Fishing Monthly - Latest Fishing Reports - Updated Weekly
COMPILED WEEKLY BY TONY ZANN IN EVANS HEAD:
e-mail: t.zann@fishingmonthly.com.au
Tweed Heads
River: Some nice trevally at the top of the tide around the mouth of the river with a few amberjack. Whiting well up the creeks, Murwillumbah and Condong for a starting point. Flathead throughout, the further up- river the better, Murwillumbah up is best, Seagulls and the Piggery also have fish. Jacks from the bridges and rocky points with the run-out tide best and livies better than lures.
Beaches: Nice tailor around a kilo at Cabarita, Hastings and Black Rock with bigger fish on cut bait. Dart and whiting in the holes on live worms.
Offshore has been shut down with the rotten wind but there should be fish out there.

Julie/Graeme, Anglers Warehouse Tweed Heads (07) 5536 3822
anglerswarehouse@shopsafe.com.au
Wayne, Kingscliff Bait and Tackle
Matthew/Charlie, Deep Sea Fishing Charters

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Byron Bay

David Keevers, Coastal Fishing Tackle 02 66 857 133

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Ballina
Matt at Dave’s Bait Shop says earlier in the week a few jew landed off the walls on live bait, squid and plastics. A few good jew around the Town Reach and the Porpoise Wall, fish to 10kg. Large flathead taking large lures and livies. South Beach has heaps of whiting but there are plenty of throwbacks. Rat bream in the river. Crabs in top of North Creek, around Broadwater and blue swimmers at Pimlico. No outside reports.
At Evans Head, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were all above 38° with a northerly that felt like it came out of the oven, so there wasn’t a lot of fishing getting done. Thank god for the southerly! Some flathead between the Golf Course and the Black Hole, a few whiting above the Iron Gates and some whiting and bream on the beach early in the mornings. No one has put to sea for a few days. Looks like things might settle down a little after the southerly change – let’s hope so.

Dave’s Bait Shop 02 6686 2481
&
Tony Zann

t.zann@fishingmonthly.com.au

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Yamba
Nothing great to report from the Clarence. I believe the whiting have moved upstream. I'd suggest fishing around Browns Rocks as a possibility, on the southern side of the river hard up against Palmers Island. No guarantees but they must be somewhere as they are not around Sleeper Point, a favoured whiting spot on these tides and around this moon. The barometer is down to just about 1000 so I'm wondering if this has an impact on this species, technically these fish should still be in the lower reaches but if anyone has some info, please advise. I don't think there are a great number of lizards around, the early morning run out last week proved good for plastics downstream from Harwood but as the tide got later by the day fish were not easy to find.
School jew are worth targeting on plastics in the deep hole at Palmers, around the Harwood Bridge and I would think also at Browns Rocks and the wharf at Goodwood.
I have no reports from outside fishos.
Some chopper tailor to be caught. Large schools of sea gar holding on Whiting Beach with kids catching them in their bare hands – great fun!!

Glen Porter, 6646 2017
The Bait Place 6646 2017
ports@reeltime.com.au

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Coffs Harbour

Peter Russell, Fish Tackle Australia 6652 4611
motackle@midcoast.com.au

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South West Rocks
Fishing last week was pretty well confined to inshore thanks to the north-easterly winds. The reports coming in through the week have been a little patchy.
Some nice fish have been pulled out of the river. Bream up to a kilo have been hooked off the South Wall but you need to be there early, preferably before first light. With the full moon the jewfish should be lurking around with live bait such as pike or squid your best bet. Flathead are being picked up in most areas of the river. Last of the run out and first of the run in are your best times to fish for these. The whiting have been a little scarce in the river with the odd nice one, but this can change from day to day. Live worms or pipis are the best baits.
Once again the rockhoppers have had difficulty fishing their favourite location because of the strong sea swell. With no reports of any catches coming into the shop last week, hopefully the sea will settle and this will change.
Off Smokey Beach last week 2 or 3 days were not fishable due to the winds. When the fishos where able to get out there, whiting and bream were caught. If you are fishing Smoky be careful on the sand. Because of the extra traffic a lot of cars are getting bogged in the soft sand. The Gap Beach is fishing well with whiting, bream and dart being hooked. Back Beach is fishing the best for whiting.
There are a lot of frustrated outside fishermen here at the moment. The big seas and dangerous bars have kept them from the marlin that are in the front of the jail. Boat Beakie braved the conditions to fish out wide for a 75kg yellowfin and two 14kg mahi mahi. With the conditions slowly improving hopefully you all can get out there – and let us know how you went.
Don’t forget to wear your lifejacket when crossing the bars and make sure your safety gear is all up to date.

