Help for a fanatical beach angler hitting Australia in February!

[Chris Stringer]

Hi, the name is Chris Stringer, arriving on the Sunshine coast at Coulandra in early feb., [I think I spelt it correctly!]
Here in the UK I am into beach/rock fishing in a major way.
I plan to bring some gear with me and would like some advice on what might be useful.
I am a regular on the British match scene, and have gear for most eventualities.

Hope to hear from someone!!

[wags on the water]

Welcome to the site Chris. From the waters around the Sunny coast you should be able to catch whiting, flathead, trevally and bream.

[crowser]

looking to go out to sea, there are a couple of reef's worth a look,
Gneerings (7-8km out from mooloolaba)
Murphy's (8 km Out from Mooloolaba)
12 Mile (Caloundra)

Out there you should be able to catch some pretty decent sized fish now that we're heading into summer.

cheers,
crowser

[PADDLES]

g'day chris, depending what sort of gear you've got it might be easier and cheaper to get something when you get here. that way you don't risk wrecking any of your good stuff on the plane. you won't need to spend heaps to get a decent surf rod with either an egg beater or an alvey reel. especially considering you've got pounds sterling to spend too. by the way you're not an official queenslander unless you use an alvey anyway. where you're going you've got plenty of beaches to choose from and if you have access to a 4wd vehicle then you can go to double the locations. good luck with it all.

[oldboot]

Well if you are comming to australia to fish the beach.... particularly the surf...... you have to get an alvey reel or two.........you can get those when you get here.

There are all sorts of arguments about reels and stuff.... but up here in QLD the "Right thing to do" is to fish an Alvey on a long rod in the surf.;D ;D

We do pretty well for fishing gear down here, so don't bust your bagage alowances unless your gear is realy nice or special.

You'll find fishing is taken quite seriously in the colonies.........fresh water angling is very much on the improve....... but salt water is still king.

Oh.... BTW....... if the beer is warm....... thats a problem.

cheers

[rando]

Hop onto Google Earth and have a look at the area there are HEEAAPS of options on the Sunshine Coast. Caloundra is at 26 48 s 153 07e roughly.
I know Poms have to take a Valium to travel as far as the corner shop:D,, but,, from Caloundra for about 400kms in either direction you have good beach/rock options, so you should have a bit of fun exploring that.
Welcome to Ausfish, and welcome to Australia.
Oh by the way, Tailor, various types of Trevally, Mulloway, Mackeral , Kingfish , Tuna, Mangrove Jack, Estuary Cod and others are all available from the rocks/beaches/ estuaries within easy reach of Caloundra.
Now you just have to figure out how to catch em;D

[Little grey men]

G'day Chris, If your into beach fishing, you'll be staying in a great part of the world for it.
Do you use spin gear or overhead reels, and what length rod's do you use over there for beach fishing ? Most blokes here are using rods ten ft and over for long casts in the surf.
Stay glued to the site and check the saltwater reports to see what people are doing and how they're doing it. Most of the members don't mind answering questions about gear or locations.
From where you'll be based any report featuring the areas of Noosa, Maroochydore, Caloundra obviously and the Bribie area will be quite handy to you.

Have fun mate;)

[kingtin]

Hi Chris,

I'm originally from Blackpool and did most of my beach fishing there, Morecambe Bay, and Rhu Narrows and the Scottish sea lochs. The gear I used in those locations I still use here and have no troubles with my trusty abu 7000's and abu Atlantic 484, and Endeavour Rods. They are still going strong and despite protestations from the Alvey brigade are nevertheless suited to beach fishing here ;-) I've caught shark and other vermin (apart from the edibles) to 8ft on 'em so it is worth fetching them over as beach rods, because rods with reel housings as high as the European models are not made here. You can fish heavier and cast longer, if you wish. Although fish here are generally caught on lighter gear and closer in than in the UK, you still have a decent option with the UK rods if you want to holiday in SA or rock fish elsewhere. I have even used mine as downriggers in the boat :-)

Apart from that, the gear here (including boats) knocks spots off the prices in the UK

As has been said, there are plenty of locations on the Sunny coast and if you pm me, I can clue you up further. I'm in Brizzy and can give you a boat trip when you finally get over here.

kev

[pommy]

Hi, Chris.

Would agree very much with Kingtin about the gear and the others about the fishing.

Came over from Durham 7 years ago and am now settled in Ballina. Your gear should be more than adequate, although the long casting in the UK is not so much in evidence here. There are some places where, however, it would be an advantage. You might need to pick up some lighter gear for fishing close in to the beach as slinging a 100g torpedo lead 100m won't work so well for a 30cm whiting or bream.

If your beach rods are carbon fibre all the better. The fibreglass age still rules over here for pretty much anything over 10ft.

Hope you have a great time over here!

Best regards, Rob.
Ballina

[rockfisho]

g'day mate, welcome aboard

yes the Alvey reels do rule the beach up here, and they are virtually the only reel you will see on the east coast. They are one of the great Queensland Icons

Speaking of fish, it would probably be best to drop in to a local tackle store and ask them what is biting at the moment. I know that the whiting and dart have been on recently, with the odd bream thrown in.
There also might be the odd tailor lurking around, but they are scarce at the moment, compared to the run in winter.

I suggest you get hold of a cheap combo, rather than bringing your gear over.

Good luck mate

cheers

Owen

[tunaticer]

I would be checking out the hock shops while you are looking to buy some fishing gear here. See a lot of decent quality 2nd hand surf rods for a few bucks and alveys in there are almost a dime a dozen. Will save you heaps of coin for fishing trips and maybe even a trip or two further afield to places like 1770. The headlands there are definitely worth a look at.

Jack.

[fish_outta_water]

hi ya chris
another traveling pomme here , fished that area last year on my trip , had no real need for the beach casters , very little current used mostly 1-2oz leads and lighter when fishing bait ,
can heartly recommend the shimano travel range of rods , have been using em for years with great success , the exage 330 10/11 ft is ideal for the surf beaches up to 2oz leads
must say the most productive methods i found was on the lighter gear , soft plastics on light 1/8 oz ish heads for the flathead and trevs in the inland waterways for this used the exage 7/8ft
you should check out bli bli barra park while your in the neighbourhood good sport
any questions send me and email would be glad to help out mate , will be headed out for a month in november myself
all the best mate
carl