Fishing Monthly - Latest Fishing Reports - Updated Weekly

Fishing Monthly - Latest Fishing Reports - Updated Weekly

These reports are updated weekly.
Last Edited: Monday, 29 August 2005

Quick Jump Links:
Byron Bay, Ballina, Yamba, Coffs Harbour.
South West Rocks, Port Macquarie,
Forster, Port Stephens, Hunter Area,
Newcastle, Central Coast, Sydney Northern.
Wollongong,
Batemans Bay, Narooma, Bermagui.
Archived Reports, Weather & Tides.

COMPILED WEEKLY BY TONY ZANN IN EVANS HEAD:
e-mail: t.zann@fishingmonthly.com.au

Tweed Heads

Offshore: A few fish out there but it’s mostly been too windy. Nice pearlies, kings and the jackets have slowed right up.
Estuary has blackfish at all the usual haunts, like Boyds Bay and Drydock. Flathead throughout the river and bream at the entrance and around Boyds Bay. School jew around Barneys Point bridge on plastics and livies.
Beaches have a few chopper tailor at Cabarita and Pottsville and a few dart. Not many bream.

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

Brunswick Heads

Outside: Snapper and jew on the local reefs.
Rocks and beaches: Tailor and salmon with some jewfish on New Brighton Beach. Tailor North Wall. Bream inside South Wall.
River: Luderick and bream around the boat harbor and Spur Wall. Try for flathead in the lower part of the river. Whiting around the Ferry Reserve Caravan Park, good bream in the upper part of the river with a few big jewfish around also.

Joe
BP Discount Fishing Tackle Brunswick Heads (02) 66851268
brunswick-fishing@netspace.net.au

Byron Bay

Still heaps of flathead around the Belongil, both in the creek and on the beach. They seem to be coming from offshore and moving into the creek. Some big mud crabs knocking about in there too.
The occasional school of really big tailor moving through but they’re patchy. Offshore for some big pearl perch and squire on the gravel.

David Keevers, Coastal Fishing Tackle (02) 6685 7133

Ballina

Matt at Dave’s Bait Shop says there have been good tailor from the beaches and headlands on pillies and metals, with some fish to 3kg, along with the odd salmon. A few jew taken from the walls and deeper beach gutters such as those on Angels and Shelly beaches. The odd big whiting in North Creek near the Ex Services home and plenty of school flathead in the creek and the main river. Plenty of bream in the river and off most of the beaches but the blackfish are a little quiet. Bit too windy for offshore.
Little action likely off Evans Head this weekend with wind at 22 knots S and a fair lump of a swell. The swell has knocked about the beach fishing a bit, too, but earlier in the week there were some good low-tide gutters on Airforce Beach that harboured some nice bream and even the odd salmon. Maybe the blackfish will come around the walls as the swell drives them from the headland. A few bream in the river, mostly at night.

Dave’s Bait Shop (02) 6686 2481
&
Tony Zann

t.zann@fishingmonthly.com.au

Yamba

Not much to report this week. Early in the week the offshore guys reported leatherjackets as far as the eye can see along with some snapper to 4.3kg and the occasional trag and tuskfish.
Some big tailor at Woody Head but they’ve been sporadic. They might improve with the increased swell.
The river has been pretty quiet apart from a few flathead around Harwood flats, a sprinkling of bream and improving numbers of school jew.

Paul Kneller
Big River Bait and Tackle, Maclean (02) 6645 1834

Coffs Harbour

Pretty quiet around the traps and the weather has been against us as has the sea temperature. Estuaries are running gin-clear. Beach gutters still interesting with dart at one end and salmon at the other with a good run of tailor the odd big bream and jewfish turning up too. Big snapper have gone back to deep water with fish to 8.5kg landed earlier in the week. Some good pearl perch, big samson, kings and how many leatherjackets would you like? Interesting to see a few mahi mahi turning up on the wide traps.

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

South West Rocks

It was a little tough out there last week with fishos struggling to get a feed from outside and inshore locations.
Conditions outside have been sloppy with swell enough to make it uncomfortable. Charter operators are getting snapper in fair numbers with the odd venus tusk fish coming in off Grassy, both in close and out wide. No reports from The Dot and out wider last week. Fish Rock has been quiet with the kingfish proving very elusive and the odd snapper. If you are battling for a feed out there try the flathead grounds in front of the lighthouse.
Fishing the beaches has been very slow. Smoky Beach and Gap Beach are producing a few bream, salmon and the odd flathead. Back Beach is starting to fire up with big salmon coming in close. These fish are not terrific to eat but great fun to catch. Pilchards, strip bait or metal lures will do the job.
Blackfish were a little tougher to get last week. Numbers were down at most of the popular haunts. The fish are there but getting them to bite is the problem. Some good flathead are coming in of the breakwall on the south side along with the odd nice jewfish. Bream are still about everywhere on the river, it’s just the bigger ones that are hard to find.
Salmon are off most headlands with some bream and possibly the last of the straggler tailor if you are lucky.
There is a Fisheries discussion paper on the fresh and saltwater rules and legal lengths out now. You have a chance to comment on these ‘proposed changes’ until September 30. We urge you to read this before they go ahead and change this unopposed.

