The Basics

Fishing comes in many shapes and forms, from catching mullet off a jetty to chasing marlin out over the continental shelf. Even with such a huge variety of fishing environments there are some basic ideas that hold true no matter where you are fishing. Keeping these in mind and applying them when necessary will no doubt improve your success rate and help you to hone your sense of awareness.

When: Sunrise and sunset are a reasonably safe bet as fish can feed more freely in the relative safety of  these low light situations. These prime times can be extended simply fish areas of shade as the morning progresses. Also in suburban areas the hustle and bustle of boat traffic is at a minimum in the early and late hours of the day and therefore the fish will be more active.

Tides play an important role in choosing fishing times. Tides can give you an idea of where fish will be and how they will be feeding. For example on a rising tide foraging species such as whiting and bream will be following the tide up feeding on the sandflats.  As the tide empties ambush species like flathead will station themselves at run off points from the sandflats to feed on creatures being taken out with the falling tide. Whatever the location, a good start is to concentrate your fishing around the last few hours of the runout and first few hours of the run in. It’s all about figuring out what tides work best at your local spot and to organise your efforts around these times to maximise your chances. If the tides co incide with sunrise or sunset, all the better.

Watertemp: Water temperature plays a huge role in fish movement. Pelagic species follow certain temperatures and will not even be around if the temperature isn’t to their liking. Species such as flathead and Australian Bass go into a hibernation of sorts when the water cools over winter making them very hard to temp during the cooler months. It’s important to know what fish inhabit what temperature water so you can target the appropriate species. Speaking to your local tackle store will certainly help you figure out what fish are biting at any given time of the year.

Barometric pressure: Most definitely an inexact science however, changes in barometric pressure can be attributed to different fishing conditions. As the old saying goes, bar at a 1020, cod aplenty. The calm before the storm, or a change in barometric pressure  can also signal quality fishing.

Seasons: Some fish move with the seasons, and techniques need to be changed accordingly to suit the available species. Use the what’s biting feature to see what fish are around an area at any given time of the year.

Where: As important if not more so than what kind of gear you have or what bait or lure you’re using is the ability to read the water and spot the signs that point to fish. These would include such areas as snags or structure, deeper holes, weed beds and drop offs. These areas are holding stations for fish, offering both ambush areas for predators to zip out and attack unsuspecting prey and at the same time offering cover and perhaps a home for prey. ‘Structure’ can take many forms, in an estuary it could be snags, bridge pylons, oyster leases, weed beds and drop offs. To the offshore anglers it could be current lines and temperature breaks, reefs and floating debris to the beach fisho it’s holes and gutters.
A key to success is to identify these areas and target them until you find out what works.

Natural presentation: No matter if you’re soaking worms for trout or trolling livebaits for marlin, the more natural your presentation the better your chances are of fooling a fish. In saying that you also have to take into account the conditions, for example, if you’re fishing deep water with some current and the fish are holding deep on a reef, an unweighted bait or lure isn’t going to get you into the strike zone very efficiently. The trick here would be to use just enough weight to get the presentation down into the strikezone.
Another factor in presentation is using a balanced outfit that is the correct weight for the fish you’re targeting and the fishing method you’re employing.

Awareness: To catch more fish, an angler must become aware of their surroundings. This is a key point to catching more fish and having loads of fun while you’re doing it! Noticing subtle fish holding structure, keeping a sharp eye out for surface action or observing bait in the water and changing your presentation to ‘match the hatch’ all serve to heighten your levels of awareness. Another key point is knowing when to throw all the rules and acquired knowledge out the window and start experimenting!


The absolute key to fishing is you sure as hell won’t catch anything sitting on the couch at home, get out there and have a go!


Keep checking this space as we explore these principles and more fishy information in greater depth in the future.