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“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT 8 September 2022

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Fishing Report – 9th September 2022    

Ben White had a great trip offshore on the Gold Coast nailing a couple of quality SnapperIt has been a bit of a wet start to September on the Gold and Tweed Coast with a few showers persisting throughout the week. The wind has finally eased a bit also giving everyone some nicer conditions to get out on the water. Good news as we head into the weekend at the time of writing my report with Saturday tipped to be the best day with light winds and plenty of sunshine on the way making it a great day to get out on the water for a fish.

Looking at the forecast for Saturday at the time of writing my report the weather is looking good for fishos that are keen to head offshore and chase a feed. Anglers that were lucky enough to find a weather window to head out the past week were rewarded for their efforts like Ben White (see photo in report) who had a good day out on the 36 fathom grounds land some great quality Snapper for the table. It’s always a bit of a gamble when planning a trip as to what water depth will be best worth targeting on the day. September is a good month for chasing the popular species Snapper for a feed, both the 18 and 24 fathom reefs off the Gold Coast have fished well over Winter and should also be holding good numbers of quality fish to target during September.

EARLY STARTS

Getting an early start will increase you chances of finding the better-quality fish, I always recommend allowing yourself enough time to have a good sound around and try to mark a show of bait or fish feeding to target your efforts on. I do prefer to anchor up and get a burly trail going when fishing the closer reefs as this will help to attract any fish from the surrounding reef and then keep them active in you strike zone. A burly trail will also tend to make the fish rise in the water column and this is great when float lining as you will quite often get hit halfway down on the drop which is a great feeling when reef fishing. As well as Snapper you will have a good chance a finding a feed of Tusk Fish, Moses Perch, Maori Cod, Spangled Emperor, Trag Jew, Jewfish and Cobia. The 36 and 50 fathom reefs have also been producing some great catches of the past couple of weeks current dependant. Fishos have reported good hauls of Snapper, Pearl Perch, Trag Jew, Tusk Fish, Cobia, Amber Jack, Samson Fish, Yellow Tail Kingfish and even a few Dolphin Fish have been taken off the local fads. Best baits are WA Pilchards, Whole Large Squid, Bonito Fillet, Mullet Fillet, live or dead Yakkas and Slimy Mackerel.

WHITING

Now that the days are getting longer, and the weather is starting to warm up chasing a feed of Whiting will be a great option. Good quality Whiting are on offer pretty much all year round on the Gold Coast including Winter with the warmer months generally producing better numbers of bigger fish. Whether you are fishing from a boat or land based there are plenty of spots to try your luck. Basically, you are looking for an area with a sand or mud bottom or mixture of both with a few undulations in the bottom that gets a fair bit of tidal flow running through to stir the bottom-up which intern attracts schools of Whiting to feed in these kinds of areas. A light estuary outfit is all you need, I recommend a rod around 7 to 9 ft in length, with the reel spooled with 6 to 9lb mono, a long trace of 6lb fluro carbon leader and usually a size 4-ball sinker to keep your bait on the bottom where the fish feed and a size 6 bait holder hook. Best baits are live blood worms, beach worms and smaller sized yabbies. If you are land based you can try your luck along the Broadwater foreshore around Southport, Labrador, Biggera Waters, Runaway Bay, Paradise Point, Hope Island, Jacobs Well Cabbage Tree Point, Tallebudgera Creek and Currumbin Creek. If you are fishing from a boat, try the Nerang River, Wave Break Island, Crab Island, Coomera River, Pimpama River, Jacobs Well, Cabbage Tree Point, Bedrooms, Gold Bank, Tiger Mullet Channel and the Logan River.

Callum with a quality 40cm whiting caught on the shallow flats with Clint from Brad Smith Fishing Charters

QUOTES FROM THE BOATS

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports :Sea Probe Fishing Charters scored a great feed of Snapper from the 50 fathom line off the Gold Coast

“Once again we had some great weather and some good fishing through the middle reaches of the river. Combining a mixture of trolling Pontoon 21 and Slam minnows and jigging with Samaki vibes produced a variety of nice fish. The species caught were Flatties, Bream, Whiting, School Jew and a couple of nice Giant Trevally. It appears that the GT’s might start moving around the river a bit earlier this season which is great as they are so much fun on light gear. It is important to note that there is still a lot of logs and debris floating around the Tweed River and I witnessed a boat smashing into a floating log and doing a fair amount of damage so take care and always keep an eye out.”

Clint from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports:

“We had some really good fishing at the Gold Coast Broadwater this week. Plenty of Squid, Flathead, Flounder, Tuskfish and Whiting kept us entertained. Best areas were South Currigee and Southport, best lures were Samaki vibes in whitebait and uv squid colours, Ecogear ZX40 in 440 colour. The water has suddenly got crystal clear and warmer on the run-in tide so it now pays to find slightly dirtier water to find the better fish and even the Squid. The snot weed that had started to appear has gone again but I’m sure it’ll be back in force with the next Northerly winds. Flathead are plentiful in the shallows out to the deep, feeding hard on baitfish. Soft plastics in pearl colours are working well. There were also good numbers of Sand Whiting up to 40cm on the Southern Broadwater banks this week.”

Gavin from Sea Probe Fishing Charters reports:

“There has been plenty of Snapper still getting caught on the 50 fathoms line also with some Pearlies, Tuskies, Amberjack and Yellow Tail Kings and also Dolphin Fish still hanging around on the 50 fathoms taken on pilchards.”

LINKS & INFO

If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went. brett@coomerahouseboats.com.au or brett@fishotackle.com.au     

Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Fisho Tackle and Coomera Houseboat Holidays now have Hire  follow the link to view http://www.coomerahouseboats.com.au/our-fleet-type/hire-tinnies/     

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/  

Good luck with the Fishing. Brett     

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“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT 1 September 2022

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Fishing Report – 1st September 2022    

Hi Everyone, hope you are all having a nice week, as we say goodbye to winter and transition into springtime we have seen a few showers hanging around on the Tweed and Gold Coast this week. Let’s have a look at how the fishing was this week. 

