SOMERSET DAM – Somerset is still fishing quite well however the schools have begun to scatter and be less dense and on some days they can be hard to locate. The quantity of fish that are being caught has been diminished a little although the quality is still there. The main area to concentrate your efforts is around Pelican Point. The schools that are being found are in varying depths of water depending on the time of day. Generally what is happening is earlier in the morning the fish are heading into the shallows around 12ft or less and then heading to the deeper water as the sun gets higher during the day. What we are finding is that once you have located the fish it is important to back off them a little and punch out long casts past the fish and then work the lure back through them. This is a good technique also if the fish are scattered as you are able to cover a lot ground. Vary the speed of your retrieve and use hops and pauses as what works one day may not work the next. I find that a real slow retrieve close to the bottom is the most effective retrieve in most cases as Somerset Bass get hammered a fair bit and often need the lure in their face a little longer before they will strike.

BORUMBA DAM – There are some real positive signs from this dam at present with some schooling bass being located and some hungry Saratoga now beginning to really fire. The bass are being taken in the junction of the creeks amongst the sticks using spinnerbaits and ice jigs when the schools are found. If you can get your hands on Motty’s new Smak ice jigs then you will do well as the fish in the dam in this area are loving these lures at present. The “’Toga“ have been on the chew with the weather heating up and multiple catches are now becoming much more common. The area to target these great sport fish is up the Yabba Arm of the dam up the very back where it gets quite shallow. Cultiva Zip’n’Ziggies are proving lethal from early to late morning and later in the afternoon. During the day spinnerbaits are effective in purple, white and chartreuse colours.

LAKE MACDONALD – Lake MacDonald is still recording some solid catches with most anglers coming away with some fish in boat at days end. There is still a school of bass off the point of bass bay which are responding well to blades and plastics. The three ways and the bubble trail have seen some solid bass being landed with the odd Yellowbelly to 40cm here and there.

Hope this helps,

Brendan

If you’ve been away fishing you might not have heard the good news: anglers no longer need to remove a pectoral fin from coral reef finfish. Here’s the official Fisheries statement:

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No more pectoral fin removal for recreational fishers
Recreational fishers will no longer be required to remove the pectoral fin from coral reef fin fish and Spanish mackerel following changes to Queensland fishing rules.
Fisheries Minister Craig Wallace said the requirement for recreational fishers to remove the pectoral fin was no longer considered necessary.
“We had the rule in place to help prevent illegal marketing of coral reef fin fish and Spanish mackerel,” Mr Wallace said.
“By requiring recreational fishers to remove the pectoral fin, we were seeking to identify people who were selling the whole fish without a commercial licence.
“Illegal or black marketing is a significant threat to the economic viability of the commercial fishing industry, and it is imperative we continue to target such activity.
“However, we found that the rule to remove the pectoral fin did not help prevent illegal marketing and by removing it we are reducing the regulatory burden on recreational fishers.
“The Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol has a number of ways for targeting illegal marketing including onsite inspections of seafood wholesalers.
“The public can also help by reporting suspected illegal fishing activities to the Fishwatch hotline on 1800 017 116.”
For further information on fishing rules, visit www.fisheries.qld.gov.au.
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Regards

Nicole Penfold
Editor
Australian Fishing Tackle Retailer (AFTR)
The official publication of the
Australian Fishing Trade Association

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OFFSHORE – sweetlip and snapper on murphys reef. cobia and snapper on caloundra 9 mile. few spanish on the outer gneerings. school mackeral and the odd spotty on coolum reefs. pearl perch, red throat and snapper on the top of the banks.

ESTUARY – Bream and trevally on the top of the tide at the mouth of mooloolah river. few jacks in the upper reaches aswell. whiting, bream and flathead at the mouth of maroochy. school jew on plastics in the cod hole. jew jacks on live bait at the mouth of petrie creek. bli bli to coolum creek school jew and jacks. trevally, whiting and jacks in currimundi lake.

Well if you are a freshwater fishing enthusiast then it is time to get very excited as the fishing in the dams, rivers and creeks is heating up.

SOMERSET DAM – Once again Somerset is most probably the pick of the impoundments at present with some thumping fish being taken throughout the dam. The area from Beams creek to Pelican point is still producing some good consistent catches for bait fishermen, trollers and lure fishermen. This area has been copping a lot of pressure over the past few months which has meant that the lure casters have found it increasingly difficult to catch fish. The key at the moment is to slow the retrieve right down to an absolute crawl and you will find that the hook up rate is more in your favour. Soft plastics have been working well in this area along with ice jigs. The trollers have been doing well in this area with catches of 30+ fish not being uncommon. Most people have fished this area in around 20 – 30 feet however fish a little deeper in 45 feet plus and the fish should be more condensed and active. Other areas that are housing strong concentrations of fish are Poly Point, The Spit, Out from Red Rock and Queen Street. All these locations are giving up good numbers of fish. The usual suspects will work on these fish such as blades, jigs, plastics, jackals and even spinner baits. Some very large specimens up to 59cm have been taken off Pelican Point in the last week and the concentration of fish along this flat has increased so this would be a great starting point. Most points in the dam are a good option especially if you do not have all the electronics to pinpoint schools exactly. Saratoga have been a regular catch for boys targeting yellas up in the timber. Lightly weighted spinnerbaits tossed into the shallows has been quite successful. I personally like using bright chartreuse colours when chasing toga as it seems to catch their eye.

BORUMBA DAM – Borumba has been hit and miss for a lot of anglers of late with some having a very productive day while others are catching only a few or none. The pleasing thing is that the weather in the area has been quite warm and humid which tends to fire up the fish and get them on the chew. There are a couple of areas that have been the got to spots in recent weeks depending on what species you are targeting. The junction of the creeks in the timber is still fishing well for bass and yellas with some thumping 55cm yellowbelly being caught quite regularly. Borumba creek has some concentrations of fish that can be targeted but they can be hard to locate at times in this area so take a look, throw a few lures around and then move on if you can’t locate any on your sounder. Head up into the Yabba or Kingham if you want some Toga as they are now starting to become active and more visible close to the surface in the shallows. They can be easy to spook as you are in such minimal water so try and keep away from the other boats to maximise your chances. Target the shallows where there is some cover such as timber, lilypads or weed and once again use lightly weighted spinner baits. If you can spot them close to the surface throw some surface lures around and have some great fun.

RIVERS AND CREEKS – One of the best options for freshwater fishermen at present is the rivers around the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast. Massive numbers of bass are being caught along with plenty of yellas and some quality cod. During the week, 3 cod were caught in a 500m stretch of water in the Stanley River all reaching the 75cm mark. The bass in this system are generally on the smaller size but there are some better quality fish taken. All the yellow belly have been quality, reports are they are up and over the 50cm mark. Spinnerbaits have been the weapon of choice with darker colours being the most productive. The Mary River has been absolutely on fire with huge catches of bass being recorded and many of them over the 50cm mark. Cod are being caught fairly regularly and some huge yellowbelly up to 60cm. The reports are that it is uncommon to land any fish under the 40cm mark. The fish in the rivers at the moment are trying to get back to the fresh after spawning and they are waiting for a little more rain to assist them in getting there so they are sitting in the pools around structure just waiting. Get in there and enjoy yourselves, the fishing is red hot!

Hope this helps,

Brendan