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Watch for Signs

By Andrew Schrodter

Anyone that knows me knows that I have a love for boats of any kind and I tend to keep one for a year, then move it on and get another... I may have issues...

Anyway, after having quite a bit of time off the water (10 weeks... yes I was counting!) and selling my most recent boat to help fund another block of land for my little family, it was time to look for a little creek basher to get around in while we build a house. I jumped on social media and put it out there and before I knew it I was on my way to pick up a little Quintrex 385 Explorer from a friend of a friend. It ended up being a great little boat, with the basics that I needed to get back on the water and enjoy fishing again!

It really did take me back in time to when I was a lot younger and running amok up most of the estuaries around Southeast QLD in little tinnies. Generally I am equipped with a decent sounder and electric bow mount engine, however this time, due to budget, I'm back to basics... IS THIS A BAD THING OR GOOD? When you don't have the luxury of these items you really have to think about targeting certain areas in the system and at what times to do so.

My first plastics session was with my son Emmett, so I had to have a good think about where I could go to give us the best opportunity, with the boat we were using and the conditions that we were fishing in. The tides were larger, as we were fishing the day before a new moon, meaning more tidal flow and lots of water, making it more difficult to target fish and I knew the wind was going to be up around 15/20 knots. So, I picked a local saltwater creek, a very popular fishing spot that has plenty of flats which I was thinking of targeting. Being that the tides were larger and we didn't have an electric motor, drifting the flats would be perfect.

Emmett and I both armed ourselves with Okuma LRF rod combos, Emmett's is smaller as he's young, matched with a 20 size reel, while mine is a 3-6kg setup, matched with an Okuma Epixor XT 40 reel, loaded with 10lb Platypus Bionic Braid (best braid in the world and made in Australia). We both tied on 1/4oz 2/0 TT Lures HeadlockZ jigheads and started drifting the creek.

The idea is to make long casts in front of the drift and work the plastics back to the boat, or in Emmett's case, make a long cast behind the boat and just hop it. I was using a ZMan 3" MinnowZ in Pearl Blue Glimmer colour and Emmett was fishing his forever favourite ZMan 2.75" Finesse FrogZ. This lure, hands down, just keeps surprising me!

A few things to look out for when fishing the flats include baitfish, structure, weed and sandy wallows, all of which are prime fish holding areas. Now, if I could see any of this coming up on the drift, I would get the anchor ready. If you haven't got and electric motor to hold position, then the next best thing is using the anchor. Don't go crazy though, have it ready and slowly lower it into the water when you're approaching these areas, so as not to spook the fish. Once anchored, take your time to cover the area with casts to see if you can come up with the goods.

Now, this tide (flooding tide) and moon phase is  definitely not my favourite to fish, however we powered on as sometimes it only takes one bite or idea to key in on things. We spent a few hours casting with no love, however we did get a few missed hits and bumps. It wasn't until we drifted right up towards the mangroves that we keyed into a potential plan. I saw a large sign with poles embedded into the flat and being a large tide, with water flowing fast, I approached from down current and had Emmett cast his lure near the poles and hop it back. Generally, the larger flow creates little eddies and wallows behind the structure, which can hold fish.

First cast, a couple of hops and Emmett had his first hook up, which unfortunately came off. I positioned the boat again and he made another cast, hop, hop and he was onto a nice flatty for his efforts... and once again on the Finesse FrogZ! I was really happy for him as it was a full cast and retrieve, where I hadn't helped in any way and the look on his face was cool when we had it in the net. It was then followed by him letting me know he's the best on the boat! So that was our target as we continued to drift. When we saw signs of breaks in the flow, behind rocks or manmade signs, we cast in there hoping for a hook up.

So there you go, if it's quiet, you're fishing a tide or moon phase that you don't like or you're running a basic setup, make the best of the situation and open your mind to new areas or lures and techniques. Fishing the flats is generally a great start when you have larger tides as you can cover a lot of water. Not having an electric bow mount motor can be a disadvantage, however use your anchor to target specific structure or use an oar to steer you where you want to go. Where there's a will, there's a way!

Until next time.
Andrew

Andrew's Gear List
Okuma LRF Spin Rods
Okuma Epixor XT Spinning Reels
TT Lures HeadlockZ HD jigheads - 1/4oz 2/0
ZMan 2.75" Finesse FrogZ - Watermelon Chartreuse colour