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What Month or Season?
Whatever month you get the chance to fish is best!!
Every month can produce awesome barra fishing. What changes in those four seasons is where and how you catch your barra.
If you move with the change, you can obtain great results every month of the year, but if you fail to fish where the fish are,
you will have a sad trip. If you love trolling, you will have a better chance in the warmer months, yet will have a lower
result in the cool weather months. It all comes down to different fishing techniques for different months.
Jigging, trolling, and casting all have a better effect in the right season. Get them a bit mixed up and you can miss out on barra.
Of the four seasons, each month can get a big wrap. So not one month gets a bigger mention from where I sit. Eg, May is beautiful,
December runs hot, March sticks proud from memory, so too does October.
Add these months to everyone else’s' favourite time and we would certainly cover all 12!
Johnny
Summer or winter"....it’s the question at the moment. Last night, (winter 08) was as toasty as ever in Gladstone. Hungry biting fish were at
Awoonga yesterday for those who tuned into the right radio station. Two blokes landed 14 barra yesterday, the best which was 108cm to take the
lead in the live category for barra in a local competition.
Lunar Phases, Fish Behaviour, Natural Cycles
Lunar cycles stir more activity amongst anglers than amongst the fish in the lake. The most memorable fishing sessions that stick out in my
mind in Awoonga coincide with neither full nor new moon phases. Barra usually bite every day, and I can only pick one day out of the last
approximately 115 days when I failed to land barra at Awoonga,(2006) and if I had my time again,
I’m sure with a more 'switched on' approach I could change the results of that day. Stay positive when fishing and the positive results will come.
Lunar cycles naturally influence many species of plant and animal. Seasonal weather, such as showers, and the storms today also played their part.
A barramundi's natural cycle during the 'wet' is for maturing fish to migrate downstream from freshwater billabongs, pools, creeks etc to head down
to salt reaches. Flooded and swollen creeks and wetlands allow this migration to occur, and it also allows juveniles from previous spawning to reach
the safety of freshwater pools, to continue the cycle. Sexually mature fish head to river mouths, flats, headlands and open estuarine environments to
be available to spawn annually anytime between September and April, although this may differ slightly between locations. Spawning is supposed to
coincide with full and new moons. I'm sure many people aren't aware as to how much barra move around in a system; and back to the STORM topic, is
it coincidence that mass numbers of the larger fish in the lake have congregated at the junctions of the pre-existing natural river channels
closest to the most downriver point in the lake in the deeper water! Has the stormy season clicked with their urges to find pole position for
a pre-spawn gathering in wait of a wet that we may be unaware of? Nature holds secrets that can be picked up from viewing the behaviours of
wild animals. Instincts are their driving force.
The major governing factor in an impoundment that controls a barramundi's activity, given that oxygen and water chemistry is acceptable- is water temperature,
and prevailing weather conditions. The full moon coinciding with spells of stable weather can see awesome fishing, but also that same lunar pattern in
terrible conditions can see saddened fishing results. As previously mentioned in earlier posts, the best fishing sessions that I have experienced don't
coincide with either a full or a new moon. Many big barra are caught during the full moon phase, but one must also take into account the extra number of
anglers and the extra emphasis and motivation that drives people into fishing these periods, not to mention the ease of being able to see what you are
doing under a bright moonlight. Apply the same effort during the week on any given 5 day period, and the results will be very similar.
Barra are 'locked' in Awoonga and other lakes, they cannot escape unless mass rains and floods see the lake overflow, and the fish leave by 'choice'!
Barra move everyday in a lake system and the 'art' of finding and enticing a barra to strike a lure is a challenging one. Food is their driving force
for survival. Capitalise on this, and you have a mass advantage when it comes to encouraging a barra to strike your offering/lure.
A mass population of stocked barra in Awoonga sees your chances of finding or stumbling onto barra very favourable. Apply correct techniques 365 days
of the year and your results can be equal to any other day on the water.
Our minds are powerful things, and negative thoughts will see you lose confidence and also most likely see your technique alter and your chances of
success will diminish greatly. Water temp is critical during all months of the year as to how, where, and why you will catch your barra.
They can't escape, they must eat, and they can be tricked! It is an art, it is the challenge!
Watching fish swim off on release can give you some idea on a fish's natural instinct on where it looks for safety or comfort.
Some head for deep water, some dive straight for heavy weed cover. Lots of fish stay and live in weed beds for extended periods.
Fish hooked can often swim wide and out to the deep while on your line, others persist on heading back to weed cover.
Often this indicates if fish have travelled to a location from deeper zones or if they have been steady and stationary in heavily weeded areas for extended periods.
