mangajack

Didnt want to take over someone else thread, but the discussion re grunter is and example of discussions I have had with friends.
Winding the clock back to the mid 90’s and we used to hear about the odd threadfin being caught in the northern reaches of the passage but usually if you wanted to catch them you were going to Maryborough.  Now without saying they are now common place there are certainly good schools of them around the estuaries.
Grunter - now there is a fish I thought was really only ever up north.  Its interesting to see the sizes of these being caught - heck a 50cm specimen up north is a good fish and here we are with 60cm fish.
Nannies, coral trout and red emperor…..yes normally just small but are they more prevalent?
So is it just that the internet has opened up more discussion about what is caught and they were always around or is the warming trend of the east coast current bring warmer climate fish further down south.
Or even the reduction in commercial fishing and fairly strict size and bag limits for rec fishers increasing the numbers to the point that they are observable.
As a second point could it that nannies and reds in these southern waters are just a product of the current and as they grow migrate north for warmer waters?
Anyway its an interesting thing.

Squid are more location oriented than tide oriented...just look for structure they would like and investigate it. 
As a side note...squid really like a sand bottom under them with some structure beside them....60cm of water and seem to be relaxed usually.

For me I get up to about 10 of these fish a year in SEQ.
I am not sure if they are more numerous now or our techniques and lures have changed that is enticing more bites.
II regularly caught smaller models in the 80's in Bribie Passage....usually on small live baits.
These days I catch larger models on soft plastics off Redcliffe, at the Port and in the Pine River usually.....mostly around the 60cm mark.....I think the presentation is the key to not catching many or any small ones these days.

For me I get up to about 10 of these fish a year in SEQ.
I am not sure if they are more numerous now or our techniques and lures have changed that is enticing more bites.
II regularly caught smaller models in the 80's in Bribie Passage....usually on small live baits.
These days I catch larger models on soft plastics off Redcliffe, at the Port and in the Pine River usually.....mostly around the 60cm mark.....I think the presentation is the key to not catching many or any small ones these days.

For me I get up to about 10 of these fish a year in SEQ.
I am not sure if they are more numerous now or our techniques and lures have changed that is enticing more bites.
II regularly caught smaller models in the 80's in Bribie Passage....usually on small live baits.
These days I catch larger models on soft plastics off Redcliffe, at the Port and in the Pine River usually.....mostly around the 60cm mark.....I think the presentation is the key to not catching many or any small ones these days.

Thankyou.
We were landbased this trip, but drifting would definitely be better. I'll have to check that reef out once we've got the boat registered

Fellow fishers
A fish that's certainly had my attention for a long time has been the humble barred javelin. Having only recently acquired a tinny less than 2 years ago i'd never caught a legal one. This changed earlier in the year flicking lures around mud island. I hooked a nice one off the bottom (pics attached) and am pretty stoked about catching one locally over 60cm.
I've not since been able to catch another even though trying whenever the weather allows. As always the case in fishing it leads to many questions, but moreso makes me hungrier to find them. I'm interested to see what others experience has been with these awesome fish, particularly in Moreton Bay (MB). Feel free to add whatever comes to mind when you think of them, biggest one youve caught, if you think theyre always around in MB in some form, if theres seasons. Not sure if it's just me but they seem to be popping up regularly (more regularly locally? or am i just noticing them) in my social media feeds, ppl asking for fish ids, some youtube clips even more recently. 
Totally understand if some dont want to share, either, but hope you like the pics....they are cool as.
 

Good work Andrew.
Nice selection of components and finishing.

Two interesting sessions for your party.
I find the bridge fishes best drift fishing it rather than anchoring....the current is not an issue then.
Explore the channel up from the bridge to around 750m....there is lots of low reef through the area that all hold fish.

Thanks MJ. I use a range of high quality blanks and components from various companies and Australian retailers. For this build the Samurai blank/Fuji components were preferred. At AFTA last year i was able to pull on the SB6 (PE 4-6) and SB8 blanks as well as fully built Samurai rods built on the same blanks. I'll be building the SB6 for my own use soon, matched to a gosa 10k and 40lb tasline. i'd be well over the 100 rods built since i started in 2020 - as they say, the first 100 are the hardest!

Two interesting sessions for your party.
I find the bridge fishes best drift fishing it rather than anchoring....the current is not an issue then.
Explore the channel up from the bridge to around 750m....there is lots of low reef through the area that all hold fish.

Good work Andrew.
Nice selection of components and finishing.

About 12 years ago i caught my first legal nanny off Redcliffe, there had been small models about for about 5 years before that that I know of. I have since caught 3 more legals and maybe around 10 undersized models.
They are definitely becoming more common. My decky caught one at Clara Rocks in February...undersized but still surprising.

Two interesting sessions for your party.
I find the bridge fishes best drift fishing it rather than anchoring....the current is not an issue then.
Explore the channel up from the bridge to around 750m....there is lots of low reef through the area that all hold fish.

Good work Andrew.
Nice selection of components and finishing.

