Coxy trying to out-stare a solid mangrove jack he caught this week. Cool camera work for a unique photo mate.

More Showers to Follow Recent Rain

Good falls of rain in and around Hervey Bay township mid-week were very timely and welcome. Local rain Wednesday was just the tip of a rain band that drenched catchments and coastlines to our south. 

Our ground is soaked once again, meaning significant falls in the immediate future could see substantial run-off. But for now, our local streams have had a renewed taste of fresh water without any real water level rises.

Widespread rainfall in our catchments, particularly the Mary’s, might see an inflow of dirty water for a while yet. Picture numerous small streams along the river course all contributing to the flow, versus isolated storms that only impact a small area of catchment. You will see why steady rain such as this week’s still has an impact on the river.

Local falls have poured a little fresh into the Burrum system, but Lenthall’s Dam is still yet to be over-topped. The lake is full though, so it won’t take much in the near future. Run-off here in town was brief but still abundant in some parts of town on Wednesday, so local creeks have had a boost to their ecosystems.

The Xmas school holidays kick off this weekend, so word of showers and winds next week won’t be very welcome. Suss out the latest weather reports and monitor them regularly, as they can so rarely be relied upon for accuracy more than a day in advance. The holiday kick-off coincides with the full moon this Sunday, so there will be plenty of run in the tide initially, and less day by day for the week thereafter.

You might have noticed that I had a rant last week about the frustrations of interpreting weather reports. A couple of folks made the effort to email me with their thoughts when I sought feedback regarding future weather predicting efforts. I thank those folks again for their comments, but at this stage, due to minimal overall response, I am inclined to discontinue my weekly fisho’s take on the weather and save time deciphering conflicting online weather site reports (and what’s left of my hair). Should enough of you demand a return of the weather component of this report in the future, then it will be reinstated.

The reef fishing was first very good for Kyle and crew. Conditions were spot on too it seems.


Brown maori cod often feature in catches from offshore waters. Enzo with a plump model caught on Sunday.


Green jobfish were just one of many species Kyle and crew caught offshore last weekend.


Enzo with a little wahoo caught offshore last Sunday.

Plenty to Get Excited About for Pier Fishos

Pencil squid numbers are steadily increasing beneath Urangan Pier. At the same time though, much of the usual herring biomass has moved on, and gathering live baits has been challenging. Ensuring that you have a good arsenal of Flasha spoons and other metals is a must at present, as it is a long walk back from the deep end if you fail to catch herring for livies.

Regardless of the inconsistent bait supply, the fishing has been very good. Catches of broad-barred mackerel, school mackerel, queenfish, flathead and giant trevally have all been reported from day to day over the past week. Saturday saw numbers of spotted mackerel turn up too, with fish beyond 70cm in the mix. The spotties moved on as quickly as they appeared; somewhat reminiscent of a fortnight beforehand.

The school holidays will see crowds gathered along the pier both day and night weather-permitting. Daytime efforts will likely to focussed on pelagic species, with mackerel and queenfish within the scope of anyone with reasonable medium-scale tackle. Those with heavier tackle and a bit of nous might take on the GTs, whilst plenty of other hopefuls might mimic what they see the locals doing. The GTs might be easy enough to tempt right now, but you can bet they will get spooked by all the extra attention and bust-ups sometime soon.

Evening sessions will see many folks heading for the deep end chasing pencil squid. There are tips in last week’s report for any of you keen to learn how to do so. A bright moon is not ideal for nocturnal squid endeavours, so some consideration of the position of the moon, or potential heavy cloud cover might save you fruitless trips. Early dawn sessions should bag you a few squid, so long as you are prepared to sink your jigs to the bottom. Most of the squid are still very small, as should be expected, yet there are a few decent models in the mix.

Shark fishos are also drawn to the Urangan Pier in summer as they seek out the many noahs that cruise those waters after dark. Large sharks, small sharks and every size in between can be caught, so a mix of tackle is often noted by onlookers just out for an evening walk. You all know that sharks over 1.5m in length are totally protected and must be released unharmed (hence the issues we have on our reefs etc these days).

Eddie Whittle christened his new birthday combo in fine form. Well done young fella - you da man.


Damo is a dare devil just for diving in our waters, let alone risking life and limb with evil yellow fruit on board.


Mackerel are abundant throughout the bay and will be keeping many holiday fishos entertained this Xmas.


Mitch with just one fish from a selection he brought home from out wide.