Mark and Denise Bird and Paul and Michelle Martin
Rocks Marine Bait and Tackle 6566 6726
birds@tsn.cc

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Port Macquarie

The big event now upon us is the Golden Lure game fishing tournament. In recent years, this tournament has not enjoyed assistance from the weather or sea gods, with most competition days seeing poor conditions at best along with less than desirable water colour and temperature. Without tempting fate, this year at least looks promising with the water temperature offshore reaching a hot 26° in places and the colour electric blue. Baitfish numbers are reasonable and lead-up reports encouraging.
Out wide, a few solid blue marlin to around 160kg have been encountered by anglers off Port Macquarie and South West Rocks, while inshore waters are containing increasing numbers of smaller black marlin. Yellowfin tuna are also around, with last weekend seeing fish of 25kg and 37kg kilos boated, and a larger fish reportedly lost at the boat. Mahi mahi are here in better numbers than 2003, with John from Ocean Star Charters managing a magnificent 14kg fish, along with several other around 10kg and numerous smaller specimens.
Other positive reports have also come in regarding cobia, with Barries Bay giving up a few nice fish, while Golden Lure anglers will also be pleased with reports of plenty of large sharks wider out. No reports of mackerel however if the hot currents continue perhaps we may see some action Best mahi mahi results have been off the wider FADs, including the new FAD installed by NSW Fisheries – location is 31° 24.592 S - 153° 04.672 E, around 8 nautical miles east north east of the bar in aaround 92 metres. NSW Fisheries requests absolutely NO tying up to the buoy.
John From Ocean Star reports a few nice snapper along with some nice kingfish and pearlies but on the few occasions when conditions have allowed them to get out, strong current has made bottom fish almost impossible except in quite close.
Beaches: Lighthouse has been fishing quite well. Whiting are common, with the early run-up tide producing best. A few solid bream but no real numbers. School jew numbers have been a little disappointing and there is no shortage of vermin to keep night anglers busy – stingrays, shovel nose sharks, dart and other undesirables.
Off the rocks, good numbers of bream have been snared from the washes, with early morning fishing best. Tailor have been hit and miss although a few nice bags have been extracted from Point Plommer and surrounds. Good numbers of blackfish along with the odd pig. A few jew were also taken from Plommer last weekend and this week should be prime time. Little LBG action as yet.
In the estuary, flathead continue to dominate, with the Hasting fishing exceptionally well. Best results come from the Maria and above the Dennis bridge, but the breakwalls have a few nice fish. Blackfish remain patchy, as too are bream, but the leases around Limeburners are well worth a go from a boat. Crabs remain excellent with plenty of muddies upstream and blue swimmers in the lower reaches. Many stories of stolen, destroyed or raided traps. Last moon was excellent for prawns and we are now entering a new dark. When Lake Cathie is open, as it is now, you only need a scoop net and a decent light to manage a nice feed. Simply find some standing space on the run-out tide and scoop them up as they go past. This method is often more successful than the traditional drag nets, with last month in particular seeing most scoopers achieving better than a couple of kilos apiece on most nights.

Jason and Virginia Isaac, Ned Kelly’s Bait and Tackle 6583 8318
cjisaac@ozemail.com.au

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Forster
Offshore: At last a change in wind direction has allowed the warmer water to settle in and bring with it fish that we would have expected to see a month ago. Over the last few days reports of small black marlin and big mahi mahi have been coming in from waters to the north of Forster/Tuncurry. The reefs in the same area are well stocked with baitfish (slimies) and have produced quality Snapper. Looks like the fun is just begining!
Beaches: Sadly, beaches to the south of town are suffering from red weed. If you can find a clear area there are plenty of whiting, some bream and tailor.
Rocks: The situation is much the same as the beaches. No reports yet to get the land based game addicts excited.
Estuary: Plenty of mulloway have been reported from the Tuncurry Breakwall along with some huge bronze whalers after dark. The lake and rivers are providing enormous quantities of whiting with plenty of flathead for good measure. Bream are well established in the upper reaches of the rivers with surface lures working well. It's also worth setting the crab traps while out on the lake for the day.