About 12 years ago i caught my first legal nanny off Redcliffe, there had been small models about for about 5 years before that that I know of. I have since caught 3 more legals and maybe around 10 undersized models.
They are definitely becoming more common. My decky caught one at Clara Rocks in February...undersized but still surprising.

It sounds like you are on the start of the learning curve for your area.
Here are a couple of basics that work well here in SEQ.
Whiting like the early stages of a run in tide....they move onto a sand flat as the water covers it....20cm of water is plenty for them to be ravenously feeding there. Use the local bait for them....worms, yabbies, crabs or small live prawns.
Bream like structure with a bit of depth and plenty of current, again they are ravenous at the start of the run in usually. Bream will eat anything but offer them something they can easily swallow rather than something they have to bite chunks off. 5c to $1 size baits are good for them....pilly or mullet cubes, prawns and squid are all good options.
Flathead are ambush hunters primarily, they lay and wait for food to swim by them....that being said though they will follow a scent to a bait ok too. For me flathead are the easiest to catch in the bottom half of a run out tide. Live baits rule, lures and plastics second and dead baits 3rd. Look for drains of flats or creeks entering rivers, they will be within a five metres of those spots.
If you only catch smalls you are generally either fishing the wrong area or you are fishing the area at the wrong stage of the tide.
You can throw all of the above out the window if you are fishing a flood zone.....everything will be feasting on the last 90 minutes of the rising tide and vanish as soon as the tide turns. Flood zones up here are mangroves that only go under at about 3/4 tide...often behind the mangroves there is a clear area of sand or mud several metres wide....when that gets 25cm of water over it the place is full of big feeding fish and very easy to catch if you do not spook them. 65mm squidgy wrigglers in bloodworm colour unweighted are the gun plastic.....sit or crouch down and wait for the fish to approach you...they move quickly and absolutely smash anything resembling food. Very exciting fishing.
Good luck.

Mid-Upper kedron brook fishing
This is a small guide i've put together about a local waterway I have fished alot with @James ReevesAnd his brother tom, the kedron brook has a bikepath going along almost the whole duration of it so access to most spots is easy. Most of the best spots are downstream of Grange.
(Be careful, there's plenty of karens around)

Fish species
Nile and spotted tilapia
Sea Mullet
Eel tail catfish
Longfin eel
Silver perch
Australian Bass
Bullrout
(Small aquarium fish such as swordtails can also be found)
(Freshwater Prawns)
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Guide:
Weather conditions:
Rain is absolutely horrible, the fish will usually completley shut down if there is even just a shower, best times to fish would be sunrise, 11am-2pm, 5-pm to 8pm. Overcast is good unless targeting mullet

Tilapia
Gear: light spinning rod, 6-12lb leader
Lures: Gulp worms (Cast at trees and let it sink unweighted or on a lightweight jighead), 2.5 inch paddle tails (Slowly hop along bottom)
Bait: Prawns (Sinker), Bread (squish into a ball of dough rig unweighted or under a float, or do not squish bread and let it float), worms (Sinker, unweighted or float)
Distribution: All along the freshwater parts of the brook
Notes: Tilapia are invasive, so make sure to kill them and dispose of them properly


Catfish 
Gear: spinning rod, 6-16lb leader, they have teeth but they wont really fray your line
Lures: Those metal spinners used for trout work weirdly well for some reason (Sightcast at catfish, slow roll on bottom, be persistent)
Bait: White grubs found in garden (Sinker, unweighted, Work super well, by far the most effective bait I have used), prawns (Sinker, unweighted) Bread (Sinker, unweighted)
Distribution: All along the freshwater parts of the brook
Notes: Be careful there are venomous spines at the end of their dorsal and pectoral fins


Mullet:
Gear: light spinning rod, 2-10lb leader
Bait: Bread (Squish into small ball of dough, float, only strike when the mullet has pulled the float fully under and started running)
Distribution: All along the brook



Bass: 
Gear: Light spinning rod, 4-14lb leader
Distribution: Windsor and downstream
I haven't caught one myself but my friend@James Reevesand his brother Tom have caught them on small poppers, if you're curious on how to catch them you'll have to ask @James Reeves



Silver perch: 
gear: Light spinning rod, 2-10lb leader
Bait: Bread (Squish into small ball of dough, float)
Very rare to catch in the brook
Distribution: I have only caught them around alderly

Bullrout: 
Notes: It's fun to get spiked by them, as @crazywalrus would know


I've also spotted some sort of carp, probably a Koi or a big goldfish: 

Hi all, 
I've been out for two sessions at my local park recently. One was a couple of weeks ago and very unsuccessful, as the only thing I caught in the net was a catfish and there were many logs drifting by making fishing difficult. The second was on low tide one Friday arvo where I got enough prawns to have a cast and a couple of small catfish. Both were pretty disappointing sessions, but it was better than not going fishing. 
Quick Stats:
Tide: Varied, low and rising. 
Fish Caught: Nothing good
Bait Used: Prawns
The next session was last night/this morning with Thorbjorn on his tinny. We launched at POB boat ramp with a rather calm river awaiting us. After going through Boat Passage, it wasn't long before we managed to get a good amount of herring and mullet at Luggage Point. Following that, we went to the first fishing spot of the night, where Thorbjorn had some good success on snapper the night before, and dropped our lines down. 
The bites were a bit quiet at first, but just as I was about to cook my dinner my rod had a few taps. Sure enough I was on, and pulled in a small but legal snapper that was kept for dinner.

