Fisho's Weekly Fishing Report – 3rd July, 2026

Another happy cobia-cradling client aboard a Saltwater Playground fishing charter.

Glorious Weather to Kick-Off Hervey Bay's Premier Fishing Event

There were a few nervous moments as organisers, sponsors and competitors involved in this weekend's inaugural Hervey Bay Fishing Classic monitored the latest weather forecasts. The timing of the south-easterly change was a mild threat, but it looks set to arrive late Saturday weaker than first forecast - so all systems go for a huge weekend on the water.

Many competitors are already out on the briny today, enjoying brilliant conditions as an ultra-light northerly zephyr of around 5 knots keeps them cool whilst hauling in the big ones. Today, Friday, is definitely THE day for heading wide, and perhaps overnighting, as a building south-easter Saturday will restrain travel somewhat. Saturday will kick off well early, with a light southerly followed by that gradually-building south-easter as the day wears on.

Sunday looks windier, after the south-easter reaches 15 knots or so overnight Saturday night and strengthens throughout the day. Looks like extra beers Saturday night for the offshore crews as more competitors will be nursing hangovers than fish the next morning. Showers are expected to start rolling in with the stronger onshore wind late Sunday and keep coming into early next week whilst the stronger breeze prevails.

The weather is a little flasher than the tides you might say, as a waning moon leads us to next Wednesday's last quarter phase. This means diminishing tidal flow daily until then, but there is still sufficient pull from what's left of the recent full moon to keep the fish biting.

Boat ramps will be extra-busy over the coming days, so kindly show some patience when required. Help your fellow fishos if they need help, and make sure you yourself are as efficient at the ramp as you can be too. Hervey Bay is on show this weekend people - so make us proud fishos!

Boats you can win just by entering the Hervey Bay Fishing Classic plus the Rally for a Cause raffle prize.

The Hervey Bay Sports Club site all set up and ready for the fun and games of the Hervey Bay Fishing Classic.

Hervey Bay Fishing Classic is Underway

As mentioned, the inaugural Hervey Bay Fishing Classic has already kicked off, and will mean an immense amount of extra boating traffic on our waters. Shore-based fishos will be bouncing from hotspot to hotspot too as they vie for their share of the immense $130,000 prize pool on offer.

Offshore grounds got left alone due to weather constraints for the past week or so, so we expect to see some terrific fish brought back to the weighmaster. Deep droppers will get a crack at waters beyond the shelf, so the pearl perch, jobfish and perhaps 'other species' categories will be hotly contested. It will take a big ruby to win the 'flame-tail/ruby snapper' category, whilst it will be interesting to see whether a green jobbie can out-class a rosy in the 'jobfish' category.

Snapper fishos hauling in numbers offshore will be competing with inshore fishos hoping for a better class of fish closer to home. There have been a few on the chew in both areas just recently, so this will be an immensely-interesting category. All Fisho's Tackle World customers sporting our in-house snapper competition tokens should make sure they are on board when they catch their next snapper. One fish could win big at the HBFC and then back that up with even more prizes from us at Fisho's.

A westerly giving way to a gentle northerly today could mean a very lean daylight bite for a host of reef species in the northern bay. Then again, there is history of quality red emperor captures in the very same conditions when other species are less active. Reds are bound to feature on stage and whoever claims the winner will walk away with bragging rights forever, as the inaugural category winner of the most sought-after fish in any comp such as this.

There is bound to be a swag of tuskfish weighed in, from which, you would expect blueys (aka black-spot tuskfish) to come out ahead of any venus tuskfish. That is, assuming the bluey gurus can get them to bite (and past the sharks) in the cooler winter water.

Grassy sweetlip will be in abundance, both inshore and in the northern bay. Fair to say that the winner is likely to come from up north in weather this good, assuming someone catches a grassy bigger than the RTEs caught offshore. In the case of a freak inter-species tie, you might think the judges would give it to the RTE for this category based on sheer quality alone. Not so, if you refer to rule # 17 (first fish weighed wins).

