Tackle Tactics » Tips-Techniques » Saltwater-Estuary » Catching SEQ Jacks... Finally!
Catching SEQ Jacks... Finally!
By Sean Bekkers
Well, it only took a few years, but I finally landed myself the elusive SEQ (Southeast Queensland) mangrove jack. In the past I have hooked and lost them in a short and intense, few seconds of chaos. With that being said, they were never a fish species that I really spent a lot of time targeting. In this article I’ll share the things that I’ve changed, that have led me to landing my first few mangrove jack and a couple more in quick time.
Over the years I have spent a lot of time fishing more open areas, targeting areas such as weed banks, drains and edges, in search of flathead, mulloway, tailor and bream. Although I still fish these areas a lot, one big thing that has changed for me recently is purchasing a pedal kayak to play in. Now, I’m not saying that buying a kayak has resulted in me catching mangrove jacks, more so that by kayak fishing more I have been putting myself in locations that are more likely to give me a better shot at hooking a mangrove jack. Since getting right into kayak fishing, I have made a conscious effort to fish the creeks more and because I’m fishing from a kayak, I have spent a lot more time fishing areas where I would usually have one or two casts before moving on. In short, I am covering more productive mangrove jack water more thoroughly. So, for my first tip, fish likely jack locations thoroughly and if possible, at different stages of the tide and throughout the day.
The first thing that springs to mind, when trying to catch a mangrove jack, is location. There are plenty of articles out there on hot jack structure, focussing on natural and man-made structures and featuring the favourite places for these red devils to hang out. I won’t focus on the man-made structure in this article as so far, I haven’t managed to hook one from any man-made structure. My fish have come from rocks or rock bars, with either an outgoing or incoming tide rushing past. That being said, I think you can definitely use what I have found effective when fishing other likely areas.
My fish have come from rocky areas that have water rushing past. These areas also have an area of slack water where the bait and fish can hold up out the current, commonly referred to as an eddy. Now it’s no secret that these areas are hotspots for all manner of species, including trevally, grunter bream, mulloway, and for me the occasional red hoodlum as well. Since I landed my first jack, I have been replicating the combination of fast-moving water rushing past pockets of rocks, with areas of slack water around it. On both the incoming and outgoing tides I have successfully hooked and landed mangrove jack. After catching my first one, I really keyed into the tidal rush past rocks, creating pockets of slack water. So, the next little tip that I would give you is, once you have found a spot that works for you, try to find where this is replicated in other areas.
The next point is matching the creek bait as closely as possible. It’s something that most anglers do anyway. Over the past few months there have been plenty of prawns, garfish, and small profile baitfish in the system. So, dialling in as closely as possible has been another key point that has assisted me in cracking the jacks. For example, my first jack came from a bunch of rocks that held little red rock crabs, prawns, and baitfish right in the slack water. The winning presentation on this occasion was a Calico Candy coloured ZMan 2.5” PrawnZ, cast right into the rocks and hopped to the bottom. This could have represented an easy meal of either prawn or crab, which in turn got me the bite. It’s also worth mentioning that on this occasion the day was a little overcast, so the colour would have silhouetted nicely in the dirty water of the outgoing tide.
The next stand out catch came on a ZMan 6” DarterZ. This has not been a traditional plastic to throw for a jack, however, on this occasion, I identified a few garfish hanging about and decided to match the hatch, which resulted in a solid 40’s jack smashing the plastic. The next handy hint would be ‘match the hatch’. I know it’s been said before, but it’s definitely worth mentioning again.
The next interesting point that has been working for me is going light on, well everything, rod, reel, braid, and leader. Now, I will mention that this is just my experience, and I am definitely not an expert when it comes to chasing jacks, however my fish have come on light gear, both 2-4kg and 1-3kg rod and reel combos, loaded with 6-8lb braid and, apart from my first fish, 10lb leader. What has stood out for me is that once I’ve hooked the mangrove jack, they have run out of the structure. This has left me scratching my head because from all accounts they should be looking to run me into structure.
Don’t get me wrong, they have all pulled hard and put up a great account of themselves, doing everything you’d expect, however they have also opted to run out into deeper water, instead of running for cover. This could very well be due to running light gear and not going super hard on them early, however it could be the locations where I have managed to find them. Rock bars may not have offered enough cover for them to run back into, when compared to jetty pylons, pontoons, or thick mangroves. Whatever the reason I’m happy to be getting the bites and I’m sure to be for a dust up soon.
Thanks for reading, I hope the fishing has been good for you and you get a shot at one of these red devils soon.
Screaming Dragz, Sean
Sean’s Tackle Box
Rods: TT Red Belly and Black Mamba 2-4kg
Reels: Okuma ITX 3000 and Ceymar HD 1000 and 3000.
Braid: Platypus Pulse X8 – 6lb and 8lb
Leader: Hard Armour Leader (Supple) – 10-15lb
Plastics: ZMan 6” DarterZ and ZMan 2.5” PrawnZ
Jigheads: TT DemonZ 3/8oz 3/0 / TT HeadlockZ HD 1/16oz 2 / TT Nedlockz EWG 1/15oz 1