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Smaller estuaries better
  |  First Published: October 2013



The estuaries around the Narooma region have continued to produce with the smaller systems like Tuross, Mummaga and Corunna Lakes the better ones to try.

Most species are having a go now that the water is slowly warming.

A lot of anglers will be targeting flathead as they come out of their Winter slumber, with bait and lure anglers succeeding.

These smaller systems have fished quite well over Winter for eating-size models, but this month the big girls will get active and I expect some crocs upwards of 90cm. Early in the season these breeders will be hungry.

I like targeting them with lures of 100mm and bigger on 1/2oz heads fished slowly near the bottom. These fish will still be a little lethargic, hence the slower retrieve, but instinct and hunger will take over so expect the bite to be quite aggressive.

Concentrate around the lake margins in 3m-5m.

At Tuross, the river is a great place to start. Every season some big fish come from these shallows.

There's a heap of other species willing to fill the gap.

Bream numbers will increase, especially yellowfin bream as they head back into the estuaries after their Winter spawn along the beaches and rocks.

In October the lower sections of the estuaries are usually best for bream so concentrate in the channels that feed water to the basins.

You should be able to get trevally, blackfish, a few flatties and whiting in the same areas with plastics and fresh prawns, worms and tuna cubes.

OFFSHORE

Anglers after kingfish will be getting a little excited as these superb fighting species increase in numbers on the reefs and at Montague Island.

Over recent weeks a few kings have been about but as we head further into the month things will definitely get better.

This time of year jigs are popular and highly effective, with most kings averaging 3kg-5kg. You will get the odd bigger fish to 8kg but school size fish are the norm.

For the bigger models live bait will be more effective. You can get all the livies you want out the front of the golf course rocks or the reef off Narooma’s Main Beach.

Where the kings will be will depend on a number of factors but if you look around the western side of Montague (Fowlhouse Reef) or down south around the pinnacles, you should be in business.

Big bonito will be mixed in with the kings. These speedsters have been catchable all year and some are nudging 7kg. At that size they certainly have a go and are not bad on the plate if bled on capture and popped in an ice slurry.

On the reefs the snapper have been OK without being red-hot.

Some crews fishing around Potato Point have done pretty well on fish to 4kg, although they’re doing the hard yards.

These reds are an early morning proposition so latecomers will be disappointed.

Depths of 55m-60m have seen most of the action and I’ve heard of the odd kingfish being caught by the snapper fishos.

It may be worthwhile taking a jig outfit and a few livies if you’re planning a snapper trip; you never know when the kingies will turn up.

Those after flathead are doing very well on sandies in 30m-35m straight off Kianga. Once you locate a patch it won't take long before you reach your bag of 20.

Tiger flathead can be found a little further out, in 60m-plus, and these excellent eating fish are in awesome numbers at present.

Some days you may have to move around a little to get away from the leatherjackets but your effort will be rewarded with tasty fillets for the pan.

ROCK, BEACH

The ocean rocks are in the transition period, like most fishing at this time of year.

It’s possible to get a feed of blackfish, drummer and bream, then follow up with whole pilchards or chrome lures for some action on salmon, tailor, bonito and smaller kingfish. To me, that's a cracking mix.

Better ledges to try include Dalmeny Headland, the Golf Course Rocks in town and south of town, Mystery Bay’s high rock.

It’s an exciting time for beach fishos with bream and mulloway definite targets this month.

Both species will be entering the various estuaries along the coast, with the mouth of Tuross a hot spot to target. Every year solid jewies get caught on the southern end of Blackfellows Beach and if early reports of jewies around 8kg from here are anything to go by, that's the area I’d be concentrating on.

Better baits include squid, pilchards, salmon and tailor strips and the best of them all – big bunches of live beach worms.

When using worms, don't be afraid to cast your offering just past the shore dump; mulloway don't need a lot of water to feed and you could be pleasantly surprised how many fish come from this skinny water.

 

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