FLATHEAD

Nathan caught this nice Flathead with Clint from Brad Smith Fishing Charters on the Broadwater webFishos reported some nice catches of Flathead again this week with good numbers of fish being landed throughout the Broadwater, Jumpinpin and adjoining rivers and estuaries. Unfortunately, there has been a bit of the dreaded snot weed starting to show up in some areas just to make anglers lives a bit more difficult when fishing. When targeting Flathead in the Broadwater and Jumpinpin systems the two main things you should look for is water quality especially on the run-in tide and the other is bait including bait fish and prawns being the main sources. Finding clean water will normally increase your hookup rate as the fish will tend to spot your lure or bait much easier rather than just swiping at it when the water is dirty. Any bait activity is important when you are fishing and that applies to Flathead, keep and eye out in the shallow water for bait fish and prawns jumping around trying to escape from predators and also keep an eye on the sounder in the deep water as the bait schools will attract Flathead to feed in these areas. My favourite tide to fish is the run-out tide when chasing Flathead, you can choose to target the edges of sandbanks, creek mouths, drains and river mouths are all good spots to find Flathead laying in wait. As the water level drops and the bait moves towards deeper water the Flathead will be waiting to head into the tide ready to pounce on anything that swims past. 

LURES

When using lures trying a mixture of trolling hard body lures, casting soft plastics or working soft vibes are all worth a go to see which method the fish are best responding to on the day. When trolling lures, you are best to troll with the tidal flow to increase your hook up rate. The same applies when casing plastics try and retrieve with the flow of water. 

GOOD FISHING SPOTS

Some good spots producing fish at the moment are Wave Break Island, Nerang River, Currigee, Crab Island, Brown Island, Coomera River, Tipplers Passage, Bedrooms, Kalinga Bank, Crusoe Island, Tiger Mullet Channel, Logan River, Tweed River, Tallebudgera and Currumbin Creeks.     

We have been lucky enough to have a pretty good run of weather the past week giving fishos plenty of opportunities to head offshore and chase a feed from the local reefs. Once again quality catches of Snapper have been the standout with good numbers of fish being caught. Once the strong wind and swell predicted for the weekend settles down, getting an early start and hitting the 18 and 24 fathom grounds off the Seaway will be a good option with some great quality fish being landed in these areas. Make sure you get out as early as possible to allow enough time to have a good sound around between 18 to 24 fathoms reefs and find a show of fish and bait to target on the sunrise bite time. 

Wayne Young has a great trip offshore landing some quality Snapper and a good sized Jewfish webRIGGING

Fish as light as possible, sometimes you can get bricked on the bottom, but you find the lighter set up will always out fish the heavy gear and you will catch a lot more fish in the long run. A float line rig set up is again my first choice when fishing either live or dead bait as you have all the control on how quick you drop your baits making them present as natural as possible producing a hit on the drop. 

WHAT ELSE IS BITING?

There has been a good general mixed bag of Snapper, Moses Perch, Jew Fish, Cobia, Trag Jew, Maori Cod and Tusk Fish on offer. As you head out wider the 36 and 50 fathoms grounds are also fishing well current dependent with good numbers of quality Snapper, Pearl Perch, Tusk Fish, Trag Jew, Yellow Tail Kingfish, Amber Jack, Cobia and Samson Fish being landed. Best baits are WA pilchards, Whole large Squid, Mullet Fillet, Bonito Fillet or live or dead Yakkas.   

FISHING CHARTER REPORTS

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports,

Dan caught and released this lovely Jewfish on a charter with Brad Smith Fishing Charters on the Tweed River web“I only did a couple of days work on the Tweed River this week, and had a sensational day with Clint travelling to Brisbane to meet our new sponsors. We met up with Gareth the owner of Tackle Tactics and we are both now proud users of Okuma Australia reels and TT rods. Okuma makes a fantastic reliable range of reels and I could not wait to get back to the Tweed to use them. The best fishing for us this week was to once again jig vibes in the deep holes and channels where we caught Flatties, Bream, Tailor, Big Eye Trevally and Jewies. We also caught a few Australian Bass and of course released them very quickly and carefully as it is closed season for them in tidal estuaries at this time of the year. It is well worth noting that the Bass have moved well down the river this year due to the ridiculous amount of rain we have received this year.”

Clint from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports,

“Once again this week the Squid were keeping us entertained, and there were plenty of Flathead on the chew. We are blessed to have an abundance of Squid in our waters over winter, and they are so much fun to catch and absolutely delicious to eat. Some days they will aggressively attack Ecogear Australia Dartmax squid jigs, other days the Ecogear and vibe lures we use daily are the best offering to tempt them. Flathead have been everywhere, shallow to deep, the key to finding them is looking for bait fish. In shallow water keep an eye out for birds diving and the actual small fish in the clear water. In deeper water look for patches of bait on your fish finder then dropping lures under them. Water temperature has been hovering around 18 degrees, there has also been some decent Flounder, Winter Whiting, Tailor, Bream, and Trevally hunting in the Broadwater.”

 

LINKS & INFO

If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went. brett@coomerahouseboats.com.au or brett@fishotackle.com.au     

Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Fisho Tackle and Coomera Houseboat Holidays now have Hire Tinnies follow the link to view http://www.coomerahouseboats.com.au/our-fleet-type/hire-tinnies/     

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/  

Good luck with the Fishing. Brett     

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“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT – 26 August 2022

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Fishing Report 

 

Friday 26 August 2022     

Hi Everyone, hope you are all having a nice week, as we head towards the Gold Coast Show Day Long Weekend at the time of writing the report it looks like we will see some moderate winds but unfortunately there is a pretty good chance of rain hanging around. Given the conditions, if you can put up with a bit of rain it will be well worth getting out for a fish on both the Tweed and Gold Coast waterways. Let’s check out what’s been biting and some good options for your Long Weekend. 

Where They’re Biting

The fishing offshore has been pretty good the past week with fishos finding a few weather windows to head out and chase a feed. Good numbers of Snapper have been on the chew for those lucky enough to find a school to target. At the time of writing my report it looks like the southerly winds might be up over the weekend and then start to ease Monday, just make sure you have the latest forecast before heading out on the water. Once again, the close reefs off the Seaway have produced some good quality Snapper on the dawn or dusk bite and also on the tide changes which are best times to target fish on the 18 and 24 fathom grounds. Finding good ground to fish is the key to success in close, I always try not to fish too close to other boats, opting to have a good sound around and try to find a show to target away from the crowds this will increase your chances of catching fish. It’s worth having a good look on the sounder when choosing a spot, finding a show of bait or fish arched up is a good indication it’s a spot worth having a drop on. If you are not catching fish in the first 15 minutes or so I would usually recommend moving on and trying another area of the reef, even a small move of 50 metres can make a big difference. Catches from the 18 to 24 fathom grounds this week have included Snapper, Jew Fish, Cobia, Trag Jew, Maori Cod, Moses Perch, Spangled Emperor and Tusk Fish. Out wider on the 36 and 50 fathom reefs current depending fishos have scored some great feeds of Snapper, Pearl Perch, Cobia, Tusk Fish, Yellow Tail King Fish, Amber Jack and Samson Fish to name a few species. 

