Ex pro

Yea foodsources change n different fish adjust to this and it seems to some that fish numbers have exploded overnight,,no better time to chase jew in estuarys than in a drought ,they leave the beaches n offshore reefs in pile into rivers and around breakwalls n piers chasing the occys,for those in the know at these times it can make for absolutely unheard of numbers of fish caught from a single session,,meanwhile old matey anchored up right next to ya with a live mullett is drawin blanks for the 3rd night straight even though hes sittin in the exact spot you were last night n has been there all day with no luck lol,,,if only fisherman learnt to adjust to the conditions as well as fish lol,,,

Yep out wide aswell at certain times theyll filter feed on rock lobster and mudcrab spawn,this can make things difficult however at these times there is also other stuff around that they generally wont turn their nose up too,,alot of the difference in these times is the way fishing for them is approached,,i used to watch other boats fishing a certain way at certain times n picture it like going to a chinese buffet n seeing a chicken nugget on the floor and expecting someone to pick it up and eat it,,that nuggets gonna stay there all night just like alot of baits

Theyll work,but there is also something else that happens during winter and in turn creates a food source that simply drifts into them in these spots and when that happens you can put whatever you want infront of them n they wont budge,,ive had days where i went all day lookin n when found one managed a few baits n even recycled the baits out of caught fish and put a load on the deck,

Sorry but im not gonna give up locations n ill tell u way,,however i will give u some pointers,the larger resident fish will hold over winter inshore in 5 to 20mtrs hugged up in little bays n crevices along the coastline, generally they are 15kg plus fus more often than not over 20kg,they are in small schools of 2 to 20 fish and i believe they should be left to breed and produce out of their usually strong build type genetics,,you will also get schools of smaller fish inshore in winter,,all depends on currents,,anyhow there is a myth that during a certain period over winter that kingfish disappear deep or dont feed,,load of bs,,ive had years where more kingfish were boxed up in winter than in summer,,places like montague island are known to have the best kingfish bite through the winter period,,all comes down to one thing,,,,food,,,,easy constant food,all those little cracks n coves like eves ravine at currarong and the tubes at jervis bay all act as a catch for the foodsource they are wanting therefore hold the fish that eat that bait,,the difference being the current is generally pushing the opposite direction in winter and the bait isnt the same as whats there in summer hence why those who try to apply the same tactics that are used in summer with the same baits fail and in most cases dont even get a look in

Ive literally caught tonnes upon tonnes upon tonnes of kingfish on a handline,,only time i really use a rod for them is fishing pinnacles in flow where they movement of water dictates an upward direction of baitfish and for that the jigs come out,,

All the beaches have them,my 7year old loves goin down of an arvo n feedin out a salmon head,,find the cuts leading out of a gutter next to a sandbar n land your bait in the cut,,no current is prefereable but if theres a good flow fish the cut on the downcurrent side of the bar just the same as fishing for mulloway basically,,run out tide fishes best,ive caught them middle of day ,morning,and arvo,,short bit of single strand 200lb wire about ten inches long with a swivel one end n 10 to 14/0 j hook is all u need for beach bronzies n duskys,from that run 8 to ten feet of 100 lb mono with a sinker slide on it and a star sinker good enough to hold a salmon or mullet head,from the mono just use whatever knot your happy with to your braid,i use fg generally but uni is fine,,take plenty of fluids n snacks n somethin for a bit of shade n wind protection n enjoy kickin back waiting for the rod to bend,this one the young fella got 2 days after xmas with about 50 swimmers around us that promptly left the beach when he landed it,,if only they knew what is in really in there at times lol

Theyre more than likely feeding underneath the mixing water ,chuck your stickbaits in the bin,tune your sounder n find the thermocline in the water column n tow your baits at that depth n under

Low salinity,,go out the seamounts theyll be covered in kingfish,,look around reefs offshore that usually arent known for kingfish that are holding bait,,what youve all been doin the last 5 or 6 years before the the floods was all according to high salinity waters inshore due to years of drought,,thats all changed the last year

Up it 60 or 80lb leader,1 fathom leader,if ya gonna use a swivel use a 3way melted into a snapper lead,set ya drag at 8kg n let the fish knock up a bit but get straight into him the second you can,theres really no enjoying the moment with kingfish,,its either skull drag n get as much line on reel as possible or hold on n hope he doesnt reef ya,,let the drag dictate ,at 8kg u wont stop monsters in their tracks but if your gettin into him n he manages to turn hes head your not gonna pop ya line n the line at 60 to 80 in fc will handle a bit of rubbin against kelp if he gets ya near the bottom

My kids were days old n out in a boat,,just gotta go easy n make sure they dont get knocked around,,memory foam lined fishbox with a pillow in the bottom works a treat,,once theyre a bit bigger the old jolly jumper hung off the rocket launcher works wonders n by the time theyre 2 or 3 theyre sittin in a seat n holdin on,,my middle son was drivin for me when leadlining kings at 3 year old,,saves payin a decky lol