FISHING REPORT   – 30-08-2013

FISHING CLOSURES FOR FRESHWATER FISH SPECIES

As of midnight this Saturday 31^st August through to midnight 30^th November, a no take rule applies for Murray Cod, in the Dumeresq, Macintyre and Barwon Rivers. These waterways can still be fished for Golden Perch, but if you happen to catch a Cod, it must be returned to the water as quickly as possible. On the other hand, the closed season for Australian Bass finishes at midnight, this Saturday 31^st August, so it’s all systems go, for those of you that like fishing the Brisbane River.

BASS

Very similar to last week at Cressbrook, with mixed results still coming in, there are some quality fish being caught, the best places to look, are around the points and drop-offs throughout the dam, use a sounder to find the fish and target them with soft plastics and ice jigs, there’s also been a few fish hitting trolled hard bodies around the points. Boondooma has produced a few Bass, on the flats in the Boyne arm, hopping blades and Jackals has been effective, with some quality fish starting to show up. Maroon is much the same this week, with a few Bass taken around the edges and weed pockets on soft plastics, and Moogerah has again produced decent numbers, with the same lures working successfully, including small blades, soft plastics, soft vibes and ice jigs.

YELLOWBELLY AND COD

Cooby Dam is still producing decent numbers of Yellowbelly, fishing mid to late afternoon in the deeper water has produced the best results; blades have been the pick of the lures, while frozen saltwater yabbies and live shrimp have again been the popular baits. Fishing deep has again been the best option at Glenlyon this week, with some quality Yellowbelly taking bait suspended at about 20-25 feet, some quality Cod around the 70cm mark, have been taking spinnerbaits around the timbered areas. Coolmunda has again seen Yellowbelly to 50cm hitting Jackals, Spinnerbaits and bait around the timber. In the Warwick area this week, Leslie Dam has only produced small numbers of Yellowbelly and Silver Perch, off the banks, on frozen saltwater yabbies and live worms. Boondooma Dam has seen some decent Yellowbelly taking Mask Vibes and bait in the Stuart arm, with bag limits being reached fairly easily and Bjelke Peterson has produced some quality fish around Bass Point on live shrimp and trolled hard bodies. As for the rivers, the Macintyre at Goondiwindi has produced good size Yellowbelly on bait and hard bodies, the Balonne at St.George is fishing well for smaller Yellowbelly, also plenty of Silver Perch on bait and a few smaller Cod have been taken on dark coloured hard bodies, while the Condamine River continues to fish well for Yellowbelly and Cod, with most of the weirs and popular holes, throughout the system proving to be quite productive.

GOLD COAST AND TWEED

Offshore fishing this past week has seen Cobia taking live bait on the closer artificial reefs and out wider; the 50’s has produced good mixed bags of Snapper, Kingies and Amberjack and some quality Pearl Perch have been coming off the northern 36’s. As far as the inshore fishing goes, the Tweed River has seen a few Flathead on the edges, taking soft plastics and Tailor around the rock walls at the river mouth. While on the Gold Coast, plenty of Jewies in the Seaway, on soft plastics, around the tide changes, good numbers of Flathead on trolled lures around Crab Island and Tipplers Passage and quality Bream around the bridges and pontoons throughout the Nerang River.

SUNSHINE COAST

Offshore fishing has again seen the outer reefs firing for plenty of Snapper, Pearl Perch, Yellow Tail Kingfish and Sweetlip, while inshore fishing has seen small Snapper off the rocks at Kings Beach, big Summer Whiting have been plentiful throughout the passage at Caloundra and off the beaches a few Trevelly still getting about the Pelican Waters canals, good size Bream in the Maroochy River, Tailor on poppers at the mouth of the Noosa River and also in the Noosa River, Flathead on plastics, working the edges of the mud flats and School Jew have been hitting bigger soft plastics in the deeper holes.  

FRASER ISLAND

Fraser Island is producing plenty of average size Tailor during the day, while night time fishing has seen some bigger fish landed.