Snap
The bites stayed quiet here though, so we moved spots after an hour or so more of fishing and sporadic rain. 
It wasn't long before Thorbjorn had a good run at the next spot, but unluckily it didn't hook up. We sent baits back down, and after a decently long wait Thorbs was on again. This time the fish was hooked, and after a few nice runs and big headshakes we had a solid jewie on the boat (about 85cm I think). After a quick pic we vented and released the jewie, which eventually kicked off strongly. 

Jewfish
After this, we were hopeful of some more action and the fishing didn't disappoint, with Thorbs pulling in a nice 45cm or so snap on a livie that was also kept.

Snap
A catty later Thorbjorn had some jewie looking nibbles on his rod before hooking up to a very good fish. It was taking some pretty fast runs and plenty of headshakes, but before we could see it, the hook came out. We were both pretty disappointed about this but sent some baits down and continued fishing until after midnight. We finished up when we ran out of livies and because I sadly have a couple exams I needed to study for today that are in coming weeks. Thanks again for taking me out @Thorbjorn Hale it was a fun night, here are the stats of the trip for anyone interested:
Stats of Trip:
Tide: 6:50PM, 2.1M, High, 1:00AM, .6M, Low.
Moon Phase: 23%
Air Pressure: 1013
Humidity: 88%
Bait Used: Live herring and mullet
Fish Caught: Jewie x 1, snapper x 2, catfish x 1
Overall Success Rate: 100%, some nice fish landed. 
Thanks for reading the report,
Cheers Hamish. 

thanks

I agree with Neil, different spots at different stages of the tide....
Incoming look for feeding banks about to get a few inches of water on them....they will be feeding hard there for about 30 minutes. Keep following the flooding banks as the water rises. You want to cast into about 6 inches of water roughly.
Once the bites have tapered off you need to find where they will wait for food to come to them....look for a sand bank that tapers down to the river bank along the river.....you can bet a years wages they will sit there until the top of the tide vacuuming up all the worms and small crabs and yabbies dislodged by the sand bank being disturbed.  You really should recon the river towards the last of the run out tide to learn where this high tide spot will be. Ideally the sand bank should be at least 1/2 the river wide and taper down to the bank on one side only on the upstream end.....the fish will be over the last 15 metres of that bank guaranteed. Google Earth Pro shows these sand banks quite well too....another way to plan your run.

I agree with Neil, different spots at different stages of the tide....
Incoming look for feeding banks about to get a few inches of water on them....they will be feeding hard there for about 30 minutes. Keep following the flooding banks as the water rises. You want to cast into about 6 inches of water roughly.
Once the bites have tapered off you need to find where they will wait for food to come to them....look for a sand bank that tapers down to the river bank along the river.....you can bet a years wages they will sit there until the top of the tide vacuuming up all the worms and small crabs and yabbies dislodged by the sand bank being disturbed.  You really should recon the river towards the last of the run out tide to learn where this high tide spot will be. Ideally the sand bank should be at least 1/2 the river wide and taper down to the bank on one side only on the upstream end.....the fish will be over the last 15 metres of that bank guaranteed. Google Earth Pro shows these sand banks quite well too....another way to plan your run.

That's a first!! 😂

I agree with Neil, different spots at different stages of the tide....
Incoming look for feeding banks about to get a few inches of water on them....they will be feeding hard there for about 30 minutes. Keep following the flooding banks as the water rises. You want to cast into about 6 inches of water roughly.
Once the bites have tapered off you need to find where they will wait for food to come to them....look for a sand bank that tapers down to the river bank along the river.....you can bet a years wages they will sit there until the top of the tide vacuuming up all the worms and small crabs and yabbies dislodged by the sand bank being disturbed.  You really should recon the river towards the last of the run out tide to learn where this high tide spot will be. Ideally the sand bank should be at least 1/2 the river wide and taper down to the bank on one side only on the upstream end.....the fish will be over the last 15 metres of that bank guaranteed. Google Earth Pro shows these sand banks quite well too....another way to plan your run.

I find the tide sizes don’t really affect it too much , you’ve just got to be prepared to move around and position yourself in the right spots during your session down there. It’s always about knowing how the puzzle works ie  how when why and where  you anchor your  boat and  present your baits. Whiting will move to where the food is., think like the fish .Sounds like you tried a few spots ,but  hey , not all was lost , at least you’ve found where they don’t bite on those tides. The next trip will  be better.
regards
neil