onsite caretaker to manage this campground. GETTING SUPPLIES A few minutes from the dam towards Inglewood is the Matilda Roadhouse. You can grab your fuel and a few basic supplies here as well as a great home-cooked meal. For motel accommodation, groceries and pubs you will need to drive the 13km back into Inglewood. WHAT TO EXPECT Coolmunda is a big round open lake with a surface area of 1645ha when full. This can make it a bit choppy when the wind picks up. The area can also receive some severe
water. Lining the creeks and rivers are also some big old tree stumps. Provided you have 2m of water under your boat when you’re outside of the creeks and river, you will be pretty safe to poke along without hitting anything. Catfish and spangled perch are native to the lake and breed naturally. The golden perch, silver perch and Murray cod are natural to the Macintyre Brook system but are heavily stocked with assistance from the Queensland Stocked Impoundment scheme. Make sure you have a current Stocked Impoundment Permit if you are fishing on the lake. BAIT FISHING A lot of anglers are happy to head out to soak a bait in the hope of catching a feed. This is a good year-round
Murray cod love big spinnerbaits. This one ate a 1oz Sudsy in black and red. It was tricked up with a Powerbait Bubble Shiner soft plastic trailer and Hot Bite Stinger Assist hook. option as it seems to produce a few fish at all times. There are quiet periods when the fishing is tougher. Generally the winter months are much harder to produce fish on lures (apart from Murray cod) and bait is the best option. Worms are great for the catfish, spangled perch and silver perch. A few goldens will also be taken on them, but there are better options. Live shrimp (which can be caught in traps set along the rock wall adjacent to the boat ramp) and saltwater yabbies are the best baits for golden perch. The occasional cod will take a live shrimp and just about any other bait in the water if they are really active. However, most are fooled with lures. The best areas for bait fishing are up in the timbered creeks and along the edges of the old creek and riverbeds. When the dam drops to
60-80%, one of the best drop-offs is just out in front of the boat ramp. LURE TROLLING Trolling lures is a good option over the warmer months. September through to April will see plenty of golden perch caught on hardbodied lures. The water always seems to have a bit of colour to it, but provided there is at least 50cm of visibility, you stand a good chance. The Murray cod will take trolled lures all year round, but seem to fire up for short periods. The end of winter sees the action pick up and then it tends to taper off in December. Some years are better than others and when they are really fired up, you can expect to have several cod encounters each session. Trolled lures are best worked along edges to the old creek and riverbeds. The area to fish is dictated by the
dam level. Lures that dive to around 5m deep are ideal and these should be fished close to the bottom when just out of the deeper water of the old creeks and river. Zig-zagging this edge will give you a good chance of finding the more active fish, as sometimes they will be on top of the flat country and other times they will be suspended out in the deep water. Always keep an eye on the sounder. Along the drop-off are heaps of old tree stumps. These bigger stumps are prime locations to find Murray cod. A lure bumping right alongside these structures is the best way to entice these fish. CASTING FOR GOLDENS The golden perch love to eat small blade baits. The most popular lure used here for them is the Ecogear ZX40. The darker colours
This is cod country. A timbered flat where the water is around 2-3m deep. A lot of anglers also like to drop live shrimp or saltwater yabbies here for golden perch.
easter holiday feature are perfect. Casting along the base of the rock wall between the boat ramp and the no fishing zone at the dam wall is a great option when the lake is close to full. Heaps of shrimp are
offs and sometimes through random areas in the timber. The junction of Sandy and Bracker Creek is a pretty reliable area to try. The small blades can be hopped vertically under the boat or
so you are increasing your chances by flicking smaller offerings up in the sticks. The best depth to target is around 3m, deep but during the hot times venture out into around 5m as well.
Adam Krautz is a Coolmunda guru. This big fat and greedy golden perch decided it liked the look of his cod spinnerbait. Notice the barren water in the background. This fish came from the start of a treeline. found along these rocks so the goldens have plenty of tucker and small blades do a good job of fooling them. Concentrations of fish will be found on the sounder along the drop-
cast out and hopped back along the bottom. Lipless crankbaits and spinnerbaits will account for a few golden perch up in the timbered areas. The same lures can produce cod too,
CASTING FOR COD The Murray cod in Coolmunda vary in size from tiny to well over a metre long. Legal-sized fish are in abundance with the average sized fish 60-80cm
long. The cod don’t eat all the time, so they can be frustrating. All you can do is just keep casting and hoping. On some days it’s almost impossible to tempt them and others you will score multiple fish. There are so many cod lures available these days but the best one to use based on overall success is still the spinnerbait. Big spinnerbaits tend to receive more attention. A cod-sized offering with a soft plastic trailer and stinger hook added to the main hook will be perfect for Coolmunda. I used to throw a lot of 5/8oz spinnerbaits but now prefer to use 1oz lures. I have seen the cod caught on all types of crazy colours, but still prefer the darker ones with red and black my all-time favourite. When casting for cod, the timbered flats seem to produce best. Cast lures tight to the trees and always look for any submerged braches or trees as well. The preferred depth is 2-3m for most of the year. If you’re casting in deeper water, target the forks of the trees as well as down deeper around their bases. Don’t be afraid to cast through tight gaps as this can save the day when the action is slow. Coolmunda is a great place to visit. You can mix
MacIntyre Brook
Camping Area
ok
MacIntyre Bro
Boat Ramp
Rock Wall
Coolmunda Dam
Dam Wall
Brooker Creek
Sandy Creek
Tree stumps Standing trees
Note this map is the dam at around 75% capacity. up the day if you’re taking the family with a morning and arvo fish and a water ski and tube when it’s hot. Grey nomads love it for the ease of just jumping into the boat parked on the shore and going out for a quick session. Lure trollers and tossers love the thought of catching
the metre long Murray cod. Pet owners can bring their extended family and even take them out in the boat. It’s a lake with a lot to offer. Understanding how to fish it is half the battle but once you rule out the less productive water, it is actually quite easy to find the fishy spots.
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49
easter holiday feature
Catch a topwater cod BRISBANE
Wayne Kampe wkff@aapt.net.au
Murray cod inhabit a good proportion of water at the top and west of the Great Divide these days. Transported via stocking groups from their
and runs west, it’s a fair bet cod will be in it. So an expedition to cod country these days will see an angler with a realistic expectation of decent captures. Remember that Queensland has size limit slots of 60-110cm, with a possession limit of two, while New South Wales are somewhat more protective,
the angler that sets out to nail a cod after a leisurely breakfast or lunch might well assume there are no cod in the system. When in the mood and at the right time of day, cod can be outright aggressive and produce some spectacular surface activity on both topwater lure and fly.
Not all surface feeding cod are large fish, this little fish took a liking to the Halco.
With the fly, it’s important to keep the rod tip on the water to eliminate all slack. stronghold of the somewhat turbid waters of the Murray Darling system, there’s been steady up river recruitment in the last three decades, which now sees cod well established in some very pristine streams, rivers and impoundments. From Queensland’s Granite Belt through the New England ranges as far south of Tamworth and beyond, if the water has permanency
with a slot limit of 55-75cm, and with a possession limit of four. Given these figures, it’s pretty obvious that there are some seriously large fish among them. Large they might be, push overs they are not! Cod have survival instincts that involve staying very close to cover most times, with forays into more open areas of their habitat at times of low light or after dark, so
IF IT MOVES… As opportunistic feeders, anything that enters their domain will be regarded as tucker. Undoubtedly small fish, shrimps and other aquatic life are bread and butter items but terrestrials play a big part in their day-to-day dining as well. When cicadas and Christmas beetles hit the water, cod eat them like jelly beans. Moving up the scale, water
This fish just could not resist a topwater offering! 50
MARCH 2018
On the right day these surface lures are prime cod catchers, and if a fish looks at but does not connect to them, the clue is to persist for a while, before trying another. dragons and birds having a splashy bath, ducklings, mice and even snakes are also seen as potential prey. Anglers in the know can exploit this trait to great advantage, and it’s a real treat to see a cod – totally unseen prior to the big scoff – nail a surface offering in a manner similar to a barra. The boof is not as spectacular as a barra, and for whatever reason they don’t seem to be as accurate as a barra either – the rounded head shape pushes the surface offering away perhaps – but the adrenaline rush of the attack is what keeps us coming back for more topwater work with these brawlers. The one big advantage of surface offerings is the fact that they make their presence felt; there’s noise and surface disturbance to attract a cod and if the action imparted by the angler is correct, it’s pretty easy to provoke a strike.
BARRA MINDSET? FORGET IT There’s a degree of finesse involved in surface work for cod, especially
if you’re targeting the big specimens. Forget any barra mindset when lure fishing; there’s no requirement for heavy braid or a heavy
Missed it! These fish aren’t the most accurate surface eaters, but it sure is fun watching them try.
easter holiday feature leader. I think it’s far better to keep things on the light side for easy and accurate casting. Solid 20lb braid will tame a lot of river and stream cod, while a 10kg leader is all that’s necessary to bring a fish to the bank. Cod do have teeth, rows of small but sharp little grinders, but lures and flies are seldom bitten off. There’s more risk of a fish racing back
comes down to reading terrain and environment, working out the right combination of cover and depth to attract these predators, then working the surface offering (and there are some whoppers in use these days) on or after dark for success. Rivers A better way to target cod is to fish the Granite
pool’s head, or against a bank with an overhang of trees or reeds should come under immediate scrutiny if a cod is sitting there just waiting for food to come past. Most cod won’t attack it first off, but will be watching it. If a lure is on the leader, the idea is to give it some gentle forward motion for a metre or two to kick up some
There’s plenty of cod habitat here. Focus on areas like the overhanging willow, the reeds along the steep bank and the narrow reed covered neck at the top.
A trio of the author’s big topwater cod flies. They have evolved from the Gartside Gurgler and are on 6/0 hooks. to cover and snagging up than biting terminal tackle off. FINDING TOP WATER COD FISHING As an aside, let’s look at the sorts of places where we might tangle with a topwater cod. From my experience, the cleaner the water, the better the chance of success. I’ve tried surface offerings, both lure and fly, in western rivers on the Downs and beyond, and results have been disappointing. Subsurface lures and big plastics were great, but my surface crawlers and fur and feather offerings were ignored. These presentations are far more effective in clearer water. Impoundments There are plenty of impoundments with Murray cod in them, and they are renowned for clean water, but the fish tend to be scattered. A fair effort is usually required to score. Anglers with years of impoundment experience will do it reasonably easy at times, while novices may struggle. It
Belt and tableland’s streams further south, as most of the higher altitude small waters and broader rivers towards the western side of the plateau hold cod. Dams such as Glen Lyon, Leslie, Pindari, Copeton, are all fed by these streams. Clean platypusinhabited water flowing through boulders or rocks into smooth tree-lined pools with rock bottoms, ample snags and bits of timber from long gone floods are the domain of cod that will react positively to a surface lure or fly. FINESSE TACTICS I mentioned finesse as the key to success with both lure and fly. Minimising all bumping or thumping on the bank and maintaining as low a profile as possible is important in the sweetwater. The first step is to assess likely cod habitat. The next is to work the lure or fly in a manner that Murray cod find hard to resist. A lure or fly dropped right by a bit of jutting timber,
ruckus and wake, then stop and let it sit right there for around 10 seconds. As soon as it moves again on the retrieve, the water will likely erupt as
a cod kicks into gear. Halco’s Night Walker in OZ Frog is one of my favourite’s for this sort of work. When fly fishing, the presentation needs to be even more subtle, which is not always so easy with the 8 or 9wt outfit required for casting big bulky flies, plus subduing big bulky cod that want to get back into cover. The fly, tied on a 4/0 or 6/0 hook and looking like a giant Gartside Gurgler, needs to be on a section of 10kg leader at the end of a floating fly line. You could use a lighter leader, but it probably isn’t worth the risk of losing the fish – been there and done it. Your fly should land near the snag or other likely habitat
with a plop. After the plop, leave it to sit until all ripples are gone, then three or four short sharp ‘bloops’ for around half a metre will create some
attention. It’s common to see an oily swirl near the fly at this time, just after it stops… you’ve got a looker! The clue then is to give the fly the
Cod are suckers for a well-presented Jackall Pompadour.
In this photo you can see the wake from Trevor’s surface lure. When the lure stops, it’s a prime time for a strike.
tiniest of forward movements, just sufficient to cause the front of it to dip a tad and cause a tiny ripple, then stop. As the fly sits gently rocking, it’s usually then that there’s a loud scoff as a fish grabs it. A sharp strip strike sets the hook and the long rod is in action. No matter whether a lure or fly is in use, if the cod is a larger specimen and gets into cover again, it’s unlikely it will be coming out, so keeping things good and tight from the outset should keep the fish under control. LAST THOUGHTS March, just as the season is changing, is a great month for taking cod on surface lures and flies. It’s also a great month to be camping on a stream with a big fire at night and enjoying some cool air when sleeping.
Find your new favourite place to fish and camp...
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Australia’s largest land sharing website MARCH 2018
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easter holiday feature
Easter delights? Scones in the camp oven BRISBANE
Wayne Kampe wkff@aapt.net.au
The main ingredients for this culinary masterpiece can conveniently be found on the supermarket shelves neatly packed and ready to go. You will also need a fair-sized camp oven, a trivet for the interior base to keep the scones from burning and a long handled shovel to maintain control of the coals. A camp oven with a recessed lid is a real asset as well, because coals can
be placed on it if necessary to finish the cooking. Your first job is to get a fire going with plenty of wood that will provide decent coals. We are always forced to use whatever timber is present, so if it’s she oak or gum timber, plan on using bigger chunks to provide decent coals. It’s best to get the fire going at least 30-45 minutes prior to baking so that the timber has been reduced to coals – nice solid ones without any flame present. Once the timber has been reduced to coals the idea is to combine the scone mix and milk – forget water, milk is
better – into a dough that is almost sticky but still able to be shaped into a long roll on a floured board, or some newspaper. It’s next cut into scone-sized portions. While making up the scones it’s smart to have the camp oven close by the fire to heat it up; turn it around so the heat is spread uniformly. We would not put scones at home into a cold oven, right? So the camp oven needs to be heated up as well. Regulate the coals. With the fire reduced to coals the shovel is used to scatter them to one side of the fire, making an even bed upon which to
sit the camp oven. Too much heat will ruin things, so an even bed of coals makes things easier. My idea of a good bed of coals is one I can easily approach and place the oven on; if I can’t approach it then it’s much too hot. Scatter the coals more in this case. With the scones in the oven, on the trivet, the camp oven is placed fair on the coals and a few coals heaped evenly around the sides. After ten minutes it’s wise to see how things are going. At this point the scones should be rising nicely into shape and perhaps browning a little on the sides. If they’re
not browned but taking shape, give them another five minutes and check again. Once they are browned on the sides, take the camp oven off the coals altogether and then heap a good lot of coals on the lid to finish the top of the scones. Around four or five minutes with coals up top should see the scones done to perfection, yourself as a camp oven hero cook of some stature and a real tasty feed on hand. For the record I had a lot of failures in the beginning by putting the camp oven in the fire proper. This invariably burns the scones, hence the
need for a shovel to scatter the coals to the one side for cooking. Remember, if the selected coals are still so hot that it’s hard to put the camp oven onto them, it’s wise to scatter them or move them even further to one side to avoid disappointment with burnt offerings. Enjoy. MATERIALS • Scone mix • UHT milk • A fair-sized camp oven with a recessed lid •Trivet • Long-handled shovel
The scone mix looking about ready to be placed on a floured surface for shaping.
Roll the scone dough out, ready to cut it into size for baking.
The scones just about ready for the camp oven.
In they go; the scones should be placed touching each other so they will rise nicely. Evening out the coals with the shovel makes things easy.
The oven was on quite a small bed of coals, but the scones still cooked in less than 15 minutes.
The scones done to perfection and ready for jam and cream. The author placed a substantial bed of coals on the lid to finish the cooking.
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It’s fast food for fish. In today’s world everybody wants things to happen FAST. Fish are no different – they want it and they want it now. The Halco Max 190 gives them exactly that – a lure that can be cast or trolled at better than 15 knots – now that’s FAST! Combining outstanding speed capability, double thickness sidewalls for ultimate strength, Mustad 7/0 inline singles for superior hook setting and Halco’s ultra strong fish rings, the fish will find it impossible not to take a bite.
Pick up a Max 190 FAST. You’ll be glad you did.
www.halcotackle.com.au
WHAT’S NEW FISHING NEW ASTRO VIBE COLOURS
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Strike Pro’s very successful Astro Vibe 45 has been a standout in the Hobie Bream series and Vic Bream Classic series, and has helped anglers win a number of events. Now two new fish-catching colours have been added to the range: 612E and 793E. Like the other colours in the Astro Vibe range, the new colours incorporate a polycarbonate belly with small inbuilt rattles for added sound, which can be handy when the water is slightly discoloured. The Astro Vibe’s construction also allows for a transparent finish to be achieved in a metal blade, and the belly section is enhanced with UV for added attraction and effectiveness. The Astro Vibe 45 is 4.5cm long, weighs 9.6g and comes fitted with quality hooks. It’s deadly on bream, bass, estuary perch, yellowbelly, mulloway, flathead and redfin, just to mention a few. www.jurofishing.com
ZMAN 2.75” FINESSE 2 FROGZ
green and blaze orange colourations. It comes in 6, 8, 10, 14, 17, 20, 25 and 30lb breaking strains in 150m and 300m spools. Price: SRP 150m $34.99, 300m $67.99 berkley-fishing.com.au
BONE DASH 90S
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The Bone Dash 90S is a dual function sinking pencil and vibe, and is the first lure produced by legendary rod maker Bone Lim. This dual-function, sinking pencil bait flutters on the fall and slides on the retrieve, giving anglers options like never before. By attaching the line to the front eyelet, the Dash 90S will work like a sinking pencil bait, fluttering on the fall with a side-to-side glide on a straight retrieve. Attaching your lure on the top eyelet will enable the vibe mode, giving the Dash 90S a tight wobble on a straight retrieve. This tie-off position also creates less resistance through the water while still maintaining the fluttering sink. The Bone Dash 90S measures 90mm long, weighs 33g and comes in 10 colours. Bone recommends anglers fish these lures with the Bone Voyage series rods such as the BVC774H, BVC684XH, BVC704XH or the BVS704XH. www.wilsonfishing.com
ZMan’s bite-size 2.75” Finesse FrogZ features a realistic frog profile and twin paddle feet that create noise, water movement and a bubble trail that predators can’t resist. Rig it for surface fishing on a TT 2/0 ChinlockZ or ChinlockZ Finesse hook, hold the rod tip up and wind the Finesse FrogZ until you hit the magic speed where the feet are bubbling and it’s calling predators to attack. Alternatively you can rig the Finesse FrogZ on a TT 2/0 SnakelockZ or ChinlockZ SWS to fish weedless through cover, or even on a standard HeadlockZ or DemonZ jighead for subsurface fishing. A bottom hook slot and deep top hook pocket protect the hook from fouling or snagging when weedless rigging, and the softness and flexibility of the ZMan 10X Tough ElaZtech ensures the plastic clears on the strike, exposing the hook and pinning the fish. Deadly on bass, saratoga, mangrove jack, barra and more, this little frog is also sure to get eaten by a few surprises in both the fresh and salt water. It’s available in six colours, with four per pack. Price: SRP $10.95 www.zman.com.au
Pumping worms and yabbies is a great way to get the freshest of fresh bait for your day’s fishing. Having the right tool to get the job done is an important step to success and one that needs careful consideration. The Wilson Big Willy Bait Pump gives users an extra long 39” shaft meaning you do not have to bend so far down when pumping. This is a great asset for those who want to collect bait comfortably and easily. Stainless steel and brass construction mean that this pump will go the distance, giving you years of faithful service and opening up your fishing options. Available at all leading tackle stores, the Big Willy will become a vital part of any bait collection trip. For more information on this and other bait collecting products from Wilson’s, visit the Wilson Fishing website. You can also catch up with the latest news, catch photos and videos at www.facebook.com/LWilsonAndCo. www.wilsonfishing.com.au
BERKLEY FIRELINE ULTRA 8
PELICAN IPHONE CASE
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Berkley Fireline Ultra 8 delivers a line that is incredibly strong and abrasion-resistant yet long casting and user friendly, resisting wind knots like never before. Optimised for spin reels, Fireline Ultra 8 is ideal for all light to medium lure fishing applications. The unique fusing process using heat to molecularly bind thousands of Dyneema fibres gives Fireline Ultra 8 more body than regular braids. The body and heft of Fireline Ultra 8 delivers unique handling properties and superb manageability. More tolerant of line twist than traditional soft braids, Fireline Ultra 8 performs exceptionally well on spinning reels meaning less loose loops and less wind knots on the water. The 8 strand fusing process also gives Fireline Ultra 8 several significant advantages. It is four times more abrasion resistant than original Fireline, and is rounder and smoother, casting 10% further than traditional Fireline. Fireline Ultra 8 retains superb knot strength and near zero stretch, delivering a telegraphic feel for structure and strikes. The unique fusing process produces a round profile that resists digging into the spool under heavy loads, and never separates like many standard braids. Fireline Ultra 8 is available in crystal, flame
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PRODUCT GUIDE
BIG WILLY BAIT PUMP
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With an IP68 waterproof rating, the Pelican Marine case shields your smartphone from the harshest elements that mother nature can throw at you. Providing reliable protection from the snow, dirt, sand, dust and water, the Pelican Marine’s slimline five-layer shell design protects your smartphone and its screen from scratches, impacts and drops from all angles. The case has been uniquely constructed of impact absorbing materials, like the ultra-tough elastomer internals and a rigid polycarbonate outer shell, with a soft-touch over-mould incorporated into the design for an easy hold that also reduces the risk of the device sliding off surfaces. Like all Pelican protective equipment, the ruggedised Marine case has been tested to military specifications and is guaranteed to survive multiple drops. The IP68 waterproof protection rating enables your smartphone to stay submerged under water at a depth of up to 1.5m for up to 30 minutes. The Pelican Marine Waterproof Phone Case is compatible with iPhone 6, 7, 8, X and plus models. Price: SRP: $99.95 www.pelicanstore.com.au
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WHAT’S NEW FISHING X-RAP MAGNUM XPLODE
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The over-engineered X-Rap Magnum Xplode combines a heavy through-wire construction with a thick-walled ABS body, giving it Rapala’s Magnum level of strength to absorb the most vicious strikes. Featuring 3D holographic eyes and internal foil, it is explosive and loud. Low positioned tow points pull the popper downwards, keeping the X-Rap Magnum Xplode stable in all weather conditions, while its deep cupped face generates a thunderous service explosion with each sweep of your rod. The long-casting, rear-weighted X-Rap Magnum Xplode rests tail down, perfectly positioning the 5/0 VMC 75 series 6X Tropic Spark Point trebles, which are connected to 250lb split rings. Available in eight fish-catching colours, the lure weighs 140g and is 17cm in length. Suitable for many large saltwater gamefish, such as GTs, tuna and kingfish, the X-Rap Magnum Xplode is a must for all serious sport and game fishers. It’s due to arrive in Australia around March. Price: SRP $49.95 www.rapala.com.au
VANFOOK JWS-50 ASSIST HOOK
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The JWS-50 wire assist hook from Vanfook is a single assist hook designed to battle fish with sharp teeth, such as mackerel. You can use these assist hooks when jigging or on stickbaits and poppers. Fitted with standard wire JH-10 and JH-30 hooks, Vanfook JWS-50 assist hooks have excellent fish-holding strength and superb hooking penetration. The assist line is a strong, flexible and difficult to kink hybrid wire (200lb) which is further protected with a transparent shrink tube. Made in Japan, Vanfook JWS-50 assist hooks are available in sizes 1/0 to 6/0 with three assists per pack. For more information on this and other hooks in the Vanfook range, check out the EJ Todd website. You can also find more info, news and catch photos on the EJ Todd Facebook page. www.ejtodd.com.au
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SHIMANO OCEA JIGGER RODS
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Jig-eating fish are usually at the nasty end of the spectrum, and the Japanese domestic market Ocea Jiggers have the power and design features to keep the biggest of them away from trouble, and heading towards the boat. Built on Shimano’s exclusive Spiral X and High Power blanks, Ocea Jiggers range in length from 1.88m to 1.91m, so they’re all one piece, which makes them a delight to fish with. Depending on the target species and the jigging technique required to entice them, the Ocea Jigger line-up has spin rods for slow jigging for demersals, right through to overheads that are ideal when targeting deepwater species like kingfish, samsonfish and tropical muscle like dogtooth tuna. Custom Shimano Ci4+ reel seats and comfortable EVA grips mean the high intensity fights these rods will be a part of ensures the angler’s comfort for the duration of the fight. The guides are Fuji Titanium frames with SiC inserts. For the full list of specs visit the Shimano Australia website. www.shimanofish.com.au
EUREKA TORPEDO AND TROLL DOLL
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DAIWA LEGALIS LT
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JIGPARA AND ZOC HOOKS
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Eureka Lures Australia has released an impressive range of pre-rigged small game lures that will be effective on small pelagic species. The Eureka Torpedo lures are a classic bullet shaped lure that will work in most sea conditions. They feature double feathers with an outer skirt and all come pre-rigged with quality nylon leaders, crimps and a Stainless Steel single hook and are available in four colours suitable for tuna, mahimahi, mackerel and albacore. The Eureka Troll Dolls are professionally prerigged with a quality double hook, monofilament trace and are available in five proven colours. Troll Dolls are a great high speed lure suited for tuna, albacore, mackerel, kingfish, salmon and tailor. To browse the full range of Eureka game lures, visit the Juro website. You can also see all the latest news and photos from Eureka distributor Juro OzPro at www.facebook.com/ JuroOzProTackle. www.jurofishing.com
The Legalis LT is one of the latest generation of reels based on Daiwa’s LT or Light Tough concept – lighter, stronger and more compact than ever before. It also incorporates Daiwa’s innovative technologies such as Tough Digigear, ATD, Air Rotor and Airbail, making it one of Daiwa’s most technically advanced budget reels that delivers on both price and performance. Key features include: LT Concept (suits the new generation of PE lines for higher line and drag capacity, stronger gearing, improved handling and increased performance); Tough Digigear (50% stronger than previous Digigear II); Airspool ABS (up to 30% lighter than previous generations, and has a redesigned spool lip improving overall castability); ATD drag system (reduced start-up inertia protects delicate and thin lines from aggressive strikes); Air Bail (maximum rigidity and strength with minimum weight, with a protrusion-free design mitigating line tangles during the retrieve); Air Rotor (reduces weight, stress and flexing, while enhancing transmission of vibration and allowing the rotor to spin with perfect balance); Twistbuster (tapered line roller offsets line twist and greatly improves line management). www.daiwafishing.com.au
Majorcraft has introduced a new range of lead and tungsten jigging lures — 185 versions of Japan’s number 1 saltwater lures. First up are the Vertical Short and Vertical Long Jigparas. Designed with a centre balance and asymmetric body, these have a classic broad slide action, perfect for mechanical jigging for high speed species and big predators. The Tungsten lure is denser and smaller than lead to create less water resistance and sink faster, for a quick cast and catch. The Micro is 3-10g and designed for the smaller estuary and freshwater species. The Vertical Slow Pitch and Slow Pitch fluttering jigs are designed for slow pitch angling. Their slow dancing action means they stay in the strike zone for longer, bringing in shut down or slower fish. Majorcraft has also released 45 variations of the custom coated assist hooks that come in a vast range of sizes and drop lengths. They all have a premium epoxy Z-Hard coating, which keeps the fish on the hook. www.majorcraft.com.au
Please email contributions to: nicole@fishingmonthly.com.au MARCH 2018
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WHAT’S NEW FISHING DUO D-SQUID 95
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One of the most advanced squid jigs in the world is now available here in Australia. The DUO D-Squid eliminates the traditional ‘feather wing’, which causes drag. Removing these wings, along with internalizing the weight in the body, means the D-Squid reaches the bottom at a speedy rate and allows a light yet sharp darting action in the deep zone. In additiona to this, the D-Squid has a body shape which allows the lure to maintain an ideal body position after the darting action. This results in the increase of bites and eliminates the annoying problem of the hook catching the line. There are two body sizes, 95mm (21g) and 105mm (27g). The 95mm and the 105mm will show its true potential at 15m+ and 20m+ respectively. Another great thing about the D-Squid is the colour line-up; you can select from a wide range of proven colours depending on the field conditions and activeness of the squid. With the D-squid, you will easily be able to reach those deep zones and in fast flowing currents never fished before. Price: SRP $19.99 www.duo-australia.com.au
MAZZY SLIDE BOMBER
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The all-new Mazzy Slide Bomber from Big Yella Time is here. It took many hours of design to get this lure doing exactly what was intended, along with extensive field testing of different prototypes, and now anglers can finally get their hands on some. The Slide Bomber measures 100mm and 40g, and this tall-bodied lure is designed to swim in wide S-curves. By changing your retrieve speeds with a start-stop action, the lure’s swimming action can be increased dramatically. The Slide bomber can be retrieved at super slow speeds but also does not mind pace either. It has a very slow sink, and this action is dynamite on large fish. It gives these wary and cunning fish the urge to attack. So whether you want to target Murray cod in the fresh or mulloway, jacks and flathead in the salt, the Mazzy Slide Bomber has you covered. Price: SRP: $27.95 www.bigyellatime.com
PRODUCT GUIDE
visit the Samaki website. You can also like them on Facebook and Instagram, where you’ll see the latest catch photos and new releases. www.samaki.com.au
SAMAKI RED SNAPPER SHIRT
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Samaki’s new Red Snapper shirt is striking and full of colour. It features hungry snapper in a baitfish-filled rockery, chasing down a Samaki Boombait. This shirt is made from lightweight fabric that features UPF50+ technology, providing the highest level of protection against the harsh sun. The soft touch, 100% polyester material is comfortable on the body and has the added feature of being breathable, keeping you cool and dry. Samaki designs are brought to you by Australian anglers who love to design Australian species. Red Snapper shirts are available in adult, youth and kids sizes, ranging from a size 2 through to a 3XL, allowing the whole family to get in on the action and out onto the water. For more information, including the location of your nearest stockist, visit the Samaki website or like them on Facebook and Instagram. Price: SRP$59.95 (adults), $49.95 (kids) www.samaki.com.au
SWIM BAITS AUSTRALIA
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From the fish mad brains that bought you the Shads Lures range, Swim Baits Australia are brand new swag of lures that started hitting shelves and catching big fish in 2017. These high quality timber swimbaits and glidebaits can be found in sizes from 100mm right through to a mammoth 230mm, and they are bound to get the strike in both rivers and dams. All models are fitted with strong hardware and are available in a great range of colours. Not only will they get the bite, they’re also strong enough to hold on to some of the giants who are eating them. For more information, up-to-date news and recent catch photos, look up Swim Baits Australia on Facebook to see what all the fuss is about. w w w. f a c e b o o k . c o m / S w i m - B a i t s Australia
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NEW 9CM SAMAKI MAGNETIC 18 SQUIDLY RIGS 15 RELEASE CLIP Black Magic’s range of Squidly rigs have Samaki is expanding further into the practical tooling and accessory market with the launch of the Magnetic Release Clip. The Samaki Magnetic Release clip allows you to access any item you want with ease. The quick release system is made of an aviation-grade aluminium magnet, which is strong and durable. With a maximum weight capacity of 3.5kg, it also features a high strength carabiner. these are so handy you’ll want more than one by your side. Ranging in three awesome colours black, red and cobalt, they are in stores now. The Samaki accessory range also includes fish grips, pliers (long-nose, split ring and multitool) and line spoolers. For more information, including the location of your nearest stockist, 56
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proven to be very effective on deepwater denizens off the shelf, and on big snapper as well. Now a smaller size squid (9cm) has been added to offer anglers a wider range of species to target with this popular rig. Great for both casting and jigging, the 9cm Squidly has three plastic squids rigged in a paternoster style. The components, as always with Black Magic tackle, are high in strength and performance. Squidly rigs use 60lb trace and a long shank hook. Keep an eye out for the new Squidlys at a store near you, and watch out for the new candy colour as well. Before you use these rigs, check the local fishing regulations regarding the number of hooks allowed per rig. If need be, you can just remove one of the hooks and use it separately. www.blackmagictackle.com
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WHAT’S NEW FISHING
Field testing the new Zerek Flat Shad Pro and Live Mullet There’s a huge range of soft plastics on the market, and all of their different designs have not come about by accident; rather they are the result of extensive research and development. The one thing I really like about plastics is that they are continually evolving, and a look at the new range of Zerek soft plastics confirms this fact. Zerek is all about making good lures even better. The original Zerek Flat Shad sported a baitfish-shaped body and active tail that virtually begged a fish to have a bite. I have found them to be extremely effective, especially on ambush predators such as barra, jacks, flathead and cod. Now Zerek has revamped the Flat Shad with a softer and more flexible body material throughout. It’s called the Flat Shad Pro, and it’s part of Zerek’s Professional Craft series of plastics. The newbies are lighter, yet just as dangerous to fish due to the supple body collapsing upon a bite to enable the hook to do its job. These new lures have been designed to be cast on a more lightly-
The Flat Shad has a high degree of snag proofing as the hook will lay right along the lure’s back during the retrieve. lure, with a deliberately slow retrieve, was deadly on these marble-eyed freshwater marauders. Casting just behind a large rock in a high country stream, I eased the snag-
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the action of a swimming fish. Remember how effective the Zerek Live Shrimp is, due to its very lifelike action and appearance? The same flexibility and realistic appearance is the key with the Zerek Live Mullets, as their segmented construction provides ultra flexibility in the water. Moreover, these segments are held together with Kevlar matting material throughout to ensure that toothy critters don’t give them the chop. They also feature 3D eyes for maximum attraction. Available in a wide range of colours, sizes and weights, the Live Mullet has certainly earned its place in the tackle box. Just like the Pro Series Flat Shad, the Mullet’s action stands out from the crowd. It can be retrieved as fast or as slow as you like without sacrificing that fish-attracting wiggle. I’ve seen these Mullet take quite a few species of fish so far, and without a doubt durability is one of the best things about them. In the freshwater they were good on Murray cod, and my son Scott was generous enough to take me out from Mission Beach and show me how effective the Mullet was on a decentsized queenfish. Despite the attention the queenie gave the lure with its teeth, the Live Mullet came out unmarked. That’s pretty tough! - Wayne Kampe
This Zerek Live Mullet came through totally unscathed from an encounter with a queenfish taken by Scott Kampe. weighted hook, and this reduction in weight gives the tail a slower, more active and enticing action. The Flat Shad Pro can flutter down or be retrieved on the slowest of rolls, with the tail working very enticingly. For those among us that like to pimp their lures, there’s an attachment loop
for an additional stinger hook set into the lead belly weight of Zerek’s weedless worm hook. These lures come in a range of sizes Murray cod find the Zerek Flat Shad Pro hard to resist. This fish nailed the lure the from 3.5-7”, and there are five colours second the author started a slow roll retrieve. to choose from. I opted for a bright orange/yellow 4.5” model to try out on Granite Belt cod, and I found that the proof Zerek over the rock and watched in amazement as three smaller cod fought over the offering. One naturally hooked up, and I released it after a quick photo. In the saltwater I gave a couple of Flat Shad Pros a swim in the Murray River near Tully, and saw everything from barra through to jacks attacking them. Zerek Live Mullet series The concept of a lure closely resembling a fish is an old one. Early offerings made by various companies were moulded to look like fish, but sadly did not swim like one, as they lacked flexibility due to a one-piece rigid construction. They were innovative, but not reliable fish catchers. These days the new Zerek Live Mullet range from their Professional Craft series are as far removed from those early offerings as I am from competing in an The Zerek Flat Shad pro series is virtually Iron Man event. Constructed from a highly The Zerek Flat Shad pro series is virtually snag proof. This barra scoffed the snag proof. This barra scoffed the durable, high-end TPE material, the Live Flat Shad right in the sticks. Flat Shad right in the sticks. Mullet is specifically designed to imitate
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The local rivers are giving up their bounty HERVEY BAY
Dane Radosevic
There have been some great reports of quality barra coming from River Heads and both the Mary and the Susan River systems. Pay close attention to the tides and moon cycle before heading out, as this will dictate which areas you should investigate first. As a rule of thumb, on the quarter moon period around the neap tides take advantage of the limited run and push upriver. On the lead up to the moons generating the larger building tides concentrate your efforts towards the lower reaches of the system and around River Heads itself. Live bait fishers have been getting amongst the action with exceptional reports of barra and threadfin salmon coming from the Mary River. The most productive method for chasing threadfin has
period continues to produce the best bites. The shallower flats and drains around the mouth of River Heads have been teeming with life around the bigger tides. The last few hours of the run-out tide has provided most of the action with some trophy-size threadfin salmon feeding on the baitfish being flushed out of the drains. Sight casting to them is certainly an exciting method of targeting them, and can be done with small soft plastic presentations and shallow-running hardbodies. The larger rocky outcrops and deep rock bars have been holding some exceptional numbers of barra in the back eddies. Twitching and stalling suspended hardbodies or hopping a soft vibe on the last of the run-out tide has proved successful. If you’re heading up the river at this time of year, bring a cast net, as we have had an exceptional run of quality
launch alone in easterly winds. Due to the ramp modifications at River Heads the Burrum River is a great alternative option as this system has been fishing well. The upper reaches of the main river are still running quite fresh, so the mid to lower reaches should prove to be more productive. Expect to encounter quality mangrove jack throughout the Burrum system during the autumn period, with the Gregory proving very reliable lately. Bait fishos generally get the best results. Popular live bait options are banana prawns and poddy mullet, however a fresh slab of mullet fillet wafted down into the base of a snag or rock bar has also accounted for good fish. Aside from mangrove jack, quality barra have also been encountered in good numbers throughout the river, particularly towards the mouth. They have been aggregating in large numbers
Tony Mulligan, a travelling UK angler, with his first-ever threadfin salmon that was caught on a charter. been live baiting with banana prawns and poddy mullet around the deep corners and drains throughout the Crab Islands area, however the lower reaches of the Susan River are also well worth a look. Barra have been more prevalent around the lay down snags and rock bars with Beaver Rock being an ideal location to focus your efforts. Anchoring up current and drifting live baits back into the snags and rock bars has been producing quality fish. The last of the run-out tide
banana prawns that should extend into mid-winter. The deeper gutters around River Heads have been holding good aggregations, making for easy gathering on the dropping tide and most of the local rivers and creeks throughout the straits will produce good numbers of these tasty morsels. Just a reminder – due to ramp upgrades at River Heads ,the only accessible ramp for launching is the single lane ramp on the eastern side (barge side), which can be quite dangerous when trying to
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around most protruding structure, deep holes and channels. Soft vibes and prawn imitation soft plastics have been the go-to lures throughout this area. Other species you could encounter throughout the lower reaches of the system will be whiting, flathead and grunter. The best results will come from those bait fishing at night as the water temperatures drop and the fish move up to feed over the shallower flats. During the warmer months here on the Fraser Coast our inshore waters teem with life, particularly if we have a good annual run of pencil squid through the bay, which we have experienced this year. This abundance of prime bait supply in turn draws large numbers of fish to our inshore waters. The Goori and Kagari wrecks on the Roy Rufus Artificial Reef have been fishing exceptionally well with better-than-average size sweetlip, cod and quality nannygai being caught on fresh banana prawns and live
Another happy angler with a solid longtail tuna that demolished a well-presented ZMan soft plastic on a charter. pencil squid, with the low light periods producing the best results. Coral trout have also been caught in the same areas and presenting a live pike tight to the structure can be crucial to tempting one of these oftenfussy feeders. The adjacent shallow reefs surrounding Big Woody and Round islands have been fishing very well as expected. Using light line and wafting a whole banana prawn or bonito strip out across the reef flats and into bommies has been paying dividends for many anglers, especially those choosing to put in the efforts around the low light periods. Blueys have been around in good numbers this season and have continued to live up to their reputation, destroying those anglers who are unprepared or under-gunned. For those wishing to try their luck on rod and reel for this species be sure to fish heavy, lock up drag pressure and try and turn them on the initial hit, otherwise it will more than likely all be over in a heartbeat. Generally 100-150lb handlines are the preferred method for targeting this species, as they allow you to exert maximum pressure in turning them and pulling them in quickly. The most popular bait is live crabs, however large banana prawns can sometimes draw a bite.
