Thursday 28.3.24
For those visiting the Bay this Easter, welcome, we are so very fortunate to have such an extensive estuary system offering various types of fishing assessable for land based as-well as boat fisho’s. This year Easter lands a little earlier in the Calander & thus the weather gods appeared to have blessed us.
Firstly, for the Junior Duffs going for their first fish check out our kid safe locations; Shoal Bay Wharf, Shoal Bay Beach, Little Beach small wharf, Taylors Beach Wharf & Sally Shores Wharf & Pearson’s Park Wharf.
https://www.salamanderbaittackle.com.au/port-stephens-4-top-school-holiday-fishing-spots/
The Bay appears alive with garfish and squid with warm conditions those long-tail can’t be too far away. Sally Shores Wharf producing Cobia on both live and dead baits this week.
Flathead fisho’s target the Western end of Shoal Bay Beach under Nelson Head working soft plastics/hard bodied lures. Blue bait on size 4 gang hooks no sinker and slowly retrieved are a gun bait. Also try the boat ramp which is located just East of the Shoal Bay Pub. The advantage of this area is that there is also plenty of water no matter the tide, the sand-based area allows you to use lures without snags. Other species that frequent this area are bream, tarwhine, tailor and sand whiting.
The small wharf at Little Beach located at the Southern end produces flathead, bream, blackfish and tailor. Cast towards the Boathouse restaurant wharfs for best results. The longer wharf at Little Beach produces most species including snapper. The Little Beach boat ramp is a great place to target arrow squid in the afternoon into the evening.
Nelson Bay Beach is a great stretch of beach to target flathead, especially at the Fly Point end. Just be mindful that the marine park sanctuary ‘no fishing’ zones.
Onto the Nelson Bay Breakwall, this is the place to target, bream, perhaps blackfish if they have started, kingfish and jewfish. For kingfish fish the sunrise or sunset with stick baits, poppa’s or whole squid. For jewfish target the change of tide with live slimies or yellowtail. Prawns and fish baits are the way to go for bream. Blackfish from the Breakwall at this time of year can be hit n miss but reports of blackfish sightings there have been consistent, perhaps the water temp is a little warm for them to feed readily although if you’re keen the fish are there.
https://www.salamanderbaittackle.com.au/catching-bream-from-nelson-bay-breakwall/
Onto Roywood Reserve, this area is a great place to pump yabbies at low water and as the tide comes back covering the sand banks and yabbie holes the fish are close behind. Target species here are flathead and sand whiting. This is also a great area to target whiting on surface poppa’s on high water. Also, worth a night-time prawning adventure, wear shoes! Fish the sandy areas at high tide with surface poppa’s for whiting and plastics for flathead.
Wanda Headland is located West of Salamander Bay just behind the shops at Old Salamander. Good deep water around the rocky headland that produces, bream, tailor, flathead and Jewfish. Moving West towards Soldiers Point behind Bannisters Hotel Sally Shores Wharf offers squid, bream, tailor, salmon, whiting. Approximately, 60-80m from the end of the wharf it drops off into a channel around 40metres deep, this area produces kingfish, Longtail Tuna and Jewfish. Ballooning live baits out here is the way to go.
For those that will put the boat in, try Tilligerry Creek for Trumpeter Whiting, flathead and mud crabs. Work the North end of Feninghamms Island along the shoreline for flathead on plastics. Works the Western side of One Tree and Shag Island for Trumpeter Whiting. For Jewfish work the Western side of Middle Island and the Entrance to Fame Cove during the change of tide with live yellowtails or slimies. The wreck at Salamander Bay is also worth a look for Jewfish and flathead. Fish the Middle Ground on the drop-offs for sand whiting. The West Bank produces tailor at this time of year. Drift the main Nelson Bay Breakwall for Kingfish with whole squid, live baits or poppas. If the fish are working the surface, then lures are the way to go. Anchor off the main Breakwall or the Northern end Short Wall off the Anchorage and fish the change of the tide for jewfish.
If there is a Southerly swell rolling in then fish the Boulders under Yacaaba Headland with fish baits for bream. Drift Jimmies Beach West for flathead and whiting. Try the Short Cut for whiting and flathead. Work Orungall Point to Lower Pindimar for flathead. Drift the rock-wall along Piggy’s Beach for bream on plastics or hard bodies. Into Lobito Point West through to Balberook Cove put your boat onto the sandy Coves and walk the shoreline for flathead on plastics or hard bodies.
The Western side of Garden Island under the oyster wracks produces bream and flathead. Work up into the Karuah River in amongst the wracks for bream. Both Bridges produces Jewfish on the change of tide as does the Tea Gadens Bridge.