FISHING REPORT   – 23-08-2013

SOMERSET ABT BASS PRO

Lake Somerset lived up to its big fish reputation delivering anglers, oversize bags and huge bass, the fishing still wasn’t easy, but there were some quality fish weighed in. In total, 273 fish hit the scales, at an average weight of 1.36kg, there were good numbers over the 2kg mark, and even a few tipping the scales over the 3kg mark. Queensland angler Callum Munro, broke the ABT Big Bass record, with a cracking Bass, that weighed in at 3.82kg, the majority of the fish were caught on soft plastics, soft vibes and ice jigs, with Pelican Point, Queen Street and Bay 13 proving to be the best spots.

BASS

Very similar to last week at Cressbrook, with mixed results still coming in, there are a few fish being caught, the best places to look, are around the points and drop-offs throughout the dam, use a sounder to find the fish and target them with soft plastics, ice jigs and blades, it would also be worth casting Jackals to the edges, early morning and late afternoon. Boondooma has produced a few Bass, on the flats in the Boyne arm, hopping blades and Jackals has been effective. Maroon is much the same this week, with a few Bass taken around the edges and weed pockets on soft plastics, and Moogerah has again produced decent numbers, with the same lures working successfully, including small blades, soft plastics, soft vibes and ice jigs.

YELLOWBELLY AND COD

Cooby Dam is still producing decent numbers of Yellowbelly, fishing mid to late afternoon in the deeper water has produced the best results; blades have been the pick of the lures, while frozen saltwater yabbies and live shrimp have again been the popular baits. Fishing deep has again been the best option at Glenlyon this week, with some quality Yellowbelly taking bait suspended at about 20-25 feet, some quality Cod around the 70cm mark, have been taking spinnerbaits around the timbered areas. Coolmunda has again seen Yellowbelly to 50cm hitting Jackals, Spinnerbaits and bait around the timber. In the Warwick area this week, Leslie Dam has only produced small numbers of Yellowbelly and Silver Perch, off the banks, on frozen saltwater yabbies and live worms. Boondooma Dam has seen some decent Yellowbelly taking Mask Vibes in the Stuart arm and Bjelke Peterson has produced some quality fish around Bass Point on live shrimp and trolled hard bodies. As for the rivers, the Macintyre at Goondiwindi has produced good size Yellowbelly on bait and hard bodies, the Balonne at St.George is fishing well for smaller Yellowbelly, also plenty of Silver Perch on bait and a few smaller Cod have been taken on dark coloured hard bodies, while the Condamine River has again fished well for Yellowbelly and Cod, with most of the weirs proving to be quite productive.

GOLD COAST AND TWEED

Offshore fishing this past week has seen quality Snapper on the 18’s and out wider; the 50’s have seen good mixed bags of Snapper, Pearl Perch and Amberjack. As far as the inshore fishing goes, the Tweed River has seen a few Flathead on the edges, taking soft plastics and Tailor around the rock walls at the river mouth. While on the Gold Coast, plenty of Mulloway on the flats around Seaworld and Wavebreak Island, it’s a pretty good time for Flathead at the moment, and the Pin has been producing plenty on soft plastics, while trolled lures have worked well, from the Aldershots to Crab Island.

SUNSHINE COAST

Offshore fishing has again seen the outer reefs firing for plenty of Snapper, Pearl Perch, Yellow Tail Kingfish and Sweetlip, while inshore fishing has seen small Snapper off the rocks at Kings Beach, good size Flathead, on plastics and live bait, throughout most of the estuaries, Whiting have been plentiful around the mouth of the Maroochy River and throughout the passage at Caloundra and a few Queenfish and Trevelly are getting about the Pelican Waters canals.  

HERVEY BAY

Longtail Tuna and Trevally on the deeper reefs, with a few small Sailfish getting about, while in closer, plenty of Flathead in Gatakers Bay, heaps of Bream off the Urangan Peir and Fraser Island continues to produce some decent numbers of Tailor off the exposed beaches.