The deep ledges that run parallel to the western side of Fraser Island and down the Great Sandy Straits have been producing mixed bags for bait fishos with sweetlip, cod, coral trout, blueys and even the odd summer time mulloway being taken on a well-presented live bait. Pelagic species such as queenfish and big GTs have also been quite active in these areas due to the large schools of bait; hopping big soft plastics or working large surface poppers will draw the strikes. The larger tides associated with the build-up to the moons causes large numbers of baitfish to get trapped in the pressure edges and current lines, which in turn attracts GTs. These fish take full advantage of the situation, feeding hard on the helpless bait. In this scenario large topwater presentations are often required to excite them and result in some backbreaking action. For sportfishers this is an exciting time of year in Platypus Bay as golden trevally, queenfish and other mixed pelagic species haunt the deeper reefs and rubble patches in large numbers. Locating areas that hold a good bait supply is definitely key to success in this area. It often pays to take the time and sound around the area you plan
to fish as the vast majority of the bay is so flat and barren that the fish move around in search of the bait. Areas such as the Six-Mile at Arch Cliffs, Wathumba Washing Machines and Red Neds are all worthwhile locations to start searching with various soft plastic presentations or 30-60g micro-jigs. With a slower-than-usual start to our annual run of longtail and mac tuna, March should see large bait balls moving into the area and the predatory fish following close behind. Bring on the surface action! Both longtail and mac tuna schools should extend from the Six-Mile at Arch Cliffs area through to Roonies Point and hang around until late May and June, providing great sport for anglers. Be mindful of the ever-present taxman at this time of year when leadering and tailing fish beside the boat, as they have been known to hang under the boat and attack last minute. For those wishing to anchor up and soak a bait, nannygai numbers will start to increase over the coming month as they tend to school up in good numbers on the smaller, more-isolated structures like the scattered wonky holes, gravel and sea grass patches and sunken artificial reefs that are spread
The gangsters of the bay have been out in full force; this one destroyed a stickbait on the slow sweep worked around a pressure edge formed by a headland.
throughout the Six-Mile and wider grounds off Wathumba. Targeting this species at night will account for the larger fish and might even produce a solid reef jack or two. Float lining with fresh or live baits such as pencil squid, pike and yakkas is the preferred method. The daylight period often produces school-size nannygai bordering on the legal size
limit, however other species encountered in the same areas include Moses perch, sweetlip, parrot and cod. Fingers crossed the weather gods play nice and we aren’t threatened with a severe weather event that could potentially change the exciting fishery that we expect over the next few months.
Jamie Carmichael has been getting stuck into the inshore reef species in relatively close proximity to Urangan.
Hope weather will stay good RAINBOW BEACH
Ed Falconer
The weather has been pretty good for this time of year and anglers have managed to get some great fishing in. Offshore we are still seeing some great bottom pearl perch still turning it on with more great catches of these beautiful table fish. They haven’t been fussy and are taking any baits or plastics thrown at them. Tuskfish are also continuing to bite their heads off. Slowly drifting over gravel bottom with cut baits of squid and mullet works well. Large estuary cod have been very active on the close reefs but live bait is a must to trap these guys. On the beach the dreadful weed that was hindering the beach fishing has cleared somewhat. I’ve had good reports of whiting and flathead at Double Island Point. Use live worms for the whiting and unweighted pilchards for the flatties. On the Great Sandy Straits there has been some great fishing. Whiting have been around in big numbers on the bottom end of Fraser
Max with one of many cod caught lately.
Zoe with a cracking pair of pearlies.
Island around the full moon. Kauri Creek has also been a hotspot for whiting and flathead. With a bit of steady rain mud crabs are on the move and it’s well worth dropping a few pots in. March is usually a bit unstable weather-wise, but in previous years great mackerel fishing has been had and bottom fishing should remain great. • Enjoy a day on the water with Keely Rose Fishing Charters phone Ed 0407 146 151 or visit www.keelyrosefishing charters.com.au.
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Bring on the best months for Monduran barra LAKE MONDURAN
Rob Howell
March, April and May are some of the best months of the year to target barramundi at Lake Monduran. As these months approach and the temperatures cool down, barra tend to feed more aggressively knowing that winter is on the way.
They do this to build up much-needed fat stores to ensure their survival through these colder periods. This time of year is also easier on anglers; the milder temperatures mean we can fish longer periods without having to escape the heat of the day. Early mornings and late afternoons have produced the best bite times, especially when the wind is constantly
Sharon with her first metre barra at 103cm.
Call Jamie today to book your next trip Ph: 0407 434 446
blowing from the one direction. Shallow windward points and bays are great places to start your search for feeding barra. Once you find them schooled up, it’s just a matter of finding a bite zone. Most of the time barra will school up around a point or in a bay but they may only feed on a certain section of that bank or weed edge. A bite zone may only be a couple of metres long and if you’re not in that zone you will not get the bites. When the wind becomes variable the barra become a hard target. This means sometimes you need to look a bit harder for them. In preparation for a trip to Monduran there is a lot to be said for following a fisher’s almanac. I’m always checking to see when bite times are predicted before a charter and have found them to be very accurate, sometimes exactly on the hour. One site that I recommend and use is tides4fishing.com; this site has everything from barometric pressure, tides, wind directions and
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of course predicted bite times. This is a very handy tool indeed. Now that barra season has reopened, there will plenty of fishing options on offer through the lower reaches of the Kolan River system. There are a number of landlocked sections throughout the river that
will have healthy stocks of barra in them among other target species. For more info on these areas, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I will be operating charters throughout these areas as well. • Our team here at Lake Monduran look forward to seeing you in the near
future for some barra action. For Charter, houseboat and accommodation bookings please contact us email info@lakem.com.au or call us on (07) 4157 3881 or my mobile 0410 599 147. Check out my facebook page for up to date barra info, Lake Monduran Guidelines Fishing Charters.
Grand plan for Awoonga Jason Medcalf
BA RR A PA RK
Judy also caught her first metre barra, which measured 101cm.
Our two hottest months of the year have passed, and now we’re moving into a (hopefully) more stable time of year, weather-wise. February for our region brought some shocks to the system, with the coldest February day for over a hundred years followed again by hot, humid and stormy weeks. These storms seem to be like clockwork; just when the rivers and creeks start to clean up, the storms come on in and dump more rain. It’s almost like a traditional wet season, and with the Northern Territory and parts of North Queensland finally getting some big falls, the fishing should be very good for the rest of the year. I have always said that the best thing about fishing is how much there is to learn, despite how long you have been doing it. Recently on a filming trip to Gladstone with the crew from The Fishing Show, I once again got to learn. We visited the Gladstone Area Water Board’s fish hatchery, and got a VIP tour from the manager, Tom. He gave us some great insights, not only into fish breeding cycles but also why the GAWB do what they do. I took away some great information, including the fact that the fish stocked
into Awoonga Dam are done so with the aim of them being distributed back into the river system. Tom told us that it’s part of GAWB environmental offset plan, as when the dam was built it impeded the natural progression of estuarine fish up into the fresh, where they grow faster with less predation. Then, when there is a flood or high water, the fish naturally move back down into the salt to then breed and the cycle starts again. This environmental offset plan is why the GAWB haven’t and won’t put anything in place to prevent fish from going over the wall in flood events. I have spent many hours fishing Awoonga Dam for barramundi in competitions and socially, and was devastated when I watched all those barra swimming over the wall in initial flood in 2010. Of course, since it hit that 100% full mark it hasn’t taken much to spill, and it still does regularly in the wet season. They tag a certain percentage of the barramundi stocked into the dam, and local angling groups tag fish for research as well. These tagged fish have shown up as far north as Townsville and as far south as the Gold Coast, which is quite a distance to travel. This distribution of barramundi has dramatically increased the wild population of the species, and anglers in our area have certainly had
way more encounters with them in the past eight years than ever before. Now that the barramundi season is in full swing, how and where should you try to catch them in our area? Well, the Burnett River has seen a lot barramundi in it of late, with switched-on anglers getting into them very regularly. Because the barra have just come off their optimum breeding time, they will start move around, with the smaller fish trying to push up into the freshwater and the larger models searching out good feeding zones in our larger river and creeks. Big barramundi can show up just about anywhere there is a good source of food. River mouths, rock bars and even shallow feeder creeks can hold them. Of course, those anglers that regularly hunt them in the Burnett do find they move
a lot; the barra can be in the town reach one day and down near the ferry crossing the next. Putting the time in and carefully watching your fish finder is the key to consistently finding them and hopefully catching them. Most of the other rivers and creeks in our area also hold good numbers of barramundi – you just have to get out and look for them. The Baffle has seen some great catches, as has the Kolan. Even the Elliott has been producing regular catches of barra. If you do manage to get yourself onto some great estuary barra fishing you might just be hooking into an escapee from Awoonga. And Awoonga Dam itself has really started to fire up, with fish around 60-70cm being caught in big numbers, and the dam looks magnificent.
Fishing the mouths of the rivers and creeks will produce quality fish.
Stanage comes alive STANAGE BAY
Von Ireland
This month should be good in the estuary, with barramundi boofing and being hooked. Take your pick as to whether you cast with your soft plastics or hardbodies. I’m not a casting person; I’m quite lazy when it comes to line fishing in the estuary. Live mullet are awesome if you anchor up where the barra are in a feeding frenzy, or simply take about 20 of your favourite lures and keep swapping until you find the one that suits the depth and environment and troll,
CREATE YOUR ADVENTURES Brian Wells is a miner who leaves his boats in the author’s boat storage yard. Over the years he has become one of the most successful fishers to visit Stanage.
Coral trout have featured in anglers’ bags recently, and the action on these tasty fish should continue in the months ahead. or until a barra finds it. Depending where you fish up here, you may need to wait until the tide is below the mangrove root, as the baitfish are always feeding in at the bottom of structure . If we have had the run off rain – so far we have had none – the tops of the creek would be being fed by the overflow of the flats and salt pans. Prior to the storms and rain, the mouths of the creeks are the best. Until the rain and storms, the rocky headlands can be surprisingly good too, and don’t be surprised it you hook a monster, but please release these big fish in good condition. The muddies have been potted in generous proportions and crabbers have come with their pro gear from far and beyond. Some lads from Bowen left after three days with big smiles on their faces with monster muddies galore. The boys in the Oasis fishing rental did excellently with some monster crabs. As per usual they will be back; those fellas have become part of the furniture. One extreme fisher took his fishing life to
the next world with him. Brenden Douglas wanted half of his ashes to be set free at Stanage. Fish in peace, Bren. A big thanks to his mates for bringing him up for one last annual trip. He will always be remembered. Back to the fishing, on the islands and reefs anglers have caught many delicacies from red emperor to grassy sweetlip, coral trout to tuskies. The Collins Island group always gives up a feed of grassy sweetlip with a speckle of stipies and coastal trout. The road into Stanage Bay is a real credit to the last road contractors and
staying pretty much as they laid it. The grid at Lyndon needs serious work and lifting; it’s on the bitumen area of the Stanage Bay road. The grid has dropped, leaving a slight dip. Please be careful and slow down for it, or your trailer may not see Stanage Bay. Although we haven’t seen any runoff rain, the previous year’s runoff was kind in stimulating the growth of our fish and muddies. Do yourself a favour and experience Stanage for yourself. It’s within a day’s drive from Brisbane and Cairns. Take two weeks out of your year. The trip will keep you chatting about it forever. There are plenty of rental properties and all you could possibly need or want from a serious, last fishing frontier holiday. Remember, you really need to shop locally for your bait, ice and tackle; you will be surprised at the range and budget prices. Your business keeps us here for you. • For more info or bookings, simply call Von at Stanage Bay Marine & Accommodation on (07) 4937 3145, before all the good spots are gone. Cheers until next time, Von Ireland.
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An Australia Day muddy that Jess caught. MARCH 2018
61
CQ barramundi season starting with a bang GLADSTONE
Liam Jones
Barra season opened with a boom! Although it was the biggest tide on opening day, plenty of people still managed to get amongst some good fish. As expected, those who fished the upper tidal reaches of the Boyne and Calliope rivers were most successful. As the tides began to drop the harbour and narrows came into their own, with some much bigger fish being reported from these systems. In this issue, I want to take some time to talk about the standout lures that have worked so far this open season and why they have worked. Firstly, I’ll start with hardbodies and of course the ever-reliant Jackall Squirrel. The finish on these 79mm hardbodies is second to none. The fact that they can handle heavy terminal straight out
of the box and the fact they suspend with the nose down makes these little gems an absolute must for every barra fisher. The Yakamito Hyper Jerk 90 is a very similar profile to the Jackall Squirrel, just 11mm longer and slow floating. Upgrade the front treble and soon it becomes a nose down suspending hardbody. They don’t need to be upgraded, as they come
rigged with a 4X strong VMC straight out of the box. These guys don’t have the massive colour range of a lot of other hardbodies but the colours they have chosen certainly work in all different waters and times of day. The fact that these are slightly larger than a Jackall Squirrel but not as big as a Lucky Craft Pointer 100 put them in a perfect size category. The Duo Realis 100DR
The author’s first barra for the season caught on a 4” Lunker City soft plastic.
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worked wonders on our dam fish throughout the closed season and continued to do the same in the salt once it opened. Justin Nye from Gladstone Fly and Sportfishing rates these as one of his standout lures this year. They’re rigged out of the packet with pretty ordinary hooks, but once upgraded to a size 4 Decoy Y-S81 they will suspend and maintain the brilliant action they have with the standard hooks. Happy Rock Softies – these guys have been a massive hit locally over the past few years and are beginning to have an impact nationally. Anyone who’s used these know how well they swim. This hasn’t got anything to do with the mould, rather the materials used to make the plastic.
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The colour range is amazing and forever changing to accommodate anglers’ needs. Whether it’s the small, medium or Big Willy, the new Mullys or the Grub, they all have their time and place for barra! The Castaic Jerky J 5” and 7” are some of my all time favourite plastics. They have great action, great colours, they’re easy to rig and will swim with just about any weight jighead. Massive tail action even at slowest of rolls is a bonus. Lunker City Shakers have been around for quite a while now and have been hard to come across in Australia. An American plastic designed for largemouth bass, just about every colour you can imagine has been done. They range from 3-9” although the 5-7” lures are my pick for barra. They have a massive body roll due to their thin deep body profile and big oversized paddle-tail. The two-tone colours are my pick; with that massive body roll you get a real flash on the slow roll. Expect these to account for many barra this season! Now you have my top three lures in both hard and soft for barra this season! The weather was once again been pretty poor throughout February with a few small windows of opportunity. With the massive tides that fell on one of those opportunities, it made for some pretty exciting stickbaiting up on
A welcome by-catch from barra opening day. some nice weather around the lead up to the new moon so we can see some good numbers of big red emperor come on board. Mangrove jack are still firing, although they should have a little less pressure on them now barra season has opened. Lunker City 4” Shakers have been the standout once again with 90mm Sugapens and Yakamito Spectres doing the damage on surface. Surprisingly, there have been a lot of blue salmon about in the narrows and harbour. On a recent trip chasing grunter we landed a
Brandon Gillett with a solid jack taken on a 4” plastic. the reef flats. Big red throat emperor were schooling up in the shallows and hitting just about anything thrown at them. Throw in a few big trout and you get hard pulling, great-tasting fish and visual fishing. Red fish have been reasonably quiet, with a few reports of some nice nannygai coming from up around Cape Capricorn way – no records by any means. Red emperor have been pretty hard to come by but that’s probably more to do with when the good weather fell and the tides didn’t really line up. As we move into March (touch wood) we have
few around the 40-50cm mark before witnessing a school being absolutely hammered by a 1m+ barramundi. That’s something I have never witnessed before and
certainly won’t be forgetting in a hurry. Grunter are still thick and the size certainly hasn’t decreased. Both the harbour and the local wrecks are all still holding good fish. Anglers caught a heap of fish in the harbour on the last moon in February, which ranged from 40-70cm. These fish are good fun on light gear and in shallow water! Crabs had a small fire at the beginning of February and were consistent throughout the month. Grahams Creek, Turkey Beach and the top of the narrows were the most successful. As we move into March, expect the barra and jacks to continue to fire with some of the cooler months species beginning to pop up. Salmon should begin to thicken and the grunter should start moving from offshore and deeper places in the harbour up into the shallower estuaries. Until next issue, let’s hope for good weather and plenty of fish. • For more information on what’s biting, or to stock up with all the tackle and bait you need, drop into LJ’s Compleat Angler Gladstone at the Gladstone Marina on Bryan Jordan Drive. You can also check out the latest news, photos and specials at Facebook Compleat Angler Gladstone.
A decent jack taken on topwater recently.
March mayhem on the Fitzroy ROCKHAMPTON
Clayton Nicholls clay94_fishing@live.com.au
Early February was huge for our local fishery, with many people cracking 1m and even 1.2m barra. Local freshwater areas have been getting many decent fish, but looking for run-off brackish spots where the barra are sitting is quite productive as well. There have been good numbers of prawns and heaps of great-sized mullet in all the systems, and the local estuaries are alive and well for anyone unable to fish the river or port. The wind has been fairly consistent at around 10-15 knots. FITZROY AND THE NARROWS The barra have been retreating to cooler pockets of water to escape the heat. The barrage gates were opened in mid- February and the water spilling out was clean for a short while. The fresh pumping through is not all doom and gloom though, as it took a while to reach the port, and there are plenty of local estuaries fishing well. Some great lures for fishing the temperature lines
been two great locations for prawns and mullet. Coorooman Creek is still yielding a variety of species, including some huge crabs. The neap tides are a lot easier to fish in this system, as you target the run-offs and the drop-offs. The neaps also help with lure placement, as you don’t need a fast retrieve to keep the lure in the line you want it to follow, which means more time in the strike zone. FRESHWATER LAGOONS The freshwater lagoons are fishing very well because of the heat. The Roope Road crossing made from culverts is a very effective place to throw a lure; the water flows through very easily and the baitfish congregate around the snags around the crossing. The crossing generally holds many barra making their way up from the salt in flood times, and they then get locked into the lagoons as the water recedes. There’s a plentiful supply of tarpon here, and they’re great fun to target on surface lures as they are very aerobatic and not hard to find. Using smaller lures we were able to match the baitfish that were in the creek, and the
Little Summer Brett finally cracked her first barra last month. and rubble patches are the Zerek Fish Traps and the Berkley Shimma vibes. Any lure that can give you a nice action at a low speed will land you some great fish. There have been plenty of king salmon in the river lately also, and many fish have been landed using prawn imitations and live prawns. Some key areas to target are the rock bars at the mouth of the river, the deep holes near Thompsons Point and Devils Elbow when the water has settled down. RIVERS, CREEKS AND BEACHES The local estuaries are still full of bait, and the causeway is still a great place to get both eating and baitsized prawns. Around the front of Coolwaters and the front of the boat hire have
lures easily picked up fish when slow rolled back along a snag line, or twitched and left in front of snags. CRABBING The crabbing will pick up for a while after the fresh slows down and the system is again full of nutrients. The water temp is still quite high, and that will keep them active. A pack of mullet heads will always do the trick for a day out crabbing, but with some good winds about, and reef trips plentiful, reef frames make some great bait too. REPORT FROM COL BRETT Plenty of big barra are getting caught at the moment, especially in the Fitzroy and Port Alma area. We’re now in the second year of the net-free zones, and there’s a massive difference in both the
quality and quantity of the barra. I’ve caught more 1m+ fish in 2018 than I have in the last five years combined, and even the kids are getting XOS barra and threadies off the boat ramp. One lucky kid managed a 1.32m barra off the ramp recently. Lure anglers are having success on soft vibes such as Transams, Threadybusters, and Shiriten Madness vibes, along with plastics such as the ZMan SwimmerZ 4” and the Trick SwimZ 3.5” going pretty well. The standout hardbody lures have been Lucky Craft 78XD and 100XD Pointers, Jackall Squirrels and the Imakatsu Kirikaze Kicker Eater II. The local barra are used to seeing lots of lures, and have become quite educated, so more anglers are using the more hightech Japanese lures to get the edge. And when all else fails, the local timber Lethal Lure is racking up some big fish as well. For your best chance at landing a good barra, fish the last two hours of the run-out and the first two hours of the run-in, and fish deep and slow. If you’re fishing on the high tide, work your lures over the rocks which are exposed at low tide. You want to bang the rock bars with those hardbodies and vibes. For the bait fishers, livebait has been working the best, but if you can’t get a livey then fresh local prawns are a good alternative. A lot of king salmon also showing up in the city reaches of the Fitzroy, and the usual areas though the Fitzroy and Port Alma. They’re taking all the same lures and bait as the barra. Look for jelly prawns along the banks and the threadies won’t be too far away. The creeks are fishing well for mangrove jacks. Productive lures include Lucky Craft 78 Pointers and 3” ZMan MinnowZ. Concentrate your efforts during those low light periods early in the morning or late in the afternoon, and fish tight to structure. Coorooman Creek is going well for barra and grunter. Like threadies, grunter will take the same lures and baits, plus mullet fillets. A few mud crabs are getting caught in Coorooman Creek, but the best crabbing is in Corio Bay. It’s doing really well since the fresh. Barra are getting caught there as well, and the whiting shouldn’t be too far away with the freshwater flushing down. Outside there have been a lot of grey mackerel getting caught along in the coast in the dirty water, along with a few Spanish on the back of the Keppels. Taipans and
Flasha spoons are the go-to lures, or you can just float out a pilly while bottom bouncing. You can catch these fish at any time, but that first light period is the golden hour. Lately the fishing has been very good for red emperor and nannygai on the local reefs and wonky holes. Big baits are the key to catching quality fish more consistently. Use a live bait if you can get it, or a cuttlefish head or whole cuttlefish. If all else fails, the old hussar fillet works. You can find the reds in depths of 25m+. Anglers are also picking up coral trout and sweetlip on micro jigs, soft plastics and vibes. You can find the trout anywhere from 5m to 60m. Look for isolated bommies and fish tight to the pressure points. Plenty of black jew and grunter are being caught along the coastal spots. You can catch the black jew on micro jigs, big soft plastics, livebait or a big dead bait like a squid. Most are caught at night, especially around the full moon. FISHING IN MARCH The crabbing should be really good this month. We can also expect the
The net-free zones are giving anglers a much better chance of landing a trophy barra like this one. barra to really kick on as the temperature cools down a bit and gets more stable on the back of the February heatwaves. The rest of the fishing in March should be much the same as it was in February.
