Tips for chasing Jacks

[Carter]

Hard body Jack Tactics

Mangrove Jack are the violent ruffians and rascals of the northern Australian estuaries and many battles fought with these brutes have swung in favour of the fish. Hard, fast, powerful short runs give this fish its distinct advantage when the battle is fought in the vicinity of structure. When casting at snags you have to be ready to give the fish a bit of curry in a hurry. That first burst of adrenalin from the fish usually determines who wins the battle.

Over the time I spent chartering in Cairns the Mangrove Jack has been my saviour. I don’t think I ever had a disappointed customer when the Jacks were out to play, in fact they were 2nd only to the Barramundi as the most requested target estuary species. 1-2 kilo specimens are prolific around the tidal reaches of our local rivers and estuaries and are frequently caught right up into the far fresh water reaches whilst targeting other sport species.

Jacks are caught in northern NSW in small numbers but as you travel north along the Qld east coast there density thickens and they extend all the way around to the north west of W.A. Any Jack of 50cm in my book is an exceptional estuary specimen even though they do grow up to 15 odd kilo. The larger fish migrate out of the estuaries usually when they reach the 45-55 cm mark and school up in deeper water around structure but to tackle them out of the estuary environment is a totally different story.

Techniques

Trolling the creeks:

Scorned by some but worshipped by others; from personal experience trolling for Mangrove Jack can be deadly. It is an effective way to introduce inexperienced fishermen to lure fishing and a great way to explore a new area. I’ve spent many a relaxing afternoon sipping on a beverage, trolling up Jacks and just enjoying life.

In my early 20’s when I first started experimenting with lures I occasionally trolled up the odd Jack and a few other species in the Gold Coast canals and on the Fisherman Island rock walls in the Brisbane river. When I moved to Cairns where the Jack population is considerably thicker I adopted the same tactics with instant success.

The most important factor when trolling for Jacks is to be in the Zone. About 30cm off the bottom is what I would call the perfect position in the water collum. The occasional puff of sand or bump over a log doesn’t hurt and in fact can be a turn on however you don’t want to be constantly on the bottom or you’ll end up retrieving a lot of lures with a tackle back. Lifting and lowering your rod as you watch the sounder will raise and lower the lure in the water collum to a certain degree as will letting out or retrieving line.

Stagger your lures out the back for two reasons the first to try and cover as much area as possible and the second is to avoid fouling on bends. If you’re spreading different depth lures place the deeper divers in close and the shallower lures further back. When working a new creek take the time to map out your troll path concentrating on the channels, structure and mangrove undercuts. It’s possible to troll 3 plus lines a side for use in targeting deep mangrove undercuts or steep snaggy banks if you stagger them correctly but a bitch to land fish if there is only two of you fishing.

The creeks and canals that have worked best for me in are those that have an average low tide depth of approximately 2 meters. I have trolled for Jacks in depths up to 15 meters with the use of down riggers but the deeper you get the thinner the numbers although there is a distinct increase in quality. Once you start targeting deep structure by catch become a more frequent catch. You will get onto the odd patch in deeper water and on rock bars but the shallower creeks are much more predictable, reliable and thicker in numbers. Once you catch a Jack whilst trolling work over the same area a few times because despite having a reputation as being a territorial fish there’s usually a few hanging out together. They are probably there in the same area for a good reason, food availability!

90% of my trolling in the estuaries whilst chartering was done with the big 4 banger at idle speed. The noise of the engine doesn’t seem to deter the Jacks except in the smaller constricted creeks with depths under 1.5 mtrs.

Twitching a slowly trolled Jack snack or Barra pro mini behind an electric motor in these barely big enough tropical creeks on those hot summer afternoon low tides can also be deadly although the average size tends to lack a little.

Get to know your local creek because the more you troll it the more refined you will become.

Casting the Snags:

This can be brutal! Once you’ve been bricked by a Jack back into the snags you realize how important it is to get the upper hand straight away.

