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5 Tips for Fishing Canals

By Jacob Iedema

Canal systems can be found around the country, are loaded with structure and they attract bait and in turn predators. Here’s some tips to get you hooked up when fishing canals.

Choose a Target Species

With such an array of species available in canal systems, narrowing each session down to one species, or a couple that can be fished for with similar techniques, will increase your success dramatically on the water. By far the best and my favourite way to target any species of fish is with soft plastics. Soft plastics are versatile and leave the prospect of finicky treble hooks out of the picture, while retaining a great hook up rate.

Bream

Bream are probably the best target species for those wanting to give canals a shot for the first time. With sessions often producing large quantities of fish and the high chance of by-catch they are challenging for the experienced angler and rewarding enough for the beginner. Targeting bream with lightly weighted soft plastics, skipped in behind pontoons or rolled adjacent to them, is a very exciting way of targeting one of Australia’s favourite recreational fish species.

Targeting bream, along with any other species, requires the correct gear. This equates to small lures, light lines, responsive rods, and small spinning reels. Bream would be a favourite of mine to target, with my current bream outfit as follows:

Rod: Okuma Cerros Spinning Rod 7’ 1-3kg (CER-S-701L)

Reel: Okuma ITX Carbon Spin Reel 1000 (ITX-1000)

Braid: Platypus Pulse X8 Braid (6lb) Aussie Green

Leader: Platypus Stealth FC Fluorocarbon Leader (6lb)

Go-To Lures: ZMan 2.5” GrubZ & ZMan 2.5” Slim SwimZ

Flathead

Another Aussie favourite is the humble flathead. Growing to over one metre in length, the flathead is another awesome species found throughout nearly every canal, often being caught as a by-catch when fishing for other species. However, if targeted specifically, large numbers of fish can be caught. Hopping medium size soft plastics along the bottom is by far the most effective method of targeting flathead. With shady areas, bases of rock walls and along the edges of pontoons being common ambush points for flathead in canals.

My go-to gear for flathead follows:

Rod: Okuma Cerros Spinning Rods 7’ 2-4kg (CER-S-701ML)

Reel: Okuma ITX Carbon Spin Reel 2500 (ITX-2500)

Braid: Platypus Pulse X8 Braid (8lb) Aussie Green

Leader: Platypus Stealth FC Fluorocarbon Leader (10lb)

Go-To Lures: ZMan 3” MinnowZ, ZMan 3” Slim SwimZ, ZMan 4” StreakZ Curly TailZ & ZMan 3.5” EZ ShrimpZ

Mangrove Jack

Mangrove jack would have to be the most difficult challenge to face in canals, with hours upon hours spent chasing them for small numbers of landed fish. They truly are a rewarding sight, when gently placed in a landing net. However, targeting these fish is not impossible and with time results will follow. My go-to jack gear is as follows:

Rod: TT Rods Black Mamba Spin 4-8kg (BMS701MH)

Reel: Okuma ITX Carbon Spin Reel 4000 (ITX-4000)

Braid: Platypus Pulse X8 Braid (15lb) Aussie Green

Leader: Platypus Stealth FC Fluorocarbon Leader (30lb)

Go-To Lures: ZMan 4” DieZel MinnowZ, ZMan 5” DieZel MinnowZ, ZMan 3.5” EZ ShrimpZ & ZMan 5” StreakZ Curly TailZ

Golden Trevally, Diamond Trevally & Javelin Fish

Golden trevally and diamond trevally differ from other trevally species as they aren’t equipped with the same hunting style and fast attacks. They tend to be more tentative to eat a lure and often require a slower retrieve to produce a bite. Just the anatomy of these fish alone suggests that they have a different hunting style to giant trevally and other fast and aggressive pelagic species. The large blubbery lips, that angle down when the mouth of each fish is open, suggests that they prefer hunting for prey near the bottom.

Javelin fish (grunter) feed in a similar way, hugging the bottom scouring it for crabs and any other source of food. However, grunter tend to sit below structure or hug rock walls a little more than the trevally species. The retrieve for javelin fish is similar to targeting diamond and golden trevally. Another tip worth mentioning is that javelin fish are a sucker for a well-presented blade, such as the smaller TT Switchblade models.

Keeping this in mind, a retrieve can be determined to target these fish with the most efficiency and effectiveness. A little bit of shared experience can also provide priceless advice. Hopping plastics along the bottom has proven to be the best way to target these fish in canals, along with other environments. The proven retrieve consists of a few big flicks of the rod tip, quicker and more forceful than that of a flathead retrieve, with extended pauses while the plastic rests on the sediment, allowing more time for the fish to grab it.