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MARCH 2018
63
Action all over the region YEPPOON
Scott Lynch ifishcq2@bigpond.com
Last month we saw more barramundi over a metre than ever, and a bundle of fish over 1.2m. I guess you could say the net free zones are working! So far this year has been fairly dry, and the lack of decent flow will have an effect on recruitment for the future, but at least for the present, barramundi and king threadfin salmon are both in large numbers throughout the Fitzroy and local area. The bigger tides mean that the bite periods tend to be either side of the top and bottom of the tides when the current has started to slow. The anglers who have the river wired tend to turn up for those couple of hours and then disappear. I on the other hand like to spend the day looking around when the fish aren’t necessarily on the chew. Many times you can find structures that are out of the flow a little that are holding quality fish. The anticipation is what lure fishing for barra is all about anyway, and it only takes that one big hit to get you focused enough to keep going. Using the side scan is a definite advantage when searching for spots that may hold fish. The anglers fishing the river with live baits have been doing very well, especially when the tide changes are at night or around sun up. The availability of bait is normally the biggest issue. Quite a number of the bait crews go to the freshwater ponds around Rockhampton
64
MARCH 2018
to collect bony beam. They catch them using small fly hooks and bits of garden worms. There are tilapia in some of the ponds, but they are illegal to use for bait and must be disposed of appropriately away from the water when caught. Coorooman Creek and Corio Bay fish very
herring out fish everything else, and other days poddy mullet seem to work better. Prawns will be picking up again if we get some decent rain. The little jelly prawns kicking about the gutters and drains need the boost of a fresh run to get them growing faster. In most of the systems the numbers are improving,
Ben Crew with a very nice grassy sweetlip. differently to the Fitzroy, because of their makeup and more localised flows. These systems have more specific spots and smaller structures in a much smaller area. They are generally much cleaner and clearer than the river and the fish are in quite shallow water much of the time. The other attraction of these two places is the availability of different baits. It is easy to get a good amount of live bait and even stock the esky with future reef baits at the same time. Some days greenback
and that means that prawn lures are going to be hard to beat. The king threadfin salmon schools have spread over the entire salt section of The Fitzroy, and over the high tide they will be working the banks or eddies, particularly where the small creeks and gullies run into the river. Over the low tides they usually move back down into the holes where they school up. We have been having the most success with prawn or crab-style plastics on the flats and banks, moving
up into shallow water with the tide. The current lines and colour changes are always worth a shot and there is good chance that if threadies aren’t there, then barramundi will be. Once the tide is well and truly running out and they have moved back out to the holes again, vibes will work the best. This is also the time that they will take a deepdiving lure, providing it can get deep enough to attract their attention. The holes or channels that have been working the best have been around the 5-6m range, making the lure choice any easy one. Go for a lure that is deep enough just to touch bottom occasionally. Like barra fishing in the river, when the water is dirty, use the brightest fluoro lure or the darkest lures you can find. When the water is clear, use the more natural colours, with greens and golds working best . The estuaries all seem to fire up in March as queenies, blue salmon, grunter, bream, golden snapper (fingermark), mangrove jack and cod are all in fair form. Flathead have spread out through the local systems, however, there are lots of quality fish to be had if you look around. This time of year you can’t just hang on one bank and score loads of fish. We move constantly as the tide moves through different areas and channels. The bigger fish have been along the deeper channel edges, while the smaller fish have been lining the mangrove banks and shallows. As usual, yabby beds and prawn gutters are a great spot to work, especially as the tide starts to cover them, and again when it starts to drain away. March in Keppel Bay can be feast or famine, depending on the rain in the river catchment. In dry years we get schools of bonito and small mac tuna right in around the islands and headlands. These bigger than regular-sized baitfish mean that bigger baits are needed to get the better mackerel. Bonito and wolf herring are definitely the star baits at the moment. Once the smaller baits come in then gar move up the list. This year and the end of last year has been especially good for Spanish mackerel, and it’s been very rare to miss out on a trip. There are a number of residents at some of the bigger areas, but mostly we are getting traveller schoolies passing along the contour line highways and stopping to feed at the many reef patches on the way. Many times they are down fairly deep, and you don’t notice them until they take one of your reefies, or a chromie you have cast out and let sink to the bottom before winding. There are one or two early black jew showings at places like The Corio Heads Jew
Mitch Dowling caught this lovely coral trout from a local reef recently. Hole and The Pinnacles. They don’t normally school up until the temperatures drop off a bit. Some of the bigger holes in the river down towards Port Alma are working and even Findlays has had a couple. The best baits are fresh slabs of mullet or bonito. Pillies and squid are always a handy back up when all else fails. We have hardly had a reasonable day for offshore fishing this year. I can’t remember when there has been more windy days. Despite this, there were some serious reefies taken
in the local area and out at the nearer wide grounds. As per usual, red emperor and coral trout have dominated, with the regular red throat emperor, cod, tuskies and jobfish filling the bags. The larger reefies can still be caught quite close, and the patches past the main islands are producing when the opportunity arises. Large mouth nannygai are coming back and should be in good numbers at spots like Manifold, The Rama, Jim Crow and any of the bait grounds.
Fabian Sutton’s big flatty, tagged and ready for release.
Anglers hoping for a break in the constant rain MACKAY
Keith Day habdays@bigpond.net.au
The recent start of the barra season came with hot, steamy weather and then a southeasterly change and much-needed rain. The change saw the hot barra bite quieten down, but the rain will see another run of creek prawns and the barra will respond. March barra fishing will be dependant on the amount of rain we get and traditionally March is our wettest month. The rain and strong winds have also put an end to any plans to fish offshore, so most anglers are getting gear serviced and preparing for the next round of good weather. Barra have been on the go in all our creek systems and the bite will continue through March in all the usual hotspots. Close to town the rocks around the highway bridge are always worth some time with either lures or livies. There are good spots both upstream
the Pioneer River near Dumbleton Weir. The fish looked around 40-45cm long and had obviously been deliberately put in the river. Local scuttlebutt has it that about eight adult fish were put in the system. The capture created a furore with Fisheries responding quickly and having the area electrofished over about a week but no peacock bass were found. But it is known there is at least one in the river, as the young lad that caught the fish shown on Facebook returned the fish to the river. More disturbing however is the story doing the rounds that several hundred fingerlings were released well upstream in one of the small side creeks that flow into the river. Further intensive investigation is needed, as the risk these major predators pose to the native fish stocks is extremely high. In fact they have the potential to wipe out local stocks including the 34,000 odd barra MAFSA has stocked in the river over the years.
by MAFSA over almost 25 years and have now put that at risk. Sheer lunacy is the only way to describe this action. Anglers are reminded that it is an offence to place any non-native fish into any system or dam and it is also an offence to return any non-native fish to the water after catching it. The fish should be killed humanely and taken to Fisheries or even a local tackle store for passing onto Fisheries with info on where the fish was caught and when. It is also an offence to breed these fish and keep fingerlings in anything other than a secure environment, and farm dams are not considered secure environments. The only positive to come out of this debacle is that it highlights how lax the regulations are regarding fish such as the peacock bass. The pollies appear to be turning deaf ears on calls to outlaw these fish and make it an offence to have them in an aquarium or anywhere else for that matter.
There have been plenty of barra like this silver salty being caught in the Net Free Zone. and downstream of the highway bridge with those above the bridge accessible on foot. There is a fair-size croc that lives in the area, so it pays to be careful. We have had a monumental scare locally with a peacock bass appearing on Facebook caught by a young lad in
How the people who put these pests into the river could think there was anything good about introducing them into the river is beyond me completely. The worst aspect of all this is that the offenders are obviously anglers and fish in freshwater, so they have had the benefit of the stocking carried out
Anyway, on a lighter and brighter note MAFSA has stocked another 3,510 barra into Kinchant Dam, which were purchased with SIP funds. Most fish were 250-280mm in length and all were really healthy fish. It was great to see the general public coming along to help with the
MAFSA’s Matt Tratt passing a net full of barra to Lily Hamilton of Marian so she can help release the fingerlings. stocking. More fish are on order for the dam. If March has quite a bit of rain as I expect, the colder runoff water may put the barra off the bite. But while the barra might slow down, threadies thrive in these conditions and will gorge themselves on small jelly prawns. Threadies can be very frustrating when they get a fix of small prawns, as they will ignore just about anything else. Small clear or white curltail grubs cut down to ‘match the hatch’ will find plenty of takers and can still be cast with threadline gear. The kings can be found right up in shallow water and often their tails and backs can be seen when they are hunting down the tiny prawns. An electric outboard helps to approach them quietly and a wellplaced cast will do the job. Once hooked the threadies use their big tail to really get mobile and they are great fun on reasonably light gear. Clearer water through March will see barra and plenty of flathead, pikey bream and grunter featuring
in anglers’ eskies. If you’re bashing the snags in clearer water then expect to run across jacks and estuary cod, and they will both put a decent bend in a rod. With the early rains in February, prawns will be on the move and a cast net will get you enough for a feed or two and some bait. Crabs have also been on the move, with good numbers and sizes coming from all the creeks, and this should continue through March. Keep an eye on your pots, as the ‘share farmers’ (otherwise known as pot thieves) are still around and active. A couple of mates had five pots cut open and the crabs removed in the NFZ recently. The rains will get the muddies moving around and flats at the front of creeks might just be the go in March. The NFZ continues to fish well, with reports of plenty of grunter coming in. The first couple of days of the barra season saw plenty of hopefuls in the NFZ and most weren’t disappointed. The barra numbers will continue to get better in the NFZ as time goes by.
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Up in the dams, the barra and sooties have been on the job, with Teemburra fishing really well lately. Barra in the dams don’t like a lot of runoff, as that water is usually very cold in comparison to the dam water temperatures and the barra will initially move right up to the inflow, then head off for warmer water. Sooties don’t have any such concerns, and will hang around the inflow looking for an easy feed. This month the INDT World Sooty Championship nominations will be opening, so check out MAFSA on Facebook for the current position on nominations. This competition is very popular, so it’s best to get in early. This year the competition is on 5-6 May at Eungella Dam and INDT is the naming rights sponsor. So while March may be wet and wild, there are as always options available for local and visiting anglers alike and remember if you catch a peacock bass, don’t put it back in the water. See you at the ramp.
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Exciting fishing action on good weather days WHITSUNDAYS
Mick Underwood
Everyone’s kids are well and truly back at school, mums and dads are back to the regular grind and it shows on the water, with a lot less boats around, not that we panic too much about that out here at Hydeaway Bay. Being such a laidback little community, apart from big fish we don’t get too excited about much anyway. The fishing over the last month has been a bit of a mixed bag, with the most consistent catches coming from the inshore grounds. Regular runs of blustery days have limited the amount of time that anglers have been able to fish around the outer islands for reef fish and the water out there hasn’t been that clear either, making the pelagic fishing hard. Back inshore around the mainland and inner islands, the reef fishing has been patchy with some nice fish coming in, but we’ve had to work for them. The
In the estuaries the threadfin have been feeding up in the shallows. The recent rains have stirred the prawns up and there have been some nice crabs coming in as well. March is a great month to spend some time on the briny, as long as the weather gods shine upon us. Locally March is typically our most unstable month of the year, remembering that tropical cyclone Debbie paid us a visit this time last year and no one wants a reoccurrence of that event. ESTUARIES With the water temperatures being nice and high combined with the recent rains and plenty of bait being around the barramundi fishing should be on fire. At this time of the year don’t limit your options to chasing this iconic sportfish in the creeks. A lot of fish will be located outside the river systems in particular around any rocky headlands and the flats systems outside the rivers. Some good mud crabs should continue to be caught and if the rains
Around the lower portions of the tide, try to cast net the gutters where the water is running off the flats and out of the smaller side creeks. If you are new to this sort of fishing and keen to have a go, invest in a drawstring net as opposed to a pocket net – I find them a lot quicker and more efficient to use, especially when on a nice patch of prawns. REEFS For daytime anglers this month, shallow is the go. I love to chase big trout coral trout and gold spot cod with hardbodies through this period of the year (make sure you read last month’s feature article to get the tips and tricks). Don’t be scared to bust out a few vibes and plastics as well, as they can be equally as productive. When selecting which plastic to use, try and keep the size down to 100-125mm and if the bite is tough, go even smaller. The old saying that elephants eat peanuts definitely comes to the fore here. Quite often through March, April and sometimes into May I find
Amie Lindsay and her family went out a couple of times with the author recently and they all had a great time catching piles of tealeaf trevally. necessary to fish on country with lots of prominent structure; isolated rubble patches will yield plenty of trophy fish. The number one bait to target big golden snapper at night is live squid and there are plenty to be found at night around most of the golden snapper haunts. The bonus is that you have the chance to bring home a feed of fresh squid as well as a golden snapper or two.
PELAGICS Over the last couple of years in March the pelagic fishing on Reel Addiction has been dominated by massive golden trevally. These are one of my favourite sport fish and will provide fun all day long on light spin and fly gear. To target these speedsters, locate the inshore bait schools and the big trevally won’t be far away. Another brilliant way to target golden trevally is
on the flats with a fly rod or really light spin gear and small lures. This isn’t a technique where you will always catch big numbers of fish. But when you lay your eyes on a 10kg+ specimen in gin-clear shallow water, lay that perfect cast out, watch it eat your chosen lure/fly and then bolt for the horizon doing Mach 3 – that’s a feeling that’s hard to beat!
Reef, seven years old, went out for his first crack at micro-jigging and came up trumps first drop with this nice golden trevally, which he pulled up out of 35m of water all by himself. mainstay of the fishing for myself recently has been the inshore pelagics. Fortunately over the last few weeks piles of herring have been gathering around the mainland headlands and in particular along the shores of Edgecumbe Bay. With them they have bought in scores of various species of mackerel and trevally. This has provided anglers with plenty of opportunities to enjoy some light tackle fun with lures and flies. 68
MARCH 2018
come down there will be plenty of prawns to go around as well. To target a nice feed of prawns, the shores of Sinclair Bay are a good place to start your hunt. When the tide is nice and high, get up on the flats and up against the edges of the mangroves to find where the pockets of these tasty little critters are hiding. As the tide recedes take care not to get caught on the flats, as it’s a long wait for the tide to come back in again.
XOS barracuda to be a pain in the backside on some reef fishing spots. If you happen to notice one hanging around your boat or suspect that you can see one of your sounder, be prepared to move to another location, as they will stop the better reef fish from biting. March is a top month to get out and try a bit of night fishing chasing big golden snapper on some of the deeper reef and rubble patches around the outer edges of the islands. It’s not
The trout are going to scoff lures this month and soft vibes are just one of the offerings that they’ll be partial to.
Have you scored a barra in the Burdekin yet? AYR
Steve Farmer
This month the barra season will be well and truly open and more than likely quite a few lucky and skilful Burdekin anglers will have notched up their first barramundi for 2018. Of course, Burdekin barra fishing depends on how much rain we get and the 2018 season definitely got off to a dry start. A sluggish start to the wet season might be great for anglers planning to lure the local estuaries, but it doesn’t fire up the fishing across the district like rain and a run in the river does. It’s also not so good for those who desperately need a fair dinkum wet season right across the north. If serious flooding stays away, the relatively clean estuarine waters might fish well with a range of lures, either cast or trolled. Prawn lures fished close to timber are always popular and effective. Large minnows trolled slowly along mangrove banks or through holes and over drop-offs should also entice barra. Estuary anglers who don’t fancy chasing barra
could do well to target golden snapper, mangrove jack or grunter. All these quality species should be fishing well while floodwaters stay away. Baits to try include fresh squid, slabbed and whole mullet and herring or small live baits. For golden snapper, target the deeper holes with structure. For jacks, drop your baits as close as possible to bank-side snags, and for grunter, look for shell beds and channels. Bluewater boaties haven’t had much luck, with few breaks in the unusually strong southeast winds during the first part of the year. One positive aspect is that temperatures for much of the time have been almost pleasantly cool for this time of the year. Conditions were the exact opposite at the same time last year with calm, hot days allowing many crews to fish the reef. This year a few of the bluewater skippers managed brief sprints to the Alva Shoals, returning with modest bags of nannygai and cobia. In fact, cobia were about in good numbers, accompanied as they often are by schools of large manta rays. Being a pelagic species
Russell Sutcliffe took this cobia on the Alva Shoals. the cobia is also often taken in open waters around Cape Upstart and Camp Island. A drifted pilchard bait, cast or trolled poppers and large minnows are likely to elicit a strike from a cruising cobia. MARCH FORECAST Variable weather conditions mean March fishing is always hard to predict in the Burdekin. No doubt barramundi will be the number one angling interest and the prime
spots to tempt a barra during the next few months will be the creeks and channels in Bowling Green and Upstart bays, followed by the larger estuaries such as the Haughton and Burdekin rivers and Groper and Barrattas creeks. While smaller estuaries are always worth a try, one angler reported some of these were already slightly affected by local runoff from the few showers and storms we have had. He explained that he had
a disappointing session in Ocean Creek with only three undersized mangrove jack snapping up his offerings of slabbed mullet and prawns. Most locals will be hoping for a reasonable wet season and a modest fresh in the Burdekin River. If that’s what we get (and chances are it will be) fishing across the delta estuaries will suffer in the short term. If your favourite creek is washed out, try moving a
little offshore to escape the freshwater influence. The Alva Shoals or Cape Upstart are obvious local choices, or you could head to Bowen’s picturesque and often clean waters to successfully wet a line. If conditions are less challenging, mangrove jack, golden snapper and grunter will continue to be the main estuarine targets. Small mackerel species, trevally and queenfish can also be about in good numbers during March. These pelagic species are likely to frequent waters around creek mouths, as well as inshore shoals, Cape Upstart and Camp Island. A pilchard rigged on a gang of hooks will tempt any of these pelagics. Lure fishers would do well to have a small supply of metal slugs and slices in the tackle box, especially for the mackerel, while poppers are probably the most effective way to hook-up on trevally and queenfish. By the way, if we get a small wet season, the limited amount of runoff is likely to suit the prawns, providing an opportunity to cast net a tasty feed or a handy supply of quality bait for future trips.
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MARCH 2018
69
A dry end to the summer fishing TOWNSVILLE
Dave Hodge
Brownsville is living up to its nickname quite well of late, and a couple of quick downpours that settle the dust and raise the humidity for a few hours are all that we have been able to milk out of this summer so far. Apparently the rain forecast has been pushed back a little further and March might be a bit better for us around here, maybe. If the accidental captures of barra before the season open are any indication then we’re going to do just fine on the barra front. There have been some stonkers caught, but the average fish is around the 60-62cm mark, which is still great fun in the snags. A mate of mine and I went for a look for some queenies the other day and could see these darkish brown black looking fish in the shallows, and it didn’t even resemble a barra shape, let alone the colour. A couple of casts soon revealed a school of around 20 fish shadowing bait and herding it into a small bay before erupting on it. After our initial casts, we started to notice more and more small schools ghosting around the shallows. There
The author releases most of his fish and is happy to catch whatever as long as it pulls hard. Slateys pull bloody hard, but taste awful. occasions, but some lures don’t have a very appealing action until the speed is increased considerably, so go for a lure that works at slow speeds. Most of these deeper diving lures have reasonable bibs for getting them down and if it’s almost coming out of the nose of the lure in line with the body, then it will be a deep diver. I usually troll these lures on 20-30lb braided line and most times I use a 2m long 40lb
productive for other species like jacks and smaller river golden snapper around 50cm. Sometimes you can find
anglers are all doggied out by now, and they’re just annoying when chasing other stuff like golden snapper, grunter and trout. I went for a flick with good mate Karl Romano a few weeks back, and the number of plastics that got snipped off was insane. We got a few lures past them eventually, but got smoked a few times, and they felt like they we’re big choppers. Just sub-legal Spanish were also around on the shallower grounds and with no wire on board, we just left them biting to go in search of bottom stuff. The inshore reefs have been producing plenty of trout in that 40-50cm range, and are smashing plastics. There are a few 60cm+ models mixed in as well, so a good feed is on the cards even if you leave the bait at home. The trolling of 125mm 8m divers is also starting to make a comeback for many reef fishers. They can be cast or
If the weather turns bad then there are always a few land-based options for the kidlets. An unweighted peeled prawn was all that was needed for young Tannhym to catch five identically-sized giant herring plus a heap of pikey bream. There are plenty of trout getting around lately on the shallower reefs. Rods need to be stiff if you’re to get most of them out, as they know where every crevice is and will get there if you let them. is no particular area that has been a standout though, and while chasing golden snapper (fingermark) recently, I hit several small just legal-sized barra in 8m of water on small plastics. While chasing jacks with my young fella, there were barra boofing in the spindly tips of branches in 3m of water. They’re about, and that’s the important bit. Trolling is a pretty good option when these bigger tides are around, so this might be worth experimenting with. It’s not really difficult to do, and a small tinnie that can idle for hours on end without oiling up is all that’s needed to put you in the chase. The trolling speed is a pretty standard slow walking pace on most 70
MARCH 2018
fluorocarbon leader, unless the size of the fish is substantial and they’re near structure and require more serious stopping power – then it’s always the 30lb rig that gets used. I rarely troll, as it bores the bejesus out of me, but trolling is a handy way to find fish on the sounder and I’m always watching the screen for the tell-tale signs of a school off the troll path, or a bunch of submerged snags that would be undetectable without the side scan. I usually run the split screen option on my sounder, as this allows me to see exactly what’s underneath me and what’s out to each side as well. A snag that’s away from the normal trolling run of other fishers is often more
snags that are off to the side only a few metres away and a quick change of direction can swing your lure far enough as you move forward to intercept these fish without having to retrieve your lures and reset a path. On average, your lures will be 20-30m behind the boat and trolling against the current flow, which allows you to manoeuvre them quite a distance sideways before you reach the snag. If there are ledges, rocks or bank slips, I’ll usually use the 90-125mm divers to bounce my way around the contours. If it’s thick timber and snags, then I always run a lure with a nose-down action and snag resistance in the thick timber. OFFSHORE FISHING Talking to the offshore guys and girls there has been plenty of action on the mackerel still and the doggies have been plaguing some locations. Most
trolled, but this is exactly what they were made for, so crank up the drag and throw a few of these things around. Some 30-50lb braid is the go for this cutthroat type of stuff and 50-60lb leaders are going to help you stop most of the trout. The 5” Paddle Prawn and 4” Atomic Prongs are a great option for the shallower stuff, but in the deeper areas, the 7” Paddle Prawn is the go. Your by-catch will be pretty unpredictable as well, so be ready for anything. Jigheads need to be strong and sharp, and rods stiff in the butt section to keep their head pointing in the right direction. You’re also going to land many more if you hold onto the rod instead of putting it in the holder. There are heaps of lures that you can muck around with on the reef, and many people wait until they’ve caught a feed on baits before experimenting,
The Halco Poltergeist did the trick on this golden snapper. which is a smart way to go about rehearsing your mix of tactical options. The C-Gar is a sinking type stickbait at rest and can be twitched around bommies and reef, or cast and skipped across the surface for GTs and queenies. Out off the edge, the Outcast and Twisty jigs can be used to great effect in 15-30m for trout, lipper and nannies, but also cobes and other fish that are lurefriendly. I suppose it all boils down to what you want to do; if you want to stay active and just experiment then the lure thing is a real journey, but if bait floats your boat, it’s a pretty straightforward way to get a feed. It’s important to remember though, that the more you practice the more you’ll catch, and the amount of anglers that quiz me about the lure thing almost daily proves that the interest is out there. Those explosive strikes on the surface are what some people dream about, and others can’t get enough of those arm-jarring, headthrashing bites that leave you shaking your head. If you’re a vibe fan, the vibe thing is established here in Australia for good, but some just don’t cut it with peg teeth and bad attitudes, so beware of what you spend your hard-
earned cash on. CLOSE TO SHORE If the weather’s a bit on the rough side then the breakwalls around town can be a great source of entertainment and some big fish are often encountered when you least expect it. A few weeks ago Ryan and I went to leave the river and as we neared the end of the breakwall, dropped off the plain and shook our heads in disbelief at the waves that were crashing around the end of the wall. We just dropped the electric and started casting our way back to the ramp, until a crunching strike had me buckled over the gunnel and loosing line as it went under the boat, then around the boat and under it again. This went on for about 10-15 minutes before a big goldspot cod revealed itself boat side. Ryan was almost ripped from the boat as he slid the net under the big cod and it panicked and hit the afterburners. We took a couple of happy pics and put it back in the drink to smash up someone else’s gear, and add some more jewellery to that gob. Even though we haven’t been able to escape the barra during closed season, it’s still a pretty exciting time, as we can actually target them now. All in all, I don’t think you’ll have too much trouble getting a feed or just bending a rod in the near future.
Cromarty Boat Ramp will flood on 4m tides, so get there a bit before the top of the tide. The Morriseys Creek Ramp is also closed for works until late March. If you’re using a shortcut to get to Morriseys, be careful – it’s narrow.
Barra season hangs in balance HINCHINBROOK
Ryan Moody info@ryanmoodyfishing.com
What a stinker the summer has been. With these above average temperatures, let’s hope it’s building for a reasonable wet season, but I’m not holding my breath too much. It’s been pretty dry, with very few storms reaching the coast in February. Hopefully we might be lucky enough to see some late rain events. The Northern Territory has had a good drench, but the east coast hasn’t been so lucky as yet. During the past month the main species of interest will obviously be the barra. Some anglers have been saying it’s very quiet, while others are getting a few, but it’s not the most outstanding barra fishing we have had for this time of year. It’s still a little too early to tell what season it will be at the moment. If we get some good rains, then things will slow up in the short term, but will be good for the following months. We have caught a few nice barra, with some good sessions on smaller fish in the shallows.
Inshore reports suggest that grunter have been around in reasonable numbers, but the golden snapper (fingermark) have been a little slow so far. The channel has had some very patchy golden snapper captures in the past couple of months, which suggests most fish have moved out to deeper headland waters and are best
caught at your fishing spots with the aid of a squid light and drawstring castnet. Lots of baby sharks have been harassing local fishers who are using livies, but this can be quite common at this time of year, and I must say the numbers have boomed on previous years. The adult whaler species have boomed too, with many
Karen with her best Hinchinbrook barra at 98cm. targeted at night. Live squid and herring are top baits for this species and can be easily
northern fishers both inshore and out wide complaining about them taking fish. The
sharks have been an ongoing issue for the past few years, and many anglers have had enough. We just hope they disappear as quickly as they came in. Offshore reports have been a little sparse, with some good captures of red emperor and red throat at night, but only slow reports of trout and red throat during the day. It can be a slow time of year to fish the reef, and any northerly or northwesterly influence can slow the fishing substantially. Nighttime is by far the best time to fish out wide in summer, but beware of bad weather. During periods of fresh run-off, bait fishing can become difficult with baitfish often a little hard to catch. Only the very switched on will know where to find the bait when it gets like this. The best alternative is to target them with lures and Hinchinbrook has plenty of run-off areas and drain country that should work a treat. The run-off and drains will also suit the fly fishers too. If the region is fresh affected, then it also sometimes pays to look for backwaters that hold thousands of baitfish.
Offshore anglers will tend to fish deep for coral trout at this time of year. The barra can quite often be seen engulfing mouthfuls of them, as these tiny baitfish can get thick in these areas. Alternatively, you can always look to the shallows during this time as well. If you are struggling to catch a barra and just can’t put it all together, then you can join the long list of anglers who are starting to fish smarter not harder, by enrolling in our e-course
Barra Basics. Enrolments for the next intake is in September, so head over to www.barrabasics.com for more info. • If you would like to book a charter or join our fishing community for some great fishing competitions etc, head on over to www. ryanmoodyfishing.com. And you could also win a free charter drawn twice a year.
MARCH 2018
71
Rain leaves few fishing windows for anglers PORT DOUGLAS
Lynton Heffer www.fishingportdouglas.com.au
By the end of January and the start of February we started to see a string of low pressure systems roll across the tropics, which brought with it the so called wet season rains. There’ve been bouts of heavy rain, scattering showers, beautiful sunny days, calm days and very windy days. The weather has basically been all over the shop, which is typical at this time of year. Naturally, on the bad days you don’t have much choice but to choose an alternative activity, but there’s been enough windows of opportunity to go fishing. With the rain, our rivers and creeks have been stirred up sufficiently to move around bait and rejuvenate. Big barra have been caught around the headlands, river mouths and break through creeks along the beaches. Anglers using live baits and hardbody lures have been rewarded and a trickling incoming tide has often been the best time to target them.
Dylan Case with a ripper long nose emperor caught on a stickbait fishing on the reef flats. Upstream there’s been no shortage of hungry mangrove jack ready to pounce on a pilchard or moving lure and they’ve been caught in dangerous territory, hard up against the mangrove banks.
In the deeper holes, golden snapper have been responding to live baits on top of the tide, and also following the tide coming in have been some queenfish and trevally, which can be targeted with soft plastic
lures. Some deeper holes have also seen huge numbers of tarpon swirling around on the surface and small poppers are dynamite on these sportfish. Along the beaches there’s been all sorts of quarry, with
a healthy supply of bait in the region including prawns in the shallows. Barra, trevally, big queenfish, permit, dart, blue salmon, tarpon, squid and a variety of sharks have all turned up at various times to check in. The activity has peaked early morning during calm weather with an incoming tide. Late afternoon with the same tide has also been productive. Live baits such as mullet or garfish have easily been the best bait, with small poppers worked on the surface and soft plastics also claiming fish. Inshore reefs and patches have fished quite well with some run in the current with bar cheek trout, nannygai and grassy sweetlip. Off the bottom, there’s been some hefty pelagic activity with big schools of trevally cruising through, along with numbers of doggy mackerel. Drifting pilchards and jigging metal slices has been the best way to hook into the pelagic fish. Despite it being not the ideal time of year, the reef fishing has been fairly consistent. At times it has meant a bit of chopping
and changing in tactics, but there’s been enough action for those prepared to put in the time. The deeper rubble patches seem only able to produce a handful of good size largemouth nannygai before having to look elsewhere. Bommies in 25-35m of water seem to produce similar numbers of trout, spangled and red emperor, trevally and sweetlip. Those prepared to change things up have moved right up into the shallows into depths of only a couple of metres casting poppers and stickbaits across the surface. They have been rewarded with some great fish such as blue spot trout, footballer trout, red bass, giant trevally and some cracker long nose emperor. It doesn’t sound like a viable plan, but it can work if you are struggling to find fish elsewhere. Being prepared to explore all options is the key moving forward in March, and I’d expect your fishing will be governed by the amount of rain we get. The calm days should fire up nicely both inshore and offshore.
Wet season looks promising for barra season CAIRNS
Garry Smith garrysmith@fishingmonthly.com.au
Good rain in late January kicked the barra season off on the right foot, with plenty of opportunity for the big girls to breed before the nets and recreational anglers joined the fray. Surprisingly, barra angler numbers were much thinner than in previous years and not because of lack of fish. With perfect
offshore conditions on opening weekend, most anglers took the opportunity to head east, as it’s rare to get such ideal conditions over a weekend in the middle of the wet season. Plenty of boaties returned to harbour with smiles on their dials, while others didn’t fare so well. One thing they all experienced was the heat, with plenty of care needed to avoid heat exhaustion. After doubling the average rainfall for Cairns in January good follow-up rain in early
February put the wet season back on track and fish patterns should return to normal over coming months. The only downside is the majority of rain has been coastal, with Tinaroo Dam still over 8m below the spillway recently. However, lots of rain and southeasterly winds will hopefully help prevent another coral bleaching episode this summer. Barra were on the headlands in the opening week, with both big and small fish around however many
Jordy Wedrat is just as happy to battle a big trevally as he is to jig up a trout from the depths on light spin gear. 72
MARCH 2018
anglers fished the gutters and drains, due to the amount of rain either side of the opening. There were mixed results with some people heading home smiling, while the majority are still to open their account for the season. Surprisingly the headlands held relatively few anglers on opening weekend. I was expecting big numbers with the massive tides forcing people out of the estuaries. All the run through creeks on beaches to the north and south of Cairns were open to the ocean as a result of massive tides and heavy rain, but even these held few anglers. On the other hand, the boat ramp car parks were chockers with reef boat-sized trailers. Trinity Inlet had been producing plenty of incidental barra in the lead-up to season opening. Heavy rain just before the opening threw a spanner in the works for most, with a fresh in the system, along with massive tides, dramatically changing the conditions. Most serious anglers were more intent on getting to the reef. While trout were about in the shallower water, reds in the deep water were of greatest interest for most anglers. Overnighting was popular for both comfort and productivity reasons. Plenty of western activity in the night sky kept skippers on alert and regularly checking the Cairns BOM radar on their mobile phones for any sign that the storms To page 73
Magnus Rotnes from Norway with a quality spangled emperor, which he caught on an overnighter while visiting his Australian host family from when he was here as an exchange student a few years ago.
