Hervey Bay for the Holidays

[blairv70]

Hi All,

Well have booked a week in Hervey Bay in Jan ;D

Will be taking the family, bikes and most importantly the boat

After some advise on not only where to fish and what to target but also some good places to take the family on the boat

Any advise would be appreciated

Cheers

Blair

[Macks forever]

Hi Blair
I have fished up there a bit.

Hopefully I can tailor some advice depending on what you have and what you like.

What sort of boat do you have?
How old are the kids?
Do the family like to fish hard or prefer a nice day on the water?
Type of gear you like to use?
Type of fish you like to target?

Regards
Macs

[blairv70]

Macs

Answers as follows:

Boat: 5.5M Stacer half cab so should be able to handle the bay
Kids: 3 aged 10 and up (all girls)
Fishing: I like to fish hard they like the nice day on the water
Gear: Everything from light spin to Overhead bait more than plastics
Fish: I want to get a Spaniard or a Wahoo, reef fish for the girls and muddies or sandies

So really pretty much anything goes :-)

[Still_Dreamin]

Sounds like what me and 3 mates are planning first weekend of December. Looking for GT and macks

[Macks forever]

Macs

Answers as follows:

Boat: 5.5M Stacer half cab so should be able to handle the bay
Kids: 3 aged 10 and up (all girls)
Fishing: I like to fish hard they like the nice day on the water
Gear: Everything from light spin to Overhead bait more than plastics
Fish: I want to get a Spaniard or a Wahoo, reef fish for the girls and muddies or sandies

So really pretty much anything goes :-)

Hi Blair

Don't go out in the bay a northerly. The Sandy Strait is OK in light Northerlies and stick to the rivers in anything over 10-15 from the north.

In most winds other than north or westerly the inside of Fraser is a happy compromise for the family.
Can dump the wife and kids :P on the beach for a while while you go chase tuna and spotty macs and an odd Spanish near Wathumba/Rooneys. Siguatera in Spanish from that area though. :o

Prevailing Southeasters normally at that time make it all flat close to Fraser.
Can be a lumpy trip from Urangan to Moon Point especially with wind against tide! There is a fair run there. Also high tide is rougher than low tide. About 6 miles from Urangan Boat harbour to Moon Point on Fraser. A beautiful run up the island from there. The beaches throw up some whiting and flathead at that time of year but some parts better than others. The gutters inside Moon Point are good for goldies and flathead and whiting.

Pelican Island on the way is a lovely picnic sand Island and Round Island just outside the Boat Harbour is a great spot for families. There is even a old long drop thunderbox hidden in the bushes!

It is not called the Great Sandy Strait for nothing! If you do not have a good Map GPS make sure you buy a good map and study it. Unless you like spending time on sandbars.... :-[

Kingfisher Bay is also a good day trip from the harbour. About 10 miles. Often see some surface fish down that way. Plenty of rocky points around the islands like Little Woody [beware the green zone] and the Picnic islands to throw some lures.

Burrum River is a lovely estuary. Locals get Jack there but ya need to know what you are doing. Also get the local map for there..... Upstream is rocky at low tide. :(

If you want to go out wide [probably a bit far for your boat] Rooneys reefs and the Southern Gutters are worth a shot for reefies. Check out the fishntales website for some plot points if you want to go there.

Like everywhere, the first thing I do [after buying the grog ::)] is go and chat to the local tackle shops (pretty helpful at both Fisherman's Corner and BCF) and ask what is on. Also worth booking a charter with a local guide first day and get the lay of the land. Good that you are flexible - much easier to catch fish that are around and biting!

Shallow reefs like Gatakers Bay and top of Woody fish well for small reefies but don't bother fishing office hours unless you just like feeding the happies.

Cheers
Macs

[Argle]

Nice places to take the family would have to include KingFisher Bay Resort - they welcome day trippers - just watch the tides!! Another spot that is really pretty is Moon Point Bank (or Pelican Bank as the locals call it see the pic from a few years ago) Beautiful clear water and white sand and just a nice place to be! Again watch the tides as they are much bigger up there than what we get here.

Check out the Fish n Tales forum for local info on good spots to hit fish wise

We holiday up there every year - beautiful part of the country

[Macks forever]

Forgot to say the Mary River and the Susan and its tribs are a great daytrip too. Again local knowledge is a big bonus. And worth popping the crab pots in there although heavily crabbed commercially as with the netting.

You will find sandies out in the bay proper but again need some local advice on where they are at the time of year - they migrate.

Not sure where you are from but do not expect to catch a lot in Hervey Bay. The place is extensively fished commercially even in the yellow zones that are no netting everywhere else.
But it is a great boating area so I guess your family might enjoy the trip more than you. :P


Macs

Answers as follows:

Boat: 5.5M Stacer half cab so should be able to handle the bay
Kids: 3 aged 10 and up (all girls)
Fishing: I like to fish hard they like the nice day on the water
Gear: Everything from light spin to Overhead bait more than plastics
Fish: I want to get a Spaniard or a Wahoo, reef fish for the girls and muddies or sandies

So really pretty much anything goes :-)

[perko]

Macks Forever has hit the nail on the head. Summed the bay up perfectly. Best fun I find at that time of year is the shallow reefs.
We fish 3am to 6am and get plenty of feeds and the family is only waking up when we get home.

[Cheech]

Excellent advice from Macs.

I just love Rooneys. Was up there a few weeks ago and planning to go back over Christmas and spend a couple of nights there with the missus. It is the sort of place you can pull up on the beach and enjoy the sheltered beaches, and then troll for palagics around Rooneys point on your way to the reefy grounds only 5k from the point and catch reef fish. Have a look at some of the pictures in the recent Fishing Reports from the Breaksea Spit M&G. But is ti an hour and a half to get there, which is great as it keeps the crowds down.

For our couple of days up there I will have some times where I will just drop her off at the beach with a beach umbrella, deck chair, esky with wine and nibblies, and duck out for a fish. Everyone is happy.

Though it would probably be a bit far with the kids unless you took up a tent and camped overnight. Not sure what the rules are about that, but you are in the middle of nowhere so who will complain or police?

I have also spent a lot of time in the creeks in the straight chasing black bream. The possibilities are endless.

[blairv70]

Thanks for the info!

[flatzie]

Thanks for the info!
Another great spot to fish is the Roy Rufus artificial reef area just off Big Woody out from Urangun.
You can only fish there on small tides or around the turns on big tides. When the bait schools up there, big Spaniards and GTs show up and if you can get a few livies from the bottom you better have your big gear out. I hooked two 20kg Macks there one morning, and got destroyed by a big GT as well. You get get the marks on the net or in tackle stores up that way.
I fished northerlies, yes it was lumpy on run out, but you dont always get the weather you want, and if on hols you dont have all year to wait.
Cheers
Flatzie