After such a drawn out summer season the winter species are finally in full swing, and to the delight of anglers the fish are big and biting hard.

The Sunshine Coast offers a broad range of winter species, and that includes on the beach, in the estuaries and out wide in deeper water. This diversity satisfies a lot of angler’s passions and provides families with a great holiday destination that lives up to its reputation.

The Pumicestone Passage in Caloundra holds some monster whiting that are being taken during the night, however the smaller winter whiting can be taken along the sand bars during day light hours. Generally the weed beds around Bells Creek and along the Golden Beach strip offer the best opportunities. Yabbies and worms are without doubt the best baits and if they are difficult to find then try the ever-reliable peeled prawns. The smaller the hook the better, I use a no.4 long shank Mustad hook with the lightest possible weight needed to stay in the bite zone. Flurocarbon line makes a big difference and 2-4lb delivers the best results. Bream are another genuine winter target and as we get into the really cool months the bigger bream come out to play. Herring and hardiheads are the live baits that they love to eat, so use your cast net around the pontoons and jetties to get some. Smaller herring are the better baits for the bream and flathead are a welcome by-catch when fishing with them.

Currimundi Lake also has whiting and bream and is a popular destination for fishermen both during the day and at night. The canals around Pelican Waters through to Kawana hold large schools of bream; it’s just a matter of looking around to find where they are feeding at a particular time. Bread, or chook pellets half dissolved in water are terrific items to use as berley to get bream in a feeding frenzy. Other species around the canals that are popular throughout winter are tarpon, and they are best targeted in the calmer water areas like Pelican Waters.

So while the estuaries offer some great fishing opportunities the beach areas come into their own during winter. Mulloway, tailor, dart, bream and whiting are all on a very long list of species that frequent the Sunshine Coast area. The Noosa North Shore is popular at this time of year, along with the long stretch that runs from Moffatt Beach at Caloundra through to Point Cartwright at Mooloolaba. Use the day period to find a nice hole to fish at the bottom of the tide or locate a gutter that may produce larger species on the top of the tide. Coolum also offers some top spots off the rocks and along the beaches to target these species. Best baits for the bread and butter species include pippies, worms, fish strips and prawns. For the bigger fish and species pilchards are the way to go.

Offshore is really on fire and the inner reefs have been full of small snapper and pearl perch. Morwong and sweetlip have been caught around the Gneerings and Murphy’s lately, and have weighed in around the 2-3kg mark. Good catches of snapper have been taken in the deeper waters out from Wide Caloundra with some early reports of 5-6kg fish being taken. Remember the bigger fish are the breeders so let the majority of them go to keep the species plentiful for future years.

Some of the known hotspots are loaded with those pesky grinners, but get past them and monster mulloway, cobia and kingfish are waiting to smash your bait. The snapper will also be in the hunt but sometimes you will need to target them directly rather than hope for them as by-catch. Live yakkas or slimey mackerel are the key to the better fish, so spend the time catching some live bait before heading out. Larger Spanish mackerel are still hanging around and with any luck you can still get a feed if you know where to go. The Barwon Banks is another winter spot and when the weather permits an overnight snapper trip can make the cool nights worthwhile. It’s not all smooth sailing though with sharks always ready to share in the bounty.

So we are riding the winter wave here on the Sunshine Coast and by all counts it looks like it will be a top fishing period for all. Remember to use live bait or fresh squid and pilchards where possible to increase your chances of a catch. Offshore is alive with some real brutes and the estuaries offer some quality fish for those that want to put in the hours to catch a feed.

If it’s beach fishing you love then this is the time of year that will get you excited. Tailor and mulloway are the target for the persist anglers with plenty of quality species available as by-catch. Enjoy the season and have fun!