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

Port Macquarie

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

Forster

Offshore: The reefs are generally quiet but the boys on Seaquest seem to catch snapper and pearl perch at will. Still a few makos being reported. Dare I say it, but drifting for flathead seems a good option if you want a feed.
Beaches: The salmon that were in the Pacific Palms area are on the move. A few big tailor have come from the northern corners of Seven Mile and Burgess Beaches.
Rocks: There are still big traveling bream being caught south of town along with plenty of drummer. More big tailor have come from Jannies Corner.
Estuary: Small mulloway have again come from the Forster breakwall. The blackfish remain everywhere, with some aggressive bream now feeding hard in the lower parts of the Wallamba River. Some big whiting have been seen on sand flats but are yet to be caught.

Lloyd Campbell, Great Lakes Tackle 02 6554 9541

Port Stephens

Estuary: Blackfish off the breakwalls and the Tomaree tubes. Bream on the co-op and Anchorage walls and the North Arm Cove racks. Whiting Middle Grounds and west side of Soldiers. A few flathead along Baggies, Shoal Bay, Corrie Island. School jew off Oyster Cove and Karuah bridges.
Beaches: Loads of salmon with a few tailor among them. Some bream and the occasional whiting.
Rocks: Drummer on most ledges like Boulder and Honeysuckle. Good tailor Sunny Corner and One Mile. Snapper at Fishermans. Squid at Fingal and Boat Harbour. Blackfish pretty well spread out everywhere.
Offshore: Snapper at Edith Breaker, the Broughton shallows. Flathead and flounder from Fingal light over to Little Island in 40-50m, also at Providence Bay. Yellowfin tuna out on the shelf and the canyons. Kings at Looking Glass and East Head. A fair few nannygai and mowies out at the Tank and the Inner V.

Graham Duffy, Salamander Bait and Tackle 02 4982 0711

Newcastle

Have had plenty of encouraging reports of bream on the move in various parts of the lake, especially Swansea Channel and Swan Bay. Some reasonable catches of whiting but you'll have to brave the chill. The tailor are back with Dan Hughes spending some time trolling between Wangi Point and Coal Point for up to 6-10 fish to 2kg. He has most success on deep-diving Killalures in River Rat colour. When you hook up, stop the boat and cast with metal jigs to a deeper depth to hook up with any other fish that might be schooled up. Blue swimmer crabs have also been caught in numbers
Some areas of Blacksmiths Beach have also been producing mostly salmon and good tailor. The groundswell should subside over the weekend.
Offshore and the water dropped to 15.5° through the week but we had some reports of reasonable mixed catches from the deeper water, including perch, snapper, kingfish and morwong.

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

Central Coast

Fairly quiet. The kings have just about petered away out wide but a few nice snapper between 40m and 70m with fish to 3kg and pearl perch to 70cm. The estuaries have shut down after some decent flatties in Lake Macquarie and Brisbane Water. EPs have also been pretty quiet. Still masses of salmon to save your trip around Avoca bay or Barrenjoey. Rock fishing hasn’t been too bad, especially for pigs from most local ledges.

Aaron / Joel
Freddys Fishing World (02) 4367 5555
Shop 1/ 229 The Entrance Rd Erina

