Fisho’s Weekly Fishing Report – 13th March, 2026

New Fisho's staffer, Chewy, loves his barra fishing at Mondy, Lenthalls and in our estuaries. He is also our new fly guru, so look him up for guidance.

Recovering from the Big Wet

We Hervey Bay folks got off lightly once again, as the monsoon and tropical depression that descended on us last Sunday-Monday gave us a solid drenching without any catastrophic flooding. Our thoughts are with the folks in Bundy and anyone in Maryborough adversely affected by the same event, and trust they will continue the clean-up that they are all too used to.

If you hit the bay yesterday or this morning, then you just enjoyed the best conditions of the week (former and future). Sadly, the brilliant weather will be all too brief, as the south-easter is set to crank it up a few notches again for the weekend. BOM is suggesting up to 25 knots Saturday morning, with the wind rising quickly beyond the relative calm of dawn. A few showers are possible Saturday, and a few more Sunday as the onshore south-easter eases back to 20 knots.

Things could change of course, but at this stage, the working week winds look something like 15 knots or so onshore pretty much daily, with very few if any showers. Another burst of wind could hinder plans for the following weekend and there is already talk of another nameable storm in the coral sea in the near future. Around two weeks from now could get messy once again.

Our tides continue to build as we have passed the half moon of the third quarter and are heading for the new moon next Thursday. These making tides will continue to build pressure against the excess floodwaters trying to escape our rivers and creeks, so expect higher than standard tide heights in any streams still impacted by flooding, as well as exaggerated ebb tidal flow.

Impacts of Flooding on Fraser Coast Waterways

We certainly enjoyed significant rainfall here in the bay Sunday-Monday after what was forecast for Saturday was a fizzer. Over 200mm was tipped out of gauges in Torquay over the event, and more in other suburbs. Falls of around 200-250mm seem the average for the immediate hinterland, with more like 300-350mm for much of the Mary River catchment. Accumulated figures beyond 400mm were recorded at select sites to our south-west, whilst up Bundy way they copped an average of 300-400mm locally and heavy falls throughout virtually the whole Burnett catchment.

The Burrum system received a much-needed (yet largely unwelcome) flush, creating issues for locals with the Burrum Town bridge closed after Lake Lenthalls peaked well above capacity. Lake Monduran rose quickly after its catchment finally received a drenching towards the end of the event; rising from around 85% to the current 104%.

Obviously, there will be the after effects of flooding to contend with now, so boaties should be extra wary of floating debris etc. Such debris issues are certainly not limited to riverine or near-river waters either, as wind and tide disperse all sorts of flotsam well beyond local influence. If you can avoid travelling at dawn and dusk or during the evening at present, then that will improve your vision and overall safety. 

Debris will be an issue for some time to come, and will even be something for offshore boaties to be wary of. Be especially careful after any spring tides when the wind direction opposes the recent status quo (south-easters) as future big tides and winds blowing in other directions could re-float much of the flotsam pushed ashore in the current prevailing conditions.

Our inshore waters are very much browned and less appealing to the eye, but that certainly doesn’t make them any less fishy. Quite the contrary in fact, as this rain event has created the perfect wet season run-off that re-invigorates our fisheries and creates so many extra feeding opportunities for forage and predatory species alike. This report might be a little theoretical with a view to future fishing (rather than reporting on what wasn’t caught last week), so read on for a few tips on what to expect from local fisheries post-flooding if you are interested.

Say Goodbye to Pier Pelagics for a While

Local run-off combined with the massive overflow from the Mary River has already negatively impacted the waters beneath Urangan Pier. The once clean waters; temporary hang-out and feeding ground for GTs, queenfish, mackerel and tuna, are now filthy and home to vermin such as sharks and rays.

The upside to the flooding event is the very real chance that apex estuarine predators will take up station or at least pay visits to the pier’s waters. The general lack of baitfish right now means the vast food source that might attract and nourish passing fish is MIA, but the inherent attractiveness of such a structure in such a position will still see some interesting visitors in coming weeks.

