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Sandy Straits Winter Guide
By Paul Chew
Well folks it's that time of year again when it's either blowing a 20 knot sou' wester or the water is looking like a pane of glass, with not much in between. For me, it's one of the best times of year to chase fish in the Sandy Straits, with the lead up to the new and full moon my preference for tides, for a couple of reasons. Firstly the bigger tides discolour the water a little, which is a big help over winter as gin clear water makes the fishing tough. Also, with some decent run the bait schools up, making it is easier to find the predatory fish shadowing them. On the biggest of the winter tides, there is also a good chance for a sneaky quality mud crab. It really is the easiest time of year to catch a feed of fish.
I will again touch on chasing a feed on plastics, however recently I have been doing a little bait fishing again, chasing some grunter at night and during July and August I do my only whiting fishing for the year. Again, the lead up and over the biggest tides produces the best results. Now, the best results normally sill come in the first couple hours of daylight, however let's face it, getting up and heading out on the water in sub 10 degrees Celsius isn't that much fun. Good results can still be had heading out at lunchtime and fishing the flood tide up into the mangroves with both soft plastics and bait.
When chasing sand whiting, you want to pump yourself some yabbies around the low tide and then look for the drains heading back up onto the sand flats. Fishing back into these drains as the tide rises will produce whiting and flathead at this time of year. For grunter and salmon I prefer the last couple of hours of the incoming tide, fishing along the mangrove edges. I find few things more relaxing on a Saturday arvo in winter than listening to the footy, tossing a couple of lines out the back and waiting for the fish to bite.
Gear for this sort of fishing is fairly basic, with a light spin outfit for the whiting, a slightly heavier outfit for the grunter and you are all set. I have just started using a couple of Okuma Lunaris Spin Rods this winter, a true old school soft bait rod that has plenty of give and loads well once the fish is hooked. An added bonus is that it has a glow in the dark tip, that even with a small amount of light shows up really well. Spin reels with 12 or 15lb Platypus braid, and some Platypus 15lb leader complete the setup. I use a very basic rig, consisting of a running ball sinker, swivel and a 50cm trace to a longshank #4 Mustad Bloodworm hook for the whiting and #1 for the grunter.
Bait is super easy, being just mullet fillets cut into strips or squid cut the same way grunter and yabbies for the whiting. If you miss the tide, peeled prawns will also get you plenty of whiting and bream. There is no rocket science to this, just cast out at 45 degrees behind the boat on both sides and wait. For the grunter, I don't even try and hook them, I just wait until they hook themselves and then pick up the rod. Take your time and you will get a feed most times.
Where to look in the Sandy Straights is a question that I get asked a fair bit. I fish everywhere from a few kilometres up in the Mary River down into the Sandy Straits, both on the mainland side and the Fraser Island side. All of the creeks south of Kingfisher right down to Garry's Anchorage will hold grunter, flathead and whiting during winter. Similarly, on the mainland side, the waterways from German Creek south to Maroom will hold the same fish. I like German Creek over winter as a starting point, as it's generally fairly easy to get a feed without travelling too far, while also not too difficult to navigate into.
While I have talked up the incoming tide a lot, the area around German Creek fishes really well on the outgoing, so if you have slept in like I do frequently, it's a good fall back plan. As soon as you can get on a sandbank to dig some yabbies. Head on up a kilometre or so and anchor in the middle of one of the two creeks. The whiting and grunter, along with plenty of bream, will be dropping off the mud edges and you shouldn't have too much trouble catching something for dinner, using the rigs I have mentioned above.
Once the tide drops toward the low, flicking a few soft plastics around the drain mouths out on the flats at the front should yield a flathead or two. One of my favourite presentations for this sort of fishing, when the tide has just bottomed out and has just started to rise, is the ZMan 5" StreakZ in Electric Chicken colour, rigged on a 1/4oz 4/0 TT Lures HeadlockZ HD jighead. It's a deadly rig fished in a metre of water along the channel edges, with most fish eating it on the drop. Keep your eyes out for a few squid also as the tide rises, as they will push up around any rocky outcrops.
As I mentioned earlier, a bonus while out chasing a feed with the rod and reel is the quality of the mud crabs in the Sandy Straits over winter. Baiting with big baits and leaving the pots in the same spot for a couple days is a couple of the tips that are working for me this year, having had a couple of very good sessions recently.
If you want to really make a weekend of it, some mullet fillets and squid, freshly pumped yabbies (just make sure to anchor your boat out far enough), and a couple crab pots thrown is, equals a fantastic getaway. The added bonus is that during winter the sandflies are least active.
There is nothing quite like waking up in the boat as the sun rises, making a cup of coffee, tossing a couple of lines in and watching the day come to life.
That's my idea of a perfect weekend away in the Great Sandy Straits.
Tight lines, Chewy.