Moon phases and barra fishing
Soooo, when we talk about a visitor coming to a lake to try to catch a barra we find a definite split in results when we come to day versus night during a 'bright' moon phase. So, what does one do? For those skilled men that predict when , where, how and what; they come up triumphs when everything aligns, but they, like Scott - (vet) are relying on a strong set of skills to come together with uncontrollable key variables aligned to get those fantastic results that everyone dreams of. Those skilled men know the lake fringes and weed banks almost inside out, and can tell just by a simple cast and retrieve where they are positioned in relation to weed banks or shore lines. Most visitors cannot do that. These men have a swag of luring techniques up their sleeves, one of which (on the night) often catches more than anything else, rather than any lure bringing equal numbers every trip. A novice, or visitor who isn't tuned 100%, or even 50% to the contours of the waterway will struggle in the depths of the dark unless following the mid water troll pattern that may or may not work in their favour at the time. ( A gamble) So, on a bright moon that shines at night, do anglers sleep by day and play golf and fish by dark? A skilled angler could do that and succeed well. A visitor could be wasting hours. If the wind blew cool by night, but daylight offered better conditions, a visitor may find better chances by day; so in saying all of that, I still cannot recommend a visitor plan a trip to a barra lake under the influence of a full moon (or there
about) if they do not carry the appropriate base skills required to even have them in the game.
When Scotty says he catches up to 30 in a night, it is not because anyone can do that, it is because skill A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, and N has been utilised to have it all come together. If an angler lacks even just one of those skill sets, it can be just as tame as one key variable like weather, temp, water clarity etc missing from the equation that is required to obtain substantial results. In my job, teaching anglers to fish in the dark hours would be like asking a blind man to count red cars in the parking lot. In my eyes, everyday anglers need to work on simple skills, the basic essentials that bring results. (Daylight offers those people more to absorb, by eye.) When they are mastered, or when fish come every trip, or close to it, it may just be time those anglers could advance to night angling in hope of scoring double figure sessions.
Night time angling in lakes was our cuppa tea 9-10 years ago, for a short period, but daylight seemed to offer more
learning's. I have experienced what can happen in the dark/night in a lake when it all comes together, but instead, I work/fish lakes by day and fish the salt for barra by night in hope for that special giant that comes along once or twice per year. One or two 30 kg salty barra, to me, is worth the million casts it takes each year.
Two books could be written for day and night barra fishing- contrasting worlds to say no more.
As Scotty says, the last session for him proved a bit tame due to the weather not playing it's part in the equation. Just maybe later in the night may have been better if conditions improved, but if is an iffy word.
*Just my view- I still say that anglers visit a lake when they can. If things like weather are in their favour, that can set a great baseline to start off on, but nothing is more important than " How To" when any angler hits the water.
Great conditions and poor techniques will very often catch you nothing, on the other hand, well tuned techniques in average conditions will give you a better chance at success. Averaging ones' self out to be able to catch barra everyday, or every visit, in almost any condition is a major goal in baseline learning.
Lots to think about - I, like Scott, Dick, and many others, enjoy these types of topics.
Ausfish has done a full circle over the last few years from chest pump score cards, whizz bang lures; to now, with full on statistical information presented so the fine detail that makes these fisheries tick is shown to those who are genuinely interested. You won't find better barramundi information on salt or fresh water fisheries than on here, and
sweetwater.com.au.
I'm sure many others think the same. I also think it is quite special that the topic can be discussed fairly and passionately for Aussie anglers.
Cheers
Johnny Mitchell
Vet,
(Scott) and Dick,
Your statistics laid out point to a trend of bright moon success, but how much of this success occurs during the daylight hours,,,,,,, the other half of the day?
I know (Scott), you rarely fish extensively during the daylight and hover in the stillness of the eve. So if a visitor arrived to fish Awoonga on the moon,,,full, etc, would you expect them to have equal chance by day as they would by night, or by day would you be recommending a totally different moon phase to amp their possible chances during the day? There are variables, and there are triggers that affect barra behaviour, feeding times and response to lure stimulus. The weather is the number one contributing factor to a barra's body operation. Forget your moon phases as a key from which you plan a trip; changing weather will make or break the fish's eagerness to feed. Salt or fresh water, they really are 365 day per year fisheries with some easy days and some hopeless days thrown in. Just go, whatever the moon phase, you might just surprise yourself.
Dick,
One thing I'd like to see laid over your catch results would be weather
conditions and catch techniques. As we all know, there are a few different ways
to trigger a fish/barra to bite a lure, hunger not being the key derivative at
all times. (Reaction, instinct, reflex etc) I once thought gun tides and superior moon phases existed in the salt fisheries, but once a few more doors got opened, I realised we as anglers needed to alter our approach a great deal to continue staying in contact with fisheries where altering conditions closed one door and opened another. In apparent peak times, factors aligned and helped us with our candid and simple styles that we adopted. (the fish came to us). I no longer see tides in rivers or sea, or moon phases that make me pack my stuff and go, but I now see a series of 'circumstances', or 'creations' made by nature that require a differing approach to get results. As Scott (Vet) says, several key variables need to align for the bright moon to add to to his super success. Subtract one key variable, and it's back to average results.