 

FISHING REPORT   – 16-08-2013

BASS

Very similar to last week at Cressbrook, with mixed results still coming in, there are a few fish being caught, the best places to look, are around the points and drop-offs throughout the dam, use a sounder to find the fish and target them with soft plastics, ice jigs and blades, it would also be worth casting Jackals to the edges, early morning and late afternoon. Still some pretty good shows of fish throughout Somerset Dam, targeting the schooled fish with blades, plastics and ice jigs would be the best option, early morning would also be a good time to work the edges with Jackals and the Eagles Nest back to the Spit has been the better area of the dam. There is an ABT Bass Pro event being held there this weekend, so it will be interesting to see how it fishes with the pressure of a tournament. Boondooma has seen small numbers of Bass taken off the edges on spinnerbaits and blades. Maroon is much the same this week, with a few Bass taken around the edges and weed pockets on soft plastics, and at Moogerah, the fish have scattered a bit, but the spit has still produced decent numbers, with a variety of lures working successfully, including small blades, soft plastics, soft vibes and ice jigs.

YELLOWBELLY AND COD

Cooby Dam is still producing decent numbers of Yellowbelly, fishing mid to late afternoon, look for the fish in deeper water; blades have been the pick of the lures, while frozen saltwater yabbies and live shrimp have been the popular bait., Fishing deep has again been the best option at Glenlyon this week, with some quality Yellowbelly taking bait suspended at about 20-25 feet, some quality Cod around the 80cm mark, have been taking spinnerbaits. Coolmunda has seen Yellowbelly to 50cm hitting Jackals and Spinnerbaits around the timber, and a few undersize Cod have been active in the same area. In the Warwick area this week, Leslie Dam has only produced small numbers of Yellowbelly, off the banks, on frozen saltwater yabbies and live worms, if you are in a boat, working around the edges with TN50 Jackals has again produced a few as well. Boondooma Dam has seen some decent Yellowbelly taking live bait, the middle part of the day has been the best time, while trolled bright green lures have been effective as well and Bjelke Peterson has produced some quality fish around Bass Point on live shrimp and trolled hard bodies. As for the rivers, the Macintyre at Goondiwindi has produced Cod on trolled hard bodies and Yellowbelly on spinnerbaits, the Dumaresq River has seen Yellowbelly biting on live bait, the Balonne at St.George is fishing well for Yellowbelly, however there is quite a few Carp in amongst them and the Condamine River has again fished well for Yellowbelly and Cod, with most of the weirs proving to be quite productive.

GOLD COAST AND TWEED

Offshore fishing this past week has seen Snapper and Cobia on the 18’s and 24’s. Inshore fishing has seen a few Flathead on the flats and Bream around the rock walls at the mouth of the Tweed River and a few Tailor off the beaches. While on the Gold Coast, the Seaway has again seen plenty of Tailor getting about, Bream and Trevally have been active around the rock walls and some decent Flathead have been taking soft plastics throughout the Broadwater, but the better fish have come from around the Pin.

SUNSHINE COAST

Offshore fishing has seen the outer reefs firing for plenty of Snapper, Pearl Perch, Yellow Tail Kingfish and Cobia, while inshore fishing has seen good size Bream off the Boardwalk, and around the bridges in the Maroochy River, good size Flathead, on plastics and live bait, throughout most of the estuaries, the beaches have produced some quality Whiting and the Noosa River has produced good numbers of Flathead and Trevally, as well as some decent Mangrove Jack on live bait

FRASER ISLAND

The past week has again seen good catches of Tailor, Whiting and Dart from Happy Valley to Woody Point, the Tailor have been ranging from 35-45cm, with the odd bigger one in amongst them and most of the Dart have been around the mid 40cm mark.