Lloyd Campbell, Great Lakes Tackle 02 6554 9541

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Port Stephens
Estuary: School jew on the breakwall, flathead corrie Island and Myall river, sand whiting Middle Grounds Manton Bank, blue swimmers Taylors Beach and Cromarty. Bream Rocks Awash, North Arm cove.
Beaches: Water has warmed up. Whiting, bream on Stockton, good jew between the Huts and the Wreck. Stacks of whiting One Mile and Fingal. Jew on Sandy Point and Little Gibber.
Rocks: Squid any bay from Tomaree to Birubi. Kingies Fingal Head, One Mile; a few bream around the washes in Honeysuckle and Boulder Bay.
Outside: Water has climbed to 20° inshore (16° last weekend!). Snapper to 6kg off Boat Harbour, also Sisters, looking Glass and off Fingal light. School jew The 21, Bulahdelah Wide, trag The 21, Gibber. Best snapper on the Breaker at Seal Rocks. Big mahi mahi in 70 fathoms, a few little black marlin inside 60 fathoms, striped marlin and blacks on the shelf. Heaps of sharks, little hammers everywhere.

Graham Duffy, Salamander Bait and Tackle 02 4982 0711

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Hunter Area

Jordan Armstrong,
Tackle Power Fishing Stores,
Jordan@tacklepower.com.au

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Newcastle
Bream in close down at Cams Beach, Blacksmiths breakwall for tailor, nothing much in the channel. Blackfish on Lucys Wall and lots of squid at the same place.

Peter Sanderson, Fisherman's Warehouse (02) 4945 8922
enquiries@fishermanswarehouse.com.au

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Central Coast

Gary Oxley Coastline Bait & Tackle, East Gosford ph/fax 4325 4255
kathgaz@bigpond.com
http://www.coastlinefishing.easysites.ws

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Sydney Northern
The offshore scene has picked up with warm blue water just off the coast holding baitfish schools and the marlin are never too far away. Jason Olivey scored a nice 14kg mahi mahi on a live slimy mackerel about 6km off of the northern beaches. He says you need to find the blue water before you’ll find the dollies.
Off the stones, cold, green water has replaced the nice blue stuff so most fish have slowed up a bit. Bonito have been spun up from Whale Beach, Curl Curl and North Head ledges with a few rat kings taking to the metal slugs. It’s good to see the kings not being so picky for a change.
Alex Bellissimo pulled some reds from the wash and the live-baiters have landed kings to 6kg off North Head. Most, if not all, the action needs the blue water present.
Sydney Harbour is holding good form considering conflicting water temps, down as low as 18º and green through to 23.9º and blue. Middle Harbour has consistently held bait and kingfish in the deeper water while the sand flats and drop-offs are producing flathead and bream in good numbers on strip baits, worms and plastics. Over to central harbour as far down as the bridge bonito have been spun up in among the salmon and tailor as they herd their feed. Squid have been caught around the weed beds but not too many. Still worth a throw at your local yakka spot, you only need one or two to maximise kingfish attention. Peter Le Blang of Harbour and Estuary Charters in Pittwater has water temps from 24.1º to 25.4º, the extreme upper reaches with all the action means less travel and more fishing. Kingies are hitting live and dead squid on the downriggers and taking live baits and trolled Rapalas. If you get a school up to your boat they’ll even scoff a whitebait unweighted. Surface trolling any metal lure will get you tailor to 50cm while most bream grounds are holding squid.
Blue Swimmers are quite visible in the clear water with four metres as deep you would set any trap. Another monster just under 100cm from nipper to nipper was caught during the week, sort of explains how your trap can relocate itself 30 metres away sometimes!

