Fishing the Gold Coast: Part 1

The Gold Coast has an abundance of landbased fishing for everyone from serious big-fish chasers to family fishos looking for a safe place for kids to wet a line.

Wiki Fishing Spots has listed the best parks and reserves for landbased fishing here.

There are many other good fishing areas at the Gold Coast and nearby. Here’s a few …

1. Burleigh Heads – the north bank of Tallebudgera Creek mouth has tailor and bream. Rock groynes on the south bank and along Palm Beach through to Kirra have tailor, bream and luderick.

2. For yakkers, Palm Beach Reef has spotted mackerel in summer.

3. On big tides Tallebudgera Creek has bream, whiting, flathead, luderick, mangrove jacks , jewfish, queenfish, trevally, tarpon, giant herring and occasional mud
crab.

4. Currumbin Creek fishes much the same as Tallebudgera Creek. Currumbin Rock south of the creek has most species, with mackerel in season. There are big flathead at the creek mouth in spring.

5. Elephant Rock (north) and Flat Rock (south) have tailor, dart and bream, flathead on edges.

6. Snapper Rocks has great landbased fishing with bonito, tailor and tuna off the rocks between Rainbow Bay and Point Danger.

7. The Tweed River’s north and south rock walls have bitumen paths, easy access for landbased fishing. Fish turn of tide. Mainly bream, tailor, luderick, flathead. mulloway after rain.

8. A footpath follows the Tweed River in places. flathead, bream, whiting.

9. Good rock fishing at Fingal Head. A rock gaff is needed.

10. Terranora Inlet has Foysters Jetty off Mingjungbal Drive. Upstream, Cobaki Creek/Terranora Creek has the Pioneer Jetty, off Kennedy Drive.

11. Tidal fishing extends to the Tweed River’s weir. Bass are stocked upstream.

12. Cudgen Creek at Kingscliff has rock walls that produce most species. luderick at bridge. Usual species in the surf.

13. Most species are caught off Norries Head. The road follows the coast. A permit is required to drive on beach.

14. Hastings Point has mulloway, tailor, bream and luderick. A hole on the beach north of the creek has whiting, bream, tailor aned mulloway. The local creek has luderick in winter, occasional jack in summer.

15. Schnapper Rock near Pottsville has tailor, bream in winter, occasional snapper and mulloway.

16. Pottsville Beach usually has good gutters.

17. Mooball Creek has whiting, some mangrove jacks .

18. Black Rocks is out of casting range from the beach but the adjacent beach has tailor, bream, dart, mulloway – there is a carpark nearby.

Those chasing mulloway, big tailor, sharks and more should try the Gold Coast seaway area, where the entrance rock walls and nearby sand-pumping jetty produce a variety of fish.

There is a large park just inside the seaway entrance that also has rock walls and good fishing.

You’ll need appropriate gear to fish these places as the rocks are large and the jetty is very high.

The sheltered waters of the Gold Coast include a labyrinth of canals off the rivers, with many public parks that give good access to bream fishing, with flathead, whiting, mangrove jacks , luderick, tailor, mulloway, cod, trevally and more also caught.

The broad shallow areas of sand around the Broadwater where flathead and sand whiting are the main catch.

Landbased fishing tends to be best on bigger tides.

In the canals, spots around tidal restrictions that produce mixed currents are often good fish-holding areas.

Use fresh bait and light tackle in the shallow, clear Gold Coast waterways.

For freshwater fishos, the Gold Coast’s Bjelke Petersen Dam has excellent bass fishing in summer.

Here is a list of recommended tackle for SEQ waters.

Book your fishing stay early at Booking.com