The race will be on to catch the winning coral trout you would expect. Bar-cheeks only grow to 11 kilos, and blue-spots need to be thrown back over 80cm, so this will be one heck of a contest and very likely a category with multiple names upon the leader board unless someone presents a donkey first up.

Looks like nannygai didn't warrant a specific species category, but haul them in and have them weighed if you get some whoppers. These handsome creatures would be well-deserved winners in the 'other species' category if trophy-sized.

Spanish mackerel and cobia are both quite abundant throughout Hervey Bay's open waters, and there are more offshore as well. It will take a mammoth cobia to win out over the many XOS models likely to be caught this weekend if recent captures are anything to go by. Most of the spaniards have been school fish lately, so a big one caught from anywhere other than Platypus Bay waters (where they are a no-take species due to ciguatera poisoning risk) could be a winner.

Big grunter being caught as snapper bycatch are likely to blitz fish caught down the straits or within our rivers, but you never know. Grunter to 75cm have been caught in local creeks, so every grunter-hunter is in with a chance. The same could be said for the potential winning jewfish. However, a reef fisho hooking one will need more than an ounce of luck to beat the sharks, whilst an estuary fisho plying holes and ledges down the straits stands a far greater chance of landing a similar-sized fish.

Needless to say, there will be plenty of the bread'n'butter species brought to the weighmaster, as both seniors and juniors alike present their best whiting, bream and flathead captures. It will likely come down to milligrams in these categories, so the scrutineers will be monitoring very closely.

The kids can also weigh-in mud crabs, coral trout, sweetlip, estuary cod, grunter, school and broad-barred mackerel. There will also be a prize for the best junior 'other species', so send them up to the weighmaster with their best snapper, nanny, cobia or whatever, and they can be in the running.

With prizes for first and second biggest plus secret weights for species-specific categories, and with mud crabs scoring prizes as will biggest fish overall; not to mention the proud honour of overall champion junior or senior angler; you, your family and/or your mates could be walking away with multiple prizes come Sunday. This competition will set a new standard for fishing competitions in Hervey Bay and is certainly not one to miss.

Suss out all the details by googling Hervey Bay Fishing Classic, and get along for the fun and frivolities. There is bound to be laughs galore as the drinks flow and plenty to keep the kids excited apart from just the big fish being presented to the weighmaster. No doubt you will all have an absolute ball folks. Enjoy!

The Costigan crew got amongst the snapper during a full moon snapper session in the bay.

The Costigans were spoilt for choice when it came to their next seafood feast. Grunter are welcome bycatch and worthy targets in their own right.

Urangan Pier Alive with Baitfish and Bream

Given that this is a fishing report, perhaps we should take a look at what's been biting. Starting with the pier, the abundant herring are drawing a few predators, whilst schools of bream settle between the pylons during their spawning run. Pike are there in reasonable numbers too, mostly in the first channel, and proving a challenge for folks unaccustomed with techniques required to catch them when proving cagey.

School mackerel have been in sufficient numbers to see a subtle spike in Flasha spoon sales in-store. No talk of other pelagics at this time. Flathead in the first channel have been fairly cunning. They are there, but proving difficult to tempt for some folks. Even more reason to learn how to catch pike. Those smelly critters will bring the flatties undone.

Bream numbers are sound, and they are biting quite well given the mild winter weather. Quite a few folks target them for a feed and they are doing okay. Others relish the challenge of catching larger models on lures, so Cranka Crabs and other plastic crab imitations have been popular additions to bags of arsenal walking out the door with pier fishos.

Local beach fishos have had a bit of fun chasing whiting and bream on tiny topwater offerings. Toogoom is central to some of the best action lately, as those species join queenfish and flathead amongst recent catches. Creeks other than Beelbi have produced a few flathead, some bream and a bit of bycatch, with the Burrum River entrance currently hosting a modest run of whiting.

Kingy displaying a sample of the class of bream you can find in many shore-based locations locally.

The Ridgeway boys love nothing better than a day out fishing with dad.

