Fishing with Tony Lincoln | Fishing post flooding

G'day all,

As I write this, we're only a few days post flooding so plenty to talk about.

I hope everyone managed to get through the weather without too much damage and for those that did bear the brunt, please remember that things can be replaced, people can't, and memories can never be taken from us.

Ok, fishing. With the volume of water that we've experienced the fish are going to be erratic to say the least. The best advice I can give in the immediate aftermath of what we've just experienced is in the discoloured water to use baits with strong natural scent and oily or bloody content such as bonito, mullet, pilchards and bloodworms. Use burley liberally. And lures should be of a type that vibrate strongly and of solid and/or darker colours, and I would also recommend using some type of added scent gel. With the condition of the water over the coming weeks, it's not the time for subtlety.

Whilst the fishing's going to be affected in the immediate period, there are a couple of positives; It's going to be a serious lucky dip in the next couple of weeks where you could hook up to anything, no matter how far out of its range or traditional area. Plus, looking to the near future when things settle, there will be entire systems full of new snags to find and explore. Just take it easy when navigating rivers and creeks that you think you're familiar with as there's going to be changes, some minor, some major. And if venturing into open water, please take it easy as there's going to be literally tons of debris floating out there only just visible above the water line and a lot more slightly below the surface. The last thing you want is to tear a hole in your boat or take out your outboard leg. This stuff is going to be turning up for months out there so keep your eyes open when travelling. Stay safe.

Thanks for reading again, and remember;

Talk to old people, they know stuff you don't.

Talk to young people, they know stuff you don't.

FISHING REPORT

No reports due to weather, but a few suggestions …

• The sky's the limit at the moment when anything and everything could climb on, so fish your usual locations if they're fishable and safe.
• There'll be plenty of sharks cruising the discoloured water, particularly around creeks and rivers, both upstream in these systems and around the mouths.
• Fish deeper or on the bottom as the salt water and freshwater will separate with the fresh sitting on top.
• Certain species such as Bull sharks, Mangrove Jack, Jewfish, Sea Mullet and Trevally can all live comfortably in brackish or even fresh water as can most of our traditional bread and butter estuarine species, so don't think there'll be no fish due to the amount of fresh in the systems.