Great Keppel Island

[beefaman]

Guys,
I am lucky enough to be heading to Keppel for a week, leave on Sunday, and was wondering if you could actually fish on the island and what my options are!!
Any help greatly appreciated!!!
Thanks
Beefas 8)

[boatboy50]

You will love Keppel.
Its a fantastic resort, and you are sure to have fun. Hope your single!
There is not too much fishing to be done from the island itself, but the island runs fishing charters which are well worth doing.
Alternatively you can get some even better charters from the mainland, its not too far away. They will go much wider than the island based charter companies.
Regards
Darren

[Local_Guy]

i didn't think there was a lot in regards to fishing charters. but they have been pulling some good queenies and trevelly off the sand point. you'll know where i mean when u get to the island (if by boat that is).

there's heaps of spots to try and the mackeral are also around.
let us know how you go when you get home.

[bugman]

Beefaman,

Try a resort dive - that was where I did my first and have never looked back.

Got to watch a shark mackeral smashing a bait school for 10 mins from 5 metres away whilst sitting on the bottom playing with the crayfish.

It's a whole nother world down there.

Bugman

[CQ_Fisher]

Local_Guy,

Good to see another person from CQ on here. Hopefully i can get some tips off you for when i head to Yeppoon. What area do you mainly fish. My cousins keep telling me Cario Bay is the goods.

JD

[Local_Guy]

yeah. i've found a secret spot at corio bay. only secret cuz no one can be bothered walking that far :P. but thats a secret.
where are you based?
i've lived in yeppoon for the last 3 1/2 years and i have quite a few spots i go at different times, based on weather, tide and time of year.

[CQ_Fisher]

I've been in Gladstone for the last 5 1/2 years but was a Rocky boy before that. Are you a land based fisher or have you got a boat? LAst time i went up Corio i almost got stuck on a dropping tide in that maze of sand bars.

[beefaman]

Have booked in for a dive Bugman, cant wait actually.....I will take the rod anyway, and walk around flicking here and there....am sure I will find something to chase [smiley=2thumbsup.gif]

[firetruck]

I was up there in Feb, no fishing just taking it easy and enjoying the view ;), but as local guy said on the point where the boats come in. The boats stir up the sand and water and there was heaps of silver flashing around dwon there.

[beefaman]

Cheers for that, sounds like where the boats come in I will be flicking a lure or two around ;)
Just have to make sure I dont get run over :-/

[bugman]

Beefaman,

I hope you get good weather and good vis. We had about 20-25 metres. There's heaps of basic reef life and hopefully you'll get lucky and see some pelagics or turtles or something similar. We went in closed marine zone (no fishing) and it was great to see all the coral trout.

Bugman

[Local_Guy]

i've got a boat but it's not ready to take out yet. still need rope for anchor, ores and lifejackets.
i'm mostly land based.

[Kev_McC]

I have not actually fished from Keppel, but I've fished around the Keppel group a bit. I was camped on one of the islands for a few days back in January, and the fishing was pretty easy. School mackeral were thick wherever we went, got a few smallish spaniards as well. There always seem to be plenty of big longtails around the Keppels as well, we got them to about 20kg on that trip.
I have not heard how the fishing is going at the moment, it's been blowing it's arse off for the last few weeks. Apparently the wind will back off to 10knots this arv, so your timing looks good.
cheers
kev

[Local_Guy]

you couldn't have picked a better day to go over there. as of 5pm today there was no wind. it's now 10:30 and it's still dead calm.
you should have an excellent day tomorrow.. i know i will. i'm going surfing at farnbrough beach. should be going off up there if this wind keeps away. then i'm going fishing at the woolwash around 9 - 9:30am fly fishing.

[Kev_McC]

I often hit the woolwash with the flyrod when I'm in Rocky. It's a pretty reliable place to get a tarpon on surface flies early in the morning. I've had follows and strikes on fly from barra there but am yet to stay connected. I got a tarpon 60cm long there a couple of years ago, really bends the flyrod to the corks. Might see you out there one day
kev

[Local_Guy]

well. it's still a perfect day today. should have seen the amount of boats hitting the water at 8am. they almost drew a line from Roslyn bay Harbour to Keppel.
Surf was crap at about 2ft.
and we got to the woolwash too late around 9:45am. so unfortunately we didn't get anything.. the day just heated up too quickly.

my father was invited on a boat out past the keppels so i'll reply back in here when i find out how he went.

[Kerry]

Lets put it this way, it was certainly a better day than yesterday and for the past 5 weeks for that matter but with 20 knots max still during Saturday one really wouldn't have been in a hurry to head out anywhere wide today.

I suppose after 5 weeks of crap some might be a little more desperate than some.

Cheers, Kerry.

[Local_Guy]

ok. latest repost on fish caught.

1 spanish mackeral. estimating at 15 - 20lb. with tail and head off it was 2 1/2 foot long. thick ass too.
red emperor, red throat emperor (grassy sweetlip), small cod, mother-in-law

[Kerry]

.... , red throat emperor (grassy sweetlip), ....

You saying a Red Throat and Grassy are the same thing?

Cheers, Kerry.

[Local_Guy]

well. this fish had the red throat. but looked like a grassy sweetlip.. aren't they in the same family anyway

[Kerry]

well. this fish had the red throat. but looked like a grassy sweetlip.. aren't they in the same family anyway

A Grassy Sweetlip isn't even classed as a Coral fin fish, has a minimum size of 30cm and no bag limit.

A Red Throat Emperor is classed as a Coral Fin Fish with regards the regulations, has a minimum size of 38cm and maximum in pssession limit of 8.

I doubt a fishing inspector would be interested in you thinking they were the same thing or not.

Cheers, Kerry.