Fishing Competitions

The King of the Pin competition was held last weekend with plenty of keen anglers giving it a go, by the sounds of it the comp was a great success with lots of happy winners taking out some great prizes in their chosen categories. The comp saw a good mixed bag of species like Jewfish, Tailor, Flathead, Bream and Whiting landed, to name a few.

Bait Schools

The Broadwater and Jumpin Pin are holding lots of bait schools at the moment, this in turn has seen plenty of good-sized Tailor being caught this week. The best time to target Tailor is the last couple of hours of the run-in tide when the water quality is at its best and the first hour of the run-out tide. The deeper main channels seem to be the best spots to target the Tailor, the bait schools tend to hold up against the current lines in the deeper water and will move towards the surface when being attacked by hungry predators. When looking for fish to target, always keep an eye on the sounder for signs of life to indicate either bait schools or schools of lager fish like Tailor in the area. Birds searching a current line or diving hitting the water is a great sign as it usually tells us that fish are actively feeding at that time. When searching try trolling a mixture of diving lures to cover ground until you get consistent hook ups, once you have found fish you can then look at switching to throwing metal slugs as they can cast a long distance: work quickly or let sink, to attract fish feeding deeper. If there is plenty of surface action, try a surface popper or a stick bait for an exciting surface strike. Some good spots to look at the Gold Coast Seaway, Main Currigee Channel, Mouth of the South Arm of the Coomera River, Aldershots, Jumpinpin Bar, Kalinga Bank, Crusoe Island, Mouth of Tiger Mullet Channel, Short Island and Canaipa Passage. 

Jackson Ford with a quality Flathead caught at Jumpinpin

Flathead

Flathead catches have also been very consistent this week with some great fish being landed in the Broadwater, Jumpinpin and the Local Rivers of the Gold and Tweed Coasts. A mixture of soft plastics, soft vibes, glide baits, trolling hard body lures and drifting baits have all done the trick on the Flathead.  

From The Lads

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports the weather was awesome this week and so was the fishing earlier in the week but unfortunately the back end went a bit quiet. The reason the last couple of days went a bit slow was the lack of run in the tides and a major barometer drop. It is amazing how you can have the best sounders as well as equipment and techniques and mother nature’s little tantrums have the last say. It was not like we didn’t catch anything over the past couple of days we just got less fish and worked harder to get them. The fish caught this week were Flatties, Bream, Whiting, School Jew and Mangrove Jacks. 

Arrow Squid caught in the Gold Coast Broadwater with Clint from Brad Smith Fishing Charters

Squid

Clint from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports this week again there was lots of Squid in the Broadwater. It is now peak season for them, and they should be on for the next month. I will be doing lots of Squid fishing and chasing nice fish as well, so book in your private charter soon. Limited dates available. The Squid are now bigger and more numerous in their usual areas both sides of Crab Island, Biggera and in all the holes from Seaworld to Sundale bridge. Look for areas 4-6 metres deep and use 2.5 and 3.0 size squid jigs. My favourites are Ecogear  Dartmax in colours including green, gold, white, orange, pink, and purple, red in cloudy conditions. Cast them out far enough that they will reach bottom then either drift or slowly lift and drop and retrieve. Other than the Squid there are some nice Flathead on the flats and in the channels, plus Flounder, Bream, Winter Whiting and Tailor. I have been noticing the bite including the Squid has been dropping off during each day as the barometer drops. This week we have some nice size tides for channel fishing in the Broadwater, and casting lures over the edges of the sandbanks.

Snapper Season

Gavin from Sea Probe Fishing Charters reports Snapper season opened on the 16th and weren’t they on the chew bagging everyday along with Pearlies, Tuskies and also Dolphin Fish still hanging around on the 50 fathoms taken on pilchards and squid. Sea Probe Fishing Charters with a solid Pearl Perch taken on charter off the Gold Coast

Links & Info

If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went. brett@coomerahouseboats.com.au or brett@fishotackle.com.au     

Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Fisho Tackle and Coomera Houseboat Holidays now have Hire Tinnies follow the link to view http://www.coomerahouseboats.com.au/our-fleet-type/hire-tinnies/     

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/  

Good luck with the Fishing. Brett     [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_raw_html]JTNDZGl2JTIwaWQlM0QlMjJjYm94LTVTbTQ3M0p3RHpJZ01TRlklMjIlM0UlM0MlMkZkaXYlM0U=[/vc_raw_html][stm_sidebar sidebar=”651″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT

[vc_row][vc_column][stm_post_animated_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Hi Everyone, hope you have all had a good week, pretty average conditions for wetting a line with a persistent cold Southerly wind, overcast conditions and rain on the way to end the week on the Tweed and Gold Coast. Monday looks we will see a return to good weather to start the week. Let’s see what’s being caught this week.

Anglers would have noticed a large amount of snot weed starting to make fishing a bit harder throughout the Broadwater and Jumpinpin the past couple of weeks. There seems to be a lot more around earlier this year than normal, usually September is the prime Month for weed. A lack of rain the past couple of months has not helped, a good dumping would help to break up the snot weed.

Coomera Houseboat customers have been getting stuck into some great quality Bream from Jumpinpin this week. Numbers have been ok during the day but fishing at night is still the prime time for landing the larger quality fish. Spots that produced have been Short Island Huts, Kalinga Bank, Crusoe Island, Perrys Hole, Whalleys Gutter, The Never Fails, Tipplers Passage and Tiger Mullet Channel. Best baits are White Pilchards, Blue Bait, Prawns, Mullet Fillet, Mullet Gut and Yabbies.

Flathead have been around in better numbers with some good-sized fish starting to show up. Plenty of bait fish around Jumpinpin and the Broadwater at the moment is a great sign as we edge closer to breeding season for these awesome fish. Hopefully, we get a flush out soon to clean up the snot weed as it can be a massive pain when targeting Flathead on lures. Drifting bait is a good way to cover ground and find Flathead if you not used to fishing with lures. Yabbies, White Pilchards, Blue Bait and strips of Mullet Fillet make great baits. Flathead have a habit of wearing through trace line pretty quickly, so I recommend at least 12lb trace when using bait in case they swallow the hook. For the lure fisho’s if you can manage to dodge the snot week trolling hard body lures along the Mangrove lined banks of Islands and edges of Sandbanks is a great method as Flathead will sit head into the current waiting for bait fish to swim past. Trolling against the tide is not recommended as the fish will have to turn to attack your lure and can often result in them missing the lure and not hooking up. Some good areas to try your luck are Bedrooms, Tipplers Passage, Paradise Point, Aldershots, Never Fails Islands, Kalinga Bank, Tiger Mullet Channel, Cabbage Tree Point, Currumbin Creek, Coomera River, Brown Island, Logan River and the Tweed River.