Barramundi bonanza for the Trinity Net Free Zone CAIRNS
Dan Kaggelis dkaggelis@gmail.com
There has been some big news for the Trinity Net Free Zone and I’m not just talking about the number of quality fish being caught. Late last year myself and a group of motivated rec fishers met with the State Fisheries Minister where he announced they would be providing $100,000 in funding to support our Net Free Zone. While this was great news, it just got better with Local Government also reaching into their
coffers and matching the State Government money dollar for dollar. This is terrific news for rec fishers in Cairns as an investment of $200,000 is a great boost for infrastructure, better access and potentially more fish. Stakeholder talks are already underway in terms of how this money will be spent, so watch this space. Politics aside, the Trinity NFZ continues to improve in leaps and bounds and some early rain before the start of the barramundi season was a welcome sight. Big schools of bait and prawns have been scattered up and down creeks and out the front of beaches, creating a much-
needed boost to feed the now protected fish. With all the dirty water around from the rain I have been spending much of my time out the front around the headlands and beaches in the 3-5m mark, mostly hunting salmon. There have been plenty of blues around and plenty of barramundi mixed amongst them. Fishing vibes has been the best method and the area between Machans and Holloways Beach has been providing the best catches. The rock walls around Yorkies Knob continue to produce the odd barramundi and queenfish as well, and these spots will get better
Big barramundi are responding well to vibe style lures across the open beaches.
Mangrove jacks have been responding to soft plastic frogs tossed up into the shade of the mangroves. From page 73
were heading out to sea. Quality largemouth nannygai, red emperor and mangrove jack will be the main target species in the deep water this month and there will be plenty of spangled emperor, longnosed emperor and trevally of all shapes and sizes joining the action. Pelagic fishing is certainly on the agenda this month for the more sports minded, as it can be a real playground, with large trevally of numerous species on the rampage chasing the bait schools. While bottom anglers consider trevally, like GTs, bludger and tealeaf just a nuisance at worst and good bait at best, sport fishos love nothing better than the dogged fight they put up on light gear. You know you have been in the fight after landing a 10kg bludger trevally on spin gear! The inshore wrecks, rocks, islands and reefs have been holding good numbers of golden snapper, nannygai and cobia and ridiculous
numbers of juvenile sharks. In some places it has been impossible to fish using dead and especially live baits due to small sharks. Luring using soft vibes, micro-jigs, slices, soft plastics and jerk shads has been the only way to go to reduce the shark problem. Once a fish is hooked however you have to hope there are no big sharks in the area! Golden snapper have been plentiful along the headlands; live sardines and mud herring are the go for bait. Lures were catching a few but nothing like the numbers falling to live baits. Dropper rigs fished with the rod left in the holder are by far the best way to fish for these brutes. Fishing with rod in hand, especially for less experienced anglers, usually results in the fish being missed from striking too early. It’s much more relaxing to sit back with a coffee in hand and a close eye on the rod tip, waiting for it to double over before picking it up. Don’t make the mistake of taking your eye off the rod
for more than a couple of seconds or the big fish will brick you before you even get to lay a hand on the rod. Mud crabs have been around, with the rain forcing them to move. They should continue this month if the rain does the same. Prawns should be around in good numbers as the early rain would have forced the smaller ones downstream and offshore and they should be getting to good eating-size by now. They are a top live bait at smaller sizes, so they have been a popular target around the estuary and inlet mouths and open beaches, since the rain started in late January. All up, this month anglers will wait and see and take advantage of the prevailing conditions. If we have continual periods of torrential rain then work on your brownie points on the home front, as the fishing will light up when the waters settle and you will want to have enough credits in the bank to get out there and join the chase.
when the water clears up. Anglers fishing the inlet are reporting excellent schools of barramundi throughout the system. The bigger fish are staying deep and some fish have been taken below 8m in depth. The flats out the front continue to produce barramundi on the bigger tides and it can be a matter of sitting on them until they decide to feed. Golden snapper have also been about in good numbers and have been
sitting in holes on the low tide, especially when the tides are neap. Fresh bait is the best way to target these fish. With all the prawns around, getting a few of these to put on your hook will certainly be worth the effort. Mangrove jack are also being caught in big numbers and skipping frogs and other lures like the Tiemco Skipping Minnow under mangroves deep into the shade is really paying dividends. Jacks love the
shade at this time of year and this is the best place to target them. The open beaches are the place to be on calmer days and I have seen some great barramundi taken off the beaches from Clifton to Palm Cove. There are many runoff creeks in this area, which spill into the ocean and these are hotspots for congregating fish. Make sure you are getting out and enjoying the NFZ as we are certainly lucky to have it on our doorstep.
Young gun fisho Dan with a couple of spotties. Nice work, mate! MARCH 2018
73
Still waiting for rain LUCINDA
Jeff Wilton jeffwilton83@hotmail.com
So far it has been another disappointing year in terms of rainfall. It is starting to get very frustrating, as we need lots of rain to fill dams and help flush out our systems. It’s sad when you walk to streams and waterholes that normally have lots of water and life to find a stagnant pond, or even worse – a dry waterhole. Hopefully this month the heavens will open up for a month straight of rain, causing big water rises in our major rivers and putting new life back into our creeks and estuaries. But enough negative talk; let’s see what the fishing should be like in March. The best thing about Lucinda is the amazing amount of options it has on offer. HINCHINBROOK CHANNEL As always, the fishing in the channel will be heavily influenced by how much rainfall/flooding we get. At the moment there has been nothing at all, and the fishing has been pretty consistent. Lots of people have caught their first barra for the year, and these fish should remain
active in the heat and humidity that’s typical for March. The mangrove jack fishing has been great for months now, and these fish should actually become more aggressive and in better numbers if we can get some rain flushing out the top reaches of the creeks. The smaller to mid-size jacks love to head right up into the top reaches of creeks, which are usually inaccessible to boats and anglers. It’s here that the jacks feed and grow in safety. When we get good flooding rain they get pushed out or instinctively leave their skinny waterways for larger places to feed and grow. Eventually they head out to the reef to fully mature. It’s easy to hook up to a jack, but they can be difficult to land as their dirty tactics can mean you will be tying plenty of new rigs. They are my favourite fish to target though as they love eating lures and plastics, and the challenge to make pinpoint casts to get their attention is part of the fun... and frustration! Jacks are suckers for a well-presented surface offering such as poppers or stickbaits, but my favourite surface lure at the moment is the ZMan Finesse FrogZ. These small FrogZ are ideal as they can be rigged weedless and basically
thrown anywhere you want. If you are a confident caster then skipping them under overhangs and snags is very deadly, and trying to extract the fish when you hook them can be epic fun. Using light to mid-size spin gear to throw them means you are limited to lighter braids and leader, so I can guarantee some of the bust-offs you get will be ridiculous. You’ll find yourself tying plenty of new leaders with shaking hands and a fast heartbeat. Plenty of golden snapper (fingermark) have also been encountered up in the creeks by lucky bait fishers and lure throwers. These great looking and tasty fish are normally plentiful in the channel itself, but not in such large numbers in the creeks. Maybe it’s the lack of rain that has caused them to stay up their creeks for longer. Either way, when you think you’re hooked onto a nice mangrove jack and a golden snapper comes to the net, it’s always a welcome catch. I would have to rate golden snapper up there with the best eating fish in our waters. JETTY, ISLANDS AND REEF If you have the patience to catch some live baits such as sardines or squid, you’ll
The more rain we get, the better the fishing is for barra. find that late night sessions at the end of the jetty should pay off. With the right live bait, there’s a good chance you’ll go home with some quality golden snapper and grunter in the esky. I talk to plenty of people who spend lots of hours out the end fishing for very little action, and in most cases it is because they were using store-bought baits and not fresh. While it’s true that using even the best baits at the right time still won’t guarantee fish in the boat, it’s always a good idea to push the odds in your favour. For those into sportfishing there will always be the odd GT hanging around, wanting to play tug-of-war with you. Big poppers or plastics worked in close to the pylons will see you
get some attention if you keep at it. Actually pulling fish out is the major problem though, as it normally means your lure will be very close to extremely unforgiving structure. Fishing around the islands will be worth a shot this month, and I would recommend trying to find some isolated rubble bottom or reef away from the actual islands. These spots see less boat traffic and receive less fishing pressure. A good sounder will help you to find isolated fishy structure, and the best idea is to throw a lure out the back and slowly troll around while watching the screen. Finding some rubble ground on the way to the reef is an easy way to get a few tasty fish in the esky. Chasing nannygai is the easiest form of
fishing. All you have to do is find some life on the sounder, drop a chunk of fresh squid down and hang on! Nannies normally hang around in schools, and it is very easy to bring fish after fish on board. Just remember that nannygai have a bag limit of 10 and they suffer from barotrauma very badly, so once you have caught some please move on and target something else. You will also find lots of good ground in the shipping channel on the way out to the reef; just spend some time looking at maps and learn to read contour lines, as this can help fast track your ability to find new spots. The more spots you have, the more likely it is that you’ll go home with a good feed.
Wet season will hopefully provide good fishing CAPE YORK
Tim O’Reilly wildrivercompany@gmail.com
Starting in the Southern Gulf and moving up the West Coast towards Weipa, early signs for a decent wet season are positive. All will revolve around the positioning of the monsoonal trough and the occurrence of cyclones, which are pretty random at the best of times. Fishos will understand the correlation between plenty of water and big barramundi in the months ahead. Generally speaking, March, April and May will be the prime months, as flooding waters subside and fish begin to congregate around food sources. Following a larger than normal wet season like those experienced around 201113, some truly exceptional fishing resonated throughout the Southern Cape. Not only were there good numbers of barra, but some real monsters were found lurking around the river mouths. The secret to finding these larger fish usually involves fishing the neap tides (quarter moons) where the water has a chance to clear a little and the salt74
MARCH 2018
fresh demarcation becomes easier to uncover. Quite often the larger barramundi will have used floodwaters to move downstream and take up residence close to this point. Baitfish and food items will concentrate in these fresh and brackish areas in the later stages of the wet season before the tide again starts pushing farther up the river systems.
Any drain or natural flow of water from wetland areas will be a prime lurking area for large predators. Prawns, cherrabin, frogs, lizards, insects and a host of smaller fish will be flushed out of these areas, providing easy pickings to old bucket mouth. While Cape York lacks some of the characteristics that makes the Northern
This lovely small barra hit a popper in floodwaters on dusk.
Territory such a remarkable run-off fishery, some other features make up for it. The sheer remoteness of many of the West Coast rivers mean that some similar fishing scenarios as those presenting themselves in the Daly, Mary, Victoria and Alligator Rivers in the NT, simply remain unfished in Cape York. During a massive wet season, a flight from Karumba in the Southern Gulf up the West Coast all the way to Bamaga in the north will represent something like an endless inland sea, with snaking creeks and rivers dominating the landscape for hundreds of kilometres. These are breeding grounds for sooty grunter, saratoga, barra and the starting point for almost every food web supporting life in this part of the world. Cape York is an incredible myriad of mangroves, coastal bays and estuaries. There will be a huge amount of clear water starting to spill out into every conceivable type of structure and March will be a great month for chasing mangrove jack. Hidden in tiny indentations just out of the main flow, a receding tide will be the best time to chase red terrors. Nothing beats the sight of a shallow diving lure set upon by a mob of hungry mangrove jack.
Waterways criss-cross the landscape, pumping all the excess fresh to the sea during March. In some of the shallow muddy bays and along the coastal verges, showers of tiny prawns will be congregating en masse, desperately trying to stick close to structure as the tide falls away. Threadfin salmon can be a fickle fish to trick in these conditions and hooks need to be razor sharp to pin any half-hearted bumps and swipes from these big-whiskered hunters. All in all, March is one of the most exciting months
to fish Cape York. Anyone lucky enough to be one of the first to fish an area post wet season are in for a real treat. The weather is warm and the rain and run-off will have almost everything with fins out looking for a feed. • For information on remote charter operations for tailored fishing adventures, please email Tim on wildrivercompany @gmail.com
Cooktown is getting good flows COOKTOWN
Paul Prokopuk
March should provide plenty of rain for our region. So far this wet season, Cooktown and the surrounding areas have already experienced some good rain with several weeks of heavy downpours and the looming threat of a cyclone. Amongst the heavy downpours, local Cooktown anglers have been blessed with some consistently good weather. The rain has been a big relief for our waterways and also benefited the fishing quality in the area. The rivers’ banks and lagoons have already overflowed this wet
A lovely Spanish mackerel caught on a red and white Halco. deeper holes where the salt water sits under the fresh. Mud crabs have also been flushed out of their holes from the excess freshwater and they tend to move down to the mouths of river systems or into the bays where there is more saltwater influence. You will be able to catch plenty of mud crabs around the first few kilometres of the river systems. Think carefully where you will place your pots, because the driftwood and trees that flush through from the floods sometimes tangle with the rope and floats of your pots and drag them to unknown locations or snag them under debris that builds up. The winds in Cooktown have been favourable over
This jack was caught on light gear flicking plastics in the Annan River. the last month. As a result, our local reef fishers have been having an absolute blast out on the reefs. Most people are coming in much earlier than they had planned, because they had already reached their bag limits. Coral trout and largemouth nannygai seem to be most targeted due to their quality eating and no one is coming home without an ice box full of them. Simply find the bommies with bait for the trout and rubble patches for the nannygai. One of the great things about Cooktown is the
sometimes-extreme weather and wind conditions restrict boaties accessing the reefs, which gives the fish habitat good recovering times between fishing trips. As a result, great success is had for all fishers when we do get out to fish the big blue. The mild winds will continue right through until the end of March so there will be plenty more opportunities to get out and fish the reefs. Reef fishers also need to take care navigating at this time of the year because of the driftwood, which sometimes as big as power poles, is floating around in the sea.
The author with a couple of nice bucks caught after a big rain. season. This is great news for our barramundi fishing enthusiasts. The floods have allowed the barramundi to escape from their waterhole traps and
move freely throughout the river system. Already there have been reports of barra being caught off the local wharf and around the headlands. With the recent
deluge, fish will flee to the mouths where there is cleaner saline seawater. Try using this to your advantage and target the cleaner water around headlands and
Phil Gillard went fishing at the northern end of the Barwon Banks and caught this great mahimahi trolling lures. The fish weighed in at 16kg.
A solid barra caught flicking soft plastics on a run-out tide. MARCH 2018
75
Northern Junior
Barramundi are on the bite WEIPA
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Jackson Bargenquast
The barramundi closed season finally ended last month and, now that the barra have finished their spawning, it’s time to go and target one of these chrome drag turners and enjoy the amazing battle. Along with chasing barramundi there are many other potential species to target – some of them equally impressive and just as likely in the same habitat. Torrential rain has really soaked the Cape over the last few weeks and after speaking to longlived Weipa locals this year has been a significantly bigger and harsher wet season than the last few previous years. This has made for some cancelations of fishing trips and for some very unpleasant ones, however it’s all worth it when the barra fishing is exceptional. The large amount of run off has resulted in all of the
A lot of rats can be caught fishing run off but this is not necessarily a bad thing. are obvious fish magnets and all kinds of predators are attracted to the scene. There are carnivores, like the barra, and all kinds of species from bream to mangrove jack and even queenfish and trevally. Sharks and rays, such as bull sharks and sawfish,
in many more by-catch species, and while some may be welcomed such as kings and blue salmon, often the only fish to be caught are catfish and bream. The type of lure to use is not generally rocket science when the barra
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Alan ‘Fish’ Philliskirk proving that hardbodies can pick up just as many fish as any plastic can.
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76
MARCH 2018
Phone: 0410 173 060 basscataustralia@gmail.com
inland swamps and lagoons filling up with freshwater and with enough excess to cause drains and creeks to flow freshwater for days or even weeks on end. This results in large amounts of baitfish, such as spangled perch and rainbow fish, to wash downstream into the salt, which then congregate around the mouth to push back upstream. Other saltwater fish species, such as mullet also school up around freshwater inflows that have nutrients flowing in with the freshwater. All of these factors
will try to push upstream as well – the worst nightmare for every fisher up north – crocodiles will be present hunting large fish but won’t hesitate to stalk humans. Be careful when fishing run off for barramundi. Barra can be chased with live baits, including prawns and herring, but often under run off circumstances lures will outfish baits. Since many different sizes of fish will be schooled up together, livies don’t necessarily get the bigger fish. On top of this, using baits will result
are schooled up. Often the places being fished are no deeper than 6-8ft and the fish will be quite aggressive, rising in the water column and actively hunting. When fishing drains, use shallow diving minnows; these lures seem to produce the overall best results. This is because the water is dirty and fast flowing and the fish can detect the lure better. Most of the time the fish caught on hardbodies will be over 50cm, but often fish in the 90cm+ range are hooked but not always landed. Soft plastics can be just as deadly but often a lot of juvenile rats fall to plastics 4” and smaller, so hardbodies are generally the go. Good luck to all anglers in the upcoming months and a word of advice would be to watch out for crocodiles, as this is when they can be very active and carelessness can lead to some nasty interactions with these huge reptiles. Also please make sure to sow the seed for the next generation – limit your kill, don’t kill your limit. While the season may be open, the fish should still be respected. Remember to make the most of the run off, and don’t forget to think like a fish.
Whenever there is a break in the rain, go flick a few drains!
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MARCH 2018
77
Politics and fishing
We have an exotic dilemma – peacock bass WEIPA
Dave Donald
Many Aussie fishos won’t recognise this fish! That’s because it usually lives in the Amazon basin in South America, on the other side of the world. This particular specimen was caught in Queensland, just below the Dumbleton Weir on the Pioneer River near Mackay. That capture has sent alarm bells ringing right through fishing networks Australia wide due to the ability of this species to propagate and proliferate at a much faster rate than our native fish. In other parts of the world, such as Florida USA, their highly predatory behaviour has completely changed estuarine ecosystems in a very short time. Once introduced to the wild, they are virtually unstoppable! This fish is a peacock bass or pavon, probably Cichla monoculus, a species of the highly invasive genus of Cichlids. Investigations have found that peacock bass are able to be sold in Australian pet shops and are proving quite popular with freshwater aquarium owners. It would therefore appear that this captured fish has been dumped in the Pioneer River probably along with others of its kind. Whether this has been done deliberately or accidentally has not yet been determined. Either way, this is an act of sabotage on our freshwater fishery – some might call it environmental terrorism. Posts on Facebook about the peacock bass capture went viral! In my particular case, a blog on the issue recorded 60,000 hits and I’m aware of several other sites that
had a similar reaction. The story caused a storm of protest from concerned fishers with many asking the obvious question as to why the heck this species was permitted to be imported into the country in the first place! H o w e v e r, what surprised me the most was the snide remarks from a minority that obviously supported the ‘escape’ of these bass into the wild. There are idiots out there who are more concerned about the possibility of catching an exotic species than their potential to cause an environmental disaster. Some even wanted to sell their catch back to the pet shops, a very short term plan given their breeding rate. Then, there were the ‘responsible’ aquarists saying that being able to buy peacock bass wasn’t enough. They wanted to be able to buy currently prohibited species like the Asian snakehead, an even greater environmental threat. When opinions like this are flying around, it’s easy to reach the conclusion that all exotic fish imports to Australia should be banned outright, end of story – and such a move should have been instigated decades ago. Restrictions and regulations only work for honest people and, as usual, it only takes a few rogues to spoil it for the majority. Of course, there were plenty of reminders of the status of European carp and tilapia, both of which had similar origins to this new threat. The impact of the carp on our largest river system is nothing short of catastrophic and now billions of dollars of our taxes are being thrown at eradication schemes that are dubious at best. The
A peacock bass was recently caught just below the Dumbleton Weir on the Pioneer River. This species can propagate and proliferate at a much faster rate than our native fish. heart of our country is not only being irreparably damaged by this alien blight but simultaneously by the syphoning off of its lifeblood by greedy farming interests. Both are national disgraces. Tilapia are another cichlid that came in via the pet trade and have already established themselves over a wide area of coastal Queensland. They breed so rapidly that tens of thousands of fish have been taken from a single farm dam when it was drained. The chain of lagoons running through Mackay known as the ‘Gooseponds’ is just one waterway that has been infested by hoards of the species. Fisheries are aware that tilapia are now living in the upper reaches of the westward flowing Walsh and Mitchell watershed – a frightening prospect for juvenile barramundi populations that move to these areas to mature. There was also a report
from an experienced Cape York guide that he had seen a couple of small schools of these fish in the upper reaches of the Jackson River north of Mapoon a couple of years ago. This sighting has yet to be confirmed, but is nevertheless a big worry. This whole problem of potentially ecologically invasive fish being allowed to be imported into Australia is something that recreational fishers haven’t thought about seriously enough. The blame could be foisted onto the immigration/ quarantine departments and their seemingly totally inadequate regulations that have allowed this to happen. However, convincing politicians to restrict such imports in today’s free trade environment is an extremely difficult task, even when there are serious environmental concerns. The recent outbreak of white spot virus in farmed prawn stocks is the classic scenario. In
spite of being advised that packets of imported prawns contained infected individuals some years back, quarantine measures were not introduced in spite of the obvious serious consequences to our farmed and native species. Now our local industry in the South East has been obliterated and the wild population possibly endangered. It remains to be seen if regeneration of the farms will be successful in the long term. Millions of dollars are gone, livelihoods lost and a major environmental threat has been created because exceptionally poor quarantine decisions allowed the importation of cheap prawns that were sold mainly to recreational fishers. This is an absolutely ludicrous situation that would never have happened if common sense, rather than political complacency and wishy-washy decision making, prevailed in our quarantine policy. But wait, there’s more! A number of prawns have been captured in the Mackay area that are suspected of having another extremely serious disease – yellowhead virus. The matter has been referred to Biosecurity officers who are yet to report back on the outcome. It has been speculated that this outbreak may have originated from ballast water pumped from the armada of ships waiting to load coal in that area. Canberra, we have (another) problem! I have a couple of mates who worked in the quarantine sector for many years. The gist of their many workplace stories was that they were continually frustrated and hamstrung by poor regulations and
inadequate resources. They could see disasters looming but their hands were tied when it came to getting appropriate action. Our Fisheries Enforcement Officers are often faced with similar problems. The political will to halt the rot is just not there. Sadly, that’s pretty much the norm these days when it comes to matters of the environment, regardless of all the righteous gobbledegook that tries to convince us otherwise. It’s certainly not my intention for the issues exposed in this column to concentrate on the bad stuff, and seem like a grumpy old man. I’m really a glass half full sort of bloke; that’s what keeps me hammering away. My motivation has always been to get other fishers thinking about doing positive things towards the enhancement of our fishery and how we can personally make a contribution. The task gets very difficult sometimes! Peacock bass (invasive fish in general) and the blasé political attitude to the multitude of biosecurity problems currently facing our fishery are festering sores, some of which may never be healed. Shutting the gate after the horse has bolted makes the task a thousand times more difficult and we should be continually reminding our politicians and bureaucrats of that fact. Every fisher needs to make a point of contacting a local member and posting on social media. If you happen to catch a peacock bass, take a picture then drop it in to your local Council or Fisheries office. Don’t release the fish or resell it; kill it humanely and immediately.
NEWS
New Queensland Recreational Boating and Fishing Guide The new Queensland Recreational Boating and Fishing Guide is now available, with the release of the 2017-18 edition. Fisheries Queensland Executive Director, Claire Andersen said the comprehensive booklet provides up-to-date information on boating and fishing rules and regulations in Queensland. “The Guide is the perfect companion for the tens of thousands of Queenslanders who enjoy recreational boating and fishing,” Ms Andersen said. “It provides information on fish size 78
MARCH 2018
and possession limits as well as the restrictions that apply to fishing apparatus to protect our valuable fish stocks from overfishing in Queensland. “Dates for closed seasons are included so that fishers are aware of when they are not allowed to take certain species.” Ms Andersen said the Guide also includes comprehensive information on boating safety, rules and regulations. “We want to ensure that our waterways are as safe as possible for all users, so the Guide features detailed information about on-board
safety equipment and safe navigation,” she said. “Information on marine park zoning has also been included with a map identifying the Great Barrier Reef, Great Sandy and Moreton Bay marine park zones.” Ms Andersen encouraged people to get a copy of the 2017-18 edition to ensure they were across the current rules. Bulk orders of the guide can be ordered direct from the publisher by calling (07) 3891 7793 or online at www. transtasmanmediagroup. com (postage and handling fees apply).
Single copies of the Guide will be available from bait and tackle stores, local Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol and Maritime Safety Queensland offices or can be ordered through the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Customer Service Centre on 13 25 23. A digital copy of the Guide will also be available to download from the Fisheries Queensland website www. fisheries.qld.gov.au. Queensland’s recreational fishing rules and regulations are also available on the free Qld Fishing smartphone app from Apple and Google app stores. – DAF
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The fishing stays great as the water cools TOOWOOMBA
Jason Ehrlich fishability1@bigpond.com
While things will start to cool down a notch weatherwise this month, don’t expect too much to change on the fishing scene. The core body of water will hold its temperature and the fish will just keep on doing what they currently are. The exception to this is shallower holding fish like barramundi and Murray cod. These big brutes will venture more into the shallows for longer periods as the surface temperature of the lakes will be first to drop a few degrees. March is a great time for
tossing surface lures for cod, barra and bass. The cooler water in the mornings is perfect. With the days now shorter, the bite time will be extended and you won’t need to set three alarms to get up at a ridiculous hour to hammer the water at first light. Surface luring is my favourite way to fish. Watching a fish eat your lure off the top of the water is as good as it gets. Topwater lures come in several styles and it pays to carry a selection of each. Choose a lure to suit the species you are chasing. A 60mm popper or stickbait may be ideal for bass but a sizeable cod or barra wouldn’t even raise an eyelid (if they had one). Popper, paddler and
SOUTH EAST QUEENSLAND CRESSBROOK CLOSEST TOWN: CROWS NEST
Recently, Cressbrook Dam was closed to all water-based activities
fizzer-style lures are great if you want to make some commotion. If you are looking for a more silent approach, try a stickbait suited to walking across the top. Another subtle option that has accounted for heaps of fish is the bent minnowstyle lure. One lure is never enough and I have four topwater trays dedicated to different styles of fishing. March is always a cracker if you want topwater action just about anywhere in Queensland, so make sure you’re prepared this time around. There’s plenty of new lures on the market, and even more places to throw them! Until next month, buckled rods from the Colonel!
DAM LEVELS
DAMS Atkinson Awoonga Bjelke-Petersen Boondooma Borumba Burdekin Falls Callide Cania Clarendon Cooby Coolmunda
DEC JAN FEB 18 15 11 99 99 97 18 19 17 44 43 41 101 100 99 82 73 74 83 82 80 99 98 97 5 4 3 50 50 47 78 67 58
14 17
28
34
18
Toowoomba
BRISBANE
IMPOUNDMENT DAM
safe, will allow activities to resume. Keep an eye on their website www.trc.qld. gov.au for the most up-todate information. The fishing has been slow at Cressbrook for a couple of months. The bass schools are still scattered and should hopefully start to reform. Some quality fish have been caught trolling the main basin out from the boat ramps. These bigger bass suspend in the deep water and can be fooled with deeper diving lures.
48 37 30 61 59 58 7 9 4 95 93 92 32 28 25 72 68 59 100 100 99 75 72 71 77 62 56 22 19 42 12 11 11 103 99 99
Gold Coast
22
24 1 Tinaroo Falls Dam 2 Peter Faust Dam 3 Burdekin Falls Dam 4 Eungella Dam 5 Teemburra Dam 6 Kinchant Dam 7 Cania Dam 8 Lake Monduran 9 Isis Balancing Storage 10 Wuruma Dam 11 Lenthalls Dam 12 Boondooma Dam 13 Bjelke-Petersen Dam 14 Lake MacDonald 15 Gordonbrook Dam 16 Borumba Dam 17 Somerset Dam 18 Wivenhoe Dam 19 Pindari Dam 20 Copeton Dam 21 Moogerah Dam 22 Maroon Dam 23 Leslie Dam 24 Connolly Dam 25 Coolmunda Dam 26 Clarrie Hall Dam (NSW) 27 Hinze Dam 28 Lake Cressbrook 29 Callide Dam 30 Lake Awoonga 31 Lake Samsonvale 32 Fairbairn Dam 33 Koombooloomba Dam 34 Cooby Dam
27
21
23 25
Cairns 1
26
19
33
20
Townsville 2
3 4
Proserpine 6 Mackay
5
Rockhampton
Emerald
32
29 7
10
Highlighted dams are covered in this issue
Gladstone
30 8
Bundaberg 9
11
Roma
Lures like the Blitz Baga, Little Rippa, JDK Ripper and Poltergeist Crazy Deep are capable of reaching 10m deep on light braid and will stand a good chance of hooking a fish. There may be some movement and change in fish behaviour by the end of the month. Bass should start to school tighter in their usual haunts. Spots like Bass Bay, the Toilet Point up Beams Creek and the flats just past the rock wall up Cressbrook Creek will
BRISBANE
be worth exploring. Rely heavily on the sounder. If the fish aren’t there in numbers, move on. As soon as better concentrations are found, they will take spoons when they are cast over and wound through them. Trolling tail spinners is another good option if the fish are spread out over at least a 50m long area. For all your fishing supplies and the latest reports on Cressbrook and To page 81
Dam............................ % Full
Maroon 98 98 97 Monduran/Fred Haigh 102 102 100 Moogerah 89 89 87 North Pine/Samsonvale 76 75 73 Peter Faust/Proserpine 72 68 67 Pindari 99 81 63 Somerset 79 77 76 Teemburra 99 92 90 Tinaroo 40 36 38 Toonumbar 100 100 100 Wivenhoe 73 71 69 Wuruma 100 100 98
For fortnightly updates on Sunwater dams visit www.sunwater.com.au This symbol indicates that a Stocked Impoundment Permit is required to fish these dams. All figures are % readings Current as of 15/02/18
(All levels correct at time of going to press. Dam levels can change at any time, so please check with local authorities to ensure safe boating and fishing.) 80
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Maryborough
w w w. b a r g a i n b o a t b i t s. c o m . a u
Dam............................ % Full Copeton Cressbrook Dyer/Bill Gunn Eungella Fairbairn Glenlyon Hinze Julius Kinchant Koombooloomba Leslie Macdonald
16
31
Weipa
brought to you by
Dam............................ % Full
13
15
(including fishing) due to high levels of blue green algae. The council will continue to monitor these levels and once
The Hot Bite Torpedo rigged with a beetle spin is perfect for bass if they are eating spinnerbaits. Just ask this chunky Somerset model and a heap of his friends.
Gympie
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the surrounding dams, call in to see Fish’n’Bits in Alderley Street. They have a great range of lures and fishing gear. The boys can sort you out with the right gear and give you some tips on where to find them. Just remember there is a speed limit of 8 knots and a restricted area at Cressbrook Dam. Check out the signage to ensure you stay out of trouble and abide by the rules. The gate hours for the boat ramps and day use area will be extended this month to 6am until 8pm.
