After all the rain we are only now seeing our estuaries slowly starting to clear. While this will mean we won't have a large concentration of fish in the lower reaches, the angling conditions overall are about as good as it gets.
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In the estuaries, whiting numbers have picked up noticeably as they begin to clear. Limeburners and Lake Cathie are well worth a look. But bear in mind the warnings regarding the water quality, and possible effects on seafood, from the lake. Live worms are the bait of choice, however those who prefer to throw surface lures have also enjoyed success.
Flathead remain excellent with the stretch from Settlement Point up to Rawdon Island producing great results on whitebait and lures.
The breakwalls are still holding bream with mullet fillets, mullet gut or brined prawns your best baits.
Further upriver, lures are proving effective on the bream, with those fishing around Wauchope also scoring a few solid bass brought down by the recent fresh.
The breakwalls are producing the occasional school-sized mulloway, although with the moon and tides terrific from this weekend onward, an early evening session could be worth a look for a larger model. Live baits or large lures will be worth deploying.
For crabbing enthusiasts, muddies have been terrific in the lower reaches although will likely now begin moving back upstream as the water clears. Some nice blue swimmers have been around in the canals, and will likely be back on the weed beds in the main channel now.
On the beaches, whiting have been reasonable with Lighthouse producing the better results. Best bait has been live beach worms, however pipis have also accounted for some quality fish.
In with the whiting, bream numbers have been consistent. A few tailor and salmon have also been about, and will further improve as the water clarity returns.
Off the rocks, a few tailor and bonito have shown up using small metals. Blackfish are also a viable proposition during the day, while those fishing the evenings are encountering a steady stream of pan-sized bream.
No real action on the land-based game scene as yet, but it's only a matter of time.
Offshore, the recent Golden Lure saw some terrific game fishing. Black marlin numbers have been excellent in-close, while further out blue marlin, mahi mahi, yellowfin tuna and sharks have all be around in good numbers.
Bottom fishing has just begun to pick up again in line with a bit of current. A few snapper, pearl perch and kingfish were taken early in the week off Plomer, along with some cracking flathead in around 60 metres.
