ozcryptian

True eh about snag bashing in the inlet - get lures chucked at them by tourists all day every day.
I tried burley trail at Kamerunga sunday arvo which just brought in bullies. Then this afternoon at Holloways on the high tide for 30 minutes with gar from the Barron; didn't even get a single run. Fishing's terrible in Cairns in south easters.  

Can't help you too much mate. I'm a land based angler (by choice) and with almost all of the accessible areas banned from fishing in the inlet, I never go there anymore. I concentrate on the warm months salmon and barra on the beach now. 
All I can suggest; forget buying bait and throwing lures at inlet fish that see lures every day. Live bait is the key so get a castnet and fish live bait anywhere and you'll get fish. Use a long leader with lively baits and in the inlet you'll always get a good fingermark or something. Lightest or no lead and most natural presentation is the key - the livie will get smashed.
Other option without castnet; find a nice spot next to snags and burley heavily - plenty of big bream in the inlet this time of year and jacks, cod etc will be attracted too, but there seems to be a lot of bull sharks around this year that have been making my burley trails in the Barron a waste of time.
Last option; if the SE wind dies there will be heaps of doggie mackeral around the leads to the inlet. 
 
  

Hey mate. So sorry for the late reply. I actually went fishing on Friday with little luck. I did catch bait for next trip though! For next time, a simple tip is to just throw a net at the Tingira street boat ramp, We always catch bait there. If not, throw a net off creek mouths and points. You will always get bait. If you are time poor and can't look for fish, just anchor up on one of those yellow buoys. There are always fingermark and I have caught some grunter there. We found some structure just in front of a buoy full of fish. Try fishing the leads too. Time is much needed to find fish. 'Snag bashing' may produce some good fish but is a waste of time. It's too inconsistent.