Interesting Time for Landlubbers

Recent rain triggered a minor flush to the back reaches of local creeks. What might seem quite insignificant can be just the trigger to invigorate a number of local fisheries. Possibly the most obvious is the mud crabs. Stormy weather has had them on the march in our local rivers in recent weeks, and the rain mid-week very likely flushed a few from their holes in the backwaters of local creeks too.

Crabbing creeks where there is land-based access is somewhat risky when it comes to crab pot and crab theft. The same disgusting behaviour that raises its ugly head every summer is once again an issue. Beware of others lifting your pots and stealing your crabs, and/or your pots. Also be aware that some pot thieves are so lazy they only move your pots to other reaches of the creek and don’t even remove your ‘branding’. Go for a walk if your pots go astray and you may recover them. Film any culprits you catch in the act if you can, and report them to Qld Fisheries immediately.

It is that time of year when a burgeoning jelly prawn hatch can trigger a predatory response from many estuary species. It doesn’t go unnoticed by schools of herring gathering at river mouths beforehand either. A lack of threadfin salmon in our rivers has been notable and raising many questions this season. Their whereabouts is likely to be discovered very soon and, in some cases, it may be landlubbers that trip over them.

Warm weather and recent rains have the local mangrove jack population on edge. They are biting in the smallest of our local creeks and will continue to do so until these creeks flood properly. Wandering the upper reaches, or pockets of shaded snag-strewn water in the lower reaches can see you hooking jacks of surprising size. Just how you fare when it comes to landing these brutes stretches beyond skill into the realm of sheer luck at times.

Grunter fans should be relishing recent weather events and making some effort to gauge their whereabouts along local foreshores. Fish flushed from creeks will join fish that move in for the feast in coming weeks. Right now, a full moon-triggered bite should be happening somewhere. 

The stretches of town beach at Urangan and up at the Pialba end, as well as the rocky shores of Pt Vernon are most popular these days. Yet, there are ample opportunities to tangle with grunter on the flats on the outskirts of town too. Regardless of your chosen location, your efforts after dark may yield the best rewards.

Fishos seeking a feed of whiting, or perhaps just a bit of fun for the kids, can look west of town. The beaches out that way have been the best producers recently. There might even be a few flatties lurking around the usual creek mouth haunts, and they will be suckers for a small softie, a shallow diver, a livie or a humble prawn. Queenfish have been harassing the herring schools gathered in and beyond creek and river mouths of late, so they too may come within casting distance for the odd shore-based fisho.

Every summer at this time, a number of folks take to the rocky foreshores of Pt Vernon and Gatakers Bay to flick lures for coral trout. Some score the odd fish or two. Others get towelled-up in the coral-encrusted rocks, and others fail to bother the scorer or just land little tackers. Effort in the right spots at the right time can see other species such as grunter, GTs, queenfish, mackerel, tarpon and blue salmon landed, and small reef fish bycatch such as stripies, moses perch and cod are quite common.

Andy enjoys walking the local flats chasing whiting on topwater. Here is an example of the fish fooled by his faved Bassday Sugapens.


Tim was very proud of his flathead captures, and equally proud to be the one feeding the family.


Baedin Huth caught this white-spotted shovelnose shark after a torrid battle. These critters are tough.


Baedin again with a big flatty

Dirty Mary Makes Straits Appealing

Dirty water has made its way down the May River all the way to River Heads. These big full moon tides exaggerate the tidal flow and disturb more sediment too, so expect a filthy scene if headed for our big river. A complete lack of boat trailers at Maryborough boat ramps tells the story as to what the upper reaches are like right now, so any river efforts are best concentrated in the lower reaches.

Salmon feast in dirty waters as they round up tiny prey such as jelly prawn and small fish. Drain-bashing sessions are on the cards nowadays thanks to those recent rains. As mentioned, threadfin salmon numbers have been ultra-low in the river this season, however, quite a few large fish were caught sight-fishing shallower fringes last week. So, a freshwater flush upstream that might aggregate numbers downstream could be seen as a good thing.

Still go armed with soft vibes etc for probing deeper waters, but consider smaller prawn imitations and small shallow-diving jerkbaits that you can work drains and flats with. Hard vibes and blades in smaller sizes also come into their own in this dirty water fishery, and some of you might even be tempted to try topwater at the right time.

River Heads itself has to be an interesting place at present. It is such a prominent peninsula right at the crux of the outflow from the river and hosts some impressive river predators in conditions such as these. Shore-based fishos might chance encounters with salmon, jewfish and other species, whilst boaties can scout the area looking for targets on their sounders.

Barramundi will respond to recent weather and that taste of fresh in the water with a view to spawning. I know that it is beyond naïve to think that everyone will leave the barra to spawn in peace, but I will put the plea out there all the same. What used to be very few folks successfully fishing for barra in our waters is now many. 