Casting around pressure edges, adjacent to pontoons or under shade thrown by vessels moored in the canal, are all great places for a prospect with a lure. My go-to gear for these great species is as follows:

Rod: Okuma Cerros Spinning Rods 7’ 1-3kg (CER-S-701L)

Reel: Okuma ITX Carbon Spin 1000 (ITX-1000)

Braid: Platypus Pulse X8 Braid (6lb) Aussie Green

Leader: Platypus Stealth FC Fluorocarbon (8lb)

Go-To Lures: ZMan 3” Slim SwimZ, ZMan 2.5” Slim SwimZ & ZMan 2.5” GrubZ

Giant Trevally & Queenfish

Giant trevally and queenfish are the speedsters of the canals. With a tendency to hunt in open water and close to the surface, they can make for some erratic sessions on the water. Low light conditions can produce some impressive surface strikes as well as high speed hits from fish chasing a plastic. Finding fish can be a matter of spotting a school of fish feeding on the surface or locating them by finding the bait they feed on. My queenfish and trevally gear consists of:

Rod: Okuma Cerros Spinning Rods 7’ 2-4kg (CER-S-701ML)

Reel: Okuma ITX Carbon Spin Reel 2500 (ITX-2500)

Braid: Platypus Pulse X8 Braid (8lb) Aussie Green

Leader: Platypus Stealth FC Fluorocarbon Leader (10lb)

Go-To Lures: ZMan 3.75” StreakZ, ZMan 3” Slim SwimZ, ZMan 2.5” Slim SwimZ, ZMan 2.5” GrubZ. 

Seasonal Targets

Canals are versatile with options at any one time throughout the year. With seasonal fluctuations bring new bait sources and fish species to this environment, fishing them never grows old. Whether its topwater tailor in winter or jack fishing in summer, there is always a new puzzle to piece together.

Winter in the canals of Southeast Queensland and Northern New South Wales can often yield diamond trevally, golden trevally, tailor, snapper, bream, better flathead fishing, javelin fish and the occasional giant trevally and queenfish.

Autumn and Spring are the best times to target queenfish and giant trevally around the canals as they follow the baitfish in around winter, while firing up in warmer temperatures.

Summer in the canals is a great time to target topwater bream, estuary cod, mangrove jack, trevally, and javelin fish.

Structure

Structure. Structure. Structure. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, casting in any direction hoping for the best is a great way to go home empty handed. Fish don’t just swim anywhere and everywhere for the sake of it. Just like people have houses, fish cling to structure for safety and other accommodations like food. Different fish species will prefer different types of structure and the methods of catching them will vary because of this. For example, bream are suckers for an oyster covered boat hull or pontoon and will sit up higher in the water column more often. While javelin fish prefer to stay nearer to the bottom, scavenging for crabs and tending to hang out under pontoons or near rock walls, instead of being in purely open water.

Structure in canals consists of, but is not limited to the following:

Pontoons

Pontoons are the primary source of structure in the canals, providing accommodation for bream, jacks, estuary cod and other common species. There are multiple ways to effectively fish pontoons, however the most effective method that I’ve found for most species is a variety of retrieves with soft plastics.

The most basic retrieve, that everyone wanting to fish the canals should have in their arsenal, is slowly hopping a plastic around the edges of the pontoon. Whether that’s the front, back or sides of the pontoon, it doesn’t matter, just ensure the lure remains close to the pontoon. A light jighead will allow slower sink rates and often produces more bites, due to the more enticing and realistic sink.

The second retrieve is a slow to fast roll under the lip of the pontoon. To achieve this, make a cast along the face of the pontoon, with any preferable side of the pontoon accessible. Allow the lure to sink below the lip and start rolling it back, ensuring that it remains under the lip of the pontoon throughout the retrieve. The odd flick of the rod tip can be thrown in here and there to vary the retrieve. This is also a great bite trigger if fish like bream are following the lure but won’t commit on a straight retrieve.

Boats

Moored boats throughout canal systems provide additional floating structure to complement the pontoons and the shadow they cast as the sun rises can be a magnet for fish hunting in open water. This is especially the case if baitfish congregate below the hull or in the shadows.

Fish such as mangrove jack and bream often sit just below the hull, while trevally, javelin fish, diamond trevally and more are attracted to the cover provided by this source of structure.

Boat hulls can be fished by rolling a plastic below the hull or hopping a plastic along the bottom below the boat. Both are effective techniques for different species.

Rock Walls

Rock walls are another large source of structure found in canals, often creating pressure points where the tide pushes against outcropped walls, creating a haven for baitfish. Fishing the base of rock walls, where the sediment meets the rocks, with a hopping a plastic is an effective way to target bream and species that feed off the bottom. Alternatively, a surface lure can often produce mangrove jack and estuary cod that are hiding amongst the rocks.

A Stealthy Approach

A stealthy approach includes everything from being quiet while being mobile on the water, to gearing up with tackle that will present the most realistic presentation to your target species. Fishing stealthy with your tackle can be achieved by fishing light, often a 1-3kg outfit or 2-4kg outfit, depending on the target species, will suffice. However, remember that fish such as estuary cod and jacks will require a bit more grunt to pull them from the tight structure. Long fluorocarbon leaders, often about two rod lengths long, is another great way to ensure the fish won’t see what hit them when that hook is set. Along with this, realistic lures are a must, and you can’t go wrong with a super-soft and flexible ZMan soft plastic.

Beating the Crowds

Whether its other anglers or the noisy commotion of boats and jet skis, beating the rush can make for considerably more successful sessions when fishing the canals. The key to beating the crowds can be an early start or fishing a weekday. Otherwise, fishing in slightly unfavourable weather can mean that the system is empty of other anglers and the commotion and raucous of boat traffic.

The final piece of the puzzle is spending time of the water, so get out there and get stuck into a few cracking fish.

Tight Lines, Jacob Iedema