SOMERSET CLOSEST TOWNS: ESK, KILCOY The bass fishing has been a bit tough over the last month. As usual, the fish will bite one day and the same anglers who whack them will return the next day and struggle to get a bite. One method to keep the bites coming, which should continue to work this month, is to cast spinnerbaits to the deeper fish. This style of fishing has a few tricks to ensure you are keeping the lure where it needs to be. It is best to use fine braided lines. I personally like 4-6lb Fireline with a
SUNSHINE COAST REGION MACDONALD CLOSEST TOWNS: TEWANTIN, NOOSA There is a bit of mixed action on offer at MacDonald. Early risers will be able to enjoy some surface action around the weed edges and weed pockets. Walking lures like the Cultiva Zipin’ Ziggy across the top and pausing for a second or two will draw them out. In the tighter weed pocket a slower retrieve with a 60mm cupped-face popper can be deadly. The lure
can be blooped right in the middle of the weed pockets, calling out any nearby bass. Regardless of lure choice, use at least 14lb leader, as the better quality bass will break anything less if they dive down into the weed. During the day, the surface action will be a non-event. Working the weed edges with spinnerbaits and small blade baits will keep the bites coming. It can be a tricky way to fish for those who have not tried this before. Treble hooks like
DARLING DOWNS GRANITE BELT REGION COOBY CLOSEST TOWNS: HIGHFIELDS, TOOWOOMBA The golden perch bite at Cooby has slowed down since Christmas. The fish are a lot harder to catch but the old proven methods will still put some in the boat. There was a post on Facebook that gained some traction recently. It hinted that tackle stores and those with an interest in a fishing destination talked it up to be better than what it really is. Like all freshwater fishing, if you aren’t doing the right thing, you simply aren’t going to catch. It can be the difference between a 30 fish session and not even seeing a scale. There will be two proven methods to try out at Cooby this month. Trolling lures will get the bites for another couple of months but you will need to select the right lure and place it where the fish can find it. Lures that dive 3-5m are perfect for Cooby. A couple of my favourites are the 3m Poltergeist and the no. 3 StumpJumper. Both have a strong action, which can be felt through the rod tip. When they are weeded up this action will stop or reduce and you know it’s time to rip the lure
a few times to free it up or wind it in to check it. Lipless crankbaits have less action, but at a slow pace will still troll to the same depth and some days the more subtle vibration and enticing rattle makes all the difference. Watch the lure beside the boat or
short 12lb fluorocarbon leader (around 1.5m long). Spinnerbaits tend to rise in the water column quickly when retrieved. The fine, slicing nature of fused braid helps cut the water to help keep the lures deep and where they need to be. Next, choose a heavier spinnerbait with smaller blades. Smak and Bassman make some awesome basssized spinnerbaits. Opt for the heavier ones; a 5/8oz is perfect and a 1/2oz can get it done provided you slow down a little more. Find the schooling fish across the flats and fire out long casts. Wind drifting is
the best way to cover the water and the windier days where the boat drifts at over 1km/h are often best. In this situation, you can almost troll the spinnerbait and one or two casts can cover a few hundred metres of water. It is always much harder when there is no wind and you need to fire casts to the horizon. Spinnerbaits catch the wind and spin during the cast, which greatly reduces distance. Other lures fished in the same fashion have been working as well. The Hot Bite Torpedo sold out at Somerset Tackle in a flash after I had a great session on them. Rigged with a beetle
spin arm, these lures can be fished just like a spinnerbait and in the same scenarios. The wire of the beetle spin spaces the line away from the lure and it tangles way less than when it is used without the wire. Keep an eye out, as I will have more out by the end of the month. An error at the moulding stage saw me destroy the moulds, so it’s back to square one in the manufacturing process. Trolling lures has accounted for bass in the basin of the lake as well as up in the timber. Schools are holding around Pelican Point, Queen Street flats and either side of Kirkleagh on
the flats and drop-offs. Up in the 6knot zone in the timber north of Kirkleagh bass and golden perch have been whacking trolled lures and are also being caught on live shrimp. Somerset Fishing has moved the tackle van up the hill closer to the campground. Look for them inside the day area up near the toilet block above the boat ramp. The boys will be there from Friday to Sunday. Not only do they have the right gear, they can steer you in the right direction, as they always know where the fish are schooled up.
to catch the weed but at the same time you need to be fishing right next to it. The small, finer gauge treble hooks on bass-sized lures can often be de-weeded by a sharp rip of the rod tip. The bubbles and deeper water around the Botanical Gardens and main basin may hold some schooling or suspended fish. Trolling the open water in this area and following contours is a good way to find them. Trolled lures that dive to around 5m are ideal. Once found, switch to spoons and jigs to nail better numbers and quality fish. Davos in Noosaville is just
a short drive away and they carry all the right lures to use on the lake. Check in with them to see if they have heard the latest news on how the lake is fishing. Word is they also have some sweet new surface offering the bass and toga are going to love. BORUMBA CLOSEST TOWNS: IMBIL, NOOSA The basin of the lake should fish well this month before the bass retreat back to the start of the timber. The weed points are a good place to start. Tossing spinnerbaits and lipless crankbaits early in
the morning to the edges of the weed is a good way to start out. Some quality bass to over 40cm can be caught doing this. As the day wears on, a switch to trolling spinnerbaits can be more successful. This allows lures to get a little deeper as the fish move out from the edges to deeper waters. Casting lures like tail spinners, spoons and blades will also entice these deeper fish. Bass can be caught up in the timbered arms but they will be harder to find. The occasional one is caught while casting the edges for saratoga. The toga numbers
should be good in the upper parts of the lake. Surface lures, beetle spin rigged plastics and spinnerbaits are good choices when used around any form of structure. Bass can also be found around the deeper trees, so keep an eye on the sounder at all times when fishing the timbered arms. Davos at Noosaville has all the gear you’ll need to tackle the fish at Borumba and Lake MacDonald. The store caters well for fresh and saltwater anglers. They can be found in the Homemaker Centre on the corner of Mary and Thomas streets.
kayak to make sure you are travelling fast enough to have it swimming and vibrating. Lure placement should be right on the edge of where the healthy weed drops off into deeper water. Try to visualise your lure tracking at full depth right beside the weed bed.
Cania Gorge
LAKE CANIA - ONE OF THE TOP
4 STOCKED DAMS IN
QUEENSLAND!
www.caniagorge.com.au
To page 82
WOOD FIRED PIZZA SATURDAY NIGHTS
Bush Walks
Boating
Fishing
Kayaking
l Events Room l Bird Feeding l Jumping Pillows l Pools & Water Park Complex l Outdoor Movies l Bettongs l Wine Tasting l Tennis Court l Open Fires l Self Drive 4WD Trips tion Major Annual Fishing Competi l Camp Oven Dinner er emb Nov in d ken wee 2nd on the l Morning Tea l Challenging nine hole golf course l Plenty of Red Claw
When it comes to catching Coolmunda cod this is the author’s lure of choice – a 1oz Sudsy spinnerbait, PowerBait Bubble Shiner soft plastic trailer and Hot Bite Stinger Assist Hook.
n Creek 5 kms from our carava Situated on the Three Moon ts. attraction to our touris park Lake Cania is a very big n d dams in Qld, and has bee It is one of the top 4 stocke ga. ato Bass, Yellow Belly and Sar stocked with fish including ation holds its... Cania Fish Stocking Associ 07 4167 8188 Cania Dam Rd, Cania Gorge, QLD
info@caniagorge.com.au MARCH 2018
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Holding your rod and driving it up and over the shallower areas will produce more hits than letting it foul up when unattended. Some of the best weed can be found straight out in front of the boat ramp and down
towards the rock wall to the west. Bait fishing is the other way to almost guarantee success. Try using live shrimp and saltwater yabbies. Shrimp can be scooped out of the weed around the edges or a baited trap used at dark the night
before your next session will produce plenty. Last trip, I must have had smelly feet because they were all over them in 40cm of water on the concrete boat ramp when we were retrieving the boat in the dark. Baits should be dropped just outside the weed edge.
Cooby Dam goldens are suckers for trolled lipless crankbaits. Work close to the weed edges late in the afternoon. Ian Ryan nailed this one just before dark. WIDE BAY AND SOUTH BURNETT REGION BOONDOOMA CLOSEST TOWNS: PROSTON, KINGAROY The smaller bass have been out in force but the larger fish have been harder to come by. Bass have spread out through the lake,
with numbers found around the dam wall, the Narrows, the Barbers Pole and the run all the way up to Pelican Point. A lot of these fish are still suspending 5-7m deep regardless of water depth. Fish to 40cm
have been most common, but persistence should see a few larger specimens. I know of at least one 48cm bass caught recently. Spoons and medium-sized blade baits have been getting plenty of bites from these suspending bass with the occasional golden perch mixed in.
The area out from the boat ramp is a good spot to try. Another popular spot is up near the dam wall buoy line on the lake’s northern side. The deeper weed edges around 6m are best for bait fishing during the day, but as afternoon approaches and the light fades, fish will come out to play in as little as 4m. You can now pick up your bait from Craig’s Home Hardware in Highfields. They are stocking worms, frozen yabbies, pink yabbies and prawns. The guys also carry a range of kayaks perfect for the lake and other surrounding waterways. Cooby D a m ’s proximity to Highfields and Toowoomba makes it a very popular fishery. If you are looking for somewhere close to home to drop the boat or kayak in, Cooby is definitely worth a visit. The dam hours are now 6am until 8pm. Remember, no outboard motors are allowed to be used on the dam. The concrete boat ramp is on a shallow angle when the dam is full and can be slippery in places but a big electric powered boat can still be launched with care. Outboard motors can be left on the boat and must not be used. COOLMUNDA CLOSEST TOWN: INGLEWOOD The fishing has been
steady at Coolmunda. A few cod and golden perch are still being caught trolling and casting lures. If you want success on this lake, I recommend deciding which species you want to target. If you are chasing the cod, upsize your lures and spinnerbaits and fish appropriately. If golden perch are the target, then use smaller lure offerings like 60mm lipless crankbaits and blade baits. The golden perch can be caught along the rock wall. I’d suggest the drop-off to the old creek and riverbeds, as the water temperature should still be quite warm. The goldens are also scattered through the timber and where you find one there will often be more in close proximity. These fish are also fond of a 5m diving hardbody trolled right along the creek bed drop-off. Trolling is a great way to locate better concentrations of fish and you can then switch to casting or hopping lures through the same area. My favourite fish to target in this lake is the Murray cod. These fish range from undersized to well over 1m in length. The thought of one of these larger fish is enough to keep me tossing big spinnerbaits to try and draw them out. The most
reliable areas for casting are the 2-4m timbered flats. Cast around the standing trees and pay particular attention to the forks in branches in any deeper trees. Always watch the side image on your sounder as it is the best way to locate hidden logs and branches, which are lying on the bottom. Heavy spinnerbaits around 1oz are ideal and opt for the cod-sized models with a soft plastic trailer on the back. The Coolmunda Caravan Park is only around one kilometre away from the lake. The park is just off the Cunningham Highway and far enough away from the noise of trucks to get a good night’s sleep. It offers camping sites, cabins, caravan facilities, tennis courts, a swimming pool, BBQ shelter and a camp kitchen. The park now has an extra two new wheelchair-friendly cabins to add to their older ones. Camping is also available near the boat ramp with toilets and hot showers to make your stay more comfortable. To take advantage of this and the great fishing opportunities in the lake and the river below, give the park a call on (07) 4652 4171.
Trolling spinnerbaits on light line is a good ploy while the fish are suspended. Use 4-8lb braided line and 1/2-5/8oz spinnerbaits to keep them tracking at the same depth as the fish. Alter the boat speed to suit and it shouldn’t take too long to produce the goods. If you have never done this
style of fishing before, head in to the shallower water until the bottom depth matches the depth the fish are suspending. As soon as your lure starts touching the bottom, you will know how much line to have out or how much to slow the boat down to achieve the desired depth with the lure.
There are still a few fish holding up in the timber. This area is best fished early in the morning by casting spinnerbaits to the edges and then working gradually deeper as the day gets brighter. Mixed in with the bass and golden perch have been some quality saratoga, especially in the Boyne Arm of the lake. Boondooma is a great place to camp right near the water and sit by the fire while enjoying the view. You could also stay in more style and comfort by booking into one of the cabins overlooking the dam. The kiosk at the main office does hot food and other basic items including an excellent range of proven fishing tackle. For campsites, cabins and bunkhouse rooms call (07) 4168 9694. BJELKE CLOSEST TOWNS: MURGON, GOOMERI With the low water level, the bottom end of the lake is the place to fish. Confined to a smaller area, the fish are quite easy to find and are in great numbers. Look around the old creek bed for fish suspending 5-7m deep. Here, trolling spinnerbaits and hardbodies will score a mixed bag of bass and golden perch. The same schooling bass can be caught by casting
CAPRICORN REGION AWOONGA CLOSEST TOWNS: BENARABY, GLADSTONE Barra season has now kicked off. Last month, there were fish to over a metre caught below the dam on the day the season reopened. Good numbers of barra can be found in the Boyne River in the freshwater around Pikes Crossing and at times above the highway bridge at Benaraby in the upper tidal reaches. This water is perfect for small boats and kayaks. Just stay safe when battling big fish from small craft. You don’t want to flip your vessel when things start to get exciting. The dam has also been fishing well. The fish aren’t everywhere so you will need to go looking. The main basin points and bays are fishing well for barra, which are coming from standing timber and the thicker 82
MARCH 2018
water lily lined edges. In the timber, try using suspending hardbodies. Twitch them down into the sticks and allow them to pause for several seconds. The long pause allows the barra to rise to take the lure. In the lilies, suspending lures can work well on the fringes. Earlier in the morning, surface lures are the go. The shorter days should see the surface temperature drop a few degrees and prolong the surface bite time. Mark from Awoonga Gateway Lodge has a few productive secret spots he’s always willing to share. The Gateway Lodge is on the way in to the dam after turning off at Benaraby. The accommodation is great with plenty of boat parking space right beside the comfortable air-conditioned, selfcontained cabins each with its own veranda. To book in a stay give Mark or Lyn a call on (07) 4975 0033.
Don’t be afraid to fish deeper trees with spindly tops in Awoonga. A suspending lure that dives 2-3m is ideal as the pause time allows fish to come up to it.
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lures. Blade baits are hard to beat when hopped and slowly wound through the schools. Blades provide a good hook-up rate due to their sticky, small trebles. Lures like soft plastics, tail spinners, vibes and spoons can also do the job, so be prepared to have a play around to find what works best on the day. For help catching Bjelke and Boondooma fish, call into Bass 2 Barra. The store stocks an awesome range of gear suited to chasing our freshwater fish and the staff have all the knowledge to guide you on how to use it. You’ll find the stores at 119 Youngman Street Kingaroy. Matthew Mott also runs fishing charters on the dams and you can reach him through the store for bookings and enquiries on (07) 4162 7555. The Yallakool kiosk is all set up with a great range of tackle if you don’t happen to have the right lure or lose one. Be sure to call in and check it out. Give them a call for accommodation and camping bookings on (07) 4168 4746. CANIA CLOSEST TOWNS: MONTO, BILOELA Good numbers of bass are still being caught in Cania. There seems to be a trend of the fish moving further up the lake. Numbers of bass have been showing up in the timber past the second cattle yards. Look for them in deeper water this month, as they should be found in 5-6m of water. As things cool down, more will be found closer to the edges but this could take at least another month. The edges and structure in the timber will still produce saratoga. Casting spinnerbaits is an awesome way to hook these fish. These lures can cover a lot of water and you will need to probe plenty of fishy looking haunts to find them.
WHITSUNDAY REGION PROSERPINE CLOSEST TOWNS: PROSERPINE, AIRLIE BEACH Lake Proserpine has been a bit tough to fish for the part time barra angler who likes to cast lures. Those switched on to locating fish through the timber on the flats and around the old creek bed edges have still scored plenty of fish. The only way to confirm their presence is with a reliable sounder, preferably with side image capabilities. In the timber, look for the concentrations of fish during daylight hours. They will be most active in around 3m of water. This is a good depth to find them hunting. As the water gets deeper, they are more likely to be mooching around on their way somewhere else. The creek beds are like highways they patrol on their way to the next stop-off point. Even in this situation, they can be fooled into taking a lure. Lure trollers will have success working deep divers like the Scorpion
Crazy Deep around the dam wall area. Toss the lure well behind the boat and troll the deep water in search of bait or barra arches on the sounder. Sometimes the fish are there and sometimes they aren’t. If you trust your sounder, just keep exploring until you find what you are looking for. These deep water barra can be caught day and night and sometimes you will find them holding together in a tight bunch. This is when casting big soft plastics or hopping vibes can work extremely well. Night sessions around the full moon can see an increase in fish movement. Barra will move in to the windblown points to feed. Things to look for are bait schools, deep water access nearby and good healthy weed edges. Repeatedly casting soft plastics to the edges is the way to go. Try to work your lures out of the weed or up and over any weed towers. Often there will be one spot in particular where the bites keep coming from, so once you find it, focus on placing more casts there.
The bite time for surface barra should extend this month if surface temperatures cool off due to the shorter, cooler days. Try topwater lures or soft plastic frogs to extract barra from the swampy stuff. For all your fishing supplies or a guided trip on the lake call Lindsay or Dane at Barra World on (07) 4945 4641. Lindsay’s barra tours have been busy so book ahead. You won’t be disappointed as he often delivers the goods and always shares a wealth of knowledge. The store is right on the highway in Proserpine and specializes in barra fishing tackle. You can also keep up to date by visiting their Barra World Facebook page.
Blake Ehrlich knows small barra don’t hold back on bigger lures walked across the surface. The walk-the-dog action of the C’ultiva Tango Dancer is hard to beat.
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Leigh Elsmore caught this solid spotty recently off the Gold Coast. Great one, Leigh!
10HP OF POWER This is the most powerful electric motor in the ePropulsion range. Pumping out a massive 6KW of power which is equivalent to a 10hp petrol outboard. This motor is available in either tiller control or forward control. Forward control uses a wireless throttle and gear shifting control box. Silent, zero emissions and maintenance free makes this motor a pleasure to own.
Email: info@islandinflatables.com.au
www.epropulsion.com.au MARCH 2018
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Anglers struggling for size at Somerset Dam SOMERSET DAM
Matthew Taylor
While Somerset Dam is currently undergoing a tough period of fishing, with a low number of large fish being caught, anglers who have dialled in on what lure the fish specifically want have managed to land the occasional fish up to 50cm. Since my last report, it has become a common theme for fishing techniques and locations to vary and change daily. Casting anglers have found that on some days the bass will be all over one lure and the next they will not touch it. It has been vital to mix up your lure choice until you discover what they want. Lures like the Charlie Brewer Slider or Keitech Fat Swing Impact, Hot Bite 18g Jets tailspinners, Hot Bite Torpedos, Jackall Lizinc spoons, Nories Wasaby spoons, Ecogear ZX40 blades and Little Max Blades have all worked well at times. There are two key ways to increase your chances of hooking up. First is downsizing your lure; whether it be cutting down
your soft plastic or using a smaller profiled lure, there have been many instances where this has sent the bass into a feeding frenzy. A good example of how to do so could be opting to use the new Spin Mad Jag 18 tailspinners instead of the Hotbite 18g Jets, as they have a longer profile.
The second key tip I can give is to mix up and add vibration to your lure. Try changing your blade from a Little Max to a Tiemco Sonic Metal to change the lure vibration or add a beetle spin arm to your soft plastic – added vibration has resulted in increased catch-rates.
Colour-wise, several key lure colours have been successful. As the water colour has been somewhat murky, the deeper water columns where the fish are located appear to be clearer. Hence, lighter coloured lures like whites, blues, light purples, silvers and greens have been go-to options. Bass have been widely scattered throughout the lake, with schooling fish reasonably easy to find. The most popular locations are Brads Bank, Pelican Point and Kirkleigh. In each of these areas, some anglers have caught dozens of undersize fish per session yet struggled to catch any or many legal-sized fish. While this is generally the situation where I would use a run and gun approach to find larger fish, which is to move rapidly between spots to find fish that are feeding. I strongly advise against doing so at the moment. Instead, try sticking it out. In every spot where schooling bass are located, you will likely see both small and large fish on your sounder. Spend the time working an area out and
Bass have been loving the recently released Hot Bite Torpedo. These areas can often treat anglers with large numbers of fish. It’s also worth giving trolling a go. Using lures such as the Smak Golden Child and Blitz Baga should tempt some quality fish. In typical
Craig McDonald and Dave Eklic with two solid bass caught on Hot Bite Gangbangers and Halco Twisties.
Peter Wilson smashed the bass on a recent trip with a spoon.
Ultralight Outboard Motors For kayaks, canoes and very light boats With a total weight of 8.9kg including battery, the Torqeedo Ultralight won’t limit your paddling performance, but when called on it can give you the right push against the current, against the wind, or be called on to save your tired arms. Technology that is clean and state-of-the-art Find your closest dealer: email: web: phone:
84
MARCH 2018
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eventually you will tempt one of the larger bass. While it may not always be possible, I recommend trying to fish the lake during the week if you can. Weekends can be chaotic with boating traffic, which can not only make fishing difficult, but also shut the fish down. In the past month the yellowbelly have been rather active and have reacted well to lures. One of the most reputable and well-known lures for this species, the Ecogear ZX40, has been a standout option. Many by-catch golden perch have been caught while jigging this lure in schools of bass. You should also be rewarded by jigging this lure next to standing timber, with the Villeneuve area being particularly productive recently. By using side-scan on your sounder you should also be able to find fallen timber in the vicinity of Pelican Point or on the Kirkleigh flats.
• When heading to Lake Somerset, be sure to drop in and see the team at Somerset Fishing Tackle, now located next to the food van and amenities block in the Lake Somerset Holiday Park. Stocking a massive range of competitively priced fishing tackle, now including Spin Mad products, they have everything to suit your fishing needs. If you are after any fishing tips or information, drop in and talk to the guys or check out their Facebook page, @SomersetFishing, and website, www. somersetfishing.com, to stay up to date with fishing information. Remember, between September and April, the gates open at 5.30am and close at 6.30pm. There are two main boat ramps available for
Sam Sparrow with a cracking bass caught casting a Keitech 2.8” Fat Swing Impact soft plastic off Pelican Point. Lake Somerset fashion, the yellowbelly have reacted well to blues and blacks, with the mystique and old faithful colours also pulling their weight. Mix it up until you come across what the fish really want.
use: one located at the Spit and the other at the Lake Somerset Holiday Park. To see more from Matt, you can find him on Instagram (@matthew____ taylor) and Facebook (@matthewtaylorfishing).
Let’s ensure future success LAKE TINAROO
Warwick Lyndon
It’s March already and 2018 is flying by! In great news for anglers, Tinaroo has been topped up with approximately 30,000 barramundi fingerlings in several recent stockings. This will go a long way to ensuring that those trophy fish are there to be caught for many years to come.
fingerlings, and when big enough, they are able to be captured and kept within the relevant Fisheries regulations. The bonus is that because barramundi can’t spawn in the dam, there is no closed season. All you need to get in on the Tinaroo barra action is a Stocked Impoundment Permit and a sense of adventure. The Tablelands Fish Stocking Society consists of a small number of passionate individuals who volunteer
Fingerlings are released into suitable cover where appropriate forage sources have been identified. For those unfamiliar with the concept, Tinaroo is a stocked impoundment, meaning several fish species are stocked into the dam as
their time to manage purchase and release fingerlings into the dam also raise extra funds for purpose via events like
the of and this the
annual Tinaroo Barra Bash. Despite what some people might assume, there is plenty of science that goes into ensuring that the survival rate of the baby barra is as high as possible. Firstly, potential stocking areas are surveyed using electrofishing to locate suitable forage sources for the fingerlings, as well as to locate and avoid the larger previously stocked fish and other predators which could easily prey on anything smaller than themselves. Fingerlings are then released into areas, which provide both adequate cover and food sources. Stocking is carried out over a large area during each release, and subsequent releases are done in entirely new locations to ensure that no one area is over-populated, as well as maximising the chances of survival. Once again, this is because electrofish surveys have shown that many juvenile barra are still residing relatively close to where they were released. The best part for anglers is that due to the amount of bait in Tinaroo, these fish grow extremely quickly and, after feeding for several years, they turn into the monster 1m+
fish that everyone loves to target. It is a well-known fact that Tinaroo supports fish of incredible proportions, and the next beast over 40kg landed won’t be the last. This month should see barra fishing remaining productive as the effects of the wet season continue to encourage baitfish activity. As always, the best times to target barra will be around the dawn and dusk periods and into the night. If the water levels are still rising this month, make sure you take notice of the structures that have recently become inundated. Big Tinaroo barra are nomadic and will happily congregate on a new snag or feature in surprisingly
TFSS secretary Ann Leighton with the result of previous stocking success – a healthy 115cm barra. shallow water, especially if it offers decent cover, a break from current, access to deep water and of course a bait source. Islands, points, boulders, trees, creeks and
piles of timber where this occurs are the obvious places to start looking. Trolling or casting lures (referred to as flickin’ by the locals) or even fishing a well-presented bait near prominent structures should see you in with a chance of meeting one of Tinaroo’s chrome ghosts. If you want to check up on the work of the Tablelands Fish Stocking Society and be the first to see all the information regarding the annual Barra Bash event, then head to their Facebook page or website, tinaroobarrabash. com.au. You can also find me on Facebook on Wazza’s Fishing Page.
Fingerlings arrive from the hatchery in a specialised truck and are then dispersed around the dam by volunteers in multiple boats.
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85
Mitsubishi ASX 2WD petrol BRISBANE
Wayne Kampe wkff@aapt.net.au
The ASX is indeed a surprise package. It’s based on a platform that’s been around forever – the Lancer – yet sales of the eight-year-old ASX are as strong as ever. Given that the ASX was the strongest selling small SUV in Australia in 2017, you know there must be a good reason for this popularity. I gave one a test drive to find out.
tested was the 2.0L, 2WD 4-cylinder petrol. The LS petrol came equipped with the new Advanced DriverAssist Systems (ADAS). The new systems offer audible and visible Lane Departure Warning, Forward Collision Mitigation, plus automatic high beam in all LS and top shelf XLS models. Dusk-sensing headlights, an electro-chromatic (autodimming) rear view mirror, and rain-sensing wipers are also part of the package. ADAS relies on radar to monitor driving and road conditions. It activates the
The ASX has decently large front seats, and three adults can be seated behind them in comfort, as there’s no shortage of leg or head room. The usual piano black and dark grey dash sections are highlighted by faux chrome, and there’s eye-catching red stitching on seats and gear selector. The centre console has also had an upgrade, with a tray within the storage bin. The idea is that you sit your
good rear view camera plus radio controls. With rear seats down the cargo room extends to 1143L, which makes it large enough to take a bicycle, and with rear seats upright there’s still 393L of space. ENGINE AND CVT WELL MATCHED I found the ASX to be surprisingly good to drive. The 2.0L fuel-injected 4-cylinder petrol engine (110kW/ 360Nm) was peppy,
Driven sensibly, this 2WD managed gravel roads and light creek crossings with ease.
The ASX has a very good reversing camera.
Attractive styling is testimony to the R&D work Mitsubishi have put into their 8-year-old ASX. EXTERNAL CHANGES AND ADDED SAFETY This year’s variant of the popular ASX sees the design refined with changes to the front, including LED running lights, along with small changes to bumpers and tailgate design. You’d never confuse it with its competitors such as the Mazda 3 or Hyundai’s new Kona. The styling is pretty bold and designed to make the ASX look big: which it is! It’s larger on the outside, and has more room on the inside, than both the Mazda 3 and Kona. Everybody likes to get more car for their money, and this is a key reason for the ASX’s popularity over its more high-tech competition. The reviewed car comes with a five-year, 100,000km
phone on the tray when it’s being charged via the port in the bin. Storage is quite good all round, with cup holders in both the front and back, door
A very tidy interior with highlight stitching to catch the eye is a feature of this year’s Mitsubishi ASX. lane departure warning system or, in the case of the Forward Collision Mitigation system, it activates brake force assistance. If you don’t
pockets and other nooks and crannies ideally placed. There are two Isofix attachment points on the rear seats. The Mitsubishi’s infotainment system features Android Auto and Apple Car Play along with DAB digital radio, while the in-dash display features a very
and mated very well to the CVT auto system. I have a fair bit of experience driving vehicles fitted with Constant Velocity Transmission systems, and not all CVTs mate so well with their engines. There have been occasions, when accelerating, that I’ve seen the engine revving like a tiller control outboard in neutral, with the speedo struggling valiantly to keep up with the tacho. Not so the ASX. The tacho and speedometer seemed to be in perfect harmony to provide ample take off at the traffic lights, while the overdrive gearing in highway mode saw the little SUV travelling at 110km/h on 2000rpm. ON THE GRAVEL The ride on both bitumen and gravel roads was excellent, with Macpherson struts/coil springs up front mating perfectly with the coil spring/multi-link set-up at the rear. Given that the ASX is classified as a small SUV, I was impressed with
Climate control air conditioning, wheel-mounted audio and phone controls plus a very user-friendly cruise control system are all at your fingertips. just how enjoyable it was to drive on the highway. The seating was comfortable, and there was excellent visibility from the ‘command’ driving position. With cruise control engaged, a great sound system pumping out a few decibels, good headlights and a well-tuned suspension, I started to understand what makes the ASX a top seller. I had a few misgivings as to how the front wheel drive would fare on a gravel road, but as it turned out there were no issues. I didn’t push the ASX to its limits though, as I prefer to drive sensibly in areas where a roo could jump in front of you! The ground clearance was ample for formed dirt roads, and there was no tendency to bump steer on corrugations or for the rear
suspension to rebound off bump stops, even though we had a solid load of camping gear in the back. GREAT TOWING SPECS Riding on 18” alloys, the ASX is a smooth performer. It has a 60L fuel tank, and a fuel consumption of around 8.0L per 100km on a good country run, which included a range or two. Its towing specs are impressive: 750kg for an unbraked trailer and 1300kg for a braked unit. In all, the ASX 2WD ADAS petrol would make a very useful small family SUV around the city, and take the family on country trips on the weekends. The list price is around $28,500 but I’m told you should be able to buy it for less than that.
With a 60/40 rear seat folding capability, the ASX has a large and useful cargo bay. warranty, which is better than a lot of competitors as well. PETROL 2WD There’s a diesel 4WD ASX, but the model I 86
MARCH 2018
respond to this quickly enough and a collision is imminent, the FCM system will initiate emergency braking.
The ASX had no problems delivering the author to some New England high country water.
One of the good things about the ADAS safety system is that you can customise it.