Sydney Northern

7kg inshore kingies, 10kg albacore out wide, fat pigs off the rocks and warmer weather slowly creeping in. Now that’s a nice way to start a report. All we need now is a bit of consistency.
The SCFC broadbill expedition/competition was blown out for the second time last weekend but things offshore are pretty good when you can get out there. Parksey managed to sneak out early in the week and was pretty happy with things when he found a big school of travelling albacore out east of Browns Mountain. Most of the fish were from 8-10kg but were great fun on relatively light (10kg) line. The only thing he could have asked for extra might have been a few yellowfin, but alas. There have been a few nice bottom-dwellers brought in, though, for those willing to winch 15kg fish up from 400+ metres. Browns has been particularly good, yielding some nice blue eyed cod and pearlies lately from right off the bottom. Just get ready to feel your arms burn. The less hardy can look toward The Peak and 12 Mile, where there are a few more common reef species in residence. Closer in, reefs and gravel beds are producing morwong and snapper respectively. Fresh squid strips or heads are the armament.
The Harbour is still clear, clean and rather quiet, holding around 14°. At least there are a few sporadic, though small, salmon schools that have crept inside to shelter. They can be found around Middle Head and at times as high up as Bantry Bay, though they’re not prolific anywhere inside the Harbour. Most of the salmon are still out the front, just off North Head, where there are larger schools of possibly the most skittish fish in the known universe. The only way to tackle them is to start a well-placed drift, by wind or current, into the area where the fish and birds are congregated and hope that one of the frequent risings will take place while you are within range! Occasionally a trolled large diving minnow, especially a blue Bombers or Blue Mackerel Rapala, has picked up fish right on the front of North Head.
There is not much else to turn a reel for around the Harbour at present, with even squid being scarce. Some recent late-night fishing by this reports previous author DT has turned up plenty of ‘box heads’ (Port Jackson sharks), inside North Harbour but in his words they would have a hard time fighting their way out of a three-week old waterlogged tissue-paper bag and given their penchant for stealing very rare and precious live squid at the moment, they are no favourites. There are a few smaller harbour drummer around Dobroyd and Fairlight if nothing else can be found.
Pittwater is a stark comparison to the Harbour, mostly due to the kingies. Everything else is the same, with cool clear waters and very few squid, but the kingies are around and up in size, with a very happy Harbour and Estuary Charter customer landing one fish to 7kg this week. Nice work from such a structure-laden environment. The fish are off the bite for most of the day, though, with all the action being concentrated within one hour either side of the change of tide. Live squid are the only option as well, even though they are scarce, as live garfish and live yakkas have both been downrigged this week for zero result. There are a few trevs around the deeper water points in Pitty, responding particularly well to a heavy pellet berley. The fish will take paternoster-rigged squid strips off the bottom, as well as unweighted baits suspended higher in the berley trail.
Beach and rock fishing is still going strong. Plenty of pigs have come in from the ledges off Queensy and Curly, as well as others. Abalone gut seems to be the pick of the baits again this week. Salmon are patrolling beach gutters in the evening, and the odd tailor is about in the same areas. For the determined, the odd smallish jewy has come in after dark lately as well.

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

Sydney Southern

Mac's Bait Bar This has been another slow week in the bay with only a handful of people fishing. Bare Island has produced some good catches of blackfish and tailor on green weed and pilchards.
There are some good-sized drummer off Cape Banks and surrounding areas; best baits have been nippers, peeled prawns and salted ab gut. Both Captain Cooks and Tom Uglys bridges are fishing well for blackfish on green weed. Also drifting around them will produce flathead. The Moons and Picnic Point are also still producing blackfish on green weed.
This looks like being a good weekend for fishing so get out there and have a go. I will be out there on Sunday in a centre console near the Kurnell oil wharf , Towra Point, Watts Reef or the centre of the bay so if you see me, come and ask how I am going.

Mitch, Mac's Bait Bar
428 Princes Hwy Blakehurst
ph 02 9546 1341, mobile 0411 661 911.

Wollongong

Lake: Plenty of blackfish near the kiosk and the finger islands on worms. A few bream on the southern pylons of the bridge. Mullet in the channel are taking bread bait with good bream in the channel between the islands on worms, along with nice whiting. Pink lures for bream around Berkley. Macquarie Rivulet and Mullet Creek going well for bream with up near the weir the best spot.
Beaches: Bream off Windang near the radio towers, nice salmon down near the little lake entrance on Warilla. North end of Port Kembla beach for jewfish to 14kg on squid and fresh yakkas.
Rocks: Trevally off Kembla headland, good pigs on royal reds and ab gut on Windang Island. Bass Point gravel loader for good blackfish. Slimies at Kiama and plenty of salmon caught at the Blowhole.
Offshore: Good snapper around the islands, nice mowies on

Garth, Deans Bait and Tackle, Windang 4295 1615

Batemans Bay

Plenty of snappers, movies and jackets offshore. Even a few big gurnard and some good sand flatties. Gummy sharks in around 20 fathoms.
Rocks have a few bream and salmon.
Beaches: Big flatties have been on the move with fish of 80cm and more. Also some nice ones in Cullendulla Creek, so that should mean the bream will be moving back into the Clyde soon. Some school jew in Tuross Lake. Flounde4r going OK in the Clyde already.

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

Narooma

Darryl, The Ocean Hut (02) 4476 2278

Bermagui

Winds light and variable, not a cloud in the sky. Water has cleared right up and plenty of snapper to 3kg out there. Good mowies and tiger flathead with the odd sand flattie. No game fish to speak of.
Beaches a bit up and down – plenty of salmon from runts to bigger stuff, depending on the school you’ve hit. A few tailor also around with an odd bream as well. Rocks for nice pigs and some good crayfish if you can brave the cold water.
Estuary: Clouds of whiting in the harbour and up towards the bridge but they’re very hard to catch, though one 45cm fish was caught near the bridge. Blackfish and trevally still in the harbour.

