The Sunshine Coast and Fraser Coast River systems have seen a considerable amount of rain over the past few weeks.
As water temperatures have cooled a little with the fresh and the overcast conditions, fish species such as flathead, whiting, and trevally move into shallower water to feed on smaller crustaceans and scattering baitfish.
By resorting to a more finessed approach using smaller profiled soft plastic such as 2-3 inch paddle tails with a lighter weighted jig head will allow you to ambush fish.
This technique requires a light fluorocarbon leader ranging from 4-8lb depending on the water clarity, using a small 1000-2500 size spinning reel paired up with a 1-3kg rod.
This will allow you to cast these lightly weighted lures and cover more ground.
A slow hop, hop, pause retrieve is your best approach to imitate a fleeing baitfish or prawn which usually results in a reaction bite.
Fishing the deep holes around Tin Can with larger 4-6inch prawn and fish-profiled soft plastics has been good on species such as jewies, trevally, and mangrove jack who are waiting to ambush prawns and baitfish as they get swept past in the current.
Whiting anglers have reported an improvement in the amount of summer whiting around at the moment.
These tasty fish have been more prevalent in the low light periods or even at night.
Quality baits or worms, yabbies, peeled prawns and soldier crabs have been getting the job done.
It seems we have a sea of crab pot floats in most of the creeks at the moment.
There have been plenty of quality buck taken over the last couple of weeks with most anglers opting for the good old mullet as bait.
With the wind and swell dropping a little over the weekend offshore, anglers had the opportunity they were looking for to get out.
The outer reef off Double Island has certainly been the featured reef this week with highly desired reef fish such as snapper, sweetlip, Jewfish, and Red emperor on the chew with some good sized fish boated.
Again the tax man in the grey suit (sharks) have been a problem with plenty of anglers reporting fish taken only metres from the boat.
Pelagics are starting to come on with most bird activity just off the coast producing bonito and long tails along with spotted and smaller spanish.
Chardon’s have been Noosa’s hot spanish bite with most fish hitting slow trolled live and dead baits.
On the beaches, the dart have increased in size with pipis continuing to be the favourite bait.
Try casting your bait into the outer white water of the gutter, as this is where the larger fish are hiding.
The many beaches around Rainbow have been good for whiting.
Fish the run-in side of gutters as these are generating the better fish.
A great idea when surf fishing is to use bait keeper style hooks on a running sinker rig.
Don’t overdo the weight as a moving bait is more appealing than something pined to the bottom.
While fishing in our local estuaries may change, freshwater dams such as Lake MacDonald and Borumba start to fill and fish start moving into the shallows.
As water levels rise fish start moving shallow, eyeing out frogs and insects that may have to move locations due to the water rise.
This creates a perfect opportunity for anglers to throw top water lures.
Top water lures are generally thrown at sunset and sunrise, however when there is cloud cover, fish tend to go shallow and feed actively in 2-6ft of water.
This can be easily done by using Z-man hard legs frog with an unweighted weedless hook and slowly rolling it across shallow lily pads.
In the Mary, the water level is slowly starting to rise as we get more rain in the catchment areas.
There is heaps of activity out towards Curra and Miva with plenty of sooties and bass on offer.
Those in kayaks have had sessions where over 30 fish are caught.
For all the latest information log onto www.fishingnoosa.com.au for up-to-date bar and fishing reports, don’t forget to drop into Gympie’s Newest tackle store “The tackle Shop”, Tackle World Noosa, and Northshore Bait & Tackle in Marcoola for all the right equipment, bait and advice to get you catching.
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