Rigs and Bait for Tilapia

[Yogi65]

Was thinking of taking my young bloke fishing on the weekend and dont feel like putting the boat in the water so thought we might try fishing Lake Kurwongbah and getting rid of some Tilapia.
But I'm not that experienced in freshwater fishing so some hints on rigs, baits and some locations and is it preferable to fish morning or afternoon or are they biting all day through?

Thanks
Yogi

[shayned]

Hi Mate,
we took 10 kids out to Mick Hanfling Park yesterday morning and couldn't scare up a Tilapia to save ourselves.

I would suggest you give it a go, the tackle shop at carseldine sells containers of worms. Try them on a whiting rig or on a patanosta rig under a float. The size of the fish is mostly around 15cm at the moment. But if you can find an interested school you will catch plenty.

They were biting Monday, but it was a very hot day.

I would suggest you grab a couple of quill floats and some hooks sized somewhere between no.12 and 16 as a back up. If the Tilapia wont cooperate take your little one over to Samsonvale and chase gar.

All you need is a little peice of prawn flesh or squid on the hook and then make a fine slurry out of a bit of water and bread for burley. Try to fish a bank where the wind is at your back. It may still be a little early for the gar yet but definetly worth a try.

While you are there helping your little one out, you might think about putting some jewelery in one of the gar and sending it back out. No reason dad cant have some fun too.;)

[shayned]

By the way the tackle shop at Carseldyne is the only place that always stocks tackle for gar that I can find.

I'll try and attach a photo from the end of last season when my little bloke was a whole 2 and a half years old.

The first photo is him and his big rod that he is trying to grow into, waiting for a suicide gar to come along.

The second photo shows him with the second fish he hooked up, check out the face on him, he's got a head like a split water melon. Unfortunately the first fish got off the hook in shallow water.