Straits Versus Rivers for Estuary Fishos

Whilst these tides will favour straits fishos, our local river systems are hosting plenty of quality estuarine predators as well. Look for jewfish down along Fraser's western ledges or perhaps closer to River Heads or South Head. Legal models are well and truly outnumbered by undersized fish further upstream in the Mary, whilst a legal fish or two might be calling the deeper holes in the lower Burrum home nowadays.

Shore-based fishos spinning from the rocks at River Heads continue to catch chopper tailor when the tide is up. There are tailor down the straits too. Some legal, some not, and none likely to impress anyone with their size just yet. A jewie is possible from the heads, as too is a blue salmon or even a mackerel. Expect more mackerel and more tailor in the coming two months as ultra-clear waters and amassing baitfish draw their attention.

Queenfish can be a fun target species down the straits, where very large fish occupy very skinny waters at times. Sight-fishing opportunities abound, so fly fishos can join the rest of us 'normal' fishos and everyone can be hooked to grey-hounding acrobats one after the other either side of high tide. Keep an eye out for little GTs for more fun and especially the much-lauded permit if you get ultra-lucky down there.

Flathead continue to turn up in better numbers, and will be worth some semi-serious effort in coming months. For now, they are well-spread throughout the creeks and verges of the straits and are also well-represented in the lower reaches of our rivers. Bream and whiting are there on the flats for those keen to dust off the ultra-light finesse tackle, as are tiger squid for those keen on a little fresh calamari.

The Mary is home to increasing numbers of both barramundi and threadfin salmon, as well as more than enough blue salmon. Grunter numbers are steadily improving, but better things are to come for grunter fans as river waters continue to clear. This prolonged mild winter weather cannot last forever, so go see if you can tempt the barra and threadies whilst such good conditions prevail.

Do the same in the Burrum if you prefer, where schools of both barra and threadies can be found milling about seemingly together. Don't get too pre-occupied with the first hard-to-tempt schools you find, as chances are you just tripped over the same fish that scoper after scoper have been peppering before you. There are fish well-scattered throughout all four rivers up there, so go find some beyond the obvious spots and you should enjoy a more responsive bite.

Jacks are still biting this winter, even if only for brief periods. That bite won't improve with further cold snaps, so pounce on the opportunity for the winter jack bragging rights while that window remains open. Oh, and don't be too surprised to come up tight to a similarly hard-pulling adversary of similar build but drab banded grey with luber lips. Nasty big old blubberlip bream are being caught here and there in the Burrum of late. Random captures they may be, and impressive they might fight, but don't bother taking them home to eat. Pretty much the old "boil with a brick, then throw out and eat the brick" scenario with blubberlips.

River fishos can kick back on anchor and catch cricket scores of bream if so inclined. A steady berley trail will have them lined up and willing to swipe at your next lightly-weighted bait. Or, you could chase them with tiny artificial offerings around the many rock bars and snaggy ledges in the lower reaches. Grunter, flathead and cod are potential bycatch either way, as are blubberlip potentially if they don't trash you on such light bream tackle.

Tarj Wilson's latest Pro Lure Clone Prawn victim.

Lennox scored a sunrise longtail as snapper bycatch during a recent sunrise session.

Snapper and Welcome Bycatch in the Bay

The recent full moon saw snapper catches increase in the southern bay, but not without an unacceptable attrition to the taxmen in many locations. Best return for effort has been from the western and central bay, where effort is not as condensed and sharks not as prolific.

Quality knobbies have been caught on an array of soft plastics, whilst some very welcome bycatch has joined the party for some crews too. Grunter are particularly welcome for their fighting prowess and delicious flesh, so softies allowed to sink all the way to the bottom are the go when snapper fishing over known grunter hangouts.

Nannies and coral trout are every bit as welcome when caught accidentally whilst targeting snapper, whilst golden trevally and big longtail tuna might appeal to some, but certainly not all of us. You might find nannies in the central bay or up the island, with a rare fish or two within our local shipping channels. There would be more close inshore, but the sharks are just too vicious.