Modern sounder technology enables any fisho to actively target barramundi very successfully these days, that, in some cases, wouldn’t have stood a chance of finding or catching them in the past. Barra in spawn-mode are very hungry and inclined to bite aggressively. What might have once been a tiny number of fish caught during the annual spawn with minimal impact on the population can now be significant numbers due to enhanced effort. 

Big barra in particular are often targeted these days with no respect for their role as egg-bearers or the rules. You have had your fun in recent weeks, now give the barra a break! Let them spawn in peace as our wet season unfolds, and remember that catching and handling such fish can have a profound effect on their ability to produce, retain and spawn their eggs. Continuing to target barra trip after trip is just wrong! You want a great barra fishery here on the Fraser Coast? Then do the right thing and park the big lures until the 1st February.

There are plenty of other fine fish to catch during the barra closure. Suss out the salmon scene down the straits or out on the flats beyond the flow of the Mary. Look for grunter flushed from upstream that will make their way onto the flats with the rising tides. Chase queenies in cleaner waters further down the straits, and look for various trevally species working patches of baitfish out in the channels.

Mangrove jacks are the ultimate challenge for a frustrated barra fisho. Salmon are all too easy once you master them, but the feisty red devils of our smaller creeks will keep you guessing if not grunting and groaning. Jacks flushed from the backwaters are typically inclined to school, so it can be a numbers game if you find the motherlode. Cloudy skies, hot nights and high humidity create prime jack fishing opportunities, and guess what we have next week.

Jacko with his first fingermark, jigged from deep water in a local stream.


Dan fished with Jacko and they had a ball catching many species, including flathead.


Flathead seeking reprieve from the heat in deeper water can be jigged up on soft vibes. Jacko with an example.


Most predatory river species will eat a soft vibe, including rat GTs such as this one.

Giant Trevally Terrorise Local Reef Inhabitants

If you can’t raise a sweat chasing jacks, then some time connected to a rampaging GT will soon have you soaked to the bone. The summertime run of inshore GTs has commenced and they are starting to take up residence on the usual local hotspots. Steep ledges swept with strong currents, swirling waters adjacent to pressure points of islands and sand ridges, shipwrecks and other artificial reefs all host giant trevally, and big ones, at this time of year.

You can target them in the traditional sports fishing mode via large stickbaits and poppers, or you can troll oversized deep-diving lures past likely haunts. You can try live baiting with legal-sized mackerel if you prefer, or other regular-sized live baits of some sort. A hungry GT will rarely reject a good offering. Once hooked however, these brutes will pull out all stops to trash you if they can. Lock up, hold on and drag them free of structure, then the rest is ‘easy’.

If GT fishing is all too hard, or just plain unappealing, then there is always the inshore mackerel to target via trolling, bait fishing or spinning methods. There were spotties off Pt Vernon last weekend, but alas, they seem to have moved on. While they were on off the point, it was absolute pandemonium. Metal slugs of all persuasions worked. Fishos were catching fish after fish when they weren’t accidentally hooked up to birds. Folks were frantically skull-dragging fish to the boat to beat the sharks in scenes that had the kids wide-eyed and squealing. Absolute chaos for the family fisho!

Schoolies are still prevalent inshore, and can be found within the shipping channels and over many inshore reefs. They will be a right pain in the proverbial for those chasing pencil squid in the near future. Broadies continue to show up here and there, but seemingly not in anywhere the numbers of a month ago.

Whilst the mac tuna haven’t been hard to find out in the bay, the spotted mackerel schools have been a bigger challenge. Even the pros are struggling to pin them down. The central bay seems the best bet at present, but that is likely to change. The early season spotties have been larger fish, as always, and very inclined to roam. Potential stronger bursts of south-east wind next week should see Platypus Bay waters come alive.

Alas, there still appears to be minimal baby black marlin in the bay. Should that change, then we will let you know. In the meantime, some folks have shifted their attention to the likes of cobia, queenfish and trevally for some sport whilst they await the arrival of the longtails in coming weeks. Again, should that burst of south-easter next week be the real deal, then we might see some early arrivals up the island.

A fine example of the sort of grunter you can expect from our inshore waters this summer.


Luke with the best trout of the day. Another victim of shallow water trolling tactics.


Luke, Dan and Rowan with their catch from a reef in the local shipping channel.


There are plenty of grassies inshore in summer. Here is Stuart with a solid model.

