Snapper: A Fish for All Anglers
Hervey Bay waters are cooling with the onset of winter, and baitfish schools are migrating inshore in massive numbers. The bay has benefited from a substantial and prolonged wet season that has re-invigorated local ecosystems and created a soup of prime fodder for predatory species that we haven’t seen in years.
Tuna season was excellent, mackerel are prolific, and our resident reef fish have been growing fat on an abundance of prawns, crabs, squid and baitfish. Hervey Bay is more alive than it has been for ages, and it is now time for one of our most highly sought after species to migrate into the bay from offshore. It’s snapper time again folks!
Snapper Hotspots in Hervey Bay
From one end of the Fraser coast to the other, snapper are incredibly popular for many reasons. They look great; they are right up there with many other reefies in the culinary stakes; and they fight hard without demanding heavy tackle to subdue them. Not only this, but their predatory tendencies lend themselves to a wide range of fishing techniques that can see anyone from the most casual bait fisho to the most experienced lure fishing gun hooking quality fish time and time again.
So, with potential snapper-slaying bait fishing techniques such as live baiting, float-lining and bottom-bashing all having their dedicated exponents, many fishos rely on past successes to continue gathering a feed, not realising the extra fun they could be having by pursuing these very same snapper with modern lure fishing techniques.
Snapper are absolute suckers for a huge range of soft plastics, vibes and slow-pitch jigs. Trolling deep divers has been a proven and worthy technique for many years now, and the range of lures capable of tempting them in this regard just gets wider and better. We will look at all of these aspects of snapper fishing later in this article, but first, we need to look at why the snapper are coming, what they are doing here and what they are keen to eat - if we are to understand them and catch them regularly.
Snapper swim the big miles from offshore into the bay for two primary reasons – to spawn, and to feast before and after they do so. Their timing is excellent, as it coincides with the massive influx of baitfish that flood the bay in winter. Thanks to last summer-autumn’s better-than-average wet season, there is more fodder awaiting them than past years and this factor alone may see an improvement in snapper numbers in 2025. Here’s hoping!
Hervey Bay has many well-known snapper hotspots that have produced quality snapper over the years, and many lesser-known spots that are even better producers in these busy times. Regardless of the location, there are many factors that will determine if snapper will be there, and what artificial presentations will tempt them.
Whether it be close inshore artificial reefs such as the Roy Rufus, the Simpson or the Hardy; ledges such as Moon Ledge, Mickeys or Sammies; or low-lying reefy bottom such as the Burrum 8 Mile or Arch Cliffs 6 Mile; there needs to be a viable food source lingering in the area for snapper schools to justify extended stays.
Luckily, masses of baitfish, including herring, pike and yakkas (as well as a host of other similar-sized morsels) take up temporary residence around these reefs. Be there on bigger tides when the bait is gathered and your confidence should be peaking. Turn up and the sounder is devoid of baitfish, and you should move on and continue your search.
Initially, many fishos will focus on inshore hotspots, then turn their attention to the grounds in Platypus Bay and the central bay as winter wears on. Low-lying weedy ground that barely registers on even the best sounders, along with numerous reefs, holes, and wrecks will all draw snapper to Platypus Bay waters mid-winter. They will join many members from the trevally clans to predate on the myriads of baitfish that settle into the area.
At the same time, the yakkas will start to turn up at the 25 Fathom Hole and the Gutters, and bring with them schools of snapper. Evening exploits can be absolutely dynamite on these grounds, and many an active lure fisho will be focussed on the fringes targeting snapper so clearly displayed on their sounder screens. Bycatch will be significant, particularly at the Gutters, whilst the dominance of big snapper at the 25 Fathom Hole that time of year will be notable.
Suckers for Soft Plastics
The advent of soft plastic fishing techniques many years ago changed the snapper fishing game forever. Once snapper schools are located, it is a very simple matter of positioning your vessel so that you can present your appropriately-weighted softies to the snapper below. Variations of the same technique, by way of different weight and different plastic profiles or sizes enables you to present the right softy with the right action at the right water depth. So much easier than bait fishing for the uninitiated.