You won’t find any squid lingering in such filthy water, so you can retire your tiny 1.5 and 1.8 sized jigs for the season now. Boaties will still find pencillies beyond and beneath the floodwaters out in deeper waters in time, yet even they will need to venture up the island or out into the bay a tad to do so at present. The next squidding any pier fishos will be doing will be in much cooler and clearer waters in several weeks’ time when the tiger squid return. Invest in an arsenal of suitable 2.5 or 3.0 sized jigs when the time comes.

Those insisting on fishing the pier will have to bring their own baits with them or default to lures. Prawn imitations are deadly options that are already doing the damage on large predators there and elsewhere, whilst soft vibes are a particularly great option for those wishing to work the waters beneath the pylons more vigorously in current. Visiting Urangan Pier fans planning a visit at Easter should heed the above and consider their options. The alternatives locally are vast and many, even without a boat in these parts.

Don’t Be Perturbed by Muddy Waters Along Our Beaches

Steering away from the pier and wandering the local beaches could see you tangling with some pretty cool predators too. Fish such as barramundi, threadfin and blue salmon, the omnipresent flathead and large grunter could be hooked whilst fishing an array of baits or lures from local beaches. Waters closer to creek mouths will be even more productive at appropriate times, as the movements of displaced prawns and baitfish as well as prevailing water quality dictate who’s home at any moment.

Flood (incoming) tides will improve water salinity beyond the immediate flood zones, and successive days of making tides will enhance this improvement faster. Move closer to the creeks with improved salinity and try further away when the tides are nearing their low point and the waters spewing forth are pure fresh. You will be pleasantly surprised just how quickly estuarine species adapt to their new surroundings beyond the creeks proper and just how much easier it is to catch them out in the open on the flats.

There is already talk of salmon and barra being observed actively smashing displaced fodder species on local flats and beaches, and they have just started. Don’t miss the opportunities this post-flooding scenario creates if you are a landlubber, and go suss out your local beaches, flats or creek mouths. The Booral Flats are already producing, and will continue to do so now that gill-netting is banned down there. Dundowran beaches and the waters off Gatakers Bay, Pt Vernon and Pialba also offer new opportunities, as does the shoreline at Torquay and Urangan.

Lots of larger predatory fish will be highly visible as they attack their prey in skinny water. Sambos and barra are particularly boisterous, particularly after dark, and can be heard as well as seen. Now is your chance to join the ever-increasing clan of fishos addicted to topwater fishing, as these post-flood conditions offer the perfect opportunity to fine-tune your fizz, pop, frogging or dog-walking skills.

Those favouring ultra-light finesse tackle for some reason can get excited about future opportunities chasing whiting and bream. This flooding will not only flush out mature and growing prawns, but will ensure there is a multitude of tiny jelly prawns amassed on muddy flats and creek verges in the very near future. All triggers to get small and large predators responding to topwater lures in waters dirty enough to give them confidence in the skinniest margins.

It won’t be just the desirable predators mooching about under the cover of dirty water in coming weeks. Bull sharks of all sizes revel in these conditions and they will be hyperactive. Even more-so given their standard pupping season that is about to commence. Scary to think how many female bulls (funny combination of words that) will drop the average 15 pups in coming weeks, adding to the already disastrous scene we have watched unfold for so many years.

These conditions offer crocodiles the opportunity to relocate in a stealthy manner too, so as I suggest every year at this time, take extra care in dirty waters and avoid wading unnecessarily. There may only be a couple of sizeable crocs in the whole Fraser Coast area, but you do not want to come into contact with them in or near the water. Warn the kids, and be extra wary whilst pumping yabbies, cast netting or fishing near our estuaries while the waters are dirty.

Inshore Reef Fishos Have Lots to Cheer About

Sharks-aside, there is much to look forward to for inshore reef fishos. Dirty water will deny spearos any opportunities in shallower waters, so some species will recruit unhindered eventually, even though a few will retreat to deeper waters whilst the fresh is at its worst. Those trollers hell-bent on maintaining the rage over our shallow reefs (yes, Luke, I am talking about you) might find themselves hooked-up to critters way cooler than trout or cod.

The flood plume ex-Mary River has already flowed beyond the bay islands all the way out the fringe of ‘the banks’. Dirty waters can be found from Moon Point to The Fairway and these waters will extend a little further in time. That very demarcation line from dirty to clear will be a fish magnet for several weeks to come and will make grounds from Coongul across to The Outer Banks and The Simpson all the way to the reefs off the Burrum Coast a highly popular and productive part of the southern bay.