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87
How motivation makes the fisher SUNTAG
Stefan Sawynok
I have been on the road for three months solid doing presentations, talking to fishers, watching fishers in action, filming, analysing performances and results, running scoreboards and – on at least three occasions – fishing. I even managed to up my PB barra, which came achingly close to the metre; for that I have to thank Jimmy Reid who is one of the wisest and most knowledgeable men I have met. On the one hand, we are now using the kinds of methods that can crunch big datasets and find meaning in them. On the other hand – as highlighted by a recent conversation with Johnny Mitchell and Dan Powell – there are so many observations at the moment on the water that can’t be easily described by data. In part that is why I have had to spend so much time in other fields of science. One of the fields of science I have looked at the most is the area of human performance. It doesn’t take much imagination to understand that some anglers are better than others, but breaking down why is a much more tricky task. In this article, I will look at three big factors that shape fishers and in turn the fishery. FISHING HAS STOOD THE TEST OF TIME Here is a fascinating question: why has fishing endured throughout the ages? By that I don’t mean decades or centuries; I mean tens of thousands of years. The evidence, from an anthropological standpoint, indicates that fishing is 30-40 thousand years old. Hunting goes back as far as two million years. Why did it take so long for fishing to appear? I think the ongoing obsession with technology in fishing is a good clue. While fish are a healthy source of protein, they aren’t as energy-rich as many of their terrestrial counterparts. As such they represented a lower return on investment in times when calorie expenditure was much higher. Even using tools such as spears, fishing can be a lot of work for a limited reward. It wasn’t until the invention of hooks and baits around 25,000 years ago and nets at least 11,000 years ago that fishing became a big part of food gathering. In other words, it took the invention of new technologies to make fishing viable. 88
MARCH 2018
Fishing was the last of the big hunting techniques to be perfected, yet it has endured as the only large-scale hunting method practiced both for food and recreationally. Robert Arlinghaus estimated that there are 100 million recreational anglers in the western world; no other form of hunting comes close to those numbers. Fishing as a practice occurs in one form or another across the globe. Even in the most technologically advanced regions such as Silicon Valley, fishing happens every day. That fishing is still prevalent in the face of decades of pressure, increased alternatives and conservation messages, especially in schools, is something to pay attention to. I believe the success of fishing is due to it being the expression one of our oldest biological instincts – the agricultural revolution removed the need to fish purely for food, but did not erase fishing from our DNA. Another part of that enduring success has to do with the fact that fish are not small, fluffy mammals. Even PETA acknowledges this with their posters that show dogs with fishhooks to get across the fish and pain argument. Fishing’s strength lies in the fact that it’s widely practiced, is much older than any other sport and fish are perceived by most of the community as food, not friends. Fishing’s weakness lies in its strength – successful anglers, like it or not, degrade fish stocks. BREAKING DOWN FISHING TO ITS BASICS I can think of no better demonstration of the evolutionary challenges in fishing than ‘noodling.’ Noodling is the art of catching big catfish by hand. The technique is simple; wade into the muddy water, find a catfish in a hole and aggravate it to the point where it bites your hand. After that, hang on. Noodling is somewhat controversial because catfish are targeted in spawning season, taking advantage of their nesting habits. That aside, people die in the sport; there are rivers considered too dangerous to noodle in and injuries and infections are common. Spearfishing is a step up from noodling but nonetheless showcases the difficulties for humans in the watery domain of fish. Technology makes the sport more viable, but anywhere you are dealing with injured fish there is the opportunity for larger predators to show humans how it’s done, sometimes with fatal consequences. These challenges demonstrate why technology is so essential to fishing. We need technology to overcome
our evolutionary deficiencies in the water. From a data perspective, capturing the skills of fish is also challenging. However, we have observed expert fishers at length to distil the activities that matter. They fall into five categories: • Locating fishing spots • Developing technique • Understanding the environment • Understanding the behaviour of fish • Making the connection between location, technique, environment, behaviour and success catching fish. There’s nothing surprising there. Paradoxically, longterm success as a fisher is not dependent on ability in these five areas. THE BIG TWO FISHING MOTIVATORS While there have been no formal studies on the links between motivation and fishing success, there have been a lot of studies done on the relationship between motivation and achievement. That successful people are highly motivated is probably not a surprise, but there is a bit more to it. Highly motivated people tend to be goaloriented, focus on practice, continually improve technique and are more reflective. In a way, the strength of motivation is a predictor of a fisher possessing these traits, rather than motivation being the reason for success in of itself. Two motivators consistently predict good habits for success: a high motivation to catch fish and a high motivation to build skill in fishing. These are what I call the big two motivators, and the development of fishing ability requires one of the two, but not both. Most fishers don’t score highly in the big two, and this is where I struggle with the term ‘recreational fishing,’ because while most fishers are in fact ‘recreational’ anglers, fishers motivated by the big two aren’t. They are ‘recreational fishers’ in the same way Beyoncé is a musician. Your average Joe who sings in the shower is also a musician but that doesn’t make them comparable. Treating them as the same beast is doing both a disservice. That is why I tend to refer to the big two motivated fishers as T20 (Top 20%) fishers, not recreational fishers. T20 fishers are in the fullest expression of their fishing biology. Biology influences recreational anglers, but other factors such as cultural traditions or personal interests motivate them more. The type of fisher you become is an expression of what motivates you. Which comes first – the chicken or the egg? Are you shaped by
what motivates you, or are the things that motivate you an expression of the person you are? I sit firmly in the camp of the latter. I have also done extensive study and practical work on the former, so both are possible. As stated above, most people enjoy fishing for a reason other than the big two motivators. That is borne out by looking at the performance data, which I have talked about before, and things like the ANCORS report Improving our understanding of the motivations and attitudes of recreational fishers in NSW. That report identified that 79% of fishers were motivated primarily by non-catch drivers (social opportunities, love of outdoors, other). Interestingly, only 13.4% of fishers identified as social fishers, which sits comfortably with my view that fishing is a sport more attractive to introverts. Note, introverts are not always ‘socially shy’ – they just find activities that include prolonged periods of isolation or low human contact time lift their energy levels. Extraverts experience the opposite; connecting with people energizes them. Here I introduce an interesting side note for those that may remain unconvinced by the importance of motivation. The world’s most potent Artificial Intelligence (AIs) that play and win games – notably Deep Mind – are all very highly motivated. That is, they have a (mathematical) reward for success and a penalty for failure. It’s this motivation factor combined with processing power that has made them better than any human. FISHING – THE WORLD’S FIRST ‘TECH INDUSTRY’ I have made the joke many times that if the first hook was invented 25,000 years ago, then about a week later the first tackle store was opened. That is only half joking, as deep down we all know it’s true. Even if the fundamentals haven’t changed much – the rods, reels, lures, and baits of today are weapons of mass destruction in comparison to the past. I have had many chats with Fisheries scientists and managers that fear the constant development of technology, especially fish finders. While I do empathize with their concerns and even agree it’s a risk, I just want to highlight that recreational fishing is one of the most highly innovative industries in the world. I don’t for a second believe that investment in technology in the sector is intended to wipe out fish species. Recreational fishers have a vested interest in improving fish stocks. That doesn’t mean there aren’t bad actors within the ranks of recs,
or that fishers always act in their own best interests. GRIT, THE UGLY SIBLING OF MOTIVATION There are lots of motivational speakers and coaches out there. I haven’t heard of any grit coaches but there should be. Grit is the companion to motivation, which weaponises it. Grit, for want of a better word, is staying power, especially during the bad times. To understand the difference, motivation is what gets you out on the water fishing and grit is what keeps you out there – even when you haven’t caught a thing in the last month, it’s raining, you just broke a rod, and the fishing gods have it in for you. Motivation defines the difference between recreational and T20 fishers. Grit has the biggest say on whether you are a T20 or T1 (top 1%) fisher. All of the T1 fishers I have looked at in any field (recreational, commercial, artisanal) have displayed high levels of grit. That does not surprise me; grit is a critical factor in extreme success in all fields of endeavour. Grit is a genuine superpower, and it’s something you should value. At this point, I know many people are going to highlight skill as the thing that defines the difference between T20 and T1. I beg to differ. The long-term studies have been conducted looking at skill versus grit and the evidence is overwhelming that grit is a much better predictor of success. While the reason for this is unclear, I would hazard a guess that staying power is essential in problem-solving. HOW DO YOU BECOME GRITTY? The subject of developing staying power is an interesting one, because grit is an attribute that has only been the focus of research in recent years. In exercise terms, developing grit is similar to growing muscle, slowing increasing repetitions and duration. In the case of fishing, this is the ‘one more cast’ principle. If you cast to the point where you are done, then cast one more time, then again and again, over time staying power will increase. Combine grit and the big two motivators, and you are on your way to becoming a fishing weapon. BARRIERS SHAPE THE FISHERY The interaction between motivation, grit, and barriers to fishing profoundly influence the fishery. Barriers include: • Difficulty of technique required to catch fish • Equipment required • Time available • Access limitations or time limitations • Regulations such as bag limits or slot limits.
As an example, the saratoga fishery where technique is a huge barrier is almost all T20 fishers, while bream, caught on a wide variety of baits, has a mix of fishers much closer to that described in the ANCORS report. The observation I will make is this – barriers reduce participation by recreational (non-T20) anglers, which has a significant effect on the nature of the fishery and the kinds of measures that will help fishers. BARRIERS GIVE T20 FISHERS PREFERENTIAL ACCESS Okay, time to head into controversial territory. T20 fishers with their higher levels of the big two motivations are more likely to find fish. It doesn’t matter if you are talking whiting or marlin – T20 fishers are much more efficient. Further, technology has helped to widen the gap between T20 fishers and recreational fishers, mostly because recreational anglers won’t invest the time or money to get the benefit of technology. Barriers such as bag limits are also preferential to T20 fishers, particularly gritty T20 fishers, as they can move onto other species, find larger fish or fish more often. Access barriers such as poor infrastructure also advantage T20 fishers. Motivated T20 anglers will work around such impediments. In short, T20 fishers will find a way around the things that inhibit their activity much more than general recreational anglers. T20 FISHERS AND ADVOCACY I know that science often gets left behind in political discussions, so it’s only right that I turn science back on the politics. Almost all fishing advocates are T20 fishers. Occasionally you get someone who is motivated by advocacy more than fishing, but such beasts are in the minority. As such, when advocates espouse that they represent recreational anglers, that’s a claim that should be tested. I’m not saying that T20 fishers can’t advocate for recreational anglers, but the needs of recreational anglers are very different from T20 fishers and this is not always well understood. Recreational anglers (non-T20) benefit from two things: improving access and improving stocks of easy to target species. Measures outside of these areas are far less likely to help the broader population of fishers. I am not suggesting that is a bad thing, but advocates should be mindful of this nonetheless. To quote one of the most famous lines in Spiderman, “with great power comes great responsibility.”
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News
Tagging Achievement Awards for 2017 Hi, I’m Glen Baker, the new President of Suntag Queensland. I have been tagging since 1991 and to date have tagged just over 3,500 fish. Many people ask me why I tag fish. For me, there are many reasons. These reasons include, the personal challenges of achieving the many tagging awards, measuring myself against other likeminded anglers and continually trying to tag your new PB of each species. Trust me, you
get some strange looks from other fishers when you tag and release a big snapper, a mulloway or a thready! Then there is the science side of it, such as learning about the fish, their 90
MARCH 2018
movement, growth rates and the size of fish stocks. Some recaptures I have had over the years have blown me away. Several grass emperor I have tagged have travelled from Peel Island in Moreton Bay to up off the Sunshine Coast. That is a big swim for a little fish! My wife and two children are all involved in Suntag. They all get a buzz out of receiving a recapture certificate or a Tagging Achievement Award for a particular species. My son
Lachie is 15 and has been tagging since he was about 5 and recorded his 900th fish recently. Lara is 12 and is working hard at present to obtain her first Tagging Achievement Award.
In 2018 we have added a stack more personal challenges on top of the existing Tagging Achievement Awards and Tagging Excellent Awards. To view these jump on the
website which is www. suntaggers.com.au My hopes and vision for Suntag are to grow the number of anglers that participate. I want fishers at all levels to get involved,
from the very skilled to the weekend angler who just loves fishing. I am especially passionate about getting the junior anglers involved. Tagging will give them a great insight into
fishing and teach them the importance of things such as sustainability. To join Suntag or obtain more information go to www.suntag.org.au. – Glen Baker
NEW TAGGERS TAGGED FIRST FISH Fisher
Date
BRYSON B
December 08 2017
BENSTED P
December 11 2017
HOWARTH P
December 13 2017
GRAU MT
December 19 2017
JENNISON P
September 29 2017
SULLLIVAN A
September 02 2017
HARWOOD N
September 02 2017
FOSTER AD
September 02 2017
WENCK A
September 05 2017
BLACK R
September 16 2017
ORR K
September 20 2017
FITZPATRICK LK
September 21 2017
BAINES K
September 22 2017
PRIOR D
September 23 2017
SVILANS M
September 23 2017
LINDLEY L
September 23 2017
PRICE K
September 23 2017
SAVAGE E
September 23 2017
SAVAGE E
September 29 2017
BOON A
September 29 2017
MANNS J
September 29 2017
MANNS V
September 29 2017
BEAULAVON A
October 07 2017
WILLIAMS SH
October 11 2017
GRAY MT
October 13 2017
VISENTIN T
October 26 2017
LONGBOTTOM A
October 26 2017
THOROGOOD C
October 26 2017
WARREN M
October 26 2017
MANNS K
October 26 2017
GIBBS A
October 26 2017
BOUNA P
October 26 2017
MILBURN C
October 26 2017
HILL K
October 26 2017
BEYER H
October 26 2017
MAZZER B
October 26 2017
MOSS Z
October 26 2017
HOULIHAN R
October 26 2017
WHITTAKER B
October 26 2017
ROSS S
October 27 2017
ROBERTS CH
October 28 2017
HARRISON J
October 28 2017
LITTLEBOY C
October 28 2017
BORG T
October 28 2017
BLUCHER C
October 28 2017
MILLEN A
October 28 2017
SCHNEIDER G
October 28 2017
MILINOVICH G
October 28 2017
BEARD P
October 29 2017
PAUL N
November 11 2017
Fisher
Date Completed
LANGAN C
November 26 2017
COOK DM
December 3 2017
HALL RD
December 08 2017
DUTTON L
December 3 2017
ENGLE S
September 29 2017
PEARDON C
September 29 2017
O’SHEA S
September 29 2017
RAPLEY M
September 29 2017
HUFF L
September 29 2017
HINDLEY K
September 29 2017
THOMAS K
September 29 2017
WESTAWAY T
September 29 2017
GAW M
September 30 2017
BARBIERI N
September 30 2017
O’SING D
September 30 2017
SOO K
September 30 2017
CONRAD E
September 30 2017
HUCKETT DN
October 04 2017
CARPENTER D
October 26 2017
BIRSS T
October 26 2017
HURLEY P
October 26 2017
DUNNE M
October 26 2017
GRAHAM S
October 26 2017
MILBURN J
October 27 2017
CONRAD R
October 27 2017
THAW J
October 27 2017
HETHERINGTON M
October 27 2017
BROOK K
October 27 2017
WHYTE N
October 27 2017
LONG N
November 27 2017
CROKER W
December 03 2017
SHEPHERD A
December 03 2017
WALL J
December 07 2017
QUINLAN Z
December 20 2017
SIMON K
December 20 2017
PILETIC A
December 21 2017
BRUNATO K
December 23 2017
BUSH C
December 23 2017
RICKEY A
December 26 2017
HAGTAN S
December 26 2017
ZYGNERSKI M
December 26 2017
MOON C
December 31 2017
FINISHED FIRST CLIP OF TAGS
News HOT REGIONS 2017 - 2018 STATEWIDE
BARRA SITES
BASS SITES
Region
Fish Tagged
Location
Fish Tagged
Location
Fish Tagged
Central Queensland
4135
Fitzroy River
509
North Pine Dam
992
South East Queensland
3849
Boyne River
197
Lake Kurwongbah
306
North Queensland
1386
Corio Bay
155
Lake Sommerset
213
Gulf Country
399
Port Alma
152
Lake Wivenhoe
143
Western Queensland
101
Curtis Island
128
Borumba Dam
131
SUNTAG EXPLORERS MOST GRIDS FISHED
MOST GRIDS FISHED
AREAS NOT FISHED IN 3 YEARS
Fishers
Suntag Grids Fished
Fishers
Suntag Grids Fished
Fishers
Suntag Grids Fished
OXFORD B
76
BAKER L
30
OXFORD B
23
REED L
56
THOMAS R
23
REED L
21
NUTTALL S
49
STUDHOLME A
23
POWELL M
16
BAKER G
36
STRINGER B
23
NUTALL S
13
POWELL M
36
KIDD W
19
HOLESZKO
9
HIGH ACHIEVERS Awards
Fishers
Platinum Lure
Salmond S
Gold Lure
Oxford B, Reed L, Powell M, Vesel T, Pearce D
Silver Lure
Thomas R, Nash S, Murphy Pt, Baker G, Fox J, Stratford N, Jung P, Nuttall S, Huth B
Challenge Species 2017/18
Salmond S (25 Giant Trevally, 25 Queenfish)
Tagging Achievement Awards
Schmidt G (50 Barred Javelin), Pitcher G (50 Barred Javelin) , Moore J (25 Mangrove Jack), Spyve M (25 Mangrove Jack), Stratton B (75 Barramundi), Rapley D (75 Barramundi), Cooper A (25 Mangrove Jack), Price N (25 Golden Snapper), Stratford N (75 Australian Bass), Nuttall S (75 Barramundi), Avery B (50 Blackspotted Rockcod), Baker L (50 Goldspotted Rockcod), Price N (75 Barramundi), Matheson K (25 Golden Snapper), Kuhr L (75 Australian Bass), Baker G (25 Mulloway), Nash S (75 Australian Bass)
BIG TAGGERS 2017
TAGGING EXCELLENCE AWARDS Nuttall S
250 Mangrove Jack
Charteris K
500 Red Emperor
Salmond S
500 Giant Trevally
Willmann L
250 Mulloway
Macgregor J
500 Barred Javelin
Left: Barry Oxford tagged a lot of fish last year and featured highly in the Tagging Achievement Awads, including the biggest traveller, tagging fish in more grids than any other taggers. Right: Lochie Reed and five others earned themselves a Golden Lure Award, which is won by tagging the most trophy fish.
Fishers
Fish Tagged
Salmond S
753
Oxford B
549
Powell M
268
Vesel T
266
Reed L
238
Pearce D
214
Baker G
195
Stringer B
185
Nash S
179
Thomas R
175
BIG TAGGERS DECEMBER Fishers
Fish Tagged
Salmond S
186
Oxford B
55
Kidd W
49
Reed L
41
Baker G
40
Jenkins R
38
Jung P
37
Powell D
35
Cook DM
32
Baker L
32
MARCH 2018
91
Cooking
Tasty miso crusted salmon with crunchy rice BRISBANE
Lynn Bain
This recipe is very easy to make. It’s a slightly salty, savoury and sophisticated dish – if there is such a taste as sophisticated, then miso has it. The red miso paste that I use as part of the crust on the fish in this recipe is available at most supermarkets in the Asian section. You may also notice white miso paste in the same area of the supermarket. You could use either in this recipe, however I prefer red miso because it has a more pronounced flavour than the white miso, and red miso also adds an excellent colour to the crust on the salmon. The quantities in this recipe will serve two.
2
Ingredients • 2 salmon steaks • 2 tbsp red miso paste • 3 tbsp soy sauce
Add the brown sugar.
1
3 6
5 92
MARCH 2018
Place the salmon steaks onto a clean work surface and spread the miso paste mixture over the flesh side of the salmon. Place the coated salmon steaks into the fridge, skin side down, for half an hour to allow the flavour of the miso paste mixture to partner with the salmon and for the coating to firm up.
• 1 tbsp brown sugar • 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar • hot steamed rice • uncooked vegetables • noodles
Add the rice wine vinegar to the miso mixture.
Heat your bbq plate or heavy-based cast iron frypan to a medium-high heat. When it’s hot, oil it lightly with some cooking oil. Place the salmon skin-side down onto the hot surface and cook for three minutes before carefully turning the salmon over. Cook on the flesh side briefly to get some heat into the miso paste. Remove the salmon from the heat and place to one side on a plate. The salmon will continue to cook for a little while after you take it off the heat, so ensure that there is a sliver of pink flesh through the centre of your salmon steak when you remove it from the heat.
4
7
Place the red miso paste into a cup or small bowl. Add the soy sauce and stir together well. The paste is quite thick and it will take a bit of stirring to incorporate the soy sauce into the miso paste.
Mix until well blended.
The miso crusted salmon with the rice medley is ready to be served – the rice/veggie mixture is a simple combo of steamed rice accompanied by slivers of carrot and sliced Asian greens as well as slivers of red onion. Top the rice/vegie medley with some Asian crispy noodles for that crunchy texture. These can be purchased at most supermarkets.
Dazed and confused with Dudds in a boat BRISBANE
The Sheik of the Creek
I felt dazed. My head ached, like someone had just whacked me on the side of the head with a no. 6 bean sinker, which was appropriate, because someone had just hit me on the side of the head with a no. 6 bean sinker. Manboobs was in a state of insobriety after chugging a number of midstrengths following a few weeks of domestic arguments, non-stop driving and financial stress. But let’s call it what it is: Christmas. Anyway, Skipper and Boobies had claimed the comfortable front seats with rod holders, while I was perched like an overweight cormorant on the front deck. We were hoping for a thready or two to break up the monotony, but all we
could hook were catfish and sharks. They were chewing through our supply of mullet and prawns like Charlie Webb through an all you can eat buffet. As the chillybin got lighter, the can pile around Boobies grew higher. For the first couple of hours he managed to stand up to cast, and I was warned of possible missiles by an aluminium cascade that sounded like the Black Knight standing up without his buckles done up in a late summer Brisbane hailstorm. But as the day wore on, I could hear the muttered curses from the front right fade, as Boobies found it more and more difficult to dislodge the plethora of cans gathered around his person, like ants around something that ants really like. So I had no warning of this lead missile, which dealt me a good blow on the temple. I could hear the hook fizz past
my ear. The terminal tackle swung lazily in an arc some 50m into the turgid waters of the Mary. The last remaining herring went a further two hundred metres into a stand of thick mangroves on the far bank. I considered diving in to retrieve it, but my head was already swimming; I didn’t need the rest of me swimming too. Skipper and I exchanged a look, then fumbled around a bit and gave our original looks back to each other. But the lack of bait didn’t seem to worry the catfish; Boobies was on again shortly after, even without bait. Unless he’d become confused and was putting two baits onto each hook, which was entirely possible. Watching him take catfish and sharks off his hooks was interesting. I think I know how they felt in Houston watching Apollo 11: waiting for the disaster
and able to do absolutely nothing about it. But he got through it. We got through it. Yes,
there were some catfish barbs, shark teeth and sinker wounds to contend with that night. It was alright
for Boobies, he had some high level pain relief on board. As for me, my head just ached.
TOURNAMENT CALENDAR 2018 MARCH
APRIL
MAY
JUNE
6-8 Mar
ABT BREAM Series Australian Open Sydney Harbour/Hawkesbury River
abt.org.au
8-11 Mar
VMR Hervey Bay Family Fishing Competition Dayman Park, Urangan
George Duck 0407 663 578
10-11 Mar
ABT BASS Pro Round 1 Hawkesbury River
abt.org.au
20-21 Mar
ABT BREAM Series Round 3 St Helens, Tasmania
abt.org.au
24 Mar
Wyralong Dam Carp/Tilapia Eradication Comp Wyralong Dam
www.lafma.org
24-25 Mar
ABT BREAM Series Round 4 Derwent River, Tasmania
abt.org.au
21-22 Apr
ABT BREAM Series Round 5 Gold Coast
abt.org.au
22 Apr
ABT BASS Electric Series Round 2 Clarrie Hall Dam
abt.org.au
5-6 May
ABT BREAM Series Round 6 Swan River, WA
abt.org.au
19-20 May
ABT BASS Pro Round 2 Glenbawn Dam
abt.org.au
22-23 May
ABT BASS Pro Round 3 Lake St Clair
abt.org.au
2-3 Jun
Round 6 Hobie Kayak Bream Series Gold Coast
hobiefishing.com.au
2-3 Jun
ABT BREAM Series Round 7 Hawkesbury River
abt.org.au
7-9 Jun
Frenchville Sports Club Barra Bash Frenchville
frenchybarrabash@gmail.com
8-10 Jun
Weipa Fishing Classic Cape York
www.weipafishingclassic.com
9-10 Jun
Tweed Coast Marine Greenback Fishing Competition Tweed Coast
Stephen Duffield 0421 052 135
Add your tournament or competition to this list by emailing jthomas@fishingmonthly.com.au or calling 07 3387 0800 in office hours. Just supply a date, venue, tournament name and a telephone number and contact name. MARCH 2018
93
Big Cash is on offer for Copeton Murray cod The chance to share in over $25,000 cash is up for grabs as a new Murray cod fishing tournament is due to start on 14 April near Inverell in northern NSW.
Copeton Dam has established itself as the premier Murray cod fishing capital of Australia. Anglers often dream of adding the mighty metre cod to their bragging vocabulary, however now something more than this lifelong thrill
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is on offer. The MO Tackle & Outdoors Cod Cash is offering a huge $25,000 in cash prizes for avid anglers who can successfully land a tagged Murray cod. But that’s not even the best part
– the event is absolutely free to enter! The nine-day event is a new initiative of Inverell Shire Council and has already captured interest from interstate visitors, with MO Tackle and Outdoors the event’s major sponsor.
The MO Tackle & Outdoors Cod Cash will see the release of at least six Murray cod into the Copeton Dam impoundment and offer cash prizes to participants who are able to successfully
re-capture any one or all of the fish. One Murray cod will carry a tag worth a whopping $20,000, while other minor prizes will include at least five Murray cod valued at $1000 each. The 9-day event, to run from 14 April 2018 – 22
April 2018, is the icing on the cake for many anglers thinking of visiting Copeton Dam to chase the almighty metrey. April has proven to be a red-hot time for catching cod in Copeton, with monster fish angled on a regular basis. The opportunity to catch the fish of a lifetime paired with a chance to secure $25,000
landed and submit them to a designated e-mail address for their chance to win some fantastic mystery length fish prizes! Registration for the MO Tackle & Outdoors Cod Cash will be made available in the township of Inverell from 24 March 2018 until the end of the competition on 22 April
• Simply Print Anything Inverell Registration will not be made available at Copeton Dam or online. Anglers of all ages and abilities are encouraged to participate for as little or as long as you like, with no requirement to fish the entire event. Participants under the
worth of cash with no registration fee is an offer far too good to refuse. To coincide with the event, a photo competition will be run where participants are challenged to take a unique snap of anything Copeton and/or Cod Cash related, and upload it to social media using a series of hashtags (#). In the generous spirit of the event, the photo judged to be the best/most unique will earn its photographer a cool $500 cash. Participants are encouraged to photograph all Murray cod and golden perch
2018. It is imperative that keen participants sign up to receive their unique participation card that must feature in the photos used to verify a tagged fish. Registration will be available at the following seven businesses in Inverell: • Australian Hotel Inverell • Compleat Angler and Camping World Inverell • Inverell Fishing and Hunting • Inverell H Hardware • Northern Tablelands Local Land Services • Regional Australia Bank Inverell
age of 16 years old must be accompanied by a registered parent or guardian to whom prize money will be paid. As a strictly catch-andrelease competition, it is a requirement that participants have the ability to photograph a potential prize-winning fish as photographs will be used in the verification process. To find out more simply head to www.facebook.com/ CopetonCodCash. Enquiries can be made by e-mailing tourism@inverell.nsw.gov.au or by calling (02) 6728 8161. – Inverell Shire Council
The Greenback Fishing Competition is back on The Lions Greenback Fishing Competition is back and being held on June 9-10 this year. Since 1981 the Greenback Tailor Fishing Competition has been a community focus event
helping to raise funds for local beneficiaries. There has been some difficulty in the past with holding the event in 2015 and 2017. With the backing from the Cabarita Beach Pottsville Beach Lions
Club, two Lions members (Stephen Duffield and Stan Dawson) formed the Lions Greenback Management Team. With the support of major sponsor Tweed Coast Marine, the Greenback Fishing Competition is
alive and well and back on track for 9 and 10 June 2018. The fishing event has been held on the NSW Queen’s Birthday weekend for many years, and this year the organisers are
planning for 800+ anglers from NSW and QLD to attend. The event in its 31st year is expected to give the region a welcome economic boost. Following consultation with past participants,
some changes have been made to the competition. Prize money, in general, has increased across all categories. For the greenback tailor, a 3rd place prize has been allocated providing an opportunity
to all anglers to be in the running for a tailor prize. The men’s division will also have a 4th place prize. The boundaries are changing and now cover the area from the QLD/NSW border to South Ballina. The event now includes the Tweed region, so if you fish in the Tweed River and the local beaches, you can catch the fish species without leaving the area. The Sunday activities will be completed by 1:30pm, so the Queensland entrants have some time to travel home. With the boundary changes, we hope to see more local river anglers sign up for the competition. The prize goods will be from fishing, camping and sporting product lines. There has also been some tightening up in the honesty and fraud control areas in the background running of the event. The familyorientated markets will also be back with the help of Curl Creative. All entrants will have a complimentary ticket in the Lions Charity Raffle, a breakfast voucher and the chance to win lucky prize draws on Sunday morning. We are also introducing a New South Wales vs Queensland entrants shield to go the state with the most competition points (a pro-rata point system will be in place). In March there will be blues and maroons Greenback merchandise available for purchasing online. With the first State of Origin game on the Wednesday before the
Greenback Competition, this will add to the entertainment during the weigh-in on Sunday morning. An early bird rate (until 9 April) is offered to encourage participants to register and pay a reduced entry fee that will help with planning the event. The early bird entry rates have been set at $35 and $30 for seniors (55+) – savings that take us back to 2013 and 2014 entry fees. Entrants will be able to pay
online using PayPal, VISA, MasterCard or AMEX. In addition to the early bird savings, entrants who register as an early bird may pick up a Greenback cap (first 40), Greenback stubby cooler (first 80) and go into two prize draws for three Fishing Monthly Magazine twelve-month subscriptions. For more information visit lionsgreenback.com, email greenback2018@ optusnet.com.au or phone Stephen on 0421 052 135.
MARCH 2018
95
FUN PAGE AND COMPETITIONS WORDS CONTAINING FISH
SELFISH STANDOFFISH OAFISH FISHMONGER FISHTAILING FISHERFOLK FISHERIES FISHPONDS OUTFISHED FISHBOWL
FISHY FISHNETS FISHEYE WAIFISH ELFISH OFFICIAL WOLFISH EFFICIENT AFFICIONADO FISSURE
Valley Hill Rocketeer Slicer
Name: Address:
P/Code:
The first correct entry at the end of each month will win the prize pack. SEND ENTRIES TO: QLD Find-a-word Competition, PO box 3172, Loganholme Qld 4129
QLD MAR 2018
Phone (day):
BARRA COUNTRY by Brett Currie
The Rocketeer Slicer from Japanese tackle giant Valley Hill is a real feat of Japanese design and engineering. The Rocketeer Slicer has a unique metal plate at the nose of the jig, which lets you secure line in two places, and ensures a superior swimming action even through debris. In addition, its tail system lets you cast more effectively into the wind. The Rocketeer Slicer is available in two sizes (3.0 and 3.5) and 13 different colour combinations. It has proven to be highly effective on Australian squid. www.dogtoothdistribution.com.au
SPOT THE
10 DIFFERENCES
GEORGE & NEV by Michael Hardy
ORIGINAL
FIND-A-WORD
Congratulations to Ross Diane Kelly from Colosseum, who was last month’s winner of the Find-a-Word Competition! Monthly winners receive a sponsor prize. Prize delivery can take 8 weeks. – QFM
SUBSCRIBER PRIZE
The subscriber prize winner for January is B McGarry of Mount Pleasant, who won 28 packs of Madeyes valued at $300. All subscribers are entered in the monthly subscriber prize draws. Prize delivery takes up to 8 weeks. – QFM
D Stewart of Townsville, G Priestly of Silkwood, S Theofanes of Home Hill, C Hendry of Imbil, J Lowik of Churchill, C Daniel of Brightview, G Poor of Taromeo, S Dawson of Gympie, E Stevenson of Redbank Plains, A Finch of Stanthorpe, D Deppeler of Burpengary East, R Treacy of Frenchville, B Tieman of Buxton, J Bowyer of Blackall, M Hicks of Carina, J White of Aspley, D Davidson of Guyra,
P Baggett of The Caves, M Goodwin of Cardwell, A Dougan of Bucasia, K O’Brien of Burrum Heads, D Cauchi of Bundaberg, B Brown of Maryborough, B Steers of Redbank Plains, R Schefe of Point Vernon, M Chadwick of Burrum Heads, C Bradfield of Morningside, M Mason of Bongaree, J Nock of Kallangur. Prize delivery takes up to 8 weeks. – QFM
LAST MONTH’S ANSWERS
FIND THE GAMAKATSU LOGO
GUESS THE FISH?
