It's been a good start to the New Year with better weather, great fishing and we still have a couple of months before it starts to get cold again!

We’re still getting plenty of pelagic action with longtails, mackerel, billfish, trevally, queenfish and mac tuna working the many bait schools in the area. Sharks have been taxing on many good fish so an upgrade of line class might be the call to get fish to the boat.

If there are no bust ups of bait on the surface or birds working then sight casting the shallows or drifting over the many coffee rock reefs close to Fraser Island using plastics, stick baits and metals can be a productive option for a mixture of reef, estuary and pelagic species. 

The local reefs have fished really well with coral bream, sand bass, parrot, blackall, Moses perch and cod making up the bulk of the catch. Squid, mullet and prawns are worth a shot if your bait fishing and prawn profile soft plastics are working well at the moment. Live baiting is the best way to tempt many fish and cod are real suckers for herring, mullet, pike and just about anything they can fit in their mouth.

Most of the bay's shallow reefs hold cod and if you set yourself up on some decent ground with a good supply of live bait and fish the tide changes you'll catch fish.

Pencil squid are everywhere at the moment attacking baits and plastics meant for other species. They vary from tiny bait sized to the big fellas most anglers chase for the table. Carrying a selection of sizes and colours of Yo-Zuri style jigs will get you amongst them and if your night fishing, a decent light will bring them around the boat in no time.

In the creeks and estuaries, bread and butter species like flathead, whiting and bream have been a reliable source of fresh fish for the table.

Threadfin salmon are in their prime at this time of year and good numbers of grunter have been caught on a mixture of baits and lures.

Plenty of crabs are on the move too, so now is the time to get your pots in the water for a feed of succulent muddies.