Fishing for barramundi: 6 tips for landing a trophy fish

By Ryan Moody

During the last decade, we’ve had some great wet seasons, and the stocked impoundments have often overflowed. Escapees (barra) that survive the trip over the dam wall have made their way south.

Catching barra around the Sunshine Coast, in the Brisbane River, and around the Gold Coast is no longer unusual.

The quest for barramundi can be a frustrating one. One day you’re catching them, the next you’re not - or you’re catching rats when you want that big, metre-plus fish.

The key to catching barra is learning their behaviour and using the right gear.

Learning how to catch barramundi takes some time and dedication, but the following tips will help you troubleshoot where you might’ve gone wrong on your last fishing trip.

Set yourself up for success with these six tips for catching big barramundi:

1. Check out the area before you go fishing

Barramundi is a shallow-water fish and likes to lurk around a bit of structure, sheltering against currents, or around food sources.

In deeper water, you’d have to use a sounder, but shallow areas have a lot going on that you can see for yourself. Doing reconnaissance at low tide can help you find where bait fish might be hanging around, where entrances or deeper areas are, and where any trees or other debris are making ambush areas for predatory barra.

Cast around these areas when the tide is falling with soft plastics. As the tide falls, they aggregate in these types of areas, having moved from areas that have already drained.

2. For live bait, use half-circle hooks in the Kahle pattern

Use a Kahle-style hook over a J-style for live-baiting barra. Don’t try and strike at the fish, just leave the rod in gear and let the fish do the work (come onto the hook).

The barra will inhale the bait, and the hook will get them right in the corner of the mouth. Just make sure your drag is smooth and set correctly.

3. Use the best live bait for the season

In the colder months, barra prefer prawns. Pin them through the last knuckle in the tail so they can still flick around and look appealing to the barra. If you pin them through the middle of the back, your live baits won’t be lively for as long - and they won’t have that good flicking movement while they last.

In summer you should go for mullet. Pin smaller baits through the tail so they can wriggle like mad, or if it’s bigger than seven inches, pin the hook through the nose. Again, avoid pinning in the back - the mullet will just spin and be unappealing to barra - reducing your chances of a bite.

4. Change up your casting angles when fish are not on the chew

If you’re not having much joy, change your approach. Most anglers anchor behind the school of fish, down current, and cast forward of the school. This carries the lure with the current through the school. If the current is stronger, the lure can pass by too quickly and you will limit your chances of a bite.

You want to give the fish more time to see the lure. Changing up your casting angles and giving them an alternative view, plus using a high contrast lure, can give you an advantage when the barra aren’t biting with your usual methods.

5. Use the right transducer

Don't take an offshore transducer into the shallows - it won’t do what you need. A transducer with a high-frequency side scan is the way to go, so you can avoid having to zigzag around the area to find where the barra are as you would if you only had a 2D unit.

The higher the frequency, the better it is for shallow water. Most units with side view also have down view, so you don’t need to worry about missing anything.

6. Study the movements of bait

Where does bait get directed to when the tidal run changes? Where and when do you commonly see bait? Barra will not be far behind. Be patient when working these things out - it’s worth the effort.

Barra also tend to aggregate more in winter. If you find a school, wait until they move and work out what has triggered their movements. Tidal run is a big one. Once you understand what triggers their movements, you can start to predict their behaviour.

When you do hook your dream barra, keep in mind that the bigger ones are the breeders (barra are born male and change to female as they grow) and larger fish aren’t good eating. It’s better to catch and release these older fish, keeping the smaller ones under 80cm for the table (or targeting another species for eating).

About the author:

Ryan Moody is a former Australian fishing guide turned coach, with more than 30 years of experience, dedicated to teaching anglers to catch more fish through proven techniques - learn more at ryanmoodyfishing.com