Monthly Archives: September 2014

Bribie – the bridge and the old oyster jetty flats – 12 September 2014

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Friday

Another late report – but it may be relevant for anyone planning to fish at Bribie over the school holidays, to get a feel for what is going on. I am planning to get down to Iluka in the next few weeks, so watch this space for a bit more variety.

So I drove back up to Bribie Island to fish my favourite spot on the mainland side of the Pumicestone Passage. I arrived just after first light at about 5.00 am. Low tide would be at 5.25 am. There was a light southerly wind blowing and it was cloudy.

There was a fair amount of bait jumping around under the bridge lights so I decided to start fishing in that area. As I walked out under the bridge I noticed plenty of ‘lies’ showing where the flathead had moved up to feed on the night time high tide.

I started with a small 3” GULP Minnow soft plastic in the Smelt (Grey & white) colour. This plastic looks like just about any small profile bait fish and has a nice soft texture. I cast it towards the edge of the reef, just to the south of the fifth bridge pylon. I waited for it to sink to the bottom and as I lifted, a fish attacked. There was no hesitation and this one hooked itself, as soon as it bit down. It can be a challenge to keep your fish in this area. There are lots of big clumps of weed and rocky outcrops. This fish was a good size and it wrapped itself around a few large weed clumps. Fortunately, the water was shallow enough and I was able to walk up close and free it. After a few minutes of back and forth, I pulled it safely to shore. A solid 57cm flathead, on my first cast – it was a great start.

 

I tried in the same area for another, but I think my wading around had spooked any remaining fish. It was now low tide and the water was not really moving. I waded to the south. I moved past the old oyster jetty and swapped to the paddle tailed Mad Scientist 6” Optishad soft plastic. I was fishing with a 1/8th ounce, size 1/0 hook jighead and 10lb fluorocarbon leader. At about 6.30 am, I found another flathead, about 40cm long. Then about ten minutes later another smaller fish.

As the tide started to run in, I made my way slowly down to the channel marker, casting into the current and found four more fish – all on the Mad Scientist soft plastic. Only two were about 45cm so I added these to the first one for a family supper. At about 9.00 am I stopped for the day.

 

Bribie Island – The old oyster jetty flats – 4 September 2014

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Thursday

By Thursday I had time for a morning fishing session. I have been hoping to get down to Fingal Head or Iluka to chase some bream, tailor and mulloway. But I just cannot seem to carve out the time at present, so it was back up to Bribie.

It was another mid-morning low tide at 10.20 am. The moon was about 60% full. Strong southerlies had been blowing for a few days but these were forecast to drop off by lunchtime. It was a bright, sunny morning, when I arrived at about 8.00 am.

I did not really have time for exploring so I waded straight out under the bridge on the mainland side. The tide was already a fair way out and I could see plenty of fresh flathead lies in the sandy area, under the bridge lights. They were not big fish but there were plenty of them. There were also plenty of track marks from cast nets. There must be some prawns or squid around.

The water was very cool but clear. I headed straight for the sandy depressions just north of the old oyster jetty. This area is not as peaceful as it used to be. The new hotel is going up fast just behind the jetty and cement trucks are constantly coming and going.

I decided to start with a small hard body for a change. I selected the DUO Realis Shad MR62. A small diving minnow. After a few casts, something grabbed it, but after a few violent headshakes, it was off. On the next cast I found another fish and this time it stayed connected. It was about 45cm so it went in the keeper bag.

I was feeling confident. I stuck with the hard bodied lure for about another 15 minutes but I could not find any more. I changed to a GULP Jerkshad and then a GULP Shrimp soft plastic, but neither of these got a bite. It was turning into another fairly tough session.

After about an hour, I was using the GULP 3“ Minnow in the Smelt colour on a 1/8th ounce, size 1 hook jighead. I was fishing with about a metre of 10lb fluorocarbon leader tied on to a 10lb braid. I was now about halfway between the old oyster jetty and the green channel marker. I found a few sandy patches amongst the weed and hooked another flathead. This one was a more significant fish at about 55cm – another one for dinner. It was a confidence boost but I had to wait another 30 minutes to find another fish and this time it was just undersize, at about 38 cm.

At about 11.30 am the dolphins came in close and chased a bit of bait around. I had also seen some quite significant squid through the morning. It’s good to see a plentiful food source in the area.But the tide had turned and not much was happening so I made my way back to the bridge.

Just after noon I reached the bridge and stopped to cast around the pylons. This paid off and I caught another small flathead on the 3” Smelt Minnow. It was just under 40cm so I released it. That was it for the day.

Bribie – the old oyster jetty flats – 20 August 2014

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Wednesday

Apologies for another long gap between reports – no excuse is adequate for neglecting ones passions, so I wont offer one.

On Wednesday the rain would take a break and it looked like the south westerlies would drop off a little, in the morning. I have not had much time to fish lately, so this small window was good enough for me. Low tide would be at 0.7 m at 11.00 am, so I did not need to rush out too early.

I arrived at the west end of the Bribie bridge just before 9.00 am. I pulled on my waders. The wind was up but the sky was an amazing blue. The sun was out and this took the edge off the cold westerly wind.

It was about a week after full moon. It had been raining fairy constantly over the last week but it had not been very heavy. The water still looked clear. I was expecting the fishing to be pretty tough so I started with an 8lb fluorocarbon leader and a GULP 2” Shrimp soft plastic lure in the Peppered Prawn colour. I waded towards Moreton Bay, casting my soft plastic back towards the bridge.

I felt a few grabs and swipes from what I assume where pike or small Moses perch, but I could not find any flathead to the north of the old oyster jetty. By 9.30 am, I was about 50 metres to the south of the jetty and I felt a bite from a sandy patch in the shallows. I did not hook up so I put the soft plastic back in the same place. On about the 5th cast in the same area, I connected and this time I successfully set the hook. It was a 35cm flathead which I released, after a couple of photos.

After 20 minutes more in this area I decided to move further south and swapped to a 5 inch, GULP Jerkshad in the Cajun Chicken colour. At about 10.10 am, I caught the first keeper size fish of the day. It was lying close to the edge of the large sand bank, which is gradually exposed in this area, on the run out tide. It was about 45cm long and went in the bag for dinner.

I hoped I had now found the fish but it was not to be. In fact, it took almost hour to find another flathead that was big enough to keep. Just after 11.00 am, I had almost reached the green channel marker. The tide had slowed right down and was about to turn. I cast out towards a patch of sandy bottom beyond the weed and let the plastic sink. Just as I hopped it over the edge of the weed, a flathead shot up and grabbed it. After a good initial strike and long run, I was very conscious of the 8lb leader, but I soon had the fish subdued and slid it into the keeper bag. Having caught so few fish of late, it felt much bigger than it was – it measured just 46cm.

That was it for the day I kept casting on the way back to the car, but caught nothing more.