The water temperature is now cooling and this will bring on the grunter and Spanish mackerel.

Our late wet has seen plenty of good fish caught recently with Haden Bell bringing his son up to catch his fill. Brodie Bell caught some awesome barramundi up to 1.22m and left with a huge smile. I am pretty sure his dad caught some but young Brodie took out the trip with his massive captures. Not only that, but he let them all go so he could do it again soon.

Grunter will start to make their way up the river to breed. The easy way to find them is to leave the boat ramp a bit later and follow the crowd up river to the spot. Fresh bait is always good with live prawns the best to get the job done.

I always use a running sinker rig with mono leader and a 5/0 hook to catch the big ones, and usually get the odd king salmon as well.

Travelling out the front when the wind allows will give you an opportunity to catch a Spanish mackerel with better chances towards the end of May as the water continues to cool. The place to be is on the northwest side of the sand island as the tide runs out. Please spread out and you can all share the spoils.

Another option is to troll out a bit further with spoons; just remember that they have soft mouths so be patient and do not increase the drag pressure once you start the fight. Never give a slack line or it will all be over.

Heading out to the rubble patches will be a good place to start looking for tuna feeding. These fish are great to catch and they will test your gear so make sure you come prepared. The way to catch them is to get upwind of where they feed on the surface and cast metal slugs out past them. Let the slug sink for about 10 seconds then wind fast back through the school of fish.

Please remember that when passing other boats going in the opposite direction you need to pass on the starboard side or right side like driving cars in America. It is not the same as driving cars in Australia so be careful. If someone is not doing the right thing then best option is to stop and get their number and pass it on to the Fisheries department as there will be an accident if it is not done right.