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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Craig Wraight
BP Discount Fishing Tackle, Brunswick Heads
ausie_28_red@yahoo.com.au
Phone (02) 66851268

Good catches of tailor from most headlands – Broken Head, the cape fishing very well. The odd school of salmon on Tallow Beach. Good jewfish from Broken Head and under the lighthouse. Whiting, bream and dart from Suffolk Park, Cosy Corner, Belongil Beach.

David Keevers, Coastal Fishing Tackle 02 66 857 133

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Mandy from Dave’s Bait Shop says early whiting are showing in North Creek and Emigrant Creek. Bloodworms are the top bait. Bream biting best at night along the Porpoise Wall. Some school jew in the river around the back of the police station and along the walls. Tailor from the beaches. Some snapper outside. Alex Hickson and I struggled briefly in the Ballina gales on Wednesday in search of estuary perch but found only a handful of small bream and flatties – and a 46cm bass!
The wind has been appalling at Evans over the past week and no one much has been keen enough to brave it but the weather seems to has taken a turn for the better for the weekend, for once. Big schools of pilchards in the bay with about 1000 gannets dive-bombing them, but no sign of any fish working the schools. Three or four humpback whales have been dining on the bait big-time for the past few days – I guess a 3” Berkley Bass Minnow would match the hatch but I reckon you’d need about a 1500lb leader and 1200km of Fireline to have any chance... A few bream and blackfish in a very clear Evans River and a couple of reports of bream and whiting along the beaches and around the headlands. The one pro who’s been offshore this week brought back a handful of medium snapper and some trag on Thursday.

Dave’s Bait Shop 02 6686 2481
&
Tony Zann

t.zann@fishingmonthly.com.au

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Earlier in the week when there was a bit of sea around there were a good lot of tailor right throughout the area. Lots of salmon as well. Quite a few good jew on the walls at night, mostly on live flat-tail mullet. The breakwalls have also seen a bit of luderick action finally but just in the last couple of days. Thursday was not so good as we had one hell of a wind blowing, the water was crystal clear and I saw two very small schools of traveling fish zoom past. It was hard fishing. The Broadwater is still producing lizards, but the best results are in the real shallows. There are a few surface fish going through. Reef fishing is not dynamic but passable.

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

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Salmon and tailor still infesting the beach gutters and headlands.
Good bream moving into the estuaries along with a rather nice run of blackfish. A few flathead also turning up but I suggest you stay at the lower ends where fishing is more productive.
Offshore fishing has been hampered by the wind but the inshore reefs have turned up some nice snapper with a few kings as well. Dreaded green toads out wide but still fishable.

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

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Mark and Denise Bird and Paul and Michelle Martin
Rocks Marine Bait and Tackle 6566 6726
rocksmarine@dodo.com.au

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Off the beaches, things are certainly looking up, with Lighthouse and North Beach re-forming after the big seas a couple of weeks ago. Whilst tailor have been a little slow over the past week, the bream have finally shown up in reasonable numbers. Quality fish have been caught on all local beaches with numerous fish over a kilo. With the moon on the wane, expect catches to pick up further. Incidentally, the better catches have been achieved in shallower areas of the beaches, particularly at night. A few solid whiting have also turned up and plenty of salmon remain on offer. School jew have been a little quiet but those putting in the effort and fishing structure have generally been rewarded with the odd fish.
In the estuary, blackfish are as good as they have been for the past couple of years, with both breakwalls holding plenty of fish to a kilo. Areas upstream have also been producing, albeit less consistently, but by all reports the river is near black in places, such are their numbers. Bream have improved markedly and should improve further as the moon wanes. Best results are evening and night, with gut baits always a winner at this time of year. For those drifting or throwing lures, flathead numbers and quality remain quite good for this time of year.
Off the stones, good numbers off drummer have been reported, with ledges south providing the better action. Diamond Head in particular has fired up, and Lighthouse and Blueface are both well worth a lash. Bream have picked up noticeably with Hat Head and Plommer giving up several bag limits, while Lighthouse has also held quality fish. Tailor have been relatively hard to come by, although the odd solid fish has been encountered during early morning sessions. The westerly winds and calm seas are ideal conditions for Groper.
Outside, excellent catches of pearl perch continue from most reefs, and not just those in deeper water. The past few months in particular has seen more pearlies taken from around the 30-metre mark than in living memory. Good snapper are also on offer while the flattie grounds are reportedly producing by far the best quality and quantity of fish for some time. Leatherjackets are still around although not in the plagues of the past month or so.

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

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Offshore: At last something has arrived on time this year – August winds! These should abate over the next few days and allow a few boats to venture to sea. Last weekend those fishing inshore reefs reported a very strong current flowing south, which made it difficult to fish. A few boats cubed for yellowfin with no luck but found some quality kingfish on the bottom in about 150 metres. This same crew also boated two hapuku.
Beaches: Offshore winds have greatly reduced wave action and most beaches will provide little action other than salmon.
Rocks: While there hasn't been much whitewater the rock fishing for drummer, blackfish and bream is as good as it gets. A hike into an isolated spot might see you have it all to yourself, but it might not be necessary as the easy to get to spots have enough fish for all.
Estuary: Mulloway action has slowed but the estuary system still has plenty to offer. I've received lots of reports of small squire in the lake but that’s not unusual at this time of the year. Several anglers have reported big calamari squid on the west side of Big Island. Blackfish and bream have been common in and around the bridge, as have some large tailor.

