IT’S CERTAINLY prime time in Botany Bay and Port Hacking. Most of my fishing over the past month has been concentrated on the Bay and our main target, of course, was King fish, Finding the Bait some days proved a little hard.

Over the next month the fishing should be at its best and all signs for March look great. There are plenty of spots worth trying and here are a few which have worked for me.

The Container Wall on the Yarra Bay side has bream and trevally as main catches, along with the odd kingfish that takes a liking to fresh peeled prawns and nippers. Anchor here and burley well with pellets and chopped pillies I fish only as light as 6kg here because of the kings, using Schneider line because of its strength – and its colour suits the Bay. Fish the Container Wall with live baits or fresh squid on heavier tackle and the odd better king will be a chance.

Bare Island should give you a top chance of tangling with larger kings if you have the right bait and berley well. Trevally should also provide you with a little action while you wait for a king.

The Oil Wharf is a great run-out tide spot, as many anglers will attest. However, the rising tide has fished also well for me there over the past month, with trevally, snapper, kingfish, bream and the odd tailor. This spot at times can run red-hot and it’s definitely worth a shot over March.

The Third Runway should work for bream on both tides as long as there is plenty of water movement. Nippers and peeled Prawns are my pick baits and should be fished on a long trace. I like to fish in around three to six metres of water for bream, which are a great chance any time of the day there. A little wider, you should find that the water drops to around 16 metres. Jewfish and the odd king hunt along the edges here and squid or small live yellowtail, or even a slab of fresh slimy mackerel, may help bring one to the boat.

Any where from the Old Runway and across to Towra Point on a rising or falling tide this month, bream in good numbers will provide plenty of action. Nippers and peeled prawns are my pick of baits. Anchor and fish with that long trace which provides bait movement and keeps the bait away from the pickers.

The Five spots that I have listed should provide all anglers who fish the Bay with a great head start. The night before your outing, pick two spots and try heading out with a bit of a game plan. Try targeting your species, rather than just catching something, and stick to the plan and the results should speak for themselves.

Remember, keep only what you need on the day as fresh fish is always better and it’s satisfying to know that the fish you release and those you leave biting will be there for next time.