Brisbane Fishing Report

Brisbane Fishing Report for March 2016

Well prawns are in full swing with very large prawns for this time of year and a lot of them you can see the roe (prawn eggs) along their whole back which looks like green snot, their poo tube runs along their belly so there should be a good season for next year too. The places where they have showed themselves are the Pimpama river, Jacobs well, Rudy Mars, cabbage tree point, little rocky point, the mouth of the Logan, Redland bay channel, Canapia, white cliffs, power lines from the green floating beacon to Giants grave, the 2 green beacons north of the power lines, Jackson is at the top of Russell island, karragarra Island west corner, the saltworks is the deep hole at the bottom of Macleay island, lamb island around the boats and just past the first green beacon at lamb island in the main channel, the yacht club in Canapia, Redland bay in front of the barge terminal and around the boats that should get you a good feed for Easter. If you need lessons on how to throw castnet check out our video on Facebook like the other 600k+ have.

Crabs are on the move, when crabbing the big tides work up the small creek and the smell of your bait crosses their hole, only on the big tides, he will come out for a feed so close to home but on the small tides work the mouths of the creek and the main channel as the current isn’t as strong and won’t wash your pot away and it is the main highway for all fishermen, fish, prawns and crabs too. When crabbing and you see a few pro pots or rec pots it don’t mean heaps of crabs and put your pot on top of the ones you can see, it means they have the area covered and you only catch their throw backs so move around and find some area where there are less pots and you will catch crabs and good ones. I like to use cooked prawn shell heads after a good feed on prawns, you can then get a Chinese hot food container with a few holes in the lid put your prawn heads in, then put in the bait bag in your crab pot then thank you to the prawns once again, as you can see in my video it works well (will be uploaded soon) Mullet, chicken frames, kangaroo tails, fish frames all work but prawn shells cost nothing. The Mackerel are just getting thicker in the bay with some schools well in there hundreds swimming up to your boat where you could just about touch it. I have been using Samaki spinners and micro jigs as they stay under the surface more, when winding flat out I have been replacing the trebles to a single hook VMC specimen inline 3/0, it makes it a lot easier to release the fish with minimal discomfit to it. They have been hanging around hope banks one day then the back of Harry’s the next, then down to peel a day or two later so if you don’t see any action keep driving in a big circle and if you find the birds sitting on the water waiting, some times it’s good to do the same as they are waiting for the mackerel to push the bait to the surface for lunch.

Longtail Tuna have moved into the bay in numbers in the last few weeks, hanging at the back of Harry’s with reports of 25 fish or more to a school but aren’t staying up for long, stick baits or 3in plastics worked not as fast as spinners this might help. A heap of small tuna and small school mackerel as well from the shipping channel to mud island. The big Tailor are thick at the Jumpin Pin, some fish well in their 60cm as the bar has silted up trapping the bait inside the bar for most of the tides. They are hanging around the yellow marker at Crusoe to the Pin & at Crusoe all the way down to the bed rooms, Wallys gutter, and from Crusoe to short island up to slipping sands. There has been a few big Jew in the last two weeks with fish over 20kg and a lot around the 1m mark they are loving the prawns, mullet, pike, as a by-catch the threadfin are thick in the river they love the dirty water, prawns & herring.

The Bay islands are fishing well for this time of year as the water temp is still in the mid 20 the snapper don’t seem to mind. The grass emperor, parrot, sweetlip, Moses, rockcod, love the high temp and loving prawn for bait, squid, mullet, pilchard are all doing the trick but prawn season is only once a year and the fish know. Mud, Peel, Goat, Coochie, Macleay, Russell have all been catching good fish. The squid have started to come back to the western sides of the bay islands, it won’t be long and they will start schooling up around the mainland jettys and boat ramps around Reddy bay, Victoria point, as they come in looking for the prawns too, that is why most squid jigs are shaped as a prawn just different colours, everything loves prawns. Now is the time you will catch prawns off the jettys too. Mangrove jack have been hanging around the bridge and floating pontoons in the Coomera and the rocks in the Pimpama, the mouth of the Logan around the rocks as well.

The Bream have started schooling up around the Pin, short island & Crusoe just have some berley out the back and they will stay there all day on the feed. Whiting are in the cleaner water closer to the Pin eating yabbies, worms and small peeled prawns, also they are thick up at chain banks & small boat passage. I hope u can get out on the water, from the crew at Victoria Point Bait & Tackle. Like our page on FB https://www.facebook.com/VictoriaPointBaitTackle
Frandon Heseltine.