Peter/Kurt
Darren Thomas, Fish Outta Water 9949 9488
captainkurt100@hotmail.com

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Sydney Southern
Sydney has been experiencing ocean water temperatures down to as low as 15° and as high as 22°. This fluctuation has put a lot of the fish off the bite. I was out on Botany Bay earlier in the week, just after the southerly came up, and the water temperature had risen to about 21°. With this rise came the increase in the fish activity.
The Hot Water Outlet has been producing yellowtail kingfish in the early hours of the morning and about an hour and a half before dark. Best baits have been whole garfish and plastics that have been skipped across the surface. Once the kingfish have gone quiet you should try anchoring up and start a berley trail going. This will bring in the silver trevally and the odd bream.
While out on the water I saw a couple of anglers fishing off the shoreline near the Captain Cook memorial. They were pulling in a couple of bream, silver trevally and the odd undersized snapper. Mark Heffernan and I fished just wide of this spot for silver trevally and snapper to 44cm. The fish were caught on peeled prawns or pink nippers. Mark also managed to get his first kingfish (64cm), his first salmon (56cm) and silver trevally to just under a kilo.
There haven’t been a lot of surface fish about, but this shouldn’t stop you from trolling in and around the structures in the bay. When we were back at the boat ramp I did spot an angler who was cleaning a couple of dusky flathead. They had both been caught on whitebait.
Port Hacking has been really turning it on for whiting. They have been everywhere. Just find yourself a sand bank or flat, anchor up, lay out a berley trail and start fishing. Best baits have been blood, tube, beach and squirt worms.
The Georges River is worth a try for bream, flathead and the odd mulloway. Places to try are the Como and Alfords Point bridges.
FISHING CLASSES
In conjunction with Roland Persson from All at Sea Fishing Charters I will hold fishing clinics on his Seatamer 34 in the confines of Port Hacking over Summer where I will teach kids the fundamentals of how to fish. The three-hour classes will run three times daily on selected days. Call Roland on 0414 525 968 or me on 0422 994 207 for details.
My regular fishing classes on how, where and when to fish the waterways of Sydney from the shore and boats will run for three consecutive Tuesday nights for $80. Email me at gbrown1@iprimus.com.au or phone 0422 994 207 or next time you are passing the shop come in and book.

Mako Tackle
Gary Brown / Greg Mercedes 9600 6999

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Wollongong
Estuary: Good flathead in the channel down near the entrance on prawns, whitebait and red plastics. Next week as the moon goes off there should be prawns around Primbee late next week. Good flathead Griffins bay. Yacht Club at Berkley for flatties on dark lures.
Beaches: Windang for salmon and tailor, small whiting also. Coniston for good tailor at the southern end, pillies and strip baits.
Rocks: Port Kembla for salmon and tailor, kings around 65cm on lures and bait at Kiama Blowhole but a lot of slimies to get through.
Offshore: The islands for plenty of bream and mowies on big prawns; surface fish quiet but some nice mahi mahi off Kembla traps. Heaps of sharks. Marlin to 100kg around the shelf on big blue lures and live baits.

Garth, Deans Bait and Tackle, Windang 4295 1615

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Batemans Bay
Outside: Improving with good snapper to 5kg and kings more regular. Mate Justin Lake trolled up a 9.5kg king on a Rapala CD Magnum just off The Bay. A 150kg blue marlin tagged last weekend with a few smaller ones and one around 60kg was kept.
River: All firing despite the extra boat traffic. I hit the racks the other day and found plenty of bream willing to take a lure. Local John Bradley weighed a 3.5kg flattie caught upstream of the bridge right in the middle of the busy boat traffic. Plenty of whiting and hundreds of pint-sized estuary perch. Bass still on up in the fresh.
Not many reports from the rocks or beaches.

Rodney Stockman,
Harry’s Bait and Tackle
ph 02 4472 4393, fax 02 4472 3405

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Narooma

Darryl, The Ocean Hut 4476 2278

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Bermagui
Offshore: A 68.8kg yellowfin weighed on Wednesday, marlin tagged and heaps dropped. Other yellowfin caught as well and even double hook-ups. Kings showing at the island, reef fishing still good.
Beaches: Bream showing as well as plenty of salmon. Drummer off the rocks.
Estuaries: All firing very well.

Darren Redman and Mark Rose,
Bermagui Ocean Hut and Charter Booking Service, 6493 4688

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