Deeper reefs to the south of there are and will continue to fish well for a host of species regardless of the filthy stained water you can see. Remembering that saltwater is denser than freshwater, you should be able to envisage happy reefies feasting on a massive abundance of displaced baitfish and prawns, as well as squid hunted from waters adversely impacted.

The most prolific of these species will always be the humble grassy sweetlip, and they have been on the chew bigtime since the flood. Coral trout will tend to escape the worst waters in the shallows in favour of better conditions deeper, as will huge numbers of estuary cod. You will still be able to catch them in the same manner as usual; ie prawn imitation plastics, soft vibes and jigs; but you will be tested by twisted and strange currents that mess with your head whilst you’re trying to accurately position your vessel in waters in the path of excess river flows.

Inshore nannygai fans can cheer loudly when they hook fish displaced from the Great Sandy Straits in the future. Deep reefs in our more northern shipping channels join the waters along and beyond ‘the banks’ as happy nannygai hunting grounds of the future. Adding to the improved nannygai fishery will be the fish already stationed beyond the banks that swim in to feast on the abundance of prawns and squid forced out by the floods. The sharks won’t let you catch and keep them all, but you should find a few strays here and there very soon.

Those of you accustomed to starting your day of reef fishing with a live bait jigging session had better consider alternate plans to standard. The Bait Grounds and similar shallow spots close inshore will be impacted adversely, so you will need to jig your bait from deeper reefs or consider dragging out the cast net. Options to catch bait in a cast net abound, and the bonus of prawns is a very welcome one.

Head Up the Bay to Find Pelagics

There will be a host of pelagic species that will linger inshore beneath the intruding freshwater for a period of time before they vacate the area for better conditions. The big GTs that have been menacing the inhabitants of our inshore shipwrecks and artificial reefs are an example, as are the schools of queenfish and golden trevally that were so active recently.

These making tides will see some push-back against the swathe of river excess which will suit those lingering pelagics, but those tides stop making in a few days and the dirty water will push out further with less resistance thereafter. By then, the Outer Banks country, and the cleaner waters beyond will beckon those pelagics northward. Monitor the distinct lines of flotsam that gather across the front of current lines in the future and you will find all sorts of pelagics actively feeding beneath or nearby.

In the meantime, you might wish to continue your assault on the tuna population, which has very likely grown since this latest blow. Word is that the tuna aren’t overly thick until you get beyond Arch Cliffs at present, with numbers increasing the further north you head. Best action has been from northern Platypus Bay apparently, yet old hands might recall the numbers that can explode in the southern central bay after major flooding. The western bay is assured a tuna season now, but no-one is heading that way until the winds ease or tend more offshore.

If you do get out and happen to hook a spanish mackerel, you will need to let it go immediately. The second 3-week closure is still in force and will be until after the 21st March. Schoolies can handle a degree of dirty water, as can broadies, so go look for them out along the banks, up the island or somewhere well wide of the Burrum Coast. You might even trip over a few spotties if you head far enough north, assuming the lingering remnant population of recent weeks hasn’t vacated the bay altogether.

Stuart has been up the island chasing longtails again. Head for Platypus Bay and keep steering north and you will find them.

Expect to see a lot more of these brutes out in the clear waters of the bay. Sadly, the bulls still hang around under the fresh too.

Flooding Game-Changer for Estuary Fishos

Estuary fishos were fore-warned of the potential of this flood event and given a few tips on how to enjoy the spoils pre-flood. So, hopefully you didn’t waste your last opportunities to fish clean river waters for the autumn season. Now you will have to alter your approach altogether and shift your effort to waters beyond the streams or to the lowest reaches thereof at least.

There will be some who know how to take advantage of run-off waters in a rising river, but it is the times thereafter, when the river waters settle back to a muddy version of normal that will offer future challenges. Fast flows and water muddy enough to plow will put 99% of fishos off, so you could get a little lonely upstream this week. There will be barra holding station in select eddies that will feed voraciously at times, but few will be there to witness that.

