mackerel

AN invitation to join a Swain Reefs fishing trip is pretty hard to knock back, and to do a trip with essentially the same nucleus of guys from previous years that all get on well and love their fishing makes it even harder. We headed out from Yeppoon late in the evening on the Capricorn Star with owner/skipper Scott Wilson …

Lewan and I were trying to skull drag our mackerel to the boat on many days and this often worked on the smaller fish but boy did we lose some. We pulled hooks, broke hooks, broke wire traces and broke the line in an effort to get the mackerel past the sharks. As annoying as it is not being able …

If you would like to join me on a charter, give me a call on 0433 732 310, check out the Moreton Bay Charters Facebook page or visit moretonbaycharters.com.au Until next month, stay safe on the water.

It had been a long time since I’d caught decent size pelagic fish and I’d forgotten just how much fun it is to have your line-burning retrieve stopped in its tracks as a super-fast sportfish takes off in the other direction with your lure in its mouth. Having not previously caught mackerel on anything heavier than 10lb gear, I was …

ALL in all the weather around the Bundaberg area hasn’t been too bad for the kids on school holidays.  Some excellent reports have come in from both estuary and offshore during this past week. The Burnett River has continued to produce the goods with some top quality flathead and grunter keeping the youngsters amused.  Both soft plastics and fresh baits …

WITH reports of water temperatures rising over the last week, good size Flathead have been taken on lures and small pilchards with hots spots being around sand banks near the mouth, back of the sound and the entrance to the first lake. The new Fish Candy Chasebaits in 3 and 4 inch paddle bait have been dynamite on these quality …

AFTER a mild winter and the days warming, it has made for a stellar start to the spring fishing season. Quality whiting been taken around the sand flats and the sand bags. If using bait ensure you pick up some live or cured worms, alternatively some of the best lures returning a catch have been the affordable 70mm Strada Viral lures …

LOOKING at the latest forecast, things around the Bundaberg area may come good for some offshore fishing, so fingers crossed. Also, keep an eye on the latest forecast before heading out, as the predicted northerlies can be unpredictable. The mouths of most of the rivers have been fishing well with some school mackerel, tailor and a mix of trevally and …

Some of the fishing from the deck of the Capricorn Star was very good. Everyone was fishing braid, and with an experienced crew tangles were at a minimum. On a number of occasions the quality of fish was much better than I had expected, and it was surprising how quickly a good catch could be put together. Ivan Mapp landed …

Lake Monduran is still well worth a crack for a barra.  The better sessions have come in the afternoons in the shallow, sun-warmed bays, suspending hard bodies are still by far the most successful lures and this action should only improve over the next few months. Fish with confidence, Dale Smith