Wind
The wind can be a pain in the butt. It can get too strong and make hard fishing circumstances, and unfavourable times for barra; just ask the 500000000000 boats who fished on Awoonga today what they
thought of the wind. The wind plays many parts on impoundments, it does many different jobs. Variable wind direction alterations can unsettle the system and destroy/divert the surface and sub surface current flows. Cold winds will eat temperature out of the system and the horrid chilling SW winds in winter reverse favourable conditions for barra. It does lots of things really, the list goes on.
Yea, it is your friend, but also your mortal enemy.
JM
Cunning Awoonga Barra in 2008
Awoonga barramundi certainly apply more instinctive and thorough thought processes than any other barra I have fished for. It is an art to boat ten fish per daytime session , 2008, in a lake stocked with over 3 million fingerlings. I can catch salties with triple the ease; lake barra require much more angler intuition, intervention and creativity to trick a cunning fish that has derived to this point from years of interaction with humans.
I say they are smart, not smart as in to write a book or to bank their money, but smart as in the way in which the barra reads the situation, and
addresses the confrontation. Most fish don't strike in, they know what's what. It seems even the best anglers on lakes work their butts off to consistently catch metre fish. I have heard the words from many locals over the years that all the metre fish have been caught out, yet mysteriously in months that
forth come those same blokes eventually 'tune in' to what it is that is required to catch an Awoonga metery and the smiles and
happiness returns until............................... The fish changes once again. I don't class myself as the world's smartest person, but I certainly stress my brain each year keeping up with a wisened fish in heavy fishing pressure periods.
Johnny
Stupid Barra
Throw up a land fenced enclosure, thousands of boats per year, millions of casts per year and each fish being hooked and annoyed in it's life time, or spooked hundreds of times per season by boaties and anglers and unfortunately we end up with a fish that is far from stupid. In wild untouched arenas or in lakes in their childhood, yea, they could be labelled as stupid. The shoe is on the other foot in 2008 in many of Qld's barra lakes with the challenge of landing just one barra every day of the year without fail being a big task to achieve. It is in the latter years that we all will learn more on exactly what barramundi will fall for, rather than the stupidity/curiosity helping us out on the many
occasions over the many years. Techniques that caught many fish for anglers in the last ten years often go fishless today.
Decreasing Water Temperature
The big picture with barra is about 900 pages long and hard to explain in a forum in a moderate response, but barra move deep in lakes usually to find stability in temperature, well away from the surface temperatures that fluctuate by day and night. In unstable weather that rolls from warm to cold, or even from cold to colder, many fish will drop over deep contours to sit in larger water masses where, yes, the temperature is colder. It is colder, but the temperature is stable and will adjust far less than the upper layers. Direct opposite to this is warm weather that lasts for days on end that allow perfect conditions in the upper layers of a lake. When this occurs, barra will bite their heads off as their metabolic rates increase and conditions for healthy living improve. When conditions suit for barra to be in big numbers in the upper layers of a lake, anglers will catch big numbers of fish, just like now in Awoonga and Monduran. The next cold snap or severe few days of weather change; and catch rates will slow as many fish will move deep and the remainder will have their metabolism slowed to a point where the food and energy levels in their bodies will last for a long period making shallow water fishing a tougher ask.
In the depths of a lake in mid winter, the water temperature can almost be equal from the surface to almost 24 metres down, some days just point 1 of a degree
separates top and bottom. Pretty fascinating. On calm days, winter or summer, there can be a significant change from top to bottom, with a layering effect in temp change usually in the first 6 metres. It can vary up to about 5degrees
Celsius in the first 6 metres. It is a fallacy that barramundi all head for warm water in winter. Only those that need to digest food, increase body temperature for body maintenance or some of those fish that do it tough in the extreme cold head for warm shallows. Hungry or catchable fish can be found here as well, but only a very tiny percent of the population move in. While anglers catch barra in shallow in winter or summer, there are still well over roughly 50-90% of the entire population holding deep in a lake. I have submersible data loggers that register temperature changes in lakes every 5 mins and some of the deeper parts of a lake hardly change for days, even when a big blow is on. In shallow reaches, it can drop 3 degrees overnight. On the surface it can drop a few degrees in an hour. The deep holds security for fish to rest and possibly sleep as well, not to mention adjustments in oxygen levels as well. Without going into a 500000000000 word response, this is basic talk.
Life and Death
Yes, it seems a shame to see any animal die, but it is part of the cycle of life in impoundments where fish are landlocked and cannot escape. Older, bigger fish are possibly weaker and do not tolerate those conditions like smaller barramundi. Too see a bundle of dead fish on the bank may seem bad news, but to then look back on the sounder screen and count live ones by the dozens puts light back on the subject of the losses posing no great concern to stocks. The quality barra captures from 100-118cm caught in Awoonga recently highlights that the deaths are a small portion of what exists. The day we see 10,000 dead fish on the bank might be a day of concern.
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