In the remote areas of Qld where they are at their thickest cricket scores are sometimes caught in a dream day session. I’ve seen balls of fish fighting for a lure as it’s retrieved from the snaggy haunts they reside in.

When choosing a bank to lure I always look for thick deep snags, shady mangrove undercuts and mangrove root lines that are still submersed at low tide. Run off gutters and creeks with snags at their intersection are usually a shore thing.

Once you’ve picked a likely looking lair the idea is to drift past or anchor up at a comfortable casting distance and cast at the structured as closely as possible. Don’t sit on a snag and flog it to death, if you don’t get a hit within a half dozen of casts move on. Casting accuracy usually plays an important factor in determining the success of a trip especially when the fishing is a bit tough so to speak. If your not getting your lure into the thick of it your not in far enough.

An electric motor to whiz yourself along the snag line is a must for any one serious in targeting them however using a mental calculation of the tide, current and wind can work depending on the severity and circumstances of conditions. If you don’t have an electric and drifting just isn’t working anchor back off the snags and work them over. This is a lot more time consuming. The more area worked usually results in a higher numbers hooked.

Take the time to work out a game plan. My usual plan of attack is to head up stream picking the prime looking banks, work my way back down the chosen sections with the outgoing tide and then back up with the incoming. The main reason for this is that it helps to save the battery power for the electric motor especially on extended trips.

Jacks are usually responsive to medium/slow erratic deep retrievals, but experimentation always is the key. A good place to start is with a buoyant lure that will dive down the snag face a little. If you hit the snag matter just let your lure float up a little and continue retrieving.

Poppers also take their toll in the snags particularly in the upper fresh water reaches or on the mangrove fringes around the neap tides. This is a much more visually rewarding style of approach suited for low light situations (first light, last light and shaded areas).

Tides/times:

As with most species the tides and moon phases influence the feeding patterns of Mangrove Jack quite considerably. They can be caught day/night, low or high tide but if you want to be constantly successful attention to the tides and applying the right techniques for those tides makes all the difference. For both trolling and casting snags the optimum luring time of the tide is about 2 hours either side of the low tide change.

At high tide you would be more likely to target them on the flats areas around mangrove fringes and rock out crops etc they are still a viable target but techniques vary.

No run no fun! Having at least 1 meter of run in the tide for me has produced the most consistent results.

The 5 days leading up to the new moon is from experience the optimum time to target them and leading up to the full moon also produces good numbers.

In the cooler months of Qld when that cold snap sets in (12-20 degrees) the water drops suddenly and they almost go off the bite at the click of your fingers. You will still catch them in winter but the bite does slow down considerably and they are much more of an option floating live baits into the snags or targeting them at night on the mangrove flats with live or cut baits. Jacks respond well to sudden rises in the water temp and react badly to sudden drops in temperature just like the Barramundi.

From May through to the end of August they are not considered a viable target species for charter operators. In my home waters when the water temperature rises back up to 20- 24 degrees they go in search of food just like a bear coming out of hibernation. The warmer the water, the more energetic, curious and troublesome the fish become.

Tackle:

A 3-5 kilo spin or bait caster combo will do the job fine depending on your preference. Use the best gear you can afford and look after it.

I use a Daiwa SOL bait caster and a Loomis 662 because they’re the tools of my trade, but the trusty old ABU full of 20lb braid and an ugly stick will be ample to knock over the average fish you’re likely to encounter. They won’t be taking long blistering runs but you will need to lock the thumbs down and pull the bigger fish up short if they head home in a hurry. You might pull a few hooks but its better than loosing a few lures.

When trolling back the drag off a little especially if the rod is in the holder because they hit pretty dam hard. There’s a lot of inertia behind the boat, when the fish hits a trolled lure the boat keeps going, the rod bends a little and something has to give. Don’t be lazy, hold your rod and use your arm as a shock absorber it only takes one hand so you can still sip a tinnie or steer with the other.

