Reels Fishing: Estuary Fishing

Reels Fishing: Estuary Fishing
Almost all anglers begin their fishing career at their local creek, jetty or impoundment chasing bread and butter fish such as bream, whiting, flathead, trout, bass or barramundi. It is the ideal way to start out and learn the basic fundamentals of fishing such as tackle, technique, location, rigs, knots and baits.
Good fishing can be had with or without a boat. A boat gives you more options and allows you to cover a bigger area whereas land-based anglers are limited by foot. On several occasions, I have out fished anglers with boats that were anchored within casting distance from my location. For me, the most important factor when it comes to fishing the estuaries is local knowledge. If your new to an area, seek advice from at least two or three local tackle stores about where and when to fish and the best baits. Estuary fishing is a nice and relaxing way to spend the day or night. With careful planning, a feed of fish can be achieved every time. It is also relatively inexpensive where everyone can afford to participate without breaking the bank.

When I fish the estuaries, I almost always source live bait. A cast net or drag net is very effective for catching mullet, herring, whiting and hardy heads. Jewfish, threadfin salmon and big bream often cannot resist a live baitfish pinned once through the back or the mouth. A bait pump is essential if you want to use yabbies on the sand flats. Bream and whiting absolutely love bass yabbies. Because they are quite soft, they can come off the hook when making the cast so you will need to pay attention when rigging making sure the hook protrudes out through the harder section of the yabby A garden fork is required if you want a supply of worms. Worms are probably the best bait for whiting and bream. They are very hardy and one bait will usually account for two or more fish. Depending on where your fishing, dead frozen baits can be just as effective as live bait. When I fish one of my local creeks, I use the old faithful pilchard on one rod set in the holder while I wade the banks and flick plastics on the other rod. This technique is deadly on flathead and tailor in my area. Other effective frozen baits include chicken gut, mullet gut, prawns, whitebait and squid.