As a kid growing up in Maryborough I had easy access to the western side of Fraser Island via the small seaside townships of Maaroom, Boonooroo, Tuan, Poona and Tinnanbar.

Maaroom was ‘just’ in range for long range pushbike trips from Maryborough with rods, my tacklebox and other accessories were all carried for the hour and a half ride to fish off the boat ramp, while begging parents usually resulted in being dropped off at the big Tuan boat ramp for a few hours of fishing.

In due course a 12-foot Stessl tinny was bought with a 5hp Mariner, and this really opened up a new world. And as usual the 12-footer went to a 14, then a 16 and so on!

Early days were spent bait fishing with frozen prawns and squid, and catches of bream, whiting, grunter and the odd flathead and tailor were common. Then the sportfishing bug hit in the mid 80s after reading early Fishing World magazines and seeing pictures of some great fish with lures protruding from their mouths (your fault, Starlo!) looked exciting and I had to be part of this.

I would never have dreamed that in 30 years the knowledge I would have gained working as a fishing guide and even bringing my own kids up doing what I loved would ever happen.

The inside of Fraser Island is a massive area and with all types of fishing opportunities available for anglers, a boat is really needed to access the area. Land-based is limited but can be done for sure. Fishing land-based from Tinnanbar, Inskip Point can turn up some good pelagic activity, and in the mainland creeks can be good soft plastic territory for bream, whiting and flathead. Further north, Hervey Bay has the famous Urangan Pier that throws up some amazing captures from big barramundi, mulloway through to longtail tuna and the occasional big Spaniard.

For the boaties, the top end of Fraser is best accessed from Urangan Boat Harbor, which has very good launching facilities with a multilane ramps and pontoons. For those with larger vessels from 5m upwards, if you’re willing to run north some world class fishing can be had for the annual run of juvenile black marlin from mid October to December as well as massive schools of longtail tuna, mac tuna, various trevally, mackerel and queenies. Distances travelled are generally around 30-50km each way so take plenty of fuel!

Further down in the bay from Arch Cliffs to Coongul Point there are a few reefy patches in 30-60ft of water that hold snapper, golden trevally and an assortment of species that are easily targeted on plastics, blades and deep trolled hardbody lures. Wintertime can see some very large cobia through this area, especially around the yakka and bonito schools. There’s cobia up to 45kg around at times, so fish accordingly!

South of Moon Point the sea grass flats start with the famous Hervey Bay golden trevally flats in this area, although their numbers have decreased with commercial netting pressure on the juvenile schools. There is still a few about, and sight-fishing for the occasional diamond trevally, queenfish, big GT or permit is also on the cards!

From about Kingfisher Resort south, the channel narrows with a sharp rocky ledge that runs for kilometers right down the inside of Fraser past the old sand mining cutting, south of Ungowa. This ledge holds all sorts of critters from barramundi, jacks, golden snapper, mulloway and black jew as well as the usual flathead, bream, sweetlip and tuskfish. At times schools of longtail and mac tuna venture down into this area, and I have even caught them inside the river mouth of the Mary!

The Picnic Islands just south of Big Woody Island is a hot spot for queenfish, GTs, goldies and in winter, big giant herring, tailor, brassy trevally, bream and plenty of squid.

As you head further south past Ungowa logging camp the straits shallow into a maze of sandbanks and mangrove islands and even after 35 years fishing down there, I still am finding new areas and fisheries. This area is best accessed from Tuan with an all tide boat ramp. Maaroom is closer but at low to 1/3 tide, the channel is too shallow. There is some great whiting fishing with poppers and the usual baits of yabbies that are in the area in millions also work a treat. Flathead and tailor spinning can be pretty good during winter.

With the comeback of the threadfin salmon population in SE QLD they too have infiltrated the area in numbers and when the prawns run from roughly February to May, they can be seen feeding on drain mouths on a run out-tide. I have seen the slow rise of their population over the past 15 years, and my view is they are actually getting a chance to breed in the river mouth now since the closed barra season has been in place. Barra nets catch them by the hundreds, we’ve scooped up thousands in a dip net right at River Heads boat ramp late February after the floods this year, and they were all 15-25 mm long!

South of Fig Tree Ledge and the reef islands the straits opens up again into more deeper seagrass country that is winter whiting country. The best part about this area is that in early winter big schools of longtail tuna come over the Wide Bay Bar and feed through the area. They come right in close to the bank, especially down towards Hook Point and have been caught from the bank on spin tackle.

Right where the barges cross at Inskip is often where the tuna can be seen busting on bait, and some big Spanish mackerel can be caught inside the bar here as well with fish up to 35kg being taken each year.

The creeks on the mainland side have a small population of mangrove jacks and some wild bass. For bass, this is about as far north as they go in the wild but I prefer to leave these alone and chase stocked fish.

Well, that about covers it in a nutshell. Of course, different weather patterns and tidal influences will slightly change where the fish will appear but give it a go, it’s a great sheltered playground for the keen sportfisher.