The answers to Find the Gamakatsu Logo for January were: 10, 14, 19, 28, 30, 39, 47, 55, 60, 65, 66, 78, 82, 88, 91. – QFM
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MARCH 2018
This month’s Guess the Fish Answer: Mahimahi
The Find the Gamakatsu prize winners for January were: W Russell of Birkdale, D Gibson of Bongaree, J Jourdan of Coomera, G Edwards of Home Hill, A Mandall of Nambour, G Watter of Ripley, W Collis of River Heads, J Buddle of Torquay, J Dawson of Cordalba, A Cochrane of Roma, D Conway of East Greenmount,
Answer:
promotion
Lure makers competition for a worthy cause While I’ve enjoyed my visits to the Tackle Show at the Gold Coast, it’s the Lure Expo (held at Ipswich last year) that is the true heart of the Australian tackle industry. The people there range from cottage makers just starting out to much bigger makers like AC Lures and Kuttafurra lures. The Lure Expo provides a platform for lure sellers and those who can make a work of art with treble hooks hanging from it. I want to encourage those who are looking to move into potential markets,
have chosen Beyond Blue as beneficiary for their work in this area. There will be two categories: the Lure Leaders – lure-makers who have sold more than 100 lures in any form or who have had a display stand at the Lure Expo (if you already make a lure that fits the bill, current production models can be supplied); and Cottage Makers – you must have sold fewer than 100 lures to qualify for this category. The main body of the lure must be made from timber, using a blank of no larger than 35x35x125mm for each lure. You can
point to be fitted into the base of the bib, but the tow point must be affixed to the nose/body of the lure, even with surface lures. The inspiration is the traditional barramundi lure. One of the first things that becomes important when you move into larger production as a quality control is that the lures have to be pretty close to identical. If someone catches a big fish on your lure, they are going to want one that performs the same for their next trip, so you must submit two lures. They can be painted differently, but one of the tests is to see how well
If you are looking for inspiration, Rapala and Halco produce some of the best nose tow lures in the world. The judges will be looking for innovation. of the lure. Each entrant will be swum to test its performance, which will form part of the final judging. The same criteria used in all of the Lure Encyclopaedia
the silent auction. Please separately include an email address so I can inform you that the lures have arrived safely and seek clarification if required.
innovation is encouraged. The winners will be acknowledged at the dinner as part of the Lure Expo. Barring mishap, they will also feature in an episode of the Australian Fishing Network’s Fishing Show hosted by Nigel Webster and will be featured in Freshwater Fishing Australia and Fishing Monthly magazines. There will be a People’s Choice Award voted on by Lure Expo attendees with no prize. Lures need to arrive by 30 April to be considered – although donations for the charity auction can be accepted after that time. I hope that the luremakers will get behind this initiative. Please don’t avoid participating because you think another maker will knock it out of the ballpark and make you look bad. Be part of the innovation and exciting things that various makers are pursuing, and you will be helping a good cause that will benefit many in our community. If you or someone you care about is suffering, please get them to contact Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 or Lifeline on 13 11 14. Check out the Beyond Blue
These are some of the most iconic barramundi lures ever produced – two genuine Moller minnows and a Norm Edwards minnow. so with the support of several leaders in the industry, including Steve Morgan and Bill Classon, I have decided to run a lure-making competition centred around the Lure Expo to raise some funds for a noteworthy charity. Many fishers suffer from mental pressures of some sort. It’s something that needs to be recognised and managed. Fishing can be a great therapy and I
add extra fittings as an attachment, but if you make a jointed version, the wood components can be no longer than 125mm. Smaller lures may be submitted; it is up to each maker to work within the maximum dimensions. The lure must be nose tow. Bib tow lures and bibless minnows where the tow point is along the back will not be accepted. It is possible for the tow
makers can replicate a lure. Each lure should be able to be identified by signature or maker’s mark. One lure will be auctioned off under a silent auction to raise funds for Beyond Blue during the Lure Expo in Ipswich Queensland on 16-17 June. This lure will not be swum and should preferably be provided in packaging. The second lure will be used to test the performance
The top two lures would count as nose tow lures – the bottom one has the lure connection too far back to be considered nose tow. This demonstrates that there is a wide range of styles possible.
Beautiful nose tow barramundi lures from C Lures. These were colour samples to provide guidance when painting large batches of lures and are collectible in their own right.
books will be used. This lure must be fitted with all hardware for fishing. These lures may form part of a larger display in the future. Each pair of lures should come with a card, which, in less than 200 words, details the wood used, the maker, the name of the lure (if using one) and what you were trying to create with the lure. This card will be displayed next to the lure as part of
Judging will be based on originality, similarity between the two lures, finish, action in the water and overall appearance. Packaging will be used as a tiebreaker if required. Lures won’t be returned, although makers can produce additional lures for sale if they have a stand. The judges will not be making any determination on the integrity of the design, but
website, and talk to your loved ones and your GP. I wish everyone the best of luck. – Frank Prokop ENTRIES Post entries to: Frank Prokop 12 Lorica Cove Hillarys WA 6025 More information: fprokop60@gmail.com. MARCH 2018
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Pirtek Fishing Challenge
Celebrating the 10th Pirtek Fishing Challenge The Pirtek Challenge is coming round again, and this year, they’ll be celebrating the Challenge’s 10th year! The Pirtek Challenge is open to anglers across the whole of Australia. Last year saw 8,762 competitors, and their aim this year is to beat that number! It’s an opportunity to get out on the water
Cancer Foundation and the Peter Duncan Neurosciences Research Unit. Prostate cancer is currently the most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australia, and is the third most common cause of cancer death, and in 2017, there were an estimated 3,453 deaths caused by prostate cance in Australia.
so you can get the whole family involved for an outdoors fishing bonanza. PRIZES GALORE There are prizes available for each of the 19 target species across NSW/ ACT, Queensland, Victoria, the Murray/Darling Basin, the Great Dividing Range, East Coast Freshwater, Top End and Open categories. This includes a ‘Mystery Length’ prize of $4,000 for seniors in each species division, and a cash/prize pack for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd for the longest of each species for both seniors and juniors. For more information, head to www. pirtekfishingchallenge. com.au – FMG YOUR CHALLENGE
• After you have registered, a limited edition Fishing Challenge cap and Fishing Challenge brag mat will be posted to you. • The list of target species will be available via the website www.pirtekfishingchallenge.com.au at 1200 hours AEDST on Sunday, 25 February 2018. • On Saturday, 17 March 2018 (after 6pm) you will be sent via email a repeat list of the target species plus your angler number. You can also log on to the website to download this information. • Fishing will commence at 6am and finish at 6pm on Sunday, 18 March 2018. with some mates, have an awesome day of fishing, and be in with a chance to win a share of $210,000 worth of cash and prizes! We want to give our readers the best possible start to this year, and we’ve got all the information you need to get started and have a cracker day on the water. This year, with more species than ever, we’re hoping to get even more anglers onboard for the challenge, so there should be a species on there for you, regardless of how and where you like to fish. THE CAUSE Each year the Pirtek Challenge is held to raise money for the Prostate
These are sobering statistics, but we can work to lessen the damage by opening up the conversation about prostate cancer with loved ones and mates, which can lead to earlier detection of cancer and fewer fatalities. The importance of supporting the research and work of the Prostate Cancer Foundation cannot be overstated. In time, we’d love to see these statistics change, and this is possible with research. What better way to support such an important cause then a fantastic day out on the water? Registration is affordable at $25 per angler
• All lines must be out of the water at 6pm on Sunday, 18 March 2018. • When you catch your target species simply lay the live fish with the nose in line with the ‘0’ (zero) measurement on the Pirtek bragmat. • Photograph the fish so the entire length can be seen in the photograph along with your angler number. • Check out the Photographing Your Fish page for information on how to correctly photograph your catch. • Remember to write your angler number clearly in the white box provided on the brag mat. • Check your photograph to ensure the whole fish is in the photograph and the nose end of the fish is in line with the ‘0’ (zero) measurement and the overall length along with the angler number is clearly visible.
• If you do not receive your brag mat before Sunday 18 March, you may measure and photograph your fish using last year’s brag mat, a Fisheries measuring sticker, another competitor’s mat (with your Angler Number), or a generic brag mat. • If you are not happy with the photograph, simply take another one. • Quickly release the fish and try to catch a bigger one. • Only a fish caught by the registered angler can be entered. • Any photograph that shows a fish not alive or damaged will not be accepted. • Any photograph which has undergone digital manipulation, i.e., photoshop, will be disqualified. • You can only upload one photograph per angler to the website. This needs to be your biggest fish. • Follow the directions on the website to upload your photograph. • The upload needs to be complete by 7am AEDT, Monday, 19 March 2018. • Any photographs uploaded after this time will not be accepted. • If your photograph is damaged, blurry or the overall measurement of your fish is not clearly seen with your angler number the photograph will be disallowed. • Check the website on Saturday, 24 March, 2018 to see if you’re a winner. The National Fishing Challenge committee’s decision will be final and no correspondence entered into.
GOLDEN PERCH Size Range: Up to 75cm, commonly caught at 25-50cm.
Tactics: Lures and live baits are popular, and they also love to hunt down worms and grubs set on the bottom. Lures cast around fallen timber in rivers and standing timber in lakes are all successful, especially around first and last light, and the warmer periods of the year are generally preferred. Rigs: Running sinker rig and a paternoster rig are both good options with 20lb braided main line to 20lb leader. The same line weights can be used for lure fishing. Bait: Baits of yabby, live shrimp, worms and even smelly dead baits are successful. Lures: Lures like Australian-made hardbodied lures, spinnerbaits and lipless crankbaits all do damage on yellowbelly. 98
MARCH 2018
MURRAY/DARLING
• Enter the challenge via the website and be sure to read the terms and conditions.
Pirtek Fishing Challenge
BARRAMUNDI Tactics: Barramundi are veracious predators of the estuary, and love eating the baitfish and prawns that abound in these waterways. It’s for this reason that live baits, lures and flies work so well for this iconic species. Rigs: An unweighted live bait rig is perfect for barramundi fishing, and a running sinker rig should be employed if you want to get the bait down a bit. Bait: Live baits of mullet, herring, whiting and prawn are excellent for barramundi.
COASTAL
Size Range: Up to 1.8m, common around 50-70cm.
Size Range: Up to 70kg and 2m, common under 1m and 10kg. Tactics: Kingfish are ravenous pelagic hunters, and will respond to a variety of tactics, ranging from dead and live baits, to lures and even fly! They can be tricky when they are keyed into a particular forage, and matching the hatch is usually the best tactic. Rigs: Floatline or balloon rigs are favoured by those who like targeting big kingfish. Bait: Both live and dead baits will work, with squid and bonito strips good for dead baits, and slimies, yellowtail and squid dynamite as live baits.
FLATHEAD
Size Range: Up to 1.1m, commonly caught 30-65cm.
Lures: Soft plastics, hardbodies and a range of topwater baits will work.
Tactics: Flathead are classic ambush predators that use camouflage to their advantage, often burying themselves in sand or mud when awaiting their prey. Drop offs, weed edges, hard rock and mud edges are all great spots for flathead. Flathead have a preference for tidal movement, either running in or running out, and don’t feed as much when the water is slack. Rigs: A running sinker rig with 6lb braid with a 15lb leader is sufficient for bait fishing. The same goes for lure fishing, but try to attach your lures with a loop knot where possible to maximize the action of the lure.
COASTAL
KINGFISH
OPEN WATER
Lures: There are so many purpose-built barramundi lures on the market, ranging from soft plastics, hardbodies (shallow and deep), topwater baits and flies. The tricky part is finding out which will work on that particular day..
Bait: Flathead will eat anything they can fit in their mouth, whether it’s live, dead, big or small. Larger flathead have a preference for live baits, however large flathead are occassionally taken on dead baits. Lures: Most lures work well on flathead, the trick is to have it in their face. Lures such as soft plastics, vibes, lipless crankbaits and hardbodied lures all catch flathead, and they’ve been known to chase down swimbaits and surface lures as well.
WHITING
SNAPPER
Rigs: A fairly heavy running sinker, paternoster, or floatline rig will do fine, depending on where you’re fishing, and the use of circle hooks has taken off in recent years, as it allows the fish to hook itself and prevents fish from swallowing the hook, making catch and release possible. Bait: Dead baits of squid, pilchards, bonito fillet have worked for many, while live slimies, yellowtail and squid are fantastic if they can be gathered.
Tactics: Smelly baits are very effective for carp. Carp will also get up into shallow water and mooch along the bottom looking for aquatic insects, and this is where fly anglers can have some fun, sometimes landing huge specimens. Rigs: A medium running sinker rig, paternoster rig or float rig with 6-20lb braided line onto a 10-20lb leader. Anglers can obviously go lighter in clear water free of snags. Bait: Baits as varied as scrubworms, corn, bread, dough, shrimp and grubs are all attractive to carp and the use of berley will increase your success rate dramatically. Lures: Carp will take lures, usually as by-catch. Fly anglers can target carp in shallow water by sight fishing with small nymphs.
Bait: Worms and yabbies (nippers) are two baits that are rarely met with failure. Lures: Small hardbodies, plastics, and more recently, surface lures have all taken plenty of whiting in the last decade. Often, the bigger whiting will be the ones that take lures.
Size Range: Up to 65cm, common from 30-40cm.
MURRAY/DARLING
Size Range: Up to 1m, but more commonly encountered at 30-60cm.
Rigs: A running sinker rig with a long leader, tiny long shank hook is enough to fool a whiting, even in shallow water. Light braided line around 4lb with a 2-4lb leader is an excellent balance for the anglers throwing lures at wily whiting.
BASS
Lures: Heavy soft plastics, jigs and vibes are favoured by those who fish in deep water, however bibbed lures can also be effective in shallower areas.
CARP
Tactics: Whiting love clear and shallow water where they grub around for yabbies, worms and other tasty tidbits. By targeting these areas with your baits or lures, you’ll encounter plenty of whiting, as well as other interesting by-catch.
Tactics: Bass in rivers love structure, but when they spawn in winter, they will school up in open water around the tidal reaches. Bass can be a little different in the dams. If there are bony bream or other schooling baitfish present, the bass will usually school up in deep water, chasing the smaller bony bream. If there is a lot of structure around the edges and the food source in predominately insects, small fish and shrimps, the bass will feed in shallow water. Fishing where the bass are with lures or bait that mimics what food source is available is the preferred approach. Rigs: Light braided line around 4-6lb with a fluorocarbon or monofilament leader around 8-14lb is preferred for lure fishing. The same applies for bait fishing, with unweighted, weighted and floated rigs working, depending on how deep and where the fish are holding.
COASTAL
Tactics: Snapper can be found in both sheltered waters and offshore, in depths ranging from 1m, to offshore bluewater. Snapper are opportunistic and will eat many different prey items, live or dead. The trick can be finding what they want on that particular day.
OPEN WATER
Size Range: Up to 130cm, common around 20-40cm.
COASTAL
Size Range: Up to 50cm, more common from 20-40cm.
Bait: Grasshopper, cricket, worms, yabbies, and particularly live shrimp are successful. Lures: Bass take a variety of lures from surface lures, diving lures, lipless crankbaits, spinnerbaits, soft plastics, jigs and even flies. Match your lures to suit where and how the bass are feeding. MARCH 2018
99
Trades, Services, Charter
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SALES • REPAIRS • INSTALLATIONS
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• Sounders • GPS • Electric Motors • Marine Radios and accessories • Stereos • Televisions • Radar Units • Autopilots Unit 4/1440 New Cleveland Road Capalaba www.trymax.com.au PHONE: 07 3245 3633
SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND
CUSTOM MARINE WELDING & ELECTRICAL Marine and Auto Electricial n All types of Welding n Stainless Steel n Aluminium n Mild Steel n Boats Repaired n Fuel & Water Tanks n Canopies n Bow and Stern Rails n Custom Vehicle Tool Boxes
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+ 50km of sheltered waterways on the Gold Coast’s Broadwater + No Licence required CALL FOR A + Boats from $995 DEAL + 2-12 berth
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BOAT PAINTING BRISBANE Brisbane Boat Painting 0433 356 620
BOAT MODIFICATIONS & REPAIRS
CUSTOM ALLOY FABRICATION • Boat repairs & fitouts • Bait tanks • Transom rebuilds • Fuel tanks • Consoles
FISH TAXIDERMY
MARINE MECHANICS GOLD COAST
Fish Taxidermist www.fishtaxidermy.net.au or 0428 544 841
Whitewater Marine (07) 5532 4402 T&S Marine (07) 5546 2599
SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND Stones Corner Marine (07) 3397 9766 Brisbane Yamaha (07) 3888 1727 Northside Marine (07) 3265 8029 Coorparoo Marine (07) 3397 4141 Capalaba Boat Centre 04011 728 379 Holt Marine (07) 3353 1928 Cunningham Marine Centre (07) 3284 8805 Caloundra Marine (07) 5491 1944
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Gary’s Marine Centre
OVER 20 YEARS FABRICATING AND WELDING ALUMINIUM
FISHING GUIDES SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND Suncoast Barra Fishing Park www.suncoastbarrafishing.com
CENTRAL QUEENSLAND Lake Monduran Barra Charters 0407 434 446
TROPICAL NORTH QUEENSLAND Hooked On Hinchinbrook www.hookedonhinchinbrook.com
MARINE TRIMMERS SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND Rowland Street Boat Trimmers Springwood (07) 3208 9511 Brisbane Yamaha (07) 3888 1727 Rays Canvas & Marine Caboolture (07) 5499 4911 Affordable Boat Covers Gold Coast 0419 424 587
HOLIDAY ACCOMMODATION BRISBANE
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CUSTOM TRANSOMS 20-75hp $750 75-150hp $890 150-225hp $980 Freight can be arranged Australia wide
PROFISH BOATS – Phone Peter 0417 782 114 Email: peter@profishboats.com www.profishboats.com
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217 Pine Mountain Road, BRASSALL MARINE TRAILERS Oceanic Boat Trailers (07) 5597 0577 Spitfire Trailers (07) 0400 866 323 Tinnie Tosser (07) 5498 7339 Sea-Link Special Trailers (07) 3881 3568
Rent for $150 per night minimum 2 nights, sleeps 6 Phone Kevin 0457 778 097 or go to Stayz property No. 182473 for more photos and information
This section in QLD Fishing Monthly consolidates the trades and services in your area that are relevant to your fishing and boating. Whether you’re a local looking for more options or a travelling angler fishing around the state, this guide will direct you to reputable businesses in the area you’re searching. 100
MARCH 2018
Boats & Guided Fishing Tours Directory HOLIDAY ACCOMMODATION SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND The Islander Retreat, South Stradbroke Island 0420 967 557
FRASER ISLAND Apurla Island Retreat 0437 739 121 Waddy Lodge on Fraser 0414 516 364 Cathedrals on Fraser (07) 4127 9177 Fraser Island Beach Houses 1800 626 230 Yidney Rocks (07) 4127 9167 Eurong Beach Resort 1800 111 808
CENTRAL QUEENSLAND Baffle Creek Holiday House 0419 624 833
HOLIDAY ACCOMMODATION
Dave Gaden’s Yamba • Deep Sea
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CHARTER BOATS GOLD COAST True Blue Fishing Gold Coast (07) 5510 9622 BK’s Gold Coast Fishing Charters 0414 293 034 My Charter Boat Tweed Heads 0407 347 446 RU4 Reel Tweed Heads 0449 903 366 Discovery Fishing Charters Gold Coast 0427 026 519 Fish The Deep Charters 0416 224 412 Paradise Fishing Charters 0403 531 428 Gold Coast Fishing Charters 0411 605 090 Hooker 1 Charters Gold Coast (07) 5528 6469 Sea Probe Fishing Charters 0400 312 330 Coastal Sports Fishing Charters Gold Coast 0412 691 929 Gone Fishing Charters Gold Coast (07) 5529 7833
BRISBANE Frenzy Charters Brisbane (07) 3209 4576 Big Cat Charters and Tom Cat Charters 0433 430 248 Moreton Island Fishing Charters 0413 128 056 Brisbane Fishing Charters 0427 026 510 Bucket List Fishing Charters 0428 368 316 John Gooding Outlaw Charters 0418 738 750
SUNSHINE COAST Keely Rose Deep Sea Fishing Charters 0407 146 151 Odyssey Charters Deep Sea Fishing (07) 5478 1109 Rainbow Beach Fishing Charters 0439 775 070 Smithy’s Fishing Charters Sunshine Coast 0407 574 868 Top Catch Charters Sunshine Coast 0429 013 012 Fish n Crab Charters Mooloolaba 0412 155 814 Offshore Reef and Game Fishing 0413 485 402 Sunshine Coast Fishing Charters (07) 5500 0671 Fishing Offshore Noosa 0418 889 956 Noosa Fishing Charters (07) 5665 8170 Hervey Bay Fishing Charters (07) 4125 3958 Incredible Charters 1300 655 818
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Coral Coast Game Fishing 0447 347 437 Norval Reef Charters 1800 771 234 Iluka Fishing Charters Gladstone 0414 940 911 Kanimbla Charters Gladstone1800 677 202
TROPICAL NORTH QUEENSLAND Eclipse FNQ Weipa Charters 0488 058 668 Fish’s Fly & Sportsfishing Weipa (07) 4069 9957 Action Charters Mackay 0417 452 346 Fishing Charters Townsville 0403 386 722 JC’s Fishing Charters 0438 753 382 Fairdinkum Fishing Charters Townsville (07) 4751 5324
Wooli Fishing Charter (02) 6649 7100
Cairns Reef Charter Services 1800 119 044
Evans Head Deep Sea Fishing Charters 0428 828 835 Reel Time Fishing Charters Yamba 0428 231 962
Cairns Charter Boat 0427 533 081 Cairns Fishing Charters 0427 400 027
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Advertisers wanting to be involved in this directory can call (07) 3387 0834 or email nkelly@fishingmonthly.com.au MARCH 2018
101
ADVERTORIAL
Be a mate,
and check your bait
Using the right bait helps stop the spread of disease. To ensure the ongoing health of Queensland’s extraordinary marine habitat and to protect local industries, Biosecurity Queensland is urging fishers to ‘Be a mate, and check your bait’. It is really important that fishers only use Australian wild-caught prawns from a quality bait supplier or catch their own bait. Imported prawns could potentially introduce serious diseases into Australian waterways and as we have seen with white spot disease, these diseases can have devastating consequences. It is not yet known how the white spot virus was introduced into Queensland, however
a possible pathway for disease to enter our waterways is through imported prawns, purchased from the supermarket and used as bait. If you are planning to use prawns, marine worms or yabbies as bait, catch your own or make sure your bait is Australian wild-caught from a quality bait supplier as using imported raw prawns as bait may introduce serious diseases into our natural waterways. Also, make sure you properly dispose of unwanted and uncooked bait, seafood and prawn waste in the bin and not into waterways. Lastly, it is illegal to move raw prawns, worms and yabbies out of the white spot disease restricted area
in South East Queensland. Catching fresh bait is a great way to improve your chances of catching fish and can be a fun activity for the whole family. The fresher the bait the more appealing it is to fish. Have a look at some tips for catching your own bait at daf.qld.gov.au/ checkyourbait. If you buy or catch prawns or crustaceans that you think may have white spot disease report it immediately by contacting Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23 or via the online reporting form at daf.qld.gov.au/ wsd – you can also find out more information about white spot here and view a map of the movement restricted area. – DAF
for • Sign up updates! • New products • Reviews • Videos
ch Is too mu t tackle no ugh? o n e y l r a ne s on the aily update
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MARCH 2018
boats & kayaks
In the skipper’s seat 106 SUP Basics Inside story...
Aquayak Kayaks is a wholly Australianowned company committed to producing high quality, low cost sit-on-top kayaks. They only sell kayaks they make themselves in Melbourne, allowing the buyer to buy direct from the manafacturer and save.
Made for...
Aquayak Kayaks are lightweight, simple and hassle-free, and are easily transported on even the smallest car, making them ideal for camping and fishing trips. They have a unique, low-drag underwater shape for optimum speed without a complicated rudder.
This month...
Bob Thornton reviews the AQUA II Tandem kayak on the beautiful Hinze Dam. Check it out on page 104!
Justin Willmer has a go at fishing from a stand up paddleboard, and weighs up the pros and cons.
110 To CC or not CC
Wayne Kampe looks at what makes a good centre console boat, and what doesn’t.
112 Sea Jay 460 Vision Centre Console Editor Steve Morgan takes this Sea Jay rig for a run, powered by a Yamaha F75hp.
114 Quintrex 350 Outback Explorer
Wayne Kampe climbs into this little battler with a 15hp Evinrude on the transom.
Aquayak AQUA II – twice the fun, half the hassle - SC
TENT -
RE ONLINE MO
T
Wayne and the author had no trouble getting right up the back of some of the arms in search of saratoga. we could really test out its fishing ability! FIRST IMPRESSIONS Unloading the yak from the 4WD and walking 100 or so metres to the water, I was surprised at just how light this two-person craft was. At 32kg, it’s not too heavy to 104
MARCH 2018
As for storage, there are two small hatches, one for each seat. There’s space enough for keys, a phone, spare trace, clippers and other small bits of kit that you’d want to keep dry. Admittedly, there wasn’t a lot of storage space available, however
at all as we did some passes for the camera. When the paddles came out of the water, the AQUA II was able to glide gracefully forward without veering to one side, eliminating the need for any complicated rudder systems. The deep moulded seats made
for a very stable ride, and the standard comfort seats that the AQUA II comes with didn’t bring about any dramas for my weathered back, and I didn’t hear any complaint from up front either! Slinking through Hinze’s drowned timber with the 3.8m AQUA II was all too easy, and the advantage of a two-person kayak is that one person can hold the kayak in position while the other really works an area over. This is exactly what we ended up doing, as there was a stiff breeze blowing across the dam, which would have made fishing out of a single-person craft difficult. Our short day on the water at Hinze proved fruitless on the fishing front, however our photographer for the day Peter Jung, who was also in an Aquayak kayak, managed to sneak off and nail a decent saratoga! One slight flaw I did find was that if you’re fishing out of the rear seat, it’s difficult to put your rod in your lap while you paddle along to the next likely spot, which anglers tend to do in a single-person kayak. When sitting up front, this isn’t an issue, however the front seat prevents the rear angler from being able to put his or her rod down, as sticking it out to the side would inhibit your own paddling. I eventually worked out that the easiest thing to do was point the rod backwards and put the rod butt in my lap under the paddle – a small price to pay
DE FOR EX
both of us had no trouble with a tackle box each and a few hand tools, and that’s about all I would tend to take kayaking anyway. You can opt to have large front and rear storage hatches fitted on the AQUA II. ON THE WATER Getting in ended up being very easy – it certainly is nice to have someone there to hold the kayak steady when you get in, as Kampey found out! What struck me immediately was how easily this kayak manoeuvred, and tight corners were no trouble
CO
It’s been a while since I’ve fished out of a kayak, despite owning one! So I guess there was a reason myself and Wayne ‘Kampey’ Kampe, who has never fished out of a kayak, were chosen to test out the AQUA II from Aquayak. We decided to drop the AQUA II into the heavilytimbered Hinze Dam in South East Queensland, opting for an early start so
lift on and off by yourself, however being a tandem craft, its assumed you’ll have someone else there with you to help. When loading my gear into the AQUA, I noticed that the vertical rod holders at the rear actually angled inward, as opposed to sticking outwards like with other kayaks. I actually came to really appreciate this small but clever little design, as it serves to protect any rod tips at the rear, and this is a big plus in a timbered graveyard like Hinze!
R
Bob Thornton
Q
RA
CON
AN THE
BRISBANE
SPECIFICATIONS Length................................................................3.8m Width..................................................................0.9m Weight................................................................32kg Capacity..............................................................240 Persons...................................................................2 for extremely comfortable kayak fishing. OUTRIGGER KIT Aquayak’s range features a device that is fantastic for anyone who wants to make this incredibly stable craft virtually untippable. This would be very handy if lugging lots of equipment while camping and fishing, kayaking in rough water and also if you’re not the most experienced kayaker. Once the Outrigger Kit was fitted to the AQUA II, I decided to try standing and fishing, and this was all too easy, even with my fairly ordinary equilibrium. I found that standing and fishing while a seated user paddles you around is as good as fishing from any boat with an electric motor! You just need to find someone who will do that for you… Attaching the kit takes about five minutes, and I’m told you can fit it to any kayak, not just those in the Aquayak range! Despite the fact that they protrude outward, they didn’t seem to affect the kayak’s performance. I did bump them a few times with my paddle on the stroke while sitting in the back, but this is probably more a reflection of my paddling ability, and a bit
of practise would probably fix this problem. FANTASTIC PACKAGE All up, I see this as a fantastic package for a few reasons. Firstly, it’s cheaper than buying two good quality fishing kayaks, and is perfect for regular fishing partners. It would also be easy enough to fish out of alone should your partner be unavailable that day. Secondly, with the Outrigger Kit, it becomes user-friendly to even the most novice kayakers, and provides comfort to more skilled users if traveling in rough water or with a heavy load. Thirdly, it can be kitted how you please, with Aquayak’s huge range of optional accessories, which include seats, rod holders, extra hatches and more. All up, the standard AQUA II package, which includes two seats, two paddles, two 12L dry bags, and a handful of extras, is $1050. The Outrigger Kit, which is sold separately, is a modest $245, and believe me, these things will last a very long time. For more information on this kayak, and the other kayaks and accessories in the range, visit www. aquayak.com.
Jumping aboard to AQUA II, the author was impressed by the inward facing rod holders at the rear.
The AQUA II with the Outrigger Kit fitted and someone to paddle you around is as good as fishing out of any electric bass boat.
The Railblaza rodholders that come with the package can be mounted and unmounted in a matter of seconds.
The comfort seats that come standard with the package didn’t cause any dramas for the rickety backs of Kampey or the author on the day.
With everything fitted, including the Outrigger Kit, the AQUA II looked like a serious fishing machine.
The deep moulded seats made the kayak extremely stable for two users.
The small storage hatches that come with the package provide enough room for phones, keys, small tools and the like.
With two people paddling the relatively light 32kg hydrodynamic frame, it’s possible to get this kayak up to a fair clip. MARCH 2018
105
An introduction to SUP fishing BRISBANE
Justin Willmer Find me on Facebook at Yaks On
The first time I saw someone gliding along on a SUP (stand up paddleboard) I thought that would be a cool vessel to fish from. After fishing from kayaks for almost 30 years, I have been keen to try my luck fishing from any craft that I could get my hands on, from blow up boats and kayaks, to drift boats and float tubes, some with more success than others. After threatening to buy a SUP to fish from for years, with varied reactions from family and friends, I managed to get my hands on a loaner from Kayak & SUP on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. So here it is, my first SUP fishing adventure, a few things I learnt along the way and also some pointers I was given from more experienced SUP users. Firstly, there are a wide range of SUPs available, from smaller boards designed for SUP surfing, through to more universal boards that suit a variety of applications and right up to larger purpose-built SUP fishing boards. It’s worth doing some research, checking out what’s out there and visiting a store like Kayak & SUP, that specialises in the sport and have staff on hand who have firsthand knowledge and experience to share with you. The board I
I’m lucky enough to have Ben, an experienced SUP surfer and racer, who has even built his own timber SUP, living just up the road and I had picked his brain on a couple of occasions before my maiden voyage. I extended the paddle to a couple of inches above my head height as suggested, and I committed to getting onto the board. Ben believed people often had trouble getting onto the board and standing up because they approached it too timidly, rather than moving into knee deep water, holding the rails (sides) in each hand firmly and committing to getting onto the board and into position in one motion. He
fitted out, featuring tie down points where I strapped an icebox down as a seat and for storage, along with a tie down point for attaching a paddle leash, tie down point for a rod leash, bungee cord on the back for storing the trolley, bungee on the front where the paddle and a fishing ruler could be stowed, and finally a stash pod where you can store your keys, that I opted to leave the lid off to keep a 600ml water bottle handy. One thing I learnt when on the water is that everything needs to be within easy reach, and I kept my landing net tucked into one tie down strap on the icebox and my Boomerand Tool retractable line snips
Fleeing prawns was a giveaway that the bream were in the area.
while keeping your body on the centre line of the SUP, you minimise any chance of becoming unstable. Unfortunately the day that I had available was wet and windy, so I opted to travel about 500m to a flat that I often fish, so that if I fell off I would only be in 1-1.5m of water. I moved into knee deep water, boarded the SUP and sat on the icebox for my paddle across wind to the flat, gaining a feel for the board in choppier conditions. Upon reaching the flat I stood up to fish, was hit by
This grunter that ate a ZMan 2.5” Slim SwimZ along with a few others made the day all the more enjoyable.
