Over the next four weeks leading into the summer school holidays we are going to do a series of articles focusing on the basics for kids when targeting some of our key estuary species like flathead, bream and whiting. Fishing is a great activity for kids to get into, it gets them out of the house and enjoying the great outdoors. There is a meme doing the rounds at the moment and can’t agree with it more, it goes “More tackle boxes and less X-Boxes”.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
One of my biggest tips when taking kids fishing, particularly from the 5 to 10-year-old age bracket is to keep the time spent fishing to around a couple of hours and target a particular species. Also fish during the right times i.e last couple of hours of the run-out or the start of the run-up tide and early morning or late afternoon, when the fish are feeding and more of chance that the kids will get a fish on.
This week I’m co-writing with the manager of BCF South Nowra, gun fisho and good mate, Stephen Marks. Stephen is a leader in the local recreational fishing community and also assists with kids fishing programs being run locally. Both Stephen and I have successfully fished the Crookhaven River a lot for dusky flathead (Platycephalus fuscus) so this week we are going to give the kids a run down on how to catch them using bait; next week we’ll share our tips on targeting flatties using lures.
Dusky flathead are found in our local estuaries and coastal bays, inhabiting the sand, mud, gravel and seagrass areas up to the tidal limit. They feed on small bait fish, like poddy mullet and whitebait. They are also partial to nippers, this is why using live bait and lures to catch flatties works so well. Flathead are attack feeders lying on the bottom waiting for their next meal to swim by, they then dart off the bottom to gobble their prey down.
The best places to find them are drop offs around sand bars, sand flats with structure (weed banks, rocks and gravel) and channels. Find the bait schools in the estuary around shallow water and you’ll also find flathead not far away. The best time to fish for them is the first hour and last two hours of the run-out tide and the first hour of the run-in tide as the water starts to come up onto the sand. Don’t discount catching at night, particularly around areas that are getting light from the shoreline.
When chasing flathead on bait it’s hard to go past drifting with live poddy mullet or white bait. The best way to trap your live bait is using a large clear glass bowl with some fly screen over the top, use some elastic to secure it around the top of the bowl. Cut a 5cm diameter hole in the middle of the fly screen and fill it with some bread.
I like either the last of the run up tide or the first part of the run out to catch my livies for flathead. Throw some bread around on the surface to draw the poddy mullet to the trap. The areas you catch the poddy mullet around, particularly in the Crookhaven River, also have nippers around so while you’re waiting for your bait trap to work, go pump a few nippers to use for bait as well. Gathering the bait is also a bit of fun for the kids to get involved in as well.
In terms of tackle, a light 4kg rod fitted with a 2500 reel, spooled with 4kg line is ideal for kids to target flathead on. When using live bait a running no 2 to 3 size sinker down onto a swivel with about 1 metre of leader is the way to go. Use a 2 to 3 sized circle hook to increase the survival rate of flathead that you need to release i.e under the legal limit. You should consider releasing most flathead over 55cm which are likely female and the breeding stock. Releasing these sized fish insures flathead for the future.
When drifting around shallow areas I don’t mind using a 1 to 2 sized sinker fished straight to the hook. The best way to present your live bait is by placing the hook through the lip going from under the mouth up. In terms of non-live bait you can’t go past drifting around with white bait or strips of fresh fish like slimey mackerel or tuna. The flatties are on the chew at the moment in the Crookhaven River so why not get out there and catch some with the kids.