We stock all the best snapper-catching profiles from all the leading tackle companies, as well as a few select niche models from new players in the game. Our expansive range of colours are locally-chosen and will enable you to present the best offering day or night, be it high in the water column or right on the bottom. From prawn and crab imitations for grubbing the bottom to a host of jerkshads, curly-tailed or squid-profiled models for working the water column, we have them all.
Scents offer another level of attraction to any soft plastic presentation. Obviously, Berkley’s GULP range is heavily embedded with their magical flavour, but even these snapper slayers can benefit from a re-dip in GULP Alive Juice. Apply a little of the paste-type scents to alternative softies and you just boosted your chances of tricking a cunning old snapper multi-fold.
Fishing for wary snapper demands a degree of finesse, whilst still retaining sufficient grunt to handle the trophies in nasty terrain. Your leader is attached to the business end in any battle and should be considered carefully. Light enough to fool the fish, yet tough enough to withstand their teeth and potential rub-offs. Lighter leaders are suggested for lure fishing when compared to bait fishing, and fluorocarbon leader material can give you a definitive edge in both the abrasion-resistance and invisibility stakes.
Understanding Snapper Size and Bag Limits
Not all snapper are large models, and it is fairly true to state that the smaller “squire”, or “squirey-snapper” to a few kilos or 60cm or so, offer the best eating in the culinary stakes. Our Qld bag limit is a mere 4 snapper over 35cm, of which only one can be 70cm or more. We even have a boat limit these days that limits catches to no more than double the individual bag limit if there are two or more people on board. This boat limit also restricts your boat limit catch to no more than two fish over 70cm.
These strict bag and size limits are necessary these days to protect Qld’s diminished snapper stocks from overfishing. In recent years, a month-long closure has also been implemented that puts snapper (and pearl perch) off limits for the period from 15th July to 15th August, inclusive. Thinking fishos such as you should work around those dates and consider alternative fisheries to limit your impact on snapper and pearl perch schools whilst they are spawning.
The Role of UV-Enhanced Lures
UV-enhanced soft plastics and other lures have gained an increased fan base amongst members of the fishing fraternity. Strongly contrasted colours have been well-proven snapper tempters over the years too. Just look at the Nuclear Chicken craze from the past. UV highlights might be just the ticket to make your softie stand out amongst a school of baitfish or a sea of other offerings.
Boosting your UV presentations with the aid of a UV torch can enhance the brightness of the glow significantly. These torches do wonders for squid jigs, and also enable you to determine which lures in your existing arsenal are UV-enhanced as well. A very handy addition to your tackle kit, and something we are happy to show you in action in-store.
Snapper Fishing Prime Times and Common Bycatch
When the snapper are on the chew, the bites come thick and fast. Fish of all sizes will get in on the action if they can, and the larger models will often be the first to claim a well-presented soft plastic or jig should it come within range. For that reason, lure fishos can often pluck the biggest snapper from a school without having to deal with lesser fish or the pickers that can frustrate bait fishos.
Snapper can be caught day or night, but are widely targeted around dawn and dusk. In offshore waters, large numbers can aggregate around rocky reefs awash with baitfish and the competition for food is intense. Similar scenarios unfold at places here in the bay too, though largely later in the season. Evening sessions wafting softies through the water column can also be highly productive, and some folks even hand one rod over to Rodney (the rod holder) to present more than one offering at a time.
Bycatch whilst snapper fishing can be expansive. Grunter and nannygai are two very welcome forms of bycatch found inshore that pull as hard as a snapper and taste every bit as good too (if not better say some). The list of bycatches you might encounter on the wide reefs offshore is too long to fully detail here, whilst in the bay it could be sweeties, cod, coral trout, jewfish, tuna, mackerel or trevally, just to name a few. Presentations higher in the water column will avoid some of the reef dwellers and attract more pelagics, whilst grubbing the bottom might reverse that scenario.