 

FISHING REPORT   – 09-08-2013

BASS

Still hit and miss at Cressbrook, with mixed results fairly common at the moment, there are a few fish being caught, the best spots are, out from the boat ramp, near the buoy line, Bull Creek arm and around Deer Island, it’s also worth a look on the flats in the Cressbrook Creek arm as well, soft plastics, ice jigs and blades have produced the most fish. Plenty of fish showing up throughout Somerset Dam, unfortunately a lot of them are Barred Grunter; however they can provide a lot of fun for the kids, there are a few decent Bass in amongst them, hopping blades, soft plastics and using Ice Jigs would be the best options, Beams Creek, Eagles Nest, Queen Street and the timber at Kirkleigh would be the best spots to target. Boondooma has again seen some Bass taken on deep diving lures in the main basin, casting blades and smaller spinnerbaits to the edges and around the timber, in the Stuart and Boyne arms has again produced a few fish as well. Maroon is much the same this week, with a few Bass taken around the edges and weed pockets, Moogerah Dam has fired up over the past week, with some decent schools showing up around the spit and also in the timber, ice jigs, blades and soft vibes have worked well on these fish and Cressbrook, Boondooma and Bjelke Peterson Dams continue to produce good numbers of Redclaw.

YELLOWBELLY AND COD

Cooby Dam is still producing decent numbers of Yellowbelly, fishing mid to late afternoon has been the most productive time, look for the fish in deeper water, soft vibes and frozen saltwater yabbies have been effective again, while a few fish have started hitting trolled hard bodies, around the edges. Fishing deep has again been the best option at Glenlyon this week, with some quality Yellowbelly taking bait, and also a few undersize Cod hitting trolled deep divers and heavy spinnerbaits, there was a 1metre Cod caught and released last weekend. Coolmunda, it is still producing a few Yellowbelly on bait throughout the dam, although along the wall seems to be a more productive area at the moment and casting Jackals around the timber has picked up some fish as well. In the Warwick area this week, Leslie Dam has only produced small numbers of Yellowbelly, off the banks, on frozen saltwater yabbies, if you are in a boat, working around the edges with TN50 Jackals has produced a few as well. Boondooma Dam has seen some decent Yellowbelly taking live bait, the middle part of the day has been the best time, while the Stuart arm has been the better part of the dam to target. As for the rivers, the Macintyre at Goondiwindi has dirtied up this week, so the fishing has been pretty tough, the Dumaresq River has seen Cod taking bait upstream of Texas, while spinnerbaits have worked well downstream and the Condamine River has again fished well for Yellowbelly and Cod, with most of the weirs proving to be quite productive.

GOLD COAST AND TWEED

Offshore fishing this past week has seen Snapper and Trag Jew taken around 9 Mile Reef, there’s also been a few Cobia and Pearl Perch on the 24’s. Inshore fishing has seen a few Flathead and Bream around the rock walls at the mouth of the Tweed River and a few Tailor off the beaches. While on the Gold Coast, the Seaway has again seen plenty of Tailor getting about, Flathead on soft plastics, at Kalinga Bank, Cobby Passage and The Bedrooms and the top of Crusoe Island has gone well for Bream. 

SUNSHINE COAST

Offshore fishing has again produced some reasonable catches, from both the inner and outer reefs, heaps of Snapper, good numbers of Pearl Perch along with some good sized Cobia have been taken with some areas still producing a real mixed bag of fish and there’s still quite a few School Mackerel and Yellow fin Tuna getting about. Inshore fishing has seen Bream around the power boat club,  and throughout the Maroochy River, good size Flathead, on plastics and live bait, throughout most of the estuaries, the beaches have produced some quality Whiting and the Noosa River has produced good numbers of Big Eye Trevally, as well as some decent Mangrove Jack

FRASER ISLAND

The past week has seen good catches of Tailor, Whiting and Dart from Happy Valley to Woody Point, the Tailor have been ranging from 35-45cm, with the odd bigger one in amongst them and most of the Dart have been around the mid 40cm mark.