I have included the link to Fisheries Queensland with information on the Snapper and Pearl Perch closure which commenced on the 15th of July and finishes 16th of August 2020. Make sure you know your responsibilities https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries/sustainable/sustainable-fisheries-strategy/fisheries-reforms

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports this week in the Tweed River has all been about one of our favourite lure crunching fish, the good old Flathead. We have been getting some serious numbers of fish in all sorts of sizes from big to small and at the same time have handled them carefully and released them as this is a spawning time for this species. Jigging the deep holes and drifting the deeper channels with vibes the likes of Ecogear zx40s, zx43s, Samaki vibelicous and Ecogear vx blades have all performed equally well. To mix the week up we have also done a bit of trolling in the same areas with some deep diving minnows and got some fantastic results. Both techniques also caught a lot of Bream and the odd Whiting that hammered the lures which is unusual at this time of year for Whiting to take lures in the colder water. We did not catch a Jewie this week but hopefully we will this coming week as they are great fun.

 

Clint reports the fishing has again this week been fantastic with great daily catches of various fish, big Arrow Squid, and nice Blue Swimmer Crabs. It is easy to forget how lucky we are to live on the Gold Coast with its diverse and amazing fishery. We are boating some really nice big Tuskfish, as well as Flounder, Winter Whiting, Tarwhine, Bream, Tailor. Best bait has been live yabbies, best lures have been Ecogear ZX40 in 440 and 411 colour, ZX43 in 404 and 440 colour, Samaki Vibelicious 70mm forktail in white bait and ghost bait colours. Use Sax Scent goldprawn scent on sunnier, calm days, and Smithy’s UV prawn Sax scent when there’s cloud cover, less light, dirtier green water such as during run out tide. The new size Ecogear ZX will be popular with a lot of anglers. It’s slightly bigger size seems to attract bigger fish on average and it’s 8.8g weight makes it easier to stay in the strike zone during tidal flow. This coming week the Broadwater area between the seaway and Sovereign Island will hold plenty of bait and fish schools.

 

Hope you all have a good week and stay healthy and safe. If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went.

 

Hi Everyone, hope you have all had a good week, pretty average conditions for wetting a line with a persistent cool Southerly wind, overcast conditions and rain on the way to end the week on the Tweed and Gold Coast. Monday looks we will see a return to good weather to start the week. Let’s see what’s being caught this week.

 

Anglers would have noticed a large amount of snot weed starting to make fishing a bit harder throughout the Broadwater and Jumpinpin the past couple of weeks. There seems to be a lot more around earlier this year than normal, usually September is the prime Month for weed. A lack of rain the past couple of months has not helped, a good dumping would help to break up the snot weed.

 

Coomera Houseboat customers have been getting stuck into some great quality Bream from Jumpinpin this week. Numbers have been ok during the day but fishing at night is still the prime time for landing the larger quality fish. Spots that produced have been Short Island Huts, Kalinga Bank, Crusoe Island, Perrys Hole, Whalleys Gutter, The Never Fails, Tipplers Passage and Tiger Mullet Channel. Best baits are White Pilchards, Blue Bait, Prawns, Mullet Fillet, Mullet Gut and Yabbies.

 

Flathead have been around in better numbers with some good-sized fish starting to show up. Plenty of bait fish around Jumpinpin and the Broadwater at the moment is a great sign as we edge closer to breeding season for these awesome fish. Hopefully, we get a flush out soon to clean up the snot weed as it can be a massive pain when targeting Flathead on lures. Drifting bait is a good way to cover ground and find Flathead if you not used to fishing with lures. Yabbies, White Pilchards, Blue Bait and strips of Mullet Fillet make great baits. Flathead have a habit of wearing through trace line pretty quickly, so I recommend at least 12lb trace when using bait in case they swallow the hook. For the lure fisho’s if you can manage to dodge the snot week trolling hard body lures along the Mangrove lined banks of Islands and edges of Sandbanks is a great method as Flathead will sit head into the current waiting for bait fish to swim past. Trolling against the tide is not recommended as the fish will have to turn to attack your lure and can often result in them missing the lure and not hooking up. Some good areas to try your luck are Bedrooms, Tipplers Passage, Paradise Point, Aldershots, Never Fails Islands, Kalinga Bank, Tiger Mullet Channel, Cabbage Tree Point, Currumbin Creek, Coomera River, Brown Island, Logan River and the Tweed River.

 

I have included the link to Fisheries Queensland with information on the Snapper and Pearl Perch closure which commenced on the 15th of July and finishes 16th of August 2020. Make sure you know your responsibilities https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries/sustainable/sustainable-fisheries-strategy/fisheries-reforms

 

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports this week in the Tweed River has all been about one of our favourite lure crunching fish, the good old Flathead. We have been getting some serious numbers of fish in all sorts of sizes from big to small and at the same time have handled them carefully and released them as this is a spawning time for this species. Jigging the deep holes and drifting the deeper channels with vibes the likes of Ecogear zx40s, zx43s, Samaki vibelicous and Ecogear vx blades have all performed equally well. To mix the week up we have also done a bit of trolling in the same areas with some deep diving minnows and got some fantastic results. Both techniques also caught a lot of Bream and the odd Whiting that hammered the lures which is unusual at this time of year for Whiting to take lures in the colder water. We did not catch a Jewie this week but hopefully we will this coming week as they are great fun.

 

Clint reports the fishing has again this week been fantastic with great daily catches of various fish, big Arrow Squid, and nice Blue Swimmer Crabs. It is easy to forget how lucky we are to live on the Gold Coast with its diverse and amazing fishery. We are boating some really nice big Tuskfish, as well as Flounder, Winter Whiting, Tarwhine, Bream, Tailor. Best bait has been live yabbies, best lures have been Ecogear ZX40 in 440 and 411 colour, ZX43 in 404 and 440 colour, Samaki Vibelicious 70mm forktail in white bait and ghost bait colours. Use Sax Scent goldprawn scent on sunnier, calm days, and Smithy’s UV prawn Sax scent when there’s cloud cover, less light, dirtier green water such as during run out tide. The new size Ecogear ZX will be popular with a lot of anglers. It’s slightly bigger size seems to attract bigger fish on average and it’s 8.8g weight makes it easier to stay in the strike zone during tidal flow. This coming week the Broadwater area between the seaway and Sovereign Island will hold plenty of bait and fish schools.

