What a weekend for fishing. The weather was perfect, so too were the sea conditions. The outside excellent flathead fishing continues out in depths from 40 to 50 metres. I’m hearing of great catches from Bournda Beach right down to off the Pinnacles. The fish sizes are excellent with sand and tiger flathead ranging in sizes from 40 to 55 centimetres, which are great table-sized fish. There is also the odd gummy shark being caught in the mix. The inshore water temperature is sitting around 19 degrees and there is not much current.
The reef fishing is still on fire. The snapper are hungry and have been very keen on burley trails over the last week. There are plenty of 40 centimetre snapper on most of the reefs and after burleying for a while there is a chance of bigger fish coming in for a feed. I have had reports, but not confirmed, of fish in the high 70’s taking unweighted drift baits, way back down a burley trail. Plastics are also working a treat in the 5- and 7-inch sizes. The best fishing times are the 2nd alf of the rising tides and the changes. There is also a chance of morwong, nannygai, leatherjackets and even a gummy shark, if you are near the reef edge when burleying. There are also quite a few rat kingfish being caught and there is still a chance of a legal kingfish too, as I had one about one metre long chase up a snapper last weekend. Couldn’t catch it though.
The beaches are still carrying good numbers of salmon with North Tura Beach, Haycock Beach, Long Beach, Short Point and the Merimbula Bar holding schools of salmon and tailor. I saw the Short Point school of salmon being herded on Monday from the rocks onto the beach around high tide, then the school disappeared along the beach into the white water. So, they will be either off Tura Beach in a gutter or back on Short Point in the deeper water along side the white water. There are good gutters and banks on all those beaches mentioned.
The estuary fishing is starting to slow a bit. The Bega River is still giving up a few bream along the rock walls and the shallow edges that hold worms and nippers. The salmon and tailor are hanging around the bait schools and there is still an occasional mulloway being hooked in the river. The Merimbula Lake has trevally and odd bream in the front lake, and trevally, tailor, salmon and odd bream up the top lake around the edges and bait schools, which the birds will show where they are. The estuary water temperature at Tathra and Merimbula is sitting around 15 degrees.
The Merimbula Big Game and Lakes Angling Club is open this Friday night, opening at 6pm. Come on down and enjoy a cold bevvy, buy some tickets in our Friday night raffles sponsored by the Lakeview Hotel, Bar Beach Kiosk and Goodalls Butchers. Catch up on the week’s fishing reports and meet some new friends.
Till next week, good fishing.
Fishy Fellow