The temperature of the water is finally starting to warm up, which will fire up the ‘Pin and make for some hot fishing right through November

There should be some big mulloway on offer out in the deep water off Swan Bay and towards the Bar as the tide starts to slow before the change of tide. Drop big plastics and baits straight down. Jigging seems to be the most productive method at the moment and the trick is to stay in contact with your lure or bait at all times.

If the current is running too fast, you’ll struggle to reach the bottom and maintain the best depth where the fish are holding. The longer you can leave your lure in this strike zone, the better your chances are of getting a hook-up. Mulloway are extremely picky and a very hard fish to catch. Another great way is to get some big livies, mullet or pike, and try anchoring up at Marks Rock, the Powerlines, Fishermans Channel and the point of Short island.

Flathead should be prevalent once again with over 4000 lizards caught and released in the recent Flathead Classic. There’s definitely no shortage in the flathead stocks. All these fish were caught on lures, so if you’ve never used lures, give it a go, because they really work. The top of Crusoe Island, Pandannus weed banks, Kalinga Bank, Tipplers Island, along the Never Fails and the Aldershots were all great haunts during the competition. With all those fish released, they should be in those spots during November.

Flathead love live mullet, herring and hardies. Drifting with these in the hotspots during the first of the run-out tide should put you on the right track to catch bigger and better flathead. Dust off the crab pots as the muddies usually fire up about now. If you love a feed of crab, start at the lower reaches of the Logan River and head outwards towards Long Island, Redland Bay Channel, further to Cobby Passage and out from Jacobs Well. Stay along the mangrove covered shoreline and holes.

Tailor should start to venture through the Bar on early morning high tides, or they’ll be hanging out beyond the breakers of South Straddie across from the Bedrooms all the way to the tip. For the bigger fish, night fishing is the way to go. Just beyond the Bar, there should be a few mackerel and tuna showing up. If the weather permits, try ducking out early and trolling lures along the dirty water line, where the fish will be stalking baitfish.

Look for birds feeding and diving on the surface to locate the schools. Then try flicking small to medium chrome lures into the schools or troll the outsides of the school. It’s great fun and you don’t have to go too far out to find the fish.

The odd cobia should start to show up around the close in reefs. Whiting are also picking up in size and numbers from the Broadwater, Wave Break Island, the Green Bank, Slipping Sands and the western side of the Never Fail Islands. A few good hauls have come from the Nerang and Logan Rivers in the deeper holes and also from the sand flats between Kalinga Bank and Crusoe Island. Stick with either sand or bloodworms, or live yabbies, for the best results.

Thanks for all your reports. If you need any advice or want to find out what’s biting, drop us a line at Gem Bait & Tackle on (07) 3287 3868, or email --e-mail address hidden-- I’ll catch you next month.

1

Sam Hill out-fished his dad yet again with his first Jumpinpin mulloway on a Zerek Fish Trap.

2

This is a stargazer – it buries itself in the sand and attacks from below. We got this one trolling near Cabbage Tree Point.