 

Hope you all have a good week and stay healthy and safe. If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went.

 

Callum Woodbury with a couple of nice Tusk Fish from the Broadwater WEBRebel with a hard fighting Tuskfish caught on the Broadwater with Brad Smith Fishing Charters WEBRodney Taylor landed a great feed of Squid in the Broadwater[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/

If you have any great catches to report or fishing photos please email them to  brett@fishotackle.com.au    Good luck with the Fishing.  Brett[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_raw_html]JTNDZGl2JTIwaWQlM0QlMjJjYm94LTVTbTQ3M0p3RHpJZ01TRlklMjIlM0UlM0MlMkZkaXYlM0U=[/vc_raw_html][stm_sidebar sidebar=”651″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT

[vc_row][vc_column][stm_post_animated_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Hi Everyone, hope you have all had a good week, School Holidays has kicked off with plenty of family’s heading out on our Houseboats to enjoy the fabulous Gold Coast Waterways and hopefully catch a feed of fish. Conditions are looking nice on the Tweed and Gold Coast for getting out of the house and making the most of the great winter weather on offer. Let’s have a look at what’s been on offer for anglers this week.

With School Holidays underway this week it is a great time to get the kids out of the house, off the xbox, phone’s and spend some quality time trying your luck to catch a fish. You don’t need fancy gear if you are just getting started or want to try something different with the kids. A light estuary outfit with a running sinker rig will work well, Prawns, White Pilchards, Worms or Yabbies are great bait. Fishing from a jetty or the beach is a great option especially with kids as you can access facilities in most of the local parks. Some good spots to try are Coomera River, Paradise Point, Runaway Bay, Labrador, Biggera Waters, Broadwater Parklands, Marine Stadium, Nerang River and Jacobs Well. You will mainly be targeting Bream, Whiting and Flathead from these areas, they are a great fun for the kids to catch. Make sure you get a photo of them holding their catch and email it to me to go in the paper.

Jumpinpin has been fishing well this week with a mixture of Bream, Squire, Tailor and Jew Fish being landed by local Fishos. Try the Pin Bar mouth on the last of the run-in tide for Tailor and big Jewfish chasing the bait schools in the deeper water, Crusoe Island, Kalinga Bank and Short Island will also be worth a try. Some good-sized Squire have been landed hanging around the Bream schools at the moment, spots to start looking are Kalinga Bank, Short Island, Whalleys Gutter, Tiger Mullet Channel, Little Rocky Point and the Power Lines.

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports we had some chilly starts this week with the cool mornings turning into perfectly comfortable winter days. It has seen a bit of an unusual week in the fact that it has been about quality more than quantity. Some of the Whiting taking the lures in the deep holes have been crackers  and the same goes with the Bream with the average size being between 35 to 40 cm long. The best lures have been zx40s, vx45s and samiki vibelicous soft vibes and they have all worked equally well. We did not get a Jewie this week but there was still a few small but hard fighting Giant Trevally in the deeper holes. Trolling along the edges of the channels with slam 47 and pontoon 21 crackjacks also produced some quality Flathead around the first hour of the run-out tides.

Clint reports the fishing is amazing in the Broadwater with big daily hauls of up to 100 Fish, Squid, and Crabs. This is the best time of the year to catch a superb feed of fresh seafood. The big Arrow Squid have been thick and a heap of fun to catch, not to mention delicious in the pan! Ecogear ZX40’s really fire them up, and they then eagerly grab squid jigs. We have also been getting lots of nice big Blue Swimmer Crabs, Winter Whiting, Bream, Bar Tail and Dusky Flathead, Tarwhine, and heaps of Flounder. Ensuring our guests go home with a seafood basket from heaven. Best bait by far is live yabbies, best lures are Ecogear ZX40 in colours 440, 418, 411, 415, coated in Smithy’s UV Sax scent.

Gavin from Sea Probe Fishing Charters reports 50 fathoms has been still fishing well with nice size Kingys , Amberjack, Samson Fish, Snapper and Pearl Perch. Live baits like yakkas and slimeys are doing the best with a BKK circle glow hook and a good size sinker to get down to the bottom, also try pillies and squid. 36 fathoms try for Snapper Tuskies, Pearlies and Dolphin Fish and  24s and 18s Snapper, Jewfish and Cobia.

 

Bailey was stoked to catch his first Flathead with Brad Smith Fishing Charters on the Tweed RiverCos has been scoring some nice Flathead in the Broadwater2Happy customers on Sea Probe Fishing Charters with a solid Amberjack from a recent trip2Wayne Young scored a great feed on a recent trip offshore on the Gold Coast[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/

If you have any great catches to report or fishing photos please email them to  brett@fishotackle.com.au    Good luck with the Fishing.  Brett[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_raw_html]JTNDZGl2JTIwaWQlM0QlMjJjYm94LTVTbTQ3M0p3RHpJZ01TRlklMjIlM0UlM0MlMkZkaXYlM0U=[/vc_raw_html][stm_sidebar sidebar=”651″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT

[vc_row][vc_column][stm_post_animated_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Hi Everyone, hope you have all had a good week, it’s nice to see our happy Houseboat customers back out on the water this week having a ball exploring our local waterways and catching feed of fresh fish. A bit of wind, the odd shower of rain and a decent swell hanging around the Tweed and Gold Coast, just pick your time and heading outdoors will be worth it. Let’s see what’s biting this week.

 

Local Fisho Ben White (see photo in report) did well scoring his bag limit on big Jew Fish from the close reefs off the Gold Coast Seaway, we have seen some great catches over the past couple of weeks which is a good sign as winter kicks in. Big bait schools will call our local waters home and finding these schools will be the key to landing the predators like big Jew Fish, Snapper and Cobia which are a prized catch and top eating quality. Make sure you have a good look on the sounder before choosing your fishing spot, if you are in the right spot you should be able to jig your live bait from where you fish, after all that’s what your target species will be eating.

