Big tides brought about big fun high in our harbour estuaries this past week – both middle and east arms were the haven for numbers of pan sized golden and saddletail snapper, javelin fish and cod.
Fishing the top of the tide change with prawn and squid strip baits has proven to be a great way to get a mixed bag of reef fish. Southport has always been a special place to fish shallow rockbars, albeit a little dangerous during the lower stages of tide for the unaware, but rarely do you return empty handed. A crew fishing the mouth of Haycock Reach’s Island Creek brained a good bag of snapper on the tide change thanks to 3-inch Gulp Minnows; the outgoing tide produced numbers of blue salmon to 60cm and the odd school jew.
Bynoe Harbour has been working well with barra about its low tide flats and the small 14A Gold Bomber returned positive results sight casting the mangrove edges on the falling tide. The 4-inch Berkley Hollowbelly, very slightly weighted also proved too much for a barra to resist.
In reef reports, The Peron Island rarely fails to impress and yet again it takes the cake for top reef jigging sessions on the best fish in the sea. Try 70cm goldies, big Jew, emporer and coral trout to envy and those Octa Jig varieties of metal jigs are quick becoming a favourite on many species here.
If it’s queenies you are after load up with maribou jigs or chrome slices and head to East Point armed with a high speed spin outfit. This area is loaded with pelagic action. One angler got steamed trained by a hefty GT that headed for Bali and busted off…an abrupt end to his session!
Mackerel numbers are now slowing as the wet season approaches, but there’s still a few greys and the odd Spaniard roaming the Lee Point reef systems during the neaper tides. Darwin’s jig king Peter Zeroni has been at it again, this time at The Vernons and Condor Point. My first guess is he’s been product testing the all new range of Reidys metal jigs and judging by his photos they work!
Checking the Got One tide times, mid-week we sneak back into a neap phase which should prove timely for a weekend assault on the bluewater. Keep one eye on the weather, go early if need be or maybe consider a night session in Darwin Harbour. There’s plenty of artificial reefs to choose from and I reckon the jewies could be ready to go.
Let’s hope a decent wet season soon arrives and prepares our river systems for another bonza run-off come March next year.
Peter Zeroni and a nice black jew he caught on the troll.
Read more from Craig Grosvenor in Fishing The NT in Reports.
