Awesome weather brings fish

Reef

IT WAS great to see so many trailer boats making the trip out wide in search of a feed.

The bottom fishing just continues to be brilliant with red throat emperor and big coral trout making up the bulk of the catches.

The full moon has passed so tides will ease this coming week and the good fishing should continue.

Ash Matthews,

Sea Fever Sportfishing

Dingo Beach/ Hydeaway Bay

THE awesome weather that we have all experienced the last few days has allowed anglers to chase whatever they want, wherever they want.

The sweetlip have held up the inshore reef fishing scene pretty well, with a few trout thrown in for good measure.

The bigger trout have been harder to get a bite out of, but by using light tackle and some finesse, anglers will be rewarded.

Targeting inshore bait schools has been producing some nice queenfish and multiple species of trevally.

Try trolling small, hard-body lures nice and fast around the edges of the bait schools for some light tackle fun.

The Spanish mackerel are showing up intermittently and have been mostly sitting deep in the water column.

They've been hard to get on the chew but we've managed a couple of bites on slow-trolled wolf herring.

With the breeze on the increase again, targeting inshore fringing reefs and rubble patches will be the go until the breezes settle down again.

Mick Underwood, Reel Addiction Sport Fishing

Rockwalls

BLUE salmon, queenfish and the odd barramundi are being caught off the rocks at the VMR and Port of Airlie, with best baits being live mullet or herring.

Lure wise, try soft plastics, and vibes are worth a try.

Peeled prawns have been reliable for grunter off the VMR or whiting at Cannonvale Beach.

Floating live baits, pillies or casting surface lures early in the morning is a great way to target the mackerel from the rock walls.

Rivers

THE moon phase and warmer weather hints that the barra will wake up at the weekend, with some good reports of quality fish being caught.

Most of these fish fall to a small live bait.

Target spots on the edge of the main current flow and eddies for these fish.

Casting soft plastics around the drains and vibes around deep bends is providing some good numbers of salmon.

Fresh mullet strips or prawns on a running sinker rig is the best way to catch a tasty feed of grunter.

Dam

THERE haven't been many reports from the dam due to the fantastic weather luring most anglers towards the islands and reef. With the change in temperature and the moon still being quite full, now would be the time to fish the warmer bays and weed beds, late afternoon and into the evening. Try using surface lures, shallow divers or lightly weighted soft plastics super slowly.

Islands

IT WAS fantastic to finally get a good run of weather, and from most of the reports, the fishing was just as great.

The mackerel were still a bit quiet but baits trolled or fished deep were the undoing of most fish caught.

Sweetlip, redthroat and bluies are plentiful around the islands and fringing reef, readily taking baits and soft plastics.

Anglers who worked the tides in the deeper water were rewarded with nannygai, red emperor and some good quality jewfish.

Ryan Fuller,

Whitsunday Fishing World