 

It’s been great to see our Houseboat customers back on the water and scoring some good feeds of bread and butter species this week including Bream, Whiting and Flathead have been the main target for anglers in Broadwater and Jumpinpin area chasing a feed. Customers have done well scoring a nice feed from the Tweed River, Nerang River, Coomera River, Pimpama River, Jacobs Well, Tiger Mullet Channel, Whalleys Gutter, Short Island and Logan River. Prawns, Yabbies, Worms, Mullet Fillet or Live Herring are all great baits.

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports well once again it has been a great week of fishing on the Tweed. Although we have not caught anything too big in size the numbers and variety have made up for it. Keeping a bend in the rod is what it is all about and being able to swap lures and techniques through the day is very exciting and eventually that big one will come along. In saying this we have caught the odd cracker Whiting and on most trips have been getting a few Flatties over 50cm. Jigging the deep holes with ecogear zx and vx vibes has been producing Flatties, Bream, Whiting, Big Eye and Giant Trevally as well as the odd small School Jew.

 

Clint reports on the water though we are seeing a typical winter pattern. The bigger Flounder and Squid have arrived in numbers, and the Flathead and Winter Whiting are increasing too. We should see schools of spawning Tailor over the next few months unless the netters take most of them. Ecogear ZX40 vibes in colours 415, 440, 447 and Ecogear VX45 vibes in colour 439 are doing well. Best of the Samaki Vibelicious soft vibe colour are white bait and ghost bait. This coming week I am fishing most days, and the Broadwater looks good, I will be fishing along the edges of the main channel South of the Seaway, and also near Marina Mirage, Anglers Paradise, Carters Bank, North Currigee, and Runaway bay.

 

Gavin from Sea Probe Fishing Charters reports on the 50 Fathoms Still Kingys, Amberjack some nice Pearlys and Snapper around use flesh baits pilchards squid and Live bait. On the 36 fathoms plenty of Dolphin fish on all the fads ,on the bottom at the 36s plenty of Tusk Fish also Snappers and Pearlies with odd big Samson fish being caught. On the 24s fathoms Cobia have been starting to show up with the Whales coming through live bait is the key and don’t be afraid to throw down a big live bait.

Ben caught his first Jewie on the Tweed River with Brad Smith Fishing ChartersBen White with a couple of cracking Jewfish from the close reefs off the SeawayMore Happy customers from Sea Probe Fishing Charters with a nice Samson Fish from a recent charterWebSteve with a hard fighting Morwong caught and released in the Broadwater Web[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/

If you have any great catches to report or fishing photos please email them to  brett@fishotackle.com.au    Good luck with the Fishing.  Brett[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_raw_html]JTNDZGl2JTIwaWQlM0QlMjJjYm94LTVTbTQ3M0p3RHpJZ01TRlklMjIlM0UlM0MlMkZkaXYlM0U=[/vc_raw_html][stm_sidebar sidebar=”651″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT

[vc_row][vc_column][stm_post_animated_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Hi Everyone, hope you have all had a good week, cold is an understatement last Saturday with only the keenest Fishos heading out to try their luck on the Tweed and Gold Coast. The rest of the week, we have been blessed with sunny days and light winds making spending time outdoors much more inviting. Once the swell eases heading offshore will be a good option. Let’s have a look at what’s been happening.

Reports of some quality fish around the southern end of the Broadwater this week seeing Fishos land a good variety of species such as Snapper, Tusk Fish, Tailor, Yellow Tail Kingfish, Jew Fish, Flathead, Flounder, Bream, Squid and Morwong. Fishing around the mouth of the Gold Coast Seaway has been extra productive with large bait schools of Hardy Heads and Yakka’s proving irresistible to predators. The run-in tide has fished well, try starting a drift from the mouth of the Seaway and heading either North in the main channel towards Currigee or South towards Marina Mirage. Live baits have been getting smashed, dead baits like White Pilchards, WA Pilchards, Mullet Fillet, Prawns and Yabbies will all do the trick. Soft Vibes and Metal Vibes up to half an ounce in weight work well in the deeper water and is a favourite form of fishing for me. I try to target the last 2 hours of the run-in tide and the first hour of the run-out tide for best results.

As the water starts to cool down quality Whiting are heading back up the rivers in numbers, local angler Wayne Young has had a good week finding an excellent feed of some great quality fish. The Tweed River, Tallebudgera Creek, Nerang River, Coomera River, Pimpama River and Logan River are all great spots to try your luck. Whiting bite best when the tide is running at a decent pace, fishing can be quite slow during a tide change. I recommend live bait is the way to go, Worms and Yabbies are at the top of the list and can be great fun to catch, especially for the kids. Fishing lite is the key, 6 to 9lb mainline, a long 6lb fluorocarbon leader matched a size 6 hook for worms or a size 4 hook for Yabbies. A decent-sized sinker is recommended, I usually use a 4 or 5 ball even in quite shallow water. Just keep moving around until you start to find consistent numbers of fish on the bite.

Tailor are starting to show up more regularly around Jumpinpin towards the top of the tide and the first hour of the run-out. The Pin Bar Mouth, Crusoe Island, Kalinga Bank, Tiger Mullet Channel, Mouth of Whalleys Gutter and Canaipa Passage are all worth a look. When targeting Tailor it’s crucial to find the bait to find the fish, birds actively feeding is a great indication of a school of Tailor. If things are a bit quiet, try trolling shallow diving lures around 65 – 90mm in length until you can temp a fish, once located you can try casting metal slugs or surface lures. Matching the size of baitfish they are feeding on is very important, once feeding fish are fixed on bait if you don’t offer a similar-sized lure they will not be interested, this is called matching the hatch.

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports the Tweed River continues to produce good Flathead, School Mulloway, Bream and the odd Whiting in the middle to upper reaches. On the flats in lower light with hardbodies that dive to 3.5m, and on Samaki Vibelicious white bait and Ecogear ZX40 colour code 447 in the deeper holes that are holding bait.

Clint has had a bit of maintenance to do this week, so only made a couple of trips to the Nerang River and Gold Coast Broadwater. I will be making a lot more trips soon and very much looking forward to it. The Nerang River is producing Mulloway, Flathead, Giant Trevally and Bream on soft vibes and blade lures. The Broadwater has Squid, Flounder, Winter Whiting and Flathead biting around the Hollywell area, on yabbies and Ecogear ZX40 blades colour 440.

I hope you all have a good week and stay healthy and safe. If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went.