Lloyd Campbell, Great Lakes Tackle 02 6554 9541

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Estuary: Bream on both walls, Corrie island, Cromarty Bay. A few trevally on the breakwall. Flathead in the Karuah River above the bridge, the Myall River up to Tamboy. Trumpeter whiting in the Back Paddock off Soldiers Point. Stacks of blue swimmers in 20-30 feet of water.
Rocks: Plenty of pigs Boat Harbour, Honeysuckle, Cemetery. Blackfish at Boulder Bay, Skate Bay. Bream in the washes around Fingal, especially in the Grit Hole. Good reds off Boat Harbour and Fishermans.
Beach: Bream back on the bite off Stockton with whiting and a few school jew. Salmon plague getting thicker, if you can imagine that. Tailor on Box beach, One Mile, Zenith.
Offhsore: Jew on Bulahdelah Wide, The Tank. Snapper in the shallows around Sisters, North Island, Mungo, Breakers. A few trag on the Gibber. Kings on The 21 on jigs, East Head at Broughton. Stacks of flathead on the drift off Fingal Light and the back of Mungo.

Graham Duffy, Salamander Bait and Tackle 02 4982 0711

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Fishing remains consistent with good catches of bream and flathead from the Newcastle Harbour area with most fish falling to fresh baits on lightly weighted rigs. Darren Maher and mate Danny Stace seem to know where to find them with bream to 1.2kg coming from the artificial structures of the harbour using whitebait. Luderick continue to be caught from the harbour breakwalls as well as right up the river and word has it that some school mulloway are also being caught.
Stockton Beach has seen some reasonable bream action by those willing to use fillet baits or pipis, as well as the ever-present salmon and tailor and should start to see some good mulloway over the next few months if past years are any indication.
Offshore from Swansea has produced reasonable catches with Roger McIvor and mate Craig fishing the local washes over the weekend and landing squire, trevally, bream and more of those salmon. Others continue to catch good numbers of squid from near the island as well as some large tarwhine and leatherjackets out wider.
Now that August has arrived many local anglers will be dusting the bass gear With this in mind a free information night on tactics and tools used to target bass has been arranged for Wednesday, August 11, from 6pm at Tacklepower`s Charlestown store. Well-known Queensland guide and successful tournament angler Harry Watson, in our region for the upcoming ABT Bass round being held at Lake St Clair, will be in attendance. Seats are limited so call either store to secure your place.
The fourth round of the NSW Pro Bream was held on the Clarence River at Yamba last weekend with many local anglers travelling to compete. Large numbers of bream were encountered with many anglers catching their limit of two fish per session within half an hour of the start and continual upgrading was the norm. First place went to local tackle store owner Darren Borg with Cardiff`s Grant McKenzie second, landing the comp`s and year’s biggest bream of 1.67kg.Third place and overall NSW Pro Bream angler of the year went to Brendon Hughes of New Lambton, with other local boys, Steele Lambert in second and John Balcomb third in the overall placings for the year with Team Tacklepower securing the teams title for 2004.

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

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

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

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Cold water, minimal current and icy breezes turned the off switch on a lot of species this week including the homo sapiens. Not too many anglers braved the conditions but some good fish were still landed.
Mick from Allie Hunter took a crew overnight trolling for broadbill out past the shelf for no fish, but ripper conditions for an overnighter 40-50km offshore. Recognising dwindling conditions, Mick fished in 45m of water over gravel for some good keeper reds, moving out to the sand in 50-60m for flattie, morwong and trevally.
Des Toms of Hookem Cookem Charters says the big squid have moved into Sydney Harbour and are taking prawn style jigs at Dobroyd and Quarantine heads. Squid, slimies and trevally have been caught on the bottom. Pete from Harbour and Estuary Charters reports Barrenjoey Head is holding salmon down deep and whitebait is preferred. Funnily enough, if it’s tailor you’re after, there’s only one place to go – and that’s Taylors Point of course. They’ve been holding up in the bay.
Don’t forget that out Fish ’n’ Tips nights are back on each Thursday night. Talks start at 6pm at Fish Outta Water and drinks and nibblies are provided. Bookings are preferred as these nights can be very popular so call the shop to book your place and keep an eye on the forum at www.fishing.net.au for more info about each week’s speaker.

Darren Thomas
Fish Outta Water 9949 9488
fishon@uunet.com.au

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Mako Tackle
Gary Brown / Greg Mercedes 9600 6999

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Garth, Deans Bait and Tackle, Windang 4295 1615

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Plenty of salmon and tailor from the rocks and beaches along with a lot of bream and trevally. Best spots: Durras for salmon and tailor and Malua Bay for the bream and trevally. Salmon have been 1.5kg to 2kg with some big tailor in there as well. In the washes there are some very good pigs and a few weeks ago Rex Mowbray caught a 9kg silver drummer from the rocks down south and there have been some nice silvers taken regularly around Congo.
Estuaries have been pretty quiet but some good salmon schools have moved into Tuross Lake and the Moruya River, though the netters are moving into the Moruya as I file this report.
Offshore there haven’t been many reports at all.

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

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Nothing much happening. On the beaches there are salmon and tailor. Some good snapper and mowies offshore. The estuary might be just about to kick off with the odd flatty coming in. A lot of bream around the leases but the water is so bloody clear and they’re spooky. Bait is moving back in and there are some nice tailor working the schools. We've been lucky to get jew right through winter which normally doesn’t happen. If the wind settles doen there should be some yellowfin offshore.

Darryl, The Ocean Hut 4476 2278

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

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