Fishing Report 4-04-2013

FISHING REPORT   – 04-04-2013

Cressbrook Dam will remain closed to boating this weekend, due to the dam’s water level, it has only dropped about 10mm over the past week and is currently sitting at about 180mm over the spillway. The camping and picnic areas are open, and shore based fishing is also allowed.

BASS

Somerset Dam is slowly settling down and has again produced a few smaller Bass around the timber at Kirkleigh and in the Queen Street area, reaction lures, like the TN60 Jackall’s and spinnerbaits have been effective, this dam is also seeing good numbers of big redclaw filling the traps. Anglers have again had some success at Maroon over the past week with some good quality Bass hitting surface poppers early morning and also sinking Fly’s in the weed beds has produced a few as well. Bjelke Peterson and Boondooma Dams haven’t really settled yet, and are still fairly quiet, using bait in the dirtier water will give anglers a better chance of landing a fish, reaction lures around the timber and the edges would be worth a try as well, and for those of you that like your Redclaw, they are still out in big numbers in both of these dams, with rockmelon proving to be a popular bait.

GOLDEN PERCH AND COD

Cooby Dam produced good numbers of Golden Perch over the Easter weekend, with a variety of baits and lures working well, as far as lures go, trolled hard bodies, ice jigs, blades and Jackalls have been effective, while live worms, shrimp and frozen Saltwater Yabbies have been the pick of the bait. Glenlyon has again produced stacks of Golden Perch, trolled lures worked fairly close to the boat has seen the best results, live shrimp have been a good option as well and bigger spinnerbaits and hard bodies picked up some nice Cod, between 6 and 16kg. Coolmunda fired over the weekend, with frozen saltwater yabbies and prawns picking up the majority of the fish, however there were a few fish taken on trolled hard bodies, working the old creek bed. Leslie Dam was a bit quiet again, with a few Golden Perch caught, working Jackals and Spinnerbaits around structure, close to the edges. Connelly dam has been a little better, with reports of a few Golden Perch and the odd Cod getting about, mainly early morning and late afternoon, with bait proving to be the best option.

As for the rivers, most of the popular haunts along the Condamine produced good numbers of Golden Perch over Easter, with bait being the best option. The Ballone at St.George again saw some nice Golden Perch and Cod landed, the Macintyre River at Goondiwindi was the venue for the Yellowbelly Teams Challenge over the weekend, 245 Anglers participated in the event, which saw 346 Golden Perch weighed in, there was also a few Cod landed around the 65-75cm mark and bait proved to be the best option over the course of the event, and the Dumeresq River at Texas produced some quality Cod and Golden Perch in the town reaches, with bait and lures working well.

GOLD COAST AND TWEED

Offshore fishing produced again this week, with heaps of Spanish Mackerel hitting trolled Strada lures, on the 24 fathom line out from the Seaway and Mermaid Reef has produced large numbers of Spotty Mackerel, spinning Arma metal lures. While inshore fishing has seen plenty of GT’s and Kingies taking surface poppers and metals in the seaway, Bream and smaller Snapper have been prominent through here as well, Flathead throughout the Broadwater on soft plastics and smaller hard bodies, heaps of Whiting on surface poppers at Paradise Point, a few Jack’s around Sovereign Island and the mouths of Coomera and Pimpama Rivers have produced good numbers of Mud Crabs.

SUNSHINE COAST

Offshore fishing fired up over the past week, with plenty of Red Throat Sweetlip, Spotty Mackerel, Grassy Sweetlip and a few Parrot Fish caught on the closer reefs and North Reef has seen some good size Snapper to 4kg as well as a few Cobia. Inshore, the Boardwalk at Caloundra is producing big Flathead and the odd Queenfish and Trevelly on live bait in the mornings, while the afternoons have seen some decent Bream landed there as well, Whiting on surface lures in Bells Creek, small Trevelly and Bream in the Pelican Waters canals and the Noosa River has seen good size Flathead, Trevelly and Whiting throughout the system, while the northern beaches have produced Whiting, Tailor and heaps of Dart.