May is arguably the best month of the year to line fishing in Gulf country. Every species that is caught in the area is available in the lead up to winter.

Let’s check out what’s been happening.

April saw plenty of keen anglers fill the caravan parks for the always popular Easter weekend. With great tides either side of the long weekend, some fantastic fish were caught in both the rivers and creeks, and along the foreshore and wide of the flats. Good numbers of grunter have been caught with some specimens to 70cm taken mostly on mullet fillet. Speaking of mullet, the silver mullet (or poddy mullet) have finally turned up much to everyone’s delight, making bait gathering a breeze. Pelagics have started showing up around the fairway beacon and outside bars. Queenies, mackerel, and the odd tuna have started to feed as schools of baitfish gather for the cooler months in the shallow waters.

King salmon are still plentiful with most anglers getting at least a couple each day, as are the blue salmon. The barra have been present but are yet to fire in their traditional style for this time of year. A number of 1m+ fish have been taken in the Norman River including a 135cm on a deep diver. Fingermark and black jew are starting to feed aggressively and are smashing the soft plastics such as Squidgies or Reidy’s types.

Mud crabs too have played a fair role this year with some great catches happening very close to Karumba. A hint for visitors: if you see a pot and it is not yours, do not check it, share farming is out and it is illegal!

As mentioned earlier, May is the pick of the months up this way. It’s all hands on deck for a while with plenty of species on the menu. The weather is back to a winter pattern making for spectacular afternoons and evenings. There is no need to get up at sparrows at this time of year. We can expect good fishing throughout the entire month on both the bigger and smaller tides. – FMG