The Bays and headlands, estuaries, reefs, beaches and islands of the Stanage area have recently seen a good amount of fish and mud crab stocks. The blue waters from the Stanage boat ramp (Plumtree) to Porters Creek have produced nice whiting, flathead, bream and cod and have even produced a couple of legal size barra, which were instantly thrown back, alive and swimming as it was the closed season for barramundi. Barramundi season opens this month.

Alligator Bay, Flatrock, and Pebble Beach (locally referred to as Pretty Beach), have all benefited at stages of the tide with extremely fruitful fishing. The infamous jew holes in Thirsty Sound have taken turns seeing legal to extra large jew leave the water never to return.

Don’t take more than your limit in jew to sell. Sheer greed depleted the jew from the area because of overfishing twelve years ago. Apparently, jewfish bladder, if processed correctly, can be delicious and some more-selfish anglers have taken far too many and left the fishery unbalanced. Currently, the jewfish holes have been healthy, which in turn keeps the local ice producer, the servo, the multiple holiday rental properties and the bait and tackle shop in business. So use your head and only take what you need. You can no longer catch sharks for their fins – so don’t catch big jewfish for their bladders.

Storms have hit some areas of Stanage, however, my water tanks are still below half-full, which means the small amount of rain received here is not enough to stir on the fish, and will slow both the fish and the mighty muddy bite.

The road into Stanage is for the most part in good repair, with potholes in the centre and corrugation on the edges in certain areas. Like the sea, fish and muddies an unsealed road changes daily depending on many factors.

•Remember the latest fishing reports are on www.fishingmonthly.com.au and for queries on Stanage Bay fishing, call me on (07) 4937 3145.