SUPs are a stable and simple option, especially for smooth water fishing. a scud of wind and began to drift across the flat at a hundred miles an hour with the wind and big tide, while waves grabbed at the tail and side rails in an attempt to destabilise the board and dislodge me. It was at this point I realised that I was stupid and had made a bad decision, taking
on conditions that were beyond my skill level… know the limits of your craft and more importantly your own limits! I decided to abandon the exposed flat and head for calmer waters in the mouth of a creek, where mangroves offered sheltered waters and the chance of a
fish. Pointing the SUP at a 45° angle to the wind and toward the mangrove edges that I wanted to fish, I soon realised I was out of my depth and decided SUP fishing was not for me. I then took a deep breath and remembered what Ben had told me about paddling. Don’t just frantically drag
The author en route to the water, SUP in tow. was paddling for my first mission was designed with fishing in mind and at 12’ long and 32” wide, offered excellent stability for my 90kg frame. I strapped the board onto the C-Tug Trolley and headed for the water! 106
MARCH 2018
suggested taking the board to the water without any rods, icebox and other kit, so that I could get on and fall off a few times, get a feel for the board and learn to fall clear of the board should I come unstuck. The board was well
attached to the tie down strap on the other side. I had additional water in the icebox, along with a dry bag containing basic tackle and my scent was stowed in the recessed centre carry handle between my feet. If you can reach everything
The trolley was easily secured with the rear bungee cord.
the paddle past the SUP, stand firm but relaxed, you will burn a lot of energy if you feel like you are hanging on by your toe nails. Reach forward, sink the full blade of the paddle into the water and then push forward with the top hand and pull back with the bottom hand, pulling yourself toward the paddle. It took me a long time to reach the mangroves, maybe even an hour, but by the time I reached the mangroves I was confident in my paddle stroke and was actually really enjoying the experience. It hadn’t taken long to realise that SUPs are perfectly suited to calm waters and low winds. In
BOATS FOR SALE on
STRATOS DC 287 Location: VIC
SUPs are lightweight and simple to transport and launch.
Top: Keeping the deck area clear and simple is advisable. Bottom: The fish started coming aboard once the author hit calmer waters. these conditions the SUP is stable and fun, with the advantages of an elevated viewing position while fishing, a very low profile with minimal shadow and excellent stealth, along with the ability to navigate extremely shallow water. I will add a rod holder to my icebox as on this occasion, I had my rod laying on the deck in front of me and although it stayed dry, it wasn’t ideal. Mixing it up between stand up and sit down fishing, I worked soft plastics along the mangrove edges, pick pocketed the breaks in the mangroves and was soon rewarded with a solid take and a bent rod. As with kayak fishing, once a fish is hooked, ensure that you point the tip of your rod to the tip of the SUP. This will ensure
you maintain your stability, rather than being leveraged sideways on the board. With plenty of recent rain and big tides, I wasn’t sure that I would even find a fish, so I enjoyed the fight of a reasonable size grunter and took in the whole experience of catching fish from the SUP. A few dodgy selfies, having not had the opportunity to attach any cameras at this point, and the fish was released. Another two grunter quickly followed and I was all smiles, loving the freedom and simplicity of the SUP. As the tide began dropping out of the mangroves, I kept an eye out for signs of bream feeding and soon saw prawns flicking and fleeing across the surface. Casting to the disturbance I was again rewarded with a solid take and I soon had a bream on the deck. This was followed by another shower of prawns and another bream, before my stomach was telling me it was time to head in for a late lunch. I hugged the sheltered shoreline on my return to the boat ramp
and just tried to absorb the whole experience. My paddle stroke had become much more confident and efficient, my toe nails were no longer clinging to the board and I felt sure and stable, even with the occasional wind gust or waves. This adventure had reinforced something that I often tell others, which is know the limits of your vessel and more importantly, know your own limits. The two halves of my session were polar opposites, from the stress and uneasy feeling of the exposed flat and the long paddle to sheltered water, to the sense of freedom and simplicity of fishing the calmer waters and landing some fish. In the right conditions the SUP is an excellent fishing vessel and a vessel that can also be used for recreation and fitness. I look forward to putting it through its paces over a few more sessions and sharing the results in a future issue of the mag. In the meantime I need to start saving for my own fishing SUP! See you on the water.
$22,995 SKEETER ZX190 Location: NSW
$45,000 CHAMPION 188 Location: QLD
$34,000 SKEETER SX 180 Location: NSW
$34,000 STRATOS 294 XL Location: NSW
$50,000 The freedom and simplicity of a SUP makes it an attractive option.
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WHAT’S NEW BOATING SUZUKI DF325A
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The innovative new DF325A 4-stroke outboard from Suzuki has been designed to be robust, easy to use and versatile, making it the ideal outboard for large boats. Sharing the same revolutionary technologies as the recently-launched flagship DF350A, including contra-rotating propellers, dual louver system and dual injectors, Suzuki has stepped it up with the new model by engineering it to run on 91 RON fuel – a world first and game changer for high performance outboards over 300hp. Suzuki’s latest outboard features its proven 4.4L displacement block which gives tremendous torque and makes it the largest displacement V6 on the market today. Combined with a compression ratio of 10.5:1, the DF325A also delivers impressive fuel economy and reliability. The first deliveries are expected in March. www.suzukimarine.com.au
RAYMARINE VIDEO LIBRARY
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Raymarine has launched a full library of Lighthouse 3 ‘Tips and Tricks’ videos that demonstrate many of the operating system’s unique features. In these educational videos, Raymarine Global Product Manager, Mark Garland, and Marketing Manager, Jim McGowan, walk boaters and anglers through numerous topics, including: C-Map and Navionics advanced features; Raymarine Autopilot integration parts one and two; auto route to here functionality; one-touch vessel details; and wireless display options. Taken as a whole, this new video library demonstrates how Lighthouse 3 system software allows boaters and anglers to take command of their entire navigational and fishfinding experience. Combined with the quadcore processor found in both Axiom and Axiom Pro units, Lighthouse 3 allows anglers to adjust technologies, data displays, and other critical information in an easy, fast, and fluid way. Raymarine plans to keep building the ‘Tips and Tricks’ video library (www.youtube.com/ user/RaymarineInc) in 2018. Price: from SRP $1199 www.raymarine.com.au
MERCURY FOURSTROKE SALE
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Mercury is offering great deals on their popular 40-90hp FourStrokes. Until 26 March 2018, you can package your boat with one of these engines and save $1130*, and Mercury will provide a free SmartCraft SC1000 tacho rigging kit with every 4090hp FourStroke purchased. Even better, Mercury Finance is available which means you can be enjoying a brand new Mercury FourStroke from just $34 a week. Mercury FourStroke outboards are renowned for being lighter, stronger, and more reliable yet still able to produce superior power and performance. Features include reliable starting, fantastic fuel efficiency, smooth operation, electronic fuel injection (on all 4090hp models), tougher components, a total commitment to corrosion protection and the availability of SmartCraft digital monitoring. *This offer is subject to engine availability, and is not to be used in conjunction with any other offer or rebates. www.mercurymarine.com.au 108
MARCH 2018
PRODUCT GUIDE
SCOTTY BALL MOUNTING SYSTEM 4 The Scotty Ball Mounting System provides a mounting platform for a variety of accessories. The ball joint enables a smooth, full range of motion, and the corrosion-proof construction provides a long service life in both fresh and salt water. The 150 model’s universal mounting plate provides a platform for a variety of accessories. The 150 stands 6 3/4” tall, and the base mount measures 2 1/4” x 2 1/4”. The 151 model with Gear-Head and lowprofile track provides a mounting receptacle for a variety of Scotty post-mount accessories. The Gear-Head drop-and-lock system lets you secure and re-position post-mount accessories with just a twist, and the no. 440 low-profile track allows for quick and easy setup. The track measures 1 3/4” wide x 3/8” tall (1” usable track), and the mount stands 9” tall. The 152 with Gear-Head adapter, post and combination side/deck mount also features the Gear-Head drop and lock system. The 152 comes with a no. 241 combination side/deck mount, and the 152 base mount measures 4” x 2” x 2”, and the mount stands 10 3/4” tall. www.jmgillies.com.au
WILSON LIQUID LANOLIN
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Wilson Marine and Leisure Liquid Lanolin cleans, lubricates, rejuvenates and extends the life of metals, vinyls, plastic, leather, fibreglass and powder coated surfaces. It is the ideal choice for protecting marine hardware, cabling, outboard engines and fishing gear from the harmful effects of corrosion. Lanolin is an environmentally friendly, nonconductive, salt and acid resistant product that protects, rejuvenates and lubricates many different materials. The lanolin lubricates and protects moving parts on tools, reels, zippers and chains, while being robust enough to resist high pressure cleaning. Lanolin can also be used to penetrate and free up rusted equipment, effectively working as an anti-seize agent in the field. Application is via a directional nozzle that allows the lanolin to be placed exactly where it is needed, including tight and hard-to-reach places that ordinary spray nozzles cannot reach. www.wilsonfishing.com
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NEW OCEAN CRAFT 6 CRUISERS The Ocean Craft Cruiser range has been expanded with a model that features an aircraft carrier square-nosed bow for maximum deck space. Other Cruiser models are the Cruiser Extreme Party BBQ Boat, and the Dune Buggy Transporter. All Ocean Craft Cruisers feature an above waterline self-draining deck; full-length heavyduty, fold-down bimini top; hatch to below deck; airtight buoyancy section under deck; and ocean going, wave-punching hull. Below deck options include a storm refuge ‘V’ berth option; underfloor livebait tank, kill tank and underfloor fuel tank fit-out; and a second weatherproof hatch to below deck. Ocean Crafts can be optionally fitted with an onboard porta-potty toilet, fitted kitchen, worktop, fridge, dual burner cooker and basin stereo with hi-fi 12V power points. The Ocean Craft 5.2m Cruiser is priced from $38,283, and the 6m model is priced from $44,995. www.oceancraft.com.au
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MARCH 2018
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Is a centre console the right one for you? BRISBANE
Wayne Kampe wkff@aapt.net.au
While it has been around for many years, the centre console (CC) seems to be gaining popularity in a manner that suggests these rigs have been discovered for what they are – great fishing boats for serious anglers. Their rise in popularity has seen most established manufacturers both here and abroad jumping on the bandwagon and offering a range of well-equipped and slickly performing rigs to tempt the buyer. The 64,000 dollar question is, of course, why the surge in popularity? My view is that it comes down to a happy mix of practicality, user-friendliness, ease of angler mobility within the craft and dollar savings in many cases. A quick glance at some alternative styles of fishing rigs might lead to a better understanding of the situation. THE OPTIONS Let’s take the standard open craft as a starting point. Every boat buyer wants at least a couple of things ticked in the must-
The US-made Sea Fox CC is an imported rig with a host of really handy features for the keen angler. is popular – particularly with family fishing teams – although fishing room is curtailed to an area aft of the forward seating at the helm/ dash area. The hull does need to be specifically designed to carry weight in close proximity to the point of water entry, and not all hulls react kindly to this setup and some can throw up a fair amount of spray as a punishment. Taking the forward helm concept further will see both the half cabin and cuddy cab rig in contention for fishing rig honours. There’s no
Tru-Line craft are locally made; the 6.2 centre console offers great storage options along with a top shelf ride. have box from the outset. The first must-have is work room; there needs to be as much work room as possible. Clutter and impairment to easy movement within the boat are definitely out. That’s a given! The next must-have is ease of helming; while tiller steer rigs undeniably offer the maximum work area there are limits to endurance levels when it comes to steering a tiller rig setup with more than, say, a 60hp outboard, and that’s with hydraulic steering to tame the torque! Once the horse power goes up the ease of steering for longer journeys goes right out the window, so it’s onto another method of keeping her on course. Seating up front with both the wheel and forward controls behind a windscreen describes the typical runabout configuration. Further seating aft usually means this style of craft 110
MARCH 2018
question that these sorts of craft offer the ultimate ease of helming; moreover there’s usually ample shelter thanks to the cabin, whether it’s a cuddy or a larger offering. Cabin craft offer tremendous storage of course and fishing gear, personal items, tucker or a passenger wanting a rest can all be stashed in the haven up front. In short, it’s a great place to get away from nasty conditions but, as with all boats and boating situations, there are compromises to accept and in this case it takes the form of a limited fishing room. It’s common to see a cuddy cab taking up one third or more of a craft’s interior, leaving the area astern as the main work area. True, some larger cabin craft offer walkaround facilities, so an angler or two can fish up front, but in practice most will fish from the cockpit where the bait board, catch
storage facilities and other handy features are located and only go up front to tend the ground tackle. The dollar aspect is certainly applicable here as well; a cabin, bunks and associated fit-out equipment all involve more expenditure. MUST-HAVES Unsurprisingly, the modern Centre Console rig combines both must-haves and one I have not touched on. Along with plenty of work room and excellent ease of helming, there’s a bonus in the eye candy and pride of ownership department. The truth is that along with versatility and practicality, centre console rigs invariably look good and even sitting on a trailer they seem to have a certain something that catches the eye. It comes down to the layout, of course. It’s rare to find a centre console without sweeping lines. Centre console rigs are usually derived from a manufacturer’s best riding hulls, because in these entirely open boats a good ride is the start and finish of everything. Consequently it’s the norm to expect the hull to ride as good as it looks. This means that the dedicated angler that wants a sweet combination of work room and efficiency will find a centre console very hard to beat. As entirely open craft with their forward controls, wheel and instruments
set up amidships, they’re virtually all work room for those enjoying time aboard. When a big bite is on, or a hard-pulling fish is really making an angler work, the advantage of being able to walk entirely around the
445 Pacific Sea up to Sea Jay’s massive all plate 6.8m Preda King with its list of on-board features as long as your left arm. As a top seller we see the all plate Preda King listed from 5.1-6.8m in length with each model offering inclusions such as bait tank plumbing, a 150L ice box with seat cushion, self draining deck, dual batteries, and windscreens on consoles with storage compartments. Yet we see many of these same features in models from makers such as Aqua Master, Formosa, Kapten, Sea Craft, Offshore Marine Master, Quintrex, Stessco, Stacer, Clark and Stabicraft. We are not talking about one or two models from each maker, either; choice is a big factor for buyers. While alloy centre consoles have been around for many years it’s only in the last decade that the
Options include an electric anchor winch! Moving right up to the pointy end of the pile is the imported Pursuit C310 – a 9.5m job. As the big kahuna of centre consoles, she has the works. If a feature is desirable within a boat then this one features it. Climate control? Sure! A fine mist that can be activated via overhead cockpit plumbing to keep things cool on a hot day? Of course. The livewell alone is almost 200L capacity – you will need a small hand net to locate a livey, while fuel capacity is almost one thousand litres. The engines can be up to 600hp – twin rigs preferred. These are awesome stats but then this is a 31footer able to seriously access blue water areas – a run to the shelf perhaps – thanks to a brilliant deep Vee design and that generous fuel capacity.
Formosa’s alloy Sea Rod offers the convenience of a folding console for ease of storage at home. entire gunwale, bow and transom area of the craft can’t be underestimated. ALLOY AND GLASS RIGS AVAILABLE Looking around the boat yards it seems that every alloy and glass manufacturer of note has centre consoles in their brochures. Looking at a broad spectrum of alloy makers it’s obvious that these rigs come in many sizes, starting from Horizon’s tidy
Check out the classy dash, speakers overhead in the T top framework, forward rod holders, gunwale padding, front seat with hand rail, and those classy seats for skipper and mate!
on-board features have really given these craft the kudos they deserve. Consider the Mach 5 from Offshore Master Marine; these plate rigs are designed as no frills entry craft, yet there’s a clear sided live well, good-sized side pockets, a shelf in the screen equipped console, an ice chest under the helm seat, a forward seat on the raised cast deck and it’s all topped with a very good ride as well. This in an entry-level rig! GLASS CRAFT Fibreglass centre console craft are equally well represented. Haines Hunter have opened the innings and scored very well at the bottom end of the size scale with their diminutive 4.0 Prowler; this tidy little centre console craft punches well above it’s weight in many respects, as there’s a decent amount of Vee in the hull while plenty of beam and considerable freeboard make this small centre console suited to a vast array of fishing situations.
On the home front fibreglass manufacturers turning out centre consoles are quite wide spread. Up north a couple of very renowned companies are based at Cairns: Hooker – their 6.7 Pro Fisherman is a favourite – and Cyclone have a very strong following. I recall reviewing the latter company’s 680 CC a few years ago and reckoned it was one cyclone I’d sure love to have in my backyard! Moving south there’s specialist centre console maker Gale Force at Hervey Bay, while continuing down the seaboard we see the likes of Bonito, Evolution, Haines Signature, Jackaroo, Pioneer, Seacraft, Evolution Truline and Tournament in a line up, which is by no means complete. As there are quite a few models within virtually every fibreglass manufacturer’s catalogues, features that were once confined to high-end, bigger glass rigs will now surprise potential buyers of middleof-the-range glass craft.
DON’T OVERLOOK THE RIGHT SIZED IMPORTS With our Aussie dollar riding reasonably high, easily towed imports must come into the equation as
fishability and easy style of centre console rigs. Anglers love them, divers love them and family groups also have a lot of boating and fishing fun with their CCs. In the
The Kaptan 610CC combines plenty of fishing room with a very high standard of ride. well. I’ve touched on the magnificent Pursuit 310, so let’s look at Grady White, which is a popular US manufacturer enjoying an enviable reputation for quality workmanship and very well turned-out fishing boats. A rig that has proven very popular with offshore anglers in my backyard, the Gold Coast, is their 180CC – a well appointed 5.44m rig with enough features, sea keeping ability and positive handling traits to give it a definite offshore attitude. IS A CENTRE CONSOLE FOR YOU? There’s little argument about the sheer practicality,
last decade a lot of advances have been made in making them more practical for storage of valuable rods and other tackle bits and pieces. A lot of these craft now come with elevated front cast decks to make the most of the available work room and under those decks there’s usually handy dry storage area. Storage shelves within the console are always put to good use and so far as seating is concerned the selection of a padded ice box seat for skipper and mate – offered by quite a few manufacturers – certainly makes sense. Self-draining decks seem to be prominently featured as
well and are a certain draw card. Fishing’s fun but when it’s over it’s so good to be able to hose the rig out at home and put it away. As mentioned, manufacturers go to great trouble to only set up their best performing hulls as CCs; nobody wants to spend time in a wet or badly riding boat, so a lot of careful thought usually goes into the design and layout of any centre console rig. In truth I have not driven a centre console rig that disappointed me with ride or handling. IS THERE A DOWNSIDE? In common with other trailer boats there are downsides to a centre
The lads are obviously having some fun around the Jumpinpin Bar in their Bonito centre console rig. console’s use and ultimate capability. Truth be told the centre console will always be an open boat, which means that the weather forecast and sea conditions are going to play a huge part in a decision to launch, as well as the
area to be fished. With the elements dominating a day on the water in any boat there’s no way a centre console rig can be exempt from hard times away from home. In big sea conditions or rain it’s very hard to beat the
The Grady White CC comes with excellent offshore capability and is the right size for easy towing.
bulwark of a big fat cuddy cab extending back from the bow for shelter and comfort, which is why so many dedicated offshore anglers stick with their cabin craft. That said, there are a lot of anglers in our midst who don’t wish to commit to these sorts of rigs for their fishing and are more than content to pick their day and the area they intend to fish and enjoy the huge advantages that a centre console rig offers, especially if there is a windscreen to sneak in behind when things are gnarly. On a personal note I have owned four centre consoles (from 4.5-5.5m) over the last decade and a half and have caught everything from marlin to whiting in the salt water with bass and barra in the fresh. Versatile is how I’d describe the centre console.
DROP IN TO YOUR LOCAL QUINTREX DEALER! BUNDABERG
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142 Enterprise St, Bundaberg PHONE 07 4152 6744
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55 Islander Road, Pialba PHONE 07 4128 9944
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32 Machinery Drive, Tweed Heads
wide chine - it’s a clever design that means more And that’s a good thing! *Size and internal features comparison made with 2016gotta Quintrexbe models.
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*Size and features comparison made with 2016 Quintrex models.
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46 Brisbane Road, Labrador
for storage, new consoles, casting platforms, bunks, Let’s face it, if you’ve got more room to cast, space for storage, new consoles, casting platforms, bunks, Let’s face it, if you’ve got more room to cast, space upholstery and transoms (depending on the model). you’ve got a better chance to catch fish. upholstery and (depending ontopsides the model). you’ve got a better chance to catch fish. We’ve alsotransoms added thicker and higher and raised Our revolutionary Apex Hull gives you more of everything We’ve also added thicker and higher topsides and raised the deck, for more freeboard. Our revolutionary Apex gives youThe more of everything for a great dayHull on the water. radical, variable flared the deck, Youfor getmore morefreeboard. room to cast and for a greatbottom day onsheet the water. radical, extendsThe to the bow variable gunnel asflared does the You get more room to cast and a better chance to catch a bagful. bottom sheet the bow gunnel as does wide extends chine - it’sto a clever design that means morethe internal And that’s gotta a good thing! a better chance to be catch a bagful.
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11/07/2017 9:54 AM
11/07/2017 9:54 AM
MARCH 2018
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Sea Jay’s 460 Vision CC with Yamaha F75 - SC
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it. Like the rest of the boats in the Sea Jay range, the warranty is effectively doubled with the purchase of the factory-matched trailer. It’s good value in our eyes. The single axle setup is achievable with a half-ton hull weight and allows you
PERFORMANCE • Top speed 63.5km/h at 5900 rpm • Best economy at 4000rpm of 3.3km/L
Main: It was great to be able to take the 460 Vision out for a serious test in some rough water. Above: Powered by the new Yamaha F75 (which is 1.8L, compared with the 1L existing F70), the rig delivered 3.3km/L at 4000rpm. With a massive 2.3m beam, this 4.6m long boat holds a console that would be at home in a hull much longer. Well designed, with a grab bar all the way around
SPECIFICATIONS Length overall ......................................... 4.74m Bottom .......................................................4mm Sides ..........................................................3mm Beam..........................................................2.3m Depth .......................................................1.24m Floor ribs ....................................................... 11 Capacity ....................................... Five persons Hull weight .............................................. 495kg Max hp ...........................................................75 Max motor weight................................... 175kg went over the setup and quickly deduced that this rig was for anglers who wanted the versatility to fish anywhere from a tidal river to offshore.
DE FOR EX
One of the most popular boat tests we’ve completed in Fishing Monthly recently was the simple and effective Sea Jay Ranger 460 – an unpainted, tiller steer open boat with the Samurai hull. That hull – powered by a 70hp tiller Yamaha – struck a chord with anglers Australia-wide. This iteration of the same hull is painted, has a plywood, carpeted floor and a giant console. Enter the Vision 460. And we finally got a nice, rough day to take the test boat for a spin – 15-20 knots from the southeast with a big tide is a pretty standard nasty-dayon-the-bay. Meeting Sea Jay’s Garry Fitzgerald at the ramp, we
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s.morgan@fishingmonthly.com.au
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Steve Morgan
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Same as most boats? Yep, and once you learn the limits of the hull, you’ll comfortably traverse water that’s too uncomfortable to fish in. High gunwales make this rig comfortable to fish in, especially from the cockpit.
FMG
the windscreen, there’s ample room for a mountain of big screen electronics and a dry storage shelf underneath. The front casting deck is elevated from the main
floor, but not so high that it’s unfishable in a bit of a sea. Underneath the floor is some gear storage and a compartment that’s ideal for the batteries for the bow mounted trolling motor. On the water, we had plenty of opportunity to see how this boat performed in a variety of conditions. In the lee of the wind and chop behind the headland, the Vision jumped up and onto the plane with the 1.8L 75hp Yamaha showing the benefit of its displacement. Around the corner where the waves and wind met current you needed to match the trim and speed of the boat to conditions. Get it right and the Vision lands gently, with the bow cutting the water. Try to traverse the chop too fast and you’ll
land the boat on the belly of the hull and wear the bang to match.
Wound out to 5900rpm, the Yamaha pushed the Vision along at 63.5km/h, but the most economical speed was at 4000rpm, there the Vision delivered 40km/h at a frugal 3.3km/L. Cradled on a Sea Jay aluminium I-beam framed trailer (manufactured by Dunbier), the Vision isn’t so heavy that you’ll need a specialised 4WD to tow
to manoeuvre the boat in tight garage situations. Overall, the 4.6m Vision would suit an angler that wants the best of all worlds, with a bent more towards bay and inshore fishing than estuary work. For more information, visit www.seajayboats.com. au or like Sea Jay’s Facebook page (Sea Jay Boats) for updated or new models.
With a 2.3m beam and 4.6m overall length, the Vision is definitely a wide boat with a big ol’ console. Spinning a 15” GP Alloy Yamaha prop it definitely jumps up and onto the plane.
With a steep entry up front flattening out to a 16° deadrise down the back, the 460 Vision’s Samurai hull addresses the balance between stability and ride.
The upswept shape of the Samurai hull has become a Sea Jay trademark.
Now that’s a big console – we loved the handrail the whole way around and the abundance of room to mount electronics.
You can have the best of both worlds up front. The traditional, roomy anchor locker and bowsprit can work with an offset mounting plate for a bow mounted trolling motor.
A plumbed livewell in the port corner transom is a typical, simple Sea Jay design.
The front casting deck is raised, but to an intermediate height. This provides a balance between height and balance in rougher conditions.
The practicality theme continues towards the transom with the fibreglass cooler doubling as a seat.
Even with a medium-height casting deck for’ard, there’s still a mountain of room to store gear underfloor – including trolling motor batteries.
Store your catch, your lunch or the food for a week away in here. The world’s your oyster with the Vision set up like this.
Cradled on a Dunbier-built, Sea Jay-branded aluminium I-beam trailer, the Sea Jay gets a twoyear rather than a one-year warranty – a solid reason to go with the factory-designed kit.
There’s some extra storage in the transom and the standard side-pockets are great for the incidental gear you’ll take for a day on the water. MARCH 2018
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Quintrex 350 Outback Explorer with 15hp Evinrude
BRISBANE
Wayne Kampe wkff@aapt.net.au
The Outback Explorer series is a brand new range of boats from Quintrex, complementing the already well received Explorer range of punts. The emphasis on the Outback models is for lighter weight, enhanced dimensions and, best of all, affordability. There are three models in the Outback range –350, 370 and 390 – and there are some extra options available for each rig to cater for individual requirements. The new Explorers offer a wider beam and an enhanced freeboard, so even though they’re only small boats they provide a lot of bang for your buck. EXPLORER 350 The little 350 model is the smallest of the three new Quintrex Outback Explorer tinnies. This baby of the Outback range weighs just
81kg, and it’s sure to be well received by people wanting a lightweight, highly portable boat for a multitude of uses. To start with, it would definitely be handy as an inexpensive tender for a larger rig. Likewise, travellers wanting a lightweight boat to put atop the vehicle or a home away from home on the draw bar of the car will also find the 350 worth a serious look. Other likely owners could well be from the first boat buying fraternity, or those wanting to downsize from a larger rig to something far more portable and less of a hassle to use. A RANGE OF OPTIONS The little 350 Outback Explorer is a 4-person craft with engine ratings up to 15hp. Standard features include two bench seats with flotation underneath, an anchor locker up front plus a small front deck, grab handles and a glove box/ drink holder. Standard, also, is a surprisingly good ride!
SPECIFICATIONS Length...........................................................3.58m Beam.............................................................1.53m Hull weight..................................................... 81kg Persons................................................................4 Engines..................................................up to 15hp Engine fitted..........................Evinrude 15 4-stroke Fuel Tote tank...................................................20L Towing................................... family sedan or SUV 114
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More on this later. Options for the 350 ranged from a bimini to a carpeted floor, side rails, fuel tank rack, vinyl wraps to add bling, and last but not least a transducer bracket. Although standard construction of the 350 Outback Explorer sees 160mm alloy used throughout, Quintrex also offer an upgrade from 160mm bottom material to 200mm for those boaters planning for some heavier duty work for their rig. EVINRUDE 15 4-STROKE Stepping into the 350 from a pontoon, I was surprised by the inherent stability of this small, puntstyle craft. I also liked the overall rigidity; the floor and sides were obviously well braced within the unit, and for a small boat the 350 had a surprisingly solid overall feel about it. Power on the transom came from a 15hp 2-cylinder Evinrude 4-stroke outboard, which at 52kg was within the 58kg weight range suited to the rig. With myself and a Quintrex rep aboard, we carried out test runs in the Coomera River, which was a perfect, sheltered environment for the little tinny. I found that the Explorer 350 had a surprising turn of speed. With a light hull weight of just 81kg, I expected the Evinrude 15
would make the craft hum along pretty well, but did more than hum – it fairly sang! Planing was between 11.3km/h and 11.8km/h, and 30km/h was an easy cruising speed. With the Evinrude’s hand throttle control wide open it reached 37.3km/h, which was very good performance from a small rig under such modest power. When it comes to boat design, it’s pretty easy to build something that can go fast in a straight line. What’s less easy to achieve is brilliant handling of a little craft like this one. With a well formed waterline entry section up front and a slight amount of vee astern, this 3.5m punt amazed me with its tenacity in the corners. This is one punt that would make it fun to whiz up a mangrove creek to check the pots before the tide gets too low. With the absolutely amazing way in which the 350 cornered under near full throttle (it generated some very serious G-forces in the process) I’d reckon there would be little chance of skidding out of a sharp turn and ending up in the mangroves. The ride was quite good thanks to the work Quintrex have done with the Explorer range in general. The new Explorer’s F-section bow, plus the hull’s clever design, ensured that we could press over wash from other craft
Main: The 350 Outback Explorer may be small, but you get a lot of bang for your buck.. Above: This shot of the Explorer travelling fast shows the excellent entry area of the punt-style hull. without having to reduce speed. This is pretty much ideal for any small alloy craft these days. SUMMING UP The new 350 Outback Explorer is definitely worth a look if you’re in the market for a highly portable but equally useful small boat. I liked the ride, the ease of handling plus the roomy layout within the Explorer’s hull. Rigidity of the craft plus a decent amount of freeboard were also much to my liking. With so many people wanting to explore the Top End’s fishing, it’s great to see that there is an ideal
craft for their requirements. The price of the rig as reviewed, ready to go onto the carry racks, would be around the $5490 mark as supplied by Surf Coast Marine on the Gold Coast. You can contact them on 07 5563 7733 or send them an email at info@ surfcoastmarine.com.au. • Quoted performance figures have been supplied by the writer in good faith. Performance of individual boat/motor/ trailer packages may differ due to variations in engine installations, propellers, hull configurations, options, hull loading and trailer specifications.
Hang onto your hat! This little boat does nearly 40km/h with a 15hp outboard on it.
This image displays the excellent side height of the 350 Outback Explorer.
Large boat owners would find the 350 Outback Explorer to be a great tender.
A shelf for the anchor, and seats with flotation underneath are just a couple of the features that make the Explorer such a handy craft. A drink holder and glove box are standard equipment in the little 3.5m Quintrex.
Modest beginnings in the Quintrex factory lead to a quality small craft on the water.
Maximum power is a useful thing in small boat, and the 350 Explorer handled the power very well. MARCH 2018
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