 

Gerry with a couple of quality Nerang River Whiting from a trip with Wayne Young.Shane caught and released this beautiful Giant Trevally in the Nerang River on Brad Smith Fishing ChartersRodney Taylor scored a great catch from the Gold Coast Seaway[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/

If you have any great catches to report or fishing photos please email them to  brett@fishotackle.com.au    Good luck with the Fishing.  Brett[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][stm_sidebar sidebar=”651″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT

[vc_row][vc_column][stm_post_animated_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Hi Everyone, hope you have all had a good week, a bit of a mixed bag of weather hanging around the past week with plenty of wind, a few showers and a couple of weather windows for keen Fishos mid-week to get outdoors for a fishing mission on the Gold and Tweed Coasts. Let’s see what’s been on the bite.

As the weather cools down, chasing a Jew Fish particularly at night-time becomes a great option. I have noticed some good-sized schools of Mullet have started to show up on the southern end of the Gold Coast. This is a promising sign as quality Jew Fish will be hunting close by. I prefer to fish the Gold Coast Seaway area at night as the Jew Fish tend to rise in the water column and can hit the Mullet on the surface, the day time boat traffic will spook the both Mullet and Jew Fish. During daylight hours you are best to anchor up over the pipeline, and drop-down live baits or fresh mullet fillet as the fish will be feeding in the deeper water. Jumpinpin Bar is another excellent area to target big Jewfish, especially around the entrance on the Northern side, which has some great deep holes in which bait and predators hide. Large soft plastics and big soft vibe lures work well when drifting through the area. I find the best time to target a big Jewfish is the last 2 hours of the incoming tide, the tide change and the first hour of the runout is the prime bite time. Big Jewfish can be a bit elusive, but if you put in the time and effort the rewards are well worth it.

Reports of some nice Flathead caught in the Tweed River, Broadwater, Jumpinpin and joining estuary systems. Try drifting and throwing soft plastics in the 3” to 4” size range like Zman Minnowz and StreakZ on a 1/4 to 3/8 jig head or working soft or metal vibes depending on water depth. Drifting enables you to cover as much territory as possible until you find an area holding good numbers of fish to concentrate your efforts.

WebBec Clarke caught a nice Flathead for dinner using Yabbies for bait in the Broadwatetr

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports the Tweed is still offering up nice Flathead, Whiting, Bream and School Jew. Now the water has cleared fully, the deeper holes in the middle to upper reaches are fishing best. Try the flats during lower light periods or cloudy days by trolling hardbodies or twerking with vibes.

Clint reports in the Broadwater bit of light at the end of the Covid tunnel. I reckon we’re fortunate to live in Australia. Especially Gold Coast! Water and fishing everywhere; it’s not hard to get out and enjoy it with so many options available. I’ve been making a few trips on the Broadwater while the wind was light and tides were neap. Fishing the run-out tides is most productive, or the deeper water on the run-in. I’ve been using Ecogear VX45 and Hurricane blades alongside the usual trusty Ecogear ZX40’s and Samaki soft vibes. The VX’s are terrific lures and mimic small baitfish very well, while the Hurricane Sting 37 blades in Bling prawn colour are super deadly! All of the above are accounting for School Flathead, Squid, Squire, Whiting, Tarwhine and lots of Flounder. Many excellent eating fish are plentiful in our local waters this time of year.

Brian with a nice flathead caught in the Broadwater on a one on one charter with Clint from Brad Smith Fishing Charters

Gavin from Seaprobe Fishing Charters reports after the weather settles down get out there and try the  fads for Dollies using pillies and live baits. Out on the 50s also try live baiting for Ajs, Yellow Tail Kingfish , Snapper and Pearl Perch, in close on the 24s try for Snapper ,Trag Jew and Silver Jew.

I hope you all have a good week and stay healthy and safe. If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went.

 

Jayden Clifford had a great day scoring a nice Bream in the Gold Coast SeawayWeb Callum Woodbury with an impressive Tailor caught on a recent trip off Stradbroke Island[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/

If you have any great catches to report or fishing photos please email them to  brett@fishotackle.com.au    Good luck with the Fishing.  Brett[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][stm_sidebar sidebar=”651″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT

[vc_row][vc_column][stm_post_animated_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Hi Everyone, hope you have all had a good week, for Mum’s that enjoy fishing it was nice to see some great conditions last weekend for Mother’s Day on the Gold and Tweed Coasts. Bit windy for the rest of the week with a small weather window to get out and about. Let’s have a look at what’s been happening.

With the cooler weather hanging around looking for a feed of Squid has been a good option for some Fisho’s landing a great feed of fresh Calamari. You can catch Squid during the daytime or night time, I prefer to pick a run in tide on the Southern Gold Coast giving better water quality and as the tide rises access by boat over some of the more productive weeds beds where the Squid hang out. We have two main species inshore to target, the larger Tiger Squid or the Arrowhead Squid. I recommend a average sized Squig Jig between 2 to 3 inches long depending on what they are feeding on. Also metal blade vibration lures work well in the deeper channels near the Seaway south to Marina Mirage area. Land based fishing can be better at night, the key is to find somewhere that has good lighting on the water, the light will attract bait fish which will also attract the predatory Squid. Some good land-based spots are Paradise Point Jetty, Grand Hotel Jetty and boat ramp, Sundale Bridge Jetty, Marine Stadium and the Gold Coast Seaway Rock Walls will all produce some quality Squid.

Reports again this week of some quality Tailor showing up along the Surf Beaches from the Tweed North to the Northern End of the Gold Coat and South Stradbroke Island. I still prefer to fish the incoming tide if targeting Tailor from the beach, the bigger fish will usually follow the bait into the gutters which are scattered along the coast. The Gold Coast Seaway and Jumpinpin Bar are also fishing well with some big Tailor showing up. Best tip is to keep your eye on the sounder for bait fish, also watching out for birds diving on the water can indicate fish feeding on bait. Best baits are whole WA pilchards, Mullet Fillet and White Pilchards, for the lure Fishos Tailor tend to respond well to trolling Shallow diving lures, Surface lures and Metal Slugs.

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports the Tweed River is awesome this time of year. Mild and calm weather, Flathead and Mulloway are pushing upstream to their winter hunting grounds, I love it! The odd trip is producing some quality Flathead, with some big Whiting and Bream amongst them. Popping MMD splash prawns in honeybee colour over shallow water is getting the surface strikes, while in the deeper channels teabagging with Ecogear ZX40 blades in 440 and 447 colour and Samaki Vibelicious 70mm soft vibes in Ghost bait and White bait colours are getting plenty of solid fish.

