There are so many great places to explore in this beautiful country of ours. Far North Queensland has endless freshwater systems waiting for you to experience your next big adventure.

For those seeking some of the greatest land-based fishing available, you really have to give jungle perch fishing a go. The places this impressive species will take you are absolutely breathtaking and will leave you wanting more. Not only is it great exercise, the surroundings will make you feel one with nature. The environment and wildlife you will encounter is truly magical.

This is a great time of year to venture up a few crystal clear water streams in search of these little polished sterling silver treasures. When targeting JPs, always take a good selection of surface lures. These fish are opportunistic feeders and love to track down and assault just about any offerings from above.

Well-positioned casts under overhanging vegetation will produce the results you are chasing. I have once even witnessed a jungle perch track my lure and explode out of the water to destroy my lure before it had even hit the water. They are simply a true predator, switched on to everything that is happening in and above the water.

Another fantastic species to target up here in this part of the country are the little football shaped brutes that go by the name of sooty grunter. These little powerhouses can and will put your land-based light gear fishing skills to the test, often smacking your lures fast. They go hard for their size and have some serious pulling power.

They will often ambush your artificial presentations close to hard cover. A nice tight drag and some fancy rod work is required when extracting this tough Aussie critter from the structure. Surface lures work a treat along with small soft plastics and hardbodies, basically anything that will fit in their mouth. I love using surface presentations in the low light conditions in the afternoons. You can have serious amounts of fun targeting this tropical native.

Mangrove jack is by far my favourite species. The lifecycle of this majestic fish is remarkable. They are the kings of ambush and look absolutely stunning. In the cooler weather, I focus my land-based jack fishing on getting the aggressive territorial bite. I make my presentations resemble that of a small mangrove jack.

When I find a likely looking snag I will make casts from every angle to annoy the potential territorial fish that are residing deep in there. Because jacks are super aggressive and territorial, eventually you will trigger a ‘go away’ strike often resulting in a hook-up. If you ever watch them in a fish tank you will soon notice how they boss the other fish around and thrive by dominating the aquarium.

I hope everyone gets a chance to get out there and enjoy what this beautiful country has to offer.