TO me, landbased fishing is hard to beat. It’s simple fishing, often only requiring rod and reel and a few lures. It’s also a great way to stretch the legs and get some exercise.
Though, if catching mulloway on lures is your primary objective, it’s not always the best option and there’s no question that a boat or even a kayak opens the door to many more ways of catching these fish.
That said – and as boat owners will know – boats aren’t always easy… Hooking up, fueling up and washing down can be time consuming. Unexpected boat and electronic issues and ramp traffic over the weekends is also problematic. These factors can make it hard to justify getting the boat out to fish and hour or so over a tide change…
On the flip side, walking along a bank, beach, or a breakwall for a couple of hours with a spinning rod and a few different lures is about as quick and easy as fishing can get. With little gear and preparation necessary, you can be casting a lure into the action in a matter of minutes after pulling up to a spot. Or if the conditions aren’t right, you can quickly change plans and chase something else.
WHERE TO START
The warmer months are a great time for landbased jewie fishing. Increased daylight hours allows many to squeeze in a quick fish during the working week (weekend boat traffic can really shut down the mulloway bite). Additionally, an increase in water temperature and crustacean activity tends to “fire up” many estuarine species. It’s also a great time for anglers to target their first mulloway, as small-to-medium size jewies become more active. In this article, we’ll concentrate on catching them on lure from the shore.
First of all, it’s important to acknowledge that mulloway are a highly enigmatic species and it may take even the most experienced angler years of research and perseverance to consistently catch them. I’m no exception to the rule and over the years I’ve put in my fair share of time and effort chasing mulloway on lures… On top of this, as far as the NSW mulloway stock science goes, it’s pretty clear: they’re not in great shape.
That said, there’s still plenty of people catching jewies on a fairly consistent basis. If you put in the time and persevere, you will catch them. But it’s important to remember that the species – for the most part – is high effort, little reward
IN THE ESTUARY
It’s fairly common knowledge that mulloway are most likely to be concentrated in the deeper sections of coastal rivers, often preferring eddies and deep holes. Sharp bends, rockbars, bridge pylons and forks in the river are other good starting points to focus your efforts in the river. All of these natural and manmade features create back eddies in the tidal current and allow these fish to exert little energy when feeding.
Land bound anglers can use mobile apps like Google Earth and Navionics to look for the above features, with the latter app critical to locating drop-offs and holes that aren’t visible from the water’s surface. Having a good understanding of your local system can save a lot of this initial groundwork!
Closer to the openings of rivers, harbours and I can’t see why a mulloway would pass up an easy meal if the conditions allow it. However, around the peaks of either moon phase (where there is more tidal movement) seem to be when most of the activity occurs. In the warmer months, the peak of the high tide occurs early-to-mid morning on the lead-up of both the new and full moon.
Fishing the tide changes that coincide with dawn and dusk is also a good time to find the larger fish. By the time mulloway reach about a metre, they’re commanding low-light hunters that rely on highly-tuned senses to hunt less conspicuously, using as little energy as possible to feed.
ROCK AND BEACH
Beaches and headlands are also great spots to target mulloway landbased over the warmer months. Around headlands, look for foamy gutters and isolated patches of reef that generate wash. The depth of water is less important when chasing mulloway along the coast, with water depths from about 1-4 metres optimal. Headlands that have cracks or washy “holes”are notorious for producing mulloway, too.
Just about any rock platform at the end of an extensive beach system will produce mulloway at some stage. Deep gutters in the corners of beaches and along breakwalls are also prime jewie haunts. The right mix of whitewash and swell is critical in beach corners. Don’t be afraid to fish some of the rougher stuff, too.
Targeting mulloway off the beach on lure is probably one of the most difficult ways of catching the species. But it is, in my mind, the most rewarding and enjoyable. It is important to remind yourself that you’re not going to catch them every session. But with a little effort and persistence, the fish will come eventually. Much like chasing mulloway along the rocks and headlands, it’s important to focus on the “wash zone”. The ideal scenario for targeting mulloway on lures from the beach is a gutter close to the shore, with a layer of whitewater/wash pushing over a deeper channel, hole or gutter of green water that allows easy entry and exit. This creates cover for mulloway to school, rest and ambush baitfish. I prefer a light-to-moderate onshore wind when chasing jewies on the sand, this tends to provide additional chop and wash. Generally speaking, fishing the higher tides for mulloway is preferred. These tides allow mulloway ample room to swim over the outside, shallower bank of the beach and along a gutter. Though, I have caught plenty of fish on low tide, too. It really does depend on the beach, conditions and gutter on the day.
Once you find them, mulloway generally aren’t too fussy. They will take soft plastics, vibes, hardbodies, metal lures and are even caught fairly regularly on surface lures. That said, paddle tail and “grub” style soft plastics are probably the best and most versatile lure option for jewies. A simple lift-and-drop action or a slow roll is often all that is required with these lures, making sure it’s in constant contact or close to the bottom of wherever you’re fishing. Don’t overthink soft plastic lure selection… A lot of the time, it’s just a matter of putting the lure in front of the fish.
The mulloway you’re likely to encounter are mostly “schoolies”, with the odd metre fish in the mix. Though, the “mystique of mulloway” means you can never be too sure when that genuine 20 kilogram fish might show up. Flathead are a common bycatch when targeting jewies particularly if you are using smaller, 3-to-5-inch plastics.
Several other lures like soft vibes, blades, jerkbaits and big hardbodies are also effective.
Landbased mulloway spinning tackle
Ideally, two outfits are preferred: a light-to-medium tackle spinning outfit suitable for 4-5 inch plastics, soft vibes and hardbodies for the estuary and another medium-to-heavy spinning outfit for the rock,s beach and breakwall.
It’s important to consider buying the best reel and rod you can afford. A sealed, saltwater specific reel will last a lot longer than a cheap reel.
Light-to-medium landbased mulloway outfit:
• 7’6 to 9-foot, 6 to 10-kilogram graphite rod
• 2500 to 4000-size spinning reel
• 10-20-lb braid mainline
• 15-25lb fluorocarbon leader (heavier leader may be required depending on class of fish, terrain and conditions)
• Noteworthy lures: Samaki Vibelicios 90mm, Squidgy Fish 100mm, Gulp! Nemesis 4-inch (jighead sizes from ¼ to ⅝ ounces)
Heavy landbased surf/breakwall mulloway outfit:
• 9-11-foot, 10 to 15-kilogram graphite rod
• 6000 to 8000-size spinning reel
• 30-50lb braid mainline
• 40-60lb fluorocarbon leader (heavier leader may be required depending on class of fish, terrain and conditions)
• Noteworthy lures: Leavey 160 Jew Lure, Croaker 180 Jewie Jewel, 150mm Squidgy Fish, 6-inch ZMan SwimmerZ (jigheads from ⅝ – 2 ounces).
Hopefully, it’s clear to see that catching mulloway on lures isn’t restricted to the boat or kayak. Targeting jewies from the “bank” is an enjoyable and simple way to fish, it’s also a great way to fast track the learning curve of figuring out where mulloway like to congregate and feed.