John caught this nice 59cm Flathead on a trolled Daiwa lure with Clint from Brad Smith Fishing ChartersWeb

Clint reports in the Broadwater good numbers of bigger Flathead are showing up which is great to see, and expected this time of year. Samaki Vibelicious soft vibes and Ecogear ZX40 account for their share share of Flatties, in much the same colours as Smithy mentioned above, in the clear water normal for the dry months. The water temperature dropped to 20 degrees in the Nerang River after the cool weather. This will bring on more Flathead, Squid, Mulloway, Snapper, Flounder and more tasty species. A good time to fish is just past the full moon and into neaps, my favourite tides for working the deeper sections of the Northern Broadwater such as Currigee reef, Ephraim reef, around the Seaway, and the main channel East of Carters bank.

 

Gavin from Seaprobe Fishing Charters reports out on the shelf there has been Blue Marlin around Jim’s Mountain, Riv Grounds with boats catching up to 4 Blue Marlin a day and also the odd big Yellowfin Tuna  using lures anywhere from 8 to 15 inch lures. On The 50 and 36s Fathoms the current was raging up to 3 knots so very hard to fish but still few nice Snapper, Pearlies and Tuskys have been biting with the Dolphin Fish still around the fads.

A Big Black Marlin caught by the crew on Sea Probe Fishing Charters last Summer

Callum Woodbury with a solid Dolphin Fish from a recent tripWeb

Rob Clifford caught a nice Trevally just outside the Gold Coast Seaway

Hope you all have a good week and stay healthy and safe. If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/

If you have any great catches to report or fishing photos please email them to  brett@fishotackle.com.au    Good luck with the Fishing.  Brett[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][stm_sidebar sidebar=”651″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

“CLARKIES” GOLD COAST FISHING REPORT

[vc_row][vc_column][stm_post_animated_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Hi Everyone, hope you have all had a good week, it was great to see everyone back out on the water over the Long Weekend enjoying the new relaxation in the Queensland Government boating rules. Cool and Windy conditions on the Tweed and Gold Coast has made catching a feed hard work. Good news for the weekend and Mother’s Day with some better weather on the way. Let’s see what’s been on the bite.

I recommend before heading out on the water that you make sure you check out the latest news from the Queensland Government, Maritime Safety Queensland or the New South Wales Government if fishing the Tweed region.

With the wind and swell up during the week combined with big tides due to the full moon hitting the protected estuary’s and rivers was the best option. Some great catches of Whiting are still on offer as the water starts to cool down. Some good spots to try are the Logan River, Tweed River, Tallebudgera Creek, Coomera River, Pimpama River and the Nerang River which all offer protection from the wind. Quality bait is the key to success, live worms or yabbies are the best choice when it come to catching a feed of Whiting. Choose an area where you can target both shallow water and deeper water at the same time with your rods until you can work out which depth the majority of the fish are feeding in. Once you can work out a pattern then concentrate your efforts in the most productive depth. Big tides mean good water flow which is important when targeting Whiting, the old saying no run no fun does apply. Make sure you are using a heavy enough sinker to keep your bait in contact with the bottom, I usually use a size 4  ball sinker and even go a 5 ball in the river depending on current flow. If the fish are quiet just keep on moving until you find some life, I usually move if I have not caught a fish in 30 minutes. Light main line and light leader will attract more bites, I normally go for a 6lb fluro carbon leader works best.

Reports of some good early season Bream around Short Island, Tiger Mullet Channel, Logan River, Jacobs Well, Tipplers Passage, The Coomera River, Paradise Point and the Gold Coast Seaway. Mullet Fillet, White Pilchards, Mullet Gut and Yabbies are great bait. A good burly trail is important when chasing Bream, pellet options from Wilson Fishing and Stimulate will do the job. As we step closer to winter, all the early signs for a great Bream season is good news for anglers.

Some nice Tailor have come from the surf gutters along South Stradbroke Island the past week, the early cool Westerly winds combined with lots of bait fish have attracted some quality sized fish. The swell is tipped to drop for the weekend, a beach fishing session would be a good idea.

Brad from Brad Smith Fishing Charters reports he has been getting out when he can, the Tweed this time of year fishes well for Flathead, and the Whiting and Bream are still active on surface lures.

As the water cools more the bigger Bream, Mulloway, and Flathead appear and are best targeted in deeper water with vibes and soft plastics.

Clint has been fishing the Gold Coast Broadwater during the settled weather and neap tides. So many good eating fish around at the moment and the fishing was on fire this week. The best fishing coincided with the smallest tides of 0.5-1 metre range, allowing us to fish the open channels more, 6-8 metre depth has been best. We have been catching a lot of good size Tuskfish. These fish are very feisty and hit our Ecogear ZX40 and Samaki Vibelicious 70 lures with venom then tear off on a screaming run, great fun on light tackle. Best ZX colours at the moment are 411, 414, 440, best Samaki soft vibe colours are ghost bait, pearl shrimp, and white bait. Flathead are increasing in numbers and size, as are Founder, Squid, and Winter Whiting.  The cold change will bring on Snapper, big Bream, Mulloway, Flathead and Squid. Heaps of great fishing to look forward to!

Jett with a lovely Tuskfish caught in the Bbroadwater on Brad Smith Fishing ChartersWEB

Gavin from Seaprobe Fishing Charters reports weather permitting on 50 fathoms there is still a good mixed bag of Snapper, Pearlies, Amberjack, Samson fish and Pig fish Out there just using squid, pillies and live bait are the best options. Also try the fads on the 36s and 50s for some Mahi Mahi (Dolphin fish) with pillies and little lures working  best and in closer around the pin there is plenty of Mac Tunas and Long Tails in the mix as well to target on soft plastics and metal slugs.

Callum Woodbury did well landing a solid Amber Jack from the 50 fathom lineWeb

Hope you all have a good week and stay healthy and safe, and Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful Mums out there. If you have any great catches or photos you would like to share, please email us and let us know how you went.

 

Rodney Taylor with a couple of nice sized Mud Crabs for dinnerJess Clarke caught and releasd this awwsome Small Mouth Nanagai in the BroadwaterWeb

 

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Stay up to date with all fishing regulations in Queensland https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries

Seabreeze is a great website to access a local forecast http://www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/

If you have any great catches to report or fishing photos please email them to  brett@fishotackle.com.au    Good luck with the Fishing.  Brett[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_raw_html]JTNDZGl2JTIwaWQlM0QlMjJjYm94LTVTbTQ3M0p3RHpJZ01TRlklMjIlM0UlM0MlMkZkaXYlM0U=[/vc_raw_html][stm_sidebar sidebar=”651″][/vc_column][/vc_row]