That’s the end of another week and one step closer to summer. For many anglers now has been a great time to go away especially over the school holidays. Fraser Island, Baffle Creek, 1770 and of course the dams have all been popular, making now a great time to get away or plan a trip.
Offshore is still very much on the snapper with the inshore reefs from Noosa to Coolum producing decent table-sized fish with the occasional standout 70cm-plus model. For bait anglers, the humble pilchard on ganged hooks has been working well. Although not really needed for snapper, the ganged hooks give you protection from sharp teeth.
Mackerel are still about, as are tuna and, although in smaller numbers, they still come through in schools, making now a great time to have a heavy weight slug on a stand alone rod a great idea. Often found in deeper water, a heavy slug can be quickly dropped down and through the school. With a super fast retrieve, this will often result in an instant hookup, so use of quality leaders like FC Rock and even a small length of Mason single strand wire is a must. Cobia have also been on the prowl and are in good numbers along with smaller jewfish around the metre mark. Both of these fish will respond well to live baits as well as jigs and soft plastics. The new range of power bait plastics and the old faithful nemesis always get the job done. Pair these up with 40lb leaders and 3/4oz 6/0 jig heads and you are in with a chance.
Surf fishing has seen many new gutters formed over the last week. Early morning winds have given anglers offshore winds which allows for extra distance when casting. The water is super clear so drop lines down to as light as you can. Asari pearl blue mono is designed to blend in with the water and at 300 metres long you should land your catch easily. Bream, dart and whiting prevail in the smaller close gutters. Around the mouth of the river you will soon start to see flathead showing up. Baits of whole whitebait, pilchard and squid work very well for bigger fish.
Once you have fished the river mouth you can work your way upriver to the Dog Beach and the Sandbags. These areas provide some of the best structure in Noosa, so it is well worth fishing here. You will start to see mangrove jacks come out to play and these fish are super tough. Ask us for the best jack setup as once you catch one, you’ll be hooked! They are called red dogs for a reason! Trevally are a great catch and with plenty of GT to 50cm in the river, standard estuary gear in the 3-5kg range will provide you with lots of fun. The new range of Shimano Raiders has landed and has something for everyone.
Away from the river the freshwaters have been fishing well with some very fat bass taken from the edges. Both dams are dropping and Borumba is below 80 per cent for the first time in a long time so caution is strongly advised once beyond the ski zone. Stealth and patience is still the name of the game but the edges will be holding a lot of heat in the weed so small frogs like the ChaseBaits Bobbin Frog is a must try especially if we see any rain. The weedy points especially the big one in the main area would do well with a weedless rigged Keitech 2 inch easy shiner and the trees will fish well if you throw smaller jerkbaits like the new Rapala Ripstop in the suspending model. Don’t forget the Mary River from Gympie upriver is closed to all line fishing for the Mary River cod spawn.
Now for all the latest information log onto fishingnoosa.com.au for up to date bar and fishing reports, don’t forget to drop into Tackle World Noosa, Noosa Boating and Outdoors and Northshore Bait & Tackle in Marcoola for all the right equipment, bait and advice to get you catching. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and remember Tight Lines and Bent Spines!
