We all love this time of year as the flathead season is in full swing and they will be literally everywhere all month long.

The pick spots to try for flatties during September are from the dead trees at the bottom of North Straddie in the deep water, all the way to Kalinga Bank and the main channels leading towards the bar (South Straddie, Crusoe and Short islands and Canaipa passage). Most of the fish will be congregating looking to spawn and will be hungry for a feed.

They can be caught on any part of the tide but you’ll find they feed more on the last of the run in and the first of the run out tide. Being an ambush predator, flathead sit camouflaged facing into the tide waiting for a meal to swim past, so bounce your baits or soft plastics along the bottom and the flatties will do the rest.

Be sure to present your baits well so that they look as natural as possible and don’t spin in the current. The best baits are livies like mullet, hardy heads and herring, but if you can’t get your hands on those go for large banana prawns, pilchards, froggies or whitebait.

Trolling hardbody diving lures in the shallows is also proving a great way to catch lizards. If you haven’t tried it before, it is well worth it, as you cover heaps of ground and get to find the areas where the fish are.

The whiting should start to come on as the water starts to heat up. There have been reports of good catches, but the bigger ones are rare. Worms are still the best bait or you could try yabbies, peeled prawns, squid or small worm-like soft plastics fed along the current.

Try Alberton Sands in the Logan, The Junction, Marks Rocks, Pimpama, Tipplers and Never Fail islands, and the Pandannus weed banks. Be sure to berley up and bring the fish to you.

Bream continue to be the staple catch around the Pin area. They can be found near snags and structure and you can also get them on a sandy bank with no structure as they cruise along in search of food. That’s the beauty of bream fishing in this area; you can basically pick them up anywhere, which will keep you coming back again and again.

If you’re struggling for spots to try, Kalinga Bank, Short Island’s eastern point, Flatrock, The Powerlines and Cobby Passage should produce a haul of bream for you.

If you’re keen for a jewfish, the best results have been coming at night in the deeper water from Kalinga Bank to the Bar on live mullet. You could also try off Short Island, Giants Grave or Marks Rocks, but stick to live bait as that has been producing the most fish.

Jigging large soft plastics for jew in the deep water off Swan Bay is also worth a try this time of year. Just be sure to set the hook well as jew have an extremely hard jaw and will often throw the hook if not set correctly.

The tailor have finally shown up with good sized 2-3kg fish on offer along the beaches of North and South Straddie. Just be sure to look for the deeper gutters with an entrance and exit and you’ll be sure to get some fish. You’ll also get them inside the Bar and they have been caught as far in as the Logan River mouth.

Thanks for all your reports and keep those fish coming in. If you’d like any advice or up to date fishing information drop us a line at Gem Bait & Tackle on (07) 3287 3868 or email --e-mail address hidden--