The Mary River Barrage was well and truly over-topped during the peak of flooding. It is currently sitting at 159% of capacity and about 2.8m over the wall. The Tinana Barrage remains at 136% of capacity and 1.5m over the wall. So, there will be plenty of freshwater following the water already flowing downstream, and drinkable water for much of the length of the Mary for a little while to come.

Head for the waters of the straits if you want to capitalise on the abundance the Mary flooding creates. Picture displaced baitfish, prawns and juvenile everything else getting smashed by big predators that can creep up on or charge at them in turbid water without warning and the scene is set for some very exciting fishing indeed. Think barra, salmon and jewfish hunting in the filth, whilst grunter, cod, flathead, queenfish and more brethren of the aforementioned feed voraciously in brackish waters nearby.

Consider what you read about last week relating to mature mangrove jacks and their movements beyond the streams. Now and the coming weeks offer you some of the most insane fishing imaginable, so plan, prepare and pursue if you are up to the task. Jacks will continue to feed into the fresh in some smaller creeks and some will return to the confines of those streams in time, but now is when you will find schools milling about beyond the creeks that will dead-set test even the best of your barra tackle if you trip over the big ones.

Burrum fishos have a chance to tangle with numbers of barramundi that made their way downstream during the flooding. The Burrum ran high and is still swollen, as are the feeder rivers of the Cherwell, Isis and Gregory. Downstream hotspots within cooee of the Burrum Heads ramps will be popular, yet schools of fish will make their way beyond those waters too. There were ample barra, jacks, grunter, salmon, queenfish and perhaps a few jewies etc all residing in the Burrum, and many of them have been part of a mass exodus. Opportunities galore there for a keen fisho for sure.

Combine the flooding of our local rivers and pretty much every small creek with the huge flood terrorising the poor folks in the path of the Burnett, and your smile should widen as a little drool develops thinking about future prawning escapades. Cast netting for small-medium prawn was quite good in recent weeks, and getting better by the day. The straits were already alive with hordes of the same prawn, so that population has been boosted big-time.

Forget heading too far up the Mary or Susan (or Burrum etc) for now. Focus on the area around the mouth or beyond and you will find your next prawn feast. Waiting for the waters to settle would be a good idea, as that will enable the prawn to amass again too. Folks were catching prawns from the ramp at River Heads prior to this flood event, so even better catches are expected from those brave souls when conditions are right. 

Woodgate prawning is bound to be the best in years, in time. Some might give it a nudge early in the piece and find masses of smaller prawn, but it is the big shiny green and gold bananas of cooler times that most will look forward to. In the meantime, look for the prawn that just got washed out of local creeks and you could find an easy feed ‘out the front’. Prawns will surprise many a landlubber in coming weeks, so even those without boats can score a feed.

Our mud crab season all summer has been well above average, and this flood event has just added fuel to that fire. Forget running any pots upstream into our creeks or rivers now, as the fresh has pushed the salt-loving muddies downstream. Many will have vacated the streams in favour of waters beyond, so pot placement both within the lowest reaches and somewhere outside the mouth will soon reveal their whereabouts.

You don’t need to be told to place your pots in areas out of the stronger flood flows, or just how important fresh bait and plenty of it can be. Enhancing your crab baits with aniseed scent is a sneaky trick only few have discovered over the years, so now you have the opportunity to test its effectiveness. Do not spill it in your boat, or you will be hassled by liquorice-lovers everywhere you go.

Sadly, these floods create the perfect opportunity for those mongrel tilapia to spread even further. Some of you will get to witness the sheer scale of the problem in our waters when you see just how many cruise the fringes in floodwaters on the way to another backwater they tend to invade. We cannot even use them as crab bait as we are required to dispose of them in a plastic bag placed in a bin or bury them. Such a useless and destructive fish that is well out of control!

So, the weather ain’t flash and our waters are filthy, but we have much to look forward to here on the Fraser Coast. Our prawn season will now be a bumper, the crabs prolific and the fishing will be red hot. If it wasn’t for those darn sharks and the disgusting price of fuel, then we could say that everything post-flood is looking rosy. Easter is just around the corner, and it looks like seafood banquets all round.

Good luck out there y’all …… Jase