ISLANDS

The mackerel have really fired up on garfish and ribbonfish.

Try mouth of the passage, Saba Bay, Deloraine and Leaper shoals.

There have been reports of a few billfish showing up.

On the bottom, the shoals have been producing well for nannygai and red emperor.

Trout have come back on the bite in the last few days with reports of some around the 50-60cm mark.

Try Hook Passage for giant trevally.

Shute Harbour has been fishing well for bluebone, queenfish and small mackerel on live herring.

ROCK WALLS

The Whitsunday Sailing Club rock walls is the pick of them this week, with reports of a few barramundi being landed early in the morning.

You need to be there on daylight.

There have also been a few grunter around.

Bob Spees

Whitsunday Fishing World

DAM

The dams really started to fire up over the past week.

The warm conditions and the northerly winds have certainly triggered the bite.

There's pretty well been fish getting caught all over the dam with guys casting the shallows in the low light hours and into the night and some really good quality fish getting caught in the deeper areas on the troll.

This year the fish really haven't left the basin and there's been a fairly consistent catch of barra in the deep basin areas all winter which is a little different from years gone by.

As these warm conditions continue, I'm sure the shallow areas will continue to fish really well, especially early in the morning, late in the afternoon and night.

Paddle tail soft plastics are always popular and also shallow diving hard bodies like the Rapala X-raps.

RIVER

The tides don't drop back a great deal this week, but certainly later in the week as the tides get smaller there should be a good opportunity to chase some good salt water barra.

Target them on lures, either trolling or casting the drains, and vibing the sand bar drop-offs and deeper holes.

However, the most effective way of catching them is having a live mullet swimming around on the end of the hook. There's still a few crabs around but they certainly aren't thick.

Lindsay Dobe

Barra World

REEF

Spring has certainly turned on the weather in the Whitsundays but that has turned the fish off a bit.

This is often the case when the weather calms; it can turn the fish off the bite, but if you work hard you can still catch a good feed.

Working the pressure points is your best bet for good reef fish and pelagics.

Ash Matthews

Sea Fever Sportfishing