For leader I recommend about 1 mtr of 20 -30lb mono or fluorocarbon attached via a double to the main line. No swivel! I prefer to use a perfection loop but a snap clip can be used for ease of changing lures.

Lures:

Match the hatch in size more so than colour and match your lure to the depth in which you’re fishing.

Most of the lures I use for Jacks are between 5 and 10 cm’s long. Mann’s 10+, C-Lure Jack snacks, Berkley Flickiers and Barra pro mini’s are my all time favourites which have been proven again and again over many years.

Use SHARP strong hooks; this is very important for your hook up rate.

I’ve seen Jacks caught on every colour of the rainbow but I usually start off with gold or a natural colour. On some days one particular colour will catch every fish and on others they’ll hit everything you throw at them. Remember tomorrow might be a totally different story. What works today might not be in season tomorrow however it’s still a good place to start.

Cheers Greg Carter

[mongrel jack]

Awesome Stuff - thanks mate!

[toonie]

that was awesome!! im hoping to catch my 1st one this summer!

[Carter]

Jacks on Poppers tactics continued.

Low light hours being either first or last light, heavily clouded days or heavily shaded areas are the best times or places to target jacks on surface lures. If it’s too bright they will be spooky or still on the deeper water edges. You will still catch them but not to the same extent. I’ve found that Jacks do not like to rise from deep water to attack a lure however there have been exceptions.

Water clarity also plays its part in success, clear shaded water usually around the slower/neap tides seem to work best. In the upper reaches the water is usually clearer around the neap tides because there is less run to stir it up. Wind direction, rain and rain run off are also culprits in determining the water clarity but it’s nearly impossible to get everything perfect. My best surface sessions have always been in clean water.

Timing of the tides is the most critical factor to ensure a successful trip. Ideally you need to time it so that you have the magic depth of .6-1.2 meters of water covering the area you wish to fish coinciding with the lower light situations mentioned. That can be around the high tide or low tide change. The longer the water remains at the magic height the better. If the water is too high the Jacks seem to go right into the inaccessible mangroves or structure in chase of a feed.

Fishing the neap tides that have been a standout which usually coincides with the first and third quarter of the moon phase. This is a time when other methods of targeting them by trolling or snag bashing can be a little difficult. Jacks are just about always there for the taking but techniques for different tides and seasons can change dramatically.

There are many types of surface lures available that work well and many different ways to work them. Poppers between 5 and 10 centimetres should work if presented with a ,little finesse but my personal favourites are the Zippin Ziggy and the Skitter pop. Some of my mates have other favourites but in the end we all catch fish. I don’t think colour seems to matter so much when chasing them on the surface and using a heavy leader for me has been no disadvantage because I believe the fish are concentrating on the main body dispersion rather than what is dragging it along.

The main retrieval patterns that we use are simple small blooping strokes back to the boat and another method that’s called walking the dog. If there is more than one angler use a variety of surface lures until you find which are working best. I’ve had days when only one type of lure will catch fish. Practice and variation is the key to success especially on those fickle days, sooner or later something will start to work and when it does stick with it. The small blooping action is basically made by keeping your rod tip down and twitching the rod towards your feet as you take up slack line. Walking the dog is similar but a rhythm is worked which makes the surface lure swing from side to side. Jacks don’t like a fast retrieve skipped back to the boat, that’s more a pelagic technique but a quick squirt and pause attack has worked a few times.

The more ground you cover the more Jacks you are likely to catch. We work the likely looking haunts as accurately as possible trying to get right into the structure and as far up into the mangroves we can without committing suicide. Most of the hits happen within the first few bloops but I have had them hit at the boat in open shallow water.

Fish till you go mad, (I’m half way there)

Greg Carter.

[attachment]C:\fakepath\surface fished at dawn.tif[/attachment]

[keen_as]

Thanks for so much info Carter, very insightful and some more food for thought.

