Tag Archives: fishing the oyster jetty at Bribie

Bribie Island – the old oyster jetty flats – 21 June 2013

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Friday

It’s been a long time between fishing sessions. Work and the dreadful weather – particularly the wind, have limited my fishing opportunities. On Friday the rain and strong south-easterly winds were forecast again but I had no choice, I had to go for it. Fish don’t really care about the wind in an estuary, but if it is really strong, it makes it very hard to feel the bite and cast accurately, not to mention the cold, if it has some west in it.

On Friday morning, on the flats opposite Bribie Island, the wind was switching between a strong south-easterly and south-westerly and bringing plenty of rain with it. The tide had been high at 7.10 am and we were approaching the full moon, due in a couple of days.

I started fishing at about 9.00am. I wanted to fish the second half of the run out tide, through to about midday. I waded out under the bridge in a disposable rain poncho and my waders – I was dry underneath but the wind was very cold. The rain varied between a steady drizzle and heavy squalls.

Despite the wild weather the water was clear and cold. Unfortunately the algae (snot weed) are all over the sea grass and rocks on the bottom, between the bridge and the old oyster jetty. If you let your lure hit the bottom, it just gets clogged up with this stuff, straight away.

The lime tiger colour certainly stands out
GULP Lime tiger gets nailed
The birds were hunkered down
One for the Zman Minnowz
GULP Pearl Watermelon, a consistently attractive colour

The situation improved to the south of the oyster jetty. I think the current is a little stronger here so the algae find it harder to take hold. I was fishing with a GULP 4” minnow in the Lime Tiger colour. After an hour of casting around I connected with a fish, but after a short fight, it slipped free. I persisted in the same spot for another 20 minutes. Eventually, I hooked the fish (or one of its neighbours) again. It was a flathead about 45cm long. Given how tough the fishing had been it seemed I was unlikely to catch the three fish minimum that I would need to feed my mob, so I released it.

I was now about 200 metres to the south of the old oyster jetty and the tide was running out, strongly. It was time to continue the sea trials of the Zman Minnowz. I chose the fairly natural, Houdini colour and put it on a 1/8th ounce, 1/0 jighead. I covered much of the same ground I had covered with the GULP Minnow and after about 20 minutes, I caught another small flathead about 35cm long.

I moved up and down casting at the edge of the weed beds but the after another 40 minutes with no bites I swapped back to a GULP 4” Minnow soft plastic lure, in the Pearl Watermelon colour. This produced a result on the first cast – another small flathead about 30cm long. I continued fishing the same area for another 30 minutes, but could not find anymore.
The wind was really building now, so I turned back and waded towards the bridge. On the way, I slowed my retrieve right down and left it longer on the bottom between hops. This produced one more flathead, just before low tide at about 1.00 pm.

Tough session – but the fish were there – as they nearly always are.

Bribie Island – The old oyster jetty – 7 May 2012

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Monday

I was time to hit the flats and weed beds of Bribie Island. The weather forecast was pretty much perfect – no wind or rain and we would have a low tide at about 4.00 am.

I set out at about 4.30 am. The moon was full and, with a clear sky I did not need the headlamp, as I waded out under the bridge at about 5.30 am. This is a great time of year to be fishing. The mornings are crisp, but not too cold and the sunrises are fantastic.

I started on the mainland side under the bridge. Now I am not a ‘tree hugger’ but like any serious fisherman I care about the environment. Just recently, a large area of woodland has been flattened just behind the old oyster jetty – huge gum trees, pines and mangroves all torn down. The area now looks like a bomb site. Apparently, a new ‘eco’ resort is on its way. I would have thought it could have included some more of the beautiful old trees. I am glad it will provide jobs and I hope what they build will invigorate the area – but I am not convinced.

I waded down out under the bridge cast around in the rocky area, just to the south. I was using a GULP 2” Shrimp in the Banana Prawn colour and my first customer was a Pike. There were plenty of prawns jumping and I presume that is what the Pike and Moses Perch were feeding on, under the bridge lights.
I carried onto the south. I swapped to a GULP Jerkshad in the Lime Tiger colour, but the bigger plastic did not get the fish going. After about 15 minutes I swapped down to a GULP 3” Minnow in the Pearl Watermelon colour. This produced results – on the first cast I felt a solid bite, but could not connect. Three slow retrieves later, in the same spot, I got the fish. It was a small Flathead about 35cm long.

SANDSTONE POINT - SMALL FLATHEAD LOCATIONS

SANDSTONE POINT – SMALL FLATHEAD LOCATIONS

I kept going south and picked up 7 more fish on the flats on either side of the Oyster Jetty, over the next 2 ½ hours, but unfortunately only one was over 40cm. I swapped plastics between the bright and dark colours, big and small. I certainly caught more fish on the 2/3”plastics, I could not get a bite on the bigger ones.

They may have been small today but where there are small fish, there are big mothers – so I will be back out looking for them again soon.