 

Fising Report 02-08-2013

FISHING REPORT   – 02-08-2013

BASS

Not a lot has changed on the Bass scene this week, Cressbrook Dam continues to see some good quality fish coming out of about 15 feet of water, mainly around the points throughout the dam and soft plastics have been the most effective, there are fish in the deeper water, as you work out from the points, but these fish are a bit smaller. Still scattered schools of fish showing up at Somerset Dam, just out from the Eagles Nest, Queen Street and the start of the timber at Kirkleigh have been popular areas, but the fish have been very tentative, with not a lot caught, hopping blades, soft vibes and soft plastics and using Ice Jigs would be the best options, if you were heading there for a fish. The water continues to clear at Boondooma and this has again seen some Bass taken on deep diving lures in the main basin, casting blades and smaller spinnerbaits to the edges and around the timber, in the Stuart and Boyne arms has again produced a few fish as well. Maroon is much the same this week, with a few Bass taken around the edges and weed pockets, soft plastics and small suspending minnows are still the lures of choice and Moogerah Dam has seen some Bass hitting blades and crank baits, cast to the edges, it’s also worth a look for schooled fish in the deeper water, with ice jigs the best option on those fish and Cressbrook, Boondooma and Bjelke Peterson Dams continue to produce good numbers of Redclaw.

YELLOWBELLY AND COD

Cooby Dam is still producing decent numbers of Yellowbelly, fishing mid to late afternoon has been the most productive time, vertically jigging or hopping blades and soft vibes has been effective, while live shrimp and frozen saltwater yabbies have again been the pick of the baits. Fishing deep seems to be the best option at Glenlyon at the moment, with some quality Yellowbelly and also Cod up to 70cm have been taking trolled deep divers and heavy spinnerbaits. Similar to previous weeks at Coolmunda, it is still producing a few Yellowbelly on bait throughout the dam, trolled lures have also started to get some results as well, but the Cod fishing has been a bit quiet. In the Warwick area this week, Leslie Dam has only produced small numbers of Yellowbelly, off the banks, on frozen saltwater yabbies, but there has been a few Cod between 65 and 70cm taking spinnerbaits. Boondooma Dam has again seen some decent Yellowbelly caught of the banks this week, there are still a few fish taking live shrimp in both arms of the dam. As for the rivers, the Macintyre at Goondiwindi has seen spinnerbaits and frozen saltwater yabbies picking up some quality Cod to 80cm, while some good size Yellowbelly have been taken as well, the Dumaresq River is a bit dirty at the moment, however bait has been a successful option as far as the Yellowbelly are concerned, while the Cod have been a bit quiet and although the river is quite dirty at St.George, again bait has been effective for a few Yellowbelly.

GOLD COAST AND TWEED

Offshore fishing this past week has seen Snapper and Yellow Tail Kingfish taken on the 18’s and 24’s, there’s also been a few Yellow fin Tuna and School Mackerel getting about, on the closer reefs. Inshore fishing has seen a few Flathead and Bream on the run in tide around the Tweed River mouth and a few Tailor taken at night off the beaches. While on the Gold Coast, the Seaway has again seen plenty of Tailor and Trevelly taken on the run in tide, also a few Bream off the rock wall, in the Broadwater, good numbers of Gar off the weed beds at the northern end of Crab Island, Tailor and Dart off the beaches, and fishing unweighted live mullet at night, has been very effective for Mulloway.

SUNSHINE COAST

Offshore fishing has produced some reasonable catches, from both the inner and outer reefs, Snapper, Pearl Perch along with some good sized Cobia have been taken with some areas producing a real mixed bag of fish and if you like trolling for pelagics,  there’s quite a few School Mackerel and Yellow fin Tuna getting about. Inshore fishing has seen Bream off the Boardwalk and Military Jetty at Caloundra and throughout the Maroochy and Noosa Rivers, good size Flathead throughout most of the estuaries and off the beaches, Tailor at night, around the mouth of the Maroochy River and the exposed beaches have produced some quality Dart and Bream, with afternoon proving to be the best time.