Those deeper inshore grounds are home to plenty of grassy sweetlip, plus a few coral trout, cod and blackall. The same species are still possible from shallower reefs, but not in the same numbers as in the warmer months. Sharks are going to be a massive issue this weekend, with so many fishos on the water. Notwithstanding, you just might get lucky and haul in a feed, while your neighbouring fishos occupy the noahs. Such is our plight in such heavily-pressured waters.

The whale that washed up dead on Mon Repos beach north of Bargara recently was taken away and dumped or buried, apparently. This seems at odds with nature, and maybe even a little wasteful. Should such a tragic death not be utilised by the very species that rely on such events? Is rotting away as landfill better than filling the bellies of countless sharks, then crabs, lice etc, as nature would have it?

It may not have been possible of course, but as a fisho you would think towing it offshore and sinking it or securing it to the bottom via a temporary mooring could be more beneficial for all. Or maybe that is being selfish. We had a week's reprieve from sharks in the northern bay due to this event, and now what? Back to the tragic status quo no doubt.

Chris found snapper on the chew during a recent dawn-buster session.

Gary with a sample of quality grunter bycatch you can score whilst fishing for bay snapper.

Winter Whiting & Bream Galore

One group of fishos that doesn't have a consistent issue with sharks is the winter whiting fraternity. They plod out regularly, filling their bag limits with plump little winteries, with little more to fear than schools of the dreaded green toadfish or some mackerel.

Recent reports reflect the changes in weather and the willingness of regulars to move beyond the building crowds. Whilst there are still winteries being caught off the Burrum, the toads up there are getting frustrating. No word from Gatakers Bay this week, whilst reports from those trying the grounds south of Round Island suggest there are ample whiting down there.

They have been caught down towards the bottom of Woody, where their size is superior apparently. There are also whiting not far south-east of Urangan Harbour too. The straits fishos are catching plenty down Boonooroo way, and there is very likely a host of other grounds also producing. This season is a good one for winter whiting fans, and they are now quite well-spread.

Some effort to catch alternatives whilst out their filling your whiting creel could see you getting stretched by golden trevally, battling mackerel, securing a few squid or maybe even tempting the odd barely legal reefy. Shift from your drifts over sand to anchoring over shallow reef and you could be adding a swag of bream to your creel too. Chopper tailor have also turned up off Pt Vernon, so your menu could be quite diverse with enough effort. Or, it could remain just whiting again and again, as many a palate prefers apparently.

Barry's new PB golden trevally was caught whilst drift-fishing for winter whiting with a pilly trailing behind.

Steve Binney has been into the snapper.

Pursuing Pelagics Sub-surface

Our winter pelagic scene is looking reasonably healthy, with a very notable reprieve from sharks in some waters again this week (thank you poor deceased humpback). School mackerel have joined the spanish mackerel out at the 6 Mile off Arch Cliffs, and there has been plenty of both species, with no sharks in sight.

Nicko from Princess II charter fame reluctantly showed me photos of one of two little black marlin caught on trolled lures behind his vessel recently. These fish can be added to the tally of little wintertime blacks that have excited a few folks further north up Station hill way. Random as they may be, these captures suggest you should be ready for all and sundry out there this winter.

Certainly, be prepared for encounters with XOS cobia, as these brutes have been turning up all over the joint. Spaniards are also rising to lures and baits in the central and northern bay, where trevally numbers are steadily building. Given time and cooler waters, absolute hordes of unavoidable trevally will inundate many of the prominent ledges of the Gutters and many a lower-lying reef system elsewhere up there too.

Trevors from numerous clans will mill about together in swirling masses as they gather to predate on the prolific baitfish also gathering in those waters. Speaking of which, there has been a notable return of slimy mackerel to central bay grounds such as the 25 Fathom Hole. Welcome slimies, may you enjoy your stay and linger. Beneath them are massive schools of yakkas and there are herring and who-knows how many other baitfish species to be found at so many reef and rubble sites.

Abundant mature-sized baitfish and school after school of various predatory fish hot on their tails. Such is mid-wintertime in Hervey Bay and beyond. Get out there and enjoy fishos, and convert your whoppers into prizes and bragging rights in the Hervey Bay Fishing Classic.

Good luck out there y'all …… Jase