The main species on the bite in estuary waters include mulloway, bream, tailor and flathead.
The top spots for bream include the Sunken Wall and Luggage Point in the Brisbane River, Marks Rocks in the Logan River and the edge of the main channels leading towards Kaling Bank and the Southport Seaway.
The best baits to use are yabbies or mullet and fowl gut.
Flathead continue to be found in good numbers.
The better catches have been reported around sandbanks on the edge of main channels.
Deep diving lures or soft plastic or small baitfish worked along the bottom has been the best technique.
Good tailor catches have been reported from the Gold Coast northern surf beaches and the Southport Pumping Jetty.
There have also been good catches throughout Jumpinpin and the southern bay.
Mulloway are best close to bar entrances on the turn of the tide and are being caught by those using live bait, big fresh fillets of fish or large soft plastics hopped slowly over the bottom.
In the bay pan size snapper have been consistent.
Top spots include the deeper wrecks and reefs.
The shallows around the bay islands are plagued with small bream but if you’re there before daylight you’re in with a good chance of better quality snapper.
There are still school mackerel in the bay.
The best catches have come from the eastern end of the Rous and around the Sand Hills.
So far it’s also been a great diver whiting season.
The banks on the eastern side of the bay are fishing the best but if you spend some time drifting until you catch a few then berley you’ll catch them on most banks in the bay.
Offshore the main species being caught include snapper, tuskfish, pearl perch and a few mulloway in the shallows and the odd winter Spanish mackerel.
You’ll need to float-line or slow troll livies to get quality snapper.
Bottom bashing is producing plenty of just legal fish.
On the freshwater scene the upper reaches of Copeland and Glenlyon dams have produced lots of big cod for those rolling spinnerbaits in among the boulders.
Wivenhoe Dam is turning up a few big female bass and the Kirkleagh arm of Somerset Dam is producing a few yellowbelly.
However, the better catches have been in the closer dams including North Pine Dam, Hinze, Maroon and Moogerah.
