With the wet season over in the far north, the time is right to get into gear for some serious fishing. The weather has been kind and the fish even kinder for the start of another great fishing season.

Albatross Bay has been inundated with large volumes of bait after the rain, drawing to it queenfish, longtail, mac tuna and Spanish macks. The bottom dwellers are also making the most of the abundance of food and reports from this month indicate a great year ahead.

Barramundi have been found in consistently good numbers both up the estuaries and along the rocky headlands. Live mullet have accounted for the majority of these fish, however shallow diving lures have also been working well. It has been great to see large schools of mullet patrolling the shallow banks, and the return of the lower tides has made catching bait much easier. Fingermark, blue salmon, king salmon and black jew have also been on the chew up the rivers, and again the live mullet seem to be the perfect bait for these species. Try fishing snags, creek mouths and deep holes close to the mouth for most consistent fishing this month.

Late March has seen some amazing pelagic action both offshore and in the river mouths. The large amount of bait now present in the area has attracted grey macks and great size queenfish into the mouth of the Hey River, providing some great angling opportunities. Although skittish, longtail tuna have been captured to the south of Boyd Bay and being a little bit patient when targeting these fish can prove to be very rewarding.

I have found that trolling around the bait schools with deep diving lures in the area will generally turn up a few tuna, and also put you in a good position to tango with some Spaniards. Locating reef areas around where the bait is holding can make for some exciting bottom fishing for fingermark, nannygai and the long list of trevally species. Jigging metal or soft plastic lures will work very well, alternatively squid and live mullet left soaking on the bottom should also produce the goods.

With good weather and stacks of food, May should be an excellent month for fishing this year. I would expect to see tuna and macks turn up in ever-increasing numbers, and become a much easier target species. The rivers should also fire up for species such as the famous barramundi, king salmon, fingermark and black jew. Try to choose a tide with a generous amount of run for optimum creek fishing as this gets the bait and predatory fish moving and out feeding. Live bait will produce most consistent results, however accurate lure casters will also reap the benefits of a day on the water.

Bookings for charters at the end of the year are filling up quickly, so if you were thinking of fishing Weipa this year give Dave Donald Sportfishing a call, or check out our website at www.weipafish.com.