SOME pleasant days over the past week have been great for fishos across the South East, allowing plenty to head out offshore and chase some fish.
The deep fishing has been excellent again this week.
Some nice catches of gummy and school shark have been reported from the 60-metre mark, all the way through to the 100+ metre areas.
There are also some good numbers of flathead, terakhi and knife jaw still cruising around, so it is a great opportunity to get a nice mixed bag.
The snapper season re-opened last Friday at lunch time, and I have already seen some fantastic fish caught.
The deeper water, from 30 metres to 60 metres has produced some nice fish, and I can not see that changing for a while yet.
The surf fishing has been red hot this week, with fish coming from the Nobles Rocks area over the border, all the way back through the South East and up to the Coorong.
Gummy shark have been on most people’s hit list, with great numbers being caught.
Piccininni, through Brown’s Bay, and around Nene Valley have been very productive for gummies and I also know of a few nice snapper that have been caught as well, with a few being over that 60cm mark.
The Coorong has fired up this week.
One crew I know of managed to land and release over 20 gummy and bronze whaler sharks in one session fishing above The Granites.
The mulloway have been fairly reasonable also, with some nice 10-15kg fish hitting the beach, but no one area seems to be better than another just yet.
The snapper fishing along the coast has been exceptional for being so early in the season.
Some excellent fish nudging the 70cm mark have been boated so far, but the numbers of 40cm to 60cm fish are excellent at the moment, so finding a feed is not too hard at all.
There seems to be plenty of bait fish around at the moment.
Barracoota have been quite thick in places and can become a bit of a pest, but they make excellent bait.
There are a few squid around also, so keep a jig handy.
Whiting numbers this week have again continued to impress, with guys managing their bags in a couple of hours in several different spots.
Carpenters Rocks, Cape Douglas and the Port MacDonnell jetty are the best bet for the land based guys, while inside the breakwater, Carpenters Rocks and Blackfellows Caves are all worth a shot for the boaties.
I have heard of some excellent whiting catches from around the Beachport and Southend areas also, so they seem spread out.
The garfishing has been good yet again, with some top notch fish coming from Cape Douglas and Livingstons over the past week or so.
Good numbers of big fish have been the norm for a little while now, so let’s hope that trend continues.
There have been some nice mullet and tommy ruff mixed in with the gar, so the option of a nice mixed bag is always there.
There has been plenty of inland news this week from across the border.
Rocklands has produced some nice redfin on a mixture of trolled lures, cast spinners and baits.
The guys with reasonable fish finders on their boats are locating fish easily and catching some good numbers.
If you have not got a sounder or you are in a canoe, troll lures until you locate them, then start your casting.
The Glenelg River has produced some nice fish this week, with mulloway and bream getting the most attention.
The area from Simpsons Landing down to the bridge has been the most productive, with some nice fish in the 70cm range being boated on a mixture of cut baits and live mullet.
There has been a few reports in the estuary of big fish hooked and lost, but we are still yet to see a confirmed big fella landed.
The bream have been wide spread, from the sand flats of the estuary, to the upper rock faces and snaggy areas.
Perch have been active in the dawn and dusk periods, and seem to be on the move up river.
The forecast for the weekend looks to be fairly reasonable, it looks like we all have a bit of sunshine for Christmas day and in the days after.
From all the team here at Spot On Fishing Tackle Mount Gambier, we would like to wish all our customers and friends a safe and very merry Christmas.
We thank you for your support during 2017 and look forward to seeing you in the new year.
Until next week, safe fishing.