Reef Fishing Success Dictated by Current and Sharks

Inshore reef fishos are tending to flog the shallower waters more than ever these days, largely due to the constant threat of shark depredation in deeper water. Big tides such as these see a fleet of hopefuls trolling deep divers across the shallow reefs in search of coral trout. To be fair, the same effort seems to be put in on the neaps as well these days as the relentless pursuit continues.

Seeking vastly better-quality fish from deeper waters is a greater challenge, requiring a little more effort, but is still pretty easy (sharks permitting). Troll ultra-deep divers if you wish, but it is those jigging softies and jigs when the tide is slack that are likely to fair better. Meanwhile, those making the effort to procure live baits may succeed even better again, should they avoid the attentions of the much more abundant estuary cod and mackerel, then the sharks.

A feed of grassy sweetlip is your simplest option if seeking fresh fillets for Xmas from our inshore waters. Simple squid baits fished on the bottom on the fringes of a reef will get their attention, but they also favour many other baits too. Better-quality sweeties are partial to prawn or squid imitation softies, so lengthening a drift beyond the gnarly trout terrain might be warranted at times. Fish at night or pre-dawn for the best of the bay’s sweeties otherwise, and high tail it when the sharks find you.

There will be a few grunter caught from gravelly reef systems in the western and southern bay this week. Nannygai are yet to hit their straps, but the growing pencil squid population and chance of impending wet season rains will have a few moving inshore soon. Local artificial reefs are as good a place as any to look for now, unless you are heading further north up the bay.

Tuskfish are highly sought-after by many folks, yet some folks still seem to get confused when it comes to their identification. Many tuskfish were tagged with the nickname of ‘parrot’ over the years, but they are not parrotfish. Tuskfish have tusks, and parrotfish have a beak like a parrot. Pretty obvious really. 

Tuskfish have a minimum size of 30cm; parrotfish 25cm. Parrotfish are very rarely caught by conventional line fishing methods. Qld Fisheries has had to issue many a fine for poor species ID in the past, so if in doubt, the safe bet is to stick to a minimum 30cm and you can’t go wrong. 

Here is Deej with a black-spot tuskfish, sometimes referred to as a blue parrot. They are not a parrotfish. The tusks are a dead giveaway.


Quality venus tusk fish are always welcomed aboard on offshore reef trips.


River Heads Fishing Club member, Amanda Althouse, with her biggest fish to date. This cod went 75cm and the family enjoyed a great feed.

Offshore, the EAC has been raging at 3 knots much of the time lately. There was a reprieve last weekend that saw local crews smash the reef fish north-east of Fraser. Then, the current returned and was widespread from the shoal country all the way out to deep-dropping territory over the shelf. Current-permitting, the reef fishing in 50-65m has been very good. Picking whether to head north or south can dictate success on any trip, and even more-so this time of year.

A lack of bait on the Sandy Cape Shoals made for more challenging topwater fishing than it might have been, yet there were still GTs to be caught in recent days. The bait is absolutely stacked-up along the continental shelf south towards Waddy, with 40m high towers of baitfish suspended not far from the surface. 

The water offshore is a rich cobalt blue and quite warm at 27-28˚C. Prime conditions for heavy tackle fishos, and boy did they enjoy some red-hot sessions last week. Billfish were the target of course, and it was the blue marlin that led the charge. Multiple flags were flying from successful game boats some days. We cannot offer any insight into the state of play for the ‘vermin’; just word that the yellowfin tuna seem to have headed south towards the big smoke.

Andrew and Gary with the spoils of a deep dropping mission off Fraser yesterday. The current made this activity very challenging.


Andrew releasing a blue marlin caught east of Fraser Island yesterday.


Gary with a big black GT caught on the shoals yesterday.


Yellowtail kingies caused some excitement for Kyle's crew last weekend.

Great Sandy Marine Park Green Zones Now on Garmin

Garmin Australia have created a software update that will enable you to download the recently-changed Great Sandy Marine Park green zones. It is a simple enough matter of opening your Active Captain app and downloading the latest software update. Transferring that update from your phone to your Garmin via its built-in Wi-Fi will soon have the new green zones appearing on your charts.

Anyone reading this that is new to the bay, or just visiting, should also download the Marine Parks Southern Qld app on your phone. This app will enable you to monitor your position on the water in real time, and contains all the rules and regs you need to know when on the water in our marine park.

Good luck out there y’all …… Jase

Josh McGuire with a sample of the coral trout caught on yet another successful reef fishing mission.

Rob with a nannygai from prime ground somewhere beyond the reach of the crowds.


Rob again, with a thumping big red from the same reef trip.

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