Tackle Tactics » Tips-Techniques » Saltwater-Estuary » Complex Canals - Broken Down
Complex Canals - Broken Down
By Jacob Iedema
Manmade canals hold some great fish, however catching these fish can be nothing short of a never ending puzzle. In this article I hope to simplistically break down canals and what it takes to catch some cracking fish in these urban environments. Locating fish can be difficult, with so much structure and at time's boat traffic, however there's always that little nook or cranny that will produce fish.
These urban environments are highly accessible waterways and are often hammered by recreational anglers. This often accounts for widespread beliefs that these areas are heavily overfished, however they can still manage to produce quality fish on a regular basis. Fish can be scarce on some days, but crack the code of a system and it can be a fish a cast on some occasions. Canals are massive ecosystems and host such a large biodiversity, it's impossible to predict what will be in the net next.
Structure
With so much structure in canals it can be hard to know where to start, however when fishing systematically, some areas can soon be ruled out, while in others large quantities of fish can be discovered. The main structure found in a canal environments are pontoons, drains, rock walls, drop offs and the mouths of the systems.
Pontoons are the primary source of structure that fish rely on in many canals. They provide shade, cover, food and even warm up the water around them, conducting heat from the sun. Mangrove jack, bream and estuary cod all predominantly rely on pontoons for safety and hunting grounds. Bream on the other hand often stray from the cover of their pontoon and hunt in deeper open water or along rock walls. Even mangrove jack move out to rock walls on certain phases of the tide to feed.
When fishing pontoons it's always important to respect other people's property, so accurate casts will not only increase the volume of fish caught, it will also avoid inflicting damage to others property. Fishing boat hulls is a great example of this. Bream and mangrove jack will sit under these boats and lures have to be presented parallel or even under the hull, so casts have to be accurate. Boat hulls with the most growth and barnacles are generally the best for holding fish. When fishing rows of pontoons it pays to fish areas that are windblown, provide extra shade or have significant current running along the row of pontoons as these have proven the best producers.
Drains or feeder creeks boost the environment of any canal system and some quality fish can be caught around these areas. Mullet often love to sit around the drains, especially after rain, and the predators take full advantage of a healthy food source. Drains and feeder creeks consistently hold jacks, cod, bream and javelin fish.
Pelagic species, such as queenfish and trevally, also roam areas around drains, feeding on prawns, mullet and other baitfish species. After substantial rain, drains and feeder creeks can flush systems out entirely, making the water too fresh for many saltwater species. It can take weeks for a system to bounce back, after having a full flush out, however the fishing afterwards is usually exceptional. After heavy rain massive schools of mullet make their way into canals, attracting predators that include bull sharks and packs of giant trevally. These giant trevally are often only smaller fish, however the odd good fish can often present itself, sometimes even attacking the smaller trevally.
Rock walls appear to be the bare areas of canals, however fish favour them as ambush spots and hunting grounds. Tidal movement and wind carry baitfish and often hurl them around bends or corners them against the rocks, so areas where this constantly occurs are best.
Trevally and queenfish herd bait balls hard against rock walls and smash them like crazy when the agitated morsels attempt to escape. Schools of bream pick off oysters, crabs and prawns that hide amongst the rocks. Javelin fish tend to sit further out from the rocks, sucking up anything they find along the bottom along with golden, long nosed and diamond trevally. Soft plastics, vibes and hardbodies all work well when fishing rock walls and even poppers are also effective during low light periods. Rock walls are also always worth a few casts when moving between each stretch of pontoons.
Canal mouths and the flats that run alongside deep channels can produce some amazing fish, if the correct techniques are utilised. Species on offer can include large pelagics, snapper, flathead, bream and jewfish. Fish out on the flats or in channels are usually more aggressive and feed on larger poddy mullet and crustaceans.
Pelagics will round baitfish up onto the flats, where some spectacular bust ups take place. Snapper and other reef species will sit just off or on the drop offs and channel edges, especially if wind or currents are pushing bait over the edge. Bream in these areas can be very aggressive, attacking larger soft plastics and vibes regularly, in large schools of thirty centimetre plus fish.
Lures to use in these locations include ZMan 3" MinnowZ and ZMan 3.5" GrubZ, any soft or hard vibe up to 65mm, surface poppers and walkers for active pelagics and any deep diving hardbody that can be trolled or cast up onto the flats.
Unlocking Secrets
Every system is different and where fish are going to feed will be determined by tides, wind, previous rainfall and time of day. Most species found in canals have a feeding cycle (especially pelagics) and they can revisit specific areas at certain times of the tide or day. When these cycles can be worked out, some very good fishing can be the reward. These rewards don't come easy, however lots of research and time on the water will eventually pay off.
Wind and rain usually impact baitfish movement, so where there's bait being forced into areas there's going to be predators nearby. Canal systems generally also have sections where fish can congregate for lengthy periods of time. This is usually caused by masses of bait, so matching the hatch is crucial, especially when fishing crystal clear water. Unlocking these secrets is literally hitting the jackpot, providing amazing fishing for long periods of time.
Fishing Lighter
The biggest tip for anyone who is new to fishing urban environments is to fish as light as possible. Six pound leader is going to offer enough strength and abrasion resistance, while being almost invisible to fish. Unless fishing for mangrove jack, ten pound is the maximum leader weight required to land some donkey fish. A light leader also allows lures to produce the most action and allows more realistic sink rates. Small lures can also be belted a long way with a light outfit and the fight that fish put up on these outfits will make you never want to fish heavy ever again.
Match the Hatch
In crystal clear water situations or when fish are locked onto a specific bait source, matching the hatch can be the only key that unlocks success. The most common natural bait sources consist of mullet, prawns, crabs, jelly prawns, herring and other small crustaceans. When it comes to lure selection it's all about finding out what the fish are eating on a particular day. Some days all the fish will eat is a 2 inch lure, while on other days they only want 3 inch lures and up.
Nearly every lure style will work as long as it resembles one of the present food sources that are available. The sink rate of a lure is also important, when imitating natural baitfish, especially when using soft plastics. Crustacean presentations work best with a slow flutter, unless fishing in deeper water. When working pontoons with soft plastics a very slow sink rate will keep the lure in the strike zone for longer and this has proven itself on species such as bream. Most baitfish found in canals are very transparent, so clear colours work well, unless the water is dirty. In dirty water darker solid colours put out a better silhouette, giving the fish something to lock onto and attack.
Time on the Water
So as always, time on the water is key when fishing new locations or a local hot spot. Getting your lure as close to any structure as possible will certainly increase catch rates. Often mixing it up with a new lures can reveal new favourites that prove themselves to be consistent produces. Just about every lure style will and has caught fish in canals, it's all about working out what fish want in every session.
Spending time fishing the same system over and over, just to understand how to catch fish in every situation, all comes down to... learning, relearning and defining. Learning about a system can only come from time on the water. Trying new techniques, new areas and targeting new fish builds a near to second nature skill that allow those who have it to consistently catch fish.
However, sometimes systems get shaken up due to dredging or torrential rain and this causes anglers to rethink their strategies and try new things. This is relearning and adding to the existing knowledge from prior to an ecosystem disturbance. Finally consolidating facts and making sure each detail is accurate will take most of the guess work out of fishing.
Hopefully this article has made canals a little less complex and given you the confidence to explore the local canals in your area.
Cheers, Jacob Iedema
Gear List
ZMan 2.5" GrubZ
ZMan 3" MinnowZ
ZMan 3.5" GrubZ
ZMan 4" DieZel MinnowZ
TT Lures HeadlockZ Jigheads