The element of surprise when snapper fishing could be considered a bonus. Many folks have been targeting snapper and scored night-time reef jacks by sheer accident; others have connected to enormous cobia and endured the lengthy battle that ensues. You might even catch a large flathead, a spangled emperor or blackall, or maybe a trophy jewfish. All this bycatch serves to reinforce the fact that snapper-fishing tactics should be replicated in the pursuit of many other species.
Alternative Lures for Catching Snapper
Whilst most lure-loving snapper fishos will lean towards the simple and effective soft plastic fishing options, there is a huge range of alternative lures that will tempt snapper. Soft vibes plummeted to the depths then hopped rhythmically below bait schools can trigger a bite, whilst stand-out alternatives such as Nomad’s Squidtrex will catch one with minimal motion.
Slow-pitch jigs are absolutely deadly on snapper (and many forms of bycatch). Even without dedicated slow-pitch outfits, these jigs can be used when drift speeds are too fast for alternatives or when probing extra-deep is the go. We carry a range of jigs capable of snaring snapper anywhere from the shallowest waters of the bay to beyond the continental shelf drop-off.
Fans of trolling for other species can slow their troll speed and deploy deep diving hardbodies in the hunt for snapper, all the while covering more terrain than anyone else. Proven snapper-slayers such as Classic Dr Evils, Crazy Deep RMG Scorpions and Nomad DTX Minnows are now joined by the likes of Bone Toughfia Papuan Bass Divers for the depths and Atomic Hardz Shiners for shallow waters. All tempting offerings for a hungry snapper that enable a troller to wander wider from reefs and seek fish away from the crowds and the sharks.
You are no doubt all aware of the serious issues we face with shark depredation these days. Thinking fishos expend a lot of energy steering away from potential shark threats to lessen their impact on snapper and other fish stocks these days. We would encourage all fishos to maintain this ethic.
Staff Recommendations for Snapper
When a few of the boys in our tackle store were asked what their go-to setups were for bay snapper, they each had a differing response:
For Scott, it is the Cast Apex 5.4" in Bankroll matched to a TT Big Eyez 3/8oz 5/0 jig head. His go-to combo is a Samaki Zing Extreme 762 15-30lb paired with a Samaki Saltan 5000.
For Jacko, it was Rapala Crush City The Jerk in Solar Flare matched to a TT Big Eyez 1/2oz 5/0 jig head. He favours a Shimano Zodias 270H 7-14lb matched with a Shimano Twin Power FE 4000.
For Logan it was Daiwa Bait Junkie 5" Jerkshad in Voltage (exclusive to Fisho's TackleWorld) matched to a Daiwa Bait Junkie 3/8oz 5/0 jig head. He prefers a Daiwa 23 Commander 722 MHXS 4-9kg paired with a Daiwa Certate Ark 4000.
Winners all three, yet just a sample of so many alternatives you might apply to your next snapper session. If in doubt though, just give some of the above-mentioned combinations a try and you might find out why they are the boys’ go-tos.
Let the Bigger Knobbies Swim Free
Truly large snapper, nick-named knobbies, are a real trophy fish and warrant a degree of extra respect. Larger breeders are very fecund and have the potential to add millions of progeny towards their species’ future. Our limits today restrict the take of such fish, whilst thankfully, more and more fishos are happy to return these larger snapper to the water in favour of smaller models anyway.
Get Hooked on Snapper
So, with the weather really turning it on of late, the current dropping offshore, and the bay in a prime state to attract bigger numbers of snapper inshore this season, now is your chance to get out there and get hooked into one of our most desirable species.
Whether you’re a seasoned fisho keen to test your skills with a new technique or lure, or a complete novice looking to add snapper fishing to your skills set, we here at Fisho’s Tackle World will be more than happy to fit you out and assist you on your journey towards snappery success.