Darren Redman and Mark Rose,
Bermagui Ocean Hut and Charter Booking Service, (02) 6493 4688

Archived Weekly Reports

Year 2005 Weekly Reports
7/01/2005	14/01/2005	21/01/2005	28/01/2005
4/02/2005	11/02/2005	18/02/2005	25/02/2005
	18/03/2005	25/03/2005
1/04/2005	8/04/2005	15/04/2005	22/04/2005	29/04/2005
6/05/2005	13/05/2005	20/05/2005	27/05/2005
3/06/2005	10/06/2005	17/06/2005	24/06/2005
1/07/2005	8/07/2005	18/07/2005	22/07/2005	29/07/2005
5/08/2005	12/08/2005	19/08/2005

Year 2004 Weekly Reports
05/01/2004	09/01/2004	16/01/2004		30/1/2004
06/02/2004	13/02/2004	20/02/2004	27/02/2004
05/03/2004	12/03/2004	19/03/2004	26/3/2004
02/04/2004	08/04/2004	16/04/2004	23/04/2004	30/04/2004
07/05/2004	14/05/2004	21/05/2004	28/05/2004
05/06/2004	11/06/2004	18/06/2004	25/06/2004
02/07/2004	09/07/2004	19/7/2004	23/07/2004	30/07/2004
06/08/2004	13/08/2004	20/08/2004	27/08/2004
03/09/2004	10/09/2004	17/09/2004	24/09/2004
01/10/2004	08/10/04	15/10/2004	22/10/2004	29/10/2004
05/11/2004	12/11/2004	19/11/2004	26/11/2004
03/12/2004	10/12/2004	17/12/2004	24/12/2004	31/12/2004

Year 2003 Weekly Reports

07/01/2003

10/01/2003

17/01/2003

24/01/2003

31/01/2003

07/02/2003

14/02/2003

21/02/2003

01/03/2003

07/03/2003

14/03/2003

21/03/2003

28/03/2003

04/04/2003

10/04/2003

17/04/2003

24/04/2003

02/05/2003

09/05/2003

16/05/2003

23/05/2003

30/05/2003

06/06/2003

13/06/2003

20/06/2003

27/06/2003

04/07/2003

11/07/2003

18/07/2003

25/07/2003

01/08/2003

08/08/2003

15/08/2003

22/08/2003

29/08/2003

05/09/2003

12/09/2003

19/09/2003

26/09/2003

03/10/2003

10/10/2003

17/10/2003

24/10/2003

31/10/2003

7/11/2003

14/11/2003

21/11/2003

28/11/2003

5/12/2003 12/12/2003 19/12/2003 29/12/2003

Year 2002 Weekly Reports
04/01/2002	11/01/2002	18/01/2002	25/01/2002
01/02/2002	08/02/2002	15/02/2002	22/02/2002
01/03/2002	08/03/2002	15/03/2002	22/03/2002	29/03/2002
05/04/2002	12/04/2002	19/04/2002	26/04/2002
03/05/2002	10/05/2002	17/05/2002	24/05/2002
01/06/2002	07/06/2002	14/06/2002	21/06/2002	28/06/2002
05/07/2002	12/07/2002	19/07/2002	26/07/2002
02/08/2002	09/08/2002	16/08/2002	23/08/2002	30/8/2002
06/09/2002	13 /09/2002	20/09/2002	27/09/2002
04/10/2002	11/10/2002	18/10/2002	25/10/2002
01/11/2002	8/11/2002	15/11/2002	22/11/2002	29/11/2002
06/12/2002	13/12/2002	20/12/2002		30/12/2002

Year 2001 Weekly Reports
25/1/2001
01/02/2001	08/02/2001	15/02/2001	22/02/2001
02/03/2001	09/03/2001	16/03/2001	23/03/2001	31/03/2001
6/04/2001	12/04/2001	19/04/2001	26/04/2001
3/05/2001	10/05/2001	17/05/2001	24/05/2001	31/05/2001
7/06/2001	14/06/2001	21/06/2001	28/06/2001
5/07/2001	12/07/2001	19/07/2001	26/07/2001
3/08/2001	10/08/2001	17/08/2001	24/08/2001	31/08/2001
7/09/2001	14/09/2001	21/9/2001	28/9/2001
5/10/2001	12/10/2001	19/10/2001	26/10/2001
2/11/2001	9/11/2001	16/11/2001	23/11/2001	30/11/2001
7/12/2001	14/12/2001	21/12/2001	28/12/2001