I've always tried to read every article or tid bit of info on this fish to highten my chances of success. I've still only managed to catch a couple but I'm confident I'll get on to a few more this year

[Carter]

Thanks for so much info Carter, very insightful and some more food for thought.

I've always tried to read every article or tid bit of info on this fish to highten my chances of success. I've still only managed to catch a couple but I'm confident I'll get on to a few more this year

No problem, glad I can help out,

[Angus]

Nice one Greg!

Ill talk to you about turning this into an actual article!

See you sat!

Angus

[Guest]

thanks for the tips, im sure many people on here have benifited from your advice mate..much appreciated.

[Perky]

Mate thanks so much for sharing all of this great info. I know i will definitely be using some of this knowledge this summer. Cheers.

[sweresy]

great read Greg!! The old Jack Snack hey?? lol you're going back to the Dom Fry days there mate

awesome shared knowledge with that outstanding report!

[JTL]

Thanks for the insight into Jack fishing, it is my favourite fish!

[nathan05]

awesome insight mate and much appreciated by all im sure!

[Zim man]

awesome write, that and the other jack article should be made a sticky in a how to section of come kind. good stuff there

[Angus]

Read my mond Rob.

I was going to turn this (with gregs permission) into a front pager that will become part of our archive of articles.

Angus

[rayke1938]

Should be in helpful articles in the tacklebox section.

Cheers

Ray

[Freshy]

Thanks Greg, that's fantastic...

Now that I've got the leccy jacks are my target for this summer...

Having been sussing my area out for a while now and with the knowledge you've imparted through your post I'm more than confident I can get onto my first and then a couple more.

Cheers

Brett

[plugga]

awesome write up mate

Jordan

[Carter]

If any body wants to come up to Noosa I'll be glad to have a chat with you and send them in the right direction. This season has started off as my best yet.

Very happy for AFO to turn this into an atricle for all to benefit from.

Taking Angus out tomorrow, hopefully the jacks will play after I've talked it up so much :whistle:

[johnus]

Bloody awesome, top effort on giving tips on Jacks, kudos mate.

This needs frontpage or sticky!

[Muppet Arms]

Great write up Carter.

I plan to use a fair bit of your advice over the next couple of months.

I have never caught a jack and am only just now starting to list them on my target list purely because up until recently, I didn't have a target list! I just used to throw some bait on a hook and wait for a thing with gills and scales to take it! This site has opened up a new world for me and given me much food for thought ... so thank you AFO!

Anyway, for all you jack hunters out there ..... I'll attach a picture of one my mate, the Colonel, caught. The back story to this fish is that we spent a week on a houseboat on the Tweed River. The Condong sugar mill was definitely our most productive spot and we watched a guy tie his tinny off to a drain from the mill and using a float, target jacks there. We saw him there for two days and he had success both days. Anyways, we were "targetting" any species (I use the word targetting loosely because we never targetted any species deliberately!)... just pumped some yabbies, tossed them out and enjoyed the fishing. We cast back towards the bank which was lined with rocks and had a few massive trees that overhung the river .... looking back I can see a few similarities, by pure chance and luck for us of course, with Carter's tips. Anyway, the Colonel had cast a yabbie to within a metre of the steeply sloping rocky bank. Put his rod down, which had a Daiwa Sol on it too incidently, and poured himself a black russian. His rod nearly snapped in half and almost went over the edge of the houseboat! He grabbed his rod, and after a bit of fight, pulled in the good looking model.

This was the first jack any of us had caught and it is still the only one! I was pretty sure what it was but had to confirm it on google! Anyway, it was our first, but certainly not last hopefully!

Again, thanks Carter for the read. Great info in there.

The Arms

[Hfisho77]

thanks so much greg for that article... i am desperate to get a jack this summer and this could make the difference

cheers

Hugo

[RUSSIAN]

Nice one Greg very helpful, i'm going down to southport soon and was hoping to hook into a few jacks, and thanks to your article i know where to start!

- Nice jack too! :woohoo: